Hello and welcome to another Saturday Sun. I’m still pretty focused on my health these days, so I haven’t been posting much on Instagram or anywhere else other than here really. My everyday cooking has really simplified and I’m spending more time outside. It’s all helping and feels good. I have a session with a vestibular rehabilitation specialist next week that I’m truly excited for. I hope that you’re keeping well and getting some time for yourself in this busy season!

The winding down of the holidays means that Veganuary is around the corner as well. This is a time of year that sees lots of new people clicking over to the site and trying new recipes, which makes me so happy. I’m all about folks enjoying more plant magic as often as possible. It’s never been about perfection or a certain lifestyle for me. More veggies, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and just more flavour and fun. When I started going down the plant-based road, it felt like endless possibility to me, so I always try to convey that feeling when I post.

Be well! Sending all my love 🙂

5 Things I’m Reading:

1. Resilience is invaluable in tough times. Here’s how to build it.
2. The year Twitter died
3. How To Ask For No Gifts This Holiday (And What To Do With Gifts You Don’t Need)
4. Why Do All Chefs Cross Their Arms in Photos?
5. On my nightstand: The Karma of Success

5 Things I’m Enjoying:

1. Mocktails I’ve enjoyed recently: Clever Sangria (over ice and garnished with citrus slices and rosemary) and Collective Arts’s Perpetual Paloma (delightful on its own).
2. So inspired by Butter Wakefield Garden Design
3. This album by Julianna Barwick for meditation, stretching, focused working etc.
4. Siete’s grain-free Mini Buñuelos are so lovely with a hot chocolate–I can’t get enough! The brand sent them to me as a gift along with their lush Coconut Cajeta Caramel Sauce (delicious with sliced apple/pear).
5. Personally having a major cranberry moment (lots of cranberry salsa, pure cranberry juice with warm water, ginger and lemon, orange cranberry smoothies, and of course my new cranberry clementine muffin recipe) so I’m loving this roundup from Aimee at Simple Bites.

5 Questions:

1. How do you juggle all the things necessary these days to be an online content creator? There’s so much to do and I find it overwhelming.
   I’m not good at doing this! I forget where I originally read it, but I try to always remember: keep the main thing the main thing. My main thing is posting vegan recipes to the website and publishing this weekend catchup. Yours might be long form YouTube cooking content, a podcast about food, multiple daily TikTok posts about your cooking garden, a Substack newsletter about gluten-free baking, etc! Whatever the main thing is that engages your audience and helps you to earn some income, I would focus most of my energy on that. The other stuff that helps to promote/assist the main thing (for me it’s the email list, Instagram, Pinterest) is strictly secondary. Of course I do all those secondary things when I have time, but my core focus is the content that goes on my website.
2. Do you subscribe to any cooking/other magazines? Looking for non-digital media!
   I looove magazines. I subscribe to lots digitally through Apple News+, but I know that plenty of the titles are also available in paper format. I love Country Living UK, Gardens Illustrated, Homes & Gardens, Naturally Danny Seo, Cook’s Illustrated, Chickpea Magazine, Breathe Magazine, and Forks Over Knives.
3. Any music recs for this time of year? Christmas-y/wintery but not cheesy?
   I had been searching for this exact thing and randomly found just the right playlist on Spotify recently. Linking it here.
4. Fave holiday cookie?
   I do a vegan version of Ina’s jam thumbprints with really hard vegan butter (unsalted Becel plant-based sticks are best for this) and I skip the egg wash and coconut step. They are simple, classic and delightful!
5. Struggling with being invited to dinner parties when I am plant-based. What do I say/do?
   I’ve answered this one before, but it keeps coming up as the holidays press on. Remixing and re-sharing my response from another edition in the hopes that it can be helpful! It really is so nice when folks want to include you in their celebrations, but stating our dietary needs can be difficult and awkward feeling at times. I’ve been there! Knowing that hosting is a bit of work and also a time investment, it’s good to remember that communication up front, empathy, and a willingness to help can go a long way. I always recommend checking in at least a week ahead of time to a) let them know that you’re plant-based, and b) ask what you can bring to the dinner to help out. I always try to bring a recipe that eats like a side dish, but will still be super satiating for me if it’s one of the only options at the table that’s totally plant-based. My go-to this time of year is a farro salad with French lentils, roasted pieces of squash, pomegranate, chopped herbs, toasted nuts, and a shallot dressing. You can get a feel for what the host is cooking and base a contribution around it! When all else fails and I leave the gathering a bit hungry, I grab a veggie burger combo from Harvey’s on the way home haha.