Vegan/Vegetarian Thread (discussion, recipes, laughs)

[Greco]

still craving oysters

banana/pineapple juice I thought about adding vanilla and coconut
milk to make it a dessert but today had the juice only delicious


for dinner as follows:

spinach green chile enchiladas

with mozzarella cheese
(no queso fresco tonight)

brown rice frijoles negros

picante sauce invented
will see how it turns out
so far so good

enjoy your Sunday
and week ahead

Greco

PS How have you dealt with cravings for other foods since
becoming vegetarian/vegan?

[violaine]

i drained and cracked, peeled, & shredded a coconut. thinking about making a creme brulee this afternoon. i've had it before, and not only are the recipes simple, they are delicious!

greco, i've never juiced- usually, i eat so many fruits and veggies throughout the day there's no issue with getting my daily requirements [and then some!]. today, with the weather being 97 degrees Fahrenheit, an ice cold fruit juice [with coconut milk] sounds good!

happy week coming to you all.


http://vegangoodeats.com/2010/07/la-...pour-le-vegan/


http://veganvisitor.wordpress.com/20.../creme-brulee/


soy-free-
http://wholelivingdaily.wholeliving....llenge-14.html

[Greco]

violaine,

that dessert sounds good I love coconut

appreciate the links as well.

Greco

Originally Posted by violaine

i drained and cracked, peeled, & shredded a coconut. thinking about making a creme brulee this afternoon. i've had it before, and not only are the recipes simple, they are delicious!

greco, i've never juiced- usually, i eat so many fruits and veggies throughout the day there's no issue with getting my daily requirements [and then some!]. today, with the weather being 97 degrees Fahrenheit, an ice cold fruit juice [with coconut milk] sounds good!

happy week coming to you all.


http://vegangoodeats.com/2010/07/la-...pour-le-vegan/


http://veganvisitor.wordpress.com/20.../creme-brulee/


soy-free-
http://wholelivingdaily.wholeliving....llenge-14.html

[violaine]

they are really good. i used- carob powder, carob molasses, agave power, xanthan gum, baking soda, vanilla, bananas, wheat-free/gluten-free all purpose flour mixture = i make the flour blend, egg replacer, earth balance, almond milk, sunflower oil, and love!


i found the places [french] with farm animals at a tag sale, and they are so wonderful to use.

[nycfem]

Originally Posted by greco

still craving oysters

PS How have you dealt with cravings for other foods since
becoming vegetarian/vegan?

I deal with cravings in a lot of different ways.

1) In some instances, I give it up altogether! For instance, I gave up all caffeine, including chocolate (which was very hard!), four years ago, and now I can be around it and not go crazy! Sometimes I think it truly takes a good two years to lose cravings, so it's a question of really waiting out those intense cravings. It helps that I gave up meat, fish, and chicken as a teenager and stuck with it all these years. It makes me know that it is possible to give up something one loves and to eventually be completely content without it! I did the same thing with "movie theater popcorn." It trains the brain to not say, "Should I? Shouldn't I" I like knowing certain things are off limits for me. I know this doesn't work for everybody but for me it makes life less complicated.

2) Imitations sometimes satisfy cravings for me. Since I live in a big city, there are a lot of vegan diners that do all kinds of impressive imitations of the stuff we miss, including seafood. There's even an old-fashioned ice cream parlor that's all vegan. If you want to make your own meat imitations at home, seitan and tempeh are great to use. You can even make your own seitan. The web is full of great recipes to satisfy cravings (e.g. google vegan seafood alternatives).

3) Think about the meaning a certain food has for you, like whether it's associated with family memories or vacations or a certain time in your life or a way one comforted one's self. Mindfulness helps me to redirect my cravings to considering my feelings related to their origins. Then I can focus on satisfying the craving in another way or sit with the uncomfortable feeling and accept it with better understanding.

4) I notice that I crave certain things when I'm sleep deprived or hungry or sick or before my period. Sometimes just realizing this helps me get through the craving because I know it is likely to diminish once I get through whatever is particularly activating it. Remember that every time you make it through a craving you train your brain to make it through the next time. It also builds confidence that you have the power to make your own decisions.

5) When possible I try to stay away from situations that are going to increase a craving. For instance, if I'm out at a restaurant that is not veg friendly and all there is is a basic salad, I bring a tupperware container with all the ingredients to turn it into a "wow" salad. On vacations I try to stay in places with kitchens so that I am able to make sure I have good veg meals whether in or dining out.

I hope some of this is helpful . Just give it time

[Greco]

nycfembbw,

I appreciate you sharing your experience with cravings and your process of
decision making. Number 3 really resonated with me. Memories of fun times
with great seafood, and family, hit the nail on the head for me.

My decision to be vegan came not so suddenly, but poignantly after I watched the "Earthlings" video. I have found it easy because I am adamant
about not participating in a way of eating that no longer feels right to me, and only me, no judgement about anyone else.

But this craving for oysters the last two days or so came from left field. This evening its getting less so I must be getting over it.

I'll take your response and absorb its meaning for me these next few days.

Again, thanks for your response and support.

Have a good week, Greco

Originally Posted by nycfembbw

I deal with cravings in a lot of different ways.

1) In some instances, I give it up altogether! For instance, I gave up all caffeine, including chocolate (which was very hard!), four years ago, and now I can be around it and not go crazy! Sometimes I think it truly takes a good two years to lose cravings, so it's a question of really waiting out those intense cravings. It helps that I gave up meat, fish, and chicken as a teenager and stuck with it all these years. It makes me know that it is possible to give up something one loves and to eventually be completely content without it! I did the same thing with "movie theater popcorn." It trains the brain to not say, "Should I? Shouldn't I" I like knowing certain things are off limits for me. I know this doesn't work for everybody but for me it makes life less complicated.

2) Imitations sometimes satisfy cravings for me. Since I live in a big city, there are a lot of vegan diners that do all kinds of impressive imitations of the stuff we miss, including seafood. There's even an old-fashioned ice cream parlor that's all vegan. If you want to make your own meat imitations at home, seitan and tempeh are great to use. You can even make your own seitan. The web is full of great recipes to satisfy cravings (e.g. google vegan seafood alternatives).

3) Think about the meaning a certain food has for you, like whether it's associated with family memories or vacations or a certain time in your life or a way one comforted one's self. Mindfulness helps me to redirect my cravings to considering my feelings related to their origins. Then I can focus on satisfying the craving in another way or sit with the uncomfortable feeling and accept it with better understanding.

4) I notice that I crave certain things when I'm sleep deprived or hungry or sick or before my period. Sometimes just realizing this helps me get through the craving because I know it is likely to diminish once I get through whatever is particularly activating it. Remember that every time you make it through a craving you train your brain to make it through the next time. It also builds confidence that you have the power to make your own decisions.

5) When possible I try to stay away from situations that are going to increase a craving. For instance, if I'm out at a restaurant that is not veg friendly and all there is is a basic salad, I bring a tupperware container with all the ingredients to turn it into a "wow" salad. On vacations I try to stay in places with kitchens so that I am able to make sure I have good veg meals whether in or dining out.

I hope some of this is helpful . Just give it time

[nycfem]

Originally Posted by greco

My decision to be vegan came not so suddenly, but poignantly after I watched the "Earthlings" video. I have found it easy because I am adamant
about not participating in a way of eating that no longer feels right to me, and only me, no judgement about anyone else.

I very much hear you on this. That's actually another thing that helps me. If I watch videos and read articles about the ethics of using/eating animals in the way that our society usually does so, it puts these important issues in the front of my mind. And the longer I go without taking into my body something that doesn't feel right to me, the more wonderfully foreign it feels to me. So much of going veg is "unlearning" what we've been indoctrinated into within our society.

[Greco]

green juice with ginger lemon last of the chard
celery cucumber and apple all day and tonight
I love green juice yes I do feel lighter clearer

And No Craving Oysters Today finally

waking before the clock I wake it up

today I sound like I'm rambling for some
reason still working tonight until who knows

nycfembbw, yes about the fact of un-learning
societal norms, and cultural ones as well there
is a difference for me as I'm not of the dominant
culture here

One important goal I have is to learn about how to
cook my traditional foods vegan

have found a site on youtube, and I want to create
my own tasty vegan dishes lots to learn and think
about always a good thing

so hope you all have a good dinner and evening

Greco

[nycfem]

Question for all:

What do you like to add to your food to increase the nutritional value?

On a daily basis I add nutritional yeast to a lot of things as well as ground flax seed. Those are my two main stapes but I'd like to add more.

[Greco]

nycfembbw,

I add flax oil to my smoothies, and aloe vera every other day
with Vit C, berry powder as well.

Greco

Originally Posted by nycfembbw

Question for all:

What do you like to add to your food to increase the nutritional value?

On a daily basis I add nutritional yeast to a lot of things as well as ground flax seed. Those are my two main stapes but I'd like to add more.

[2myladyblue]

Originally Posted by nycfembbw

Question for all:

What do you like to add to your food to increase the nutritional value?

On a daily basis I add nutritional yeast to a lot of things as well as ground flax seed. Those are my two main stapes but I'd like to add more.

Hemp!

-Blue

[Linus]

Originally Posted by nycfembbw

Question for all:

What do you like to add to your food to increase the nutritional value?

On a daily basis I add nutritional yeast to a lot of things as well as ground flax seed. Those are my two main stapes but I'd like to add more.

More raw, less processed/cooked. I did some research and was surprised to see how much nutrition is lost by that simple act of cooking! That's where the smoothie idea came in (and if you do pursue that, drink them within a day or two of making)

[Kätzchen]

Originally Posted by nycfem

Question for all:

What do you like to add to your food to increase the nutritional value?

On a daily basis I add nutritional yeast to a lot of things as well as ground flax seed. Those are my two main stapes but I'd like to add more.

I like to cook up an batch of Quinoa, or Pearled Barley, and keep it in the fridge, to use over several days. Sometimes I sprinkle two tablespoons of Quinoa or Pearled Barley over my Romaine salad, to boost the protein content.

I also use walnuts, roasted organic soy nuts, pine nuts, and all kinds of seeds -- like Chia seeds, Sesame seeds, Flax seeds, or cashews or peanuts.


I make my own salad dressings too, which the prime base of any dressing I make is made with organic tofu. This way, my salad dressing is protein rich too and it is filling. Too, I also use Flax seed powder as an binding agent, which also helps curb my appetite.



I love to sautee Tempeh. I break up an bar of Tempeh and sautee it in EVOO and sprinkle a bit of turmeric powder spice on it, which is an warm flavoring agent, as well as tasty.


Oh, back to Pearled Barley. This whole grain, on it's own, is basically not too flavorful. I sometimes take half of an batch of cooked Pearled Barley and make an summer salad out of it. Here's how I do that:


Save back half of an freshly cooked batch of Pearled Barley and set aside in an fairly large serving bowl. Add about an 1/2 cup of EVOO to the Pearled Barley. Set aside, while you prep other items which go into this Pearled Barley salad. 1) slice up an cup of black olives (or buy them pre-sliced, use one small 4 oz can). 2) cut up an bouquet of fresh Basil leaves. 3) Dice up an small Red sweet onion (about 1 cup). 4) slice up some sunburst, orange colored cherry type tomatoes (they're sweet and low acid content). 5) chop up about an cup of walnuts, finely. Take all the side ingredients and fold it into the EVOO'd Pearled Barley and stir well. Lastly, use a bit of sea salt, about 1/2 teaspoon of Cardamom, a pinch of Nutmeg, a pinch of Cinnamon, and about an teaspoon of Tumeric powder. Re-fold the Pearled Barley salad again, to make sure all the seasoning's are blended well, into the salad. I sometimes add a few roasted cloves of garlic, but not everyone likes garlic. I think it adds toward to flavor of the whole salad. So people can use roasted cloves of garlic or not, according to how their taste preferences. Also, you can used roasted Edamae too, as part of this summer salad. Avocado would compliment well, too.

Refrigerate for about three hours (or so), before you serve this salad.

I like it warm (from being freshly made) or chilled. It's got an Mediterranean flavor of it's own and is very filling and tasty. It's high in protein too.

Here's what it looks like, in case some of you have not used Pearled Barley for an summer-type alternative salad idea.

Enjoy!