40 Day Old Vegan

12 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-24T00:18:00.000-07:00

Today I was meeting up with some friends for brunch. And I hate to be like "can we go to a Vegan place?" so I suggested we go to Swingers which has MANY Vegan and Veggie options. And they thought it was a great idea! I had their Veggie Burger, which is Vegan, with vegan cheese. The waitress came out with all our food but mine and said "sorry honey, they put the wrong cheese on your burger so they're making you another one. I knew it wasn't Vegan cheese because it was all melty...vegan cheese doesn't melt like that." Funny. I wanted to get Sweet Potato Fries, but they are breaded at Swingers, so they are not Vegan... The burger was super good and filling!

I had some Trader Joe's Veggie Sticks as a snack. Super delicious!

For dinner I had more Pizza Fusion (this is the last of it!) and a kiwi. I love Kiwi, but this one was tart! Then I had more vegan ice-cream and a dark chocolate peanut butter sauce I made myself. yummy!

11 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-24T00:13:00.000-07:00

I am officially a quarter of the way there. This year has not been as easy. I've been having a lot of stomach aches when I wake up. And loss of appetite.

This morning I skipped breakfast again.

For lunch I went to Samosa House in Culver City. I got Spinach and Rice and a wheat pita bread. I was having lunch with a friend at Sony and all they have for Vegans is salad. AND they charge $8.50/lb for non-Sony employees (and only $3.50/lb for Sony peeps!). So I opted to bring my own lunch. It was good but SUPER spicy! I saw Allen Covert (from all of Adam Sandler's movies) at Sony!

I had more left over Pizza Fusion for dinner. And some applesauce.

Allen Covert

10 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-24T00:11:00.001-07:00

I went to work today and I had a banana with almond butter for breakfast. I almost added honey to it...but then I realized that honey comes from Bees and they are animals just like the rest of them so vegans don't eat honey...

For lunch I had to pull together random stuff since I was still at work. I had an apple, and I had an avocado that I squished like guac and ate with corn tortilla chips.

For dinner I had left over Pizza Fusion pizza. It has mushrooms and garlic on it. So good!

9 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-24T00:07:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up with a stomach ache. So I had a Gatorade for breakfast.

I spent all day getting re-certified in Adult, Child & Infant CPR and First Aid. So we only had a quick break for lunch. I got a bag of peanuts and an apple from a coffee shop. And I had some Fritos in my purse.

For dinner I ordered from Pizza Fusion again. But this time I got a Vegan Brownie! It was SO good! I heated it up and added some dairy-free chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream! It's good, but it is made with coconut milk, so it has a coconut flavor.

8 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-23T23:57:00.001-07:00

I had a larabar for breakfast. Really a great, quick, vegan choice. Super natural. I think the ingredients in one in dates and cashews. But they are so good!

For lunch I was going to go to Food Lab, but the kid I was babysitting started projectile-vomiting. So we went home. I had a veggie burger instead.

I made a really yummy vegan pizza for dinner. I made it with Crescent Rolls (original). Homemade spaghetti sauce. Spinach and onions. And Daiya Cheese, which is in my opinion way better than soy cheese...

7 Day old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:38:00.000-07:00

Today I started with Oatmeal and some caramelized pears. It was so delicious and filling.

I snacked through my busy day. Had some Pop-Chips, and cracker jacks.

For dinner I had another Kiwi. And I made a BBQ rib sandwich. Morningstar Farms BBQ ribs. Although not all Morningstar Farms products are vegan though.

6 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:32:00.000-07:00

This morning I had another C-Boost Smoothie. And I decided it was time to go grocery Shopping. I had a Vegan Pizza at Pizza Fusion. They made it with Daiya Cheese, which is in my opinion the best Vegan Cheese. It was delicious.

Before dinner I had to go grocery shopping. I got loads of snacky food to get me through the day. And I got some soy-pudding and soy-ice cream. As well as some Smart Balance fake-butter.

For dinner I made Vegan Sloppy Joes with Kiwi Fruit and soy-pudding for dessert. Here is a video of how I did that.

5 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

I started off with a Banana on the go for Breakfast.

For lunch I had my absolute favorite food which is Dave's Tempeh. This woman I work for gets it from her local farmer's market. It is like CRACK! So good! I also had some hummus and pita.

Dinner time I had to grab something where I was working so I had an English Muffin with Hummus and a bunch of grapes.

4 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:18:00.001-07:00

I started off the day with a C-Boost Smoothie and a Kind Fruit and Nut Bar.

I grabbed lunch at Real Food Daily. I love being able to order anything off a menu and not have to worry about how it's made. (RFD is a Vegan Restaurant). I had a BLT with Tempeh Bacon and Veganaise.

I had this delicious Butternut Squash Stew. Filled with veggies, homemade.

I had to drink a Gatorade because I was sick. And I ate more Wheat-Thins.

3 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:14:00.000-07:00

I started the day with another Bolthouse Farms C-Boost Smoothie. It's full of a couple servings of fruit. And it has nothing added to it, all fresh fruit!

I had lunch at Sony. I didn't want to chance it so I just made a big salad. Filled it up with beans, tofu, corn, mushrooms, walnuts and spinach. I had to get some fritos. And I had a peach.

I had a horrible dinner on the run....more wheat-thins and a pear.

And as a dessert I melted a dark chocolate bar and mixed it with peanut butter. So good!

2 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:10:00.001-07:00

I started off grabbing a Larabar at work. It was Apple Pie. Not my fav, but it was nice.

For lunch I had to be creative, as I was still at work, so I put together a pita and hummus and a pear.

For dinner I made my favorite Gardein chicken strips. I smothered them in BBQ sauce.

I had more of those wheat-thins as a snack. And some Fritos, one of my favorite Vegan snacks.

1 Day Old Vegan

2011-03-16T22:02:00.000-07:00

I woke up and had a delicious C-Boost Smoothie. Bolthouse Farms has the BEST smoothies!

My snack of the week are these tomato basil wheat thins and artichoke hummus. Yum!

I went to The Counter for lunch. Their veggie burger is vegan. But when I asked them about their buns they said they don't know how they're made. Thought that was weird for a restaurant not to have the ingredients of all their products on hand. So I ate the burger without the bun But I had grilled onions and avocado on it. It was good. They had some nice sweet potato fries. :)

I went rollerskating that night and the only thing I could find among the nachos, fried chicken fingers and buttered popcorn was a cherry astro-Popsicle. So that is what I had for dinner. ha!

Another 40 days....

2011-03-09T11:19:00.000-08:00

It has been almost a year since I completed my 40 days as a vegan. And with Lent beginning I have decided to challenge myself again. So for 40 of the next 46 days I will eat a strictly vegan diet. Sundays excluded. Hopefully it will be easier the second time around. Today I'm going to hit the grocery store. Wish me luck!

40 Days Complete...

2010-04-04T22:58:00.001-07:00

Last Sunday was my 40th day. And the very next day I was not a vegan any longer. Maybe it was because I was in a foreign country eating in a monastery that served cheese or chocolate at every meal. But I have to be honest when I say I just don't think I could be vegan for the long haul. And now I have serious respect for those who are vegan. It is very difficult!

Here are some things I think need to change...

I think every restaurant in the world should be required to have a Vegan option. Even if it is just one meal. I absolutely hated going into a regular restaurant and having to pick apart the menu to figure out what I could order. And also having to ask a million questions. I, so many times, just wanted to say "I'll take the vegan meal, don't care what it is..."

I think every public eatery should have ingredients for all their foods available (easily) to all it's patrons. Universal sucks at that! Disney rocks!

I think more foods should be made vegan. If you make a soup at a restaurant with vegetable bouillon instead of chicken, I doubt many people would notice and then it would open up the number of consumers that could order that dish. Or many dishes would just have cheese added for no reason. Almost as decoration. Don't bother.

In a perfect world, we would all eat Vegan. It is possible, and delicious. But it is very hard to live in a meat eating society and be a serious vegan. So many things can easily be made vegan (cupcakes for example), but we're so stuck in our ways that chances are they never will.

Perhaps I'll go vegan one day a week or something. I guess every little bit helps. Baby steps.

36-40 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I depart of Paris. I am going there on my way to a Monastery in the South of France. (http://taize.fr). This will be the hardest part of my vegan journey. And I will have no internet access, so I can't update my blog...

My first step was to request a Vegan meal on the flight.

The hardest thing will be explaining to French servers that I am vegan. Is veganism a big thing over there? We'll see how it goes. French bread it vegan most of the time. French fries too. :P I loaded my suitcase with Larabars, oreos and nuts. So I should be ok.

"Je suis le végétalien. Je ne mange pas de viande, ou de crémerie, ou d'oeufs ou de poisson." "MERCI"

35 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

This morning I went to work (the same place that had those great small bagels) but they were all out of bagels. They only had challah bread (which is made with egg) and hamburger buns. So I toasted the buns and added some "butter." It was not too bad. Added a dash of cinnamon. It was good!

For lunch had a Fizze Soda, Pita Puffs (SO GOOD!) and fruit. It wasn't the best lunch, but I was on the run! The Pita Puffs had a little "V" on them (meaning Vegan). So that was a pleasant surprise!

For dinner I had ANOTHER french bread pizza. They are just too good. And I'm going out of town soon and wanted to use up all the Diaya Cheese and French bread before I left town.

Toffuti Cutie for dessert! YUM!

34 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-23T19:00:00.000-07:00

This morning I got up and ran to work. I had some pita chips and lemonade for breakfast. Not really a breakfast of champions, but it's what I could grab while I got everything done at work.

I worked from 10-4, and before I knew it I realized I had missed lunch! So I went home and made my french bread pizza again... SO GOOD! I like to put garlic and oil on the bread before I add the tomato sauce and "cheese."

I had a soy ice cream sandwich for dessert.

AGAIN!!!

33 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-21T21:34:00.000-07:00

This morning I was up at 6am. So I had all this time on my hands. I decided to make vegan pancakes. They were really simple, Flour, Sugar, Baking Soda, soy milk, salt and some vanilla. They were very good. I wish I had had some dark chocolate chips to put in them... Next time. I also had some mango. I love mango.

For lunch I had this great Pad Thai. By Thai Kitchen. It had the Peanut Thai flavor. It's totally vegan. Very delicious, and very easy to cook.

For dinner I had a craving for French Bread Pizza. I had all that shredded Diaya cheese so I bought some French Bread rolls and pasta sauce. I made my own French Bread Pizzas and baked them until the "cheese" was melted and the bread was crispy! They were almost as good as Stouffers.

I had an ice cream sandwich for dessert. Yum!

32 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-20T21:32:00.000-07:00

This morning I had crescent rolls again. They are just so addictive! I had the last peanut butter cookie (from last week) also. Got my protein for the morning.

For lunch I had nachos. Made with my new obsession Diaya cheese! They were so good.

I had kettle corn popcorn as a snack. It's almost always vegan.

For dinner I had pasta with BBQ sauce (they were all out of tomato sauce, so I thought I'd try something new...not bad). I also had applesauce.

And for dessert, a mango popsicle. :)

31 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-20T00:42:00.000-07:00

This morning I had left over crescent rolls with "butter." Delicious! I think I could live off those crescent rolls. Yum!

I had lunch at Disney (studios, not land) with my friend. I was too nervous (after the whole Universal fiasco) to ask about their vegan options. Also, it was the lunch rush. So i got a salad. The dressings all looked creamy, except for an olive oil and red pepper dressing. I grabbed a bag of pistachios and ate them throughout the day. I also had a lemonade, very refreshing on a hot day like today!

Dinner was a crazy toss up. I had big plate of roasted vegetables. Roasted in olive oil. They were greasy and crispy. Delicious! I went to a party at my friend's house (he and his boyfriend are Vegan for Lent too! They sort of inspired me to do this...them and Alicia Silverstone.) So they had loads of vegan snacks. Fruit and veggies and these delicious pita chips. I brought the birthday boy 2 Vegan Chocolate cupcakes from Real Food Daily. I, of course, had to get one for myself too. They were like hostess cupcakes. Filled with cream. YUM!

30 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-19T00:42:00.001-07:00

This morning I had a wonderful treat! A woman for whom I work wanted me to buy her a muffin at Le Pain Quotidien. She said they had lots of vegan muffins, and I could get one for myself. I had the most delicious Vegan Carrot Cake Muffin. It was SO good. The only thing I hated was the raisins. My mom always made me carrot cake for my birthdays growing up, no raisins.

For lunch I had riblets again. They are just tooooo good to resist! I also had edamame, carrots and applesauce. Finally got some fruits and veggies in there. I had a mango Popsicle for dessert.

For dinner I had to get more crescent rolls. They are so good. I ran out of Soba noodles, so I had my chunky pasta sauce from last week heated up like a stew and ate it with my crescent rolls. I, of course, added loads of that Diaya cheese. SO GOOD!

I went to a movie and got Red Vines as a treat. Yum!

ONLY 10 DAYS TO GO!

29 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

This morning I finally got to sleep in a bit! When I woke up it was practically lunch time, so I ate left over soba noodles and chunky Veggie pasta sauce. Yum!

I spent the rest of the day running around, so I had left over Vegan Shrimp Pad Thai for dinner. Later I had Veggie Fries (from Trader Joe's) as a snack. So delicious!

28 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-16T22:33:00.001-07:00

I found my new breakfast obsession! Mini bagels with "butter." I had two for breakfast. (And another as a snack later on in the day!). Yum! Yum! For lunch I had more riblets! They are very good too! I also had a Mango Popsicle.

For dinner I had to stop by California Vegan for some delicious Vegan Pad Thai. I tried to get my friend Kerry to eat a "shrimp" but she hated it.

27 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-15T21:19:00.000-07:00

Up bright and early. Had a tangerine for breakfast. Was starving by lunch. I had a Vegan Chicken Pot Pie. Amy's. It was SO good! Creamy and crunchy! Delicious. :)

I decided to do a little cooking for dinner. As well as some left overs. I have this Diaya Vegan Cheese. It is SO good! You can buy it shredded at Whole Foods. With left overs I made a crunchy corn taco with black beans and Diaya cheese. I baked it in the toaster. I also made this summer salad. Caramelized onions and pears. Then I added corn. Sauteed it all in Olive Oil. It was such a good dinner!

I made Peanut Butter Cookies. I had those for dessert. They were good, but they fell apart very easily.

26 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-15T11:54:00.001-07:00

This morning I was up at the crack of dawn again. Had a Larabar and a cup of tea for breakfast. Breakfast is so hard as a Vegan. No eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles...

For lunch I had left-over pasta. It was STILL delicious! And I had my tangerines. Love them!

I had these morning star farm Ribblets for dinner. And edamame. The riblets were SO good! Really they taste just like the real thing.

Toffuti Cutie for dessert. yum!

25 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-14T00:27:00.000-08:00

This morning I was up early again. And again running around like crazy! I had a tangerine and a cup of tea for breakfast. Again, sweetened my tea with sugar (not honey).

For lunch I ate at Swingers. It has great Vegan and Meat options. I had a Veggie burger with vegan cheese and avocado. I think it was the best veggie burger I've had! Amazing!!! (with fries, of course)

For dinner I decided to cook (for friends). I fried chicken (but didn't eat it, obviously). I also got a load of veggies (asparagus, mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, squash, onions, garlic...) chopped it all up and sauteed it. Then I added Amy's Tomato sauce. It's vegan. So I had like a chunky veggie pasta sauce. I cooked up Buck Wheat Soba Noodles. It was so good. And I had plain crescent rolls! YUM!

For dessert I had mint-chocolate chip toffuit cutie. (Vegan, of course.)

It was a REALLY good food day!

24 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-12T21:17:00.000-08:00

This morning I woke up bright and early at 6:45am. I was running around from that moment on. I grabbed a Larabar for breakfast. Still not sick of them.

For lunch I met a friend at the Universal Lot. They have a small Cafeteria. They are NOT VEGAN FRIENDLY!!! Besides the fact that they have no vegan choices on the menu. At one station I asked if the Veggie Burger had eggs in it (I've noticed that most veggie burgers are made with eggs, and that if you want a vegan veggie burger, you have to have a vegn veggie burger). The woman I asked was like "um, I don't know, I don't think so...um...no." I'm sorry, but I can't take that as a real answer. You can't say I don't know, then say no. So I opted not to have it. The next question I had was at the spaghetti station. I figured I could have pasta and marinara sauce. So I asked the chef if the pasta was made with egg. He said "all pasta is made with egg" and I said "some pasta does not" and he replied with "NO, all pasta is made with egg, you need egg to make the pasta. The only pasta that is not made with egg are Asian noodles." So I said, "ok, do you have Asian noodles." He said no. I asked one more time "do you have a list of ingredients for all your food? Can I see the ingredients for the pasta" and he again said "ALL PASTA IS MADE WITH EGG." So I had a crappy salad and a bag of Fritos for lunch. I just wanted to tell that Universal Chef that Disney has a list of all the ingredients in all their food. And they are willing to show them to all their patrons.

For dinner I was able to make my belly happy again. I was babysitting and I found a bag of Ramen Noodles (which I haven't eaten since college) and I thought 'if the Universal chef taught me anything it was that Asian noodles are vegan.' I looked at the ingredients, and sure enough the noodles were vegan. The spices (that you add) to the noodles was not vegan (or vegetarian) so I trashed the packet. But I found a Vegetable Bouillon in the cabinet and added it to the bowling water before the noodles. It was SO good! It tasted like the same old yummy Ramen Noodles I had in my college days.

For dessert I took this non-dairy chocolate syrup, melted it with peanut butter and added crispy brown rice cereal to the hot mixture. It was like a crunch bar with PB. SO GOOD!

23 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-12T16:28:00.000-08:00

Today was an easy day. I had a Larabar in the car on the way to work. I took a kid to soccer class and afterward I had a gnu bar and a tangerine. I also had a million pistachios.

For lunch I was at someone's home, so I was limited in my choices. I had plain pasta with "butter" and salt. And I had another tangerine. It was good.

For dinner I wanted something delicious, so I ordered from California Vegan. I had "shrimp" and veggie tempura. And these tempura bananas and soy vanilla ice cream. It was so delicious!!!

22 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-10T23:01:00.000-08:00

Today started off like a normal day. I had my fruit smoothie and Larabar for breakfast (an old favorite). Then I went to babysit. The mom asked me to take her son to the zoo.

For the first half of our zoo time I kept thinking what could I order for lunch. The choices were hot dogs, hamburgers, nachos etc. at every snack bar. I finally opted for french fries and an orange. Not quite well balances but it was vegan.

After I ate, I began to think not only did the zoo have many vegan choices, but the zoo (in general) is probably not a vegan's favorite place. So many animals trapped in small spaces. I just want to set them free so they can run! The saddest thing I witness was at the Giraffe area...

There were three giraffes hanging out, walking around, eating the high leaves of the trees. We passed them and went over to see the Gorillas. Later on we came back towards the giraffes and a small group of people had gathered. One man was taking pictures. I looked over and just to the side of the giraffe enclosure was a group of men trying to get a smaller giraffe in what looked like a horse trailer. A man, who volunteered at the zoo, told us they were taking her to a zoo in Santa Barbara. They had been trying for an hour to get the giraffe into the trailer. They were pushing and shoving this giraffe into the trailer. The Volunteer told us that the giraffe's father was at this zoo. I looked over, and on the edge of the enclosure, watching the giraffe be pushed into the trailer, was a male giraffe. I pointed at the male giraffe and asked if that was her father, he said yes. It was as if the father was watching in anguish as they took his daughter away from him, possibly forever. And the daughter was trying to avoid the trailer at all costs. I just felt all this sorrow pouring out of the male giraffe's eyes, and fear emanating from the female. It was so sad.

When I got home I cooked up some corn and rice in a bit of EVOO and garlic. Later I went to a roller rink and I, again, had french fries.

French Fries = A Vegan's Best Friend.

Don't know if this picture will show up, but the main giraffe is the dad, and you can see the silver trailer to the left and behind it is the daughter.

21 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-09T23:11:00.000-08:00

I mixed it up a bit at breakfast. I had toast with "butter," and sprinkled it with cinnamon. It was delicious!

For lunch I had hummus on french bread with a splash of EVOO. I toasted the bread. It was so good! I had a clementine with it. YUM!

At dinner a friend of mine (whose home I was at)had saved me her left over Vegan wrap. It was delicious! Kale, rice, tofu, and other grilled veggies. It had some sort of vegan Tzatziki sauce in it. It was very good. Thanks Maggie!

This is not a picture of the wrap, but this is what it kind of looked like.

20 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-08T21:42:00.000-08:00

I MADE IT HALF WAY! 20 of the 40 days are done!! I cannot believe it has been so easy! I have been so busy, so I'm upset I have not been able to cook more. Perhaps in the next 40 days I'll try to cook more meals from home...

For breakfast today I had a fruit smoothie and a Larabar (still not sick of it). I had left over Vegan Pizza for lunch. And I had triscuits as a snack. Garlic flavor. YUM!

I went out to eat with friends for dinner. I was glad when they picked a Mexican Restaurant. There are a lot of Vegan food options. We went to Pink Taco. I, of course, asked a million questions (the waitress was VERY helpful!). I had the guacamole and chips. A yummy Pink Lemonade. I ordered crispy corn tacos with grilled veggies plus a side of black beans. Surprisingly their rice is cooked in chicken broth. Good to know!

I was SO full when I got home! But it was all so yummy!

19 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-07T21:49:00.000-08:00

This morning I had a quick cup of tea. I usually sweeten my tea with honey, but honey is not Vegan. So I used sugar for the first time in a long time. I also had a larabar. Yum! (and quick).

I had to stop at Real Food Daily for lunch. I got their Nachos with cashew cheese. So delicious I had them for dinner too. And as a special treat, Popsicles!

18 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-07T13:06:00.001-08:00

Today was a long day. I woke up early to get to a park where I was throwing a baby shower for my friend. So I had a large fruit smoothie. I was munching on chips all morning (BBQ and Tortilla mostly). When lunch came I was, surprisingly, able to pass on the ribs, burgers, hot dogs, Potato Salad and Macaroni Salad and still get a full plate of food. Rice, fruit, chips, salsa etc. I ended up eating so much at the shower that by the time I got home in the evening, I wasn't hungry for dinner. :P

C Boost is great! All the Bolt House Farm Smoothies. They have very simple ingredients. And they are all so delicious!

17 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-05T23:04:00.000-08:00

Had to get out the door quickly this morning. So I grabbed an applesauce. Then I had a glass of OJ. I had some Veggie Sticks (from Trader Joes) as a snack. I had left over Vegan Pizza from Pizza Fusion. I am not sure if I like the Vegan Pizza. I'm trying to let it grow on me.

Running around so much later that night when I went to meet my friends (at The Village Idiot Pub) I realized I hadn't eaten dinner. So in a noisy Pub I asked the waitress what was Vegan. She immediately said the French Fries and the "No Face." Which was basically a bowl of lentils and veggies (mushrooms, butternut squash etc...) It was good except it had the SPICIEST sauce. I could barely eat half of it.

YUM!

16 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-05T15:02:00.000-08:00

Today was a good day. I had a fruit smoothie a Vegan breakfast bar. I was running around like crazy with a kid and I ended up eating 3 tangerines and some popcorn for lunch. :P It was kettle corn.

For dinner I got a Very Vegan Pizza from Pizza Fusion. It had mushrooms and Vegan Cheese. It was really good.

15 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-03T23:06:00.000-08:00

Today I was running around like crazy! Totally forgot to have breakfast. I grabbed a glass of OJ at work. For lunch I had a Vegan Burger and a tangerine. Then I headed to Disneyland!

I love getting popcorn at Disneyland, but I knew it would have butter on it, so I bought some Cracker Jacks (vegan) and later enjoyed them at the park!

I was really worried about eating dinner because I didn't know who to ask about the food. And I figured all their food would be full of lard. I went to Pizza Planet (by Space Mountain) and asked about the ingredients. They very quickly got a manager who brought out Nutrition Fact Sheets and info about all their food. They assured me that the pasta had no egg or milk in it, and that the plain marinara sauce too was Vegan! I had a deliciously over priced vegan meal...at Disneyland!

This really is the Happiest Place On Earth!

14 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-02T23:07:00.000-08:00

Today was a really boring day for a Vegan. I had a fruit smoothie and a piece of "buttered" toast (and by "buttered" I mean fake buttery spread).

I had left over "Shrimp" Pad Thai for lunch and dinner. Except at dinner I mixed it up with a side of rice and beans.

I had tangerines and fritos as an afternoon snack. yum!

13 Day Old Vegan

2010-03-01T23:16:00.000-08:00

I slept in so late (after traveling), so my breakfast was just an applesauce. Totally natural, no sugar added. Very delicious! For lunch I had my vegan chicken fingers with edamame and brown rice. Of course with my Soy Vey Teriyaki sauce. YUM!

I had a snack of cold grapes, which were like mini-Popsicles. I love them when they're really cold or frozen. For dinner I went to a great place in LA called California Vegan. I had the shrimp pad thai. I will have to say, Vegan shrimp is almost better than real shrimp. I have no clue what it's made of. It's so good!

I had a berry Popsicle for dessert. YUM! Except now all that is left in the package is lime (yuck). Oh well.

12 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-28T22:34:00.000-08:00

My last day in Miami. I grabbed a Larabar (Coconut Cream Pie) for breakfast.

Lunch time was a bit difficult. My family went to an Italian Restaurant. I had to ask a million questions about how the pasta was made and what was in dressings and sauces. I finally got a small salad, and angel hair pasta with garlic and oil. It was delicious! And although the garlic cheese rolls looked amazing, I was able to stay strong and pass on them...

I was traveling back to LA for the rest of the day. So I grabbed some french fries and a gatorade. Not the best choice, but the quickest vegan snack I could find before boarding. I ate all my left over peanuts on the plane. Again, I was able to sleep really well. I also had minimal back pain and just a little knee discomfort.

All in all it was wild and wacky day.

11 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-27T21:11:00.000-08:00

Today was a challenge. I'm on vacation with loads of family. For breakfast we went to a greasy spoon. I ordered plain grits and a banana. For lunch we had all our family over. We made sandwiches. I was able to find a vegan boca burger. It was pretty good. I got raw vegan guacamole and vegan temple balls for dessert.

Dinner was a huge dinner party with all our friends and family. I just slipped into the kitchen and politely asked the caterers what each dish was that they were serving. I also asked if I could put my vegan boca burger (yes I brought one with me) in the freezer for safe keeping. They were so sweet. For dinner I had black beans and my boca burger (with more vegan guac) and plantains. YUM!

I hate being a bother and being rude, but a Lenten Discipline is about sacrifice. And sometimes you have to sacrifice blending in with the crowd to find out where the food you're being served is coming from. And surprisingly everyone has been very encouraging.

10 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-27T06:37:00.001-08:00

Started the day off with a Larabar and a fruit smoothie. Don't know how much longer I'll be able to endure the same breakfast, but for now it's delicious!

For lunch I grabbed a bacon burger from Real Food Daily. Don't know what the bacon or the burger were made out of, but it was amazing! The bacon tasted just like bacon!

I took a flight from LA to Miami and for the first time had no back or knee discomfort. Usually on long flights my body shuts down, but this trip was awesome. I was even able to sleep for 2 hours comfortably. My friend suggested that the absence of dairy from my diet may be what is strengthening my back. Whatever it is, it's working! I hate a snack of triscuits and oreos and orange juice for "dinner." By the time I landed in Miami it was time for bed.

Vegans travel well. :)

9 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-25T23:07:00.000-08:00

Today was another good day. :) I had a Cashew Cookie Larabar for breakfast, and a fruit smoothie. Then I had a vegan snack bar before lunch. I stopped at Real Food Daily for lunch. I sat by the actress Danica McKellar. I wonder if she is a Vegan...

I had the best Vegan Chicken Fingers for dinner. YUM! With Teriyaki sauce, edamame and brown rice. With a Popsicle for dessert.

So far I really don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. I need to start taking a multi-vitamin. But other than that I feel in ship shape!

8 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-25T00:37:00.000-08:00

Today was another good day. I had a PB Larabar for Breakfast. Then I went to work. At work I stopped in In and Out Burger for a Wish Burger. Which I thought was Vegan. Only after spending $1.36 did I realize it is in fact NOT VEGAN! (I didn't eat it.) But the Wish burger is only Vegan IF you get it without the special sauce. (boo). So I didn't eat it. I had pasta with a lime teriyaki dressing for lunch. With Oranges and hummus with carrots and celery. YUM!
I had a snack at work from Baja Fresh; some black beans and rice with their chips and guacamole. I had to ask for NO CHEESE sprinkled on top of the beans or Guac.

For my real hearty dinner I had an Amy's (Non-Dairy) Pot pie. DELICIOUS! I honestly can not taste the difference between that and the regular pot-pie.

And what better to have as a midnight snack than garlic fries (just plain fries sprinkled with garlic.)...

All in all it was a delicious day to be a VEGAN!

7 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-24T08:37:00.001-08:00

A WEEK! I've completed one week. :) Feeling great. My back is feeling great too! I am still a bit tired. But when I do sleep, I sleep great! I had a fruit smoothie and a PB Larabar for breakfast. Brought Vegan cookies to work with me and the kids I was with loved them. Went to lunch at J's Kitchen (http://www.js-kitchen.com/) and had the best Vegan teriyaki "chicken" wrap ever! For dinner I had left over Vegan Pizza. And for dessert..TOFUTTI CUTIES. Delicious ice cream sandwiches (VEGAN)

6 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-22T23:23:00.000-08:00

Today I felt GREAT! I slept a lot (still feeling tired) but once I was up I went crazy cleaning and organizing my closet. I sauteed carrots, mushrooms & spinach with a little of the soy vay sauce and added it to brown rice. Delicious!

For dinner I went to Pizza Fusion! It is not vegan, but it has vegan pizzas. :) I went with Greg & Andrew (who are being Vegan for Lent too) and my roommate Katrina. The pizza was delicious! Although soy cheese is very sticky!

5 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-22T00:31:00.001-08:00

Today was a good day. I had Apple Sauce and a Peanut Butter Larabar for breakfast. Then I had a late lunch of Pesto Pasta, Salad and Edamame. I loaded up on dark chocolate covered pretzels (from Trader Joe's) and kettle corn (from the 99 Cent store) at a movie (Shutter Island, good stuff!).

Today I noticed two things. My skin glows. I woke up and looked in the mirror and thought, this is a good skin day. Don't know if there is a correlation with being vegan but just thought I would take note of it...

Also, I suffer from incredible back pain. I usually can't stand for more than a couple minutes without trying to find a seat or just plopping down on the floor. Today I was standing around at church talking to someone and I began to look for a chair to pull up. Then I started to think about my back. I realized that, although I had been talking to this woman for five or ten minutes, that my back didn't hurt. My feet hurt from standing. But my back felt...normal. I've never felt that. Even now lying in bed I feel no back pain (after a long day of helping my friend organize and re-arrange her apt). I'm not saying Veganism cured my back pain...but I'm just keeping note of it.

4 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-20T23:37:00.000-08:00

Today is bad. My body is shutting down. I eat and eat and I still feel hungry. Starving. Still have a head ache. Being vegan is not as glamorous as Alicia Silverstone makes it seem...

I had a larabar for breakfast. Then I had hearty vegetable soup with fritos for lunch. I had peanut butter pretzels for a protein snack. Then I had Thai garlic noodles for dinner with an orange.

I need to start cooking more from scratch. Here are the two cookbooks I have...

3 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-19T22:37:00.001-08:00

Today was a rough day. Woke up with a headache. I had applesauce for breakfast. Totally organic, no sugar-added. For lunch I had Tofu sauteed with carrots and mushrooms. With Soy Joy Teriyaki sauce. On toasted french bread. With pineapple.

Near the end of the day I still had a head ache and my friend suggested that perhaps I wasn't eating enough protein. I immediately had peanut butter on wheat thins. I felt much better. I had protein backed Vegan Chili for dinner. With Fritos. :P

I need to focus on eating more protein and less starch. We'll see how day 4 goes...

(This pic is for Kat...)

2 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-19T00:21:00.000-08:00

Again I started off the day with a LaraBar.

I met up with a friend for lunch at The Grove. It is a really big popular outdoor shopping mall. I first went to the concierge to ask if they knew if any of the restaurants in the mall had vegan options on their menu. They had no idea. So I went to a few restaurants and asked the host. They all said "no" they had no vegan options. That kind of stinks. I went to lunch at The Farm. I had a plain salad with a vegan dressing (the waiter was in the know). And I had Sweet Potato Fries! YUM!

I had my homemade hummus and wheat thins as a snack later.

For dinner I had plain pasta with fake-butter and salt. I also ate some kettle corn popcorn while I watched Surivor! :)

Day 2 was ok. I feel totally bloated. I think I've gained some weight too. I need to get some more fruits and veggies in my diet and less carbs and starchy foods!

HOMEMADE HUMMUS INGREDIENTS

1 Day Old Vegan

2010-02-19T00:18:00.000-08:00

I started the day off strong with a LaraBar. Cashew Cookie. Totally raw, vegan etc...

I went to Real Food Daily (a vegan restaurant) for lunch. I got Nachos. Yum! The plate was so big I had the left overs for dinner. With some Fritos and Fruit.

So far it's been pretty easy to eat Vegan. We'll see what tomorrow brings...

Vegan for Lent

2010-02-16T14:35:00.000-08:00

I am going to be VEGAN for Lent.

What is Lent?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lent

What is Vegan?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegan