“What even is ‘Veganury’?”, we hear you ask. Veganury is a challenge to give up eating meat and animal products for the whole of January. Some do it for animal welfare reasons, some do it for environmental reasons, some maybe even just for economic reasons, whatever the reason, it is a great way to prove to yourself that you don’t need to rely on animal products for a decent meal.
There is, however, one caveat.
Going vegan doesn’t automatically mean eating healthier.
There is an unhealthy way and a healthy way to do a vegan diet. Try to steer clear of packaged foods and remember, just because it has a ‘vegan’ label on it, it doesn’t mean it’s healthy! Instead, focus on fresh vegetables, pulses, tofu, beans, nuts, and fruit.
Here are our favourite healthy vegan VITL Life recipes to get you started:
Rainbow rolls with crispy tofu ginger peanut sauce
Crunchy, colourful and delicious. Perfect for lunchboxes!
Cooked up by: @reachingforgreens
Black bean chili with sweet potato wedges
You won’t miss meat with this mighty Mexican meal. Mmmm-mmm.
Roast pumpkin, turmeric & argan soup
Often forgotten post-Halloween, pumpkin is nutritious, cheap and goes a long way!
Cooked up by: @cyntra.in.the.city
Healthy grain-free pesto pizza
‘Vegan’ and ‘pizza’ and ‘healthy’ are rarely two words you’ll find together but we’ve finally cracked it. Get creative and enjoy with your favourite veggie toppings.
Cauliflower and butterbean soup
Yes, another soup - but it is the season for it after all. This soup provides lots of fibre and protein from the beans and it’s dead easy to make.
Roasted beetroot hummus
Hummus is great and all but PURPLE hummus is where it's really at.
Harissa aubergine cauliflower “couscous”
This tasty, low-carb wonder provides 3 of your 5-a-day in just one easy dish.
Cardamom & coconut porridge
A fragrant twist to this traditional winter warmer.
Cooked up by: @sugarfreesiblings
Goji berry & beetroot energy balls
Perfect energy-boosters when you’re on the go.
Cooked up by: @lily_soutter_nutrition
And a couple of sweet vegan treats to reward all your great vegan-ing:
Protein cinnamon swirls
Cooked up by: @ThePlantifulChef
Raw coconut almond fudge
Cooked up by: @hannahdarvas
And don’t forget this advice from our favourite vegan blogger, Stacey Horler from Goodness Is Gorgeous: “Making sure your pantry is stocked with the essentials is key; having the basics on hand makes life a lot of easier when you’re cooking from scratch and can help you get creative.” Check out Stacey's top 5 vegan diet essentials here.