Bye Bye 2019 for the List

I am ready to to be done with 2019, it was an interesting year of growth and being tested. I’ve got my Green Dreamer planner ready for serious goals and fun for 2020 – new adventures, new recipes, getting out more, and conquering being a manager. Sounds good, right?

How was your Christmas? Ours was pretty awesome filled with multiple family gatherings, lots of great eats, and drinking … maybe too much of that, haha. I tried to keep it healthy between gatherings with simple stir fries and huge salads.

But had an impressive plate on Christmas Eve loaded with vegan pesto pasta, super decadent vegan mac n’ cheese we made with chickpea pasta, and salad. A plate full of tasty pasta is not a bad way to celebrate!

We had a selection of dessert options for Christmas Eve, but I brought the Daiya Plant-Based New York Cheezecake because it ticked all of our family dietary need boxes – peanut free, gluten free, and vegan. I have never tried a Daiya Cheezecake before and was very impressed! It was creamy, rich, decadent, and delicious! Something I will be bringing to future family events.

Christmas morning was quietly celebrated at home with the pups and gifts. Miko had a new toy to unwrap while Leela just wanted treats and a warm bed in front of the fireplace. And I got a stocking full of treats from sweet hubby.

Other gifts included the new Scott Jurek book, a throwback Aladdin video game I played as a kid, Super Mario Board Game, RingFit Adventure for the Switch which is actually a hard workout, Moby’s new book, and a Matt & Nat vegan leather jacket that is much more stylish than my current selection of jackets.

Breakfast was coffee with Silk Nog and healthier Hilary’s plant based breakfast sausage and Kashi vegan waffles – I was keeping it simple this year.

We had Christmas Day dinner at my dad’s house with family where we had another Trader Joe’s vegan roast and an ambitious sweet potato vegan lasagna I made with tofu ricotta that came out pretty good.

I took Thursday and Friday off work to relax and recover from the holidays, it was a much needed few days of rest! And a great opportunity to visit our favorite local restaurants I have not been to in awhile with our busier work schedules. I got to Pho Vegan Asian Cuisine for lunch one day where the vegan wonton soup with noodles hit the spot on a cold day.

Then to Zest Kitchen for a delicious lunch of a veggie hummus wrap and a kicky warm bowl of Kitchari soup with fall flavored kombucha – yum.

We also made it to a new restaurant in Sacramento I’ve been itching to try since a burger from their vegan menu won in the Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge – Culinerdy Kitchen. It’s a fun, nerdy themed laid back place with games and comic themed decor that we’ll be going back to especially with such a creative and large plant-based menu. And great local beer.

The vegan burgers and creative house-made veggie patties with other themed ingredients I really loved and tried the Dirty Hippie burger first paired with Flash Fried Brussels Sprouts. The burger patty is made from mushrooms, grains, black beans, roasted tomato, and onion for a flavorful combo. It was a delicious creation!

Hubby for the Vegan Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup and Fries for a winter comfort meal that was also delicious. Can’t wait to get back there!

Now I’m finishing laundry and preparing to go back to work tomorrow which will be tough after a few fun and relaxing days of sleeping in!

The List:

• 11 vegan Instagram accounts to follow.
• Need to get back to Berkeley soon!
• Best vegan cookbooks to add to your collection.
• Vegan Bryan Adams is looking damn good at 60.
• Vegan party Snacks for NYE.
• More vegan celebrities.
• Best vegan dessert recipes of 2019.
• Make smaller goals instead of big resolutions for the new year.
• Essential Zen Habits if 2019.