Grateful for Beans

This Sunday morning, I woke up and started in on my breakfast. I didn't want anything fancy, but I was craving some really solid protein, the sort of food with substance that would last me through my planned walk downtown.

What I put together wasn't revolutionary: multigrain toast with peanut butter, a bunch of grapes, and a half cup of pinto beans straight from the can as a side--no sauce, no seasoning, no nada.

The toast was good, as were those sunny, fat green grapes from Chile, but those beans. Those. Beans. They were creamy and salty and rich and profoundly satisfying.

They were more than just what I was in the mood for, more than just what my body happened to be craving. They tasted heavenly. And as I ate them, I was instantly and profoundly grateful for those simple little guys.

My favorite thing about eating vegan is the way my attitude has changed toward food. Yes, my taste buds have definitely changed--even low sodium rice cakes and plain veggies taste pretty damn scrumptious--but it's more than that.

People focus on what you have to give up when you become vegan, on the denial aspect on it, but they forget that you get to eat fabulous, fresh, colorful food every day, food that doesn't just sustain your body but nourishes it.

Veganism introduced a new form of gratitude into my life: gratitude for my ability to afford fresh vegetables year round, for the time I have to prepare them, and for their availability at my local supermarket. Gratitude for beans and lentils, hummus and split peas, avocados and asparagus and kale. And I'm grateful every time I get to eat just exactly what I want, when I want it.

A surplus of gratitude, even over plain old beans--how can extra gratitude ever be a bad thing?

Week 1: Early Lessons

This was really not an ideal week to go all vegan-y. Work has been hectic, with long, weird hours, which means that I'm a) hungry at work more, b) at home and free to cook less, and c) exposed to horribly tempting and distinctly UN-vegan cookies and brownies on a regular basis. I feel like I've been waiting forever for the weekend already! Not only will I be able to go to the grocery store and cook some good food for myself, but also I won't be burning through my calories at what feels like a ridiculous rate. (Being hungry every three hours is NOT going to cut it. Adapt, body, adapt!)

Still, I can consider the hunger pains to be growing pains. Here's what I've taken from this week:

1. I can't skip the grocery store like I used to. Grabbing a quick meal at work is going to be nearly impossible depending on where I'm at, so I have to give myself enough raw materials to cook with and snack on before the work week begins.
2. I really need to stick to cooking a big meal on Sunday nights, something satisfying that I can have for lunch throughout the week. Knowing that I had a big pot of vegetable stew to look forward to would have made me much, much happier at several points this week.
3. If I'm not eating something that I love for my meals, then the temptations I run into in between are going to be much more painful. Full=happy.
4. Don't go to a Mexican restaurant if you can't remember whether or not they have a vegetarian section on their menu. (This lead to the most depressing "black bean burrito" I've ever eaten. [Because it wasn't a burrito. It was a flour tortilla wrapped around a mound of plain black beans with a little hump of iceberg lettuce on the side. Sad face. ])
5. Fat is good. My body is totally missing the cheese I used to sprinkle on everything, and I'm having a hard time feeling full for long. So far, avocado and peanut butter have helped a lot, but damn. I've got to look into finding some fatty proteins that stick to my ribs. I've always been afraid of seitan, but maybe?
6. Never let yourself run out of chickpeas. Never. You will get home and go to make a salad and cry and cry and cry.

The good news is that so far, I'm batting a thousand: I was able to stay vegan for all eight meals and three snacks I've eaten this week. Go team!