The Last Supper

 

Earthen Jar is the perfect place to celebrate being a vegan. Over half the the entrees are vegan and they even serve soy lassis and vegan cookies! 

Fast Food Nation Vegan Style

Vegan brunch at Denny's? Weirder things have happened. It was especially funny since Marco ordered a bacon and egg burger. What can I say, diversity right? We've decided that we would be perfect fridge mates. He can eat all the meat and processed food and I'll eat all the veggies and whole grain foods. Nothing would ever go to waste!

Chinese Dumpling Night

I don't think veganism has made it to China yet. When we were making dumplings the other night, I was hoping I could get by with asking if we could fill a few of them just with vegetables. This cause a huge amount of chaos and a running joke of how the vegetarian dumpling were the "American" dumplings. Apparently, dumplings inherently have meat in them unless they are the breadish type of dumplings. So when Xuen asked me if we had eggs to put in the "American" dumplings, I didn't think it would go over so well if I added the whole vegan thing to the mix. She was slaving over a hot stove making us dinner after all! What would the Chinese call vegan dumplings? Maybe "Ann Arbor" dumplings? Alas, another slip of the vegan challenge but so delicious and so worth it. We had a ton of fun learning how to make dumpling and followed the meal with a cha cha lesson and a special sans-guitar performance by my talented friend Lisa Ritchie (check out her website http://hushlovemusic.com/).

Undercover Vegan in Chicago

Being vegan is hard, but on the road it's even more of a challenge. The hardest part for me is being a guest and creating extra work for the people around me. Which is why I decided not to tell anyone I was doing a vegan challenge when we went to Chicago for Malin's birthday. I still did pretty well, thanks to  the fact that Malin doesn't actually like milk and uses soy milk in everything. I did have some of the frittata Malin made us for breakfast--how could I not? I mean, she made us breakfast! Out on the town it was even harder to stay vegan and I definitely at a non-vegan sandwich a Bon Pain. Still vegetarian though :)  I don't necessarily feel bad that I wasn't able to completely stick to my vegan diet--it wasn't meant to be a do or die sort of challenge. The biggest reason I decided to do this challenge was to inspire myself to cook with more fresh vegetables and find creative ways to create meals without dairy. So even though I didn't stay vegan 100% of the time on this trip, I still managed to find some awesome vegan udon noodle soup in Chinatown!

Köttbullar och Potatismos

Getting together for a Swedish reunion!

How can you be a vegan at a dinner that consists of mashed potatoes and meatballs? Well, luckily we live in Ann Arbor, and places like Trader Joe's offer vegetarian (and also vegan!) meatballs. Mashed potatoes can easily be made with rice or soy milk and any sort of vegetable butter. I have to admit, although I had purchased the ingredients for a completely vegan version of this meal, I ran out of time and ate regular mashed potatoes---oh no! My first time cheating on the vegan thing. But hey, it was in the name of celebrating Swedish culture, and who can be mad at the Swedes?

Vegan Sushi-always has been!

Not a fan of raw fish, so I've always eaten vegetarian sushi. It's vegan and the perfect way to go out for a meal with friends without ordering a side salad or an order if fries.

Afternoon Delight

Fruit Bowl and Raisin Toast

Vegan or not, leftovers are the best!

  I love eating delicious food, but I'm also super busy around lunch time, which is why leftovers are the best. Here's a dish that took me about ten minutes to make thanks to Vegan Mother's Day! I'm going to try to cook larger quantities like this more often so I don't have to eat vegan ramen or PB&J for lunch anymore!

Vegan Mother's Day

Luckily, out mother loves vegan food and so Vegan Mother's Day was enjoyed by all! Sara made a fresh salad with so many amazing things in it including dandelion, red bell peppers, avocado and cucumber. The main course was local asparagus, oven-roasted squash and wild rice. For dessert, Dad brought a refreshing fruit salad. The funny thing is I remember Mom cooking us meals like this all the time when we were little, so there must have been a lot of vegan meals in our home that we just didn't think of as vegan! The biodynamic white wine Chris brought us from Germany was a great touch. Thanks Chris! We love you Mom for inspiring us to buy/grow/cook/eat fresh and healthy food.

Best Meal of the Week Award

This lentil soup from La Marsa on State is my new favorite meal/snack/excuse to take a break between shifts. Plus, it comes with bottomless fresh baked mini pitas. For your non-vegan friends, the pita comes with delicious garlic butter. The best part: it's filling and super cheap! $2.99 for a cup, $3.99 for a bowl, either way easily under $5. Pros: Delicious, great ambiance, perfect location, cheap, very filling. Cons: I'm might get sick of lentil soup if I eat it more than once a week. Since it's a restaurant it sometimes takes longer than other places depending on how busy it is.

Only 20 minutes for lunch?

No excuse for unhealthy fast food during vegan month!

Delicious, filling lunch for under $5!

Community Cafeteria

I still haven't had time to go shopping, which means trying out local restaurants for meals. Buy hey, I'm definitely not complaining about that :) My go to place is the People's Food Coop on fourth because it's so easy to be vegan there. They have a hot bar with and a really great salad bar bar at $7.99 per pound. Overall, I love the place. They also have meat and vegetarian options so it's a perfect place for a lunch date with a non vegan. Pros: Great selection, good location, relaxed ambiance, real plates and cutlery, very fast. Cons: A bit pricy is you fill your plate to much (hard to stay under $5) and cookies made without butter and eggs are not really cookies!

 

Latte = Coffee and MILK

I love vegan food, but soy lattes are not the same. I don't think soy and coffee were made for each other. The flavors don't blend well at all and no amount of sugar can hide that. Next I'm going to try coffee with almond milk. Seems like a more natural combination. Any suggestions for how to make my coffee more fun without dairy?

Who says vegans can't have fun?

Tuesday night was my first real test eating out with non-vegan friends. Luckily, it was Taco Tuesday :):):) Tacos are the easiest thing in the world to modify. All you have to do is ask for a vegetarian taco hold the cheese and sour cream and there you go! No feeling left out because you're eating salad and everyone else is chowing down on burgers. Plus, you get all the fabulous flavors of a taco without the three hours afterwords where you feel like you never want to eat again. Tacos/burritos are also a really fun dinner party idea to make at home. Because you are custom creating every taco you make, people of all different diet preferences can enjoy a meal together. Being on any sort of special diet (vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, breatharian) is hardest in a social situation because other people have to accommodate for you and even feel bad for you. Tacos completely solve this problem and I highly recommend Taco Tuesdays. Plus, I'm trying to stay at $5 or less per meal, and at $1 Tacos and $2 shots, this is completely manageable.

May Challenge VEGAN

My first challenge beginning this May is being vegan for a month! This one is dedicated to Sam Schiebold, who is a fantastic role model for eating healthy and having fun with food. The reason I chose this challenge is because I want to give my body a chance to recover from all the cafeteria food I ate this year! I also just moved into my sister's apartment and finally have a kitchen again. So I want to cook a lot of fresh vegetable dishes and experiment with different recipes. Please post your favorite vegan recipes if you have any!