A little while ago I came across some "Meatless Monday" recipes on Food Gawker. Since I already am almost vegetarian, I decided to step this idea up a little and try out Vegan Mondays. I thought this would be a good way to be more creative in my cooking while also doing a little bit to help the environment.
Last Monday was my first Vegan Monday. I plan to make this a weekly post, chronicling my adventures in vegan eating every Monday.
For breakfast I created a vegan version of my overnight oatmeal. I used traditional oats, a banana, half of a pear, applesauce (instead of yogurt), soy milk (instead of cow's milk), cinnamon and nutmeg. This turned out absolutely delicious, as always. It tasted exactly like my usual pear overnight oats. Next time, I'll remember to add in pecans as well.
As a snack, I had my homemade pumpkin chocolate chip granola bars. The inspiration for these bars came from this website: http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/10/20/pumpkin-cinnamon-chip-pecan-granola-bars/. These bars were made of oats, pecans, pumpkin puree, banana, applesauce, brown sugar, vanilla, and chocolate chips. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not sure these are really vegan. I was careful not to use honey, but are chocolate chips vegan? I just checked the bag that I used and the answer is no. They contain milk. Oops. This was my first attempt at Vegan Monday. I'll do better next week!
Last Monday was my first Vegan Monday. I plan to make this a weekly post, chronicling my adventures in vegan eating every Monday.
For breakfast I created a vegan version of my overnight oatmeal. I used traditional oats, a banana, half of a pear, applesauce (instead of yogurt), soy milk (instead of cow's milk), cinnamon and nutmeg. This turned out absolutely delicious, as always. It tasted exactly like my usual pear overnight oats. Next time, I'll remember to add in pecans as well.
For lunch, I had packed some focaccia I made over the weekend (see post here). I thought, that's definitely vegan, it's just yeast, flour, and water. Plus, I only put vegetables on top. Once I took it out at work to heat it up, however, I remembered that I also sprinkled cheese on top. Oops! Luckily for me, I was prepared and also had some snacks at work. So, instead of my focaccia, I had hummus, whole wheat pita, carrots and peppers for lunch. Yum.
As a snack, I had my homemade pumpkin chocolate chip granola bars. The inspiration for these bars came from this website: http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/10/20/pumpkin-cinnamon-chip-pecan-granola-bars/. These bars were made of oats, pecans, pumpkin puree, banana, applesauce, brown sugar, vanilla, and chocolate chips. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not sure these are really vegan. I was careful not to use honey, but are chocolate chips vegan? I just checked the bag that I used and the answer is no. They contain milk. Oops. This was my first attempt at Vegan Monday. I'll do better next week!
For dinner I made a spinach salad with falafel sprinkle on top. You're probably thinking...falafel sprinkle....what is that? Well, falafel sprinkle is what happens when you forget how to make falafel and the patties do not stick together. Instead of having nice balls of chickpeas and onions, you have fried bits of chickpeas and onion. The taste is exactly the same, but the results are harder to eat. That's why I put them on a salad. In this case, the salad had spinach, cucumbers and falafel sprinkle, with some lemon juice. I promise I have made falafel successfully in the past. I even have pictures. I'll post an entry on here to prove it.
Overall, I think my first Vegan Monday was moderately successful. I made two mistakes, but was able to catch myself on one before it was too late. Animal products are in more foods than I had anticipated, but I think this is a great weekly challenge for myself.
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