2012 Round Up

Hi all, how are you doing?  I thought I would round up 2012 with a little list of things I've done that I'm proud of and also a list of intentions for 2013.  Ooh I love nothing more that a good list.  It's wonderful to procrastinate.

First off though, below, is a lovely pasta dish I made when I got back from Sheffield.  I mixed chopped tomatoes, cucumber, mint, onion, chilli flakes, lime juice and balsamic vinegar together before adding it to some cooked wholewheat pasta with vegan pesto, avocado and sunflower seeds.  SO GOOD!!  Mint and chilli work so well together, it was really refreshing.  I had intended to save some for the next day but that didn't happen.....

Now on to 2012, and what a year 2012 has been.  It certainly has been a year of change :)

• I became vegan
• I joined a gym for the first time in my life
• I started running
• I lost a stone
• I moved to Norfolk (100 miles away from Southend!)
• I started a new job
• I started a blog

When I moved at the end of October I had to quit my gym and I haven’t kept up with my running which is something I’m going to remedy in the New Year. I really miss exercising and the excuse it gives you to eat more food!

Here's some Save the Tuna Salad I made from the Kris Carr Crazy Sexy Kitchen book I got for Christmas.  I added extra veggies and served it in gem lettuce leaves.  I used cashews instead of almonds as the recipe calls for but it still tasted good.  I didn't have almonds but will get some for next time and I think I added some water when it wasn't called for either so it was a little on the runny side too.  Next time I will stick to the exact recipe :)  I added some hummus and vegan mayo to eat it with.

Save the Tuna Salad (almost!)

Save the Tuna in my new blender :)

 

I’m so pleased I became vegan, I love the food I am eating and I love the online community that’s there to share it all with.  There are so many wonderful websites and blogs to see and so many that inspired me to start my own.   I have to say the two biggest influences on me have been Ginger is the New Pink and Oh She Glows.  PLEASE check out these websites if you haven’t done so before.  

Lauren at GITNP eats a high raw vegan diet and is very inspirational; she opened my eyes to juicing, Kris Carr, cocoa nibs and raw food. Angela at Oh She Glows posts vegan recipes and is in the midst’s of writing a cook book that I am so looking forward to getting my hands on, even if I have to wait until 2014!  Both of these blogs convinced me that going vegan was the right choice to make; both for health and animal welfare reasons.  They also made me realise that you can be vegan and still have a huge amount of yummy food to choose from, especially when you get inventive in the kitchen.

My intentions for the New Year are as follows:
 

Eat a healthier vegan diet

Start exercising again

Reduce my chemical intake (in foods and cosmetics)

Lose another stone

Travel to a foreign country (I’ve never been abroad!)

Be more frugal!

I also want to keep up my posting and investigate new and wonderful things :) I am looking forward to 2013.  January always seems like to be the best time to start again and I actually can’t wait.  What are you looking forward to in 2013?  Have you made yourself any lists or plans?

Before I go, we got another bunny!  She is called Rosie and is only about 3 months old.  We are currently trying to bond her with Harvey but they seem a bit fighty so we have to be careful.  It was much easier to bond Harvey with Mabel who sadly had to be put down a few months ago.  I think we will need lots of patience!!  It's a good job she's so pretty!! :)

Rosie :)

Harvey ready to duel with Andy's robot dinosaur...he's a brave boy!!

Have a great New Year everyone :)

Lana x