Veganuary Take 2, Weekend 1

This past weekend was super cold with a bit of snow.  I got on Saturday AM and hit up the track for a workout.  It was snowing and BEAUTIFUL!

so cold, but super fun track workout!

After the workout, I decided to make some vegan cinnamon rolls.  It was a new to me recipe but I went for it.  You guys, it was terrible.  I ate one but it was not at all what I was expecting.  Maybe this time around, I need to focus on baking a bit more.  Last year I didn't bake at all during this challenge so to up my game this time around I think I will go for it.  This first one was a bust though.

Later on that evening I decided to try a frozen vegan burger, Beyond Meat "Beast Burger".  I bought it b/c it was on sale at my local Safeway and had never tried it before.  The directions are to cook it on the stove with a bit of oil on both sides.  It very clearly says not to microwave it.  I found that a bit odd and had I noticed it earlier, probably would not have purchased it.  It would have been nice to have something that I could heat at at work in the microwave.  I start cooking it and....no.  The smell is not good.  I continue on thinking....maybe I just need to get used to it.  I finish cooking it and take a bite, and throw the rest in the trash.  It was so bad.  I ended up eating homemade fries, a tomato cut up with avocado and a piece of bread.

After the disaster that was Saturday's food, Sunday I went with foods I already knew!

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Veganuary Take 2 Week 1

It is that time of year when a few folks in my office go vegan for the month.  I had much less trepidation than last year and felt ready.  LOL, you know that must means things did not start out well.

I went to the store, bought lots of fresh food and started on January 2nd.  The first day was fine although I forgot my coconut creamer at home and had to drink black coffee. Day 2 passed just fine however on day 3 I was NOT feeling it.  I had a headache, I didn't feel good and was feeling OVER IT.  I thought I was having dairy withdrawals....turns out that I was eating all this fresh food but wasn't eating salt.  I had some salty peanuts and felt better within 30 minutes.  Since then I have made sure to add salt to my food and have felt fine.  I woke up on Thursday feeling AMAZING, like wide awake, cheerful and feeling good.  Thursday night I hit up the grocery store to get food and ingredients for the vegan luncheon at work the following day.  I cooked for a while and cleaned my kitchen and reoganized my pantry area.  I woke up Friday with a terrible tension headache.  I think looking down for too long at the stove, the recipe etc put too much strain on my neck.  I took some meds immeately, took the dogs out, put some peppermint oil on and got in the tub for a hot hot bath.  After that I went to bed for 30 minutes and felt much better.

We had our luncheon which was amazing, I failed to take a photo of the food, but one of the guys brought in bbq jackfruit.  GUYS, it was so good.  It looked like pulled pork and tasked amazing.  I had not tried jackfruit before, but did some google-ing and am willing to get some and try it some other ways (as well as just try it as a fruit). Another coworker brought cauliflower steak, which was very tasty and filling.  Overall it was a great 1st vegan luncheon for the year.

And with that, I'm ready for my first vegan weekend in Veganuary!

ps. To get more info about Veganuary, please go to www.veganuary.com 

Restaurant Review "GreenFare"

Last weekend I went to Reston Town Center to grab a drink with some friends.  We had no idea that Taste of Reston was going on at the same time.  It turned out to be a great coincidence. We didn't actually sample anything, we just walked around.  I did get a few cards from some of the vendors there, one of which turned out to be GreenFare.  I had not heard of it so on Thursday I "Googled" it.

They are a vegan restaurant, they don't use oil or salt in their food (there is salt on the table so you can season to taste), they use whole foods, use local ingredients and the food is great!

I posted on FB asking if anyone wanted to go check it out with me.  My friend C agreed to go check it out that night.  We got there a little after 6:30pm, there were about 3 other tables in there.  Our server asked if we had been there before and then explained more about the restaurant to us.  The decor was cozy and fun, bright red walls, book and other items for sale about plant based eating, etc.


We ordered tea (Sweet Rose) while we looked at the menu.  C ordered the spinach and sweet potato lasagna and I had the spinach alfredo pasta.

Spinach Alfredo Pasta

Magical Tea

Our food arrived quickly and we went for it.  I will warn you that even though onions and tomatoes are NOT listed as ingredients in my food, they definitely were on there.  I first tried to pick them out thinking they were just on the top for garnishment, but they were mixed into the pasta as well.  I do not like raw onions so I did send mine back to have it made without onions.  I felt a little bad about that but was very polite as was the server.  She came back not long after with a replacement meal at which time I was able to eat.  And eat it all!  I did add pepper and salt to it.  We did not get dessert so next time I will try that and let you all know!

If you are in the Herndon area or even if you are not, go check this place out!  

As a fun bonus it is in the same shopping center as Mom's Organic Market.  C and I went before dinner and I was introduced to this yummy delight:

Get in my belly!

If you have not had this YOU ARE MISSING OUT.  Yes they are pricy, but you only need 1 and it is superb.  The mint is just right, not too minty, the chocolate is also just right.  Go get this. 

Where should I go next?  Comment below!

XO-Mo

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms and single Dad's out there!  You do your thing!

My family and I went to Grafton Street in Gainesville for brunch.  It was lovely!  They had a great layout and variety of foods.  The always popular omelette bar had quite the line but was worth it.  Two different kinds of breakfast potatoes, spinach salad, pasta salad, fruit skewers, chicken, fish, grilled veggies and a glorious dessert area.  We naturally had Guinness with our brunch :) 

We first discovered Grafton Street a few months ago when we were looking for a place to meet up with my sister so that none of us would have to drive as far, a sort of half way point (but still actually it is further for her).  I found it online and we figured, let's give it a try. We first went on a Saturday and we were there right when they opened at 11am.  The food was great (I had lemon blueberry pancakes and a Guinness).  We then realized that they offered a Sunday brunch and we knew we wanted to come back soon for that.  

If you are in that area and need a good pub to go to, please check them out!

A little throwback of my Mom and I 

The Brunch Crew

Thoughts on Veganuary

How did I do?:

Overall, I did really well with Veganuary.  I did totally cheat on Saturday 1/30 and had a burger with cheese and bacon.  I also cheated one day during the snow storm, I was at work and the cafe salad bar was not open so I bought a chicken sandwich.  Could I have just had snacks and had an early dinner, sure, but I chose to eat the sandwich.

In all honesty after eating the burger, I went and walked around Target for an hour because I was beyond full and feeling groggy.

While participating in Veganuary, I noticed that after lunch I didn't get that afternoon slump.  I can really only attribute that to eating better and more nutritious food.  Does being vegan take some serious planning and food prep? Yes, it sure does.  You basically will cut out all processed food.  Imagine that? A lifestyle where you don't eat processed foods.  That HAS to be better for us.  

Lifestyle Changes:

Yes.  From this experiment, I will be eating mainly vegan, but if I truly WANT a burger or something like a warm goat cheese salad, I will eat it.  I will be more thoughtful with the food I am eating.  As a cheese lover, giving up cheese was the hardest part for me, BUT, I got over it.

This has helped to realize that I need to view food as nutrition first, taste second.  I think often we miss that aspect of it and we do not eat for nutrition.  I will be much more mindful about eating for nutrition from now on.

Take a chance and challenge yourself!  You can do this challenge for any month during the year.  

Final Thoughts:

I will be more mindful of the food I'm eating and will treat meat and cheese as special items to have only occasionally.  Food = Nutrition and Fuel

What is the next challenge?

Discussing with the ladies at work this week!  We are a little thrown off by the snow days last week so we are behind. 

What I'm eating this week

Breakfast:

Oatmeal (not quick oats) with chia seeds/hemp seeds pomegranate/blueberry.  Pick 1 seed and 1 fruit.  Also add 1 scoop of almond butter. Very filling!

Stuffed Shells:

I found this recipe on Pinterest for stuffed shells.  I did add marinara sauce on the top because the cashew sauce really dried up when baking.  Alternatively, you could make extra cashew sauce to put on top after baking is done.  Also don't be afraid to add some seasoning to this, especially the spinach and tofu.  This could be really bland if you make as listed.

Quesadilla:
Roasted Sweet Potato and Bean Quesadilla - I opted to use black beans because I have tons of them at home and want to use them.  I made a mash, by cooking them with seasoning and then using a potato masher.  Works for me!  Lol :)

Snack Attack:
Roasted Cauliflower
Avocado with balsamic vinegar
Crispy Broccoli Florets (a dried item sort of like kale chips from Trader Joe's)
Trek Mix (Trader Joe's - cashews, macadamia nuts, dried cranberries and dried pineapple)

Sweets:
Star Crunch (clean) 

The biggest trend I'm coming to terms with is that I have to make most of my food myself.  This requires meal planning, shopping lists and prep time.  I am super lucky that Joe is so into this and he is into helping me food prep.  We were talking about our weekend plans and he brought up meal prepping on Sunday.  He is the BEST.  

Massage Time!

Back in November I had purchased a Groupon for a Thai Massage.  The promo was going to expire later in January so I decided I had better get on that!

I made an appointment with Thai Healing House in Herndon for Sunday afternoon (yes during the Skins game).  You guys...I have only ever had table massage and this was a whole different experience.  You check in and then they take you to the room and give you pants and a t-shirt to wear.  There is a large mat on the ground you they tell you to lay on your back.  I would seriously sleep on this thing, it was so comfy.  Then June my massage lady comes in and she starts with my feet and legs.  The whole time we are talking and she is explaining to me how this massage is different and really focuses on stretching and pressure points.  She is really into the philosophy of it and explaining how it is different from a table massage.  She is AMAZING.

At one point, June is standing on my hamstrings.  FOR SERIOUS!  She was really able to get into the tension areas.  I was all kinds of stretched out and felt amazing afterwards.   If you get a Thai Message, be prepared for some serious close contact with your massage person.

I highly recommend the Thai Healing House  and if you go, please name drop so that I can get a $20 credit.

I plan to book a 2 hour session in March to really get in there and get relaxed.