update and my own two cents

the other night we decided to make a raw dinner of zucchini pasta with a homemade tomato sauce. for the sauce i blended some fresh tomatoes with sundried ones and herbs, and raw pine nuts. The sauce tasted good, but we discovered blended tomatoes turn out frothy. Frothy tomatoes apparently make Dan sick to his tummy so we put in a cheeseless frozen pizza instead. hahah.


To change topics....
I will share with you some reasons why you should stop drinking milk, or if you have no interest in not drinking milk why I refrain.

• The cattle industry is the number ONE cause of global warming .(http://www.purpleslinky.com/Offbeat/Cow-Farts-and-Global-Warming.117060)*
  
• We are the only species that drinks the milk of another species
• We are the only species that drinks milk into adult hood (cows milk is for baby cows!) would you feed your cat your breast milk? sounds ridiculous huh.
• Casein, the protein found in milk and cheese has shown to greatly increase cancer cell growth (book: China Study)
• Milk from the grocery store is often loaded with hormones, pesticides, even blood and puss
  
• Treatment of the cows is inhumane, they are fed hormones to increase milk production and they are often milked until there udders are sore and bloody (hence the puss in the milk) to ward off infection they are given antibiotics, that goes into your milk
• Many many studies have shown that milk actually causes OSTEOPOROSIS...yes, not only does it not actually prevent it, it causes it.
  
• Why then have we been made to believe that milk is necessary? The milk industry spends millions of dollars on advertising, it's all about the money. And the FDA is just a joke.

*There are many other sources for this information you just have to seek it out.

About two years ago, I started a facebook group, "Friends don't let friend's drink milk" most of this is posted there, but a lot of the members (almost 400 now!) have posted some great links in the comments section.

current status

When I first became vegan, I was so amazed by all the things I could actually eat! The desserts that tasted just as decadent as the unhealthy version, comfort foods that could taste fattening without being so, and store bought snacks that qualified as vegan. Every meal I prepared was an exciting challenge. Anyone can make chocolate chip cookies, but what an accomplishment to make them vegan and delicious. While I sometimes still get excited by 'imitation' recipes, I am no longer shocked by vegan deliciousness. I now know with a certainty that anything can be made vegan.
With that said, Dan and I have decided to embrace foods in their natural form and to try and make meals that don't focus on being "just like the real thing!" We are also trying to incorporate a greater number of raw meals into our diet (raw food is just incredible, the way you feel after a raw meal, and the amazing things it does to your body) and eat less refined sugar and processed foods.
I don't really know the purpose of this post, this is just what has been on my mind lately regarding food, I will keep you posted on how it goes.

Past few days

Sorry for the lapse in writing, I have been busy hosting dinners and this weekend Dan and I were in Ashland.

Wednesday night we had the missionaries over, I prepared vegan lasagna. I used Isa's recipe from Veganomicon. It looks just like the real thing, the filling is spinach and a tofu ricotta. I also made garlic bread just using Earth Balance instead of butter.
Earth Balance: I usually try to avoid 'fake' things or really processed foods, but Earth Balance really is a great alternative, it tastes the best and is probably the healthiest 'margarine' out there.

Thursday we had a family from the ward over. I made snobby joes, also from Veganomicon. That book is a must. I liked this recipe because it used lentils (we are trying to eat less soymilk and tofu- more on that later). I then made a vegan cole slaw on the side, with brownies for dessert.

sorry for the unappetizing photo

The vegan brownies were actually from a box, I was just feeling too lazy. The mix called for eggs and butter, but I just used EnerG egg replacers, and applesauce and earthbalance. *When using mixes, be sure to check the ingredients. Don't get it if it has CASEIN in it! That is a milk by-product and is posion. A lot of "non-dairy" cheeses use casein, so beware!

vegan on the go

Many people have told me that they just don't have the time or energy to be vegan, so I thought I would share some of my quick fixes when I am short on time.

Breakfast

• toast w/ pb&j
• cereal with soymilk
• soy yogurt
• oatmeal
  

Lunch/ Dinner
Trader joes has a great selection of vegan friendly frozen/packaged goods, we like:

• Their vegan frozen pizza
• Black bean and tofu enchiladas
• Vegan burritos
• Indian fares (they have two vegan kinds)
• Vegetable potstickers
• Soups and vegan chili

Other suggestions:

• Pasta and a non-cream sauce is always easy
• Stir fry with tofu
• Tofu scramble
• PB&J
  
• Amy's packaged products

Dessert/ candy

• soy ice cream from trader joe's or any store
• Tofutti cuties
  
• oreos
• junior mints
• Any cake/ brownie mix using substitutes (soymilk-milk, earthbalance-butter, enerG-egg, the options are limitless)

These are just a few, but eating on the go Vegan-style is really easy.
Here is a huge list of "I can't believe it's Vegan snacks"

somewhat ironic post

One of my main reasons for starting this blog is to show how accessible and easy it is to be vegan, so what is my first food post? Chia and hemp milk, two things I guarantee most people don't have lying around the house or can pick up at Albertsons. But it was delicious and so healthy that I thought I should blog about it anyway.

What is Chia? think chia pets ...its a seed.
Why eat it? it is the highest known vegetable source of Omega 3 fatty acids, and 1oz. has 4g. of protein.

I used the recipe from this blog.

I just soaked the chia in hemp milk overnight (you can use soy, almond or rice too), added some cinnamon and topped with fresh fruit. Perfect breakfast.

Welcome...

Those of you who read my other blog may know that I live a busy life and rarely have time to write new posts. And you may ask, why start another blog? Well...

When I am not thinking about architecture I am thinking about food/nutrition. I cook to unwind and love testing new recipes. Most of my leisure computer time is spent browsing vegan blogs, and half of my posts from my other blog involve something vegan/food related, so I figured why not start my own.

I also hope this blog will be a helpful resource. Some of the most common questions I get after telling someone I am vegan are:

• What in the world do you eat? anything! and i will prove it in this blog, I will share my recipes and those from other sources that I have tested.
  
• Why did you want to be vegan? long story...so over time I will share my experiences and beliefs.
• Is it difficult to be vegan? not at all. I will share what I choose to eat when I go out to restaurants, what I cook for non-vegans, how easy it is to use healthy substitutes, etc.

Happy reading... happy eating