Holy heck it’s finally happening: it is finally HAWT in NYC. Yes, HAWT. Not hot, or Hot, or even HOT, but HAWT. Like oh-my-goodness uncomfortable hot.

While I’m admittedly a drama queen, the forecast does predict temps to be in the low 90s all week, which when combined with humidity that makes you feel like you’re swimming through thick, moist air when you’re walking down the street, combined with the urban heat island effect…well let’s just say I’m currently thanking my lucky stars for my A/C unit. So worth the $130. So. Worth it.

Life updates regarding post-grad-school life: I’m still confused. Transition periods and decision making are two things I find to be challenging and often turn me into a muddled anxious shell of already normally quiet anxious and insane self.

But hey, it may be hot, and I may be a mess, but at least my dog is cute, and at least I have prospects of potential pathways to go about after I wrap up my thesis. And at least I have chia seeds, which means I can make chia seed pudding.

So you be thinking to yourself that this recipe is basically this recipe in chia seed pudding form. Well, you would be correct in that thought. But when I’m on a kick, I’m on a kick, and right now peaches are my go-to snack-thang. And there have been some super duper sales on the little stone fruit babies, so I’ve been going at them hardXcore. Next on my list is doughnut peaches. I saw them at TJs yesterday and almost bought them, but decided to wait until my regular peaches in my fridge run out. This pudding should help me reach this point fast.

So this pudding. It is creamy dreamy and seriously refreshing on a day as hot as today. The cold chunks of tangy yet sweet peaches add the perfect flavor and texture punch to the pudding, and add so much extra delight for your palate that very little sugar is required.

I used coconut milk, which was wonderful, but you can use any plant or regular milk your heart desires. And while it’s optional, I would highly recommend NOT skipping the coconut whipped cream, as it adds just that little bit of luscious love to take this chia seed pudding from regular chia seed pudding to tasting and feeling like an extra special treat.

And you deserve that treat. Because adulting is hard and no one is perfect, but whipping up chia seed pudding makes you sure feel like you’re doing something right. Kudos, kiddos. #BlessUp.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Chill Time: at least 4 hours, preferrably overnight

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (in a carton, or canned if you’d prefer something a bit richer) or other non-dairy milk
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
• 1-2 tablespoons sugar or maple syrup (optional)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut whipped cream, divided
• 1 ripe peach

Directions:

1. Cut peach in half. Cover half and set aside in the refrigerator to save for serving. Meanwhile, chop the other half into bite sized cubes.
2. Mash cubes with the back of the fork to allow juice to bleed from them slightly. Transfer to a small bowl. Add coconut milk, chia seeds, sugar or maple syrup, vanilla, and 1/2 tablespoon coconut cream, and mix well.
3. Cover pudding and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or, preferably, overnight.
4. Chop remaining half of peach and use to top pudding. Dollop 1 tablespoon coconut whipped cream on top of pudding and enjoy.

I love love love lemon desserts. Tangy, sweet, tart, epic. They are everything in one bite.

I also love cheesecake. Pre-plant-based days I used to be famous for my special cheesecake torte that I used to top with fresh fruit and apricot glaze. I had some tricks up my sleeve. Haven’t made that in years, but will be veganizing it very soon. Cause that sh*t was good.

For some reason I’ve been craving some lemon cheesecake bars. I couldn’t get the craving out of my brain / taste buds for over a week. Thus, on Friday night, I decided it was time to transform my craving into a reality and got to work in my pseudo-kitchen.

If you want to know how I cook, I’ll have you know I do all my prep work on my desk which requires me to move things off my desk (like books and my computer) and move things onto my desk (like my food processor, mixing bowls, utensils, ingredients, and my cutting board. Why do I do this? I literally have *zero* counter space…#newyorkproblems. Which if you knew how much my rent was, would probably make you very upset. Sadly, I’m somehow used to these quirks of NYC and accept them for what they are.

And therefore, I make almond chia oat crusts and lemon vegan cheesecake on my desk in my living room. And then I bake the cheesecake bars in my toaster oven in my bedroom.

Now you may be asking, why do you have a toaster oven in your bedroom?

Well, I will have you know that I actually DO have an oven in my apartment, but it has been broken since I moved in and my super still hasn’t fixed it. So I took matters into my own hands. This wasn’t as easy to do when my toilet broke. That sucked – I lived without one for 5 weeks. And again, if you knew how much my rent was, you’d probably feel very upset.

Back to these bars: the healthier crunchy/chewy nutty oaty crust is delightful and makes these bars like 5% healthier. But honestly they’d also be wonderful and possibly tastier with a regular graham cracker crust. I ended up going this route because of what I had on hand and was pleased with the result. But you do you. I’m not in your kitchen watchin’.

So many these bars and #blessup with lemon goodness.

And again, welcome back to kbaked. Feels good to be home😎.

Ingredients – Filling:

• 8 ounces vegan cream cheese, softened (I used Trader Joe’s)
• 1/4 cup canned coconut cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• juice and zest of 2 lemons

Ingredients – Crust:

• 1/2 cup almond meal or 1/2 cup almonds, pulsed
• 1/2 rolled oats, pulsed
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds

Directions: 

• Preheat oven to 300 °F. Zest lemons and then juice them. Set zest and juice aside.
•  In a food processor, combine all ingredients for the crust and pulse until a soft, sticky crumb forms. If mixture does not hold together well, add more maple syrup and/or coconut oil, 1 teaspoon at a time.
•  Lightly oil a 9×9 inch dish. Press crust mixture into greased dish. Set aside.
•  In a bowl, combine softened vegan cream cheese, canned coconut cream, vanilla, and lemon juice and zest. Mix with an electric beater or stand mixer until light and fluffy, about 4-6 minutes.
•  Pour filling into crust and place in the oven until lightly browned and set, about 25-30 minutes.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before enjoying. Store in the refrigerator or freezer. Taste best kept cold.

So it’s June. Exactly 3 months after I wrote my very first blog post and the day that gay marriage was legalized in Wisconsin. Such memories, many nostalgia.

Late June means a lot of things: like June bugs and sweaty days and picnics and sunglasses and those moments of “omg where is summer going so quickly?” It also means stone fruits, like peaches.

So the base of the oatmeal is pretty much normal oatmeal with a few tweaks (like the addition of baking soda and vinegar) to improve fluffiness and some diced peaches for fun and flavor. The result is a fluffy bowl of oats studded with peach pieces that have been cooked to elevate their flavor.

And if I were to describe this breakfast in one word it would be luscious. Very luscious indeed. The dollop of coconut whipped cream on the top sort of sends it over the top, taking it from blah and normal to a little bit decadent and indulgent in the best way possible.

The recipe was born out of a meh peach I found in my fridge that was stuck behind a yogurt container and I somehow missed until it got a little bit past it’s prime. Not wanting to waste food, I decided to use it up in my oats. I had some leftover coconut whipped cream from making this pie (also found in my ebook), so the marriage of these ingredients only seemed nature.

So let’s cut the talking and get to the eating and upgrade some oats with this scrumptious recipe:

Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Serves: 1

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or whatever milk you want
• 1/2 teaspoon vinegar (any kind)
• 1 ripe peach, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract (optional)
• dash of cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons walnuts (optional)
• 1 heaping tablespoon coconut whipped cream or canned coconut fat (optional)

Directions:

1. Add vinegar to almond milk and allow to sit at least 10 minutes.
2. Combine rolled oats, baking soda, almond milk and vinegar mixture, peach cubes, vanilla and cinnamon in a bowl and mix.
3. Cook in the microwave on medium-high for 4 minutes. Stir and cook an additional minute or until oats and peaches are tender. Allow to sit one minute.
4. Dollop coconut whipped cream on top of oatmeal and allow it to get all melty and delicious. Enjoy!😀

Hello from the other side….of graduate school!

I think that was an Adele reference and tbh I don’t like that song. And I think the title of this post is a Real Housewives of New York reference but we can pretend it’s not and also like I watch intelligent quality programing when I reality all I watch is Bravo, E!, and Food Network. Anyways…

I’m well aware that I legitimately sucked at blogging this year. It was sad and pathetic. It was like I didn’t even make an effort (srsly, sry). But then again I don’t know why I’m apologizing since I’m not even sure if anyone actually reads these blog posts or just scrolls over things to look at food pictures.

I feel you.

Anyways, I spent a year in the MS program at Columbia University Medical Center Institute of Human Nutrition and came out a completely transformed human being.

I literally feel like my brain has evolved. I LEARNED SO MUCH. So much. Not only about nutrition as a science and clinical practice, but also about food policy, sustainability, food security climate change, and how to read and interpret science.

And I became like, deeply, dorkily committed to issues and integrity and putting people before profit and all that corny kind of stuff. Like, holy shit is all can say. Educational opportunity of a lifetime. I feel very #blessed to have had the experience and  I am so motivated to tackle big issues and save the world, etc.

I also spent the year doing some nutrition intern(ish)? work at Spoon University. Tbh idk what my exact title is. Basically, I sit there and write shit about being healthy. Cool story, I know. I also sometimes secretly cry over the world of journalism (seriously, I think I care too much). But I did some recipes and whatever and a bunch of writing. The photos floating around this post are from some recipes I did.  And for those who ask, no I don’t get paid.

Here are some links I’ll share from the collection:

• How To Make A Week’s Worth of Vegan Meals for $30 from Trader Joe’s –> this one is prob my fav piece I produced this year
• Why I Quit My Full Time Job to Work at Trader Joe’s
• Vegan Inside Out Peanut Butter Cups
• 4-Ingredient Kale Chips That Taste Like Nachos
• 3 Ingredient Vegan Pancakes
• How To Make The Most College Sandwich Ever
• Why You Should Care About Climate Change Like Leo and Eat Sustainably

And many, many more. You can find my whole author archive for Spoon University right here.

I also poured hundreds or hours of work and my heart and soul into a published a nutrition and healthy eating guide right here!

Phew. So that’s all great and all but I’m also happy to have my own space back. It feels good to be “back home” on the blog. I love blogging outside of structured journalism because I can post whenever I want on my own schedule and have no one tell me my ideas are bad and I don’t have to worry as much about things like share-ability and click-bait and stuff.  I can just do me and be weird and that’s okay.

Except there are also benefits to journalism like having stories picked up by places like Buzzfeed and Food & Wine and other neat stuff that happened to me this year. And prob the greatest: Sam finding my thousands of spelling errors (TY Sam, srsly, plz help me always).

Either way, kbaked is back and ready to  bake and cook in my teeny tiny Manhattan apartment where I have literally no counter space and cook out of a toaster oven that resides in my bedroom and a microwave that’s in my living room.#NewYork life is truly glamourous.

Anyways, welcome back!! First recipe of the summer will be out in a few hours. Also thanks to whoever made this recipe (pictured above) kinda popular and kept the traffic goin’ while I was away. You da best!

Side note: WordPress just informed me I started by blog exactly 3 years ago today!! What a fun coincidence and the perfect day for a comeback😎. Have a good one friends!