I’m always fascinated by what other vegans eat and yet am hesitant to share what I eat.  Mainly because I am not a recipe creator, I’m not a nutritionist, and I often change the method or ingredients in recipes.  It’s also lots of work to share recipe steps, so mad respect to all the recipe creators out there!!

I’m a foodie and I eat what tastes good.  We have learnt our new repertoire of family staples through trial and error and that was our biggest learning curve with our new lifestyle.  Everyone has different tastes and I encourage you to try some things that look good – recipes that use ingredients you already know you love are a good place to start.  You can also veganize current family favourites.  For example, if you have a stir fry you make, swap the chicken for tofu.  Or a beef Bolognese sauce could be made with lentils and mushrooms as the ‘meat.’  Swap the meat in a burrito for black beans or pinto beans. You get the picture.

 I was asked the other day if I could pick ONE breakfast, ONE lunch and ONE dinner, what would it be?  Thank you Pam for the great question! Today, I’ll share the answers I gave along with recipes. 

It’s worth mentioning, we make a TON of different things now.  Eating vegan has opened our creativity and minds to what is possible.  We eat much more variety as we ever did as non vegans.  Our food is satisfying and beautiful and I never tire of trying new recipes!  It’s such an exciting adventure to try new food combos.

In the beginning, when I craved dairy or pizza, I would tell myself I already know what that tastes like and would try something new instead. This was so helpful to me. Like, I’ve been eating pizza for as long as I can remember, I know what it tastes like. I don’t need to try it again. I can try something new.

BREAKFAST

My vegan ‘fast food’ breakfast is oats.  I love oats!  They are so satisfying and I love that I can eat them on the go wherever I am.   I literally toss dry rolled oats in a bowl and add my toppings to it.  Sometimes I even eat a side of beets with my oats.  Weird I know but the beets just make me happy!  They are gorgeous and help keep me full for longer.

If I don’t have fresh blueberries on hand, I will add in about 1-2 tbsp of raisins instead.  I’ve also been known to dice up an apple with raisins (but it feels like more work so I don’t generally do this).  I barely want to eat breakfast (and often skip it) so need something quick and easy!

Morning Oats

• 2/3 cup organic rolled oats
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp ground flax
• 1 medium banana cut up
• ½ cup blueberries
• 1 cup of unsweetened soy milk (or any plant milk of your choice)

Instant Pot Beets

• Toss beets in the Instant Pot (I put mine in naked and dirty)
• Add 1 cup of water
• High pressure cook for 25 mins with a 10 minute natural release
• Place the instant pot in the sink and drain the hot water.  Turn on the cold water to help cool the beets and ‘rub’ of the skin.  The skin comes off like a dream, but feel free to use a peeler if it doesn’t for you.  Sometimes the skin on tiny beets is a bit stubborn.

LUNCH

This hemp loaded balsamic salad is my go to lunch!  There’s a plant based doctor who says if your friends aren’t shocked by the size of your salad, your salad isn’t big enough. I think it’s Dr. Klapper or Dr. Goldhammer (or both) who say this.  This salad is a ‘clean out your fridge’ type salad.  I love it so much.  When I see leftover beans in my fridge that don’t have a plan, I whip up this salad dressing. 

This salad is from the Plant Based Cookbook by Ashley Madden and I found the recipe online here.  I do not add dulse flakes or nuts and I only use one date, instead of two.  I do usually double the dressing when I make it as it seems to fluff up better & I double all the dressing ingredients, but only use two pitted dates.  YUM!

My current fav veggies for this salad are grape tomatoes cut in half as I love the juiciness they offer, leftover beets if I have em’, greens of course, shredded carrots, diced cucumber, shredded red cabbage and broccoli florets cut up small.  I then add ½ cup of whatever beans I have on hand and ½ cup of whatever grains. I tend to use chickpeas and quinoa the most.

Pro tip:  Quinoa freezes like a DREAM.   It takes 2 minutes to cook in the instant pot and once finished cooking, I spread it out on a baking pan to cool so it stays dry and doesn’t get mushy.  Anytime I make quinoa, I make extra for the freezer so I have some on hand whenever I make this salad.

Loaded Lunch Salad with Creamy Hemp Balsamic Dressing

Instant Pot Quinoa

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 ½ cups water
• High pressure 2 minutes
• 10 minute natural release

Instant Pot Chickpeas

Not to brag, but I feel like I make the perfect chickpeas.  I know the point of having an instant pot is not to have to soak, but the texture of the chickpea when pre-soaked is worth it.   These chickpeas are cooked perfectly whether they end up in a curry, a salad or a stirfry.

• 2 cups dried chickpeas soaked 8 hours or overnight
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups of water

Place the dried chickpeas and water in the instant pot and soak. 

When ready to cook, add two bay leaves, keep the same water the chickpeas soaked in.

Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes with a 10 minute natural release.

Once the chickpeas are cooked, pull out the bay leaves, you can scoop off any film that appears or drain and rinse.  Feel free to keep the cooking liquid to use as your aquafaba for making homemade hummus!

DINNER

Inspired by the Esselstyn family, we love a POTATO BAR.  This is a fun FEAST where everyone can customize their potato to their own tastes.

Instant Pot Cuban Black Beans

Original Recipe from The Simple Veganista

• 1 lb dried black beans (it’s just over 2 cups) OR use adzuki beans (no need to pre soak)
• 1 small white onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed and diced
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 cups water

Rince the beans and remove any stones (I’ve never found a stone, but it’s a good safety step to do this double check).

Put on the sauté function of your Instant Pot and dry saute the diced onion and jalapeno until the onion is softened and a bit brown.  This step adds flavour to the dish, so don’t skip it.  Add a touch of water if you need it, but I find the onion has enough natural juice, no additional liquid is needed.

Next add the garlic and spices and cook for 1 minute more.

Turn off the saute function and cook at high pressure for 35 minutes and let the beans naturally release for 25 minutes and then pick out the bay leaves.

Leftover cuban beans freeze perfectly for a future meal.

We like to bake Yukon gold potatoes to go with these beans and see below for some topping ideas.  Anything goes, the only limit is your own creativity. My current fav toppings are creamed corn, hot banana peppers, hummus and green onions.

Topping Ideas

• Salsa
• Guacamole
• Toffuti
• Creamed Corn
• Hummus
• Green Onions

I tend to eat my baked potato and beans with a green salad on the side or raw bell peppers and kohlrabi sticks.

Oh and did I mention I eat FRUIT with every meal.  As much as I want.  Lately I’ve been known to eat 2-3 grapefruits in one sitting, they are SO JUICY and sweet and delicious in the winter time.

WEEKLY CHECK IN: -2 lbs | 29.6 lbs to goal

Peace, love & plants,

Michelle 😊

p.s. My fav podcast is called the Exam Room Live with the weight loss champion CHUCK CARROLL. Check it out here or on YouTube. I love to listen while on a walk or watch on YouTube while doing meal prep!