Are you a podcast-listener? I can’t say I’ve always been into podcasts because only in recent years did I discover the magic that they offer. I thought podcasts were only for NPR business folks and religious expression but that’s only a small fraction of the podcast universe. As a matter of fact, they’re so diverse that today I’m sharing my favorite health and wellness centered podcasts.
Before we get to the list, I know there are some people out there who need some convincing. If you have yet to get into podcasts, here are some reasons why I love them:
1. They serve as an educational tool and offer exposure to people and ideas you may not otherwise hear about
2. An episode or two in the morning or the evening helps me ease into/out of my day
3. It feels like I’m sitting in on a conversation with friends when I listen to podcasts
When I started listening to my first favorite podcast, I enjoyed knowing there were many episodes for me to listen to and jump around with as I pleased. (Back in the day that was Stuff Mom Never Told You). Once I caught up with all of the episodes, I took a years-long break from podcasts.
Now, I’m back at it and exploring other podcast series! There’s a few that I keep on rotation and am siked to recommend. I hope some of these strike your interest or encourage you to give listening to podcasts a try if you don’t already!
This high-vibe podcast started out as being an inspirational interview series between Jordan Younger, the woman behind The Balanced Blonde blog, and entrepreneurs in the health and wellness industry. Slowly, it transitioned into more of a holistic health and spirituality podcast. Jordan keeps it real and gives listeners some next-level vibes that I can’t say I’ve found elsewhere. There are some stand-alone episodes that I really enjoy but you get a better feel for Jordan’s journey (and yours as you go along with her) if you listen from the beginning.
I first became obsessed with Kalyn’s Coffee Talks on her YouTube channel. She touches on everyday issues like anxiety, stress, time management, and more. Kayln is young but she is extremely helpful for advice on manifesting positive life changes. During her short but informational podcasts, she’ll talk through how a subject affects her and address the unconscious processes we may go through. On each episode, she provides suggestions for kicking bad habits and tips for how to be your most productive and badass self. These are GOLD.
Talia, the host of the PiMP podcast, is a ball of energy! She is so passionate about the benefits of plant-based foods while also providing tools to make it doable for everyone. Her podcast episodes are very insightful because each episode narrows in on specific topics related to physical, mental, or dietary health. The podcast is also a great resource for any and all sorts of healthy living tips you could ever want!
This is a fairly new but awesome podcast addition to the health and wellness sphere. My Instagram pal, Andrea, co-hosts the podcast but I’m not playing favorites here. The Vreeken Bessa Show feels like a cozy sit-down with girlfriends discussing holistic health and women’s issues. Some topics you may have read about or heard of before but still give the episodes a listen—the hosts put a fresh spin on them that you won’t want to miss. The show is only a few episodes in so definitely start with the first episode.
OPP is hosted by the amazing blogger and cookbook author Jessica Murnane. She speaks to other bloggers, authors, scientists, and revolutionaries in different fields. She has her own set of health issues so she does a beautiful job of bringing that to light and providing specific resources for listeners and their varied concerns. I love how easy it is to jump around amongst episodes so if you want to dive into some random favorites of mine, check out: Episode 19:Finding Your Gift With De’Mar Hamilton of The Plain White T’sand Episode 95Are You an Empath?+Strategies for Sensitive People with Dr. Judith Orloff.
It was very hard to keep this list at just 5 because I have a lot of podcast loves. I’ll save my other genre of podcast faves for another day. 🙂 If you listen to podcasts, what genre do you like? I’d love to hear any podcast recommendations!
The weather is cooling down slowly but surely! Even in my little corner of Southern California, where the sun is always ablaze, the days don’t seem as hot. Lately, I’ve been starting my mornings by opening the windows all over my house. I love to feel the freshness of the outdoors come into my house. It not only invigorates me to get my work out on (so I can warm up!) but it also makes me crave some warm drinks.
So, today, I bring you five of my favorite winter drink recipes! (No alcohol involved 😉 )
Some Tone it Up recipes can be a miss but, other times, I love their ingenuity. Beets in a latte? It sounds a little funky but it is totally worth trying! It’s a cozy beverage to have in the morning or filling enough to satisfy a sneaky late-night craving.
The classic hot water with lemon has its benefits but it can get a little dull. Upgrade the classic combo with this recipe that includes some yummy ginger, honey, and cloves!
If you haven’t heard of golden milk, you’ve surely been living under a rock, right? No offense but golden milk is only the best thing to ever happen to coffee-free lattes. Like, ever. I dig this recipe for Golden Milk because of the added spices. Some recipes only ask for turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. That tastes swell but I LOVE a little cardamom or nutmeg to give a more elaborate flavor profile. Plus, dates as a sweetener? You can’t go wrong there!
Again, another basic but essential recipe for your drinks arsenal. I love the warm scents of cinnamon and baked goods and homemade cider provides a similar appealing aroma. Plus, is there anything more delicious than cider?! I think not! I’m planning to cook up a pot (maybe in a crockpot ala Half Baked Harvest ) soon!
I’m wishing you all good health this upcoming holiday season. Though, if you happen to feel the start of a cold coming on, be sure to load up on some healing tonic. This anti-inflammatory tea only takes three ingredients and it feels so soothing in the body.
Thanks for reading my list of favorite warm beverages. You may have noticed something chocolatey was missing from the list? Yeah, rest assured, I will be drinking some hot cocoa this season! I’ve been working on a sugar-free protein-packed hot cocoa recipe for you all so stay tuned. 😉
Around this time of year, 3-4pm becomes the new “evening”. Once night time hits around 5pm, it is hard to feel inspired to go out and do things. Somehow, the earlier darkness and chilly weather encourages me to stay in. I love utilizing this sort of ambiance to make flavorful one-pot meals like hearty soups or pasta dishes. You already saw my five favorite soups in last week’s Friday Five. Therefore, today, I bring you five of my favorite pasta dishes.
Pasta is the ultimate comfort food. Vegetarians and meat-eaters alike can find something to enjoy in the carbalicious entrée. Even if you’re gluten-free (like I’ve recently become), there are pasta options for you! My thing is to always include vegetables in a meal so it isn’t just a purely starchy meal. The following pasta dishes are vegetable-filled and sure to be satisfying!
I can’t be the only one who still has cobs of corn and baskets of tomatoes to use up, right? I love cooking with fresh herbs and this pasta is an excellent way to utilize them. Pesto, corn, and tomatoes are a trifecta of deliciousness you must try! I don’t consume dairy so I omit the cheese in the recipe but otherwise, I love everything about it! The basil vinaigrette is dreamy makes this pasta ideal for a simple lunch or even a side dish!
I’m sure anyone who dabbles in plant-based cooking has heard of Minimalist Baker. This pasta dish with roasted cauliflower is seemingly simple but incredibly flavorful! Take my word for it and just roast double the amount of cauliflower. Trust me, you’re going to want more of that tender and crispy veggie to pile onto your spaghetti.
I’ve got to throw a mention to my good ol’ pumpkin pasta that I created last year. I created the recipe last year for a competition with Banza pasta company but, of course, use whatever pasta brand you like. The recipe is a perfect single serving but multiply as needed to feed more people! I love enjoying pumpkin pasta with warmed spinach, oven-crisped kale, or even some sautéed yellow squash.
Jeanine from Love and Lemons is a queen at building pasta dishes around vegetables. Her one-pot vegetable penne pasta is one of my most favorites because it includes leeks. Yes, leeks! If you haven’t cooked with these babies, they’re similar to onions—which I’m also wildly obsessed with adding to everything I cook. Jeanine only uses the white part of a leek in this pasta but I often double the recipe and use the entire white and green parts of the leek!
Butternut squash might be a little more accessible all-year round nowadays but it is fall produce. I stockpile my butternut squashes until the following year: I’ll chop it into cubes and store it in freezer bags to use in the spring or summer if I so desire! If you haven’t tried turning butternut squash into pasta sauce, you haven’t lived! Okay, exaggeration aside, you’ll want to keep butternut squash on hand in your freezer like me just to make this pasta!
Now go enjoy yourselves some pasta dishes of your choosing!
Pasta is a creative base that can do no wrong in my book. I’m always looking for new ideas to experiment with. Feel free to tell me what your favorite pasta dishes are!
In honor of fall, I’ve assembled a list of my 5 favorite soup recipes! Funny enough, when I was a kid, I used to hate soups. If my mom said soup was for dinner, I’d anticipate something brothy where I’d need to dig around for substance. I’d also expect to eat 2-3 bowls just to feel satisfied. There’s a place for simple broth-based soups (*cough cough* when you’re sick.) but for the rest of the time, I like a hearty bowl of soup!
In essence, I’m pretty much a low-key connoisseur of soups. Therefore, I’m only recommending soup recipes that I’ve tried and enjoyed multiple times! So, you can be rest assured that these are delicious and will keep you satisfied as the weather cools down!
This recipe is a feature from Angela Liddon’s Oh She Glows Everyday Cookbook. I actually own the cookbook but, prior to that, I was frequently referring to the recipe here. Blended soups can seem a bit boring…texturally. So, the tamari almonds included for topping are essential! You’ll be swooning over how sweet, salty, and luxurious this recipe is.
Sometimes you feel like a giant bowl of vegetable soup, right? Though, the standard onion, celery, and carrot triad of vegetables isn’t the most exciting. I love that this soup utilizes some hearty cabbage, kale, and broccoli! The colors and unique combination of ingredients makes this soup taste like it comes from a gourmet restaurant! Oh, and I also like to squeeze extra lemon into my individual soup bowl—it really makes the flavors sing!
In my hometown, there was a restaurant my family and I would always go to called Millie’s. Literally, we would be there once a week, if not more. I could probably recite the menu by memory. One dish that they offered was a chicken tortilla soup. Ohhhh that soup. Due to my previously mentioned ideas about soup, I wouldn’t usually order it myself. Though, my dad would often order it and I’d steal some from him 😉 So, to my delight, this tortilla soup has all of the classic flavors but it’s made vegetarian. And please, do not pass up making your own tortilla strips for the soup. It is simply essential!
You guys might not know it but Minestrone Soup is probably one of my favorite soups ever. It can be made so many different ways. There’s team pasta and no pasta. I’ve also seen potato and, other times, no potato. What is consistent is that it is a good way to utilize lots of vegetables! With that being said, I often reminisce on the minestrone soup offered at Olive Garden. Whether the restaurant is true to Italian food or not, their soups are still the bomb. This recipe is the closest thing I’ve tried to OG’s classic minestrone.
Again with my Mexican roots! I take for granted how much I actually enjoyed the Mexican dishes I grew up with. Soups like menudo and posole are staple dishes in Mexican culture. It wouldn’t be a holiday or family get-together without one of these. Kate, the culinary queen, once again proved that a traditional meat-based dish can be made vegetarian. I’m positive you’ll enjoy this pinto bean version of posole even if you don’t follow a meatless diet. Fun fact: the cover photo for this post is actually my recreation of the Pinto Posole! 🙂
Thanks for checking out my favorite soup recipes!
If you make any of them, let me know. Oh, and be sure to let these fantastic bloggers know you found their recipe through me. I hope I’ve provided some fall meal inspiration. Be sure to let me know what you’re cooking up this fall! Also, would you be interested in some other Friday Five recipe round-ups? Perhaps snacks, entrees, breakfasts, and such? Comment below or on Instagram and let me know what you think!
Hey friends! Who else is struggling to find consistency in their life when everything feels so up in the air? Is it just me? I’d like to blame it on the changing seasons. Each year, when fall comes around, I feel a sense of refresh and rebirth hit me. Something about the season has always caused that. Maybe it has something to do with my birthday being in the fall? Who knows? 🙂
Now, onto some favorites from this week!
Pacifica eyeliner
Just like mascara, quality eyeliner is difficult to find. I use so many Pacifica products already so I knew I could trust them for sustainable, cruelty-free ingredients. To my surprise, the eyelineris very smooth, but not oily or soft, and has great wear-time. It applies with ease and just a bit of powder around the area keeps the liner from transferring. You can find Pacifica makeup in select stores but I buy mine from iHerb! (Code: MUS0884 for 5% off!)
Lauren Gleisberg Fall Challenge
If you follow me on Instagram, you know I’m trying to kick my butt into shape. I started Laruen Gleisberg’s Fall Challenge this week and boy, oh boy, does she mean business. My arms hate me as I write this. They’re so sore–in a good way! Though, the reason I like her workouts is because her workout plans target every muscle. Most workout programs will boast that same hook but Lauren splits up workouts by muscle group so every day you’re targeting a new spot. I personally find this to be extremely helpful for arm workouts in particular. You can work “arms” on back-to-back days as long as you’re targeting different muscles! Anyway, I’m following her free challenge and loving it so far!
Spiralized and “riced” vegetables
In addition to hitting my workouts harder, I am trying to ease off of the carbalicious life I’ve been living all summer. When I was having all sorts of stomach issues, soaked and soft-cooked grains were one of the foods I leaned on. Thankfully, I’m better able to digest the vegetables that I couldn’t at the time. So now, I’m trying to make meals with vegetables playing main stage. I’m looking to non-starchy veggies, breaking out my inspiralizer, and getting creative. Here is a dish I made myself earlier in the week:
A bed of mixed greens, topped with sauteed zoodles and onions, a beet and carrot “rice”, hummus, and fresh cilantro.
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Back in high school, I was able to read many classic literature novels thanks to my Honors English classes. I’d say those classes really opened up my eyes to some interesting and impactful works of fiction. I’ve always been a fan of reading but usually YA fiction. Somehow, I haven’t really kept up with classic lit into adulthood but I’m glad I picked this one up.
The novel is downright eerie. It follows a young girl named Esther Greenwood as she has a sort of quarter life crisis. She feels she should be appreciative of her accomplishments but she just isn’t happy. She is frustrated with her job and the company she keeps. Her passion for writing is dwindling and her interest in life overall. The melancholic story was almost hard to read at times because, as a reader, I felt I could put myself in her shoes. I cringed at the sinister thoughts that crossed her mind but I understand them. It isn’t a feel-good read but, nonetheless, I think it is an important book to read because it portrays a very real and personal idea of what depression is like.
Daniel Caesar’s music
My taste in music is rapidly expanding this year! I never used to listen to soulful, bluesy, or rap music but look at me now! All of Daniel Caesar’s music is so, so good—check him out on Spotify! My favorite songs are Japanese Denim and basically everything from his album Freudian. I’ll include a video of a song from that album called “Hold Me Down”:
Hey friends! It’s time for another Friday Five. I’m not always that consistent with my blog but I am trying to change that! What sort of content do you enjoy seeing? I like variety so you can continue to expect that from me. As for now, let’s get into the Friday Five!
Forager Project Organic Pressed Vegetable Chips
Crunchy snacks aren’t usually my thing but that was before I tasted these gluten-free chips! No, they don’t taste like vegetables the way those fake veggie straws do. You’ll actually want to eat these! I love the chips on their own, dipped into vegan cream cheese! They are also my choice for easy skillet nachos (see this post on my Instagram). Sometimes I even crumble them on top of my salads like a boss. I’ve tried the original and the cheesy variety, so far, and both are SO GOOD!
Atlanta
If you asked me what the last show I’d be interested in watching is, besides Master of None (read this post for clarification), I’d say Atlanta. I kind of have a genre of TV shows that I lean towards. If it’s not on The CW, is it even worth watching? Jk. Though, I have been rapidly expanding my interests and this show is so different from anything else I watch.
It’s about a group of guys from poverty-ridden Atlanta—one of the guys being Donald Glover (aka Childish Gambino), who plays a manager for his rap artist cousin, Paper Boi—trying to make a buck and make it big in the rap music scene. The show portrays the socio-cultural challenges they face as Paper Boi gains exposure. It also addresses very real instances of discrimination with shock, humor, and finesse. Freaking Hulu decided to take season 2 of Atlanta off their site so, if you know where I can find it, help a sister out!
Peanut Butter Cookie Dough-Stuffed Brownies
Do you ever go to the “explore food” part of Instagram and see these wild photos of decadent eats? Usually it’s something covered in puddles of chocolate or a big doughnut oozing peanut butter filling! Oh, or maybe that stuff just appears in my feed (???). Anyway, the idea of cookie dough stuffed in between a brownie sounds real extravagant but I found a way to get my fix without killing my waistline. I also snuck some peanut butter Tone it Up protein in there. Yupp, yupp, yupp! I’ll be shouting “hooray!” while dunking one of these bad boys in some almond milk. 😎 You can find the recipe for these over at FoodFitnessFaith!
The Power of Now
Do ya’ll remember when I started my blog, I loved doing book reviews? Throwback moment! I am contemplating reviewing The Power of Now but, at this time, I’ll just say that it is brilliant. The text contained in the book does not involve words unheard of but, rather, an illumination to a pattern of disconnect we all partake in. In our day and age, it can be difficult to be present but the benefits are quite a fascinating discovery. Presence allows us to tap into a state of inner peace and separates us from the pain we may have learned to associate with.
Binaural beats meditation
Binaural music is produced to provide a listener with music that, when listened through headphones, comes in at two different frequencies. When the brain receives these two frequencies of sound, it initially wants to interpret them but is soon encouraged to drop the analyzing and just accept it.
Similarly, the same can occur for your thoughts. That’s why I like using it for meditation music when I want to release my grip on certain thoughts. There is a greater and more detailed explanation on the different frequencies over on this article. You can also find some great meditation music, including the binaural beats variety, on YouTube, and one of my favorites is this one:
Thanks for reading! I hope you all are having a lovely Friday and are off to a great weekend! Let me know what you’re going to be up to in the comments or over on Instagram!
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