Hummus!

I whipped this hummus up this morning and it was delicious!  I hope you enjoy it, too.

2 cans of chickpeas (rinsed and drained) or 4 c.
1/2 t garlic
2 T tahini
2 T soy sauce
4 T lemon juice
1/4 c parsley
1 t cumin

Combine all ingredients. Blend well.

Serve as a salad dressing, with veggies, on sandwiches and more!

A thought or two on progress

We're in our 4th week now of eating plant-based and the changes have been amazing.  To fill you in, 3.5 weeks ago we watched the movie Forks Over Knives by Fulkerson, Lee/ Aucoin, Joey/ Barnard, Neal, MD [ (Google Affiliate Ad).  The research made sense to me and my husband and we agreed that our whole family would try a plant-based diet for two months.  We've been tracking changes daily and have been amazed with the benefits.  I really didn't think much beyond weight loss and cholesterol initially but these past weeks have shown many more results than I could have expected.

We'll find out about our cholesterol levels in 2-4 weeks when we each have routine blood work.  I can only imagine they have dropped because so many other things have changed for the better.  To start with, I was not looking to lose weight but my blood pressure and cholesterol were both higher than they should be.  I even purchased a blood pressure cuff to monitor but unfortunately the cuff was too small.  My weight has remained the same, my energy level is up, I no longer drag in the afternoon unless I have not gotten enough sleep the night before. It feels like my tiredness is 'real' now and not just a groggy feeling I live with daily.  My mood is better.  I am energized to exercise.

As for Jason, he has lost 11 pounds.  His blood pressure went from 132/83 with a resting pulse in the 70 & 80's to 111/57 with a resting heart rate of 49.  He is no longer bloated, feels energized after eating and his sinuses are clearing.

We are both exercising almost every day now.

As for the kids, I thought we were just bringing them along for the ride with us.  I didn't realize until reading the book Disease-Proof Your Child: Feeding Kids Right by Fuhrman, Joel [Paperba (Google Affiliate Ad) how much we should have been doing this for THEM all along.  Here are a few of the changes:

Our son has seen vast improvements in behavior, he loves all the 'treats' and that he can pretty much eat as much of whatever he wants whenever he wants.  He is sensitive to processed sugars and we also think dairy (casein) is problematic but since he has not had either of these in weeks, he has not been craving them.  He says he feels good with more energy and feels less angry.

Our middle daughter has always been a big fruit & veggie eater.  I think she likes all the raw fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds best.  Her allergies have been less pronounced since we started eating plant based.  She is sniffling less.

Our youngest has had digestive problems for her entire life. But those issues are completely gone.  Her constant tummy aches are gone.  What a gift to give a child!  She was addicted to cheese before this and would go to all lengths to get it but has only asked for cheese three times since we started and that was in the first two weeks.

Tomorrow (or soon) I will share my thoughts on what happens next.  It is an interesting question that has come up in several conversations with friends who ate plant based/vegan/vegetarian for a while and then stopped.  Until then, chews well! :-)

Menu Week 4

I am getting later and later on getting these menu posts up and I realized I haven't made any updates since I posted the last menu.  So this post will be about this week's menu and the next one will be on the changes we have seen.

I am starting to get the hang of this and develop my own recipes so there are not links to every recipe.  But if you see something you would like the recipe for just leave a comment!

Sunday
Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl (I make 8 times the recipe and keep it in an airtight container for the week)
Snack
Dinner: Minestrone Soup, Corn Muffins (I adapted the soup by omitting the oil and using veggie stock, I adapted the muffins by swapping the oil for applesauce, the flour for whole wheat flour, reduced the sugar to 2 T of Maple syrup)
Dessert: Cocoa Energy Balls, Apple Slices

Monday

Breakfast: Pumpkin Oatmeal
Snack: Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
Dinner: Thai Chickpeas & Brown Rice
Dessert: Strawberry Ice Ceam


Tuesday

Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl
Snack: Power Balls
Dinner: Chinese Cashew Salad (from Fresh20.com)
Dessert: Coconut Ice Cream 
Note: Make Oatmeal Bars for morning


Wednesday

Breakfast: Oatmeal Bars & Green Smoothie
Snack: Fresh Fruit
Dinner: Burgers, Roast Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts
Dessert: Avocado Ice Cream


Thursday

Breakfast: Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding (From the Forks Over Knives Cookbook)
Snack: Trail Mix
Dinner: Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Brocoli
Dessert:


Friday

Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl
Snack: Carrots & Peanut Butter
Dinner: Kale w/ Cashew Cream Sauce over noodles (In the Forks Over Knives Cookbook)
Dessert: Store Bought Non-Dairy Ice Cream


Saturday

Breakfast: Pancakes w/ Fruit Sauce
Snack
Dinner: Curried Rice Salad (Forks Over Knives Cookbook)
Dessert: Coconut Ice Cream (2)

Menu Week 3

The table format for the menu was fun but it was cutting off the end of the week.  So I am just going to list the days and meals below.  Also, for the most part we have left-overs for lunch.  In that case I do not indicate a meal.

Tonight, we had the bean wraps and all by the littlest child cleaned their plate.  Little M even asked for a side of steamed kale.  We are all getting LOTS more veggies.  The bean wraps were my own recipe.  Sauted onion, garlic & green peppers, 1 T cumin, 1 T Chili Powder, 4 c. of black beans with their liquid, 2 c. chopped kale.  Black Pepper to taste. I mashed the beans as you would for refried.

Sunday:
Breakfast: Steel cut oats with apples, dates, cinnamon & pecans
Snack: Popcorn
Dinner: Pumpkin Hummus, Spinach Soup & Brown Rice
Dessert: Cantaloupe

Monday:
Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl
Lunch: Peanut butter and apple sandwiches, banana, salad
Dinner: Guacamole, Steamed Kale & Black Bean Wraps, Chips & Salsa
Dessert: Banana Pineapple Sorbet (from Disease-Proof Your Child: Feeding Kids Right by Fuhrman, Joel [Paperba (Google Affiliate Ad))

Tuesday:
Breakfast: Oatmeal Bars & Smoothie
Snack: Powerballs
Dinner: Chili w/ TVP, Collards & Carrots (from Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained (Google Affiliate Ad))

Wednesday:
Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl
Snack: Fresh Fruit Salad
Dinner: Mushroom Stroganoff, Broccoli Salad

Thursday:
Breakfast: Baked Tofu Squares with dip, Fruit Salad
Snack: Trail Mix
Dinner: Barley & Sweet Potato Pilaf, Green Beans

Friday:

Breakfast: Rip's Big Bowl
Snack: Carrot Sticks
Dinner: Quinoa Corn & Avocado Salad

Saturday:
Breakfast: Tofu Scramble, Corn Tortillas & Pinto Beans
Snack: Birthday Party! Fruit Rainbow, Twirly Rainbow Popsicles, ??
Dinner: Veggie Sushi, Cashew Stir Fry

I feel like I am starting to get a handle on the recipes and food prep.  The kids have been amazingly open to the changes and trying new things.  I can't believe we are into our third week.  Last night and today we had the opportunity to share a meal at home with friends and family.  It was encouraging to be able to share 'plant strong' foods with them and still enjoy and socialize.  I am glad to see we can still gather over food!

So Delicious!

Towards the beginning/middle of last week I was feeling pretty bummed about the food I was making.  I made a couple of 'dud' recipes and I accidentally undercooked the beans I was using for the week making all my subsequent recipes with those beans very dry.

But, then I started planning for Valentine's Day and Little M's birthday for Thursday and Friday and we found some great options!  For Valentine's Day I made broccoli w/ peanut sauce over brown rice.  It was gobbled up such that we only had leftovers for Jason's lunch.  Dessert was Fuhrman's Cherry Chocolate Ice Cream, we needed something special for Valentine's you know!  Another hit!  Friday, little M picked out spaghetti, mashed sweet potatoes, salad and carrot cake.  I also made double chocolate cupcakes for her preschool friends.  Another great day of eating.  I was so proud of our plant strong meals and being able to share them with friends and family.  It doesn't hurt when the kids just devour what I make either.

Today, we enjoyed a maple syrup demonstration at Ladew.  I knew it would be a little bit of a challenge but we enjoyed time outside and learned the ins and outs of making maple syrup. It was a lot of fun.  I packed a substantial picnic lunch and everyone did great avoiding the pancakes, syrup & milk and partaking in what we brought.  We did all sample the syrup and we all had my favorite, maple sugar candy.  Yummy!

I have been reading Dr. Joel Fuhrman's book, Disease-Proof Your Child: Feeding Kids Right by Fuhrman, Joel [Paperba (Google Affiliate Ad).  Most of what he says is supporting or mentioned in the other works that I have been researching.  But, the book also reinforces the importance that good nutrition has in laying a foundation for later years.  He demonstrates how what we feed them now could potentially cause or prevent future illnesses.  Certainly a powerful message.  I am also intrigued by the information regarding behavior and diet.  It is my understanding that it could take months to see a change but since we are already making this change anyway, it will be interesting to see what trickle down effects there are.  Fuhrman's book has firmed my resolve to avoid all dairy with at least Little J and E and certainly Jason.

It will be pretty easy to do if we eat lots of 'Kale with Creamy Cashew Sauce' another of Fuhrman's recipes.  The dish said it served 4 but Jason and I made quick work of it.  The kids each had some and although none of them raved about it, they did each eat what was on their plate.

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