Month Long Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Challenge

We're back at it again! My doctor (who is actually a nurse practitioner) recommended for the third time that I try going gluten-free and sugar-free for at least a month and asked that I document how I feel. I picked the month of June because, leading up to this point, I haven't been feeling so great. I've been sluggish, been getting more headaches, stomach pain in the evening, and my acne has been out of control. So I started on Tuesday with a well-crafted meal plan and a lot of conviction.

Week one has gone pretty smoothly, though not without some ups and downs. On Tuesday, I had a mild headache which I attributed to sugar withdrawal. On Wednesday, the headache morphed into a tension headache - sugar detoxing coupled with high stress from work, a pending storm, and not enough calories in my system? It was the set up for a bad scene. I ended up leaving work early and, after eating a handful of almonds and drinking two big glasses of water, I actually felt a lot better. I'm sure stepping away from work and my computer screen was a big help too. Thursday through today I have been feeling great! I'm not craving sweets and gluten was really easy for me to cut out.

Here's a sampling of our meal plan last week - I started by using other people's recipes so that I can get the hang of it and then begin writing my own!

Tuesday
Breakfast: Wild Blueberry Shake from lunchboxbunch.com
Lunch: Green Goddess Bowl from lunchboxbunch.com
Dinner: Vegan Macro Meal from lunchboxbunch.com

Wednesday
Breakfast: Wild Blueberry Shake from lunchboxbunch.com
Lunch: Green Goddess Bowl from lunchboxbunch.com
Dinner: Bake Stuffed Sweet Potatoes from lunchboxbunch.com - modified, we just topped them with diced tomato, broccoli, and tahini

Thursday
Breakfast: Homemade Shake - 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries, 2 Tbsp peanut butter, 2 cups almond milk - Serves 2
Lunch: Green Goddess Bowl from lunchboxbunch.com
Dinner: Celebratory dinner at Green Elephant (it was J's last day of work at his old job!) - I had the spicy green leaves salad with gluten free dressing and brussels sprouts

Friday
Breakfast: Homemade Shake (see above)
Lunch: Lunched at Local Sprouts - I had the fiddlehead salad special with balsamic dressing
Dinner: Sesame Miso Zucchini Noodles & Tofu from Snixy Kitchen

Saturday
Breakfast: Almonds, peanuts, and blueberries (we bused down to Boston and need something easily portable!)
Lunch: Tofu Pad Thai at My Thai Vegan Cafe in Boston's China Town
Dinner: Sesame Miso Zucchini Noodles & Tofu from Snixy Kitchen

Sunday
Breakfast: Sweet Citrus Avocado Dreamboat from lunchboxbunch.com
Lunch: Green Power Tower Salad from lunchboxbunch.com
Dinner: Raw Macro Bowl with Knock-Off Dragon Sauce from Raw Food Recipes

Our snacks throughout the week consist of homemade oil-free hummus with veggies, frozen grapes, apples, and baby carrots.

So far, I've lost 6 pounds. I'm hoping to add at least 20 minutes of walking to my days to continue on this track and I'll keep monitoring the effects of GF/SF eating - maybe you'll want to test it out too? Check out other recipes we're considering on our Pinterest board!

Warm Breakfast Quinoa

So for the past few weeks I've been "sort of" doing the anti-inflammatory diet I mentioned several posts ago. The week I decided to start, I got a stomach virus and the only food I could keep down was pretzel rods - not all that gluten-free. Following my illness, I was pretty much on track until J and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary last week with a vacation to Vermont (more on that to come).

Although I've been loosely following this "diet," I must say, I do feel a bit better. I feel like I've got more energy and I'm not craving things quite as often. My general daily routine is to have my Warm Breakfast Quinoa dish around 7:30 a.m., then, as recommended by a former guest poster, I drink Bolthouse Farm's Green Goodness mixed with protein powder around 10:00 a.m. Sometimes I'll eat some almonds and pecans around 11:30 a.m. and then I have a salad lunch between 1-2:00 p.m. Occasionally I''l have some fruit in the afternoon at work, but I'm normally good until I get home. Dinner varies every night - last night J made polenta and veggies.

I thought I'd share my breakfast recipe with you, though. It's become a real favorite for me, topping my love of oatmeal even. It's warm and cozy in the early morning and packed with protein and antioxidants to get you on your feet. I make a big container of quinoa every week or so and I'm good to go for days. Remember - quinoa quadruples in size when you make it so a little does go a long way!

Warm Breakfast Quinoa
1/2 cup cooked mixed quinoa (I mix the red and plain quinoa - there's also black but our Whole Foods just stopped carrying it...which bums me out big time because it's my favorite kind!)
1 Tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup defrosted frozen or fresh blueberries
1 Tbsp Sunbutter
1 Tbsp local honey
1 Tbsp chopped pecans
almond milk

I begin preparing this overnight so that the chia seeds have time to plump up and aren't crunchy. If you make it the morning, I'd suggest removing the chia, unless you like crunchy tiny little seeds that get stuck in  your teeth. So the night before - I put the quinoa in a bowl and sprinkle on the chia. Then I mix in the blueberries and a splash of almond milk - just enough to absorb over night. I cover it up and leave it in the fridge.

The next morning, all of the milk is absorbed and the chia seeds have plumped up. I add in the sun butter and honey and put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. I sprinkle on the pecans and top with some more almond milk, just as you would with oatmeal.

Rice & Wheat Balls

Our fridge was empty last night - we're talking baron. We haven't gone food shopping all week because I wanted to clear out a lot of foods before starting to try out the anti-inflammatory diet on Monday. So last night felt sort of like that show Chopped where they put random things in front of you and tell you to create a meal.

Surprisingly, I was able to pull something together that was really tasty and, with the addition of more veggies next time, I think it's a keeper. We had a few of Nate's Savory Mushroom Meatless Meatballs floating around our freezer, about a cup of broccoli florets and stems, an onion, garlic clove, and the butt of some ginger. Oh, and rice. We always keep a stock of grains on our shelf, all lined up in Ball jars. There's rice, lentils (green and multi-colored), quinoa, polenta, arborio rice, couscous, amaranth, millet, buckwheat, and steel cut oats. It's nice to always have a stock of various grains and legumes - I recommend everyone stock their kitchens this way. It makes nights when the kitchen's bare go a little easier!


Rice & Wheat Balls

2 cups uncooked brown rice
5 cups homemade vegetable stock, or water
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 inch of ginger, grated
1 cup chopped broccoli
5-6 Nate's Savory Mushroom Meatless Meatballs (or whatever brand you choose)
1/2 cup fresh basil
olive oil

Sauce:
1/4 cup Hoisin Sauce
2 Tbsp roasted red chili paste
2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil

Cook your rice in a rice cooker with the vegetable stock (you can also use water, but the veggie stock really imparts a great flavor and I recommend you try it at least once).

Defrost the Meatless Meatballs in the microwave.

While rice is cooking, put a little olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the onions. Once onions are translucent, add garlic and ginger. Then Meatless Meatballs and cook until nice and browned. Add the broccoli and basil and cook. I like it when things get a little charred - but cook it to your preference. Then remove from heat and set aside.

Mix together the sauce ingredients - those aren't exact measurements as I don't normally measure things out when I'm making sauces so just taste and make sure you like it.

To serve:
Put some rice in the bottom of a bowl (you'll have more rice than you need - yay! left overs for another dish) and top with veggies. There were enough for 2 servings, but if you added more veggies you'd get 4 probably. Serve with sauce on the side. I'd like to try adding some mango in the future - I think it would go with the flavors really well and add some natural sweetness.

Anti-Inflamatory Diet

I recently started going to a new doctor because I've just been so fed up with the practice I've been going to for the last three years. They've switched my GP on me 4 times now and they're front desk staff is horribly rude.

So this new place, Wildwood Medicine, has a much more holistic view of things - which falls right in line with my mode of thinking. I've been complaining of several things for several years now and I'm just tired of not feeling healthy! So my new GP (who is a nurse practitioner) told me to try out an anti-inflammatory diet for a month or so. Inflammation can be the cause of many discomforts and for someone like me who's prone to chronic infections, has hypothyroidism, and three herniated disks - I'm sure there's a lot of inflammation going on in me!

Now, being vegan, I'm almost on this diet already so this shouldn't be too rough! In addition to cutting out animal products, it's recommended that I cut all refined sugar (not easy for a baker!), margarine, white bread (never touch the stuff anyway), bagels, white rice, processed foods, potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes, and peppers. The last four on that list will be the most difficult, and of course cutting sugar is never easy. She'd also like me to test out excluding gluten.

I'm planning to start on Monday and have been tooling around the Internet to find some recipes and hope to try some out this week so that I can get the hang of this and then hopefully I'll have some of my own recipes to post!

Guest Post by Lindsay!

Today we continue our theme on how to be a vegan on the go! Below is a post written by a fellow vegan who lives in New York. She's a busy artist in graduate school who doesn't have time to fuss with complicated recipes. Lindsay proves that it's easy to be a vegan on the go if you put a little thought and planning into it.



TIPS ON BEING A TIME EFFICIENT VEGAN
Being a gluten-free, soy-free (even coconut-free) vegan is not always the easiest thing
when you are out and about all the time. Plus, I am a full-time student commuter. Fast
food or even supposed “health food” venues are not always friendly to my way of eating.
I have, however, come up with the perfect way to pack food and prepare for the day that
stays within my restrictions, tastes yummy, and treats my body right…in just one hour (I
do a variation of this EVERY morning…so if I can do this, so can you). Think of it as a
morning food meditation. If you set your alarm one hour earlier tomorrow, and continue
to do it one day at a time, by the end of the week you will be used to it, and you will
naturally start going to bed earlier. This way, you won’t be grabbing unhealthy
snacky foods, wasting money on food out, or wasting time trying to read every
label in a store to find something you CAN eat.

Let’s go through this step-by-step.

1) Put brown rice and water into rice cooker (this takes one hour). I cook 2 cups of dry
rice (with 4.5 cups of water) at a time, and it stays good in my fridge for 3-4 days. I can
eat brown rice (in lieu of oatmeal) as a breakfast cereal, add it to my salads, or throw it
into an evening stir-fry to make fried rice. I can even make a quick rice dessert pudding.
It is ridiculously easy and good for you. Make sure you always have some on hand. To
make it extra delicious, soak the rice overnight, and the texture turns out creamy. You
wont be able to go back to using non-soaked rice. It also adds to the nutritional value of
the rice and ensures that it is clean (we’ve been hearing in the news about all that arsenic
in rice, so it’s never a bad idea to do an overnight soak). In an extra hurry?? Put on rice
first first thing before you even brush your teeth, and it will be done before you know it.

2) Put on oatmeal water. I use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Old Fashioned Oats. One
serving needs one cup of water. When it boils (after about 3 minutes), I add ½ a cup of
oats, and let it cook until most of the water has evaporated. Then I let it sit for 2 minutes.
While this is cooking, I prepare my fixings. I add these things to a bowl: 1 tablespoon of
chia seeds, 1 tablespoon of ground flax, 1 tablespoon of cacao powder, 4-6 strawberries, a
banana, two tablespoons of SunButter, and a sprinkle of salt. Then when the oatmeal has
finished sitting, I add it to my bowl, add a little almond milk, and the effect is divine. It’s
like dessert for breakfast, but every ingredient is good for you. I use Himalayan sea salt
and unsweetened almond milk. Take your vitamins with this and drink some green tea,
and you will be ready to face even the toughest of days.

Note: If I’m really in a rush, I eat my breakfast while I am preparing my food for the day.
The macrobiotic people would censure me, but we’re talking about efficiency here!

3) Packing snacks. I need to pack at least 2 snacks each day. Usually I pack some
conglomeration of: raw nuts and dried fruit, an apple or any other fruit (sometimes with
nut butter), some carrot sticks or other vegetables (sometimes with hummus), a health bar
(the brands that I like are Macrobars, Luna Bars, Pulsin' Bars), and rice, corn, or kale chips.
And the amount that I need depends on whether I make a smoothie or not as I leave the
house…I’ll get to this in step 8.

4) A cooler and lots of food storage containers. You are going to need a cooler of some
sort if you are going to be gone all day with no access to a refrigerator. As a student I
don’t have any fridge access. I use a cold compress and an aluminum water bottle filled
with ice inside of a soft cooler that I got at Whole Foods. It keeps the contents cold and
food safe for at least 8 hours (as long as there’s no dairy or meat…but if you are vegan,
you have no need to worry).

5) 2-4 BIG salads at once. Always make more than one salad at a time. Salads take a
long time to prepare, and it’s way easier to just cut up a few extra vegetables than it is
to pull out all the vegetables again and again. If I have leftovers from the night before,
I only need to pack one salad for the day; otherwise, I eat one for lunch and dinner. To
put into your salads: any kind of vegetable that you want. Be creative. If you aren’t
creative and need help, today my salad consisted of: mixed greens, chick peas, avocado,
red onion, kalamata olives, carrots, and cucumber. Anything goes. Dressing lately has
been balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, and flax oil with a few herbs from my spice rack.
Simple yet delicious.

6) While you are waiting for your rice to finish: read the newspaper, empty the
dishwasher, check email, write out your to do list for the day, check your Facebook, go
to the bathroom, take a shower, put on your makeup, brush your teeth etc, etc. Pack up 2
servings (3-4 cups) in a preferably glass container and continue to step 7.

7) Putting it all together. So, today, you are going to eat:
breakfast: oatmeal and fixins
snack 1: green smoothie (step 8)
lunch: fun salad with brown rice and balsamic vinegar, an apple
snack 2: raw cashews, raw almonds, dried figs & gogi berries (or any other snack
from the list)
dinner: leftovers from last night OR fun salad #2, with brown rice and balsamic
vinegar, and an extra fun snack.

Put all of these things into your cooler. Pack a fabric napkin and metal silverware (let’s
be good to the environment too). And you are almost ready to go.

8) Just before you head out the door, make a GREEN SMOOTHIE. The most efficient
way of doing this is buying a pre-made green drink (my favorite is the Bolthouse Farms
Green Goodness, but Odwalla and other companies make them too), and throw it in a
blender with a serving of protein power. This becomes your morning snack that you can
sip on for an hour or so while you are commuting, or in my case during my first class of
the day. There are thousands of green smoothie recipes to be found online if you feel
more creative or have 4 extra minutes (I don’t always).

Please note: If you are sick of brown rice, you can use other grains to supplement,
such as making a quick cold quinoa salad with chick peas, red onion, cherry tomatoes,
cucumbers, turmeric, and cumin.

There are thousands upon trillions of variations to my morning routine and food listed here, but this serves as a basic day. Sometimes I buy a veggie sushi at a local supermarket for my dinner and eat it with a bag of chips.

Also, please note: If you are wondering about all the dishes this creates, sometimes I
have time to wash them and throw them in the dishwasher right at the moment, and other
times I don’t, so I fill them with water and leave them until I get home at night (at 10pm
sometimes?!?). I tell myself that soaking the oatmeal pan, oatmeal bowl, and blender is
the best way. How you do your dishes is up to you, but if you do this every day, you’ll
find the dishes do themselves.

9) Go about your day as usual and wait for people to be impressed with how prepared
you are for your life! Remember efficiency is key. Time is money.

Lindsay Garcia
www.lindsaygarcia.com
lindsaydgarcia@gmail.com

Snacks!

I'll admit it - I am just one of those people who loves to snack. I could easily eat snacks all day long instead of three main meals. But vegan snacking can be tricky - especially when you're on the go - so here are my top 6 favorites:

1. Nuts and Dried Fruit
Seriously cannot go wrong here. You're packing in the protein, the fruits satiate that craving you have for something sweet and this is totally portable. But here's the trick - experiment with combinations. It will blow your mind. I always start with a 1/2 cup measuring cup and fill it with varying combinations. I buy all my nuts and dried fruit in the bulk aisle at Whole Foods (don't buy trail mix - it's ridiculously expensive and I find that I eat more when it comes already mixed together!) - but here's the cost saving trick: compare the price per pound on the bulk bin to the price per pound on the packaged ones they have in the same aisle. Sometimes the packaged is cheaper! Here are some of my all time favorite combos:

Raw Almonds + Raw Pecans + Dried Sour Cherries + (vegan chocolate pieces if you really need chocolate)

Raw Almonds + Pepitas + Lightly Salted Sunflower Seeds + Dried Cranberries

Raw Cashews + Dried Blueberries + Hazelnuts

Pepitas + Lightly Salted Sunflower Seeds + Dried Cranberries + Pecans + Almond Slivers

2. Toast with Avocado and Flax Seed Oil
Ok, not so great for on the go but this is seriously one of my all time favorite snacks. I toast one slice of bread, then pour about a teaspoon of flax seed oil on it and spread it around, then I take some avocado (maybe a quarter) and I mash it on top of the bread and top it with some sea salt and freshly ground pepper. I just ate a slice...nom nom nom.

3. Fruit
No-brainer. Fruit's one of the most portable snacks you can find. Bananas, berries, and apples are my favorites because they're the least messy. I will never bring an unpeeled orange to work. NEVER. I can just see orange juice spraying all over the papers on my desk; squirting a co-worker in the eye. Temporary blindness! Yea, not happening.

4. Dates stuffed with Pistachio
Remember that detox J and I did last winter? This was one of my favorite snacks. Buy a container of pitted diglet dates from Whole Foods and raw pistachios. Put pistachios in a food processor and process the heck out of them. It becomes a sort of powdery-ish pistachio paste. Slice the dates open, stuff them with the pistachio paste and top it with some unsweetened shredded coconut. I have an extreme sweet tooth as you may have guessed (after all, I am a baker) and this totally does the trick when I'm going out of my mind with cravings.

5. Hummus
You really can't go wrong with hummus. We always make ours at home because, well, for one thing it's cheaper, for a second, we can make it ANY flavor we want, and for a third we know where our ingredients are coming from and it's super duper fresh. Here's recipes for our Cucumber-Dill Hummus and our Ginger-Lime Hummus. It's not hard, I promise. I like to dip in sliced veggies - but sometimes we'll use it as a condiment on a sandwich too.

6. Pop Cakes
So Pop Cakes are these crazy things they sell at Whole Foods and our cat Bob is addicted to them. We like them too. They're sort of like rice cakes, only more compact and they don't fall apart or taste like cardboard. They're so versatile! Have them with hummus, PB&J, tapenade, Tofutti - the possibilities are endless.

Veganized Heirloom Tomato Galette

I might be mildly addicted to Pinterest. But at least I actually use my boards and don't just randomly pin things that get left forgotten for months. A while back, I saw this recipe from one of my favorite food blogs, Tartelette, for Heirloom Tomato Galette and I pinned it, knowing I would figure out a way to make a vegan version. Well, that day is here, my friends! Well, it was here...

Saturday was one of the first really chilly nights of the season and, while I love to go walk around the town, I was craving a night in with my guy - snuggling while watching a movie, cooking together, drinking wine - perfect fall night. So below are my chances to Tartelette's recipe for those of us of the vegan persuasion. In the future I'm going to make my own dough. I got super lazy and just bought multi-grain pizza dough from Whole Foods, which is mighty different from the pastry dough called for in the recipe. But even so, it was delicious. My favorite part is folding over the crust. It creates a "stuffed crust" illusion that's really yummy and surprising. With the rest of our pizza dough, J made an awesome Stromboli. It was a yummy, warm, cuddly kind of night!

Veganized Heirloom Tomato Galette
Modified from Tartelette

Dough:
Ok, like I said, I took the easy road and bought ready-made pizza dough. But you can easily modify her recipe by subbing in a stick of Earth Balance.

Ricotta Filling:
Remember those awesome Flatbreads we made from Post Punk Kitchen? We took the creamy spread, sans scallions, red peppers, and with only 1 Tbsp lemon juice, and used that in place of ricotta. J also used it in the Stromboli.

Topping:
4 heirloom tomatoes
Fresh herbs straight from our windowsill: oregano, basil, & cilantro

So we made it according to her directions using our substitutions, and then popped it in the oven, but only for about 30-40 minutes - remember - we were working with pizza dough not pastry!

It was easy-peezey to make and proves, yet again, that any recipe can be turned into a delicious, cruelty-free meal! Try it veganizing your favorite recipes and if you need advice on substitutions, just leave me a comment and I'll try to help you out!

I know, I know, I know

I know it's been forever. Sorry buddies! Life's been incredibly hectic since J and I found out we unexpectedly have to move. We think we finally found a place - so fingers crossed!

Since January, I've shed about 15 pounds. At first I was incredibly proud of myself and excited...but now the thrill is gone and I'm remembering that my real goal was to lose about 45 pounds. So back at it we go!

For the next week or so, I'm jumping into a semi-raw diet and excluding bread, any pre-prepared vegan foods other than tofu, and eliminating cooking for the most part. Pintrest has been a huge help in providing inspiration for meals and I've even started "Raw" and "Get Healthy(er)" boards to collect ideas. This morning's breakfast was a Pinterest find and is from food blogger Oh She Glows - Easy Overnight Buckwheat Parfait. It's really delicious - earthy tones of buckwheat, the tapioca like chia seeds sweetened with banana, the fresh strawberries J and I picked at Alewives Brook Farm yesterday, and some blueberries. And no cooking involved! Yay! She gives other incarnations of the parfait to try out just to mix it up and I'm sure I'll test those out too.

I also love how portable this breakfast is. One of my more recent goals is to try to make time for myself to eat breakfast at home in the morning. Not standing over the sink, not taking bites between brushing my hair - but actually sitting down, taking in the tastes, appreciating the work that went into making the food I'm consuming. But honestly, some mornings just don't work out as planned. And this morning, I just grabbed my little juice glass sized Ball jar and headed out the door.

I also prepared a large pitcher of water with lemons and limes at home and filled my water bottle up this morning to take to work. After I get to the store this week, I'll add cucumber and mint to the water to make "Sassy Water" - which a friend pinned on Pinterest and told me she was drinking for a while while detoxing and it really helped improve her skin health. I'll let you all know how it goes!

Better Late Then Never?

It's been a while - I know. I'm doing a terrible job of keeping up with this blog, but I promise to try try try again to post more regularly, dear friends.

Back at the end of February, J took me to Camden, Maine for a weekend, birthday getaway and it was truly lovely. It also proved to us that we can be vegan AND go on vacation! Huzzah! Below is a little review of the many places we went for those of you looking to travel! Overall, I can tell you that Camden is an INCREDIBLY accommodating place - at the time, it seemed more so than even Portland, which is a much larger city. We can't wait to go back again next year!

J and me chilly in Camden, Maine

Harbor

Windward House Bed & Breakfast
Vegan Accommodations: 5/5 Stars
Environmental Awareness: 5/5 Stars 
Setting: 5/5 Stars
Staff: 5/5 Stars


At the recommendation of friends, J booked two night stay at the Windward House in the Chart Room Suite right in Camden. The Inn is owned and run by Kristi and her husband Jesse who are incredibly nice and accommodating. The room was large and cozy and included a little sitting room with propane fireplace  and a jacuzzi tub! On top of it all, how excited were we to come out to breakfast on Saturday morning and find that their menu has vegan items on it - yes! They had tempeh bacon, sticky rice with coconut milk, delicious pancakes with a rum/banana sauce, orange-soy yogurt pancakes, cereals, toast, french toast, beautiful fruit cups, teas, coffees - we certainly did not go hungry! We enjoyed speaking with our hosts who were extremely personable and we greatly appreciated their attention to detail, including their interest in sustainability! J and I want to start a birthday trip tradition and we will absolutely visit again next February!!

Cappy's Chowder House

Vegan Accommodations: 2/5 Stars

Setting: 2/5 Stars

Staff: 5/5 Stars

So Cappy's is a great place to visit if you want to feel like you're a local...especially in the winter when hardly any tourists are around. We sat at one of their back booths in the darkened restaurant decorated with photos and cabin-themed chachkis. J ordered a locally made cider and I had a hot spiced rum drink. As we pondered the menu we realized there really weren't any vegan options available. The waitress came over and asked if we needed help and we explained that we were vegan and checking to see if there was anything we could eat. She was incredibly accommodating and said they could absolutely figure something out using pasta and veggies. We asked about the fries and onion rings, but they fry them in the same fryer they use for the clams and the onion rings are made using eggs. But she was so nice and really really wanted to help us out! Normally, in Portland, when we say we're vegan and can't find anything, the waitress sort of shrugs and says oh, well; so it was very refreshing to have someone actually try to find us an option! We ended up only having our drinks at Cappy's but they get high marks for trying! It's a fun local atmosphere, and we definitely recommend getting a drink there. 

Super yummy drinks at Cappy's

Robot bar!!

Cafe Mediterranean

Vegan Accommodations: 5/5 Stars

Setting: 4/5 Stars

Staff: 5/5 Stars

After our drinks at Cappy's we went up the street to Cafe Mediterranean for dinner. The restaurant is very small and has maybe 6 or 7 tables. There was only one waitress and one guy in the kitchen, which was quite impressive. We sat in a window seat that was fairly private, and watched the snow/rain coming down hard outside. J ordered the falafel and I ordered a Mediterranean sampler plate that included tabouli, hummus, salad, warmed pita, and eggplant. The food was so, so good! There are several vegan options on the menu that don't even need to be modified and I'm sure some of the other dishes could be modified too! It's nice to go somewhere and not have to make a special request though. 

J's falafel

Sampler platter

NOM!

40 Paper

Vegan Accommodations: Unknown

Setting: 5/5 Stars

Staff: 5/5 Stars

After dinner at Cafe Mediterranean, we walked/half ran in the rain over to 40 Paper for cocktails. J was ecstatic that they had Maine Root and I had a a lemony-ginger drink. 40 Paper has a super fun/high-end atmosphere; very modern decor. I can't really comment on their ability to serve a vegan couple since we didn't eat there, but based on the rest of the town's accommodating behavior, I'd say it isn't out of the question. We will likely try to eat there the next time we visit!

Fresh

Vegan Accommodations: 4/5 Stars

Setting: 5/5 Stars

Staff: 5/5 Stars

On Saturday, J and I had a late lunch/early dinner at Fresh. The restaurant uses mainly local goods and their kitchen is open so you can watch the chef prepare your meal. As we peered at the menu, we didn't really see anything inherently vegan, but they had a nice selection of salads that we asked to modify. We asked if they could combine the Rocket Salad and Fresh Bistro Salad together but leave off the dairy and meat products, and they said, "No problem!" The chef prepared a beautiful salad with chickpeas and tons of veggies that was very fulfilling and quite yummy. We also ordered an order of their fresh hand-cut french fries which were DELICIOUS. We had planned to return to the restaurant later that night for drinks but ended up watching a movie and enjoying the warmth of our room at the Inn. 

Mediterranean Grill

Vegan Accommodations: 4/5 Stars

Setting: 3/5 Stars

Staff: 5/5 Stars

On our way home on Sunday, we stopped off in Freeport for a little outlet shopping and had a wonderful dinner at the Mediterranean Grill. We ordered the hummus as an appetizer and then shared the falafel entree. The food was excellent and J said he hadn't had falafel and hummus that good in a really long time. There wasn't a ton on the menu that would accommodate vegans but there is a lot for vegetarians and they're so nice there that I'm sure they'd be happy to modify things if you asked. The setting is a little open and less intimate - it's a very large open room which feels strange at lunch when the rest of the room is empty. Delicious food though! 

Azure Cafe

Vegan Accommodations: 0/5 Stars

Setting: 3/5 Stars

Staff: 1/5 Stars

Before heading to the Mediterranean Grill, we tried to have lunch at Azure Cafe in Freeport. We were seated at a nice window table in a room very crowded with close tables. As we peered at the menu it was clear that something would need to be modified or created to accommodate us. When the waitress came over I asked what they could do for vegans. She looked puzzled and asked what exactly vegan meant - "you mean like vegetarian?" I explained that vegans do not eat any animal products or by-products. She said, "Oh. The only thing you can eat, I think, is the Tomato Vodka Soup. I think that's safe." And then she walked away and stood by the waitstaff station, rather than heading to the kitchen to ask the chef. Annoyed and hungry, we bailed. 

Green Elephant Birthday Dinner

On Saturday night, J took me out for my birthday to Green Elephant on Congress Street in Portland, Maine. The Green Elephant is, without a doubt, my favorite restaurant in Maine. Everything is vegan or vegetarian and Asian inspired. Food is made with fresh, local ingredients and the restaurant's decor is simple, but elegant.

We showed up and were told it would be a 20 minute wait, so we popped in next door to Downtown Lounge for a glass of wine. No sooner did we sit down and get our glasses when the buzzer went off - shortest 20 minute wait ever! We downed our wine, apologized to the waitress explaining that we don't normally chug nice glasses of wine, and were seated at the Green Elephant within minutes. Our waitress, one we'd never had before, was so kind and attentive. We started by sharing two appetizers - soy nuggets with chili sauce and green leaves wrap with mango and herbs. The soy nuggets - oh man - we want to figure out how to make them so badly! They are crispy on the outside and have so much flavor. The green leaves wraps were a refreshing raw appetizer made with very fresh ingredients.

Soy Nuggets

Green Leaves with Mango & Herbs

Although we were celebrating, we wanted to keep with our plan of eating healthy and curbing portions sizes so we shared the Siamese Dream Curry Noodle dish. So delicious and just the right amount by sharing. We didn't feel stuffed when we left, just satisfied. I'd suggest sharing dishes if you're trying to lose weight or just maintain if you're the kind of person who has trouble not cleaning your plate. I was always taught to finish everything and when I try to go out to eat and tell myself I'll only eat half and will take the rest home, it normally doesn't pan out so well. So sharing a dish ensures that you'll only eat half and believe me, at most restaurants, half is enough! 

Siamese Dream Curry Noodle

If you're ever in Portland, Maine, the Green Elephant is the place to go. The prices are comparable to the service and quality, the atmosphere is charming and modern, and the food is the best vegan food you'll find around! 

27 is here

Today I turn 27 and the day is always bittersweet. I'm happy to be another year older and don't fear the approaching 3 - 0 as many do. What's makes it bittersweet is that someone isn't here to celebrate with me. In 2007, my mom died from an extremely aggressive version of cervical cancer. She was my idol, my hero, my best friend. And so on this day, I'm spending the day at home by myself with the kitties, baking for an event on Sunday, remembering her life, and feeling thankful she brought me into this world.

I'm glad today is quiet. I'm going to test out two new types of cupcakes: Cookies n' Creme and Peaches n' Cream. It's another test of my willpower over sweets! I've lost another pound this week and am down by 17 since starting, so I'll just keep reminding myself that fitting into those jeans and that skirt and that blazer are WAY more worth it than scarfing down a cupcake.

Yesterday, I took off work and treated myself to a haircut in the morning and then walked around the city with J. We went into LeRoux Kitchen, an amazing kitchen supply store in the Old Port. While there, we did buy a little Taza Chocolate that was salted almond and I stowed it away in my purse. Taza Chocolate is incredible and if you haven't tried it, you need to. It comes as a small circle and although it looks and feels like a dense chunk of chocolate, it tastes incredibly airy and light. Then we walked around a bit more and started feeling hungry by 1:30, so we went over to the Portland Public Market and visited our friends at Granny's Burrito, Kamasouptra, and Market House Coffee. Whenever I visit the Public Market, I try to spread my wealth around by purchasing something small from several vendors. So for lunch we shared a burrito filled with peanut tofu, rice, lettuce, and hot sauce from Granny's, a small cup of vegan chili from Kamasouptra, and a pineapple coconut water from Market House Coffee. It was certainly a larger lunch than we're accustomed to and I was glad we'd skipped both our morning and afternoon snacks. We also spent the good part of the day walking at a good pace - I'm guessing we walked 5-6 miles by the time we were done.

It's all about balance! My coworker says it's simple, "Calories in must be equal to or less than calories out." I think it's important to celebrate things once in a while and to not deprive ourselves of things forever because that is exactly what causes me to fall off the weight loss wagon.

So for dinner last night we had a very very light dinner of 1/2 cup of brown rice over arugula with 1/2 cup of shiitakes and a wedge of lime squirted on top. We followed dinner by a few bites of the Taza chocolate and then ran some errands for my day of baking today. After returning home, we were both hungry. Stomach grumbling hungry. So I suggested we make some Ginger-Lime Hummus and have a little with some carrot and bell pepper sticks. It totally did the trick and I'm pretty sure Ginger-Lime Hummus is our new favorite flavor!

Tonight, J's taking me out for a birthday dinner at the Green Elephant - my favorite restaurant. We've already talked about the idea of getting an appetizer to split and then sharing one entree so that portion sizes are smaller. Green Elephant makes vegetarian and vegan food and it's wonderfully fresh and elegant. I'm excited :) J's birthday present to me is a two night stay in Camden, Maine next weekend and I'm super excited about that!

Since 2006, I've thought my birthday was "cursed." In 2006 and 2007, my mom was re-diagnosed with cancer once on my birthday, once the day before. In 2008, we were told my grandmother (my mom's mother) going to die from cancer just days before my birthday. So I've had trouble celebrating these last few years, no wonder. But I'm going to move past the past and look to the future. A future filled with healthy happiness and a celebration of the strong and beautiful women who helped shape me into the woman I am today.

Favorite Detox Breakfast to date!

Yum! So have you ever tried black quinoa? I did not even know such a thing existed until we reached week 4 of the detox diet. Black quinoa is not sold in the bulk aisle at our Whole Foods and since we rarely <never> buy grains that aren't in bulk, we never even noticed it sitting there on the shelf. So what's the difference? Well, it's similar in nutrition to red quinoa, but it's much more fragrant and it doesn't have that crunchiness to it. Which is why it made for a wonderful breakfast!

On Sunday night we cooked up a big batch of the black quinoa and for breakfast we have about 2/3 of a cup with 1/4 almond milk, 1/2 Tbsp of honey (yes, we're vegan and we're okay with honey...it's a debatable topic and we only buy local), 1 Tbsp of slivered almonds, and a couple thin slivers of avocado. It is an awesome way to start the day!

Although black quinoa is more expensive (it was $7.99 for a small bag...but remember - quinoa expands to 4x its size when cooked. A little goes a long way!), I think we'll continue buying it once in a while because we are liking the taste and texture much more than red. Have you tried all of the different types yet? Let me know what you think!

End of Detox Week 1!

Week one has been a breeze....well, for the most part. I'm going going to say there weren't times when I sat at my desk at work and longed for a bag of trail mix to munch on or one of my hemp seed bars, but I pushed through. And you know what? I'm feeling awesome. I've lost about 5 pounds so far (maybe more, I stupidly didn't weigh myself before the first day), I find it easier to get up in the morning, and my mood has improved a lot. J has lost about 10 pounds so far and has had a harder time adjusting then me, but now feels pretty good about all of this.

Week two is when we get to add back in tofu and beans/legumes. It's funny, I'm almost tempted to do one more week of the week one plan, but I think I'll just stick to it the way it's written and see what happens. My biggest goal is to become more active. I've never been one to be excited about exercise...it's just not in me. I'm bummed that I'm not more excited about it, but it's hard to change that about yourself. I've been pulling out the WiiFit again, walking more, and still going to weekly Pilates sessions. I hope to keep up with the weight loss.

The biggest help is doing this with someone. I hear negative comments around me all day long. "That doesn't look like enough food." "I'd still be hungry if that's all I ate for lunch." "Who cares? One cup of coffee won't hurt you." And I've been superbly deflecting them all. I need to feel positive about me and not care what others think and perhaps my positivity and great results will inspire them to make changes in their lives too! Who knows!

Detox Day Two Recap

Day 2 has almost come a close and both of us are feeling pretty good. When I picked J up from work we both admitted to feeling a little headachey and pretty hungry, but good nonetheless!

Our meals/snacks today consisted of:

Carrot-Mango Herb Smoothie
1 Clementine
Avocado with Bell Pepper and Tomatoes 
4 Fruit & Nut Bites
Steamed Broccoli and Squash with Tahini Dressing 
Pistachio Stuffed Dates with Coconut

And lots of water! All of the recipes were awesome - especially the Carrot-Mango Herb Smoothie. It's really smooth and has this wonderful basil aftertaste. Yum!

What I thought would be the most difficult part of the day, was actually fine. I had a work meeting where they serve lunch and while they always make me a vegan lunch, it's still not on the plan. They make a big plate of desserts and inevitably the tray always ends up in front of me. Since going vegan, it's still been hard to stare at that stuff because yes, I'm a chocoholic. But today, I was totally fine. Didn't want it at all. The amazingly filling avocado lunch staved off cravings and I smiled inside during the meeting, knowing that I was fine. That's not to say that I didn't have trouble today. In the morning I was having a hard time waiting for lunch, but I stuck it through; drank another bottle of water and breathed.

The one thing I'm finding is that it takes a lot of energy to prepare everything. I don't want to find myself in a lurch with no food options and so I have to think ahead of time and prepare all of our breakfasts, lunches, and snacks in advance. It's great being prepared - I just hope I can keep this up! I recommend creating a menu for your week instead of blindly picking and choosing recipes from the detox each day. The rigidity helps you plan and also helps you visualize - "This is what I'm eating today." There's no room for that quick run to Starbucks for a coffee and a Kind Bar.

I'm going to have to start planning week two already, but will need to veganize some of their recipes. Week one is focused on only eating fruits, vegetables, and plant-based fats, including nuts, seeds, and oils. Week two adds back in seafood, lentils, beans, and soy. Hold the train. We're not eating seafood...so I think I'll sub in some tofu or tempeh. We'll see - I'm pretty creative :)

Detox Time

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all of our holiday eating. Yes, we're vegan, but we still eat things like....Salt and Pine's Chocolate-Peanut butter Decadence Cake. (Yes, I made that this past weekend!)

Although I don't plan to stop baking (it's my "job" on the side and my passion) I do plan to start a detox plan on Monday with J. If I bake, I'll take it to work or give it away so that it's not lingering around the house. 

I got the idea when someone I know on Facebook posted a link to the 2012 Whole Living Action Plan. I'm at a place where I'm not losing the weight, I'm constantly tired and just want to re-start my body. This detox goes on for 4 weeks and we'll have to create some vegan alternatives for the later weeks since the menus include fish. 

Our first week will include:

Breakfasts:

Antioxidant Smoothie

Carrot, Mango & Herb Smoothie

Green Smoothie

Mango-Coconut Water Smoothie

Orange-Berry Smoothie

Cucumber, Honeydew, and Mint Smoothie

Lunches:

Spiced Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Kale Slaw with Red Cabbage and Carrots

Sweet Potato, Celery, and Apple Salad

Avocado with Bell Pepper and Tomatoes

Dinners:

Steamed Broccoli and Squash with Tahini Sauce

Roasted Peppers, Cauliflower and Almonds

Snacks:

Dried Fruit and Nut Bites

Crispy Roasted Cauliflower

Cinnamon Poached Apples with Toasted Walnuts

In addition, the site gives you a mediation of the week, suggests starting a food journal, and has several detox yoga poses.

I'm excited to get started new week and hope to not only shed some weight but to feel rejuvenated!  

Vegan Laptop Lunchtime!

Spinach and Kale salad with chickpeas, kidney beans, carrots, yellow bell pepper, broccoli, red onion, and chia seeds and a dressing made from raw garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper; carrot sticks; homemade hummus topped with a little olive oil and chickpeas; sea salt pita chips.

I've been really sick for the last maybe 8-9 days with an infection I've been getting for the past 9 years. Some doctors say it's staph, some say shingles, some say it's a mold allergy - who knows?! All I know is that I'm uncomfortable and unhappy, dang it! So today's lunch is the "Immune System Booster" lunch. Kale, broccoli, spinach and raw garlic are HUGE immunity helpers and I'm trying to get down 1-2 raw garlic cloves a day. Of course this means I smell like I'm warding off the vampire apocalypse as I leak garlic from every pore. Hopefully no one around me notices/cares....although - why should I care anyway? If it's helping me get better, then, "More Garlic!" I say! 

Top 10 Money Saving Tips for Going Vegan

At the request of my friend Liz and because I hear it so damn often, this will be a post about how to be vegan and save money. So often I hear people telling me, "Oh, I'd go vegan/vegetarian if it didn't cost so much, but it's so expensive I just can't do it." I want to laugh when I hear this. Are you kidding me? Switching to veganism is WAY cheaper than consuming meat, but only if you are a smart and conscious shopper. Sure, you can go to Whole Foods and purchase pre-made seitan, wheat balls, veggie burgers, polenta, etc. And yes, your shopping bill will be high. No doubt about it. But if you follow these few tips, you'll find you'll be saving money in no time!

Christi's Top 10 Tips for Saving $$ on a Vegan Diet:

1. Avoid fancy specialty items. They're packaging is enticing and their easy to use but they will jack your bill up, so be prepared. We do purchase Tofurkey deli slices on a regular basis and we'll often buy Field Roast. But we know they're more expensive and we can afford it right now. These aren't vital items to be a good vegan cook and you can totally make amazingly delicious food WITHOUT them. I promise :) You can also find recipes that tell you how to make them. Homemade seitan is far more cost-effective than pre-made store bought seitan. Homemade veggie burgers are way cheaper and you don't have to worry about egg whites being included.

2. Plan your meals in advance. Every Saturday I sit down with our cookbooks and pick out 4-5 meals for the week. I write out my shopping list based on these meals and I write down the meals, cookbooks, and page numbers and stick it to the fridge for the week. You're thinking, "I see how this would save time, but money?" But it does! By creating a shopping list around the things you plan to eat for the week, you won't be tempted or even need to purchase things that are not on your list (ALWAYS food shop with a list). You'll also find that you're buying the appropriate quantity of food for you and your family and you aren't wasting food by letting it go bad. If you find that food is still going bad, make smaller shopping trips.

3. The bulk aisle is your best friend (most of the time). For the most part, items in the bulk section will cost less than buying that fancy Bob's Red Mill's bag of polenta (we don't buy his products anymore and you shouldn't either!). Your bulk aisle will likely include polenta, flour, sugar, beans, spices, nuts, and many grains. But make sure that the cost is less. Last week, I wanted to buy a good amount of cranberries to use in my baking. I checked out the price per pound in the Whole Foods bulk section. In the same aisle they sell packaged bulk items, and the packaged cranberries cost less per pound. So goo thing I checked!

4. Beans, Beans, Beans. I know it's a pain in the ass to buy dry beans, but MAN do they cost less than canned. Seriously! So here's what you do...you buy your beans on the weekend and on Sunday afternoon, soak a big batch, boil them, drain them, and put them in tupperware and stick them in the freezer. You're set for a while if you do a good amount and a variety. Beans are an awesome source of protein and numerous vitamins - so eat 'em up!

5. Shop Local. Farmers Markets, road stands, local orchards are a fantastic way to save money. Check out some of my earlier posts with shots of all the food I've gotten for $10. It's incredible and it's fresh and local and so much better for you. Think about how far some of our food travels to get to us, how it's banged around, gets dirty....local food at the Farmers Market traveled up to an hour on the back of a truck and the person who grew that tomato is handing it to you. Fantastic! I don't know why you wouldn't shop there :)

6. Use substitutions in fancy recipes. So your mushroom risotto recipe uses morels which are like $5.99 for a small bag. Substitute! You don't have to use morels. The amazing thing about veggies is how versatile they are. You should use recipes as a guide and not feel tied to them. If your recipe calls for expensive mushrooms, substitute with criminis or white mushrooms and you'll save $3. You have a recipe that tells you to deglaze the pan with red wine but you don't have red wine or can't afford it, use veggie stock or water instead.

7. Choose your proteins wisely. Many people, when they first become vegetarian or vegan, feel that they need to buy meat substitutes to replace the protein they were getting from animal foods. Not true! There are many, many, MANY other sources of protein that, at times, have more protein than the meat subs. Here are some examples of protein content from plant food from Vegan for Life:

• 3 ounces of seitan = 22.5 grams 
• 1/3 cup of soy protein powder = 23 grams
• 1/2 cup of soy beans (edamame, if you will) = 14.3 grams
• 1/4 cup of peanuts = 8.6 grams
• 1/2 cup of firm tofu = 20 grams (firm has a higher protein content than soft)
• 1 cup of soy milk = 10 grams
• 1/2 cup of quinoa = 4 grams
• 1/2 cup of frozen spinach = 3.8 grams
• 2 Tbsp peanut butter = 8 grams

You don't need soy meat alternatives if you learn about nutrition and make smart choices throughout your day. If you understand the nutrition behind it, you'll save a great deal of money! I can't stress that enough - you really need to learn nutrition and make sure you're doing vegan right - you'll save money and ensure your health. Don't be a junk food vegan (french fries and Oreos). 

8. Waste not - make stock. We're getting back into soup season and I cannot stress enough how silly it is to buy veggie stock. Seriously - don't make me come over there to give you a swift kick in the pants. Here's the trick - as you're cooking throughout the week, keep a large tupperware container in your fridge and add any veggie odds and ends - carrot peels, onion ends, avocado skins, kale stems  - you name it, if it's veg, throw it in! Then, at the end of the week, throw all the ends into a big pot with a little olive oil and saute them. Once the veggies are warmed and smelling good, add water, a bay leaf, some fresh ground pepper and 1-2 tsp of soy sauce or Braggs. Cover the pot; bring it up to a boil and then simmer for a few hours. After you turn it off, allow it to cool so you can work with it and strain the liquid into a pitcher or large container you can store in the fridge. Squeeze the veggies to get excess liquid out (it's crazy how much liquid they hold). And now you've got stock for the week to make soups, cook rice and other grains, use in sautés, etc. If you have a composter, throw the veg in. Sadly, we don't have one, but at least we're getting as much food as we can out of the veggies we buy. 

9. Make your own snacks. Snack foods are so tempting to buy. If you're dieting right, you know you need a snack or two throughout your day, but snack foods like granola bars, veg chips, trail mix, etc. can get really pricey. So make your own! Make a nice big batch of granola bars - there are tons of great recipes on VegWeb and there's a great one on The Vegan Stoner. Make your own trail mix by purchasing a some nuts, seeds and raisins or cranberries in the bulk section and then just mix them together. Ta-da! Trail mix. Make your own veg chips - you've got an oven! If you buy kale chips, I will smack you. They are SO much cheaper to make at home and you can do fun things like add a good amount of cayenne pepper and sea salt or coconut...Google kale chip recipes and you'll find tons of combinations. 

10. Set a take-out/dine-out limit. This rule applies to all diets but it's easier when you're vegan because there are less dining options to begin with! Set a rule for your household limiting the number of times you eat out or order take out. Our rule is 2 times per month and we seriously save a good chunk of change. It's hard to stick to this rule when you've got a lot of friends pulling you in all different directions, wanting to dine with you. Don't fret - just suggest small dinner parties at your houses. The setting is more intimate, you can actually hear what people are saying, and there is something so satisfying about cooking for the people you love. In other cities, there are a lot more dining-out options for vegans than in Portland, Maine, but you should still limit your meals out. Think about it, often times the bill for a dinner for 2 is equal to your week's food shopping trip. And you only get one meal out of it. If you don't believe that it will help you save money, start tracking how much you spend, not only on eating out, but record every time you purchase a latte and how much it cost you. It's so easy to drop a few bucks here and there, but then when you track it and look back at your months expenses, you'll be shocked to discover that you've spent maybe $50 on coffee. $50?! That's a food shopping trip providing food for a week! 

So all of these tips are awesome, but maybe they don't answer the question at large - is veganism cheaper than being an omnivore? Well, let's look at the cost of ground beef, pork chops, and chicken.

Average cost of ground beef, per pound, in August 2011 = $3.21
Pork chops, bone in per pound, in August 2011 = $3.65
Chicken, boneless per pound, in August 2011 = $3.25
Tofu, with a price that rarely fluctuates, 14 ounces = $1.69 (365 extra firm tofu)

Ok so, a pound is 16 ounces, so the beef is 20 cents an ounce, the pork is 23 cents, and chicken is 20 cents.  Tofu is 12 cents an ounce. Maybe you don't think that's very much, but it all adds up! And these prices on meat are averages, the region you live in and store you're shopping at can cause major fluctuations. As I noted above, the price of tofu very rarely fluctuates and so we always know how much we're going to spend.

Here's some additional reading if you want more info:

MSN: Go vegetarian to save money
20 Something Finance: Frugality through Vegetarianism - How to Save $2-$3K per Year & the Planet by Moving Away from a Meat - Based Diet
Vegan on the Cheap by Robin Robertson

Laptop Lunchtime!

Herb salad mix with tomato, summer squash, crimini mushroom, kohlrabi, sunflower sprouts, and balsamic; amazing pasta creation made by Justin last night (recipe will follow this evening); fresh local blackberries from our landlady's friend's backyard.

I've told you guys about Laptop Lunchboxes before, yes? Well, I'll repeat myself and say that this is one of the best investments I've made in the last year. It's small and easily transportable, comes in a variety of colors, has awesome little containers so you can make more interesting lunches, cuts down on lunch trash (no sandwich bags or disposable utensils), and it's BPA-free! Win! I think it ran me about $20 at Whole Foods during back to school season (which is coming up...) and after a year it's still good as new. There are many other lunchbox/bento options and Laptops has a million different designs and color choices. You can order them online or find them locally. Think about investing in one and cut down on your lunchtime trash! 

Laptop Lunchtime!

I pulled a muscle in my back this week (total lamesauce) so my man made my lunch this morning and boy did he do a great job!

Left-over Israeli couscous salad he made last night while I was couch-bound (I won't get everything because I didn't make it, but I believe it includes yellow & orange bell peppers, seitan, broccoli, fresh basil from the Farmers Market - holla! - some white wine and our homemade veggie stock); cherries; chopped carrots & broccoli with Greek hummus

Even though I'm in pain, it sure does bring a smile to my face to open up a lunch this pretty. If you have the time to make your lunch look pretty, DO IT. It just may be the thing that brightens your day :)