Vegan Kickstart Day 4

Wow. Day four of my 21-Day Vegan Kickstart meal plan is almost over. Since this whole foods "diet" is based on hearty grain, bean, and veggie dishes, I've stayed mostly satisfied throughout the day. That makes this cleanse seem to fly by, very much unlike last year's ACT cleanse which drug on and on forever!

This morning, I was allowed another bowl of Nature's Path Smart Bran Cereal with Unsweetened Soymilk. This time, I added bananas instead of blueberries to shake things up:

The lunch suggestion for today just said "Vegan Soup and Bread" with a recommendation to try a healthier soup like Dr. McDougall's or Amy's brand. I opted for Dr. McDougall's Black Bean Soup with a slice of Rye Bread:

Dinner was DIY: Couscous, Lentils, and Kale:

Though the Kickstart plan provides most of the recipes or convenience food brand suggestions, DIY meals give Kickstarters the freedom to put a dish together sans recipe. I don't really need a recipe for a grain and veggie bowl, but this is a great feature for new vegans who may be using the Kickstart app as a way to learn about vegan cooking. DIY days allow newbies the freedom to be creative.

I topped brown rice couscous with sauteed kale (cooked in a little water, no oil) and tender red lentils. The dish was seasoned with Bragg's, hot sauce, and nutritional yeast.

Snacks for today were an apple and carrots. I ate a Granny Smith apple at my desk at around 3:30 p.m., but I forgot to take a picture. Of course, y'all know what an apple looks like. I saved my carrots to bring to True Blood Tuesdays with my bitches. We used to have O.C. Night, but we watched all of those. Now we're on to True Blood. Notice the Tru Blood drinks in the background. I didn't drink those:

I also enjoyed a small glass of red wine at True Blood night. I'm allowing myself to have a few glasses of red wine each week on the cleanse. The last time I attempted giving up alcohol for a month, my social life suffered. And that was incredibly boring. Thankfully, red wine has antioxidants so it's kind of like vitamins, right? :-)