Issues

Select Issue (9)

2023 Summer

2023 Spring

2023 Winter

2022 Fall

2022 Summer

2022 Guest Chefs

2022 Spring

2021 Winter

2021 Summer

EAT IT by hot for food

The Travel Issue (July to September 2023)

New
The Travel Issue Cover

Who’s ready to go on summer vacay?! Well, even if you don’t have elaborate plans for summer you can escape into this next issue of EAT IT. The Travel Issue is a collection of content inspired by my travels. You know I travel well and eat all the vegan food I can, so I’ve created exciting recipes born out of the flavors and dishes I’ve sampled worldwide. There are recipes from Portugal, Bali, Greece, and Italy, a What I Ate In Vancouver vlog, and a recap of my son’s birthday where we went to The Gentle Barn Farm Sanctuary in California.

If you want to experience the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of places you’ve never been, dive into these recipes from my travels. I’ve recreated a simple and delightful dessert eaten in Portugal called bolo de bolacha. I’ve brought my fave thing to eat in Bali home just for you. The chef at the villa where I host Live With Purpose Bali was kind enough to share his recipe! It’s called nasi goreng, a traditional fried rice dish. I know you’ll be addicted! My recent trip to Greece was full of savory, spiced, bites and my 7 layer greek dip incorporates all of them. There’s also a greek lemon potato recipe that’s worth the extra bit of effort to make. I’m also sharing a special recipe created just for my recent trip to Italy. It’s a collab with Rose Lee from Cheap Lazy Vegan and this hybrid Asian-Italian dish, baked gochujang rigatoni, was what we made for the culinary experience we hosted.

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

The Life Changing Issue (April to June 2023)

the life changing issue cover

This exciting new issue features lots of vlogs/videos and it’s all about MY life changing events that have transpired over the last month or so! If you’ve been with me a while, which I suspect you have, you know things never stay the same over here at hot for food. Personally and professionally I go through very frequent deaths and rebirths. If you know anything about astrology, it’s all right in line with my sun in Scorpio… weeee! I’m intense and I’m meant to go through this cycle many many many many times in my lifetime here on earth. So I feel good! Even though I’ve had some changes and challenges since becoming a mom I have thrived and found new parts of me that I didn’t realize existed. Some are yet to be discovered, and that excites me. Besides, isn’t that what life is all about anyway? I embrace change, I actually get rejuvenated by it, and I welcome it with open arms.

Y’all asked for more videos so I hope you enjoy this issue and the long-form videos/vlogs I’ve included. It’s definitely the type of content I would have otherwise thrown up on my YouTube channel, Lauren In Real Life, but I decided I’d save the juiciest content for you members. Thank you for being part of my journey! I really do appreciate it and can hear you cheering me on from afar. Lots of love!

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

All For You (January to March 2023)

EAT IT cover winter 2023

This is the inaugural member recipe requests issue! I had so much fun creating the recipes YOU really wanted, that I’ll likely do this again. Annual members are added to my close friends’ list on Instagram so that’s where I took submissions and did a little back and forth with y’all to determine exactly what you wanted me to work on.  Oh, and it wasn’t without some challenges. If you were following along then you saw the disastrous journey the vegan butter cake was! I eventually figured out something inspired by what was requested— a copy-cat of CPK’s famous butter cake! I landed on the orange sugar-glazed cakes you’ll see below. I’m a big fan of the vegan pozole verde recipe. Pozole is something I probably wouldn’t have done on my own, but I’m so glad I discovered it. You’ll also see an epic recipe for tofu marsala, Filipino tortang talong, a super easy strombli, simple bean & cheese arepas, and a cozy vegan tuna casserole where I used tofu and hearts of palm for the tuna.

Big thanks to these members for making these requests for the issue: Danielle Verner, Laura De La Giroday, Miranda Hull, and Katrina Malakhoff!

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

Easiest Recipes Ever (October to December 2022)

EAT IT cover easiest recipes ever

My easiest recipes ever have been a long time in the making. Nine months and then some to be exact! These simple, but incredibly delicious ideas are all things I ate during my pregnancy and continue to make in my everyday mom life because they’re that easy. I know so because I’m able to whip them up while baby snoozes or during those precious wake windows (only moms will get that!) Either way, everyone needs meals they can throw together in around 30 minutes and I guarantee these ideas will become regular staples for you too.

There’s plenty of Asian inspiration here from Japanese okonomiyaki to kimchi fried rice to my go-to noodle bowl. Asian eats are always what I crave, and I’m mad hungry as a breastfeeding mom! I’ll also show you how to make Korean veggie pancakes and air-fried teriyaki tofu sushi bowls. There’s a recipe for a quick couscous with sauced up portobellos, tomato miso butter spaghetti, as well as a sheet pan quesadilla—it’s an internet hack that’s worth the 2 sheet pans! I haven’t forgotten super swift sweets either. Both offerings are chocolate based so take your pick! I would choose both of them personally. Chocolate cereal bark is really kid-friendly, while us sophisticated foodies can satisfy our sweet tooth with chocolate banana bites in 3 scrumptious flavors.

I hope you can use these recipes from now until the end of time to get meals on the table quickly and efficiently leaving more time to do what brings you joy. Coincidentally for me, that’s cooking, so you’re welcome!

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

Carb Girl Summer (July to September 2022)

EAT IT by hot for food carb girl summer cover

I hope you’re enjoying the summer wherever you are in the world. It’s so damn hot here in California right now that I’m inside with the A/C on full blast attempting to work with a newborn baby by my side. This issue was inspired by that event actually because, as you may know, I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant. So I cut carbs! I know, I can’t believe it either. I did it with some success… let’s be honest, I cheated. So now I can’t be bothered with hot girl summer and I suspect I’m too old for weird girl summer. That’s why I’ve opted for a Carb Girl Summer and I know you can get down with that too. You are hot for food after all!

This collection of recipes is carbs that still scream summer. Fresh and light pasta dishes using seasonal faves like zucchini, peas, and shallots. I even recreated spaghetti alla nerano—a life-changing pasta according to Stanley Tucci. There are two unique dips for picnics, and poolside snacking accompanied by homemade vegan naan… hello garlic butter! I made vegan ham & cheese croissants the easy way and I crave them constantly ever since I made ’em! I’m also giving you a couple of fruity sweet things to top it all off. The strawberry lemonade bars are beautiful and scrumptious and my key lime sheet cake is just the snack you need to make your #carbgirlsummer a success—both are perfect desserts for sharesies.

I feel like I’m supposed to say, “get outside and enjoy the sun” but with climate change coming in hot and heavy I advise just staying inside all season and cooking up stuff from EAT IT!

 

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

Guest Chefs (April to June 2022)

EAT IT guest chef issue

Hey, hot for food fam! This special issue features exclusive recipes from some of your fave vegan chefs and bloggers. It was an idea I had when I knew I’d be having a baby in April and I just could NOT get myself together to make my own recipes for this issue. But I know you’ll fall in love with these guest chefs and their tasty recipes.

When those cake cravings hit there’s School Night Vegan’s pineapple upside-down cake, Big Box Vegan’s coffeehouse iced lemon loaf, and Rabbit and Wolves have an easy fluffy triple berry shortcake recipe to get you through!

There’s a super-exclusive recipe from Two Spoons for her buckwheat crepes and cashew cream cheese which she let us publish from her upcoming debut cookbook! There are plenty of savory comforting eats too like Mississippi Vegan’s cheesy herb bread twists, Miyoko Schinner’s pork tenderlove recipe, a sustainable recipe from Alejandra Schrader for her plantain cups, fried tofu wontons from Yummy Yatra, a take on Camarones a la Diabla from Edgar Castrejón, and tasty southwestern falafels from Haile Thomas.

Superstar Caitlin Shoemaker of From My Bowl contributes a super simple dump and bake mac & peas as well as a full video tutorial to entertain you. I can’t thank these amazing guest chefs enough for coming through with some of the best recipes to be featured on EAT IT! I hope you all enjoy them and share the love on social by tagging these chefs and bloggers.

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

Magnificent Meals (January to March 2022)

EAT IT_22-spring_cover.jpg

Happy New Year to y’all and to me, because I actually managed to get this issue out despite wanting to stay in vacay/hibernation mode until April. However, we do have a reason to celebrate 2022 and it’s this collection of Magnificent Meals.

Starting off a year new with delicious, new, and easy-to-make meals is a big motivator. It was my intention to make crave-worthy comfort foods for your dinner meal plans that don’t require much fuss. In comes one-pot primavera orzo, sheet pan mushroom birria tacos, and a solid Japanese golden curry recipe paired with crispy sticky rice wedges.

The feature ingredient in this issue is tofu… and I’ll be showing ya how to transform tofu into some magical things like vegan chicken-fried steaks, halloumi cheese, and a take-out fave, mapo tofu with a twist.

Dive into this delectable collection of dinners, tantalizing ways to use tofu, and a light fruit dessert to cap it all off. Happy eating!

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

A Helluva Holiday (October to December 2021)

a-helluva-holiday-EAT-IT-hot-for-food_cover

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! So long as you’re doing it cruelty-free and vegan my friends. The holidays are about love and joy and so eating good food this time of year should also reflect that. That’s why I’m here to give you A Helluva Holiday feast with brand new recipes for your festive events. I’m leveling up potatoes, yet again, with a crispy and easy to achieve potato pave with béarnaise sauce, and giving you a rustic side of braised cabbage that’s sure to convert you into a cruciferous veg lover. I haven’t forgotten the stuffing, but I did a little stuffing in stuffing action with a full-on stuffing bread loaf. There’s even a show-stopping meaty main. No turkeys were harmed in the making of my bone-in vegan turkey drumsticks. No, that’s not a typo!

For dessert, we venture into the featured ingredient of the season, miso. I’ve got 2 sweet and 1 savory recipe featuring magical miso. No holiday is complete without a sticky toffee pudding, but I’m me, and so I put miso in that sticky toffee pudding. It’s going to wow your holiday guests for sure. I also share a new recipe for the softest, most fluffy cinnamon buns topped with miso caramel, and for those post-holiday lazy days, I’ve got your quick and easy dinner covered. Say hello to miso ramen carbonara!

This issue of EAT IT will keep you busy from Thanksgiving to New Year so I hope you enjoy a little rest and relaxation amongst the usual holiday bustle and don’t take things too seriously. Remember, it’s just food! Here’s to a helluva holiday. Cheers!

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes

EAT IT by hot for food

Savor Summer (July to September 2021)

Eat-It_Savor-Summer_2021_hot-for-food

This summer is definitely one to savor given the trainwreck that was summer 2020! In fact, this whole EAT IT thing was concocted during quarantine so it feels kinda cool to be launching it a year later.  The Savor Summer issue is a beauty. I’m giving you boards galore, recipes made with pickles, and a new ice cream flav to add to your repertoire. Get those ice cream vessels in the freezer stat! You don’t want to wait around once you see this pineapple ginger snap ice cream.

When it comes to eating food off a big platter or board, it really is a vibe anytime, but I especially like to partake in board grazing during the summer. Envision presenting my Brooklyn deli board with beet lox and whitefish spread to your pod while hanging in the backyard with beers. Or sharing the sweet dessert board with banana cream pie dip and hazelnut s’more dip with your fam for game night.  I hope these boards bring joy to everyone you share them with… or don’t share if you want them all to yourself too!

Finally, my feature ingredient, pickles, will give you the gift of 3 interesting recipes—dill pickle dip, pickle cheddar biscuits, and dill pickle soup. Ya for real! Each issue of EAT IT will feature a unique or underused ingredient with a handful of recipes that utilize the featured ingredient. So why pickles? I don’t know. I just love them and I think they deserve more than being relegated to a condiment or sandwich topping. Pickles on a sandwich are pretty much essential, though! And the only kind I buy is Bubbies—in the big jar—in case you were wondering.

Lauren Toyota

Issue’s Recipes