A Lenten Update

I had big plans to post regular updates on my Lenten promise to give up meat.  But seeing as how this is me we are talking about, of course that didn't happen. 

I'm sure you're not surprised. :)

I intended for this Lent to be very meaningful and to think of Christ and His sacrifice every time I was tempted to eat meat, but that didn't really happen either.  I was very conscious of my choices and my reasonings at the beginning of the Lenten season, but as I got used to choosing vegetarian options, this sort of went by the wayside. 

However, in terms of sticking with my promise, I think I did very well.  In the past 43 days, I have eaten meat twice.  Once in an egg roll (pork) and in a few wantons (pork again) in some wanton soup and the other time was a chicken biscuit (chicken. obviously). 

Wait, do the egg roll and wantons count as two separate incidences?  I'm going to say no.

The Chinese food meat intake happened because a) I was sick, b) they were out of hot and sour soup (how this happened I have no idea), and c) I can't eat Chinese without ordering an egg roll.  It's un-American.  Or is it un-Chinese?  Probably un-American.

So that was really an accident.  I had a sinus infection and was very medicated and not thinking clearly.  So - not my fault.  Plus I had a great case of Catholic guilt after which has to count for something.

The chicken biscuit incidence was not a mistake.  It was intentional.  I was running late for work, I was starving, and dammit, I wanted a freaking chicken biscuit from Chick-fil-A! (Side note: Chick-fil-A is the only place where I will eat a chicken biscuit.  Whoever says a chicken biscuit is a chicken biscuit is a liar.)  So I allowed myself to be even later for work and got my chicken biscuit and some tater tots. (Second side note: Chick-fil-A is also the only place where I will eat tater tots.  I'm not weird at all.  Not one bit.) 

And you know what?  That chicken biscuit didn't taste good.  Not at all.  I was devastated.  Here I had made myself late for work (okay, so not that big of deal), sat in a never ending drive-thru line, paid close to $6.00 for breakfast, and broke my Lenten promise for chicken that tasted bad. 

I have no idea if my taste buds were off from not eating meat or if that chicken biscuit really wasn't great to begin with.  Needless to say, one bad experience has not stopped me from craving a chicken biscuit almost every day. 

So what have I learned from this experience?  I've learned:
1. Being a vegetarian is hard.  It gets you weird looks, especially in the south.  It's hard to eat out at places with limited options (such as my hospital cafeteria which specializes in chicken wings and hot dogs).  And peanut butter and jelly gets really old really fast.
2. Being a vegetarian does not mean weight loss.  If anything, I've probably gained weight from relying too much on pasta, cheese, and other, wonderful but unhealthy, dairy options. 
3. I like tofu. And quinoa.  And veggie burgers. Okay, these are all things I've eaten before, but I reaffirmed the fact that I like them.  I didn't expand my vegetarian cooking options quite as much as I hoped, but I did try a few new recipes.
4. That I cannot be a vegetarian forever.  My waistline can't handle it and I really like having the option of eating meat when I want to.
5. That giving up something for Lent just for the sake of giving up something doesn't mean jack if you don't keep the real reason behind it.

Lent comes to an end on Sunday and I've already planned out exactly where I'm going to be eating on Monday.  I'm sure I'm going to make myself sick eating meat three times in one day , but I really want a hamburger! And a chicken biscuit.

Did you give up anything for Lent?  How did you do?  What did you learn?

Menu Plan Monday

Last week I did not do a good job of sticking to my menu plan.  I had lunch out more than I planned and ate dinner out with friends when I had a perfectly good meal at home.  Lately, I've also noticed myself falling back into my old single girl routine of eating too many snacks, ordering pizza way too much, and baking too many sweet treats.  

Not that any of that is bad every once in a while, but too much of anything is a bad thing.  So this week, I'm making a committed effort to stick to my menu and eat at home.  I'm also trying to fix healthier meals.  I had hoped that going vegetarian for Lent would lead to a small weight loss and healthier attitude towards food, but so far that hasn't been the case.  I don't think I'm getting enough protein because I've noticed that I'm always hungry, so I'm incorporating some lentils, shrimp, and leafy greens into this week's plan to help combat that. 

Sunday

Lunch: Leftover pizza

Dinner: Roasted shrimp, potatoes and zucchini (bumped from last week)

Monday

Lunch: Leftover pizza

Dinner: Lentils and rice (check the comments in this post for how I prepare this)

Tuesday

Lunch: Leftovers lentils and rice

Dinner: Leftovers aka clean out the fridge

Wednesday

Lunch: Soup, toasted cheese sandwich

Dinner: Pasta Florentine (made without the meat)

Thursday

Lunch: Leftover pasta

Dinner: Veggie burger, frozen vegetables

Friday

Lunch: PBandJ sandwich, chips and hummus

Friday: TBD

Breakfasts are orange-oatmeal muffins or Greek yogurt parfaits.  I'm thinking of making cookie cake bars for something sweet to have around the house and to take to work. 

Any vegetarians out there?  What are your favorite (and frugal) protein choices?  What's on your menu this week?

This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday.

Ashes On My Head Can Only Mean One Thing

As I sat in the hospital’s worship service today, I was still worrying about what I was going to give up for Lent. 

Yes, today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.  I rarely talk about religion here because I don’t want to offend or discourage anyone from thinking I’m not open to your thoughts and opinions no matter your beliefs.  (Note: I’m very open to whatever you have to say about anything, not just religion.)  But since today is such an important day, I thought it was appropriate to talk a little about Ash Wednesday, Lent, and what it all means to me.

If you clicked on either of the above links, you’ve probably realized that they refer you to information about Catholicism.  I was raised Catholic and it’s the denomination I continue to practice today.  I have never and will never be a very devout Catholic, nor do I adhere to many of the Church’s more conservative teachings and practices.  But I believe in the Catholic interpretation of the Bible and I prefer the Catholic service (I do like me some tradition.).  And I’ve always participated in Lent.   

Which is why I found myself sitting in the chapel at the hospital.  I couldn’t leave work today to go to mass, but I needed to go to a service and listen.  I needed to pray in preparation for the season and get my ashes on my forehead.  And I needed to get my mind off of how incredibly hungry I was (I did the Catholic thing and fasted this morning). 

Lent is about sacrifice, both your own personal sacrifice and remembering the ultimate sacrifice Christ made for us when he died on the cross.  Your Lenten sacrifice should call to mind Christ’s sacrifice. 

I’ve given up a variety of things over the years for Lent.  Fast food, chocolate, soft drinks, butter, caffeine, and swearing are some that I can think of off the top of my head.  Some I failed miserably before the first week was over (I don’t even think I made it through the first 24 hours without caffeine), but some really changed me.  I used to put butter on everything from ordinary things like bread and potatoes to PopTarts and every vegetable imaginable.  Now I rarely butter anything but my bread, preferring to enjoy the taste of the food as opposed to the taste of the butter.

But this year I couldn’t think of anything. 

I mean, I thought of a lot of things, like Diet Coke, coffee, sweets, and pasta, but none of those were things that I really felt like I could actually give up.  Even reminding myself that my sacrifice is nowhere near as difficult as Christ’s was would help.  Especially with the Diet Coke.  I couldn’t have made it a week. 

But then it hit me, right there during the AME chaplain singing the hymn (It’s a Baptist hospital in an urban neighborhood – no one is Catholic around here).  Catholics always abstain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent.  (It should be noted that “meat” does not mean fish or shellfish.  Meat refers to red meats, poultry, and pork.)  And I’ve been thinking about going vegetarian for budget reasons, but have resisted because I really do love meat. 

So I’m giving up meat (as in the Catholic definition of meat) for Lent.  It’s a sacrifice because I eat out a good bit with friends and it’s always hard to find vegetarian options on the menu and it’s a sacrifice because I’m tempted to eat meat and cook with meat all the time.  But it’s also something that’s going to be good for my body and for my wallet.  I’m pretty excited about it. 

Do you participate in Lent?  If so, what are you sacrificing?