Summer Recap

Somehow another month has passed without a blog post or recipe to share with you, but I'm going to try to make it up with some new recipes starting next week! I made a big batch of soup this week that I'll be sharing here soon, and I hope to start making some pumpkin treats this weekend too!

In the meantime, I thought I would do a post about what I've been eating over the summer - even though I didn't spend as much time cooking or developing my own recipes, I still enjoyed lots of good food!

A lot of my meals were super simple dinners that I could throw together quickly as I was so busy working on my dissertation. I ate a lot of toast with various toppings like avocado or sliced radishes with butter or hummus, and I loved eating fresh tomato and basil sandwiches. I also added a cob of corn to my meals whenever I found local corn at the grocery store!

Near the beginning of the summer, I made a big batch of veggie burgers at my parents' house so that I could pull one out of the freezer any time I was there for dinner and needed a vegetarian option. I loved the flavour and texture of these BBQ chickpea burgers from Oh She Glows, and they made the perfect summer meal with a side of potato or pasta salad!

I always love eating panzanella in the summertime. I usually stick to traditional combinations of ingredients like tomatoes, cucumber, basil and sometimes cheese, but I really liked this fruity variation with strawberries and cantaloupe that I threw together!

On the right is a pasta salad that I made twice this summer - it's a variation of this recipe from the blog archives, but with some changes to the veggies (like corn instead of peas and extra zucchini and cucumber) and I left out the tofu and walnuts. My favourite part of this salad is the creamy lemony basil dressing!

For other quick and easy meals, I made pasta with avocado sauce (pictured on the right), following this recipe from Oh She Glows, and zucchini noodles with a sauce I whipped together using hummus (on the left). I didn't use my spiralizer as much this summer compared to last year, but I still love "zoodles"!

For Canada Day in July, I brought these red and white cream cheese-stuffed strawberries to a party and while they got pretty messy on the trip there, they were still a hit! I can't remember the exact recipe I followed, but this one from The Comfort of Cooking is a good example!

I managed to break out my ice cream maker once over the summer to make this chocolate stout ice cream. I followed a recipe from The Beeroness, but with a few minor changes (I reduced the sugar, left out the toasted coconut, and added a bit of arrowroot powder to thicken it). I thought it had just the right balance of chocolate and beer flavours, and I loved how it stayed creamy rather than turning icy in the freezer like other vegan ice creams tend to do.

Other than my homemade ice cream, I ate a lot of delicious ice cream treats over the summer, from countless bowls of self-serve frozen yogurt, to an amazing lemon meringue pie cone, to a couple of treats that I haven't had in ages - a cookies and cream milkshake and an ice cream float!

I also visited food trucks a few times over the summer, as my city has developed a pretty good food truck culture over the past couple of years. It's usually hard to find vegetarian options, but I loved this kale salad and flatbread with brie and peach chutney!

Finally, I also enjoyed many meals out at restaurants over the summer. Our patio weather seemed a bit limited this year, but I still tried to enjoy eating out on patios as much as I could!  Pictured above clockwise is some halloumi and fried zucchini crostini, caramelized onion grilled cheese, a tofu sofritas burrito bowl from my very first visit to Chipotle, and more Mexican food with tacos, chips, and guacamole.


Hope you all had nice relaxing summers and are ready for all the exciting things that come with fall, like pumpkin, soups, and Thanksgiving food!  Personally, I wouldn't mind a few more weeks of sunshine and warm weather though ;)

Vegan Tropical Mango Ice Cream

As I mentioned in my last post, I just got my first ice cream maker this summer. I was always so jealous of other bloggers who dream up such inventive flavour combinations for ice cream that they can actually make at home, so I'm excited that I can finally join in!

So far, I've only experimented with vegan ice creams using coconut milk as the base rather than heavy cream or eggs. I figure I can go out and and buy decadent ice cream any time I want, so if I'm going to go to the effort of making my own personalized ice cream, I might as well take advantage of the opportunity to make it a bit healthier too!

I love tropical flavours and anything with mango, so when I saw a recipe for frozen mango coconut "thaiphoon" ice cream in my Vegan Planet cookbook, I knew I had to give it a try.

The ice cream itself is a blend of coconut milk, lime juice, and pureed mango, and I guess the "thaiphoon" part comes from the toppings that are added afterwards - chopped nuts, toasted coconut, and diced mango (which I forgot to add until after I took my photos and devoured most of the bowl!).

I liked this ice cream best just after it was churned, when it was still soft-serve consistency with a super creamy texture.

The ice cream itself wasn't too sweet and had hints of coconut and mango flavours with just enough lime. I loved the crunchy cashews and chewy coconut flakes sprinkled on top, but if you're not a fan of crunchy or chewy pieces in your ice cream, you can definitely eat it on its own and it will be just as tasty!

Now I just need the weather to cooperate and realize it's still supposed to be summer, not fall, so that I can keep making and enjoying more ice cream!

Tropical Mango Ice Cream
Adapted from Vegan Planet

Ice Cream Base

2 tbsp arrowroot powder

1/2 cup non dairy milk (I used almond milk)

2 cans full fat coconut milk

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp agave nectar

1 tsp lime zest

2 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 mango

Toppings (per serving)

~1/4 tsp lime zest (optional)

1 tbsp finely chopped roasted cashews (can substitute peanuts)

2 tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes, toasted

Diced fresh mango (optional)

In a small bowl, stir together the arrowroot and almond milk until smooth.

Add coconut milk to a saucepan and heat on medium until it just starts to simmer. Stir in the arrowroot mixture and reduce heat to medium-low. Continue to heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes, until the mixture has thickened a bit. Remove from heat and stir in the agave, lime zest, lime juice, and vanilla extract.

Puree the mango by cutting it into pieces and blending in the small bowl of a food processor until smooth. To make it easier to blend, add 1-2 tbsp of the coconut milk liquid mixture. Stir the pureed mango back into the ice cream mixture. Let cool, then transfer to a container and chill in the fridge until completely cold, preferably overnight.

When ready, pour mixture into your ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. 

Eat immediately for soft-serve consistency, or return to the freezer for a couple of hours first to firm up more. (Note: if you're eating it from the freezer, let it thaw at room temperature for at least 15-20 minutes first, as it firms up quite a bit after being stored in the freezer for awhile).  

To serve, place desired ice cream amount in a bowl and top with a bit of lime zest, cashews, toasted coconut, and mango (if desired).