when in doubt, carrots and sunflower seeds
Tonight I managed to cook a meal that was not only tasty (unanimous agreement from everyone at the table), but satisfied the very tricky dietary requirements currently present in our house.
We have communal dinners most nights, and we take turns cooking. I hadn't cooked in a while, so this afternoon I volunteered, thinking I'd make red lentil dal and rice. I'm studiously avoiding wheat flour/gluten, and I don't like buying or cooking meat (though I'll order a burger in a restaurant sometimes); rice and lentils is one of my fallback meals. But then I learned that our housemate Phillip would be here for dinner, and I had to adjust the menu. Phillip's allergic to beans, see, all legumes really, and for Lent he has decided to give up sugar and go vegan. That ruled out a lot of meals I know how to make.
My biggest concern was how to include enough protein. Some vegans I know claim that one's body doesn't need a whole heck of a lot of protein, and while I do believe most US-ers eat way more than is necessary (especially from animal sources), in my own experience if I don't get enough protein with my meals, I feel super woozy/head-achey shortly after. And hungry again. Legumes are my usual source, but I've discovered sunflower seeds and tahini (smushed sesame seeds) work really well too. And carrots, if you can believe that.
So with that in mind, I ended up making an enormous stir-fry, with carrots and tahini and sunflower seeds. And I used brown rice, because it's worth the extra cooking time. There were also tomatoes (fresh, from the discount/pre-Dumpster'd produce rack at the supermarket), mushrooms, broccoli, and onions, garlic, and ginger. And kale. Chris walked into the kitchen as dumped the kale and tomatoes into into our big-ass pan. "Look at all these fucking vegetables," I said, because in real life I am shameless when it comes to swearing. "That sounds like a status update," she said, laughing. (This is because, when we were at the blockade, we'd think up daily Facebook status updates to let our friends know how we were doing. They usually involved some variation of the word "Fuck.")
Anyway, it was a success! I did not accidentally kill any of my housemates or cause them to violate their Lenten vows! (I have avoided violating my own Lenten vows by not making any, which is working out splendidly so far.) And I, at least, got enough protein.
We have communal dinners most nights, and we take turns cooking. I hadn't cooked in a while, so this afternoon I volunteered, thinking I'd make red lentil dal and rice. I'm studiously avoiding wheat flour/gluten, and I don't like buying or cooking meat (though I'll order a burger in a restaurant sometimes); rice and lentils is one of my fallback meals. But then I learned that our housemate Phillip would be here for dinner, and I had to adjust the menu. Phillip's allergic to beans, see, all legumes really, and for Lent he has decided to give up sugar and go vegan. That ruled out a lot of meals I know how to make.
My biggest concern was how to include enough protein. Some vegans I know claim that one's body doesn't need a whole heck of a lot of protein, and while I do believe most US-ers eat way more than is necessary (especially from animal sources), in my own experience if I don't get enough protein with my meals, I feel super woozy/head-achey shortly after. And hungry again. Legumes are my usual source, but I've discovered sunflower seeds and tahini (smushed sesame seeds) work really well too. And carrots, if you can believe that.
So with that in mind, I ended up making an enormous stir-fry, with carrots and tahini and sunflower seeds. And I used brown rice, because it's worth the extra cooking time. There were also tomatoes (fresh, from the discount/pre-Dumpster'd produce rack at the supermarket), mushrooms, broccoli, and onions, garlic, and ginger. And kale. Chris walked into the kitchen as dumped the kale and tomatoes into into our big-ass pan. "Look at all these fucking vegetables," I said, because in real life I am shameless when it comes to swearing. "That sounds like a status update," she said, laughing. (This is because, when we were at the blockade, we'd think up daily Facebook status updates to let our friends know how we were doing. They usually involved some variation of the word "Fuck.")
Anyway, it was a success! I did not accidentally kill any of my housemates or cause them to violate their Lenten vows! (I have avoided violating my own Lenten vows by not making any, which is working out splendidly so far.) And I, at least, got enough protein.