For dessert coconut cake with strawberries (don't remember exact name). Was too full to eat in, but when I had it later, found it moist, rich, a bit sweet. Somehow had a milky feel even though it was vegan.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Golden Mean - Santa Monica
Had a lovely lunch here on Saturday. Their specialty is the works burger. Patty is garden burger-esque, tempeh bacon, "cheese" and avocado. Yum. Bowtie pasta salad was rich with olive oil and tart vinegar. Julienned zucchini and diced veg rounded out. Yum.
For dessert coconut cake with strawberries (don't remember exact name). Was too full to eat in, but when I had it later, found it moist, rich, a bit sweet. Somehow had a milky feel even though it was vegan.
For dessert coconut cake with strawberries (don't remember exact name). Was too full to eat in, but when I had it later, found it moist, rich, a bit sweet. Somehow had a milky feel even though it was vegan.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Fake meat and Thai treats.
I have given into the pressure and started eating more fake meat. I have tried Tofurky italian sausage, Morningstar links and St Ives Canadian bacon and it is official: I can't stand anything tofu based. The only way I got through through the sausage was by smothering it in condiments. I tried a kind of stirfry with rice the other night and ended up eating around it. The breakfast links are solidly edible. The Canadian bacon kinda falls in between. I bought some seitan based hotdogs (forget the brand) that are very close in taste to regular hotdogs. Of course this isn't saying much since regular hotdogs are pretty bland anyway. Still, easy to eat, which is the point.
Ive had two delicious meals in the last few days - both Thai curry. One was a musaman(?) curry with vegetables green beans, cabbage and peas from Westwood Thai cafe. It usually comes with bell pepper, but I asked them to hold that. Not a food I like. Was delicious.
Friday lunch I had red curry with fried tofu at Emporium Thai on Westwood just south of Wilshire. My friend ordered it, but of course I had to have some. It was very good. Like I just said I don't like tofu, but frying it turns it into FOOD. And you just can't beat the taste of a spicy coconut-based curry with sweet white rice.
Upcoming: Halloween vegan cupcakes. I have volunteered to make cupcakes for the office potluck. My plan is to make avocado icing. Watch for details and pics!
Ive had two delicious meals in the last few days - both Thai curry. One was a musaman(?) curry with vegetables green beans, cabbage and peas from Westwood Thai cafe. It usually comes with bell pepper, but I asked them to hold that. Not a food I like. Was delicious.
Friday lunch I had red curry with fried tofu at Emporium Thai on Westwood just south of Wilshire. My friend ordered it, but of course I had to have some. It was very good. Like I just said I don't like tofu, but frying it turns it into FOOD. And you just can't beat the taste of a spicy coconut-based curry with sweet white rice.
Upcoming: Halloween vegan cupcakes. I have volunteered to make cupcakes for the office potluck. My plan is to make avocado icing. Watch for details and pics!
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Steamed kale salad
I got into a discussion yesterday with some coworkers about my diet. I think I'm fairly known for my dietary vagaries and when I refused chocolate ice-cream by saying "I can't have that," it started a discussion about what I eat. How can you give up ice-cream? (Being lactose intolerant helps. And being in the middle of eating a soy yogurt didn't hurt.). I mentioned that I'd been eating meat on the weekend and one person asked the very valid question - won't that undo what you've been doing all week? I explained that I eat one or two servings i.e. <8 ounces one day of the week. It made sense to me, but he still didn't get it. The conversation ended with everyone deciding that eventually I would find the decline to be 100% vegan. I let it slide.
I began to realize that people see veganism and vegetarianism like the see alcoholism or drug abstinence. The focus is not on what you're eating, but what you're not eating. And if you're not doing it 100% then what's the point of doing it? It's good old fashioned absolutism. Either/or mentality. I don't buy it. I think what I'm eating is healthy. What I've eliminated is less healthy, but not evil. I am comfortable with avoiding cheese and egg because if they're ok that opens the door to all kinds of mass produced junk. I am still trying to lose weight here. A simple plant only policy makes the decision about what to eat simple. And my digestion has never been healthier.
And I'm not trying to win any endurance contests. I'm trying to find a balance that supports my health.
Almost forgot. The pic is kale salad (bagged) steamed with a little coconut oil and onion. I ate with a flour tortilla for breakfast. Something like this (steamed greens with bread or dumpling) is a common breakfast in Jamaica. Kale is vitamin rich and a good veggie source of calcium and iron.
I began to realize that people see veganism and vegetarianism like the see alcoholism or drug abstinence. The focus is not on what you're eating, but what you're not eating. And if you're not doing it 100% then what's the point of doing it? It's good old fashioned absolutism. Either/or mentality. I don't buy it. I think what I'm eating is healthy. What I've eliminated is less healthy, but not evil. I am comfortable with avoiding cheese and egg because if they're ok that opens the door to all kinds of mass produced junk. I am still trying to lose weight here. A simple plant only policy makes the decision about what to eat simple. And my digestion has never been healthier.
And I'm not trying to win any endurance contests. I'm trying to find a balance that supports my health.
Almost forgot. The pic is kale salad (bagged) steamed with a little coconut oil and onion. I ate with a flour tortilla for breakfast. Something like this (steamed greens with bread or dumpling) is a common breakfast in Jamaica. Kale is vitamin rich and a good veggie source of calcium and iron.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Native Foods in Westwood.
Native Foods is basically my favorite place to eat these days. I treat myself about once a week by going. Last week I went twice. Lucky for me quite a few of my coworkers are veggie or at least health conscious as well, so I can usually find someone to go with. Today I got...
Native Chicken Burger and sweet potato fries
I am in love with "native chicken." It's 100% vegan, but it also tastes strangely like chicken and enough unlike chicken at the same time that I have no doubt it's ok to eat. I really love this stuff. The burger had a great crispy crust, but I think I like my native chicken just a little better the times I've had it in "wings" or a wrap. There was also a lot of red onion on the burger which I could have done without. All in all though, delicious. Fries were also good. As you can see from the picture, I ate half the burger before I remembered I was supposed to be taking pictures.
African Peanut Soup
Again, half-eaten, I know. I got this for my friend because she had a teleconference and couldn't get away from her desk :( She wasn't sure before she tried it, but kept saying again and again how good it was and how much she'd like to have it again. I took a taste. It was thick, creamy, a little spicy, peanutty, but well balanced and not at all sweet. I would have it again too, and probably will when one of those rainy L.A. winter days roll around.
Cardamon Rose Cupcake
What's not to like here? The frosting is a wonder of thick, creamy, flavorful goodness and the cake is, well, cake. I have to say I didn't like it as much as the vanilla, which I usually get. The flavor of the frosting was a bit strong. I am not at all sorry I got it, but not sure I would get it again. Like I always do when I get a cupcake at Native Foods, I saved the frosting and ate it slowly during the rest of the afternoon.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
"Mostly" meatless
Why am I mostly meatless and not entirely meatless, you may ask? If you're going to eat some meat occasionally, then why avoid animal based foods most of the time?
This is what I believe - a diet based mostly on plant sources is just healthier. Now I know all the low carb/paleo people are going to jump on me, but let's address a few basic misconceptions.
1. Protein is good for you, so more protein has to be better for you. This one is just not true. Too much protein consumption can be toxic and puts a strain on the liver. Anyone that's ever been on a low carb diet can tell you that it causes constipation and often fatigue. And since most of the protein in the western diet comes from meat, high protein consumption most often leads to high consumption of animal fats. Studies have shown that diets high in animal protein and fats is linked to heart disease and cancer. There have even been links found to diabetes independent of overweight.
2. Plant based diets are high in carbohydrates and carbs are bad. The saying goes that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and in this case it couldn’t be more right. There’s no doubt that chasing two slices of pizza with a gallon of high-fructose corn syrup laden soda is a bad idea, but there are carbs and there are carbs. Eating a diet of nothing but highly processed carbs is bad for you. These foods digest quickly, cause a spike in blood sugar and in the end just aren’t as satisfying as less refined foods, so we tend to eat more of them. They’re also a bit addictive. They go down easy and taste good, or at least they rarely taste bad because anything piquant has been refined out. You can be a vegetarian and eat nothing but pizza, soda and chips. If this is the kind of “plant based diet” one is talking about then the critics are right, but it’s also possible to eat whole fruit, unrefined grains, soy protein instead of cheese and lots of vegetables. This is a plant-based diet rich in carbohydrates, but it’s healthy, filling and won’t send your body on a blood sugar roller coaster.
3. We are evolved to eat meat and so we should. This is a bit more complicated than it seems. Some proponents of the vegetarian diet will claim that this just isn’t true, but even a basic knowledge of human biology will reveal that we are adapted to be omnivorous. Neither our teeth nor our stomachs resemble those of herbivores. There is at least one nutrient (B-12) that we can’t get from eating plant foods in enough quantities to stay healthy. An examination of Paleolithic people (of which there are still some living on earth today) shows that meat plays a part in the diet. But I will point out it’s not nearly the role some people would like to say it is. There is no real scientific consensus on what percentage of calories in hunter-gatherer diets came from animal sources in the past because diets vary based on geographic location and what is available in the local environment. Neither is easy-digesting starches and sugars such a rarity. As well as gathering tubers and edible seeds, these tribes also hunt honey and eat considerable amounts of ripe fruit in season. Our closest relatives – chimps – get as much as 95% of the their calories from plants sources and their digestive tracts are essentially the same as ours. Most importantly, just because we can eat animals doesn’t mean it’s what’s healthiest for us. Epidemiologic studies have shown that many diseases are rarest among modern societies where animal sources make up the least proportion of dietary intake.
4. We can survive on just plants and would be healthier for it. Vegans do not want to hurt animals or benefit from the suffering of animals and so it would be very nice for them if this was true, but it isn’t really. There’s the B-12 thing, but beyond that it’s just hard to be fully nourished on a vegan diet without putting a lot of effort into it. It’s just as easy to be malnourished on a vegan diet as a diet that includes animal based foods. It’s harder, but just as possible to be overweight. I applaud anyone that can stick to and be healthy on a diet that excludes all animal based foods, but it seems to me a person can be just as healthy by restricting their consumption as by completely eliminating them.
I have chosen to be “mostly meatless” for a number of reasons. I will concede that a little meat isn’t such a bad thing, but only a little. Not a little with each meal, not even a little each day, but a very little each week or month. I have found that I can get adequate protein from plant sources and plant-based fats are plentiful. There’s also a psychological component, knowing that I can consume meat every once in a while makes it easier to consume none most days. I don’t worry about it, and every day it gets easier. I eat like I do because I think it will make me healthier over time and all I have to do is follow a few simple rules 95% of the time – no meat, no milk, no eggs. Anyone who thinks that is restrictive should try it for just one day. You’ll find there is a lot to eat, most of it healthy, and you won’t be hungry.
Hello World
I decided to start blogging about my experiences with my new diet because I'm so excited about it. I'll admit the fact that it's new is part of it, but it's more than that. It just makes so much sense for me, the way I am, my lifestyle and how I feel about food.
A little about me: I'm 35, 5'9" and today I weigh 204 lbs. You're probably thinking "whoa! she sure let her self go," but I going to tell you that this is actually the least I've weighed in probably two years. I've been a yo yo dieter most of my life. It's kinda funny now when I look back at being 155 and thinking I was a cow. I don't look bad now, believe it or not, but I could look so much better. But enough about that. At the beginning of the year I was in the high 2-teens and climbing. Christmas was what set it off. I come from a food loving family - my mother and I, anyway. My mother's never really had to worry about her weight except for when she was younger and too skinny, so she's always cooked heavy starchy, high fat meals. Spending the holidays with her I ate piles of meat and rice and Christmas cake. I am not a moderate eater. I eat for pleasure as much as nourishment and there's not a lot of dishes I'd turn down. After the holidays the pattern just continued.
In January I decided I had to do something. I had tried every diet (I thought) and couldn't imagine one of them working, so I turned to exercise. I started going to the rock climbing gym and in February I bought a stationary bike and began to work out everyday. Since I wasn't dieting I set a target of burning off 500 extra calories a day. It worked for a while. My weight went down from a peak of 222 to 215, then 208, but that's around where it stalled, going back and forth from 206 to 210 and a couple of times up to 212. I was getting toned and fitter, but stalled. It didn't help that I started traveling for work during the summer which made it hard to stick to both the diet and the exercise regimen.
It was only about a month ago when I saw a documentary about food that I decided to try something new. It recommended a whole food plant based diet - basically strict veganism. I wasn't sure I could do it - I love meat. I spent the summer grilling every weekend. But I wanted to see if I could do. I will admit that I have not been strict and don't think I will ever be. I do eat some foods that do fit the definition - like pita and bagels. I add sugar to my tea. I'm even ok with a little honey and I've let myself have some meat on the weekend, but for the first time in recent memory, I'm not struggling. I feel good, I'm losing weight and I'm not hungry.
This blog will be a little about the "weight loss journey," but mostly about the food, my experiences, recipes, restaurants and stores. BTW, I don't consider myself vegan, not only because I eat non vegan items sometimes, but because veganism is an ideological stance and I think the term rightly belongs to people who avoid animal products and bi-products because they are opposed to the exploitation of animals. I am avoiding, meat, milk, eggs and animal derivatives because I think that's the healthy way to live.
A little about me: I'm 35, 5'9" and today I weigh 204 lbs. You're probably thinking "whoa! she sure let her self go," but I going to tell you that this is actually the least I've weighed in probably two years. I've been a yo yo dieter most of my life. It's kinda funny now when I look back at being 155 and thinking I was a cow. I don't look bad now, believe it or not, but I could look so much better. But enough about that. At the beginning of the year I was in the high 2-teens and climbing. Christmas was what set it off. I come from a food loving family - my mother and I, anyway. My mother's never really had to worry about her weight except for when she was younger and too skinny, so she's always cooked heavy starchy, high fat meals. Spending the holidays with her I ate piles of meat and rice and Christmas cake. I am not a moderate eater. I eat for pleasure as much as nourishment and there's not a lot of dishes I'd turn down. After the holidays the pattern just continued.
In January I decided I had to do something. I had tried every diet (I thought) and couldn't imagine one of them working, so I turned to exercise. I started going to the rock climbing gym and in February I bought a stationary bike and began to work out everyday. Since I wasn't dieting I set a target of burning off 500 extra calories a day. It worked for a while. My weight went down from a peak of 222 to 215, then 208, but that's around where it stalled, going back and forth from 206 to 210 and a couple of times up to 212. I was getting toned and fitter, but stalled. It didn't help that I started traveling for work during the summer which made it hard to stick to both the diet and the exercise regimen.
It was only about a month ago when I saw a documentary about food that I decided to try something new. It recommended a whole food plant based diet - basically strict veganism. I wasn't sure I could do it - I love meat. I spent the summer grilling every weekend. But I wanted to see if I could do. I will admit that I have not been strict and don't think I will ever be. I do eat some foods that do fit the definition - like pita and bagels. I add sugar to my tea. I'm even ok with a little honey and I've let myself have some meat on the weekend, but for the first time in recent memory, I'm not struggling. I feel good, I'm losing weight and I'm not hungry.
This blog will be a little about the "weight loss journey," but mostly about the food, my experiences, recipes, restaurants and stores. BTW, I don't consider myself vegan, not only because I eat non vegan items sometimes, but because veganism is an ideological stance and I think the term rightly belongs to people who avoid animal products and bi-products because they are opposed to the exploitation of animals. I am avoiding, meat, milk, eggs and animal derivatives because I think that's the healthy way to live.
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