Tuesday, May 24, 2011

We have reached normalcy

Veganism has become a normal part of my life now. I don't find myself inconvenienced by it, and I am happy I'm doing it. Due to my schedule and constant trips across MI as well as longs days at work on the weekends, my eating schedule is completely messed up. I know I have not been getting enough sleep, or eating enough vegetables and I have not been taking my B complex supplement regularly. This combination has led to me being very tired at night and almost incapable of ripping myself out of bed in the morning. Other than that, I'm still happy with this because I don't get sick! This is really the big thing to me. I did have a stomachache the other day, which I'm not sure as to why, but it was bound to happen at some point. Maybe a spec of dairy snuck into my food. :]

I'm going camping next month and would normally just eat whatever is brought, but because of this vegan eating adventure I have been living, I have to bring all of my own food for those 5 days. It won't be difficult, its just an extra bit of hassle for me to do all the shopping, get a cooler and buy ice everyday. The last thing I wanted to do was be of any inconvenience to my group. I'm sure it will be just fine!

That's about all I have to report on veganism right now. Since this topic has become normal and rather boring to discuss, I guess its time to start talking about other things......

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Satisfaction

For the past 4 days straight, eating vegan has been top notch. I have had full, REAL meals at least once a day and they have all been different and extremely satisfying.

Sat - After graduation, my family and I went to Brick Road Pizza Co on Wealthy Street in Grand Rapids. As a vegan, it was fantastic; my two vegetarian parents, two meat eating grandparents and one very open friend equally loved it! I heard about their tasty vegan breadsticks, so I ordered those right away. AMAZING! I could tell my Papa was leery to try them because they were vegan, but I he liked them. My friend and I shared vegan bruschetta which was pretty good, I really didn't dig the vegan cheese though. At least, it just didn't work in that dish. I got a Buffalo Tofu Pizza - YUM, and a vegan cookie with a small scoop of vegan ice cream for dessert. My mom snagged their vegan black bean burger and my dad their vegan philly steak and both were very pleased with their meals. No matter what food you like to eat, GO TO BRICK ROAD!

Sun - Classic Lebanese meal with my family in Sterling Heights where we used to live. Homemade bread and garlic dip, is there anything else necessary in the world? Oh yes - a homemade vegan chocolate cake! AHHHHHHH! I used this recipe and it was the best, by far, cake I have ever had in my life. It only made a tiny 8x8 size pan, which was more than enough for our family of 5. Everyone was oogling over the tastiness of this cake. I have said from the beginning I didn't feel like I was giving anything up being a vegan, and its true!

Mon - My mom and I went to Qdoba for lunch and honestly, I would die if I could never eat there again. I got a naked vegetarian burrito - rice, black beans, pico de gallo, salsa verde, guac and tortilla chips to dip in it. The spices and flavors of all the components melded perfectly to be initially satisfying, and for the duration of the day. That place is the BOMB. I also made a stirfry for dinner; it didn't compare to Qdoba, but it was still really great. I love stirfrys because I can feel the nutrients flooding my body. Yes!

Today - I experimented today and made a Lemon Garlic Pasta for my dad and I for dinner. We also had corn on the cob and fresh bread with olive oil for dipping. The pasta had a tad too much lemon and could have been complimented better with some crisp veggies, but all in all it was a good meal.

Let the amazing meals continue......