Vegan Challenge: Week One

Afflinks are in this post, but only to items we use as a team and highly recommend.

Quick Note

Many of the members of our team are 95% vegan and about 5% meat-eating on a daily basis. That means that most days are plant-based with a few days throughout the month or week that include fish or another lean protein. Also, only one of us consumes eggs on a regular basis. We all agree that consuming wholesome food that doesn't come out of a box is the best way to go.  Some might call that Paleo; we call it being human because fads are lame. Eating "clean" or "primal" are just fancy marketing tools people use to make money. We aren't those people; we are the people who will tell you that if you want to eat grains, go ahead. If you don't, that's also okay.

Eating for life is important. Our team has decided that we are going to go 100% vegan for the next month and we would like to invite you to join the bandwagon. The motive behind this is simple: eat right and see how the body feels when you lower the level of crap and increase the level of veggies in the diet.

To make it easy, we have set out a 4-week plan that includes all of the recipes for each day. You can easily print it out too! Hooray! We're excited and we would love to hear what you think about the challenge.

DAY 1 
Breakfast
Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal
Makes 2 1-cup servings 
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Ingredients

• 1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1 chopped apple
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 2 TBSP flaxseeds

Directions

1. In a pan, add the oatmeal, water, and flaxseeds over medium heat. 
2. In a small bowl, mix together the apple, cinnamon, and ginger.
3. When the oatmeal is halfway cooked (2-3 minutes), add in the apples.
4. Cook until the oatmeal is to your liking.
5. Split into two servings. Eat one and save the other for tomorrow.

Lunch
Grilled Portobello Mushrooms
Makes 2 
Ingredients

• 2 large portobello mushrooms
• 1/2 cup vegetable juice
• 1/4 cup water or low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup roasted red peppers
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together everything but the mushrooms. Marinade the mushrooms in the sauce for 10-15 minutes.
2. In a pan over medium-high heat, add the mushrooms. You could also cook these on the BBQ or bake them in the oven. If you are doing it in the pan, add a little bit the marinade to the pan so the mushrooms don't stick to the pan.
3. Cook until the mushrooms are tender, flipping halfway through cooking.

Serve the mushrooms with 1/2 cup of rice or 4 ounces cubed tofu (cold or heated up).

Dinner
Quinoa-Vegetable Pilaf
Makes 8
Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 chopped carrot
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 cups dry quinoa, washed and dried
• 3 cups boiling water 

Directions:

1. Cook the quinoa according to the package using the hot water.
2. While the quinoa is cooking, saute the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Add the seasoning. Stir. Fold into the quinoa.

Snack

• 1 Red or green bell pepper, sliced
• 2 TBSP Hummus

**Leftovers need to be packaged up. If you have trouble eating lots of leftovers, then you can freeze some of it, but be sure to save a serving for lunch tomorrow!

DAY 2
Breakfast
Leftover Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

Lunch
Leftover Quinoa and Veggies

Dinner
Lentil Artichoke Stew
Makes 6 
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup vegetable broth
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups quartered artichoke hearts 
• 2 24-ounce cans chopped fire-roasted tomatoes, juice reserved
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup uncooked red lentils
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced 
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large stockpot, throw everything together over medium-high heat. Bring the soup to a boil.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the lentils are soft and tender.
3. Serve and store the leftovers.

Snack

• 10 baby carrots
• 2 tablespoon peanut butter
• 1 apple

DAY 3
Breakfast
Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

Lunch
Leftovers (stew or quinoa)

Dinner
Mexican Corn Salad with Baked Tofu
Makes 6 
Ingredients:

• 14 ounce package of extra firm tofu, cubed and baked in the oven for 30 minutes
• 1 15-ounce can corn, drained
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander

Directions:

1. In a pan over medium heat, saute everything together, expect the tofu. Cook everything until crisp.
2. Add the tofu into the pan. Cook for 5-10 minutes longer.
3. Eat and package portions

Snack

• 3 stalks of celery and 2 tablespoons peanut butter

DAY 4
Breakfast
Pumpkin Pie Protein Smoothie

Lunch
Leftovers from the day before.

Dinner
Tofu Tacos

**Serve these tacos with a big green salad on the side.

Snack

• A banana
• 2 Tablespoons pumpkin seeds
• A handful of raw broccoli

DAY 5
Breakfast
Leftovers from the Tofu Tacos. Add a baked sweet potato, if desired.

Lunch
Eat up the leftovers

Dinner
Eat up the leftovers

Snack

• 1 cup berries
• 2 tbsp almonds

DAY 6
Breakfast
Peaches and Cream Oatmeal
Serves 1
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1 cup soymilk
• 1 peach, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• a pinch of ginger
• a pinch of salt
• a ;pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon chopped cashews

Directions:

1. Cook the oats in the milk over medium heat.
2. As the oats cook, add the nuts, peaches and spices.
3. When that oats are cooked, eat!

Lunch
Salad Bar (if eating out) or make a BIG-ASS salad with 3-4 cups greens, and 1/4 cup of each of these: peas, bell peppers, carrots, mushrooms, cucumbers, red onion, black olives, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and a few tablespoons of nuts/seeds.

Dinner
Cauliflower Red Curry

Snack
Chocolate Cream
Makes 4 servings

• 1/4 cup  cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup  soy milk
• 1 14-ounce package tofu
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips, divided in to four groups

Directions:

1. In a blender, process the tofu until super duper smooth.
2. Add in the cocoa powder, milk, and vanilla extract. Blend again for several minutes.
3. Divide the cream into four containers. Top with the chocolate chips. 

**You could garnish with nuts, coconut, or fresh berries.

​Snack

• Apple
• A handful of almonds

DAY 7
Day Seven is a free day. You can choose what you want to eat.

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