Hello everybody, 

I did this thing this past week that I was going to blog about. Unfortunately I got a new laptop and when I transferred all the pictures I had  from my phone to my laptop, (including the ones I needed to make the blog entry) some of them got lost in the shuffle. I tried a new smoothie recipe every day of the week, and wanted to talk about them. Instead, lacking pictures, I will post the links to the recipes I used at the end of this entry.

I do however have a picture for the recipe I am about to share!

Growing up in the New England area of the East Coast United States, lobster salads have always been a thing. They’re also usually kind of a big treat. Today I was inspired by that, and wanted to make a vegan version. This is truly “lobstah” as Bostonians and Rhode Islanders would say, but is free from any cruelty towards the real sea creatures.

I used hearts of palm as the main “meat,” and some sun-dried tomatoes as well to give color, flavor, and texture. There is a mix of seafood-y spices, lemon juice, and other seasonings, and the mix of vegenaise and vegan sour cream makes a delightfully creamy dressing for it.

New England Vegan Hearts of Palm “Lobstah” Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 cans salad chopped hearts of palm, drained, placed in a food processor and pulsed a few times to further chop them
• 1/2 cup julienned cut sun dried tomatoes (the kind that comes in a bag, not packed in oil. I’d actually recommend soaking these in warm water for an hour or until a bit softer prior to including them in the salad because I didn’t and some were chewier and a bit tough when I ate them…soaking would solve that problem, but is probably optional)
• 1 tsp kelp granules
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp dill
• 1/4 tsp old bay seasoning
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper (use less if placing on top of greens instead of on bread)
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup vegenaise
• 1/2 cup vegan sour cream (I used tofutti)

Directions:

1. Place chopped, drained, and processed hearts of palm in a mixing bowl or other large container.
2. Add sun-dried tomatoes and stir.
3. Add spices and take a spoon to mix them into the chopped hearts of palm and sun-dried tomatoes. Make sure they are evenly coated.
4. Add lemon juice, vegenaise, and sour cream and stir. 
5. Serve in a bun with some crunchy lettuce, or on top of salad greens with whatever other toppings you desire.
6. Enjoy!

So there is that! Now as promised, here is the list and links to the smoothies I made each day last week:

1. Raspberry Lime Zinger from Oh She Glows *Second place in my favorites!
2. Pumpkin Chai from The Sweet Life
3. Key Lime Pie Green Smoothie from Healthful Pursuit
4. Pina Colada Smoothie from Foodie with Family
5. Orange Creamsicle Smoothie (also from The Sweet Life) *My favorite one I tried!
6. Chocolate Strawberry Almond Protein Smoothie from The Healthy Family and Home
7. Chamomile Strawberry Quinoa Smoothie from Apron and Sneakers *Runner up for favorite 🙂