So I hit up Fresh n Easy last night and I picked up a couple boxes of tofu and some pasta. I also loaded up on nuts (peanuts and almonds). I made fideo for dinner with a some quesadillas to go along. Man, fideo can be a life saver!!!
Today I was a brat and had french toast for breakfast. I know not a healthy choice but it's rare that I have french toast and it seems like a harmless choice during this challenge. I'm looking forward to lunch. My friend is in town from Boston and she suggested we meet up at Loving Hut in Alhambra. Check out the menu!! Looks tasty huh!! It's a neat lil vegan joint in Alhambra. I'm so looking forward to eating fake meat. I'll let you know how it goes.
As for dinner I've drained the tofu and I put it to fry up with garlic and let it simmer in a tikka masala sauce. I plan to serve it over brown rice tonight. It doesn't look inviting but we're looking for good taste and nutrition, right? right! I hope I'm not the only one who enjoys it. Dan doesn't look eager to eat it but I've invited my friend Iris to come over and she'll have to take one for the team since I invited her over for dinner!
I've also hit up a vegetarian chemistry professor I work with. She laughed when I told her about the challenge. Not because it's insane but because she said this is exactly how she became a vegetarian herself. She said she took on a challenge like this one and never went back. "A piece of steak feels like a rock in my stomach" she said.
She'll gather some simple recipes to share which I will post. However, she did say that the vegetarian cook books recipes are pretty extensive and that the magazines have the quick and easy recipes. She reccommended Vegan Times and also told me to try BBQ tofu.
Now gotta get some website work done. Looking forward to lunch with Jazzy.
New participants joining the challenge:
Roxy (my lil sister) I'm eager cuz she likes margaritas as much as a I do and can't live without burgers!!
Illy who seems to have pretty good discipline also joined. I think she'll be good at this and their boss.
So far our roll call:
Santa Perversa
Corey
Val
Yvette P.
Rox
Illy
QC Boss
Brenda is doing it too. A modified version of no booze and fast food. We'll keep her at bay if she rolls up with a steak.
Day 5: A friend asked me if i ever gave anything up during Lent. I gave her a look and said no. I don't believe in giving up things I enjoy. Here I am, with a type of manda choosing not to eat meat and drink alcohol for thirty days. Maybe that's the difference - a conscious choice.
ReplyDeleteMy mom is not officially participating but is being supportive. She shared with her collegue about my choice not to eat red meat for the month. He shared that meat actually stays in your system for 14 days. I have to check up on this but that's pretty insane to have something in your system for so long.
Yesterday, my mom shared my calabacitas and seared tofu w/Furikake seasoning and roasted vegetables for lunch. My friend had made also some butternut squash risotto she shared with us over the holidays. We had some of that as well. For dinner, same friend brought over some mac & cheese. I didn't get to have any since I was off to dance class. It will be savored later today.
Breakfast are usually light for me - coffee, fruit, and some bread. Unless I'm starving, I have eggs, potatoes, and/or soyrizo.
I heard that the cookbook Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is pretty accessible. If I can find it at the library, I'll check it out and share with you recipies.
As we are changing our diets for the month, a key thing to remember is that flavor & textures are still key to making any dish delicious. I know that in traditional Mexican cooking there are several vegetarian dishes. The native diet before the Spanairds arrived included squash, corn, potatoes & tomatoes. Let's go back to our raices.
Hola gals - I am a HS friend of Roxana. I saw her post on FB and admire the diet. I am Vegetarian and I'll be more than happy to help. I gave up red meat 11 years ago; Chicken and fish 1 year ago. I've been on several detoxes which included RAW fruits and Veggies...very difficult to do but amazing results. Anyhow, here are few pointers...hope this help.
ReplyDelete--WITHDRAWS--
You'll start to see withdraws within the first week, which will include headaches and moodiness. You're body will start to crave fat and hearty meats. You have to fight those urges.
--CLEANSING KIT ---
You can purchase the body cleansing kit at Trader Joes for 11.00. It provides you supplements to detox your body along w/ your intestines. You see when you dark meats, the toxins and hormones accumulate on your intestinal wall and will not remove until you detox, the supplements will help you exact that waste.
i admire that you guys are going cold turkey.....first week will be rough, but you have to plan for the second week. This weekend you should get together and go grocery shopping and start planning your meals ahead of time.
--PROTEIN--
- Supplement called Spirulina, you can find this at Trader Joes or a vitamin shoppe.
- Quinoa you can find at trader Joes, its easy to cook and put into salads or veggies
- cashew, peanuts, walnuts, almonds.
- Cereals & food grains-Grains
- Egg
---Alternatives to Meat---
Things you buy at Trader Joes
-Soyrizo
- Italian Sausage-Less Sausage
- Veggie Meatballs
- Veggie Patties
---Restaurants---
Flore
http://florevegan.com/
Gingergrass Fresh Vietnamese Cuisine
http://www.gingergrass.com
Vegan House on Sunset
http://veganhouseonsunset.com
Green Leaves Vegan
http://www.greenleavesvegan.com/
Happy Family Restaurant Vegetarian Food
111 N. Atlantic Blvd., Monterey Park, CA 91754
Phone: 626-282-8986
Breakfast Recipes
http://allrecipes.com//Recipes/breakfast-and-brunch/vegetarian/Main.aspx
Vegetarian Recipes
http://allrecipes.com//Recipes/everyday-cooking/vegetarian/Main.aspx
@rprado.. yest going back to raices is the way to go!! Do share the recipes when you get the book. Keep it up darling!
ReplyDelete@sandra!!
ReplyDeletethank you very much. I've actually had spirulina before. well actually it was spirutein. a co-worker shared some with me and she sold me! I had it for breakfast and I was full till mid afternoon. Pretty cool stuff. We appreciate the recipes, places to eat and the veg 101 education. Please keep checking up on us to make sure we're not super moody and start blogging about taking people out!! Haha!! Merci.. merci.
Hi Roxana,
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing the links and detox tips.