What I Ate: 2nd Trimester w/ Twins (Part 4)

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2nd trimester, how to have a good pregnancy, how to have a healthy vegan pregnancy, vegan pregnancy recipes, what I ate during 2nd trimester, what I ate while pregnant, what I ate while pregnant with twins

Finally the last blog post of ideas for meals in a vegan pregnancy, especially multiples. If you are new here, my husband and I were blessed with naturally conceived twins, two babies born extremely healthy and happy.  We were so blessed to have healthy twins, two babies from conception through today at 8 months old 100% vegan.  Hopefully if you are thinking about getting pregnant or are pregnant you can find some ideas here for your vegan babies.

Above Photo:  Salads were always a big even in our household, the bigger the better.  It’s astonishing what all can be crammed on a bed of organic lettuce.  My main meals were usually a large salad with a lot of protein and other toppings or a burrito with the same type of toppings.  In the photo, a bed of organic lettuce (always organic!) sodium-free seasoning, mixed veggies of carrots, corn and some edamame, a few tomatoes, salsa and some mashed avocado.  Caution with store-made guacamole as it does contain a lot of sodium, just mash some avocado up and drizzle with lime juice and add some cilantro and cumin.

When I didn’t want a salad (think cold months), I would just make a large bowl of the same type of ingredient and put in about 1/2 a bag of spinach.  In this mixture I had unseasoned tempeh instead of tofu.  Note:  My OB did mention I should not have more than three servings of tofu a day.  Then he stated that’s what the “books” state however he then mentioned people all over the world eat as much tofu as they want and there are no side-effects, so he said I could have all that I wanted.  So don’t worry about soy, the research is still inconclusive as previous studies were not conducted appropriately.  I always tried to have whole grains such Japanese steamed rice, barley, quinoa, spelt, etc.

Every weekend Genki Husband would make a delicious lunch or dinner for the two of us.  He loved to make vegan hamburgers or some sort of leftover for us.  This photo shows a vegan meat from a roast on homemade buns.  On the side is a good amount of organic snap peas (my favorite), clementines, apples, strawberries and tomatoes.  This would be a main meal and of course I ate every 2-3 hours…

This was Easter or another special holiday…  Vegan Roast, mashed potatoes with homemade vegan gravy, a salad with homemade ranch and tomatoes.

A picnic of mixed rainbow items:  Cauliflower Alfredo sauce over quinoa/brown rice pasta (I didn’t not eat gluten nor semolina pasta while pregnant as it is highly processed).  On top is a few servings of tofu and spinach mixed into the sauce.  On the side bell peppers, cucumbers, strawberries, clementines, and a bunch of lightly steamed broccoli.  Note:  try not to over steam or cook vegetables as it takes the nutrients out of them.

Broccoli “Cheddar” Soup made from cauliflower and real ingredients.  Something like this recipe.

Tons of soup during this trimester as it is winter, a bit cooler in Southern California.  This is broccoli, vegan cheese soup with tempeh and tons of added veggies.  Any soup is a great idea as long as the soup base is not made from high sodium broth.  This was one of my favorites as I loved tempeh and broccoli.  Unfortunately I do not remember exactly which recipe was the exact one I used, I probably just tossed it all together with a cauliflower base along with potatoes.  I’ll add some recipes that sound wonderful

Curried Cauliflower Soup; Lentil Soup;Cauliflower Chowder

Vegan Chili Mac was another wonderful base during my pregnancy as it is easy enough to place in kale, spinach, top, beans and so much more.  I love spicy food on a daily basis and especially during my pregnancy, I never got heartburn, even though I was having twins.  So with that sad, I used a lot of chili powder in this recipe.

Burritos were another staple throughout my entire pregnancy.  Normally I used Ezekiel Sprouted tortillas however during my 2nd trimester I started to use whole grain flour a bit more as I needed more calories.  I would add homemade refried beans, tons of avocado, mixed veggies, hot sauce and a ton of steamed spinach.  I would add leftovers or anything in the tortilla as long as it would stay in there while eating.

Snacks were every few hours during this 2nd trimester, always eating it felt like.  As a rule, I would always have a fruit and a protein together.  Carb and Protein together will reduce the risk of high sugar levels in the body, I never had any issues during my pregnancy with diabetes or proteins.  This was a few clementines, an apple and some peanut butter.  For me, I had heard about some babies becoming allergic to nuts because the mother had not had nuts during the pregnancy, so I always ate it.  Plus, nut butters are terrific for adding protein and natural fats.  Make sure you look for nut butters without any added sugar or oil.

Near the end of my 2nd trimester, I had issues with fat in foods.  So, I had to be careful not to have anything too oily or I would not feel the best.  So I would have fruit and nuts instead of a spread.  This was a common snack I would take on the road or have ready while sitting on the sofa enjoying a restful day.

So this ends my food intake for the 2nd trimester, I guess I am a bit slow as the twins are now 10 months old.  How does it go so fast?  I literally fear the day they turn 1 year old as they are my only babies, too fast for me!  Everyone states, enjoy it now because it goes by too fast.  Yes it does!  The days are slow but the months are fast.  I wouldn’t change a thing about it though, the twins are such a blessing doubled.

Next Up:  3rd Trimester!

 

 

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