Angel McNall, Author at High Vibe Lifestyle

Peach Banana Berry Smoothie Bowl

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As a food blogger, I see A LOT of smoothies on the internet, and right now, smoothie bowls are all the rage. Not really a new concept, just a new way to do things. Basically a smoothie bowl, is a smoothie that is thick enough to eat with a spoon, and because it’s in a bowl, instead of in a cup, you can really get creative with your toppings. Smoothie bowls are a delicious and beautiful way to eat your fruit, and include some other filling ingredients to make it more of a meal. This Peach Banana Berry Smoothie is really satisfying in all of the above mentioned ways!

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Carrot Cake Bars with Citrus Cream Cheese Icing

by Angel McNall

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Hi everyone! Can I just say that carrot cake is one of my absolute favorite things in life? I mean what’s not to love? It’s a dessert that is really amazing and you really don’t have to feel guilty about eating. It’s got a vegetable right in it’s name! These gluten free carrot cake bars are even more guilt free because I created this recipe with really healthy ingredients, and they are just the right size for a little snack, they’re a super yummy dessert, and they are even great for breakfast! I tried one (ok, two) first thing in the morning, just to make sure there was no sugar spike… I do these kind of things for you guys. You’re Welcome! 😉 Seriously, they don’t have sugar, so they are really great for breakfast with some coffee, but they stand up to dessert standards too.

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Super Duper Detox Juice

by Angel McNall

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So many things to talk about you guys, so let’s just dive right in!

these beautiful ingredients above… they’re what goes into my Super Duper Detox Juice… we’re going to juice them… and they are going to be delicious together… I promise.
this is the first time I’ve used a juicer that I literally bought like 4 years ago, and it’s been in the box the whole time, so I’m pretty proud of myself for FINALLY breaking it out, and just doing something that I know is really good for me, so let’s hear it for yummy juice, healthy living, and taking the time for some self care!
Speaking of self care, I just got back from Las Vegas, and it was so.much.fun!! I really needed a little vacay, some time with some of my favorite people, and some great music! So, that’s actually the third thing I was going to say… even though it seems counter intuitive to us type A people, sometimes it’s actually more productive to take some time off, because when you come back, you are energized, super charged and inspired! Even if it’s hard to make yourself just step away, it’s very important. Even if it’s just a few minutes a day. And that’s really what this post is all about. Resetting, resting, and recharging, your mind, and your body!

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Simple Sesame Garlic Buddha Bowl

by Angel McNall

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Have you ever had one of those days, that’s just one of those days? The kind where you just wake up feeling bad for no particular reason, and everything is just off? Well, that was me last Sunday, and that is just crazy, because I always feel GREAT on Sunday! It’s my favorite day of the week. I don’t worry about stuff on Sunday. I don’t do chores or things that I don’t enjoy on Sunday. I always try to have fun and relax on Sunday. I just love the whole vibe of Sunday. So I have no idea what happened last Sunday, and why it started out like that, but what happened that day, turned the whole day around, and inspired this Simple Sesame Garlic Buddha Bowl too!

My husband, being the sweet (and super intuitive) man that he is, recognized immediately that I definitely needed something therapeutic to rescue the day, so he suggested that we just meander up the coast and stop when we saw something of interest. I’m ALWAYS up for a road trip of any proportion, so I threw on something comfy, packed some sandwiches and snacks, grabbed my camera, and we were off! We are blessed to live in a beautiful area that is just a few miles from the beach, so in no time at all we were driving up the Coast Highway, listening to music (I’m loving the new Anderson East record right now- SO GOOD!!) and enjoying a day that was a a perfect mix of sun and clouds (mostly clouds, but still beautiful), and a warm breeze. We had no particular destination in mind, and that was fine!

First stop – a little picnic area and park in Summerland, just south of Santa Barbara. We had our lunch and let the kids play on the playground. My husband has a drone that he likes to fly, so he played with that for a while. I kept myself busy with a patch of wildflowers and agave that were growing there, and taking shots of the beach from the cliff.

Anytime I can get out with my family and do some photography, I’m a happy girl! When everyone was ready to go, I remembered that a dear friend of mine from my photography club, had told me about a store nearby called Sacred Space. I had always wanted to go, so we decided to check it out, and that is when the day really got interesting! When we pulled up to the address we noticed that the landscaping and decor made you feel like you are in Bali or Thailand!

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Vegan & Gluten Free Strawberries and Cream Scones

by Angel McNall

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Vegan and Gluten Free Strawberries and Cream Scones?!!! Yes!! Ok, the first thing I have to say about this recipe is, I ❤❤❤ strawberries, photography, and anything pink or red, so shooting these pictures was A LOT of fun! Spring is definitely in full swing here in Southern California, and one of the best parts of this season, is fresh, juicy, organic strawberries! I live near the coast and they grow a lot of strawberries around here, so they are showing up in big gorgeous flats at the farmer’s markets, so how can you resist? I *might* have over bought this past weekend, and once I got them home thought, ‘what am I going to do with all of these berries?’! They don’t last long and I seem to be the only one in my house that is completely in love with them. This love of strawberries runs deep with me. When I was a kid, my favorite toys were my Strawberry Shortcake dolls. My favorite book was “The Strawberry Dress Escape” by Crescent Dragonwagon. My mom made dresses for me with strawberries on them, and my room was decked out with.. you guessed it… Strawberry Shortcake. Oh, and my favorite treats, Strawberry Ice Cream, Strawberry Milkshakes, Strawberry Pie, you get the idea… So when I got the idea for these Strawberries and Cream Scones, I worked on the recipe until it was up to my strawberry obsessed standards, and now I’m so excited to share it with you!! The recipe is easy to put together and they don’t take long to bake, so you need to make these ASAP! These yummy scones are prefect for serving for breakfast, brunch (Mother’s Day!) or at tea time… and you can eat them for dessert too, they are just that delicious!

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Banana Date Protein Smoothie

by Angel McNall

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I could have called this smoothie, the ‘New Blender Celebration Smoothie’, but I thought it might sound a little better if I went with ‘Banana Date Protein Smoothie’. I am celebrating though, because I just got a new blender!(Please read that in your best Oprah voice…) Yay! I bought a Ninja blender about 3 or 4 years ago and I LOVED it! I used it almost every.single.day, at least once, but a lot of times more than once! After so much lovin’, and lots and lots of ice blending, my blades were getting a little dull. I had my hubby sharpen them with his handy, dandy, knife sharpener, and that worked pretty well, and I could have kept using it for quite a while, but I still kinda wanted a new one. And then it happened… my husband was doing his regular hero things around the house which included the DISHES (thank you!!), and he accidentally knocked the blender off of the counter, and it landed in just the right way to split it down the side! I admit that I am so hopelessly addicted to this smoothie that I used it in the morning, crack and all, with a towel wrapped around it ( I know, embarassing, right?) but then I promptly bought a new one. And the new one is even more awesome than my older one! It came with some large smoothie cups with lids and a separate ‘nutrient extraction blade’, which I haven’t used yet, but I’m sure I’ll be appreciating the professionally extracted nutrients! 😉 I know some people spend a few hundred dollars on super fancy blenders, and I’m sure they’re totally awesome, but I’ve never had one of those and I don’t know what I may or may not be missing. I just know that this blender rocks out my smoothies! So, if you’ve been thinking about a new blender, be careful what you wish for, because yours may just fall right off the counter top! Law of Attraction – It’s powerful! Now let’s talk about a smoothie that is so yummy, it’s fit for christening my new blender!

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Southwestern Bacon Avocado Salad

by Angel McNall

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Have you ever played that game where you name just one thing/record/food that you would pick, if you could pick only one to be stranded on a deserted island with? Let’s play it right now! If you could pick just one record, one comfort item, and one food that you would be stranded with, what would you pick? (Answer in the comments – GO!) For me, that one comfort item, or that one album might change…. my favorite possession is without a doubt, my camera, although without a power outlet, or a laptop, that wouldn’t last too long. *I think the goal is not to over-think these things* My go-to answer for music is usually Bob Marley’s Legend, for it’s ability to cheer me up because if I was stranded I might need that. However, I should probably pick something really long, so a Grateful Dead live show would be a good one. At the moment though, I am having a full.blown.obsession with Eric Church’s new album, Mr. Misunderstood, so that’s such a tough question really! The struggle is real folks!! The one thing that I never have a hard time with though, is the food. I ALWAYS pick salad! It’s strategy really… see if you pick salad, there are sooo many different ways to make salad, and so many ingredients, that it would be like having a whole bunch of different foods, so it’s really a no brainer. (They’d have to drop me off with a whole salad bar, hehe!) Now that I’ve fallen head over heels in love with this Southwestern Bacon Avocado Salad, I think it would have to be THIS salad. It’s that good. (BTW – my husband said that this was the best salad he’s ever eaten in his whole life! Yay!) Try it, I think you’ll agree. I’d have to specify though, to whoever was going to be dropping me off on that island, PLEASE pack the Chipolte Lime Ranch Dressing too!

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Vegan Gluten Free Cinnamon Blueberry Pancakes

by Angel McNall

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Pancakes come in all shapes and sizes, but I have to say that my favorite ones, are of the fluffy, pillow-y variety! So how do you make them fluffy, when you are making vegan, gluten free pancakes? Well, when I went to work on this recipe, that was priority number one! Priority number two is that they needed to incorporate aquafaba. Why? Because I have to say that I’m fascinated with it! So, for those of you not in the know about this yet, I’ll give you a very quick primer. Aquafaba is the latest and greatest egg-replacer that you probably have in your cabinet right now. The vegan community is buzzing about it! It was discovered about a year ago, and it’s been revolutionizing the way people bake without eggs. It’s basically just the bean brine that your canned beans come packed in. Mind blowing, right? Yes, it’s really that simple! Now, people are taking it a little (or a lot) further than that, and actually whipping it into a thick, creamy consistency and baking it into meringues, icings, and all kinds of wonderful creations! It’s really quite amazing, and a lot of fun to experiment with. In a lot of recipes however, you can just substitute one egg with 3 Tbsp. of the liquid (no whipping required) and it works great. This pancake recipe is sort of a hybrid, in that it takes just a short whisking, but the results – light, fluffy, gluten free pancakes on your plate are so worth it! If you are adventurous and give this new aquafaba thing a try, definitely leave a comment at the end of the post and let me know what you came up with. If you ‘d like to connect with other aquafaba experimenters, pop onto Facebook and check out the Vegan Meringue – Hits and Misses group, it’s a pretty active group and it’s fun to see what works and what doesn’t. And if experimenting in the kitchen isn’t your thing, or you just don’t have the time, then don’t worry friends, I got your back! I do the experimenting, and you get yummy, tested recipes! If you want to get those yummy recipes right in your inbox, and never miss a single one – sign up for my email list. It’s right over there ——> to the right —–>in the sidebar! So, back to what’s really important here…. Yummy, Fluffy, Cinnamon Blueberry Pancakes!! Make them this weekend for breakfast, or dinner. You can even freeze some them and pull them out on a week day for a quick, filling breakfast before work or school. And while you’re in the pancake making mood – definitely make up a quick batch of this crispy Vegan Bacon (yessssss!) to go with your pancakes! 😋

Tofu Bacon is the perfect compliment to these pancakes!

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Tofu Bacon

by Angel McNall

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Bacon. It’s everywhere! People love bacon. And not just eating it, they wear it on t-shirts and earrings! I’ve seen Christmas decorations that look like bacon! It pops up in ice cream, on pizza, and wrapped around everything under the sun. It seems to be the one item that will make any food more attractive. You could say anything and if you include “bacon”, you’ve won over 99% of the population. Let’s be honest, it’s delicious. But what if you don’t eat bacon, for one reason or another? (There are lots of reasons not to eat bacon, but right now we’re going to assume that you’ve already got a reason.) Make some Tofu Bacon! Seriously. Is there anything tofu can’t do?

Tofu Bacon is easy to make, and it has all of the qualifications that you expect from bacon. We’re talking the salty, smokey, savory, slightly sweet, crispy traits that make bacon completely irresistible! I’ve made this recipe a million times for my vegan cooking classes, and many catered brunches (full of non-vegans) with menus that included tofu bacon, so I can assure you, it’s a crowd-pleaser! There’s a few different ways to prepare it, and it’s just as versatile as the ‘real’ thing! Think, breakfast sandwiches, pancakes, salads, mac and cheese, etc.! Best of all, tofu bacon is cholesterol free, has lots of protein, and is way lower in fat than bacon. Once you’ve made this addictive tofu bacon, you’ll want to make it again and again. I’d actually recommend making a double batch, because my next two blog posts are going to be recipes that utilize this amazing tofu bacon…. and you may also be prone to eat several pieces while you’re making it… and you may have to fend off hungry kids and husbands that smell this delicious concoction coming from the kitchen and sneak in to steal several pieces off of the plate before your meal. It happens people!

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Vegan Broccoli ‘Beef’

by Angel McNall

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Vegan Broccoli ‘Beef’?! Yep. This is happening! It’s make-over time!! Traditional Broccoli Beef gets a vegan, gluten free make-over, with meaty, succulent, portabello mushrooms standing in for the beef. (That’s why the ” around ‘Beef’ in the title of this recipe!) Subbing portabello mushrooms for beef in this recipe takes the cholesterol down to ZERO (all plant based foods contain no cholesterol, so if you need to lower yours, eating more plant based foods is a great start!), and they are also a good source of protein and iron. Oh, and let’s not forget to say that this recipe is DELICIOUS! That’s fairly important right?! You will definitely enjoy the full flavors of the sauce and the crunch of broccoli cooked just until it’s crisp, tender. I know that you have food on your mind, so let’s get right into it!…

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