Are You Looking for a Challenge? Vegan Week

I really like the idea of Meatless Mondays. However, in a given week A. and I eat plenty of meat-free meals so instituting something like this would not make much of a difference. I am, however, interested in going a full week without meat. And since I am not eating dairy for The Lad's reflux, it makes sense to try a vegan week.

This should not be difficult for me. For about five years I ate a mostly vegan diet. I did not identify as a vegan since I did not adopt any other aspects of the vegan lifestyle. It was probably the healthiest diet I've ever enjoyed, however, it took a great deal of effort to make sure I was getting enough of what I needed (this was a time in my life where I would have been perfectly happy eating suishi rice and miso soup at every meal). I stopped eating vegan when my body started tolerating dairy again. Then I discovered tuna sashimi. Then I got bored with my diet and had a turkey sandwich and the story goes on from there.

In any case, vegan and vegetarian eating still appeals to me from a personal economic stand point (tofu and beans are far, FAR more affordable than grain fed, locally raised meats) and an environmental one (see above, meatless mondays). Since I also tend to procrastinate, vegan eating also puts far less perishable foods to waste.

So, here are the rules:

1. All meals prepared and consumed by me will be vegan. Andy can do whatever he wants for breakfast and lunch.

2. Although I probably won't be using any processed foods, I am not going to worry about things like caesin and whey as ingredients.

3. I reserve the right to use the fish sauce that is already in my pantry. The same goes for my white table sugar and flour that some vegans would not use.

4. The "week" begins this Sunday at dinner and ends next Saturday at lunch.


More later when I decide which meals I am going to prepare.

Woo-Hoo!!! Three Successful Dinners

I am rather proud of myself. I made three successful dinners this week, two of which were from new recipes.

Friday

I made chickpea curry with brown rice and a side of spinach. I wound up stirring the spinach into the curry and it was quite good. Now I just need to figure out how to get the curry smell out of my wooden spoon.

Saturday

I made tofu panang curry. It's an old favorite. However, I am quite certain that the way I make it breaks all kinds of rules. Basically, I fry the tofu in a little bit of oil until golden brown, then I stir fry green and red peppers and white onion for a bit. I make the sauce separately; whisking together one can of coconut milk, two tablespoons of curry paste, two tablespoons of fish sauce, and two tablespoons of brown sugar in a separate bowl. Then I pour the sauce into the pan and simmer for a while. Toward the end I add fresh thai basil (although we didn't have any this time). I first started making this dish in a very tiny kitchen and mixing the sauce separately seemed neater and I've never considered doing it any other way although I might eventually.

Sunday

I made grilled smoky tempeh, a recipe from Veganomicon with spicy sweet potatoes on the side. Liquid smoke. It's my new best friend.


Also, I am very excited. Today we purchased a 7 qt. dutch oven by Outset. I am very excited to use it, especially for the no-knead bread recipe that Mavis sent to me.