I've been absent for a bit. Getting used to the whole vegan thing.  The biggest revelation so far has been - it is not that difficult after all! I mean, I really hadn't expected it.  I thought I would be miserable. But so far it has not been bad.

Here are the key factors:

- Always, always have a snack on hand in case you're stuck in a non-vegan environment with no chance of escape (I bring a banana, a baggie of raw almonds and a peanut butter-banana sandwich or something similar)
- Go food shopping more often
- Have a mental or physical map (I mean smartphone app) that lists vegan or vegan friendly restaurants
- Drink lots of fluids

I've also gotten pretty experimental in the kitchen.  So I guess for me it has been about spontaneity and improvisation.  For the longest time I've had these tortillas in my freezer.  And I usually have a can of beans in the pantry.  And also usually a bag of frozen pre-cooked brown rice from Trader Joe's.  So putting all of that together and adding some cut up avocado (for lack of time in preparing guacamole) and dicing some tomatoes with red onions I came up with:

This is a non-queso quesadilla.  The worst thing about it is it doesn't stick together, so you really have to hold on to it pretty well.  There's also very little taste to it because I didn't try hard enough to make it tasty.  I would definitely invest in a jar of tangy salsa to throw in the middle. 

I left out the cheese because the packet of vegan cheese I was considering at the grocery store made me feel uneasy.  I read the ingredients and they just made me feel like I could do without.  I ate it.