Lathan was a late bloomer when it came to starting solid foods. He dabbled in avocado a little around 6 months but had a scary episode where he vomited after having it and thus didn't eat it again. Besides avocado gate, and his early love of peaches, he simply lacked an interest in solid food but being a breastfed baby who was healthy and developing well I didn't worry much.
Just shy of his 1st birthday this all started to change and he began loving all things food. From green smoothies, fruit, veggies, beans, to green juice Lathan loved it all. Considering his transition into solid foods was so swift, I had to quickly come up with meal options to meet his growing appetite. I knew that his diet in many ways would mirror the diet that my husband and I already ate, plant based and for me also gluten free. While I know for some this is controversial, I find that eating this way has introduced me to abundance and variety that I embrace and see as health building and promoting for our family.
In our house micronutrients are king. We eat to fulfill our bodies need for vitamins and minerals to provide the necessary elements to help our cells build and regenerate. This focus is slightly different that the standard American diet's focus on macronutrients, you know your carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. While I care about macronutrients, as my family's primary meal planner, I do not find that eating solely to cover those bases is good enough. What I have found through my own diet journey is if you eat for micronutrients, the macronutrients will come, however the other way around isn't so true (at least in my experience). When I meal plan I am thinking about magnesium, calcium, iron, folate, phosphorous, b6, vitamin c, zinc, manganese and so forth. These elements matter most to me because at the microlevel they keep the body functioning at its prime.
So why vegan and why gluten free? Well this all begins with me. Five years ago I gave up eating many things, including meat, dairy, and gluten on a journey to reclaim my health. Suffering from Celiac Disease giving up gluten was a no brainer. Meat and dairy soon followed as I realized that I didn't like how either made my body feel. Around this time I started listening to my body and monitoring how eating certain foods truly made me feel. In that respect meat made me feel weighed down and slowed my digestions and dairy gave me an awful mucus coating in my throat, which I always have to clear (I know TMI but it's true). Being honest with myself and also through researching alternative diets I realized that these signs were my body telling me something, so I listened.
Since changing my diet my energy levels have flourished, I no longer struggle with weight, I rarely get sick, and my constant brain fog has been lifted. I took these and other clues as evidence enough that Lathan too would share the same diet. And so far I have been quite thrilled with how open he is to eating such a variety of things. Usually what he sees mama eating he is inclined to also want to try and most times he likes it. I can't say he always does but typically he's open to it.
A key point to note, what is central to our diet is we eat a real food diet. We eat food that expires naturally. I shop almost primarily in the produce and bulk bin sections. We avoid canned, jarred, and packaged food as much as possible. We also do not eat processed vegan junk simply because it says vegan. Our vegan diet is conceptually more aligned with plant based eating than eating anything as long as it isn't derived from animal products. Though we do respect the ethical vegan stance regardless of what vegan food you eat.
Below you will finds a breakdown that highlights Lathan's meals in categories then also a chart that illustrates the variety of foods he has eaten and/or regularly eats. Lastly, I have included three of Lathan's favorite recipes which you can find at the very bottom of this post. Enjoy!
Breakfast
- Green juice* + A bowl of fruit
- Green Smoothie**
- A bowl of Fruit + Almond Butter Gluten Free Toast
- Banana + Almond Butter Gluten Free Toast
Lunch
- Roasted Vegetables + Brown Rice
- Beans + Brown Rice or Quinoa
- Gluten Free Bread + Hummus
- Roasted Potatoes + Beans
- Pasta Sauce + Quinoa
- Any leftover dinner from the previous night
Dinner
- Whatever we are eating as a family served as a little person's portion :)
Snacks
- Fruit
- Coconut Milk
- Fruit Smoothies***
- Roasted Potatoes (his current favorite)
- Coconut oil coated popcorn
- Lara bars
- Nori sheets
Food Groups
- Fruit // Pears + Bananas + Apples + Raspberries + Blueberries + Strawberries + Oranges + Tangerines + Satsumas + Melons + Stone Fruit + Pineapples + Grapes
- Vegetables // Butternut Squash + Brussels Sprouts + Beets + Sweet Potatoes + Cauliflower + Broccoli + Carrots + Potatoes + Okra + Sea Vegetables + Avocados + Green Peas
- Leafy Greens // Kale + Spinach (cooked) + Collards + Arugula
- Fats // Coconut Oil + Coconut Butter + Almond Butter + Almond Meal + Coconut Flour
- Legumes (always soaked) // Black Beans + Pinto Beans + Red Beans + Garbanzo Beans + Lentils (all types) + Mung Beans + White Beans + Kidney Beans + Black Eyed Peas
- Grains // Sprouted Brown Rice + Sprouted Red Rice + Wild Rice + Quinoa (seed like grain) + Millet (seed like grain)
- Nut Milks // Almond Milk + Coconut Milk + Hemp Milk
- Packaged Food // LesserEvil Buddha Bowl Coconut Oil Popcorn + Lara Bars + Way Better Snacks
- Supplements // Probiotics + Elderberry Syrup (Winter) + Breastmilk
RECIPES
*Green Juice
- 4 large tuscan kale leaves
- 4 celery stalks
- 2 granny smith apples
- 1/2 lemon
Take all items and run them through a juicer. Strain juice through a sieve to catch any remaining pulp. Serve immediately.
**Green Smoothie
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh nectarines or peaches
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh strawberries
- 1/2-1 cup homemade almond milk
- 2 teaspoons spirulina
- 1 teaspoon chlorella
- pinch of vanilla powder
- pinch of himalayan pink salt
Add all contents to a blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.
***Fruit Smoothie
- 1 cup frozen wild blueberries (If you can find free even better but I haven't been able to)
- 1 cup homemade almond milk
- 1 pitted medjool date
- a handful of fresh basil leaves
- pinch of vanilla powder
- pinch of himalayan pink salt
Add all contents to a blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.