"Easy, Healthy, Tasty."

Say hello to Angèle! She's a Montreal-based food blogger who's been sharing her experience with veganism one recipe at a time.

She started her Instagram account @Veganmontreal to show everyone that vegan food can be easy, healthy and tasty. Leaves was lucky enough to chat with her about all things vegan recipes, travel and living a low-waste lifestyle!

Check it out below!

When did you start writing recipes and why?

I started writing recipes about four years ago. After moving on my own with minimal cooking experience, I spent a lot of time researching easy, healthy and tasty recipes. I would often open too many tabs of recipes on my computer and would get inspired from them to create the recipe I was looking for. That is how I developed my own sample recipes and decided to share them!

What do you think is a really underrated ingredient that people should use more of?

Go nutritional yeast go! Vegans usually know about nutritional yeast, but non-vegans rarely do. The taste, the nutritional content, the versatility of nutritional yeast are all amazing. My tip is to keep a jar next to salt and pepper, you can add it to everything!

Which season has the best ingredients? (Are you excited for fresh fruit in summer or pumpkins and squash in fall?)

I love all seasons and am always excited for the new produce they bring. If I had to pick, I would say my favourite season is summer for its abundance of fresh produce: strawberry, corn, lettuce, tomato, melon, peach, green beans… Rediscovering them after the long winter months!

Which recipe are you most proud of and why?

It is my three ingredients sweet-potato gnocchi recipe! I am proud of it because it inspired so many people who did them at home. It’s a recipe that is fun to make and intuitive: you have to trust yourself! I like to encourage my followers to cook intuitively: “taste and adjust seasoning” are words you will find in almost all of my recipes.

How have you changed from your first recipe to your last?

Since the beginning, my motto is Easy. Healthy. Tasty. However, I now try to give more tips in my recipes, to make them even easier to follow! I learnt a lot since I first started which allows me to develop new recipes quicker and to be able to share more of them on my page.

You post a lot about traveling! Can you tell us one of your most memorable travel experiences?

Kenya! I went there for my honeymoon and we did the Masai Mara and Amboseli National Parks. The nature, the animals… it was magical!

You talk a lot about lowering waste! What are some simple things people can do to lower waste in their everyday life?

Lowering waste in general is a very important topic for me. There are so many small changes that we can do and will make a huge difference. We have to be conscious of it and make responsible decisions as much as we can.

Here are my five favourite tips:


1- Say no to plastic bottles: Have a water filtration pitcher at home and bring your reusable bottle everywhere you go.


2- Bring your own bags: This is valid for the larger bags but also for produce bags at the grocery stores. You will start noticing how many bulk items you can find at your local grocery store, focus on these instead of the overly packaged produce!



3- Buy in bulk: This made a huge difference to reduce my waste. Bonus points, I can get exactly the amount of product I want so it is fresher. I discover cool new products, I save $ and my kitchen looks super cute with all the glass jars (reused from pickles, tomato sauce, jams, etc.).

4- Compost: This one is huge as about 50% of municipal waste is compostable! Therefore, composting will reduce waste in landfills and instead be turned in productive fertilizer or even energy. I have been composting for three years and never had problems with it. Give it a try!

5- Spread the word: Sharing about your efforts to help the planet is so important to see change on a bigger scale.

You also discuss #SELFCARE on your social media. How have you been practicing self-care during quarantine and what advice do you have for people?

For me self-care is keeping my exercise routine (I love, running, hiking and yoga), taking time to cook beautiful meals for myself and calling my family regularly. My advice would be to take the time to ask yourself how you feel and not hesitate to seek help.

We noticed you did a few pop-ups and even participated in the vegan festival one year! What’s it like teaching your recipes in person?

Getting out there instead of behind my screen is clearly going out of my comfort zone but love it! Being able to share my recipes and tips live is what I like the most.

Where can we follow you?

I am mainly on Instagram and I also have a Facebook page. And I am currently updating my blog to make things easier for you. Can’t wait to see you there!

Want to make your own plant-based recipes? Visit Leaves in store or online to and pick up a carton plant-based milk (including coconut, macadamia, almond and oat!) Leaves also carries matcha or maca powder!