Pure Luck Restaurant and Pub

707 N Heliotrope St
LA, CA 90029


So after an amazing matinee show of West Side Story at the Pantages Theater, Steven and I wanted to find a good place to eat and I suggested we use my fancy phone app that finds vegan restaurants and it suggested Pure Luck. I picked this one because it was right across the street from Scoops which serves vegan ice cream, but it was too cold to get some afterwards haha maybe another days

It is a small restaurant off of Melrose with good service and good atmosphere. Some may call it a "hole in the wall" place, but I think it has character:)
They serve vegan "mexican", but I had the chickpea salad, which was similar to chicken salad but made with garbanzo beans and served over romaine lettuce with a vegan caesar dressing. I really enjoyed my meal.

Steven ordered a tofu taco and a baja burrito with a side of sweet potato fries. I can personally say the fries were great and he said he really enjoyed his meal and would like to try the burrito with the tofu next time because the he liked the tofu in the taco. He also got Mexi-Coke and said it was good and came in an awesome bottle.

The coolest thing that happened though was at first they forgot or lost our order so we had been sitting and waiting without food for about 45 minutes and the waitress came to apologize and the meal was free!
"Patience is a virtue friendos."-Taylor Bouknight

We gave a good tip though because they were kind and the food was still good.

Overall, I'd say it was a good restaurant and I would go back to try something else at some point, however, it was not the most amazing place in the world. Fun place to sit and talk with friends and I will go back when I can get some vegan ice cream afterwards:D

I am excited to try out more vegan places in LA though because there are so many. Half the fun is the spontaneity and exploration!

hope you enjoy:)
you are loved.

A Lunch of Sweet Potato, Onion, Pineapple and Tempeh

More Vegan Recipes!
This one was SUPER good and can be served either by itself, with some rice, over rice noodles, or over a salad. Really good flavors though:D

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
*1 teaspoon salt (I used pink salt...and I will have a blog about why you should use it too!)
*1 teaspoon chili powder
*1/2 teaspoon cumin
*1/4 teaspoon cayenne
*2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
*2 medium onions, peeled and cut into 1 - 2 inch long strips
*1 - 1 1/2 cups pineapple chunks
*2/3 block of tempeh cut into 1/2 inch cubes
*1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
*olive oil

START YOUR OVENS...375!
you will need two baking sheets, each with a piece of wax paper covering.
in a small dish, mix the salt, chili powder, cumin and cayenne well.
in a bowl, toss the sweet potato chunks with approx. 3 tablespoons olive oil (that isn't exact science...I just drizzled some in and tossed the potatoes until they were evenly coated).
sprinkle the spices in a little at a time and toss the potatoes so the spices spread evenly. Depending on the amount of 'kick' you want, you could use all the spice or half or 3/4 of what you made...personal preference. For me, about 2/3 was just right.
spread the potatoes evenly across one of the baking sheets and set aside.
in either the same bowl rinsed out, or another bowl, toss the onion slices and tempeh with some olive oil and the garlic. spread the onion and tempeh evenly across the other baking sheet.
on top of the onion and tempeh, evenly distribute the pineapple.
place both sheets in the oven, either the potatoes on the upper wrack and onion on the lower wrack, or side by side.
bake for 30-40 minutes or until sweet potatoes are soft.
serve with the onions, tempeh and pineapple over the potatoes.
make sure your first bite had all of the different flavors on it!

hope you enjoy:)
you are loved.

Hummus Sandwich

Hooray for the many ideas my new vegan cookbook has given me!
This one was inspired by a homemade hummus wrap from the book but I improvised with what I had in my house.
Super delicious and it is one of those meals you just feel healthy eating haha

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
*2 slices of gluten-free bread (I used Ezekial with sesame seeds)
*about 1/4 cup hummus, prepared or homemade (recipe to follow soon)
*cucumber sliced thin
*broccoli sprouts
*two romaine lettuce leaves
*2 slices of almond pepperjack vegan cheese

START YOUR TOASTER OVENS
toast the bread until starting to brown and then add the slices of cheese, one on each piece of bread.
then simply add the cucumbers, hummus, sprouts, and lettuce and its done!
I bet tomato would be a great thing to add too but we didn't have any in the house.
Also, I want to try and make a hummus sandwich with caramelized onion and peppers sometime...sounds delicious, right?
I will let ya know when I make it :D
but for now...

HOPE YOU ENJOY:)
you are loved.

Dirty Rice

For Christmas Santa gave me the most amazing vegan cookbook ever! I started putting post it notes on pages as soon as I opened it and the first recipe I wanted to try was this version of dirty rice.
I tweeked it a bit and added beans for a little contrast.
The book is inspiring so many ideas and cannot wait to post ore amazing recipes!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
*2 cups rice (brown or white...i used brown)
*1/4 - 1/2 cup pinto beans
*1/4 - 1/2 cup black beans
*olive oil
*1-2 diced onions
*1 bell pepper diced(any color but I used orange because I had it on hand)
*2 stalks diced celery
*2 tsp. minced garlic
*1 tsp. ground cumin
*1/2 tsp. oregano
*1 tsp. dry mustard
*1/2 tsp. thyme
*1/2 tsp. cayenne
*1 tsp. paprika
*salt


START:by preparing your rice...whether it is microwavable, stove top, boil in a bag, etc.

NEXT: heat about 3 tablespoons oil and the garlic in a large frying pan over medium heat for about 1 minute. then add the onion, bell pepper and celery.
when the onions start to brown, add the black and pinto beans and mix for about 2 minutes.

add in the rice, a little bit at a time, so all ingredients combine. finally add all the spices and stir the mixture so spices are evenly distributed.

cover the pan and let it sit over low-medium heat for about five minutes and then check.
Mine was done pretty fast but depending on how done you want the rice you can wait longer.
I had this with some veggies and was completely content but I bet you could add chicken or fish or tempeh and it would be delicious:D

HOPE YOU ENJOY:-)
you are loved.

Vegetable Bake

I made this one for Thanksgiving and got such good reviews I made it for a Christmas Eve Party:D
Basically the idea behind it was we wanted a sweet potato SOMETHING for the holidays...but we have made the same sweet potato casserole every year. So I decided to combine all the best veggies into one awesome, healthy, delicious dish!
I did make this dish gluten-free, wheat-free and vegan, but if you want you are following the blood type diet you can use regular bread crumbs or regular mozzarella cheese instead of the substitute cheese:)


what you'll need:
*about 4-5 slices of spelt bread (if you're making it gluten free)
*one sweet potato
*one yam
*approx. 1 1/4 cup broccoli
*approx. 1 cup sliced carrots
*1 cup diced onion
*one bell pepper
*1-2 large zucchini
*2 large tomatoes
*Daiya vegan mozzarella cheese (or just mozzarella cheese)
*olive oil
*garlic powder
*Italian herbs
*basil

start your ovens...400!
also, start your toaster ovens!
if you're making this with the spelt bread, start by toasting the bread slices until extremely crisp. I learned how to make bread crumbs here: http://glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com/2010/10/how-to-make-gluten-free-breadcrumbs.html
but found the toaster doesn't take as long:)

then when they are toasted you can break the pieces up and pop em in a food processor and make them into crumbs! pretty simple...but I never would have thought of that on my own! Thanks Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef!

Anyways...
Next step in to brush olive oil all over a 9x13 baking pan. Cut up the sweet potato and yam into about about 1/4" slices (you can choose to either peel or not peel the potatoes...good either way)and lay them out across the bottom of the pan. drizzle a little olive oil over them and sprinkle in the garlic.

Now spread the broccoli and carrot slice over the sweet potatoes and sprinkle Italian herbs over the dish. Spread the diced onion over that and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil. I added a little bit of garlic here too but it's all personal preference how much garlic you want to use:D

Then dice of the bell pepper and scatter it over the onion followed by thinly sliced strips of zucchini created a top layer. Here I sprinkled some more Italian herbs and a handful of Daiya mozzarella cheese.

Slice up the tomato into thin slices and place over the zucchini. top off the dish sprinkling the bread crumbs, adding some more cheese, a little drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of basil.

bake covered for about half an hour and uncovered for half an hour. check the dish by poking down to the bottom with a fork. You will know it is done when the sweet potatos at the bottom are soft.
It may take another 15 minutes in the ovens.

But I find it quite delicious and I could make a meal out of just that!
So..

hope you enjoy!
you are loved.

Personalization

I really don't crave anything on my avoid list anymore...which is nice. But I have been talking to Kim and Jess and Crystal at the Valencia Wellness Center a lot and they tell me the blood type diet is really very personal. Once you have been really cleansed of all the junk in your system, you can start trying things one by one on your avoid list and see how you react.
For instance, Jess says there are eight items on her avoid list that she knows for sure will trigger an attack of some kind and one of them is cinnamon. She has an immediate reaction no matter how much or how little. They all say it is about being aware and avoiding the foods that are especially bad for you.
So I made pumpkin bread the other day and the only thing that was "bad" for me was the cinnamon I put in it. I had a TON of it and had no reaction. So I tried it again yesterday by putting cinnamon in a waffle recipe I made and still no reaction. SO I am safely assuming I can have cinnamon now and be fine.
HOWEVER...
I had sushi the other day with soy sauce. And little did I know the first ingredient in soy sauce is wheat-gluten. UG! I had incredible stomach cramps and felt extremely bloated. Wheat-gluten is just horrible for me. So now I use Bragg's Amino Acid substitute for soy sauce. It is cheap and delicious and I don't get the horrible feeling afterwards.
Also, this morning I was drinking my green tea and my mom had a cup of coffee with peppermint creamer. I wanted to taste it so I took a sip...a really really tiny sip...and had stomach pains and nausea. I do miss coffee...but not enough to endure that every time I take A SINGLE SIP.
crazy right?
so my advice, stick to the diet for a few months then start experimenting and testing. We all react differently to foods. I might try brussel sprouts next because I do miss them in stir frys...
but enjoy living and eating and digesting!
And have a wonderful holiday season!

YOU ARE LOVED.

Follow Your Heart

21825 Sherman Way
Canoga Park, CA 91303


Quite possibly one of my favorite places in the world...right up there with the Valencia Wellness Center and Sprouts:)

This past Sunday my mom and I went shopping for Christmas gifts and ended up in Canoga Park. We wanted to go somewhere fun for lunch so I used my vegan restaurant app on my phone and found Follow Your Heart was only two miles away.
I fell in love.
The place is small and is both a market and cafe/ restaurant. I'll start with the restaurant...

I ordered a vegan carob milkshake and couldn't believe how amazing it was! I thought I was cheating or something but everything in it was fine for me! I would DEFINITELY order it again.
My mom had a mushroom burger with mozzerella cheese (not entirely vegan) but she said it was absolutely delicious. It came with carrot chips and other veggies. Looked amazing!
But mine was killer...I got a tandoori style vegan "chicken" and curried tofu with rice and mango chutney. completely vegan, wheat free and gluten free.
OH MY GOSH.
I was so incredibly full after that meal but it was worth every single bite. I was beyond content.
But the nice thing is that even after all of that food, I didn't feel bloated or gross because I could digest everything.
now for the market...
OH MY GOSH.
any kind of tea you need, it's there.
any kind of chakra candle. there.
gluten free bread products. done.
vegan, gluten free, raw food, detox, sugar free, health food cookbooks. all there.
flowers and aromatherapy. got it.
bumperstickers, hemp sweatshirts, buddhas. yep.
best part....i bought four cartons of green tea soy ice cream. love

and all of these wonderful things are condensed into this little market/cafe. I could have spend hundreds of dollars....numerous hours...in Follow Your Heart.
Worth it. I promise.
Highly recommend for shopping and eating:D

hope you enjoy:)
you are loved.

PUMPKIN BREAD! FINALLY!

The reason why I say 'finally" is because it is mid December and I have yet to have pumpkin bread! crazy!
I just haven't had the time to truly experiment with gluten-free wheat-free vegan recipes lately, but I needed one. I was desperate lol
But here it is...finally...and it is the best bread recipe I have created to date. so have a wonderful holiday season and don't feel left out of the delicious bread-ness!

what you'll need:
*2 cups Spelt flour
*1 1/2 cups Buckwheat flour
*2 tsp baking soda
*1 teaspoon cinnamon
*1 1/2 tsp salt
*1 tsp nutmeg
*1/4 cup walnut oil
*3/4 cup grapeseed oil
*2 tablespoons egg replacer powder and 8 tablespoons hot water
*2 cups pumpkin
*1 cup sugar
*1 1/3 cup agave nectar
*2 tablespoons water
*1 cup chopped walnuts

start your ovens...350!
place the flours, soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and walnuts in a large bowl and mix. add the oils and mix well.
in a small separate bowl, whisk with a fork the egg replacer and hot water until thoroughly mixed. then add this small mixture into the large mixture.
mix in the large bowl, then add the pumpkin, sugar, agave, water and walnuts.
mix thoroughly. the batter is thick but smooth.

I put my batter into a large bundt cake pan because I didn't have any individual bread pans, but it will either make one huge bundt or three regular loaves. I used a spray olive oil Pam to grease the pan.

Bake for 60-65 minutes. mine required the extra five minutes because of the dense bundt cake but it will probably be an hour in the individual pans.

and then you're done!
gotta love the holidays...

hope you enjoy:)
you are loved.

It's What You Make Of It...

that really counts.
I'm so happy for everyone who is attempting the blood type lifestyle...it is an amazing experience and worth while life change.
something I have been encountering lately though are the warped views of the "diet" and how negative people are. For instance, I am blood type O so I don't eat dairy, I eat very little carbs, and I am supposed to eat a lot of meat which I don't due to my previous years of being vegetarian. Basically, I am a wheat free gluten free vegan, except for the fact I eat fish.
I love eating...and I eat a lot
I am constantly making desserts and rice dishes and experimenting in the kitchen. I come home everyday from school and prepare myself a huge lunch of fresh veggies, sometimes fish, tempeh, salad, rice...whatever am in the mood for. So when I tell people about my diet and they ask "what do you eat then?" I usually say "whatever I want". Half the fun is in experimenting with new ingredients!
The part that frustrates me is when they apologize and say how much it sucks. But it doesn't! It really really doesn't suck. I love it. I feel great and look great and don't a crave a single thing. I can still eat ice cream (hemp ice cream), I can still make pasta (rice pasta), I can still have stir fry, I can still have cheese (vegan cheese), I still go to starbucks and I still eat out all the time...I'm not being deprived at all. I've learn to live with the change and fully embrace it.
I am aware of the restaurants that don't accomedate at all though...that's when I eat a big meal beforehand and tell the group that I am with I am not terribly hungry and I will order a side salad or drink.
The other little problem I have is when people are on the blood type diet and they insist on making others feel bad for not following the diet. Saying things like "I wish I could eat that...I miss it so much! But it's bad for me..."
Not only is that self-defeating, but you are also criticizing someone else's lifestyle, which is not the point of this at all.
Don't complain, this is a choice. You can choose to do this or not, but I hope you do:)
it gets easier as time goes on...trust me.
just stay positive and I am here for support!

you are loved.

A Delicious Lunch of Veggies and Tempeh

So I hadn't been to the store in a while so when I went I decided to just shop sales and came up with some random ingredients but made a delicious meal!

what you'll need:
*black-eyed peas
*broccoli
*one yam or sweet potato (I used a yam just because that's what I had in the house)
*about a third of a block of tempeh
*onion sprouts/ broccoli sprouts (I used both- but you can choose one)
*olive oil
*garlic
*italian herbs
*basil

start: by steaming the yam/potato on the stove until it is slightly soft. in a large frying pan, heat the olive oil (approx. 2 tbsp) and garlic (a lot).
add broccoli and tempeh(cut into cubes or strips) to the olive oil and garlic and cover for about 2 minutes.
drain the yam and add the cubed yam to the frying pan. also add the peas and sprouts. sprinkle italian herbs, basil, and drizzle olive oil over all the ingredients. stir frequently and occasionally cover for about 5-8 minutes.
then you're done! it's super filling but really delicious:)

hope you enjoy:)
you are loved.