What We Eat In A Week - Episode 034

Welcome back to our vegan newsletter showcasing what we eat in a week! If you’re new and want to learn more about us and why we started this series, read our About Section :)

Note: This week’s episode is a day late because we had a very hectic week. From here on out we’ve decided to publish new episodes every Friday instead of Thursday to give myself a little more room to write!

At the beginning of this week, we made more meals at home like smoothies, salads, burgers, curry, and cheezy ciabatta sandwiches.

On Tuesday, we spent the night in San Diego and got to try out a now new favorite taco place, Vegan Urbano. We also got to try Serpentine Cider for the first time as well as vegan donuts from Donut Panic! You’ll have to read through for more details :)

We hope you enjoy this edition and don’t forget to let us know what your favorite meal was in the comments!

Thursday, August 5th

Breakfast - Smoothie

For the smoothie base, I used Wawona Organic Daybreak Blend and Frozen Pitaya (Dragonfruit) all from Costco. I added 1 tablespoon of peanut butter. For the liquid portion, I used Silk oat milk and Tropicana essentials Pineapple Mango probiotics juice. This smoothie was refreshing and had the perfect amount of sweetness!

Lunch - Falafel Salad

For lunch, I made our favorite simple salad. To make this, I first added a couple of handfuls of chopped kale to a bowl and drizzled the greens with Trader Joe’s Vegan Caesar Salad Dressing and hummus. Next, I added some minced cilantro to the bowl. I topped each bowl with 3 falafels and diced cucumber.

Snack - Plum

I had a plum as a snack.

Dinner - Kimchi Fried Rice + Veggie Gyoza’s + Avocado

I heated up Trader Joe’s Japanese Style Fried Rice in a pan. After a couple of minutes, I added in 4 tablespoons of Nasoya’s Spicy Kimchi which is vegan friendly! In a separate small pan, I placed 8 vegetable gyozas in 1/4 cup of water, 1 teaspoon of oil, salt, and pepper. I covered the pan and waited until the gyozas were cooked through. Lastly, I plated everything along with half of a small avocado. This is quick to make and so delicious!

Friday, August 6th

Breakfast - Nutty Açai Bowl from Robek’s

This is our favorite bowl from Robek’s! To make it vegan, ask for no bee pollen and no honey. We add agave and strawberries to our bowls.

Lunch - Impossible Burgers

I cooked the impossible patty on the pan & melted a couple of Good Planet Food’s Hot Pepper Cheese Slices by covering the pan for a couple of minutes. I seasoned the patty with a version of Lawry’s from Cardenas and salt + pepper. I toasted sesame buns and spread Chipotle Ranch Dressing from Chef Tanya’s Kitchen over each bun. For toppings, we used pickles, jalapeños, tomato slices, and spinach. This burger was amazing!!!

Dinner - Nongshim So Veggie Ramen

We ended up having Nongshim So Veggie Ramen (the bag version) because we wanted a lighter dinner.

Snack - Cucumber w/ lime & Tajin

We snacked on some cucumber slices topped with lime and Tajin.

Saturday, August 7th

Breakfast - Smoothie

For the smoothie base, I used Rader Farms’ Fresh Start Organic Smoothie Blend and Wawona’s Organic Daybreak Blend from Costco. I added plenty of peanut butter and a tablespoon of moringa powder. For the liquid portion, I used fresh orange juice and Suja’s Citrus Immunity juice. Smoothies are one of our go-to breakfasts!

Lunch - Snapdragon Vietnamese Pho + Gardein Ultimate Chick’n Tenders

We heated up Snapdragon Vietnamese Pho bowls for a quick lunch. We found these at business Costco — they’re vegan friendly, tasty, and convenient. We also air-fried some Gardein Ultimate Chick’n Tenders and dipped them into Chipotle Ranch Dressing from Chef Tanya’s Kitchen which is next level!

Dinner - Maya Kaimal Coconut Curry Simmer Sauce with Tofu & Veggies + Rice + Aloo Tiki

First, I washed and put the rice to cook in the rice cooker. Next, I cooked frozen tofu cubes on a cast-iron skillet and sautéed 2 bell peppers and frozen green peas. I seasoned the veggies with minced garlic + salt and pepper. While I was cooking Fahim air-fried the rest of the Aloo Tiki we had for a side.

After a few minutes, I added Maya Kaimal’s Coconut Curry and tofu into the pan with the sauteed veggies and let it all simmer together for a few minutes. Lastly, I served the coconut curry over rice. This was fantastic! You can find Maya Kaimal’s Simmer Sauces at some Costcos.

Sunday, August 8th

Breakfast - Alpha Foods Frozen Veggie Breakfast Burrito

We found Alpha Foods Veggie Frozen Breakfast Burritos at Grocery Outlet and decided to try them. Usually we’re not a fan of frozen burritos but we surprisingly didn’t mind these. We added some Green Pepper Cholula to every bite for some extra flavor. If I saw them at Grocery Outlet again I’d get them because they’re just convenient to have, but I wouldn’t buy them at full price.

Lunch - Cheezy Ciabatta Sandwiches

We had an early lunch because the breakfast burrito wasn’t very filling, First I spread Best Foods Vegan Mayo with sriracha on one side of Trader Joe’s Everything Ciabatta Rolls. On the other side, I spread Chipotle Ranch Dressing from Chef Tanya’s Kitchen. I topped each side of the ciabatta with Good Planet Foods Mozarella Shreds and serrano peppers from our garden.

Then I air-fried the ciabatta at 375°F for 3 minutes. I topped the ciabatta with Unreal Roasted Turk’y Slices from Unreal Deli, sliced cucumber, tomatoes, spinach, and avocado. This is now our favorite sandwich — if you come across Trader Joe’s Everything Ciabatta Rolls, give them a try to elevate your sandwiches!

As a side, we ate HIPPEAS Vegan White Cheddar Organic Chickpea Puffs.

Dinner - Spicy Basil Fried Rice from Palm Thai Cuisine

For dinner, we split Spicy Basil Fried Rice from our favorite Thai restaurant — Palm Thai Cuisine.

Monday, August 9th

Breakfast - Dunkin’ Beyond Sausage Breakfast Sandwich

To veganize Dunkin’s Beyond Breakfast Sandwich, omit the egg and cheese. We like to stack hashbrowns into our sandwiches and add Green Pepper Cholula too! For pictures check out Episode 9!

Lunch - Salad + Meatless Plant-Based Dino Nuggets

First, I added kale and spinach into a bowl. For the dressing, I used Taylor Farms’ Tangerine Crunch Dressing and toppings. I didn’t use their greens because they had already gone bad.

For the side, I air-fried some Plant-Based Dino Nuggets to dip them in Primal Kitchen’s No Dairy Buffalo Sauce made with cashew butter. The nuggets are so nostalgic for me and this particular brand of Buffalo Sauce is too good!

Dinner - Mole Rojo con verdolagas and papas (Mole Rojo with purslane and potatoes)

My mom came over and brought Mole Rojo that she had freshly made along with some Spanish rice. She added verdolagas and papas (purslane and potatoes). My mom’s mole is truly perfect! She wanted me to note that it wasn’t as red as usual because the color diluted after she added nuts to the mole. Nevertheless, it still tasted incredible!

Tuesday, August 10th

Breakfast - Alpha Foods Frozen Veggie Breakfast Burrito + Kashi Chocolate Peanut Butter Chewy Granola Bar

We heated up another Alpha Foods Frozen Veggie Breakfast Burrito for a quick breakfast. Per usual, we added Green Pepper Cholula to every bite. We also snacked on a Kashi chocolate peanut butter chewy granola bar because the burrito isn’t too filling.

Lunch - Sun-dried Tomato Pesto Gnocchi + Guacamole made by PLVNTFOOD

For lunch, we enjoyed some wonderful sun-dried tomato pesto gnocchi + guacamole Brianna made!

Pick Me Up - Yerba Mate + Vegan Coconut Macaroons from Lestat’s in San Diego

We went to Lestat’s for a little pick me up. We ordered 2 yerba mates and 2 vegan coconut macaroons! The yerba mate from here is fresh and so smooth!

The coconut macaroons were scrumptious!

They have plenty of other vegan sweet options including tea cookies we love, strawberry oat bars, and cupcakes!

Dinner - Tacos from Vegan Urbano and Cider from Serpentine Cider

We spent the night in San Diego and while I was trying to figure out where to go for dinner, I saw Serpentine Cider's post about Vegan Urbano being there for taco Tuesdays and we wanted to go try! We’re SO happy we decided to go because these are hands down the BEST vegan tacos we’ve EVER had! They were VERY juicy and flavorful, I can’t recommend them enough!!! We ordered 2 of each type of taco, mine without beans because of my IBS.

Everything was on point: the salsas, handmade tortillas, nopales, and cebollitas asadas (grilled nopales and green onions)! 1000000 out of 10. If you’re ever in San Diego when Vegan Urbano is having a popup GO TO IT it’s a MUST HAVE! Follow his IG for updates: @veganurbanosd.

While we were waiting for our tacos we also shared a flight of cider from Serpentine Cider — we chose their apple, pineapple, and guava flavors. We loved them all! The flight of 3 was also the perfect amount for us to share. If you don’t typically like heavy cider/drinks this is the place for you — it’s the perfect balance of flavor and light!

Wednesday, August 11th

Breakfast - Vegan Bagel Sandwich + Donuts from Donut Panic

Before we made the drive back home we stopped by Donut Panic for breakfast. We split an everything bagel with vegan cream cheese.

They also make fresh vegan donuts every day that we had to try! We ordered a dozen donuts plus 2 because there were too many flavors we wanted to try. These are SO soft they literally melt in your mouth! Usually, we’re not fans of cake donuts but these are next level.

We shared a maple sprinkle donut and a chocolate peanut butter donut.

Later when we got home, we each had a cinnamon crunch donut.

Lunch - Panang Curry from Palm Thai Cuisine

We heated up Panang Curry from our favorite Thai restaurant, Palm Thai Cuisine. This is our favorite dish — it’s traditionally made with coconut milk and we ask for tofu as our protein!

Dinner - Plantspired Steak Salad from Waba Grill

When dinnertime rolled around we were on our way home from our chiropractor. We made a stop to pick up Waba Grill because we wanted to try their new Plantspired Steak which is vegan!

We ordered 2 Plantspired Steak Salads made with spicy sesame dressing and a side of garlic habanero sauce. It was great! We were so surprised. My brother also went to try it as soon as I told him and also agreed it was the bomb!

They have 3 options that come with the Plantspired steak. We’re so happy to have this new fast food option!

Snack - Peanut Butter Pretzels + Nongshim So Veggie Ramen

We snacked on peanut butter pretzels from Costco while we watched TV. These peanut butter pretzels are the perfect snack! After a bit, we started to get hungry so I made us some of the bagged Nongshim So Veggie Ramen. This ramen is our favorite quick ramen. The bagged one has thicker noodles than the cup version and a slightly better broth in my opinion, but we love both! :)

Thank you so much for reading! If you enjoyed this episode or one of our meals, please leave a comment below with your thoughts! Don’t forget to subscribe to get new posts sent directly to your email inbox every Friday! Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! See you next time! \(◔‿◔)/ ♥

-Mariana & Fahim