Three Days Eating as a Vegan

Thought I might give the short introduction to life as a vegan: delicious, healthy, and a great variety

Day One

Breakfast: Whole-wheat toast with peanut butter and banana slices on it, a few strawberries, and a cup of gunpowder green tea
Lunch: Bean burrito with sauteed bell peppers and onions, guacamole and chips + sparkling water
Snack: Three-bean salad
Dinner: Vegan french toast + spinach salad w/ sliced fresh strawberries, walnuts, and beets w/ balsamic vinegar
Late-night Snack: Darjeeling tea

Day Two

Breakfast: Smoothie (frozen strawberries, frozen blackberries, fresh banana, apple juice, flax seed), small vegan bran muffin
Lunch: Curried cous-cous with peas, crasians, sauteed red onions, and softened apples w/ brown sugar + sparkling water
Dinner: Fried tofu marinated in hoisin sauce + lentils & brown rice
Dessert: Vegan chocolate chip cookie :D
Late-night Snack: Fresh Strawberries

Day Three

Breakfast: Steel-cut oats with flax seed, maple syrup, kiwi slices, and cinnamon
Lunch: Collard Greens with fresh garlic and red onions braised in vegetable broth with tomatoes and red pepper flakes, stir-fried veggies (lima beans, edamame, onions, carrots, and button mushrooms) w/ rice noodles
Snack: Golden Delicious Apple
Snack: Soy double cappuccino from Equal Exchange Cafe
Dinner: Falafel, hummus, baba ganoush, tabbouleh, whole wheat pita, and ciaro salad from Falafel Corner (own pita :) )
Late-night snack (still to come!): Whole wheat bagel with tofutti cream cheese, spinach, and sundried tomatoes

Pocket-Sized Guide to the Food You Eat.

Michael Pollan, the renowned journalist and author of The Omnivorous Dilemma, has just come out with a new book, Food Rules. Based on the idea that the American obsession with complicated diets has spiraled out of control and has often been more destructive than helpful to American health (the Atkins diet, the South Beach diet, the Taco Bell diet even), Pollan puts forth this carry-with-you-anywhere manual of quick and easy rules on how to eat right.

The book is divided into three main sections, each with simple answers and short justifications accompanying: What to Eat (Pollan answers: "food"), What Types of Foods to Eat ("mostly plants"), How to Eat ("not too much"). Each section has witty tips to consult whether in your grocery store or at a restaurant.

One such tip from the first section on defining what food is writes "don't eat anything advertised on TV". Such a proposition (which was following by a short explanation and clarification) may seem quite obvious: we hardly see cucumbers or simple brown rice advertized on TV as often or in the same marketing way that we do Doritos and McDonalds. Another helpful rule "the whiter the bread, the sooner you'll be dead", indicating how white bread offers only shots of sugar with poor quality proteins and fattening starch, without the nutrients offered by unprocessed breads.

While Pollan's book may seem to some an oversimplication of nutrition (there are many opportunities to point out, "Well, I saw an advertisement for Dole Bananas, is that so unhealthy?"), the guide illuminates the simplicity of good dieting with common sense reason.

And while these rules may not only be incredibly accurate and helpful for those obsessing with the next crazy diet to move into a more wholesome diet, whether it is necessary to purchase a book for such common sense reason is questionable. Either way, flipping through Food Rules reminds us of the simplicity in eating right and living a healthy life which we often forget.