FOOD DIARY OF A PLANT-BASED MUM - What I Eat in a Day

When I first went plant-based, I got the same question from people - but what do you eat? So... what do I eat? Food just like you guys!

I’ve read and watched a few posts about what plant-based/vegans eat in a day. Sometimes I find them to be quite vague and full of uncommon ingredients. My mouth waters at the lucky vegans that live in tropical climates and have such an abundance of ripe fruit. Unfortunately, NZ isn’t like that. Summer is fantastic for fruit, but during winter it’s mostly about apples and imported bananas (not that there is anything wrong with apples, I consider them a super food, but it’s hard to live on apples alone!).

Here is a breakdown of what I eat in a day. The day I chose to log and photograph, Jensen was at daycare. I was running around doing errands and some exercise during those precious free few hours. What I eat varies a little day to day but the base is very similar. Oats, green smoothies, bread, beans, and pasta are our staples. We also live semi-rural so there isn’t much chance to buy lunch or dinner and we eat at home about 95% of the time. I hope this takes some of the mystery out of what a plant-based mama eats in a day!

8am: Lemon water, porridge with a gold kiwifruit and raspberry chia seed jam on top, and a turmeric latte

By the time I’ve sorted out everyone else’s breakfast - tiny human, two cats, two dogs - it can be quite late before I get to sit-down and eat mine. We aren’t morning people at our house so breakfast is usually a bit of a scramble if we need to get out of the house on time.

I make my lemon water the night before so it’s ready to drink in the morning, otherwise it probably wouldn’t happen at all! I make my porridge with one cup of quick cook oats (plain rolled oats that are cut up a bit finer so they cook quicker), one cup of water, one cup of oat milk, and some frozen blueberries. I usually put it on first before I do anything else and let it simmer on a very low heat, stirring occasionally as I go. The longer you take to cook them the sweater they are. Most mornings I get the whole bowl to myself but sometimes Jensen will eat a quarter to a third of mine. Tastes much better from mummy’s plate anyway right?

11am: Packet of Zoaties and small bag of chopped celery

I’d taken the dogs to the vet and on my drive back home had a packet of Zoaties and a bag of chopped celery for morning tea. Zoaties are a great snack, they are made up of only a few ingredients including oats and dates. Oat Cookie is my favourite flavour and you can find them in most supermarkets, usually in the health food section. I try to have some celery after I eat dried fruit to help clean my teeth. I have found the best way to actually do this, is to chop a bunch up at the start of the week. This means it is ready to throw into a bag each morning if I’m leaving the house and doesn’t end up a wilted bunch in the fridge at the end of the week.

12:30pm: 2 bananas

After a very short run (3km) I scoffed down two bananas as I took the dogs for a walk on the beach for an hour. It’s amazing how good a banana can taste when you’re hungry!

1.40pm: 3 squares of dark chocolate

I was feeling a bit light headed after I got back from walking the dogs so had some dark chocolate. This tided me over while I was making lunch. We love Whittaker’s Fairtrade Dark Ghana, it’s really rich so I find a few pieces is all I usually want to eat. It still seems to disappear quite quickly from the cupboard anyway though!

2:15pm: Green Smoothie, 6 pieces of whole grain toast with marmite and cashew cheese

Lunch time! I try to have a green smoothie everyday and especially after a run. Today’s one included three bananas, two apples, avocado, garlic, ginger, half a bag of baby spinach, some flaxseed and spirulina and 750mls of water. This recipe makes enough for about 700mls for me and my husband and about 400mls for Jensen.

I also had 6 pieces of toast with marmite and some cashew brie I made from This Cheese Is Nuts cook book. We’ve tried a few bread brands and settled on Freya’s. It’s not too expensive and everyone in the family enjoys it.

3.50pm: 3 small Almond Vanilla Cookies

These Almond meal cookies are SO good (recipe breakdown on the blog coming soon). I was feeling a bit hungry so raided the last of the small ones I had made for Jensen!

5pm: Peanut Butter Frooze Balls

Frooze Balls are another great snack, made by the same company as Zoaties. We live on them and consume at least one or two packs a day. There are quite a few flavours now but Peanut Butter is our absolute favourite. They can be found in most supermarkets in the health food section.

6pm: Super Secret Veggie Goulash with 125gm of wholewheat pasta

We eat a variation of the same meal most nights. A veggie goulash with beans, tinned tomatoes and herbs and spices, usually over pasta, soba noodles or corn chips. Tonight, we had it over wholewheat pasta with half a bag of 500gm pasta shared between us. I topped mine with some Cere’s Organic Sauerkraut, great for digestion and for some added flavour.

9:30pm: Piece of The Happy Pear’s Home-Made Snickers

After getting the tiny human to bed and working on the blog it was time for a sweet snack. I’ve been making The Happy Pear’s Home-Made Snickers a lot lately and keep it in the freezer. It’s so rich that only a small piece is needed to fill you up and the recipe yields quite a lot. A bit of effort equals 2-3 weeks of sweet snacks stored for a quick treat.

And that is the end of my day of food! I’m definitely not saying this is how everyone should eat but it’s what works me and my family. Check out my Tips for Transitioning post for more information about eating plant-based. One of the most important things to be aware of is volume. Personally I need to eat significantly more on a whole food, plant-based diet. I really enjoy the large portion sizes! You may think you are restricted by excluding animal products from your diet, but you will be rewarded with the abundance and nourishment of plants. Hopefully this has taken some of the mystery out of what a plant-based mama eats in a day!