Tag: food

Gluten-Free + Dairy-Free Trader Joe’s Grocery List

by Madison

Hi! What’s up! Welcome back to Vogue and a Latte.

Today I am sharing my simple, weekly Trader Joe’s grocery list with you guys! Being gluten and dairy-free has its struggles, that’s for dang sure. But I have found some incredible replacements for items that I wouldn’t want to live without and have also created new meals and recipes while expanding my palette. I have gotten a little bit healthier since cutting out gluten and dairy, I wish I could say that was my choosing LOL. So my meals are healthy-ish, some by choice and some not. I always like to add in those comfort food cravings ( like my faaaave GF/DF ranch and fries ) when I can. At the bottom, I will outline a couple of meals that I throw together with these items! Honestly, it changes weekly depending on my mood and what I want to eat, but a lot of these items are staples and things that I eat each and every day.

Some meals I throw together:

☆ Hot dogs + carrots + sauerkraut + arugula
☆ Eggs + bagels + arugula + bacon + tomato
☆ Sliced bread + avocado + EVOO + pepper flakes + eggs
☆ Waffles + peanut butte + agave + chia seeds
☆ Sliced bread + turkey + mayo + tomato
☆ Chicken nuggets + ranch + lettuce combo
☆ Canned chicken + mayo + hot sauce + tortilla chips
☆ Lettuce combo + shrimp + spices + EVOO + peppers + tomato
☆ Rice + grilled chicken + spices + beans + avocado
☆ Roasted arugula/kale + grilled chicken + bacon + veggies + ranch

You can see that I am horrible at adding fruits and veggies, I am a work in process. Each time I go to the grocery store I try to add one new veggie and one new fruit to see how much I actually eat them. I HATE wasting produce but I also need to be eating so many more greens and fruits. For example, I got some bananas last night at Target to try and see if I will eat them with some peanut butter or grab out the door. If I don’t, I will grab some grapes next time or an orange and see if I reach for those more than others. I just wanna be healthy but I wanna enjoy it, ya know?

If y’all are into this, I think I am going to do a GF/DF charcuterie board post next! I am so into finding ways to enjoy the things that I love while also not killing my stomach. This digestion journey has been a TREK but it’s all about the mental game in my opinion.

Do you have any items you can’t leave Trader Joe’s without? Try any of these items on the list and love them? Leave a comment or shoot me a DM!

You can always follow along with my daily life on Instagram at @MadisonCrowley. It’s pretty real over there, not super glam at all times, but I am always sharing tips, tricks, and what’s really happening in my life.

Hope you loved this post! Have a fantastic and blessed day! xx

February Spending Freeze: Budgeting, Saving, and Spending.

by Madison

Thoughtless spending. I do it all of the time. Grabbing a coffee on my way to work when I have a perfectly good Keurig at home AND at work. Getting groceries (that I actually need) at Target and adding on a pair of jeans and a cute mug. Stopping for food on the way home from spin class when I have a refrigerator at home filled with healthy, yummy food. Watching a YouTube video and buying some beauty gadget that I REALLY don’t need from Amazon just because it is the latest and greatest.

Any of this ring a bell? Just me?

I have decided to put a hold on my spending for the month of February. I have recently noticed myself being extra caught up in the more, more, more atmosphere that can come from social media, our culture, and being inundated with ads and products all day long.
Never being satisfied.
Always needing something NEW.

The second I decided to really monitor and diminish thoughtless spending, I realized how many parts of my day were consumed by thoughtless spending, that I wasn’t even aware of. The worst part of it all is that I already have so much STUFF. Stuff that I don’t use. Clothes that I fold up and forget about. Beauty products that I push to the back of my shelves underneath my counter. And I still want more.

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DELICIOUS, easy, gluten-free + dairy-free pizza recipe

by Madison

Thanks for stopping by my sliver of the internet. For daily happenings in my life, follow along on Instagram! @MadisonCrowley

I have recently added gluten-free to the already present dairy-free in my life and things have CHANGED y’all. It’s hard out there for us food intolerant folks. Thankfully we are living in a time when healthy options are much more free-flowing (thank you TJ’s, Whole Foods, and LA!!!) so it isn’t as daunting as trying to eat this way years and years ago.

I am a foodie and I love beer. I love trying new foods and new places. So this is hard for me. But I figured if it would help my digestion, then it’s worth giving it a try. So far, SO GOOD. Which is bittersweet bc beer. While I love trying new foods, my daily go-to foods are pretty basic and honestly not as healthy as I once hoped that they would be. But I have gotten to the point where I no longer want to solely enjoy what I am eating, I want to not feel like crap afterward as well. Prioritizing quality of life, ya know?

So here is this recipe that is everything I wanted it to be and more. I honestly wasn’t even thinking about blogging this at all, but after I made it and tried it and LOVED it, I realized that there are ways to work around this food intolerance thing that I actually enjoy. Finding dairy-free cheese that actually tastes good AND melts is hard… until now. I knew I had to share with you guys. Welcome to my new fave, easy pizza recipe! Totally up to you to add more or fewer toppings, I just did what I knew I liked. I will probably try with different toppings next time, just to keep things new and interesting.

Delicious Gluten + Dairy Free Pizza 
UDI’s gluten-free pizza crust (1)
SO Delicious Mozzarella dairy-free shreds
Large pepperoni
Olives
Basil leaves
Tomato paste
Oregano
Garlic Salt
Oil

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I’m Back, Y’all.

by Madison

HI! Happy Monday and welcome back to Forge A Frenzy!

It has been two long weeks since I have last posted and wowza, life has been crazy. I took an unintentional hiatus from Forge A Frenzy over the last two weeks due to two life events: Moving from Newport Beach to Huntington Beach, and a much needed trip to Atlanta to see my dearly missed friends.

All of that being said, life is finally settling back down to normalcy. I am figuring out my new commute to work, unpacking tons of boxes, and scouring Pinterest for room inspiration ideas. And I got a pedicure. Pedicures always put life back on track.

I have two fun looks coming up on Forge A Frenzy, this one and another that will be posted shortly, but after that there are going to be some home/interior posts coming because that is where my hard earned money is going towards these next few weeks. I have slowly but surely been redoing the furnishings in my room and I have some cute DIY’s (that don’t look like DIY’s) that I am going to be tackling. The rest is a mix and match of HomeGoods finds and Target scores. I like to get the best bang for my buck and those two places have really been helping me out.

On top of that, I have tons of new places to add to my Atlanta food + drink guide that I will be summing up in a post as well as adding to my Atlanta Travel Guide page. Such exciting stuff!!!

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