Vegan Family Grocery Haul | Wegmans

One of the reasons I've been able to stay on this vegan journey for 5 years is by always going to the grocery store with a detailed meal plan.

Tip for you:

Use a spiral notebook and jot down what you're eating for the week and what ingredients you need to pick up.

Not only does this keep your budget in check, but it will also get you in and out of the store in a reasonable time (even on crazy weekends).

I remember those days of being confused about what I should or shouldn't buy and wondering if my family would even embrace this new life with me. 

I will say that once you're consistent, patient with yourself and family (believe me I know the struggle) and open to learning a new way of doing things, you will find that it isn't too difficult to stay on track. 

Wegmans is my fave grocery store ever!

On this recent trip, we spent $151. This is enough groceries for about a week and a half for our family of 5.

Check out the full video here....

Recipes we made:

Green chickpea curry with couscous from Minimalist Baker

Lentil tacos

Coconut lentil soup 

Green chili veggie burgers from Minimalist Baker

BBQ tofu

Broccoli & vegan sausage stir-fry 

Chickpea Mac

Chipotle black bean tortilla soup from Minimalist Baker 

Brands mentioned:

Snapea Crisps - Only the lightly salted and pepper version of this brand are vegan 

GT's Kombucha 

Field Roast hotdogs

Field Roast sausage 

Earth Balance vegan margarine 

 

Where do you grocery shop? Leave a comment below 

How to Introduce Vegan Meals to Your Family

Every.single.meal. was a debate when we started this vegan journey back in 2010. 

Most of the heat came from Elijah....but Eric, Brandon & Jason didn't hesitate with the side eye action.

I already wasn't the most confident about cooking this new way, so listening to chatter from the peanut gallery made me even more insecure.

I won't lie. There were times when I wanted to just give up.

Here's the best way to introduce new meals...

On nights when there are leftovers to fall back on. 

I know. I know.

The whole point of leftovers is so you don't have to cook anything else. 

I promise this method has worked well for our family though.

When you're ready to introduce a brand new meal or ingredient (like tofu) to your family, make sure you have leftovers in the fridge to fall back on.

Taking this step will reduce the complaints (because you can just serve the leftovers) and it will make you more confident to experiment with new recipes and ingredients.

Case in point....this cauliflower Alfredo dish in the picture below. We love Alfredo sauce made of cashews (like this recipe), so I had some anxiety about making it using cauliflower.

The results of making Alfredo sauce using cauliflower?

My family hated it!

Instead of getting all in my feelings about it, I served them leftover vegan pizza and beans & rice and went about my business.

One last thing.... 

Just because they don't like a meal today, it doesn't mean you shouldn't try it again in a couple of months (I talked about that is in this video).  As your family gets used to eating more vegan meals, their tastebuds will adjust and they will be more open to trying new dishes.

Be gentle. Be patient. Have fun and enjoy the journey!

What We Ate Today #10

Breakfast:

Roasted potatoes (here's the recipe), sautéed spinach (with garlic, salt & pepper) & strawberries

Lunch:

BBQ tofu (i sprinkled garlic powder, smoked paprika and salt on it before frying), jasmine rice and steamed broccoli 

Click here to watch an older BBQ tofu recipe video I made...here's the written version of the recipe. These days, I just dry fry (fry the tofu in a non-stick pan) instead of in oil like in that older video.

Here's an excellent video from Vegan Cooking with Love on how to press tofu to get great texture and make it easy to marinade.

Dinner:

Spring corn and potato chowder (here's the recipe) - I seasoned mine with cumin & coriander 

Check out the full video of What We Ate here

Music playing while I cooked lunch: Luther Vandross - A House Is Not A Home

Check out other "What We Ate Today" posts and videos here

Broccoli & Vegan Sausage Stir-Fry

Stir-fry is one of my "go-to" meals because they're quick, easy and delicious.

The possibilities are endless with the different combinations you can make each week (or night, if your week is super crazy and your family doesn't complain too much lol).

In the recipe below, I show you a fast lunch I put together for us the other day.

I used Field Roast vegan sausage. Even though it comes in a pack of 4 links, I only use 2 and save the others for another meal.

Stretch it out, baby!

                                                                                                                                            Pic credit

Another option for vegan sausage (this one is more accessible) is the Tofurky brand.

Enjoy!

Broccoli & Vegan Sausage Stir-Fry

by Brown Vegan

Prep Time: 7

Cook Time: 12

Keywords: fry entree vegan vegetarian

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 2 fresh broccoli heads (florets only), chopped into bite sized pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 bell peppers (I used a green and red one), chopped
• 2-4 links of vegan sausage (Field Roast & Tofurky are good brands), chopped
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce (add more if necessary)

Instructions

In a large skillet, heat the oil on med-hi heat.

Toss in the broccoli and saute for about 4 minutes.

Add in garlic, onion and bell peppers and continue cooking for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Mix in the vegan sausage and soy sauce.

Continue to cook for 3 minutes.

Serve with rice, quinoa or solo.

Enjoy!

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Coconut Lentil Soup Recipe | Great Weeknight Meal

Watch the video below…

Coconut Lentil Soup

by Brown Vegan

Keywords: saute entree soup/stew vegan vegetarian gluten-free nut-free soy-free sugar-free Indian

Ingredients (Serves 5)

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil or broth
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1 1/2 cups lentils, rinsed
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 14 oz can of coconut milk
• Juice of half a lemon
• Serve this soup with rice and garnish with cilantro

Instructions

1. In a large pot, saute onion and garlic for 7 minutes on medium heat.

2. Mix in cumin, coriander, cayenne, salt, black pepper and ginger.

3. Continue cooking for 1 minute.

4. Add in lentils, vegetable broth and coconut milk.

5. Bring soup to a boil.

6. Reduce heat to med-lo, cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the lentils are soft.

7. Mix in lemon juice

8. Serve with rice and cilantro.

9. Add salt to taste, if necessary.

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Recipe adapted from Kris Carr's Crazy Sexy Kitchen