Life as Lauren Mikael: Happy Birthday!

Posted on October 31, 2020 by laurenmikael

Today Life as Lauren Mikael turns one year old! Times flies, it honestly

doesn’t feel like it has been that long to me.

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I think it has been a pretty great year honestly. I know a lot (okay, most) people think 2020 has been a crap year. It’s all about perspective, if you are focusing on all of the bad things that have happened this year…or any year really, that is all you will see eventually; so I always vote that we look on the bright side of things.

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2020 has given me time (a lot of it) to sit at home and work on my blog and become a better writer, which is honestly just what you need when you start a new blog. so, thank you 2020. People who don’t blog seem to think it all just sort of happens over night…getting page views, building an audience and showing up in search engines like Google takes a lot of work.

…and trust me, I still have so much work to do, because all those things I mentioned above take time. Which can be rough when you are as impatient like me. (I’ve been really working on that though.)

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Over this year of blogging here on Life as Lauren Mikael I have told you all about my online dating experiences in a little series I like to call POF Conversations and/or POF Stories. Pretty interesting stuff if I do say so myself, if you are new here take a look around…I have quite a few POF Stories/Conversations. My most popular being the time that I (almost) dated a Real World Atlanta cast member.

I have become a more positive minded person. As well as a more Spiritual and grateful one.

We’ve read a few books here (not as many as I had hoped for, but we’ll get back to that soon) in a series I like to call Tuesday Starts with Tea where I give you a book review and a tea review all in one post. I have drank so much tea this year you guys. That is totally cool with me though, you guys probably already know I am a bit of a tea snob.

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I’ve even told all of you lovely readers about great music on Fridays when I do yet another series which I like to call Fangirl Friday; where not only as I mentioned do I tell you about awesome music…but I also tell you my backstory with the band/musician if I have one, most of the time I do. That one when I went to see Green Day is my favorite experience so far. Man! I miss live shows, Corona Virus needs to go away.

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I’m excited to see where this next year brings Life as Lauren Mikael. If you are a reader of mine I just want to say thank you so much for all of your support, this blog would literally be nothing without you.

-laurenmikael

Don’t forget to share this post, it really helps out and keeps Life as Lauren Mikael alive.

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PS: I took the featured photo in 2011 on my 21st birthday as part of my 365 Flickr project.

It is also the last day of Blogtober, which I didn’t participate in as much as I wish I could have…but I did meet a lot of other cool bloggers and there is always next year to try again at least.

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Vegan/Vegetarian Vegetable Soup

Posted on October 19, 2020 by laurenmikael

At the beginning of this month I started a vegan diet.

I am back to share another recipe

When I was a teenager I told my parents that I wanted to be a vegetarian. For many reasons one of them being that every time I ate pork it made me very sick along with getting sick, I would get strong lighting type pains in my stomach. The Bible says pigs are unclean, so that makes sense to me. Plus the fact that eating meat means killing a living being. That just makes me sad.

However my parents were not supportive of this, I guess they thought it would be a hassle since I was the only one in the household who wanted a vegetarian diet. So, I fell back into eating meat.

However this month I have found that vegetarian is actually much easier than a meat based diet.

I feel so much better, and I’m not all bloated up from eating junk. No more guessing what is in my food now that I eat clean. All of the ingredients in this soup are organic, but you do it your way; if you don’t shop organic, the soup will still be yummy!

One of the best parts of eating vegan/vegetarian is you don’t have to worry about cross contamination when cooking anymore.

I started out this month as vegan, but I have decided to be vegetarian instead. I just really love cheese. I have tried vegan cheese, and well…it’s um…not for me. Same with vegan eggs, they just don’t do it for me. So, apparently according to Google that makes me an lacto-ovo vegetarian. Meaning I eat dairy and eggs. I actually prefer milk alternatives over milk, so I’m going to keep plant based milks and yogurts in my diet.

As the weather gets colder and rainy like today I want soup. (To be honest I always want soup.) I had been craving a nice vegetable soup for a while now. A few days ago I threw together the recipe below with ingredients that I already had.

I never measure anything (I hate math) I just put as much of something in until Holy Spirit tells me to stop. So, do as much as you like when it comes to the ingredients below. I used oregano and Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, but obviously you can use whatever seasonings you want, there are no rules.

I need to learn to cook in smaller batches, but I always make food in a huge pot for some reason. I live by myself, I’ve been eating soup for days.

I also don’t time stuff when I cook. I just keep checking on my food until it reaches the texture I desire. Can you tell I don’t like rules? Ha! I like to be free and do things my way.

*This post may contain affiliate links and I may earn compensation when you make a purchase from the links provided. At no additional cost to you.

Anyway, on to the soup!

I love bowls with handles! I got these bowls from Sam’s Club a few years ago, but Amazon has some cute ones too, right here: https://amzn.to/35fRdli.

Ingredients:

1 large carrot

2 cans black beans

1 zucchini

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

1 small onion

1 (8 ounce) package of mushrooms (I buy pre-sliced because it’s easier)

Spinach

Red lentils

Minced garlic

Tomato paste

Veggie broth concentrate

Lawry’s Seasoned Salt

Oregano

Plain Soy Milk

Salt

Black pepper

Water (as much as your brand of veggie broth concentrate calls for)

Cook until vegetables are softened.

Y’all are smart enough to know that you need to chop all the vegetables up right? Okay, I thought so. I don’t like seeing a recipe that tells you 1 carrot chopped, 1 onion chopped (well duh!) Like we are just gonna throw it all in the pot Amelia Bedelia style or something. No ma’am!

-laurenmikael

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Fall Favorites: Candles, Teas, and Recipes

Posted on October 3, 2020 by laurenmikael

In my opinion the best time of year is most definitely Fall. The crisp weather, the cozy sweaters; the food…sign me up for all of it! If it were up to me we would all live in a constant Autumn season. Now that the time is finally here, I figured it would be a good idea to share a few of my Fall favorites.

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A few years ago I was hungry for dinner but I only had a few ingredients on hand and I couldn’t get to the store (this was before Instacart was a thing.) So, I googled something along the lines of: “What can you make with black beans and sweet potatoes?”

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Right then Google introduced me to the greatness that is The Kitchn, and The recipe that is first up on my list of Fall favorites.

*This post may contain affiliate links and I may earn compensation when you make a purchase from the links provided. At no additional cost to you.

Fall Favorite #1: Smoky Sweet Potato & Black Bean Casserole:

Fall Favorite Smoky sweet potato casserole with chunks of avocado on top

My casserole dish is The Pioneer Woman Flea Market set: https://amzn.to/2GyZmZ8

I cook this all the time; whether it is Harvest time or not, but…since it has a lot of Fall-(ish) ingredients I am adding this meal to my list of Fall Favorites. I make a few adjustments though.

The good news is it’s Vegetarian/Vegan (you could always use Vegan Mozzarella cheese instead.)

I added some Chipotle powder into the mix The recipe calls for cilantro as garnish. Since I can’t stand cilantro I always swap it for little chunks of avocado which I sprinkle on top during the last few minutes of baking.

INGREDIENTS

Cooking spray or olive oil

2 tablespoons
Olive oil

1
Medium yellow onion, diced

2 pounds
Sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 (28-ounce) can
Fire-roasted diced tomatoes, drained of juices

1 (15-ounce) can
Black beans, drained and rinsed

3 cups
Shredded mozzarella cheese (about 7 1/2 ounces), divided

1 tablespoon
Smoked paprika

Chipotle powder (to your taste)

1 tablespoon
Kosher salt

2 Cloves
garlic, minced

*You can cut an avocado in small chunks to sprinkle on top.

Serve with sour cream if you want.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 400°F. Coat a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray or olive oil; set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until shimmering.
Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the sweet potatoes and cook until just heated through, about 5 minutes (they will not be cooked through). Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.
Add the black beans, drained tomatoes, 1 cup of the mozzarella, smoked paprika, salt, and garlic and stir to combine. Transfer to the baking dish and spread into an even layer. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese.
Spray a large sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray or coat with olive oil. Place the foil greased-side down over the baking dish and cover tightly.
Bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until the sweet potatoes are tender and the cheese on top is browned in spots, about 30 minutes more. Let cool 10 minutes before serving

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Fall Favorite #2: Candles

I’m known to go a little crazy at Bath and Body Works/White Barn this time of year. Once those Fall scents hit the shelfs…(or um, more socially acceptable right now) websites. I pretty much always have a candle going.

A few that I love:

Leaves– This is the definition of the season in scent form. That’s the only way I know how to describe it: https://amzn.to/3ixSqZW

Pumpkin Apple– Basically smells exactly as the name suggests: https://amzn.to/3jsI4LQ

Mahogany Apple– This smells so good! An aroma similar to a nice bottle of men’s cologne…which is really nice ’cause if you are single…just like me, you can at least have your home smell like you aren’t: https://amzn.to/2Sp4zWl

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Fall Favorite #3: Tea

Unless you are new here, you know by now that I am obsessed with tea; all kinds of tea: Green. Black. Herbal. Hot. Iced. I love it! I’m not even gonna lie to you here, Harney and Sons (www.harney.com) is my favorite. (Other brands are great, don’t get me wrong…but there is a special place in my heart for Harney’s.)

Cranberry Autumn- Like I said in my Shockaholic: Tuesday Starts with Tea post, Cranberry Autumn is Fall in a cup. (Add some honey to really bring out the flavors.) https://amzn.to/2GmyY51

Hot Cinnamon Sunset- I talked about this one in my The Bassoon King: Tuesday Starts with Tea post, but this tea reminds me of Cinnamon Ice Breakers Mints. https://amzn.to/33s5sU8

Pumpkin Spice– (I haven’t had the chance to try this one yet..so I can’t claim it as a favorite yet.) However, I’m going to be ordering some soon. I really enjoy pumpkin everything, so I bet this tea will be a new favorite in no time. https://amzn.to/33oRvq3

What are your Fall Favorites? Let me know in the comments.

-laurenmikael

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Blogtober Challenge: 31 Days 31 Posts

Posted on October 1, 2020 by laurenmikael

Yesterday on Twitter I found out about the Blogtober Challenge; it’s where you write a blog post for every day during the month of October.

*This post may contain affiliate links and I may earn compensation when you make a purchase from the links provided. At no additional cost to you.

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Halloween will be Life As Lauren Mikael’s first birthday...so I figured participating in Blogtober would be a good way to celebrate.

There are no rules for Blogtober, aside from blogging everyday. Which in itself is flexible, because life happens. (There are prompts in the Blogtober Facebook group if you are stuck on what to write and need a guide to follow)

I’m excited about this. I love a good challenge. In 2011, I participated in the 365 photography challenge on Flickr…which you may have guessed is when you take a photo every day for a year. I was so proud of myself for actually sticking with it and finishing the project. I realized I have talked (err written) a lot about my photography, but I haven’t really showed you guys much of it. I’ll link my 365 so you guys can see it here.

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I had just gotten into photography and bought my first DLSR camera (Canon T1i) (https://amzn.to/3ijZ7P4) when I decided to start doing the 365, I figured it was a good way to learn how to use my camera and grow as a photographer. As you can see when you are looking through the photos…by the end of the project I was much better than when I started. I forced myself to only use Manual mode on the camera the whole time. The way I looked at it was: How would I ever grow as a photographer and get to know the camera if I used the automatic settings? The answer: I wouldn’t. You can’t learn anything if you are letting the camera do all the work for you.

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Anyway, back to Blogtober. For the most part right now I am going to be just as surprised as you are when it comes to what I am going to blog about each day this month, haven’t planned much out yet…but I think it will be fun for me, and I hope you enjoy it too!

-laurenmikael

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