San Diego Road Trip: Day One

What better to do on a long holiday weekend than road-trip with my husband and a couple of good friends?  After much deliberation, David, Leah, Patrick, and I decided a getaway to San Diego was in order.  With the beach, nightlife, and shopping to explore, there was plenty to do to fill out a few days.  Plus, San Diego is only 2 ½ hours away, and so it would be a long enough trip to feel like we were getting away, but also short enough that we wouldn’t spend most of our time off sitting in holiday traffic.  

Before we left, we set up hotel reservations at a suite hotel with kitchens in the room.  That way we could save some money and eat fresh, home-cooked meals.  (This didn’t turn out exactly as we’d hoped due to circumstances out of our control, but more on that later…)  Leah and I put together a list of foods to bring, so that we didn’t have to buy a bottle of extra virgin olive oil or a jar of cumin in San Diego when we could have just used what we had in the cupboard at home.  So in addition to the usual swimsuits and beach towels, we discussed who would bring the agave syrup and turmeric.  I had to laugh thinking about how different that is from most ideas about what to bring on a road trip.  We created a meal plan, so that our vegetables, grains, and spices would do double duty as much as possible. 

Then I packed snacks and lunch for our time on the road.  The drive from LA can be stress-free, or it can be a parking lot.  You never know what you’re going to get, and so it’s best to be prepared.  I filled a sealable container with a generous amount of Better-Than-Tuna Salad from Vegan Table for sandwiches and a jar of peanut butter also for sandwiches.  I sliced carrots and celery into sticks and put all of that into my Playmate with plenty of fruit and a stainless steel bottle filled with water.  Leah picked up grapes and Organic Salt & Pepper Kettle Chips.  (So addictive.  Beware.)  We were ready to go.

On the way down to San Diego we played Twenty Questions and the alphabet game, and we were able to whiz around the holiday traffic without too much fuss.  After we checked into the hotel and unpacked, we headed down to Old Town San Diego to walk around the shops and have a bit of Mexican food to get in the spirit.  Let the fun begin!

MEAL PLAN

DAY ONE:  FRIDAY

Road trip snacks & lunch:

Better-Than-Tuna Salad Sandwiches

Peanut butter sandwiches

Kettle Chips

Carrot and celery sticks

Cherries, apples, and peaches

Dinner Out

DAY TWO:  SATURDAY

Breakfast:

Tofu Scramble

Ingredients:  Tofu, Carrots, Spinach, Broccoli, Onions, Garlic, Red Bell           Pepper, Avocado, Lemon, Turmeric, Cumin, Paprika, Oregano, Hot Sauce

Serve with whole wheat or corn tortillas, cherries & raspberries

Tea with turmeric & lemon juice

Coffee with cinnamon, rice milk, and agave syrup

Lunch:

Remaining Better-Than-Tuna Salad & bread from home, peaches, and salad

Salad ingredients:  Spinach, Cucumbers, Red bell pepper, Tomatoes, Onion, Lemon

Serve with water

Dinner:

Tacos

Ingredients:  Chickpeas, Cumin, Oregano, Paprika, Whole wheat or corn tortillas, Spinach, Tomatoes, Avocado, Lemon, Onion, Garlic, Hot Sauce

Serve with wine and water

After dinner snack:  Grapes

DAY THREE:  SUNDAY

Breakfast:

Peanut Butter toast, cherries, & raspberries

Green Tea with lemon & turmeric

Coffee with cinnamon, rice milk, and agave syrup

Lunch out

Snack:  Apples

Dinner:

Spicy Peanut Noodles

Ingredients:  Whole wheat spaghetti, Peanut butter, Tamari, Rice vinegar, Hot sauce, Red bell pepper, Carrots, Garlic, Onions, Cucumber, Broccoli

Serve with wine & water

Snack:  Peaches

DAY FOUR:  MONDAY

Breakfast:

Peanut Butter Toast with cherries

Tea with lemon & turmeric

Coffee with cinnamon, rice milk, and agave syrup