HOW TO: Poached Eggs

From my previous post, it seemed that a few people wanted a more detailed description on how to make the poached eggs. Ask and you shall receive!

Step one: Fill a pot up with 3-4 inches of water and set to boil. Grab ANY mug and line it with cling wrap.

Step 2: Line the cling wrap with non-stick spray or coconut or olive oil to keep the egg from sticking. Then put in the raw egg.

Step 3: When the water is boiling, twist the top of the cling wrap to keep the egg inside, and then place the whole pouch in the water. Set the timer for 3 minutes.

Step 4: Pull the top of the saran wrap (carefully, it was just in boiling water...) and then release the egg on to your plate. PERFECTLY COOKED!

Let me know if you try it!! SO easy and a great way to get in lots of protein! :) 

xo

Healthy, Vegan, burgers?

To carry on the healthy food for 2015... let's have burgers!

I went to "Bareburger" in Astoria, Queens this weekend to celebrate finding a new apartment with Chase! :) We finally found one that was going to work for us, which was fantastic, and we celebrated with burgers.

This burger is a Sweet Potato and Rice patty served with hummus and tomatos on a collard green leaf! Stay tuned, because you better believe I will be recreating this at home.

Check out your local burger places for vegetarian or vegan burgers for a more tummy conscious option! The Collard green leaf did nothing to satisfy you desire for a burger bun but I enjoyed it. Of course you can ask for a regular bun though ;)

Hope your SECOND week of 2015 is FANTASTIC! Stay tuned for more food tips :)

xo

Hello, 2015

New year, new resolutions.

Everyone is coming up with their new years resolution this week, including me. Of course, like many others, improving my health and happiness is definitely a priority for me this year. However, I also want to challenge myself with more recipes, taking more risks and doing things a little different.

Yesterday morning I made Chase and myself this breakfast! It was delicious!! I wanted to go all out and make eggs Benedict but every recipe I looked up for Hollandaise sauce called for a STICK or more of butter! This was unreal to me. So I spun it a little differently. Instead I put some Siracha cream sauce on the toast, a piece of smoked salmon and 2 poached eggs.

It was simply delightful and much healthier for us!

Nutrition Facts:

353 calories

28 g. protein

13.5 g. carbohydrates

13.1 g. fat

Preparing poached eggs may seem tedious but recently I have discovered the easiest way!! boil around 3 inches of water in a sauce pan. Take a mug, and line it with plastic wrap. In the plastic wrap, spray or coat it with coconut oil or vegetable oil to keep the egg from sticking. Put in one egg and seal the top of the plastic wrap by twisting it. Place the "baggies" of eggs in your pot for 3 minutes and 30 seconds. When you remove the plastic it makes the perfect poached egg and you won't lose al of those great whites!! :) 

Instead of limiting my calories or restricting things I love, I am really going to focus my energies on moderation.

I was a vegan for a few months and I was gaining weight because of a lack of protein. I simply could not get enough greens in to get the appropriate amount of protein, and since introducing eggs and fish back into my diet, I have lost around 5 lbs. 

By the end of this year I hope to be 25 lbs lighter. I want to be really confident in my body. More recently I have been. Instead of being hard on the parts of my body I don't like, I've been complimenting little things I DO like about myself and it has totally improved and helped me in my weightloss journey.

Expect to hear from me more often! It is my goal to take one picture a day this year. Let's all keep up with our resolutions!!

Hope you all are doing well.

LUSH HAUL

I one hundred percent went overboard at LUSH today. But I don't regret it. My bill came to over $100. The lady at the shop offered that they are hiring for the Christmas holiday and I may just have to do that to make up for my splurge!!!

HAVE YOU SEEN THE SPARKLY PUMPKIN BUBBLE BAR? SO freaking cute. I have been working out a lot and I have a date with it and my bathtub tonight and I 100% can't wait!

I think it's important to pamper yourself from time to time. All the time isn't right, because then it isn't special when it's pamper time!! I went to LUSH with the intent to get this bubble bar, and a few of the other Fall and Christmas special products and that I did! I went in on my lunch break from work. I was in a slight rush, but luckily the store was empty and I found all the things I wanted quite quickly!! 

I got my favorite lip scrub: Mint Julips Lip Scrub today! It's a bit of a splurge for me - $10.  I love the directions on this little bucket of magic goodness!! "Scrub on and then lick off the excess." SO delicious and amazing. I usually will use this up and then make my own a few times in the same jar and then I'll buy another one because I can't make one as good as this. SUCH soft lips and it just feels good to pamper them every day! :)

What's a BUBBLE BAR?
Crumble a Bubble Bar under warm water as your bath is filling up. This will release its scent and bubbles and make your bath irresistible for you to get in!

What's a Bath Bomb?
Once you have ran your bath and put in the bubbles that you want, get in and then break a piece of your bath bomb off and drop it in the tub. As it fizzes and froths up, get ready for a colorful show. Colors will erupt and the scent and sound of the bomb fizzing will be an amazing and relaxing experience for your bath. 

I have linked the rest of the things I bought below. Stay tuned I'm going to do some reviews of the products and give you my input on whether or not it's worth all its hype!!

Wizard Bubble Bar - I bought two of these, so one of my lucky friends will be receiving one! :)
Lord of Misrule Bath Bomb 
Father Christmas Bath Bomb
Holly Golightly Bubble Bar
Dashing Santa Bath Bomb
The Christmas Hedgehog Bubble Bar

I hope you relax and try some of these holiday favorites in your next bath!

xo

Hey!

Hello!

Me and my boyfriend, Chase, at my brother's wedding.
He is my toughest and first critic for every recipe!

I wanted to start by introducing myself. I am Caroline Kretsch (or CK) and I wanted to share my life with all of you. I am a social media marketer at a large international company by day, but a vegan chef (amateur) by night! 

It is my goal to sweep the nation with animal cruelty free healthy meals that are far more delicious than anything you can get on the streets! I have always been a foodie. My mom's family is from France and my dad's is from Germany, so cheese, bread, bratwurst, burgers and beer were huge staples in my life, until I decided to cut out those things.

It all started when I would get home from a delicious and calorie filled lunch at Chipotle in college, and only want to take a nap. I thought food was supposed to be FUEL, how come it made me so sleepy!? And thus, I started eating less and less meat and started to feel more and more energized. 

When you first go vegetarian, it seems so easy... Mac and cheese, Vegetarian lasagna, Grilled Cheese, etc all delicious meals, with SUCH high fat content. And that's when I started playing with the idea about being Vegan. The hardest thing about being vegan is that it is different among your friends and family, and to restaurants. I go to restaurants from time to time with NO naturally vegan options on the menu. NOT ONE ITEM with zero animal products. It's crazy! Yet, I still try to stay true to it. Because being vegan is the best way for me to remain healthy, lose weight, and feel good about myself after every meal.

Stay tuned for great recipes, tips from a vegan, and mostly just life hacks and DIY projects from one 24 year old living in New York.

Ask and you shall receive. Share your favorite non-vegan meal and I will attempt to create a vegan equivalent for you to try that will be delicious and nutritious!

xo