SWEDEN
My ERASMUS+ summer challenge - Nova Kempe
First off I’ll try out eating a vegan/vegetarian diet. Right now I’m already trying to eat more vegetarian food, but I want to try doing all the way trough. I’ll try some vegan meals too, because it feels unnecessary to buy a bunch of vegan substitutes if I won’t eat it all up like; vegan yogurt etc.
So, I do have to admit that I have the memory of a gold fish and I did forget to take pictures some of meals. Sometimes I also had the same thing multiple times during the week.
Since it’s summer I woke up later obviously, so sometimes I’d eat a late breakfast or lunch as soon as I woke up.
I’ll also be doing the alternative transportation challenge. Because I really want to cut down on my carbon dioxide emission.
Day 1
For breakfast the first day I had nectarines with chai seeds.
And for dinner I made tofu with a soy glaze for my family, especially my dad and brother has been really against tofu and other vegetarian protein alternatives, but they actually liked this dish (even tho I burned them a bit hihi)
This day I ate entirely vegan!
Day 2
Lunch/breakfast I had an omelette with spinach, tomatoes and cottage cheese. This was SO DELICIOUS I have a strange love eggs and this is so simple to do and is super filling.
For dinner my family had hamburgers, but I requested them to buy “grilloumi” which is an alternative to halloumi from Sweden.
Day 3
Here I had some along with greek yogurt and chia seeds, and some bread my mom made.
Here I made my way into Stockholm to meet up with my parents, I took the bus because I obviously can’t drive a car. I got a library card for all the libraries in Stockholm. Before that I only had one in Vaxholm, but it’s really limited.
For dinner I had a plant beef burger from a Swedish burger chain called Max. If you ever have the chance to have “spicy avocado plant beef” TRY IT! It’s amazing.
Day 4
This morning I had some extra time and I decided to try and make oat milk. It came out really slimy, so I ended up making vegan pancakes out of it.
For an early dinner I had an omelette on toast with some cottage cheese.
Day 5
On day I was taking the bus to my friend’s summer house, it’s takes about three hours with bus and around the same with car. My parents didn’t have to drive me there and then drive back, so it was really a win win situation.
But on the bus I bought this self serve salad from the grocery store where you pay by hg. They have a lot of vegan/vegetarian options you can add, my favourite is the “chilli tofu stripes” which I absolutely love. I added some pasta, croutons, salad and cheese cubes too.
For dinner my friend mother mad this feta and broccoli pasta wich was absolutely amazing. There was also a side of salad with cucumbers and tomatoes her grandmother had grown in their garden herself.
Day 6
Today my parents went to France and me and my younger brother are going to stay with my older brother. So for breakfast the last two days of the challenge I had porridge, because it was the only thing he had breakfast wise.
During the day we walked to a near by grocery store. My brother doesn’t have a driver’s license, he takes an electric bike he’s built himself every where.
For dinner I cooked a vegetarian pasta with soy meat supplement and peppers.
Day 7
Again, I had porridge for breakfast and I forgot to take a picture of it.
For dinner we had a vegetarian nacho plate which is one of my favourite foods
Now we’re coming to the end of the challenge and end of summer. Now I’ll write a little about the “sustainable fashion” challenge I did too. When I think about it, I don’t think I bought any new produced clothes all summer. I’ve really been thinking about how much new clothes I buy, especially from fast fashion brands. So now I’ll share some of my best second hand finds!
I found this cool vest at “Erik’s hjälpen”. At the same store I bough a shirt and a black top that’s perfect for fall! I also bought a skirt and a black top.
I think the hardest part of the challenge was to get my parents to that I didn’t eat meat. But really they still got it pretty quickly. I loved trying out the new recipes, and that I could could change my family’s mind about vegetarian food. I cook the dinner a few days a week, and from now on I plan on making mostly vegetarian meals.
Vegetarian week by Isabelle Siljemark
First day:
My lunch 👆🏼
vegitarian enchiladas with keso and vegetables.
My dinner👆🏼
Ut was the best dish I have ever eaten, it was so delicious. Roasted cauliflower in panko with stir-fried vegetables.
The second day:
This pasta with tomato sauce and burrata was also really good but very spicy. As protein I used spinach which has high protein. I will definitely eat this again because it was so tasty.
The third day:
My lunch
Vegetarian nuggets from mcdonald’s. I think that it’s very good that they have vegetarian alternatives so that everyone can eat there.
My dinner 👆🏼
Vegetarian ramen with Japanese mushrooms, miso noodles, eggs, Chinese charcoal and seaweed. Yummy, all the flavors went together so well. I used egg as protein and I’ve come to the realisation that every vegetarian meal I eat always has vegetables in it. Otherwise I got protein from the boiled egg and carbohydrates from the noodles.
Fourth day:
My lunch👆🏼
Vegetarian sushi with avocado, omelette and tofu.
Nowadays they always have different vegetarian alternatives, which is very good to be able to choose when you’re not in the mood for cooking.
Today I forgot to take a picture of what I ate, so I found a similar and google. Today’s meal consisted of tomato sauce, gnocchi and mozzarella. Gnochi is somewhat a combination between pasta and potato which is both high with carbohydrates. I chose this dish because it looked interesting and I’ve never tried these different combinations put together.
Summary:
This week I made sure to choose meals that provide my body with all the essential nutrients it needs to stay healthy throughout the week. Some dishes taste even better when they're vegetarian rather than made with meat. The only challenge you might face as a vegetarian is finding new recipes, but it's not too difficult. By embracing a vegetarian lifestyle, not only do you benefit your own health, but you also contribute to a healthier climate by reducing carbon emissions from the meat industry. That's why I want to become a vegetarian.
