Day Three: Vegan Challenge

My friend will be pleased to know that the Vegan Challenge made it's way to my workplace. Of course the conversations made me crave meat since that is just about all we talked about...how much we love our bacon, cheese, yogurt and all those animal products that many of us have a tough time walking away from. It also presents a way to talk about healthy eating habits without being pushy. I loathe people who push their agenda whether it be Pepsi is better than Coke to who is the better politician. My focus right this moment is whether I use wild rice or quinoa for dinner. Heavy decisions!

The boy enjoyed his lunch of honey roasted nuts (with oats and sesame seeds), an organic graham cracker square, pomegranate/spinach salad,  olives and a cup of coconut milk.

There was a salad that was purchased the day before the challenge that needed to be eaten or thrown out. My husband was more than happy to consume that for lunch since it was loaded with feta cheese and salami. I happily ate leftovers from last night's dinner.

We used the last of the vegetables tonight. Perhaps you have seen my recipe for Cabbage Rolls. A classic comfort food favorite. While my original recipe does contain ground meat and cheese, I created a vegan version. It was as big of a hit as the original recipe was. My husband was pleasantly surprised. The boy requested leftovers be put in his lunch. He is lucky I love him, leftovers are suppose to be for me!

Cabbage Boats

1 head large cabbage (do not cut up!)
1 large onion
1 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cooked beans (your choice, I used the remainder of kidney from last nights dinner)
1 tablespoon poultry spice blend (sage, parsley, marjoram, thyme, pepper)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon turbinado sugar
1 can organic canned tomatoes
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes

Put the full head of cabbage in a pot of boiling water. Allow to boil for 20 minutes. Allow to cool. Peel leaves (2 per person is my rule of thumb), chop finely and set aside. Sauté onions until translucent, add spices, salt and cabbage. Simmer for 15 minutes. Blend tomatoes, sugar and sundried tomatoes until chopped loosely and add to cabbage mix. Mix in quinoa and beans.

Fill each cabbage leaf with cabbage mixture, leave top open like a boat. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.