Vegan day 1: Spicy tofu wrap
I want to go vegan for one full year!
I have never done this before. My record is 4 months this past year. This is a major goal for me and it’s my New Year’s resolution this year 2012!! haha the last time I blogged was 2 years ago when I began a lifestyle change– hopefully I can keep this one up daily!!!!!
I will be writing about going VEGAN one meal at a time… one day at a time! A friend of mine said.. “Lisa you don’t eat meals… you eat snacks”.Ok whatever you want to call it lol.
Some quick background notes about me:
Since my first blog 2 years ago– I have completely changed my eating and I am 50 pounds lighter in doing so! It’s aPROCESS!! I eventually went pescatarian and then veganish! I love New Years resolutions:
— My first one was NO WHITE BREAD, NO WHITE RICE and NO WHITE PASTA– check!!!
— My second one was NO CHEESE– check plus!! lol
Now for my third year– the hardest of them all– going VEGAN… butttttttttt notlike just any vegan… A HEALTHARIAN VEGAN! I will link you my amateur YOU TUBE video to explain that one! [Healtharian] I don’t want to be a junk eating processed food VEGAN– just a healthy VEGAN! So here we go~~
Like most people I am a busy on the go kinda person! Preparation is key in accomplishing this goal! I live in Brooklyn and there is by no means a health food store on every corner. I work nights so when I get to the city the health food stores are just closing sooooooo I need to prep and I guess cook! lol
Today is day one! I just came back from Florida– went to the Whole Foods down there looking for my vegan wraps that I find in New York– NOTHING!!!! Scandalous lol.. because I had gotten used to them and they were quick, easy, vegan and contained protein! I decided to make my own and they came out a million times better so now I will make them once a week- they will keep for 5 days. Today’s highlight is the spicy vegan tofu wrap.
*Spicy vegan tofu wrap
- whole wheat wrap– the bigger ones; for now I used whole wheat flour but I will switch it up with different grain tortillas with less calories. This one is 190 calories.
- extra firm tofu packed in water- look for the rectangular containers of tofu and BE SURE it’s ORGANIC or GMO FREE. This is non-negotiable lol as SOY is the #1 genetically modified crop in the US! If you want to make a bunch for your friends/ family or enough for the week then use the whole container. Take the tofu out and press it a little to soak out some of the water.
- chopped veggies- use whatever you want. Today I used onions, tomatoes, carrots and spinach chopped finely.
- nayonaise or veganaise- I used nayonaise because I didn’t have the veganaise but I will get it! Nayonaise is vegan and it’s 35 calories per tablespoon.
- hot sauce— Franks.. need I say more! lol
- salt & pepper- break out of your shell here and use this opportunity to “add on the health”, Get some kelp granules! Use turmeric, cayenne, parsley, garlic.. whatever floats your boat- switch it up!
READY to prep:
Grab a large mixing bowl. Crumble in the tofu into small bits. Add in the chopped veggies and condiments. Stir it up! Layout the wrap– put the new mix in the middle– like a rectangular amount. Tuck in the left and right edges and roll it up. Wrap the wrap lol in saran wrap hehe. Keep refrigerated! I think you can make 7 wraps per container of tofu. That’s about 270 calories per wrap. 190 for the wrap (you can definitely find ones with less calories), 60 for the tofu and 20 for the nayo!
** My aimis to blog daily so some days will be longer and many will be shorter than this. Gonna keep it simple ya know! That’s what it’s all about.
** Also lol- I MIGHT add animal or environmental facts here and there. If this doesn’t interest you– you may stop here. I started off healthatarian but now that has lead me to incorporate a vegan lifestyle as well. I study food and nutrition– the more you read, the more you can no longer ignore the facts. The animal cruelty in the food industry is SIMPLE OUTGRAGEOUS!!!!!!!!!! I eat for health– yes but now I eat to save the animals and the planet!
FOOD INC (the movie) has a variety of images and stories. IDK what it is… the baby chickies get me. They are so cute!
“Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer is another reference. There are two kinds of chickens: broilers (that become meat) and layers (that lay eggs). What happens to all of the male offspring of the layers? They are destroyed– about 250 million of them a year in the US alone. “Most male layers are destroyed by being sucked through a series of pipes onto an electrified plate.” I’ll stop there for today!
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Hey girl! You are an inspiration to me. Gonna give it a try. If only my boys would eat vegies… got any tips for pinicky eaters?
Hi Cyn — Getting kids to eat veggies is not an easy task lol! I came across these 2 sites– hope they help! I think it would be about making it fun.. and easy of course! The first link is a game. The second is recipes!FOOD PYRAMID GAMEhttp://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/game/Blastoff_Game.htmlRECIPEShttp://www.freshforkids.com.au/lunch_box/pdf/ffk_lunch_box_edition4.pdf
Hi Lisa, after watching Fork over Knives, I'm trying veganism too. Now I don't have to do so much research because I'm at least 94 days behind you, so thanks! Also, considering your healthy approach, I thought you might want to reconsider your use of saran wrap. It's known to have BPA in it, which is bad for the bod, especially when it finds it's way into landfills and then into the water supply. Nothing is safe anymore, I know, but i've moved away from plastics where I can. Here's an blog that talks about it, if you're interested: http://green4u.wordpress.com/2009/02/02/why-plastic-is-bad/ Keep the yummy recipes coming! And congrats on the weight loss too! (Do you use My Fitness Pal? I love it!) Vegahealthily yours, Kris
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Hi Lisa,Is the tofu raw or cooked? Thanks.John