Happy Herbivore Meal Plans

Portobello Verde Tacos from Happy Herbivore's weekly meal plans. Around 320 calories, 12 grams of fat, 46 grams of carbs, 10 grams of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, and 10 grams of protein for all this. These tacos are extremely satisfying; I could eat them every day!

This week I finally got around to starting Happy Herbivore's Meal Plans. The reason I say "got around to it" is because I purchased a year subscription back in September and have been printing out the meal plans and saving them for when I was ready. I follow Happy Herbivore on Facebook, and I enjoy making the recipes she shares. 

You might be thinking why didn't I buy one of her cookbooks, but I really wanted to follow the meal plans. I just didn't have the will power. You see, her meal plans consist of daily meals and snacks that by the end of the day equal 1,200 calories. Plus, she very, very rarely uses ingredients with oil or added fat in them (she avoids cooking oils, vegan mayo, fake and processed products, etc.). 

How the heck do you cook onions without oil -- was my first thought. How do you enjoy salad without dressing? 

This Mexican Rice Soup had a nice crunch from the veggies and hints of sweetness from the corn. My dish wasn't a soup because I didn't cook the brown rice with the veggies, which required broth or water. I had made rice the other night, so I added the already cooked brown rice to the pan once the veggies were done cooking. Oh, and when you cook onions or any other veggie, just layer the pan with a little broth or water instead of oil. Worked just fine! Half this pan is one serving and contains 388 calories, 20 grams of fat (which comes from the avocado, but I omitted that, so the dish was virtually fat-free), 46 grams of carbs, 10 grams of fiber, and 9 grams of protein.

I started a plant-based lifestyle back in January 2013 for animal welfare and my health. I love being vegan and have no desire to ever eat animal products again. Since January 2013, I've lost 15 pounds, but the weight-loss has stopped there. I've read so many wonderful testimonials about how Happy Herbivore's Meal Plans have helped people lose massive amounts of weight. I would cheer for those individuals she'd highlight on a weekly basis, but I never took the final step of following the plan myself. Until Monday...

I definitely love to add salt and a pinch of sugar here and there to my dishes. I also add oil to any pan I put on the stove. Since Monday, I haven't cooked anything with oil, nor have I added any sugar or much salt (very small pinch here and there when I used water instead of broth in a recipe). I have so much energy! I usually feel sluggish in the afternoon and often turn to coffee or tea for a small pick-me-up. I haven't needed anything like that since starting this meal plan.

I thought this Curried Red Lentil Soup was going to be so bland because the recipe doesn't call for salt, but the broth I used added enough sodium. Plus, the curry and cumin spices elevated the dish. But what made the soup so comforting was the chopped celery. I felt like a little kid eating mom's home-cooked soup on a school night. There's just something about cooked celery... My husband, who usually finds anything without a gallon of hot sauce on it bland, raved about this soup. I added a few dashes of sriracha of course, but he didn't find the soup lacking in flavor at all. 2-1/4 cups of this soup has 389 calories, 1 gram of fat, 69 grams of carbs, 31 grams of fiber, 6 grams of sugar, and 25 grams of protein. 

I even ate a salad yesterday without dressing....yup, no dressing! I filled a big bowl with chopped lettuce, some celery, and then I splashed the juice of one lime over the salad and added hot sauce (a little too much hot sauce, so I had to kind of eat around the hot lettuce leaves). 

Did you know you can enjoy salad without oil? I sure didn't. This salad is dressed with lime juice and hot sauce. It was delicious. This wasn't on the meal plan, but I was craving a salad. I looked at what was used for a dressing on another meal-plan salad recipe and used that to top the lettuce and celery in the bowl. 

The salad was amazing. Even my husband asked what new dressing I bought. I told him it was lime juice and hot sauce. He just blinked at me and then continued to shovel the salad into his mouth. 

There's definitely been an adjustment. I'm still getting used to eating rolled oats without salt or sugar (I'm allowed to add fresh/frozen fruit), but my views on eating are changing, which I'm so happy about. I don't need oil or fake or processed foods for flavor, and I'm loving the simplicity of these healthy, tasty recipes.

The quantities, too, have been amazing. Because the dishes are low calorie, the portions are sometimes so large I have to eat some of it later. I also like that Happy Herbivore -- aka Lindsay Nixon -- encourages you to customize to your tastes. So, if you want fewer carbs, swap out the grains for greens. If you need more bulk, add more veggies. 

And some other good news -- since Monday I've lost 1 to 2 pounds. I have an old scale that's not digital, but the needle is definitely pointing to a lower number than it was on Monday. 

I'll keep you posted on my progress. I definitely see good things ahead! 

Recipe: Tamale Casserole with Neat Mexican Mix

In yesterday’s post I reviewed Neat, which is a shelf-stable, dry-mix, meat-alternative product that’s available in three flavors: Mexican, Italian, and Original.

Using the Mexican mix, I made a hearty tamale casserole inspired by a recipe from Plan To Eat. 

Tamales are delicious but definitely require a bit of time to prepare. That’s why I like making tamale casseroles because I cook the filling, throw it in a pan, top it with the masa dough, and then bake. The trick to a perfect topping is steaming the masa dough so it obtains the tender, flaky consistency of a tamale cooked in a corn husk.

The last couple times I’ve made a tamale casserole, I prepared my dish, topped it with the masa, and then set the glassware on a rack inside of a roasting pan. I then added enough water into the roasting pan so the water level came about halfway up the side of the glassware. I covered the entire roasting pan and glassware with a few sheets of aluminum foil and baked it. The water bath steamed the masa effectively. 

I wanted to try Plan To Eat’s way because it didn’t involve the water bath. I did cover the glassware with foil because I was concerned the masa topping would get dry without it.

Masa is fun to work with because the texture is very fine. When you add a liquid, the mixture feels soft and fluffy in your hands. 

Tamale Casserole

Ingredients:

Topping:

• 2 cups masa
• 1-1/2 tsp of baking powder
• ½ tsp of salt
• ½ c of melted coconut oil
• 2 cups of vegetable broth

Directions:

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and then pour in the melted coconut oil and vegetable broth. Mix with a spoon and then your hands until the dough can be shaped into a ball. Set aside the bowl and complete the filling.

Filling:

• 1 package of Neat Mexican mix, prepared and set aside
• 1 T of oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 c. salsa
• ½ c. corn
• 1 can of black beans, drain and rinsed
• 1 c. of chopped olives
• Optional: chopped jalapenos, bell peppers, green onions.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Over medium heat, saute the onions in the oil in a large skillet. After 5 minutes, add the minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the salsa, corn, beans, and prepared Neat mix. Simmer for 3-5 minutes and then remove from the heat. The Neat mixture will break down in the skillet and take on the texture of refried beans. You want the filling to be on the wetter side, so add more salsa juice or a couple tablespoons of veggie broth if the mixture starts to get pasty. Taste and add salt if needed.

The onion, corn, bean, and Neat mixture.

Transfer the filling to a 13-by-9-inch pan. Top with the chopped olives. (I also added chopped green onions). Grab a handful of the masa dough and flatten it in between your hands before laying it on the filling; repeat until the filling is covered. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and leave it covered on the stove for 10 minutes or so. 

Once in the glassware, I topped the mixture with chopped olives and green onions.

I flattened the masa dough in my hands and then placed the pieces over the mixture.

The masa topping was flavorful and slightly moist. The water-bath method produces a slightly moister topping, but the difference isn’t that great. With the water-bath method, you bake the dish for about an hour and then allow it to cool under the foil for 10-15 minutes. Bake longer if the topping looks like it needs more steaming.

I topped this tamale pie with salsa and some homemade Cilantro Avocado cream sauce, recipe from Oh She Glows here. (Scroll down for cream recipe)

A piece of tamale casserole topped with salsa and a cilantro avocado cream sauce.

The dish was spicy, sweet, tangy, and briny. The beans and corn gave a nice chew, while the Neat provided a creamy texture. The masa topping delivered a slight corn flavor and pastry-like texture. This is a dish worth making again!