Day 15: More Pictures

Polenta and Pinto Bean pie, with soy nacho cheese. (Not our favorite!)


Jasmine Rice Fantasy and African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew with figs and grapes.
Good Meal.

Day 14: Irony

Back in May we ordered a quarter of a cow. One of Patrick's coworkers raises cows and we thought we'd try getting our beef from a local, responsible source. On Day 14 we recieved the call that it was ready at the butchers. Sofia, Otis and I drove out to pick it up and I packed the freezer full with roasts, steaks, and ground beef that we're not going to be able to even think about trying for another week.

Day 15: Catching Up

We're two thirds of the way through our cleanse. While it has been less challenging than we expected, we are anticipating the return of certain currently forbidden foods. Patrick is looking forward to a good beer. I am excited about cutting up a nice freshly baked loaf of bread.

This week it has been a little harder to mix it up and keep the variety and flavors interesting. I had a day when I didn't want to cook so we bought some fairly vegan Thai food. We tried something new, a pumpkin curry. It was delicious. Patrick found himself wishing for it again the next day. Our favorite home cooked meal so far has been the spring rolls and rice with Spicy Peanut Sauce (above). Wow. We will definitely be adding it to our normal lineup. The spring rolls were fun to make.

Day Seven: Motivation

Both Patrick and I have noticed in the last day or so that we have been suddenly ready to take on old tasks that we have been procrastinating for a long time or tackling problems that have needed solving. This is an unexpected but good development. What would happen if everyone in the USA went off sugar, caffeine, alcohol, gluten and animal products for a week?

Day Six: Calm

Today's lunch is blue corn chips with freshly picked cherry tomatoes and hummus and baba ghanoush from Robin Robertson's Vegan Planet. Yumm. The hummus with the tomatoes on chips is especially delicious.

This morning and afternoon I have been feeling very calm. No jitters from caffeine or sugar highs or lows. I can read my body better.

Day Five: New Cookbooks

Above is polenta with two tomato topping from Robin Robertson's "quick-fix vegetarian", one of the cookbooks we bought yesterday. It includes sun dried tomatoes, yellow heirloom tomatos and basil from our garden (and other things). We liked it. A nice variety to the soy based meals we've had so far.

After we bought two vegan cookbooks yesterday, we went ingredient shopping. This time I tried New Seasons, with much success. They had everything we needed. Whole Foods selection wasn't as good when I went there, but maybe I missed things because I had the kids with me.

I had so much fun today trying new things. I made my own hummus and baba ghanoush as well as a dairy free creamy salad dressing using soft silky soy. An interesting tidbit I learned from one of the cookbooks: In Japan, because of the large amounts of soy in the diet, it is very rare for women to experience hot flashes during menopause. There is not even a word for it in the Japanese language because it is so uncommon.

Today is the first day I feel really good. No achey muscles, no headache. I like how I feel. Also, the scale keeps turning up miracles. Perhaps helped by the 6 mile walk we did yesterday... Patrick mentioned today that he keeps feeling "stuffed" full after our meals. I have been surprised also by how quickly I fill up.

Day Four Dinner: Vegan Tacos

Dinner tonight was ground "soy" beef crumble tacos with a nacho soy cheese. Would have been better if I had used our regular taco seasoning, but it did hit the spot and felt nicely familiar.

How Patrick coped: