Life As A Veggie: vegan

Vegan beauty product review: AA Vegan skin care.

5:06 AM
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Green smoothies

Hi guys and dolls! Today we will talk about something quite interesting, green smoothies. These smoothies are very popular for the fact that they are full of vitamins, minerals, phyto-nutrients, and they are very quick and easy to make. They usually contain vegetables, fruits and a liquid base. The most obvious benefit of shakes is that they help us consume more fruits and vegetables on a daily basis, but they have many more!

For example, if you are a person who does not have much time to prepare breakfast every morning, you can leave your green smoothie ready the night before and blend it all together it in the morning. It's as easy to make as it is to drink! But that's not everything, they are also portable! You can blend it, put it in a thermos or mason jar and take it on the way to work or school.

Now, if you have never tasted or made a green smoothie, we have the perfect formula so you can do it in the comfort of your home!

First of all, you have to choose a liquid base, it can be mineral water, coconut water, soy milk, if you want to give it a particular flavor, you can even add orange juice! Then, choose a vegetable. The most recommended are leafy greens, for example spinach, lettuce, or kale (among others). Finally, the fruit that you like the most. I personally love to add strawberries, because the flavor is strong and it hides the taste of vegetables a bit.

The formula is the following:

2 cups of liquid
2 cups of vegetables
3 cups of fruit
Juice of half a lemon

Optional:

1 tbspn seeds (chia, flax, hemp,etc.)
1 tbspn peanut butter
1/4 cup oatmeal

It is very important to wash fruits and vegetables very well, as they can have residues of chemicals, herbicides and pesticides, which are very harmful to our body. To facilitate liquefying, it is good to chop the vegetables a little and put them first in the blender, so that the vegetables are below and the fruits are up, which will guarantee that the vegetables are liquefied well.

And Voila! You have your green smoothie. See how easy it is? There is no excuse for not having a healthy breakfast. Whenever you want, you can modify the recipe, you can put a cup of a fruit, and a cup of another fruit, or put two cups of kale and one of spinach. The magic is in getting the one you like the most!

This recipe makes two servings so it's perfect to share with friends or to save up for a mid-morning snack.

Thanks a lot for reading! If you have any questions or comments let me know in the comment box below ;)

3:50 AM
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Review: Ecotools starter brush set.

beauty

Hey everyone! Today I'm going to be reviewing my favorite makeup brushes, Ecotool's Starter Brush Set. As a vegan in the making and a passionate animal rights activist; I always look for vegan/cruelty free alternatives to everyday things. Here in Venezuela, that's something that is really hard to achieve. So, imagine my surprise when a few years ago I found these babies in a beauty store in a local mall. I actually hadn't heard about this brand before, so I googled it when I got home. When I found out these brushes are vegan and made out of sustainable materials (like bamboo) I pretty much RAN back to the mall to buy them. First time I tried these brushes, three things stood out to me:

They are extremely soft. I am not kidding. I can imagine clouds being as soft as these brushes. These are the best synthetic bristles I've ever seen!
Perfect set for starters. It's pretty basic, it has a concealer brush, eye shading brush, blush brush, angled eyeliner brush and a lash and brow groomer. This allows for anyone to create a complete makeup look without having to use any other brushes. I personally find the angled eyeliner brush a bit wide, so I use it to fill in my eyebrows and I clean it off to apply highlighter in the inner corners of my eyes.
Perfect quality/price ratio. For certain reasons, these brushes can't be found in Venezuela anymore (And if you find them, they're very, very, very expensive). Some people sell them online but the price is still going to be exorbitant. The moment I bought them, the price was really really good, and by what I can appreciate in online stores that sell these bad boys, the prices are perfect for the quality of the product you're getting. If you're looking for good quality/low price brushes, these are the perfect choice for you. I use these brushes daily and I've never had bristles come off or anything of the sort, not even when I wash them.

Usually when I buy something that hasn't been recommended by someone I act a bit skeptical, but these brushes were an amazing surprise. I totally recommend them 100%. I bought the set pictured below, but you can get the same set in a new design at www.EcoTools.com

I hope you liked this post. If you have any review, comment or question make sure to leave it in the comment section below. Thank a ton for reading. Stay awesome!

4:03 PM
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Top 6 vegetarian/vegan sources of protein.

almonds

Hi there! So if you've been a vegetarian/vegan for a long time or you've just started, the question you're probably already tired of hearing is "Where do you get your protein?!". Before you start vegangelizing, you have to think about the awesome opportunity before you. You've got the chance to look smart and make vegetarianism/veganism look as good as it actually is. The challenge is in doing it without sounding annoying or making the other person get mad at you. So, here are some pointers to giving a calm, normal answer to this incredibly annoying question.

First of all, we need to get something straight. What is protein? Proteins are biological molecules made up of chains of aminoacids. What protein does is help the body create new cells, build and repair new tissue. It's obviously a big deal. But consuming protein without eating meat (or any other animal products) is really not that hard. In fact, many people consume too much protein! Your first thought probably is "Well, the more the better, right?". Well not really. Consuming too much protein for an extended period of time can cause some serious problems on your bones and organs.

So, let's cut to the chase here. What are some good sources of protein for us vegetarians/vegans? Well, there are tons! All plants have protein (Some more than others evidently) so we don't really need to look so far. Here are my personal favorites!

Beans beans beans!: Lentils, black, chickpeas, soy! They're all super tasty, super awesome and super healthy! Beans contain more protein than any other vegetable source, so they are an absolute must in your diet! They are also very high in fiber, so they'll make you feel full for hours (totally awesome aid in wheight loss! I think... I hope! Haha)!
Nuts: Self explanatory: Nuts about nuts!
Whole grains: Grains are great to pack a protein punch into you diet! Rice is always a great option, but quinoa (even though it's technically a seed) is worth a try too!
Green veggies: Yep! Green veggies! Kale, spinach, lettuce, swiss chard are full of protein! For instance, every 100 grams of Kale contains 4,3 grams of protein! Amazing right?
Seeds: These are like the best addition to any meals! Flaxseed, chia, hemp, you name it, it's good for you! They're so easy to add to your diet you can't not try them! High in fiber, omega-3 and protein.
Plant milk: You've got soy, almond, oatmeal, hemp, hazelnut, coconut! They all have their advantages; protein, calcium, vitamin E, magnesium, selenium, manganese, etc.

So, these are my six personal favorites. Do you guys eat any of the things I mentioned? And If you do, how do you add them into your diet?

All comments are welcome!

Thanks for reading!

8:00 AM
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Vegetarian rambling.

blog

Hello there. You probably know some stuff about me already. I'm a girly girl, with too many interests to name them all and a really big soft spot for animals. Ever since I was a little girl, animals fascinated me. All of them, not only the cats and dogs. I used to collect pet magazines, wildlife articles, anatomy booklets, a little bit of everything. I was subscribed to horse illustrated when I was living in Miami and still go through my old magazines (9 year old magazines). When I was about twelve, I remember I was browsing the greenpeace page and thought that I should become a vegetarian. I hated the thought of eating an animal. I didn't really know about the cruel treatment they went through, I just thought eating an animal was horrid. I went over to my mom and told her I didn't wanna eat meat anymore, but she gave me a long speech about how we need meat to survive. Since I didn't really do any research about the subject, I didn't know how to argue against what she said. During the last year I was an omnivore I reduced my intake of meat, eating it probably once or twice a week instead of every single day. What really made me make the decision to switch to vegetarianism was reading Peta's vegetarian starter kit. The facts overwhelmed me so I made the decision. I've been vegetarian for 9 months now.

After that, I took it upon myself to learn more about the subject, and veganism popped up. As soon as I can, I'll become vegan. It hasn't been easy being a vegetarian, and I imagine being vegan must be even worse. I don't refer to the diet as much as the support of my friends and family. It's amazing how most people have supported me. Even the ones that don't agree with the way I feel about eating meat always think about me when making food. When I go to my best friend's house, she makes me a cheese sandwich instead of a ham sandwich like everyone else. And it doesn't bother her. Same as my across the street neighbor. We made pizza the other day, and she was thoughtful enough to take out some cheese for me and put cheese on half the pizza so I could have as much as I wanted. My mom has also made changes in our menu just so I can have what everyone is having too.

Of course, there are those days when no one really thinks about me. It kinda sucks considering I've always thought that is it was the other way around, and I had to make food for them, I'd always try to give them something they like too. I guess there are things that just take time. I feel happy, and as long as I feel good about what I'm doing and how I'm living, I'm ok :)