I mentioned it to my email subscribers and on Instagram earlier this week, but I’ll reiterate because the feeling hasn’t changed honestly. I do find it difficult and strange to post here as usual amidst so much suffering, senseless death, and more escalating geopolitical conflict. I wish I could pause all new recipes and content indefinitely, but like most of you I simply have to keep working and showing up. At this time, I am supporting The Alliance for Middle East Peace and World Central Kitchen.

The usual feel-good theme of this weekly feature may be a bit toned down today. At the same time, I think a lot of us know that doomscrolling is generally unproductive and bad for our mental health. I say this as a person that values being informed in general, but also as a means to understand and relate to people in our real, offline lives.

If you’re hurting today or feeling that pang of despair, my heart goes out to you–it always does. If folks want to skip this week’s edition, I get it. But if you need a moment away from the news cycle and other bits of life, my selected reads and other things are below.

Remember to take care ♥️

5 Things I’m Reading:

1. How Online Educator Blair Imani Safeguards Her Inner Peace When Using Social Media in Times of Stress
2. In the Age of Distraction, Honoring the Light Within
3. In Defence of Garlic in a Jar: How Food Snobs Almost Ruined My Love of Cooking
4. Yewande Komolafe Obsesses Over Perfect Bites
5. On my nightstand: Rooted – Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit

5 Things I’m Enjoying:

1. Michael Imperioli on Tricycle Talks
2. When the World Is Full of Noise
3. What To Do When Things Feel Hopeless: Politics, Climate Change, Chronic Illness & More with Susan David Ph.D.
4. Words for when the world is holding inexplicable pain
5. These truly unhinged recipe substitutions made me smile

5 Questions:

1. What do you do when you’re in an inspirational rut?
   I used to resist this feeling and would force myself to make things, get going with a project etc. Now, I take advantage of the times that I am feeling inspired so that when those ruts happen, I can just be with them, observe them, and let them pass naturally. More often than not, this type of feeling comes up when I’m stressed out, lacking rest and overall balance in my life.
2. Any super frugal vegan dinner faves of late?
   I cannot get enough of this “slaw bowl” style dinner we’ve been making lately. I shred cabbage and carrots and toss them in my red wine vinegar dressing with some chopped parsley. I’ll crisp up chickpeas with spices and olive oil in my air fryer. Then I put both of those things on top of the golden garlic rice from this recipe and finish with some finely chopped pickled red onions and dill pickles. It’s basically brown rice, cabbage, and chickpeas, but with a ton of flavour and extras. I really want to post a more polished version of this as a recipe on here, so stay tuned!
3. Best vegan cream cheese?
   The new Nuts for Cheese one is super tangy and delicious. I’m partial to the lemon dill flavour in a veggie bagel sandwich setup. If you live in the US or Canada, we’re doing a giveaway with all three flavours and some swag. Check it out here.
4. How do you get the majority of your protein requirements?
   A while back, just for fun, I tracked what I ate throughout the day (for about a week) just to see how much protein I was getting. Without really trying I was hitting at least 80 grams a day. My morning smoothie generally gets me to 30 grams (soy milk, peanut butter, oats, vegan protein powder, flax, chia, greens, all the things) and then the rest of the day I’m eating vegetables, fruit, whole grains, nuts, beans, lentils, sometimes tofu/tempeh etc. I don’t have any food allergies and have minimal dislikes in terms of plant-based food, so overall I don’t find it difficult to get enough protein.
5. When do I use firm vs extra firm tofu?
   For all of my tofu recipes (that utilize sautéing or baking), I find them mostly interchangeable. Extra firm does have less water in it and will therefore be less susceptible to absorbing marinades. Overall I think firm tofu is my personal all-purpose tofu of choice.