I love watching “What I eat in a day” videos on YouTube, especially when I first toyed with the thought of being vegan, and I’ve always been a little sad that I couldn’t really do my own. Writing is where I shine, and I seriously hate recording myself. Recently, I found some bloggers that have done their own “What I eat in a day” blogs, and the lightbulb went off. I could write about what I eat! Duh! Well, this is me finally catching up. I hope this gives you a few ideas. Remember, whatever ideas you get here, make them your own. Feel free to make mistakes. You may have to make some pretty nasty stuff before you get some killer recipes.
Breakfast
What better way to start the day as a vegan than with a smoothie? I know, there are lots of other breakfasts I could make, but frankly, smoothies are the easiest. All you need is a blender, ingredients, and five minutes. Also, I find it really fun to experiment with different ingredients.
In the morning, I’m a fan of fruit smoothies. I haven’t really gotten into green smoothies yet, but I have an inkling it’s because I haven’t learned how to make a tasty one yet. This morning, I surveyed the kitchen for ingredients. There are so many combinations that I rarely make the same smoothie more than a few times.
I found some bananas (my smoothie staple), grapes, and an apple in the kitchen and started putting it together.
- 2 bananas
- 1 apple
- 1 bunch of grapes
- Splash of coconut milk (optional)
- 2 c. water
- 2 c. ice
Place the bananas, diced and cored apple, a bunch of grapes, coconut milk (optional), and water in your blender. When smooth, add ice to your desired consistency.
Seriously, guys, this is so easy. And it actually turned out pretty tasty too. Sometimes, when you’re experimenting, you may get some nasty concoctions, but that’s okay. At the beginning of your vegan journey, you have to make a lot of mistakes before you find things you love. You’ll begin to build your own vegan cookbook with your favorite recipes, and, all of the sudden, it will actually be easy, and even fun, to be vegan. Be patient with yourself. It’s going to take a little time to get there.
Second Breakfast
I shared my smoothie with my brother, and it wasn’t enough to completely satiate me. I’m a fan of trusting my body to tell me what it needs, so for a snack, I had some chips and hummus. The hummus was red bell pepper and super tasty. Maybe I’ve just been vegan for a while, but the hummus tasted almost cheesy today. Definitely, a welcome taste knowing that no animals were hurt to achieve that cheese taste.
Lunch
Look at that delicious salad. I never used to not be able to stand salads without drenching them in ranch. Now, I can only handle a little bit of dressing because the vegetables are so good. It’s interesting how taste buds change.
This is my lunch I brought to work. I added the side of broccoli to fill me up a little more. When I sat down to eat this, I poured some balsamic dressing on top of the salad and stuffed my mouth. If you don’t like eating broccoli plain, you can use Brianna’s Poppyseed Dressing. It’s a vegan option despite the creamy taste.
Here’s what was in my salad:
- 1 head of romaine
- A couple tbsp of hemp seeds
- Handful of sunflower seeds
- Handful of dried cranberries
Dinner
My mom has always been extremely supportive of my lifestyle choices, and she tries really hard to make delicious vegan meals when I come to visit. Because I know she tries so hard, I never turn down anything vegan that she makes. Tonight for dinner, she was sweet enough to fry up some potatoes with onion flavoring. I had a side of watermelon as well. This is typical of what I eat when I visit home.
I think it’s wise to never act haughty. Just because something isn’t organic or 100% vegan doesn’t mean they aren’t trying. When we acknowledge when others are trying to understand, we can do so much to impact their own lifestyle choices. As soon as we stick our noses in the air, they close off.
Dessert
For dessert, I treated myself to some Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. They have some non-dairy ice cream made with almond milk, and seriously, I died. That stuff is so good! I tried the peanut butter and cookies, so I don’t know how the others taste. But if you’re missing ice cream, give this a try. It was seriously so good.
I hope this gives some ideas of what you can eat as a vegan. The options definitely don’t have to be closed off. Honestly, I’ve felt that my choices and creativity have only increased. When I first became vegan, it didn’t seem like I could eat anything. After a while, though, I slowly added recipes to my mental cookbook, and now I find so much freedom in my food choices. Not only that, but I’m helping the animals, my own health, and the planet. I’d call that a win-win-win.
If you are just starting the transition to veganism, or even just curious, check out my blog post, “What to expect when transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle.” This is specifically about transitioning to vegetarianism, but the general principles are exactly the same. Also, many vegans started as vegetarians. Give it a read.
Hey Annah, great post. I was vegetarian from the age of 12 to about 24 when I started having a few health issues and craving things I’d never even eaten before. I took it as a sign to trust my body that it was missing something.
Now I’m 32 and have always been interested in going back to vegetarianism and eventually maybe veganism. I’ve just been too concerned that it’s difficult to get everything you need that way without spending a ton and buying a million ingredients and paying such close attention to how you’re planning meals and snacks. I don’t have that kind of time or money. I’m a super busy mom, blogger, and full time worker!
How do you ensure you get everything you need to nourish your body? I noticed there was very little protein in your meals for this day; is that the norm for you? Do you supplement or get your protein through snacks, like nuts?
I think that’s the hardest thing for people who want to make the switch to a plant based lifestyle. It can be super confusing and, as someone whose done it, it’s really easy to do it wrong and not nourish yourself properly. I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Thank you for your questions! You definitely asked some of the most important questions about veganism (and vegetarianism). I really love that you are in tune with your body and recognized that you were missing something. I think that is one of the most important skills someone can have when it comes to health.
I’ll answer about the protein and nutrients first. Also, I’m not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, and I’m learning this as I go. I just know that I feel great as a vegan. A common question for vegans is where they get their protein. The misconception is that we need a ton of protein to survive. It turns out, the average American has twice as much protein as they need which ends up actually being unhealthy. The recommended amount of protein is 0.8 mg/kg of body weight. For a 140 lb person, this is 50.8 g a day. The average American consumes 100 g. Also, this 50.8 isn’t a minimum. It’s what we’re shooting for. If you get a little more one day and a little less the next, it’s perfectly okay.
Plants are actually a great source of protein. Per calorie, broccoli has about twice a much protein as steak. I eat a lot of raw greens, raw fruit, and honestly, whatever else my body craves (as long as it is plant-based). I trust my body a lot to tell me what it needs.
I actually wondered with you about how much protein I got, so I recorded it all right here to find out.
2 bananas – 2.4 g
1 apple – 0.5 g
1 bunch of grapes – 1 g
Hummus – 15 g
Chips – 3 g
Head of romaine – 8 g
3 tbsp hemp seeds – 10 g
sunflower seeds – 15 g
dried cranberries – 0 g
Watermelon- 3 g
Fried potatoes – 4 g
Almond milk ice cream – 3 g
Total: 64.9
The recommended amount of protein for my body is only 57.6. I actually had more protein than I needed. It seems that I had little protein because of the fruit, but the hidden amounts of protein came from hemp seeds (10g), sunflower seeds (15g) and romaine (8g). That one meal added a lot of protein to my diet.
I didn’t even plan this out. I just knew I was craving that salad, so I made it. I don’t worry about perfect numbers. Our body is very recuperative and makes up for tiny mistakes we make as long as we feed it good food.
We don’t worry about unhealthy people getting enough protein or nutrients, but they are more nutrient deficient than any plant-based person.
Sorry, that was a lot of information all at once. I may have to write a post about just this topic. Because it’s already so long, I think I’ll write a blog post to answer the rest of your questions (especially about the time and money). I’ll send you a link to it when I finish it.
Feel free to email me at theartofpureliving@gmail.com as well for anything further.
Thanks for such a comprehensive reply, Annah! A blog post on this would be fantastic. I know there are others out there confused as well and would really benefit from it.
I know we don’t need much protein, but I guess I didn’t realize how much is just in plants. The romaine surprised me! Do you eat an entire head in a day? That seems like a lot, but maybe not if that’s all you’re eating for that meal…
You don’t worry about other vitamins and minerals? Do you use anything fortified to ensure there aren’t any gaps in case there are things you’re not getting by staying away from all animal byproducts? I can’t remember which ones, but I was under the impression there were a few things that aren’t really found in plants (not normal ones anyway).
I’d love to see a comprehensive post, or series of posts, addressing all of these concerns and how you manage them!
Here’s a link to the post about saving money on a vegan diet. http://www.theartofpureliving.com/10-tips-eating-vegan-budget/
I’m going to keep plugging away at your other questions, specifically the vitamin/minerals vegans should supplement.
Thanks again for the question! 🙂
Thanks, Annah! We actually just decided to transition to a plant based diet ourselves; the whole family, including the toddler. Aside from getting the little one to try different things, it’s going well. It seems like b12 is the only real concern for vegans, but a supplement can take care of that, and making sure to have the fortified foods. Non-vegans are pretty deficient these days anyway, so no real difference there!
I’m so happy for you! The transition may be hard, but I promise it’s worth it. 🙂
The only supplement I take is B12, and you really don’t need much. I think it’s so ironic that vegans could be getting B12 from the soil plants are grown in, but because of over-sanitization, the vitamins are lost.
I just figure that we’re trying to be healthy, not perfect. Anyone on the SAD is way more nutrient deficient anyways, so I’m happy being a little healthier even if it isn’t perfect (even though I think it nearly is).
Thanks for the comment and good luck in your plant-based journey!