Last night my husband, Rupert, came home with a surprise for me. Ingredients to make Vietnamese Spring Rolls. These rolls have been a family favorite for about 4 years now and so I was excited because we had not had any in quite some time.

Rupert learned to make these wonderful tasting rolls while in Georgia and I am glad that he did. They are a refreshing alternative to deep fried egg rolls in that there is limited cooking and herbs used are fresh and not cooked.

I won’t talk much about these delicious treats but I will show you pics of the the herbs and type of mushrooms he uses when he makes them. Today he did not want to make the sauce from scratch so he just a use a Teriyaki Ginger marinade that we had in the house already. You also need extra firm tofu for this dish.

With these rolls you simply cook about 8 Chinese mushroom in water and magi until the rehydrate and then saute the tofu in granulated garlic and magi or soy sauce until it begins to brown. Mix it with the mushrooms and set aside. Then you chop the herbs and mix them together as well. You need to have a saute pan of water for the rice or tapioca rolls. Dip the roll just enough to get them wet but don’t dip for long or else they will tear. Place the desired amount of herbs and tofu/mushroom mix and roll as you do an egg roll.

That’s it!

This is what Chinese Mushrooms look like:

Here are the names in both English and Vietnamese of each herb you will need.

Cinnamon Basil (Ram Que)

Cumin (Ngo Om)

Fishy Chick (Ran Vap Ca) - I am not crazy about the smell of this one.

Lady Thumb (Rau Ram)

Mint (Hung Mi)

Now the pics I took of the rolls cut in half did not come out as well, but I am going to show you anyway.

I cannot say enough about these rolls but I will let you know that they are very addictive! If you decide to give them a try, let me know how they came out for you.

I for one have always been a momma who shopped on a tight budget. As a single mother I was on welfare and there was a time when I was only receiving $50 a month in food stamps,$490 in cash benefits and working only 10 to 20 hours a week. Now considering my rent, which was $400, utilities and the rest it was difficult to make the groceries last. But I got smart and learned the value of coupons, day old products, the .99 stores, and other frugal living habits.

Believe it or not I learned to make those food stamps, plus the little money I added to it, stretch. At the time I was not a vegan but I was still into fresh produce and was never a huge boxed food person. I learned that from my momma who made home cooked meals almost daily. The only time we ate out was her payday when she would go out and get some fish or ribs. That was really about it. So cooking at home has always been a part of me.

When I became a vegan I thought shopping frugal was out the door. But since we are more of a whole food  as opposed to a convenient food family, I was able to apply the same techniques I learned as a single mother.

Eating healthy vegan foods does not have to be expensive. The expense starts to come in when we purchase the convenient foods and eat out more than we eat in.

I have created a 15 page report that will help any one become a frugal vegan. It is not a grocery store report but rather a how to stretch your food report. You will find information on

• how to create additional meals from your leftovers
• what you can do with a few basic kitchen staples
• frugal breakfast ideas
• lunch ideas that will keep you out of that lunch line at break time.

This report is completely free and my gift to all Vegan Family Living visitors, subscribers, and supporters. You can download your report here.

Once you have read it, I would love to know your thoughts. Just leave me your comments right here on this post.

In April in an effort to help bring us out of the hole we were in, I decided to start a writing business. I have been writing for over 26 years but I did not want to make a full fledge business of it because my writing started out as such a personal therapeutic journey for me. But I finally heeded the voice that told me for the last two years to two years to start a writing business. The Natural Writer was launched with clients waiting for natural health and living writer to help them with their content needs.

I am so happy to say that, because I listened, financially we are beyond being blessed and now we are ready to do with this blog what we really wanted to. That includes offering more information on natural health and living, whole food consumptions, and also providing all natural (really they are all natural) products.

Now of course everything will not occur overnight but you will see not only cooking and transitioning vegan information but a full fledge naturally healthy family blog. But you will see some changes not only on the blog post themselves but also on the podcast. So be on the look out.

I was excited when Rupert came to me because I did not want to pressure him at all to do his part. I knew how hard he was working and it would have been totally wrong of me to bother him. So today I am one happy woman because the vision for Vegan Family Living is coming to fruition.

Now when I was a little girl, I loved rice krispy treats. But I can’t eat them now because of the marshmallows. For the last few years I have been wondering if anyone would make a marshmallow treat that I could eat. And then I found Brown Rice Marshmallow Treats from Glennys and I was in heaven.

Talk about yummy!

These organic marshmallow treats are made with whole grain brown rice and not only vegan but gluten free as well. That is huge plus all the way around. And for those of you who are looking for kosher these treats are Certified OU Kosher Parve and if you want to know more about kosher listen to the Vegan Family Living Podcast where we did an interview with Sarah Zeldman who discusses kosher foods.

Glenny’s marshmallow treats come in Vanilla, Peanut Caramel, and Chocolate. That means that there is a flavor for everyone in the family.

photo credit: WordRidden

Contrary to popular belief, veggies don’t need any dressing up to make them taste good. Nature has done that all by itself. They are picked fresh from the earth filled with succulent taste. The best vegetables that you can purchase are organic and found fresh in stores, at farmer’s markets, or even better, your own garden.

Vegetables can keep without freezing or refrigerating them which is good for snacking on the run. If you are on the run or about to hit the road, you can grab a bag of veggies for the ride. Turn vegetables into snack sized pieces by slicing them into sticks, cubes, or chips. In this form, they are easier to manage. Pack them in plastic bags or small containers and you are good to go.

There are many vegetables that you can prepare for a healthy on-the-go snack.

Carrots can be cut into sticks or a veggie slicer can cut them into chips. Don’t waste time buying baby carrots because they are expensive and are not baby carrots at all. It is easy enough to take a regular size carrot and fix it up. The same goes for cucumbers, beets, peppers, squash, zucchini, and other rigid veggies.

Tomatoes are classified as fruits, but we will consider them vegetables here. Many people just eat them like a fruit. Add a pinch of salt and bite in. You can even purchase the smaller versions like cherry or grape and simply pop them in your mouth as you ride. Broccoli and cauliflower can also be eaten raw. Celery is a good vegetable because it is filled with water and can relieve thirst and hunger at the same time.

photo credit: judepics

What are vegetables without dip? Dip adds a flavor to veggies and even kids who turn their noses up to vegetables will eat certain ones if they are dipped in something. Many dips can be made at home with dry seasoning packets and a vegan sour cream or cream cheese. For a different taste add your own fresh herbs. Sweet dips, like yogurt based ones, are also good with veggie snacks. Dip can be stored in a container or a two-piece salad bowl. With the salad bowl, the dip doesn’t mix with the vegetables until you are ready to eat them.

Vegetables can be excellent snacks for those times when you on the road and can’t get home to fix a complete meal. They are healthier alternatives then chips and a candy bar. Take them in the car, on the job, or outside for a quick energy pick-me-up. No matter what way you choose to eat them, vegetables make healthy on-the-go snack foods for everyone.