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Mermaid Bowl ~ Raw Vegan Soft Serve with Boosh Chunks

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Gaze away at this swirly masterpiece…OK, now go make yourself one. This mermaid bowl is ready in no time and provides all the dreamy, guilt-free spoonfuls your taste buds desire.

Just in time for the LONGEST day of the year. Bring on that sunshine and those mermaid bowls, who’s with me?

The base? bananas.

The colour? phycocyanin.

The topping? fermented kombucha bar chunks (from Vegan Rob’s).

The result? The bowl of my dreams.

In just a few minutes you’ll have an antioxidant packed mermaid bowl filled to the brim with live phytonutrients and fermented goodness! Ahh.

I brew my own ‘boosh‘ at home, but I never had heard of kombucha being in the form of something you chew on – like a granola bar. Well, it’s possible! Vegan Rob‘s just came out with their Kombuchabar (what?!)… So I topped off this mesmerizing soft-serve with chunks of it for some nice texture and added probiotics for digestive and gut health.

The beautiful blue-ness comes from the crazy sounding and intense looking active ingredient in spirulina (phycocyanin). I found a small package of it here. More on the benefits of it below…. I personally love it just for the crazy mermaid colour it gives to anything, because who ever made up that whole.. ‘don’t play with your food’ thing anyway?

Benefits:

  • Phycocyanin is a super potent antioxidant powerhouse. It’s the active blue pigment protein complex of the blue-green algae, spirulina. Phycocyanin is used for photosynthesis in the algae, as it directly absorbs sunlight. In humans, when ingested, it’s complex structure resembles the powerful antioxidant ‘bilirubin’ and it has the same intense affects on our body as bilirubin. It’s an immune enhancer, disease preventer, and anti-inflammatory, this stuff is magic.
  • Kombucha Bar that I’m using to top off this magical mermaid bowl is the first bar I’ve found that has the probiotic benefits of kombucha…but in the form of solid food! Crazy talk. The fermented kombucha in these bars help the gut microflora thrive. Fermented food are a must, because 90% of the cells in our bodies are bacteria cells and just 10% are human. Most of our bacteria live in our micro-biome/gut, so we have to make sure we’re feeding our gut the right things to help the cells flourish…and fermented foods is where it’s at.
  • Bananas are a staple around our place. I get a case of smoothie-ready bananas every week from Spud. I freeze half of them for bowls like this, and the everyday green smoothie I whip up. They’re packed with potassium to help balance your blood pressure, and iron to combat anemia.

 


Mermaid Bowl Soft Serve
 
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This bowl tastes just as magically delicious as it looks. Packed with fermented benefits and a mega antioxidant-boost!
Author:
Recipe type: breakfast, dessert, snack, smoothie bowl, ice cream
Serves: 1-2
Ingredients
  • 5 frozen bananas, halved
  • 1 tbsp peanut butter
  • 1-2 tsp phycocyanin powder
  • ½ cup plant-based milk (almond, coconut, cashew, hemp)
  • 1 kombucha bar, chopped (found at Vegan Robs)
Instructions
  1. In food processor, blend all ingredients except the kombucha bar until smooth. Add a bit more milk if you want a softer texture.
  2. Spoon it into a couple of your favourite bowls and top it off with kombucha bar chunks.
  3. Devour.

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Last week was all about acting with love instead of fear throughout your life, biz, relationships and to yourself.

How to Make an Aquafaba Whipped Cream Parfait | Blueberry Matcha | Raw Vegan

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If you’re breakfast looks like this, your day is complete by 9am. This raw vegan aquafaba whipped cream parfait is taken to the next level with a snickers bar made by the lovely Laura.

And even though it’s whipped cream for breakfast, it’s still good for you.

But, how?

~ The snickers bar created by the raw vegan treat pros over at Little Tucker is raw, vegan and made with nuts, dates, some maple syrup… and it tastes heavenly because these girls got skills!! If you’re going to be at Veg Expo this weekend at the Vancouver Convention Centre, go say hi to Laura and the girls to sample some of their goodness.

~ The whipped cream is made of the magical ingredient, aquafaba. Yup, the juice of the chickpea, that’s right. You threw that down the drain without thinking twice before you read this, didn’t you? Don’t worry, I did too. Aquafaba creates a wonderfully stiff, yummy, and very low calorie alternative to your typical whip. It’s also a great egg-replacer in vegan baking (3 tbsp = 1 egg).  Who knew?!

~The base is made from my breakfast cereal, Jules Fuel. Matcha Date and Blueberry Cacao Overnight Buckwheat Oats that I soak in homemade hemp milk, or any kind of plant based milk kickin’ around. It’s packed to the rim with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, plant protein, and fibre. You can order it internationally from Vegan Supply, or locally at Spud Vancouver.

Layer it all up with some fresh berries and you’ve got yourself a true breakfast of champs.

You can get Jules Fuel overnight buckwheat oats (blueberry cacao, or matcha date flavour) online from anywhere in the world at Vegan Supply! Or, locally in the Vancouver/Whistler area from Spud online, or Be Fresh, Green Moustache, and any Whistler Grocery store. You can find the Little Tucker snickers bar here.


5.0 from 1 reviews
Aquafaba Whipped Cream Parfait with Jules Fuel | Raw Vegan
 
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Not your typical parfait! Aquafaba whipped cream, matcha blueberry oats, and a raw vegan snickers bar to top it all off!
Author:
Recipe type: breakfast
Serves: 2
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In separate jars, soak ½ cup blueberry cacao Jules Fuel with ½ cup plant milk, and ½ cup matcha date Jules Fuel with the rest of the ½ cup of plant milk for at least 30 minutes (overnight if you can!!)
  2. Make Aquafaba Whipped Cream: add all whipped cream ingredients to an electric hand mixer with the whisk attachment. Mix on high for at least 5 minutes. The longer you mix, the stiffer it will become! Watch the magic happen.
  3. In 2 jars, scoop in one of the Jules Fuel oats, then some berries, then some whipped cream, then another layer of the other Jules Fuel oats, then go crazy with the whipped cream, and top it all off with the snickers bar.
Notes
Store extra whipped cream in the freezer, and use as you would 'cool whip'. Keeps for one month

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VEG EXPO IS THIS WEEKEND!

Come see me at booth #48 ! Or watch my talk at 12:40 (6 Ways to Get Hooked On Plants). SEE YOU THERE !!

Raw Vegan Matcha Charcoal Swirl Cheese Cake

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Forget friends with benefits… dessert with benefits way more fun. And yes, this raw vegan matcha charcoal swirl cheese cake does taste as good as it looks.

This luscious  dessert is a crowd-pleases and SO easy!! It only takes 15 minutes of actual time in the kitchen for you. The rest of the time is for soaking the nuts and freezing the cake so it’s a cheese cake-like texture.

Matcha + Activated Charcoal.

Mixing these two wonders together creates a black and green galaxy of antioxidants and intense detoxifying powers your body will thank you for. Matcha does wonders as an antioxidant powerhouse, and activated charcoal actually binds to toxins and heavy metals in your body (great for hangovers).

This crust is just 3 main superfood ingredients with some lemon zest and sea salt. Easy as pie (crust).

Who knew dessert could be so powerful?

Matcha is one of the most powerful antioxidants in the world. I’ve been loving the ceremonial grade DoMatcha. They’re all about quality and transparency with their matcha (check out where they source it from and how it’s made here).

I’m so in love with matcha. One of my Jules Fuel overnight buckwheat oat breakfast cereals is made with DoMatcha, and when I’m working from home I end up having at least 2 matcha hemp milk lattés throughout the day, and I feel gooooood about it.
This dessert was a hit at my good friend’s 30th birthday (Happy Birthday Shannon). No one was vegan, and everyone wanted more 😉

7  benefits of Matcha:
  1. Antioxidant powerhouse! Matcha helps slow aging process by fighting free radicals and protecting your cells from damage and minimizing your risk for disease
  2. Sustained energy release compared to coffee (no jitters)
  3. High in the antioxidant EGCG, which is shown to boost metabolism, increase fat loss, and help prevent disease
  4. 137 times more antioxidants that your typical green tea
  5. L-theanine in matcha improves memory and boosts your mood by helping produce dopamine and serotonin
  6. High levels of chlorophyll in matcha detoxifies your body by helping remove heavy metals and chemical toxins
  7. Increases your immunity with it’s antibiotic properties and good levels of vitamin A, C and potassium

5.0 from 1 reviews
Raw Vegan Matcha Charcoal Swirl Cheese Cake
 
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A decadent, raw vegan dessert packed to the brim with antioxidants and detoxifying effects! It only takes 15 minutes of actual 'work in the kitchen time', the rest is freezing or soaking time! It's delish and has mega benefits.
Author:
Recipe type: dessert, pie, raw dessert
Cuisine: raw vegan
Serves: 10-12
Ingredients
  • Crust:
  • ½ cup oats (gluten-free if needed)
  • 1 cup pitted dates
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • ⅛ tsp salt

  • Filling:
  • 2 cups cashews, soaked at least 3 hours (or 1 hour in hot water)
  • 1 cup full fat coconut cream (scrape the solid white stuff out of the can, leave the liquid)
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • juice of 1 large lemon
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 tsp matcha powder (I used ceremonial grade matcha fromDo Matcha)
  • 1 tsp activated charcoal (sub cacao powder)
Instructions
  1. Make crust: in your food processor, blend dates until they've become small chunks or a ball. Remove from food processor and blend walnuts and oats until their a fine meal. Add the dates back in. Blend until well combined. Texture? It should stick together when squeezed.
  2. Press crust into a parchment lined spring form pan (up the sides too).
  3. Place the crusted pan into the freezer.
  4. Make filling: in your blender, blend cashews, coconut cream, maple syrup, vanilla and lemon until smooth and silky. This will give you 2½ cups of white filling.
  5. Pour ¾ of the filling (1¾ cups) out into a jar, keeping half of the filling in the blender.
  6. Add matcha to the blender and blend until combined.
  7. Pour matcha filling in the pie crust.
  8. Blend the rest of the white filling with the activated charcoal (or cacao).
  9. Drizzle the activated charcoal filling in a swirl over the matcha filling. Use a butter knife or chop stick to create art! (zig zag motion)
  10. Place the pie in the freezer for at least 2 hours.
  11. When you're ready to eat it, take it out of the freezer and let sit 10 minutes.
  12. Store it in the freezer!
Notes
The actual 'work time' of this pie is only 15 minutes, or so (blending the crust, then blending both fillings). The soak time and the freezer time is included in the total time.
The longer the cashews are soaked, the creamier the pie.
You can freeze it for less time, but it just won't be as solid.

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Smokey Vegan Parmesan | Ready in 3 minutes

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This smokey vegan parmesan goes well with anything, and I mean ANYTHING savoury.

It has to be in the fridge at all times, ready to get it’s sprinkle on.

There’s nothing like a little smoky saltiness to add pizzazz to any meal.

Your next pasta, salad, tofu scramble, sandwich or wrap will welcome this parm with open arms.

The one thing people seem to miss most during the transition to plant-based eating… CHEESE, because it’s physically addicting. Casomorphins in dairy create an opioid effect to keep the calf coming back for more from her cow Mama. When milk is made into cheese for human consumption (it takes 10 lbs of milk to create just 1 lb of cheese), the casomorphins are concentrated to high levels and create a strong opioid effect, that keep us coming back for more. Once you’re separated from the addiction for a bit, you’ll be over and and see cheese for what it really is… Check out this post for more on that.

It’s becoming easier and easier with all of the amazing vegan cheese companies coming out with innovative, melty, flavourful, creamy, cheeses! And this recipe gives a cheesiness to any recipe.

When it comes to parm, I think VioLife makes the best store bought vegan version. But, when you don’t have any of that kicking around, you can resort to this smokey vegan parmesan recipe!

The smokiness adds a deep deliciousness to your typical parmesan flava flave.

Benefits:

  • Cashews provide you with 100% of your copper needs! Copper helps with the reactions needed for the metabolism of iron, energy production, and neurotransmission. They’re also packed with vitamins E for healthy skin and bones!
  • Paprika is ground up red pepper! It’s packed with antioxidants, and is very anti-inflammatory.
  • Sunflower seeds are also an amazing source of copper and vitamin E, as well as B1. Vitamin B1 helps the breakdown of fats and protein, and vastly improves the cardiovascular functioning of the body.


Smokey Vegan Parmesan
 
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This is your next meal's best friend. Sprinkle this stuff on anything to enhance any kind of savoury dish.
Author:
Recipe type: topping
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup raw cashews
  • 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp smoked paprika
  • ¾ tsp sea salt
Instructions
  1. Blend all ingredients in a mini food processor, blender or spice grinder until you reach the consistency of parm! You shouldn't need more than 30 seconds.
  2. Store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

** This goes great with Simple Green Curry, Butternut Mac n’ Peas, Whole Roasted Cauli, Curried Collard Greens, Mashed Potato Butternut Swirl, and the Green Machine Curried Zucchini Hummus.

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Juice Cleansing 101

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Juice cleansing can give you the vitality, energy and digestion you’re looking for…

(Scroll to the bottom for $ off the cleanse I did)

After the detox symptoms pass and the will power succeeds, that is…

Spring is the time for re-sets, refreshers, transitions, and switchovers. I love it.

It’s also the perfect time to get your cleanse on. I used to think it would mess with the metabolism, but now I’ve learned that a short juice cleanse can be the thing to do if you need a digestive re-set.

Here’s the thing. Food takes energy to digest, which takes away from the energy it needs to support other important bodily functions, so it’s good to give your digestive system a break every now and then. Fasting and cleansing allows the body to work on other ‘house cleaning’ besides digesting, assimilating and eliminating the last snack or meal.

There’s no doubt about it, you will experience some detox symptoms. This is your body clearing out toxins and excess waste.

Why do a juice cleanse?

We are constantly putting food into our mouths. 3 meals a day, snacks in between. Many of these foods are acid-forming and inflammatory. Our body sometimes needs the time off from digestion, assimilation and elimination, to start working on other important aspects of being a bad-ass body!

While we sleep, our body works on cell rejuvenation and toxin removal (once our dinner is digested, which why it’s a good idea to eat a couple hours before sleeping). This typically leads to waking up feeling puffy, with white on the tongue and flem in the throat. The body is ‘cleaning up the yard’ as efficiently as it can while it doesn’t need to focus on digesting food or expending energy elsewhere. This is why it’s recommended to give yourself a fasting time of 12 hours from dinner to breakfast. Eat a couple hours before bed, then listen to your hunger signs in the morning and eat when you’re actually hungry. This has been proven to lead to longevity, prevent cancer and disease and help digestive issues.

While we juice cleanse, we’re fasting while still fuelling our cells with a super-dose of enzymes, nutrients, antioxidants, and minerals that will help breakdown diseased tissues in the body. Aging and disease come from biochemical suffocation, that happens when our cells aren’t getting enough oxygen and nutrients to eliminate wastes. Juicing will give those cells that oxygen and sweet nutrients directly!

Rather than using energy to digest, your body will be able to focus on:

  • cell rejuvenation and restoration
  • alkalinizing
  • reducing inflammation
  • enhancing your immune system
  • replenishing the micro-biome (9/10 of our cells are bacteria, 1/10 are human. Since most bacterial cells live in the gut/micro-biome, we need to keep them happy by providing their home with phytonutrients and micronutrients)
  • balancing hormones (leading to a better mood)
  • clearing up skin issues
  • detoxifying the liver
  • reducing cravings
  • showing you what allergies and sensitivities you have
  • getting in tune hunger signs and teaching you how to eat intuitively
  • lowering blood pressure
  • increasing blood circulation
  • decreasing blood fat
  • decreasing athertosclerosis (plaque build up)
  • pulling toxins from your cells and your liver
  • breaking down stored, circulating chemicals
  • creating new essential substances in your liver

Other benefits you may feel:

  • motivation to get sh#t done
  • an urge for change
  • a better understanding of the connection between your body and the food you fuel it with
  • clarity – easier to make big decisions without being masked by food distraction and digestion
  • you will drop a few pounds, but this will be temporary. The long term affect of easier weight maintenance comes with the digestive system and micro-flora replenishing benefits you’ll get!

What to expect?

It’s not all rainbows and butterflies. There’s a good chance you’re going to feel some symptoms during the detox period, especially if you’re coming from a diet with animal products, lots of caffeine, sugar, or alcohol. But, stay strong! They will pass and you’ll feel better than ever. It may take longer than a 3 day cleanse, but any kind of short term cleanse can act as a jump-start you to making healthier choices and crave better things (like whole plant foods).

Cravings can be physical additions (especially when it comes to refined sugar and dairy). But, sometimes it’s your body telling you that you need a certain micronutrient that you’re low in. A juice cleanse does wonders for combatting cravings of any kind. Detoxifying from these foods will take will power, but you may just come out on the other side as a free bird!

Detox symptoms:

If you feel any of these, they should only last a 1-2 days if you have them. If you do a longer cleanse and on day 4 these symptoms continue to worsen, stop the cleanse and start introducing whole plant foods again.

  • hunger (when you’re hungry, try to get in touch with yourself and ask ‘what am I hungry for?’, then try to distract yourself from the kitchen callings)
  • bad breath
  • congestion
  • digestive upset and farts
  • crazy dreams from your body releasing poisons overnight
  • headaches
  • low energy
  • break outs
  • diahrea
  • fogginess/light-headedness
  • fatigue
  • cravings
  • white coat on tongue

Sounds nice right? Have no fear… maybe you won’t experience any of this at all. But if you do, it won’t last and unfortunately, it’s necessary. Just like you clean up your closet, your body is cleaning up it’s business.

Warning: all the juice may turn you green…or create the urge to give yourself more self care (take a bath, do a face mask, oil your hair)

How to:

  • Use a straw (for teeth protection)
  • Sip, don’t chug
  • Minimal exercise (light jogs/walk/yoga), or keep to your regular but add in strained, homemade nut or seed milk.
  • Drink water all day… a lot of it
  • Drink herbal tea
  • If you need something to chew on, go for something easily digestible (add chia or hemp seeds into your juice, eat a fresh fruit or veggie – cucumber is best)
  • If you feel the need for something creamy, or if you continue to work out in some way, make your own nut milk to sip on
  • If you’re up for it, get a colonic or enema while you’re at it! Your colon (23 feet long) can hold old fecal matter for years. Juicing will help dislodge toxins and build up, but an enema will help bring them out of you…leaving a colon that is able to absorb nutrients again. It’s important to drink a lot of water, or do colon hydrotherapy to get rid of those toxins before your colon absorbs them back into the system.
  • Keep yourself distracted if you feel the urge to reach for the cookie jar (go for a walk, tea with friends, work on your passion project, hobby it up, take a bath, clean out your closet, go see a movie, meditate, call your grams…)
  • Take a sauna or get a massage to help along the detoxification process
  • Optional supplements:
    • milk thistle – helps liver detoxify and repair
    • niacin – helps detox from chemicals in your system
    • B12 – every day
    • spirulina and/or chlorella – microalgae for extra detox
  • Get yourself a tongue scraper! Not only for the juice cleanse, but every morning. It just scrapes off the build up on your tongue first thing in the morning. This stuff is bacteria and waste built up from the night of detoxifying.
  • Get your self a dry skin brush. This is another way of detoxing. Your skin is your biggest organ and it is continuously detoxifying and shedding old skin. Get that stuff off so it can do it’s job more efficiently. Dry brushing also increasing lymph flow (your lymph is what is pumped when you work out and sweat, but this is another way of triggering it to work it’s magic for your immunity, fat loss and detoxification!)

My 3-day experience:

Day 1:

  • Feels: Slight head-ache around 2pm. A bit foggy while working away. Went for a super easy jog, drank another juice and felt better.
  • Digestion: great! No fogginess or lows from digesting.
  • Exercise: 5 minute yoga and 15 minutes of exercises on the VibraFit (oscillating/vibrating machine that’s amazing for blood flow, muscle contractions, detoxing)
  • Hunger: Wasn’t hungry. Missed the chewing though.
  • Tummy: a bit loud as I was falling asleep, with all the liquids moving around
  • Added home made hemp milk to the day (about a cup in total to my herbal teas), partly because I wanted something creamy, and also because I ran today. It’s ok to add a bit of protein from milked nuts or seeds on while you cleanse.

Day 2:

  • Feels: Woke up naturally at 6:30 with clarity, energy, motivation. 5 minute meditation (trying to do this more consistently…). Minimal congestion, some white on the tongue. Flat tummy! I usually wake up with a bit of bloat from dinner still, which is why I always start with a big mason jar of water and wait a couple hours to eat breakfast. No head ache. A bit of puffiness under the eyes still, first thing.
  • Hunger: only when I was making food for Davey. It’s the smell and being around it! Otherwise, I would be content and energized enough from the juice noots (nutrients)
  • Digestion: smooth. Not too many trips to the bathroom. No burps or gas.
  • Exercise: HIIT in the AM, 1.5 hour skate ski in the afternoon. Felt fatigued near the end (more than normal)
  • Had homemade hemp milk in my bengal spice tea throughout the day again

Day 3:

  • Feels: Woke up easily at 6:30 again. Slept great (I usually do). Barely any morning congestion! Flat tummy.
  • Afternoon/evening: A bit of a head ache. Sooooo tempting to cave to the craving of crunchiness.
  • Hunger: Getting in tune with my hunger pangs. Realizing how much food cravings are emotional/comforting/for happiness over just plain hunger. Once I have a juice, the hunger signs are gone. The body just wants nutrients to live off! I did feel a bit ‘floaty’, but kept myself busy and out of the kitchen/house.
  • Digestion: smooth sailings. No bloating or digestive fatigue.
  • Exercise: 15 minute HIIT.
  • Realization: asking myself “what am I hungry for” when I feel like I want to eat. Usually it’s not actual hunger, but that comforting feeling of eating a meal, chewing, enjoying food with people. Instead of having that to look forward to, I think of other things that can give me joy and keep me busy. This is why I feel more productive on juice cleanses. I keep myself busy with stuff I’ve been putting off for a while… Cleaning the truck, cleaning the closet out, writing more. But, this also makes me appreciate food even more, and how grateful we need to be for each meal (can’t wait to get back into the kitchen to create).

Day 4 – introducing food back into ma life (Keep it light-what to eat to break the fast): 

  • Feels: Woke up again at 6:30 easily, with a bit of congestion this time (body eliminating toxins). Flat tummy again.
  • Exercise: Morning HIIT for 15 minutes + 7 minute yoga flow before breakfast. 45 minute before lunch.
  • Food on the day of re-introducing food should be simple, easily digestible and full of plant nutrients.
  • Breakfast: Simple smoothie bowl to re-introduce fibre! Kale, Spinach, Carrot, Ginger, Banana, Blueberries, Spirulina, Maca, Water. Loud tummy!
  • 2nd Breakfast: Small portion of Jules Fuel blueberry cacao overnight buckwheat oats + banana with hemp milk. Turmeric hemp milk latte
  • Lunch: Green Moustache Superfood salad
  • Dinner: Butternut Mac + Peas, with a mega salad
  • Dessert: Apple + 2 medjool dates

Want to try a juice cleanse out? 

The ‘Chief’ juice cleanse I did was made by Be Fresh. 6 juices a day for 3 days (there is a 1 day option, too).

Order it right to your door from Spud Vancouver!

Use this code at the check out for 20$ off: CRVAN-MURJUB.

 

Let me know if you do it! Tag me @hookedonplants on instagram to connect if you need support;)