Falling in Love With Food ... All Over Again | Recipe, Vegan, Cooking

I'm ashamed to see how long it's been since I last posted on Good Food. And I'd rather not admit how much I'd "fallen off the wagon," in terms of cooking at home. But it seems that I'm back!
Back from where, you might be asking? Well, a little bit before my husband and I got married, he turned into a vegan. Yes! A full fledged vegan. That means no meat and no dairy. He will eat fish - wild caught only! But no dairy!

This was EXTREMELY difficult for me. I was a HUGE fan of fried chicken, mac 'n cheese, any kind of casserole imaginable, etc. I went from having a pocket full of recipes to prepare for lunches and dinners, to having absolutely NO IDEA what I was cooking from one day to the next. Honestly, I was fighting the entire vegan lifestyle. I refused to bend. If my husband wanted to eat, he was going to have to cook for himself.



It wasn't until our daughter started getting into solid food - outside of the pureed vegetables, etc - that I had to bite the bullet and change my ways. Not only was my husband vegan but he wanted our daughter to be as well. WHAT?!?! Yes. Arguments occurred on a weekly basis. Eventually, I had to give in. My husband was so adamant about our children having a better lifestyle when it came to food, I had NO argument for why they shouldn't be vegan. The pros outweighed the cons.

I'm writing this post now because my daughter and I have just finished a wonderful lunch of Zucchini Pizza Boats. Sliced zucchinis, with light pasta sauce and cheese (Vegan cheese for her, regular cheese for me). No meat, for obvious reasons... She loved it! Now she's almost 2, so my cooking habits have gotten much better. I believe I'm finally getting into a groove. To say it's not still a challenge, would be a lie. I'm a foodie. A BIG TIME foodie. I love trying out new things, but I'm not a fan of the dairy supplements, including the vegan cheese, so it's still a challenge for me when cooking mac 'n cheese or lasagna, etc.

But I'm here to say that converting or at least trying the vegan lifestyle isn't the end of the world. :-)

Bon appetite!

Zucchini Pizza Boats recipe via Beauty & Beast Mode

Ingredients Per Person:
1 medium zucchini (you'll get about 2-3 good slices out of one medium-sized, so how much you want to eat is up to you! I sliced mine into two strips)
2T pizza sauce
8 slices of turkey pepperoni
1/4 cup 2% mozzarella, shredded
Italian Seasoning, to taste
Nonstick Spray

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with nonstick spray.
Slice each zucchini lengthwise into 2-3 strips (depending on your desired thickness)
Lay the zucchini slices on the baking sheet.
Spread the pizza sauce the length of the zucchini.
Lay 4 slices of pepperoni onto each slice.
Cover with cheese.
Sprinkle with Italian Seasoning.

Bake until cheese is bubbly - about 10 minutes.

Nutrition:
Calories 149 / Carbs 11g / Fat 7g / Protein 14g