Recipes and Race Day

Hi!!!

Doing the Vegan dance is hard. We get invited over for some homemade Tuna Casserole, I have to bring a sack lunch, or we get invited out to some bar and grill where NOTHING is remotely even Vegetarian, let alone Vegan to hang out with Jex's unit mates; not being allowed to bring my own lunch I end up ordering one of those tasteless iceberg lettuce salads with a slice of lemon instead of their questionable dressings.

But that's not all. Recipes are kind of a pain too. A lot of the Vegan cookbooks I found were crap. I'm sorry but if I can't eat butter I'm not going to buy a "Vegan Buttery Stick" or any of the other pretend meats, cheeses, and egg substitutes. For one thing their probably incredibly processed, for another I'll just eat the real damn thing for cheaper. Skinny Bitch was an especially big let down. I live in a town just barely big enough to have a ligit mall. Even if I was going to eat all the Vegan pretend foods there is really nowhere to buy them.

So I've made stuff up as I went along, it's still hard some days but I'm getting the hang of it. Below is my recent favorite made up recipe. Hopefully you guys like it too.

Nonbasa
This is a spin off a meal that my dad would make for us from time to time that he called simply Kielbasa, because that was the main ingredient of the dish. 

1 Med Zucchini, cut into inch thick slices, then quartered
1/2 an Apple (Fuji, McIntosh, or Granny Smith)
1 small onion, quartered then sliced into 1/2 inch slices
1 cup Mushrooms (optional)
2 cups Cabbage (optional) 
2 Table spoons Coconut oil
Salt, pepper, and cayenne (red pepper) to taste
A cap full and a half Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar

In a med skillet with a decent lip, or wok, melt the Coconut oil on med-med hi heat and toss the onions and apples to coat. Stirfry about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the vinegar, stirfry for another 3 minutes or so before turning the heat down to low and covering. Cook until cabbage and zucchini are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Uncover and add the vinegar, toss and taste, adjust seasoning to taste. Serves 1 very hungry new Vegan. 

Here are a few of my favorite places to get ideas when I have no idea what to make for dinner, or if I feel like branching out.

Olives for Dinner - I think this one is my favorite because the food photography is gorgeous.
Love and Lemons - I like the recognizable meals, like bean burgers and various kinds of root veggie fries that this blog has to offer.

Also, guys tomorrow is race day!!!! I'm going to die!!! I'm also hoping to get some pictures. Yay!

Till next time.
The light heart lives long <3 p="">

Week 3

Well, I'm halfway through my experiment. Week 3, the magical number that I'm supposed to feel better by. Let me tell you what, I kinda do. Now I don't feel like a million bucks or anything, but I'm done feeling super gross. Yaaaay!!!

I am running out of ideas for food though. Doesn't help that I'm not in my own kitchen. But that's ok! Asian food is easy.
I also want to give my heartfelt thanks to the vegan bloggers who post recipes. Really, you guys are life savers.
Here try some Coconut Creamed Spinach.


More than the veganry, I'm kinda here to complain a little.

You all might remember that my dude is military. Perhaps you noticed that my blog got really really quiet while he was deployed.
Jex is a reservist. It basically means ten times the stupid, a quarter of the time and a few of the benefits. Unless you have the stupid pink reserve Dependant ID on a nonreserve base, then no one knows what the hell is happening.
I just spent the better part of an hour trying to find a reserve support group online to help me out with the finer points of Jex's reintegration headache. Specifically the healthcare bit. Guess what I discovered.
Army, Nat. Guard, or Marine reserve spouses have it covered. Navy and Air Force reserves, not so much. I think I was more surprised over the fact that Marine reserves exist rather than the lack of support for someone in my position.

I live over 300 miles from my husband's station. No I did not type that wrong. To top it all off were in a totally civilian community. It is so hard to connect with some one who has lived in one place their entire lives. Especially when your struggling to figure out something like TAMP.
There is no key spouse to walk you through things. To share stories of the times she fell to little tiny pieces when no one was looking. To laugh with you about the lovely, but totally awkward, phrases the nonmilitary wives would say to to you. And as much as the active duty spouses get it there are still things they don't have to deal with because, well, it's kind of completely different.

I want to start a site for people like me. But from what I hear every reserve base does things completely different from every other base. I also have no idea what to do.
You know that "Yeah, that's a great idea" moment that is immediately followed by silence? Yeah that's where I am.
I guess I could try the Facebook thing... Even though I kind of despise the book of face.
Oh well. I guess I'll figure it out. Always do, eventually.

Till next time,
The light heart lives long.

Running into Recipes

The Spartan sprint is coming up guys!!! March 9 I'm going to go do a stupid 5k filled with stupid obstacles for a T-shirt, some beer, and a little Pride.
You might have to be in the military, or a military brat to fully apreciate this next bit. While testing my 3.1 mile time on base the anthem played.
Now, for those of you unfamiliar with why that might have been an issue let me explain. At about 4pm every day the base speakers play the anthem. While the song is playing you stop driving, walking, doing whatever it is you were doing, face towards the nearest flag and put your hand over your heart or stand at attention (if in uniform).
I have done this all my life. Never have I been caught mid PT. And there I was, running my buns off, fighting with my self. Do I stop? Would it be ok if I jogged in place? Is it ok if I keep running?! I had no idea what to do.
Being so close to the end of my run I kept going; feeling guilty the entire time.


Over the past few days I feel like the luck fairy kissed me on the nose while I slept. I have discovered delicious things to eat. Thank God! Salads were starting to make me want to cry.
So, I decided to post some recipes here, maybe some aspiring vegan or someone who is having a vegan over for dinner will stumble across a post or two.

Here's a tip: Asian food is the easiest to veganize.

Lunch/snack
Avocado and brown rice Onigiri (rice balls)
Makes 6 Onigiri

1 Avocado
1 1/2 cups of cooked brown rice. Note: rinse your rice before you cook it or it won't stick properly. I rinse mine 5 or 6 times.
2 tsp white cooking wine/sake
1/2 tsp chili garlic sauce
Salt to taste.
Furikake (optional seaweed topping)
Saran wrap for forming.

Cut the avocado into cubes. In a small bowl combine the other ingredients. Add the avocado and toss.
Tear off about 16 inches of saran wrap. Place 1/4 cup of the brown rice in the center of the wrap and squish it down into about 1/2 inch layer. Place a heaping teaspoon of sauced avocado in the center and fold up the sides. The saran wrap keeps your hands clean as you press the rice ball together.
Repeat the process, and tada!!! Tasty vegan food.

Till next time my lovelies,
The light heart lives long~