hi there!

As some of you may have noticed, I haven't updated the blog in ages. I have been working extra hours, eating pretty poorly (my food has sadly not been blog-worthy lately!), celebrating Christmas with my love and my family, hitting the gym and dealing with an unwelcome bout of conjunctivitis. Yep, I went there.

Some nice organic red wine

Christmas Day was admittedly a bit of a challenge as it was my very first vegan Christmas lunch (last year I was vegetarian). I had a vegan "beef" roast to eat, plus a big kale salad, plus a little pudding from the supermarket that happened to be incidentally vegan. I couldn't eat my Grandma's homemade pudding which was a little heartbreaking as we hardly ever get to see her this time of year, but eating animal products is just not an option for me at all. Needless to say, I stuck to my vegan fare and got through it. If I can get through Christmas lunch unscathed, I can get through anything!

My Christmas was wonderful, and I was showered with love and a shitload of presents. Amongst them were three big bags of chia seeds, Ere Perez lipstick, a Rusk Miracurl hair styler (it's amazing!), a health food hamper from Luke (his hampers are always my favourite), some beautiful nature-like fairy lights for the bedroom, some books, a digital camcorder, a new Moleskine notebook and a Parker pen, Hurraw vegan lip balm, a beautiful teacup and saucer, and an ornate (and very pretty) ceramic dish to place my engagement ring in when I'm not wearing it. And that's only what I can remember! I got totally spoiled, and my gifts were so special and sentimental to me. The boys got a bluestone frying pan, which I might steal as well. 

I bought Luke a barbecue for Christmas, so there has been a lot of that going on. Last night I chose to have a beer and eat a sweet potato burger instead of hitting the gym- the shame! Never mind, I had a great workout tonight anyway.

I am super excited for 2013 to tick over, and will be drinking cocktails with a pack of twelve girls (friends, friends of friends!) and dancing in the city. Should be good! Luke stocked the fridge with Berocca and coconut water for New Year's Day in anticipation of my hangover. I hardly ever drink alcohol anymore, so it will probably be inevitable. I have a whole page of resolutions for 2014 and am looking forward to feeling fit and healthy again; the festive season wasn't kind to my insides, and poor eating feels bad and strange.

Will probably see you guys in the new year! Have fun everyone!

exams and chana masala

I have posted off both my exams! 

They were both quite difficult, I guess because they were the final exams for each of those subjects. Fingers crossed that I passed both. How strange that the first three subjects of my Advanced Diploma in Naturopathy are (almost) complete? And I got through unscathed!

It is very hot outside today. Today has been a bit unproductive, mostly because I know I am going off to work later. I did make a delicious green smoothie (a ton of baby spinach and kale, half a frozen banana, a cup of blueberries, peanut butter, LSA, coconut milk and water) for lunch and worked on a DIY Christmas present, so I haven't done too badly. 

Remember how I said a little while ago that I was feeling a bit uninspired about food and wanted to try some new things? 

Well. I have been craving a vegan curry for ages, like months (I know, such a weird food to crave in summer), and I don't trust Indian takeaway places not to use ghee in the cooking...so I finally made my own! I have never made a curry before so I was a bit unsure of myself, and then I got the idea from Rebecca at Strength and Sunshine. She had a delicious-looking picture of a vegan chana masala on her blog, which inspired mine. I never follow recipes though, I just don't have the patience and would rather just cook intuitively. 

Guys...it turned out AMAZINGLY. I am loving myself sick right now for creating such a tasty delight. It has chickpeas, tomatoes, English spinach, onion, a little bit of coconut milk, a ton of spices, and some fresh coriander on top. It certainly knocked my cravings on the head.

I had banana and coconut as a side because it was very spicy

I added a heap of English spinach for greens

I am going to bring it to work and eat it for dinner tonight, then Luke and I are going to the gym together when I get home. I have been loving the gym lately because it makes me feel happier in my head. I also realised the other day that my tropical  honeymoon is in just over three months and I will have to expose myself in a bikini every day for a week. On top of getting sweaty for my mental health, this is a bit of extra motivation as well. Can't hurt.

five months vegan!

I missed my five-month veganniversary! It was on Friday and I didn't even celebrate. Sad. I guess time flies when you're having (vegan) fun. 

My completed exam is in there, ready to post!

As promised, I have been a better blogger and taken a few more photographs of my food this past few days. I have been eating a lot of kale (what's new?), a lot of summer fruits like watermelon, peaches, cucumbers and my first cherries of the summer. They were delicious, and they gave me digestive upsets because I ate almost half a kilo in one sitting, but I would totally do it all over again. Thanks, farmer's market! 

I love cherries because they feel very "Christmassy" to me. It has been pretty weird reading all my favourite vegan blogs from America and they are all getting cosy by the fire, rugging up and drinking eggnog while I'm wearing denim cut-offs and eating raw fruit by the kilogram. It wouldn't be an Australian Christmas without summer, that's for sure.

These rolls are so fresh

I put apple on top of cucumber and munch it

My Vitamix and I have been getting along famously, although I am still too timid to try doing anything tough with it. I am traumatised by the weaker-motored blender that came before it, even though I logically know that this motor is industrial-strength and could probably liquefy a diamond. I want to make my own cacao-almond butter but the thought of all those nuts whirring around in there makes me nervous for the blender. I'll get there.

It is now ten days until Christmas and I am loving it! I spent today studying and cuddling with my little family (Luke and Totes), in a ratio that I'm not proud of. I also got a haircut. And watched an episode (or two...) of "America's Next Top Model," which I adore. Pick me, Tyra! 

This is a dinner Luke made me for a surprise- thank you my love!

Baby spinach, vegan sausage, baked sweet potato and beetroot with nutritional yeast

Amongst all this frivolity I did manage to complete a big fat exam too, so I am pleased with that. The subject was Naturopathic Philosophy, which sounds all fun and light and airy, but there is a lot of history there to learn and my brain is like a sieve. Tomorrow I have the Herbal Medicine final exam, and then I will have completed the first semester of my diploma! I am a bit ashamed at the volume of dry cereal I ingested while studying though; I have a bit of a snacking issue when I get stressed out. Working on it!

overdrive

We had such a busy weekend! 

Happy December Toto!

I worked Saturday morning then headed out to a barbeque for my work Christmas party. I brought a kale salad with walnuts, apple and cranberries and everyone polished it off (I was happy to see everyone eating their greens with such vigor, although my colleagues were a little tipsy). I didn't want to drink much alcohol since I have already been eating a few too many sugary treats this month, so I brought a single beer, opened it with my teeth because I forgot to bring a bottle opener, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Me and my girlz

On Sunday we chose our Christmas tree from the RSPCA (all proceeds go back to them, so it's a super good way to support homeless animals) and decorated it. It looks so beautiful and the house smells like pine, which never fails to make me feel festive. I have also eaten my body weight in vegan spelt fruit mince pies, which is making me feel very sexy for summer. We also headed out and I bought Luke his Christmas present- a barbeque! Luke has been very nice and only a little bit naughty this year, so I wanted to get him something really awesome. 

Mouth-to-mouth

Also, I am extremely excited to announce that Veganarchy will be baking and decorating our dream wedding cake! We met up with Gabby on Sunday at her market stall, had a quick chat, and left with the knowledge that our wedding cake is in very safe hands and will be perfect and vegan and amazing. If you can't tell, I am stoked. And thank you to Luke for being so happy to have a vegan wedding cake- he is not vegan at all, but is extremely supportive of my vegan ways.

Ben actually can't wait for Christmas

On another note, I promise that I will start taking more photographs of the food I am cooking and eating- this blog is supposed to be about food! For the record, I have mostly just been munching on summer fruit, kale, vegan spelt mince pies and green smoothies. I will be super busy with orthodontic appointments (I am actually so excited!), final exams for Herbal Medicine and Naturopathy in about a week, wedding planning, mad budgeting, and working extra hours over the Christmas and New Year period. Life is about to get cray!

i used my vitamix!

As the title of this post may suggest, my Vitamix arrived in the post and I used it for the very first time today! 

I cannot believe how amazing this machine is; my green smoothie is actually super silky smooth, as opposed to being chewy and lumpy with un-blended fruit and kale. Holy shit. I own a Vitamix. And it's gorgeous. Watching it blend is crazy- the stuff inside literally just turns into liquid. It looks effortless.

Man that shit is smooth

In other news, I have decided to get some much-needed orthodontic work done (that's right, braces!). I am almost twenty-four years old, about to get married and I'm getting braces! To be honest, I am actually pretty excited about it; my teeth have been something I have been self-conscious about for many years, and I am finally doing something about them.  

I can't believe that we are a week into December already- Christmas is three weeks away! And then New Year's- I think 2014 is going to be an awesome year, although I will now have a lot of dental debt so it's going to be financially tight. But I will be married to the love of my life, and I will now be drinking delicious green smoothies as much as I want.