Vegan for 2018? Why not?!

This first week of 2018 I received dozens of messages from you guys (and even from old friends of mine) saying they've made "going vegan" their 2018 resolution. These news make me ecstatic! Not only because you'll be eating towards a healthier you and saving animals in the process, but also because switching to a vegan diet is one of the smartest and strongest steps towards preserving and protecting our PLANET! Mother Earth. The only home we've got! 

A few things to have in mind when going vegan or vegetarian:

(Let's start with the definitions, shall we?)

Vegetarian: cheese, dairy and eggs are part of the diet but all types of meat and seafood are not.

Vegan: we don't eat or wear anything that comes from animals. No diary, no cheese, no seafood, no meat, no leather, no fur, etc...

Whichever diet you choose, always aim at finding the right BALANCE for you. Balance is key in everything we do in life. Especially your diet! Make sure you are getting your daily nutrients and superfoods (my favorite ones are moringa, camu camu, maca), organic veggies and fruits, and your occasional cheat-meals too (yes, I have my veggie burger with sweet potato fries from time to time and LOVE it!). 

You know those recipes you thought you would never try again as a vegan? Guess again! Most recipes can be made vegan and still be mouthwatering. I've made plantbased pancakes and french toasts, vegan chocolate puddings, and vegan risotto from scratch. It's easier than you think! All it takes is a little creativity and finding the right substitutes for ordinary ingredients. Whether you are looking for raw ingredients, pre-made or to-go ones,  WholeFoods has the solution for you! Here are a few natural, non gmo, organic, vegan, and delicious products you can binge on guilt-free! I actually tried the vegan mac n' cheese for the first time last night. I topped it with truffle oil, himalayan salt and rosemary and devoured it all! Better than I expected, to be 100% honest!

For this month, I've partnered with WholeFoods to make it easier for you to go vegan and choose healthier options. You can find these products and many more at any Whole Food store. Make sure you look for the dot wayfinders. They are found on the product price signs and will signify vegan, paleo, gluten-free, and Whole30 approved! Yes, that easy!

Cheers to a healthier, kinder, and wiser YOU. 

PS: when you get a chance, watch these documentaries. They will explain the importance of a plant-based diet. "Cowspiracy", "Food Matters", "What The Health", "Forks over Knives".

PRODUCSTS:

• Vegan Mac N Cheese: made with creamy organic pumpkin, sweet potato and other natural ingredients!
• Aminos: much better than using soy. It has 70%+ less sodium and is made from coconut tree sap.
• WaterLook Sparkling Water: it's time for you to quit the soda and mineral waters! These are natural, sugar and sodium free, and taste good. I'm not a soda or sparkling water person but these taste delish!
• Almond flour: my favorite flours are almond, coconut and buckwheat. I used them for pancakes, cookies and cakes!
• Vegan protein bars: this is a must! I carry them in my purse 24/7 and have them as snacks on those days my meals lack enough protein.  I'm obsessed with VEGA. Their bars taste like snickers!

Easy daily steps you can take to go GREEN!

“It is not that we don’t live. Indeed we do, but whether we live rightly, whether we live fully, that is he question. Unless one is conscious, one is not alive. To sit in a room and meditate is not the way to become conscious. To read books is also not the way. We must, in the midst of our day-to-day life, learn to observe, to contemplate, to measure our response, our movements, our words, our thoughts- which are more important than words. We must develop the sensitivity, the urge to appreciate the soul of beauty, a sense of order and harmony. We must find and create beauty everywhere.” 🌿🍃 This year in April, I visited Auroville; a Utopian and sustainable city south of India. Besides having a breathtaking and eco-friendly architecture focused on the synchrony of the universe, there was no single dominant religion (all are practiced and accepted), no politics, and no currency. They live blissfully, respecting nature and humanity. This quote by The Mother (the woman who gave birth to Auroville) describes my view of life completely. See, respect and create beauty everywhere you go. Don’t destroy but add value to places and people. Especially when it comes to nature. Our earth is aching, guys. Badly. It’s heartbreaking to watch. Forests are burning, glaciers are melting, air is becoming unbreathable, animals- crucial to our survival- are dying faster than we ever imagined, and trash has become an overused word in our vocabularies and lifestyles. If I tell you that YOU can  change this, will you listen? Will you do something about it? The solution is at our fingertips. It’s in the way we do our day-to-day lives. How we shop, eat, think, move. Simple daily baby steps that can have a huge impact! Here are a few:

1) Say no to plastic when you go out to eat or shop. Take your reusable utensils (I have them and love them! Bamboo and metal straws) and cotton shopping bags. I'll be selling bamboo cutlery sets that benefit two nature-preserving non-profits I've partnered with on my blog's shop. Give me a few more days and I'll share details with you :)

2) Switch the car for a bike, bus ride, or electric transportation. (I surrendered my car 2.5 years ago. Best decision ever. I’m thinking of getting an electric scooter now. Yes, they exist!)

3) Offset your flight carbon impact. (Yes! That exists too!) I use ClimateCare; a B Corp offsetting your carbon footprint by using a calculator to tell you how much you need to donate to different nature-preserving projects. For example, to offset the 18,000+ miles I traveled from Miami to New Delhi roundtrip, or the 4+ tones of CO2 I emitted, I donated $42.48 to ClimateCare's projects that range from planting trees to preserving rainforests to purifying water in Kenya and many more. Use their calculator to do the math. It's very simple! 

4) Shop wisely! Consciously! Read labels. Choose fair-trade, vegan, rainforest alliance certified, organic, natural and eco-friendly (packaging especially). 

5) Set Ecosia.org as your search engine. They plant trees with each search. So far, 17million+ trees have been planted. 

6) Go vegan. I know it sounds crazy and difficult but it is the only diet that can save and preserve our planet. Besides, if done well, it is one of the healthiest diets! Take your superfoods, eat your fruits and veggies, and watch how your health and our planet bloom back to life. 

7) SHARE the knowledge. We are in this together! 

Go Vegan for Earth Day?...Tips, Videos and More.

Earth Day is coming up and our planet is probably one of the main reasons why most of us go vegan. Some do it for the animals, others to reduce soil and water depletion, others to help stop climate change, and then there are others who also do it for health issues. Whatever the reason behind it, there’s honestly no excuse not to go vegan or at least try it for 21 days and see how it feels. (I recommend 21 because, as research says, that’s the number of days it takes for something to become a habit/routine).  For me, it was mother earth: Animals and nature. I’ve been a big fan of them since I was little. Saving cats, mice, lizards, frogs and whatever other lonely earthlings I found in my way. I also remember talking to trees when I was little, specially the Weeping Willow trees. I somehow felt protected by their size and the way their leafs hung all the way from top to bottom as if they were trying to cover whomever sat next to their trunk from the world. So of course, going vegan was a no-brainer the minute a friend of mine sent me the link to Paul McCartney’s PETA documentary revealing the cruelty behind the meat industry. I have to be honest though. Back then it was not as easy and simple as it today. , Today, the vegan industry has grown so big worldwide, we have hundreds of healthy alternatives to animal products compared to 5 years ago! Today, the US alone has 13million vegans and 25million vegetarians and growing! Can you believe that? Those numbers put a huge smile on my face. Seriously!

With that being said, I want to challenge you guys a little (or maybe a lot. Depends on how you see it! :p) Yes, I want you to go vegan! For Earth Day, April 22. If you don’t want to do the full 21 days, try it for 3 days or even 1 day! Every action counts and each person who switches to a vegan diet can save 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq ft of forested land, 20 lbs CO2 equivalent per day, and dozens of animals’ lives. Incredible, right? How the power to help heal our world and solve every human-inflicted issue is in the palm of our hands? Think about it, babes!

For more info about how a vegan diet impacts our planet as a whole, please watch “Cowspiracy”. Another documentary that gave me a different perspective of life.  

PS: I leave you guys with this yummy 100% vegan, healthy and organic smoothie bowl recipe. Besides the regular ingredients I use on my morning smoothies, this time I also used Pure Potions superfood box. Inside of it came the prettiest glass jars and tiny bottles (Beauty, Longevity & Brilliance) with different superfood powders, dates, coconut oil and hemp seeds. Talk about happiness in a box! I put a little of each and Voilá! Vitamin, vegan protein, minerals, omegas, antioxidants and everything I need to become the best and purest version of myself all in one smoothie bowl serving. <3

The products you use & Orangutan brothels.

I mentioned this topic a few days ago on Instagram and, after all the responses I received, I thought I should share more information with you so you have all the tools you need to make wiser choices. There are many ongoing issues and causes I've written about but this one is very dear to my heart. For some reason, and without ever having seen one in person, orangutans have become one of my favorite animals. Maybe it's the way they show their love towards one another and towards humans that fills my eyes with happy tears. They hug, and kiss and play just like any human being but in an extremely adorable way!!! Sadly, this species I like so much has been suffering greatly because of our selfish capitalistic mindset. During the past 20 years, the orangutan habitat has decreased by 90% due to palm oil production and around 1000-5000 orangutans are killed each year through deforestation. The orangutans that managed to survive the tree-cutting and fires, are either sold as pets for entertainment or become salves of orangutan brothels. Yes, you read correctly! Sex slaves for human pleasure. This was all exposed in an article about Pony, an orangutan that was rescued in Borneo after years of sexual slavery. Her story was so horrific and the pictures so heartbreaking, I promised myself to read every product label carefully to avoid buying things with palm oil. Now, you might be asking yourself “What the hell is palm oil?” Well, palm oil is an oil derived from the fruit of the oil palm tree and is pretty much in every freaking product we buy! Not kidding. Shampoos, soaps, body lotions, peanut butter, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, chips and even our most delicious frenemy, chocolate! Luckily, an increasing amount of brands are coming up with vegan alternatives to all palm-oil containing products. Walgreens just came up with it’s own eco-friendly & cruelty-free line, Ology. From printing paper to cleaning supplies. Walgreens has become one of my weekly stops and Ology one of my best friends. Frustrated Farmgirl's palm oil free soaps are also my recent addiction. Click here to buy them.

Little by little I’ll start sharing my favorite 100% vegan products via instagram and blog posts. In the meantime, try to read labels when you go shopping. If you see “palm oil” in the ingredients, scream NEXT and move on! Look for love words like: cruelty-free, vegan, no animal testing, no animals harmed, palm oil free, and lastly…the bunny logo. I know it’s a pain and we just “don’t have the time” but see it as your drop of kindness towards our planet. Simple steps that make a huge difference. <3

To read more about palm oil production or Pony’s story click links below. 

http://www.orangutans.com.au/Orangutans-Survival-Information/About-Palm-Oil.aspx

http://orangutan.or.id/ponys-new-life-2/