Hey happy weekend! I’m greeting it with a smoothie that has all of my morning necessities: caffeine, chocolate (!), oats, peanut butter, and a good bit of plant-based protein powder to keep me energized. Something about espresso in a smoothie that feels so early 2000’s and I am unabashedly into it.
We have a pretty relaxed weekend lined up. I think we’re going to see Dumbo, which means I will be full-on sobbing in public at some point haha. Hopefully the rain lets up so we can take our furry companions out on a long hike. We’re also going to be busy booking and planning a trip to Seattle for June. If you have any recommendations (restaurants, shops, hotels, neighbourhoods, sights etc), please let me know in the comments!
Hope you get a chance to try this amazing mocha smoothie! If you’re into chocolate smoothies, check out this hazelnut chocolate one, this red velvet one with beets(!), or this mint chip espresso shake. Here’s a few articles, podcasts etc. that I enjoyed this week. Have a good one!
-We really blew it on arugula.
-Taking comfort in the familiar style and silhouette of “dad sneakers” in these chaotic times that we’re living in.
-I enjoyed this episode of the GOOP podcast quite a bit. Might be a little far out for some of you, but there are golden nuggets of inspiration in here. What you think = who you become.
–Can What We Eat Affect How We Feel?
-What it’s like to spend 24 hours in an air hanger-turned-tropical resort just outside of Berlin, complete with an “ocean” the size of 3 olympic swimming pools, a rainforest lagoon, and beach tent accommodations. Ridiculous as this attraction is, I kind of empathize with the writer’s motivation: “…winter sucks and a tropical air hanger seemed like the strangest way to deal with it.”
-Weird pet peeve files: I can’t stand flip flops.
-Reading this excerpt from Ruth Reichl’s latest memoir is wild. Lots of insight into the demise of Gourmet Magazine and how much their web presence (and the presence of another popular online food entity) had to do with it all. Juicy! A warning though: there is a segment that discusses goat butchery in a rather outright way near the end.
-It’s been a weird month for the vegan community.
-I am a MASSIVE fan of power couple Abby Wambach and Glennon Doyle. This forthright account of Abby’s financial life/slightly shortsighted retirement planning is candid, refreshing, and a great learning opportunity. Lots of surprising stuff in here too! “…80 percent of all professional male athletes go broke.”
-If you haven’t yet, listen to Glennon’s episode of SuperSoul Conversations. It’s the perfect dose of inspiration to carry you into next week.
Vegan Peanut Butter Mocha Smoothie
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- 2 tablespoons rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch sea salt
- 1 ripe banana, preferably frozen
- 1 shot espresso
- ⅓ cup ice
Equipment
Notes
- I like the extra chocolaty boost of cocoa, but if you have a super flavourful chocolate protein powder, feel free to skip it.
- No espresso? Double the amount of coffee, reduce the milk by a ¼ cup, aim for a frozen banana, and maybe add a bit more ice to keep that thickness intact.
Instructions
- In an upright blender, combine the milk, protein powder, oats, cocoa powder, peanut butter, vanilla, salt, banana, espresso, and ice. Bring the speed of the blender up to high and continue to blend until totally smooth and creamy, about 30 seconds. Enjoy the peanut butter mocha smoothie immediately.
Nailed it! My protein powder was unflavored with no sweeteners so I added a date and more cocoa. I also added some frozen greens. So great . Those flavors: coffee, cocoa and peanut butter are the best!! With added caffeine….yes please!
Hi Laura,
Tried to read the article on Abby Wambach but it wouldn’t work. Should I just watch the Dumbo trailer?! haha.
Love your posts with all the recommendations.
That smoothie looks so good that I’d make it right this second if I hadn’t just eaten breakfast! I will be skipping the banana though -ick – and give frozen pear a chance for the substitution.
Hi Laura,
Your arugula link redirects to the Dumbo trailer. I assume this is unintentional? How did we blow it on arugula?! :)
Oops! Fixed it up. Made for a real cliffhanger, right? ;)
-L
That article about the vegan youtubers (i.e. Rawvana) who are no longer vegan was wild. I have been reflecting a lot on this topic recently, so thanks for sharing this article :)
Some of the reactions to Rawvana etc. have been waaaay more extreme than I expected. Sometimes the vegan community, especially on YouTube, really surprises me.
-L
Omg, YUM!!! This smoothie hits all my favourite things: thick and rich with chocolate and peanut butter flavour!
Plus coffee! All the things that I need to function in life ;)
-L
Check out Harvest Beat restaurant in Seattle. Vegan and more like an event than just dinner… so amazing.
Can’t wait to check it out. Thanks for this recommendation, Carolyn!
-L
Delicious! My breakfast this morning, made with oat milk & frozen banana so nice and creamy
So happy that you enjoyed it!
-L
No Bones Beach Club, Cafe Flora, and Pablo Y Pablo. And check out Harvest Beat too! The Ballard Farmers Market is fantastic.
PS the “Seattle is Dying” video is grossly exaggerating; I live in Seattle and most Seattle-ites do not agree with it at all.
Thanks so much for these recommendations, Amber! Really appreciate it <3
-L
Cafe flora in Seattle is amazing! Delicious vegan brunch options.
Definitely on my list! Their brunch sounds amazing. Thanks so much.
-L
Hi Laura, my recommendation on Seattle is to watch a video on YouTube called “Seattle is Dying.” I just randomly came across it two days ago and couldn’t believe what I was watching. I had all these pictures of Seattle in my mind, and this video changed that fast.. It doesn’t even make any sense how and why this is happening in the city. It is astonishing! (It is basically about drug use, homelessness and how good, decent cops risk their lives every day only to have the city let the criminals off scot-free!)
PS…Your posts like this one with lots of links are my favorite.
Hit there to both Laura and the above commenter,
Please don’t judge the city of Seattle by this biased and right-wing-funded documentary. Homelessness is a complex, multi-faceted issue that Seattle (like many urban cities) is currently struggling with, but as a long-time resident of Seattle, I can say for sure that it is still a beautiful, vibrant, amazing city that I love living in! Cafe Flora is an iconic vegetarian restaurant, and its right near the Washington arboretum, which is a giant urban park/woodland that should be at its most beautiful in June. :)
Ha ha…You know I almost added a comment saying I don’t know how true/one sided it is because I’ve never been there myself and is the first I’ve ever heard about the problem there. I wouldn’t normally post about it— it was just that I watched the video only two days prior so it was on my mind. And in no way am I saying not to go . But the video really seemed legit! And it was genuinely interesting and eye opening to watch when I had no idea about the situation there in the first place. I get that videos exaggerate things but the filth and the garbage and the camps shown are not made up. Anyway…sorry, Laura to have said anything in the first place. Not trying to get anyone riled up. I just thought you might find it as interesting as I did.
No worries at all, Sonia! Totally understand the inclination to share when something is fresh on the mind. Appreciate it either way :)
-L
Thank you for this, Maggie. A lot of people emailed and messaged me about this documentary and I had a feeling it was probably on the sensationalist side. Appreciate your point of view and your recommendations so much!
-L
Yeah for sure don’t judge Seattle by that propaganda!! Born and raised in Seattle has always been home, definitely wouldn’t let that documentary sway anything, it’s still an amazing city, yes we have a growing homeless population that is a problem that needs to be addressed, but as far as you visiting in June that will be a great time to come!
I concur that Cafe Flora in Madison Park/ Capitol Hill area is a must, No Bones Beach Club in Ballard, (which is also a really great neighborhood to just walk around and check out- right next to Fremont also fun), Wayward Vegan Cafe in North Seattle area also is a very well known and good vegan spot, and final suggestion is Sizzle Pie on Capitol Hill for pizza! One more suggestion while you are here would be to take the West Seattle ferry over to Vashon Island for their farmers market or just for fun to take the ferry maybe go to winery’s or dinner!
Thanks for your awesome recipes!
Leslie