Miami Vegan Dinner Event at Basil Park

Conscious-Bite-Out-Dinner

I’m excited for Conscious Bite Out‘s vegan dinner event Thursday, May 7th so I wanted to share!

As the Miami New Times article states, “The beginning of the month is always an apt time to start new stuff: better habits, New Year’s resolutions (it’s only May, you have even months to make it happen), new hobbies. So maybe kick off May with Conscious Bite Out, a vegan dining experience by Basil Park‘s Tim Andriola.”

The dinner is sponsored by Whole Foods Market and Seed Food & Wine, and features a full five-course meal, passed hors d’oeuvres and organic wines. 

“We love Tim’s story, passion and cuisine,” says Conscious Bite Out co-founder Veronica Menin. “We love Basil Park and happy to have partnered up with Whole Foods Market and Seed Food and Wine to collaborate on this event together, always to inspire and create an awareness in our community of better food choices and to create better food choices available in restaurants as well.”

Check out the mouth-watering vegan menu!

Hors D’oeuvres

~Purple artichoke “pizzette” with Harpke Family Farm’s arugula pesto, macadamia nut cheese, and crisp essence flat bread

~Fava bean and black truffle crostini with golden flax seeds, cashew parmesan, and mâché

~White asparagus sushi with spinach, pine nuts, jicama, and red curry

~Avocado ceviche with coconut milk, lime, ahi amarillo, sweet potato, and young cilantro

~Watermelon radish “raviolini” with english pea purée, pea shoots, and pistachio oil

~White grape gazpacho with cucumber noodles, micro sorrel, and fresh green almonds

~Shaved vegetable daikon roll with pickled mango, fresh ginger, and tamari

First Course

Heirloom Tomato and Golden Beet Salad with Red Romaine, Avocado Vinaigrette, and Brazil Nut “Cheese”

Second Course

Steamed Wild Ramp Dumplings with Fiddlehead Ferns, Edamame, Baby Bok Choy, Toasted Nori, and Red Miso Broth

Main

Sous Vide of Porcini Mushrooms with Roasted Vidalia Onions, Spring Vegetable Ragout, and Black Garlic “Aioli”

Dessert

Raw Chocolate Lasagna with Cacao, Hazelnuts, Frozen and Macerated Raspberries

If you are in South Florida on Thursday I hope to see you there!

Mixologist Throwdown! Miami’s Badass Vegan Festival Kicks Off!

Vegan Seed Food and Wine Festival Miami

Ask anyone who went to the Vegan “Mixologist Throwdown” what they did and they will all agree with me… We ATE. DRANK. ENJOYED!

Seed Food and Wine Miami is an incredible 5-day experience for guests who want to sip, savor, and learn about conscious plant-based living. Nightly events, as well as the full-day festival itself consists of so many experiences to be had, from cooking demonstrations, wine, beer and spirits tastings, to body care, workshops, yoga, urban gardening and more. Everything served during the festival is VEGAN and whenever possible organic and non-gmo. What’s so cool about this festival is that it’s appealing to almost everyone. The events are of the same (or better) caliber as the top food and wine festivals in the world… it just happens to be 100% plant-based!

Last night I was a host at the THRIVE Magazine VIP Cocktail party and it was a huge success so I wanted to share! Guests walked the ‘green’ carpet, casted their votes for “Best Cocktail Creation” at the ‘Mixologist Thowdown’, enjoyed delectable bites created by the hottest local and national farm-to-table chefs, and bid on art, travel, dinner and theatre tickets in a silent auction, and walked away with a seriously cool vip gift bag!

Brendan Brazier (Owner of Vega brand supplements), John Salley (NBA Champion, TV Host, & Wellness Advocate, Maranda Lambert (Origins Magazine also hosted the event. Sponsors included some dear friends of mine including Marco Borges (22 Days Nutrition) and John Lewis (Bad Ass Vegan).

Celebrity Chefs included Jamie DeRosa {Tongue & Cheek}, Todd Erickson {Haven}, Nicolas Torrent {Juice Lab}, Robyn Aldomovar {Food Network}, Mark Zeitouni {The Standard}, Nicola and Fabrizio Carro {Via Verdi}, and Robbie Errichetti . There was such a rush of attendees, beyond what anyone expected, and the succulent dish samples quickly ran out… People couldn’t get enough!

Mixologist competed from Tongue and Cheek, Haven, Finka Table and Tap, and Blackbird Ordinary. My vote for the best drink went to Finka Table and Tap… they made a tequila drink (if you don’t know, I’m a tequila girl!) with some amazing ingredients that included fresh beet juice and hibiscus. Incredibly creative and delish!

So there you have it. I just wanted to send out a quick post because I’m so excited to be participating in such a world-class event that emulates compassionate, healthy living… my forte!!!

Marco-Sheryn-Ella-SeedFW

Marco Borges (owner of 22 Days Nutrition), Sheryn Abalos (Celebrity Vegan Chef), me 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vegan John Salley Thrive Cocktail Party Miami 2014-10-17 08.30.47John Salley (NBA Champion, TV Host, Wellness Advocate) and me
 

 

 

 
Vegan Thrive Cocktail Party Green Carpet

 

 

 

 

My Girls! Sheryn Abalos (Celebrity Vegan Chef), Diana Perez (Jewelry Designer, BluLua), me, Silva Valderrama (Sisley Paris)