Our Journey Continues: Day 11

We are not even two weeks into this adventure yet and today was difficult. It started out as a great day but had a lot of mental highs and lows.

Our breakfast was oatmeal bars and chocolate (spinach, banana, cocoa, etc) shakes.  I thought the kids would love them but the girls were not thrilled and took a while to plow through them.  Little J, Jason and I enjoyed these and the shakes turned out much better than the first round from last week.  I used a high powered blender which made a big difference in the texture and experience.

For lunch I had we picked from left overs and single ingredients for our individual meals.  Little M chose rice, an energy ball (peanut butter, dried fruit & seeds), blood orange.  All great choices.  Little E had her dinner from the night before which she again refused to eat.  I had left overs and salad and that was fine.

Dinner was an attempt at spaghetti and meatballs. The first and most major problem was that I tried using the failed tomato soup as spaghetti sauce.  It may be fine as pizza sauce but it just didn't have enough 'umpf' to make the dish.  In any case, Little M sensing my distress over-compensated on her praise for the meal,  Little J ate it so he could have cookies and Little E just ran around and refused to eat it.  I think my disappointment was that it just didn't taste like spaghetti and meatballs.  Better sauce would have helped so would a mental shift.

I can't make 'traditional favorites' because they are just not going to taste the same.  We need to find new favorites.  Plus, I am pretty much done with the oatmeal, banana, cinnamon flavor that we have had in several breakfast/dessert dishes.  It is ok once in a while but I need more variety than that.

Prior to this diet change I would plan each week with a beef, poultry, pork, fish, bean and egg dish.  It made meal planning easier and meant that we got variety in the foods we were eating.  This coming week I am going to re-implement this policy with adaptations, of course.  We will have a bean soup, a veggie soup, a salad dish, a grain dish, pasta and sandwich/wrap.  I might play with those some until I find the right combination.  But I am going to try to avoid 'look-a-like' dishes like the ones I focused on this week because they were just took disappointing.

I picked up The Forks Over Knives Cookbook today and will look for inspiration there.  Tomorrow, I will plan for Little M's birthday party at the end of the week.  Encouragement is welcome!

Menu Week 2

Here is the menu and recipes for this coming week. I think I did a little bit better planning the full week this time.  Links are provided for the recipes I will use except for Friday (I haven't decided which burger recipe to use yet) and Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream (it is from Furman's Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained (Google Affiliate Ad) book)

Today we tried a LOT of new recipes including "bacon" for breakfast (not a hit, too dry) and Tofu Scramble (not quite eggs but yummy and eaten up!)  The Polenta Pizza was yummy and I took it to a church potluck.

I was a little concerned going to the potluck as our first adventure out into the 'real' world.  I only took one child so I wouldn't have a big job of keeping track of what they were each eating.  We really lucked out.  There was the dish I brought, green beans w/ almonds, a big salad and a fruit salad.  So we were set!

Meatloaf tonight was fun and felt homey on this cold-ish winter day.  But looking back at the recipe now I realize that I forgot two big ingredients: the oatmeal (no wonder it was not totally solid) and the nuts.  But, eaten along with the mashed potatoes it was great!  Definitely will make again.  For dessert we had Chocolate Ice Box Pie and while not TOTALLY healthy (there was maple syrup in it) it was so good. I topped it with raspberries and my dear husband asked a couple of times just how bad it was for him.  The kids, of course, devoured it and wanted seconds.  My favorite part was the crust made of dates, nuts and vanilla.

I am trying to figure out little M's birthday, which is coming up on Friday.  She has asked for burgers but wants real meat ones.  We could indulge her request for her birthday, it wouldn't hurt anything.  Definitely, need to continue to discuss with my dear husband and see what the best plan for our family is.

Some continued health benefits: we continue to feel alert and refreshed.  Jason has said his sinuses feel more clear than he can remember.  Our littlest one is having an easier time going to the bathroom.  DH and I have both felt like exercising and are actually do it, every day.  His blood pressure and heart rate is significantly lower than it was 1 week ago.  We will continue to monitor but so far so good!

On an environmental note, we have almost no trash!  Food scraps go into compost, the wrappers go into recycling and that's about it.

	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Breakfast	Scramble, Bacon, FruitSalad	Rip's Bowl	Breakfast Bars & Green Shake	Rip's Bowl	Oatmeal	Rip's Bowl	Saturday
Mid Morning Snack		Power Balls	Rice Cakes & PB	Apples & Pistachios	Trail Mix	Friday	Saturday
Lunch	Polenta, Pesto Pizza						Kale w/Cashew Cream Sauce
Afternoon Snack	Apples, PB and Toast, Pistachios	Hummus	Popcorn	Fruit Salad w/Chia Seeds	Chips & Salsa	Fruit Shake	Saturday
Dinner	Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, salad	South West Mac & Cheese	Spaghetti & Meatballs	Black Bean Burritos	Stir Fry & Brown Rice	Burgers, Fries, Salad & Fruit	Potato Enchiladas, Guacamole,
Dessert	Chocolate Ice Box Pie	Cookies	Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream	Pumelo		Carrot Cake & Banana Ice Cream	Saturday

Breakfast Is Served!

Saturday is typically our pancakes morning so adapting our traditional recipe would have been a little challenging (though not impossible).  So I returned to a whole wheat recipe I have used over the past year.

PANCAKES

Here is the original.  My adaptations are below:

Combine:

1 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. oats
1/4 c. corn meal
1/4 c. flax seed meal
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t baking soda

Add:
2 c. milk alternative (I used Almond)
1 mashed banana

Stir and let sit while you heat the griddle
Cook as you normally would pancakes.

SYRUP

For the syrup I combined the following in a blender

1 banana
1/4 c orange juice
2 T dates

Blend well

Add
1/2 c.-1 c. Milk Alternative (I used Almond)
1 T Chia Seeds
Combine

Let sit while the pancakes cook.  Serve generously over top (or drink :-))

I've Been Vegucated

Netflix so kindly recommended other documentaries that would enjoy since I just watched, "Forks Over Knives".  From the list I chose, "Vegucated."  I made the mistake of watching it over dinner.  Although I knew most of the information regarding factory farming and I am learning about the health benefits of a plant based diet, to see the reality of those types of farms was sickening.   I am thankful that it's been years since we stepped off of that terrible machine to only eat locally sourced, humanely treated animals.  The documentary questions whether it is humane to kill any animal when we do not need it eat that kind of food to survive.

If you are still purchasing any type, organic & free range included, of grocery store meats, eggs or dairy, I would recommend you watch this movie.  You need to know and see where you food is coming from.

Four days into this project I am feeling pretty good about this choice.   Jason and I have already noticed certain changes such as: we are not tired after eating, we are less tired in general (and it's not because we got more sleep!), he has lost a pound and feels less bloated, we are less hungry in between meals, the food is delicious.

On a TMI note, I thought we would all be more gassy because of all the fruits, vegetables, beans, etc but I haven't noticed it to be any different that usual.

We had 'Blueberry Dumpster Cake' last night for dessert and it was again motivating enough for the kids to devour their food.   I am making veggie sushi on Friday and can't wait!  It's probably going to be a mess but is should be fun!

Three days in

We are 3 days in to our 'plant based, whole foods' lifestyle change.  I have been surprised by several things.  First, the children are actually receptive to the change.  We have told them nothing at all about it.  But, they have been eating and enjoying the meals I have prepared and snacks.  They were especially excited today when I made tortilla chips and the desserts have been a huge hit.  None of these items contained any added sugars, fats or dairy.

Second, I have noticed fewer of my own cravings.  The breakfast I crafted this morning, "Rip's Big Bowl", was a devoured by everyone and there were no requests for the cereal we typically have.  I wasn't even hungry until lunch time.  I usually need several snacks between breakfast and lunch to get me there.  I love that you can eat as much as fills you up.  My sweet husband commented that he is going to need to learn to listen to his body telling him when he is full and hungry as it feels different and the portions are larger.  The kids, too, are asking for less food in between meals and amazingly enough Little E hasn't gone diving for the cheese in the fridge yet. That is usually a daily occurrence.

Third, the food I have made so far has been absolutely delicious.  The Lentil Coconut Soup from last night was so good we all remarked on it's tastiness :-)  The post just prior to this has the meal plan that I came up with for the whole week.  I linked most of the recipes to it so you could follow along, too.

I was worried we'd never get through the next eight weeks but I don't think it is going to be a problem now.  We watched the extended interviews on Forks Over Knives today.  The documentary clarified a few questions that I had.  I have also been reading extensively.  Trying to wrap my head around a new way of eating, cooking and planning for meal.  We have eaten A LOT of bananas recently but that may change as I figure out recipes and plan differently.

I hope you will join me and post your comments, too!

Weekly Menu for Plant Based Whole Foods Diet

Here is the manu plan that I have come up with.  Click the links to see the recipes:

I am not quite finished with this but you can see where I have started to get an idea.  We had the Lentil Coconut soup last night with RAVE reviews from the kids, same with the Rip's Bowl for breakfast.  Looking forward to these meals!

	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Breakfast	Pumpkin Quinoa	Oatmeal	Breakfast Bars	Musli	Rip's Bowl	Friday	Saturday
Mid Morning Snack	Apples and PB	Enfrijoladas	Power Balls	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Lunch	Leftovers	Leftovers	Bean Burritos	Hummus Sandwich with Veggies	Leftovers	Friday	Leftovers
Afternoon Snack	Hummus and pita	Chips and Salsa	Popcorn	Rice Cakes & Dip	Nut Chips	Friday	Saturday
Dinner	Lentil and Coconut Soup	Rice Corn & Avocado Salad	Very Veggie Chili	Rice Salad with Fennel, Oranges & Chickpeas	Cuban Black Bean Soup & Cous Cous	Sushi, SpinachSalad, Noodles	Potato Enchiladas
Dessert	Banana Ice Cream	Pumpkin Pudding	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday

We Watched Forks Over Knives

Today, my family and I watched Forks Over Knives.  The movie had been recommended to us by several friends and I finally had the chance to sit down and watch it.  I have watched many food movies at this point and read many food books.  Mostly, my perspective on food issues has been to answer the following questions: What is the impact of food production on the environment? Is the food safe for our bodies?  To date, I have been able to sustain my beliefs as a locavore but watching the Forks Over Knives documentary has changed my perspective yet again.

I would highly recommend you watch it.  The movie promotes a plant based whole foods diet.  They provide research which supports the belief that this type of diet provides for a healthy, well balanced life-style and lowers an individuals risk of cancer, heart disease and other illnesses.  If you have Netflix, you can check the movie out there or your local library.

With strong evidence of the veracity of this life-style change from a close friend, we decided to try it out.  Our goal is to eat a plant-based whole foods diet for the next eight weeks and then have a physical exam to see if there are any changes.  My husband is on the verge of high cholesterol and is not at his personal ideal weight.  I had had high blood pressure at my last appointment, my bad cholesterol is high  and I often feel tired.  I hope that the changes we are about to make will help.

I still have a fridge full of food that I am not going to let go to waste so I will incorporate those items in small amounts as we make the transition.  But, tonight we had Enfrijoladas and a big green salad with avacados, tomatoes and sunflower seeds.  We decided that the only way this would work would be if the whole family were doing it so the kids ate the food, too.  Little E (3.5) devoured the two bowls of salad and almost her entire entree.  Little M (5) had three bowls of salad and half of her entree and Little  J(7) ate only half of his entree but I feel like we are off to a great start.  

I am making a meal plan for the week with breakfast, lunch, dinner & snacks identified throughout the day since this will be a new way of cooking and eating.  I will have to ditch my 'go-to' recipes and foods.  I am excited though as I do enjoy trying new things.  Looking forward to how this adventure unfolds.  I'll do my best to bring you along with it!