Vegan eaters?!?!?!

Question

I am really trying to maintain a mostly vegan household. I have a 1 year old. I struggle to come up with cheaper meals and snacks. Please help. Maybe list one of your weekly grocery lists? How you can cost effectively eat vegan, things you always keep in your cupboard or fridge.

Answer

Vegan on a budget is hard. My wife is vegan, I am mostlitsrian (I eat mostly vegan because I cook for her, but I still eat animal products for lunches and when I am eating by myself), and our food bill is as about 150.00 a week. 
I would recommend a few things that have helped (full disclosure, we have a very good, very cheap grocery store in the area)
1.) make double recipes of soups, stews, waffles, and pasta dishes and freeze them for later use. We eat pretty cheap in the winter this way. 
2.) farmers markets are a great place for bulk veggie buying 
3.) avoid the rash of vegan “junk food” that is starting to hit shelves. They are tempting with a child but can skyrocket a bill. 
4.) avoid pre-made foods... $$ bills ya’ll! 
5.) power bowls. Rice, tofu, veggies and beans, some sort of dressing...full for a few bucks per meal, with plenty or rice left over for a second round of power bowls later on the week (also, very fast to make) 
My grocery list every two weeks looks like this 
Staples 
2 packs of Tofu 
1 pack of protons crumble 
1 pack of wraps (pita, tortilla, something for quick lunches or breakfast wraps 
3 onions 
1 gallon of almond milk 
Bananas 
Apples 
Some sort of citrus 
Some in season fruit
2 lbs eggplant 
3lbs carrots 
1 lbs yellow squash 
1 lbs Zuchinni
.5 pounds broccoli 
1 large tub of greens 
1 bunch of asparagus 
1 pack of vegan lunch meat 
1 pack of vegan cheese 
1 loaf of grainy bread 
1 pack of rolls (hotdog or sandwich)
2-3 cans of chick peas or other beans 
2 boxes of store brand cereal 
Monthly 
2 28 oz cans of diced tomatoes 
2 14 ox cans of crushed tomatoes 
1 tub of vegan butter 
Soy sauce 
Vegan pizza
Vegan grilling (tofu dogs, sausage, beyond burgers something like that)
Quarterly 
5 lbs rice 
Big jar of pre-cut garlic 
Olive oil 
Veggie oil
Honey* (not technically vegan I know...)
Agave syrup 
Almond slivers 
Cashews (for vegan rocotta cheese and vegan nacho cheese) 
Sunflower seeds 
Dried cranberries 
I have a index of about 20/25 recipes that are my go-tos and I swap out one or two for something new 
 
I recommend looking at “vegan for everybody” from America’s test kitchen. I can usually make most of the dishes there did about $10.00 per meal and most recipes are good for dinner and leftovers. 
Adding a child to the mix can be difficult, especially if they are picky, or don’t like broad swaths df food. Honestly my worst nightmare is our baby turns into a picky eater. For quick snacks I like to roast chicken peas and pumpkins seeds, make cereal bars, and keep salad mixes handy for quick snacks and meals

Answer

Bringing a baby up on a vegan diet is absolutely fine if done properly. I have several friends doing it. It’s really important to do your research though and there’s loads of literature out there to help you.
I’m not sure where you live but here in the UK there are vegan substitutes for everything. There are alternative milks fortified with calcium etc. There’s lots of alternative protein sources - my shop always contains tofu, tempeh, chickpeas lentils and some kind of mock meat.
Do some googling and perhaps buy yourself a couple of recipe books from Amazon. Lentils in particular are cheap. soft for babies and easily added to lots of meals.

Answer

Look up “Shine with plants” YouTube channel. She has a now 4 or 5 year-old that she raised vegan and has many food ideas that pack nutrition. We Are raising our son vegan (he’s now almost 3) and is a ball of energy and healthy. Hope this helps!

Answer

1 is a little early, I would talk with your pediatrician before to much action. 
Otherwise once she’s a little older you may be able to substitute some things. Like there’s vegan chicken nuggets that are pretty good and they’re microwaveable.

Answer

I’m vegetarian but I started my own garden recently. I also do buy canned vegetables and buy canned vegan or vegetarian soups when I’m at the store. Try Ibotta, you can get cash back for some stuff and when you first sign up if you redeem I think 10 offers you get $20 including the amount you made from the ones you redeemed.

Answer

Also you may find this helpful 
to ensure all nutrient needs are met
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/vegetarian-vegan-children/

Answer

Edit: 150.00 for two weeks...

Answer

Are you putting your vegan diet on your baby?

Vegan eaters?!?!?!

Let’s Glow

Glow is here for you on your path to pregnancy

25+ million

4.8 stars

20+

Getting Pregnant

Pregnancy

1st Year (Baby & You)

Baby Products