Eating by Elaine Vegan Eating Resource Guide: Plant-Based, Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly

Meal Planning and Food Prep

Eating plant-based, homemade meals does require a little bit of prep! The good news is, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Just like any other good habit! In these posts I've covered the basics of my meal-prep process and the dishes and ingredients I rely on each week.

• Foods I Prep Every Week!
• How to Bulk Prep for Healthy Meals
• Combat the Nightly “What’s for Dinner?” Stress: Weekly Meal Planning and Bulk Prepping for Healthy Meals
• 25 Easy Weeknight Gluten-Free and Vegan Dinners

Vegan Eating with Kids

My three little ones can often be found in the kitchen cooking right along with me! Involving my kids in the cooking process helps them learn important skills and makes them want to eat the food they have worked so hard to prepare. Cooking with kids is actually really fun and rewarding (despite the mess!). I love including my little ones in my ongoing kitchen experiments and adventures!

• Kid-Friendly Vegan Dinners: Recipes Kids Love
• Healthy After-School Snack Board (Vegan + Gluten-Free + Refined Sugar-Free)
• Healthy Snacking Tips for Kids and Toddlers
• Fun with Food: Halloween Fun with Food (vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free), Fun with Food: Hanukkah Snacks Edition (vegan + gluten-free), Fun with Food: Christmas 2020 Edition and Fun with Food: Christmas 2021 Edition (vegan + gluten-free)

Lifestyle

I don't believe in crash, fad or trend diets. Instead, I encourage small steps and simple swaps that will help you feel your best! I want to make healthier eating feel totally approachable and, of course, absolutely delicious. As an adult, I've had chronic migraines that have the potential to be debilitating. I've found that the food I eat has a noticeable impact on my health and I can lessen or avoid migraines by avoiding my trigger foods like dairy, gluten, soy, eggs, peanuts and refined sugar.

• Favorite Dairy-Free Swaps: The Ultimate Dairy-Free Resource And Recipe Guide
• Ultimate Gluten-Free Product Recommendations + Helpful Resources
• Beginner's Guide to Starting a Veggie & Herb Garden
• Eco-Friendly Products I Love
• Top 10 Eco-Friendly Kitchen Products

Roundups

As my site has grown, I've seen so many fun themes emerge! I started creating these roundups to help you satisfy cravings, enjoy holidays with themed foods, meal plan and see just how many plant-based and allergy-friendly options there are for you to enjoy.

• Vegan Rainbow Recipes
• Vegan and Gluten-Free Recipes From Around the World
• The Ultimate Gluten-Free & Vegan Pasta Recipe Roundup
• The Ultimate Vegan Sauces Roundup
• Healthy Comfort Food Recipes (vegan + gluten-free)
• Best Immunity Boosting Recipes (vegan + gluten-free + refined sugar-free)
• Ultimate Vegan Soup Recipe Roundup...plus, Garnishes to Turn Your Soup into a Meal

Fall & Winter

There's something so satisfying about creating warm, comforting and nutritious recipes in the kitchen when it's cold outside! Apples, pumpkins and even winter squash are in so many Eating by Elaine recipes. You're going to love making these recipes all season long!

• Ultimate Vegan Football Food Roundup (Gluten-Free)
• Ultimate Vegan Back to School Recipe Roundup - All Gluten-Free, Soy-Free and Refined Sugar-Free
• Fall Smoothie Recipe Round Up (vegan + refined sugar-free)
• Pumpkin Recipes: the Ultimate Vegan and Gluten-Free Roundup
• Apple Recipes: the Ultimate Roundup (Vegan + Gluten-Free + Refined Sugar-Free) and 10 Healthy Apple Recipes That Will Make You Swoon (Vegan + Gluten-Free + Nut-Free)
• Winter Squash Recipes (Vegan + Gluten-Free)

Spring & Summer

I'm happiest when the sun is out! I look forward to pool days with my kids all year long. We're happiest when we're outside enjoying the sunshine and playing in the water! You'll find tons of fun frozen treats and fresh spring and summer produce featured on Eating by Elaine.

• Vegan Spring Recipes - All Gluten-Free!
• The Ultimate Vegan and Gluten-Free Camping Recipe Roundup
• Spring Holiday Menu Inspiration + Brunch Dishes (all vegan + gluten-free)

Instant Pot & Blender

Let's talk appliances! Without competition, the most-used appliance in my kitchen is my KitchenAid Pro blender. I always joke that I don't ask for diamonds...a professional-grade blender has me swooning! Bobby got me my blender as a gift and I haven't stopped using it since. I also use the Instant Pot to quickly cook so many favorites, from everyday staples like rice and quinoa to more seasonal favorites like Homemade Applesauce and Pumpkin Puree make from scratch.

• Vegan Gluten-Free Recipes to Make in the Instant Pot
• 115+ Vegan Blender Recipes (gluten-free + refined sugar-free too!)
• Ultimate Vegan Smoothie Recipe Roundup
• The Best Green Juice: How to Make Juice in a Blender (No Juicer Needed!)
• How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree in the Instant Pot
• Easy Coconut Rice in the Instant Pot
• Vegan Vanilla Blender Ice Cream
• Easy Instant Pot Homemade Applesauce
• How to Make Perfectly Cooked Quinoa in the Instant Pot

My Cookbook: Rock Your Blender!

Smoothies are my absolute favorite thing to make! Any time I hear about a really delicious treat, I immediately start dreaming about how to make a smoothie version. My kids and I enjoy smoothies almost every day...and sometimes multiple times a day! Because of this obsession, I wrote an entire cookbook dedicated to smoothies. It's called Rock Your Blender, and it's available as an e-Book instant download or a paper copy on Amazon. These recipes are exclusive to the book and won't be found on the site!

Desserts/Chocolate

I think that sometimes when people hear words like "vegan," "gluten-free," and especially "refined sugar-free" they assume that I just skip dessert or never crave chocolate. In fact, the opposite is true! I am a TOTAL Chocoholic and I eat dessert every day. Check out these resources for the absolutely delicious treats I love to make and enjoy!

• Vegan and Gluten-Free Cookie Recipe Roundup
• Ultimate Chocolate Roundup: 70+ Vegan Chocolate Recipes!
• How to Build a Chocolate Dessert Board (Vegan & Gluten-Free)
• Chocolate: Junk Food or Superfood? (+ 5 healthy chocolate recipes)

How I Cook With Pantry Staples

Pantry Staples That Do it All is a newer series on the blog that shows all of the ways I use affordable, easy-to-store pantry ingredients! These vegan staples are filled with nutrition and can be made into so many different recipes, you'll quickly see just why I say they can do it all.

• Black Beans: Pantry Staples That Do It All
• Quinoa: Pantry Staples That Do it All
• Chickpeas: Pantry Staples That Do it All

Meal Plans

Do you hate meal planning? Dread making a shopping list? Don't even know where to start with a week of nutritious eating? Need a restart to plant-based eating? I'm here to help! I assembled these meal plans filled with in-season fruits and veggies, and they're totally free! Each one has five days of breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus snacks, drinks, and dessert...and I even made you a shopping list!

• Spring: Spring Vegan Meal Plan (Gluten-Free + Refined Sugar-Free)
• Summer: Easy Summer Vegan Gluten-Free Meal Plan + Helpful Grocery List
• Fall: Vegan and Gluten-Free Fall Meal Plan
• Winter: Vegan Gluten-Free Winter Meal Plan + Shopping List
• Vegan Meal Plan (Gluten-Free and Refined Sugar-Free!)
• Our Family Weekly Meal Plan (vegan and gluten-free)
• My Weekly Meal Plan (vegan, gluten-free and refined sugar-free)

Dairy-Free Resources

Eliminating dairy can feel really overwhelming! Luckily, there are so many ways to add satisfying, creamy and delicious texture and flavor to any recipe. These posts cover the plant-based milks and cheeses (and even whipped cream!) that I rely on to keep animal products out of my kitchen.

• Favorite Dairy-Free Swaps: The Ultimate Dairy-Free Resource And Recipe Guide
• How (and Why!) to Soak Cashews Properly - Overnight and Quick Soak Method
• Easy Homemade Vegan Cashew Cream or, if you're nut-free, try Easy Sunflower Seed Cream Sauce
• Make your own plant-based milks: The Best Homemade Almond Milk (+ What to Do with the Leftover Pulp!), How to Make Oat Milk and Easy Homemade Cashew Milk (Vegan, Paleo, Refined Sugar-Free)
• How to Make Coconut Whipped Cream

Eating by Elaine Staple Recipes

These are the recipes you're going to see me mention again and again! Some of them, like roasted garlic or cashew cream, and frequent ingredients in bigger dishes. Others, like granola or hummus, are dishes that I make multiple times a week for snacking!

• How to Roast Garlic Perfectly
• Easy Homemade Vegan Cashew Cream
• How to Make Caramelized Onions
• Easy Granola Recipe (refined sugar-free + vegan)
• Perfectly Cooked Quinoa: How to Make It On the Stovetop
• Homemade Raw Creamy Almond Butter
• How to Make Pumpkin Puree (easy oven method)
• Quick & Easy Creamy Hummus
• Thick & Creamy Chia Seed Pudding

Eating by Elaine: Go-To Ingredients

How do I stock my pantry? What are my go-to ingredients? These are the items I buy in bulk and use often. If you start making my recipes regularly, you'll see how valuable these go-to ingredients are...and how many ways you can use them to create incredibly delicious foods!

• Maple Syrup - Since I don't eat any refined sugar, I rely on maple as a natural sweetener! This is made from one ingredient: sap from maple trees. It's different from the table syrup that you'd put on pancakes or waffles; there's no added high-fructose corn syrup or artificial flavors. It adds a subtle sweetness to so many of my favorite dishes! I buy this big bottle of maple since I use it so often. I'll also sometimes use Pure Maple Sugar, which is made from pure maple that's been cooked a bit longer and granulated!
• Cashews - I use a LOT of cashews! They're the main source of dairy-free, creamy texture in my cooking. I buy raw, unsalted cashews that are perfect for soaking. Want to know why I soak my cashews? Click here! These are the cashews I recommend. For nut-free friends, use sunflower seeds instead!
• Pasta - Find a gluten-free pasta you love and you'll never look back! I love Jovial pasta and Andean Dream.
• Chocolate Chips - I probably eat chocolate every day! My favorite brand of vegan, no-sugar-added, paleo chocolate is Hu (use my code ELAINE for 10% off)!
• Almond flour - Many of my baked goods have a base of oat flour (this is made simply by pulsing gluten-free oats in a food processor or high-speed blender) and almond flour. I use superfine, blanched Almond Flour...not almond meal!
• Olive oil - This is a pantry staple for everyone, but I think high-quality olive oil makes a big difference when it comes to homemade dressings and roasting veggies. I love Pomora brand Olive Oil (use my code EBE25 for a discount).
• Hemp hearts - I love hemp seeds! They're a really tasty plant-based protein with a subtle, nutty flavor. I add a spoonful into most of my smoothies, I sprinkle them on salads, and we put them on toast.

Top Recipes Each Year

Every year I look forward to seeing which recipes my readers got most excited about! I love making these posts filled with YOUR favorite recipes. Check out these favorites from each year!

• The Top Eating by Elaine Recipes of 2021
• Top 10 Vegan Recipes of 2020
• 2019 Top Recipes
• Top 10 Recipes of 2018!