I tried Veganuary and I didn’t hate it

The month I decided to go fully plant-based. [Today On The Spruce]( [The Spruce Daily]( [Today On The Spruce]( [Today On The Spruce] [Lemon Heading Photo]( [I Tried Veganuary and I Didn’t Hate It]( [Victoria Heydt]( Every January, we ask, and are asked, “What are your New Year's Resolutions?” “What will you be giving up this year?” Which usually gives me some anxiety. Why do I have to give up something? I truly dislike having the perspective of “giving up” because then I start to look at how my life will be lacking in that department. If I can’t have this, I want it more. At which point, I’m setting myself up for failure. Rather, I want to look at my new year as a way to gain something. Specifically, gaining strength; with my body, my resolve, and my discipline. It’s a challenge, you see? And I do enjoy a good challenge. (Me? Competitive? No…) As I’m keen on learning new skills and expanding upon the ones I currently have, I decided to go [vegan]( for January— affectionately called Veganuary. This was going to definitely test my resolve and discipline. I’ve toyed around with the idea for the past few years, but even with a background in culinary arts, I felt intimidated by the prospect of only being able to eat [plant-based items](. No meat? Okay, I could do that. No seafood? Okay, this is a bit harder, as I love seafood. No dairy? I use non-fat Greek yogurt in and on everything. Truly, everything. No animal byproducts? I’m definitely going to be reading lots of labels, aren’t I? This is going to be interesting. So, I ordered some [vegan cookbooks]( (America’s Test Kitchen was my favorite!), spread out on my couch, and started to digest what the next 31 days were going to look like. One thing you should know about me is that I eat a lot. I mean A LOT. My family, friends, and colleagues can attest to the fact that I’m usually [snacking]( on something at least every 2 hours. Homemade [hummus](, protein balls, and apples with [peanut butter]( have been staples for me for a while and typically make it into a majority of my Zoom meetings, so it was great to see I could continue eating those. Phew! What I really needed, though, was [vegan dinner ideas](. I searched through our site and came up with a robust list of possibilities. I’ve already made [this vegan pesto]( (doctoring it a bit with some vegan Parmesan cheese), cauliflower and fennel pesto pizza with [homemade whole wheat dough]( (I used organic sugar to keep it vegan), and our [vegan tofu scramble](. All were super tasty and pretty filling, without feeling like I had an anvil in my stomach. (Okay, vegan foods, I see you!) While I’ve been struggling with not having dairy (whoa, did I quickly realize during this experience how much I used it as a go-to snack or topping), I’m excited about how creative I can be with my meal planning. On the menu for this upcoming week: I’ll be making that delicious vegan pesto again, pairing it with fettuccine and [this cheesy vegan garlic bread]( that has me drooling; I’ll be making [vegan chickpea burgers](, to satiate that burger craving I get every once in awhile; and [these delightful looking cauliflower tacos](. For more insight into how Veganuary is going, check out [this article]( detailing my journey. Are you vegan or enjoy plant-based cooking? Share your favorite plant-based recipes with us on Instagram and tag us @thespruceeats! - Victoria Heydt Editorial Project Manager, The Spruce Eats [READ MORE]( [Today On The Spruce](#) Recipes We Love [Sugar]( [18 Delicious Vegan Snacks to Munch On]( [5-Minute Homemade Peanut Butter]( [Sugar]( [Dinner Ideas That Prove Going Vegan Is Easy and Delicious]( [Cheesy Vegan Garlic Bread]( [Today On The Spruce](#) One Thing [Heading Living Room]( [The Easiest Way to Peel and Cut Butternut Squash]( [Watch & Learn]( [Today On The Spruce]( [Spruce Eats Banner]( [Today On The Spruce](#) More From The Spruce [What Is Caerphilly Cheese?]( [Best Japanese Snack Boxes of 2021]( [What Is Lotus Root?]( [Trending Topics](#) [Breads]( [Winter Recipes]( [Comforting Pasta Dishes]( [Seasonal Produce]( [Soups, Stews, and Chili]( [Breakfast Casseroles]( Did somebody forward you this email? [Sign Up for The Spruce Eats Newsletter!]( Have feedback? Send us an email at contact@thespruceeats.com, subject line: Newsletter Feedback. [The Spruce]( [The Spruce]( [The Spruce]( [The Spruce]( You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to The Spruce Eats newsletter. [Unsubscribe](page=spruce) © 2021 Dotdash.com — All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy.]( A DOTDASH BRAND 28 Liberty Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY, 10005