Oh She Glows Every Day Party Challenge Finale, Interview and Giveaway!

Sep 27, 2016Foodie Interviews, Oh She Glows Every Day Party Challenge6 comments

I cannot believe that it is the end of another challenge! That means I am up to six challenges šŸ™‚Ā  As always, I really enjoy these challenges as they make me push my comfort zones and try different recipes.Ā  It is a great way to discover a new cookbook and I love seeing what everyone else makes.Ā  Thanks to each and every one of you for participating in this challenge.Ā  Please let me know what your favourite meal was.

Overall, I really enjoyed this cookbook.Ā  Being quite an Oh She Glows fan, I do have some critiques about the new book (however they are minimal).Ā  I am not sure I really liked the photography as much as the first cookbook.Ā  I think they were well lit and captured the food, however I found the white backgrounds not as ā€˜warmā€™ as the first cookbook.Ā  When I think of glowing, I think of a rustic environment with lots of love and laughter.Ā  I loved the photos of Angela and her family however.

My second piece of criticism is that I felt like some of her recipes werenā€™t as creative as the first book.Ā  Again, so hard to criticize as it must be exhausting trying to think of new novel ideas, when you have already made so many.Ā  But especially the staples and sides section, it would have been nice to see some new things in there.Ā  I noticed lots of repetition from her blog and app in this new cookbook.

All that aside, I did really enjoy the recipes and noticed a bit of a departure from the cookbook.Ā  The recipes were SO simple to make, I donā€™t think any of them took longer than an hour.Ā  It really helps that they are labeled ā€˜freezer friendlyā€™ or ā€˜advanced preparation requiredā€™.Ā  These are crucial as it helps you before scanning the recipe.Ā  She really tried to reach a broad audience.Ā  It is an appealing cookbook for those with kids, or just busy schedules.

I have TWO exciting things to share.Ā  Or should I say, two ways I would like to end this challenge.Ā  Firstly, I would like to thank you as readers, by giving away a copy of the cookbook!Ā  That is right! A copy of Oh She Glows Everyday. To enter the contest, please leave a comment, either on this post, or on my Instagram.Ā  Please share what your favourite Oh She Glows Recipe is of all time.Ā  I will be doing a draw on Friday, September 30th, 12:00pm PST.

oh she glows every day finale

Lastly, like I said in my first post introducing this challenge, I was fortunate enough to communicate with Angela about what I was doing. She was nice enough to let me ask her a few questions! She is such a wonderful person, really an inspiration.Ā  I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I enjoyed conducting it!

oh she glows every day party challenge finale


FROM OH SHE GLOWS EVERY DAY. COPYRIGHT Ā© 2016, GLO BAKERY CORPORATION. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION OF PENGUIN CANADA, A DIVISION OF PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE CANADA LIMITED. PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT: ASHLEY MCLAUGHLIN.

I am so excited to be a part of your blog tour this year and was so pumped to review the second cookbook.Ā  As I opened the pages, I could feel the blood, sweat and tears that you put into it!Ā  Congratulations!! What was the most challenging part about creating a second cookbook, knowing that you had to live up to the success of your first one?

Thank you so much! Iā€™m thrilled to have you on the blog tour, and am loving your month-long challenge. Itā€™s so much fun to follow along and Iā€™m sure itā€™ll inspire others to try it out too.

Iā€™d say one of the hardest parts of creating this second cookbook was juggling my family life and work life (I started the book when my daughter was only 3 months old). There were many long nights of working on this book after Adriana went to bed. And as for feeling pressure to live up to my first book…yes, that pressure is very real! Iā€™m so hard on myself and itā€™s something Iā€™m trying to work on. But the incredible support I received from everyone (family, friends, blog readers, and my publishing team) throughout the entire cookbook creation process was a great antidote to the self-doubt whenever it started to creep in.

What are your favourite recipes to cook in the Oh She Glows Every Day Cookbook and have you used them for a party?

Honestly, itā€™s so hard to choose! Some of my favourite dishes in the new book include my Salted Chocolate Hemp Shake, Crispy Smashed Potatoes, Creamy Thai Carrot Sweet Potato Soup, Fusilli Lentil-Mushroom Bolognese, Oh Em Gee Veggie Burgers, and Ultimate Flourless Brownies. I recently hosted a get-together and served my Shepherdā€™s Pie with Cozy Gravy and Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Coconut Bacon for the main, and Peanut Butter Loverā€™s Chocolate Tart and Meyer Lemon Cheesecake with Strawberry-Vanilla Compote for dessert. The meal was a big hit! And now Iā€™m craving those brussels sprouts…hah.

Many of the recipes are gluten, soy or nut-free and kid friendly.Ā  What would be your first suggestion to someone trying to cook plant-based, with a dietary restriction?

The good news is Oh She Glows Every Day is packed with allergy-friendly recipes and options. I really tried to create recipes that many different people could enjoy. Conveniently, below the title of each recipe is an allergy info line that tells you whether the recipe is gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, oil-free, grain-free, kid-friendly, freezer-friendly, or if there is advance prep required. Or it tells you whether there is an option to modify the recipe (such as ā€œgluten-free optionā€). So itā€™s really easy to simply glance at the recipe to see if itā€™ll work with your restrictions.

If you were stranded on a desert island with only one meal, what would it be and why?

It changes by the day, but answering as an about-to-pop preggo I would look you straight in the eye and tell you that I could live off of my Almond Butter Rice Crisp Treats. Iā€™ve been making them A LOT lately and they store so well in the fridge or freezer, too. I really think everyone needs to try this recipe.

Who are some of your favourite bloggers/cookbooks that give you inspiration? (and any suggestions for a future challenge for Whole Foodie Challenge?)

Oh man, there just so many! I think Iā€™m subscribed to over 200 blogs in my feed. Giving a shout-out to a few people I admire, it would be fellow Canadians Meghan Telpner, Laura Wright, and Erin Ireland.

oh she glows every day party challenge finale

Well there you have it! Don’t forget to leave a comment below to get entered in my contest for a free cookbook!

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