About

Welcome to Plant Based Jess!

I’m Jessica, the recipe developer, photographer and videographer behind this blog. I created plantbasedjess.com to share recipes that are healthy, easy-to-prepare and (most of them) family-friendly.

My goal is to show how eating wholesome meals can be varied, simple and so delicious!

About me

I am a French Canadian (from Québec) now living in Maine with my husband Christopher and our two children, Zachary and Lilianne.

Although eating almost exclusively whole food plant based is a relatively more recent switch in my life, I grew up eating entirely homemade meals and sweets. Vegetables at the center of the plate, the smell of freshly baked breads invading the house and a freezer loaded with batch cooked pasta sauces ready for the last minute meals were the normality. This created a passion and pride for cozy homemade meals that followed me into my own home today.

  • Showing is a white shallow bowl containing long and curly white pasta and topped with a vegan tofu bolognese. Also garnished with a vegan parmesan cheese.
  • There are 5 oat flour pancakes stacked on top of each other on a white plates. There is a quick blueberry jam on top with some fresh raspberries and you can see some maple syrup being poured over the pancakes. Also on the side, there is a fork, a pink hand towel, a small container with maple syrup, a glass jar with fresh raspberries and a large white plate with more of the pancakes.
  • Showing is 2 white bowl (one you can only see half of it) containing brown rice noodles that are topped with miso tempeh, shredded red cabbage and steamed broccoli. There is a drizzle of a miso sauce on top as well as sliced green onion. On the table on the side, there is a pink hand towel, a fork, a small white bowl with more of the tempeh and a bowl with a miso sauce.
  • There are 2 glass jars containing a vegan chocolate avocado pudding topped with diced mangoes and cacao nibs. Also on the side, there are 2 spoons, a lined blue and white hand towel and a small white bowl containing more of the diced mangoes.

A few fun facts about me

  • I’m a veterinarian. Being married to a busy demanding-career husband made me reflect about our priorities as a family and brought me to the conclusion that a break for a few years from my own career would be beneficial. This allows me to focus on my family (and this blog!) and make sure I’m not missing on any important milestones from our fast growing children!

  • My first language is French. Writing this blog in my second language has its own challenges! Thanks to my chief editor husband (as he likes to call himself) for reading each one of my posts.

  • I’m a skin care fanatic. Oh hello, amazing May Lindstrom.

  • I knew absolutely nothing about photography before creating the blog.

  • White pasta with a simple tomato sauce is my weakest addiction (hey, don’t forget to choose whole wheat pasta, my friend).

  • I love extra romantic, aka “cheesy”, movies. With popcorn. Always popcorn.

About the blog

This is a no-calorie-counting, non-judgmental & guilt free blog to celebrate food in its simplest way. I create plant based meals for my family and share them here on the blog hoping it will also help other families to explore new flavors and enjoy sharing healthy meals together.

All the recipes in the blog are vegan. But, ALL EATERS ARE WELCOME!

Either you are looking to find the perfect recipe for your meatless Mondays, inspiration for your Veganuary challenge or the once-in-a-while meal where you are craving a wholesome plate: I hope you can find what you need here!

  • Close up on a few squares of vegan blueberry cheesecake displayed on a piece of parchment paper. There is a yellow hand towel in the background.
  • Close up on a white bowl filled with bright green lettuce and topped with a dill chickpea salad. On the side there are 2 wedges of lemon, a fork and a small bowl with sliced bread.

What’s coming next at Plant Based Jess?

When I’m less busy running after 2 young kids (does this ever happen?), I am looking forward to bring more and more to my readers!

  • I know I have a lot of French speakers coming to visit my blog.

    * Traduire chacun de mes posts an français est un objectif important depuis la création de ce blog! Jusqu’à ce qu’une traduction sur site soit possible, envoyez-moi une demande de traduction à jessica@plantbasedjess.com pour recevoir une recette détaillée en français!

  • More healthy plant based meal planning, including grocery shopping list, batch cooking steps, tips and more.

  • More information about cooking plant based meals for kids, including more recipes to please picky little eaters.

  • More plant-based support to help anyone that needs extra encouragement or motivational tools in eating healthier on a more regular basis. If you need extra information, assistance, ideas or recipe substitutions, please do not hesitate to send me an email!

Thanks for letting me share my passion for healthy eating with you! Now, let’s get cooking!