Save the Oceans with Sparkling Water!

June is World Ocean Month, so the folks at FOUND Beverage reached out to ask if I would feature their new 100K Initiative to benefit Oceana, an advocacy group dedicated to protecting and restoring the world's oceans.

I'm a sparkling water addict, so I was more than happy to try out FOUND's new flavored sparkling water for the 100K Initiative! According to UNESCO, there are 100,000 marine mammals impacted by plastic in the oceans. To commemorate these animals, FOUND has developed 100,000 glass bottles of the brand's naturally sparkling, infused mineral water to sell and raise money which Oceana will use to protect the oceans and their wildlife.

Each of the 100,000 bottles is individually numbered, so you can get a better feel for the impact of plastic on wildlife. FOUND has bottled two flavors of their carbon-neutral sparkling water for the project — Cucumber Mint and Elderflower.

They sent me the Cucumber Mint, and it was fantastic! Just the right amount of bubbly carbonation with a refreshing cucumber flavor and hint of mint. Learn more about how you can support the 100K Initiative here. 100% of profits go to protecting all wildlife that call our oceans home.

Hummus & Doughnuts & Pizza!

One a few weeks ago, I brought a salad to work for lunch, but it just didn't feel like enough food for a proper lunch. So I ordered the Three Bean Hummus platter from the cafe at Crosstown Arts (where I work). I don't know what three beans are in this house-made hummus, but it's delicious — especially with that warm grilled pita.

Friday was National Doughnut Day! There's currently nowhere in Memphis serving vegan doughnuts on the regular – only occasionally at Imagine Vegan Cafe and the cafe at Crosstown Arts. So I had to make do on my own! I went to bootcamp Friday morning, and then I followed that with some FitQuick Protein Doughnuts (made from the chocolate brownie and orange cream bar waffle mix and topped with chocolate peanut butter and plain almond butter). I used to eat FitQuick waffles and doughnuts all the time! But I got a little burned out. Luckily, I still had some mix in my freezer.

Later that night, I picked out a recipe for Baked Frosted Lemon Doughnuts from Chocolate Covered Katie's cookbook. These were a little healthier than fried doughnuts, so I felt pretty good about eating two. 

Last time I was in Nashville, I ordered the OG Bowl from Wild Cow and added grilled tofu. Such a simple and healthy meal! But I LOVE it. I had to recreate it at home, and I think I nailed it — brown rice, garlic kale, pinto beans, and grilled tofu topped with garlic aioli. For the aioli, I thinned out a few tablespoons of Vegenaise with water and then added a few grated cloves of garlic. 

Here's another yummy — but not as pretty — bowl with roasted butternut squash, chickpeas, kale, quinoa, and tahini sauce.

On Mother's Day, we made naan pizzas at my parents' house, and my dad had the foresight to suggest I make an extra one to take home and freeze for a busy week night. This Vegan Sausage & Veggie Naan Pizza came in very handy one night! I just re-heated from frozen it in the air fryer, and it was perfect. My dad is so smart!

And here's a random Vegan Deli Sandwich with BE-Hive seitan slices, avocado, tomato, and lettuce. Served with my favorite Food Should Taste Good sweet potato corn chips.

We'll end this post with CAKE!! My friend Vaughan turned 65 a few weeks ago, and Stephanie baked him a Vegan Chocolate Cake. IT WAS SO GOOD. The party was kind of late on a week night, so I ate cake at 9 pm and then went to bed at 9:45 pm. Not the best idea. Definitely affected my sleep, but it was worth it.

Race Recap: Beer & Bagel Off-Road Series in Memphis

I know this is a food blog, but for me, running and food are SO interrelated. So much of what I eat is either for pre-run fuel or post-run recovery. But the best meals are post-race! I live for those celebratory meals of carbs and beer.

When I heard about the Beer & Bagel Off-Road Race Series moving to Tennessee, I knew I had to sign up. This trail series has been going on in other states for several years, but they expanded to include Memphis this year. The race was this past Saturday on the Wolf River Greenway and through some trails in Shelby Farms. The race's mascot is Bigfoot, and he was waiting for us about a mile into the 4(ish)-mile course.

He jumped out at runners as we passed, and then when we passed him again toward the end (the course was an out-and-back), he gave out high-fives. 

The course started through some single-track trail through Shelby Farms. It was muddy from the previous week's rain but not as bad as I expected. No big mud holes! The race organizers said they had to change the route a bit after the rain because part of the planned course was underwater. After we got through the single-track (about a half-mile), we switched to the paved Wolf River Greenway. We got to run on a new portion of the Greenway, which follows the Wolf River through a beautiful shaded forest area, that isn't yet open to the public. Very cool! There were butterflies everywhere!

As the race name implies, this event ends with beer and bagels, two of my very favorite foods (yes, beer is food). They had locally made beer by Wisecare and handcrafted bagels by Dave's Bagels.

We also got a sweet finishers' medal with Bigfoot on it. It doubles as a beer opener, naturally. Not pictured is the awesome race shirt we got — a long-sleeved tech shirt that says "I'm a runner with a drinking problem" on the back. Can't wait to wear that on some winter runs. I only wish they'd had short-sleeved shirts so I could wear it now!

There were two vegan bagels — Plain and Cinnamon Raisin — and they were cut in half. So I got a half of each. They also had BBQ at the post-race party, but of course that's not vegan. So I took some of the BBQ sauce and covered my plain bagel in it so I could have BBQ too. Turns out BBQ bagels are really good!

Super-fun race! I love the chill vibe of smaller trail races so much more than the high-energy, anxiety-inducing vibe of big city marathons.  Love running both, but I'll take a trail race over a road race any day!

Fried Tofu! Pizza! Aloo Gobi!

My friend Susan and I went to Pho Binh for lunch today. Best tofu buffet in town (and under $10!). The lemongrass tofu (on the left of my plate) is INCREDIBLE. Also pictured: Tofu & Mushrooms, Tofu & Green Beans, and Curry Tofu Soup.

We had our monthly Crosstown Running Crew meet-up at Elemento Neapolitan Pizza in Crosstown Concourse last week. They don't have vegan options (yet!), but their pizza is still amazing without cheese. I got this one (with mushrooms, kalamatas, and roasted red peppers) to go, so I added some Daiya at home.

The cafe at Crosstown Arts, where I work, had a yummy Aloo Gobi on the menu last week. Served with rice and toasted warm pita. So good!!! WOULD. EAT. AGAIN.

Here are some oats I had last week — with berries, pumpkin seeds, and walnuts. Just bein' all healthy!

And finally, here's an awesome post-run meal from this week. Loaded Sweet Potato with avocado, black beans, spinach, corn, tomato, and Trader Joe's pepita salsa. This combo was delicious and super-filling. Also oil-free! I feel best when I'm eating like this.

Giveaway: The Complete Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook

My long-time blogger friend Barb Musick — of That Was Vegan blog fame — has a new cookbook out! And I am so proud of her! The Complete Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook is just what it sounds like — a comprehensive guide to vegan cooking in the Instant Pot. We'll be giving away a copy at the end of this post!

When Barb reached out to me about reviewing her book, I had to admit — I didn't actually OWN an Instant Pot. It's one of the few kitchen gadgets that I just haven't gotten yet. But my parents have one, so I was happy for an excuse to borrow theirs.

Barb includes lots of great tips for Instant Pot newbies like myself. And since my parents' pot isn't an Instant Pot brand pot (it's a generic version called GreenPan), I found that section of the book very helpful for translating some of the Instant Pot settings to other instant pressure cookers.

I've made a few recipes over the past couple weeks, and I am so thrilled with everything I've made! From the breakfast chapter this week, I made Barb's Strawberry Oats with Maple Toasted Walnuts. 

These creamy steel cut oats are sweetened with a little brown sugar and topped with fresh berries and candied walnuts (made on the stovetop while the oats are cooking). Steel cut oats always take forever on the stove, and they still took awhile in the Instant Pot. But I was able to set the timer, walk away and take a shower, and come back to finished oats. No need to watch a pot on the stove. Love that!

I picked two recipes from the Vegetable Mains chapter to try. First, I tried the Butternut Mac & Cheese because I LOVE a vegan cheese made from butternut squash and cashews.

This is SO creamy, and the whole wheat pasta cooked in the Instant Pot in just 2 minutes!! The squash was roasted first (I did that the night before to save time), so that made for a very flavorful sauce. But the recipe doesn't call for that; you can use B-nut squash cooked in any way. I just prefer roasted squash. I served this with broccoli for a balance meal.

I tried the Tempeh Sloppy Janes last week. Best vegan sloppy janes (or joes) I've ever had!

The sloppy jane mixture is made with a base of tempeh and refried beans, which is unlike any I've had before. I love the texture of the beans, and the recipe made so many servings. I had it on buns with diced red onion, bell pepper, and pickles for several days. And when I got tired of eating it on buns, I served it atop whole wheat pasta for a very yummy and filling meal.

All of Barb's recipes are based on whole foods, which is how I try to eat at home most of the time. There are so many things I want to try from this book, so it looks like I'll be asking for an Instant Pot for Christmas! Other recipes on my list: Chickpea Kale Korma, Savory Tofu & Potato Casserole, Taco Chili, Red Thai Curry Cauliflower, and the Layered Mexican Casserole.

Want your own copy of The Complete Vegan Instant Pot? Just leave a comment on this post that includes your email address (so I can contact you if you win!). I'll randomly choose a winner on Monday, June 10.

New Vegan Options at Midtown Crossing!

New vegan options are popping up at Memphis restaurants all over the city these days! Just yesterday, I blogged about the new vegan scrambles at Brother Juniper's, and tonight, I'm highlighting even more vegan options on the menu at Midtown Crossing Grill — my neighborhood pizza joint/ sandwich shop/watering hole.

Midtown Crossing released their new menu last week, and there are a few new vegan options added, including VEGAN NACHOS!!

Paul and I stopped in last night so I could give them a try. Plus, Monday night is $3 draft night so we love to go there for beers on Mondays. The vegan nachos are covered in a made-in-house vegan queso made from almonds and potatoes. It's creamy and delicious and made from whole foods! Also atop the corn chips are black beans, corn, tomatoes, scallions, and a generous scoop of guac. Perfection.

Here's the new dinner menu. I love that vegan options are now clearly marked in green. Other new items include a Hummus Platter with roasted, pickled eggplant, kalamata olives, and sliced flatbread and Spring Rolls!

To be clear, there were spring rolls on the old menu, but there was just one variety. Now, the kitchen will prep ingredients for different kinds of spring rolls every day, so you might get smoked tofu one day and peach pecan the next. It's a surprise! But they'll always be vegan.

Of course, the Bianca Banh Mi (named after yours truly!!) is still on the menu. Midtown Crossing owner Octavia named this delicious tofu banh mi after me because I wouldn't stop bugging her about vegan options when she first opened a few years back.

I didn't get a picture of the new pizza menu, but there's a new Herbivore Pizza that's loaded with veggies. It comes with dairy cheese by default, but Midtown Crossing always has vegan mozzarella on hand to make any pizza vegan. You can also sub vegan cheese to make the potato skins vegan (like these!!).

And don't forget about brunch! Midtown Crossing has an awesome weekend brunch with tofu scramble (served in a cast iron) and vegan biscuits & gravy. It's not new, but it's amazing and you should go!

New Vegan Menu Items at Brother Juniper's

Brother Juniper's is a Memphis institution. This brunch spot is so well-loved that people expect to wait 45 minutes to an hour for a table. On weekends, there's ALWAYS a wait. And it's always bustling and loud. But that's part of the charm. You just have to make sure you have a small snack or light breakfast before you go!

Brother Juniper's had always had vegetarian options, but for the past few years, the only vegan option was something you just kinda had to know about it. The Fahim's Special — a tofu scramble with portabellas and roasted red peppers — used to be on the menu years ago, but it was taken off because they stopped carrying one of the dishes' main ingredients — kalamata olives. After it was taken off, they'd still gladly make it without the olives. But only in-the-know folks knew to ask.

Now, they've added the Fahim's Special (minus the olives) back to the printed menu! And they've added another vegan option — Spicy Tofu. Paul and I met up with folks there on Sunday morning to check out the new dishes.

The Spicy Tofu is a Southwestern-style scramble with black beans and jalapenos, served over home fries and topped with avocado spread. SO DAMN GOOD. The jalapenos make it a little spicy, but I'm a spice lover and thought it was perfect. Loved the creamy, generous dollop of guac on top.

You get a choice of grits or home fries on the side, so I went the home fries route even though there were already some under the scramble. You can't have too many potatoes. You also get a choice of toast or biscuits, but the biscuits aren't vegan. So toast it is! They bake it fresh in-house and serve with homemade jams and jellies.

Here's that Fahim's Special, which is back on the menu. My mom and I always bring our own olives so we can get the full effect.

Note to vegans: There's also a Veggie Sausage Scramble dish on the menu, but last time I checked, they were using non-vegan Morningstar Farms sausage. That may have changed, but definitely ask before ordering this one.