Two Week Update

Some musings after two full weeks as a vegan:

I feel healthy. 

I feel proud that I'm experimenting in the kitchen and kind of learning to cook. Learning how to mix spices and combine ingredients in a way that tastes delicious.

My nails seem to be stronger than ever... I stopped painting them, so I'm sure that has something to do with it. But I'm also eating way more green stuff!

We invited my parents over for vegan enchiladas, and everyone loved them! I was happy to share this lifestyle with my parents. Jay hasn't eaten meat since Sunday (!!!) My parents are still eating meat, but have cut down significantly in the past few months, and I think they will continue to cut down!

Some things I've made:

Black bean burgers with pasta salad
Oat-rice cereal-pepita granola

Sweet potato/black bean enchiladas with avocado "cream"

Gluten free veggie pizza with tofu "ricotta"
Giant salad for sides and for lunches

Broccoli quinoa wraps with cashew "cheese" sauce

Some meals/snacks on the horizon for this week:
Buffalo breaded tempeh
Zucchini fritters
White bean quesadillas
Mushroom marinara
Avocado pasta sauce

Today is Jay's birthday, so we're going to go out. We decided on Flatbread Pizza Company, because they have delicious options for both of us. They always have a vegan pizza special AND I think they have vegan brownies/cookies for dessert too! 

(...Though I did just eat an entire pint of Ben and Jerry's PB Cookies Non-Dairy Ice Cream Dessert in the past 2 days, so maybe I should skip dessert tonight!)

One Week Update!

Well, everyone, I have officially made it one week without eating any animal products! I think it's important to chart how I've been feeling, so I'll sum up some of the changes I've felt and seen here.

1 - I feel happy. I don't know if that's because it's getting springy, or the end of the school year is near, or I'm planning some mini trips and summer fun, OR it's because I'm so chock-full of plant vitamins, but I feel happy and it's good.

2 - My skin has been so clear and smooth (knock on wood.)

3 - Even if I still feel a little pudgy or bloated some days, I generally like my body and how it feels. I know I'm not totally detoxed from meat products yet, and I have still been partaking in plenty of alcoholic beverages, so I'm not the HEALTHIEST I could be, but I am proud of what I'm feeding myself and thus proud of how my body looks.

4 - I have been, for lack of a better term, clearing out the system? (WARNING - TMI AHEAD!) For years I have struggled with bloating and constipation, and this is why I stopped eating dairy about four years ago, and why I started taking Magnesium a couple years later. I haven't been my magnesium, but I am becoming quite "regular" which is actually so, so great, even if you didn't want to hear about my bathroom habits. Sorry, you were warned!

5 - I feel really passionate about this. I want to teach people about it and encourage them to learn what they're doing to the environment and to animals and to their own bodies when they eat meat. I guess now I know why vegans get such a bad reputation for talking about being vegan all the time. It's not an attention thing or narcissism or anything like that; I think they truly want to educate others about this enlightenment they've had about what the world is feeding us AND what we're doing to our planet AND what we're doing to other innocent creatures. We no longer need these things to kepe us alive, and we're doing a disservice to ourselves and future generations to continue to abuse and use up all these resources just because we want burgers. Veggie burgers are just as good!


A couple days ago I wrote that I was having trouble calling myself a vegan and I blamed it on beeswax chapstick and leather-handled tote bags. But in reality, I think I was kind of ashamed, or embarrassed, to admit how much I care about this lifestyle. Because it does come with a certain amount of judgment from the outside world. I'm starting to realize that it doesn't matter what others think- if they would only educate themselves on everything that is wrong with meat-eating, they might gravitate towards this path too!

Day 7 Menu

I am just realizing that this Menu thing is pretty boring and tedious, and I should probably start coming up with recipes if I want to consider myself any type of food blogger. I guess I am currently a food-list blogger... That's nothing to write home about! So this might be the last day I just give you a boring menu to read.

Breakfast:

Green smoothie - my favorite new breakfast

Lunch:

Cut up veggies with hummus

Leftover "meatloaf"
Salad with homemade lemon tahini dressing

Dinner:
Basically a disaster.

Let me clarify. I had big plans for dinner! I was going to try to cook the tempeh that's been sitting in the fridge all week. But, I decided to make some extra sides just in case the main dish was less than succulent. I made corn salad with jalapeno, lime juice, and cilantro. That worked just fine! I cut up and roasted some potatoes with garlic and dill... I did not look up the appropriate temperature, so they just ended up either sticking to the pan or being soggy. I also cooked some asparagus. It was fine, but they were very fat stalks, so it wasn't the best bunch of asparagus. THE TEMPEH WAS TERRIBLE. First, without realizing what I was doing, I sauteed it in olive oil, which is not supposed to be at a high heat because it will burn. So I immediately began stressing about that, so I didn't get the tempeh crispy enough probably, and it was also "bacon" tempeh, so it had a TON of seasoning and flavorings on it. It was just too much. I think there were probably 8 bacon-shaped slices in the pack, and just FOUR slices was 27% of your daily sodium intake. Gross! So, plant based does NOT always equal healthy. If I try tempeh again, which I probably will because it seems like a sometimes-fun plant based protein to eat, I am going to season/marinade it myself. Oh She Glows has a nice balsamic tempeh recipe that I think will be next on the list... In a few weeks, once I forget about the smoky-flavored fakin' bacon tragedy.

Day 6 Menu

Day 6 happened to fall on Mother's Day, and we were planning to head to my parents' house for a nice cookout. I had offered to make a salad, and I figured I would make some other yummy surprise, so I didn't tell them that I was becoming a vegan. My mom partially figured it out, based on my plant-based Instagrams of late. I don't think she realized how much animal product I'm trying to eliminate, but she seems actually quite interested in it... I think she and my dad will at least be doing a day or two a week of meatless dishes.

Anyways, I ended up with more than enough to eat. Salad, broccoli, grilled bread, strawberries, and french fries. Yum!

I had made some vanilla vegan cupcakes and decorated them with coconut or raspberries. They were really pretty, and also really delicious! Everyone liked them, and took an extra for later :) I didn't take a picture, though. Wah!

The real treat was that Charlie and Vanessa brought a box of Union Square Donuts... Yum, but so NOT vegan... Or so I thought! It turns out that they make a couple of vegan donuts each day, and one vegan flavor is the Pink Lemonade donut, which happens to be my favorite one anyway! So I ate a pink lemonade donut, and took the other one for breakfast some day this week. 

Day 5 Menu

I went to barre this AM and felt like dying. I came home, made a green smoothie, and laid in bed for like 4 hours watching Forensic Files. I ate way too much salt last night (I didn't drink, so I expected to feel fine, but I was soooooo dehydrated.) I also did not have coffee this morning, so it could have been a caffeine thing. Anyways, I'm definitely going to pay attention to the foods that I eat and make sure I'm getting a balanced diet and enough calories to sustain myself!

Breakfast:

Green smoothie involving banana, spinach, almond milk, pb, flax, etc.

Lunch:

Whole wheat pasta with olive oil and nutritional yeast

Dinner:

Oh She Glows lentil walnut loaf (pictured)

Green beans

Sliced avocado

Jay is still skeptical of plant based nutrition, so I would not be surprised if he has a sandwich or something later. I usually eat seconds for dinner, but I felt very satisfied by this meal. (I had a very tiny plate of seconds because it is just so delicious!!!!)

Day 4 Menu

My 4th day as a "vegan" but I still have trouble calling myself that because my tote bag has leather straps and my lip balm has beeswax in it.

But, I haven't eaten ANY meat, eggs, or dairy for 4 full days. I'm educating myself about food and nutrition, AND doing more cooking than ever before!

Breakfast:

Toast with avocado and salt

Lunch:

Leftover cauliflower tacos

Dinner:

Chips and salsa

Taco salad with black beans

We went out to dinner tonight. I was nervous but we chose a place where we thought I could get something vegan pretty easily. My meal was good, but the bean to salad ratio was a little heavy on the beans! But at least I felt comfortable eating what I chose. Yay!

Coconut Lime Cauliflower Tacos

Made these for dinner last night, and I wanted to share the recipe from Veggie Inspired Journey.

It was Cinco de mayo, so this was the perfect meal for the evening. Jay even enjoyed these Vegan tacos. Yum!

I highly recommend them! They come together pretty quickly and are just so tasty!

Friday Facts

from greengarage.typepad.com

Did you know: Americans are consuming too much meat. Americans are consuming too much in general! It not only costs a lot to RAISE all the meat that Americans consume, but it also causes a lot of carbon emissions that are harming the earth. We are also cutting down forests and greenery to make more room for cattle. We are using massive amounts of water to grow the food for livestock.

If other countries consumed at the rate that Americans consume, we would need five planet earths in order to survive.

To me, eating so much meat is wasteful, selfish, and harmful to future generations. No one needs meat with every meal, and certainly no one needs multiple types of meat for every meal! I understand how this dependence on meat has evolved, but we don't need it to keep us alive. And in fact, it's actually hurting us to keep eating meat at this rate. 

Just something to keep in mind the next time you think a vegan or vegetarian is crazy! Do your part and try Meatless Mondays, or just try to cut back on meat, dairy, eggs, and other animal products. Your children and grandchildren will thank you :)

Day 3 Menu

Today, I feel really tired. I think it is probably a combination of getting back to school after April vacation, having a weird mixed up school schedule because of PARCC testing, getting back into barre after 2 weeks off, and maybe some other things that are out of my control. I don’t think it’s because I am not eating meat. I feel like I’m getting plenty of protein and energy from nuts and fruits and veggies and pasta and hummus, but my feelings are something I definitely want to pay attention to. I have struggled with stomach problems for so long that I am very sensitive to the way foods affect me. I want to balance this lifestyle so I feel healthy and awake.

Something I haven’t yet done, but maybe I will do it after my experimental 30 days if I plan to continue, is throw away/donate my animal beauty products and clothing items. I have some new lip balms that are made with beeswax which I really love. I’m not ready to give them up! I also have a favorite sweater that is partially merino wool, and my favorite tote bag is pure leather. I love these things, but it kind of freaks me out to imagine carrying a bag made of skin. A cute cow’s skin.

Anyway, here’s the menu for today.

Breakfast:
Oatmeal made with almond milk, cinnamon, and maple syrup
Banana

Lunch:
Cucumber, mushrooms, carrots, cherry tomatoes
Hummus
Teddie PB and blueberry preserves mini wrap

Snacks:
Apple
Veggie straws

Dinner:
It’s Cinco de Mayo so… Vegan tacos!!! I might just use lentils instead of meat, or I might try to find a more adventurous recipe. Jay is going to crumble up a leftover turkey burger (AKA my last meat-based supper) and use that for the meat in his, but I think he will also like the veggie ones. We'll see! 

Day 2 Menu

Breakfast:
Vanilla cinnamon almond smoothie

Lunch:
Cucumbers, tomatoes, mushrooms with hummus
Vegan “chicken” soup cup

Dinner:
Whole wheat pasta with lemon
Garlic tomato basil sauce
Spinach

Snacks:
Apple
Lara bar

After dinner I was really craving something sweet, per usual, so I snacked on a few Annie’s bunny grahams. I need to find a small, easy, tasty vegan nibble that I can scarf after dinner. I have such a sweet tooth! I always need a little something sweet to signal that I’m done eating. I know it’s a bad habit. Maybe I can switch to some tea with almond milk as a dessert… I have tried that a few times and it’s not bad, but I haven’t been able to make the habit stick. The hunt for a “healthy sweet” continues!

Day 1 Menu

Breakfast:
Oatmeal with blueberries (not vegan.)
Iced coffee with almond milk

Lunch:Salad with oil-based dressing
Fresh baked roll
Cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and mushrooms with hummus

Dinner:
Black bean soup
Quinoa salad
Panera baguette (oops, not vegan. But, proud of myself for not eating a cookie!)

Snacks:
Apple
Almond butter
Lara bar