January 14: A Food Journal Again and Thoughts on Choking

I'm keeping a food journal again to help me keep track of what I'm eating. There is just something about seeing it written down starkly - as long as I am completely honest with myself - to give me perspective on what I am putting in my body.


Thursday, January 14

Breakfast:

• Scrambled tofu with tomato, onion and carrot
• 1 10-oz. glass of water with multivitamin and 3 SlimQuick Hoodia tablets
  

Snack:

• 1 mug of authentic Korean ginger tea - Ginger is supposed to help digestive ailments.
  
  I don't know if I'm having reflux issues or what, but it's worth a try. The thought of seeing a gastroenterologist and getting scoped is enough to make me cry. I have no problem being knocked out and cut open for a surgery, but scopes skeeve me. :/


• 10:30 snack - raw apple "granola"
  
  
  • 1/2 Granny Smith, cored, but with the peel still on
    
  • 1/4 cup of oats
  • 2 heaping T raw sunflower seeds
  • 2 T almond butter
  • drizzle of agave nectar
  • pumpkin seeds
    
  • 1 T ground flax seeds
    
    Process the apple, oats and sunflower seeds until finely chopped, then add the almond butter and pulse a few times until mixed well. Top with ground flax seeds, agave and pepitas.
    
  
  
  
• 1 10-oz. glass of water

Lunch:

• Zucchini pasta and raw marinara sauce
• 1 10-oz. glass of water
  

Snack:

Dinner:

---

Notes:

• I really did well with my food yesterday even despite the sour cream on my 2 bowls of lentil soup. Not vegan, I know, but I wanted it. And it was good.
  
  Two of my meals were flat-out raw: the Raw Apple Breakfast and Zucchini Pasta with Raw Marinara sauce. I made a spicy lentil soup which was vegan, but then I nixed that by topping it with a dollop of sour cream.
  
  My snacks were all vegan and raw except for the occasional mug of hot tea.
  
  Also, I drank water regularly, every few hours, every time I had something to eat. I think that really helped keep cravings under control.
  


• Something weird - last night I woke up choking on something. Before I went to bed last night it felt as though there might still be a fragment of a lentil stuck way back on the soft palate part of the roof of my mouth. Maybe I breathed it in last night and choked? Sometimes I do wake up choking on nothing but my saliva.
  
  When I woke up last night, after trying to cough it out, I got up and drank some water. Nope, didn't help. Then I got back up and had 4 whole wheat crackers with cheese and another glass of water.
  
  I can still feel something in there though and no amount of clearing my throat or coughing is helping.
  


• Something gross - I have a choking phobia. This may be a bit TMI, but one time during my last pregnancy I woke up choking on a tiny bit of vomit. I was actually choking and panicking until I could cough it out, but the acids burned my throat for days. I have only ever had problems with reflux and heartburn when I was pregnant, but maybe now that my weight is up, it's recurring?
  


• Another weird thing - I have that same sensation that everything is being forced up inside me as I had when I was pregnant during the end of the 2nd trimester and the 3rd trimester. It just feels as though there is something more in there than just my organs. I don't know, could that be just a sign that I've got too much fat hanging around in there? I mean I am nowhere near The Biggest Loser-morbidly obese, so I wouldn't think that that would be a problem.
  
  I mean, sure wouldn't it be cool to find out that there is one of those 50-lb, benign tumors loitering in my abdomen? So maybe I'm not overweight because of lack of exercise and eating too much. *sigh* I can dream, right? I'm always hoping for a Deus ex Machina, but no. My only choice to to make better choices for myself, NOT hope for some freakish medical anomaly!
  


• So anyway, it feels as though something is literally shoving things back up my throat. I am not eating a lot in one sitting (except for my 2 small bowls of soup last night), so why should I feel over-stuffed?

Zucchini Pasta with Raw Marinara Sauce

Today's two main meals so far have been raw. For breakfast I had the raw apple breakfast, and for lunch, this tasty take on pasta and sauce.

Zucchini Pasta and Raw Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 tomato
• ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes
• near-boiling water
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  
• 1 heaping tablespoon jarred sun-dried tomato and minced garlic or 1 clove of fresh garlic, minced
  
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  
• ½ teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
• Dash black pepper (optional)
• 2 medium zucchini
  

Directions:

1. Place the sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and pour enough hot water over them to cover them and then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 15 minutes. Drain.
   
2. Place the fresh tomato, sun-dried tomatoes, bell pepper, and garlic in a food processor and process until smooth.
   
3. Add the olive oil and spices and continue to process, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
   
4. With a mandoline or a spiral-slicer, cut the zucchini into thin ribbons.
5. Toss the zucchini with a bit of salt and pepper and ladle some sauce over it.

Makes 2 servings.

Green Smoothie

Today's lunch.

I had forgotten just how delicious these are.

Green Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 3/4 cup fresh pineapple
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 oz baby spinach leaves
• 1 scoop Michaels Super Defense Food powder

Directions:

1. Blend.
   


2. Drink
   


3. Enjoy.
   

Red Lentils over Quinoa Pilaf

I love red lentils in soups, stews and dhals. Just as the various spices that accompany them lend heat to the dish, so does the vivid color of the lentils perk up the dish. On this frigid day I have been looking for a comforting dish to warm me up, so I tossed some things together and served it over the leftover Quinoa Pilaf from last night's dinner.

Red Lentils over Pilaf

Ingredients:

• 1 stalk celery, diced finely
• 1 medium onion, diced finely
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced finely
• 1/2 cup of diced carrot
• 1 large clove garlic, chopped (about 2 T)
• 1/4 cup diced tomato
  
• 3/4 cup red lentils
• 4 cups water
• 1 T tomato paste
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• chili powder
• coriander
• cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• turmeric
• hot sauce
  

Directions:

1. Heat 2 T olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
   


2. Add the chopped onion and celery and saute for 2 minutes.
   


3. Add the bell pepper, carrots and garlic, stirring well.
   


4. After 5 minutes or so, when the vegetables have softened significantly, add the tomato and stir well.
   


5. Add the red lentils, turn the heat to high and add the water, the tomato paste and the spices.
   


6. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, keep covered and let simmer for 30 minutes.
   


7. Taste and adjust seasoning. Here's where I add the hot sauce.
   


8. Simmer uncovered another 15 minutes until the lentils are no longer crunchy. You may add more water if you prefer a more stew-like consistency, but I prefer it with a texture more like dhal. I even sometimes use a potato masher and smash the lentils a bit.
   


9. Serve over rice or pilaf of your choice.

Notes:

• See this post for my pilaf technique.

Raw Apple Breakfast

In keeping with my attempt to eat many more light & healthy meals throughout the week to balance out the times when I indulge in full-cream, full-fat decadence - and believe me, I do indulge - here is a fiber-rich, deceptively filling, delicious breakfast that may have you thinking, "Hey, some of these raw vegan dishes are pretty damned tasty!"

Unlike many raw dishes which require some fancy footwork with a food dehydrator, the only pieces of equipment you need here are a food processor and a coffee grinder.

Raw Apple Breakfast

Ingredients:

• 1 apple, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
• 1 heaping tablespoon of almond butter
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• 2 T pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
  

Directions:

1. Peel, core and cut the apple into quarters.
   


2. Process it in a food processor along with the almond butter until it is in small pieces - you don't want to make a puree.
   


3. Grind up the flax seeds in the coffee grinder until they've become powdery.
   


4. Serve in a bowl topped with pepitas and the ground flax seeds.

Notes:

• This filled my cereal bowl pretty well, so it was a good portion for one person.
  


• Next time, I may drizzle some honey or agave nectar over the top for a teeny bit of extra sweetness.
  


• Other additions which might be nice:
  
  
  • chopped almonds or walnuts
  • chopped dried fruit
  • untoasted sesame sees
  • unsalted sunflower seeds
  • maple syrup
  • wheat germ
  • a dollop of Greek yogurt
  • blueberries
  • cinnamon
    
  
  

Gearing up for the New Year

Gearing up for the vegan kickstart:

1. I am looking forward to my morning scrambled tofu again. That stuff is just damned-tasty.
   
   


2. I think I'll probably make some Indian dishes:
   
   
   
   • I remember making Cauliflower and red lentils in balti sauce, and although it was tasty, the recipe needed some tweaking.
     
     
   • Aloo gobhi will likely make an appearance as well. I'll have to peruse some vegetarian Indian recipes & blogs for more ideas.
     
   
   
   • Oh! There are those spicy chickpea dishes, Channa Masala (chickpea curry) or Aloo Chhole (chickpeas with potatoes). One of my local Indian restaurants makes killer Aloo Chhole. I could just eat that with garlic naan and call it a meal.
     
   
   
   • I know that there are some excellent vegetarian curries with spinach as well. I need to hunt those up.
   
   
   • I've got a few recipes for naan and onion-stuffed kulchas, and will give those a whirl to accompany the Indian dishes.
     


3. I don't want to rely as much on the fake meats & soy cheeses; they seem to be every bit as over-processed as any sodium-filled crap out of a box or a can. More reliance on pulses and beans for protein. The goal is to eat the least -processed foods as possible. I'll make some exceptions for tofu and tempeh. Those are pretty great.
   


4. I can't even begin to count how many different rice and beans recipes I have, from the outstanding Cuban-style black beans and rice from Dinosaur BBQ, to Mexican-style, to a great Cajun red beans and rice recipe. More rice and beans. More Beano, too. ;-)
   


5. Now is as good a time as any to cut out my Diet Coke habit. It's insane, really. I have been drinking hardly any water at all, and that is just not good. 6 - 8 glasses of water a day is my new goal.
   


6. Again, for snacks, I'll opt for nuts and fruit, but if I feel hungry, I'll start with a tall glass of water. I recall reading somewhere reputable that lots of us are so over-fed that we mistake signs of thirst for hunger. So when we're reaching for a bag of potato chips or something else fairly laden with empty calories and salt, what we really ought to be doing is downing a glass of water.
   

I'm Back

I fell off the wagon this fall.

No, actually, that's not quite right. I didn't fall off so much as jumped off the wagon.

Right into wheelbarrow filled with sausage and cheese.


I've talked about lapses with other vegetarians and vegans, so I know that it happens. Still, I could only describe myself as a self-loathing omnivore. With every bite I took I was torn between the decadent taste and the suffering behind it. I wanted the cruelty-free ethical lifestyle, but not as much as the taste of the food I grew up with.

I didn't realize I could be that weak.

I don't know if I had trouble sticking to a vegan diet because I dived in feet-first, going straight from omnivore to vegan instead of easing in gently.


I resolve to try again.

Starting January 1, I'll be climbing back in the wagon via the 21-Day Vegan Kickstart.

I suppose I'll take it from there and see how it goes.

Four-legged Vegans in the House?

Now, my cat ate a squashed pea off of the kitchen floor the other day, and he's been known to snack on house plants from time to time, but unlike some vegans out there, I will not insist on trying to turn my perfectly lovely 9-pound carnivorous tabby into a vegan.

There's ethics about what your yourself eat, and then there's a step into Crazyland.

At some point, we have to accept the facts: cats are carnivores, from their sharp teeth to their razor-like claws to the chemical makeup of their stomach juices and length of their intestinal tract. Forcing them to an all-plant diet because you don't want animals to suffer is ludicrous. You'll only be passing the suffering onto your beloved pet.

Now I know that the anti-vegans out there will take this argument and project it onto humans and make wild claims about meat as an essential ingredient for human development, but even that is a subject of fierce debate. Did we evolve as scavengers? Was our brain development contingent on adding meat proteins to our diet? etc etc etc

My own personal belief is that for people, it is a different issue. We can survive without meat; unless there is scientific evidence of which I am unaware, conventional wisdom states that cats and dogs, as carnivores, can not. For people, it is a choice to abstain from meat for whatever reason, be it health, ethics or even aesthetics.

Making that choice for your pet can't be healthy. I don't know of any vets who propose a vegetable-based diet for animals.

I do agree that the pet food industry has been tainted by association with the meat-packing industry and the factory farming model. The leftover bits of livestock are ground up for pet food, and considering the quality of the "mechanically separated meat" that ends up in our tinned meats and soups for human consumption, I can not begin to imagine the meat that's leftover for our pets!

I do understand the desire not to participate in supporting the industrialized food model, but I can not put my pet's health at risk to do so. I haven't really researched organic pet foods - Hell, I don't know if they even exist - but I'd like to see what I can do to avoid Purina and other companies which I imagine use the dregs from the killing floors of the big slaughterhouses.

Sweet Potato Fries

I've been down lately, and true to form, when slightly depressed, have been running into the comforting arms of carbs. My latest carb-obsession has not been desserts or home-baked breads, but instead, sweet potato fries.

I know, I know, like who really needs a recipe for this, right? I thought I'd share it anyway.

I like my sweet potato fries with a bit of a kick. I love the sweet and spicy flavors together. I tried making these with creole seasoning last week, but they were far too salty, so I switched back to my standard Old Bay until I can hunt down a creole seasoning blend which has less salt in it.

Sweet Potato Fries with Spicy Mayo

Ingredients:

• 1 sweet potato, sliced into matchsticks
• Olive oil
• Old Bay



• veganaise
• whole grain mustard
• Old Bay

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425.


2. Slice the sweet potato into batards/matchsticks NOT julienne slices.


3. Toss in a bolw with a generous amount of olive oil and a good tablespoon of Old Bay.


4. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray (I like grapeseed oil for high temperatures).


5. Spread out the sweet potatoes in one even layer.


6. Bake for 15 minutes, take out and flip them and bake for an additional 15 minutes.


7. While they're baking, mix the ingredients for your spicy mayo, seasoning to taste, then devour.

Mini Key Lime Pies

These were oh-so-good. If you are expecting some unnaturally green plasticky pie, this is not it. Try a lime gelatin pie for that. :p

Mini Key Lime Pies

makes 6

Ingredients

• 1/2 package silken tofu
• 2 T agave nectar
• 1 T arrowroot powder
• 3 T Key Lime Juice


• 6 mini graham cracker crusts, prepared or homemade
  


• Turbinado sugar (for garnish)
  
• Lime (for garnish)
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375.


2. Place the 6 mini graham cracker crusts on a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan.
   


3. Place the tofu and agave nectar in a bowl. Whisk together well.*See Notes below.
   


4. Add the key lime juice and continue to whisk briskly.


5. Add the arrowroot powder (or tapioca starch) and stir until well mixed.


6. Pour the mixture into the prepared crusts.


7. Bake for 25 minutes. Take out and let cool on a rack, then chill for at least 2 hours.


8. Sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar and slices of lime.


9. Eat and faint from joy.
   

Notes:

• This is the first time I've made any sort of dessert with silken tofu, so I am still getting a feel for it.


• They were very tasty, but I think that I did not whisk well enough, because the texture wasn't the perfectly smooth and creamy custard of the non-vegan Key Lime Pie. It was a bit grainy, which I think I could overcome by whisking more, or even using an electric mixer.
  


• The flavor was wonderful- sweet and tart, no hint of "tofu-ness" which puts a lot of people off desserts with silken tofu. The key lime flavor really bursts forward in this recipe.
  


• If you would like a full-sized, 9-inch pie, double the filling recipe and add 10-15 minutes' baking time.
  

Day 53: Mock Crabcakes

I saw a recipe for mock crabcakes made with tempeh at the Post Punk Kitchen. The thought of using tempeh instead of tofu, like most of the recipes I found, intrigued me. I made some changes to the recipe to keep it closer to the original Maryland crabcakes I used to make when we lived in southern Maryland in our little house by the Chesapeake Bay. *wistful sigh*

The Old Bay seasoning is essential. I swear, it's in everything down there. We would joke that new transplants to the state would get a huge tin of the stuff in their welcome basket, along with a diagram on the only correct way to pick crabs. My ex got to using Old Bay in place of paprika in his Saturday morning homefries. It adds a nice bit of bite and spicy flavor to the potatoes.

Another change I made was adding crushed Saltines, although Ritz crackers would have been my first choice. I remember talking to someone down in Maryland who swore that Ritz crackers were the super-secret ingredient for the perfect crabcake.

While the original recipe looks tasty, I can't recall ever eating a real Chesapeake Bay crab cake that had bell pepper in them. Celery and minced onion, yes. Then again, there have got to be as many ways to craft the perfect crabcake as there are cooks. I wanted to recapture the essence of the crabcakes I remembered.

This recipe came pretty close. The texture of the tempeh is nice, much closer to real lump crabmeat than tofu would ever do, in my opinion.

Mock Crabcakes

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces tempeh
• water to cover
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Bragg's liquid aminos
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoon whole grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon Frank's Red Hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 cup minced onion, rehydrated
• 2 stalks celery, minced
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
• 8 Saltines, crushed
• 1 handful toasted nori, crumbled
• Panko breadcrumbs


Spicy mayo:


• 3 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
• 1 tablespoon Frank's Red Pepper hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning

Directions:

1. Crumble the tempeh into a sauce pan. Pour in enough water to cover the tempeh. Add the Bragg's, olive oil and bay leaf. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, uncover and let boil for 12 minutes. Stir occasionally. Drain well.
   


2. Transfer contents to a mixing bowl, remove bay leaf, and mash with a potato masher. Let sit and cool for about 15 minutes.


3. Toss in the minced onion and celery and mix well. Add the crushed saltines and crumbled nori and stir well. Fold in the mayo, mustard, hot sauce, Old Bay Seasoning and mix thoroughly.


4. Fill the bottom of a pie plate with panko breadcrumbs. Take a small handful of the tempeh mixture and form into a ball. Press them into the panko crumbs in the pie pan and flatten them. Coat the top and sides well. Be careful with these cakes, as they will fall apart with rough handling.


5. Gently put about four cakes in a large oiled skillet, frying them over medium-high heat. Fry the cakes for about 5 minutes on one side until (GB&D) golden brown and delicious. Fry for 2 minutes on the other side and transfer to a plate. While the second batch is frying, whip up the spicy mayo by mixing all the ingredients together.


6. Top each cake with a generous dollop of the mayo and eat while still warm.

Notes:

• This recipe made 8 generous-sized crabcakes. You could make them much smaller for hors d'oeurvres.


• They are very fragile. I had to use two spatulas to turn them. I would not recommend turning them more than once. Make sure that you let them cook longer on the first side and come to a nice GB&D state before flipping.
  

Day 52: A Touch of Autumn

It's been cool and rainy here lately. This morning especially, I got a hint of fall on the breeze, and even though I know it's only temporary, I thought I'd celebrate this autumnal mood with apples. I'm also down to the scraping the barrel of the fridge and pantry. I really need to get to the grocery store soon, but I love those days when I have to take stock of what I've got in hand and see what I can whip up. Honestly, I've made some of the best meals that way.

Today it was individual apple crisps. The girls said that I need to make those again, so next time I'll have a photo. Also, bear in mind, I was tossing things together as I went, so my measurements this time are inexact.

Maple- Brown sugar Apple Crisps

Ingredients:

• 2 apples - I used 1 Granny Smith and 1 Jonamac. With my apple pies I like a mixture of sweet and tart apples. These make a nice combination.
• 2 T pure maple syrup
• 3 T brown sugar


• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup oats
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 T wheat germ
• vegan margarine (or butter if you're not a vegan)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.


2. Peel and slice the apples into very thin slices.


3. Place into a bowl and drizzle with maple syrup.


4. Add the brown sugar and stir well. Taste to adjust. You may like it sweeter or more mapley.


5. Put the mixture into greased ramekins. This made enough for three.


6. In a food processor, pulse the walnuts until coarsely ground.


7. Add the oats and pulse again until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.


8. Dump this mixture into the same bowl that held the apple mixture. The bowl should still have some of the maple syrup/brown sugar mixture in it. Stir well to mix in all the syrup.
   


9. Add about 1/4 cup of brown sugar (I usually add it in tablespoon increments and taste as I go) and mix well. I like to add a tablespoon or two of wheat germ too.


10. Cut in about 2 T of butter or vegan margarine. (I like Earth Balance) and work with your hands or a pasty cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.


11. Divide between the three ramekins, packing down the crumb topping firmly.


12. Bake in a 375 oven for 25 minutes or until it's bubbling nicely around the edges.


13. Take out and let cool on a rack for a bit and then serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream.

Day 46: Strong Hearts Cafe

Well, as I predicted yesterday, I could barely wait until 11 am to try out the vegan cafe in my city. I dragged the girls off with me for a vegan luncheon. I promised them pizza, only to discover that I had not read the menu very well. They serve pizza on Friday nights from 6pm until 2 am only. Oops. That elicited a bit of sulkiness from my Tween-in-training, but I snagged a few menus and pointed out to her that they served breakfast all day and emphasized the long list of milkshakes and she was ok.

In the end, Natalie had waffles topped with powdered sugar, fresh strawberries and real maple syrup and washed it down with a huge pumpkin milkshake. That milkshake tasted like a Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, oh my! Lucy opted for a BLT using the fak'n bacon stuff, vegan cheese (Teese), vegannaise, lettuce and tomato on grilled whole wheat bread, and to drink, had a thick, creamy blueberry milkshake. I had a TLT: a generous slab of marinated, baked tofu with tomato, lettuce, sprouts, pesto & vegannaise on grilled whole wheat bread. Although the milkshakes were tempting, I had a yerba mate after finding out that they'd sold out of my first choice Thai Iced Tea.


The verdict: Delicious. The girls loved their food too, and any mom, vegan or otherwise, can tell you, that's no mean feat.


The sandwiches came solo, unaccompanied by chips, fries or even a small salad, so the prices were a bit, well, pricey for simple sandwiches, but I'm ok with it, and let me tell you why. This place is 100% vegan, and it's rare that a restaurant offers any vegetarian items at all, let alone any vegan offerings. I'm more than happy to support them. Sure, I won't be eating there every week, but I don't eat out anywhere every week, but when I do go out, I will be going there instead of spending my money elsewhere.

I am happy to spread the love; in fact, I told my sister-in-law about the place today. She hadn't heard about it either. They've been open for a little over a year now, and are going strong. I hope that they continue to do well. We could use more places like this.

Day 45: Dining Out

I've only dined out twice since I've made this switch. The Thai restaurant had a whole vegetarian section filled with tofu and vegetables and when I asked if there were hidden animal products like broth, the waitress told me that it was all totally vegan. The Friendly's menu, on the other hand, was not terribly vegetarian-friendly, let alone vegan-safe. Nevertheless, they accommodated my request to un-cheese my veggie fajita quesadilla and it was pretty tasty. I rarely eat out, so it hadn't really occurred to me that this would be quite the ordeal.

I did a little bit of online searching and found the Vegan Eating Out Guide, which researches popular sit-down restaurants and fast food chains and details what, exactly, on their menus is vegan. Some restaurants, like Red Robin, Hooter's, Denny's and TGI Fridays, offer nothing. Nope, not even a fruit cup, a bowl of plain oatmeal or a green salad. I was stunned, really. I had figured that vegan dining out would be an exercise largely reduced to a plate of anemic-looking iceberg lettuce passing itself off as a "green salad" or picking and choosing from side dishes, but for some restaurants to have nothing free of animal products, like not even a baked potato, for God's sake, well, that's an eye-opener.

Panera and Au Bon Pain, on the other hand, had some soups and sandwiches which were either already vegan as-is or could be made so simply by omitting the cheese.


I was surprised and disappointed to discover that Ruby Tuesday's Veggie Burger was no longer listed. A few more searches on Google later, and I found that they had switched suppliers and their veggie burger mix had mayonnaise in it. So now, the only stand-alone vegan offering on their menu is their salad bar. I did not become a vegan so that I could be relegated to eating salads wherever I went. Is it really that difficult for a restaurant to add a grilled portobello mushroom sandwich to the menu? I'm not asking for fake meats or seitan, here.

I was perusing the Vegan Eating Guide's of fast food restaurants which serves 100% vegan foods and saw that there was one listed in New York. I clicked on it, wondering what in the world a fast food vegan restaurant could possibly be like and I nearly fell over.

The link took me to a place called Strong Hearts Cafe, the largest vegan cafe in New York state outside of New York city, and it's right here in Syracuse.

How the Hell did I not know this?!

Now I am so excited I can barely stand it. They have a full breakfast, lunch and PIZZA menu! I told the girls that we would go there soon for pizza. Hell, let's see if I can wait as long as 11 am.

They have milkshakes, soups, salads, sandwiches and.... did I mention the pizza?

You can expect my review as soon as I've gone there. Check out their menus here.

Day 44: "Mexican" Quinoa & Rice with Corn and Chorizo

This was a spur of the moment, "the pantry is empty" recipe that ended up tasting delicious. I was inexact with my measurements, so if you're trying to recreate this, bear that in mind.

"Mexican" Quinoa & Rice with Corn and Chorizo

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup long grain white rice
• 1/4 cup quinoa
• 1/4 cup red quinoa
• 1 can Rotel tomatoes and chilies
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• 1/2 t onion powder
• 1/2 t (heaping) chili powder
• water


• 1 vegan chorizo, diced (I used the LightLife Smart Sausages brand)* A poster kindly pointed out that these sausages are not actually vegan, as they contain egg. I believe I will try to make steamed seitan sausages from scratch this weekend.
  
• 3/4 cup frozen corn
• dried, minced onion, reconstituted * for some reason I am using this stuff in everything lately



• chopped avocado
  
• shredded vegan cheese
  
• chopped cilantro
  

Directions:

1. In a sturdy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.


2. Add the chopped onion and saute until translucent.
   


3. Add the garlic and the rice and two kinds of quinoa. Stir well, be sure that everything is coated.


4. Dump the Rotel tomatoes, chilies and juice into a measuring cup and add enough water to make 2 1/2 cups.


5. Add the spices to the rice and onion mixture, stir well, increase heat to high and add the tomato and water mixture.
   


6. Cover, bring to a boil and reduce heat to low and let cook for 15 minutes, then turn off the heat. Let sit at least 10 minutes before removing the lid. The longer it sits, the better.


7. In a medium-sized skillet, saute the diced chorizo in olive oil over medium-high heat until browned.
   


8. Add the corn and reconstituted onion, stir well and cook until it's as browned as you like. I like the corn to have a bit of color.


9. When it's done, add the chorizo mixture to the grains, stir well. Serve in a bowl topped with cheese, avocado and cilantro.

Notes: This recipe uses my basic pilaf technique:

• I saute the aromatics (chopped onion or shallot) in olive oil over fairly high heat until it just starts to sweat and turns translucent, then add the garlic and then almost immediately the grains.
  
• Up the heat to high, stirring pretty frequently, making sure that the grains are nicely coated. You can saute them longer until they're slightly browned and give off a nutty smell, and then add the liquid.
  
• Cover immediately with a tight-fitting lid and bring to a boil I like to use a pot that has a glass lid so I can see exactly when it's come to a nice boil - then lower the heat and let simmer for 13-15 minutes. This is where the glass lid comes in handy. You can see the surface of the rice if there are holes, like small craters where the hot air has forced through but there is no more liquid bubbling, it's perfect.
  
• Turn off the heat, and let it sit for at least 10 minutes before you remove the lid to fluff the rice.
• I use this for mixed-grain pilafs and when I was a dairy eater, would add grated cheese and a pat of butter at the very end when I would stir in the last ingredients.
  
• One of my favorite mixed-grain pilafs uses 1/2 cup of rice, 1/4 cup of bulgur and 1/4 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of liquid.
  

Day 42: Sunday Morning Vegan Fry-up

I've never been a fan of cold cereals, pancakes, waffles or french toast for breakfast. I've tried the light breakfasts of fruit and granola, and on the whole, they just don't work for me. I need a solid breakfast under my belt to get me going in the morning. On those occasions when I want a big breakfast, I'd always opt for a big greasy plate piled high with eggs, sausage, some mess of fried potatoes and toast.

I have fond memories of when I was in Korea after partying in Itaewon, my friends and I going back to my apartment where I'd make a late-night( or very early-morning ) breakfast mess of a huge skillet filled with fried potatoes cooked down to a lovely golden crisp with sauteed vegetables and topped with scrambled eggs. We called it the Peasant's Breakfast Special, but oh my GOD was it good, just thing thing after a night of too much beer, soju and the greatest disco hits of the 70s.

There's nothing like a nice fry-up on the weekend, and there's no reason you can't have one, even if you're a vegan.

Vegan Sunday Fry-up

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• 1/3 package vegan Gimme Lean Sausage
• 4 T dried, minced onion, reconstituted
• 1/3 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 tomato, diced


• 1/3 package extra firm tofu, blotted dry
• 1/2 onion, chopped fine
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 t onion powder
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• 1/2 t turmeric
• 1 T nutritional yeast

Directions:

1. In a skillet, over medium-high heat, cook the sausage in olive oil until it starts to brown. Add the reconstituted onion and stir well.


2. In another skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, then crumble the tofu into the pan. Stir well and cook until browned.


3. While the tofu is browning, add the red bell pepper to the sausage mixture in the first skillet, stir well, then lower the heat and let cook through.


4. Once the tofu starts to get lightly golden-brown, add the chopped onion and garlic. Stir well.


5. Add the onion powder, garlic powder and turmeric to the tofu mixture and stir thoroughly to coat.


6. Add the chopped tomato to the sausage mixture, stir well.


7. Add the nutritional yeast to the tofu mixture, turn up the heat to high briefly, stirring constantly, then add the tofu to the sausage and vegetable mixture in the first skillet. Fold it all together, then serve and eat.

Day 41: Refreshed

For the past 8 years ever since my son's death, a good portion of the month of June is hard for me. I often disappear from the radar, I'll stop blogging, avoid my usual internet haunts, hole up at home, reading books, watching movies, and quite often, just go to bed.

This past week I did not eat healthily; I ate completely vegan, but I basically ate nothing but bread. I took in no fruit at all, and very few vegetables. I took refuge in homemade naan and whole wheat flatbread. I craved Korean and Indian food for some reason, and made aloo gobhi and kimchi fried rice. Kimchee fried rice was one of my comfort foods when I was teaching in Korea: cheap, easy to make, and very filling, it satisfies.

This morning, though, I feel as though I've finally woken up. The girls have been begging me to take them to see the movie "Up," so we're off to the movies in a little while. They also asked for Chinese food, but I told them that a trip to the movies and take out was too much for one day, but said that we could do our DIY takeout, and they liked that.

So, later on, we'll be making mandu, veganized, 0f course. I'm planning on two kinds: the fake ground beef sort adapted from my original meat-based recipe here (I'll use the Gimme Lean fake ground beef), and veggie mandu filled with baby bok choy, tofu, shiitake mushroom, green onion, soy sauce, garlic and ginger.

I have some nice asparagus that I'll roast, glazed with soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds, and I still have some leftover sticky rice that could heat up as an accompaniment. Presto! DIY takeout Chinese night. It keeps the girls happy, and as the three of us sit together at the dining room table making the mandu, we do silly things like sing songs and tell stories. Then we'll eat pic-nic style in the living room while we watch some dvd.

The girls' gradual introduction to vegan replacements for old standards has gone very well. They are actively taking an interest in what I eating and are willing to try things out. They have found that "these things taste good," which is the usual fear with healthy foods.

I'll post pictures of our mandu feast later on.

Have a great weekend!

Day 32: June 18th

Today is the 8th anniversary of my son's birth and death and I'll be going to the cemetery later on, so this will be short and sweet.

It's rainy, cold and gloomy out, a fitting parallel of my mood. I needed a hearty breakfast this morning, and decided to veganize one of my comfort food breakfasts: Scrambled Eggs with Onion & Tomato.

Scrambled Tofu with Onion and Tomato

Ingredients:

• 2 T olive oil*
• 1/2 block of extra firm tofu (I like nasoya organic tofu best)
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 tomato, chopped
• 1/2 t onion powder
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• 1/4 t turmeric
• 2 T nutritional yeast
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Put the olive oil in a pan and turn the heat to medium-high.


2. Drain the tofu and blot it with a paper towel.


3. Crumble the tofu into the pan and saute until it's nicely golden-brown.


4. Push the tofu to the sides of the pan and add the chopped onion and saute until translucent.


5. Add the tomato and stir the mixture together.


6. Stir in the onion powder, garlic powder and turmeric and mix well.


7. Fold in the nutritional yeast, making sure that everything is well coated. Let it cook for about a minute more, then plate.


8. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

*Unlike Rachael Ray, you'll never see me prance around the kitchen calling it EVOO.


Notes:

• It looks amazingly like the real deal scrambled eggs, thanks to the turmeric and nutritional yeast.
  


• I always preferred my eggs on the dry side which is why I did not opt for any additional moisture, but if you like yours creamier, you can whisk your nutritional yeast into some warm soy milk or soy creamer first and then add it to the tofu and vegetable mixture.
  


• I may try something like this in my quest to make the perfect vegan omelette. Omelettes were my favorite egg-based dish. If I coudl recreate their essence with tofu I would be very happy indeed.
  

Day 30: Perspective

Well, it's not what I'm eating, there's something else going on because as of this morning I've gained 5 pounds since yesterday, all in excess water I can feel sloshing around in my tissue. All day yesterday I was ridiculously thirsty, drinking glass after glass of ice water, and running to the bathroom constantly. Nevertheless, I have accumulated 5 pounds of fluid, so obviously there is more going on here. My first thought, especially because of the extreme thirst, was diabetes, but I was just tested, and my numbers were fine. I'm not nearly at a weight that would put me at risk for it either, so unless this thirst persists for days, I will rule that out.

Then I got to thinking, I did start a new medication two weeks ago, and for some lucky reason, I am prone to weird side effects of medications. Reading the literature on this medication I noticed that a rare side effect is... hyperglycemia or diabetes. Great. I think I'll call and have them order a blood glucose test for me and see if perhaps my blood sugar numbers have sky rocketed in the past few weeks. Or I suppose could just stop taking it, it's not an essential medication, it was just for migraine prevention.

So in other words, staying true to my ideal of eating healthy should be the way to go. I may put the Eco-Atkins on the back burner for now and continue to eat smart, eat healthy and choose from all the groups, and to Hell with the scale.

In other news, today we have our big day at the zoo. My younger daughter's long-awaited class field trip to our local zoo is today, and I somehow volunteered to be a chaperone. I still am not sure how that happened. She's so excited that I'm coming along, and packing our lunches in the laptop lunch boxes. The forecast is for a beautiful day, I'll get plenty of exercise walking around herding kindergarteners, all in all, it should be an epic day.

If only I can keep from running to the bathroom.

Enjoy your day, everyone.

Day 29: "Now is the Time on Sprockets Ven Ve Dance!"

Ok, not really. In fact, in the swirling torrents of my mind right now, it actually goes something more like "Now is the time on Sprockets ven ven obsess over our veight."

Ugh. I weighed myself today, and inexplicably, I am up a pound and a half from Friday. I knew it was happening too, because I could feel the water weight accumulating over the weekend. I hate that. It makes me feel like a bloated sponge. I wish I could just wring myself dry.

What. The. Fuck?

I haven't been eating unhealthy foods, I haven't been overindulging, the portion sizes aren't gluttonous, yet *BAM* I haven't even been overdoing it on the breads, well, except for yesterday. I made my whole wheat flatbreads to accompany the cauliflower and lentil dish and had four of those; 1 "tester" straight off the griddle when I was cooking them, another to test the cauliflower dish as it was simmering and then two later on with the meal. Granted, they're small, but still. I'll have to put them in the freezer until I can sort this out.

So, how lovely, my firm resolution of the other day is basically all shot to shit, and I am now obsessing over the idea of doing this Eco-Atkins plan that's got people's tongues wagging. Basically, for two weeks I'd eliminate the carbs I do eat: the whole wheat bread, whole wheat tortillas, potatoes, grains & the occasional Guiltless Gourmet chips. Oh, and the damned vegan pancakes. I never really cared about pancakes before, I don't know where this craving came from.


Part of me really hates that I've become so scope-locked on this as primarily a weight loss issue, instead of as a healthy lifestyle & ethical change, when it's both. I guess I assumed that now that I am eating healthily (and virtuously for God's sake, I'm saving cows and pigs and chickens), the pounds should be melting off of me as quickly as they did the first time I adopted a vegan diet. I remember losing 20 pounds pretty damned quickly, but then again I am 40 now, and was 18 then. Big difference in metabolisms.

Anther option would be to go raw, which would mean no cooked or processed anything: bread, tortillas, hummus, refried beans, cooked lentils, tofu, seitan, tempeh, fake meats. Basically a lot of what I've spent money on the past three weeks at the grocery store. It's just not economically feasible to throw food out, that's throwing money out, so I'm going to say no to going totally raw. I am going to continue keeping the bulk of what I eat raw fruits and vegetables though.

So I think that for the next two weeks I'll just cut out what flour-based items I have been eating, along with the occasional rice or potato dish along with the snack indulgences and anything that might still have sugar in it, though to be honest, I haven't used white sugar in months. I'll increase the amount of protein because I've read that boosting the higher-protein plant foods might be especially helpful for vegan women looking to lose weight.

I am keeping the fruit, at least for the next two weeks. If the pounds don't start sliding off in a steady manner, then I'll see about taking the drastic step of eliminating them for two weeks.

So, a sample menu for my day on an Eco-Atkins diet would probably look something like:

Breakfast:

Monster Green Smoothie

Snack:

20 almonds
water

Snack:

apple with peanut butter
water

Lunch:

1/2 cup of hummus with 2 cups of raw vegetables: raw red bell pepper, celery, grape tomatoes
water

Snack:

1/4 cup of roasted soy nuts
water

Snack:

Celery sticks with cashew cheese
water

Dinner:

Tofu and veggie scramble
water

So, lots of raw vegetables, beans, nuts, soy and legumes for protein, plus some fruit and plenty of water. Oh, and I won't be stepping on the scale again in a while. Let's see where I am after two weeks of doing this.


Of course, getting back to the title and the sentiment Dieter's expressing in the photo to the right, you know, I really should get up and dance, or so some cardio daily. My copy of Yoga Booty Ballet beckons.

If the weather cooperates today, I will walk instead of drive to pick the kids up from school, and tomorrow is my little one's big day at the Zoo, and she made me promise to come on the field trip with her, so no doubt we'll be walking all day, plus I'll have my own bevy of kindergartners to herd.

This would all be so much easier if I had the support of a loving spouse, but yet again, one of life's big lessons is that if you don't love yourself, then really why the hell should anyone else love you? It's especially difficult in those times when you feel as though you really want to give up, but you know that you can rely on a loved-one to buck you up. Don't get me wrong, I get a ton of support from my friends, and I appreciate every bit of it, but it's a different kind of support from the type you get from someone who loves the hell out of you. So yet again, I have to suck it all up and just pull through this shit on my own. It's tiring, and kind of demoralizing after a while.

Well, enough of that Monday morning negativity.