An Update on My New Vegan Life

Good morning!

I thought I would give an update on my new vegan life.  As of right now, the vegan part only involves the food & beverages, not the other aspects of life that can be "veganized". 

I reference the following site quite a lot:

http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/accidentally-vegan.aspx

It is Peta's site, and it give a list of everyday foods that you may not have known were vegan - they were "accidentally vegan".  I'm so glad I can still enjoy Oreo's, Cocoa Puffs, Life cereal, Wheat Thins, etc.  It makes the transition a lot easier. 

I have been making vegan dinners each night, and I have been using recipes from the books of Isa Chandra Moskowitz, Terry Hope Romero and Colleen Patrick-Goudreau.  I own quite the collection of vegan cookbooks, so I have many things at my disposal for ideas on recipes for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

My breakfasts each morning before work consist of a bowl of Cinnamon Life cereal and some Silk Light Original soy milk.  I will change up the cereal every now and then, so that I won't get bored.  I do this type of breakfast because it is easy, and I don't want to have to fuss with a "homemade" breakfast each morning.  Once I become more comfortable with the new way of eating, I might try to make some breakfast items on Sunday that I can freeze and heat up each morning.  Who knows?

My lunches (M-F) are peanut butter & jelly on vegan sandwich bread, some original Sun Chips and some no-sugar-added applesauce.  I have been eating this lunch for quite some time, and I am not bored with it...yet.  I am not one that enjoys leftovers too much, so I do this lunch.  I also have to be in the mood for salads, so I don't really bring those to eat. 

With the lunches on the weekends, I will get some vegan items from a fast food place because I don't feel like eating at home!  I have been cooking at home all week, eating at work for five days, and I just need a break.  The bean burritos at Taco Bell with just the beans & red sauce (and lots of fire sauce) are quite sufficient and satisfy my appetite time and time again.  The french fries at most fast food places are vegan, so I have that option as well. 

True, these items aren't that healthy and are usually processed, but they are free of animal ingredients.  That in and of itself makes you feel better about making a decision of what to eat at a fast food place.  One can still maintain a healthy diet when utilizing the convenience of a fast food restaurant.   I've heard many people say (and have read many books & articles) that it is all about moderation and you must let yourself have these types of food every now and then in order to be successful with your new way of eating

On top of that, I don't eat a lot of it when I do have some fast food, and I am usually on my way to some other place where lots of walking will be happening (i.e. shopping), so some of the calories will be gone!

This site helps me in making decisions at fast food restaurants:  http://www.veganeatingout.com/.

Last night, my boyfriend and I ate at Applebee's with a couple of friends.  I was a bit hesitant to accept the invitation because that restaurant is not known for being that healthy, let alone have many choices for vegans.  We looked at the menu before we left, so that I could have some idea of what I was going to order before we arrived there.  I decided on the Paradise salad thingy with romaine and fruit.  The really annoying thing is that the price included chicken, and they didn't have a price for the salad without it.  I still got the chicken, but on the side for someone else to enjoy.  They weren't getting free money from me.  The salad was sub-par, the dressing (which I got on the side) was not very delicious, and while I felt almost full after eating the salad, I wasn't satisfied. 

After we paid and left, we went to the grocery store to buy some sorbet to help with my sweet tooth and to fill me up some more.  That helped my appetite a lot.  :)

'Til next time when I give another update, post another vegan recipe that I cooked or review a vegan product!  Thanks for reading and leave any comments you may have!

Quinoa Puttanesca

Hello!

This is the dish I made this evening.  I'm not going to lie; quinoa puttanesca sounded really iffy, but after I read the ingredients and the process of making it, I was on board.  The link for this recipe is actually on the Post Punk Kitchen's website: http://www.theppk.com/2007/11/quinoa-puttanesca/.  Yes, it is an Isa Chandra Moskowitz recipe (can't you see that she is a Goddess and a genius of vegan cuisine???). 

The recipe is from her book Appetite for Reduction, and you should buy it TODAY on Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Appetite-Reduction-Filling-Low-Fat-Recipes/dp/1600940498/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1314321105&sr=8-1.

I think the fact that pasta puttanesca is the dish of Italian whores makes this dish all the more intriguing.  Maybe the substitution of quinoa for the pasta makes this dish less whore-ish?  What do you think?

I only had one change from the printed recipe:  I used green pitted olives from a can (a whole 16-ish ounce can) because I'm not a fan of black olives (recipe calls for kalamata).  I sliced them in half because "sliced in half is great".

Once it was all cooked and plated, it was a beautiful site. 

Mushroom & Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto

Good evening.

I am well on my way to maintaining my vegan "way of eating".  I feel better, and I am very sure I can do this - giving up meat & dairy. 

I actually made this dish this past Tuesday, but I haven't had the time to blog about it until now.  I found a link for the recipe online:  http://www.food.com/recipe/mushroom-and-sun-dried-tomato-risotto-207099

It is another recipe from Isa Chandra Moskowitz's (http://www.theppk.com/) book Vegan With A Vengeance.  You must buy this book, as well as all of her other books because they are awesome. 

I have made many risotto dishes before, and they are easy once you understand the process and why it takes patience for it to be perfect.  A risotto dish can be a complete meal for me, but, for others, it may only act as a side dish.  They may long for something else to accompany a risotto.  I think the fact that these dishes require so much attention, I don't bother making anything else with it. 

This one had mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes in it, so it was like the grain side dish with the vegetable side dish.  It all works out. 

Some of my changes:

*I used about 1/2 cup of dried shiitake mushrooms (re-hydrated in the broth) and 3 1/2 cups of cremini mushrooms.  I did that mainly because shiitakes cost more $$$, and eating healthier is already expensive as it is.  You try to save where you can.
*I left out the shallots because, as you know, I don't care for shallots or onions.  Like I said above, I have made many risotto dishes before, so I know how to adapt the recipe to account for the omission of this ingredient.
*I increased the garlic from 2 to 4 cloves.
*I used dried thyme (1 1/2 tsp) & dried rosemary (1 tsp) and crushed it in my hands before pouring it in.
*I didn't use the black truffle oil because I don't have any because it costs a lot of $$$.  It is a delicious ingredient, but I didn't want to shell out the $$$ for it. 

The picture below is the finished dish.  It looks soupy, but it wasn't like that at all.  The sauce is thick, and the dish is just beyond delicious.