Ashley Madden is a full-time food lover and health enthusiast. She's a pharmacist, plant-based chef, certified holistic nutrition consultant and food photographer. Living in Taiwan, Ashley was diagnosed with MS in her early 20s and ultimately traded prescriptions for plants.
Since I work with food almost every day, I’m not always registering what I’m having for each particular meal. I’ll grab a piece of this and spoonful of that. So, I thought this food diary would be a fun exercise for me. And it was! This week was more structured than most and it was fun to document.
I like to eat soups and salads a lot, but I was conscious of boring you with the same thing every day, so I put effort into adding variety! I also follow a plant-based diet, so all of the following is vegan. I will say that the key to OMS-friendly, healthy eating is having a lot of stuff pre-made and frozen in the freezer. Things like “cheese” sauces, bean burgers, and cookies are things I always have on hand for quick dinners and snacks.
Slow cooker oatmeal
Big salad with baby greens, 1/2 cup chickpeas, 1/4 cup quinoa, veggies, 1/4 avocado and a simple dressing of dijon mustard, apple cider, garlic powder and maple syrup. You can also add some flax seed oil.
2 bowls of broccoli dhal and some homemade spelt bread.
Green smoothie – 1 banana, 1/2 cup blueberries, 1 tablespoon flax seed oil, 2 teaspoons hemp seeds, 1 cup almond milk, 1 cup spinach and a dash cinnamon
Leftover broccoli dhal and brown rice crackers (I found a no-added-oil brand that I love!)
Tofu Stir-fry (oil free) and brown rice
Handful of Mary’s Crackers and a big scoop of oil-free hummus (this hummus or a similar version is in my fridge at all times!)
Almond milk latte
Stove top oatmeal with loads of fresh fruit, almonds, goji berries and a little bit of maple syrup
Big salad with veggies, quinoa, chickpeas and a tahini and dill dressing. This is an easy dressing to whip up.
We ate out! There’s a vegan hot-pot restaurant in Taipei where you make your own vegetable soup in a healing Chinese broth. I always load up on brown rice noodles and all the mushrooms (so many varieties available!).
2 Chocolate Beet Bliss Balls. I skip the coconut and eat them plain or roll them in hemp seeds or sesame seeds.
Handful of raisins and oat milk latte.
Toasted spelt bread, raspberry chia jam, almond butter with sliced banana and salt
Big scoop hummus, carrot sticks, few olives, 3 brown rice cakes (this was a quick lunch).
Chickpea burgers on lettuce leaves with avocado and baked potato wedges. I make these burgers on weekends and keep them in the freezer then just quickly reheat in the oven.
Apple and watermelon
Big salad with veggies and a leftover chickpea burger crumbled on top plus tahini dill dressing
Buddha bowls – quinoa, basic baked tofu, steamed veggies, hummus and a squeeze of lemon
Dragonfruit and watermelon
Blender oat pancakes, berries, bananas and mango chia pudding
We didn’t really have lunch this day! Out and about and had a soy milk ice cream instead!
Mac and cheese and a side of roasted cauliflower
Hummus and Mary’s Crackers, air popped popcorn
Big serving of tofu scramble and avocado toast
Again, not a structured meal day! We are on the move over the weekend. Smoothie made from bananas, raspberries and flax seed.
Leftover mac and cheese with steamed asparagus and beet/red cabbage sauerkraut (I buy from a local restaurant)
Chocolate pudding and berries