Mom's Parsley Potato Salad

If you grew up in a household where mayonnaise was almost forbidden — though she never admitted it, I’m fairly certain that Mom hates mayo — you can understand why I don’t have a family recipe for a classic (mayo-drenched) potato salad.
It was just not part of Mom’s cooking repertoire.
She did have her own version of potato salad though.
One that involved parsley, lemon, olive oil, capers, but — not surprisingly — zero mayo.

Homemade Almond Joy Bars (Paleo and Vegan)

The Almond Joy is one of the most iconic American candies (together with the Tootsie Roll, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Milk Duds, Butterfinger, etc.)
It’s famous for its creamy coconut filling topped with almonds and covered in milk chocolate.
It also has a sibling, the Mounds bar, which is basically the same, minus the almonds.
And though the recipes for these two candy bars are top secret — just like Coca-Cola or Nutella — it’s possible to recreate these amazing coconutty candies in your own kitchen.
With only a few ingredients you can whip up your own Almond Joy Bars in no time.
Needless to say it, these are way healthier than store bought. As in, gluten-free + grain-free + refined sugar-free + vegan healthier + paleo healthier.

No-Bake 4-Ingredient Chocolate Almond Butter Bars

Almond butter, almond butter, almond butter! It’s the classic saying: “When life gives you almond butter…”
…Or something like that.
When you’ve got heaps of almond butter on your hands, you don’t take that stuff for granted. Instead, you turn it into something even more incredible. Such as double chocolate almond butter brownies, almond butter blondies, almond butter cookies OR almond butter bars.
Yeah, you heard that right, almond butter bars.

The Best (Paleo) Chocolate Chip Cookies

Would you believe me if I say that these cookies are the real deal? That despite being paleo and grain-free they don’t just look appetizing but they are actually delicious? And that you won’t be disappointed when you take the first bite?
You don't?
That's too bad, because these (Paleo) Chocolate Chip Cookies will exceed all your taste and texture expectations.
In fact, I genuinely believe that they are actually better than the original (you know, the cookies made with white flour and sugar).

Smashed Potatoes with Tapenade

This recipe comes from celebrity chef Francis Mallmann whom I’ve discovered thanks to Netflix Original Documentary Series “The Chef’s Table”.
He’s the Argentine god of fire and I’ve cooked a lot from his cookbooks Seven Fires and Mallmann on Fire.
And if it wasn’t for him, I never would have thought to put these two flavors together in all the world of combinations: On one side the tapenade so briny, savory, and aromatic, on the other the ever-so-mellow boiled potato.
Who would have thought that they’d be any good together?
Thankfully Chef Mallmann did and he had the fortitude to put it in his cookbook for me to find.

(Vegan) Creamy Chipotle Spaghetti

Okay seriously people, I can barely stand how delicious this is. It’s going to knock your socks off, roll them into a little ball, and return them to your sock drawer.
But it won’t blow your budget or your time, because you can make this in 15 minutes or less.
You in?
I love easy, quick, and delicious recipes that free up time for other things.
Having quick recipes you can get on the table in a snap is so helpful to anyone trying to juggle too many balls in the air. Which is pretty much everyone on earth nowadays. We are all so busy.

(I Can’t Believe It’s Meatless) Mushroom Lentil "Meatloaf"

I’m sorry guys for the long recipe title. I know that it’s annoying and I tried every which way to shorten it but I wanted it to describe the awesomeness of this dish, hence the long title.
But you see, when the process of perfecting a recipe takes time (a lot of time) and what normally takes a couple of days of testing ended up taking over a week to finally hit the mark, you want to showcase it in all its glory.
So there you have it: (I Can’t Believe It’s Meatless) Mushroom Lentil “Meatloaf”.
A title that requires parentheses and quotes.

(Vegan) Easy Coconut Green Curry Lentils

If you know anything about me, you know that I do love me a good curry lentil.
In my humble opinion lentils are perfect for curries: They pair perfectly with spices, help thicken the sauce, and cook down and get super soft and yummy.
I already have a couple of pretty awesome curry lentil recipes on this blog too. Including some spectacular red curry lentils, my worldwide famous red lentil and spinach tikka masala and a recent addition, the Crock-pot Thai curry lentils, that has quickly become a new favorite.

Mom's Chocolate Pudding

In my forced departure from chewable-food, I dusted-off some old recipes that I haven’t made in years and asked friends and family for their own recipes that don’t require heavy use of your jaws. Needless to say it, a large number of pudding recipes showed up in my inbox.
It’s funny that when somebody is in no condition to flex those cheek muscles to smile, let alone to chew food, pudding is the first thing that comes to mind.
Which hardly ever happens, pudding is not that popular. Seriously, when was the last time you had pudding? Or thought about pudding?

Creamy Banana Breakfast Smoothie

I got one wisdom teeth out yesterday. Ouch!
I’m still numb/sore and most of all irritated by the fact that I cannot eat solid food.
When you get a wisdom tooth pulled, the rule of thumb is to chew as little as possible, eat cold foods to soothe the mouth, and avoid seeds and hot spices (as they’ll irritate the wound).
In other words you can have smoothies, juices, and ice-cream during the first few days, and when the wound starts to heal you can start eating hot food such as soup, mashed potatoes, and other non-chewable things like hummus, applesauce, etc.
So, no solid food and no strenuous physical activity. Which begs the question: What the heck I am supposed to do then if I cannot eat and train?
I dunno, I dunno people