Day 7, or "New Ingredients"

Yet another reason that I (so far) love being vegan is that it means I can go grocery shopping pretty much whenever I want, and not feel the least bit bad about it. I'm spending $0 on going out to eat, so even if I went to the store daily (which I don't actually do, but it's getting close) I'd still be spending less money than usual. 

And it's not like I'm going to the same store every day. Some days I go to the Biomarkt (my favorite days) and pick up just a few small things, usually special vegan products, because I can't get them anywhere else. Other days, I just run across the street to the little "Netto" to grab some bubble water, a loaf of bread, or a cucumber. On Tuesdays and Fridays I have the option of going to the small vegetable and fruit market located practically outside my door. And other days, like today, I'll go downtown to the huge grocery store, Kaufland, and do my basic shopping for the week. Kaufland is where I buy my salad ingredients - lettuce, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, any canned vegetables, chopped nuts, etc, and also the fruit that is too expensive to buy at the Biomarkt, where grapes can sometimes cost as much as 8.99 Euros for 1 kilo. 

This morning I had a piece of toast (topped with vegan butter and white grape jelly) and a grapefruit for breakfast, and then went downtown to the store. I spent a solid twenty minutes in the cereal section, trying to decide what would be the least harmful to my cereal addiction but still allow me to use up the rest of my soymilk. I settled on unsweetened, no-nonsense, plain old cornflakes. And I managed to have just one bowl as an afternoon snack. Lunch was, of course, a salad, but this time with two new additions: baby corn and chopped almonds. I also used up the last of the artichoke hearts. Sad day.

For dinner, I was (yet again) going to make the pasta, but somehow just didn't feel like it. I had all the ingredients for a scrumptious veggie sandwich (quickly becoming one of my favorite foods) so I settled on that instead. I bought bread today specifically with the idea of veggie sandwiches in mind, and it worked out well. The slices are huge, so I cut one in half and toasted it. Then I spread ketchup on one side and sweet Bavarian mustard on the other. On top, I put cherry tomatoes, lettuce, and a leek-carrot tofu burger (wow, I sound like such a hippie). I have to say it was my best veggie sandwich to date. Here's a photo of the sandwich-making process (very complicated, try to follow):

And the finished product:

Mmm! Guten Appetit!