About

Hi, I'm Kaitlin and thanks for stopping by! Sharing plant-based foods is one of my life's greatest joys and my hope is to spark your excitement too - with easy, approachable vegan recipes that are packed with enough flavor to please both herbivores and carnivores alike. Most of us don't have time to stand in the kitchen making long, complicated meals. Recipes you find here are super simple, showing just how quick, easy, and fun healthy eating can be. And because it brightens my day (hopefully yours too!) I especially love creating dishes with as much color as possible. One of my favorite parts of this blog is connecting with people. I genuinely love hearing from you guys - seeing what you're cooking up, your thoughts, your travels, and what inspires you! I encourage you to come join me on The Garden Grazer Instagram 🍓 and share if you'd like!

About Me

I love animals, nature (especially Yellowstone, mountains, and the smell of fresh pine), matcha & tea, reading, exploring this beautiful Earth, and doing my best to live consciously and compassionately. I grew up in a small town in southern Michigan which is where my veggie love-affair began. My parents lovingly labored to provide us with a beautiful vegetable garden right behind our house. I spent many childhood days sitting between the rows, eating fresh tomatoes, green beans, sugar snap peas, and strawberries right off the vine. (Hence the name "The Garden Grazer") 😊🌿 It was pure summer bliss!

 Planting seeds with my grandma in our garden - early 90's, Michigan

I graduated from Michigan State University with a BS in Environmental Biology/Zoology, then my husband and I traveled around the western part of the country. We spent time living near Yellowstone, Tempe, Arizona, and Portland, Oregon. We reside in Bozeman, Montana now and are absolutely loving it. The mountains and fresh air energize my soul! (See more behind-the-scenes & non-recipe posts on my Lifestyle page.)

About the Recipes
I'm passionate about using one-ingredient, organic/non-GMO, whole foods as much as possible. Rice, quinoa, beans, fruits, vegetables, herbs, etc. (Basically I like to follow a whole food, plant-based, no oil diet.) I love simple, healthy meals that aren't complicated, so I put a ton of emphasis on developing the recipes in a way that's easy to follow and most efficiently uses your time. (i.e. I'll let you know as the quinoa is cooking, that's a great time to dice veggies.)

Why Vegan?

There are a few reasons why I choose a plant-based lifestyle. For one, I've always been a huge animal lover. (Just look at these adorable little faces!) I'd never want to harm or kill an animal, so why pay others to do it for me - often in a cruel way - just for the sake of consuming it? There are so many wonderful foods out there to enjoy without taking other creature's lives in the process.

Visiting Heartland Farm Sanctuary

Another big reason is health. Years ago I read "The China Study" by Dr. T. Colin Campbell (a true hero!) and it immediately changed my life. I started preparing more plant-based meals and was also inspired to enroll in a 6 week online course to obtain a certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from eCornell, based on Dr. Campbell's research. (Great course if you're interested!) Soon my husband and I completely fell in love with the notion of plant-based foods, and gradually shifted to preparing all vegetarian then vegan meals. We considered ourselves pretty healthy people, so it came as quite a shock when we experienced how much more health and energy there was to gain by eliminating all animal products from our diet. My awful migraines disappeared, debilitating menstrual cramps went away, stomach issues resolved, acne cleared, and many others. So much research is continually coming out backing the amazing benefits of incorporating more plants into our diet to slow, halt, or even reverse diseases - it can be such a powerful tool to take control of your heath. I recommend checking out the new documentary "What the Health" for more info!

Last but not least, the environmental impacts of a meat/dairy diet are alarmingly destructive compared to a plant-based diet. I believe it's important to become aware of the connections of our personal actions with our environment and do the best we can to live gently, consciously, and take care of our beautiful, diverse earth. (Check out the awesome documentary "Cowspiracy" for more info!)

Transition from Vegetarian to Vegan

After about 4-5 years as a vegetarian, a couple things inspired me to try a vegan diet. First, I became even more aware of the awful conditions and violence within the dairy/egg industry. (If you're interested, here's a short article of one example.) Second, I'm in a constant search for discovering what food and nutrients my body needs to achieve optimal health and well-being, with a responsible connection to nature and our earth. In addition to meat, I found eliminating all animal products (eggs, dairy, etc.) gave me even more energy, health, and happiness. Once I started listening to my body, I felt much more empowered and connected to the food I eat. The power of whole foods continually amazes me! It's a lifestyle that all-around just feels right in my heart 💚

Enjoying the beautiful Montana winter!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I truly hope you enjoy the recipes!

To stay connected, come join The Garden Grazer on Instagram 🍓 - I really love to see what you guys are cooking up.

 Grand Teton National Park - so majestic!

 Walking with my daughter near Hebgen Lake, Montana




Disclosure / Affiliate Program Details
The Garden Grazer is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliated sites.

I only occasionally share things that I personally use and genuinely recommend. If you click on the affiliate links and make a purchase within a certain time frame, I may earn a small commission. There is no additional cost to you by clicking the affiliate links.