Rather than writing a post about any one recipe today, I thought that I would share some of my favorite things to eat these days! There is so much goodness going on in my kitchen and I feel like I am very behind on posting recipes that I have been making. Like really, really behind. So here it goes! Enjoy! 🙂

Banana Ice Cream and Cashew Butter on Toasted Ezekiel Bread for Breakfast! A great energizing breakfast, especially before a workout. Who wouldn’t love ice cream for breakfast! I just use 2 frozen bananas and about 1/4 cup of unsweetened almond milk. Process together in a food processor until smooth. It had already melted a little before my toast was ready, but still delicious. I’ve been on a major banana ice cream kick these days.

Cinnamon Syrup on Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes

I thought of jazzing up our syrup by adding cinnamon to it. Just whisk together 2 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon and 1/2 cup pure maple syrup. It is like having a cinnamon bun for breakfast, without all the work of actually making cinnamon buns. Genius if you ask me.

Black Bean and Bell Pepper Chili. I have a recipe like this already, but this weekend I added veggie ground to it, so it is more hearty. It is simply delicious! You could probably tell by the picture. I love the color of the peppers!

Black Bean and Bell Pepper Chili

A quick chili recipe made with black beans and bell peppers. The addition of veggie ground makes for a more hearty meal and is especially great for those looking for a more ‘meaty’ vegan dish.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 bell pepper, diced (I used half a yellow and half a green)
• 1 (796 ml) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (156 ml) can tomato paste
• 3 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 (540 ml) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 package (340 g) veggie ground round (I use Yves)
• pinch of sea salt and ground black pepper

Directions

Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok on medium heat. Add the diced onion and pressed garlic and saute 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Add the diced bell pepper and continue to saute 8-10 minutes more, until the onions and peppers have softened. Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, chili powder and oregano. Finally stir in the black beans and veggie ground. Continue to cook and stir 5-10 minutes more until the entire mixture is hot. This is even mighty delicious in whole grain wraps or with multigrain taco chips, shredded vegan cheese and romaine lettuce for a taco salad feel.

And for dessert… something chocolatey!

Chocolate Puffed Wheat Squares

These squares are a perfect afternoon pick me up and take under 10 minutes to make. A recipe I love when I don’t feel like baking, but still want a sweet treat. My kids LOVE these as well.

Makes 12 large squares

Ingredients

• 10 cups puffed wheat cereal
• 1/2 cup vegan margarine
• 1 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Place the 10 cups of puffed wheat cereal into a large mixing bowl. In a saucepan on medium-high heat, melt the margarine. Whisk in the brown rice syrup, cocoa powder and vanilla and continue to whisk until combined and smooth. Bring the mixture to a boil then remove from heat and pour over top of the puffed wheat cereal. Mix until combined and the cereal is well coated.

Transfer to a 9 x 13 baking pan and press the mixture down evenly in the pan with wet hands. Place the pan into the fridge or freezer for at least 20 minutes so that the mixture sets before cutting into squares. The mixture is very soft because it is made with brown rice syrup. We eat these squares from frozen or keep them refrigerated.

Or just eat it all warm and gooey if you can’t wait.

And a little something to watch while you are eating your dessert, Jason Mraz on Live From Daryl’s House if you are a fan of amazingly awesome music! 🙂