High-res version

I rang in 2018 with a quick run to my 2-year-old’s room at 1 am. She was crying, which is not like her at all. I scooped her up to take her to the living room to rock her and halfway there all I remember her saying is “my mouth” right before she threw up all over me. The next thing I know, Mike and I are navigating cleanup. I won Mae. He won the floor. This was the universe’s way of showing me that I won’t be able to control every aspect of 2018 and so I remain hopeful that I will keep the resolutions I made while staying open to all that 2018 clearly has in store for me.

Oh, and Mae is fine. She’s had an ear infection for a few days and I think it pushed her right over the edge last night.

So here we are on the first day of January and I’m trying to stick with my resolutions: eat more veggies and write on my blog. Sure, it’s the first day of the year and pretty much everyone keeps their resolutions on the first day, but let’s just PRETEND that this is monumental for a second.

My latest vegan journey features Jones Valley Teaching Farm’s cauliflower (thank you, Jessica)! I made two recipes:

  • Sweet Chili Cauliflower: I dipped the cauliflower in a garbanzo flour batter and baked for 30 minutes. Then I tossed them in a Ziploc bag with Thai sweet chili sauce. My plan is to combine them with farro and veggies for a quick lunch this week.
  • Buffalo Cauliflower: I tossed the cauliflower in olive oil, Frank’s hot sauce, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and pepper. Then I baked them in the oven for 30 minutes (turning once). I added them to flour tortillas and topped with shredded lettuce, cilantro, avocado, and tomatoes. You could add vegan ranch if you’d like!

 

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And now for what you’ve all been waiting for: Whipped Body Butter! Okay, this is time consuming but easy. Just google or search on YouTube for Whipped Body Butters and you will find a TON of ideas. My favorite recipe can be found here.  I tripled the recipe.

2 cups Shea Butter (I order mine from Amazon)

2 cups Coconut Oil (I got mine at Costco)

4 or 5 tablespoons Sweet Almond Oil (I got mine at Sprouts)

4 or 5 tablespoons Avocado or Jojoba Oil (I got mine at Sprouts and on Amazon)

1 tablespoon Vitamin E Oil (I got mine on Amazon)

2 teaspoons (or more) of Lavender Essential Oil

Fill a pot with ½ cup of water and bring to a low boil. Place the shea butter and coconut oil in a glass bowl and place on the pot with the boiling water.

 

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Wait for 5 to 10 minutes until both butters are melted completely. Add your other oils except the lavender essential oil. Give the oils a minute to incorporate. Then move the bowl off of the pot.

 

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Once it cools a bit, add your essential oil. You don’t want the butter/oil mixture to be too hot or else the essential oils will evaporate! Wrap the bowl with saran wrap and place in the refrigerator (or freezer). When the mixture is semi-hard (meaning when you push your finger on the mixture, you see an indention), then you are ready to whip! Whip the mixture with your hand mixer (or your stand mixer) until your butter is light, airy, and fluffy! It should look exactly like icing.

 

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Add to jars and use immediately after your shower or bath. Enjoy!

 

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In summary, I plan to end the first day of the year eating Jones Valley Teaching Farm’s cauliflower, diffusing frankincense, lathering on my homemade body butter, and pretending that I will keep this up the rest of the year.

Here’s to 2018…