Food for Road Trip

There are not many options for healthy food items during road trips, and I can’t expect hosts to cater to my plant-based-only eating. Here is what I packed for a 5-day trip for 4 people, although most of it was for me and my daughter. This worked out really well: no cooking, easy to clean, and provided protein, fiber, hydration. These would make great items to pack for camping, too (except for the microwave popcorn). 

-Fruit: grapes, apples, bananas, clementines, medjool dates

-vegetables: baby carrots, sugar snap peas, celery sticks, cucumbers

-oatmeal bags: 1/2 c oats, pecans, raisins, hemp seeds, cinnamon (+ bowls, spoons, and water)

-mock-tuna fish salad and whole-grain crackers (or celery)

-variety of nuts: raw almonds, raw brazil nuts, raw cashews

-seed-and-dried fruit cubes (we call them "all-sparks" ... a Transformers reference)

-peanut butter for apples, celery, and dates

-salad dressing (I put some in a small jar just in case a restaurant/host doesn't have vegan dressing)

-vegan banana bread

-chips and salsa

-snack of broad beans (fava beans) "Bada Bean Bada Boom"

-water, water, water

-microwave popcorn (if hotel has a microwave)

-utensils: mini cutting board, mini strainer, small knife, forks, spoons, paper towels, measuring cup

For the oatmeal: pour bag into bowl, add about 1/3 c of water, stir. It will be room temp, but you can microwave it if you want it warmed. If you have apples, you can dice them and add.

We did visit a restaurant once per day. I can find grilled veggies, whole beans, greens, and rice at most Mexican food restaurants. Bonus: when we went to Old Town Flagstaff, there was a completely-vegan restaurant there called "Red Curry." I was in heaven 💚

Here’s the link for the mock tuna recipe:

http://42veggiequest.blogspot.com/2019/07/mock-tuna-fish-salad-this-is-family.html?m=1

Cutting Mango Tecnique

Here are two techniques for cutting mangos. The first one takes longer but is what I usually do when I serve it with a fork (less messy). The second method is much faster but be prepared with dental floss and damp napkins because the fruit fiber gets stuck in teeth and the fruit could be sticky.

There is a large flat seed in the fruit.
Turn the fruit on the side that looks
the longest and thinnest.

Cut along the flat side of the seed

Cut along the other side

Cut along the curved edge of the seed

Try to cut as much fruit as possible off of the seed

Cut the larger portions into thirds

Slide knife along the skin to remove fruit.
Don't worry about getting close to the fruit's skin

Press down on one edge of the piece and
slice the blade across to get more mango

Flip piece around and get the other end

              🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱

Second method:

Score the pieces of fruit without

cutting all the way through,

then invert the pieces to push out

the fruit to bite into

Reviving Wilted Greens and Storing

Sometimes the greens in grocery stores are wilted. As long as the leaves aren't yellow or brown, they are still salvageable. All they need is a drink of water. Trim the stems and place them in water. Set the timer for about an hour. Check and add more time if still wilted. It's important to remove them from water once revived. If they sit in water for too long, they will turn yellow and possibly wilt, again.

Then wrap the leaves in a thin kitchen towel or paper towel and wrap again in a plastic bag or container.

Chopping Greens Technique

Keep base intact, and cut lengthwise from
base. Make several lengthwise cuts while
rotating head of greens so you have strips
of greens.

Now cut crosswise. Hold the bunch together
with other hand (keep fingers out of the way
of the blade, tuck in fingers, use knuckles).

Toss base and any yellow pieces (bitter)

Walter and his weird obsession
with the salad spinner

Once as I was carrying the spinner,
Walter attacked it and completely
knocked it up and out of my hands.
Lettuce went flying in the air and
onto the floor.
Me: "Tossed salad anyone?"
Marie: "Here, letttuce help you clean it up."

Something else I didn't know: Remember the E.Coli scares that resulted in recalling spinach and Romaine lettuce? The contamination came from animal agriculture. Animal waste from the thousands of tightly packed livestock contaminated the water supply. Some farms spray waste water into the air.

Good news: Reducing consumer demand for animal meat will reduce the amount of animals the ranchers artificially reproduce. Less animals, less contamination, better water, better air.

Bunapi Mushrooms

Look at these cuties! I had to try them. They kept really well in the refrigerator. I read that you have to cook them and not to eat them raw. Basically, cut them from the base, rinse. I marinated them in 1/2 T maple syrup, 1 T Braggs, 1/2 tsp liquid smoke, dashes of garlic powder and smoked paprika. Then I heated them on a small pan for 5 min or so. I used them to top our creamed potato soup. They are mild with a nice texture.

Cordyceps Militaris Mushrooms (in stir fry, no oil)

I visited a new Harmon's grocery store and was in heaven with their produce section. The variety was incredible! These mushrooms were amongst items I had never seen before, and, yes, I stood in my kitchen today looking at them and asked myself, "What am I supposed to do with that?" I mixed them with brown-rice noodles and marinated pan-seared tofu. My 14 yo liked the mushrooms and noodles (and was a good sport about trying the tofu). He said they were pretty good. Note: He usually does not like mushrooms. These are pretty mild and have a nice texture. I really enjoyed this meal.

Ingredients:

1 pint cordyceps mushrooms

4 oz dry brown rice noodles, prepared

1/2 cup vegetable broth (or water)

1/2 cup-ish green onions (incl white part)

1 clove garlic minced

1 block tofu prepared (drain, slice, press, marinate, pan-fry/bake/or bbq) - optional

Method:

-Rinse mushrooms

-Heat wok (or pan) on medium-high

-Sauté the white part of the onion and the garlic, add some of the broth to keep from sticking, 1-2 min

-Add the mushrooms, add more of the broth, stir, 1-2 min

-Add the green onions, sauté a couple more min, add more broth (or the rest of the 1/2 cup)

-Add the noodles and mix all together
-Serve with tofu (or tempeh, edamame, just plain)

You can also mix in your favorite sauce. This recipe is basic, mild, but fresh-tasting.

Cordyceps militaris mushrooms rinsed

Green onions, garlic clove, brown rice noodles,
mushrooms. I kept it very simple so I could taste
the new ingredient.

Vegetable broth/bouillon

Tofu, noodles, wok with mushrooms and veggies

I love the colors! (Not filtered)

Son's portion as an introduction.

"Kitchen Snippets"
The previous owner of our home salvaged
doors from a home built in the 1800s

Something else I didn't know:

Our human bodies have the characteristics of herbivores rather than carnivores. Because of this, the enormous amount of meat, dairy, and eggs we have been conditioned to eat are making us very, very sick (individually and culturally): heart disease, variety of cancers, diabetes, lung disease, brain problems, infections, high blood pressure, liver disease, kidney disease, suicidal depression, various auto-immunity diseases, erectile dysfunction...

The good news:

We can recondition our brain, habits, and tastebuds and get back to our natural way of eating as well as improve our health. Whole food plant based eating is the only diet proven to reduce heart disease and reverse T2 diabetes (and improve T1 diabetes), reduce BP... you get my point :)

Kiwano - the "Horned Melon"

I found this beauty at Harmon's grocery store. It was easy to cut into.

-Cut lengthwise and scrape the pulp and seeds out into a bowl and eat with a spoon

-Cut them into little half-moons and eat them like orange slices

-Cut crosswise and squeeze the seeds and pulp out... they pop out nicely

Hubby, son, and I were the only ones here to try it, and we all liked it. It's like a sweeter cucumber taste maybe with a little lime. You can eat the seeds, and they are each surrounded by a sweet gel. It's refreshing! 

Some nutrient info: 3.7 g protein, 18% RDA Vitamin C, 21% RDA magnesium, 13% RDA iron, several antioxidants, ++ 

Look at the tips of these horns! They are very sharp.
I was trying to figure out where to place them in the
shopping bag so they don't poke the rest of the groceries

Such a pretty color!

Rambutan Fruit

These are a fun fruit and very tasty! My 14 yo really likes them. 

I found these at Walmart

They are about the size of a golfball.
There's a seam to cut along to open up.
It's like a giant grape but with a seed
(don't eat the seed).

The fruit peels away from the seed
fairly easily.

Humorous Food Memes, Cartoons, Videos

1st of 3: My ideas for vegan restaurant names.
"Vegan AF"
(AF stands for my town, American Fork, of course) 

2nd of 3: My ideas for vegan restaurant names.
"Vegan SL,UT" for Salt Lake City, Utah

3rd of 3: My ideas for vegan restaurant names.
"Viva! Las Vegans!"
(Thank you, thank you, very much)