Back to Basics

Contrary to popular belief, I have NOT been losing weight while on this journey. In fact, despite running 23 (twenty-three) miles last weekend, I have managed to gain about 5 pounds. I asked myself... "WHAT IS GOING ON???" and then I realized - my dietary equation has changed. Where I used to evaluate food choices and recipes based on nutritional value, I have recently been evaluating them on one criteria alone... Does it contain meat? If not, I'm eating it. Case in point: All the cheese laden veggie pizza I've consumed in the past three weeks. The meatless 3 Musketeers Bar I ate after realizing that I couldn't have a hotdog. The meatless 3 Musketeers Bar I WANTED today after my husband screamed "STOP!!!" when I inadvertently put a piece of beef jerky in my mouth (close call and fortunately, my teeth had not yet even begun to sink).

Let me just say this about the beef jerky thing. Boy, was I pissed. My husband and I had been working in our rehab condo all day and I went to the store for some beer (which thankfully is meatless). He asked me to pick him up some beef jerky (not meatless), which I did. When I got back and ripped open the package of beef jerky and started to eat one without thinking, and he stopped me, I got all 5th grader pouty like "Now I don't have ANY snack!" I was a bit of a pill for a bit. I'll admit it. In fact, it was "BOGO" on the beef jerky so the second pack, the BBQ flavored one, was supposed to be for me. Damned vegetarian-diet-for a month idea. But I digress....

For the past few days I've tried to get back to basics and combine the "nutritious" part with the "meatless" part. Friday night, I made a delicious Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo Sauce which was made with tofu, fat free cottage cheese, roasted red peppers, and some other stuff. It was DELICIOUS and super creamy! According to my husband (as if he is more reliable), you would never know it did not contain heavy cream. Today? Breakfast was a fruit smoothie and lunch was a veggie "pizza" soup prepared in my blender made with practically nothing but veggies and some fat-free cheese. (Dinner was left over Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo Sauce and even though it was good, it's just not worth repeating here)

So, it's back to basics for me. I'll be running a marathon in 2 weeks and I've got to lose all this extra weight plus a little more in order for me to perform well in the race. Wish me luck. And hope I don't accidentally stick another piece of beef jerky in my mouth.

Tomorrow, I'll have to tell you about the meated torture I put myself through on Saturday. Oh... it was so painful. I almost caved in. And I almost didn't care.

Veg on.

Third time's a charm!

I am pleased to tell you, humbly, that I finally achieved the Holy Grail, as it were. A meatless meatloaf that my family actually liked!! I can't believe I had the nerve to try it, honestly, but I was convinced that it could be done. So, I picked up a pack of veggie "meal starter crumbles" from MorningStar Farm and noticed a webite on the package: http://www.seeveggiesdifferently.com/. I thought, if anyone should be able to give me a good meatless meatloaf recipe without a bunch of weird ingredients like TVP, it should be these guys. Here are a few highlights:

Pre-Oven:
Me: (Placing mixture in loaf pan) This one looks much more promising. Here, let me show you. See? It actually looks like meatloaf!
Husband: Let me smell it. (sniffing) Mmm... it smells good.
Son: Let me smell it. (sniffing with nasty wrinkled nose) Smells like butt.

(As meatlessloaf bakes, paranoia sets in. But I feel somewhat reassured knowing I have potatoes and green beans for sustenance)

After-Oven
Husband: Something smells delicious!
Me: (cautiously) Before you eat it, let me just remind you that it is NOT meatloaf so don't expect it to taste like meatloaf.
Husband: Don't be so hard on yourself. I bet it will be good. (Easy for him to say. He knows that if it does in fact taste like butt, he can go to McDonald's while I'm stuck with nothing but potatoes and green beans.)
Son: (says absolutely nothing because he knows if he makes another "smells like butt" comment, he'll be eating leftover Cottage Cheese loaf)

At the Table:
Me: (watching family members out of the corners of my eyes, afraid to try meatlessloaf, afraid to ask about it)
Husband: MMM.... this is a good one! You did it!
Me: Well, I figured it must have been OK since Cody has taken 4 consecutive bites without complaining. Must not be too bad.
Son: Well, it doesn't taste like meatloaf, but it's not bad. Actually, it tastes like stuffing.

I will call that a ringing endorsement! 3 Cheers for MorningStar Farms Recipe Starter Crumbles! But I will say this... it sort of did taste like stuffing. That's OK though because I like stuffing.

Tomorrow, it's just me and my husband. Since he was so supportive about the meatlessloaf, I'm going to try pineapple and black bean burritos. You think I'm kidding, but I'm dead serious. I'm on a roll now!

It was an ACCIDENT!!!!

Wow.... what a close call. See, I am a runner and I'm training for my 10th marathon in a few weeks. I run with a group of crazy people (some could argue we are ALL crazy to run that far) which makes the long runs go much easier. On Saturday, we were out for a 23 mile training run. When you run distances like that, your mind tends to glaze over - probably for self-preservation, to be honest. Along the way, during a bathroom break at Starbucks, one of the runners bought a low-fat latte to share. And at mile ... oh, about 13 I guess, they got even crazier and decided to dash in to Wendy's to grab a couple of burgers. Yes, grabbing a few Wendy's cheeseburgers to eat WHILE RUNNING 23 miles. Like I said, crazy.

So, here is this group of us like a pack of wild dogs and this girl in the middle passing out morsels and pieces of cheeseburgers to the others. I'm not big on fast food anyhow so I didn't really think much of it but as I looked at my friend Paul holding a 1/4 of a burger, I thought "What the heck. I'm running 23 miles today. I'll burn it off." I was justifying the FATTENING part - without even thinking of the MEAT part! He handed it over, and I took a little bite.

No sooner had a closed my lips around the little morsel in my mouth than my eyes got big as saucers and I yelled (with food in my mouth - my mother would be ashamed) "ACK! I CAN'T EAT THIS! IT'S MEAT!" (Fortunately, all my running buddies know about my "experiment") I ran about 10 feet away and spat it out on the ground. With considerable drama. I turned around to see them all staring at me in disbelief, and one said (with just as much drama) "I can not believe you spit that out. God will strike you down for that."

Later that evening, my husband and I were at a St. Patrick's Day party - a benefit for the local athletic boosters - where they were serving mostly meat appetizers, with some cheese/crackers and some fruit. It's really shameful how few party planners consider that there may be vegetarians in the crowd. This disturbs me. They did have eggrolls so I took one of those too. The lights were dim but as I ate it, I thought I might have detected some meat, but it was difficult to discern. Before getting another one, I asked my husband to inquire and sure enough, they had some pork in them. I do not feel guilty because it was an accident and once I learned of the offending ingredient, I had no more. And besides, it was punishment enough to have to watch my husband eat BBQ meatballs.

Strike Two

I am discouraged. This has been a difficult weekend for me to be meatless. Mostly because I've seen and smelled delicious meat all weekend. But my payoff was going to be dinner tonight. I found a recipe for a meatless meatloaf that actually won second place in a meat loaf cookoff! This was super encouraging so I thought SURELY this would be a winner! The main ingredient is something called "Textured Vegetable Protein" which is not only supposed to be a great source or protein, but also super meat like in texture and consistency. I made a trip to Whole Food, purchased some TVP, and was supremely optimistic. I couldn't wait to serve my masterpiece and just knew my family was going to write a song about me and I was going to be a hero! The stuff of legend! A delicious meatless meatloaf!

The only thing I did differently when making this dish was using a real egg instead of egg substitute. I can't believe THAT made any difference! I shaped it into a loaf (well, loaf-ish shape anyhow) and baked it as directed. What came out of the oven was pretty much like a big pile of brown rice - seasonded like meatloaf. As brown rice was one of the other main ingredients, I'm wondering if something went wrong there. I slopped it on to the dinner plates with significantly diminished enthusiasm. My husband and daughter ate it (my husband appeared to like it) and both were gracious enough to keep their opinions to themselves. Well, except when I heard Holly snicker under her breath "That? Is supposed to resemble meat?"

I'm not giving up. I've actually TASTED a meatless meatloaf that was delicous. I know it can be done. This is now my quest. There is no way what I pulled out of the oven tonight could win ANY contest, much less a meatloaf cookoff. Well, maybe it could win a "This does not taste like grapefruit" contest because that's about the only thing I can say about it for certain.

In other, more positive news, I've received several reports about mung beans and now know where they can be purchased. I'd be more excited about it if my dinner had turned out a little better.

Almost slipped up...

Last night, my husband and I drove up to Bowling Green State University to pick up my son who is coming home for spring break. I told him we had to eat before we left because I was not confident there would be much along the way I could eat without really having to search. He tells me "You can get a bean and cheese burrito from Taco Bell." Yeah, that's healthy. Heck, I could get a Biggie fries and a Frosty from Wendy's too but that's just not nutritious. Instead, I had some leftover Roasted Pepper Vegetarian Chili that I have to tell you was exceptionally tasty. Even my 15 yr old son liked it!!

Anyhow, along the way, we stopped for gas at a Speedway station and I decided to go in and get a soda. I asked my hubby if he wanted anything and he said "Yeah, get me a hotdog." Without even thinking, I started to get one for myself, too! The only reason I caught myself was because I don't typically like hotdogs so I wondered why I wanted one. That was a close call! But then, I wanted a hotdog so bad, I had to get a 3 Musketeers bar just to distract myself. And I don't really even like hotdogs. Weird.

I found a recipe on line for a meatless meatloaf that actually won 2nd place in a meatloaf cookoff. This intrigues me so I plan to try it for dinner tomorrow. Cottage cheese is NOT an ingredient in this one.

So, here is a quick score card of some of the things I enjoyed eating last week and some that I didn't:

Thumbs Up
Morningstar Farms veggie burgers (any variety, they are all yum)
Mangos (can't seem to get enough)
Lightlife Smart BBQ (meatless BBQ - tastes authentic!)
Roasted Red Pepper veggie chili
Samosas from the Whole Foods deli case

Thumbs Down
Tofurkey brand italian sausages - not enough like the real thing
Cottage Cheese Loaf - it was OK, but I won't make it again

You think you know someone.....

Alright, get this. I'm on the phone last night with my step-mother who's all "How's it going? What's new?" and all. So, I fill her in on how the first 2 days of being a vegetarian went and we get to talking about it and somehow, I mention how I will be shopping for exotic things, like mung beans. And listen to this. I kid you not. She says "Oh, I love mung beans!" After pausing to let it sink in, and confirming that she was not in fact joking, I absolutely burst into laughter. They actually exist and someone I know has actually eaten them? And loves them? HAHAHAHAHA! I told her that was definitely going on my blog. So blog-worthy, that little piece of information. That's just something you never think to ask someone, isn't it? "Have you ever tried mung beans?" Nope, can't say I've ever had that question come up in a job interview.

So, she's had mung beans, and I've had Cottage Cheese Roast (a.k.a. Vegetarian Meatloaf). Things could be stranger, I suppose. But I have to tell you, the Cottage Cheese Roast was not half bad! Now, it's not going to FOOL anyone, that's for sure, and likening it to meatloaf is really not a fair comparison, but really not a bad little meal. The ingredients? Thought you'd never ask: eggs, cottage cheese, chopped walnuts, corn flakes, onion, and dry onion soup mix. Yeah, no kidding. And believe it or not, it is meatloaf-ish enough to pass (as long as it's been a while since you've actually HAD meatloaf and the memories of it's texture and taste aren't too fresh in your mind). It was a little spongier I expected - and next time I'll chop the walnuts in my food processor to make them more like bread crumbs. Biting into a walnut is a dead giveaway that the food on your fork is not meatloaf.

Today? Haven't really eaten too much because I've had a busy, busy day of work so I don't have much to report. Since I'm all alone again tonight, I'm probably going to cop out and just have one or two of my veggie burgers. Or maybe some eggs. Or maybe leftover Cottage Cheese Loaf. I wonder if it's as good the next day?

One down, 30 to go

So yeah, yesterday was not bad. And I am happy to report that I suffered no ill effects from the excessive meat consumption at the party. Other than the fact that I have a NASTY cold, but I don't think it's related to meat consumption. And now, the meatless month begins!

I had always wondered what those meatless hotdogs taste like so yesterday for lunch, I bought some Morningstar Farms meatless mini corn dogs and heated them up. To my surprise, they tasted just like corn dogs! What a treat! But they weren't enough to fill me up and higher in calories than I would have liked, so I supplemented with a meatless tomato/basil pizza burger topped with meatless spaghetti sauce and fat-free mozzarella cheese. I was content.

I followed through with my pizza plan and went with my husband and step-son to my favorite pizza place, Dewey's, where I created my own pizza. Green peppers, onions, roasted red peppers, fresh basil, dried oregano, and minced garlic. YUMMMMM!!!!! The plan would have been perfect if it wasn't for the fact that my step-son decided to order my all-time favorite pizza (BBQ chicken) for his half. And when they brought it to the table, they put the chicken half directly in front of me. In my rush to get the chicken out of my face, I knocked over my wine glass and dumped it all on Cody. Serves him right for making me watch him eat BBQ chicken pizza. He won't try THAT again any time soon!

All in all, Day One was not hard. But I can already tell that it won't be an easy month. My friend Miriam was intrigued by my quest and decided to join me as a vegetarian for a month so we went out to lunch today. I had NO idea where to go but I had heard one of my favorite restaurants was "vegetarian friendly" so I got on line to check out their menu. I think "vegetarian friendly" must be code for "they have a few salads on the menu" because I did not see a one vegetarian entree, other than a cheese pizza. This is a bummer because I like that place.

We opted instead for a new "100% organic" restaurant up the street. When I hear things like "100% organic" I think "earth friendly" which makes me think "tree hugger" which makes me think "vegetarian and possibly vegan" so I was optimistic. A quick online search did not come up with their menu, but I found a review that indicated they were not a vegetarian restaurant but that vegetarian choices were "good, but not as many as you would think." This is code for "They have a few salads, squash soup, and a few meatless pizzas." Options were fairly limited. I am hoping this is not a trend. For the 2nd day in a row, I had vegetarian pizza. It was quite tasty, but I simply can NOT eat pizza every day. For a wide variety of reasons that go without saying.

Tonight, my husband is out of town so I am going to experiment. I found a recipe for ... get this ... "Cottage Cheese Roast" which is also dubbed "Vegetarian Meatloaf." Since I have not yet been able to find "mung beans," this will be my "so disgusting I have to try it" recipe of the week. I told Miriam I will bring her some of the leftovers. She was less than enthusiastic. Wait until she hears about the mung beans!