This Should Lure You to the Dark Side...

There's a secret that vegans aren't telling.  It was actually in my Vegan Code of Ethics.  But I'll take my chance of punishment (wearing GaGa's disgusting meat outfit) to share it with you.  And here it is...Vegans eat A LOT.  And constantly.  And yet, maintain or LOSE weight.  Although I'm not trying to, I've lost over 25 lbs since adopting a plant based lifestyle.  Am I happy about it?  Hell yes!  But I didn't have to measure or count or restrict myself in any way.  And every week, I maintain or lose more.  Win win!  


I am almost embarrassed to show you how much I eat.  But I feel it's important for you to know, and maybe, just maybe, it will persuade you to give up meat, if only for one meal. So here goes...
Breakfast - 
I finally used up my Almond Butter, which meant I could make Overnight Oats in a Jar!  Basic recipe and variations from KathEats.com.  I used 1 cup almond milk and a little more than a 1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal.  Please, only buy old fashioned oats!  Stop buying that processed crap in envelopes.  I'M WATCHING YOU! Then, just mix it right in the jar. (I like to just shake it!)  Leave it in the refrigerator overnight and then add whatever toppings you like.  I just added jam to mine this time.  This is really good in the summer when it's hot out!

Of course, coffee was involved.

I was still hungry, so this happened - 1/2 of a 1/2 of a bagel, leftover from the night before.

 With peanut butter.  I decided to try something new, and bought chunky.  I haven't had this in years!  I chose this kind because it's Natural, and it's in a glass jar.  For some reason that made me happy!

 Then, a glass of V8.  I drink a lot of this.  And once a day, I stir a little EVOO into it.  Call me crazy, but it's good for your skin etc.  It makes me feel good and something I did even before I went vegan.

 Because yesterday's temps were ridiculous (minus WHAT??)  I decided to make soup.  This is kind of a carry over from WW, but I make it because it's good.  I carmelize some onions in Earth Balance and a little EVOO, then add  a can of diced tomatoes and some vegetable bouillon cubes and this time I added extra water and some lentils.  Then I threw in some cabbage - the kind that's already chopped since I am lazy.  

 I had some for lunch, with a sprinkling of nutritional yeast.  This is also know as vegetarian's yeast, and tastes like cheese.  It's also protein packed and extremely good for you

 I had some celery leftover from the soup (oops I forgot to mention I threw in celery too)

After lunch, I had a cupcake.  Vegan of course.  Don't think you caught me cheating!  I made these over the weekend (the recipe makes 15) and there's only 3 left.  And I'm the only one that eats them.  Hmmm...how did that happen??  I'll share the recipe tomorrow.  It's Accidentally Vegan, just like me! It's my Mother's recipe from generations ago, and sometimes it's called Depression Cake since there's no eggs in it.  It's a great recipe!

 This is something else I have every day.  It's called a Green Monster and it's originally from a great site called Oh She Glows.  The version I make is very basic, and really the credit for it goes to Emily from Eating Chalk.  It's just a frozen banana, two handfuls of spinach, and one cup of almond milk.  Sometimes I use OJ, but today I knew I was low on dairy so almond milk it was.  Blend it up!

Sure it looks scary but it tastes amazing.  It does not taste like spinach at all. Try it!


Dinner was an experiment I have been wanting to try for a while.  I LOVE chicken tikka masala, and my daughter's bf's Dad makes it and it is SO good.  Anyway, Biz from My Bizzy Kitchen had a great recipe for it.  I just subbed tofu instead of the chicken and Tofikka Masala was born!  I followed her recipe except she is a lover of all things HOT and I changed the hot pepper to a few splashes of Frank's.  And after I marinated the tofu, I baked it at 400 and the marinade got nice and crispy. I kept eating right off the cookie sheet!

I splurged at Wegmans and got the So Delicious yogurt.  I knew this recipe wouldn't be the same without it and I was glad I did.  It's a little pricey at $2 but I had a coupon AND Wegmans doubles.  Score!
















The stats are pretty good too if you care about that.  I only check items for protein since I don't care about calories or fat

On a side note, and at the risk of making a long post even longer, can I just say how thrilled I am at NOT counting calories, or Points or whatever?  For the first time since I quit smoking (and gained a lot of weight) I don't care about calories.  OMG how freeing that is.  And this is the FIRST YEAR in a long time that "losing weight" wasn't my New Year's Resolution. I am kind of getting choked up just thinking about it.  Anyway....here is the final product

The picture definitely doesn't do it justice.  It was amazing!  I made this rice to go with it.  I never tried this before but it was really good!

 I toasted a pita too.  I wanted naan, but the kind the store sells had eggs in it.  Boo.  Next time, I'll make some of (never)homemaker's 5 minute naan.

And,  a glass of almond milk!

Finally, an after dinner cup of coffee.

I think that about covers it!  I usually have a snack around 8 or so, but we ate dinner kind of late so I just wasn't hungry.  Hard to believe I know!
Writing this post however made me hungry.  Time for some leftovers!  
Coming up tomorrow - my Mother's Accidentally Vegan chocolate cake and by demand, MACARONI AND CHEEZE!  


Diclaimer - no animals were harmed (or eaten) in the consumption of all this food!