Day 30

Day Thirty...  A day that will live in infamy...

I will have made it 30 Days Total Vegan come midnight, tonight!

Here's how everything went down on my final day...

Bootcamp.  Kicked my ass.  Ran outside.  I was in the "B" group.  I don't want to talk about it.

Had a Vega protein shake when I got back and 3 cups of coffee throughout the morning.  I decided for my last day that I needed to go by this place called Dulce Vegan http://dulcevegan.com/ in the Kirkwood neighborhood.  I met my buddy, Eric H, over there.  It's a cool vegan bakery and sandwich shop and a favorite of my friends, Russo and Tina.  A little secret I learned: you can rock so many baked goods vegan and never know the difference.  Instead of eggs, you can use apple sauce as a binder and just not use cow's milk.  I would encourage people to try Dulce Vegan.  Don't be scared because of the word "vegan"!

Pumpkin chili was the soup of the day- Very good & spicy!
I tried a few bites and took the rest home.

Their version of the mock chicken salad sandwich-if you go, get this!
Awesome and also a little spicy, too!

Chocolate cupcake with raspberry icing-
Eric got one and tried a bite and couldn't tell the difference

Big E- Talked him into going to this place!
Finally agreed it wasn't bad

For my last official dinner, my favorite ePhilanthropist made a salad and some soup.  

Great final meal for the blog!
Black Bean Soup and a salad

Couldn't believe how simple this soup was and it was really good!

Here are the recipes courtesy of one Laura Lou: 

Black bean soup:
2 cans black beans, rinsed
1 container fresh salsa
1 can vegetable stock
Simmer and put half in a blender, and then add it back to the pot

Added quinoa on top of soup.

Salad:
1 can hearts of palm
1 can artichoke hearts
1/2 cucumber
1 seeded jalapeño
1/2 red onion
1 avocado (unfortunately ours wasn't ripe tonight)
4 tablespoon white vinegar
Cilantro
Salt and pepper

Butter lettuce

Dessert- Mini dairy-free ice cream sandwiches
Tiny, but not bad.  I guess that's how they keep 'em at 90 calories!

That's it!  Now, I'm just counting down the final hours!

A lot of you have asked me... How do I feel? What will I do next? Will I continue being a vegan?  Stay tuned for my last blog entry as a final Recap on what I learned!

Also, for those of you in the ATL who want to join us:

You can find me at my favorite BBQ joint,  Community Q BBQ , in Decatur at 7pm tomorrow!

Day 29

Almost to the finish line!  One more day to go!

So, Monday morning came around.  Like it always does.  I opted for the Vega protein shake for breakfast.  http://myvega.com/  No coffee today!  I have the chocolate flavored powder and added bananas and almond milk.  I had some meetings in the morning and headed out.  I was starving by lunch time.  I heated up the leftover black beans and rice from last week.  I added a whole wheat pita with hummus.

Hummus pita w/ black beans & rice-
La Croix sparkling water instead of soda

For dinner, my friend, Tina Rains, invited me over for one last vegan meal before the end of the bet.  A little plug for TRains and her company: Your GoTo Girl Atlanta !! If you live in the ATL, give Tina a call!  She made fettucine alfredo without the real alfredo sauce!  The recipe called for cashew nuts instead, and had nutritional yeast and chardonnay in it.  Then the dish was garnished with sauteed spinach, and roasted asparagus and red peppers.  Tasted great!

Very good!  Wasn't much different from regular alfredo sauce

I also had a couple of beers, but who's counting.  Day 30 here I come.

Days 26, 27,28

Well, my last vegan weekend is behind me!  Hers's a rundown of Friday, Saturday & Sunday!

So, a cup of coffee for breakfast was all I had.  I was on my way up to Roswell when I had a tire blowout on RT. 400!  I was calling my insurance agent, then AAA, dreading putting the spare on myself.  I was crunched for time and really didn't want to deal with this when luckily a H.E.R.O. truck showed up!  Let me just put a plug in for these guys!.  Highway_Emergency_Response_Operators  The GDOT provides these guys for assistance.  This dude was cool.  It took him 5 minutes to put my donut on for me.  And when I offered to give him a tip, he wouldn't take it!  Solid. I ended up Googling the closest Discount Tire.  4 new tires later (sucks!!!) and I decided to hit another great Mediterranean place nearby, Aladdin's in Roswell.  www.aladdinmediterraneanrestaurant.com  They have great shawarma!  If you have never had shawarma, you need to check it out!  It's awesome, but definitely not vegan!

Falafel plate- always a go to vegan meal- great!

For dinner, we met friends out in the Oakhurst neighborhood again. We went to this Mexican restaurant and there are usually some vegan options.  www.matadorcantina.com

Tofu tacos and a couple beers with friends- I'm tofu'd out!

On Saturday, brunch at Ria's Bluebird http://riasbluebird.com/ in Grant Park.  This place is pretty good.  Get there early if you can because this place is very popular.  This was a big step for me!  Brunch is tough because there are so many good things that aren't vegan!  Eggs, cheese... bacon.  Oh, sweet bacon.... That's why I haven't been going to brunch.  Soysage and breakfast skillet without eggs or cheese.  First time having soysage-not bad. Still not as good as the real thing.

Bionic breakfast with a side of soysage

That night, a group of us were checking out a show at Eddie's Attic www.eddiesattic.com in Decatur.  So, we met at Raging Burrito beforehand.  www.ragingburrito.com  Raging has been an ATL staple for a long time.  This place is usually good!

Burrito-Pineapple Jerk with tofu-excellent alternative!
About one the best things I've had so far.

On Sunday, I met my buddy, Dawson, for lunch after picking up my car in Decatur. Another plug: Uber  After a few drinks last night, it's always better to cab it.  Check out Uber.  It rocks.  That's all I gotta say.   I decided to try the vegan pizza at Mellow Mushroom.  http://mellowmushroom.com/  I'm not sure if you can tell by this photo below, but it looks like someone puked on this pie!!

Daiya cheese pizza with onions and mushrooms-
Edible, but doesn't look too appetizing!  Definitely  not as good as a regular pie!

I don't think I can say I'm a fan of this fake pizza.  If you're going to go for a 'za, go for a 'za!  I guess you could go with no cheese, but that wouldn't be pizza.  That's like a big round bruschetta.  And I friggin' love pizza.

For dinner tonight,  green curry with vegetables and coconut ice cream for dessert!  Bought everything at Trader Joe's www.traderjoes.com and mixed it up.  Super easy and good!

Green Thai curry with brown rice and vegetables- Tasty!

Non-dairy ice cream- chocolate made with coconut milk- Awesome!

2 more days to go!  Bring it.

Day 25

I'm still alive!  Day twenty-five!

Sorry about the late post for those of you keeping score.  Went out for beers with my buddies last night.  That's probably all that needs to be said. I'm blaming Wortmann for those last 2 Jamesons!

Coffee for breakfast.  Need to get back on the smoothie/shakes at least.  I've never been a breakfast person.  More of a hungover brunch person on the weekends!  For lunch, I browned some onions and garlic and added them to some black beans and rice.  This is what I imagined I'd be eating everyday this month!

Black beans from Whole Paycheck w/ onions & garlic

Finished product- Notice my Big Green Egg plate in the background?!

 For dinner, I decided to try these vegan hot dogs that my buddy, Dawson, brought me during the SuperBowl.  I had some leftover hummus on the side.  Also, thought I'd be living off hummus everyday during this bet!  Pretty close.  So these vegan dogs look just like the regular franks.  I would even say close to the same texture.  But, they are disgusting!  I like my "lips and *ssholes" to be the real deal.  If you're gonna eat a hot dog, eat a hot dog.  My advice.

Look like franks, made out of soy

Couldn't add enough condiments to make these things  taste good!
I gave the other one to my dog, Shadow.
He even looked disappointed after he gulped it down 

Hummus-Always a good time

 I met my boys out in Little 5 at the Wrecking Bar www.wreckingbarbrewpub.com  This place is great.  They brew their own beer.  Decent menu.  Took a look at these fries and decided to order a little something even though I already had dinner.

Fresh cut french fries-the bomb.  Had a few

Had half of this vegan seitan gyro. OK
Side of roasted vegetables-awesome.  Beer-IPA-Awesome.

So, probably not great on the waistline, but good times with my Bros.  Stopped by one of my favorite bars on the way home. The Porter  www.theporterbeerbar.com  This place rocks.  Tons of great beers bound to give you a headache!  Great food, too!

Heading into my final weekend!

Day 24

Wednesday, February 27th, aka Day 24.  Finished the first day of my last full week of vegan madness!

Coffee for breakfast, but I actually made a bowl of cereal with almond milk, too.  For lunch, a peanut butter sandwich on wheat (no jelly again). No snacks every few hours and probably not enough water for all you diet enthusiasts.  So, sue me.  I was starving by dinner.

With no one to cook for me, I was back to my normal bachelor lifestyle.  Quick and easy.  As already referenced by the bowl of cereal and a PB sandwich!  I pulled out some of the frozen vegan concoctions from my first visit to Whole Foods at the beginning of this journey.

Vegan Mac & Cheese- Can you believe it?
 Is the apple sauce made out of Daiya, too?!! 

Veggie burgers- I'm about veggie pattied out by now,
but these were in the freezer and easy to make

Finished product- veggie burger with vegan mac & cheese.
Probably some kid's nightmare.      

Amy's makes a ton of  organic, vegan, gluten/dairy/soy free stuff. www.amys.com The mac and cheese is made with rice pasta and "Daiya Cheeze". www.daiyafoods.com  What exactly is in Daiya?  Couldn't tell you.  I would say that this meal was OK.  Definitely not the Mac & Cheese at Community Q www.communityqbbq.com That stuff is phenomenally amazing!  And by the way, they have the best BBQ inside the perimeter.  But probably about as good as that cheese powder sauce in the cheap Kraft stuff.

Veggie burgers... I'm over them.  I fed most of the 2nd patty to my dog.  He seemed to like it.  But "a dog would eat a sh*t sandwich" as my Dad used to say.  Until tomorrow.

Day 23

Day 23 today.  After today, one week to go.  That's 7 days for those of you counting!

Busy day this Tuesday.  I went to BootCamp and surprisingly felt pretty good.  I managed to get through everything a little easier despite the time off from last week!  I came home and had the usual Vega protein shake and 3 cups of black coffee.  I hopped in the shower and had to get on the road to Greenville, SC today.  So, I was proud of myself for packing my lunch for once!  Mock Chicken salad sandwich on wheat, some carrot sticks and a water.  I also brought a single serving of the Vega stuff, but it got late and I never drank it.

Tonight, a very special gal cooked me dinner!  I didn't get home until almost 8PM, so it was very nice to have dinner waiting for me!

Leftover Tofurky Italian Sausages with peppers, mushrooms & onions

Roasted Broccoli and tomatoes- tasted great!  My new favorite

Of course, I opted for the sausage on a bun with peppers, onions! Decent.
 Definitely not the pop, taste, and grease of a regular sausage, but not bad.

For dessert- vegan chocolate pie from Sevananda!  It  tasted pretty good!
Kind of like a healthy chocolate mousse parfait.  All the ingredients are raw and organic.

I'm beat.  Long day.  One week to go!

Day 22

Salutations, Salad-Eaters!  Day 22!

I was running late this Monday morning and had a conference call before heading out. I wish I had a protein shake, but I drank at least 3 cups of coffee!  I decided to try this new "Mock" chicken salad from Sevananda in Little 5 Points. http://www.sevananda.coop/  I must have walked or drove by this place a million times on my way to some bar in Little 5 but never stepped foot inside!  Someone told me their vegan chicken salad was even better than Whole Foods.

"Mock" Chicken salad from Sevananda- Pretty Tasty!
 Has more of an onion taste than the Whole Foods version.
Both great alternatives and I could eat all the time.  

I decided to make another mock chicken sandwich as a snack at 3:30pm, too!  I love this stuff.  For dinner, I experienced pure tempeh for the first time.  

Tempeh- not as spongy as tofu!  It almost looks like rice krispy treats!

Finished product- Stir fry with brown rice, tempeh, onion,
peppers, mushrooms, bok choy- Very good!

The tempeh was marinated in soy sauce, rice vinegar, red pepper flakes, ginger and garlic.  Definitely, had more of a meat consistency than tofu.  I would say I probably liked it better.  Back to BootCamp tomorrow in the AM after my long sabbatical!  

Days 19, 20, 21

I hope everyone had a good weekend!  Who has the Oscar Buzz going on right now?  It's Sunday evening and here's a recap.

Friday-I met my buddy, Eric, and his neighbor, Kirk for a late lunch.  We met up at Lawrence's Cafe, that new Mediterranean restaurant in Decatur.  I had the falafel again.   Friday night I met up with some friends in East Atlanta to see a band at the Earl http://www.badearl.com/  We went to Midway Pub for dinner beforehand.  ww.themidwaypub.com  Midway is one of my favorite bars in EAV.

Hot Pretzel appetizer-wasn't sure about the sauces,
so opted for  plain yellow mustard

Veggie Burger- with tater tots.  Who doesn't like tater tots?
Except my buddy, Brian Parrish.  Who says and I quote
"Tater tots?!  I wouldn't throw a tater tot at a dog's ass."

Saturday was the Oakhurst Wine Crawl http://oakhurstgaorg.ipower.com/?p=958  My friends, the Dawsons, had people over after this annual event.  Sadly, I don't have any photos.  All I had was a protein shake for lunch.  Tasted a ton of wine, and since there weren't a ton of vegan options at the party... another falafel wrap from Lawrence's down the street!  I'm keeping that place in business!

Sunday Funday- Met my friends, the Wortmanns and their kids!  We went out for a late lunch in Little 5 Points @ Front Page News  http://frontpagenews.com/

Little fuzzy this Sunday- I forgot to take a pic, but this was the grilled portabello mushroom sandwich.
Hair of the dog- bloody mary in the background!

After lunch, we took the Wortmann girls over to Zestos. http://www.zestoatlanta.com/  Not too much to choose from as far as ice cream.  They had a slushie machine, but it was empty.  I guess they're getting rid of it.  The lady behind the counter encouraged me to e-mail the owners, get on the Zestos FaceBook page and lobby to keep it.  And write my congressman.  I guess they don't sell a lot of slushies anymore. 

The sad Slushie machine at Zestos in Little 5 Points -Apparently on it's way out 

My assistant, Hailey Wortmann, who says "I'm not ever going to be vegan!"

Cereal with bananas and almond milk for dinner

Less than 10 days to go!

Day 18

What's up, all of you humans at the top of the food chain?!  Day 18 and still at it.

I had to go to another conference today.  Good thing because it gave me an excuse to duck out of BootCamp early!  Don't worry, David of Pinnacle Fitness BootCamp, if you're reading this-I'll be there next week when I get back!  Although, it did look like I quit today, I'm sure.  We were being timed on this activity that had us do 3 series of reps of 3 exercises.  And we had to document our time in this folder he's keeping on us.  This also included the dreaded running outside.  I did it once and that was my cue to leave.  What's with timing myself and writing this crap down anyway?  I don't need to be the best at exercising!  I just need to get my fat ass there and try to finish!  

I had half a banana for energy before I left for BootCamp, then a protein shake and the usual cups of coffee on the road and at my conference.  I had the usual dilemna again at this thing.  What would be available that was total vegan?!  Luckily, it was another buffet.  The bad part-you should have seen the good stuff they had to choose from.  Not only cold cuts and salad, but 1 word-Tacos.  Who doesn't like a taco?  Here's what I got instead:

That's right... a salad!  Welcome to my world once again.

Dinner was nice and light- a bowl of cereal with almond milk and some fruit.  Another day down and tomorrow is the start of the weekend!

Day 17

Hello and Happy Hump Day, Health Nuts!  How's that for alliteration?  Eat your heart out, Goldberg, you hack!

Today was good.  I should've eaten something for breakfast, but was busy.  Drank some coffee, of course.  For lunch, I had the leftover pasta from Sunday night.  I managed to polish most of it off and gave the rest to my dog.   I had a granola bar late afternoon for a snack with some water.  People keep telling me to drink a lot of water.   I'm trying, but the last thing I saw, I was supposed to drink like 10 cups a day.  My back teeth would be floating and I'd never get anything done because I'd be peeing all the time!

For dinner, we checked out this place called Broadway Cafe in the Emory area. http://www.yelp.com/biz/broadway-cafe-atlanta   Decent spot and there is a ScoutMob for it.  I did some research on the information superhighway and discovered they are a vegetarian and kosher restaurant.

Vegan buffalo chicken wrap in whole wheat tortilla and sweet potato fries.
Leave it to me to get the most unhealthy choices on the menu at a vegetarian place!

Case in point: vegan beignets for dessert!  Fried goodness!

The wrap tasted pretty good and was hard to tell it wasn't chicken.  Sweet Potato fries are always good.  BootCamp tomorrow, so maybe the beignets weren't that bad of a choice!  OK, probably a bad idea, but they were pretty friggin' awesome.  Peace out, homeys.

Day 16

Officially, I am on the second half of my vegan journey.  Day 16, Playas!!

This was the start of my 2nd week of BootCamp.  I think the time off over the weekend took a little bit of a toll on me today!  But alas... I lived to fight another day...  At home, I drank the typical Vega protein shake afterwards.  Feeling a little sluggish, 3 cups of coffee, black.  Don't judge, you health freaks.  For lunch, Peanut butter sandwich sans the jelly and a granola bar.

For dinner, a very important person who Eric Goldberg knows made me dinner.

Acorn Squash, baked in the oven.  They call them acorns, but here they look like turtle shells!

Stuffed Acorn Squash (with mushroom, brown rice pilaf) and roasted  broccoli -very good!

  This was a great meal.  Acorn squash-never even heard of it, let alone ever eaten it, I think!  Skipped the butter and used peanut oil and obviously, no cheese. Also, added some dried cranberries.   Can I also say, I have become a huge fan of the roasted vegetable!  Broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts... you name it.  This is an awesome way to get your vegetables and better for you than french fries.

Here are the recipes.  Knock yourself out!

http://www.veggiebelly.com/2012/11/acorn-squash-stuffed-with-brown-rice-mushroom-pilaf.html

http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2008/11/the_best_brocco.html

Day 15

Halfway through.  Boom.

Day 15 and I'm still vegan.  WTF?!  (Translates: "Why The Face"-Phil Dunphy)

Look out all you naysayers!  I can't believe how time flies.  I had a couple cups of coffee and a granola bar for breakfast.  I had some meetings today, so I was out and about.  Pressed for time, I needed to make a quick stop for lunch.  Continuing this experiment, I thought what about fast food?.  Being in sales, and especially when I was on the road all the time, you really have to be careful what you eat. I always try to avoid fast food, but sometimes that's your only option.  And in America, there are fast food chains on every corner!

McDonald's really seemed out of the question, but I found this link: http://dailyveganeats.tumblr.com/post/7551305799/eating-out-vegan-taco-bell   Taco Bell- Oh, what the hell?!  Definitely can get bean burritos without cheese, and surprisingly a lot healthier than most fast foods.  And does the meat at T-Bell really qualify as meat, anyway?  What would I really be missing?

New "Cantina Bell" Menu, meant to compete with the fast-casuals like Willy's, Chipotle, Moe's...
Veggie option & for $2 more you can get a soda and  side of chips w/ salsa or guacamole.

Veggie burrito, but without the creamy cilantro dressing (not sure what was in it,
 and a quick way to lose a bet on a technicality-Meaker!)
It was OK, but no Willy's!

For fast and cheap, you probably could jump into Taco Bell and save on many of the calories than a lot of the other fast food options.  As far as the new "Cantina Bell" menu, I paid $7 bucks for the veggie burrito and a side of chips and salsa w/ a drink.  I ended up getting water anyway.  For maybe $1 more, you could get the same thing at Willy's or Chipotle and it would be way better.   

For dinner, I had left over pasta from last night.  Halfway done, True Believers!!

Days 12, 13, & 14

I hope everyone out there in the blogoshere had a wonderful weekend!  It's Sunday evening and here's a recap for the weekend blog.

Friday- I survived my first week of BootCamp!  I go on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.  Today was the toughest day, yet.  Not only was I stiff, but we went outside in the cold and ran.  I hate running.  In fact, I don't get how people enjoy this activity.  It sucks.  Up until today, the only time you would catch me running would be if someone was chasing me with a knife!  I gotta long way to go on the running thing!  I had my protein shake for breakfast and an Aleve when I got home!  For lunch:

Classic PB & J!  Can't beat it!

I met one of my good pals, Heath, out for Happy Hour at Taco Mac http://tacomac.com/ in the VA/Highlands.  I had a couple drinks while I watched him polish off a dozen buffalo wings.  

Bastard torturing me.  

For dinner, I went to Cafe Sunflower http://www.cafesunflower.com/ with my favorite social media expert, Laura Cobb.  Cafe Sunflower is a pretty famous total vegetarian restaurant in the ATL.  I went here only one time with my vegan friends, Russo and Karen.  This place rocks, though!  I was always very apprehensive about a total vegetarian place.  I would recommend anyone to at least try Cafe Sunflower- even the biggest meat eaters! 

Appetizer-Fried Avacado Tacos.  Money!

Eggplant Lasagana- 

Autumn Vegetable Curry

Saturday- Coffee and protein shake for breakfast.  Willy's burrito bowl for lunch.  This time I added tofu.  Not bad. For dinner, I met my buddy, Dawson, at a new Mediterranean place by his house- Lawrence's Cafe  http://www.lawrencescafe.com/  This place is very good!  Check them out!  The owner and staff are very friendly, too!  They moved from Buford Hwy to Decatur and like most Mediterranean restaurants have a lot vegan choices. 

Hummus and grape leaves

Falafel in pita sandwich and a Lebanese beer.  Pure Awesomeness.

Dawson was flying solo without his wife, Laura, and son, A-Dawg.  Laura told me to get him out of the house.  So, we ended up drinking a ton of beers over at my house with other buddies, Raw and Meaker!  Good and buzzed up, we didn't make it out to the bars and late night munchies kicked in.  Meaker and I polished off the rest of my chili and I made these tenders:

Vegan pseudo chicken tenders, From what I remember,
they seemed like chicken nuggets

Sunday- fighting a hangover and regretting all the calories I consumed last night!  Leftovers from Cafe Sunflower for lunch.  A cup of black coffee and then pasta with salad for dinner,

Whole wheat pasta, red sauce with Tofurkey Italian sausage,
onions, peppers, mushrooms

And that is what my life has become.  Tofurkey!  Who would have guessed.  Tasted fairly good, but definitely not as good as regular Italian sausage. Definitely.