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Thank you so much for viewing our posts. We have decided to make this bigger. 

What does your skin eat??

I know.. such a strange question but its a question we should all ask ourselves. Did you know that your skin absorbs anywhere between 60-90% of what you put on it? When was the last time you checked your ingredients? Its no wonder cancer is on the rise and our immune systems are struggling. Our bodies and brains are not made to process most of the ingredients packed into the average skincare product. Most of these "additives" serve no other purpose than for esthetic packaging purposes. 

I would like to touch a moment on the most harmful skincare ingredients.

Fragrance/Parfum: A catchall for hidden chemicals such as phthalates. This ingredient makes me the most upset. I believe in the power of essential oils and our brains ability to use the to work on our bodies. That being said synthetic frangrance goes into our nose and to our brain which thinks its getting helpful information and then when it goes unrecognized it starts attacking our bodies.

Ethoxylate surfactants and 1,4-dioxane: Never listed because its a by product. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found 1,4-dioxane in 57% of baby washes un the U.S. Avoid any ingredients containing the letters "eth."

Hydroquinone: Used for lightening skin. Banned in the UK, rated most toxic on the EWG's Skin Database and linked to cancer and reproductive problems.

Lead: Known carcinogen found in lipstick and hair dye, but never listed because its a contaminant not an ingredient. Lead is the cause of many neurological problems.

Mercury: Known allergen that impairs brain development. Found in mascara and some eyedrops.

Mineral Oil: By product of petroleum thats used in baby oil, moisturizers and styling gels. It creates a film that impairs the body to release toxins.

Parabens: Use as a preservative and found in many products. Linked to cancer and reproductive toxicity. Please note that paraben awareness is very much a trend these days so even though it says paraben free please check your labels.

Let's talk about how to educate ourselves. I know not everyone has the time to set around and research things like I do but fortunately there is a very helpful site that can take a lot of guesswork away for you. Its called Skin Deep Cosmetic Database. They have most all commercial products listed. You just type in the name and it will tell you on a scale of 1-10 how toxic the product really is. It even goes into the detail of specific ingredients and what they do. 

Light&Love

Credits: Cosmetic Database and Treehugger Blog

Acai Bowl Recipe

After spending most of last summer in California I became obsessed with acai bowls. I decided to bring Cali to the South and make these yummy bowls for breakfast. Hope you enjoy my recipe!!

Acai Bowl

1- 4oz frozen packs of acai puree

1/2-1 cup coconut water

1/2 banana 

a handful of blueberries

Pulse in blender until smooth. Top with cut berries, honey, cut up bananas and granola. 

Its a very easy and healthy breakfast.

Vegan Cashew Alfredo with Garlicky Kale

Whats for dinner tonight? None other than my now famous Vegan Cashew Alfredo with Garlicky Kale. It was a hit with my wonderful Fiance and our friends Suman and Olivia.. Check my recipe out below.

Vegan Cashew Alfredo with Garlicky Kale

*Make 8-10oz of gluten free pasta 

* 1 cup peas (I used organic frozen)

*5 Stalks Kale

*4 Garlic Cloves 

*1 1/2 cups plain almond milk

*1/2 cup raw cashews

*1 cup nutritional yeast

*1 fresh lemon squeezed (juice only)

* Onion powder to taste

* Garlic powder to taste

* Cayenne to taste

1. Make pasta according to directions

2. While cooking the pasta place 3 cloves of minced garlic in a pan with olive oil and cook for a couple minutes. Add in kale and peas with a couple tablespoons water then cover stirring occasionally. 

3. Add almond milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, cashews and seasonings in a high powered bender. It will be very thin. Add to a large stock pot and cook on medium low, whisking the whole time for 5 minutes or until thick.

4. Put drained pasta and kale (drain if there is any extra liquid) in the sauce and toss until covered. Add extra nutritional yeast and seasoning along with plenty of sea salt and pepper. 

Vegan Apple Peach Pie!! My Great Grandmothers recipe veganized!!!!!

Today I woke up to chillier than normal temperatures and it inspired me. During the transition from Summer to Fall there is a variety of fruits available and what better to cozy up to than an apple peach pie just like my great grandmother makes (well veganized of course).

Apple Peach Pie

Crust

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup Earth Balance butter (about half a container)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp organic sugar

1/4 cup ice water

Chill the butter in the freezer for about an hour. 

While butter is chilling I start on the filling (see below). After the butter chills put the dry ingredients in your food processor or high powered blender and pulse a couple of times. Add half the butter and pulse another couple times and then add the rest and pulse until it gets pebbly. Then add about 1/4 cup ice water (dont add the ice). Then if it needs more add a teaspoon at a time until it starts to hold. Be sure to add just enough to bind but not to much. Roll out into two disks and then put in refrigerator for an 30 minutes to an hour. After that time your filling will be ready so you can roll it out and get going. 

Filling

3 Apples

3 Peachs

1/2-1 cup raw sugar

1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

1/2 cup Bourbon 

1 tsp real vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the apples and peaches into slices and leave the skin on. Add the apple cider vinegar and half the sugar and let cook on medium low for about 10 minutes. Then usually after I get the crust going I add the rest of the ingredients and cook until they are basically mush. After you roll out the crust add the fruit and top with the second crust and bake for about 45 minutes. 

Raw Sunflower and Seaweed Pate.. Its whats for lunch

Today for lunch I made one of my old favorites and thought I would share. Fun fact about me is that for almost a year I was a totally raw vegan (about 60%-80% of my diet consisted of uncooked fruits and veggies). During that time I gave my blendtec a run for its money and came up with all sorts of healthy treats. 

Raw Sunflower Seaweed Pate

2 Cups soaked sunflower seeds (soak at least an hour)

1 Tablespoon dulse (dried seaweed)

1 clove garlic

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp apple cider vinegar  

1 tsp fresh thyme

1/2 tsp sea salt (I used hawaiian black salt)

Put all ingredients in high powered blender with a smidgen of water and blend until it resembles tuna salad.

I usually keep out one serving and refrigerate the rest in an airtight container before adding the toppings.

Toppings (optional)

Cherry tomatoes

Chopped onions

Celery

Parsley 

This is great on crackers or my usual choice of lettuce. 

Vegan Twice Baked Potatoes

Here it comes!  Our first Recipe post!!  Stay tuned!

Travel: Hawaii

You Spent TWO weeks in Hawaii?! Yes we have gotten that comment a lot since our return a couple weeks ago. I am a travel guru to most of our friends and I pinch every penny imaginable to get us there and have the best experience possible. 

It all started around Christmas time when my soon to be in laws invited me to go along with the family to visit the new Disney Resort in Hawaii. Well true to mine and Roberts nature we werent just going to go to Hawaii and have a 5 star experience we had to go a bit more in the rustic direction. I got on the airfare and booked it through my usual source of Priceline "Name your own Price". I ended up booking both of our tickets for the price of one. The trick with Priceline flights is to be flexable. We ended up flying Monday to Monday and our return flight was overnight. I will make a whole entry on the ins and outs of Priceline soon because its a beast of its own. 

Next Robert researched camping accommodations. Since Oahu is known for its petty theft we started looking into private campgrounds that were gated. He stumbled upon the gem Friends of Malaekahana on the Windward part of the North Shore.  Its a very basic place but they do offer outdoor showers and THE GRASS SHACKS!!!!! The second we saw the grass shacks just feet from the water we knew this was our place. At only $40 a we got an 8x8 hut right on the beach. Pretty much everyone we met staying there were locals that were shocked we had found it.  The North Shore isnt a tourest spot like Waikiki, its more of a local place for surfers and farmers.  

The campground included a picnic table and rocks for a fire (note this is the windward part of the island and fire starters are a MUST). Each night we made our dinner on the fire and watched the sun go down. Our second night there after starting our fire Robert took me for a sunset walk on the beach, sang me our favorite Jack Johnson song and proposed!!  Of course I said YES!! Little Grass Shack number 2 will always hold a place in my heart. 

We stayed in our little grass shack for 5 days before moving on to the Hilton in Waikiki. The Hilton can be booked through priceline for roughly 40% off rack room prices but Roberts Brother in Law had points to book with so lucky for us he booked enough space for us all. 

The Hilton was totally different from the little hut we had stayed in the few days before. It is a bustling resort with several pool, restaurants and penguins.. you read that right penguins. We stayed here for 2 nights before meeting up with the rest of our group. 

While staying in Waikiki we ate out just about every meal. If you are vegan you know Yelp is a travel must when looking for options. We found a wonderful breakfast spot called Vintage Coffee. They have acai bowls, fresh pressed juice and the best coffee I have ever had. 

At night we usually went with Sushi. Although one night we ventured to Rum Fire and we werent disappointed. If you want amazing live music this is your spot. They have a great happy hour and we ended up staying for a few hours listening to the music. As a Nashville native I find it hard to travel and find music up to par but this place blew my mind. It started out with a one many band and ended up with a teen beatboxer. 

Next we checked into Aulani (Disney Resport). This place was AMAZING. Disney always does it right. We had 14 people in our group so we went with 2 suites and it worked perfectly. I am really glad Roberts mom planned excursions around the island because I think we could have all stayed at this resort 24/7 for that whole week. 

Over that week we saw Pearl Harbor, went snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, got shaved ice on the North Shore,  saw the Dole Plantation, Hiked to a waterfall in the rain forrest, spent a day at the Polynesian Center and ate at some amazing restaurants. 

We had such a wonderful trip and are very thankful for the experience. 

   

Im Amberley and this is my Fiance Robert.. So nice to meet you.

Our first blog entry.. kind of a big deal. Let me start by introducing us and who we are. We have become known as Roberley (Robert and Amberley) to most of our close friends. Mainly because we are connected at the hip and are basically the same person.... and thats where I get stuck. Who are we? Most people introduce themselves and the next breath say what it is they do.. well I (we) live for life. We create ways of making money that in no way define us but we enjoy. We are both vegan, yogis and live for love and travel. In the past year of our lives we have traveled nonstop across the country and back again hitting up more than 26 states. We spend our days hiking, readying, concocting vegan dishes, sharing love and creating art.  This blog is a way for our friends and family to keep track of us and for us to share our recipes, health advice, budget travel ideas, easy ways of making money and beliefs with anyone willing to follow us.  I hope you enjoy our blog and feel free to write in any questions you may have.