Up until now I’ve been pretty decent at keeping my vegan diet, aside from the occasional energy bar with honey in it. But this past weekend I went to New York City with a group from school and I failed to prepare for the craziness of traveling and the inevitable non-vegan temptation. I definitely cheated a little, well kind of a lot.
Notable weekend fails included: a cupcake (pretty worth it), a breakfast sandwich (my downfall), a yogurt (the only healthy snack I could find for my bus home), ice cream at my friend’s in Boston & a peanut butter cookie (at least it was gluten free? (nope not a good excuse))
I was tempted to just call it off, especially now that I’m home surrounded by even more temptation. But being perfect wasn’t the point of my experiment. I’d much rather finish off the month less than perfect then quit all together. Every mistake has been a learning experience and something I can get better at in the future. It also shows how being healthy isn’t always easy or convenient or perfect, but it does get easier with practice.
However, here are some vegan wins on the road and at home:
Iced Coffee from Starbucks and Spring Rolls from Trader Joe’s for the boat home. (yes, I have to take a boat, and yes it does get old)
Here’s a picture from the back of said boat.
Amazing salad bowl from Life Alive in Cambridge. I had the Alchemist: “Our Ginger Nama Shoyu Sauce transforming sweet corn, shredded carrots, dark greens, tofu, sun-sprouts & sesame seeds over protein-rich quinoa.” and added avocado and cashews.
Obviously had to steal a menu for inspiration. Everything was vegetarian, most everything was vegan. I also had an amazing smoothie with strawberries, ginger and cocoa!
Pre-Spin Fuel. Cinnamon Raisin bun with almond butter and raspberry jam.
My aunt is a spinning instructor and I always look forward to taking her classes when I’m home. She’s fun, motivational, intense, hard-working and I always leave feeling awesome.
Lunch time smoothie bowl: frozen banana, berries and cocoa powder topped with homemade granola, berries and nuts. Mmmm
My family wanted to order Italian… so after being a bit of brat I sucked it up and got a veggie pizza without cheese and it actually turned out really great! It just goes to show you can vegan-ify a lot of things if you keep an open mind.
Vegan Cookies from Averie Cooks – rave reviews from the fam (see everyone can enjoy vegan woop)
Now here’s the big challenge:
Vegan-sgiving Tomorrow. I’ve got an arsenal of recipes and I’m ready to prove how yummy and do-able it can be (mostly to myself). Honestly I’m not a huge fan of most thanksgiving foods it’s just the pies that are my weakness. So I’m going to make a vegan pumpkin pie! I’ll share a full recap on Friday complete with recipes.
Question Time:
- Favorite fall or Thanksgiving dessert?
- Favorite dish at Thanksgiving?
- What are you most grateful for?
