Day 125 -- I Love My Sweeties -- Sap

I was watching a reality show the other day about a guy who gets dropped on a deserted island and he's left to fend for himself.  He's forced to build a shelter and search out sources for food.  After ten or fifteen days, he's really dragging and I was thinking that he could use a candy bar or something sweet for a pick-up.  Then, I realized, that although sugar is a mainstay of our diets, we really don't know much about it -- beyond the fact that it comes from sugar cane.

There are so many different sources of "sweet" that I decided to do a little research.  In looking through vegan backing recipes, I've come on any number of sweeteners that I don't recognize. On Day ?, I talked about agave nectar, but over the next three days, I'm going to look at a few more.  I know that sugar is basically sugar, no matter where it comes from, but I'm still curious.

As I said, the primary source of sugar in this country comes from the sap of the sugar cane plant.  It's usually dryed or boiled to extract the sap and can be made into cane juice, syrup, molasses, powdered sugar, and granulated sugar.  Many vegans use demerara, muscovado or turbinado sugar in baking.  What's the difference?  This article from the Baking Bites website offers an explanation -- What Are Demerara, Muscovado and Turbinado Sugars?  Another article, What's The Difference -- Muscovado, Turbinado and Demerara  quoted below, adds some other less refined sugars to the mix.

• Demerara - This is a type of cane sugar with a fairly large grain and a pale amber color. It has a pleasant toffee flavor and can be used in place of brown sugar.

• Turbinado - Less processed than brown sugar, turbinado is made from the first pressing of sugar cane and retains some natural molasses. It has a light caramel flavor that makes it a good replacement for regular white sugar.

• Muscovado - Another cane sugar, this one has a very moist texture and a strong molasses flavor. It can be found in different strengths, as you can see visually in the image above and read about here. It's excellent in savory dishes like barbecue sauces and marinades.

• Sucanat - Made from crystallized pure cane sugar, this truly unrefined sugar retains a higher proportion of molasses than other types of cane sugars. It has an intense, rather burnt taste that can be jarring in lighter baking recipes but is fantastic in things like spice cakes and ginger cookies.

• Jaggery - This sugar is typically made from palm, coconut, or java plants and comes compressed into a pattycake or cone. It has an earthy sweet flavor that we like over oatmeal and in some fruit crumbles.

• Piloncilo - Similar to jaggery, this uniquely Mexican sugar is the secret ingredient in many salsas, soups, and mole sauces. It has a strong and almost-smoky molasses flavor.  In Central and Latin America, this product is called panela.

Other types of sugars come from sap.  Maple sugar/syrup is the most obvious, but other trees such as birch and palm (date palm, coconut palm and others) also produce sweet sap, as does the sugar pine. John Muir thought that sugar pine syrup was tastier than maple syrup!   Sorghum and maize plants also product a sweet sap.  And of course, agave sweetener, which comes from the sap of the agave plant.

In my next installment of "I Love My Sweeties", I'll learn more about sugar made from seeds and roots!

Day 124 -- Spring Is Here!

After a very long winter, we had our first real day of spring today.  The weather was warm, the breeze was light and I went grocery shopping.  I came home with a couple bags full of veggies -- a bunch of beets, a bag of oranges, lemons, bananas, a bag of small Vidalia onions, whole Shitake mushrooms, whole Crimini mushrooms and sweet corn.  It felt so good to lug those heavy bags home.

But the best part of it was looking at my purchases at the checkout and seeing that I only had three things in a box -- golden raisins, currants and whole grain crackers.  I did buy a bottle of spray I-Can't-Believe-It's-Not-Butter.  Can't eat corn without salt and pepper and it doesn't stick unless it has something to stick too.  The lady in front of me had bags of snacks and two cases of sugared soda, along with a few veggies.  I was proud of my choices -- choices that seem to come more naturally to me now.  We I see good looking or inexpensive veggies, I immediately think about what I can cook with them.

Tomorrow I'm going to make roasted beets and Vidalia onions and serve with with an Orange-Miso dressing over herb salad and quinoa.  I'm also going to make a mushroom and seitan stroganoff this week.  And the Detox Salad that I posted recently.  Oh, and I have to make some molasses cookies!   I can hardly wait for the first farmers' markets of the summer.  All that fresh produce to choose from!

Day 123 -- Eat Your GOMBBS!

Dr. Joel Fuhrmann is a leading advocate for healthy eating, particularly vegan eating.  In a recent article on his website, DiseaseProof (Eat Smart, Live Happy), he suggested that people try to eat more "superfoods."  Superfoods are the most nutrient-dense, health promoting foods on the planet.  And GOMBBS is a handy acronym for remembering what the "superest" of these superfoods are -- greens, onions, mushrooms, berries, beans and seeds.

Just as a check, let's see which of these things I ate yesterday.  Greens-- I had a bowl of sauteed spinach with garlic. Onions- I added a half a red onion to my tofu stir-fry.  Mushrooms- I added a package of shitake mushrooms to my stir-fry.  Berries - I ate some Craisins.  Do they count?  Beans- Hmm.  I guess tofu would count as beans?  Seeds - I hit these twice yesterday.  Chia seeds in my pumpkin smoothie and sesame seeds in my stir fry.

In his article, GOMBBS: Greens, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries, Beans and Seeds, Fuhrmann explains the benefits of all these foods and this is definitely worth a read.  I was directed to this article by one of my favorite websites, FatFree Vegan and using a recipe for Susan Voisin's Superfoods Soup, I decided to develop my own Superfoods Soup, using the ingredients that I love.  It should be noted that along with onions, other members of the allium family are just as super:  garlic, leeks, scallions, and shallots.

My Very Own Superfoods Soup

1 sweet onion, halved and sliced
5 to 8 oz. of Shitake or Crimini mushrooms, sliced
3 large cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 cup frozen shelled edamame (or frozen peas)
2 t. Korean red pepper flakes or 1 t. crushed red pepper
4 c. organic mushroom broth
2 c. water
1 small bunch of kale, washed and stripped from stems and torn into pieces (4-6 leaves)
1 1/2 T. yellow miso
Garnish with sliced scallion and  toasted sunflower seeds

Saute onions and mushrooms until slightly wilted.  Add garlic and saute until fragrant.  Then add edamame, red pepper, broth and water.  Let broth come to a boil, then add kale and reduce heat.  Simmer until kale is tender.  Remove soup from heat and mix a small bit of broth with the miso.  Stir to make a smooth paste and  then add back into soup.  Ladle into bowl or mug and garnish.

So there it is.  Everything but the berries.  A bowl of fresh or frozen blueberries drizzled with honey for dessert would  make this the perfect super superfoods meal.  Or maybe a blueberry smoothie made with flax or chia seeds?

ETA:  This soup was fantastic!  One of the best I've ever made.  The Korean red pepper flakes (which I bought for my Amazing Kimchi Adventure) added a nice bit of heat to the broth, but it wasn't overwhelming. Combined with a Detox Salad, I think I'm going to have a very healthy week!

Day 122 -- Another Milestone In A Year-Long Journey

Four months ago, on December 27, 2012, I decided to make a major change in my life.  Now, here I am, on Day 122, a third of the way through the year.  I'm over a third of the way toward my weight loss goal, but I expect that as I get closer to my goal weight, things will slow down.  Though I'm tracking my weight loss, this still doesn't seem like a diet to me.  I'm eating all the time and there's no deprivation.  And I still love veggies!  Let me show a little veggie love before I go on.

In looking back at my first four months as a vegan, I think I did pretty well.  I ate meat once -- pepperoni on a slice of pizza a week ago.  I have eaten tiny amounts of extraneous cheese a few times (picked out of a salad and stuck to some guacamole) and enjoyed a few treats that contained eggs and butter.  And I can't seem to visit my favorite restaurant without indulging in the ranch dressing dip with the tortilla chips.  So, I will proudly declare that I'm mostly vegan.  About 98% vegan.

Of course, the vegan police will beg to differ.  If anything other than veggies pass my lips, then I'm not a vegan.  But every now and then, I meow like a cat. Does that mean I'm not 100% human?  So, I'm going to continue to eat vegan, even though I might not be considered a vegan.  One thing is very true -- I'm so much healthier than I was four months ago.  I feel good!  And I'm looking forward to the next four months.

Day 121 -- Meeting Some Meat Alternatives

After my mini-rant about tofu yesterday, I decided to do a little more research into meat alternatives.  I happened upon this article on popsugar.com.  Meat Alternatives Explained: Tofu, Tempeh and Seitan.  This is what I was looking for.  Meat Alternatives For Dummies!

I've never eaten tempeh or seitan and I'm not even sure where to find it in the grocery store (it's not next to the tofu, I can tell you that).  But after reading the descriptions, I'm really thinking I might enjoy either tempeh or seitan alot more than I "enjoy" tofu.  Which I don't really enjoy at all.

The author describes tofu as spongy, wet and smooth.  I'd add slimy and bland.  But it does pack 10 grams of protein in 1/2 cup with only 80 calories and 5 grams of fat.  Tempeh is twice as many calories, twice as much fat with a protien count of 15 grams.  And then there's seitan.  Three times the calorie count as tofu, but lower in fat grams.  And 36, yes!, 36 grams of protein in a half cup.

Tofu is made by curdling hot soy milk and adding a coagulant.  It's kind of like cottage cheese, I think.  And though I love cottage cheese, I just can feel the love for tofu.  Tempeh is made from fermented cooked soybeans and has a firm, chewy texture.  And then there's seitan, which is made from wheat (surprise, surprise!).  It's made by taking wheat dough and washing the starch out of it which leaves an elastic blob which is then cooked.  And sometimes it comes marinated or flavored already.  Sounds yummy.  But it has to be better than tofu.  Anything is better than tofu.  Or almost anything.

So, now I'm going to have to go search out tempeh and seitan and see what all the talk is about.  I think I like the sound of seitan.  Not soy.  Chewy.  Maybe marinated.  I could definitely eat that.

Day 120 -- How Do I Hate Tofu? Let Me Count The Ways.

I buy it with the best of intentions.  Tofu.  As a vegan, I'm supposed to eat it.  Yet, there it sits, in the back of the fridge, well on its way to spoiling.  The use-by date is today, so whether I want to or not, I'm going to have to use this damn tofu in a dish.  But what to make?

Yes, even that photo looks boring to me.  Oh, and before I go on, can I just say that it would be very helpful if the tofu manufacturers would make a smaller container of tofu.  The most I ever use in a recipe is a half a block and the other half just rots in the refrigerator.  And man, when it rots, it really stinks up the joint.  Yet another reason why I resist even buying tofu.  All right, rant over.  Now, I think I need to find a recipe or the tofu will end up in the garbage.

I have a package of shitake mushrooms that need to be used and some red bell peppers and a red onion.  I feel an Asian dish coming on here.  Oh, and I'll add some edamame so I get a legume in my meal -- in case I don't eat the tofu.  I have some brown rice noodles that will be good with the dish.  But how to cook the tofu?

My sister gave me a recipe for teriyaki tofu, which uses slices of tofu, dredged in cornstarch and fried until brown.  While frying it, it's basted with a teriyaki sauce.  I think I'm going to go with that and then stir-fry my veggies and make a spicy sauce.

I am not excited.   But I keep hoping that I'll learn to like tofu if I just keep trying to eat it.  Maybe this time?

ETA:  I labelled this Good Eats, but I was being sarcastic.

ETA More:  All right. Maybe tofu isn't that bad.  Dredged in cornstarch and fried until brown, then braised in 1/4 cup cooking sherry, 3 T. soy sauce and 1 1/2 T. brown sugar?  It was pretty yummy when served with stir fried veggies and brown rice.  But it did take frying it until it was crispy to get some decent texture.

Day 119 -- Thank Goodness Alcohol Is Vegan!

I've had a particularly difficult week.  Lots of conflict and angst, which is unusual for me since I'm usually a very chill person.  But this was one of those weeks when I just needed a drink.

I miss a lot of foods from my old diet -- cheese, sour cream, and an endless list of desserts made with butter and eggs.  But there's one thing that I'm not sure I could give up if it weren't part of a vegan diet.  There are just sometimes when you need a really good drink.

It's really the only time I allow myself to enjoy sugar and calories without any guilt.  I normally stop at just one drink and tend to stick to margaritas, bloody Marys or beer.  I think I am going to try to find a few drink recipes that might be a little healthier.  Here's one from Vegetarian Times for a Pineapple Ginger Elixir.  An elixir sounds very healthy to me!

Pineapple-Ginger Elixir

Serves 4

To turn this sweet-and-spicy cooler into a cocktail, add a shot of rum to the bottom of each glass and stir well. Don’t forget to break out the drink umbrellas.

4 cups fresh pineapple cubes

2 Tbs. minced fresh ginger

¼ cup light coconut milk, optional

2 ½ Tbs. lime juice

2 Tbs. pure maple syrup

1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

⅛ tsp. ground cardamom or allspice

⅛ tsp. cayenne pepper, optional

4 ½-inch-thick pineapple rings and/or lime wedges, for garnish

1. Purée pineapple cubes, ginger, and 1/2 cup water in blender until smooth. Strain through fine-meshed strainer into bowl, stirring with spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard pulp, and return liquid to blender.

2. Add coconut milk (if using), lime juice, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, and cayenne (if using) to blender; blend until smooth. Serve over ice, and garnish with pineapple rings and/or lime wedges.

Day 118 -- The Amazing Kimchi Adventure -- Part Three

Well, my amazing kimchi adventure has come to an end.  After fermenting for 3 days, my kimchi was ready for a taste.  I had added a bit more salt to the mix yesterday, not sure that it was salty enough to stop any germs from growing.  Today, I took a spoonful and tried it.  And it was sour and spicy and crunchy and salty pretty close to the Sunja brand of vegan kimchi that I was trying to copy.

I'm going to copy the recipe I posted earlier with the alterations I think I'll make on my next batch and notes on the changes I made.

Vegan Kimchi

1 large head of green cabbage, core removed, chopped into large pieces
1 bag of matchstick carrots (10 oz.)
1 leek, cut into half moons (discard dark green top)
8 green onions, cut into 2-inch slivers
3/4 cup Korean red pepper flakes (I increased this because my kimchi was too mild)
2  t. sugar (increased for additional sweetness)
1/4 c.  minced ginger (done in food processor) increased for more flavor
1/2 c. minced garlic (done in food processor) increased for more flavor

Peel the large outer leaves off the cabbage and wash and reserve.  Chop the cabbage and wash thoroughly, then put in a non-reactive bowl or ceramic-coated soup pot.  Cover with a brine made with 1 T. of sea salt to every 2 cups of water.  Let this sit for 24 hours until cabbage is slightly wilted.  Rinse cabbage and mix the cabbage with the other ingredients in a large bowl.  Put mixture into large jar (I used a 1 gallon apothecary jar) and then make a new batch of brine or use the brine from wilting the cabbage. Pour in jar to cover the cabbage mixture.  Stir to get all the air bubbles out and then put large cabbage leaves and a small plate on top to press all the veggies below the surface of the brine.  Add some type of weight to hold the plate down.  I used a small bowl.  Allow to ferment for 2 to 6 days.

I stirred the mix every day and after 3 days, tasted it.  I was already sour, so I transferred the veggies to a plastic container, added some of the brine and put it in the fridge.  But not before I topped some freshly cooked brown rice with my home-made kimchi and a little sweet and spicy Thai chili sauce.  I have to say, it was definitely fermented.  After I ate it, my stomach started growling and rumbling so the probiotics were doing their work.

Day 117 -- Food For Health

My friend, E, always posts interesting quotes on her Facebook newsfeed and every now and then, one of them just slaps me in the face.  Today was an example.

This is so true and yet very few people ever realize it.  I count myself lucky that I did come to realize it and it wasn't too late for me to change my bad habits.  Had I continued to eat as I was, I would have probably needed diabetes medicine, high blood pressure medicine, cholesterol medication, and more.  But many of these problems disappear as one begins to eat a healthy diet.

The quote comes from a website called Food Matters, a site devoted to a film of the same name.  According to the site, you can watch the first 40 minutes of the film online, but I haven't figured out how to do that yet.  I would like to see the film and will report back if I ever do get a chance to see it from beginning to end.

Day 116 -- Detox Salad

My sister passed on this recipe and I thought I'd try it.  It's different than anything I've made before, but this new way of eating has made me embrace new and unusual dishes.  And, I am intrigued by the name -- Detox Salad.  It's based on a popular deli product from Whole Foods, but I got the recipe from one of my favorite sites -- Angela Liddon's Oh She Glows.

One of the things I've learned over the past four months is that when my enthusiasm for my vegan eating plan wanes, the best thing to do is to find a new recipe and make it.  A new dish shakes up my routine, it makes me appreciate the fresh and nutritious food that I'm eating.

Detox Salad
Makes  10 cups


2 heads broccoli (1 bunch), stems removed
1 head cauliflower, stems removed
2.5 cups shredded carrots
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup currants
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup raisins
4-6 tbsp fresh lemon juice, to taste
kosher salt, pepper (I used 1/2 tsp salt and lots of pepper)
kelp granules or Herbamare (optional), to taste
Pure maple syrup, to drizzle on before serving

1. In a food processor (or chop by hand) process the broccoli (no stems) until fine. Add into large bowl.
2. Now process the cauliflower (no stems) until fine and add into bowl. Do the same with the carrots.
3. Stir in the sunflower seeds, currants, raisins, and parsley. Add lemon juice and seasonings to taste.
4. Drizzle with maple syrup to taste.
Note: I saved the stems for a stir-fry later on in the week.

Kimchi Update:  It's Day 2.  I'm not sure what's happening inside the jar, but there seems to be a puddle of kimchi juice on the counter around the jar.

Day 115 -- The Amazing Kimchi Adventure -- Part Two

Today, I take the next step in the Amazing Kimchi adventure.  All the ingerdients have been assembled and now it's time to make the kimchi!  I've studied the process on YouTube videos and looked at recipes online. I've decided to try to copy my favorite vegan commercial kimchi, Sunja's cabbage kimchi.

It should be noted that Sunja's kimchi doesn't use Napa cabbage, but uses green cabbage instead, which is good, since that's much cheaper than Napa.  So if I screw up completely, I haven't wasted a lot of money.  I started by removing the core and chopping up the cabbage into large chunks.  I washed it thoroughly then and mixed it with the salt brine in my big enamel soup pot.  I put a plate inside to keep the cabbage submerged and covered the pot with the cover.

Tomorrow, after it's wilted down, (12 - 24 hours) I'll drain. it and rinse it off.  Then I'll grind up garlic and ginger in my Nutribullet and mix it into the wilted cabbage, along with Korean red pepper flakes, chopped leeks and green onions and matchstick carrots.  I'll need to mix this all up and then put it in my kimchi container (still to be determined), stirring out the air as I cover it with another batch of salt brine. Then it will be topped with the inverted plate, a weight to hold the plate down and a cover to keep the smell from permeating every last corner of the house.

This is the process I'm using -- "How To Make Kimchi" from WikiHow.

Brine 1 T. sea salt per 2 cups water
As far as ingredients I used:
1 large head of green cabbage, core removed, chopped into large pieces
1 bag of matchstick carrots (10 oz.)
1 leek, cut into half moons (discard dark green top)
8 green onions, cut into 2-inch slivers
1/2 cup Korean red pepper flakes
2 t. sugar
3 T. minced ginger (done in food processor)
1/2 c. minced garlic (done in food processor)

In 3 to 6 days, I'll transfer the kimchi into jars and put it in the fridge and we'll see if the Amazing Kimchi Adventure was a success!  Stay tuned for Part Three of the Amazing Kimchi Adventure in which I will actually eat the kimchi that I made!

ETA:  I used a one gallon apothecary jar that used to hold white sugar for my kimchi.  It is now about 8 hours since I put it in the jar and it's already starting to smell.  It looks like it's supposed to, so that's a good sign.

Day 114 -- The Big Five-Oh!

No, I didn't turn fifty!  It's not my birthday, although I feel like it is. I have officially lost fifty poundes.  I started on this vegan journey on December 27th and I'm coming up on four months of eating mostly vegan.  Four months and fifty pounds.  Wow, it's hard to believe.

There are so many little things that I can do now that I couldn't do four months ago.  I fit very nicely into a restaurant booth now.  My old clothes are incredibly baggy and I'm starting to dig into the pile of clothes that I haven't worn in years.  I had to buy a new bra today because the old one was just not doing the job.  And I'm so much more active now.

I've settled into a life that doesn't revolve around food.   Though I've occasionally strayed from my rather strict eating plan, I've never lapsed into a full-fledged binge.  I'm able to control my eating now like I never was before.  I/m no longer an emotional eater.  In truth, there are times when I actually forget to eat.  I really think that all the fat and processed food fed an addiction.  And now that I'm not addicted anymore, there'sno craving for those foods.  I don't know if I'll ever figure it all out.  But my bathroom scale is no longer my enemy.  I kind of look forward to watching the dial go down little by little.

Day 113 -- Oops! I Missed A Post

I'm usually so careful about posting every day, but it is now day 119 and in looking back on my blog, I noticed that I missed Day 113 and Day 117!  I suspect I might have been abducted by aliens.  And taken to their ship and forced to eat alien junkfood.  And just for that, I'm going to post a picture of an alien --

I prefer the Disney version of aliens rather than the X-Files version.  They seem much friendlier.  And the guy is green.  He's probably a vegan, don't you think?  So, sorry Day 113.  Sorry I missed you, but it's never to late to catch up.

Day 112 -- A Vegan Meal In A High School Cafeteria?

Yesterday, I dined out on portobello mushroom fajitas at my favorite restaurant.  It's the only vegan alternative available on their menu unless you're in the mood for lackluster salad with most of the ingredients left out.  The meal was good, but it was probably a little higher in fat that I'd like.

Fast foward to today.  I was working at my local high school over the lunch hour and decided to see what was for lunch, not really expecting to find anything I could eat.  But I was surprised!  On the menu was Santa Fe Rice Bowl.  That sounded hopeful.

Let me back up and explain that several years ago some of the mothers got together to lobby for healthier meals in the cafeteria.  They outlawed chocolate milk, they got rid of the soda machines, and they insisted that the chef offer more fresh fruits and veggies and use whole grains whenever possible.  Their lobbying resulted in a total overhaul of the food service program.  Now, there are always several choices available to each student.  The alternative today was a hot dog on a whole grain bun with baked beans.  Or a turkey ranch wrap.   Every meal also includes an all-you-can-eat salad bar that usually offers raw veggies, fruits, and some type of veggie or grain salad.  And you'd be surprised how many fruits and veggies kids will eat when they're still hungry after eating their entree.

So, here was my healthy meal -- much healthier than the restaurant meal I ate the day before.  A scoop of white rice (brown would have been better) topped with black beans and corn and garnished with salsa, ripe olives, onions, pico di gallo and crushed tortilla chips.  From the salad bar, I got chilled peas, honeydew melon, sliced cucumbers and raw carrots.  You can't get a much more balanced vegan meal than that!  So, thanks to those moms responsible for making our local school cafeteria a great place to get a good meal.

Day 111 -- Where Has All The Protein Gone?

I never used to think about protein.  As a meat-eater, it was never an issue.  But as a vegan, I seemed to dwell on it.  It's my goal to become more knowledgeable about good sources of protein and automatically include them in my meals so I don't have to think about it that much.

My friend and food guru, E, sent me this link for a really good article about the best sources for protein.  From the website, MindBodyGreen, the article is called "My Top 7 Sources of Plant-based Protein."

I've chosen three of my favorites and listed three that I still need to try.

1. Beans (Black, Kidney, Mung, Pinto): 12-15g Protein / Cup
I eat a lot of beans.  Black beans and garbanzos are my favorite.  In fact, I put garbanzos in just about everything I can.

2. Quinoa: 11g Protein / Cup
I love quinoa, but I don't use it as often as I should.  Now that I know that it's so high in protein, I'm going to use it much more.

3. Lentils: 17.9g  Protein / Cup
Lentils are a big favorite of mine, especially red lentils.  I put them in soup and stews, often just to thicken them up.

And these are three that I need to try with comments from the author of the article.

1. Tempeh: 24g Protein / 4 Ounces
A fermented soybean-based food, tempeh is a healthy protein-packed alternative to it’s non-fermented cousin tofu. It makes for a great veggie burger and doubles as a tasty meat alternative to meatballs in pasta, or over brown rice and vegetables.

2. Seitan: 24g Protein / 4 Ounces
An excellent substitute for beef, fish and soy products, one serving provides about 25% of your RDA of protein. But not for those with gluten sensitivities, as it is made from wheat gluten.

3. Hemp Seeds: 16g Protein / 3 Tbsp
With a perfect ration of omega-6 and omega-3 EFA’s, hemp seeds are another bioavailable complete protein rivaled only by spirulina. A simple and great addition to a multitude of dishes, from breakfast cereal to salads to smoothies to vegetables and rice.

So, I'm off to look for recipes that use tempeh and seitan.  I know I can use hemp seed in place of my chia and flax seeds.  Time to add two more foods to my list of new tastes.

Day 110 -- Pizza Is The Devil

Well, it happened.  I ate cheese -- and pepperoni.  After a long, stressful day, I was faced with a buffet of pizza.  I was starving, I wasn't going to get home for another three hours, it smelled so good, and I ate two slices of pepperoni pizza and a bite of brownie.  I tried to make it 365 days without a cheat, but I should have known it would be almost impossible.

The odd thing is, I'm not tempted to chuck the whole diet and give in to temptation tomorrow.  I'm ready to keep going and continue eating vegan.  Perhaps this is a glimpse of the future for me.  Mostly vegan with the occasional lapse for pizza or some other tempting treat.

One-hundred and ten days without meat is pretty good.  And then, only four or five slices of pepperoni.  I'm still pretty amazed by my fortitude.  Now, I'll try for another 110 days before I indulge again.  Keep tuned to find out if I succeed.

Day 109 -- Back To The Plan!

After a hectic month, things are finally going to settle back down to a normal schedule.  And with that, I hope a normal eating plan.  I've done my best to maintain my vegan diet during this unusually busy time and on the whole, I've done a pretty good job.  I haven't gained any weight.  I've indulged in a few things that I probably shouldn't have.  But I've weathered the storm and come out healthy on the other side.

Now, I'm looking forward to doing a good shop, picking up some fresh veggies and fruits, and getting down to business again.  I'll have time to cook so there will be food in the fridge when I'm hungry.  The dishes will get done on time. And I'll slip back into my relaxed, home-bound routine.

I think back to how these busy times used to affect my diet.  Multiple MacDonald's runs, food that might be filling but totally unhealthy, late-night meals filled with fat and calories and then restless nights trying to digest all the processed food I ate.  The bad diet only added to the stress of the moment.  But this time around, I've been remarkably calm.  I haven't found myself overwhelmed and exhausted.  It's funny how a simple change in diet has such ripple effects on the rest of my life.

Day 108 -- With Friends Like These

Tonight, I've been invited to a friend's house for a late dinner.  And she is cooking a vegan meal.  My friend M. has been keeping up with my experiences as a vegan and is interested in cooking more vegan dishes.  Since she is quite a good cook, I'm looking forward to something pretty tasty when I arrive.  No hastily prepared veggie burger for me.  No eating before I leave home.  I'm going to get a real vegan meal prepared by someone other than me! And she and our friend, T, are going to eat it with me.

Over the past three months I've had nothing but positive reactions to my new diet.  Which is kind of strange since many things I read on the internet about veganism seem to set off a war between the vegans and the meat-eaters.  Why do people feel the need to defend their diets in the same way they defend their religion -- or lack of religion?

Many of the people I talk to express a desire to eat more healthy foods, to cut out more meat from their diets and eat more vegetables.  To do away with processed foods.  The science is there and I can attest to the fact that eating more whole foods does make you feel better.  At least it makes me feel better.  I will never be a vegan crusader, out on the front lines fighting for my choice to avoid meat, eggs and cheese.  But it would be nice if the meat-eating world didn't see me and my kind as a threat.  When I used to eat meat, I used to admire vegans, for their ability to resist foods that were not the best choices for a human to eat.

ETA: It was a lovely meal of hummus and crudite, roasted potatoes, xauteed spinach and mimosas.  Oh, and vegan chocolate pudding!  I must start making spinach like that -- lightly sauteed with garlic.  I could eat it all day long.  And the pudding was yummy, too.

Day 107 -- I've Fallen Behind And I Can't Catch Up!

Occasionally, life gets in the way of writing this blog and I'm faced with writing several days worth of posts at one time.  I search for subjects, realizing that the past few days haven't been very noteworthy when it comes to the subject of food.  What have I been eating?  Veggie burgers, whole grain crackers, popcorn.  I've even gone out for portobello mushroom fajitas twice in one week!

My refrigerator is empty of any decent leftovers and I don't have time to cook anything -- or maybe I just don't have the energy to cook.  These days, I approach cooking like a carefully planned military maneuver.  I usually cook at least two or three dishes at once, providing decent choices for an entire week of eating.  But that requires a stocked refrigerator and a clean kitchen.  Right now, my kitchen counters are littered with dirty dishes that should gradually find their way into the dishwasher -- but only when I can muster the energy.

These are times when I wish there were fast food restaurants for vegans.  A place with a drive-thru window that offered organic salads and veggie burgers on whole grain buns.  And sweet potato fries!  If vegan eating were as easy as this, maybe more people would eat vegan.  It is strange to think of a world where fast food could actually be good for you to eat.

Which brings up another point.  I recently read that Chipoltle Mexican Grill, a chain of Mexican restaurants, was adding a vegan item to their menu in certain locations in California.  It's called Sofritas and is shredded tofu (non-GMO from Hodo Soy Beanery) braised with chipotle chiles, roasted poblano peppers, and spices made from tofu.   I had to wonder why other restaurants didn't do the same.  How difficult would it be for my favorite drive-in to make a veggie burger?  They come frozen, you can cook them in a separate frying pan.  What's so hard about that?  And there are plenty of health-conscious customers who would choose that item.

As a newly-minted almost-sorta-kinda vegan, it isn't always about the food.  Sometimes it's about the fun of eating with friends.  And when there is virtually nothing on the menu to eat -- except french fries -- it takes the fun out of it.  See what happens when I fall behind on my posts.  I turn into a surly vegan!

Day 106 -- I Ate A Pear

There are moments on this vegan journey when I have to stop and appreciate the wonder that is food.  Not food stuffs, but real food.  Whole foods.  Fruit and vegetables.

Today, I ate an absolutely perfect pear.  It was a Bartlett pear, picked out of the bin at the grocery store because it was pale yellow with a rosy tinge on one side, its skin unblemished, its scent sweet and subtle.  Why am I rhapsodizing about a pear?  Because I can!

Until I began eating vegan, I never really appreciated the vast variety of tastes available in the fruit and vegetable kingdom.  Fruits and vegetables were just things I was supposed to eat because they made me grow up big and strong.  But they never held a candle to Snickers Bars and strawberry malts.  Why couldn't those things make me big and strong?

I wish I could have come to appreciate fruits and vegetables a little sooner.  Biting into that pear was like taking the first taste of an extraordinary dessert.  And then there's the wonderful sweet crunch of a red pepper or the earthy taste of Crimini mushrooms.  And the sugary bite of a Vidalia onion.  All these wonderful taste experiences from whole foods that I once looked at with disdain.

There may come a day when I reach for a pear or a tomato without thinking about how good they are for me.  Maybe some day, I'll eat them because, to me, they taste better than a Snickers bar.

Day 105 -- Wrap Me Up

For some odd reason, I seem fall victim to the impulse buy when it comes to bread products -- or reasonable facsimiles.  I've tried tortillas (corn and flour), little round flatbreads (Brownberry), wraps, whole grain crackers (J.J. Flats), and whole grain bread (Food For Life).  And today, I found another variation -- Flatout flatbread wraps.  You can see all the different varieties at their website.

The soft 100% Whole Wheat variety are just 100 calories and 1.5 grams of fat.  I tried a wrap tonight for dinner -- a little vegan chili that I had in the fridge, some arugula, a little vegan sour cream and a few Greek olives.  It was pretty good.  But I think the potential for this product lies in it's use as a pizza crust.  It's long and oval, much bigger and thicker than a tortilla.  So tomorrow, I'm going to give that a try.  Cheeseless, of course, though I do have some Daiya vegan cheese in the fridge that I've been saving for a special occasion.

Day 104 -- This Time The Wagon Backed Over Me

A few days ago, I fell off the vegan wagon.  I ate a little bit of cheese.  Yesterday, I fell off the wagon again and it backed over me.  But this was all my own doing and I guess I really don't feel too bad about it.  No animals were harmed in my fall.

First, let me say that this all began with a dream -- or maybe it was a nightmare.  All I know was that I dreamed that I pigged out.  Went completely crazy.  In my dream, I was just gobbling up food left and right and all the people around me were unconcerned.  No one asked why I wasn't following my vegan eating plan.  No one seemed to care.  Which is probably quite true in reality.  I'm the only one who cares.

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Then we move on to the next day.  I was very busy with work, away from home, and there wasn't much to eat in the fridge.  I didn't have time for breakfast and I was out of the house by 8:30 am, running errands and getting things done.  By lunchtime, I was starved.  So I stopped at my favorite restaurant, the one I've dined at twice since beginning this diet, and I had my favorite portobello mushroom fajitas.  Yum.  But I also gobbled up chips with spicy ranch dressing.  Yes, ranch -- as in made with milk.

Maybe it was the dream coming to life.  But the chips tasted really good and the ranch dressing was the perfect thing and I couldn't keep myself from eating them.  So even though I'm not a perfect vegan -- or technically a vegan at all -- I'm happy to be mostly, almost always, sorta-kinda-pretty diligent vegan.

Day 103 -- The Amazing Kimchi Adventure -- Part One

I'm a kimchi junkie.  That's right, I've got a bad habit and it's costing me big bucks.  Since I discovered kimchi, I've been feeding my habit with 16 oz. jars purchased at my local natural foods store at $6 a jar.  Which for me is pretty darn expensive.  So do I go to kimchi rehab now?  Or do I learn to make my own kimchi?

I opted for the second choice.  After all, if thousands of Korean cooks do it every week, why can't I learn.  Now, I know it's a stinky process as my sister has warned me, but if I can get kimchi at a reasonable price, I'd be a very happy addict.

My first step proved to be a bit tricky.  The red pepper used to flavor kimchi has to be a very specific type, the type difficult to find in a small Midwest city.  So I was forced to get it mail-order from a Korean site called H-Mart.  Once I found the right product, Tae Kyung Red Pepper Powder, I had to choose between a one pound bag at $5.99 or a three pound bag at $14.99.  With shipping at $11.00, I figured I'd go big.

When the first ingredient for my homemade kimchi arrived about a week later, I was stunned to find I now have a bag of red pepper powder the size of one of the throw pillows on my sofa.  But maybe that's for the best.  The bag is sitting on my kitchen counter, a constant reminder that since I have what I need, it's time to make kimchi.  Either that, or I could cover the bag with a nice raw silk and just use it as a throw pillow.

Day 102 -- The Side-Effects Of Eating Vegan

I've heard it more than once since I began eating vegan.  "Your skin looks wonderful" or "You're glowing."  And I'm not the only vegan who has noticed a change.  I stumbled across this blog post on Huffington Post -- Vegan Secrets (Or Why My Skin Is Always Glowing).  I guess it's something that many new vegans experience.

My skin used to be dry, my feet especially so.  And I often used a scrub on my face.  But now, my skin is so soft.  I don't have to use moisturizer.  My elbows are smooth and they've never been smooth.  I suspect part of this has to do with giving up processed food and therefore, a lot of the salt in that food.  Plus, I get more water, from all the veggies and fruit I eat.

Of course, whenever there is anecdotal evidence that veganism is good for you, someone always comes along to refute that evidence, to claim that vegans look sick or sallow.  This blog post -- How Does A Vegan Diet Affect The Skin -- is written by an esthetician, who claims to have seen her share of vegan faces.  She claims that vegans don't get the right kind of protein for the skin.

Luckily, I didn't have to do the legwork to research the claims.  In this blog post, Is A Vegetarian or Vegan Diet Bad for Your Skin?, the author lists all the reasons why a vegan diet would be good for your skin.  I'm sure the debate will rage on and I'm not going to argue one way or the other.  But my skin has benefited from my new eating plan.

Day 101 -- Yesterday, I Fell Off The Vegan Wagon

It's kind of ironic that on Day 100, a cause for celebration, I ended up eating cheese.  Let me set the scene.  I was working on a project away from home.  I started at 8 am and expected to be home for lunch, but by lunchtime, we weren't even close to being done.  A few people stopped to get take-out and knowing I was vegan, the brought me a McDonald's Caesar salad -- with cheese.  Yes, that's right.  After 100 days of staying away from fast food, I ate fast food.

I was hungry, I didn't want to run home to get something to eat, so I ate the salad.  It was impossible to take off all the cheese and the dressing might have been made with cheese as well, but in the end, it wasn't a big deal.  I'm a vegan for health reasons and enjoy not having to eat creatures that were once living.  But for me, dairy and eggs (and honey) are not as ethically difficult to justify.

The salad alone had 5 grams of fat and 190 calories and the dressing added 18 grams of fat at 190 more calories.  It wasn't the worse thing I could have eaten so I'm not going to worry about it.  Instead, I'll worry about the bag of dry-roasted peanuts I scarfed down a few nights ago.  That came in at a whopping 960 calories and 84 grams of fat.  YIKES!  That was a huge mistake, especially on top of the avocado I also ate last week.

But I did buy a big container of baby spinach at the grocery store.  Greens.  Greens will be my penance.  Greens will be my salvation.

Day 100 -- Now What?

Day 100!!!  This is a big milestone.  I'm officially in triple digits.  I should celebrate in some way, shouldn't I? I ate an avocado this past week.  That was kind of exciting.  Half on Sunday, half on Monday.  Hass avocados were on sale for .99 and I was tempted.  Now, I know avocados are loaded with fat, but I was really surprised that the calorie count for a half an avocado was pretty reasonable - 140 calories.

I didn't bother to put it into a dish or slice it up for a salad or sandwich.  I just ate it right off the skin and it was so delicious and creamy and wonderful that I couldn't even feel guilty  Avocados are good more for than just guacamole and facial masks.  For vegans, they're a valuable source of healthy fat in the diet and I think that's what my body was craving when I bought the avocado.  

When I was a kid, my mother's bridge club would have avocados for luncheon, sliced and dipped in mayo (kind of piling fat on top of more fat, if you ask me).  Avocados were like shrimp cocktail or lobster salad -- expensive and exotic, just the thing for ladies that lunch.  I don't think I tasted avocado until I was in college it was that rare in our local grocery store.  But now, they're available year round and cheap enough to eat like any other vegetable.  Except they're not vegetables -- they're fruit.  Either way, they're yummy.

 

Day 99 -- Agava, Agave, Agavo

I feel like I'm conjugating Latin, but today I'm actually learning more about agave sweetener.  It seems to be the sweetener of choice for many vegan cooks.  Though I'm a honey girl, which isn't technically vegan, I am willing to consider agave nectar/syrup, but not until I know what agave is.  I'm thinking it might be some kind of cactus?

Hello, there.  Blue agave, the plant often used to produce agave syrup or nectar, is also used to make tequila!  I've always enjoyed tequila in my margaritas but I've never thought much about where it came from  Mexico was as close as I could come to answering that question  As far as the worm, I'm not sure what that has to do with anything.  A future subject to research.

To produce agave nectar from the Agave Americana and tequiliana plants, the leaves are cut off the plant after it has aged seven to 14 years. The juice is then extracted from the core of the agave, called the piña. The juice is filtered, then heated to separate the complex components (the polysaccharides) into simple sugars. This filtered juice is then concentrated to a syrupy liquid, slightly thinner than honey. Its color varies from light- to dark-amber, depending on the degree of processing.


Agave salmiana is processed differently than Agave tequiliana. As the plant develops, it starts to grow a stalk called a quiote. The stalk is cut off before it fully grows, creating a hole in the center of the plant that fills with a liquid called aguamiel. The liquid is collected daily and processed into syrup.

I bought a bottle of agave syrup when I was stocking my vegan pantry.  I now know that it's sweeter than honey and is also thinner, so it flows better.  It can be used as a sweetener in drinks, but also is used in vegan baking.  As for tequila, we all know what that's good for.  Now, about the worm . . .

Day 98 - Yet Another Use For Chia Seeds

I recently made a recipe for a Pumpkin Pie Smoothie that called for chia seeds.  Since I'm new to this whole healthy nutrition thing, the only thing I knew about chia seeds was this:

Actually, I had read that they were a good source of Omega 3 and an alternative to flaxseed.  But they were also very different from flaxseed.  Flaxseed needs to be freshly ground in order to get at the valuable nutrients.  Chia seeds can be eaten as is.  Flaxseeds, once ground, need to be stored in an opaque container and refrigerated. Chia seeds can be stored in a jar at room temp.  And chia seeds have an odd way of creating a gelatinous coating (great for spreading on your chia pet) when coming in contact with moisture, which besides being weird, also makes them a good thickener.  But were there any other advantages to chosing chia seeds over flaxseeds?  Time for a little research.

This article, Flaxseed Vs. Chia Seed: Which Is Better?, explains it all.  But here are a few of the high points of eating chia seeds.

--Chia seed is higher in Omega-3s than flaxseed.
--Chia seed oil is more than 60% omega-3 making it one of the highest commercially available sources.
--Chia seed is higher in fiber than flaxseed.  Three tablespoons of chia seeds contain fifteen grams of fiber while three tablespoons of flaxseeds contain nine grams of fiber. Chia seeds are often recommended for diabetics because the balance of soluble and insoluble fiber slows the absorption of glucose.
--Chia seeds have one of the highest levels of antioxidants in a whole food.
--Chia is a wonderful source for calcium.  Three tablespoons contains 307 milligrams of calcium.
--Chia seed is easily digested and does not need to be ground.
--Chia seed will store up to two years in a dry place.

And finally, any leftover seeds can be used for your Hello, Kitty! Chia Pet!  Available here!

Day 97 -- Pie, Pie, Pie, Pie, Now I Shall Have Some Pie

Not that kind of pie.  Although I haven't had a slice of pie since December 27th, I'm really looking forward to having one.  Cherry is my favorite, followed up by Dutch apple.  I also like pecan.  All with ice cream.  So NOT vegan.  But the pie I'm going to write about today is Shepherd's Pie -- not really a pie because it doesn't have a crust.

Shepherd's pie, or cottage pie as it was first known, is an old dish, dating back to the 1780s, when the potato began to be cultivated as food for the working class.  Usually made with a meat layer, covered by a layer of mashed potatoes, the dish originated in Britain and/or Ireland.  I found a delicious recipe for this dish on the Oh She Glows blog.  This Vegan Shepherd's Pie is the perfect comfort food.  I used the mushroom sauce from the Cozy Millet Bowl recipe I referenced on Day 93 for a delicious gravy.

The pie is filled with root vegetables including one of my favorites, parsnips.  When I was a kid, my grandmother used to grow parsnips in her farm garden.  She'd leave them in the soil over the winter and around Easter time, the ground was usually thawed enough to dig them out and serve for Easter dinner.  Left in the ground to freeze, the parsnips get sweeter.  I like them roasted as they get even sweeter.  And these days, parsnips are readily available in most larger grocery stores.  Don't buy them encased in wax.

Day 96 -- A Vegan No More?

Well, I've fallen off the wagon big time.  Last night, I went out and ended up eating a steak dinner with baked potato and sour cream and creme brulee for dessert . . . wait for it . . . it's coming . . .

APRIL FOOLS!

Part of sticking to my not-so-new-by-now eating plan is maintaining perspective -- and a sense of humor ----- about what I'm doing.  This isn't the most important thing in my life, or even the second most important thing.  I write about it every day not because it occupies my attention but because, by writing this blog, I'm remind me every day that I have to think carefully about what I'm putting in my mouth.  Most of the time, except for when I'm cooking, I don't think much about food.

That's kind of strange for me because three months ago, that's all I thought about.  When I wasn't obsessing over what I was going to eat next, I was wracked with guilt over what I just ate.  It was a constant worry for me and even though I knew it was an unhealthy attitude, I couldn't seem to do anything to fix it.  But the desperation is gone. The moment I first felt a hunger pang, I used to start thinking about what I was going to eat.  But now, hunger pangs usually don't distract me from what I'm doing.  I know that food is available when I want it and I don't get that frantic feeling anymore.

My relationship to food has changed significantly.  And with that has come a kind of inner calm.  I know that what I'm doing for myself is good and I wake up every day knowing that I'm going to make it through another day putting healthy things in my mouth.  Day 100 is coming up soon.  That's a big milestone.  And there are a few milestones coming up on the scale.