Get ready, get set...

So the big, bad, basic rules for the 21 day vegan cleanse are as follows:

Refrain from:
1. caffeine
2. alcohol
3. gluten
4. animal products
5. sugar

Easy peasy right?
Well....

Alcohol: no problem, I hardly ever drink anyway.

Animal products: a little tougher but not too difficult. We eat vegetarian quite regularly. I will sort of miss steak and eggs though, together or served seperately, it doesn't matter! The harder part will be the dairy. We are going to be trying soy, rice and almond "dairy" options.

Sugar: this is where it starts to get hard. I'm a baker. I just love to make cakes, cookies and pies. And put sugar in my coffee...oh wait, no coffee for me! I'm going to be using agave nectar and stevia exclusively.

Caffeine: NO DIET COKE. NO COFFEE. No stimulants. Until I detox, it's going to make for some very sleepy afternoons and grumpy mornings! I've picked up a package of Teeccino, an herbal coffee alternative, in Java flavour. I'll let you know how it is.

Gluten: gluten-free (GF) is tricky. Some products and recipes taste great. And others not so much. It's probably going to take some disasters before I get this one figured out. I am going to pick up the "Healthy Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a day" book since I know there are a lot of GF (and hopefully some sugar free) recipes in it. The original book is my go-to bread bible. Which I will get to eat again in 22 days :)

I'm hoping that I will feel so good that I end up staying with many of these changes after the cleanse is done. We'll see...

As for cookbooks, information and menu ideas I'm using:

"Moosewood Restaurant: Cooking for Health" by the Moosewood Collective
"Ripe from Around Here" by Jae Steele
"Perfect Vegetarian"
"Babycakes" by Erin McKenna (just got this one and haven't tried any recipes yet)
"The Kind Diet" by Alicia Silverstone
"Skinny Bitch" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin
"Go Green, get Lean" by Kate Geagan
"The Gorgeously Green Diet" by Sophi Uliano
"Food Matters" by Mark Bittman
"Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips" by Kris Carr
"Quantum Wellness" and "Quantum Wellness Cleanse" by Kathy Freston

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions please leave a comment. We'd love to have your input.

We're ready to go!!

-Carolyn