veganuary – my favourite foods so far
It’s been nearly two weeks since I gave up dairy, and I’ve actually not really struggled at all. As a long-time cheese addict and crazy egg lady I thought I’d have a few cravings, but nope. Nothing. There’s so much tasty vegan food out there that I’ve not really missed anything. Eating at home, at work, and on the go has been really easy. The only hard part has been when someone brought chocolate into work and I couldn’t have any. If anything though, that was good for me. I got to practise willpower, and I didn’t eat the fatty foods.
Here’s a whole bunch of stuff I’ve really enjoyed eating so far:
Homemade delights
I love cooking new things, but get so stuck in the routine of cooking the same stuff all the time. Changing up my diet is always a really good opportunity to try some different meals. As a cheese fiend, most of my usual dinners include A LOT of cheese. Obviously this needed to change for veganuary. There are vegan cheeses available in the supermarkets now, and it’s really good as a thing, but it’s not quite cheese. Suddenly how the actual meal tastes is so much more important when it’s not 80% cheese.
Burrito
Made with Quorn vegan pieces, Sainsbury’s cheddar style free from cheese, onions, pepper, spices, lettuce, avocado, rice, and leftover new year salsa.
Burrito in a bowl
This is actually the leftover burrito filling from the previous day, topped with olives and dried chickpeas from new year.
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Beans on toast and sausages
It’s beans on toast with Linda McCartney sausages, topped with Sainsbury’s cheddar style free from cheese.
PIE!
Jul-rol puff pastry is vegan! HOW COOL IS THAT?! Traditionally puff pastry is mainly butter, so this was a huge surprise. I made a pie filled with carrots and mushrooms and Sainsbury’s meat free mince. I loved it so much I’m going to write up the recipe.
Tomato pasta
Usually pasta = cheese. However, I have now learnt that pasta meals can be tasty WITHOUT cheese. I fried some finely cut mushrooms, shallots and garlic, mixed it with tinned tomatoes, a stock cube and some spring greens. Finally I sprinkled over some nutritional yeast. It was delicious, even sans cheese.
Shop bought
The choice for vegans now is phenomenal. While I love cooking, sometimes I can’t be bothered, and sometimes I don’t have time. Also some things just can’t be homemade. Like chocolate. And a girl needs her chocolate. You don’t even need to go to the special shops anymore, the supermarkets are full of really good vegan meals and treats. So far I have been incredibly impressed. Plus, there’s a whole bunch of stuff that’s accidentally vegan, like Oreos and Bourbon biscuits. Who said vegans were all super healthy
Tesco free from mac and cheese
I was so excited when I found this in Tesco that I had to buy it. Usually I don’t go for ready meals, especially at £3 a pop, but I couldn’t resist. The accompanying kale was from my veg box, and green beans from the reduced section. The whole meal was really tasty and super convenient.
CHOCOLATE!!!!
Actually I’m not as big on chocolate as I am on cheese, but it is still very important. I need a sweet fix every now and then, and this Sainsbury’s free from chocolate is really, really tasty. The orange one is my fave, but they also do a crispy one that’s yummy too.
Posh minty chocolate
Possibly the tastiest chocolate treat I’ve ever eaten. And it’s a bloody good job at £3.99 for a tiny box. My boyfriend bought this for me from Amazon prime, not realising how tiny it is. He was a tiny but mad, but the chocolate tasted really good, and the texture was divine. Can’t really justify buying it again though.
Caramel rice squares
Another tasty sweet treat, this time from Asda. I popped in the other day and thought I’d check out the free from aisle. There wasn’t a lot there that was actually vegan – most of it was gluten free or dairy free, but still contained eggs. These rice squares were one of the only things I could have, but I don’t mind because I really enjoyed them.
Nutritional yeast
I’ve heard a lot about nutritional yeast in vegan recipes. I’m still not sure exactly what it is, but I do know it is nice sprinkled over pasta. If you get this, don’t try it on its own – it’s not very nice. Also it looks exactly like fish food. It does add a nice flavour to meals though.
Eating out
Weatherspoons – Sweet potato and chickpea curry
I’ve only eaten out once since the start of the year and it was at Wetherspoons. My boyfriend is currently on a low carb diet, which is basically the opposite of my diet at the moment. Wetherspoons is really good for dietary needs as you can each order something completely different. Dan had a mixed grill, while I had this tasty vegan curry.