Freshly washed.

Every year—or, sometimes, multiple times a year—I give my body a little break with a cleanse. My favorite for the past few years has been the 21-day "Whole Living Action Plan."

Being a vegetarian, I don't find these cleanses too disruptive to my life since I already try to eat cleanly and follow a mostly whole-foods diet; but, like anyone else, I give in quite a bit to the junk dished out during the holidays and I have a raging sweet tooth to boot, so it's nice to scale back to the basics right around when the time changes and I'm ready to begin my spring cleaning ritual, both inside and out.

Last night, I made a "clean" version of this roasted sweet potato soup recipe—no peppers, sherry, or yogurt. It was so silky smooth and delicious (thanks to my NutriBullet, which has officially replaced my blender at this point, btw). Having a rich, creamy soup like this during a cleanse felt so much more decadent than having to only down green juice after lemon tonic, which so many other "cleanses" seem to tout throughout their regimens.

I am way more a fan of the Whole Living-type of cleanse than the liquid-only ones since it's varied, nutrient-rich, and I never feel hungry. In fact, snacking is encouraged! To celebrate this, I made some hummus to keep on hand for the occasion. (If you've never made hummus before, it couldn't be easier. It requires a few more ingredients than homemade almond butter, but it's well worth it knowing that it came from your own heart and kitchen. Here's a super simple recipe for you to try out.)

Let me know what kind of ritual you follow when your body needs a boost or if you've tried out the Whole Living Action Plan and how it's worked for you. I look forward to your thoughts and comments. In the meantime, happy clean living!

Splurge alert: VYNL

A couple of weeks ago, the bf and I got together with some super fly* friends (SFF) for dinner at Vynl in Hell's Kitchen. It's such a cool and kitschy place and, after having only ever been there once before eons ago, I went back not 6 months before my SFF dinner with some family who came to visit from Australia. (I actually have a rule about not eating anywhere in NYC twice and there aren't many places around here for which I will break my rule, but Vynl is one of them.)

For appetizers, two of our crew had the Vegetable Dumplings which were served with a sweet soy chili dipping sauce while the bf chowed down on the most decadent, delicious Sliders Rellenos. These teeny burgers had a crispy poblano cheese ball sitting atop them which burst into a gooey yum-fest (not the bf's words, but I know he was thinking exactly that) when eaten.

I went with the Seared Coriander Crusted Tuna for my main dish which was served with a slurpy, sloppy plop of udon noodles and a sweet soy garlic sauce (I know my adjectives really do it for you, don't they?) and then noshed on my bf's Truffle Mac N Cheese which immediately gave me a right lactose-intolerant-spurred belly ache, but it was well worth it.

The real splurges, though, were the Housemade French Fries and the I-can't-remember-the-name-of-it-but-OMG-it-was-awesome sundae which had extra creamy ice cream** and tons of caramel and chocolate with a brownie and salted mini-pretzels. It was such a treat that we all dug in (even though I was the only one who actually ordered dessert, but I am nice enough to share).

I had meant to take some photos of our meals, but Vynl is crazy dark (and loud) during dinner, and I didn't want to be "that girl" with the flashlight (or—GASP—mistaken as a tourist), so you'll have to either visit the website or go to Vynl yourself to check out all the good stuff mentioned above and more. If you do go in person, though, give me a shout so I can come with you as I'd like to break my rule again.

*I've been listening to a lot of rap lately.
**More lactose? What am I, crazy?***
***The answer to this is always "yes."