Meatless Monday Recipes

It is barbecue season, and we attended 2 recent events with grilled hamburgers. It was so easy to bring along some veggie burgers for the grill! Everything else being served was already vegetarian, and I enjoyed these get-togethers with friends.

I tried 2 new recipes recently. This quinoa salad from Mind Body Green was delicious for dinner, and the leftovers were great for lunches. This vegan chocolate pudding from Minimalist Baker is really rich and easy to make.

Have a great week!

Meatless Monday: CBLT

The first tomatoes are ripening from our garden.

I wanted a vegetarian BLT, and I made a batch of coconut bacon. The recipe is from Joyful Vegan, and I really like it. I do have to carefully watch these in the oven so they do not burn.

Here is my yummy "CBLT" made mostly with ingredients from the farmers' market and our garden.

Meatless in Monterey

We just returned from a weekend in Monterey, California. I had no problem traveling with my omnivore family and staying meatless. We rented a cottage with a kitchen, so we ate about half of our meals there. We brought a little food with us and made a trip to Trader Joe's. As a treat, I think that the Trader Joe's Coconut Milk Chocolate Ice Cream cannot be be beat! It is really rich and delicious. Is not not low calorie or low fat, but it does have less calories and fat than a serving of regular ice cream.

Before the trip I bought the Happy Cow App to help research veg-friendly restaurants. We played our meals by ear, but it was still nice to have this tool. Our first meal in town was at the Sand Bar and Grill. John wanted seafood, but I was still able to find a meatless and delicious pasta dish. It had olives and capers for a nice flavor. Our view of the bay and boats was fantastic.

One of our favorite Bay Area chains is Ike's Place. They make a huge variety of sandwiches, including vegetarian and vegan options. Alex and I split a "Meatless Mike" since the sandwiches are large.

I was impressed with the cafe at the Monterey Bay Aquarium even though it is a bit pricey. I was able to find a veggie burger and plenty of other meatless options. They had menus out that shared their vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free options.

The food was just one part of this fun trip! I will share more pictures from our trip in a future post.

Easy Vegan Waffles

My husband made whole wheat vegan waffles for Mother's Day, and they were a hit.

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 pinches of salt
4 TBSP sugar (I can find vegan sugar at Trader Joe's.)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup plant milk
4 TBSP vegetable oil (I may sub apple sauce for some of the oil next time.)
Makes approximately 12 small waffles

We enjoyed our waffles with some veggie bacon and raspberries from the farmers' market.

(Recipe adapted from Spark People.)

Around Here - April 2015

Here are some of our pictures from April 2015:

Alex enjoyed an Easter Egg Hunt and then we headed to the East Bay for a yummy vegan brunch with family at Sanctuary Bistro. I managed to avoid eating milk chocolate Easter candy this year!


We continue to have mainly vegetarian & vegans dinner, and recently I made vegetarian chili with "Happy Herbivore" cornbread. I found a vegan cheese that I like on grilled cheese sandwiches. It takes a little longer to melt than dairy cheese, but it fulfills my grilled cheese craving.


Alex and I planted a little garden during his spring break. We need to add a little more dirt, but I am happy with the fabric container. It will be easier to move in the future and holds a tomato plant, a blueberry bush, and some strawberry plants. We planted spinach, summer squash, and carrot seeds. We also have a couple of herb plants.


On April 25th, we headed to the first ever Oakland Veg Fest and had a great time. We enjoyed yummy food, free samples, and inspirational speakers.



Happy May!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

These muffins are easy to make and taste great. I adapted the recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking.

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup applesauce
4 ripe mashed bananas
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup nondairy semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 and spray or line a muffin tin.
2. Mash 4 ripe bananas and set aside.
3. Mix all of the dry ingredients except for the chocolate chips
4. Add in the wet ingredients and stir.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips.
6. Fill each muffin spot about 3/4 full.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
8. Cool & Enjoy!

We are not big egg eaters, so I do not often have eggs in the house. I love baking with bananas since they are a binder and taste great. I got 16 muffins from this recipe, which was enough to share with friends. What have you baked recently?

Meatless Monday: Vegetarian Pho

I have been fighting off some form of allergies or a cold for the past two weeks, and in my dad's words, "I am sick enough to be cured." Once it turned into a suns infection, it was time to get some antibiotics. It was also helpful to get some soup, so last night John took us to his favorite Pho restaurant. Alex and I had not tried this Vietnamese dish yet even though there are lots of Pho restaurants in our area. I ordered the Vegetarian Pho (with tofu) and loved it. I am finding lots of tasty vegetarian and vegan options at local restaurants. Alex and I are both getting better with chopsticks.

Happy Meatless Monday!

Meatless Monday: For the times that I do not want to cook!

I have been cooking more dinners since I left full-time work and especially since adopting a plant-based diet. (I wrote a post last summer when I left my job, but I am overdue on for an update, including my observations from "kindergarten lunch duty.")

But some days I do not want to cook dinner. Here are a few meatless options that we've enjoyed:



We really like the Trader Jose's soup. The Creamy Tomato Soup is vegetarian and the Butternut Squash appears to be plant-based. (I need to find a vegan recipe similar to the Trader Joe's Tomato Soup. It needs to be creamy and a bit sweet and not seasoned with basil. This is my new challenge for another post.) While homemade soups can be healthier than packaged ones, I do appreciate the convenience of just quickly heating up some soup. The Trader Joe's website has a list of all the products that are completely vegan.

I was recently stumped for an easy dinner option and walked by Amy's Roasted Vegetable Pizza. I really enjoyed this find and it was on sale at Target! I have surprised myself by not really missing cheese on my pizza. The Amy's brand products are all vegetarian and some are vegan.I have liked everything I've tried from this brand and can often find their Indian wraps on sale at Safeway.

While I strive to eat less processed food, I appreciate seeing plant-based and vegan products in the grocery stores for when I need a fast and easy option. What is your favorite quick meal?

Meatless Monday: Trying New Things

One of the main benefits of switching to a vegetarian and then plant-based diet has been the extra motivation to try new things. I have checked out books from the library to try new recipes.

I have a new appreciation for tofu, and I made my first tofu scramble on Saturday (recipe from Happy Herbivore). I made a big breakfast taco that reminded me of the ones at "Aguas" in San Antonio. I paired the tofu with salsa and some crock pot refried beans from 100 Days of Real Food. I did not eat scrambled eggs often, but I still wanted to try out this quick recipe.

I have been getting more active and am now tracking my steps with a Fitbit. I like the small size and being able to see my steps on the screen. My current goal is to take at least 200,000 steps by the end of March, and I aim for at least 10,000 steps a day. I am usually more active during the week since I help at Alex's school. I find it challenging to stay on track with both healthy eating and activity, but I will keep trying.

What new things have you been trying? Have a great week!

Taco Tuesday

It's Meatless Monday, but let's talk about Taco Tuesday. It's catchy and has been a family favorite around here, especially with the Lego Movie reference. If you've see the movie, "Everything is Awesome" should be running through your head now. ;)

We've had a weekly taco night for years. In Texas, I would cook a couple pounds of ground beef ahead of time for a quick meal after work. I also tried some healthier versions with black beans or lentils over the years. We've gone back-and-forth between hard shells or soft tortillas.

Now I make our weekly taco filling with Trader Joe's Beefless crumbles, a can of crushed tomatoes, a can of black beans, half an onion, and some spices (chili powder, cumin, garlic, salt and pepper). This mix seems to work for all three of us. The omnivores can add cheese and sour cream, but I try to mainly add some greens. I have tried the Tofrutti vegan sour cream, which is not too bad. I also enjoy the leftovers for lunch.

What do you eat for dinner every week? Have you tried meatless tacos? Do you prefer hard or soft tacos? Leave me a comment and have a good week!

New Series: Meatless Monday

I am starting a new series of Monday posts. Welcome to Meatless Monday! I have been posting lots of food photos on my Instagram feed and would like a way to also share them here on my blog.

Towards the end of March 2014, I started eating a vegetarian diet. I was never a big meat eater, so overall the transition went smoothly. I could still enjoy lots of my favorite foods from chocolate to baked good to pizza. Inevitably some meat products still snuck in to my diet. Many soups are made with chicken broth, and meat can sneak in at restaurants and parties. My weight only slightly dropped because my overall diet was still similar.

By the holidays, I was becoming more interested in trying a vegan diet, but Christmas was not really the time to make a big change. I kept reading and gathering information, and since January 25th I have been working to follow a plant-based diet. I am seeing improvements in my skin and weight through this change. Since cutting out all animal products sounded restrictive, I follow the motto "Progress Not Perfection."

Where to Start
For me, vegan baking was a good place to start. I have been replacing oil/butter with applesauce and replacing eggs with bananas or ground flax even before becoming a vegetarian. I did not regularly keep eggs in the house, so these substitutions made sense to me. Another idea to start is by following "Meatless Mondays." Going meatless one day a week helps you try new foods and realize that some of your favorite foods are already vegetarian. I also prefer almond or coconut milk to cows' milk. I usually buy the unsweetened almond milk that only has 30-40 calories per cup.

Our Household
I have learned that my diet changes can happily coexist with omnivores, including the two in my household. Throughout this process, I have cooked with less meat and animal products. (This does help lower grocery costs!) My goal is not to cook two different meals each night, so we have many flexible meals. The boys in my house do not drink the plant-based milk, but I can still cook and bake with it.

Motivation
My biggest motivation is health and weight loss. I do not have medical or nutrition training, so I believe in researching information from trusted sources. I will link to a books below that I bought to start my plant-based, low-fat diet. I have also seen my doctor and had blood work done. I believe that they are a variety of ways to eat a healthy diet, and this way is working for me. I really enjoy trying new vegan recipes.

My secondary motivation is for our environment and animals. I will link to an organization below that has provided helpful information. I am finding that having multiple reasons for these changes helps them stick. I was able to turn down the cake and cheese pizza at a recent kid's birthday party.

Resources
Vegetarian Recipes: Picky Eater
Plant-based, Low-Fat Recipes & Information: Happy Herbivore
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine: 21-Day Vegan Kickstart
Books: Guide to Plant-Based Living & 21 Day Weight Loss Kickstart
Animals & Environment: Factory Farming Awareness Coalition (I learned a lot from watching Katie's presentation.)

I still have a lot to learn and I keep reminding myself that it is about "progress not perfection." I will share more of my progress and pictures each Monday.

P.S. Good news - Thin Mints are vegan! I have indulged in some even though they are not low fat. ;)