Vegan Dining in Monterey, California

My husband, Gerald and I just returned from a two-night stay in Monterey to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary. Before heading down there, I did some research to see if I would be able to eat anything other than salad. Nothing against salad, I love salad, but variety is the spice of life, as they say. And for vegans, there is a lot of variety available, even though some carnivores are mystified by the concept. I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of tasty vegan/ vegetarian restaurants, and another restaurant had an additional vegetarian menu with vegan options as well.

We arrived on Wednesday in time for lunch and decided to check out El Cantaro Vegan Mexican Restaurant. Gerald is a carnivore, but food is food, so he was willing to venture inside. The restaurant was super clean (I am a germaphobe), the guys working there were very friendly and helpful, and the food was to die for. It was very filling, but did not leave us feeling groggy and greasy like typical American Mexican restaurants can do.

We were given a small bowl of delicious, warm tortilla chips and a creamy red salsa that was allegedly 'mild.' The salsa was fantastic, but I would have labeled it more toward 'medium.' We chowed it down, nonetheless, because it was outrageously good. I ordered the Grilled Pineapple Veggie Burrito on a spinach tortilla, and I was blown away. I thought the pineapple might dominate the flavor, but it was more like an amazing spice ingredient. I had the choice of some four or five different tortillas, and the spinach tortilla was the recommended choice for my burrito. My carnivore was blown away by his entree, the Caesar Salad with Grilled Chick'n. We each enjoyed a bottle of Virgil's Microbrewed Root Beer, which happens to be my favorite root beer on planet Earth. They do not serve alcohol at El Cantaro, which I believe is part of their mission to serve healthy vegan food.

That night for dinner, we headed over to Hula's Island Grill. They have food for all--carnivores and vegans and vegetarians. Included in their menu is a separate menu for vegetarians/ vegans. The atmosphere was fun and alive, and every staff member we had any contact with was friendly, fun, and very happy. If you like to drink alcohol (I do not) there is plenty to choose from at Hula's. We both ordered the iced tea, which tasted like it was brewed moments before we were served and had a light fruitiness to it. Deliciousness galore!

I ordered a vegan bowl, the Kingston Curry Tofu. Let me just say.. OH. MY. GOD. It was amazing! White sticky rice, cabbage and other vegetables perfectly smothered in an outrageously good yellow curry sauce, topped with fried tofu sticks and plantains. I ate too much of it. I could not bare to see such deliciousness wasted, but alas I still could not even come close to finishing the entire bowl.

Gerald also ordered a bowl, but his had seared ahi tuna. His was the Ahi Wasabi Bowl, and he, too, was blown away. Just letting you know in case if like me you are in love with a carnivore. In any case, we were both beyond happy. We were offered a free dessert after Gerald mentioned that we were in town to celebrate our wedding anniversary, but we were way too full to take them up on their kind offer. If we had, I would have had to order the coconut sorbet as it was the only vegan dessert. But I am certain I would have enjoyed it immensely.

After an exciting outing of whale watching on Thursday, we went to the Cannery Row Brewing Company for a light lunch. I actually craved a salad, and so I suggested this restaurant for Gerald as there are many options for carnivores. I ordered the large CRBC House Salad, which was perfect for me. It had artisan lettuce, cherry tomatoes, shaved radish, diced cucumber, croutons, and a citrus vinaigrette. Gerald ordered the Albacore Tuna Melt and let me nibble on some of his garlic fries. Although there is also a Veggie Burrito on the menu, it is a highly carnivorous menu. But I was craving a lighter meal, and I wanted to give Gerald a chance to eat something he likes since we had reservations that night at a vegetarian restaurant.

We had our anniversary dinner at Julia's Vegetarian Restaurant in Pacific Grove, which of course, also offers vegan options. Julia's has a real relaxed, homey atmosphere. As their menu states, "We feed the creative minority," this place feels like a place great artists of all kind would hang out and write poetry, sketch some beautiful drawing, or compose a laid back song on a guitar. In fact, that night they had a musical duo (a guitarist and accordionist) playing live music in the small dining area. The waitress was lively and fun, and the chef came out and checked in with each patron to see if they enjoyed the food. It was a wonderful evening.

Their menu changes regularly, but that night Gerald had the Margherita Pizza, and I enjoyed the Raviolis in a broth with greens and mushrooms and asparagus. The raviolis were stuffed with eggplant and mushrooms, and were delightfully vegan. It is tough finding vegan raviolis in regular restaurants, so I jumped on those. Before our meals were served, a large flatbread cut like a pizza with various spices and a big dollop of what looked like reddish-orange hummus was served. We forgot to ask what the dollop was, but I can tell you, it was fabulous. We both cleaned our plates and ordered a slice of Vegan Chocolate Cake to go. We both totally overate, but the food was so good we could not bear to waste a bite!

Our bed and breakfast inn was a bit flummoxed by my request for a vegan breakfast. The owners of the last seven years recently sold the inn, but when we made our reservations six months ago, I noticed "vegan breakfast options available" noted on the website. We have stayed at The Jabberwock Inn a few other times, and it is a lovely place in a perfect location. Just know that vegans freak them out a little. I ate oatmeal and fresh fruit both mornings.

The first morning they put in too much effort by also serving me a couple slices of toast and a big plate of hash browns. Do not get me wrong, I completely appreciate the effort, but I could see that they were the kind of people vegans run into who say things like, "What do you eat?!" They must be so used to overly stuffing themselves (and their guests) with eggs, sausage, and cheese that the notion of a bowl of oatmeal could be quite satisfying mystified them. They did make a concerted effort as they also went out and bought rice milk especially for me (even though I did not ask for or use it), and I highly appreciated the kindness and effort.

Another restaurant we did not eat at but reviewed the menu on Cannery Row called Cooper's Pub does offer a vegetarian Black Bean Burger. So, there are plenty of options in Monterey and Pacific Grove for vegans and vegetarians to eat amongst the abundance of seafood restaurants. Our stay was short, so I can only give these few reviews. I hope they are helpful for those looking for plant based cuisine in the Monterey Bay area.

Peace for all.

It's been a while since I have written, because I have been dealing with a health problem. You can read more about it here. 

I am still eating a vegan diet with zero plans of changing, but I have to admit that I have allowed some junk foods in. Processed foods galore, one might say. I let a little in, and wham-o! The flood hit. Plus, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't also tired of washing and chopping oodles of veggies every single day. I started to feel like a sous chef in a restaurant that wasn't paying me! 

I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), so putting a lot of energy into anything is really difficult for me now. My dream when I started this blog was to create as many different recipes, easy ones, that tasted delicious while also being very healthy. It got to be tiring coming up with new ideas.  I realized I had fallen into a rut of making what was easy--but still healthy-- for quite a while, but it became repetitive. 

Did the healthy diet help the CFS? It did. I thought I was cured even. I didn't know when I started the vegan diet earlier this year that I had CFS, rather, as I have stated in older posts I thought it was perimenopause. It's not perimenopause. Unfortunately, like everything else I have tried to feel better, the fatigue and other symptoms came back. That is how it goes with CFS. One day you feel a little or even a lot better, and then in a day or two, you're back to feeling very poorly.

Regardless, my desire to eat with compassion and to eat healthier is as strong as ever. And when I have a more energetic day or chain of days, I will post about anything new and exciting that I come up with. 

Until then, if you live in or near Berkeley, CA, you must visit Cinnaholic. Their gourmet cinnamon rolls are truly to die for and 100% VEGAN. Even if you live too far away, you can order them to be delivered by mail. 

That said... be kind, be loving, be compassionate, and be gentle. 

Peace.

Tofurky, Veganism & Perimenopause, And A Shrinking Appetite

I would like to start by apologizing to the makers of Tofurky, Turtle Island Foods, Inc. After reading how soy isolates can lead to cancer and that they are commonly used in meat alternatives, I publicly announced I would no longer eat Tofurky products. Unfortunately, I assumed all meat alternative products used that as an ingredient without looking into the ingredients used in Tofurky products. They do not use soy isolates, and as they say under the "our story" tab on their website: "For soy proteins we rely on products like tofu and soybeans, which we believe are more wholesome, better textured and more environmentally friendly than high tech, hexane-extracted soy powders, isolates and concentrates." 

 Tonight  I will be using Tofurky Italian Sausage in my spaghetti. I have tried this one as well as the Kielbasa, the Hickory Smoked Deli Slices, and even the Italian Sausage Pizza (which sadly I cannot find in the stores near our current residence). The sausages do cook well on the grill, which is great when attending a BBQ where cow and pig are on the menu. I have not tried a product of theirs that I did not like, and I am thrilled to learn that they take such pride in creating a quality product. 

Now to switch gears a little, I need to discuss female health. Since switching to a vegan diet a little over two months ago, I have noticed a lot of my perimenopause/ PMS symptoms lessen by a lot. No, I cannot say they are all gone, but they are improving. In February, just before I started the vegan diet, I had a little over two weeks of immensely high anxiety. I was following a vegetarian diet, but I was still eating dairy. So, in my opinion a vegetarian diet is OK, but vegan is better. And by "OK," I mean it is nice as far as intentions go, but if you want better health, vegan is the way.

Dr. Neal Barnard says in his books that a vegan diet lowers a woman's overall estrogen levels. As the normal estrogen and progesterone hormonal cycle has peaks and valleys, lowering one's estrogen levels helps to create less of a drop when estrogen levels naturally lower just before menses. My vegan diet is still in its infancy, really, and I believe that over time the perimenopause/ PMS symptoms will be further reduced. Time will tell. 

Hormonal or not, another interesting benefit I have recently noticed is that my appetite is shrinking. When I first started the vegan diet, I was coming off a low calorie (deprivation) weight loss diet, and I was ravenous. I loved how the message from doctors Barnard, McDougall, Esselstein, and Campbell was to eat until fully satisfied and to not weigh or measure my food. Done and done! I stuffed my face and either lost or maintained my weight, but now I find I am full on less food and feel hungry less often. 

Here are some baked potato fries I can barely finish (just one potato):

I washed and cut the potato, placed the pieces on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, and sprinkled with garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. I then baked them for 30 minutes at 400 degrees fahrenheit. The outsides come out nice and crispy, which I love! 

This is whole wheat pasta with red bell peppers, zucchini, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, sundried tomatoes, potatoes, and spinach. As usual, I just cooked the vegetables in a pan with vegetable broth. When they are cooked, I add the beans for a few minutes, and then add the mix to the pasta. It is low fat, nutritious, and delicious!

A fun dessert I recently tried while craving something sweet to enjoy on a nearly 100-degree hot day was this:

If you like ice cream, you will like this. It was very creamy, perfectly sweet, and it did not have that funky coconut flavor other products made with coconut milk tend to have. Nothing against coconut milk, but for people looking for a dairy alternative that is close in taste and texture, I believe this one is the best.

Now on with Day Sixty-five... 

Day 45--Starch Strong

The starch life is a much better one. Food is tasty, satisfying, and I am not starving to death. Here is a simple little rice and veggie dish I recently made:

I simply sauteed the veggies, beans, and spices in some veggie broth, and then added them to cooked brown rice. I heated the chopped potato chunks in the microwave for three minutes first, before adding them to the pan. 

This dish included the following: 

Russet potatoes, 3 small, peeled and chopped

Zucchini squash, 1 large, chopped

Red Bell Pepper, 1 medium, chopped

Crimini Mushrooms, ~1/2 cup, sliced

Spinach, ~2 cups

~ 1/4 cup Sundried Tomatoes (comes in a bag, no oil)

Garbanzo Beans, 1 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed

1 15-ounce can Roasted, Diced Tomatoes

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

2 teaspoons dried parsley

Vegetable broth to cover bottom of pan

Brown rice (short grain was used in this dish)

There is usually enough for five or six meals, which comes in handy when I need something quick. I can just pop the leftovers in the microwave and wah la! It also makes packing meals to take to work easy, too. 

This next photo is toast with hummus and red kidney beans. I have read from a few different sources that beans on toast is part of a traditional English breakfast, and I wanted to give it a shot. I added the hummus to give the beans something to stick to. I am still using the low fat hummus I buy from Whole Foods Market. The ingredients are just garbanzo beans, lemon powder, garlic powder, and citric acid. It has a nice lemony tang which gives a nice flavor. I eat it as a snack, but it could definitely be eaten as part of a meal. I have also used Pinto beans which were equally tasty and filling. 

I recently decided to branch out after reading through Dr. McDougall's lists of store bought foods, and I bought some sprouted whole wheat bread by Alvarado Street Bakery. Although I still like the Ezekiel bread I was eating before, this bread is quite tasty as well. Each piece is a little bigger, probably more like the standard bread everyone is used to buying, and it is fluffier.

This was last night's dinner: Salad, a baked sweet potato, and brown rice with some parsley flakes and Bragg Liquid Aminos. I probably would have enjoyed some more rice, but this was all I had leftover. I did not add a single thing to the potato. I heated it in the microwave for 5 minutes to cook it a bit faster, and then I set it in the oven at 400 degrees fahrenheit for about 10-15 minutes to get the skin crispy. The sweet potato is so moist and flavorful as is, and so I cannot imagine any good topping for it. I used to add a buttery spread, but that just adds fat to my waist, and again, the sweet potato is already so moist and delicious on its own.  

The salad was made up of Romaine lettuce, cucumber slices, carrot slices, cherry tomatoes, and raw beet slices to which I add Annie's Naturals Fat Free Mango dressing. 

 

On with Day 45....

Days Thirty-five Through Thirty-seven: Becoming A Starchivore

Three days ago, I picked up a copy of John McDougall's book, The Starch Solution from the library and devoured it. Meaning, I read through it in two days. If I did not have to go to work, I would have read it in one day. Along with sound nutritional information and an explanation as to how eating fish, meat, and dairy is killing the planet, McDougall says we should all center our meals around starchy food and add nonstarchy vegetables and fruits to complement. Starchy foods include potatoes (white and sweet), corn, legumes (beans and peas), and grains. They are filling foods, they are comforting (think "comfort food"), and they give us the energy we need to live. It does not get better than this! I salivated looking through the menu plan and the recipes at the end of this book. 

When I first started my vegan diet a little over a month ago, I was starving from being on the processed-food diet by Nutrisystem. The first day of eating the vegan way, I unintentionally ate a lot of starch--I had some with every meal. I was only consciously trying to avoid animal products, to eat whole foods, and to omit adding any extra fats in the form of oils, fake butters, nuts, seeds, avocados and olives. I do not think nuts, seeds, avocados or olives are bad, but I do know that if one is trying to lose weight--which I am--it is best to limit or avoid them altogether. 

So, the first few days were pretty great. I was eating way more food (good tasting, real food), and yet, I was losing an average of a pound a day. My skin was clearing up, I had energy, and I was euphoric. I gave all of the credit to the mere absence of animal products from my diet. 

Then, I started to read Dr. Fuhrman's book, Eat To Live, and I incorporated a lot more nonstarchy vegetables into my diet. That is not horrible in and of itself, but I was starting to feel a little less energetic and euphoric, the weight loss stalled, and junk foods were starting to tempt me. Also, my skin started to break out again, which was frustrating as I was gorging on salads full of high-nutrient vegetables. 

Never was I tempted by animal products, but fat was looking more and more appealing. Tired of washing pounds of nonstarchy vegetables day after day, I started to eat the more-convenient sandwiches made with Tofurky Deli Slices and Vegenaise spread. I piled on the lettuce thinking that would make it okay, but apparently it did not. My fingers found their way into my husband's greasy potato chip bag a few days in a row, and I started snacking here-and-there on raw walnuts and almonds. My weight started to go back up.

In McDougall's The Starch Solution, he warns against eating over processed soy products, saying they are as bad if not worse than eating their animal equivalents. In fact, they have isolated soy protein in them which has shown to be as aggressive at feeding cancer as eating animal proteins (be aware, it is a common ingredient in protein bars and shakes as well). So that did it! No more Tofurky for me! Plus, I should not be eating the vegan mayonnaise, Vegenaise, anyway. It may not contain animal fat, but it does contain fat. And as Dr. McDougall says, "A fat is a fat is a fat."

Today is the third day in a row of following Dr. McDougall's food plan, and I have lost two pounds! BUT... even better than that, I am loving the food, feeling very satisfied, eating way more than I thought I could to be still losing weight, my skin is getting clear again (most noticeable today), and my mood has been very upbeat.   

Another very interesting thing I learned from Dr. McDougall is that sugar is not bad. He even says that adding a little simple sugar, like brown sugar or maple syrup, to food is not a horrible thing, so long as it is used as a flavoring and not the main ingredient. He suggests adding it to food at the table in small amounts so that it is not cooked into the food. We need to be able to taste it. Our tongues are designed to seek out sweet and salty foods so that we will eat and remain alive. (So yes, a little salt added to a dish is not going to kill anyone either). 

Our saliva "produces six to eight times more of the starch-digesting enzyme amylase" compared to "lesser" primates. We are designed by nature to eat starch! It is not evil or fattening like the meat and dairy producers who make billions of dollars would have us believe.

The day after borrowing the book, I decided to test Dr. McDougall's claims, and I put some agave nectar on my morning oatmeal--about 2 teaspoons worth. I thought for sure it would show up on the scale or sabotage me in some way. I also ate until I was full--not watching portion sizes, eating lots of brown rice for lunch and dinner, snacking on sprouted wheat tortillas, wheat bread, and even pretzels. I have eaten potatoes each of these last three days, corn, and green peas. But alas, I have lost weight and I feel amazing! I am convinced that Dr. McDougall is spot on, and I am officially eating like a starchivore as nature intended. 

I highly recommend to anyone looking to improve their health and the health of the planet to go to his website and learn all you can. Buy or borrow his books, check out videos of his lectures on youtube, and look at the free program on his website. He actually wants to heal people, not make a buck (or a billion).

It is dinnertime... 

   

Day Thirty-four, Differing Opinions

Okay, so there are three doctors with diet plans who are big in the healthy vegan diet world: Dr. Neal Barnard, Dr. John McDougall, and Dr. Joel Fuhrman. They all seem to agree that a plant-based diet is the key to health and that keeping the fats very low are equally important. However, how much of each food group (fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes) each doctor thinks a person should eat is a different story.

Each of the doctors would be in favor of a person eating a huge green salad with a fat free dressing. In fact, Dr. Fuhrman would be particularly in agreement with this choice. His recommended food plan is probably the toughest for me. Do not get me wrong, I am a huge fan of salads and vegetables in general, but he really wants you to eat a ton of them. As I have mentioned in prior blog posts, he suggests making it a goal to eat one pound of raw non-starchy vegetables and one pound of cooked non-starchy vegetables a day (Eat To Live). 

I have not been able to consume nearly that much produce in a day (think of how lightweight lettuce is), and contrary to his claims, even a high quantity of non-starchy vegetables does not keep me full. Sure right after eating a huge salad and a big serving of cooked vegetables I feel full, but it does not last until the next mealtime. I completely respect Dr. Fuhrman and the science he provides to back up his recommendations, however, I find my hunger is better satisfied by starches and grains. 

Dr. Barnard and Dr. McDougall are probably very similar. Unlike Dr. Fuhrman who recommends a mere one cup serving daily of grains/ starchy vegetables, they suggest eating them throughout the day. I have not yet read one of McDougall's books (picking up The Starch Solution from the library today), but I have looked at the free program posted on his website. Aside from the elimination of caffeine, this program is looking pretty good and doable. 

One thing I love about amazon.com is that I can peruse the inside of some books, and I was able to read a little from McDougall's book, The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss. Two chapters I clicked on and read from were, "Women Are Slow Losers," and "Alcohol, Coffee, and Your Weight." Bottom line, women can efficiently lose weight on his program and coffee is not good for weight loss. McDougall says people tend to overeat with caffeine in the stomach in an effort to absorb the acid burning which many mistake as hunger. 

I have not read all of Dr. Barnard's books, so I cannot say where he stands on my morning friend, coffee. His plan is also accessible for free online: 21-Day Vegan Kickstart. He does not list coffee as something one should be drinking, but I have not seen him say to avoid it. Animal-based products seem to be the only things he would place in the "avoid" category, next to added oils and fats. 

I am navigating my way, trying to find the right balance for my body between the food groups. Here are the doctors' recommendations summed up: Barnard recommends 8 servings of grains, 3 servings of legumes, at least 4 servings of vegetables, and "aim for" 3 servings of fruit; Fuhrman says to eat an unlimited amount of non-starchy vegetables, fruits, and legumes, one cup from the starchy vegetables and grain group, 1 ounce maximum serving of unprocessed, raw seeds and nuts, 2 ounces maximum of avocado, 2 tablespoons max per day of dried fruit, and 1 tablespoon max of ground flaxseeds; and McDougall says starchy foods should be the center of a meal (included in this group are starchy vegetables, grains, and legumes), non-starchy vegetables can be eaten in unlimited quantities, and fruits should be kept at 3 servings a day. He also warns to go light on soybeans as they are high in fat and do not qualify for the legume serving suggestion, which may be unlimited, I am not certain. 

As promised, here are photos of Dr. Barnard's recipe for Italian Greens and Beans that I made from his book, The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook (recipe follows):   

I put this deliciousness over plain brown rice and gobbled it up. 

Italian Beans and Greens

makes 4 servings

1/4 cup vegetable broth

1 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 cups baby arugula, washed

2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained, or 2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

Pinch of sugar

Kosher or sea salt to taste

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Heat the broth in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 3 minutes. Add the arugula and lower heat to medium-low. Cook until the arugula is almost wilted. 

2. Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, oregano, basil, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Cover and cook for 5 minutes until all ingredients are cooked through.

I have to add that I did not drain my can of diced tomatoes, and it was lovely. I also used the white part of green onions instead of a regular yellow onion simply because I needed to use them before they go bad. They seemed to work just as well. 

And now on to live day Thirty-four of my vegan diet...

Day Thirty

As of today, I have been following a vegan diet for an entire month. My conscience is clear, and I am feeling wonderful. 

The weight loss has slowed a bit in the last week or so, but I know that all of the good I am doing for my body and the planet is paying off. Also, in reading some testimonies from various patients of Joel Fuhrman, M.D. and Neal Barnard, M.D., I got the message that although the weight may come off more slowly for some of us, it does continue to come off if one sticks to a healthy, whole foods vegan diet. I am only around ten pounds over what I was in high school, and so really, I am okay if it takes longer than it might on some crazy crash diet to lose the last ten or so pounds. I must also admit that I have slowed down on the exercise a bit. (It's just not my favorite thing in the world to do!).

I finally watched the feature film Forks Over Knives yesterday with my mom. Wow. Not that I needed any more convincing, but this film has me ready to raise my right hand and take an oath swearing to never eat any animal products ever again. Mom is ready to try a plant based diet as well! As T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. shows us, if you want to feed cancer, eat animal protein. Period. If you want to increase your chances of having a heart attack, eat animal products. 

If you want to see cancers diminish or even go away, heal your arteries, improve or reverse diabetes, lower your cholesterol, get off poisonous medications, lose weight, increase your energy--basically, completely improve your health--then eat a plant based diet (vegetables, fruits, legumes, and grains). 

T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. has the science, and Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., M.D. has the clinical evidence  to back this up, and they explain it all quite simply in the film. Both men were born into families that owned and profited from the meat and dairy industry, but they could not deny their findings. They gave up animal products and are both well into their seventies, practicing what they preach.

So let's talk about food!

I washed and peeled a sweet potato the other day, and as I sliced it, I somehow sliced the pieces fairly thin like potato chips. I was living in the moment, if you will, and I did not have a plan for the potato, so I went with the flow. Homemade potato chips sounded great, so I gave it a shot. 

I heated the oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit, covered a cookie sheet with a piece of parchment paper, and spread the potato slices evenly over the surface. Then, I lightly sprayed a thin coat of Trader Joe's fat free olive oil spray over the potato slices, and sprinkled garlic powder, paprika, parsley flakes, and onion powder over each piece. I considered tossing the slices in a bowl, wetted with water, with the spices to avoid using the olive oil spray, but honestly, I could not stand the idea of washing another dish. 

The thinner slices burned to a crisp, but the thicker, more evenly cut pieces looked like this:

They were in the oven a little over twenty minutes. Abby, our five-year-old Abyssinian cat had come to sit on my lap while they were baking. As she is not much of a lap cat, it was such a treat that I did not dare get up to check the potato like I should have. The next time I make this, I will probably check it in ten minute increments and pull out the thinner slices before they turn black. Very tasty though, even without salt and tons of fat like the store-bought variety. 

This salad consisted of romaine lettuce, heirloom tomatoes, cucumber, raw beet slices, and a little carrot. Boring as I can be, I am still using Annie's Naturals Fat Free Mango Vinaigrette. Delicious! Looked so vital and alive that I had to take a picture of it.

Believe it or not, these are red split lentils. Dry, they are a light coral red, but once cooked they lose their color and turn greenish-yellow. They cook up very quickly, which I love. (By the way, I had considered calling this blog, "The Lazy Vegan," but that title was already taken). 

I cooked the green onion, garlic, mushroom, and carrot in some vegetable broth for about five to ten minutes prior to adding ~3 cups of broth and 1 cup of lentils. I used my usual favorite spices: garlic powder, parsley, and poultry seasoning (maybe some thyme, too--cannot remember). After the broth heated through and cooked the lentils for about ten minutes, I then added about five big handfuls of spinach and wilted it before stirring everything together. The lentils soaked up the liquid quickly, and so to avoid burning them, I turned off the heat, covered them, and let them sit before serving. I had company over, so I let them sit for fifteen to twenty minutes prior to serving, but I probably would have filled up a bowl sooner if I had been alone. 

The plan is to branch out a little more this week. I bought some arugula and plan to follow the Italian Beans and Greens recipe in Neal Barnard, M.D.'s book, The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook. I made it a few years back, and although I am not normally a fan of the spicy arugula, I did like this recipe. The diced tomatoes and chickpeas seem to tame this leafy green. Photos coming soon. 

In addition to my usual favorites, I also purchased an eggplant today. Not sure what I am going to do with it yet, but I feel confident that it will be something good. 

And now on to month two... 

Day Twenty-seven, Eating to Live

My view on what is and is not food is going through an epic transformation thanks to books by Neal Barnard, M.D., and Eat To Live by Joel Fuhrman, M.D. 

Of course, both doctors know (and probably their publishers, too) that to get people's attention they need to advertise weight loss on the covers of their books. That is all good and fine, but regardless of weight loss, the fundamental nutrition information they both offer up in their books has me realizing that I have not been eating real food for some forty odd years. 

OK, I have been enjoying vegetables and fruits for quite a while now, so I have not been completely deprived of nutrition. But, I have percentage-wise definitely consumed a lot more non-food, as I am now calling it. The nutrition information is so smack-your-forehead simple and intuitive, it is a wonder we ever got off track and into eating all of the processed garbage we now call food. He also offers up nutritional information that is not so readily available to the public. Or at least, it is not plastered to billboards or predominant in television advertisements. Those are held available for the disease causing, mega-rich "food" companies. 

If you are a die-hard meat eater, Dr. Fuhrman does not admonish you in his book, nor does he push or guilt you into giving it up. He offers the same advice to all, which is to make at least 90% of your daily intake of food fresh produce. He does bring up the harmful effects of eating animal products, but he says that if you focus most of your calories on fresh produce, you are better off than any person, vegetarian or meat eater, who eats mainly processed foods. 

Personally, I am sticking with the no animal products way of eating, but I think his book is good for everybody. He even includes two meal plans--one for vegetarians and one for meat eaters. I would rather see the meat eaters of the world greatly reduce their animal product foods over following a low-carb diet any day. A little bit of meat is a huge improvement over the colon cancer inducing amount many Americans consume these days. 

My diet contains some processed foods--I am not claiming perfection. I have, however, reduced my intake of them by using water in place of soymilk to make my morning oatmeal. I only use it in my coffee and enjoy the occasional chocolate soymilk as a treat. I have also continued to allow Tofurky deli slices in my diet. They are tasty and quick when I need to make a sandwich in a hurry. 

In trying to follow Dr. Fuhrman's produce guidelines, I have found that I do not have the time or energy to eat non-foods. He actually recommends eating an entire head of lettuce daily! I am doing my best to eat mainly vegetables and four or more fruits daily, but it is a lot of food! I am not quite there and may not be for many months to come, but I am greatly increasing my vegetable intake with a concentrated focus on leafy greens. If you read his book, you may also become fanatical about eating your leafy greens. 

Smoothies are an easy and tasty way to get a lot of leafy greens without a ton of chewing. I should just use water, but I will admit that I use orange juice mixed with water as my liquid base. Eventually I will just use water, but for now, I am going to enjoy my smoothies with a little more sweetness than just adding whole fruits provides.  

The above photo shows some vegetables I cooked up in vegetable broth and added to cooked quinoa. Like Dr. Barnard, Dr. Fuhrman advocates staying away from added oils. I cooked the chopped onion, garlic, and mushroom first. Then, I added cauliflower, zucchini, red bell pepper, and spinach. The spices I used were poultry seasoning, parsley, and garlic powder. The cauliflower crumbled into much smaller pieces on its own once it was cooked through. 

This is some amazing green lentil soup I made. I bought the green lentils from Trader Joe's. Lentils are great because you do not have to soak them before cooking them, and they cook up fast. I first cooked the onions, garlic, and mushroom pieces in a bit of vegetable broth* for about five minutes (*enough broth to cover the bottom of the pot and to keep the vegetables from burning). Then, I added more broth (~48 ounces), cauliflower, carrot, some garlic powder, dried parsley, and one cup of green lentils and cooked everything on medium-high heat for forty minutes. In the remaining five or so minutes, I added a few big handfuls of raw spinach and covered the pot so as to wilt it before stirring it in with the rest of the ingredients. I was surprised at how well it turned out. I think my palate is adjusted to real food now and does not need a ton of added seasonings to be satisfied.

I am still quite happy and plan to continue on with my vegan diet. Sorry for the gap in blog posts. More on that in a couple of days.

And now on with day twenty-seven...

Days Sixteen- Eighteen

Raisins are a high concentration of sugar, and if you put on weight easily with sugar like I do, go lightly with the dried fruits. I was just adding a tablespoon or so to my oatmeal, which was fine, but then earlier in the week I must admit the sugar cravings got me. I snacked a bit too freely on some raisins, and my weight went up. Once I stopped eating them (because I ran out!), my weight went back down. 

OK, so I was not being entirely truthful when I said the numbers on the scale did not mean as much as the feeling of eating healthier. I do want to be healthy, and being overweight does not feel healthy to me. The numbers went up mid-week (thanks a lot, raisins!), and I did start to freak out. After all, I was not eating cookies, candy, fried foods, or anything "fun." I mean, hey, if I am going to gain weight, I want to have at least enjoyed some french fries or a candy bar, not raisins! 

After an honest look at what I was eating and a video ("How to Lose Weight Without Losing Your Mind") featuring Dr. Lisle from the McDougall Program, I realized my vegetable consumption had gone down a little in favor of what Dr. Lisle calls "concentrated" foods. I was eating more grains and legumes (and raisins), which are not bad foods, but for a body like mine (curvy/burly, not naturally thin), I need to eat more fiber and water rich foods to fill up my stomach and shed those pounds.

I realized that I was no longer eating a salad every day, and in fact I had gone many days without one. So, I am back on the salad train, and my weight is going down again. I love salads, but I will admit that I can get lazy when it comes to washing and chopping so many vegetables--for salads or cooking. 

Dr. Lisle explains in the video that as animals we are naturally wired to seek pleasure and to conserve energy. And it seems to me that many foods, sadly not watery, fiber-rich vegetables, can be highly addictive even when they are not chalked full of preservatives or harmful chemicals. I would gladly take a toasted slice of Ezekiel bread with apple butter over the washing and chopping of just about any vegetable any day. The bread is oil and sugar free, simply made from sprouted grains, yet it is more appealing to my brain than a cold, wet salad. Unfortunately, the calories from the toast and apple butter add up faster. 

My diet is a work in progress. Eating vegan is as easy as breathing air for me, but always eating healthy is the work part. There are tons of non-animal foods to eat, the problem is that even something as natural as a walnut can be too rich if eaten in too large quantity. 

Now on to Day Nineteen.... 

Days Thirteen- Fifteen

Still going strong with the vegan diet. My tape measure and clothes are in agreement, but the scale is not. According to my measurements, I have lost about another 1/2 inch off my waist and hips, and my clothes are getting looser (choice of outfits from my closet are getting slim, too). Oddly the scale has me in the same place, but I am finding that I do not care about that number as much. I am just around ten pounds over my comfortable weight, so I really cannot complain about that. 

Although I do enjoy losing the weight I put on and carried around for five or so years, I have to say that my overall well being is so vastly improved that I am not freaking out about that three digit number. My head feels clearer and my heart feels lighter. I have also noticed the painful stiffness in my knees is magically gone. Well, not magically--it is pretty logical, actually. My body is not having to process all of the junk I used to eat and it is receiving more nutrient-wise. And as I have said before, not starving myself is a huge upside to healthy eating as well.

A delicious green smoothie that is actually green. Mine are usually purple from mixed berries.

On Day Thirteen, I was a bit rushed for time and realized I did not have the luxury of making a healthy lunch and dinner both from scratch. This dawned on me as I was grabbing a few items at the grocery store, and so I snatched a package of hickory smoked Tofurky deli slices and made a sandwich when I got home. Technically, the Tofurky is a processed food, I know, but I am a busy woman, and frankly, sometimes I need some "fast food." 

I spread a very thin layer of Vegenaise (vegan mayonnaise) on two slices of Ezekiel bread--Yes! I even added a little fat!--sliced a tomato and some cucumber, and placed them on the bread slices with some lettuce and Tofurky deli slices. Presto! Lunch in a snap. It held me over until dinner, and I felt comfortably full without that drowsy feeling people talk about after eating turkey or a heavy meal. 

For dinner the same day, I prepared my currently comfortable and somewhat quick food combination: Rice, beans, vegetables and spices. 

I also grabbed a couple of peeled carrots to chew on in case I did not bring enough of the dish I made--which I did eat as the above meal is so low in fat and calories. After work, I enjoyed a lovely, whole apple while I played with the cats (multitasking cat mama).

The next day I did something a little risky: I combined the small amount of Breakfast Scramble leftovers from Day Ten and the leftovers from the night before in a tortilla with a little hummus. I was not sure the flavors would combine well, but sure enough, it was a marriage made in heaven. Honestly, I was a little sad there would not be any leftovers of this bizarre concoction, but it could happen again someday.

For dinner that night, I changed things up a bit and threw together some rice fusilli pasta and added vegetables and red marinara sauce. I cheated with the marinara sauce and used Classico's Tomato and Basil Sauce. It was wonderful, and I got to enjoy the leftovers yesterday (Day Fifteen).

Day 15 was more of the same, except that for breakfast I kept it light as Gerald and I were going to do some yoga before he left for work. I just had a banana, a meatless breakfast patty, and a slice of Ezekiel toast with apple butter. After yoga, a delicious smoothie held me over until lunch, which was a rice, veggie, and lemony hummus combo. 

Now on with Day Sixteen...

Day 12

Giving up meat, poultry, fish? No problem! Giving up eggs and dairy products? No problem! Giving up added fats, even just the ones from vegetable sources? Starting to get tough. 

During an hour and a half massage yesterday before my break at work, I started to get hungry. I had brought a salad heavy with chickpeas and other vegetables along with a couple of Mandarin oranges, and suddenly that was not sounding heavy enough. I am going to say something men hate to hear--my period is coming. And when that is on its way, my appetite increases tenfold, and I  am not necessarily craving carrot or celery sticks. 

I started to fantasize about walking a couple doors down to get a black bean and brown rice burrito from Chipotle. I was really into to it--the beans, the rice, the salsa, the lettuce, maybe some guacamole. Wait! Guacamole is super fat. Ooo, what about the grilled vegetables? No, probably cooked in oil. I did not care, I was going to do it. I just had to decide whether it was going to be a low fat burrito or a high fat one. 

After I cleaned up from the massage and stood in the break room contemplating the burrito, guilt took over my consciousness and I stayed to eat my salad. I still had about thirty minutes left in my break after finishing my meal and started to consider that burrito again. My extreme premenstrual exhaustion saved me that time, because the idea of having to hustle out and get the burrito with two more massages ahead in my schedule, sounded about as exhausting as trying to push over a brick wall with my bare hands.

Earlier in the day, I had decided that when I got home after work, if I felt hungry, I would eat an apple and if that did not do it, some brown rice with Bragg's Liquid Aminos. I did eat the apple, but I also nibbled on some Kettle Krinkle Cut Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper Potato Chips. Gerald takes these for a snack at work. I read the label a hundred times to make sure they were vegan. On their website (which I will admit I am just now checking after eating some chips last night) in the FAQs section, when asked if their products are dairy free they say: 

"Our products are processed on equipment shared with ingredients that contain very small amounts of dairy. We thoroughly clean our lines after each flavor run, but there is a slight potential of cross contamination." 

All right, so I will not eat more Kettle chips. The salt and fat was satisfying to my taste buds though, I will admit. 

Oddly, I did not eat the brown rice as planned. Instead making crispy tortilla chips from my Ezekiel tortillas and dipping them in low fat hummus sounded better. I really wanted to dip them in salsa, but I am currently out. I believe the solution is to browse through my Forks Over Knives, The Cookbook by Del Sroufe and The Get Healthy, Go Vegan Cookbook by Neal Barnard, M.D. Because honestly, my own creations are all starting to essentially be the same meal with little variation. I am getting bored. 

I also follow Vegetarian Times Magazine on Facebook, and they are constantly bombarding me with pictures of gorgeous -likely fat laden- dishes. I also follow Chef Chloe's posts, and the woman loves to bake, bless her soul. I am the yin to her yang, because I love to EAT baked goodies. 

Happily, my challenge is not that I desire animal products for food, just that I seem to be craving fattier foods. OK, and sugary foods--not simply fruit, devine though fruit can be. 

Reviewing my food list for yesterday before sharing it here, I am seeing how I probably began to crave fats and sugars yesterday because I did not actually eat much in terms of quantity. It was the one day of the week when I go into work earlier, and I believe not having as much time for filling up on healthy foods may be the culprit. Quantity and new recipes will hopefully be the solution. Hoping today goes better.

Here is what I ate:

Breakfast: Breakfast Scramble leftovers, coffee with soymilk.

I have to admit, the craziness started early. The potatoes in this recipe screamed for ketchup, and I gave in. I drizzled a fairly small amount over the scramble. The sugar in the ketchup is probably what got the ball rolling down hill.  

Snack: Chocolate soymilk, single serving box (8 oz.).

Uh oh, see? So soon I was looking for more sugar.

Lunch: Bean, veggie and rice leftovers from lunch the day before.

Oddly enough, I recall not being all too hungry when I ate this. It was a small serving, maybe about a cup in size with all of the ingredients, but I ate it because I knew it would be about four hours until I could eat again. 

Dinner: Salad with Annie's Natural dressing, 2 Mandarin oranges.

Red leaf lettuce, chickpeas, cucumbers, carrots, red bell peppers, and Annie's fat free mango dressing. 

Later: Fuji apple, handful of Kettle chips, Ezekiel tortilla w/ hummus, raisins.

I mentioned the apple, chips, tortilla and hummus above, but I did not mention the raisins. I REALLY wanted some dessert, but another piece of fruit just did not seem sweet enough. I just snacked on the raisins.  

  

Days Nine- Eleven

A funny thing happened after writing my last blog about sugar and how I had once read that eating animal protein helps with sugar cravings. Later that same day I went on to read some very contradicting information in Breaking the Food Seduction, by Neal Barnard, M.D. In his chapter on meat he says, "It turns out that meat stimulates a surprisingly strong release of insulin, just as a cookie or bread does, a fact that surprised nutrition researchers." That truly surprised me, but at the same time it made sense as I recall times of eating what I thought was a healthy meal--baked, white chicken breast, salad, side of vegetables--and seconds afterward I could not wait to get my hands on some dessert. 

Barnard added, "In fact, beef and cheese cause a bigger insulin release than pasta, and fish produces a bigger insulin release than popcorn." Normally when a person eats something sweet or with a high glycemic index, their bodies compensate by releasing insulin to balance the excessive amount of sugar going quickly--too quickly--into the blood. All that insulin can then bring on another craving for a sugary or simple carbohydrate, and the poor body is up and down between overly high blood sugar and too much insulin, which if I am understanding correctly can lead to diabetes. 

Before following the low-fat vegan diet prescribed by Dr. Barnard, my blood sugar levels were all over the place. My hunger went from "am I hungry?" to "if I do not eat this instant I am going to pass out!" Now I become aware of my hunger in a much gentler way. For that, I am immensely grateful. I used to think it was just me and how eating was supposed to be. Since starting the diet, I have been on a much more even keel with my hunger and energy levels. 

So, let's talk about food!

I tried out a couple of new things as promised over the last few days. Day Nine was more of the usual fare, but I ventured out in a new direction for breakfast the next morning, on Day Ten. 

This is what Neal Barnard calls the Breakfast Scramble in his book 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart, with a couple of ingredients added by me.  

The ingredients are:

4 ounces of firm tofu, crumbled, 1 Yukon Gold potato, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of Turmeric. To these I added some chopped onion and a few crimini mushrooms. (Ezekiel toast with apple butter pictured with the scramble). 

I chopped up and microwaved the potato for about 3 minutes (adding a couple tablespoons of water in the bowl so that they would not dry out). I sprayed the frying pan per the recipe directions with fat free oil spray--first time I have added anything oil-like since starting the diet. I then added the onions and mushrooms and let them cook for a few minutes before adding the crumbled tofu and 1/4 teaspoon of salt (salt--also something I have not done in over a week).

The directions said to allow the tofu to cook for up to five minutes before adding the potatoes and Turmeric. I did that, and I have to add a note here. I believe 2 entire teaspoons of this spice is WAY too much. I almost stopped after one teaspoon, but I wanted to see how it would taste. I tossed all of the ingredients in the pan, but it was difficult to get the Turmeric to fully mix in with the other ingredients. While I was eating it, I sometimes stumbled upon patches of powder in my mouth. I like the spice, but not so much that I would shake some into my hand and pop it into my mouth. 

Minus the overload of Turmeric, I think it was a tasty dish. I could not taste the salt to save my life. The firm tofu crumbled up really well, and if I didn't know any better, I might not have known it was in there. One can add other vegetables and use any leftovers in a breakfast burrito. The recipe says it serves two, but I ate a little less than one serving.

For Lunch on Day Ten, I added brown rice, cauliflower, and tomato to Trader Joe's Latin Black Bean Soup.

The rice was pre cooked, of course, but I had this weird idea that raw cauliflower and uncooked tomato might taste good in the soup as well. I was wrong, but I had to get ready for work and ate the weird concoction anyway. Oh well, not all creative attempts are successes. 

The bean soup is really tasty on its own and great with rice as it is a little thicker than a broth, but not as thick as some split pea soups. It only has 1 gram of fat per 8 ounce serving, which follows Dr. Barnard's guidelines. Plus, it is easy to prepare. Just shake, heat, and eat. Sometimes we all need convenient foods to help save time. 

For Dinner that night, I made a big salad which included edamame, carrots, cucumbers, red bell pepper slices, zucchini slices, and tomato. I topped it with Annie's Naturals Mango Vinaigrette. I also enjoyed a toasted slice of Dave's Killer Bread, Rockin' Rye with nothing on it.  

  

The next day, Day Eleven, was a little more of the same. For lunch I cooked some edamame in a pan with vegetable broth, after a few minutes I added garlic powder before incorporating some crimini mushrooms, red bell pepper strips, zucchini slices, and pre cooked sweet potato, chopped. Once the veggies were cooked through, I added some brown rice. I liked the light flavor, but my husband, Gerald, added some Bragg's Liquid Aminos to is bowl.  

For a light Snack after work, I enjoyed a couple of Mandarin oranges. 

Now on to day 12......