Review: Be Leaf Vegan Fried Egg!

My dad ordered me an early Valentine's Day gift from Vegan Essentials — a care package with Sjaak's Melk Truffles AND the new Be Leaf Vegan Fried Egg!!! 

I first saw this awesome yuba skin "egg" on Hillary's blog, My Cat Loves Daiya, and I knew I had to try it! Unfortunately, at $14.99 a package, this six-serving box of eggs isn't really practical as an everyday food item, but it makes a fun gift (especially when dad is buying!).

The eggs come pre-made from a mixture of non-GMO soybean protein, non-GMO soybean skin (yuba), pea fiber, pea starch, sunflower seed oil, yeast, sea salt, brown sugar, paprika extract, and carrot extract. The texture is eerily similar to a chicken egg. The yolk has a mouthfeel that's pretty much the exact same as a cooked egg yolk, rather than a runny one. The sides of the yuba skin get super crispy when fried in a skillet. They taste a little eggy, but I like to add black salt for maximum eggy-ness.

I've been enjoying these on their own with air-fried hash and toast.

And they're also amazing on sandwiches! When I was going vegan way back when, I had a much harder time giving up eggs than I did cheese. And that's because I loved a fried egg sandwich. Like more than pretty much anything in the world. So getting to enjoy a fried egg sandwich (this one has Chao cheese, vegan mayo, and spinach) again was life-changing. 

This morning, I had a vegan fried egg with Chao cheese and mayo on a LuLu's English muffin (scored from the CY Farmers Market this past weekend).

The eggs come frozen, and you have to thaw the entire package to use them since they're stacked together in the box. But I put three eggs back into the freezer to hoard for later! I'll be sad when they're gone!

Burritos and GGB Bowls!

We're coming to the end of the first week off the Health Made Simple meal plan, and I'm feeling great. I'm still focusing on whole foods, but I'm making more space for treats and the occasional processed foods. I'm also still having smoothies for breakfast, fruit for afternoon snacks, and salads before dinner.

On Monday night, my first day back to "real life" eating, I met up with a few friends at Moe's Southwest Grill (the burrito chain) for Veggie Tofu Burritos! I had a race orientation that night for the 50K I'm running in March, so I pretty much just ordered with the friends, and then I had to eat in the car on the drive to my event. But this massive burrito with tofu, black beans, brown rice, corn salsa, peppers, onions, mushrooms, and guac was portable for car eating.

On Tuesday night, I made one of the Health Made Simple recipes I didn't get to make on the plan — Tempeh Rice Gumbo. This isn't real gumbo because you need a roux for that, but since this is oil-free, a roux wasn't possible. But it's still really good with gumbo flavors (from file and paprika)! I made it in my new Instant Pot, and it has brown rice, tempeh bacon, bell pepper, spinach, and tomatoes.

On Wednesday night, I made a fun spin on the GGB Bowl (that stands for grain/green/bean). You can make a GGB bowl with any grain, any green, and any bean. For this, I used whole wheat pasta as the grain, sauteed kale and broccoli for the greens, and chickpeas for the bean. I topped it with the leftover butternut squash cheese sauce from last week's mac and cheese.

Review: Voke Superfood Tablets

I'm a morning person. I wake up at 5 am with pep in my step, ready to take on the day. Okay, real talk, that first 10 minutes after the alarm goes off is rough, but as soon as I've had my morning cuddle with my dog Maynard and my warm lemon water, I'm ready for anything. But come 2 pm, I go a little cross-eyed at my work laptop, and my focus starts to fade.

A few weeks ago, I received a review package of Voke Superfood Tablets to test out and review on Vegan Crunk. These chewable tablets claim to help you stay mentally vigilant, focused, and emotionally upbeat all day.

They contain guarana, acerola cherry, beet, and green tea caffeine. The guarana is said to help improve mood and focus; the cherry is good for immune support and sport recovery; the beetroot helps with cognitive function and is a natural antioxidant; and the green tea helps with mood and energy.

Each packet contains two chewable tablets. You take one in the morning and another mid-afternoon. I've been following this protocol for a couple weeks now, and I'm here to say, "It works!!" I definitely felt a boost immediately after taking them. It's a very similar feeling to a B12 shot or one of those B12 sprays, but I don't think this actually contains B12. The afternoon tablet was especially helpful for getting me through those 2 pm slumps!

My only complaint is the taste. They have a cherry flavor, thanks to the acerola cherries, but there's also a bitterness that I suspect comes from the guarana, which is naturally very bitter. My pro tip would be to always wash the tabs down with a flavored drink (like a smoothie or juice) to mask that lingering taste. But despite the bitterness, I've continued to take Voke tablets because they work!

Health Made Simple for Athletes Wrap-Up

I'm done with Health Made Simple! Technically, my 4-week whole foods-based meal plan ended Sunday night, but over the weekend, I deviated from the plan a few times. I love a good January reset to get my healthy eating goals back in line, and I plan to take some healthy habits from the plan forward into the year. Definitely going to try to eat mostly whole foods, eat fruit every day, and enjoy salads before dinner.

Here's a recap of Friday through Sunday. On Friday morning, I had a Larabar before my 6:15 am bootcamp class, and then I had a post-workout banana. Breakfast was a raspberry strawberry protein smoothie, and morning snack was Baked Corn Chips with Vegan Queso & Salsa.

Lunch was leftover Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese with Steamed Kale. Yummy!

Afternoon snack was fruit, as usual. And then for dinner, I had Cowboy Chili, topped with vegan cauliflower-cashew queso. This was supposed to be made with blackeyed peas and kidney beans, but I forgot the peas at the grocery store. So I used pintos since that's what I had. What I love most about this chili is the hominy and collard greens, both unique ingredients for a chili.

On Saturday morning, I had a race — the Crosstown 10K, which goes right through my neighborhood! I got up early and had a pre-race Bagel with Sriracha Hummus.

Here's a finish line action shot! I took this race super-easy because, after the 6.2 miles, I still had to run 12 more to get the 18 miles from my 50K training plan done. 

This is the third year for the Crosstown 10K, and I've run them all. But this was the first year they offered finishers' medals. I LOVE MEDALS!

After the race, I stopped by Juice Bar inside Crosstown Concourse for a Berry Good Smoothie (blueberries, banana, coconut milk, lemon, and cashews) for post-race carbs and more pre-run fuel since I still had more running to do!

Shortly after the race, I hopped in my car and drove out to Shelby Farms Park, where the Big Buffalo 50K will be held in March. I attempted to run the race course based on a course map on their website, but it was partly on trail so I'm not sure if I ran the right path the whole time. But either way, I managed two 6-mile loops and felt pretty badass afterward!

I had a couple of sesame tamari rice balls in the car on the drive home and then had some leftover Cowboy Chili at the house.

Later in the afternoon, I had to get groceries, so I snacked on a Lenny & Larry's Protein Cookie. Definitely not a whole food but slightly healthier than a regular old cookie, right?

Sunday was Imbolc, the cross-quarter celebration between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, but I knew I had a busy day planned for Sunday. So I decided to go ahead and make my Imbolc feast for dinner Saturday night. Milk and dairy foods are traditional for Imbolc, so I decided to make vegan milky dishes! I made a Grilled Cheese (with Chao, sauteed mushrooms and onions, and avocado on sprouted grain bread) and Mushroom Bisque — both from Sabbat's Almanac. 

Blackberries are also traditional for Imbolc, so I made this Blackberry Crumble topped with oats, wheat berry cereal, and coconut nectar. Really yummy but also healthy.

On Sunday, I had yet another run on the schedule, but this was an easy recovery run. Still yet, I decided to try a new-to-me run fuel recipe — Pinole Chia Waffles from the No Meat Athlete website! These waffles, made with cornmeal and chia, are inspired by the traditional food of the Tarahuama, an ancient tribe of ultra-runners from Mexico (featured in Born to Run). This was really good, and I felt like it gave me power!

Here's Paul and I on our trail run in Overton Park! It was such a warm winter day!

Of course Sunday night was Super Bowl Sunday!! I'm not a huge football fan, but I never miss the Big Game. I'm mostly in it for snacks. Paul, Misti, and I watched the game at my house and got takeout from RP Tracks. Paul and I split orders of the Buffalo Tofu Wings with vegan ranch and BBQ Tofu Nachos!

Health Made Simple for Athletes, Day 25

We're heading into the weekend, and I'm nearly done with Health Made Simple — the four-week meal plan from No Meat Athlete! I have plans to deviate from the plan quite a bit over the weekend (for Imbolc and Super Bowl) so I should probably just consider myself done. But I'll be back on Monday with a weekend recap anyway!

Until then, here's what I ate on Thursday, Day 25. The morning started as so many others do — a Larabar, a run (5 miles), and a bowl of post-run white rice. I'm usually eating that pre-run Larabar in the bathroom while getting ready because I'm classy and I have no shame.

Breakfast was another Sid's Superfood Shake (banana, hemp/flax/chia seed, wheatgrass, spirulina, dulse, Complement protein powder). And morning snack was a fruit bowl.

For lunch, I had my leftover BBQ Bella with Tahini Chickpea Slaw sandwich-style on whole wheat toast with a side of Air-fried Fries.

Afternoon snack was crackers with maple peanut butter (forgot to take a pic!), and dinner was my very favorite recipe on the plan so far — Butternut Squash Mac!!! 

I've made a lot of squash mac in my day, but this Health Made Simple version is the very best. It calls for roasted onions, shallot, and garlic to be mixed in with the roasted squash and blended cashews, and that really makes a difference. I remember loving this when I did Health Made Simple the last time (back in Oct 2018). I'm so glad I have this recipe to come back to again and again!

Health Made Simple for Athletes, Day 24

Another great day on the No Meat Athlete Health Made Simple meal plan! On the last Wednesday of each month, I host a Crosstown Run Crew meet-up after work, and we always run 3 miles. I had 5 miles on the training plan, so I decided to do 2 miles before work and the rest after. I snacked on a couple dates pre-run and then headed out for an easy couple miles. After my run, I had a banana. Then, a little later, I had this Raspberry Banana Protein Smoothie with Complement Protein powder (my bi-monthly protein powder shipment finally arrived!).

Morning snack was Whole Wheat Crackers with Sriracha Hummus.

And then lunch was a yummy leftovers plate from RP Tracks the night before. I had pita, hummus, veggies, and vegan ranch left, and I added the leftover baked falafel from a dinner last week. Love snacky plates!

My afternoon snack was a fruit bowl.

But since I was running 3 miles with Run Crew, I also had a Blueberry Muffin Larabar in the office before heading downstairs to meet the other runners.

We meet at 5:30 pm on the Crosstown Concourse plaza (join us on the last Wednesday each month if you're local!), run 3 miles through Crosstown, and end at a bar for post-run beers (or whatever you drink). This month, we met after at Next Door. I ordered a Wiseacre beer and some of their famous Kale Chips! These are NOT the healthiest kale chips because they're fried in oil, but they're soooooo tasty. Definitely a treat! This plan is mostly oil-free.

When I got home, it was pretty late, but luckily, I had my dinner already prepared. BBQ Portabella, Tahini Slaw (with added chickpeas for protein), and Air-fried Fries. I would have added bread to make this a proper sandwich, but I go to bed so early, and I wanted to eat a little lighter before bed.

Health Made Simple for Athletes, Day 23

Tuesday morning on the Health Made Simple whole foods-based meal plan started with — you guessed it! — a Larabar, a run (7 miles this time), and a bowl of post-run white rice.

And that was followed by Tuesday's meal plan breakfast of Sid's Superfood Shake, named for Sid Garza Hillman (who, along with No Meat Athlete's Matt Frazier, developed the Health Made Simple plan). I didn't have all the superfoods needed to make this (I was out of maca and have never owned chlorella), but I used what I had. This has banana, hemp seed, chia seed, dulse flakes, wheatgrass powder, spirulina powder (subbed for the chlorella), plus I added flax seed and chocolate protein powder (not in the recipe).

I was feeling great and full of whole foods when I got to work. But about 30 minutes after I arrived, I was surprised with VEGAN DONUTS! My co-worker Lily, owner of Darling Donuts, brought some into the office. I will ALWAYS make exception to my healthy eating goals for donuts! I had half a chocolate PB and half a cherry sprinkle.

I wasn't at all hungry for my morning snack, but I had a yoga class at 11 am, and I was worried that I might need some real fuel (not just donuts), so I ate my snack anyway — Veggies & Cashew-Hemp Italian Dressing.

Lunch was leftover No-Chicken Noodle Soup (no pic, sorry!). And afternoon snack was a fruit bowl (pineapple, strawberry, blueberry). Enjoyed with a rare afternoon cup of coffee.

For dinner, I met up with my Memphis Vegan Drinks buds for beer and food at RP Tracks. I had considered getting the BBQ Tofu Nachos, but since I'd already gone donut crazy, I figured I'd go with a healthier option — Chipotle Hummus Platter (plus a side of vegan ranch for dipping my veggies!), enjoyed with a 22-oz Meddlesome Brewing Co. Broadhammer Brown Ale.

I'm all about that balance, y'all!