The BEST Vietnamese salad roll, ever.

I absolutely LOVE Vietnamese salad rolls. Whether it is the traditional one with shrimp, minced pork, Vietnamese ham, or whatever, they are one of my favourite ways to eat a salad because who has the time to sit down and eat nowadays?! They are great for an on-the-go lunch or snack and are even more delicious with a few dabs of Sriracha and hoisin sauce. Mm….

Lately I have been finding myself skipping the rice noodles traditionally found encased inside the roll as a lighter and healthier way to eat my rolls. I usually throw more lettuce or greens in there but sometimes, I do miss those carb-y noodles. I hadn’t ever found a suitable substitute those noodles…UNTIL NOW.

Introducing to you, my raw enoki mushroom and avocado salad rolls.

Killer lettuce wraps.

Looking for an innovative and refreshing way to eat your food? Skip the tortilla wraps and use some leafy greens instead! I present to you my avocado, shrimp and egg lettuce wraps.

Tofu “cheese”cake?

A long time ago, I made a delicious tofu “cheese”cake that was “almost vegan”. I hated explaining that it was “almost vegan” because it had contained chocolate. I think that recipe isn’t even posted on here at all — it was way before Umami & Me’s time! But ever since then, I have been on a mission to make a completely vegan tofu cheesecake and I think I have finally created it. And not to mention this one is not only vegan, but it is also gluten-free AND (for the most part) sugar-free as well! Oh. My. God.

I would like to introduce to you my banana coconut tofu “cheese”cake.

The best chocolate cake ever.

And what’s even more exciting about it? It’s vegan, gluten-free AND raw. Yes, folks. Probably the best thing ever created. This pure genius idea was brought to you by Chocolate Covered Katie, one of my favourite dessert blogs ever. She makes all the traditional desserts into delicious, healthy ones that you don’t end up feeling guilty about!

This was the first recipe I’ve tried out from her website and I haven’t looked back since. Her raw chocolate banana fudge cake is to die for.

An unlikely combination.

As much as I absolutely love cooking, there are days where I just want something made for me. Sadly, I live by myself (well, with a roommate but that doesn’t count) so I’m responsible for all of the cooking. This is where frozen food and instant noodles come in. I usually always have some food frozen in my freezer. And no, not just food that I’ve made. I’m talking about store bought tortellini, soups, shrimp  — you name it. I’m totally guilty!!! And not ashamed. A girl’s gotta eat, y’know!

But sometimes there are just those random ingredients that just sit there FOREVER and in my freezer, it’s those sad mixed vegetable medleys. That, or peas. Sick of seeing the same frozen organic green peas over and over again, I was inspired to make a green pea, sunflower seed and miso pesto.

Raw pie?

Well, almost. I cheated a little…but it’s possible!

I’ve been wanting to do a raw for ages but just never got around to actually doing it. I was finally inspired to do it when I bought a lb of raw hazelnuts and got my bi-weekly shipment of fresh blueberries from my friend G. It was time — time to make a summer berry pie.

A Thai take on pistou.

As you may know, I am a huge fan of pistou. Again, if you aren’t familiar with what a pistou is, it is basically a blended sauce comprised of various herbs, garlic and oil. I’ve made so many different pistous but my favourite would have to be of the cilantro variety.

Today I mixed it up a bit and made a cilantro and scallion pistou.

Asian pesto.

Well, technically it’s a pistou but since so many people are more familiarized with the term pesto, I decided to use that term instead (a pistou is similar to a pesto but it does not contain cheese or nuts). But this recipe here is very close to a pesto, you’ll see why. But…an Asian pistou!? Yes, my friends, I was inspired. Inspired to experiment in the kitchen with yet another chilled noodle salad. This time around? Soba noodles with chive, parsley and miso pistou.

Party/potluck food.

Bringing food to parties or potlucks can be a daunting task. But it just takes a little planning, scrounging around in the cupboard and stepping outside to your garden for fresh herbs. Atleast in my world it is. But seriously. It should be a simple task, no?

I had a family dinner recently and not only was I tasked to bring dessert, I was also asked to bring an appetizer as well! 7 good eaters…what was I to bring? I looked around my house and it came to me: brown rice and chick pea salad.

The whitest sushi ever.

I’m talking about the infamous California roll.