Vegan Mac & Cheese… and Vacation Troubles!

I’ve been eating my old favorite, vegan mac and cheese, even though technically, I’m back to eating regular cheese. What can I say, vegan mac & cheese still hits the spot!

I know I’ve posted this on my old blog, but I’ll mention the recipe again, just in case you missed it! Trust me, even if you’re not vegan, this stuff is GOOD!

Vegan Mac & Cheese

• 1/3 cup water
• 1/3 cup couscous
• 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
• splash of soy milk
• 3/4 cup peas
• 1/4 tsp salt
• dash of red pepper flakes

Heat 1/3 cup of water until it’s boiling. Stir in the couscous and remove from heat. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork, and stir in the nutritional yeast and peas. You’ll need to thin out the nutritional yeast with a little soymilk. (You could just use water, but I like the added creaminess of the soy milk.) Sprinkle with salt and red pepper flakes. Dig in!

This meal takes less than 10 minutes to prepare and it’s SO good. Delicious comfort food! And healthy too 🙂

So I’m going back to Ohio for thanksgiving, and I’m so excited! However, it seems like any time I go home (or on vacation) my healthy eating goes out the window! I’m overwhelmed by choices, and activities seem to revolve around food. And let me tell you, the food presented isn’t usually carrot sticks and hummus. It’s tortilla chips and guac, or cookies and cake. It can be a diet disaster. What’s a girl to do?

I’m a big fan of tracking my meals on Sparkpeople.com, because it helps me identify if I’m getting enough protein, fat, etc. (No joke, when I first went vegan, I realized I was consuming almost no fat. Oops! Bring on the olive oil!) Instead of setting unrealistic expectations, I’m just going to keep tracking my food, and try to stick to healthy options when possible, but allow myself indulgences. It IS Thanksgiving after all! But there is a difference between enjoying a slice of pie, and enjoying half a pie 😉

The other trick will be fitting in some workouts. I won’t have a gym available to me over the holiday, and unfortunately, the weather in Ohio is colder than Virginia, so I’m not sure I’ll want to run outside. Do you guys have any tips? I’ll have free weights, and open space in my basement. I’d DEFINITELY like some home workout tips!

Happy Holidays!

❤ Liz