What I Do When I'm Starving

Part of being vegan is maintaining a vigilance, a level of organizational skills that keep us ahead of the game. Oh, who am I kidding?  Sometimes, in a bustling household on a weekend, I find myself truly operating as if I were the clown in the circus spinning plates balanced on sticks, running from plate to plate, just trying to keep track of which one needs a little spin to keep it from toppling. That's where I found myself this morning, lost in thought while writing an article, while simultaneously responding to the needs of kids, husband, telephone and dogs. Suddenly I realized I had forgotten to eat. It was way too late for oatmeal.  I needed substance.

I started boiling water before I even had a plan. When in doubt, pull out the pasta. Whole grain penne this time.  Then I began pulling food out of the fridge in a random fashion, really just a collection of things that would each be delightful to me on its own.  While the pasta was still boiling, I filled a bowl with jarred marinara sauce, great northern beans, fresh spinach leaves and capers. I popped the bowl into the microwave for a minute just to take the chill off and then mixed in the drained pasta.  To top it all off, smoky, cheesy nutritional yeast!  (What an unfortunate moniker for such a delicious food!)  Start to finish, this meal took me only 10 minutes!   It was YUM!

I love to think of myself as an artiste with food, I like to imagine that I am worth the extra effort, the time spent perusing stores and recipes, but that is not always reality.  I can't always execute a plan. But I don't have to sacrifice my vegan principles. Keeping your larder stocked with some basic staples that won't go bad is a good idea, for moments like the one I had today.