Six week digest

...digest--get it?  heehee

First of all, if you don't follow me on Twitter yet (@TryingVeggie) take a sec and do that. This way, you won't be left hanging again. But I'll happily report to non-Twitterers that I did not break at the OC Foodie Fest--phew. I've been Trying Veggie for six weeks and counting.

There's still a bit of fretting about what's for dinner and I find I run out to grab ingredients more often then I used to--but it all does feel a bit more comfortable. A few of our favs have been fajitas, veggie lasagna, slow cooker pinto beans, homemade meat(less)balls... and I've yet to make the same exact thing twice.

Overall, my husband and I (and I think my little one) are all very glad we're sticking out this challenge. We feel healthier for it, seem to have more energy than we used to and have even dropped a few pounds. It's also led me to be as healthy as I can be in other ways. I've learned about GMO corn and soy and realize the importance of non-GMO produce. Also, a few weeks ago I found out...

"If a non-organic product contains a soy protein isolate, soy protein concentrate, or texturized vegetable protein, you can be pretty sure it was made using soy beans that were made with hexane (...a decidedly un-green petroleum byproduct of gasoline refining)"

And here I was, Trying Veggie to be healthier! So this means a lot less reliance on sources I've written about before: Gardein, Trader Joe's meat-less varieties, Morningstar patties... anything that's not organic. Read more from CBS here.

Luckily, I learned that hemp seed is a very good source of protein and I'm using that to make sure we get enough of what our bodies need. They sell the hulled seeds in health food stores or online. They're soft and nutty and sneak well into everything (cereal, oatmeal, smoothies, meat(less)balls, veggie burgers, pizza... you get the idea). Read more about this great protein here and here.

Lastly, and I still can't believe this one, but I stopped drinking coffee. I was such a coffee fiend that I still find this shocking to write. It's only been about a week, but I find I enjoy the sustained energy level vs. the up and down peaks and valleys I felt when drinking my daily lattes. Plus, I'm drinking healthy green tea and water instead of sipping one large latte all day long.

All these little things are adding up and encouraging me further. In addition, I've met vegetarians, vegans and raw foodists who inspire me and push me to wonder... what's next!?

I've been Trying Veggie for 25 days

Today marks 25 days. No meat. Though there have been some non-veggie slip ups and I'm posting in an effort to remind myself NOT to break tomorrow! (I'll explain in the last paragraph.)

First, I hate to share this, but Jiffy corn muffin mix contains lard. I'm not sure what compelled me to read the list of ingredients (after I ate it!), but here they are (I added the bold)--and oh great that it might actually be hydrogenated lard!:

Pic from Jiffy @ http://www.jiffymix.com

 

 

INGREDIENTS: WHEAT FLOUR, DEGERMINATED YELLOW CORN MEAL, SUGAR, ANIMAL SHORTENING (CONTAINS ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING: LARD, HYDROGENATED LARD, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED LARD), contains less than 2% of each of the following: BAKING SODA, SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SALT, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID.

Those little Jiffy boxes have always turned up tasty corn bread, so I'm sad to think I have to let them go (and of course I have some on hand still).  But little things like that popping up are a lot harder to avoid than preparing meals without meat or ordering dishes without meat.

Speaking of which, I reported back on eating out earlier, but I have to dedicate a special mention to two GREAT local restaurants that make Trying Veggie a real no-brainer: Veggie Grill and Yard House. (Side note, I hear Yard House will in the Fenway neighborhood soon.)

Veggie Grill is a vegan restaurant and was an early discovery when we moved to California and a place that we went to once a week--well before I even thought about Trying Veggie. The food is just plain great. We usually get the All-American Stack: grilled veggie-steak (Gardein), thousand island dressing, pickles, lettuce and tomato topped with crispy onion rings, another entree and the kids meal for our daughter--who loves it there (and asks to eat there quite regularly, actually). Overall, it's how vegetarian food should be. Good. NOT--good, for being vegetarian. Oh and they have a killer vegan carrot cake too!

Yard House is a yummy restaurant that happens to have a lot of fun beer on tap. Their food tastes great and is always a sure bet. What they do special is offer normal menu items with Gardein--providing a newly-vegetarian person like myself an amazing array of options that can satisfy any craving you may have (or void you may feel by not eating meat). Case in point--this week I had Béarnaise Sliders--four Gardein mini-burgers with classic béarnaise sauce and fried onions. It was such an awesome treat and I am so grateful to have such cool options made by the professionals.

I owe readers more recipes, and I assure you I will share them. I made stuffed crispy wontons that were awesome, a veggie lasagna, veggie chili... and will share it all. But I had to get a post up today in an effort to hold myself accountable to stay vegetarian.

I'm not sure how hard it will be or not be to do this weekend, but we're going to the OC Foodie Fest tomorrow. Since we've lived here, I've followed the moves of the food trucks in our area, but have yet to try food from any of them. After months of drooling over their menu items, I will be facing 50 of them head on tomorrow--and vow to try my hardest to avoid meat. Can I do it? I'll let you know soon!