Day 44: "Living Among Meat Eaters"

    Today I finished another one of Carol J. Adams great books; "Living Among Meat Eaters". The last book of hers I read, "Help! My Child Stopped Eating Meat!", was more written towards parents coping with their children's new life style. This book "Living Among Meat Eaters" is great, for it is written for vegans and vegetarians who are learning how to deal with the "meat eaters" in their own life.

     If you want to know the reasons behind why people will go out of their way to make such a big deal about your change in diet, this is the book for you. Adams goes in depth about the various different types of responses many vegans/vegetarians get from "meat eaters", and how to go about dealing with them. In this book Adam also describes "meat eaters" as various different types of blocked vegetarians.

    Along with all the great advice on how to handle some of these sticky situations, in the back of the book Adams also includes a list of her favorite recipes. I decided to try her famous kale soup with a side of seasoned diced baked potatoes, since I had some extra kale in the fridge.

      This simple soup was absolutely amazing. It reminded me almost of the type of soup you might order at an ethnic Chinese restaurant. The kale was soft and tender like how cabbage is in most Asian soups. The vegetable broth and soy sauce gave it a warm salty taste that made me think of chicken noodle soup.

Kale Soup

3 cups of roughly chopped kale leaves

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup minced onion

2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 (14-ounce) cans of vegetable broth

1 tablespoon soy sauce

    Step 1: In a large sauce pan or soup pot place the oil and turn the heat up to medium-high. Add the onion and cook until it begins to brown; stirring occasionally.

   Step 2: When the onion is golden brown add the garlic and cook for approx. one minute before adding the broth. Bring the broth to a boil then lower the heat and add the soy sauce.

   Step 3: Add the kale to the broth and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

(Serves 3 to 4)

Day 43: Organic Black Bean Soup with Kale Chips

      For lunch today I had the southwestern style black bean soup, that I picked up from Vons. It consisted of black beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, along with organic vegetables and cilantro. This ready made soup was quickly warmed up, and was spicy with a chunky consistency. It was definitely one of the better ready made soups that I have tasted. I also quickly whipped together some kale chips on the side, which I originally made on Day 36.

     Later this evening I treated myself to a vegan root beer float. Who knew there was such a thing! All I did was substitute the normal dairy based ice cream with soy ice cream, and voila I had a vegan root beer float on my hands.

Day 42: Vegan on a Budget

    After one whole month of being vegan, and experimenting with different foods, my grocery bill went up drastically. A lot of people say being vegan is too expensive, but in reality that is only partly true. This last month I have been transitioning from different foods and made quiet a few mistakes (buying food with animal products hidden in the ingredients list) as well as tried many different substitute products. Since I bought a lot of “faux-meats” and “faux-dairy” products which are normally pricier than meat products my bill went up exponentially, but the same would happen if you were a “meat eater “and bought a ton of meat and dairy.

     Substitute meat and dairy products, along with prepackaged food, are pretty much the only pricey vegan foods. There is plenty of healthy food you can buy that will fit into your budget.

    I found this great article on L.O.V.E. (Living Opposed to Violence and Exploitation) with some tips on how to eat vegan for those of us that are on a budget, and decided to share it with you (as well as add a few things). Check out there website for more information on cheap meal plans and vegan recipes.

Here are some tips for those of us that are on a budget:

1) Cook if you have the facilities and the time

You can also freeze your leftovers for later, for most of us don’t have time to cook from scratch three times a day.

2) Read-made convenience foods

They cost more than cooking from scratch, but is cheaper than eating out

3) Limit the use of mock meats and other substitute foods

They can be more expensive than real meat and dairy

4) Shop in African, Asian, Latin American, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean markets

There produce and bulk products tend to be cheaper

5) Shop at Farmers Markets

There produce can sometimes be cheaper than grocery stores and it’s locally grown

6) Buy in bulk

I know what you are all thinking…Costco!

7) Beans, grain, and vegetables

Beans , rice, pasta, as well as many vegetables can be super cheap

8) Buy canned or frozen

Frozen is better for you since it doesn’t have as much preservatives and sodium as most canned products do. Also by having canned / frozen vegetables you won’t have to worry about them going bad.

9) Make a lot, eat leftovers

You can simply eat it for lunch the next day, or freeze it for later use

Day 41: "A Diet For All Reasons"

     Today I found this amazing video called "A Diet For All Reasons" by Michael Kaplar, M.D. which summarizes really well the bulk of what I have learned so far in this challenge. If you have an hour to spare I advise you to check out this video for it is very clear and straight to the point on so many issues concerning a vegetarian or vegan life style. I know it is a little old, but the information is still valid and worth while.

    One of the most shocking thing I learned from this video, that I haven't heard before, is that fact that when you eat a lot of meat and dairy your blood actually becomes fatty. Dr. Klaper said in his video "If you feel greasy after eating this food, it is because you are! Your insides are greasy" He goes on to say that animal fat in the number one cause of disease and death in North America.

    Another interesting fact I learned about in this video was that there is such thing as too much protein. I had heard that before from other sources, but didn't know why until now. Dr. Klaper said that when you eat too much protein you are actually loosing calcium in your urine, which is one of the main causes of osteoporosis.

     If you would like to check out this video you can purchase it through Dr. Klaper's website or watch a lower grade version of it for free at http://www.viddler.com.

Day 40: Veggie Hot Dog with Onion Rings

     I swear since my roommate got our grill almost a year ago my boyfriend is still the only one who uses it and we have used it even less since I became vegan. Today was one of those rare occasions where we fired up the grill when my boyfriend and I decided to try veggie hot dogs.

     Our lunch consisted of veggie hot dogs on a whole wheat bun, with a side of onion rings and watermelon. While the hot dogs tasted ok, the consistency was kind of bizarre. The texture was that of a raw hot dog which unnerved me a bit. All I can say is if you decided to eat veggie hot dogs don't think of them as a hot dog substitute. It is still good, it just doesn't taste like a hot dog. The onion rings on they other hand turned out great! I wasn't sure at first, for the recipe seemed kind of weird, but I was pleasently surprised by these tangy homemade  onion rings.

Onion Rings


1 large white onion, sliced into 1/2 inch rings
1 cup of soy milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup yellow mustard
1/2 water
1 1/2 cup corn flake crumbs (can make with corn flake cereal)

    Step 1: In a large bowl mix the soy milk and lemon before tossing in the sliced onions. Make sure to coat all the onions with this mixture.

    Step 2: In a shallow bowl mix the flour, paprika, and salt. In another bowl mix the mustard and water until it is the consistency of a beaten egg. In a third bowl place the cornflake crumbs.

    Step 3: Take each soy milk coated onion ring and dredge in the flour bowl mixture, then dip it into the mustard batter, and last but not least the corn flakes.

    Step 4: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease the baking pan. Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

(serves 2 to 3)

Day 39: Stuffed Pita Falafel Sandwich

     My boyfriend and I went to the store today to pick up some food for lunch, since his parent's house doesn't have much vegan friendly food. Today we decided to experiment with some new meat substitutes and picked up veggie falafel chickpea balls to stuff in pita bread along with some sauteed vegetables. We also found this new version of hummus that we hadn't tried before so we picked that up as well to smear in the inside of our pita falafel sandwiches.

     I wasn't to sure about the falafel balls at first but they were very filling and went great with the greek olive hummus we picked up at the store.

Stuffed Pita Falafel Sandwich

Falafel chickpea balls

Pita bread

Red bell pepper

Minced garlic

White Onion

Mushrooms

Hummus (we picked up a greek olive hummus)

Olive oil

    Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and cook the falafel for 8 to 10 minutes.

    Step 2: While the falafel balls are cooking lightly oil a frying pan and saute the garlic, onions, bell pepper, and mushrooms until soft.

   Step 3: Cut the pita bread in half and gently open the center, before warming them up in the microwave.

   Step 4: Once everything is done coat the inside of the pita bread with hummus before stuffing them with the falafel balls and sauteed mixture. Once completely stuffed add a little bit more hummus on top and you are ready to eat!

Day 38: Oscar's Peruvian Dish

    Tonight my boyfriend made me a Peruvian inspired vegan dish with a side of rice and beans for dinner, which was amazing. He took the idea from a dish he had in Peru and changed it up a bit to make it vegan for me. I must say I am super lucky to have such a supportive boyfriend.

Oscar's Peruvian Dish

Cubed potatoes
Sliced carrots
Diced tomatoes
Green and red bell peppers
Olive oil
Minced garlic
White Onion
Salt

Sauce:
Cilantro
Green onions
Minced white onions
Green chili pepper
1 cup water

   Step 1: Chop up the cilantro, green onions, white onion, green chili pepper and toss in the blender. Add some water to make it smooth and blend well.

    Step 2: Lightly oil a frying pan and add some garlic and salt along with the potatoes. Cook until the potatoes are golden brown. Once the potatoes are close to done add the onion, carrots, bell peppers, and tomatoes.

    Step 3: When the vegetables are thoroughly cooked add the sauce and cook until warm. Serve immediately