Red onion hummus

1 large red onion
1 can of chickpeas
1tbls of water
2tsp of tahini
Seasoning
Oil to fry onions

I used to spend a fortune on buying onion hummus, I now love experimenting with different types to see which is my favourite, I used tahini in this recipe which I dont normally like in hummus which is just a personal preference and will be leaving it out in the future.
Start by dicing your red onion, heat up a pan with about a tbls of oil add the onion and lots of seasoning and fry until soft with slight colour. Add your chickpeas and water, I use the water out of the can of chickpeas, to a bowl with the tahini if adding it, then the onions and blend, keep tasting to see if more seasoning or tahini needs adding. I enjoyed my hummus on a piece of toasted seeded bread.

Vegan Chocolate cakes

I use a basic chocolate cake mix but add things like fruit, nuts or chocolate chunks to make it a bit more exciting. This is the cheapest, easiest and quickest chocolate cake mix iv tried so far and always comes out perfect and moist.

200g plain flour
200g caster sugar
4 tbls cocoa powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
5 tbls vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
250 ml water

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, fold in the wet ingredients, separate the cake mix if making different fillings, I used fruit and nut for one and melt in the middle for the other by placing a piece of chocolate in the centre of each muffin. You can make single muffins which take around 25 minutes on a medium heat or one large cake which will take around 40 minutes. This recipe is very simple yet versatile, have fun experimenting!

Cookie dough protein balls

1 can of drained chickpeas
1/2 cup of peanut butter
4 tbl spoons of agave
Dark chocolate chunks

Combine the chickpeas, peanut butter and agave and blend until a smooth dough like texture, add the chocolate chunks and roll into balls then place in the fridge for atleast an hour. Great for pre/post workout treats, add to desserts or to just snack on, packed full of protein! Enjoy

Vegan carb free shepherds pie

For the mash:
4 large carrots
1 swede
Lemon and tyme seasoning

For the filling:
1 bell pepper
1 can of peas
1 onion
1 courgette
1 cup of mushrooms
1 cup of vegan mince
Shepherds pie seasoning mix/gravy

Chop carrots and swede into small chunks and bring to the boil. In another pan heat up with a small amount of oil and seasoning, dice the onions and add to the pan with mince to brown, once brown add all veg, chopped into roughly the same chunks. Add the shepherds pie mix/gravey to the veg and mince and leave to simmer for about 20 minutes. Once carrots and swede are soft, drain, add lemon and tyme seasoning and mash. Pour filling into a deep dish and layer on the mash, place in the oven on a medium heat for a further 20 minutes

Banana and strawberry protein 'cheesecake' jar

One frozen banana
Couple frozen strawberries
Alpro coconut milk, 1/4 cup
Arbonne essentials vanilla protein powder, one scoop
One vegan digestive
Blueberries

Blend together banana, strawberries, protein powder and coconut milk until smooth, then layer with blueberries and digestive biscuit, done!

Vegan coconut 'cheesecake'

200g of vegan biscuits of your choice
Half cup Dessicated coconut
2tbl spoons of coconut oil
2 frozen bananas
Half cup of alpro coconut milk

I found using a silicone cake mould best as it comes away from the cake very easily.
Start by crushing your biscuits, add the dessicated coconut and melted coconut oil stir together and press firmly into your cake mould to create the base.
Blend together the frozen bananas and alpro coconut milk until smooth, pour over the biscuit base and place in the freezer. Remove when firm and ready to eat, approximately 2 hours.
A great refreshing dessert thats quick and easy!

Mixed bean chilli stuffed pepper, lemon and tyme couscous and guacamole

For the chilli
2 cans of mixed beans
1 can of chopped tomatoes
Red onion
Mushroom
Bell peppers
Cumin
Chilli powder
Smoked paprika
Oregano
Garlic
Chillies

For the couscous
Half a lemon
Tyme
Dried couscous

For the guacamole
1 large avocado
Half a lemon
Cherry tomatoes
Red onion

Start by taking out the seeds of 4 bell peppers and placing on to a baking tray and into a hot oven. Dice the onion, pepper, mushrooms, chillies and garlic and add into a hot pan with a little oil, then add the two cans of mixed beans and chopped tomatoes. I used around 2 tsp of each spice and created a fruity medium heat, and also seasoned to taste. My tip is to keep tasting once its been simmering for about 20 minutes and add spices and seasoning if needed.

Mix dry tyme with about a cup of couscous, add in half the lemon cut into chunks and add 2 cups of boiling water, cover and leave until fluffy and all water has been absorbed and squeeze over the lemons.

Dice 1 large avocado, half a red onion and a handful of cherry tomatoes, season and squeeze over half a lemon and mix until a creamy texture, taste for extra seasoning or lemon.

Once peppers are cooked with a little colour place onto a plate, fill with the bean chilli, and serve with the couscous and guacamole. Great cheap yet filling dish!

Vegan scrambled egg tortilla

Tofu
Red onion
Tomatoes
Pepper
Paprika
Baby spinach
Wholemeal tortilla

This is by far the best recipe I have tried for egg alternatives. Start by dicing the vegetables and adding to a hot pan with a small amount of olive oil, season, then crumble over the tofu. Add half a teaspoon of smoked paprika for a little added heat, this dish is very versatile so add any herb or spices you prefer. Place the baby spinach on a warm tortilla and spoon over the 'scrambled egg' mix and enjoy! Perfect for breakfast or quick snack.

'low fat' hummus

This is a cheats hummus, the chickpeas are out of a can, I did not peel them and everything was kinda chucked together and tasted along the way. Its low fat as I dont use tahini, it tastes great without it so why add more fat.

1 can of chickpeas 

1/2 lemon juice

1 tbl spoon of olive oil

1 clove of garlic minced

Salt 

I started with draining the chickpeas but keeping the drained water, I used about 3 tablespoons of the water in the hummus, I added everything to a bowl and blended with a hand blender until smooth, seasoning to taste. Add more liquid or olive oil if you want a smoother more runny version, I like mine with a little bit of texture. This is just a basic easy hummus with garlic and lemon to flavour but tastes amazing, look out for my other flavoured hummus being added to the blog shortly. 

Vegan 'fudge' icecream

3 bananas (frozen)
Handful of dried dates (chopped)

Blend the frozen bananas, I used a hand blender, until smooth then add the chopped dates and stir. Me and my non vegan sister were so shocked at how simple this was yet taste so much like icecream, almost felt food guilt while eating it! In the image was about half of the amount I made with 3 bananas.

Vegan guacamole and baked wedges

I stole this recipe off a friend who made this for me, made it myself and it tasted exactly the same.....delicious!

2 avocados
Cherry tomatoes
Red onion
Lemon
2 baking potatoes

I started by cutting the baking potatoes into wedges and placing them on a baking tray and into a hot oven, no oil just a touch of sea salt, they usually take around 30 minutes depending on size, but just until golden.
I scooped out the two avocados and chopped into small chunks, I then quartered the cherry tomatoes and finely diced the red onion, combine together with the juice of half a lemon and lightly season.
I absolutely love this recipe as it's so versatile, if there is left over guacamole i have it on toast for my breakfast the next morning, also great for these summer bbq's as so refreshing and light.

Fruit salsa

Me and my 18th month old niece love this for breakfast or a mid afternoon snack, simple and quick to prepare, and keeps well in the fridge.
Watermelon
Blueberries
Raspberries
Apple
Lemon
Pomegranate (usually add this but didn't have any in today)
Cut watermelon and apple into small cubes add to blueberries and raspberries and then a squeeze of lemon juice, great for hot summer days!

Mixed bean salad with mint

This is a great side to many dishes or to add in wraps and salads, its super cheap and really filling. I combined a can of mixed beans, drained, small amount of olive oil, mint and finely chopped red onion, then season to taste.

For vegan recipes and updates follow me on instagram and twitter @graceyhart4

Vegan breakfast

This is one of my favourite snacks or breakfast, grilled cherry tomatoes and avocado on pumkin seed toast.
A handful of cherry tomatoes grilled in a very small amount of olive oil, season to taste, with half an avocado sliced.
Quick, easy, light yet filling.......Enjoy!

For more vegan meals, snacks and ideas follow me on Twitter and instagram @graceyhart4

Arbonne Bronzer review

I have a slight addiction to bronzer so with this I have tried many brands but have finally found what I've been looking for! Bronzer can often be too orange, glittery, hard to blend or just doesnt last very long, Arbonne bronzer has delivered all my needs in one. Its such a light powder it doesn't create a massive dust cloud when applying and blends into my makeup perfectly, I'm a fan of makeup contouring and this bronzer leaves no lines when doing this. A little goes a long way, with other brands I'd have to keep brushing on and keep applying to see the colour, with doing this they would last me no longer than a month, my Arbonne bronzer has lasted 3 months before replacing which I think is amazing as it only costs £21. The colour is not orange, it really is just a sunkissed colour with a healthy glow, not glittery (my pet hate in bronzer) so can see this working on many skin tones. I love the look of the case, and also comes in a little velvet pouch, my favourite thing about this bronzer is it didn't crack or break into bits, it stayed in place until all used up, which is great as it lives in my handbag!

Arbonne nutrition shake

I replace one meal a day with an Arbonne Essentials chocolate protein shake. It comes as a powder in a plastic pouch, I like the pouch as it takes up less room in my cupboard than a tub. All you do is add two scoops to 300ml of water, I sometimes do one scoop and a banana, but always in a blender. It is surprisingly thick yet light and tastes amazing, just like a chocolate shake, not your typical protein shake. Also I sometimes like to add one scoop of Arbonne fibre boost, also comes in a handy pouch with measuring scoop, just to up my fibre intake which leaves me feeling less bloated.
So which meal do you replace? I replace whichever meal comes after my work out, usually breakfast or lunch. This is by far the nicest tasting protein/meal replacement shake I have ever had and is packed full of vitamins too. How did they make chocolate taste so good yet still be healthy!?

Vegan spicy meatballs and pasta

I'm not really a 'recipe' kind of girl, I like to just chuck everything together, no measuring, no messing. So this recipe is one of my quick and easy one pot wonders. Ingredients are basically whatever veg you like or have in, the sauce i make with tinned chopped tomatoes, usually two cans, or a jar of good passata, season everything well with salt, pepper, chilli powder and whatever herbs you like, I just use a standard dry herb mix. To start i fry the sausages off in a very small amount of oil and salt and pepper, while they cook chop everything into roughly the same size. Get the kettle on the go for the pasta, my favourite is wholegrain, or mix the bits left in odd bags. Once the sausages are cooked slice them up into chunks, add back into the pan with onions, garlic and chilli and fry. The amount of garlic and chilli depends on how much you want them flavours coming through, I like heat in this dish so add heaped tea spoon of chillis and teaspoon of chilli powder. Add the passata and rest of the veg and leave to simmer for atleast 20 minutes, make sure you keep tasting as it may need more seasoning or heat. Add to the cooked pasta and enjoy! This is a great cheap dish and goes a long way, feeds atleast 4 hungry mouths.

Arbonne SPF Tan review

When the sun is out everything feels better, everyone is happy, the first thing you do is dig out the summer wardrobe, I did this but felt way too pale so thats where this product comes in. Arbonne made in the shade self-tanner SPF 15 gives me medium protection while out and about in the sun while also developing a tan within 2-3 hours, this was perfect for me.  I exfoliated then applied the tan all over and I couldnt believe how fast the tan developed and how natural it looked. For the first few hours there was no fake tan smell and my skin felt lovely and soft, not sticky. Pros of this self-tan, looked natural, skin felt amazing, developed fast with no smell, long lasting, SPF 15. Cons of the self-tanner, smelt like fake tan after a few hours but i guess that is when you wash it off, my palms tanned even though i washed them but that could be transferred from touching my skin after i washed them. All in all this is a great product, highly recommend for first few days of summer or holidays.

Healthy roasted chickpea popcorn

I find myself being a really big snacker, especially when bored or when its hot and I dont fancy a meal so I'm sharing a few of my healthy snack options. Chickpea popcorn is one of my favourites as its so cheap, easy and versatile. Just drain a can of chickpeas place them on a baking tray with a small amount of olive oil or coconut oil, sprinkle on some sea salt and place in a hot oven for about 20 minutes, giving them a shake every so often. The more crunch you like the longer you keep them in, I prefer the bigger chickpeas to snack on but find the small chickpeas add lovely crunch and texture to a salad. Enjoy!

People tree

I recently bought these bracelets off the fashion site Asos as friendship bracelets for me and a friend. They are handmade by a brand called People Tree, I absolutely love anything handmade and the fact this brand is all about sustainable and fair trade clothing and jewellery made me love them more! I have gone on to buy other bracelets from People Tree and also have my eye on the cute little sweaters they also sell, the prices they charge are really reasonable and knowing its supporting fair trade makes me feel less guilty about spending and happy and proud when I wear them.

Arbonne breakfast

My breakfast this morning after my T25 work out. Arbonne essentials herbal infusion tea is a nice refreshing alternative to the usual coffee, its caffeine free and tastes lovely with peppermint, parsley and liquorice flavours coming through. I paired this with Arbonne essentials fruit flavour nutrition bar, its not like your usual protein bar as it doesnt have that heavy powdery taste, its again light yet filling, its packed full of goodies such as pumpkin seeds, pea protein and quinoa, its my favourite post work out snack!

Arbonne....cc cream review

I was introduced to arbonne in February, I loved the fact the products were not only vegan but great for your health, not just your look! The products have no hidden nasties and packed full of stuff thats great for your skin. I had already noticed what an amazing difference changing my diet to vegan had made on my health well being and skin, made sense to take it through to my daily beauty regime. In this picture I am wearing the Arbonne Intelligence CC cream in light. I start off with applying my Arbonne FC5 nurturing day lotion which contains SPF 20 then apply the CC cream all over just like a moisturiser with my fingertips. It has a great coverage but still very light, and its super blendable as il apply more over a blemish or dark circles. I just love the fresh faced look it gives and the feel I have no more on than a moisturiser, this is now my day to day got to!

Spicy veg and rice noodle broth

This was a very easy and cheap but filling vegetable broth I made when I had flu a few weeks ago.
  I just used whatever veg i had to hand, onions garlic, chillies, carrot, sweet potatoes, spinach and swede, and then some flat rice noodles I found at the back of the cupboard.
  So simple I just chopped everything into small chunks, mainly so they would cook quicker, sweat the onions and garlic off, added vegetable stock and veg and left till soft, added the rice noodles and dried chilli flakes. I suggest add seasoning and chilli flakes to taste, I made this one pretty hot. The rice noodles worked brilliant as they sucked up all the flavour of the broth.....I ate this for two days, was great the day after!

Vegan <3 Hebden Bridge <3

I recently visited Hebden Bridge as I heard about the amazing vegetarian and vegan places to eat there, also all the little markets and quaint vintage shops attracted me, i absolutely fell in love with the place......this picture is taken from a menu in a beautiful little coffee shop where I ate an amazing vegan breakfast. Its a must visit place, the views, the shops, the people and food, most laid back few days I have had in a long while.

Vegan festival!!

So excited about the vegan festival coming to Blackpool! Its nice for smaller towns showing more interest in the vegan lifestyle, hoping to pick up some helpful tips and bits.