Sunday Feb 16: The Week in Review

Despite my best intentions and planning, the week did not turn out as expected. Chip's work schedule was super-wacky so I was eating alone several nights, relying on whatever we had in the house. I mostly lived on potato soup, roasted potatoes, veggie burger and salads.



I ate dinner out a couple of times, too. One particular night I met my friend Susan at a Thai restaurant. I had perused the menu ahead of time, noted that though they had no tofu on the menu (strange!), they did have several vegetable dishes. I had my heart set on the Vegetable Curry until I learned that they put fish sauce in theirs. Darn it! I'm glad I inquired, but I settled for a plain bowl of brown rice & steamed veggies. I poured on a little soy sauce just for flavor. Ugh! Glad the company was wonderful because the food definitely left something to be desired.



Then, of course, there was Valentine's Day. I didn't go crazy, but there were a couple glasses of wine and a tiny bowl of vegan ice cream. Saturday we met up with some friends for happy hour where I enjoyed my weekly french fry fix and shared a Bruschetta with Chip. Our friend Rob (in the foreground) works at this restaurant so he personally spoke to the cook to ensure that our appetizer was 100% vegan. So sweet of him!

 

Back to "normal" today, made a pot of chili for dinner. This is another McDougall recipe, delicious blending of traditional flavors with some Moroccan spices thrown in. Super-yummy! I didn't include the peanut butter because I didn't want the added fat, but imagine it would've added a nice flavor to the dish.
 

Chili with Yams 

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I have been using a lot of red lentils lately because they cook quickly and thicken soups and stews very nicely.  I am also very fond of yams and they go together very well in this dish. This is delicious served with fresh, warm corn tortillas or pita bread.

Preparation Time:  20 minutes
Cooking time:  55 minutes
Servings:  6-8

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 ¾ cups water
• 3 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 4 cups peeled and chopped yams
• 1 cup red lentils
• 2 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes
• 1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed (I used my own pressure-cooked beans)
• 2 tablespoon peanut butter (optional)
• 2 tablespoons lime juice (optional)

1. Place ¼ cup of the water in a large soup pot.  Add onion, celery and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the chili powder, paprika, cumin, cinnamon and crushed pepper.  
2. Mix well, then add the remaining water, yams, lentils, tomatoes, and beans.  Stir to combine, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the peanut butter, one tablespoon at a time, if using.  Season with lime juice and a bit of sea salt, if desired.

Per Serving (based on 6 servings, including peanut butter): 394 Calories; 4g Fat (8.5% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 73g Carbohydrate; 23g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 535mg Sodium. 

Note: I cooked this in the slow cooker for about 6 hours on High, turned down to warm until ready to serve. 

Source: McDougall newsletter, April 2007

Hope everyone had a beauty-full weekend!

Michele~

Pretty in Pink

My daughter works for Tijuana Flats, so whenever there's a discount or promotion going on, I'm in the know.  Yesterday she shared some really exciting news: It turns out that for the seventh year in a row, the restaurant chain is raising money for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.  You can read more about it here, but basically for a $1.00 donation guests can have their favorite hard or soft taco in a fancy pink form.  How cool is that?! Since I am on Day One of my Plan, I chose not to participate, but Chip was happy to support the cause.



Having researched the restaurant's online menu ahead of time, I knew that my best bet for a low-fat vegan entree was the Black Bean Salad, sans shell and dairy of course.  I took the nutritional info from the site, minused out the stuff I wasn't eating, and came out with a very respectable calorie/fat count for my meal.  Under 200 calories and 9 grams of fat for all of this, amazing!



I should mention that before dinner, Chip and I had a movie date, went to see The Butler.  What an amazing film, highly recommend it!  Now, we all know that a movie just isn't the same without a tub of popcorn, right? Out of curiosity, I looked up the nutritional info on a small (unbuttered) bag of theater popcorn.  Are you ready for this? 485 Calories, 32 grams of fat.  Holy smokes! There's no way I'm putting that into my body, so not worth it for a couple hours of, let's face it, mindless eating.  tInstead, I dragged out my air popper and made my own, bagged it up and stuck it into my purse.  My 4 cups of corn, tossed with 1 tablespoon of Nutritional Yeast: 150 calories and 1 tiny gram of fat.  For that kind of savings, I'll take the risk of being caught by the theater "police." (For the record, my daughter worked for Regal and says unless you're being obnoxious about it, they won't give you a hard time for bringing in your own snacks).

So, that was my first official day back On Program.  Overall, it went really well, thanks to a little bit of planning and a lot of willpower (I didn't have even one bite tortilla chips at TF!).

We're packing up and heading  back to South Florida tomorrow, so today will be a busy one.  I have a yummy slowcooker soup planned for dinner, will post the recipe tomorrow.

Have a beauty-full day,

M~

Weekly Weigh-In and other Updates

Today marks the one month anniversary of my pledge to go Vegan...and I continuing my commitment for a lifetime.  Not only do I feel good about my decision from an ethical standpoint, I just feel amazing overall! My energy has increased, my skin looks better, and I've lost 1.4 pounds this week.  I'm discovering new foods & flavors (tempeh is delicious!) and learning to be more creative in the kitchen as well as when dining out.

This week I've made do with some less-than-perfect menu options...

This booth at the Native American Earth Festival did not tempt me in the least! Ewww!!

A baked potato & tossed salad were my only options at the diner in Osteen, FL

and have enjoyed a few tasty restaurant meals..

Veggie Stir fry at Dancing Avocado Kitchen, Daytona Beach

Cali-Burger at Surfside, Daytona, FL

And spent a lot of time in my own kitchen, which is definitely the "safest", easiest route.

Penne alla Vodka w/Garlic Bread

Amy's Tofu Scramble

I've also taken a few lovely walks on the beach..

Ormond Beach, FL

and have been resting and relaxing as well, because we ladies do need our beauty rest!

Have a Beauty-Full Day,

Restaurant Round-Up: The Good, the Bad and the Dowright Ugly

As you know, Beren and I do quite a bit of traveling and socializing in our day to day life.  His current job requires him to be in various parts of the state and if we're not in our own home(s), we dine out.  Since making the pledge to go Vegan, eating out has been a challenge, to say the least.  Veg options are limited, and they are often carb and fat-laden when available. I've been giving myself some leeway, allowing cheese if I can't find anything dairy-free, but I'm not thrilled about it.  With the current trend toward a plant-based diet, I would think that more eating establishments would get on the ball!

Below are a few examples of good experiences I've had, such as the vegetarian and mostly-vegan food truck, Veggie Xpress.

Kali in front of the fabulous Veggie Xpress!

Cubanita Wrap

And the "naked" pizza Capone's Flickerlite was more than happy to prepare for me.

Whole Wheat Veggie Pizza, sans cheese

and then there's our beloved Ocean Deck where Beren and I often visit for cocktails and gorgeous beach view.  In the past I've been able to order a mahi salad or shrimp but now that I'm not eating seafood, I'm pretty much screwed at this place.  Unless I want a plain salad or fried, greasy appetizers, I'm going hungry.  I indulged in a few bites of nachos and then Beren was gracious enough to share his chicken salad with me, taking all of the poultry for himself.

Nachos, chili on the side

The Hard Rock Cafe has a veggie burger on the menu, but I wasn't willing to spend $13.00 for it at that time. They did, however, gift Beren with a free ice cream sundae on his birthday.

At Captain Hiram's in Sebastian, FL, there was not one single vegan-friendly appetizer or entree! I inquired about other options not listed on the menu, would have been happy with a baked potato, but nope. I was left to fill up on bread and salad.  Not fun, or healthy.

So, what's a veg to do when dining out? First, plan ahead.  Most restaurant's menus are online, allowing you to peruse and plan to your heart's content. If not, call them! I'd heard that a local pizza joint was vegan-friendly, using soy cheese, but before I drove over I called ahead. Guess what? They're no longer doing so. That saved me a trip and some dollars.  I also found a website and app that will alert me to veg-friendly restaurants and stores in the area, Happy Cow has become my new best friend!

I've also been doing a lot of cooking (stay tuned for a post on that) and think that a picnic basket and cooler may be a permanent fixture in our car.  I don't want to be caught unprepared, forced to eat fried garbage for the "experience" of dining out.

I'd love some input from seasoned vegans out there!

Have a Beauty-Full Day,