Meal Plans Week of 8/14-8/20

My grocery budget REALLY missed meal-planning.  There have been some weeks that I have hit the grocery store EVERYDAY which truthfully, I don't mind because I *heart* Whole Foods, but seriously, it is a huge waste of time, gas and money. 


I picked up my veggies from my local farmer yesterday and oh.my.gosh did I get a TON of food.  Sweet corn, beets, onions, broccoli, green beans, tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, summer squash, zuchinni, cantaloupe, potatoes, onions...YUM.  As I mentally prepared and processed my bounty, I came up with meal ideas for the week, mostly main courses because I will have to fit in veggie side dishes depending on what is left.  :)

Yesterday 8/14: 

Breakfast:  cereal

Lunch:  out--Indian Buffet...AMAZING!

Dinner: Fresh gazpacho, tuscan bread, corn on the cob

Sunday 8/15:
Breakfast: cereal
Lunch:out--homemade pizza, leftover gazpacho

Dinner: black eyed peas, roasted veggies, coleslaw, bread

Monday 8/16:

Breakfast: chocolate chip scones and cantaloupe

Lunch:  out--cucumber hummus with veggie sticks and apple slices

Dinner: pasta with broccoli, tomatoes and white beans, salad

Tuesday 8/17:
Breakfast: cereal
Lunch: chickpea salad
Dinner: dill veggie alphabet soup, fresh bread

Wednesday 8/18:
Breakfast: toast and bananas
Lunch:  green been and carrot salad
Dinner: spicy hoisin glazed eggplant, grilled veggies

Thursday 8/19:

Breakfast: banana muffins
Lunch: sandwiches
Dinner: baked ziti, corn on the cob

Friday 8/20:
Breakfast: cereal
Lunch:  leftover pasta
Dinner: Homemade pizza with leftover veggies

I meal-planned and then went to the store...I was ELATED to find dried black-eyed peas!  I swear I have been looking for them forever.  At 20 grams of protein per serving, my belly will be happy too.  :)  So I came home and had to adjust the plan accordingly...I can't wait to eat them, YUM!! 

Hope your week is filled with

much love and good food.  :)

Yummy Scones!

I made the most amazing scones last night! I am not normally a scone-eater, I find them to be too dry for my liking...but these were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside! YUM! I had three very sad-looking Georgia peaches left and they inspired this beautiful breakfast (as well as late-night Top Chef snack). :)

Peach Coconut Scones
(adapted from Vegan with a Vengeance
by Isa Chandra Moskowitz)
Makes 16 Scones


3 cups All-Purpose Flour
2 T Baking Powder
1/4 cup Sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1/4 t. Salt
1/4 cup Shredded, Unsweetened Coconut

1/3 cup Grapeseed Oil (or any mild vegetable oil)
1/2 cup French Vanilla Coconut Milk Creamer
3/4 cup Almond Milk
1 t. Vanilla
3 Sad-Looking Peaches, chopped :)


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a cookie sheet. Mix all dry ingredients together and add wet ingredients. Fold in peaches. If the mixture looks a little dry, add a tiny bit of water. Use your 1/4 c measuring cup and scoop mixtue onto prepared pan, flattening the top a bit. Sprinkle some sugar on top and bake for 12-15 minutes (the bottoms should be browned and the tops should be firm).


Seriously, these are delicious.
Obviously, you can un-veganize them by adding milk and creamer or half and half.
See, everyone can try the LOVE!

Personal Responsibility

I received a text the other day from a dear friend telling me that our beloved Avalon Organics shampoo no longer scored "low risk" on the Cosmetic Database; it had switched to a 6...on the higher end of "moderate risk".  I was really bummed.  Perhaps the "New Formula" sticker should have alarmed me that the company changed things up and added a few not-so-great things into the product.  Yuck.  I could probably *deal* with the fact that it isn't under the "don't buy" hazard score, but I use this stuff on my sweet six year old.  I don't want to be putting toxins onto her hair to be absorbed into her skin...

I was recently told by a friend that her "parents did it like this when she was little and look how well she grew up".  THIS LOGIC DOESN'T WORK, PEOPLE.  Give me one product or technique that has stayed exactly the same in the last 30 years and *maybe* I will consider it.  Give me the research that supports your decision and *maybe* I will look into it.  But the truth is that companies change their beloved "family-tested" and "tried and true" formulas to make them cheaper and more efficient.  So that wonderful "natural" product you have been using for the last few years?  Double-check it.  With the economy being as stinky as it is, companies are cutting corners...and it is affecting your health.

I went into Whole Foods last year and bought some teething gel for the littlest one.  I had my three little ones with me and it was making for a difficult time so I threw in a tube of gel made by a respectable natural company.  I took it home to read that there were two different kinds of parabens in it...WHAT?!?:!?  Parabens are linked to many different kinds of cancers (including reproductive issues) and I am supposed to put this directly into my baby's gums?  NO WAY.  So I marched back into Whole Foods and got into a mild disagreement with the head of Health and Beauty about why they would even carry a product with something as controversial as parabens.  His response?  The FDA says it's OK and hasn't banned it yet.  UGH.  He also said that the store needs to provide choices for the consumer.  Makes sense now, but I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that out FDA allows something this awful to be put directly in the mouths of babes.

I need to be more responsible.  I need to read, research and check my products on a continuous basis. The FDA is not going to keep us safe and it is my own personal responsibility to make sure my family is healthy.  So please, please, PLEASE read your labels.  Food, personal hygiene products, everything.  We can't blame everybody when we could be better consumers and just think...maybe our shopping dollars will vote for a healthier world.  If we refuse to spend our money on crap, unhealthy, toxic products, companies may hold their own products to better standards. 

 Yes,

it takes a little bit of time, but chances are you could make the time if it was worth it to you...
is it worth it to you?