Toficken, or Seiticken, or ummm...Well, it's just NOT chicken.

I tried another vegan meat substitute the other day, and I wanted to share the results.  What I used was West Soy Chicken Style Seitan.  I'm providing a link, just so you can see what it looks like in the package, but this is not where I got mine.  I got it at Whole Foods, and I didn't pay that much for it.

Anyway, we like a lot of stir-fry type dishes, and R's favorite is Pad Thai, which he actually makes more often than I do, and he does an awesome job.  We usually use chicken, but sometimes use cubed firm tofu.  We decided to try the chicken substitute this time.

The verdict?  Well, it looks like chicken.  It comes out of the package in pieces that look just like shredded white meat chicken.  And it tasted okay.  Not exactly like chicken.  I think what bothered me was that the texture was a little rubbery.  Not bad, but definitely not chicken.

I asked R, if he had not known it wasn't chicken, would he be able to tell?  And he said no, probably not.  But I think I would have known.

My opinion is, I still prefer to just not eat meat at all, than to eat fake meat.  I'd rather have the cubed tofu, or even just have the rice or noodles with veggies, and not try to pretend I'm eating chicken if I'm not.

Also, I'd like to share that I was driving to the store this week and seriously craving meat.  I was thinking of all the types of meat I might like to buy, hamburger, chicken, a nice beef roast...When I drove right up on a chicken truck.  And I was stuck behind it, following all those pathetic looking chickens.  Dirty, crammed in their cages, staring at me with their beady eyes.  And I just thought, ugh, I cannot eat one now.  EG doesn't eat poultry for this very reason.  She just thinks it's gross.

Then I passed the truck, and I swear, came upon a pick up with the back full of goats, and a TURKEY.  It was a conspiracy, I tell ya.  I got to the store and bought some tofu.

It Sneaks Up On You

Maybe I'm talking about the days - and how the weeks fly by and if you aren't paying attention - and before you know you've lost track of an entire month.

Or maybe I'm talking about the meals - and how summer turns into Ice Cream Fest '11! Or how bad habits pile on top of each other. And how one bad food choice can lead to another one - and soon you are having daily "treats" or "cheats".

But really - it's all of these and more. We used to have a yearly wellness exam that would occur at our workplace - it included all the blood numbers and helped you to reflect on your daily choices and how they add up to changes that you can't see. And then our insurance changed - like 2 years ago. So for 2 years I have lacked this formal self-reflection.

So I finally broke down and went to see my primary doc. Who greeted me with these words...

Dr: So, Regina I have not seen you in almost 2 years. I see you've gained 20+ (I blacked out the real number) pounds since I last saw you.

R: Ouch.

I'm awaiting the results from the blood work - but with cold hard facts like 20+ pounds...I'd be a fool to think they will be good. But this is kind of how it happens - the weight (the budget, the days) just sneak up on you and then you are kind of floored about how you got so far off track.

And I want to believe that it doesn't require a boot camp to get back on track - but regular doses of intentional choices - which sounds about as exhausting as boot camp - only it never ends. So while I await the dreaded numbers - I'll see if I can't start to get back on track with some good choices. I'm not sure that a yearly look at the numbers will be enough to keep me on track - it would seem that quarterly check-ins would be more regular to maintain the focus. How do you keep your focus? What keeps you going?