Halfsy Veganversary!

Today is my 6 month Veganversary! It sort of feels like longer, yet also like yesterday.

Oct 4, 2010 was the first day I intentionally stopped eating animal products.

I still consider myself a baby vegan, with lots to learn and innumerable culinary adventures to have, but I've learned a few things along the way. Most importantly, I've learned how happy I feel knowing that my choices are having a minimal impact on the earth and the animals.

Even when I'm eating junk food (oh yes, vegan junk food's the best) and don't necessarily feel glowing physically, I never lose that mental peace that at least I'm hurting nothing else for the sake of clogging my arteries or getting a sugar overload.

How did I celebrate? It's a little anti-climactic.

I got in at 3 am from my weekend adventure to Santa Cruz, so I ended up taking a Kashi frozen meal for lunch since I had no time for groceries...and I slept in a bit.

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This was so dang good! Most frozen meals I get disappointed by the woeful lack of veggies, but that's not a problem with this one. The mango sauce is just sweet enough and it also has a good kick, but not too much. 

I can't afford these in my real life, but this was on sale a while back at my local healthy food store, and I thought I'd at least give it a try. It was awesome to have it in the freezer this morning when I realized I had nothing to take for lunch. Kashi...I love you. I suppose the rarity helps make you special. 

The weekend was completely worth it though. The wedding was lovely. It was great to see so many of our friends that have moved farther away. 

And look who I found ... Roomie Katie!

They also had an awesome salad bar so I didn't have to eat the Clif bar I had stashed in my bag. Don't get me wrong, I love Clif bars, it's just sort of sad as wedding food goes. 

And on our way out of town, I got my vegan milkshake! I added a little cooled coffee I had from earlier in the day and it was...wow.

So I made it back...late. I wish I'd had a more productive day of studying, but I did what I could. I had an OSCE, basically an interviewing/clinical skills exam where we're evaluated by an actor pretending to be a patient. We also have to watch a videotape of ourselves in the patient encounter. I may never get used to that, but it went all right. 

This evening though, I did get my kitchen on. Back when I made chili, I bought a 5 pound bag of potatoes...time to use the leftovers! Tonight's recipe is super-healthy beyond easy comfort food:

Cheezy Potato Veggie Mash

Makes about 7 big bowls (450 g), 260 calories each. 

Note: Potato mashes freeze very well, because the veggies are supposed to fall apart anyway. 

4 lbs potatoes - I just used basic russet potatoes, but red would be awesome too. 

2 big crowns broccoli

1 head cauliflower

1/2 Veganomicon recipe Cheezy Sauce: find it here. 

(Note: I always replace the oil in the cheese sauce with soy yogurt. It makes it extra creamy - and healthy.)

1. Cut everything up into chunks, I leave the peel on my potatoes. 

2. Boil an enormous pot of water, add potatoes and boil about 10-15 minutes.

3. Add cauliflower to the potato pot and boil another 10 minutes. 

4. Meanwhile, steam the broccoli - it takes about 5-7 minutes. You could probably throw it in the pot too, but I was running out of space, and I just love my broccoli steamed. 

5. Check to make sure your potatoes and cauliflower are tender, then drain and return to pot.

6. Mix in broccoli and Cheezy Sauce. Mash with a potato masher. 

(I mashed all of it with a fork and thought, "It's probably time to buy a potato masher.")

7. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

8. Feed an army - or a starving student. 

Big pot.

Cheezy sauce - blended in the magic bullet.

In the pot.

Enjoy!