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 

 

3 Vegan Ice Cream Recipes That Are Better Than The Real Thing

I remember when ice cream and macaroni and cheese were going to be the deal breaker.

If I couldn't find good replacements for these foods, I wasn't sure how long my vegan journey would last.

Fortunately, I was able to find So Delicious after testing out several vegan ice cream brands. It's creamy, the texture is similar to dairy ice cream and they come in so many delicious flavors.

It's addicting!

sodeliciosveganicecream.jpg

You can pick up a container of So Delicious for that ice cream fix or get in the kitchen and make your own using the recipes below.

Check out the end of this blog post for recipe tips.

 

3 awesome ice cream alternatives that are super close to dairy:

Click here to check out my original blog post for this recipe 

Homemade Pecan Ice Cream

by Brown Vegan

Keywords: vegan ice-cream

Ingredients (Serves 5)

  • Meat from 1 young Thai coconut
  • 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for 2 hours
  • 1 1/3 cup water
  • 2/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract (alcohol-free works best...I used one with alcohol in the video)
  • 1 tbsp lecithin powder or granules
  • ¼ cup coconut liquid, melted
  • ¾ cup chopped pecans
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions

Place the cashews, water, coconut meat, maple syrup, vanilla, lecithin, and salt into a blender and process until smooth.

Add in the coconut oil and blend again.

Chill the mixture for about 40 minutes in the freezer, fold in pecans, and then process according to the ice cream maker instructions.

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Click here to check out my original blog post for this recipe 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Recipe

by Brown Vegan

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: n/a

Keywords: dessert vegan vegetarian ice-cream

Ingredients (Serves 3)

  • 4 frozen bananas, chopped in small circles before freezing
  • 3 tbsp Peanut butter
  • 1 tsp Vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean, scraped
  • 2-3 tsp of non-dairy milk, as needed
  • Vegan chocolate chips, as many as you want

Instructions

Watch the video above for complete instructions

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Click here to check out my original blog post for this recipe 

Vanilla Ice Cream (Vegan)

by Brown Vegan

Ingredients

  • 1 cup cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours
  • 1 1/4 cups water
  • Young Thai coconut meat (found in produce section)
  • 2 tablespoons alcohol-free vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup agave nectar
  • 1 tablespoon lecithin powder (used to thicken ice cream and available at most health food stores or online)
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil, warmed to liquid

Instructions

Place the cashews, water, coconut meat, vanilla extract, agave, lecithin, and salt into a blender and process until smooth.

Add the coconut meat and blend again.

Process mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

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A few tips about the recipes that require young Thai coconuts (which are found in the produce department) & lecithin powder (found in health food store or online):

  • Don't let opening the Thai coconut intimidate you. It took me a few times before I felt confident with handling this fruit.
  • Here's a great tutorial and here
  • Video for scraping out the meat
  • Lecithin powder is used to thicken ice cream and available at most health food stores or you can order it online 

If you don't have an ice cream maker (I bought a Cuisinart years ago for $20) you can just make the peanut butter chocolate chip ice cream (2nd recipe) which doesn't require one.

Let me know what you think once you try these recipes.

What food is keeping you from fully transitioning to vegan life? Leave me a comment 

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My Simple Advice for Dealing with Picky Eaters

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You know the deal...

After a long day at work, you put together a simple meal that you're positive that one will actually eat.

You spend 35 minutes throwing down in the kitchen, put his plate down on the table and he declares....

"I'm not eating this. Where's the chicken?"

The struggle is so real! The picky eaters rule the world and we just live in it.

It can be your husband who side-eyes anything with beans in it or your pre-teen who refuses broccoli - no matter how well you season it.

I know this life too well.

Elijah (my middle son) is my picky eater.

His pre-vegan meal of choice was chicken nuggets and french fries...that's about it. He wouldn't even eat anything that was touched by a vegetable (or even fun stuff like macaroni and cheese).

Looking back, I realize I was a big enabler...

I wasn't the most confident about my cooking skills and since my mom never made multiple meals for me (I was her picky eater lol), I wanted to make the vegan transition easier for him.

I would plead with him, make something else, or run out and grab him a separate meal. 

It was exhausting.

His favorite line was, "Don't put it on my plate because I don't want to waste your time." *sigh*

Here's my best tip for dealing with a picky eater... DON'T!

I'm so serious....

  • Do yourself a favor- make only one meal. Make it simple. Make it delicious and make it vegan. I promise your picky eater will not starve if they miss that one meal. They will always find at least one thing to eat on their plates...even if it's just the bread or strawberries. Let them catch up on the next meal. Even if they don't like a certain food, continue to put it on their plate. Exposure is sooo important and I believe this is one of the reasons Elijah started eating vegetables.
  • Be open to experimenting with vegan version of their favorite foods. I made Elijah vegan fried chicken and used Gardein crispy tenders for his "meat" fix.  Make a list of their favorite dishes and get to work veganizing them! 

Elijah has grown to like vegetables over the last several years.

Here are some pictures of him eating my seaweed salad a few months ago....

Elijah still doesn't love everything (he will probably always be a picky eater) but he has come a long way. I'm so happy about his progress!

I made a video with him a while ago, and he gave some great tips on how to handle picky eaters in your own family.

Check it out here....

 

My Favorite Vegan Cheese Brands

After posting this picture from Busboys & Poets on Instagram & Facebook...

Nachos!

A photo posted by Monique (@brownvegan) on

I got a few questions about my favorite brand of vegan cheese.

This was my face when I started eating vegan cheese back in 2010...

In fact, it took me 2 years to acquire a taste for it. lol 

My best advice for eating pre-packed vegan cheese is to go into it as a new experience.  

Don't expect it to taste exactly like conventional cheese.

Think of it this way, if it tasted exactly like conventional cheese, everyone would already be eating it.

Also, most vegan cheese is great when mixed in with other ingredients - like in this lasagna recipe. 

Here are Four of My Favorite Vegan Cheese Brands:

Field Roast - This is my fave vegan brand (we love their sausages and hotdogs) and they didn't disappoint with their chao slices. Our fave is the cayenne tomato (used it in this video) This brand is made out of coconut and does contain soy

Heidi Ho - I had this cheese with nachos at a conference and it was amazing! It's made from cashews and vegetable puree and doesn't have a lot of yucky ingredients. Also, the owner, Heidi is cool as hell. :-) This brand is also soy and gluten-free

Miyoko's Kitchen - This.cheese.is.everything. For the first time since becoming a vegan I feel like I finally have a vegan cheese that I can eat with crackers and a glass of wine. This is a nut-based cheese and is so worth the extra money. 

Daiya I wasn't a fan of this cheese until recently... It's a perfect example of all of the right ingredients but lacks in the "taste like cheese" department. It melts, stretches and is great on grilled cheese with avocado, garlic powder and red pepper flakes. It is also nut, gluten and soy-free and is the most accessible brand out of the 4 mentioned.

This sandwich using Daiya cheese is perfection!

This sandwich using Daiya cheese is perfection!

 

If you're not interested in pre-packaged vegan cheese, you can also make your own out of cashews like in this Alfredo sauce and queso recipe.

I haven't tried this cashew cheese recipe (or this one) but they look great.

Back in my early YouTube days I made a video about how I was able to slowly eliminate cheese from my diet.

Check it out here...

 
 

Is the Popcorn At Regal Theaters Vegan?

A fear of the unknown when embracing this vegan lifestyle is real!  

This is why I do whatever I can to teach vegan life in a way that is easy and accessible for families.

In my experience, when life feels like a bunch of sacrifices, it's harder to make long-term changes.

A few weeks ago Eric and I went to the movies, and for the first time in a long time, I wanted movie theater popcorn.

We usually eat before the movies, so I wasn't even sure if the theater popcorn was vegan.

My first thought was "no" since it looks so buttery.

I did a quick Google search and came across this article from PETA that confirmed popcorn at Regal theaters is vegan. Yass!!

I have to say that I wasn't expecting that at all.

Instead of using butter, they use an oil concoction to make their butter.

This concoction probably isn't the healthiest, but I'm all about letting you know your options.

Here are more tips on how to enjoy vegan life at the theater:

  • Sneak in some snacks  - I'm not above bringing in a Larabar, trail mix, nuts, carrot sticks or a baggie of Earth Balance vegan cheddar popcorn I'm all about that sneak snack life!
  • Eat before you head to the theater, so you don't even have to think about food.
  • The fancier movie theaters tend to have more options on the menu - We go to a theater has hummus and pita bread on the menu!
  • If you're in the mood for candy, you might as well skip all of the chocolate options at the theater because they contain milk. You can sneak in a bar of Endangered Species chocolate though (not all of their chocolate is vegan but they clearly mark the ones that are on the package).

Here's a quick list of common movie theater concession items that are actually vegan:

  • Sour Patch Kids
  • Skittles
  • JuJuBes

Check out more date night tips here