The End of Vegan Month

It’s March, everyone. That means Vegan Month is over – for Nicole, this is the most wonderful news ever. For me, I feel like it was quite – QUITE – the learning experience. I’m not sure how long my veganism will last, but I would like it to continue on for as long as I can. I’m shooting for six months, frankly, as a minimum.

My learning experiences:
1. When eating vegan – and mostly “real” foods (we really avoided processed foods for the most part) – fake foods lose their luster.

About halfway through the month, Nicole and I went to the movies, and we each got a Coke (okay, Vegan maniacs, there are some people who say Coke is not vegan because Coke – in other countries – tests on animals, and some that say that Coke is vegan for this that and the other…well, I had two Cokes this month. I still considered myself eating a vegan diet). The Coke just…didn’t taste right. So I thought, well, there can be a few explanations for this:

a.) Something is wrong with the Coke – it was from a fountain, and they may have just filled the fountain or the fountain was running out…something to that effect.

b.) Something I ate earlier in the day / at the theater was affecting my taste buds…

c.) Eating a vegan diet had affected my taste buds.

So I waited a week, and then bought a bottled Coke. Same thing – Coke still tasted nasty. And let me tell you, I LOVE Coke. Love it. And this month…it’s just not happening. It’s interesting, actually. I’m currently drinking a Hansen’s soda (Mango Orange…mmmm), and it tastes “right.” I can’t define “right,” only that it has to do with sweetness. It tastes real, whereas Coke didn’t (and, well, it isn’t).

Prior to this month, I would have my coffee with Splenda…not this month. It was the most vile thing I’ve ever had. Oh my heavens, it was awful.

Real foods, people. Who woulda thunk?

2. There are flavors that are absolutely delicious that have been masked, in the past, with dairy/meat products.

When I was growing up, I would put on my spaghetti (or other pasta) parmesan, ricotta, and mozzarella. Yes, three types of cheese. Fat kid, much? Nicole and I went out with Jeanne, Colleen, and Jeanne’s sister early in the month to a pasta restaurant, and we could only order one thing: spaghetti and marinara sauce. No cheese. I absolutely loved it. I can’t remember the last time I had pasta with sauce and nothing else…but it was really really enjoyable.

I felt the same way about an eggplant dish I made this month – we just put sauce on it, and it was great. It actually didn’t need the cheese to “make it.”

3. My body felt completely different this month than it has…ever.
I’m not really sure how to describe this. I just feel…differently. When I eat something processed, my body responds negatively. When I eat something “real,” my body responds positively. There is definitely a correlation between what is eaten and how I feel – I don’t think anyone is surprised by that…but what is surprising is how easily we become accustomed to “bad” food. After eating “good” food for a month, I had some fries…and felt sick for three days (including vomiting about an hour after eating them).

4. If you really explore the food industry (and there are books and/or films I can recommend to those interested), meat (and animal by-products) become far – FAR – less appealing.

I know what you’re thinking – I’ve turned into one of those liberals. But hear me out for a moment. Maybe you feel, Okay, slaughterhouses are awful places, so I won’t eat meat, but why wouldn’t I drink milk? That doesn’t harm the animals.

Actually, it does. Same cows. Same situations. And there are growth hormones riddled in cow’s milk. These cows also stand in their own manure…their entire lives. They don’t eat grass (like they are supposed to) – they eat a corn-based feed, which can seriously sicken them (hello, e.coli).

Chickens? Never see sunlight. Can’t walk.

I don’t know. The evidence is there. There is a great section in The Omnivore’s Dilemma in which Michael Pollan is sitting at a restaurant with a steak, and acknowledges that either he has to give up meat because of what he knows…or he has to admit he’s a hypocrite (or some language like that, I don’t have the book in front of me).


Do I recommend veganism for everyone? Absolutely not…not even close. I wouldn’t even recommend vegetarianism to everyone. What I do recommend is educating yourself on what you eat. Know what you’re putting into your body. There were some rules given by Pollan in The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food that I thought were pretty appropriate:

1. Eliminate high fructose corn syrup. You will be surprised if you look at labels to see what HFCS is in.

2. Buy local (Whole Foods isn’t necessarily “better”). Tomatoes in winter? Not logical.

3. Eat foods with five or less ingredients.

4. Eat foods that have ingredients you can pronounce.

5. And the overall rule of the book In Defense of Food: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

Veganism for Libby

Okay, so I love veganism. I never saw this coming. Nicole thinks that this is one of my obsessions, and that I'll get over it. It may be. But it doesn't feel like an obsession.

The hardest day so far was yesterday: Super Bowl Sunday. Jen and Wyndy hosted a party, and they had a slew of delicious food, with almost nothing for our vegan-ness. Queso, summer sausage, and what I love the absolute most: buffalo wings. It was....difficult. But I restrained! Definitely tempting, but I had to tell myself (numerous times) no. Oh, buffalo wings. I miss thee.

Honestly, though, I only missed them because I saw them. I'm not craving them. And after the party, when we were driving home, I didn't feel like I weighed 500 pounds (I kept with our hummus and bean dip), which I know I would have had I eaten everything I wanted.

Today, I made some fried plantains for lunch with a touch of salt. I don't know if Nicole has ever had them, so I'll make some for her as a snack one day. I also made an avocado, tomato, and kalamata olive salad with ground flaxseeds. So. Incredibly. Delicious.

For dinner, I'm making eggplant and couscous. Hopefully, Nicole likes it -- she has NOT enjoyed vegan month at all.

Quinoa and Red Beans

In an effort to eat healthier, I decided to build a concoction last night that sounded like a good idea. Quinoa and red beans.

First of all, if you've never made quinoa before, you're certainly missing out. Go get some immediately. Replace it for rice, and you'll never go back.

When I lived alone, I used to make brown rice and red beans all of the time as my meal, but always had to add a lot of salt (note: I love love love garlic salt, salt, anything sodium-y. 'Tis one of my many downfalls). Nicole always makes quinoa with broth instead of water, so I thought, hey, I can get my sodium fix, and see how this all turns out.

I put some olive oil in a pan (just a little), and chopped up a clove of garlic. Next time I'll put a little more in it, maybe three or four cloves. When the garlic was starting to become brown, I put in a cup of quinoa and 2+ cups of chicken broth. When we do our vegetarian month, I'll replace the chicken broth (which I had in the house) with vegetable broth (which I did not). I also added a pinch of chili powder and cayenne pepper (and Emeril's essence seasoning). Let that boil for a few minutes, then turned the stove down for it to simmer for about 20-25 minutes.

Okay, so I use canned organic red beans. I'm sure I'm supposed to avoid canned beans, but it's just so simple. Replace if you'd like with "real" beans.

After the quinoa, broth, and garlic simmered, and the broth was absorbed and evaporated, I poured two cans of organic red beans (drained, of course) into the pan. Let that cook for another five minutes or so, stirring, stirring, stirring. Voila.

I loved it. I'm loving it this morning as my leftovers (I didn't eat a "normal" breakfast before coming in to work today). I'm going to start making huge vats of it on weekends for my lunches during the school weeks. It packs a lot of protein, and while there is a bit of sodium, that's not the biggest deal in my world. Ah, well. Try it if you'd like.

Nicole reminded me that I haven't written about the race, so I'll need to do that over the next few hours. We survived! That's a big win. 5K this weekend in Boulder.

No restaurants for us...

I just asked Nicole if it's been a week since we've gone out to eat, or had any meal outside of our home, and the answer was yes. It's probably been longer than a week by now.

I like the life we're building for ourselves; it's healthier in many ways. I'm glad to be home with her at night, eating whatever is left over or something new or a bowl of Golden Grahams, and just talking with her, playing with our dogs, or getting ready to work out together.

I have no desire to eat at a restaurant, either, which is VERY strange for me. I love food. Hence, I have plenty of weight to lose. But I am not craving restaurant food or fast food or anything of that nature; I just want to go home, make a salad, and run for thirty minutes. Not bad.