Raw Veganism Is Easy, Clean and Effective + Sample Grocery List & Meal Plan

Since I am still learning a lot about what it looks like to be a raw vegan, I reached out to DeChantell Lloyd who enjoys a lot of raw meals and owns a juice bar in upstate NY. Follow DeChantell on Facebook

Below are her tips and a sample grocery list.

You can download and print all of her tips and sample grocery list by clicking here 

My journey into raw veganism was hard mentally to begin because I freaked about not preparing hot food! What am I going to eat?  

Let me tell you to Get Over That

The rule of thumb for going raw is a cooking temperature should not exceed 118* F.  
Once I started to mentally plan for the process I found it very easy to process that rule and rewarding because my kitchen, food and mind was so clean.  I was being guided on this journey by a sound heart and that feeling is amazing.  To help assist with your challenge below I documented a few steps I took to get started.  

 

Know what being raw is about and do independent research  

I was ignorant about what I could have raw and I only focused on the fact my food was no longer cooked.   There are plenty of support groups and recipe sites dedicated to raw living on social media. You have to do independent research, You have to find support and You have to be mentally prepared.  Your taste and journey should be specific to your needs. 

 

Shopping list and household must have

Now that you have a feel for recipes build a shopping list. I’ll share a few must have items below but go hard on veggies. Also, you must have a food processor.  I did survive without a food processor on my first challenge but I also had a Vitamix. Let me say the food processor made my life amazing ;-)  Recipes were on point and easy!

Here's are some simple ingredients to add to your grocery list:

Spinach – Smoothies and Salad

Romaine – Wraps and Salads

Banana –  Overnight oatmeal (here's a recipe - use Google for more suggestions), Snack and Ice Cream (here's a recipe)

Apples – Overnight Oatmeal, Juice, Salads

Ginger – Juice, Salads, Salad Dressings, Smoothies

Nuts – Snack, Salads, Raw Desserts

Oils – Cold-pressed Coconut oil and Olive oil are must haves

Bell Peppers – Will give any salad a nice color and crunch

Others – Cucumbers, Carrots, Onions, Oranges, Melons, etc... 

 

Meal Planning is essential

Your mind will trick you because everything raw can be prepared in about 10 minutes! Heck, it’s easy to pick up a banana and run. However, you need more than 1 banana when you’re out here in these streets all day. I’ve done it and trust me I’ve become unable to talk too until I got to food in my system. My typical raw day planned...

Breakfast – Overnight Oatmeal with Chia seeds and your favorite topping!

Snack –  Sweet Banana (2)

Lunch – Banging Salad

Snack – Nuts and Celery

Dinner – Raw Wrap

These are just a few lessons I’ve learned to get you started. Remember being raw is more than not cooking your food - it’s preparing it in a way that helps your mind, body and spirit work more effectively for you.

Follow DeChantell on Facebook

 

How to Plan Your Vegan Breakfast | Vegan Meal Planning for Families

Breakfast is the simplest meal of the day for us.

No seriously, I keep it on autopilot.

I have things to do like sleep in (*sigh*) or scrolling through Baller Alert's Instagram from bed (*side eye*).

Anywho, enough about me and my bad habits...

This post (and above) video is about how to plan a simple vegan breakfast each week.

Notice I said each week and not daily meal planning.

I actually only plan our breakfast about 4 times a month because we typically eat the same breakfast each day for a week.

Seriously, no one complains...

Plus this method works really well for saving time and money. We can all use more of each

Here are 10 easy breakfast combinations that you can serve your family:

  • Toast/Bagels (check ingredients to ensure there's no eggs, dairy or honey) + Fresh fruit or Smoothie
  • Vegan Pancakes + Fresh fruit
  • Grits + Tempeh bacon
  • Cereal with almond milk (here's a list of vegan-friendly cereals) + Fresh fruit
  • Tofu scramble + Vegan sausage (Field Roast & Tofurky are options) + Fresh fruit
  • Oatmeal with vegan margarine or coconut oil, fresh fruit, cinnamon, raw sugar/agave nectar
  • Roasted potatoes + Sautéed spinach + Fresh fruit
  • Vegan Waffles (if you don't want to make a homemade waffle, Vans has a vegan pre-packed option) + Fresh fruit
  • Coconut yogurt (So Delicious is a good brand) + Granola + Fresh fruit
  • Vegan muffins + Fresh fruit

You're probably already eating the same breakfast each week anyway, so continue that traditional right into your vegan lifestyle.

 What We Ate Today video series...look at those videos and blog posts here

Keep it simple and veganize some of your current favorite breakfast meals to get started.

 

What's your favorite vegan breakfast? Leave a comment below 

Plan Your Dinners in 30 Minutes of Less

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Ready, Set, Go Vegan is a starter guide to help you and your family go vegan together. Ain't nobody got time to make multiple meals, so I cover meal planning a lot in the guide. Here's a little strategy I use when I wait until the last minute to plan dinners for the week.

My go-to meals are spaghetti, tacos and stir-fry. I love using these simple dishes because the options are endless.  

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3 possible combinations for each meal:

Spaghetti

*Spaghetti noodles + mushrooms + red onion + spaghetti sauce

*Spaghetti noodles + vegan crumbles + spaghetti sauce

*Spaghetti-Nos with Lentil balls  

Tacos

*Roasted chickpeas (seasoned with cumin & chili powder) + lettuce + salsa + taco shells

*Seitan + cilantro + vegan sour cream + taco shells

*Black Beans + mushrooms + arugula lettuce + vegan cheese + taco shells

Stir-fry

Vegan sausage + broccoli bell peppers + red onion + rice

Tempeh + red bell pepper + onion + rice (full recipe here)

Tofu + canned tomatoes + onion + basil + rice (full recipe here)

There's so many possibilities with all these meals! Carrots, kale, spinach, kidney beans, sweet potatoes, are just a few more ingredients you can play around with.

 

What are some of your go-to meals?