Lunch

This is what I ate for lunch (along with roasted red pepper hummus from the Happy Camel and pita chips from Dip Sea Chicks - St. Albert Farmer's Market stand). I must say, it was pretty good. It's quinoa with red peppers and peas with a bit of Greek salad dressing for some taste. I really enjoyed it. Although a light looking lunch, it carried me through the afternoon without feeling hungry.

I just cooked vegetarian chili for supper. It is mushrooms, red and green pepper, chickpeas, navy beans, and non-dairy tomato soup with some chili powder and cayenne pepper for flavour. I may steal a bit of basmati rice from my parents as they eat their Mango Chicken dinner.

Bon appetite!

Going Vegan

Alright. The day has arrived. I made my first vegan purchases at Planet Organic http://www.planetorganic.ca/ today. I am following The Kind Diet http://www.thekindlife.com/ and hope to become a full vegan in a couple of months. I bought quinoa, 8 grain cereal, agave syrup, chocolate peanut butter non-dairy ice cream, non-dairy tomato soup, chips, and Earth Balance butter. http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/#/products/ (While this was going on, I had a mild bathroom freak-out from eating a lot of beans at lunch and had to rush to the back. Hopefully over the next few days, this will balance out and become less frequent.) I picked up some soy yogurt, but put it back. Some things I am not ready for yet. Including soy milk, which I have tried before.
I tried to find vegan chocolate (obvi) but couldn't find anything interesting. Anybody have any ideas?
I am about to go cook some quinoa which I found out is just like cooking rice. 2 cups of water for every 1 cup of quinoa. Then I can jut use it to make a quick salad tomorrow.
Wish me luck!

Weekend food

On Friday my mom bought a canoe. So, on Saturday, we headed out to http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/elkisland/index.aspx to try the red canoe and have a BBQ. While my parents strategically took the canoe off the top of the van and brought it to the beach, I took Miss G to the playground. It was a day of firsts for Miss G as it was her first time in a canoe and seeing a buffalo. As we got closer to the playground, I could smell delicious wafts of Indian food coming towards me. When we got to the playground it was filled with little Indian children as their parents sat at the picnic tables surrounding, cooking and eating delicious curries and rices. (I was spying.)

Nevertheless, when we got to our supper of BBQ hot dogs and s'mores, I wondered if they were laughing at our random meat on a stick compared to their beautiful yellow rice. But, in my opinion, there is nothing better than a BBQed hot dog on an open fire.

That being said, I've started reading Alicia Silverstone's book/recipe book called The Kind Diet, A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet. http://www.thekindlife.com/ If you're thinking - Alicia Silverstone as in Clueless - you are correct. As almost everything in my life, I saw it and her on Oprah (http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Alicia-Silverstone-on-Becoming-Vegan) and thought I'd give the book a read. It's actually really enlightening on the food we put in our bodies and how it affects our moods and whatnot. She talks about the nasty foods we put in our body (meat and dairy mainly) and the kind foods we should be eating such as beans, veggies, and fruits. There are three different levels in the book - Flirting, Vegan, and Superhero. I am going to start with Flirting as it will be hard to cut some foods out of my diet while still living at home where mom pays for groceries as I save for a down payment on a condo. I think I'm going to cut out red meat, add beans and legumes daily, and cut out some dairy. Cheese is going to be tough, as will be yogurt.

I wonder where a BBQed hot dog over an open fire fits on there. I guess I could try tofu dogs, but I do have a nasty gag reflex that kicks up when I try new foods that have weird textures. Hopefully I'll be okay.

Breakfast today was at Cora's http://www.chezcora.com/ over interesting conversation with the newly wed Saba. I love it there. Every meal is served with a mound of fresh fruit. It's not an uber-healthy place, but it does have many healthy options to choose from. I ordered the brie and mushroom eggs benedict which is mouthwatering delicious. They also feature a fruit juices daily. Today it was a mixture of banana, blackberry, cranberry, and apple. So good.

I could use a little more kindness in my life, so I will try to embrace The Kind Diet which also promises glowing skin and less gas. I could use a little of that as well.