The Glow Down: Tempeh, Tinder (!!) Protein Bars & Kombucha

Is this hot chocolate giving you all the cozy winter feels?!

Grab a cup of coffee, tea, a smoothie (or wine!) and find a cozy spot for my new weekly chit chat series “The Glow Down” aka the lowdown on everything and anything you guys have been asking me lately.

This is a fun series where I answer questions, give tips, offer my thoughts/advice, etc. Really though, it’s super casual and can be about anything from the plant based vegan lifestyle to my 5-Day Cleanse or Vegan Starter Guide to beauty/girly stuff to cooking tips to my favorite products and home things, blogging stuff or how to find something here on the blog, even what shirt or sweater I was wearing on Snapchat…

Leave a comment below with questions for next week’s post or contact me here if you want to remain anonymous (my email is theglowingfridge@gmail.com). You can message me on facebook, instagram, snapchat (glowingfridge) or twitter too… you name it, anything goes! I’m trying to build up the community we already have here on TGF so it remains a helpful resource for you guys! It would mean a lot if you sent in questions or thoughts etc. 🙂 Plus I love reading these on other blogs because they normally answer questions I never even knew I had! 🙂

Hope you are having a great week so far!

Let’s get started.

1) Where do I buy my kombucha? Do I buy it in bulk? 

Kombucha is one of those health guru drinks that takes some getting used to. While I LOVE kombucha, some people think it tastes nasty. I tend to not care so much about the taste and more about the health benefits, so I’ll try anything but it can be best described as having a slight apple cider vinegar-y after taste, I think? But it’s also effervescent and comes in lots of different flavors. The most known kombucha brand is GT’s Kombucha (my favorite flavor is Guava Goddess) but I only let myself buy kombucha when it’s on sale, so a couple times a month.

Years ago, I would sometimes buy a case of 12 at Whole Foods because you get 10% off, I think? I also only drink 1/2 bottle per day. Kombucha is rich in raw probiotics, tons of vitamins/minerals and is so great for immunity and energy. 

2) How did Terry and I meet?

Terry and I met on… wait for it… tinder!! LOL… BUT our story is way cooler than that because without knowing it, we grew up spending our summers at the same lake in Wisconsin. For those who don’t know Terry, he’s my boyfriend of over a year now. Our families both have lake houses on the SAME lake (how cool is that?!) which both of us have had in our families for generations. My dad grew up with his uncles and our lives are weirdly intertwined… but I love our story and we have a lot in common because of the lake. Just makes it that much more special.

While we don’t know this to be true or not, we like to joke that at some point, we probably played together at the public beach when we were little… but maybe not because boys have cooties.

Had to include a pic of us at the lake!

3) What is tempeh and how do you use it in recipes?

Tempeh is a vegan protein powerhouse source. It comes in a block form made from soybeans (and sometimes, rice, barley and millet, depending on the type you buy) using a culturing/fermentation process. I promise you, it is not gross or disgusting, it just looks a little weird. Tempeh tastes pretty bland on it’s own which means it can take on any flavor well and works great in marinades or stir fry’s. Since I’m usually lazy though, I almost always just crumble it up for adding into salads or glow bowls (like the one pictured below) because it adds texture. 

The main reason I eat tempeh is for the plant protein and honestly, because it’s fermented, it digests way better for me than beans. Plus, tempeh’s fermentation process keeps the whole bean in tact, giving it a higher content of protein, dietary fiber, and vitamins. One half of a package packs in 20g of plant protein!

You can find tempeh at almost any mainstream grocery store now, I’ve even seen spotted it at Target!

4) What do you do when you’re feeling sick? What to eat?

Drink lots of: kombucha, plenty of lemon water (especially my Turmeric Glow Lemonade and/or Golden Glow Elixir)), oregano oil and ginger tea

Eat: lots of fresh ginger (try my Cleansing Detox Soup), lots of fresh fruits and raw veggies, zinc capsules. and superfood smoothies!

And of course, get plenty of r&r. 

Golden Glow Elixir

What are my go-to snacks and favorite protein bars?

I always have snacks or bars in my purse! 

My fave everyday snacks:

pink lady apple with sunflower seed butter
green grapes
baby carrots with hummus
rice crackers w/ chopped veggies 
chia blueberry jam bars 
pumpkin spice muffins 
pumpkin bread

My fave snack bars:

GoMacro bars (coconut granola)
CLIF Energy Bars (chocolate brownie!)
L?RABARS – any flavor
my homemade almond butter granola bars

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That’s it for today’s post. Be sure to check out yesterday’s pumpkin pie yogurt 🙂

I’m off to work on my newest meal plan eBook!