Some Thoughts about VeganMoFo : Post #18

Vegan Month of Food is drawing to a close. Here are some of my thoughts about this experiment in food that I so boldly embarked upon 30 days ago.

I feel great. I feel ‘lighter’ in all ways.

I have lost weight, but I have eaten like a horse (as usual)

My skinny jeans fit great!

I am very, very proud of posting 20 times this month

I cheated only a few times (super proud of that!)

I ate a fried egg (and there I go yet AGAIN mentioning an egg during the VeganMoFo!)

I had a few huge spoonfuls of the most delicious honey yogurt the other day…. not sure I can totally give up yogurt.

I had two Greek salads this month, both smothered in feta cheese – I don’t think I can give up feta (or Parmesan)

I snuck a few brownies down the old-pie-hole in moments of weakness. They were conveniently tucked in the freezer intended for my son’s bag lunches. Darn them! (see the recipe here and dare to scold me….they are incredible) 

I ate a slice or two of cheddar cheese and my tummy hurt for the longest time afterward. It was weird. Too rich. Too ‘buttery.’ It didn’t even taste good to me.

I learned about lots of new ingredients like Nutritional Yeast, raw cashews, Tofutti, Veganaise, Ener-G Egg Replacer

I ate a huge slice of tofu for the first time in my life and I lived to tell about it. (kidding – it was pretty good.)

My pantry is filled with all kinds of cool beans – ready to be boiled and eaten. I am going to post about my bean collection soon. (You might know that Michigan is a huge producer of dried beans.)

I used my Veganwannabe dreams as an excuse to purchase a Vitamix - here you see 2 carrots,     1/2 C frozen pineapple, 1 inch of fresh ginger, some orange juice and ice cubes.
Vegans sure know how to blend stuff.
 Hail to the reconditioned Vitamix.
Drink to my health. 

I learned that vegans have trouble eating in restaurants.

Cleaning up after dinner has been a dream – washing dishes is so nice when it’s only veggies and ‘clean’ food on the plates.

My grocery bill is much lower that when it was filled with cheese, dairy and meats

I miss eating fish and sushi.

I am worried about the huge Thanksgiving meal. Meat. Cheese. Butter.

People think vegans are weird. Which maybe they are.

Will I remain a vegan? I hope so, but probably not. It’s difficult out there in the ‘real world.’   I am going to be aware of what goes in my mouth every single day.

I am starting to feel brave enough to learn about where the food I eat comes from. It’s a scary thought.  My reasons for doing the VeganMoFo 2012 did not have anything at all to do with the realities of the mass production of meat and dairy in our country. My reasons were mainly about my health, the health of my family, curiosity, and for some fun on my blog. But I am getting ready to dip into the other side of veganism….. the animals

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