Onelife fam, it’s World Vegan Day! If you’re not vegan, no worries, there’s still so many benefits to adding more plants to your diet and today I’ll show you 3 easy ways to do that!
My name is Leena, I’m a Practical Nutritionist, and while I’m not vegan, I’m all for adding in a plant-based day a week and finding easy ways to eat more plants every single day without feeling deprived of delicious food!
Today I’m going to walk you through a full day of vegan eating starting with breakfast!
Being the busy people we are, a healthy, balanced breakfast sometimes gets put to the wayside on busy mornings which is why I love an easy, prep ahead, Chia Seed Pudding.
This one is packed with fiber, fat, protein, and so many vitamins and minerals from the chia seeds! The perfect combo of fiber, fat, and protein is essential to help keep you full and away from the donuts in the breakroom until lunch!
Chia seeds are also an excellent source of Omega-3 fatty acids, full of manganese which helps support a healthy metabolism, and are rich in powerful antioxidants.
The sweet, natural flavors from the banana and nut butter make the chia seed pudding not just healthy, but also extremely tasty!
For lunch we’re looking at another extremely easy, no cook, option with a Mediterranean flare. This Mediterranean Inspired Chickpea Salad is so versatile, simple, and extremely flavorful.
Chickpeas are similar to chia seeds in that they’re perfectly balanced in nature, coming equipped with ideal rations of fiber, fat, and protein. Again, the rich fiber and plant based protein is a sure fire way to promote increased satiety, or fullness for hours on end!
Pairing the chickpeas with tahini, a paste made from ground sesame seeds, helps to increase the creaminess, flavors, and bump up the nutritional value even more. When it’s mixed with lemon, spices, and the veggies in your fridge, you’re curating a meal that has everything you need to feel like you’re a gourmet chef in just 10 minutes.
Dinner is quite possibly my favorite, go-to, meal! Tempeh Thai Curry is packed with spices that help reduce inflammation, have health supporting antioxidants, and bring your meal from “eating healthy is boring” to “I can’t believe I ever ate anything else!”
Believe it or not, simple things like spices, texture, and volume can promote weight loss and overall health without dieting or counting calories. When you think about what you can ADD to your meals instead of taking away, you realize making healthy changes can be a lot of fun and its proven to be far more sustainable than a crash diet.
In this Thai Curry you can swap out the tempeh for tofu, chickpeas, or lentils! A frozen bag of mixed veggies or two keeps this dish easy on a weeknight but you can use fresh too! A good Thai Curry paste can be found at just about any grocery store these days too.
What’s your next plant-based meal?!
Chia Seed Pudding Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 cups plant based milk
- 2 bananas
- 1/2 cup nut butter
- 6 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Dash of salt
Directions:
- In a blender or food processor add milk, bananas, nut butter, salt, and vanilla. Blend until smooth.
- Transfer to a medium sized bowl and stir in the chia seeds. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.
- Store in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 7 days.
Mediterranean Inspired Chickpea Salad Recipe
- 1 can rinsed chickpeas
- 1/2 onions
- 1/2 cup chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
- 1/4 cup tahini
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp ginger powder
- Optional but makes it Mediterranean: 1 tsp zaatar or thyme & sesame seeds for topping
- Salt to taste
Directions:
- Rinse & mash chickpeas, set aside
- Chop desired veggies, set a side
- In a separate bowl, mix tahini, spices, and lemon. Add water slowly to reach desired consistency (you want it to be thin enough to mix with the chickpeas but thick enough that it can sit on a cracker or in a sandwich without falling out)
- In a medium bowl mix mashed chickpeas, chopped veggies, and tahini mixture until combined
- Top on toast, crackers, salad, or eat with a fork!
Tempeh Thai Curry Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 onion
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 jar thai curry paste
- 1 can light coconut milk
- 1-2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 bag of frozen mixed stir fry vegetables
- 4 oz tempeh
- 1 tsp ginger powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Olive oil
Directions:
- Coat a large pot with olive oil and cook onions and garlic over medium-low heat. After the onions are translucent, add tempeh and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium for ~5 minutes.
- To the pot add Thai curry paste and mix. Then pour in coconut milk, vegetable stock, frozen vegetables, and remaining spices.
- Cook over low heat until vegetables are cooked through. Taste and adjust spices to your liking
- Serve over white rice, cauliflower rice, or eat as a soup.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days.
Follow Leena on Instagram @practical.nutritionist for more healthy, tasty recipes!