My father-in-law is a vegan and he mostly lives on tofu. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. In fact, I never really enjoyed tofu until he made me his signature dish.
He mixes together a mean stir-fry of tofu, broccoli, onions, chili oil, and he uses garlic so judiciously that I don’t even know it’s there. Continue reading
Here’s a vegan, gluten-free curry recipe that you can serve on a cold winter night to warm yourself up. Continue reading
Gary Francione, a prominent legal scholar and animal rights activist, has written a new piece for Truthout.org conflating the actions of Michael Vick, Ann and Mitt Romney, and all you people who had a cheeseburger this weekend. Continue reading
Everyone appreciates a sweet and delicious treat. Everyone with functioning taste buds, anyway. One of the more common questions I get about being vegan is how I make things without eggs or cows’ milk. In fact, it’s actually very easy. Whether you want to impress your vegan friend or your non-vegan ones, here I’ll discuss the common baking substitutes and post a delicious cupcake recipe!
Milk
You can put almost any other kind of milk in place of cow’s milk. Soy, almond, rice, and hemp milk are all options. I would consider soy milk to be kind of “neutral” in taste when baking. Rice milk is somewhat thinner than the other kinds. I love using almond milk in baking, but if I think there might be someone with a nut allergy I’ll stick to the other kinds.
Butter/Margarine
Earth Balance is the best vegan margarine for your fake buttery needs. It’s non-hydrogenated, too, so it’s kind of better for you! It’s not always easy to find, so another option is Fleischmann’s unsalted margarine. For some reason their unsalted margarine is vegan, but the regular stuff is not.
Eggs
Eggs are kind of tougher than replacing cow’s milk or margarine. In general, your go-to egg substitute is Ener-G Egg Replacer, which can be found in Whole Foods and other health food stores. It’s largely made from potato and tapioca starch, and can be used in pretty much any recipe you have. One egg equals 1.5 teaspoons of Ener-G plus 2 tablespoons of water.
Ground flax seeds are very useful in baking, and you can pretend your cookies are healthy too! The best way to go with these is to buy whole flax seeds and grind them as needed. If you buy ground flax seeds, make sure to put the bag/jar in the freezer when you’re not using them to preserve the nutrients. One egg equals 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds plus 3 tablespoons of water. This website has more info on using flax seeds as an egg substitute.
Silken tofu can be used as well, at a conversion rate of ¼ cup of whipped silken tofu for one egg. Silken tofu is good for puddings and pies, as well as cakes and whatnot you want to be a little thicker and more moist.
Other foods can be used to replace eggs, but the following ones will change the taste of whatever you’re making. Bananas are great to use (especially in recipes that involve chocolate!), as they are good binding agents. Applesauce can also be used in place of eggs, though I would say that this option generally does not help keep everything together as well as the other substitutes. Maple syrup can also be used to an extent, and is my favorite egg replacement when making pancakes.
Finally, as promised, one of my favorite cupcake recipes.
Chocolate Banana Cupcakes, from the Post Punk Kitchen
Ingredients:
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Combine the first three ingredients in a large bowl, mixing well.
3. Add banana, stirring well to combing. You might have to use your fingers to smush some of the larger chunks of banana.
4. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stirring well with a whisk.
5. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture alternately with ½ cup milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture; mix after each addition.
6. Spoon the batter into 12 muffin cups.
7. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cupcakes spring back easily when touched lightly in the center.
8. Allow to cool, and frost if desired (I highly recommend a peanut butter frosting).
Enjoy!
So you want to learn more about vegetarianism/veganism? Or you don’t, but this article came up and you’re procrastinating at work/school/life so you’ll read it anyway? Good enough! This is meant to be kind of a brief intro to what this stuff is all about, and will respond to some of the main questions that generally come up in this topic. If there’s a particular area of vegetarianism/veganism (veg*nism) that you would like to know more about, let me know! I love talking about this stuff.
The Basics
A vegetarian is someone who does not eat meat. They may still consume dairy, eggs, and possibly fish (but fish is really a meat). Vegetarians have been around forever!
A vegan is often defined as someone who “begins with vegetarianism and brings it to its logical conclusion.” Vegans attempt to consume nothing that originally came from an animal. This includes clothing, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics, and of course, food. The term was coined by Donald Watson, an Englishman who founded the British Vegan Society in 1944.
But Why?
If you’re a vegetarian or vegan, you’ll know that the question everyone asks you (along with the protein question) is “Why did you decide to become a veg*n?” People go veg for a variety of different reasons. The main ones:
For the animals
There is nothing “circle of life” about our modern production of meat. Animals are kept in terrible conditions for the sole purpose of being killed. This is generally where all the ethical arguments against eating animals live. Many people believe that there is no such thing as “humanely-killed” meat. Additionally, the principle of not using animals for our own gain (this can be extended to circuses, rodeos, and even pets) is often used in reasoning against using honey, pearls, and other things that we generally think of as not harmful to the animals.
For personal health
Eating more plants and fewer animals has been linked to lower cholesterol, higher fiber, lower rates of cancer, diabetes, h
eart disease, osteoporosis, and a host of other health issues. For more info on this, see The China Study.
For the environment
Factory farming is incredibly damaging to the environment. Livestock’s Long Shadow (pdf file), published by the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization in 2006, details the many harmful impacts that raising livestock has for the environment. One of the more interesting facts: all factors involved, livestock contribute more to greenhouse gas emissions than all forms of transportation.
ZOMG where do you get your protein?
I figure we’ll just tackle this one right off the bat. First of all, you probably don’t need as much protein as you think you need. The average American consumes about double the protein his or her body actually needs. (Source) So let’s just relax about that. The general formula to determine how much protein you need per day is your body weight times 0.36. So a 140-pound person would need about 50 grams of protein per day. Obviously if you’re an athlete and/or a pregnant or breastfeeding woman you’ll need more. Veg*ns can get protein from legumes, grains like rice and quinoa (kee-nwah), tofu, nuts, and non-dairy milks. However, it is true that while all meats offer complete proteins (they have the 9 essential amino acids which cannot be produced by our bodies), most vegetarian sources do not. Quinoa is one of the only plants that is a complete protein.
Aside from eating quinoa all day (which wouldn’t be the worst thing), us veg*ns can use what are called complementary proteins- where one source is missing an amino acid or two, another one has it, and when eaten together or during the same day, they complement each other. We already form complementary proteins in many of the foods we commonly eat: rice and beans, falafel in a whole wheat pita, peanut butter on whole wheat bread, cornbread and beans. Basically legumes + grains is a good way to go.
.jpg "Rice grains (IRRI)")
Some Random Nutrition Notes
Hopefully I’ll get to do a later post on veg nutrition, but for now a few brief things. Being vegan does not necessarily mean eating healthier. A lot of junk food is vegan (and delicious). But that’s not really what veganism is all about, so in between bags of Tings, have a leaf or something.
Even if you’re not looking to go veg, a good guideline for healthier eating is to eat the food as close to how it naturally is as possible. This means eating corn on the cob, not corn nuts. Using rolled or steel-cut oats rather than the instant oatmeal. Basically, when you go food shopping, you should look for food that has five or fewer ingredients listed, or better yet, just one! This way you can better ensure that you’re getting the most nutrition and the least processing possible in your foods. Now, I can’t ignore the cost issues here- it’s fucked up that buying junk food is less expensive than buying broccoli or something, but if you can try to eat more whole foods without going broke, it’s absolutely worth it for your body. Former Jezebel readers beware, but legumes seriously are the shit in this regard. They are cheap and incredibly nutritious. This doesn’t mean eating lentils for every meal every day, but maybe buy a bag of beans instead of that chicken breast. The larger societal and governmental issues of our food system can’t really be addressed right here, but I’ll include some links for those of you who want to read more on this (Food Inc. also addresses this issue).
So that about wraps this up. Do you have a particular food/meal you’d like to share with the group? Good books, articles, films, etc.? Let us know in the comments!
But I want to know more!
Complementary proteins
Sources of protein
Wikipedia on Veganism
Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine protein info
Vegan Action
Vegans of Color
Racism & Speciesism
Mark Bittman, Food Matters (lots of good information)
Compassionate Cooks
Carbon Footprint Calculator
Last month, while pondering what I wanted to do differently in 2011, I thought about what I put in my mouth.
For about seven years (age 14-21), I was a vegetarian. Back then, there weren’t nearly as many ready-to-eat or veg-friendly ingredients carried in regular grocery stores. Now, even Wal-Mart has organic and veg-friendly options.
Needless to say, I fell off the veg wagon and was OK with that for many years. Then, in 2010, after putting on some unwanted weight, I started working out with a trainer. I still didn’t change what I was eating, but knew that would need to change sooner than later.
While identifying what I wanted to change in 2011, I wrote down that I wanted to institute vegan Mondays and Wednesdays each week to force myself to really think about what I’m putting in my mouth and to start preparing healthier meals for myself.
A friend told me about the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine and their 21-Day Vegan Kickstart program. I signed up, bought a few recipe books, and put together a meal plan for the first week.
Since January 2, 2011, I have been eating a plant-based diet and I feel great. Seriously. I’m a life-long insomniac, but have been sleeping really well lately. Also, I find myself waking up and wanting to get out of bed. My body feels energized. Usually, I felt sluggish around 2PM or 3PM while sitting at my desk. Last week, I breezed through that time with ease.
I’m now in my second week and feel like I could do this for much longer than 21 days.
Of course, it helps that I love to cook and throw stuff together in the kitchen. It also helps that I live in a city where there are tons of vegan-friendly restaurants in addition to the options available in the grocery store.
Because of my access to veg-friendly options, I consider myself quite lucky to be able to even do this. I know not everyone in this country has easy access to quality, fresh vegetables, which is something that needs to change.
Being on a plant-based diet has made me realize how important it is to keep track of what’s going in my body if I want it to continue working properly without slowing down.
Vegan Lasagna
1 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach, thawed (or a bunch of fresh spinach, rinsed well and chopped)
1 Butternut Squash, peeled, seeded and cut into small chunks
4-5 Fresh basil leaves or 2 tablespoons of dried basil
1 container of firm tofu
5-6 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon salt
About 2 jars of marinara sauce (or use your own)
1 cup of vegetable broth
About 12 dry (uncooked) whole-wheat lasagna noodles
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Place the cut butternut squash in a large pan or stock pot. Pour in enough water to cover the squash. Put on medium-high heat and cover. Cook until the squash is tender. Remove from heat and drain.
In a food processor, add the cooked squash, garlic cloves, and tofu. Purée the ingredients. While the processor is in purée mode, slowly add in 3/4 cup of the vegetable broth. When all ingredients are mixed, turn off the processor.
In a large sauté pan, add 1/4 cup of vegetable broth and the spinach. If using fresh spinach, sauté until it’s wilted. If using frozen, sauté until it’s warm. Remove from heat and add in the marinara sauce. Mix together.
Coat the bottom of a 9″×13″ pan with the marinara/spinach mixture, then add a layer of lasagna noodles, overlapping noodles slightly. Then, spread on a heaping amount of the butternut squash-tofu mixture to cover the noodles. Then, add on another layer of lasagna noodles. Repeat this process again. The final layer should be the marinara/spinach mixture. Sprinkle nutritional yeast all over the top.
Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour. Stick a knife through the center of the lasagna to make sure the noodles are completely cooked. Let cool for about 15 minutes, uncovered, before serving.
Enjoy!
