Economic Vegan

So I  challenged myself to eat vegan for under $5 a day! Not the best in nutrition but in event an emergency happens or I’m strapped for cash I know there are options to alleviate me from straying away from my goals

$1 – 5 packs of Top Ramen Oriental flavor only! A lot of the other flavors contain animal fat/powdered meat (yuck)

I used less than half of the seasoning package and throw in some broccoli and topped it off with chili sauce

$1 – One box of Chicken Flavored Lipton’s Rice (Contains no meat, artificially flavored)

$1  - Can of low sodium black beans w/brown rice

$1 – Can get about 3 bananas and 1 kiwi

$1 – Bunch of Kale or Spinach

Here’s a quick pic of my Ramen Remix

Meatless Creations!

Since starting the plant based diet, I have been very creative with keeping myself interested. Luckily I have not experienced any cravings for meat.

However last week I almost broke down because I needed a hot wing terribly. The recipe below is how I manipulated cauliflower into tasting like chicken, and it actually looked like chicken as well.

For this recipe I used whole wheat flour, in about 2 weeks I will be removing all wheat and gluten from my diet so feel free to use any flour you prefer.

Chicken-less boneless buffalo wings

1 whole cauliflower

Franks red hot wing sauce (read ingredients to ensure its vegan safe)

1 cup of flour

1 cup of almond milk (unsweetened)

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Black pepper

Cajun seasoning

1 ziplock bag

Coconut oil

Wash & Rinse Cauliflower, cut into desired pieces (rinse again)

Create a batter by pouring all ingredients into a bowl

Pour a little flour into the ziplock bag to use for coating

Dip the cauliflower pieces into the batter

Shake in the bag that contains the flour (I added a little seasoning to the flour)

Place in greased pan (coat with coconut oil, or oil of your preference)

Bake for 30 minutes on 400

Broil for 7 minutes with stove open (or until brown/crispy)

Immediately remove and toss in desired wing sauce….. that’s it!!!!

July 21st Day one of vegan challenge

Well today was exhausting to say the least.... hopefully after tomorrow my energy us built back up! To start my vegan journey off I'm doing a 1 day raw fast and 3 day juice fast by Friday I will start to incorporate a few items back into my diet at a time.  Today wasn't so challenging. No cravings thank god.  However I am considering deactivating my Facebook account. Of all days today has been the day I've noticed everyone eating chicken! I mean varieties galore.

So what did I do? Went for a intense workout and juiced my life away

Skip on over to 7 days later... i've been terrible at updating my blog daily! After my 3 day juice cleanse/reset i managed to lose 4.8 lbs i feel energized i feel light and no longer lethargic! And to top it off i have been able to get up for work on time lol. 

The first 3 days i juiced and ate raw food only, Next time I will try to juice straight through with the attempt of not reaching for a salad, or fruit to hold me over! Unless i am on a strict budget, as I have noticed juicing has become very expensive, the price of produce fluctuates per week. Going forward I will replace 1-2 meals a day with juice or vegan protein shake.I have also decided that every 3 weeks I will perform the 3 day juice fast. See below for a recipes I used to get me through week #1

I caught a sale on $1 pineapples, so I purchased 10! Juiced three and cut and froze seven!

 Green Energy Boost Smoothie

These smoothies are quick easy and tasty! I always prep them for the week because its easy to grab when on the go!

¼ of pineapple

2 handfuls of spinach

½ banana

1 kiwi

8 oz of plain 100% pure coconut water (spring water will work just fine)

Makes about 20 oz

Green Goodness Juice

1 broccoli head

2 bunch of spinach

5 celery stalks

1 bunch of romane

½ pineapple

4 green apples

 Makes about 32 oz (2 servings)

Green Daily Cleanse

1 broccoli head

1 cucumber

1 bunch of kale

1 bunch of spinach

1 bunch of parsley

4 celery stalks

1 bunch of romane

½ pineapple

5 green apples

1 lime

 Makes about 32 oz (2 servings)

Limeade Refresher

½ Raw Ginger

6 apples

7 limes

36 oz of water

2 table spoons of agave

 (2-3 Servings)

Apple Refresher

2 pineapples

3 apples

2 lemons

6 bunch fresh mint

1 bunch of kale (Optional)

Chia Pudding

4 oz of Fresh Almond Milk

2 Tea Spoons of Organic Chia Seeds

Dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

1/3 of pure vanilla

Stevia to taste

Refrigerate for 1-2 hours top with fresh fruit (1 serving)

Fresh Almond Milk

½ cup of raw almonds (soaked for 8 hours)

6 cups of water

6 dates

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp of nutmeg

3 tsp of pure vanilla

Blend until contents become white, strain or refrigerate as is!

Now this is what I call the economic vegan!

After I juice spinach, or all greens (without the fruit) or broccoli I take the pulp and freeze it for later use!

This can be used for pasta, soup or even making fresh preservative free veggie patties/burgers!

Vegan Haul!

Stopped into my local farmers market today to pick up a fee goodies to prepare for this awesome detox I'll be starting on Monday

Good Belly Probiotics: Vegan friendly! 1 glass a day keeps the dr away lol maybe. This is a healing process for me and I want to fix myself externally to be the best I can be.

Got some new supplements garlic pills and probiotics because you can't overdose on them and I need as much as I can get. In a later detailed post I'll explain why probiotics and garlic will be a big factor in my vegan challenge (and it assist in alleviating bloating)

Until today I assumed I'd be parting ways with yogurts! While browsing I stumbled onto Soy yogurts which will be for breakfast in the morning. There were a variety of maybe 5 brands due to this being a trial and me a bit wasteful I got the one for $1.11 usd Instead of the popular brands. It's completely dairy free!

And last I was recommended to a vegan cuisine restaurant.  Yes the whole restaurant caters to vegans only...I was in utter disbelief of how good the dishes I tried tonight were. Whenever I'm in need of a quick meal on the go I'll most definitely be making it my business to stop in to Loving Hut

The excitement of being a vegan is really keeping me on my toes I'm tooooo excited for the unknown. Taking it one day at a time

xoxo

Count Down to Vegan Journey!! 11 Days Left

This week I have been slowly but surely decreasing my meat intake little to none.

Monday starts the first day of my Pre-Vegan Detox! And I am beyond excited! A few items I’ve recently purchased was the vegetti (for clean noodle making) Ab Cuts CLA to assist in losing this belly fat and Some organic chia seeds, because I’ve been going pintrest crazy this week, i've complied so many recipes and I’m going to make a promise that 2 days out 7 days I will try a new vegan recipe to keep the interest and excitement going.

Today I tried a tasty and now favorite combination,  I've been craving something hot soothing and filling! Because that bean burrito I ate last night just didn't cut it.

I am not afraid to admit that I have commitment issues, therefore I have to keep myself entertained!

Today’s mid-morning snack consist of:

3 Small Apples, peeled and chopped (8 oz/1 cup)

Almonds (Shaved, 2 Table spoons)

Granola (2 Table spoons)

Cinnamon (To taste)

First peel and chop apples sprinkle cinnamon. Place in bowl covered with napkin, or loose lid, and microwave for 2 min (max)

After that add your toppings and enjoy!

Vegan protein shake

Today I experienced probably one of the best things a vegan can find!!!

I was introduced to a product "Plant fusion" which is actually protein powder that is plant based and consist of soy.
I purchased the chocolate flavor, however it comes in three different options.  Chocolate, Vanilla, and Regular (which is great in a green smoothie)

As a woman it's hard to shake my chocolate cravings so I treat myself by having chocolate protein shakes.

Today I used:

8 oz of almond milk
1 scoop of plant fusion powder
2 scoops of PB2
1 Frozen banana

This will be my go to combo as it was a treat within itself. I used to days shake as a meal replacement for dinner. It's been about 4 hours and I have no cravings or any hunger symptoms.

Pineapples from hell!!!

Ok so I was a little disappointed to find out the hard way Pineapples are dangerous!!

This morning I started my day off with a smile, woke up and decided to juice for the day. While juicing I decided I didn’t want to waste the pineapple chunks I had left, so I packed them for a mid-morning snack. So 10 am finally arrives and I’m beyond excited to eat my chilled pineapples (I binged a little) bite after bite I devoured the pineapple chunks. Minutes later I begin to get a stinging feeling in my mouth….which then turned into a harsh burning of my tongue. Needless to say I can’t taste anything else that I consumed today.  I feel like majority of my taste buds are burnt (Ouch!) after my work out tonight I will research a remedy to stop the irritation… I dotn normally eat fresh pineapple unless it’s truly in season, and has a sweet aroma. However this pineapple I only planned to juice and didn’t check for ripeness. (big mistake)

Today’s Lesson:

Select the ripest fruit possible from the grocery store. Ripe pineapples are naturally sweeter and less acidic than those that have not ripened fully on the farm. You can choose a pineapple by selecting one that has a firm and yellow skin and then turning it upside-down. Smell the bottom of the pineapple; it should smell aromatic and sweet. A lack of aroma indicates an unripe pineapple.

Slice the pineapple and remove the core, which can be extremely acidic. Cut the bottom and the top from the fruit, then slice the pineapple down the middle. The core is the lighter yellow strip that runs down the center of the fruit. Once finished, rinse the cut pieces you plan to eat to remove some of the acidic juice.

Place pineapple chunks or slices into a large bowl and sprinkle with a teaspoon of salt. Salt is highly basic, which counteracts the high pH of the pineapple. Using a small amount of salt won't alter the flavor of the pineapple but make it less acidic so it doesn't burn your tongue. If you're bothered by the idea of salt on your pineapple, soak the slices in salted water and rinse clean before eating.