I kind of failed {Week 2- Angela}

I didn't know. 

It wasn't easy to see.

I was misinformed.

I missed it.

Does it still count?

Ok, let me back up... 

I was minding my own business; enjoying a delicious bowl of cereal. 

I started reading the nutritional label, which I had done before, and saw it. 

Hidden within the ingredients and written in smaller print than everything else(or so I interpreted it) was HONEY. 

 I felt an instant sense of failure as I vocalized my disappointment saying "Nooooo" outloud to myself. 

I squirmed and I thought "but I didn't see it the first time I checked the label..."

does that count? 

Yes. 

Did I continue to eat the bowl of cereal I poured?

Yes.

Hey now. It is what it is.  I can't turn back time. 

It was an honest mistake, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed. 

I have worked so hard to be completely vegan during this process.

I considered pretending I didn't see it and keeping this dirty little secret to myself, but then what would that prove? 

I sucked up my pride and admitted my defeat. My downfall. My demise.  

Ok, ok. Dramatic, I know. 

I won't do it again, but if I do you will all be the first to know.

Let's not focus on the negative ---I did do some things right this week: 

     

1. Edamame Salad- This recipe was inspired by laziness and an attempt to clean out my fridge.  I threw together edamame, carrots, pine nuts, nutritional yeast, poppy seeds and raisins onto of a bed lettuce with balsamic vinaigrette.  It was yummy and an easy salad to make.
2. Hummus Sandwich- This is my staple.  This is my vegetarian staple and with some modifications it is my vegan samples as well.  This sandwich consists of vegan cheese, Dijon mustard, hummus, cucumbers, tomato, spinach, bean sprouts and lemon pepper.  It is everything.
3. Roasted Broccoli & Apple Salad with Lemon- Tahini Dressing-  This salad is one of the best things I've ever tasted.  I've made it TWICE during this month thus far.  It also has vegan bacon on it.  I literally cannot get enough.  This recipe will be added to my recipe book so I can enjoy it from years to come. You will not be disappointed.
4. Pecan Parmesan- Crusted Avocado & Kale Florentine with Hollandaise Sauce- This recipe helped to fill my hearty egg-filled breakfast void. There's something about avocado crusted in pecans. There's something about being in love.  This breakfast did that for me. Please and thank you.

Overall, this week was a total success minus my little slip-up I noted in the beginning. Don't be fooled.  I'm still a vegan machine.  Yes,  a vegan machine.  Until next week, friends!

-Angela

Week 1 [Amber]

Week one.......nailed it! (<-- insert fist pump emoji here)

I can safely say I was neither starving nor diving head first into a vat of melted cheese. In fact, I feel pretty good. Don't get me wrong, this is in no way the easiest feat i've ever attempted. ohhh, no no no. The lunch room at work might function solely to torture me on a semi-regular basis, what with the danishes, chocolate and carmel corn that always seems to appear. 

But alas, I'm succeeding and it feels good. Am I ready to start preaching the wonders that is a vegan diet? Not quite. But I am starting to feel like the next three weeks won't end with me crying into a pint of Ben & Jerry's sobbing that I'm a vegan failure. 

The main thing I've learned thus far is how crucial planning and meal prep is to a successful diet. For more than a month before this challenge commenced I was scouring pinterest, blogs, and research articles daily for recipes and nutritional guidance. I HATE being hungry. I mean, if we're being honest with ourselves, who actually enjoys being hungry? But i don't just get hungry. If you looked up "hangry" in the dictionary, my resting bitch face would be inked right next to the words aggressive, hostile, and likely to rip peoples faces off. 

So you can see how important satisfying and filling food is to me. And as if "going vegan" wasn't enough of a challenge, I went into this month with the notion that I was going to try to limit my processed food intake and challenge myself to cook more. I've always really enjoyed cooking, but the idea of cooking without dairy and eggs was very daunting. And as you'll see below, through photographic evidence, i'm doing pretty okay in the kitchen. No, scratch that, i'm crushing it. 

The only downside to this week was when I went to Philly for a Flyers game. Not only did I panic that we wouldn't have enough time to stop at one of the vegan restaurants I'd researched for dinner, leaving me starving with no options at the arena, but also, its Philly! No cheesesteaks?! No Chickie's & Pete's crab fries with cheese sauce at the arena?! Are you trying to kill me!?! Who goes to Philly and doesn't get a cheesesteak? 

Not this girl. Not...this....girl.

Spoiler alert: I didn't get one. And of course we didn't have enough time to stop for dinner -- thank you Philly traffic, you're always such a treat. So of course, I had to scramble to find something to eat that wasn't focused around animal carcass. Luckly I'd perused the interwebs before we left for suggestions so I wasn't completely screwed; again my fear of hungry saved the day. Well, that and a bag full of pre-prepared vegan snacks for the car ride.

And now that I've rambled on for far too long, how about some food reviews?

1. Coconut Blueberry Breakfast Quinoa. Lacked sugar. and salt. and the creamy consistency I'd hoped for.

2. Quinoa Salad with Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Dried Cranberries, Pepitas and Pistachios. A modified recipe that turned out really well. Filling, fairly quick and flavorful.

3. BBQ Cauliflower Salad. Not good. I don't know if I used the wrong type of silken tofu for the ranch but this was no substitute for Hidden Valley. Don't waste your time unless you've got a solid vegan ranch recipe in your repertoire. 

4. Dragon Noodles with Tofu. I've made this recipe for months now. Quick, cheap and delicious. Just remember to omit the egg and double the sauce so theres enough to cover the added tofu. 

5. Chipotle Bowl. Straight bangin! And makes a TON of food. Great for lunches for the week. Plus, its filling and cheap to make. I love me some Chipotle, but it can get $$$. 

Amber

It all became real {week one- Angela}

...and then it happened.  

I had fear.  I had a lot of fear. 

A continuous thought kept running through my mind...
"what if I get hungry?!"

If there is anything you need to know about me it is that hunger and I do not mix well. 

Oil and water status.

snippy;angry;irritable;sad;annoyed;unfocused.

Those are some adjectives that could be used to describe me during those moments.
And we all know I can't grab a snickers.

So I knew that I had to have a lot of food. Peeps I don't play.
Research and meal planning has been my savior with this process.
If not I would solely eat chips, salads and oreos.
Something I've considered, but not the intention of this process.

Anyway, I really got my chef on with this first week of veganism. Chef Ang status for real.
My recipe inspirations came from endless hours of pinning in addition to a
cookbook I now refer to as a dear friend of mine.
 It's called "But I Could Never Go Vegan." The title really spoke to me.   This book will be referenced quite a bit in my vegan posts. No diggity, no doubt.
Thus far I have had limited difficulties with eating vegan.
  It is actually much easier than I anticipated. Say whatttt?!
To give my chef self a break, I went out to eat at a Vegan restaurant in Asbury Park
called Twisted Tree Cafe. Aprons need breaks too, you know?

So, the moment you've all been waiting for: here are some highlights from my first week:

1. Roasted Red Pepper Pasta . This recipe revealed my love for Nutritional Yeast. Wowza.  #vegancheeseflavor

2. Peanut Butter and Banana Overnight Oats. Creamy peanut buttery goodness. Very rich. Very filling.  Overall I thought this was good, but not spectacular. 

3. Lunch at Twisted Tree Cafe. Featured here is both a Soy Chicken Salad Sandwich and a Focaccia Melt. Both were off the hook. Off the chain.  Like how is there no meat or animal products in this yummy yummy goodness? THEN there was carrot cake. Holy moly.  Thank you vegan heavens because I visited you today. It's a beautiful place.  I recommend anyone taking a trip there to check it outttt! 

4. Falafel Tacos with Sriracha- Tahini Sauce.  This was from my beautiful cookbook that I referenced above. This recipe allowed me to stay in my comfort zone and eat familiar food.  Falafels for the win. 

5. Banana Split Rolls. Something went wrong... very wrong with this recipe.  I never thought a recipe could go wrong with chocolate, but trust me people it can.  This was just nasty.  Not good. The dough was similar to chalk.  Yes, chalk. If that's your thing then try this and do exactly what I did to make this happen. 

6. Roasted Corn & Tofu Chevre Quesedillas with Avocado Crema. This was one of the best things I've ever eaten.  I have learned so many cooking techniques from this cookbook. I made tofu chevre cheese...what?  Like fireworks flew after this entered my mouth. Like the fourth of July in my mouth.   And avocado Crema.  Just stop. Stop it right now. 

Not pictured: Apple Almond Energy Balls. Delish. Make these. Thank me later. 

After a week I'm still alive, well nourished and ready to see what the rest of the month holds! 

Thanks for loving me even though I can't eat fondue or ice cream with you. 

Angela 

Where to start?

When you tell people you're going vegan for a month, they usually laugh for somewhere close to 3.2 minutes. Then realize you're not kidding and spend the next three days telling you why you're crazy. But who's to blame them; cheese IS delicious!

I mean, come on! The Melting Pot is an entire restaurant devoted to melted cheese sold at exuberant prices. Give the people what they want....CHEESE!
But enough about cheese....
Angela is a vegetarian with a desire to try vegan for a month and Amber is a carnivore willing to give it all up to support her friend in her quest to detox the cheese addiction.
Cause that's how we work.
We just do shit.
Stupid shit.
Cool shit.
Weird shit.
Fun shit.
Borderline illegal shit.
After an extreme vegan cooking boot camp weekend, and many laughs over food photo techniques, an idea was born.
A blog.
A blog about being vegans for a month....and then some.
Welcome kids.



Angela + Amber