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Delicious Vegan Recipes To Get In Your Belly!

Food has been a running theme in our weekly blog since I’ve somewhat taken the reigns of writing it. To say I’m obsessed with food would be an understatement. Since I moved out of home a couple of years ago and actually started cooking, I’ve been experimenting with vegetarian food; because it’s delicious, it’s been a good way of getting vegetables into my flatmates and it’s a lot cheaper than meat based meals. Not meaning to be preachy, but it’s always good to vary your diet and include some meat free meals in your week, if you’re a meat eater like me!

Now vegan, that’s a territory I haven’t quite yet explored, but one I’m definitely keen to. Emily, one of the lovely ladies here at Madame Fancy Pants, has recently become a vegan. We’ve all got a little overexcited dreaming up and sourcing recipes to add to her repertoire, including Claire deciding that creating a vegan macaroon would be perfect to include Emily in our macaroon obsession (we are both addicted to the ones from the wicked italian café just up the road). Oh that cloud of coconut, dipped and drizzled in dark chocolate… I’m drooling just thinking about it. Not a pretty image? Well, here is a real pretty image to distract you.

Oh pretty, pretty vegan food! These recipes come from the blog Wolf and Willow. The owner of this blog, Nancy Alice Chalmers, has embarked on a sugar-free and vegan diet adventure and has created an e-cookbook, dubbed The Sexy Sugar-Free Vegan Project, which is full of amazing recipes. Red Velvet and Coconut Cream Brownies? Yes please!! The two recipes above, Roasted Eggplant Hummus with Vegie Crisps and the Heavenly Coconut Butters, are available as a sneak-peak on her blog. They seem like perfect vegan party canapés to me. Or just smother your morning toast with one of them. Or both. Whatever floats your boat (probably don’t combine both, wouldn’t be very tasty).

So, I may be a little in love with Hungry and Frozen, who I have mentioned before on this blog. Wellingtonian Laura Vincent fills this blog with food love; it’s bursting with recipes she has created and snapped to share with all her lucky readers. Since she started the blog as a ‘strapped for cash’ student, most of the food you can find on her blog can be made on the cheap, whilst still remaining tasty and healthy. I’ve turned to her recipe for Spicy Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Coconut Cream time and time again for a quick and healthy dinner.

Ice cream is my favourite food, don’t judge, and Laura’s ice creams are seriously standout. She’s conquered vegan ice cream in a few variations, but this Lemon and Poppyseed Ice Cream looks amazing. Would probably taste pretty good after those Spicy Chickpeas too!

 

My last source for vegan cooking inspiration comes in the form of Tumblr blog, Thug Kitchen. If you like your vegan food served with a side of gangster, check this one out. Be warned, if you’re sensitive to strong language, would be best to avoid this one. If you can look past the effs and blinds, or you are harboring a secret internal gangster (like me), you’ll enjoy it and laugh. My picks? The Lavender Lemonade alongside the Roasted Chickpea and Broccoli Burrito. Delicious.

Well, there we have it! A trio of blogs where you can find delicious vegan recipes to try out on yourself, or your lovely vegan friends. I’m dreaming of eating the Strawberry and Vanilla Coconut Butter by the spoonful already…

Xoxo Anneke xoxo

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Winter Is Coming

Winter is (kinda) here! Let’s celebrate the glories of this crisp, chilly weather with a blog post all about the best bits of Winter; clothes, food and wintery things to do.

Winter clothes! We have a wonderful range of winter clothes here at Madame Fancy Pants. Highnoontea, Miss Sparrow, Arielle Mermin and Book of Deer are currently gracing our racks. Such stunning collections, you have to check them out! Plus we have COATS. I think coats are the best part of winter, but finding The One can be a bit of a chore. You need a coat that you can throw over your snuggly jumpers, one that will go with everything and one that isn’t black. Lucky we have two perfect coats and one little rain cape to make finding The One a lot easier. Have a peek at this classic navy coat and little red rain cape from Highnoontea.


And how about this stunning wool cape from Miss Sparrow?



Winter food and drinks; the comfort, the cuddling up in bed with a mug of homemade hot chocolate, the “using baking as a way to keep warm” trick.

Hot Chocolate is my guilty pleasure in winter, especially with a massive dollop of cloud like cream. Everyone likes hot chocolate, so why not keep things interesting and try out some creative flavours like Red Velvet and Salted Caramel? I created a wonderful, easy hot chocolate recipe for a midnight feast after dancing my night away to the sweet tunes of John The Baptist one chilly Friday night (JTB are a great wintery band, plenty of foot stomping dancing to be had), here it is; take one cup of milk and heat on the stove with about two to four rows of milk chocolate (I used Dairy Milk, but Whittaker’s Creamy Milk would make for a richer, smoother drink; I’d probably use less chocolate, more to nibble on!) add a drop or two of vanilla essence and a sprinkling of cinnamon, remember to keep stirring! Pour into your favourite mug and snuggle up in bed with your favourite book.


Can’t wait to try out some warm, snuggly cocktails from A Beautiful Mess! Love me a mug of mulled wine, but warm spiked cider sounds perfect for warding off the chills too.


We just got a new fridge here at MFP so we ladies can bring in some lovely soup to warm us up on those bitter, cold days. Soup is such a fantastic winter lunch, easy to take to work and usually healthy too! Check out 101Cookbooks post ‘Soups Worth Making’ for an eclectic and delicious mix of soup recipes. Really want the Pumpkin and Rice Soup in my belly right now!



If soup isn’t your jam, and you really want to delve into a bowl of cheesy, classic comfort food with a twist check out '30 Mac and Cheese Recipes' from The Food In My Beard. I know. My jaw dropped too.


What to do in Winter? Don't feel as if all there is to do is curl up in bed and watch movies from your laptop (although that isn't such a bad idea!). Wellington is full of lovely things to do, and you can always get a little creative when you're stuck indoors for the day! 

+ With the end of the water ban we can finally get our skates on and try out the ice rink on the waterfront! Outdoors + exercise= good vibes. So excited for this one! See here for the daily sessions they run. 

+ Need something to keep little ones occupied and you inspired? Be sure to check out the Wellington Makertorium on April 27th at Te Papa if you’re a crafter/creator/inventor/tinkerer/thinker. A one of a kind massive exhibition featuring all kinds of brilliantly creative and inventive bits and bobs, as well as workshops for those mini-makers! 

+ Like music? Go to a gig. Dancing is sure to keep the spirits high, check out Brockaflowersaurus-rex at Bodega on May 11th. Their eclectic mix of hip hop, funk and soul will have you tapping your feet for sure. Preview their music and get warmed up before you go by listening to their EP online

+ Don’t want to venture outdoors? If you’re a crafty type an Embroidery Transfer and some Floss from Sublime Stitching will keep your fingers occupied and the boredom at bay as you sew by the fire, or whip up a cute little animal from Sarah Young to decorate your sofa this Winter; the fox and the hare are particularly well suited to the chilly months.


So there it is! A whole bunch of wintery goodness to keep you entertained, stylish and full this winter! Stay tuned for gift ideas for Mum this Mother’s Day and a Winter Style Special.

Thanks for reading!

Anneke xoxo

 

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I May Have Been Eating Chocolate Whilst Writing This Blog..

Hello there! Welcome to another weekly Madame Fancy Pants blog post!

First of all, an invitation. We would love to see you here next Thursday evening for a little tipple and a look through High Noon Tea’s collection, plus enjoy 30% off all purchases of High Noon Tea on the night! This is all to celebrate High Noon Tea’s debut at Wellington Fashion Week as part of the SS’14 Group Showcase next Friday; purchase your tickets here for an evening of exciting fashion.



Easter is coming up this weekend and with that comes chocolate, family time, craft and chocolate. Yeah, I said chocolate twice.. I’m seriously looking forward to guiltlessly eating my way through an entire Easter egg trail! Maybe I’ll have a lazy Sunday walk afterwards, maybe. With that in mind here are some cool ideas for crafts and chocolate.

First up are these seriously cool classic blown egg decorations (Eggs with moustaches. So. Cool.)! You’ll know how to create these lovelies from your childhood, if you can’t remember you can learn how to here. Then just decorate them how you please, these have been stenciled, but try dying, dipping or painting. An easy craft idea that you can make with kids. 


Mmmm.. chocolate! These cute Easter themed chocolate bars are easy to make, just melt some chocolate and stud with your favourite toppings. All thanks to one of our favourite blogs, A Beautiful Mess.


Another DIY chocolate idea: if you want to learn how to make your own Easter chocolates this weekend, check out Agnes Almeida’s awesome video all about easy chocolate making and you’ll be making your own chocolates in no time. Check it out here.  

 

Oh, I didn’t forget about all you vegans out there, and non-dairy kids can enjoy this trio of recipes too! Thanks to Laura at Hungry and Frozen, my favourite Wellington food blog, here are some delicious vegan friendly chocolate recipes (just sub out honey for agave nectar if need be):  No-bake Vegan Cookie Dough Truffles, Water Chocolate Mousse and Cocoa Sorbet


 

With all the delicious chocolate out there, it pays to make an informed choice in regards to your Easter goodies. Palm oil is in a lot of chocolate treats, and as it’s important to protect our environment and the habitat of some pretty special wildlife, it’s best that we avoid purchasing products that use palm oil. Auckland Zoo has come out with this handy guide to choosing palm oil free goodies, so check it out  before you go buy your treats!

The newest issue of Extra Curricular has just arrived here at MFP. This issue is all about new beginnings, very fitting for Easter! There are tons of interviews with crafty people, pretty pictures and some delicious recipes to try out. For a full run down check out their blog. Isn’t the cover amazing? A lovely read and a lovely gift for the crafty gal/guy in your life who doesn’t like chocolate. (I can’t actually imagine a creative type who doesn’t love chocolate, but there will be a few out there I’m sure!)


Hope you all have a lovely weekend spent with family, friends and chocolate!

Thanks for reading,

Anneke xox

 

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Stationary + Gents + Christmas + Design Sponge.

Oh my! Its getting exciting around MFP with packages arriving daily.  Last week all our gorgeous Christmas Cards and advent calenders arrived.  Today a bunch of lovely journals, books and stationary was un boxed.  

A favourite illustrator at Madame Fancy Pants is Susie Ghahremani, this neat journal is filled with her whimsical drawings of owls, birds and squirrels and waiting to be accompanied by your ideas and musings.  Another exciting unpack was this Cant sleep, write now journal which has ideas for writing and places to write random thoughts for those who find it hard to drift off of wake up with brain a buzzing.  And if you're a sweet fiend like myself then you will be DROOLING over the yummy recipes that are tucked up inside The Chocolate Deck and The Cupcakes decks boxes.  YUM!  For the lads who want to be gents The Perfectly Dressed Gentleman could be his perfect companion.  When to wear a suit? What kind of neck tie when? and lots of interesting and funny facts about menswear....did you know that merino can bend on itself 20,000 times where cotton can only bend 3,200....?!

My last super exciting goody that was unpacked this morning was the AMAZING Design Sponge at Home book.  I have been an avid reader/follower of Miss Grace Bonney's truly super blog for many years (and even had one of my wee projects featured - EXCITE!!!) and now am pretty darn happy to see the many years of great home design, DIY, home hints, flowery arranging and before and afters (my fave!) filling one handy dandy book...I know whos getting this for Christmas this year!

Speaking of Christmas, its 7 weeks away! yup thats kinda soon eh? 

My challenge to you is to start thinking about Christmas, what it means to you, who you want to spend it with, what you NEED to eat on Christmas day (I HAVE to have custard from a box..you know the stuff..mnn) and who you want to give gifts to.  Gift giving should be thought about carefully, so start looking out for goodies for those special folk in your life.  Gifts need not be expensive, some may be home made, remember that its more special for you AND the giftee when given from the heart and certainly not rushed!

♥claire


Clear Skies Journal $25.00


Design Sponge at Home $70.00


The Perfectly Dressed Gentleman $34.00



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It's chilly and getting dark early.....

That means SOUP!!
yes soup. Its up there with some of the best things wintery things like dvds in bed without guilt, gumboots, rain on the roof, big woolly nana cardis, porridge and lounge tents. yay!
So here is a souper soupy winter vegie vegan soup by the lovely folk from Martha Goes Green cookbook. YUM! We sold out of this fabulous recipe book a wee bit back but will hopefully be getting more copies in soon.
Enjoy! xox 



Remove ends and outer leaves from leek, half lengthways, wash and slice. Set aside. 
Heat oil in a large pot over a medium heat and cook onion and garlic until clear. Add celery and salt and cook until celery becomes soft. Add leek and cook for 5 minutes. Add remaining vegetables, herbs, barley, split peas, stock and water and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over a medium heat for 45-60 minutes or until vegetables are tender. 
Serve chunky, or give a rough blend or mash if a smoother consistency is desired. 
Note: If soup is too thick add extra water until a desired consistency is reached.
This recipe results in quite a large yield, however, the recipe can be halved, or the remaining soup can be frozen and reheated at a later date.




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