What We Eat In A Week - Episode 040

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 :)

This week wasn’t a good mental health week for me so there are a lot of quick meal ideas.

There were also a few meals that required more effort but were definitely worth it like Taiwanese Green Onion Pancake Breakfast Wraps, Trinidad Curry, Omelettes, Lentil Soup, and Barbecued Tandoori Tofu Skewers.

We also tried Fatburger’s vegan options which included: Impossible Chicken Nuggets, Impossible Burger with Daiya slices, and a vegan strawberry milkshake topped with dairy-free whipped cream.

You’ll have to read through for more details :)

We hope you enjoy this edition and let me know which meal ideas you liked or found helpful in the comments!

Make sure to read our first comment too as I’m sharing donation links with further information about what causes you’re helping in the comment section. Feel free to comment on any causes you’d like to share with us too.

Thursday, September 16th

Breakfast - Taiwanese Green Onion Pancake Breakfast Wraps + CBD Golden Milk Turmeric Tea

I decided to make breakfast wraps this morning with Trader Joe’s Taiwanese Green Onion Pancakes. First, I made Just Egg into small omelettes. After flipping the omelette, I topped the cooked side with Vevan Foods Pepperjack Shreds and covered the pan until both sides were fully cooked and the shreds had melted.

Next, I cooked Trader Joe’s Taiwanese Green Onion Pancakes on the comal. I also cooked Gardein’s Breakfast Saus’age Patties and seasoned them with black pepper and a version of Lawry’s from Cardenas.

Lastly, I assembled and topped the wraps with avocado and drizzled Sriracha over top. We also had a side of air-fried Trader Joe’s Frozen Hashbrowns (I forgot to add them to the wrap). This was so delicious and filling!

I also made a CBD Golden Milk Turmeric Tea, if you want to read how I make it here’s the link to the episode where I go into detail.

Lunch - Gardein Ultimate Chick’n Tenders + Trader Joe’s Vegan Ranch Crunch Salad Kit

First, I air-fried Gardein’s Ultimate Chick’n Tenders. While the tenders fried, I put together a Trader Joe’s Vegan Ranch Crunch Salad Kit. I plated everything together and dipped the tenders in Primal Kitchen’s No Dairy Buffalo Sauce made with cashew butter. This was quick to make and tasty!

Snack - Frozen mango topped w/ Tajin

I snacked on frozen mango and topped it with Tajin.

Dinner - Trinidad Curry + Rice

For dinner, we made Trinidad Curry with garbanzo beans and potatoes. There were a few adjustments we had to make — we subbed coconut water for coconut milk, and diced tomatoes instead of tomato sauce.

We used Trinidad Curry Spice Mix we got from a spice shop in Solvang. This was DIVINE! We cant wait to make it again!

Snack - Bowl of kale

I was craving a bowl of greens so I massaged a bowl of kale with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Dessert - Trader Joe’s Strawberry Non-Dairy Oat Frozen Dessert

This ice cream from Trader Joe’s is AMAZING! It’s honestly my absolute favorite. It’s soooo creamy! I love the almond brittle and that it actually tastes like fresh strawberries. Truly perfection in a pint.

Friday, September 17th

Breakfast - Protein Berry Smoothie Bowl

I made us a protein berry smoothie bowl this morning. For the base, I used frozen mango chunks and frozen berries. I added in two scoops of Shaklee’s Life Shake Soy Protein Powder, and moringa powder. For the liquid, I used almond milk. I topped off the bowls with Kirkland Nature’s Path Organic Ancient Grains Probiotic Granola, chia seeds, and peanut butter.

Pick Me Up - CBD Matcha

I also made a CBD Matcha Tea, if you want to read how I make it, here’s the link to the episode where I go into detail.

Lunch - Leftover Trinidad Curry

Fahim heated up the leftover Trinidad Curry. I topped it with minced cilantro. This was seriously next level! I love when there’s plenty of leftovers it makes things easier.

Snack - Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries + Trader Joe’s Vegan Tzatziki Dip

Fahim air-fried Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries at 400°F for 10 minutes. He seasoned the fries with Shwarma Seasoning Mix we’d got from a spice shop in Solvang. We dipped the fries in Trader Joe’s Vegan Tzatziki Dip. This was the perfect combo!

Dinner - Impossible Chicken Nuggets + Impossible Burger + Vegan Strawberry Milkshake from Fatburger

We found out that Fatburger was serving Impossible’s Chicken Nuggets and decided to drive over to try them for dinner. We shared Impossible Chicken Nuggets, Impossible Burger with vegan cheese and no mayo, and a vegan strawberry milkshake. We loved the vegan strawberry milkshake!

The Impossible Burger was okay, we liked that they had vegan cheese but the patty wasn’t well seasoned. However, we weren’t big fans of Impossible’s Chicken Nuggets which tasted *too real* in a weird way, unlike Beyond Meat’s Vegan Chicken Nuggets and Gardein’s Ultimate Chicken Tenders.

We’re hoping Impossible perfects the recipe more for their chicken nuggets.

Overall, if you want to try any of Fatburger’s vegan options, stick to their Impossible burger and definitely get their vegan milkshakes!

Saturday, September 18th

Breakfast - Just Egg Omelettes + Trader Joe’s Hashbrowns + Avocado

I made Just Egg Omelettes this morning. Into a bowl, I added 1/2 cup of Just Egg, 1/4 cup of oat milk, 1 clove of minced garlic, sea salt, and pepper. Once one side finished cooking, I flipped the omelette and sprinkled Vevan Foods Pepperjack Shreds over the cooked side. I covered the pan and after a couple of minutes, added a couple of handfuls of kale and flipped half of the omelette over the kale.

I covered the pan again and after a couple more minutes I took the omelettes off the heat and plated them. While I was making them, I also air-fried Trader Joe’s hashbrowns at 400°F for 8 minutes, after 8 minutes I flipped the hashbrowns and seasoned them with salt and pepper, and air-fried them for an additional 3 minutes. Lastly, I plated everything along with a side of avocado. This breakfast was delightful!

Lunch - Nongshim So Veggie Ramen

For a quick breakfast, I made us a bag of Nongshim So Veggie Ramen. This is one of our favorite vegan ramens! I love the taste of the broth and that the noodles are slightly thicker.

Snack - Homemade popcorn + frozen mango

I made homemade popcorn for us to snack on. First, I drizzled grapeseed oil into a pot and added 4 tablespoons of popcorn kernels into the pot. I also added sea salt into the kernels. I kept the heat on medium covered the pot and kept an eye on it and let it all pop as evenly as possible. You can shake it every couple of minutes to make sure none of the popcorn burns. This time I was able to gauge the amount of popcorn better than the last time I made it, but I had a heavy hand on the salt and oil this time. We sadly ended up eating very little of it. I hope the third time is the charm.

Dinner - Nutty Açai Bowls from Robek’s

We were craving Nutty Açai Bowls for dinner. 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.

Sunday, September 19th

Breakfast - Just Egg Scramble + Avocado Toast + Rice Cakes with avocado

For this morning’s breakfast, I made Just Egg into a scramble and paired it with avocado toast. I toasted 2 pieces of Oroweat Organic 22 Grain & Seeds bread and mashed one avocado along with sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then I spread the mashed avocado evenly onto each piece of toast. I topped it all off with red pepper flakes.

For my plate, I used lightly salted rice cakes instead of bread and omitted the red pepper flakes only because my IBS has been worse this week and I’ve cut out a few things until I feel better. This is a delicious quick breakfast!

Lunch - Sweet Earth Mongolian Beefless Bowl

I couldn’t think about what to make so we ended up having Sweet Earth’s Mongolian Beefless Bowls. Frozen bowls come in handy when you don’t have meal ideas or don’t feel like cooking. We got these bowls from Grocery Outlet — they’re good for a frozen meal. The bowls are on the lighter side so we usually have a snack afterward too.

Snack - Green apple sprinkled with cinnamon + side of peanut butter

For years, as a kid, I would have this snack every single day. I stopped having it for a while but started craving it again this week. All it is is sliced green apples sprinkled with cinnamon and a side of peanut butter. It’s so simple but the absolute perfect snack!

Dinner - Barbecued Tandoori Tofu Skewers + Lentil Soup

The weather this afternoon was perfect for a barbeque so we decided to barbeque some Tandoori Tofu Skewers for dinner. For the skewers, I diced up extra firm tofu and marinated it with Silk’s Soy Plain Yogurt and 2 tablespoons of Tandoori seasoning mix. I prepared the other ingredients for the skewers which included sliced bell peppers, potato, tomato, and jalapeño.

I also made lentil soup. First, I washed the lentils and filled up a pot with mostly vegetable broth and some water to top it off. I also added in sea salt, pepper, a version of Lawry’s from Cardenas, half an onion, and a lot of garlic.

While the lentils were cooking I made pico de gallo. I diced onion, tomatoes, and 6-7 fresh jalapeños from our garden. I tossed in sea salt and pepper to taste.

Once the lentils were done cooking, I added 3 handfuls of kale into the pot. I served the lentils in a couple of bowls and topped off the soup with pico de gallo. Lentil soup is so comforting to me and the pico de gallo on top is a must!

We enjoyed a couple of the barbequed Tandoori Tofu Skewers along with grilled corn. Next time I want to make the skewers with vegan chicken again because I prefer the consistency of those better, but these skewers were still good!

Monday, September 20th

Breakfast - Leftover Lentil Soup + Quesadillas

I heated up some leftover lentil soup for breakfast. For a side, I made us quesadillas using Tortilla Frescas Uncooked Flour Tortillas from Costco. For the cheese, I used Vevan Foods Pepperjack Shreds. This is one of my go-to combos. One of the tips I have for when you're not feeling good is to make dishes that provide you with leftovers, so that way you can cook less. For me, that dish is usually lentil soup.

Lunch - Trader Joe’s Vegan Tikka Masala + Watermelon

For lunch, Fahim heated up Trader Joe’s Vegan Tikka Masala. We also had watermelon.

Dinner - Just Egg and Soy Chorizo Tacos

We packed dinner with us this day as we weren’t going to be home in the evening. While I was getting ready Fahim prepped our dinner. In a pan, he cooked soy chorizo. After a few minutes, he added Just Egg into the pan. Once the Just Egg and chorizo were done cooking he heated up tortillas for us to take too. I quickly put together guacamole by adding avocado into leftover pico de gallo along with powdered chile de Arbol, salt, and pepper. I also packed minced cilantro.

We didn’t pack salsa with us because my cousin was bringing homemade salsa, but unfortunately, it spilt when they were in the car. Luckily I brought the guacamole which saved us from having dry tacos. You can never go wrong with tacos.

Tuesday, September 22nd

Breakfast - Smoothie

I made us a refreshing smoothie this morning. For the base, I used Wawona’s Organic Daybreak Blend, a couple of handfuls of fresh kale, and chia seeds. For the liquid portion, I used orange juice and Suja Organic’s Citrus Immunity Juice.

Lunch - Snapdragon Pho

We wanted a warm soupy lunch so I heated up Snapdragon Vietnamese Pho bowls. We found these at business Costco — they’re good, vegan-friendly, tasty, and convenient.

Dinner - Trader Joe’s Japanese Style Fried Rice + Trader Joe’s Vegetable Gyoza’s

We had a simple dinner this day. Fahim heated up TJ’s Japanese Style Fried Rice in a medium pan. I cooked Trader Joe’s Vegetable Gyozas in a separate small pan. Lastly, I drizzled Trader Joe’s Gyoza Sauce over the Gyozas. I drizzled Sriracha over Fahim’s plate but didn’t drizzle it over mine because again I’m having to avoid any kind of chili until my IBS is more controlled. TJ’s Japanese Style Fried Rice and gyozas are one of my favorite combos for quick dinners!

Dessert - Dragonfruit + Oranges + Strawberries

First, we snacked on Dragonfruit from my parent’s garden and oranges. After a bit, I remembered we had strawberries so we snacked on a few of those too.

Wednesday, September 23rd

Breakfast - Breakfast wrap + CBD Golden Milk Turmeric Tea

I decided to make breakfast wraps this morning. First, I made Just Egg into small omelettes. I then air-fried Trader Joe’s Frozen Hashbrowns at 400°F for 8 minutes, flipped the hashbrowns, seasoned them with salt and pepper, and air-fried them for an additional 3 minutes.

In a separate pan, I cooked Gardein’s Breakfast Saus’age Patties and seasoned them with black pepper and a version of Lawry’s from Cardenas. On the comal, I cooked Tortilla Frescas Uncooked Flour Tortillas from Costco. Lastly, I placed everything onto the tortilla. This was great!

Lunch - Leftover Lentil Soup

We heated up the last of the leftover lentil soup for lunch.

Snack - Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries

We snacked on fries a bit after lunch. I seasoned Trader Joe’s Handsome cut fries with Shwarma Spice Mix, sea salt, and pepper. I air-fried the fries at 400°F for 10 minutes.

Dinner - Mushroom Udon Soup

I made Mushroom Udon Soup for dinner. I use Fortune Udon Mushroom Flavor noodles we get from Grocery Outlet. I like to add sesame oil, chili oil (in Fahims udon), garlic powder, black pepper, and sea salt to the broth. I also added frozen corn into the broth. We love this soup! I’m sad I couldn’t add the chili oil to my soup this time around because it definitely elevates it.

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! See you next time! I hope this weekend treats you all well! ◕‿ ◕ ♥

Heads up — check the comments below as I’m sharing donation links in episodes from now on in the comment section!

-Mariana & Fahim