SNACK BALLS
I think a lot of people know Deliciously Ella. She is a famous blogger who also owns a few deli’s: Mae Deli, with her husband. Apart from her deli’s she has also introduced these snack balls. There are 3 flavours: ‘cacao&almond’, ‘hazelnut&raisin’ and ‘cashew&ginger’. I only tried the first 2 as I’m not a big fan of ginger inside cakes. Though I should maybe try that one too, because the other 2 are very yummy! I especially like the ‘cacao&almond’ flavour. I think that is also the most popular one in general. I get that, they’re very good. One thing I really like about them, is that you can get them in Starbucks. Starbucks doesn’t have a lot of vegan snacks and now they have a tasty and healthy one. What also makes it very clever of them to sell them there. You actually see them everywhere now and they’re advertising for them a lot. So no excuses.. go try them!
INDIAN TOFU
You’re vegan, so you must eat only tofu. Well.. not only tofu, but I do eat tofu. I love tofu! One day when I was in Portobello Wholefoods (that can be a lot of days.. haha!) I was looking for a nice tofu. I always get the same one (smoked tofu), but when I saw the tofu from Clearspot, I thought let’s go for something else. The pack looks nice, doesn’t it? So I made a salad and wanted to fry the tofu for a bit, but it was quite wet and it became more like a scrambled tofu instead. I would have liked it a lot better if it was more firm. I also expected a lot more flavour actually. Maybe that is because of the picture in front of the 
pack. You expect some sort of rich curry sauce on it. I made a simple salad with it. I cut up some cucumber, cherry tomatoes, onions and a big hand full of lettuce. I also added some mayonnaise for the sauce I was missing. Normally I’m not even that much of a sauce-person. All together, the salad, the scrambled tofu and the bit of mayonnaise was really nice though. So I guess it’s tofu you really have to prepare in a dish (like in a curry) and it’s not that suitable to fry it with a salad. I do like that it’s organic and the overall basic flavour was good. So I like it, but I’m just not crazy about it.
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Years ago I went to Giraffe and all I remember from that is that they have really good sweet potato fried. Lots of restaurants have them now, but at that time they were one of the few. So whenever I craved sweet potato fries, I’d go there. Then I didn’t go for quite long, because there are not a lot of restaurants around. Last summer I flew to Mallorca from Heathrow and before boarding I went to Giraffe again. For the fries, obviously.. but then I saw they also have a very healthy yummy vegan salad on the menu! So It was time they became a hotspot!
So this time I went to the Giraffe near Holland Park. I ordered the yummy salad and.. well, you know.. Haha! I must say that this salad is very good. It’s very tasty and very healthy. Such a good option if you’re out with other people and you want to choose something vegan and healthy. Apart from this salad and the fries, you can also order things like: olives, edamame beans, avocado on sourdough bread, roasted aubergine (without yogurt sauce), Spicy Rice bowl (without egg).. so they do have quite a few options. I should try something else next time. If you go to their 
The restaurant near Holland Park is perfect for if you came from a beautiful (Holland Park is beautiful, it’s my favourite park!) stroll in the park and feel like having a nice meal. It’s only a 5 minute walk. You’ll feel welcome the second you walk in. I was served by a very kind and happy girl, what I find so important, whenever I eat out. I also really like their interior. They created a very nice place. It’s modern, but it still feels warm and homely, with different tables and seats. They did really well to create a worldly atmosphere. What means that you can almost see the menu through the interior. Also, it’s very child friendly, a real family restaurants. It’s for everybody really.
It’s almost Christmas! Are you reeaaady?! I wasn’t really, as I wanted to post this recipe a little earlier, but I didn’t have enough time. Sorry guys! Are you a real Christmas fan or do you think it’s all a bit too much? I personally really like Christmas, especially buying the presents and making a nice Christmas dinner for my family. At first my dad, my sister and I always made it together. My sister and I did the starter or the dessert and my dad did the main, but lately me and my sister are doing everything, what is nice too. My sister is really good at making desserts, so I decided to do the rest. I chose to do some simple things and also we’re just going to 
put everything on the table, instead of making every single plate. We did this because it’ll be a lot easier with 8 people and you can just take the things you like best. Now you’re probably curious about what I’m going to make? I’ll make a dill-beetroot salad and stuffed sweet potatoes from the oven, but there will also be lots of other veggies on the table like brussel sprouts, pumpkin, green beans, corn cobs and broccoli. Yum! If you don’t know what to make for Christmas yet, then this might inspire you. It’s easy to make, it doesn’t involve hours in the kitchen and it’s quite on budget too.. oh and did I say it’s delicious?!
BLOODY SALAD
STUFFED SWEETY PIES
Are you having a Christmas dinner with family and/or friends?What are you going to make (or eat) ? If you didn’t decide yet, then this is a good option, also if you’re bringing (a vegan option) something when you’ve been invited. Or maybe you can make it for New Years evening?! Or whenever you feel like it of course.. haha! Please let me know if you decided to make these recipes! You can do this by leaving a comment below or by showing me on Instagram using #PlanetManel. Thank you! X
It’s easy peasy to just put some things in a bowl, mix it up and eat! I use this meal quite often for after I get back from the gym. Because of the chickpeas and peas it’s a good protein meal and it has good fats. Sometimes I even make it in advance. So handy, because when I get home I can eat it, take a shower and I will have more time to relax. Apart from all this, it’s also very tasty! It’s one of my favourite quick meals. I love the structure from the chickpeas with the sweet from the peas and the spiciness from the avocado sauce. It’s a delicious combination!
EASY PEASY
-To make it even easier. Have all the ingredients already measured and ready to use.
This raw salad has a bit of a spicy crunch, though it’s very fresh! Perfect for a lovely lunch on a summer day. The radishes and the turmeric, combined with the raw garlic give a nice little tingle on you tongue. Personally I love this salad, because it has such a rich taste, it’s filling, raw and super healthy. It’s also a perfect side dish salad. With lasagna, pizza or a burger and chips.. and what about a nice vegan barbeque? And I’m sure you can also think of a good reason to make this yummy salad! So start chopping and mixing and enjoy every bite..
Serves: 2
Almost all my lunches are big salads. And they’re almost all raw. That’s how I get more than enough nice yummy veggies into my body. Most of the time I just mix everything I can find together and that’s what I call lunch. Haha! Now I do have a favourite dressing what makes everything taste nice. So if you’re not so good with eating your raw veggies, this might be the solution to that! I like it so much, that I almost want to drink it. Only that would be crazy. You must know that I never was such a dressing/sauce person before. I’d like to eat everything plain, so I can taste the true falvour. But lately I got a bit more into it and found out that a nice sauce or dressing can actually really add to the taste. What means that all the natural flavours all together make a perfect mix. Don’t smother it with sugary, fatty sauces.. that wouldn’t be appropriate and respectful for all those lovely crunchy veggies. Here is my favourite(let’s sat ‘the best’) dressing for any salad:
serves: 4-6
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