Here We Go Again: New Years Resolutions

It is that time of year again! Time for people to make lists of goals that they may, or may not, keep throughout the upcoming New Year. This year, I do truly feel like it is going to be a different one for me; a better one! And as I follow the long standing tradition of writing out New Year’s resolutions, I have a gut feeling that this will be the year I follow through on them. So, without further ado, and not in any particular order, my 2014 New Year’s resolutions:

• Be Active: The #1 resolution for most people at the start of a New Year. Everyone decides, especially after their holiday feasts, that it is time to bust that bulge! I can’t say this is a goal for me for the same reasons since I didn't gain much (I say much because I would be lying if I said none) weight over the holidays however, I have noticed that, although my diet isn't so bad, I am not really being active to help facilitate the weight loss! Not to mention, I do know how much more energy I gain when I am out there being active and I tend to feel better about myself when I do exercise. So, since my husband’s employer pays for a percentage of a gym membership we decided to join a gym and get our asses in gear. I have friends and family members who go to the same facility and I feel that will help motivate me just a little bit more. The crazy thing is I have never been this excited to start getting active. We signed up on Saturday and if it wasn’t for this cold creeping up on me, I would have gone to workout already! For that reason alone, I think this resolution will stick for 2014 (at least for a while hehe.)
• Focus on a Plant-Based Diet: Although this is something I have already been doing for the past few months, I have definitely waivered from it for one reason or another, here and there. Part of my choice to “waiver” has just been based on the memory of how “good” something tasted when it was a part of my diet (ex: steak, cheese) but when I actually consumed those products based on the “craving”, I not only felt a little guilty, but my stomach let me know it was a bad idea! And once the flavors hit my taste buds, I did not get the satisfaction I was hoping for. Because of this, I know my choice to follow a plant-based diet is the best one for me. If you notice, I am saying “plant-based” and not “vegan”. Originally the resolution was going to be “To Follow a 100% Vegan Diet” but, honey is just not something I think is worth giving up. I definitely understand the vegan point of view on honey however; the benefits of local, unprocessed honey outweigh those negativities. Best example would be that my husband suffers from horrible allergies. He becomes a pill-popper every spring and not only is that not the healthiest but it costs a lot of money! After some advice and research, he started consuming 1 TBSP of local, raw honey each day through the allergy season and like magic, his allergies were gone. This was 2 years ago and it has been working ever since! I would much rather spend the money at the farmers market for a product like this than put in any more money than I have to into the pharmaceutical industry! Therefore, I cannot label myself “vegan” (and who needs a label anyways) because honey, for us, has great advantages (and tastes great!)
• Cut Out Processed Foods: This resolution could be tied into the one above but I wanted to make it a separate goal. When I was focused on a vegan diet, I started to notice how processed a lot of the “vegan” substitutes could be! To be honest, I felt I might as well eat a piece of cheese than the 13+ ingredient vegan alternative. And with some added inspiration from a blog (and Facebook page) I follow, 100 days of real food, I have realized that you cannot always trust those added preservatives in your bagel, or granola bar. So why not cut those out or try and make homemade versions where you can trust what ingredients were really being used. No "monocraposulfate" in this kitchen! As I was typing this blog entry, I had a loaf on homemade bread in the oven; my first attempt at making replacements for store bought, over processed foods. It was such a simple recipe and turned out amazing. The best part? It took only 4 ingredients to make the bread! The average bread I have bought has at least 7 ingredients and 1-2 of those are things I may not be able to pronounce. The advice given to try and lessen your processed food intake is try and make as much stuff at home as you can and if you do need (or want) to buy packaged food try and stay with items with 5 ingredients or less. In our society, this may be a challenge but, I am ready to face it head on!!
• Positive Thinking: Over the entire year (2013) there has been a lot of negativity surrounding me (some I created) and within the last week I finally realized I need to take a stand against it all! There are so many details behind this resolution and trying to find a way to tactfully explain it seems quite difficult. So, I will say this, the experiences I have been through have only made me stronger and although I learned from them all, I will not let them repeat. Fool me once, shame on you…fool me twice, shame on me! I have so many positive opportunities coming my way this year with school, my marriage, and rebuilding of other relationships, that I have no plans to be brought down by any petty drama (and this may be my toughest resolution yet!!!)

Well, there you have it. I am very hopeful for what 2014 has to offer and I wish everyone a very happy and healthy New Year!!!!!

Shepherd's Pie - Vegan Style

Back in October, I swayed from my veganism quite a bit. With plenty of visits to happy hour, I found myself consuming cheese fries, quesadillas, and even buffalo wings. One night, after spending more money than I needed to, only to be feeling icky and bloated, I decided I needed to snap out of this self destructive routine and get my mind and body, back on track. As we left the frequented establishment, I asked my husband to go to Target; earlier in the week I came across a cookbook there that really peaked my interest. I ran into Target and when straight for it. The next two nights I spent looking over all the recipes and tips throughout the book (which I commonly do with cookbooks) and was pleasantly surprised at the simplicity of most of the recipes.

The book is written by chef Roberto Martin and is called Vegan Cooking For Carnivores. Martin is the private chef to Portia de Rossi and Ellen DeGeneres (two people that I didn't know followed a vegan lifestyle - news to you as well?). Like I mentioned, most of the recipes are practical and I have now made four things from the book and they all were delicious. Below is the adaptive recipe (only made some seasoning and execution changes) for the shepherd's pie. This is a wonderful dish to incorporate into your meal plan to please everyone (including the most indulgent carnivores.)

Looks yummy right? With a slice of garlic toast on the side...

• 1 cup dried lentils (used green)
• 2 lbs russet potatoes, mashed
• 4 TBSP vegan butter (such as Earth Balance), melted
• 1/2 cup almond or soy milk
• 1 TBSP chopped chives (optional - and I used green onions)
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 1 white or yellow onion (diced)
• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
• 3 celery stalks (minced)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas and carrot mix 
• 1 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 3 TBSP all-purpose flour (unbleached)
• salt and pepper

Preheat over to 420 degrees

Cook lentils in about an inch of cold water for 20 minutes. Lentils will be underdone but will cook further later. Drain excess liquid (if any)

Make mashed potatoes; use standard cooking method but once drained, mash and add melted butter, milk and chopped chives. Season with salt and pepper to taste

In a saute pan, heat olive oil.

Once hot, add diced onions-saute for 5 minutes or until they show color, add garlic, celery, salt, and  thyme and cook for another 3 minutes

Sprinkle flour over the vegetable mixture and stir in - then slowly add vegetable broth

Stir in lentils and simmer then mixture for around 5 minutes (you will see the mixture thicken)

Add peas and carrots to lentil mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste

Spread mixture into an 13x9 baking dish and top with the mashed potatoes (making sure the edges are covered with potatoes to prevent mixture from bubbling over

Bake for 25 minutes, or until potatoes are golden brown, and let sit for 10-15 minutes before serving

As you can see, this is a slightly labor intensive recipe. I made the mistake of not looking over the cooking steps beforehand and chose to start making this dish around 5:30pm on a weekday night and wasn't ready until close to 7pm (sounds early but not when the husband goes to bed around 8pm). This would be a great recipe to make on a Sunday night and have left overs for a couple days...either way, it is delicious and worth the effort!

Enjoy :)