Meal Plan, Week 2 

February 3rd thru February 9th

UNDER CONSTRUCTION 🚧🏡

***PLEASE SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE FIRST COMPLETED POST***

What This Thing Is 

Among other things, this is a staging ground for my Three Tables blog where I'll be trying the foods that may eventually end up on the 3Ts site. Snacks and treats are optional, so I may or may not be including them here. I'm going to try my best to adopt the HC/LF dietary guidelines, so most, if not all the recipes will be vegan, plant-based, and low fat.

This is also where I'll put my errand reminders, to-do stuff like chores, shopping lists, and goals/project idea-ating.

This first weekly menu goes from Mon, February 3, thru Sun. February 9th.  Links will be added.

What Is HC/LF (High Carb, Low Fat) As A Dietary Approach? 

In short, HC/LF (High Carb, Low Fat), is the vegan dietary approach that limits fats in favor of whole foods such as grains, nuts, legumes, beans, fruits and vegetables. It's an approach supported by Drs. Neal Barnard, Michael Greger, John McDougall, and Joel Fuhrman, among others. Nathan Pritikin, while not a doctor, was the genius inventor, engineer, and nutritionist, who is often recognized as being one of the first to advocate for a primarily plant-based, low fat diet. Diagnosed at an early age with heart disease, Pritikin followed his plant-based, low fat diet until his death, at which time his autopsy showed that his heart was "remarkably free of disease and (his coronary arteries) were completely open, without any hint of development of fatty plaques that plug up the vessels of heart disease victims."

In contrast, most low carb diets promote eating a high fat, largely meat-based diet, and, in the case of the Ketogenic diet (keto for short), allowable are foods such as bacon, steak, and eggs; and even  something known in the keto community as "butter bombs." These are a concoction that seem generally to be made up of large amounts of butter, full fat cream cheese, artificial or alternative natural sweeteners, and flavorings. Those dieters wanting to achieve optimal weight loss strive to put their bodies into ketosis, something they do by consuming a predefined macro amount of fat, protein, and other markers. Carbohydrates are largely shunned by the keto community.

HC/LF takes the opposite approach. Carbohydrates are not the dietary villain supporters of low-carb/ higher fat diets have made them out to be, and for good reason.

Supporters of keto are very happy about the prospect of being able to consume a diet of primarily saturated fat, and so it's not surprising the (sometimes even aggressive) lengths they will go to in support of it. But then there's HC/LF, which has quietly been gaining interest among the worldwide medical community as treatment for a number of diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension, and high cholesterol, among others. New scientific research shows beneficial changes at the cellular level, and there are numerous case studies where important health markers in people diagnosed with these diseases have, in many cases, been favorably impacted, even reversed.

The benefits of HC/LF go beyond our health, however. Animal welfare is one reason this diet is gaining popularity. More people are realizing that they don't need to kill an animal--and more to the point, should not be killing animals--for food.  In addition, plant-based, vegan diets have long been praised for their less impactive role on the environment. Less land use, water use, less methane and carbon saturation. It's an obvious win-win. More on that later.

Important Facts:

1. Most vegetable oils contain 4.7 grams of fat per teaspoon, which equals about 40 calories.
2. Dr. Bernard recommends keeping total daily fat grams to 10 percent, as an HC/LF guideline.
3. For a 2000 calorie per day diet, 10% of fat daily is equal to 22 grams. To calculate, use this formula: For a 2000 calorie per day diet, multiply 2,000 by 0.10 (10%) to get 200 calories, then divide 200 by 9 to get the number of grams, 22. 
4. An avocado serving (1/4 of the avocado), has about 5 grams of fat.
5. There are roughly 9 calories in one gram of fat. There are a little less than half that amount in a gram of carbohydrate.
6. Stroke risk increases with high LDL cholesterol, high blood pressure and hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, a high sodium diet, overweight, and low blood potassium. Foods that help lower risk of stroke include potatoes, dried apricots, kidney beans, black beans, bananas, oatmeal, nuts, avocados, acorn squash, leafy greens like kale, Swiss chard, spinach, arugula, mustard and collard greens. Salmon is a food that seems to offer some protective properties against stroke; however, studies indicate the benefit is greater for women than men.

Meal Plan, Week 1

Breakfast

Mon thru Wed - Savory: sushi rice with cubed or scrambled, sauteed tofu and button mushrooms, and maybe some salsa.
Thurs thru Sat - Sweet: Hearty oatmeal with coconut sugar, raisins, cranberries, pecans, coconut flakes, and almond milk
Sun
Vegan cookup. Tofu eggs, vegan sausage or bacon, grits, salsa verde or red salsa, avocado, potato hash

Lunch

Mon thru Wed -
Healthy Palak paneer made with tofu. With a side of red lentil korma made with red lentils, almond milk, coconut flakes, tomato paste, chick peas, potato, bell peppers, raisins, onions, and cashews. Served over basmati rice.
Thurs - Sat
Rice & lotus ramen soup made with vegan stock and vegetables, mushrooms, tofu
Sun
Leftovers from earlier in the week

Dinner

Mon thru Wed -
Rice & lotus ramen soup made with vegan stock and vegetables, mushrooms, tofu
Thurs and Fri
Healthy Palak paneer made with tofu. With a side of red lentil korma made with red lentils, almond milk, coconut flakes, tomato paste, chick peas, potato, bell peppers, raisins, onions, and cashews. Served over basmati rice.
Sat
Vegan pizza with lots of roasted veg and marinara. Made on a crust of naan flat bread.
Sun
Leftovers from earlier in the week

Treats- Vegan Orange Julius, grapefruit sprinkled with sugar, oranges

Other food ideas for upcoming weeks (links will be added)

• Vegan low fat corn chowder made with corn, crushed corn, almond milk, potato, vegan veg stock, bell peppers and onion. Served with vegan croutons
• Boiled cabbage and pasta with carrots, onions, and spinach
• Vegan Ribollita 
• https://www.connoisseurusveg.com/ribollita/
• Virginia Peanut Soup made with defatted peanut powder, veg stock, onion, hot sauce, condensed coconut milk.
• Black beans & Yellow Rice
• Colorful bell peppers, onions, mushrooms. Use turmeric and veg stock to color the rice. "Meat" version: add fork shredded vegan steak tips.
• Powdered vegan cheese - shelf stable for one week, a month in fridge, three months in freezer.
• https://www.veganricha.com/2018/12/vegan-mac-and-cheese-powder.html/comment-page-1?unapproved=533912&moderation-hash=9b84a30aeb912833ee0ada732899d1d1#comment-533912
• Vegan, low-fat mac & cheese
• https://simpleveganblog.com/fat-free-vegan-mac-and-cheese/comment-page-1/#comment-630111  Only use butternut squash, cumin, and add a tapioca slurry and pinch of xantham gum for melty-gooeyness. Omit garlic and use cumin instead. Freezable.
• Avocado toast with tomatoes and arugula on whole grain bread
• 1/4 avocado and 1/4 cup peas, mashed together with salt & pepper. Spread on whole grain toast and top with sliced cherry tomatoes and a handful of arugula. Spray olive oil on lightly with Misto sprayer, not using more than 1/2 tsp. This step is optional.
• Vegan Huevos Rancheros plate
• Whole wheat pasta and chickpea salad with cucumber, sun dried tomatoes, pimento olives, and low fat/no fat salad dressing.
• Vegan chili and vegan cornbread made with flax eggs and almond milk
• Cold curried lentil salad - good with a veg consume or vegan burger
• Charred long green beans with garlic and one tsp roasted sesame oil, sesame seeds, no-fat spaeztle
• Oat milk, plain and fermented
• https://justtakeabite.com/2015/03/30/homemade-oat-milk-fermented-option/ but use vegan probiotic instead of whey for the fermented option.
• Tomato and cucumber salad with balsamic vinegar and 1 tsp olive oil
• Roasted vegetables: zucchini, bell pepper, onion, turnips, carrots, red onion, artichoke
• Slow cooker BBQ tempeh with vegan coleslaw and vegan corn bread
• https://www.yummymummykitchen.com/2017/04/easy-baked-bbq-tempeh.html
• https://minimalistbaker.com/easy-vegan-coleslaw/
• https://www.food.com/recipe/vegan-cornbread-115929

Chores - Daily

• Dishes
• Make bed
• Sweep kitchen and bathroom floor
• Scoop litter boxes
• Feed the kitties, fresh water
• Pickup the place
• Straighten sofa cushions
• Pickup Tuxie's pooh from shower and wash with bleach.
• Swish out toilet, add 1 Tbsp baking soda to bowl every few days
• Write for one hour/day. Can be book writing or blog posts.

***

Chores - Weekly

Monday

• Sweep & mop kitchen and bathroom floors
• Clean appliances and scrub down counter tops
• Clean bathroom 

Thursday

• Vacuum
• Sweep front room
• Dust
• Shampoo carpet wherever cats have blurped
• Water plants
• Check in with realtor Julienne (Joo-lean)
• Check upcoming appointments

Saturday/Sunday

• Post 8-10 items for sale on the various selling sites.
• Spa Day
• Check credit
• Do one or two loads of laundry

***

Chores - Monthly

Days 1-7 of new month

• Big laundry day, all sheets, blankets, cushion & pillow cases
• Sweep/dust walls, trim, picture frames
• Go through car wash and vacuum out interior.

Days 8-14 of new month

• Wash filter on air cleaner
• Clean out fridge and cabinets of old food/donate what is not open
• Clean out closets and other storage, including under the bed. Either donate, put in storage, sell, or put in trash

Days 15-21 of new month

• Go around the heat registers, radiators with a damp rag
• Polish furniture
• Vacuum under bed and under furniture
• Wipe down kitchen cabinets

***

Misc.

• Every two months - Empty litter boxes, wash out, and put in fresh litter. 
• Every six months - Test/change batteries in smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.

Projects - Ongoing 

• Buy color changing spackle and start filling holes in the walls/doors
• Make list of pantry stock and use to build meals
• Wash windows and scrape paint off front room windows, sweep up paint dust between storm windows
• Make weekly shopping lists of food and post here
• Continue to put items I plan to sell on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, Letgo, Mercari, Poshmark (goal is minimum of three sales per week.), or to donate, put in storage
• Organize storage unit, throw away stuff, identify what can be sold at Hollis flea market this Spring. 
• Create website to sell handbags

Important Dates

Birthdays 

Mom - 3/14

Dad - 7/29

Gwen - 2/1

Craig - 2/19

Luke - 10/15

Jim - 11/21

Brandie 3/30

Aline

Karen - 3/8

Logan - 3/29

Maxwell

Spencer 3/

Madison
Nancy - 07/29
Mary Ann - 6/21

Anniversaries

Gwen & Jim 9/17

Craig & Brandie 9/11

Luke & Aline

Upcoming events & important dates

February
Gwen's birthday
Craig's birthday

March
Mom's birthday, go for one night stay in Rye/North Beach and for lunch at Ray's.
Late March- Hancock Inn

April/May
Trip to Bar Harbor (2 nights, 3 days)

May/June
Trip to DC and visit Karen in Fredericksburg

June/July
Pick strawberries for jam and other recipes

September
Rehoboth for one week 9/19 - 9/26
Pick apples for canning

October 25
Pick up candy for Halloween. 12 bags.

December 1
Pick the Christmas cookie recipes I'll be making.

1. Russian tea cake
2. Chocolate or molasses krinkles
3. Sugar cookies with icing
4. Cardamon cookies

Mail Christmas cards and have all shopping for the kids done and wrapped.