Vegan Challenge

Since it has been about 6 months, I revisited my "25 While 25 List" and realized I still have a lot of work to do! So, I committed to buckling down and trying to cross a few more things off. This week - it's #13, "Go vegan for a few days". When I told Will about my plan, he was like, "you can't just do a couple of days, you totally need to do a week!". Hmm. Well, I guess I have to now! After perusing some great vegan blogs like, Oh She Glows, The Vegan Stoner, and Peas and Thank You I think I was able to come up with a good plan. As long as I can resist the temptation of the ice cream social at work on Tuesday... I think I can make it happen! Haha.
When I think about my usual diet as a vegetarian, my meals are not too far from following vegan diet rules. If you are unfamiliar with the difference between vegetarian and vegan, here's a brief comparison:
Vegetarian: Refrains from meat such as chicken, beef, and pork. May or may not also restrict fish in their diet (I don't!). Dairy and eggs are ok.
Vegan: Eats no animal products of any kind. This means they restrict everything from steak to honey, gelatin, milk, eggs, other dairy, and in some cases beer/wine.
It's funny to see some people's reaction to when I say that I'm a vegetarian. Usually, they immediately assume I am a vegan, ie. "crazy person". Ha! As you can tell from the blogs I linked above, the vegan diet is no longer just for hippies or Hindu monks!

Shopping to prep for vegan week!

Each day, I plan to post about what I ate and any good recipes I came across. Here's my plan for dinner each day:
Monday:
Creamy Roasted Pumpkin Soup 
Tuesday: 
Tomato Walnut Basil Pasta by Oh She Glows
Wednesday: 
"Taco salad" with crumbled seitan and guacamole
Thursday:
Black bean and sweet potato tacos 
Friday:
Lentil and Squash Curry Stew by Oh She Glows
Saturday:
Dinner out - this could be a challenge!
Sunday:
Leftovers or Lentil Loaf by The Vegan Stoner

I am really excited about this experiment! It will be tough to miss out on cheese, milk, and greek yogurt for a week, but here goes! Maybe I'll love it and never want to go back...