On a mission to create the peanuttiest peanut butter cookies, I added peanut oil and chopped peanuts into my favorite classic peanut butter cookie recipe, criss cross pattern and all. Get ready for a peanut overload! If you have a nut allergy, check out my recipe for Sunflower Seed Butter Cookies instead.

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar (plus extra for sprinkling on top)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter 
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup finely chopped peanuts

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sift together flour, baking soda and salt. This is the dry mixture. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer or large bowl with hand mixer, whip vegan butter for two minutes. Then add granulated and brown sugars and continue to mix for two more minutes until it gets a little bit fluffy. Gradually add in peanut oil, peanut butter, applesauce and vanilla. Continue mixing until well combined. This is the wet mixture.

Now slowly incorporate the dry mixture into the wet mixture until you have a sticky and delicious dough. Stir in the chopped peanuts with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Refrigerate the dough for 15-20 minutes before baking.

Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, a few inches apart. Using the tines of a fork, press a criss cross pattern into the top of each cookie. Then sprinkle with extra granulated sugar.

Bake for 7-9 minutes until golden. Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing from the baking sheet. Enjoy!

These are my funky and delicious buckwheat waffles, best topped with fresh fruit and a drizzle of something sweet, like cookie butter, almond butter, maple syrup...or all three! Oh, and they're totally vegan and gluten free.
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Ingredients
1 1/4 cups non-dairy milk + 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar​ ("buttermilk")
1 tablespoon flax meal + 3 tablespoons water ("flax egg")
1/4 cup oat flour (or spin oats in food processor or blender)
3/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
pinch of cinnamon
​2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup vegan butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon maple syrup
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Directions
​Preheat your waffle iron.

Stir together non-dairy milk and apple cider vinegar in a bowl or cup for the "buttermilk". Set aside.

In a separate bowl or cup, combine 1 tablespoon flax meal and 3 tablespoons water for the "flax egg". Set aside.

Onto the dry mixture. In a large bowl, stir together oat flour, buckwheat flour, hemp seeds, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

In a medium bowl, whisk sugar, melted vegan butter, vanilla, maple syrup, "buttermilk" and "flax egg" until combined. This is the wet mixture.

Fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture, until it's only a little lumpy. Embrace the lumps...they're delicious.

Pour batter onto hot waffle iron, close and cook until waffles are slightly crisp to the touch. Now you're ready to plate and serve! I highly recommend topping them with banana slices and cookie butter...or anything your heart desires. Enjoy!

I've suffered with eczema for over 20 years, and after trying so many lotions and potions, I am SO happy to share that I found something that actually makes it better. 

I have been using the Hemp Salve from Queen City Hemp on my eczema for a few months now and it has made a huge improvement in my skin. Best of all, it's cruelty free (as many prescription medicated lotions are not), vegan (as many hemp salves contain beeswax), and locally made in my hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. While there is no mention of healing eczema, Queen City recommends applying the salve for skin and muscle "relief and nourishment". 

Hemp Seed Oil is the main active ingredient in the salve, which contains Vitamin E and Linoleic Acid, both amazing for nourishing skin. The remaining ingredients are Carnauba Wax, Fractionated Coconut Oil, Hemp Extract, and Hemp Root.

The salve is fragrance free, which is ideal those for sensitive skin like me. Its natural scent of it is very nutty and earthy, and can be mixed with your favorite essential oils to customize the scent. I usually put it on at bedtime, so I like mixing in a couple drops of lavender or lemongrass for of a soothing aromatherapy experience.

So far the only downside to the salve is the high price of $49.99 for 2 oz of product. As far as I can tell, this is standard for a hemp salve with full spectrum cannabinoids of this size.

As always on The Vegan Spy, this review is not sponsored. I love trying the latest vegan and cruelty free products and sharing my honest opinions with you, especially when I find something that I think is great!

I also wanted to try using hemp in a recipe, so I made some hearty Buckwheat Hemp Waffles!

This recipe embraces the color changing magic of butterfly pea flower tea, which is a striking blue until anything acidic is added, and then it turns into a gorgeous rich purple. The combination of the tea with cider makes this a perfect fall drink.


Ingredients
1 cup butterfly pea flower tea
1/2 cup apple cider
1 tablespoon agave nectar
​lemon

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Directions
Prepare hot butterfly pea flower tea. Set aside and watch the blue color do its magic.

Heat apple cider on the stove until steam begins to rise, and pour the cider into the tea.

Stir in agave nectar and a splash of lemon for the finishing touches. Enjoy!

As the colorful eyeshadow trend seemed to build and build over the summer months, Coloured Raine came out with their own iteration of pressed pigments, which are so incredibly vibrant and intense.

I played with the blues, inspired by Absolem the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland, and created an accompanying delicious autumn Drink Me Potion I think he would approve of.

Coloured Raine Vivid Pigments, $7 each, come in 16 rich matte shades. All are vegan with the exception of "Unbothered", which I replaced with the shade "Gumby" to round out the greens. They also offer all 16 pigments in palette form for $50.

These eyeshadows truly live up to their name. They pack a serious color punch and surpass all of the other bright eyeshadows in my collection in pigmentation and blendability. If you like colorful looks, these are a must.

I feel like I say this a lot, but this has got to be one of my favorite recipes I've ever made! The texture is just right and with the added flavor from the pistachios, not a single soul will be able to refuse a bite of these cookies.
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​This recipe is adapted from a recipe for "Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Cream Pies" by Mary-Kate Lynch.
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Ingredients
2 cups oat flour (or spin oats in food processor or blender)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
2 teaspoons matcha powder
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup vegan butter (+1/2 cup for filling)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 chopped pistachios (optional)
2 cups powdered sugar
Dandies mini marshmallows (optional)
mini vegan chocolate chips (optional)
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Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and matcha powder. This is the dry mixture.

In a separate bowl or standing mixer, combine applesauce, 1/2 cup vegan butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Slowly add in in the dry mixture, then fold in the oats and optional pistachios with a spatula. Jinkies this dough is delicious.

Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto the lined baking sheet. For flatter more even cookies, press down lightly on each ball of dough with the bottom of a cup or a large spoon. Bake for about 10 minutes and let cool completely before removing from the pan.

For the cream filling, beat together the remaining 1/2 cup of vegan butter with 2 cups powdered sugar, to taste. Feel free to add another spooky natural colorant like turmeric, beetroot powder, spirulina or even charcoal. I kept mine simple.

Once the cookies are cool, spread or pipe cream filling in between two cookies and then, hold the phone, they're done!

Lastly, for the zombie eyes, I used the same technique I used for my Halloween Cutout Cookies last year. Cut mini vegan marshmallows in half (kitchen scissors are great for this) and squish in mini chocolate chips for the pupils. Attach the marshmallow eyes to the cookies with a dot of the cream filling. Enjoy!

The Block Party Palette is the first thing I've tried from Suva Beauty. I love how vibrant the colors are, and though it's a summer collection it transitions really well into fall. Also pictured is the aptly named Summer Dying Fast Collection from Necromancy Cosmetica. And as always, both of these products are vegan and cruelty free!

I thought together the palette and lipsticks would work nicely for my attempt at a glam version of Velma Dinkley. And what Scooby Doo themed look would be complete without some zombies? Zoinks! Here's my recipe for vegan and gluten free Zombie Oatmeal Cream Pies, made extra spooky with matcha and pistachios.

Can there ever really be enough cupcake recipes on this blog? I think not. Sometimes you just want a simple timeless classic...and that's exactly what these double chocolate cupcakes are. Switch up the frosting color to match any occasion.


Ingredients
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
​1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup non-dairy milk (+ 1-2 tablespoons for frosting)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup Dutched unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup mini vegan chocolate chips (optional)
​3-4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup vegan butter
natural food coloring (optional)


Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a mini muffin pan with paper liners (I used primary blue to contrast the orange frosting). 

In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda. This is the dry mixture.

In a separate bowl or standing mixer, combine light brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce, vegetable oil, non-dairy milk and vanilla. Slowly incorporate in the dry mixture until smooth.

Optionally, stir in chocolate chips for added texture and richness. Pour batter into cups. 

Bake for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

As for the frosting, combine powdered sugar and vegan butter. Optionally, add in natural food coloring. For fancy swirls as pictured, pipe on frosting with piping bag and large star tip. Otherwise, opt for a low maintenance approach and spread frosting on with a knife. Feel free to top with sprinkles, chocolate chips, cookies crumbs or candy. Enjoy!

In my lofty goal to try the indie vegan and cruelty free makeup brands, Lunatick Cosmetic Labs has been on my radar for a while. I figured this would be the perfect time of year to share my thoughts on some of their products. The Vampira Palette is so much fun, I mean look at that packaging! And its deadly neutral shades are perfect for year round.

Feeling hollow? I also made a recipe for the little Double Chocolate Chip Cupcakes in the corner of this photo.

​Get caught in a "tropical lime storm" with these cupcakes!
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Ingredients
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups vegan butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup vegan sour cream (I used Tofutti Better Than Sour Cream)
​​1/2 cup Mountain Dew Baja Blast
​1/2 teaspoon spirulina powder or natural teal food coloring
1 lime, zest and juice
​1/4 teaspoon vanilla
3-4 cups powdered sugar​

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a mini muffin pan with paper liners (I went for a classic Mountain Dew yellow). 

​In a large mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt). Set aside.

In another bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter with sugar, and gradually add in applesauce, sour cream, Baja Blast and most of the lime zest until incorporated. Slowly add the dry ingredients mixture into this mixture until smooth. 

Spoon slightly less than a tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Bake for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean. Hang ten while the cupcakes cool in the pan, then remove to a rack while you prepare the frosting. If you want your cupcakes to be totally tubular, don't frost em while they're hot.

For the frosting, using a standing mixer or hand mixer, whip remaining 1 cup butter, gradually adding in powdered sugar through a sifter until smooth and creamy. Bring it to the next level with remaining lime zest, a tiny splash of lime juice, vanilla, and either spirulina powder or natural teal food coloring  for the perfect punch of cowabunga color.

Once the cupcakes are cool, add on some frosting. I recommend using a piping bag and large star tip, or simply spreading frosting on with a knife. Enjoy!