Welcome to What I eat in a week in Dublin, where we find out what Dubliners are having. We’re asking people who live in this fine city what they are really having for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This isn’t a platform for lecturing or snarky comments, just a place for foodies to tell us what they are putting in their face holes during any given week.
After a successful week one, I gotta say, I start out week two feeling nothing shy of smug. I really anticipated that I would be struggling a hell of a lot more on my Veganuary journey, but so far it’s kind of been a breeze. Besides the odd craving, and the few near slip ups (remember kids, naan bread ain’t vegan) things have gone pretty smoothly, and I’m excited to get cracking on another week.
Sunday 8th January
Morning
No Sunday morning would be complete without a bagel, so I had one half with smashed avocado, and one half with VioLife vegan cream cheese. The cream cheese had a weird consistency, almost like those take-the-day-off balms from Clinique, but it actually tasted very similar to the real deal. I topped my bagel with sliced cherry tomatoes, as well as some balsamic glaze to give it that gourmet look.
Afternoon
Lunch was a hearty portion of pasta with a big dollop of Happy Pear spicy red pepper pesto, as well as sliced peppers and onions. The VioLife vegan mozzarella didn’t let me down either, giving it that “cheesy” flavour (even if it didn’t quite melt the way regular cheese does).
Evening
January is a quiet month, meaning I’ve not been in a position where I’ve ordered food out yet. Instead I went for a safer route and ordered my first vegan takeaway, from Indian restaurant Rasa. They had a few vegan options, and I ultimately went with vegetable samosas for my starter and chana masala for my main. While the masala was tasty, it was hella salty, but the veggie samosas were chef’s kiss stunning.
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Monday 9th January
Morning
Coffee kick started my day, followed by another bowl of oats for breakfast, topped with banana, strawberries, peanut butter, and vegan chocolate spread.
Afternoon
I polished off the last of the pesto pasta which was a gorgeous lunch to have of a Monday.
Evening
It was a leftovers kind of day; I finished off the chana masala with some basmati rice and a portion of broccoli just to feel extra healthy.
For dessert I had a vegan almond magnum later on in the evening.
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Tuesday 10th January
Morning
After a gym session I downed a vegan protein shake before moving onto breakfast, which was beans, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes on a bagel.
Afternoon
I had a whole Happy Pear Sweet Potato, Coconut and Ginger soup to keep me cosy given the horrible weather.
Evening
Dinner was… interesting. I fried up meat free mince with onions, peppers, and some tomato sauce, and had it with oven chips and broccoli. Much as I stan the Denny’s sausages, I wasn’t too sure about their fake mince offering; it kind of looked and tasted like play do. It wasn’t so bad when mixed with the sauce, but I’m not sure I’d be running out to buy it again.
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Wednesday 11th January
Morning
Two coffees and a protein shake. Work got on top of me so I ended up skipping breakfast (which is definitely not something that I make a habit of).
Afternoon
After many recommendations, I decided it was time to try the McPlant. My vegetarian friends are big fans of it, so I thought why the hell not. Not one to do anything by halves, I went for the Double McPlant, a large fries (which were also part of their vegan menu) and a large Coke Zero.
I get my McDonald’s burgers with everything on it, lettuce, tomato, onions, ketchup, mustard, vegan cheese in this case, and of course, the best part, pickles. If you don’t like pickles, I’m not sure we can be pals honestly.
Evening
I finished off the vegan mince tonight with some pasta, but honestly I will not be repurchasing anytime soon; the second day of it was worse than the first. People have recommended I go for the Quorn mince for bolognese next time, so I’ll have to bear that in mind.
Thursday 12th January
Morning
Beans. Toast. Coffee. Chef’s kiss.
Afternoon
It was a week for trying vegan takeaway alternatives. Domino’s kindly sent me out their vegan American Hot pizza to try for lunch, and I was pleasantly surprised. I haven’t had any pork in just over three years, so I was very impressed by their fake pepperoni.
Evening
I had the leftover Domino’s for dinner which didn’t leave much room for anything else, but I did drink a decaf tea with oat milk before bed.
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Friday 13th January
Morning
My day began with a gym workout, followed by some coffee and a My Protein pineapple and grapefruit vegan shake; the protein had a bit of a weird aftertaste but as vegan proteins go, was pretty good.
Afternoon
For lunch I fried up some peppers and onions in sesame oil, which I had with rice, some vegan gyozas, and soy sauce – a top tier meal if you ask me.
Evening
I snacked on a Nobó chocolate bar and had some tea while I finished off work before going to one of my favourite places to eat in Dublin; Nutbutter. They do a great plant-based menu, so I was well satisfied with my jackfruit tacos and corn on the cob, only glancing at Luke’s forbidden rice bowl with brisket a few times. We shared a raspberry truffle then for dessert.
Saturday 14th January
Morning
Saturday started with coffee, classic, followed by a bagel, also classic. Instead of beans on toast I was after something sweet, so had one half of my bagel with Vego spread and one half with peanut butter, topping it with sliced banana.
Afternoon
Lunch was a repeat of Friday, with fried vegetables, rice, and vegan gyozas.
Evening
For dinner I had a smokey bean chilli FIID pouch, more rice, half an avocado, and some cherry tomatoes. I ended the day with a hot chocolate, using oat milk.
This week had a lot less cooking involved than last; it’s just so convenient when you’re busy and stuck for what to make. However I’m hoping to do a lot more cooking next week, so make sure you come back then to see how I got on with Week Three!
READ ON: What I Eat In A Week: Veganuary Week One
