The Busy (Happy!) Vegan

VeganMofo Day 15: Meals I made but never posted

2010-11-15T22:57:00.000-05:00

I feel like every time I write lately, I utter some apology about not having posted in a while. Apparently, my veganmofo inspiration just couldn't compete with my bronchitis (blech!). I'm still coughing, but missing the fun (!), so rather than trade sleep for an interesting, witty, recipe-plentiful post, I thought I'd round up some food pics that never quite made it on here. Some of them were pretty dynamite. (NB: recipe titles are mostly guesses!)

First up: Spring Vegetable Risotto with toasted almonds. It looks like I might have thrown in some cashew goat cheese as well!

Next: Hummus & Veggie Pitas made by Vegan Momma Chef. I remember these. They were delicious and summery and everything I wanted at that exact moment.

The delicious luxuriousness that is the Coconut BLT at Aux Vivres, my favourite vegan restaurant

This picture is one I had originally planned to do a whole blog post about. Maybe I'll get around to it soon. People often wonder how to navigate parties at other people's homes as a vegan. Even more complicated, how do you help your KIDS navigate it? This is just one option...

Bean Burrito Night!

Ready to build & eat!!

And... just because it's November - a reminder of why all us Montrealers wish it was still summer...

Vegan Mofo Day 7: Nothing to report

2010-11-07T11:25:00.000-05:00

So - I'm a pretty busy person. I'm studying full-time for my PhD, mothering a 2-year old, partnering a 32-year old :), trying to maintain some semblance of a social life, while cooking, cleaning (ok, definitely more cooking than cleaning), cat-caring, and blogging! Although I love, love, love to spend all day in the kitchen trying new recipes while missed episodes of HBO shows play on my laptop, time has been scarce of late, so Roger has picked up a lot of the cooking slack.

You would think that weekends would allow me to sink my teeth into fun new food experiments, but instead, they tend to get eaten up by appointments, play dates, chores, family outings, shopping, and if at all possible, downtime for Roger and me. It doesn't help that the bear has decided to fight naps at home tooth and nail, even though she sleeps for about 3 hours (!) a day at daycare.

All this to say that weekends seem to be when we cook the least - a fact that has been pretty surprising! We tend to go for sandwiches, canned baked beans in maple syrup (yum!), faux chicken breasts, steamed broccoli, home-made pizzas, and of course... take-out (thai, Indian, sushi, you name it!). So - I have no new pretty food pics to post. But - it does go to show that you don't have to spend hours in the kitchen to eat well, eat cruelty-free, and eat relatively healthy!

Halloween Recap: Breakfast for Supper!

2010-11-04T20:54:00.001-04:00

This whole Veganmofo is great for getting my blogging butt into gear. I'm all for spreading the vegan word, and I have food pics in my camera for a month's worth of blogging, so now's the time to make the time, right?

One of the things new vegans sometimes struggle with is how to handle all the animal-based food that goes hand-in-hand with our favourite traditions. My favourite solution is starting brand new, cruelty-free fun family traditions that can last for years. This plan actually started with my mom (big surprise), who got tired of turkey for Christmas long before she ever became Vegan Momma Chef. So - we started having Christmas fondue! My mom dragged out her awesome fondue pots straight from the 70's, and we started cooking veggies in broth, and dipping them in a variety of yummy sauces. Christmas Eve has been a fon-delight (groan) ever since.

Well, our little family started its own Halloween tradition to reflect one of my absolute favourite things: Breakfast for Supper! Here's the thing: I love breakfast. It's absolutely the best meal of the day. And having it for supper makes it that much better because you have more time to whip up something AMAZING! Plus, I've been dying to make really good use of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan Brunch ever since I bought it a couple months ago. I've made a couple recipes here and there, but no full-blown breakfasts... until a few nights ago :)

So I scanned the cookbook, and then picked through my fridge and pantry to discover some veggies and bananas in dire need of eating, and some very yummy leftover lemony-roasted potatoes from Veganomicom. From those, the menu was born: Veggie-laden tofu scramble, banana-raspberry New England style coffee cake smothered in a thick mixed fruit-glaze and lemony-hash browns smothered in cashew sour cream (from The Vegan Table) with a little bit of heat. All I needed was an able helper...

Notice the single oven mitt. Cute, right??

Let's start with the scramble. I know, I know. Tofu scrambles are so cliché. However, when done right, they are also delicious, and can satisfy just about anybody's egg-related craving, both in terms of flavour and texture. I've made a few in my day, all of which were "alright". To ensure quality, I decided to stick pretty strictly to the "classic" recipe that ICM threw in her book, but added lots of veggies, (broccoli, onions, and red peppers!) because that's how I like pretty much all my meals. It was dynamite. Roger actually forgot for the first couple bites that it wasn't eggs. From him, that's HIGH praise.

Next up: the coffee cake. ICM's coffee cake is apparently "New York style" and contains no coffee. It is super-moist, and covered with a yummy crumbly topping and allows for lots and lots of variations. I threw a mashed up ripe banana into the batter while it was mixing, and swirled some raspberry jam in before spreading on the topping. Amazing combo. I will make this cake again and again and again.

Just to amp it up a bit, I whipped up a mixed fruit glaze to throw on top of it. Basically, I just threw a bunch of frozen fruit into a pot with a few spoonfuls of sugar to draw out the juices, and let the whole thing sit on medium heat (simmering) until it got thick and yummy looking.

Simmering...

Adorning the cake oh-so-delciously

Finally: the potatoes. These were a snap. A touch of Earth Balance and a hot pan make some pretty dynamite hash browns.

I topped these with one of my new absolute-favourite-and-very-quick-recipes-that-make-every-meal-better, vegan cashew sour cream from The Vegan Table. This recipe requires no nut-soaking (tee hee!) and very few ingredients, but jazzes up just about ANYTHING that needs a little creaminess. I added a few banana peppers and fresh cilantro for a little heat. The pumpkin loved it.

Overall, the meal was really fun, really tasty, and a great new tradition!

I only wish I'd followed the bear's lead and gone with a segmented plate so my fruit didn't ooze into my scramble!

Veganmofo 2010, Day 2 (Day 1 for me!)

2010-11-02T22:19:00.000-04:00

So with the beginning of November comes Veganmofo IV! For those of you in the know, this month of deliciousness needs no introduction. For everyone else, including me - this is my first blogging November - perhaps a small introduction would be helpful. Veganmofo stands for Vegan month of food. The basic idea is to blog as often as possible about all things vegan food-related. I guess the idea is to get the dialogue going, to remind others (and ourselves!) about the wonders of yummy vegan goodness, and to encourage those who are considering making the leap to do so by showing them how each day can be vegan with just the tiniest amount of effort. I'm on board.

I had high hopes of describing our new annual "vegan breakfast for supper" hallowe'en tradition, but it's almost past my bedtime, so that will have to wait until tomorrow. Thankfully, I think it's worth the wait :)

Instead I'll leave everyone with two great things.

First - a reminder that mac and cheese can be MEGA-delicious without the cheese. My family gobbled it down very eagerly tonight. Even more fun, it was filled with good-for-us veggies and whole wheat pasta, but tasted indulgent. This time, I put the fakin' bacon bits on top of the breadcrumbs rather than mixed inside, so they got nice and smokey.

Second, a picture of the cutest Elmo you ever did see.

Like looking in a mirror...

See you on Day 3!

And the Giveaway Winner is....

2010-11-02T08:03:00.000-04:00

Vanilla Rose!

The bear picked the number "3" out of the hat (well, actually out of a pumpkin-shaped bucket), so the custom t-shirt courtesy of Fibers is all yours.

Use it to display your vegan message (even better if you carry yummy vegan cupcakes around with you!).

Congrats!

World Go Vegan Week Custom T-Shirt Giveaway!

2010-10-27T20:27:00.001-04:00

You may have noticed that it's been many months since my last post. The truth is this: life just takes over at times, and some things have to take a back seat. But what better week to launch my triumphant return (ok, so maybe it's not so triumphant as it is kind of alright) than the 5th annual World Go Vegan Week put on by In Defense of Animals?

Actually... I'm a bit late. Vegan Week started Oct. 24th and runs through Oct. 31st. To make up for my tardiness, I've planned my first giveaway! Josh, a lifelong vegetarian over at Fibers has graciously offered the opportunity for one of my readers to try out their custom t-shirts for free! Basically, this is your chance to finally shout your personal veg message to whoever wants to look at your chest ;) The cost of your custom-designed t-shirt, shipping, and applicable taxes are included.

If you need a little inspiration, check out their stock of vegetarian t-shirts and vegan t-shirts. They have lots of different styles, and sizes for men, women, kids, and babies. Check out my personal favourite!

So, here's what you have to do. Leave a comment on this post telling me two things.
1) What you would put on your custom t-shirt if you won, and
2) What is the one thing you wish you could get the non-veg masses to understand. That's the real heart of vegan week, after all!

I'll get the bear to pick the winner at random (she loves taking stuff out of other stuff!) and announce on Nov. 1st! Good luck to everyone, and for those of you who aren't veg, please use this week as a chance to try living cruelty-free! Maybe you could even make a t-shirt about it... :)

Another Montreal Restaurant Review: Crudessence!

2010-07-19T20:48:00.000-04:00

*Above photo from http://lafillenaturelle.wordpress.com/2009/12/23/raw-in-montreal-part-iii/

Summer has been a delicious vegan adventure, this year around. We've been barbecue-ing a plenty, eating lots of yummy cold salads, teaching the bear how to nibble on corn on the cob, and enjoying fresh Québec berries by the basket-ful. This means that although our own private terrasse has been very well-used, we've been missing out on all the yummy vegan goodness that Montreal's restaurants have to offer.

A while ago, Mary from This is Vegan asked me about good cruelty-free eats in Montreal, for her upcoming trip. I reviewed all the restaurants I had tried in the city, and was really excited to hear that she agreed with me about the awesomeness of Aux Vivres and Chuch! The best part was that she also gave a rave review to Crudessence, a raw vegan restaurant in the heart of the plateau.

Aside from the occasional green smoothie for breakfast, the raw food bandwagon is not one that I've ever had much interest in jumping on. It's always seemed a touch weird to me to avoid heating foods above 46 degrees celsius (if that's not right, blame wikipedia!!), but then again, it seems a touch weird to a lot of people that I choose not to eat animal products, right? Ok, so it's not quite the same, but who cares when the food tastes so delicious?!?!

Roger and I actually ended up at this raw delight mostly by accident while checking out a possible wedding venue. Although I was ecstatic at the chance to finally see what the Crudessence fuss was all about, Roger was more than a little hesitant. He has only recently gotten used to having nothing but vegan options on the menu... throwing the word "raw" into the mix didn't help my case very much. Ever a trooper, he poked through the menu with trepidation, and settled on nachos!

These, my friends, are not your regular everyday nachos... they're WAY better.

... so much better, in fact, that I had to snap this picture after more than a few bites had been taken!

I have no idea how they made these "rosemary chips", but they were VERY flavourful, and nice & crispy. The cashew sour cream (my next recipe undertaking) also hit the spot. Roger's only complaint was that the sides weren't plentiful enough.

As soon as I opened the menu, I was ecstatic to have two very delicious items jumping off the page at me: lasagna and quiche - two yummy foods that are tough to veganize to my satisfaction. After hemming and hawing, I ordered the lasagna, and started drooling with imagination. My dreams were dashed 30 seconds later when the (very friendly) waitress informed me that they'd had some sort of mix-up in their weekly order and were unable to make the lasagna OR the quiche. I took a minute or two to get over my seemingly great loss, and ordered the tomato pizza, which boasted sun-dried tomato sauce, mixed veggies, cashew cheese, and "crumesan" as its toppings.

The verdict?

Delicious! And huge! The green side salad was crispy and fresh, with a yummy creamy dressing. I was also really intrigued and impressed with the zucchini "pasta" salad. It looks like they used something akin to an automatic apple peeler to create long raw zucchini "noodles", and smothered them in a tangy tomato sauce. It's definitely on my at-home to-do list!

The pizza itself, was dyanamite. The flavours were really strong and complemented each other so well. The crust was really surprising - I think it had an olive-base. It was crispy and delicious.

I definitely recommend this restaurant. They seem to have a catering company as well, which could be neat for any of you planning vegan events in and around the city. I can't wait to go back for the quiche and lasagna!

A Vegan Dilemma

2010-06-19T15:21:00.002-04:00

(Photo credit: suckstobeyoublog.com)

Argh! I finally found the time, energy, and motivation (birthday cupacakes!) to write a new post a few nights ago, only to spend most of the evening searching our apartment for our connect-the-camera-to-the-computer-to-download-(or is it upload??)-photos cord. Long story short: it's still missing, which makes blogging a bit tough!

In the meantime, I thought I would share a vegan dilemma, and hopefully get some thoughts back from those of you who are reading!

First thing's first: the fun news. We have two events that need planning in the near (and quite far) future. In a couple of weeks, we'll be celebrating the bear's second birthday! We have grand ideas about a bunny shaped cake, backyard sprinkler fun, and a watermelon keg (or maybe two... one unspiked for the kiddies!). Also - we've finally set a date for our wedding! Roger and I will be getting married in August of 2011, so the time has come to find a venue, choose a dress, and host a great big party. Fun, right?

Well, here's the problem: food. As readers of this blog are likely aware, Roger is not vegan. He's incredibly accommodating, prepares most of the (vegan!) meals for our little family, makes sure the bear stays animal free, and has reduced his animal consumption greatly in the 5 years that we've known one another. But: he's not vegan.

This is occasionally a toughie for me. I think of veganism as a rights issue. It's not about preference, tradition, humane treatment, or perfectionism. I believe that animals have as much right as we do to live free of captivity, torture, and murder. I also believe that human animals have to find their own path to veganism. I mean, it's only been a year and 4 months since I went completely vegan, and expecting everyone else to have the same transition as I do at the same time as I do is simply unfair and unrealistic.

In other words, I don't spend time trying to "convert" Roger. But I DO make certain requests of him - like hosting a vegan birthday party and wedding. Although he's more than happy to plan these events as mostly vegan, he's adamant about having some non-vegan options available (like cheese for veggie burgers). He feels this way for a couple of reasons. First, he wants the guests to feel comfortable and enjoy the food. This one has an easy counter-argument in my opinion: if the food's good, nobody will care if it has animal products in it. His second reason is a bit tougher. He wants the party to be representative of him and his contribution, and he is a person who likes to eat, cook, and offer foods like cheeseburgers to his guests.

So here's where I stand: I understand that Roger wants to have a part of "him" at the party. I get it. I really do. But I struggle to reconcile that with the fact that I don't feel right about celebrating these two joyful and amazing events with the use and abuse of animals.

I know my audience is largely from the veg community, so your opinions may be a bit biased, but I imagine some of you ahve encountered similar dilemmas, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks!!

Red Lentil and Artichoke Stew Over Spaghetti Squash

2010-05-20T22:12:00.000-04:00

It's a common myth that veganism = deathly thinness. I read somewhere once that if you want to look 5 pounds thinner, you should just tell people you're vegan. Is there a link between animal consumption and higher weight? The evidence seems to say yes. That being said, it is just as easy to be an unhealthy vegan as it is to be a healthy vegan. A quick glimpse at the popular site I Can't Believe It's Vegan! lists really-terrible-for-anybody products such as Fritos, Fruit by the Foot, Lay's Potato Chips, Ritz Crackers, and Sour Patch Kids (the last of which was responsible for at least ten pounds of my pregnancy weight). Sure, sure, it's another example of how PETA seems to have missed the point, but more than that, it's an indication of how a vegetarian diet can actually include very few vegetables... and a whole lot of fat, salt, sugar, and random chemicals.

I'm the first to admit that the idea of eating a Pillsbury Apple Turnover guilt-free is enough to make me cry with joy, but I've been making a real effort lately to ensure that my core foods are straight from the ground (or from the trees that pop up from the ground!). This means I've been eating lots of greens, fruits, beans, nuts, and whole grains. All in all - my energy's been better, I've been feeling more full on less food, and I think my pants are starting to fit a bit better!

Here's a quick example of a quick and very tasty meal that's chock full of veggies, and pretty much devoid of any processed foods! This delicious Red Lentil and Artichoke Stew comes from The Vegan Table (my favourite cookbook, as I'm sure you've noticed by now), and was really easy to make. I think it has about 5-6 ingredients, all of which get tossed in a pot and simmered for a while. Roger had to search a bit to find the red lentils, but all it took in the end was a trip to Akhavan, our local middle eastern market. The recipe suggests serving it over rice or pasta, but I decided to go with spaghetti squash. Basically, cut it in half, put a tiny bit of oil on the cut sides, roast at 375F, skin up for 35-45 minutes (until tender), and then take a fork to the inside to create yummy and sweet noodle-like shreds!

The red lentils that Roger had to search for actually turned white when cooked, and the bite of the chilli flakes added a great yummy touch. Plus - I'm a sucker for artichokes!

This is the bear-sized version...

...which she dubbed "pasta" and devoured...

... at least when she was able to get it into her mouth!!

Lots of veggies = happy and healthy bear cubs!

Vegan Beet Cupcakes with Chocolatey Cream Cheese Frosting

2010-05-17T20:41:00.000-04:00

It all started with this week's Good Food Box. It contained a huge bag of yummy looking beets, so I thought I'd turn them into a salad. After a quick skim of all the beet-related recipes in my cookbooks, I made my choice: Beet Bundt Cake from The Vegan Table. Not quite a salad, but it still had beets!

I started boiling the beets, and preparing the rest of the ingredients, and then noticed that I couldn't find my bundt pan, and I hadn't boiled enough beets. Quelle surprise. Anyway, I went into improv mode, and whipped up some cream cheese frosting to boot! Roger, the Bear, and L'Anglais LOVED these. Ok, ok, I did, too. The beets are surprising, and give great taste, colour and substance to the yummy chocolatey-ness of this recipe. I will DEFINITELY bake with beets again!

The frosting was a first for me, and came out more than a tad runny. Once the cupcakes had been in the fridge for a while, though, it firmed up pretty well. It might be a good idea to chill the icing before laying it on.

I modified Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's recipe a fair bit, so I figured it would be okay to share it. Keep reading to see it!

Cupcakes:

1/2 cup canola oil

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 cup puréed cooked beets

1 cup puréed apple grape blend - no sugar added! (I stole these from the bear... she never noticed)

1/2 cup melted chocolate chips

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsps. baking powder

pinch of salt

Frosting:

8-oz. package of vegan cream cheese (I used yoso). NB: I would never spread this on a bagel... it's way too sweet, and not very tasty. But it has worked WONDERS in cream-cheese type dips and in this frosting!

1/2 cup Earth Balance or other vegan butter

2 cups icing sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 tsp. vanilla

2 tsp. lemon juice

Mix together oil & brown sugar. Add beets, apple-grape sauce, chocolate melted goodness, and vanilla. Mix well.
Combine dry ingredients. Gradually add to wet mixture, until just combined.

Pour into oiled muffin tin (makes 12) or into un-oiled tin with paper or silicone muffin cups!
Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool completely before frosting.

While cupcakes are cooking, start making the frosting!
Beat the cream cheese and Earth Balance together, until fluffy, but not so long that it gets crumbly.
Add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined.
Cool for 45-60 minutes.
Spread, and enjoy!!!

Quick & Easy Vegan Baked Apples

2010-05-14T21:03:00.000-04:00

You may have noticed (with a sigh and a tear, of course!) that my blog post frequency has been drastically reduced over the past month or so. It's just been that kind of month, I'm afraid. Not only have I run out of time to share my vegan adventures, but I've run out of time to cook and bake so that I'll have yummy recipes to blog about! The truth is, it may be high time for Roger to start his own foodie politico blog, because he's the one doing most of the cooking!

The sad part, of course, is that I miss it. I miss combing through cookbooks, magazines, and websites, in search of that fun looking recipe. I miss taking photo after photo to document the process in great detail. I miss planning out a week of meals, and then spending two hours going from fruiterie to grocery store to health food store to make sure I get exactly what I need. So when I saw Roger aimlessly poking through my cookbooks and mumbling about "roasting apples" for dessert, I jumped at the chance to recreate a childhood favourite, minus the animal cruelty, of course!

We don't have an apple corer, so I just chopped up the apples instead. After a quick consult with Vegan Momma Chef, I added a bit of Earth Balance, brown sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon, covered it in tin foil and popped it all in the oven at 350F for about 30 minutes.

I topped each bowl off with some home-made granola from How It All Vegan (a quick, yummy, and healthful time-saver, by the way!), and drizzled the remaining syrupy goodness from the bottom of the corningware over the top. The result? A pretty healthy and VERY delicious version of apple crisp! It hit the spot for Roger, the bear, and for me! I think this will be a staple from now on.

closer...

closest!

yum.

Up next: not-so-healthy vegan beet cupcakes with chocolate cream cheese frosting!

'Creamy' Leek & Potato Soup with Fakin' Bacon and Opal Basil

2010-05-02T21:21:00.004-04:00

This week's CSA was amazing! We got broccoli, plums, grapefruit, apples, tomatoes, onions, carrots, potatoes, and a lovely looking leek. The obvious menu plan had to include a leek and potato soup, although I'd never made one before, pre- or post-veganism, so it was a bit of a fun challenge. With my tastebuds tingling at the thought of a rich creamy soup, I went to the grocery store in search of chives. True to life, it was just about the only herb they were out of that day, but in its place was a spice I'd never heard of, let alone tried: Opal Basil. Now - I use sweet basil a lot. It's my favourite herb, makes yummy pestos, tastes dynamite as a pizza topping, and jazzes up pretty much any other dish you might enjoy. But here was this beautiful, mysterious, purple imposter tempting me to try it. Never one to back down, I popped it into my cart... right next to the red wine.

I forgot to snap a shot of the basil itself, but 'borrowed' this photo from Better Living With Herbs, an amazing resource for all things spicy!

Basil in hand, I set about soup-making. My not-so-secret secret ingredient for 'creamy' soups is silken tofu. I like to whir it up before hand, blending for a couple minutes until really creamy, and then add it to pretty much any and every puréed soup. It gives it the perfect texture, and packs a protein punch. Just vary the amounts depending on the size of your recipe, because it can also make a soup bland if the ratio`s not quite right.

Speaking of bland - I had to use quite a bit of seasoning to really get this soup to taste right. I think I was a bit hampered by the single leek from my good food box. In the future, I`d either up the leek quantity (to 2 or 3!), or reduce the potatoes & broth, and simply make less soup.

I topped it with some of the pretty purple leaves, some soy 'bacon' bits, and a big chunk of crusty olive bread. It looked delicious!

Everyone seemed to love it! I served it to L'Anglais over at sLudGE Soda, AKA my older brother who just returned from a 3-month surf 'sabbatical' in Sri Lanka, Roger, and of course, the bear! 2 out of 3 thumbs up. The bear was not in such a soupy mood, I guess, but preferred to chomp on a mountainful of frozen peas!

In the end, the basil made for a very pretty touch, and tasted pretty much like... well, basil. I read online that it's supposed to be more acrid than the sweet variety, but I didn't notice much difference. In other words, still delicious! Maybe I don't have the palate I thought I did...

Here's the recipe if you'd like to try it!

4 russet potatoes, washed and cut up into chunks (peels ON)
1 large leek, washed and chopped
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp. Earth Balance (or other vegan butter)
1/4 cup beer (if you happen to be drinking while cooking, like I was!)
5 cups veggie broth
1 package soft/silken tofu
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar
3 tbsp. opal basil chopped, plus more (whole leaves) for garnish
Salt & pepper to taste

In a large pot, melt Earth Balance over medium heat
Add leeks, garlic, onion, potatoes, and beer, and sauté until onion is translucent (about 5 min)
Add veggie broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
Cook for approximately 20-25 minutes, until potatoes are very soft.
Meanwhile, purée tofu in a blender until very smooth. Add to soup, stirring until well blended.
Using an immersion blender, purée soup to desired texture (I left mine a bit lumpy.) If you don't have an immersion blender, allow soup to cool, and then blend in batches in a blender or food processor.
Stir in lemon juice, rice vinegar, and salt & pepper. Adjust seasonings to taste!

Garnish with basil and lemon juice, and make sure to dip some crusty bread in there!

Go! Habs! Go! Vegan-style

2010-04-29T10:57:00.001-04:00

An impromptu game 7 last night led to an equally impromptu hockey soirée at our place. I sent out a very quick email on Tuesday, inviting people to bring their Habs-related hopes and dreams over to our apartment, as well as anything they wanted to eat! It was a pretty small gathering - we provided a bit of beer, some chips, hummus, and salsa (because a girl can never go wrong with beer, chips, hummus, and salsa), and a couple of friends brought more beer and chips to add to the collection!

Even more fun, we had all just recieved our CSA good food boxes, each of which contained a hearty bunch of spinach. Miss Toronto Fashion (don't worry - she swore no affiliation to the Leafs) emailed me early in the day for a vegan spinach dip recommendation. The only versions I had ever tried contained vegan versions of standard ingredients like sour cream, cream cheese, and mayo, and I was hesitant to send her out to scour the city for pricey, not-always-so-great dairy-free products. But then I found this intriguing 'cheese'-free recipe, and passed it along. I also passed along my strong belief that cashews are a gift from the vegan gods (and no, I don't mean Gary Francione... this time) and make for awesome creamy cheesy yummy dishes! MTF proclaimed excitement, and showed up with a very bright green, very rich, very yummy, and very healthful spinach dip, which put to shame my pre-vegan cruelty-laden and post-vegan 'fake cheese' versions, along with a side of hearty pita rounds for dipping! I wish I had a picture, but it looked pretty much exactly like the picture from the recipe:

Not only do I highly recommend the recipe, but I highly recommend surrounding yourself with people who love to cook and to try new things - it means you get to eat yummy stuff with much less work :) Much thanks to Miss Toronto Fashion.

Also - much much much much much much thanks to Jaroslav Halak.

Finally - Penguins suck.

Macadamia Nut-Crusted Tofu with Quinoa and Veggies

2010-04-26T15:22:00.002-04:00

My blog posts lately have been too few and too far between. It seems that school and trips and playoffs (Go! Habs! Go!) have taken a front seat, and vegan yumminess has remained only in my tummy! Here's a quick post that I meant to put up a while ago, about one of my go-to meals when I have a block of tofu in the fridge that needs to be used up: Macadamia Nut-Crusted Tofu from The 30-Minute Vegan on quinoa with a side of quick stir-fried veggies!

The hardest part about making this dish is finding macadamia nuts that haven't been salted or roasted in oil. The "health food" section at Loblaw's has been a pretty good bet for me! The marinade and nuts make for super-flavourful and healthful tofu cutlets. This recipe calls for some of my favourite ingredients (tahini, coconut, fresh cilantro), so it couldn't really go wrong. It's also a sure-fire winner with the bear AND Roger, so it's a frequent meal in our house!

The bear likes to follow it up with a double spoonful (or two or three) of soygurt. After all, everybody likes a sweet treat after a hearty meal!

Eating Vegan and Happy in Ottawa: ZenKitchen

2010-04-19T21:30:00.001-04:00

I have to send thanks out, once again, to Vegan Momma Chef (and her partner in grand-parenting, the bear's beloved grandpapa) for a weekend vacation that really hit the spot. Roger and I dropped the bear off for a weekend adventure involving stomping in rain puddles, hitting the mall, and eating sand pancakes, and then continued on to a fancy hotel in sunny (ok, rainy) Ottawa. It was one of those vacations where everything somehow goes well (except for the weather!). The hotel was great, including its complimentary breakfast which offered yummy vegan options like toast (of course), fresh fruit, hash browns, and stewed tomatoes and mushrooms, my favourite stores had great sales, we were both able to take delicious daytime naps, and our spirits were high. The only damper on the whole weekend was the Habs' heartbreaking loss... but such is life, right?

Our trip started on a teriffic note with a late-night dinner at ZenKitchen, the kind of vegan restaurant we all dream of running some day.

I stole this image straight off the restaurant's website, but I doubt that Caroline & Dave will mind. Their hospitality and passion for the restaurant business was evident from the moment we walked in. The atmosphere is classy and hip, if a bit noisy, and the service is dynamite.

As usual, the experience of knowing that I can order anything I want off the menu without double-checking the ingredients or defining 'dairy' for confused servers and chefs was liberating in itself. Also as usual, I found it very hard to decide what I wanted to order, because everything sounded delicious. In the end, Roger and I decided to go all out, throw caution to the wind, and order the 4-course tasting menu, with a wine pairing for each course, to boot!

Dave, the co-owner, manager, and sommelier, started us off with a Caiparinha cocktail made with Brazil's version of rum, Cachaca (a double, by the way... he must have recognized our boozy nature when we walked in the door!), lime, sugar, and crushed ice. It had been years since I'd had one of these cocktails, and it made me question why I'd waited so long! This was accompanied by a lotus chip amuse-bouche. All I remember about it was that it was tasty, lime-y, and avocado-y, and started the meal off on a great note. (I almost feel bad for posting these pictures, because I feel the quality of the pictures doesn't do the food justice. Apologies to all!!)

Course #1: Microgreens with jicama and a light vinaigrette. I don't have too much to say about this dish, except that it was yummy and refreshing! Roger really loved the jicama. This app was paired with Angels Gate Sparkling Rosé VQA, Niagara. I'm not generally a fan of sparkling wines, but this one was surprisingly good - not too tangy or sweet, and played off the fruitiness of the salad really well.

Course #2: A crispy tortilla filled with chipotle sweet potato and served with papaya mango salsa and a creamy avocado sauce. I loved, loved, loved the flavour of this dish. The salsa added a nice fruity contrast to the kick of the chipotle, and avocado, in my opinion, makes every dish better. My only complaint is that the tortilla could've been a bit crispier; Roger thought it could be a bit softer, so it sounds like a matter of taste! The wine for this course was Vineland Estates Sauvignon Blanc 2008, Niagara. I freely admit that although I am a vigorous wine consumer, I'm not much of a connoisseur. Overall, I enjoyed all the wines that Dave picked for our meal - I enjoyed even more his description of all of them! We got to learn quite a bit about what he thought was special about each wine that he chose. Lots of fun, and lots of yumminess!

Course #3: The Main. This dish convinced me that it's time for me to learn how to make my own seitan. We were served some very tasty braised seitan with a chimichurri sauce, red & black quinoa, and some grilled swiss chard, which was Roger's absolute favourite. I really enjoyed everything about this dish. The seitan was salty, in the best way possible, and the quinoa had substance. I wish there could have been a bit more chimchurri to drizzle around, because it was really yummy. Roger swore up and down that the swiss chard tasted like steak, and bought some to bbq, according to Head Chef & co-owner Caroline's friendly instructions, as soon as we got home! We had a very delicious red wine to drink with this meal: Emiliana "Novas" Carmenere-Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007, Chile. Dynamite.

As every vegan will tell you: the two toughest items to enjoy when eating at a restaurant are breakfast and dessert. That's why the fourth course was definitely my favourite. Here goes: Roasted banana chocolate parfait on a shortbread cookie with crispy cinnamon doughnuts and a blueberry crème anglaise coulis. Need I say more? This was very rich, very satisfying, and made my whole weekend that much better. All I wished for was more roasted banana! Roger and I both cleaned our plates, and washed it down with a yummy glass of Featherstone Late Harvest Cabernet Franc, VQA, 2008, Niagara.

I simply cannot say enough great things about ZenKitchen. The food (you`ll notice that pretty much all my complaints were related to wanting more!), service, and atmosphere were just right. This is what people mean when they talk about a great dining experience. And as I heard another patron say to her companion, "it's not great vegan food - it's just great food". This is the type of reaction we want to vegan restaurants! Great food is great food, and it's even better when it's cruelty-free. Here's hoping Vegan Momma Chef keeps volunteering for bear-care weekends, so we can head to Ottawa a bit more often!

Fighting extinction: Is it about us or them?

2010-04-12T20:14:00.002-04:00

Every morning, Roger and I wake up to the soothing sounds of the bear naming objects in the picture book we've left in her crib. It goes something like this: "ball? kick it! kick it! cat? meeeeeeeeoooooooooow... Daddy? Daddy where aaaaaaaaaaaare you?" We usually giggle, bargain over who's going to get up, and roll out of bed.

Once we're all seated for breakfast, coffee on the brew, we take separate sections of the paper and enjoy our toast & peanut butter. Sounds nice, right? It usually is. But yesterday, I was confronted by this story in the Montreal Gazette, about a Canadian lynx that had recently been killed in "a trap line north of Banff National Park in January".

The story told the tale of this wild cat who had originally been trapped in British Columbia, and then transported to Colorado as part of some sort of "landmark reintroduction program". According to the article, Colorado was once home to lynx, which have been on the endangered species list in that area for several decades. This particular lynx, known affectionately as "specimen BC-03-M-02" (birthplace-year of capture-sex-ID number) lived on a range there for several years, sired at least 6 kittens, and then disappeared (escaped??) and travelled approximately 2200 km. (or 1400 miles) until he was found dead in a neck snare in Alberta recently.

Sounds terrible, right? Well - not according to Randy Boswell, the author of the article, or any of the individuals he/she interviewed, all of whom commented on the amazing trek "home" accomplished by the lynx. Is it amazing that the lynx was able to travel so far and to have remained healthy? Absolutely. Is that the most shocking thing about this story? Absolutely not.

The most obvious issue, to me, is the horrific death this cat faced. Open traps such as these are a danger to all wildlife and should not be allowed. If you read the article, you may notice that they make very brief reference to "the animal's unfortunate end", but that's about it.

Perhaps more importantly, why are "re-population" efforts always considered a good thing? Is maintaining the existence of a species worth the suffering it inflicts upon the animals that are currently living? For example, a document published about the early days of this particular program reports that of 96 lynx captured and subsequently released in Colorado between 1999 and 2000, 43 (almost 45%!) had died by 2002 from the following causes: starvation, collision with motor vehicles, and gunshot. The article went on to discuss new measures to be taken to reduce the number of deaths (none of which were "stop bringing them here against their will"). A more recent article indicated that between the time of capture from Canada or Alaska and the time of release into the Colorado mountains, lynx spend 3 months in captivity.

It seems to me that capturing, imprisoning, and transporting animals to decrease the likelihood of their extinction is more about our desire for their existence than it is about the animals' best interests. I love animals, and the thought of a species ceasing to exist does not make me jump for joy. But the act of forcing them from their home, fitting them with collars, and releasing them in a new environment just so that we can enjoy the knowledge that they continue to live where we want them to makes my skin crawl even more.

Photo by digitalART2

Food Court Delight!

2010-04-11T13:13:00.001-04:00

Gone are the days when vegans have to dread walking into a shopping centre food court. Many of the traditional burger joints offer veggie burgers (on vegan buns!), salads, and of course our old friend, the french (canola oiled) fry. Lots of ethnic restaurants have jumped on the fast food bandwagon, too, so we can often enjoy a bean burrito, hummus pita, tofu veggie soup or stir-fry... the list goes on & on. The third main option is what I went for today - a sandwich shop with meatless, mayo-less, and cheese-less options!

My choice today was Cultures, a fast food joint whose goal is to provide healthful and yummy meals in just a few minutes. They often have homemade (and pretty dynamite) veggie paté, but on my last few visits, they had run out, and were offering tofu salad (full of mayo) instead. The counterperson today was awesome, though - he pulled out a big container full of roasted peppers and zucchini, wrapped them up with parmesan-free pesto, tomato, and lettuce, and threw two vegan (and not too oily!) salads on the side. The fun part was - I actually had at leat 6 or 7 mayo/cheese/cream-free salads to choose from - not just potato and/or fruit. There was avocado, quinoa, cabbage... I went with chick pea, mixed veggie, and a tiny side of curried potatoes (though you can't see them in the photo). The whole dish was delish, filling, and not heavy at all.

Food courts are fast becoming one of my favourite places to eat, because unlike some restaurants, there are tons and tons and tons of options. Visit one soon!

I had to rely on my phone to take this picture, since I don't carry my camera with me everywhere I go, but I think it does the meal justice. You can actually see a corner of one of the potatoes in the bottom left corner!

Vegans Love Easter Too!

2010-04-06T20:08:00.000-04:00

This post is a few days late, but definitely not short on yummy food! I think a lot of people expect that holidays can be one of the greatest challenges for a new vegan, but it wasn't such a tough issue for me. The truth is, my family has been enjoying non-traditional holiday meals for years. Fondues and pizza at Christmas, sushi for Thanksgiving, and this year:

coconut rice with green beans and tofu...

roasted veggies...

and dal for Easter - all vegan of course!

The follow-up was even better - vegan sugar cookies from The Joy of Vegan Baking...

...and chocolate peanut butter cups from How It All Vegan, one of my favourite recipes of all time, vegan or not! And trust me, food is always better when it's cooked (or baked!) by Vegan Momma Chef.

The best part, though, was being able to make Easter as fun for the bear as I remember it being, without hurting any animals in the process! We bought a whole bunch of little plastic eggs, and a dark chocolate (dairy-free) bunny. She hunted for all of them, with a little help from her dad! Nothing is as fun for our little bear as collecting stuff and putting it in a basket :)

Vegan Momma Chef added a VERY cute duckie basket, filled with a replica of her best bunny friend, some little plastic buddies, and a wind-up chick that brought her tons of joy as it pecked along.

She loved the sugar cookies too!

Vegan Sweet Treats are Dynamite

2010-03-31T20:57:00.001-04:00

The road to veganism can be a long and windy one. First, you find out, one way or the other, about what's really happening to the animals whose flesh and secretions you're consuming. Then, disguested, you do a bit more research, only to feel even more grossed out (and enraged!) so you decide to do something about it. Maybe you go vegetarian for a bit, maybe you jump into veganism right away, you might slip, you might spend weeks eating nothing but hummus and peanut butter. Eventually, we all deal with the cheese factor, which, I promise promise promise you is way easier than it seems.

Then - voilà! You're vegan! You're eating fresh produce and cooking your own beans, downing green smoothies by the blender-full and experimenting with tofu. Even better - you're discovering the joy of vegan baking! At least that's what it's been like for me...

It turns out, however, not only are vegan desserts just as delicious as their butter-milk-and-egg laden counterparts, they're usually just as full of fat and sugar, albeit the vegan varieties. SO: with visions of my pre-pregnancy skinny jeans dancing in my head, I'm cutting back - waaaaaaaaaaaaaay back. On Satruday, I made VERY delicious orange creamsicle waffles from The 30-Minute Vegan, mixed in some chocolate chips, whipped up a peach-strawberry topping, covered the whole mess in maple syrup, and bid adieu to twice a week vegan baking. It's been 4 days, and I'm feeling pretty great about it! I felt the strong pull of my sweet tooth tonight, so I had about a half a cup of Natur-a's Maple Glacé, sans pépites de chocolat, by the way, and called it a night.

Now - I'm not GIVING UP sweets, but trying to cut down. I've defnitely been enjoying the sugary-fatty-chocolately goodness too much of late. Plus, when I asked the bear the other night what she wanted for supper, she responded "cake!" - never a good sign. So, as a fond farewell to nightly chocolate, I've decided to finally blog about a few of the desserts I've made in the last month or two. Enjoy the deliciousness!

First up: chocolate chip bars from How It All Vegan! (I cut them into squares instead of bars so that there would be more of them... to share)

I replaced about a third of the flour in this recipe with wheat germ, which gave it an awesome texture.

Next up - chocolate chip "anything goes" muffins from How It All Vegan (are you sensing a them yet?). I somehow didn't get a picture of the actual muffins, but here's a couple shots of the bear chowing down on one, with a pureed berry chaser.

Finally - my favourite: Coconut-Lime Banana Bread from The 30-Minute Vegan. I substituted orange zest for lime zest, because it's what was in my fridge, and used vanilla-flavoured soy yogurt, because I didn't have plain. The result? DYNAMITE. Roger and Busy Bee both LOVED this. So did I!

The glaze was technically optional, but this bread wouldn't have been half as good without it!

Reply to the Anonymous Anti-Vegan Blog Commenter

2010-03-27T17:05:00.004-04:00

I recently replied to a comment on a great animal rights blog called Provoked about the treatment of calves involved in the dairy industry. I admit that my comment may have been a bit sharp, but this was largely because of my frustration at "anonymous" comments, which feature unsubstantiated and emotion-driven statements. Shortly following my reply, the same "anonymous" commenter showed up on one of my posts, about my love for cheeseless (and cashew cheesy!) home-made pizzas. I decided to reply to the comments, but wrote what essentially is a blog entry on its own... so here it is!

Anonymous 1: Thanks for your comments. I looked at the blog link that you sent me. I take it from your comment that you assume that I chose to be vegan because I “listened” to a couple of people who said that farmed animals were treated inhumanely. The truth is that I have long believed that the distinction in value between human and non-human animals is arbitrary. As such, regardless of how well-treated an animal is prior to its slaughter, I object to the fact that it was bred and raised solely to be killed for food, clothing, and convenience. Additionally, your comment on my site is similar to the one you left on Bea Elliott’s site, to which I replied – I’m guessing that’s how you ended up here in the first place – in that it is rude, aggressive, and shows no interest in genuine discourse. Although I welcome disagreement, because it provides an opportunity to explore rights issues which are close to my heart, I object to comments designed solely as attacks, especially those which offer no factual information, but merely emotional outrage. In the future, rude and/or offensive comments (and no, I don’t consider disagreement, per se, to be rude or offensive) will be deleted promptly.

Anonymous 2: I am replying to you separately, even though you are the same person as Anonymous 1, because you chose to voice your anger in two separate comments. Contrary to what you may expect, I actually think you made several good and true points.

First: It is incredibly sad to hear of the death of a child who was clearly suffering from malnutrition. No – soy milk and apple juice are not nutritionally adequate for a person of any age. Vegan (or lactose intolerant) babies who are weaned from breast milk before the age of 2 are supposed to replace it with soy formula, which contains all the nutrients that are in cow’s milk (fats, B12, protein, calcium, vitamins A & D), largely because both products are supplemented with them.

Second: You’re right – a vegan diet is not a fertility diet for men or women. It is not a diet for babies, children, or teens. It’s not a diet, period. It’s a cruelty-free lifestyle that excludes the use of animal products, and includes whole-food, plant-based products, rich in all the vitamins, nutrients, and fats that can be found in animal products.

Those are the points of yours that I agree with. The remainder are simply untrue. For example, soy does not inhibit growth. Just ask individuals from Asian cultural groups who have been living happily and healthily for years. Better yet, ask Dr. T. Colin Campbell, author of The China Study, who examined relationships between food consumption and illness in more than 2400 countries and 880 million people, who, following his research made this statement: “People who ate the most animal-based foods got the most chronic disease … People who ate the most plant-based foods were the healthiest and tended to avoid chronic disease. These results could not be ignored,”.

Some of this information may come as a surprise to you. I understand if you are unaware of whether the statements you made in your comment were true or not, because you didn’t actually write them. In fact, I found your exact comment, word for word, on two separate websites:

http://www.theherbaladvisor.com/Healthy_Living_35/A_Vegan_Tragedy.shtml

http://realbabyfood.info/vegan_death.html

Either you are the original author, Dr . Angela Hywood, who got all of her information from Nina Planck, in which case, please confirm that so we can have that little chat that I mentioned earlier, or you are simply unaware of the facts and logic surrounding veganism and choose to co-opt the thoughts of others, and claim them as your own. By the way – Dr. McDougall, M.D., does a great job of tearing up Ms. Planck’s “facts” by referencing actual scientific research. Neat idea, right?

I started this blog to share my experience of veganism with those that were interested. This site is open to everyone, and I welcome comments, questions, and strong disagreement! I believe it is incredibly important to explore these issues through open and honest discourse, based on facts and logic. Thanks again!

Red Barley Risotto

2010-03-25T22:05:00.005-04:00

Readers of my blog probably know by now that I love watching Top Chef. It's incredibly rare that they cook or bake anything of any relevance to me whatsoever, but I love the drama. I love watching Padma's nose turn up in disgust, and Tom Colicchio's eyes dance with disdain (if dancing and disdain can ever go together, but whatever).

I remember watching one episode recently, where one of the chefs made potato risotto, and explained that although we think of risotto as a type of food (i.e., arborio rice), it's actually a cooking technique. To which my response was whhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaatt?!?!?

Ok, so it was probably slightly less dramatic than that, but I was still pretty intrigued. Since then, I've been meaning to "risotto" some kind of grain besides arborio rice, just to see how it turns out. I'm also unsure whether arborio rice is a whole grain, but I think not. I settled on barley. Unfortunately, I don't know that much about barley, and made a snap decision at the grocery store to get "pearl barley" rather than "pot barely", and it turns out I got the most refined kind - so not so "whole grain" after all. Such is life.

Anyway - inspired by my first CSA experience, I set about using up some of the veggies we'd received in our Good Food Box. I googled a few recipes to try to get a sense of how to use them (who knew you could cook radishes, and they would be delicious?!?!), and set about risotto-ing. The results were AMAZING. The recipe is below!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups pearl barley
5 1/2 cups vegetable stock
2 tbsp. Earth Balance
3 tbsp. Olive oil, divided
2 small onions, diced
1/2 cup white wine
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 small radishes, ends removed, scrubbed and thinly sliced into half-moons
1 tsp olive, canola, or vegetable oil
1 tsp. water
6 small beets
1 1/2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, minced
2 tbsp. fresh basil, minced
3 tbsp. pine nut & macadamia nut ricotta (or other nut cheese, soy cheese, whatever)
1/2 large tomato, diced

Directions:

1. Roast the beets: Preheat oven to 400F. Scrub the beets well, but leave the peels, and the ends ON. Place on a large piece of aluminum foil, sprinkle with 1 tbsp. olive oil, wrap tightly, and toss in the oven for about an hour, or until tender.

2. Remove the beets from the oven, set aside, and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, remove the skins, chop off the ends, and cut into bite-size pieces. By the way: If you don't want to look like Lady Macbeth's image of herself, wear rubber gloves.

3. While the beets are roasting, bring the vegetable broth to a boil, and then reduce the heat and cover so that it simmers gently.

4. While the vegetable stock is heating up, warm the Earth Balance and Olive Oil in a medium-large pot, until the EB is melted. Add the onions, and cook until translucent - about 5 minutes.

5. Add the pearl barley to the onion-pot, and stir well to coat each grain. Let it toast for a few minutes.

6. Add the wine, and let cook until it's been absorbed, stirring occasionally.

7. Add a couple ladelfuls of stock to the barley, and cook until absorbed, stirring occasionally.

8. While the barley is cooking, heat 1 tsp. of oil and 1 tsp of water in a small frying pan. Add garlic and cook for about 3 mins. Add radishes and sauté for about 5-7 minutes. Taste these when they're done. They're surprisingly yummy - sweet and savoury all at once!

The second best (and even more surprising) part about the radishes were the tops. I saved them, washed them very well - three times actually to get all the grit off - and whirred them up with spinach, banana, frozen peachs, frozen strawberries, and water, to make a really dynamite green smoothie!

9. Repeat step 7 over and over until all the stock is used up.

10. Stir in tomatoes, nut cheese, cilantro, basil, beets, and radishes, cover, and remove from heat for about 5 minutes. The risotto will turn bright pink, and the tomatoes will cook in the dish until they're just right!

11. Serve

12. Enjoy

13. Bring the leftovers for lunch - that's what I 'm gonna do!

The bear hated this dish. She took one bite, and said "no? no good?" (for some reason, she says everything as if it's a question), and then "try it?" while she handed the bowl over to me. She decided to go with baked beans and kiwi instead, which seemed like a pretty tasty option to me!

Roger, however, RAVED about it, had two servings, and told me I should open a restaurant. Pretty high praise! My only regret is that I COMPLETELY forgot to put in the dried cranberries that came in my Good Food Box, which would have completed the red theme, and added a really nice sweet tang to the dish. Oh well. Next time!

My First Good Food Box!

2010-03-23T22:42:00.003-04:00

Months and months and months and months ago, The Karoake Queen told me about The Good Food Box, our little neighbourhood's version of community supported agriculture (CSA). Week after week through the winter, I watched her bring yummy meals into school, full of in-season veggies, promising myself that I would call the next week. Well, winter has come and gone (ok, not really, it actually hailed and snowed today - rrrrrrr), and I finally got around to calling for the details. Ok - that's a lie, too. Roger finally got around to calling.

But - long story short, the bear and I took a stroll last week to pre-pay 16$ for a "family-sized" food box (there are 3 sizes - family is the biggest!). Basically, you pay a certain amount every 2 weeks for two weeks worth of fresh fruits and veggies, straight from local farms, with the occasional greenhouse or grocery store top-up if you live in a locale with limited variety in certain seasons... like Montreal. It's a great way to support the local community, get access to in-season produce (maybe even experiment with ones you're not familiar with), and save money while you're at it!

Well - today was the day. Roger picked up our very own family-sized Good Food Box this afternoon. It was filled with: 3 heads of romaine lettuce, tons of fresh spinach, onions, potatoes, beets, radishes, carrots, kiwis, avocado, oranges, lemons, and... dried cranberries!! Very very very very exciting. Roger threw together a dynamite salad, with a homemade lemon vinaigrette, mashed potatoes, and PC brand meatless chicken breasts. Not bad for a last-minute meal!

I've been trying to decide all night what to make over the next couple weeks with all of these yummy ingredients. I have a few ideas... we'll see how they pan out over the next few days. But for tonight: I took the remaining lemons...

...and made...

LEMON SQUARES!!!

This is one of my absolute favourite recipes, and the first vegan dessert I tried to make way-oh-way-back when. It's in 125 Best Vegan Recipes, calls for very few ingredients, very little time, and almost always turns out right!! Tonight was no exception. I always put in a little extra lemon juice & rind, because I like mine extra lemony. Also, although the recipe calls for 40-45 minutes of baking, mine were ready after about 30.

Tune in soon to see what other yummy dishes the Good Food Box leads to...

You're vegan?? But don't you miss... pizza??

2010-03-21T19:37:00.004-04:00

After 5 years of vegetarianism, and over a year of complete (and joyful!) veganism, I'm still a tad surprised by the look of shock on people's faces when they discover that I don't eat any animal products. No milk? Nope. Never any eggs? Uh-uh. How about fish? Fish is an animal, so... no. But... (eyes widening) don't you miss pizza?!?!?!?

NO.

And here's the secret reason why:
I don't miss pizza because I eat pizza... several times a month, actually! Roger & I often pick up yummy tomato sauce covered plain pizzas at the grocery store (check the ingredients carefully! Many prepared pizzas have "modified milk ingredients" in the dough, and/or parmesan in the sauce), and cover them with the toppings of our choice! My personal favourite combo is roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, regular tomatoes, fresh basil, and tons of toasted pine nuts. For my non-vegan readers, I can hear your protests already: "But... no cheese???"

Yes. No cheese. Why, you ask? First: I just can't justify the use (and abuse) of animals for the tiny, unimportant goal of satisfying my taste buds. Second: It turns out my tastebuds are perfectly happy with a cheeseless pizza. Even better, I don't feel disgusting and bloated after eating it!

I've also recently discovered the joy of nut cheese (and yes, I still can't help but giggle when I write or say "nut cheese"). So - I figured what better way to put it to use then throwing it on my weekly pizza?? For this one, I topped our favourite dough/sauce combo with roasted red peppers, fresh basil, sautéed mushrooms & zucchini, and cashew goat cheese, rolled in cracked & cayenne pepper, for a little kick!

Close-up:

We popped it in the oven for about 10 minutes, no baking sheet, until the bottom was nice & crispy!

And yes - I finally put my Christmas dishes away!!

The cashew cheese actually got brown & somehow, even tastier. It added such a great tang to my usual `za, and I ate the leftovers the next day at lunch! Can't wait for next week's version!!

Blue is the New Green

2010-03-19T19:58:00.002-04:00

With a bear to chase around, commitments for school, work, friends, and family, some of the things Roger and I loved to do in the past fall by the wayside. For example, we realized at the very last minute on Wednesday evening that we needed to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. With no green food dye, and no beer in the house, but a full bottle of Canadian Club and some overly ripe bananas, we started frantically searching for recipes that would suit our purposes. We decided on banana blueberry muffins. Fine, fine, they're not green, but the batter looked VERY blue, so we went with it. These are from How It All Vegan's "anything goes" muffin recipe - one of my very favourites ever. It's super versatile, super-easy, and always allows me to use up any almost rotten fruit in the house!

They turned out to be not-so-blue once they were all baked up. However, they were DELICIOUS. The chocolate chips, helped, of course!!

If you're wondering about the drinks in the background, they were also delicious! We had actually hoped to make a vegan Bailey's Irish Cream with our big bottle of rye, and found tons of recipes online. Too bad the only ingredient we actually had on hand was the whiskey. So - we improvised, and just mixed it in with yummy Chai Latté from Bolthouse Farms and lots of ice. This tasted nothing like Irish Cream, but actually mimicked egg nog amazingly well. It was DYNAMITE.

Happy St.-Patrick`s Day!

The 2010 March Daring Cook Challenge: Lemon Risotto (with a twist, of course!)

2010-03-14T11:51:00.001-04:00

The 2010 March Daring Cook challenge was hoted by Eleanor of MelbournefoodGeek and Jess of Jessthebaker. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make risotto. The various components of the challenge recipe are based on input from the Australian Masterchef cookbook and the cookbook Moorish by Greg Malouf.

I am officially a Daring Cook! This means I belong to an online community that completes monthly food challenges, and then posts about the experience on a particular day of each month. "Alternative cooks" like myself are challenged a little bit more - to find appropriate (and tasty!) substitutions to animal products.

When I found out about The Daring Kitchen, I was so excited to join! I filled out the application, and waited, waited, waited. Once I was accepted, I logged on, found the recipe, popped in reruns of Beverly Hills 90210 for some background noise, and started cooking!

With Tori watching over my shoulder, I set about completing this month's challenge. I had been wanting to make my own stock for a while, but never thought about it in time for whatever meal I was preparing that night. This month's challenge calls for a chicken stock, but I obviously went for a veggie version from Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker, in hopes that the slow cooking would make it extra tasty. It's such a great feeling to konw my veggie stock came from veggies, instead of chemicals, salt, etc. The recipe made so much stock that I was able to use it for the challenge, as well as other meals throughout the week! I made it the day before, so I pulled it out of the fridge, and started heating it up.

Next up: risotto base! Cook onions in oil to flavour the oil, and discard the onions. Like the challenge makers, I love onions, so I kept mine in, added the arborio rice, toasted it up, and added a bit of stock! The recipe called for wine also, but I didn't have any (which is pretty rare in our house, actually!), so I added a bit of white wine vinegar and some extra stock.

I had some parsley in the fridge that I wanted to use up, so I chopped it up to go along with the celery and the lemon rind (regular lemon instead of preserved lemon, because I couldn't find any in the store!), and thought it looked so pretty, so I took a picture!

The lemon risotto recipe said that the dish had a really strong flavour, so it was a good idea to add something to cut that a little bit. They suggested goat cheese, which, obviously, I don't eat. BUT - it was an awesome opportunity to FINALLY try making cashew goat cheese, which I did (it was DYNAMITE, by the way). When the risotto was just about ready, I mixed in about a third of the cashew cheese recipe, and it really did the trick! I added some dill, too, just because I love lemon and dill together. The finished product looked and tasted AMAZING. It was creamy, lemony, with just the right amount of spice and deliciousness :)

We threw a salad with toasted pine nuts and poppy seed dressing on the side, which was super refreshing next to the denseness of the risotto.

The bear appeared to enjoy her first bite:

Well, maybe not.

A 2nd trepidatious bite:

Final decision? Non merci. She went with peas, pineapple, and vegepate instead!

Two thumbs up from Roger though... which is a rave review!

Finally: here's the recipe, I greatly recommend it!

Ingredients:

2 oz. olive oil

1 sml onion, quartered

400g. arborio rice

1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar

1 L. plus 1 oz. veggie stock

1 tsp. dried dill

Peel of 1 lemon, chopped up

about 1/3 cup celery

100g. Earth Balance (or other soy butter), chilled and cut into small cubes

1/3 of this cashew goat cheese recipe

parsley to taste!

Directions:

Heat oil in a pan and add onion. Cook until translucent
Add the rice and stir for a few minutes to coat each grain of rice with oil and toast slightly.
Add the white wine vinegar, and enough of the stock to cover the rice by a finger's width.
Cook on medium heat, stirring from time to time, until most of the stock is absorbed.
Add celery, parsley, and dill
Repeat step 4 making sure to leave aside approximately 100mL of stock for the final step
Keep repeating until you only have the 100mL left.
Stir through the preserved lemon
Add the final 100mL of stock and Earth Balance, and stir until both are completely absorbed. Stir through the goat cheese, stick the lid on and let it sit for a few minutes.

Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy! Seriously, this one was DELICIOUS.

Just Like Mom Used to Make... Before She Went Vegan!

2010-03-10T21:22:00.000-05:00

Roger is a "meat-and-potatoes" kind of guy. Despite his commitment to cooking vegan meals for the whole family almost every night, he occasionally struggles to replace that down home chicken and mash feeling. Alas, no more. I came home a few nights ago to the sweet smell of mashed potatoes smothered with gravy - mushroom gravy from The Vegan Table, to be exact - sitting next to meatless chicken by President's Choice (seriously, one of the best veggie/grain meat products I've ever tried) and the perfect side: peas & corn.

It was all really really really really really good, and had that additional comfort factor that channa masala can't always provide. The mushroom gravy, in particular, was, well, the gravy on the potatoes. It was way better than I remember any meat gravy being, thick, delicious, and super-healthful! I ate more potatoes just to have a base for an extra ladelful (or two or three)!

See how delicious it looks????

The meal "au complet"

The bear's gravy-free version (turns out mushrooms aren't her bag... who knew??)

She loved EVERY bite. I could barely get a picture because she wouldn't stop eating!

... but I managed to get a semi-smile anyway!

Dynamite.

I'm an Animal Activist, but I Eat Meat: The Problem of Moral Inconsistency

2010-03-08T15:28:00.004-05:00

A colleague of mine sent me an article recently (Herzon & Golden, 2009), which looked at differences between people who identified themselves as animal activists, people actively involved in animal use (e.g., hunters, medical researchers), and people who considered themselves "unaligned". Specifically, the researchers were looking at whether people who were more easily disgusted by a range of "yuck" type situations were more likely to be involved in animal rights and/or be vegetarian. The first thing that popped into my head was "aren't animal activism and vegetarianism (ok, veganism, but still) the same thing?" It turns out: the answer is mostly no.

In fact "The relationship between animal activism and vegetarianism was complex: nearly half of all animal activists ate meat, and half of the vegetarians did not consider themselves animal activists." (Herzog & Golden, pp. 485).

Weird, right? How can you fight for the rights of animals while eating their flesh and secretions?? I suppose, though, that I shouldn't really be surprised. Animal use is ubiquitous in our society, so I think most people have become really good at "tuning it out" as a result. The funny thing is that professed love for animals is almost as widespread. The most obvious example of this is how much people can love their "pets" and treat them as family members, at the exact same time that they chow down on pigs, cows, chickens, and fish, without even a hint of hypocrisy.

The truth is that if most of us deeply examined our logical reasons for distinguishing right from wrong, we would probably be hard-pressed to justify the ongoing torture and slaughter of animals for our consumption. Somehow, however, many people's emotions, traditions, and desire for convenience get in the way of their logic. Confusing as this might seem, it happens in many areas of life. The sad part is though, that this "moral dumbfounding" is having a catastrophic effect on nonhuman animals, who want to run, jump, play, and love, as much as the family dog does.

The path to veganism can be long and windy, and might have a few obstacles along the way, but it's the only way to go if we want to be morally consistent. The food is really yummy, too!

Herzog, H. A., & Golden, L. L. (2009). Moral emotions and social activism: The case of animal rights. Journal of Social Issues, 65, 485-498.

Great Veg-Friendly Restaurants in Montreal!

2010-03-02T22:02:00.001-05:00

I recently got asked about places to eat out in Montreal as a vegan, whether accompanied by like-minded conscientious objectors or unlike-minded, but very well-meaning, omnivores! I haven't tried out every veg-friendly place in the city - not even close - but here are the ones that have made my short list :)

Aux Vivres:

This is a VERY vegan place on St.-Laurent street, which is a great area of the city overall. This is one of those super wholesome places where hippies rejoice. It also serves really delicious food, and is one of the only places I know about that has really yummy breakfast, too, which is a hard thing for a vegan to find! Go! Go! Go!

Chuchai (or its more casual neighbour, which serves the same food: Chuch)

This restaurant, so far, is my personal favourite. I actually posted about this place not so long ago, after drinking several bottles of wine with a bunch of friends while consuming very (VERY) tasty food.This place is AWESOME. It serves almost exclusively vegan thai food (there are a few items with eggs in them on the menu, so check with your server), full of I-can't-believe-it's-not-meat veggie and grain meats.I know, I know, veggie and grain meats can be gross, and are often shunned by omnivores. BUT, I have taken many an omnivore there, and they all LOVE it. The restaurant's next greatest feature is that it's BYOB, which means you can save a lot of money on the wine. If it's not obvious yet, I highly recommend this place.

Lola Rosa

The link above is to their yellow pages listing, because they don't have a website, but if you google the name, you'll find tons of reviews. This is a vegetarian place in the heart of the McGill Ghetto (don't be fooled - this is NOT a ghetto... it's just where a lot of the McGill students live). It's a cute little place that serves veggie, ethnically inspired, comfort-esque foods. Usually, about 25% of their items are completely vegan, and most of the remaining items can be easily "veganized". The food's really tasty, and most people I know have really liked it there. It's got a nice bohemian vibe, too, but can be a bit slow, so go there when you're in a leisurely mood :)

Le Commensal

For some reason, I couldn't find their address on their website, but they have two locations in Montreal - check the yellow pages. One is in the heart of downtown, and on the second floor with huge windows, so you get a nice view while you eat; the other is in the Plateau somewhere, which is a neighbourhood with a great night-life! Anyway, this place is really neat (neat?!?! Who says neat anymore?). It's vegetarian, and buffet-style. They have a MILLION options, and you pay by weight. All of their foods are well identified, and have little symbols telling you if they're vegan, gluten-free, contain eggs, etc. Just be careful, because if you pick "heavy foods" the price can climb pretty quickly! They also offer a line of prepared foods, so you can try to do a little taste-test at the grocery store, if they carry their products!

Casa del Popolo and Sala Rossa

These are actually show bars (as in concerts, not strip shows, although they may have hosted a burlesque evening or two) which also have restaurants. I haven't been there in several years, so you'd have to check in about kitchen hours and such, but they have a really great vibe, and the food is pretty tasty! As far as I remember, Casa del Popolo is smaller and serves casual veggie food (sandwiches and stuff), with several vegan options. Sala Rossa is bigger, serves omni food, but has lots of veggie and vegan options. Both of these places have a real "Montreal" kind of feel, and are popular with the locals. I definitely recommend them - and try to catch a show if you can, too!

Burritoville

This is pretty much exactly what it sounds like! Vegetarian burritos, with vegan options. I've only been once, and I really liked it, even though the selection was small. It's right near the downtown campus of Concordia University, which is an area filled with Irish pubs, shopping, and at night, tourists! Check it out.

If you're up for an adventure, check out Spirite Lounge in the Gay Village. This place is quirky to say the least! Every night, they have a fixed menu, and ridiculous decor (think aluminum foil on the walls). The service is cranky, but intentionally so. The price depends on the portion size you choose, and if your eyes are bigger than your stomach, they make you pay the price! But - the food is usually organic, always vegan, and usually pretty tasty too!

Other things I would recommend that have veg-friendly foods are the Lebanese take-out places that you'll find pretty much ANYWHERE in the city. Particularly good ones are Boustan and Basha, but Amir will do in a pinch (although it can be a bit greasy). Ask for a vegetarian pita, and then be VERY clear that you want no garlic sauce, or garlic mayonnaise. Also, ask for extra pickled turnip - trust me! Usually, they'll fill the pitas with roasted potatoes, tons of hummus, tabouleh, tomato, lettuce, and the dynamite turnips. But watch carefully, because they'll slap the mayo on without thinking about it, because most people want it! They also make really yummy falafel pitas, but the same advice above applies!

As I mentioned, this is only a small sample of the veg-friendly restaurants in Montreal. I only mentioned the ones I've been to. Other resources to try are Happy Cow, Montreal.com, and Vegan Montréal, a (lapsed) blog about vegan resources in the city.

Please let me know about other great places if you know them - I'd love to add to the list!

My First Veganniversary!

2010-03-01T22:50:00.001-05:00

So - I don't remember the exact date when I went fully vegan last year, but I know I came to the decision around early February, and then made a pretty quick transition into full veganism. I've decided to pick the official date of Mar. 1st (today!) as my first veganniversary!

If you've read some of my earlier posts, you might remember that this is my second go-around at veganism - the first time, I ate a lot of hummus and peanut butter, complained about missing cheese, made an exception here and there for foods of the chocolate variety, and gave up after what I thought were a tough 6 months. I managed to convince myself that vegetarianism was more convenient, and good enough. Maybe it was, and maybe it wasn't, but the truth is, for the 4 years that I spent as an ovo-lacto vegetarian, I always had a little something nagging at my conscience about it.

My friend reminded me today that it was when we were out celebrating my 28th birthday at a local pub when I really felt re-inspired by the vegan waitress there, who semi-jokingly reminded me that even the free-range eggs I used were "another animal's menstruation." Gross? Definitely. But that's the weird part, right? If we think logically about what we're eating or drinking, we realize that a lot of it's pretty disgusting. Pretty much every sitcom that's ever been on the air has had a bit about some clueless male figure mistakenly drinking human breast milk stored in the fridge, and then spitting it out to pre-recorded laughter when he realizes what's happened. But, we happily drink cow's, goat's, and sheep's milk without a second thought - something that no other mammal does!

The coolest part of that night though, was that it wasn't the thought of eating a chicken's ovum that made me seriously consider removing all animal products from my life, it was how happy she was with her decision, and how easy she made it seem. She'd been vegan for years, and was genuinely excited about how many different avocado varieties there were to eat. With my interest renewed, I started doing my research again, and the decision became really clear, really quickly. It's been a vegan cake-walk for the bear and me ever since.

See how happy the shark is that Georges Laraque won't eat him?

Why Does Food Always Taste Better When Somebody Else Makes It?

2010-02-26T08:44:00.000-05:00

Ever since becoming vegan, I have been cooking a LOT. I really enjoy throwing the contents of the fridge into a pan for a delicious stir-fry, or poring over cookbooks and creating a mix n' match meal that suits my mood. Let me qualify that: I USUALLY enjoy all the work that goes into whipping up (mostly) delicious vegan meals for the whole family. But the truth is, as my name implies, I am busy. So it's also pretty awesome (or even awesome-er) when somebody else does the cooking (or buying!).

Last week, I had one of those days at work where everything goes really well. I had a couple of great meetings, I got a bunch of work done, started a new project, and came home in a terrific mood. The mood was made even more terrific when I walked in the door and saw Roger, the bear, and Forever Young, with dinner and dessert ready on the table. Amazing, right?

Roger had cooked one of my favourites, actually, tofu triangles in nut butter sauce from This Can't Be Tofu by Deborah Madison (NB: although this book has some great recipes, it is not completely vegan or vegetarian), on a bed of quinoa. And to give credit where credit is due (although I hate to admit it!), his version was better than mine! He even grilled up some delicious peppers to eat on the side. I wish I had pictures of this meal, because it was pretty and tasty, but we were so hungry, and the house smelled so good, that we gobbled it up before I had the chance! Even the bear, who had already finished her supper, had several bites, saying "yummy!" over and over :)

However, nut butter tofu was not the only highlight of the night. On her way over (after picking up a lovely bottle of vegan wine, of course!), Forever Young's very gifted nose picked up the scent of pastries. She quickly parked, and walked (excitedly!) into the Snowdon Bakery in Cote-des-Neiges. With hope in her heart, she asked the person at the counter whether any of the baked goods were vegan. Amazingly, the answer was YES! Forever Young was so surprised, she proceeded to explain that a baby who couldn't (technically, it's WON'T, but I won't get bogged down in the details...) eat eggs or dairy. She went so far as to remind the counter person what constituted dairy. "So - you're ABSOLUTELY SURE there's no milk, butter, or cream??" When she received confirmation, she promptly bought four enormous apple-raspberry turnovers and brought them over. We were so glad she did!

Yummy, right?

Last night was also quite a treat, because Roger decided to continue my Cabane à Sucre theme from a few posts ago, and make yummy vegan baked beans (sans lard). Now, my memories of baked beans are either when my dad made them - straight from a can, with weenies and mustard added - or when my mom baked them - maple syrupy goodness from a DAY of cooking. The baked bean recipe from The Vegan Table was a happy medium. It basically consisted of throwing canned navy beans (essential for a busy vegan cook) into a baking dish with onions, dry mustard, ginger, and molasses, into a baking dish and baking them for about 40 minutes. They were quick and VERY tasty. Roger found them a tad on the ginger-y side, and we both agreed that they could do to be a bit saucier (maybe a good blend of maple syrup and tomato paste!), but the bear eagerly devoured two bowls!

We like our beans with a dollop of mustard - it's a Québecois thing, I think!

Kamir seemed to think she might like to try a little taste, too!

The bear had some roasted squash on the side, and we had my favourite: just barely roasted veggies cooked in a bit of balsamic vinegar and lots of pepper!

Dynamite! Tonight's menu: homemade pizza with roasted red peppers, sundried tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, and lots and lots of fresh basil!! Yum!

My "Cheese" is Better Than Your Cheese

2010-02-23T15:52:00.002-05:00

One of the most common thing for vegans to hear from well-meaning omnivores goes something like this: "Y'know, maybe I could stop eating meat, but there's just NO WAY I could live without cheese!!" First off, we can all live without cheese, no matter how hard it may seem at first. It's the cows (and goats, and sheep, and...) who can't live when we're eating cheese.

All that being said, if you really can't see yourself giving up the flavour and consistency of cheese, and like me, you find most soy cheeses to be pretty disgusting, I've made a recent discovery... NUT CHEESE! Ok - I had to write that, and I had to write it in capital letters. Obviously, "nut cheese", with all its possible meanings, sounds gross. BUT - cashew cheese, pine nut cheese, or almond cheese sounds a bit more palatable. In fact, cashew cheese, at least this Pepper-Crusted Cashew Goat Cheese from Vegetarian Times, in my opinion, may be even better than "the original".

I've actually wanted to try making a nut cheese or two for a while now, but never got around to it, because it seemed like a lot of work. It turns out that although it takes a lot of time (soaking, resting, draining, baking), the actual prep work is minimal. Just make sure you plan to start the recipe a couple days before you need it! This was a really fun adventure for me, so I took quite a few pictures along the way. Take a peek!

Step 1: Soak the cashews overnight

I actually love the way this photo turned out. There's something so innuendo-laden & gross-looking about this shot, even though it's just cashews submerged in water. Go ahead, people, make your floating nut jokes!

Step 2: Blend the cashews with the other ingredients (I think there are only 4)

Looks like hummus - YUM!

Step 3: Wrap in 3 layers of cheesecloth, and let sit in a strainer at room temp for 12 hours

So here's the thing. I had NEVER used cheesecloth before. I asked the employee in the produce aisle where I might find it, and she was as clueless as I was. I tried to explain what "cheesecloth" was, but she basically pointed me to the dairy section, so I don't think she got it. At any rate, if you have an eagle eye and happened to notice that the cheese appears to be wrapped in WAY more than 3 layers of cheesecloth, pat yourself on the back for being better than I am. I didn't realize how thin a single layer of cheesecloth is, so I ended up with something like 9 layers. I spent the rest of the 12 hours checking on it, and wondering why none of the liquid was draining into the bowl!

It didn't end up being much of a disaster, though. the liquid still drained out of the cheese itself, but got a bit stuck in the outer layers of cheesecloth. Next time I make it (which will be soon - we've already eaten most of it!), I'll be sure to use the right number of layers, and I think it might make for a slightly firmer texture.

Step 4: Bake! (then cool, then chill, then grind pepper all over it... see? lots of time, but not that much work!)

Step 5: Admire

Okay. So, "admire" might be a bit of a strong word. Maybe, stare at with trepidation is a bit more accurate. I admit, this looks funky. Partly, I think it's because of the too-many-cheesecloth-layers issue. Another part is that I saw the fancy picture in the Vegetarian Times magazine (I have a subscription - and I love it!), and this is NOT what it looked like. Maybe I should hire a food stylist...

Anyway, I was a little unsure of how it had turned out, so I moved onto Step 6.

Step 6: Spread it on a whole grain Premium Plus cracker, and test it out on an unsuspecting bear

You may not be able to tell from the picture, but this particular bear LOVED it. She couldn't decide whether to call it "cake" or "hummus", but she requested it over and over! Success!! Finally, I was able to move on to the final step.

Step 7: Make (and eat!) a delcious cashew cheese, tomato, and avocado sandwich with a crunchy pickle on the side.

It was DYNAMITE.

This will definitely become a staple in our house, although I may try to reduce the amount of oil in the recipe next time around. Hopefully I'll have success with some with other nut cheeses (tee hee!) as well. The best part for me, of course, is that I can enjoy something cheesy, while still eating and living according to my conscience. It's also nice to know that although this is definitely not a low-calorie, low-fat item, it's got about a third the amount of saturated fat as real goat cheese. Not a bad little perk!

Ass-Backwards, As Always

2010-02-21T19:10:00.005-05:00

I found this NYT article today, and my jaw nearly fall off from shock. It discusses the possibility of genetically engineering animals used for agriculture so that they don't feel, or notice, the pain that we inflict upon them in the name of greed. Specifically, the author points to research with rats that has been effective at damaging, or reducing protein production in, areas of the cingulate cortex (yep, BRAIN), which is important for pain sensitivity.

"When these mice encounter a painful stimulus, they withdraw their paws normally, but they do not become hypersensitive to a subsequent painful stimulus, as ordinary mice do."

So... it still hurts, but they don't complain about it?

How screwed up is it that rather than choose not to intentionally torture and slaughter animals simply for our taste preferences, convenience, and social comfort, we would actually invest who knows how much money into altering animals' brains so that they may "suffer less"... or at least appear to suffer less. It's amazing how much the idea that treatment is preferable to prevention has pervaded every last inch of our society. The world is happier to maintain the status quo, no matter how twisted and dysfunctional it may be, than to give up burgers and scrambled eggs. We're killing animals for their flesh and secretions, which in turn, are killing us via their high saturated fat, cholesterol, bacterial, and chemical content.

When are we going to wake up and change the way we do things?? We have no right to breed, own, and control animals to suit our own purposes. Moreover, we have no need to. Research has consistently shown that a whole-foods plant-based diet is related to longer life-spans, fewer lifestyle diseases, and lower weight. Plain and simple - it's the way to go. Creepily altering animals' brains so that we can slaughter them with a slightly lighter conscience is not.

The article, however, says "If we cannot avoid factory farms altogether, the least we can do is eliminate the unpleasantness of pain in the animals that must live and die on them. It would be far better than doing nothing at all." Right. Because trying to improve the "humanity" of factory farms has been so effective so far... All welfarist activism does is make people feel better about eating animals.

Go Vegan.

Feline love

2010-02-20T23:56:00.003-05:00

So - we live with three lovely cats: Kosho, Cuervo, and Kamir. Unfotunately, one of these lovely cats, Kosho, who I've known the longest, and who has always been, to say the least, a bit skittish, has been taking every possible opportunity to pee (and once - to poop) on our sectional sofa bed. Now - just to be clear, she is peeing ALL over our couch; every cushion, seat and back, mattress, whatever.

We've been doing a bit of detective work, and have basically figured out that she's protesting the existence of our little bear, who, since taking to walking, has created a pretty hectic environment for our Koshi-cat, especially at mealtime. So, after talking to the vet to rule out anything organic (he was very sweet and caring, told us it was a behavioural issue, made some suggestions, and then informed us that if all else failed, they could put her on the same anti-anxiety meds they give non-human animals... who knew?), we've been trying to make sure she's safe in our bedroom, with some food & water, whenever the bear is at home and awake. We've also added another litter box to our collection, and put it in a quiet part of the apartment, away from the chaos.

Kosho repsonded by... you got it... peeing on our couch.

Anyway, amidst the frustration, the worry about my fluff-ster, and the fear that we'll have to shell out money that we don't have on a new sofa, or accept a living room that smells like cat urine, it was a pretty nice reminder of why we choose to live with these meow-sers when I came home to this cuddly-cat scene:

Kosho is the furry cat on the left. Ever since picking Cuervo up from a cat shelter 4 1/2 years ago, she and Kosho have been the best of friends, and every once in a while, they like to get extra close, especially on an un-made bed!

They're even cute from the back!

When Roger and I joined forces over 2 years ago, he and Kamir came as a package deal. Despite her incredibly affectionate and cuddly nature, she has yet to break into the exclusive Cuervo-Kosho duo, so she often takes her naps solo... but she looks pretty cute doing it.

Wow. That is a LOT of cat fur on that cushion... obviously a favourite kittie hang-out.

So there you have it. Cute cats - 1, sofa - 0. Hopefully, we'll be able to make our fur-machine feel a little bit safer in the coming weeks, and avoid throwing out an almost brand-new sofa.

Wish me luck! (And ideas, if you've got any...)

Tomorrow's vegan adventure: Pepper-crusted cashew goat cheese! Stay tuned...

Take the leap! ... to Cruelty-Free Products

2010-02-18T12:54:00.004-05:00

The Karaoke Queen asked me the other day about what hair products I use, where I find them, and how I know they aren't tested on animals. The short answer is: Look for the leaping bunny!

The leaping bunny logo (beware of imitators!) is awarded to products (if they choose to use it) by The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC), an organization made up of animal protection groups who inspect and certify products as cruelty-free. If a product has this logo on its packaging, it means that none of its ingredients have been tested on animals (this is a biggie, because although some companies may say that their product is not tested on animals, it may still test the ingredients on their own). However, this does not necessarily mean that no animal products are actually in the cream, shampoo, face wash, dish detergent, or whatever, itself. Believe it or not, some products gloat about their avoidance of animal testing, but still use animal ingredients in their products! In other words - look at the ingredients... CAREFULLY.

Here is a very short video from the CCIC (no horrific images, I promise) about why choosing cruelty-free products is so important:

The best part of being a compassionate consumer is how easy it is to find products that are cruelty-free!

Although I often shop in the specialty section for products that are not only cruelty-free, but devoted to animal-free products, eco-friendly practices, and to add a cherry to the ice soy sundae, Canadian (I love Nature Clean for just about everything!), there are tons of mainstream products (like Mitchum deodorant, my favourite long before I was vegan) that you can find in the oldest and most decrepit of Jean Coutu's.

When looking for such products, there are a few things to watch for. Many companies are tricky, and will do just about anything to make their product accessible, and marketable, to everyone, even us "difficult" vegans. Some of these issues I mentioned before, but I'll bring them up again here.

"This product has not been tested on animals." This does NOT mean that its individual ingredients are also cruelty-free. In fact, the very specific "this product" or sometimes "this finished product" is particularly suspicious.
"We do not test on animals." ("We" being the operative word). This is particularly sneaky. Many companies simply contract their testing phase out to other companies, which means that the product (or its ingredients) are still tested on animals, but just not by the actual product company.
Check the ingredient list! You may find things like honey (from bees), lanolin (from sheep), gelatine, or animal-based glycerin, none of which are vegan. So, even if a product has not been tested on animals, it is not necessarily cruelty-free!
Look at the fine print - check who actually OWNS the product. For example, although Dove products are not tested on animals, their parent compant, Unilever, does use animal testing for some of their products, which means that by buying Dove, you are still creating demand for these horrific practices.

I know. That's a lot of stuff to think about. Thankfully, there are other people who have done the thinking for us! Caring Consumer is an organization affiliated with PETA (please don't take this as an edorsement of PETA... I just think this particular site is a great resource) which offers extensive lists of companies that do and don't test on animals, organized by name and product type. These lists are HUGE. It's important to note that Caring Consumer is not a certifying body; rather they rely on official statements from companies about whether they do or don't test on animals. Yes, they are relying on companies to be truthful, but they require that they do so in a vey official manner, so it's unlikely they would take the risk of out-right lying about the specifics.

The CCIC also provides this great list of companies and products that have met their standard of no new animal testing. This means that the companies attest that they are not, at present or in the future, conducting (or contracting other companies to conduct) animal testing on their finished products, or the ingredients that go into them. Moreover, they agree to independent audits, and renew their commitment to the CCIC every year. When you're looking at the list, you may notice that some of the companies/products have the leaping bunny logo next to them, but some of them don't. The logo itself is optional, and comes with a small fee, so some companies have chosen not to obtain it. But, all products and companies listed on this website have met the CCIC standard for compassionate care of animals. They also indicate whether the company is Canadian, and the presence of a parent company that does test on animals, so you can be super careful and super confident about your choice.

So - long story short (ok, not really, but it's a fun line to say), print out the lists, carry them around when you shop, check the ingredient lists, and then enjoy all the great products you've found. Because, let's face it, forcing caustic substances into bunnies' eyes just isn't justifiable, no matter how much we love Great Lash Mascara.

Ham-Free Pea Soup Makes a Vegan Québecoise VERY happy!

2010-02-15T20:46:00.000-05:00

One of my favourite things to do has always been to go to the Cabane à Sucre (Sugar Shack) with my family in the spring. In my pre-vegan days, this involved scrambled eggs, ham, sausage, bacon, pancakes, and pea soup (cooked with ham), all covered in maple syrup, of course (!) followed by butter tarts and sugar pie. Obviously, this is a much harder event to enjoy as a vegan!

Although I don't miss the food, I definitely miss all the other things that make Cabane à Sucre so fun. There's folk music, dancing, booze, great people, great fun, and of course, delicious sap on snow! While planning out this week's menu, I was reminded of all of this when I set my eyes on a recipe for a slow-cooked pea soup in Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow-Cooker, which by the way, despite its title, is pretty much an entirely vegan cookbook. With French-Canadian folk tunes playing in my head, I bought the ingredients (ok, I sent Roger out for the ingredients, but whatever), tossed them in the slow-cooker this morning, and spent the day enjoying the aroma as it got stronger and stronger!

It called for 8 hours on low, but was ready by about 6 hours, which I've found to be the case for most of the recipes from this book. I also had to add a bit of water at the end to thin it out a tiny bit.

This soup gets a bit of sweetness from parsnips (which usually I hate), some smokiness from a bit of liquid smoke, and its Québecois flair from the soupçon of maple syrup I drizzled (ok, poured) on the top. Add a piece of toast with Earth Balance, and enjoy. It was DYNAMITE, and nostalgic :)

Roger thought it was delicious (so delicious, in fact, that he didn't even wait for me to get home before he gobbled up two bowls!). The bear thought it was just alright, but in her defense, it was a tad too peppery for a toddler.

Can't wait for lunch leftovers tomorrow!

Is There Anything That You Want to Eat That Badly??

2010-02-14T19:48:00.000-05:00

I just found this post that Gary Francione wrote back in June, 2009, and wanted to share it. He describes, in better words than I ever could, the reason why I chose veganism. Please read it if you have the time.

Feed a Cold... with Raspberry Cornmeal Muffins!

2010-02-14T12:25:00.003-05:00

After a few days of the whole family being sick, we got a bit of a reprieve thanks to Vegan Momma Chef and Poppa (as the bear calls my dad). They picked up the bear for a 2-day visit, while Roger and I took to the sofa bed to rest and watch the Olympics. Unfortunately, there was almost no food in the house, and neither one of us had the energy (or clean clothes) to take a trip to the market, so I looked for any recipe that was quick, and made use of the ingredients I had in the house. I decided to try these raspberry cornmeal muffins from How It All Vegan. The only change I made was that I substituted a third of the flour for whole wheat flour, just to give it that added little health benefit.

This is a great recipe if you prefer to cook or bake without using too much oil or sugar. The recipe said it made 6 muffins - but I made 16! If you like your muffins on the big side, fill the cups really full - they don't rise that much.

They were dense, filling, and very yummy - especially if you're partial to cornbread! They were even better warmed up, and smeared with Earth Balance.

Ok, so technically, these muffins didn't cure me, but they definitely lifted my spirit! Next time I make these, I'm going to double (or triple!) the amount of raspberries, just to give them that extra fruity goodness.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Kids are going veg, too!

2010-02-11T09:00:00.001-05:00

I'm home sick today with the flu, which means I'll be watching a LOT of daytime television. Early this morning, I caught the beginning of an episode of The Mom Show, a Canadian show that, according to the website, "dish(es) up a fresh, frank, and funny take of the world of motherhood five days a week." One of the hosts started talking about her 8-year old son who had just started putting together the fact that the burger on his plate is the result of a slaughtered cow, and had therefore decided to stop eating meat. He told his mother that "civilized people" who have other options, shouldn't have to kill animals for food. Pretty wise kid.

How cool is it that somebody that young can come up with that decision on his own while growing up in an omni home??!? I think his mom's reaction was pretty great, too. Although she didn't necessarily jump on the veg bandwagon, she commended him on his compassionate and caring decision, and has been incorporating beans, whole grains, and more and more veggies into the family meals, to help him get all the nutrition he needs! All in all, a pretty good sign that we're moving in the right direction.

(I found this t-shirt at Café Press, as well as lots of other cute veg-related products).

Kudos to The Busy (Happy!) Vegan's Vegan Momma Chef

2010-02-09T20:11:00.002-05:00

For as long as I can remember, my mom (Momma Chef) has been known for her cooking and baking abilities. A one-time caterer, and a full-time home chef, our bellies were always full of very tasty, and usually nutritious meals (unless my dad was on supper duty, in which case we got beanies and weenies). In fact, the secret ingredient for my Perfect Vegan Mac & "Cheese" comes straight from her original (though non-vegan) rendition, which I requested for YEARS.

Throughout my welfarist-vegan-to-vegetarian-to-abolitionist-ethical-vegan adventure, my mom has been nothing but supportive. She often "veganized" meals for me at dinner parties and the like, so that I would have lots of yummy options. She listened to my reasons, offered input, and, of course, recipe ideas!

Recently, however, Momma Chef made the leap, and changed her identity to Vegan Momma Chef. It was a gradual process, that started with a move towards a whole-foods, plant-based, vegetarian diet, with the occasional milk in her coffee or egg in her sandwich. Over time, the eggs, dairy, gelatine, etc. went the way of the meat, and Vegan Momma Chef has spent the last 4 weeks or so cooking and baking up a delicious vegan storm!

Because she spends her Tuesdays taking care of the bear, we've also been lucky enough to have some very yummy vegan suppers waiting for us at the end of the day, so I thought I'd take a second to share a couple that I thought were particularly tasty, and to say merci beaucoup to Vegan Momma Chef for all her hard work! I'm very lucky, and very proud.

First up: lentil sloppy joes from Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker

I know, I know - this picture is not the best. But again... a food stylist I am not! These sloppy joes were DYNAMITE. They were thick, and flavourful, and incredibly filling. Roger raved about them, and the bear ate the leftovers happily for days!

Tonight's meal was even better, if possible!

From How It All Vegan: Sweet Polenta Pie.

In an earlier post, I discussed how I preferred to function as a "toss-whatever's-in-the-fridge-into-a-dish-and-see-what-happens" kind of cook. Well, I learned that ability straight from Vegan Momma Chef, whose skills were put to the test this evening when she opened our fridge to discover that a few (ok... several) ingredients called for in the recipe were missing. Apparently, Roger and I had failed this week's grocery shopping mission. But luckily, Vegan Momma Chef leapt into action, substituted a little of this (ketchup for tomato paste), a little of that (regular tomatoes for plum tomatoes; carrots for zucchini), a casserole dish for a pie plate which is missing from my kitchen, and then adjusted the taste with a few extra spices and some soy sauce, and voilà! Sweet Polenta Casserole (yes, it was supposed to be pie...) that rocked our socks off! Ok... we kept our socks on, because it's February, but we ate pretty much the whole thing.

The topping is ground almonds - gives it a bit of protein, and a delicious little extra bit of texture!

The bear became angry while waiting for her portion to cool down in the freezer, all the while grumbling "hot? hot? peeze? hot? hot? peeze?"

But it finally arrived, and she gobbled up a bowl and a half! In other words, a rave review!!

Satisfied, she demanded her "lait" (soy formula), and drained the bottle.

Another happy Vegan Momma Chef customer.

Down with Denny's! ... among others.

2010-02-08T14:33:00.001-05:00

As vegans, we often tell ourselves that if all the omnivores out there knew how and why animals were grown and slaughtered for our consumption, they'd surely give up animal products altogether. I've come to understand, however, that there are many reasons, besides misinformation, that keep the masses intent on maintaining the property status of animals. Some of these include tradition, convenience, taste, and social conformity.

Change isn't easy, especially when we grew up learning about all the "benefits" of animal products, whether it be their ability to provide lots of protein (way more than the average person needs), prevent osteoporosis (because of the calcium, which by the way, is actually supplemented because most of the calcium is leeched out of cow bones due to inhumane treatment), or provide us with energy (which would be way more efficient if we just got it from yummy and delicious greens, like the non-human animals do).

So - I get it. I get that really thinking about where we get meat, dairy, and eggs doesn't necessarily make the average person want to reach for an apple instead.

That being said, I must admit, I just can't wrap my head around using the concept of what is basically animal torture as a marketing campaign, which is what Denny's did when they unveiled their new ads during the Superbowl last night.

The gist is basically that chickens should be very worried and upset, because Denny's is offering up tons of cheap and free eggs, so they best be careful. Here are the three that I saw, although my guess is that more will be popping up over the next few months.

I was particularly grossed out by these two lines:

"So rest assured, ladies, it's gonna be a rough day for you egg-layers"

AND

"Great day to be an American, bad day to be a chicken"

I just don't get it. Not only do people know that the mass-production of eggs means a horrific life for chickens, but they actually make jokes about it, and use the information as a selling point???

It's not like Denny's is the first either. I remember Thanksgiving commercials showing cartoons of terrified turkeys, and a McLobster campaign that showed these little lobsters sneaking around and turning off all the neon signs advertising the sandwich made from their flesh. I would expect that to destroy someone's appetite, not whet it.

Paul McCartney, a famous vegetarian, once said that everyone would be vegetarian if slaughterhouses had glass walls. I guess he was wrong.

Busy (Happy!) Vegan Comments

2010-02-06T10:40:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone! I've heard from a few people that there have been some problems commenting on posts. If this happens to you, could you please send me a quick note by email? I'd really like to get this fixed, so the more info I have about it, the better!

thanks!

Vegan Chocolate Breakfast Pudding Cake

2010-02-05T06:58:00.003-05:00

Ok, so technically, this is not a BREAKFAST pudding cake. However... I am eating it for breakfast, because it's chocolatey and yummy. So there.

As some of you may have noticed, I've been making the odd reference here or there to trying not to eat too much sugar. Here's the thing: in my pre-vegan days, I had a system. I resisted junk food for the hour that I spent in the grocery store, because I knew what would happen if I brought it into the house (I would eat it all before the day was up!). BUT - not believing in self-sacrifice, if I felt the pull of sweet sweet sugar (or fat, in the case of chips & dip), I would take a walk to the dep, and pick up a single serving chocolate bar (or something else, depending on what the dark craving was telling me to do). That meant that every once in a while, maybe once or twice a week (except when I was pregnant... then it was more like once or twice a day, which could explain the 40 pounds I gained with the bear, but whatever), I was having a reasonable sweet treat.

NOW, though, my dep (which is actually called the GONG) has NO chocolate products without milk ingredients, so I have been compensating, by making entire dessert recipes (remember the cupcakes?), and eating the whole batch (with some help from Roger & the bear) within a day or two. Not good.

So - I set out a goal - (much!) less frequent dessert making.

I lasted a week, and then made this cake from How It All Vegan:

Is it pudding? Is it cake? DOES IT MATTER?

This was actually a really cool cake to make. You mix up the "cake" portion, spread it in a casserole dish, then cover it with a blend of cocoa powder & sugar. THEN (and this is the fun part!), you pour 2 cups of boiling water over the top, and throw the whole thing into the oven - no mixing or anything. It felt like some mad experiment! I expected fizzing, popping, smoking, etc. What I ended up getting was overflowing. Turns out I didn't use a big enough casserole dish...

I slid a tray underneath to catch the overflow, but all the gooey chocolatey runny-ness was starting to burn, so I had to pull the whole mess out a bit early.

Having never made an upside-down pudding cake before, and being the type of person who loves the little stuff, I thought this cake was the coolest thing. The whole boiling water & sugar & cocoa bit sinks down to the bottom and gets pudding-y, while the cake batter rises to the top!

Nifty, right??

I will DEFINITELY make this cake again, but I would make two important changes:

Use the right-sized dish! Because I had to pull the cake out early, the pudding was runnier than it's supposed to be - still tasty, but a bit runny (although - not according to Roger, who had two bowls!)
I would change the sugar cocoa blend a bit. More cocoa, less sugar. I found this a tiny bit sweet, and would have preferred it a bit richer in chocolatey-goodness.

Obviously - I can't have minded too much, since I'm eating it for breakfast while I write this post :) DYNAMITE!

Warm Winter Vegan Deliciousness

2010-02-04T10:44:00.001-05:00

It has finally been getting chilly here in the M.T.L., and so I have recently been craving warm and toasty soups! When it comes to soups, I usually just throw whatever's in the fridge into a big pot with some veggie broth, and see what turns out! We had some leftover crushed tomatoes in the fridge from a very delicious lentil sloppy joe recipe my mom made last week (pics & post to come!), so I decided tomato was the way to go. I've included a recipe (see after the jump), but it's pretty much from memory, and may be a tad less than accurate because of the throw-everything-in-the-pot soup mentality that I mentioned above. Add a yummy salad with "honey"-mustard dressing and some spicy guacamole on toast (oh! and don't forget the wine...), and you have the perfect vegan winter warm-up meal!

I know, I know... it's time to put the Christmas dishes away. But a) I'm lazy, and b) I like them, and I feel they're more "winter" than "Christmas" dishes, per se. Anyway - back to the food!

Warm Winter Tomato Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp olive oil
3 1/2 cups low-sodium veggie broth, divided
2 red peppers, roasted*, chopped
1 (big) can diced tomatoes
~1 cup crushed tomatoes (you could probably skip these, but I had them in the fridge, so I threw them in!)
lots of fresh basil! (chopped)
salt & pepper to taste
1 package soft/silken tofu
1 1/2 Tbsp agave nectar
1 1/2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice

* I roasted the peppers myself, because I had some in the fridge, it's cheaper, and you can avoid all the oil they're typically packed in. BUT - jarred roasted peppers would work just as well, and would DEFINITELY save time. To roast peppers: cut & seed peppers, put face-down on a baking tray, and brush with oil. Broil on the top rack until the skins are black, then put the peppers in a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel for about 20 mins. Peel off the blackened skins, and enjoy!

Warm oil & ~1/2 cup of veggie broth in a large pot over medium heat
Add onions & garlic & sauté until the onions are translucent
Add remaining veggie broth, red peppers, tomatoes, basil (keep some for a garnish, if you like!), salt, & pepper, and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, until the flavours are all meldy and dynamite (usually about 30 minutes is enough).
While the soup is simmering, blend tofu until smooth. This is best with a blender (standing or hand), but a food processor would do in a pinch - just might make the tofu a little bit grainy.
If you have a hand blender, use it to blend the soup to your desired texture. I often like mine a little bit chunky, but not always! Otherwise, allow soup to cool a bit, then blend, in batches, in a standing blender or food processor. Make sure to only fill the blender about half-full, or you could have a very soup-y kitchen to clean up!
Combine puréed soup and tofu in the pot. Add agave, lemon juice, and red wine vinegar to taste (the amounts I indicated are approximate). Garnish with basil, if you like, and ENJOY!

Serves 4-6

Spicy Guacamole

This is a recipe for 1 - but just multiply it depending on how many servings you need! Also - it`s a VERY basic guacamole recipe. I just wanted something with a little kick, and saw that we had two avocados, but only one that was ripe. Then - voilà! Spicy Guacamole! (But only enough for me... oops!)

1 ripe avocado. mashed, but still chunky

2-3 Tbsp lemon juice (I know guac recipes usually call for lime, but I just prefer lemon...)

2 cloves garlic, minced

pinch of cayenne pepper (or more if you're feeling caliente!)

salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, spread on a nice crusty whole wheat bread. Marvel at how tasty and satisfying guacamole on toast can be!

The perfect side for this dish was a refreshing salad. My mom made a "honey"-mustard dressing from Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's The Vegan Table, for a family dinner the other night, and it was DYNAMITE. So - I re-created it (it is my cookbook, after all!), poured it over a spinach salad, and ate it all up! I highly recommend it!

The only thing that could have made the meal better were some cupcakes to follow it up... but I'm trying to cut back, so Roger and I drank a bottle of wine instead. Wine's sugar-free, right? RIGHT?!?!?

Tonight's dinner: Channa Masala and Curried Cauliflower by Roger. Can't wait!

Vegan Thai Delight!!

2010-02-01T21:08:00.002-05:00

Technorati Code: KXFUYH5SC5U2

It may have taken weeks (literally... weeks) to get the best group of girls together for a night out, but we finally did it! There were 7 of us: Forever Young, the Pool Shark, Busy Bee, Momma Bear (no relation to the bear who has already featured prominently in this blog), Crafty Lady, the Karaoke Queen, and me. None of my friends are vegan, or vegetarian, and some of them are downright carnivorous (Momma Bear, I'm looking at you, here!), but Chuch (Chuchai's cheaper cousin, for those of you in the know), is well-known in Montreal for its delicious veggie and grain meats, and managed to suck everybody in! It didn't hurt that we each brought a bottle of wine (ok... everybody except me, who drank everyone else's, but that's neither here nor there), and finished every last drop.

The menu was a tad confusing for many of us. We knew we were at a mostly vegan restaurant (out of about 150 items (!), only three had egg in the ingredient list), but the menu was divided into (vegan, of course) duck, shrimp, chicken, beef, and noodle dishes. A few of us had eaten there before and knew (happily!) what we were in for, but some of us (Momma Bear, I'm looking at you again!) were a tad more skeptical. We decided to open the bottles, pick a few things that sounded tasty, gossip about our respective partners, children, jobs, adventures, pet peeves, and/or wild times, depending on who was dishing (pun intended, my friends), and have an awesome time.

Well - neither the wine, the food, nor the company let us down...

We started off with some yummy appetizers.

First: some fried imperial roles, which Momma Bear thought were DELISH!

I ordered vegan fish cakes, which were moist and tender.

Forever Young seemed to enjoy them as well. The wine and yummy apps were beginning to take effect!

Crafty Lady had the best appetizer by far, some sort of crispy mushroom dealy, but I somehow never got a picture of it! Here is a picture of Crafty Lady enjoying them, instead.

Then the main dishes started arriving.

First up: chicken with peanut sauce and crispy spinach

Busy Bee's verdict? DYNAMITE.

My personal favourite: Red curry duck and vegetables

Followed by my second favourite: chicken with soy sauce and vegetables

The weirdest one to eat was the shrimp with peanut sauce and crispy spinach. Yummy, but weird.

The yellow curry sweet potatoes and cauliflower were also a big hit! Just ask the Karaoke Queen...

But the pièce de resistance was definitely the soy-glazed duck with crispy spinach.

A longtime fan of the dish, the Pool Shark mugged for the cameras. A pictorial representation of the transformation from hesitation to joy...

followed by a gleeful hug!

All this to say, we had an amazing time - the food was really terrific (even Momma Bear said that she would be vegan once a week, if she could eat at Chuch once a week), the wine played a very important, yummy, and tongue-loosening role (interpret that however you see fit...), and the company was even better. It was such a treat for me to be able to go out with some of the people I love most, and be able to order pretty much anything off the menu knowing that I'm not contributing to the harm of any animals out there. Can't wait for the next night out!

... the drinks at the bar, post-dinner were pretty great, too :)

William Kruidenier: Veganism: "Most Principled Position"

2010-01-28T19:27:00.000-05:00

An interesting blog post to check out:

William Kruidenier: Veganism: "Most Principled Position"

Finally! My Perfect Vegan Mac & "Cheese"

2010-01-27T09:02:00.002-05:00

I have been working on this recipe for months! I tried a few from different books, online recipes, magazines, etc., took the best bits of each, and used a recipe secret from my mom. It's delicious, full of veggies, and much lower in saturated fat, cholesterol, etc. than the animal-based version. I definitely used some processed ingredients, though, so I wouldn't go so far as to call it "whole-foods", but I think it's a pretty good compromise, and a definite crowd-pleaser. Enjoy!!

Noodley-bit
3 1/2 cups whole-wheat macaroni (dry)
4 cups veggies (I used broccoli, carrots, & red pepper, but you can use whatever you like, whatever's in season... just whatever!)
1 cup frozen peas
1 large tomato, chopped
1/2 cup simulated bacon bits

Sauce
1 cup soy milk (unsweetened is best, vanilla-flavoured is a mistake. Trust me.)
1 10oz. can condensed tomato soup
1 cup nutritional yeast
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup Earth Balance or other soy butter
3 tbsp. flour
1/2 t. paprika
2 tsp. stone-ground (grainy) mustard
1/2 tsp. dried basil
salt & pepper to taste

Last Thing!
1 1/2 cup bread crumbs

NB: There is almost no bread in many varieties of store-bought bread crumbs. Ok - that's obviously an exaggeration, but if you check the ingredient list, you'll see about 20 items, some of which are egg and dairy-based. So - I make my own, which is ridiculously easy. It also gives you the added benefit of using whole-grain bread crumbs for an added bit of fibre and deliciousness. Basically, just throw some stale-ish (but not old, and gross, and mouldy!) bread slices into a food processor, and... well... process! This is a particularly good way to use up the bread bums.

Cook the macaroni according to the package directions.
Steam all the veggies, except the peas and tomatoes.
Boil the peas for 2-3 minutes, drain, set aside.
While the noodles and veggies are cooking, make the sauce!
Combine all the sauce ingredients in a medium pot over medium heat, stirring frequently (a whisk works best!) until the Earth Balance is melted. The soup should make the sauce thick & creamy (and incredibly delicious), so you shouldn't have to cook it to thicken it, but if you like it extra thick, keep it on the heat a bit longer. If you like the sauce a bit thinner, throw in some water, a couple tbsps at a time until you reach the desired consistency. Just know that I think you're making a HUGE mistake :)
In a large baking dish, combine cooked macaroni, steamed veggies, peas, tomatoes, "bacon" bits, and sauce.

If you're really hungry, and can't resist how yummy the dish looks, you can eat it "as is".

If you're a little more patient, spread the bread crumbs on top, and pop in the oven at 350 F for 10-20 minutes, depending on how crispy you like the topping. I find 17 mins suits me!

Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy! (If you're especially into ketchup, it adds a nice touch, too!)

This was a big hit with Roger, my mom, and the bear, who ate two bowls for supper, three for lunch the next day, and then ran around with a make-shift chapeau.

What's better than that??!!??

Recent Yummy Vegan Meals!

2010-01-25T15:43:00.003-05:00

I just wanted to take a quick second to share some of the yummy vegan meals I've enjoyed (read: devoured!) recently. Please remember: I'm a blogger, not a photographer :)

First up: Dijon Scalloped Potatoes by Roger:

These were dynamite! The recipe is from one of my favourite books, How It All Vegan, although I have the original, not the 10th anniversary edition. We ate them with a yummy salad, and very tasty veggie "chicken" breasts from President's Choice. This meal was especially special (that's a whole lot of special!), because Roger is awesome in that despite his non-veganism (even though he eats more vegan food than not), he always makes yummy animal-free meals for the bear and I to enjoy (and, of course, he enjoys them too!). A little tip for this dish from my recently-seen-the-vegan-light-mom: Use a smaller dish than what the recipe calls for, so the potatoes will stack higher and the whole thing will be creamier.

Suivant: Oatmeal!

Here's the thing. I hate oatmeal. No, seriously. For as long as I can remember, I've found it slimy, and mushy, and gruelly (new word!). But - I've become bored of breakfast, well, of weekday, quick as possible breakfasts. I alternate between toast & peanut butter, cereal, and smoothies. So - I decided to throw myself back into the world of oaty mush. Given my time constraints, I used quick oats on the stovetop (so quick!). Given my lifetime oatmeal loathing, I piled it high with yummy bananas, raspberries, and blueberries, with a bit of Chai Latté to top it off. The verdict? DELICIOUS. It will definitely become a recurring breakfast character.

Finally: SALAD!

I know, I know. Salads are boring! Salad's are all us (very lucky!) vegans can order at restaurants, blah, blah, blah. As I recently commented at Vegan Planet, I think salads are WAY underrated. They are the quickest and easiest (and incredibly tasty) way to get a whole bunch of nutritiously delicious fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, beans, etc. into a single meal!

Also, I had been dying to try a recipe in The 30-Minute Vegan for a Citrus Curry Salad dressing that's made mostly of butternut squash (no oil!). It looked and tasted creamy and sweet and had a nice kick and a punch of colour!

I filled the bowl with baby spinach, fresh avocado slices, tomatoes, and red peppers, drizzled on the dressing (which took about 2 minutes to make, because I already had some roasted squash in the fridge - a bear favourite), and topped it off with toasted pine nuts, sesame seeds, and almonds. In my opinion, the more nuts the better! (Minds out of the gutter, people, out of the gutter...).

The whole combo made for a dynamite lunch, and Roger loved it too. Plus -I have tons of dressing leftover to last me the next week!

Next up: perfecting my mac & "cheese" casserole. Stay tuned!

Vegan Dining Out: A Success Story! (With a little bit of failure thrown in...)

2010-01-24T12:34:00.001-05:00

I always tell people (when they ask), that eating vegan is incredibly easy. Cooking with fresh foods can be quick, tasty, and very satisfying, with a minimal amount of planning. Not only that, but it can keep you full for longer periods than meat, too!

But I must admit, eating out, be it at restaurants, parties, or work luncheons, can be a tad... inconvenient. At many restaurants, it's rare to find a vegan item that isn't a garden salad with oil & vinegar on the side. At others, however, you can find tons of tasty animal-free options throughout the menu.

Even more difficult can be events at work or with friends and family, where you have the choice between requesting some vegan options (which can often feel like quite an imposition), or bringing you own (with lots to share, of course!), which is often what I offer to do.I'm lucky enough to live in a big city where there are lots of veg-friendly places (go to http://www.happycow.net/ to find some in your neighbourhood!), and to have great friends and family who do their very best to whip up vegan recipes of their own if they know I'll be coming over.

This week, however, I had two events coming up where I was certain I would either be very hungry, or very under-satisfied taste-wise. (For the record, I NEVER think taste is a good enough reason to eat animal products).

The first was dinner out for a friend's birthday. At Montreal's Old Port, several ritzy (i.e., unaffordable) restaurants are participating in an event called Happening Gourmand, where they offer a set menu at much-reduced prices. I have generally found that if I call ahead, many restaurants are more than happy to alter their current meals, or to make something off-menu (and usually delicious - I had pretty much the best stir-fry I'd ever eaten at Restaurant Julien, last summer, with the added benefit of not feeling super-sluggish after the meal), so I felt pretty confident as I dialed the number for Verses in Vieux-Montréal.

When I (very sweetly, of course!) explained what my dietary restrictions were, I was asked, as usual, if it was due to an allergy. I refuse to lie and say that I avoid animal products for allergy or religion-related reasons. I realize that if I did, I would be more assured of a vegan meal, and have more concessions made, but I just feel like my reasons are good enough, and, I would argue, better, because they're about choice, not obligation. But, moving on, the woman on the phone suggested a green salad, then proclaimed that my food choices were "bien compliqué," and I asked her to change the reservation from 12 to 10. Roger and I would be eating somewhere else (Thanks to my brother for babysitting - sorry the bear barfed all over as soon as we left!). Usually, I suck it up and eat a salad so the I can participate in these events, but I just couldn't stomach (pun intended!) paying 22$ for a bowl of mixed greens. So, we ended up at a lovely Thai BYOB place on Ste-Catherine (Here's a tip, by the way: Thai food is delicious, but almost everything has fish sauce in it - even the plum sauce - so double-triple-check. Most places can make a dynamite red, yellow, or green curry without it, if you ask them to, and you can add a bit of soy sauce to replace the saltiness), and then met up with everyone after for some karaoke, where I did a terrific rendition of Eminem's "Lose Yourself". No, seriously.

What I generally find the most difficult with respect to eating outside the home is attending work-related luncheons. We had several job candidates coming in, and grad students were strongly encouraged to attend a group Q&A lunch with each one. Not only that, an email was circulated promising that it would not be pizza this time, but something much better. I sent a quick RSVP, explaining that although I planned on attending, I was vegan, so depending on what the food options were, they may not want to include me in the food count. I heard no response, and expected little. In fact, I ate lunch before going to lunch, because I figured it would be sandwiches (made of egg, cheese, or meat, instead of yummy hummus of végépaté), as well as fruit and veggie platters (which are great, of course, but I preferred the leftover tuscan white bean and sundried tomato dish my mom had made earlier in the week). To my surprise, (and excitement!), it was edamame (which I LOVE), and sushi, with the vegan ones expressly set aside so as not to be mixed in with the others. It was AWESOME.

The moral of the story, of course, is to have no expectations with respect to how other people will or will not accommodate your food choices. Fancy restaurants can say no, and budget-conscious academic departmants can make delightful efforts. So - just keep asking - you'll never know what you might get!

Another Random Act of Animal Violence

2010-01-21T09:16:00.002-05:00

Although I'm always horrified when I read a story like this one (Cat stabbed, beaten to death in Windsor), unfortunately, I'm rarely shocked. We live in a world where animals are treated like property, suitable for slaughter when it satisfies the desires (not needs) of humans (food, fashion fun, etc.). Although I don't necessarily equate the intentional torture of a neighbourhood cat with picking up a package of ground beef at the grocery store to make a favourite family recipe, I do wonder why most members of our society are genuinely sickened by the slow slaughter of so-called companion animals, but are willing to finance the similar fate of billions of "agricultural" animals worldwide.

I have several other points of contention with smany articles that were written about this event (e.g., focus on potential human harm rather than current non-human harm, the witness who waited 5 hours to call the humane society, etc.), but I prefer to make this post about the poor cat who suffered a slow death, and the billions of animals who are being born into captivity each day so that they may live their short lives in inhumane conditions, only to be slaughtered so that we can enjoy the taste of food which does little more than harm us in the long-term.

Veganism can even save you money!

2010-01-20T09:48:00.002-05:00

A few months ago, I finally got around to applying for life insurance (only 1 year and a half after my daughter was born - not bad!). I called London Life, and they had a financial advisor, a friendly entrepeneurial guy named Phil, get in touch with me. He came to the house, asked me a few questions about my health & lifestyle (no questions about what/how I ate, or how often I exercised, which I think is CRAZY), discussed different options with me, gave me a quote, asked for a cheque, and went on his merry (well, merry might be a bit strong, but definitely chipper) way.

A few weeks later, a very nice Eastern European nurse in his 50s (who just fell in LOVE with the all the bear's antics) dropped by (don't worry - he phoned first), took my blood pressure, heart rate, blood, and urine (which, by the way, is ALWAYS somehow humiliating), and regaled me with stories of how his once-toddler-aged daughter was now a feckless layabout with no understanding of the real world, and went on his merry (or in this case, friendly, but somewhat depressing) way.

They then entrusted me with the task of phoning a certain survey company to complete, well, a survey (duh). This was probably not wise on their part, because I'm a disorganized procrastinator with a selective memory for actors' names and negative things people said or did years and years ago.

After a couple (ok, several) reminders from Phil and a message or two (or five) from the survey company, I finally phoned them up, a little nervous, of course. How much should I tell them about my young adult heavy drinking years? Would they ask about how much I used to smoke? Would they care about the inordinate number of sour kids (gelatine free!) I ingested when I was 8 months pregnant? If so, could I actually tell them without creating self-shame that would last for days? (Ok, minutes... I'm not really one for shame). The surveyor answered the phone (heart palpitations!!), asked me about a referral I'd received to see an orthopedist (I need orthotics for running), then asked me what year of university I was in (uh... 9?? Grad school can be such a hard thing to explain to people), and hung up the phone. I have to admit, I was actually a bit disappointed that I didn't get to regale her with the story of my 22nd birthday where (Mom: stop reading here), after many, many tequila shots, my friends who escorted me home had to keep picking up my shoes, because I kept kicking them off (in a Montreal November, brrrrr!) and giggling.

A few nights ago, my now old pal Phil phoned and asked if he could drop by in about 20 minutes, for me to sign my (approved!) insurance policy. I said "sure, no problem!", finished reading the paper, completely forgot that Phil was coming by, changed into my pyjamas, and climbed into bed to watch Season 4 of Top Chef. Then the doorbell rang... and I was embarrassed to answer in my housecoat.

Moving on...

Phil happily informed me that my original quoted rate had been reduced by 25% (25%!!!), because I was, in his words, "really really really healthy", and had therefore been given the super preferred rate. SUPER PREFERRED. What an awesome category to be in for anything! It turns out, only about 6% of applicants fall in this range.

I'm telling this story for two reasons. First, I really enjoy bragging about my accomplishments. Second, I really think it's amazing that this is the result of a (mostly whole-foods) vegan diet. I may not be the most fit person on the planet (not even close, actually - my schedule is packed, and my exercise routine consists of walking to school and back all day, which only takes about 5-7 minutes each way, chasing my bear around the house - she has little legs, so she isn't very fast - and the odd swimming session or yoga class), but according to life insurance stats, I have an extremely low chance of dying from health issues in the near future.

It's a nice bit of evidence to share with all the doubters out there (like my G.P., who, when she found out I was vegan, immediately ordered a blood test - I'm sending her the one from the insurance company), who think that we can't get enough protein, calcium, vitamins, etc. from a diet that excludes animal products. The truth is, as much research is starting to show, a varied, whole foods, plant-based diet provides all the nutrients we need, without bogging us down with saturated fats, bad cholesterol, processed sugar, or unnecessary and harmful chemicals. And, even more important, it does so without harming animals, people, or the environment. Long live the avocado!!

Art by Joe Quinones, James Stowe, and Maris Wicks

Fruit is Nature's Candy. Isn't it??

2010-01-18T20:07:00.003-05:00

In my quest to stop wasting food, and with a container of dried black-eyed peas that had been sitting around forever, I went searching for a solution. I found a delicious-looking recipe for black-eyed pea masala, checked to make sure I had all the other ingredients I needed (I did), picked a side, and went for it. I finally got around to varying the leafy greens I eat (a girl cannot live on spinach alone!!), and paired the masala with swiss chard and caramelized onions from The Vegan Table. The whole meal was AMAZING. Roger said he would actually pay to eat it. Of course, I immediately asked if that meant he wouldn't pay to eat every other delicious thing I've cooked, and he somehow managed to change the subject. Tricky tricky tricky.

Dinner wasn't ready in time for the bear's desired (and fiercely maintained) schedule, so she went with broccoli and végépaté, a solid combo. We all enjoyed the cupcakes I made earlier in the afternoon. Although I was originally ELATED to discover that desserts are just as tasty without eggs, dairy, and honey, I am gradually beginning to regret said revelation.

Exhibit A: there are only 4 cupcakes on this plate.

Have you ever heard of a cupcake recipe that serves 4? I didn't think so. From now on, I'll have to try and repeat my friend Naomi's hopeful mantra: "Fruit is nature's candy."

Although I love apples, bananas, raspberries, strawberries, etc., I have my doubts about their chocolate replacing abilities...

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Roasted Veggies and Buttery Sage Pesto

2010-01-17T20:24:00.006-05:00

Before I was vegan, I considered myself an "ad hoc cook". I rarely used recipes, but rather looked in the fridge and pantry, pulled out whatever ingredients were closest to spoiling, and whipped something up. They were not always gourmet meals, but the flavours worked! When I made the decision to go vegan, I knew that if I wanted to stay vegan (i.e., avoid smothering each meal and snack in cheese and mayo – see two posts back), I was going to have to start using cookbooks. So, for the last 10 months, with the exception of some improvised stir-fries (stir-frys??), soups, and chilies, I’ve relied heavily on many delicious (and some not-so-delicious) recipes that I found online or in cookbooks (see the sidebar for my favourites!). The food was yummy, but I was occasionally stuck with veggies that needed to be used, and no recipe to match! Yesterday, however, I decided NO MORE.

Well, ok, not NO more, just not tonight. Having just come down from a Top Chef marathon, I decided to try gnocchi (which I’ve never made), and to make things even more complicated, I thought... sweet potato! Here’s the problem: potato gnocchi is usually made with potatoes (obviously), flour, and... wait for it... eggs. Never one to shy away from a challenge (that’s a total lie, I usually avoid challenges at all costs, but that’s a post for another day...), I did a bit of research, went to the grocery store, and cleared my whole afternoon (thanks to Mom, Dad, and Roger for all the child care!).

Once the potatoes were baked and mashed, I had to very seriously consider whether or not to replace the eggs. In other words: ta-hini or not ta-hini (I think I’m going to regret that pun, later, but let’s just move on). Because I love all things sesame seed-related, I tahinied. I also hoisin sauced. Then came the flour, and more flour, and more flour, until I had a very sticky mound of sweet potato dough. Apparently the trick to good gnocchi (actually, I should probably say one of many, many, many tricks, as I was soon to find out) is rolling out uniform tubes of dough.

I failed.

Soldiering on, I started dropping the gnocchi (that term is becoming looser and looser) in the boiling water, burning my knuckles along the way. It only takes about a few minutes for each dumpling to begin to float, so I watched carefully, and removed them one-by-one, carefully laying them on a parchment-lined tray to keep them from sticking to each other. The problem was, with each successive batch of “gnocchi”, the flour that coated each of them also clouded up the pot, making it almost impossible to tell when they were floating!

Finally, all the gnocchi were boiled, and it was time to sauté. In trying to avoid adding more oil to the meal, I used veggie broth to coat the pan. Bad move. The result? Sticky, soggy, gnocchi, and a burned-bottomed pan. I compromised with an olive oil spray, and the last two batches turned out DYNAMITE. So, I ate them (along with some roasted veggies and a buttery-sage pesto sauce that I thought would taste just right with the sweet potato).

Please ignore how pesto-messy pesto the bowl is. Presentation is not, and never has been, my forte. Just ask every one of my elementary school teachers.

Roger loved the dish, and had two servings! I thought it was a teeny bit bitter and would consider using either a touch less sage or a touch more agave in the pesto to perfect it. Our little bear was having tummy troubles, so she stuck to toast. Always a safe bet.

All in all, my first successful vegan experiment! The recipe is below. Let me know if you make any modifications which improve it; I’d love to try them. Enjoy!

Gnocchi:

3 medium sweet potatoes

2 small red potatoes

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tbsp. tahini

1 tbsp. vegetarian hoisin sauce

salt & pepper, to taste

2 cups of flour (more or less).

Bake potatoes at 350F. Some recipes said this should take about 30 min., but it was about an hour before they were soft enough for mashing
Once they're no longer too hot to handle (thank you, Otis Redding), peel and mash the potatoes along with the garlic, salt, tahini, and hoisin sauce.
Mix in flour a little bit at a time, until the dough is soft and sticky, but not too sticky (sorry for the ambiguity, but that's how it goes sometimes!). I found that to do this properly, I had to mix it by hand.
Roll the dough by hand into several "snakes", about an inch in diameter. Make sure to generously flour the counter AND your hands, or else this will be impossible. Using a fork, GENTLY press to create pretty stripes ;) in the rolls. Cut the rolls into 1-inch pieces (about the length from the tip of your thumb to the first knuckle).
Batch by batch, drop the gnocchi (VERY carefully!!) into a large pot of salted boiling water. When they float, remove them with a slotted spoon, and lay them on a parchment lined baking tray so that they don't stick together.
Sauté the gnocchi in a lightly-oiled pan, about 3-4 mins on each side.

Roasted Vegetables:

I used asparagus, red peppers, zucchini, and onions, because that's what was in my fridge. Use whatever veggies you like! Preheat oven to 450F. Toss veggies, about 1 tbsp of olive oil, and a bit of salt in a roasting pan (I used a corningware), and roast in the oven for about 30 mins, stirring occasionally. Enjoy!

Buttery Sage Pesto:

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup spinach

1/4 cup fresh parsley

3/4 cup fresh sage

1/4 cup fresh basil

1/4 cup olive oil

5 whole cloves garlic, peeled

2 tbsp. Earth Balance (or other dairy-free margarine), melted

4 tbsp. water

1 tsp. agave nectar.

salt, to taste

Blend everything in a blender or food processor (I used the magic bullet!). Warm the sauce to your desired temperature, either in a microwave or a small pot over low heat. Toss with vegetables, gnocchi, and enjoy!!!

Serves 6-8

Possible Vegan Recipe Disaster

2010-01-16T18:33:00.001-05:00

I am going to try to make up some version of sweet potato gnocchi tomorrow night... sauce TBA. This could be TERRIBLE. Stay tuned!

Art by Kirsten Reynolds

Why vegans do it better OR Give up the cheese!

2010-01-13T21:04:00.008-05:00

Anyone who even “sort of” knows me (which, at this point, is everyone who could possibly be reading this) can tell you that there was a time when I lived almost exclusively on cheese sandwiches. Bread, preferably toasted, Miracle Whip Light, and skim-milk mozzarella, with the odd tomato or cucumber slice thrown in, was a staple combo in my life. For the meals (or snacks!) when I decided to venture slightly out-of-the-box, I made sure to take the cheese and/or mayo with me (mac & cheese, egg salad, crackers & cheese... you get the picture). During my first attempt at eliminating animal products from my diet, I used to refer to cheese as my “gateway drug”, which it actually turned out to be.One fateful night at an Italian restaurant with omnivorous friends, a quickly growing dissatisfaction with toast and peanut butter, and limited menu choices, and all of a sudden there I was with a tummy full of vegetarian pizza... and a tiny bit of shame. It wasn’t long before I was, once again, regularly enjoying my cheese sandwiches.

Since then, however, I’ve done a lot of research, and tried a lot of recipes, and have been happily (and healthily!) vegan since...

February 2009.
As I mentioned, this is a shock to many people around me, given the sheer volume of cheddar that I consumed in a given week. This is why I understand why ovo-lacto vegetarians are hesitant to give up non-flesh based animal products. I never believed it could be as easy as it has been – but a couple of great cookbooks and an understanding of exactly what goes into making some of my ex-favourite foods helped me leave them behind and never look back.

Besides the basic premise that we don’t have the right to use animals for our pleasure (taste, comfort, warmth, tradition...), and the horrific conditions under which most animals are grown (let’s face it: the happy family farm may as well be run by Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy), here are a few bits of info about how different animal products are made that may explain why veganism is the way to go:

Gelatine:

Often used as a gelling agent in different products like marshmallows, gummy bears, medicine “gelcaps”, paintball shells, photo film and hairstyling gel.
Made from pig skin, cow hides, pig and cow bones, which can be boiled down, or prepared through environmentally disastrous curing, acid, and alkali processes.
The pork and beef industries would not survive without being able sell its by-products (hides, bones, etc.) for other uses such as leather and gelatine.

Eggs:

Even organic, free-range (if you can actually ensure that it is “free-range”) egg farms acquire egg-laying hens from chick “factories” which routinely slaughter male chicks, typically by drowning or suffocation.
A chicken’s natural lifespan is about 5-10 years, with the possibility of living up to 10-12 years. The egg production of egg-laying hens peaks at about 2-3 years, largely due to living conditions. At this point, they are deemed “spent” and sent to the slaughterhouse. In other words, when we eat eggs, we contribute to the early death of chickens.

Cheese:

Dairy products are produced by impregnating cows, and then collecting the milk that is intended for their calves. Calves are formula-fed: the females typically follow (involuntarily) in their mother’s footsteps and become dairy cows; males are used for veal, which means they are slaughtered very young, some as early as a few days old.
A cow’s natural lifespan is about 25 years. “Spent” dairy cows are killed at about 4-5 years old.
This one’s the kicker: many brands of cheese are not vegetarian! Rennet is a coagulating product that is used to separate milk curds from milk liquid (whey). Rennet occurs naturally in mammalian stomachs, and is often harvested from cow stomachs. Vegetarian rennet is available, but is usually derived from microbial or genetically modified sources.

Honey:

There is a fair amount of controversy about whether honey is vegan or not. Honey (at least the kind of honey you’d typically find at Loblaw’s in a cute bee-shaped jar) is a food source created by bees, for bees, and stored by bees as wax honeycombs in beehives.
Commercial beehives entail the confinement of bees, and the theft of their food source for our purposes (toast is just as yummy with jam!).
A queen bee has a natural lifespan of about 5 years. Commercial beekeepers typically kill the queen after about 2 years, and select a new one on behalf of her colony.
10-20% of bees in commercial beehives die prematurely over the winter... not all of them by accident.

Making the decision not to eat the flesh of animals is a great step towards reducing cruelty to animals. That being said, choosing to eat animal secretions (sounds gross, I know, but that's what milk, eggs, etc. are!) still contributes to their early slaughter.

On the bright side, for those who stop eating cheese, eggs, honey, and other animal products, a door opens to plenty of yummy, healthy foods that don’t contribute to the harm of animals, humans working in the animal agriculture industry, or the environment (avocado, hummus, pine nuts, quinoa, almond butter, tahini...). Buy a cookbook (or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5...), experiment, and enjoy!

Introducing the Busy Happy Vegan!

2010-01-11T11:16:00.000-05:00

This is a blog for vegans, vegetarians, and all you veg-curious people out there. I hope to be able to share why and how I made this decision, and tell a few stories along the way about how I live happily (yes - vegans are happy too!) without using animals. Although I'm always interested in some friendly political debate, I hope to bring some levity and humour to the world of animal rights. No, I don't think hurting animals for food, clothing, make-up, wallets, cleaning products, hats, and worst of all, fun, is funny. But, it was pretty hilarious when I tried to make hollondaise sauce out of vanilla soy milk and baking soda instead of unsweetened soy milk and cornstarch. A little gross sugary foam with your english muffins anybody?

This blog is a brand new experience for me, so you may see many many changes along the way as I figure it out... which is not so different from how I came to be a vegan! From welfarist vegan to vegetarian who "kept vegan" in the house, to ovo-lacto vegetarian, to happy abolitionist vegan, the last 5 1/2 years have been quite a journey. I have not been perfect, and I do not come even a little bit close to being the expert on veganism. But I live it every day, and other than the decision to commit to my partner and have my daughter, being truly happily vegan is the best choice I've made in my life. And believe it or not, it does not take me 10 hours a week to plan what to eat. So hopefully, we can all share some tips on how to stay happily vegan even when we're INCREDIBLY busy.

I look forward to your thoughts and comments, recipe ideas, and general world views. I plan to contribute things I've learned on this vegan adventure, yummy treats, and general thoughts and opinions about why and how to be vegan. Hope we can all enjoy it!