Veganuary 2018

[lurchermummy]

Myself and DD aged 16 are going to try a vegan diet for January. DD is already vegetarian and I was vegetarian for many years although recently not. I really want to try a lighter healthier plant based way of eating, feel blurgh after all the rich food of Christmas, and am really keen to see if it helps my psoriasis. If we like it we may well continue but I signed up for Veganuary to give us a focus. DD2 is a fussy eater and not a big fan of vegetables so that may be tricky, DH is happy to eat vegetarian but vegan may be a step too far for him. Would really welcome any tips for adaptable family meals eg. sausage and mash, I can do vegan sausages for us and meat for them. I'm actually really looking forward to it now!

I've done well so far on my Veganuary (from being someone who was always eating meat, fish, eggs for protein).
Porridge for breakfast, lentil soups, quinoa and stir fry veg, green lentil curry with coconut milk etc.
I even bought some Mrs Crimble choc biscuit things and almost ate them but realized they were made with egg white - so my DS ate them!
But - just realized this morning I've been taking cod liver oil along with my multi-vitamin every morning! Oops.
Is there something I can take instead of cod liver oil for my old stiff bones?

Glucosamine?

You can get human Cortaflex I think, dunno if vegan (only used the horse version)

Just checked on Amazon and they do do some vegan versions of Glucosamine and Coraflex - thanks for those ideas WhyDidIEatThat - might pop to Holland & Barrett - they're bound to have some there.

Still going strong here. I don't feel on top of food this weekas I missed out o prep cooking this last weekend. My take forward from thus month us that we eat 100x better when I've prep cooled loads. When j get in from work tired and can't be arsed is when it falls down. Hence Linda Mc sausage rolls for tea! I am hapoy to continue. Dh has a fantasy Ocado order that indicates otherwise!

Hello, I've been a long time Vegetarian (26 years) and trying veganuary. It's been going well so far but last night I had no dinner after working and then going to a course and grabbed a double decker chocolate bar.....OMG it was so weird. I liked it at first but then felt sick as it tasted like I was eating a bar of double cream. Didn't finish it which is unheard of and felt queasy for ages. Anyone else had this? I was wavering if I am honest but after that I think I might stick to vegan eating after January is over.

user1494849703 - I think that’s pretty normal if you have been eating healthily - a double decker bar would be a real rush of sweet sickly sugary taste. I actually prefer darker less sweet chocolate now and just suck on a few pieces in the evening (85% choc). Once I am onto a healthy low sugar diet I do really feel better and notice if I eat something too sweet. However it’s all too easy to fall off the wagon and be back to square one.

Hey thanks Gara. I was pretty shocked but if anything it's made me not miss milk chocolate at all. I have been eating some vegan biscuits but you are right, nothing like the amount of sugar I would normally eat. It's very interesting though how your tastes can change so quickly.

I also feel, as well as my tastes changing that I don't have the highs and lows. I don't get an afternoon slump now as I'm not loaded up with carbs at lunchtime - I am steady all day.
However, it feels fairly 'boring' - I feel better and all that, but don't get the rush that I would have before - my food now is healthy and fine, but it's more like fuel, I'm not really eating for pleasure - but I still look at a doughnut and think 'yum, would love that' but I know that I feel better without eating doughnuts etc (also would never have an off switch so better to have none!)

" I'm not really eating for pleasure"

You are cooking the wrong things then. We have enjoyed some spectacularly delicious meals. And how are you managing with very few carbs? Unless you are only eating nuts, tofu and vegetables I would have thought a vegan diet was more carb heavy.

DD is vegetarian anyway, but the vegan diet doesn't seem to be agreeing with her this year. She is eating so many healthy foods and meals, but is coming out in spots and rashes all over the place.

Lonicera - Maybe healthier carbs then - I usually have porridge in the morning, made with almond milk and cinnamon, then homemade lentil and vegetable soup at lunchtime , or today I'm having a thick banana, avocado and soya yogurt smoothie. Tea will be aubergine dip on rye bread, and maybe some roasted sweet potato. I might have peanut butter on apple slices for a snack sometimes.
It's not not tasty , but maybe it doesn't have that psychological 'naughtiness', I don't know. But I know I feel a lot better in myself health-wise and losing weight (slowly but surely).
I'm also doing Dry January, and I feel so much better, less likely to just flop in the evening etc, but I still miss that glass of wine (or 2) in the evening after kids in bed - but that was getting a habit every night.

Sorry to hear about your DD - that's not good, hopefully you will find out what the problem is. My children have various allergies, do you think it's possibly that, to a specific food. I can't make a lot of vegan things for one of my children due to nut and pulse allergies, and dairy too. I'm pretty stuck with giving him meat and 2 veg.

Has anyone tried the Nush Almond milk yogurt? I don't like soya yogurt so thought I might give this a go. Greek yogurt is the one dairy food I'm really missing.

That is really interesting to hear Lonicera, I have a rash on my neck and chest since doing this and wondered if it had anything to do with what I am eating. The only thing thats really changed is more avocado's and more Almond milk, not sure if either of those could cause it. Will consult Dr Google.

Ive made a large lasagne and cottage pie with green lentils today. Am off work today and the plan is to get it portioned up and into the freezer to give me a couple of "ready meals" for after work days when I am running late. I need to get it in the freezer before my carnivorous DS comes home from work as he loves my vegan lasagne. Feel like its been a good day. Although I still miss cheese I'm not missing it as much as I did in the first 10 days or so. Maybe I can do this permanently

Mysteriouscurle - are you using a substitute cheese or just no cheese. I do use Violife and quite like that occasionally (am dairy allergic anyway so had to get used to some fake cheese).
The lasagna and cottage pie sounds nice - real home comfort warming foods, I might try making those.

GaraMedouar you need to try the chocolate mousse that I linked to earlier. It does not taste the least bit "worthy"

We are trying some of the new Tesco Wicked Kitchen range tonight. We don't eat many ready meals, but it is useful to have something as a standby. I will report later.

@GaraMedouar no cheese. I never used cheese in my white sauce for lasagne. Just a white sauce. So it was Just a case of swapping soya for dairy milk. I did used to sprinkle grated red leicester on top but I just left it without. I have had a few unpleasant experiences with vegan cheese and have come to the conclusion that id rather just not have it.

@loniceraJaponica it would be good to know what the wicked meals taste like

Jesus Christ. Just tried violife mozzarella on a pizza. I will never voluntarily let that stuff near my mouth ever again.

I am concluding that I won't go back to cows milk but will reintroduce eggs and cheese next week. It's been an interesting experiment and I will definitely continue a mainly vegan diet after this.

@whirlygirly the Sainsbury’s Free From grated ‘mozzarella’ is also foul. The smell when it was in the oven was horrendous, let alone the taste.

That violife cheese has a melting point close to something nuclear.

Wicked KItchen mini review:

Teriyaki Noodles - Don't bother. Dry, boring and not much taste
Caponata Pizza - a bit on the small side. DD loved this, I liked it and OH thought it was underwhelming
Muay Thai Curry - a winner for me. Absolutely delicious, but quite a lot of chilli. OH and DD didn't like it as it was too hot. Warning: don't bite into the bird eye chilli!

For tonight I cooked a coconut and lentil curry and Bombay potatoes. We had popadums with minty soya "yogurt" and mango chutney to start with, and naan bread with the curries. DD had an omnivore friend over and I was very happy when she said "you always make nice curries, that was delicious"

Thanks @LoniceraJaponica. I thought they were a bit pricey so good to know which are dull and underwhelming and which are good before I buy

but I still look at a doughnut and think 'yum, would love that'

Co-op jam donuts are vegan @GaraMedouar! 😊 So are Oreos and most bourbon biscuits. I know this is kind of missing the point about being healthier but I think it's important to have a few treats, otherwise it just becomes this horrible endurance event with no 'fun'. I tried The Coconut Collaborative little choc pots. They're tiny but really nice as a little treat - don't taste dairy free at all!

I have to say that I feel my diet has become more interesting since doing Veganuary (I'm veggie normally). It's challenged me to try new dishes and cuisines. Anna Jones's books A Modern Way To Eat and A Modern WayTo Cook have so many fab recipes which are often vegan/can be made vegan. Great flavours. Also look at Minimalist Baker and Avant Garde Vegan online. This was delicious and full of flavour minimalistbaker.com/saucy-moroccan-spiced-lentils/

I tried Violife smoked cheddar and liked it. Nice on a burger. Slight coconut aftertaste maybe but didn't put me off!

I'm planning a vegan Lent (see other thread) and this is all very encouraging except I can't see much I can adapt for the DCs except burgers/fishless fingers/sausages and mince based foods, and I'm struggling to find ready meals from our regular supermarkets.
Someone was asking about large wraps - Dina do enormous white ones - not tortillas to be honest but v large!

Tonight I made a pumpkin risotto garnished with mushrooms, and added in peas for OH and me (DD dislikes peas). I served this with salad. It was utterly delicious.