Cooking from Blogs : Sweet Potato Soul

Hi Everyone! I'm back today with the next installment of my Cooking from Blogs series- it's been a while but I'm excited to share some recipes from Sweet Potato Soul. When I first started to eat more plant-based and testing out the vegan lifestyle four years ago, this was actually one of the first blogs / youtube channels that I found. All of the recipes looked so approachable and delicious, and I'm happy to say that I still make a lot of Jenné's recipes now.

I haven't done any of these posts since Quarantine started- I haven't been shopping much, and was trying to buy things as shelf-stable as possible to put of going to the grocery store more than once a month. But- as I was flipping through Jenné's instagram, I realized that a lot of her recipes incorporate pantry staples and used ingredients that I had on hand.

As usual, I'll be sharing a breakfast, lunch, and dinner (as well as a snack) that I cooked following this blog's recipes. Let's see how they turned out!

Breakfast : Hot Chicken Biscuits

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This might be one of the biggest food shocks of my life. To be honest, I'm not a fan of cauliflower at all, but I had a half stalk after Dan wanted some for a soup recipe, and this recipe just seemed so weird that I had to try it out. Imagine my surprise when it turned out to be absolutely delicious!! Does it taste like chicken? Not really. Is it savory, a little bit sweet and spicy, and really satisfying? Definitely! This was such a weird recipe but it somehow works...I'm in awe. One thing I would change if I were to make this again- instead of cutting the cauliflower into florets like the recipe suggests, I would cut it into inch-thick slices. You can see in my picture how thick the sandwich is- I think it would be much better thinner and covering the entire biscuit.

Rating - 3.5/5. It was super good, but I'm not sure how often I'll make it- kind of a time consuming project and I don't think the "chicken" would last well as leftovers.

Snack : Energizing Breakfast Smoothies

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I tried out two of these smoothies- the Cacao Joy and Berry Green. The Cacao Joy was a nice, decadent treat, but I found it to be a bit too thin. I think if I were to make it again I would add ice or more frozen banana. I also definitely want to try substituting some of the almond milk for coffee or espresso- I think that would be delish.  Onto the Berry Green (pictured above)- I don't usually add greens to my smoothies, but since I have SO many growing in my garden, I decided this was a great way to enjoy them! I only had frozen strawberries to use as the "berry" part, but I liked how it was just mildly sweet and definitely energized me through morning meetings, but I'm not completely sold for the greens yet!

Rating - 4/5 for the Cacao and 3.5/5 for the Berry Green.

Lunch : Buddha Bowl

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My favorite way to eat is to have lots of small dishes that come together to make one epic, delicious meal. So- when I saw this Buddha Bowl filled with a bunch of stuff that you can meal prep, I was so excited! The falafel was really easy to put together, and I was able to use up some leftover sweet potatoes and chickpeas. The cucumber salad was really fresh, and something that would be a great side dish for a cookout! I really liked how all the flavors went together to make a great and filling lunch- particularly topped with that amazing tahini dressing. YUM!  Back when I'm in the office (if that happens...) I could see this being a meal prep staple. When I ate this, I also topped it with some shaved carrots and radish.

Rating - 5/5. So simple, delicious, and customizable- my favorite.

Dinner : Black Eyed Pea Curry

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Ok..this was actually amazing. I followed the stovetop directions, and it came together super quickly and easily. The flavors were unbelievable- all the spices worked together beautifully and it was a really complex and layered dish! I was also happy to use up some canned goods, dried beans, and old sweet potatoes that I had hanging out (I actually used a leftover baked sweet potato from the falafel...worked perfectly). I added some spinach at the end and just let it wilt, and it was the perfect addition to this simple and filling dinner. Bonus- this tasted even better the next day.

Rating - 5/5, 10/10, 100%!! This was amazing and I will definitely make it again and again.