Veganism Hits "On Point"

Recently I took notice of a feature on the NPR program "On Point".  Host Tom Ashbrook looks at the increasing trend of veganism in America and the fact that it is becoming more and more mainstream.  What a concept!  I listened to the program three times, and while I did not necessarily agree with everything that I heard, I think that it is amazing that being vegan is not as obscure as it used to be.  And I think that I have proven through this blog that it does not have to be extreme at all!!!!  I would not say that I am extreme.  As a matter of fact, I still think that eating dead bodies and enjoying it is extreme.  Mr. Ashbrook mentions in the introduction that ,"... things change, and suddenly vegans and veganism seem to be everywhere. Some Americans going all the way.  Some toe-dipping. It’s a remarkable moment, a remarkable shift."  PLEASE take a few minutes to listen to this interview, and let me know what you think!  You can email me at jocelynshaffer@hotmail.com!
Here is the interview:
Vegans Take America

Chili Pot

Woah baby, it's COLD outside!  Wherever you are in the world, veganism is a super choice.  In this part of the world, right now, it's cold.  Like, really cold.  When I lived in New Zealand, it never got this cold.  But now that I live in Northern Virginia in the US, the winters are mighty frozen.  One of my favorite meals to put together on a cold winter day is a large pot of chili.  Homemade chili is delicious, hot, and one of the most filling meals I have ever had.  I have tried many different recipes, and my own is my favorite!  Try playing around with it, it is fun to experiment.

Anti-Winter Chili

2 cups of sauteed bell peppers and onions

1 16 ounce can of whole peeled tomatoes

2 packages of Tempeh

1 can each of black beans, red kidney beans, and white beans

1 package of mild chili seasoning mix 

olive oil

  First, put a little olive oil into a pan and saute your onions and peppers...DO NOT limit yourself to just onions and peppers though!  Sometimes I throw in whatever leftover frozen vegetables I have in the freezer.  They are all good, especially mushrooms.  Leftover hash browns are also good! 

  Then, put all the beans, undrained, into a big pot.  Don't over-think it, just use a big pot.  I use the liquid from the beans instead of water because it is thicker and my husband likes a hearty chili.  Pour about half the liquid from the tomatoes in and cut each tomato into 2-3 pieces.  Put 'em in the pot.  Crumble the tempeh and add that to the pot along with the sauteed veggies.  Stir really well and then add the chili seasoning.  The prep time on this meal is SUPER fast and the results are amazing.  I like to cook a pot of elbow macaroni to go with it.  Put about a half cup of macaroni in the bottom of the bowl and then cover it with chili.  You can also serve this with some choice vegan cornbread.  I use Jiffy cornbread mix and veganize it with EnerG Egg replacer.  It is very, very good!

Warm Wishes

 We hope that you had a wonderful holiday season and wish you a happy new year, wherever you are!

Interview: Vegan Nutritionist

While I was at the Green Festival in Washington D.C., I had the pleasure of interviewing Mark E. Rifkin, MS, RD, LDN.  He is a vegan nutritionist at Preventative Nutrition Services, which provides in-home and other nutrition services to the Baltimore-Metro area.  He gave me some sound advice for vegans, the same advice that he gives to his clients.  One of the most important tips was to plan meals ahead of time and cook on the weekends.  I mentioned that I never seemed to have time to cook whole foods during the week and on busy nights I often will rely on veggie burgers, stir-fry, or spaghetti.  While these things are fine, we can optimize our nutrition by cooking larger portions of whole foods on the weekends and then freezing or storing them for meals throughout the week.  Collard greens, tofu, beans, and other grains should store well and it will save a lot of time to prepare them in advance.  One grain the Mark recommended highly was Barley, which has way more fiber and protein than brown rice.  Another tip that most vegans have heard is to take that Vitamin B12.  I mentioned that I am always tired on weeknights!  Well, I am super-busy (c'mon, who isn't?) but cooking ahead and making sure vitamin levels are in-check is really important for energy levels!  Take a multi-vitamin, your body will thank you in the long run.  Also, get more iron (read: eat beans and spinach!) and be sure you are getting plenty of vitamin C along with that to aid iron absorption.  Finally, those kids will always wear you out, whether you are a parent, caregiver, teacher, or ALL OF THE ABOVE!  Kids likes change frequently, so keep trying new dishes several times before you completely rule them out.  My kids do that all the time.  They will refuse to eat something the first 3-4 times I try it, but then something will change and they all of a sudden cannot get enough.  If you are in the Baltimore Metro area and would be interested in Mark Rifkin's services, email him at preventative_nutrition@verizon.net.

From A Kid's Point of View!

My daughter wanted to let everyone out there on the Internet know why she loves being vegan.  First, she says that it is awesome.  There are a lot of good choices for things to eat.  Her favorites are baked corn, vegan "pigs in a blanket" (made with veggie dogs), and Tofurkey.  She says that being vegan makes her feel good.  She knows that being vegan helps the animals and keeps her healthy.  She says that it is cool that being vegan helps the environment, too.  She says that her friends at school do not make fun of her and they do not really ask a lot of questions.  It's just something she does, just like the peanut-free people.  So, take it from a seven-year-old, being vegan is cool on the elementary school scene, yo!

Stuffing or Dressing or Whatever you like Recipe

I am making a Thanksgiving meal for my family tomorrow and right after the Tofurkey I want stuffing.  Not complicated stuffing, good old stuffing the way my Nana used to make it.  SIMPLE, folks!  So I Googled many stuffing recipes and was very disappointed because some of them had 20 ingredients and about 30 steps.  I do not have the patience for this, I have too much to do!  So here it is, another recipe from Nana, veganized!
Easy Bread Stuffing

• ½ cup chopped onion
• ½ cup chopped celery
• A bag or two of stuffing bread cubes
• A few tsp. Earth Balance
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1 Tbsp chopped sage (I used dried and ground sage from my garden)
• 1 cup vegetable broth (don't use water, it will just not be the same)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.  Use the butter to saute the onions and celery for a few minutes until they are tender.  Put everything but the butter and the veggie broth in a big bowl.  Stir it up (little darlin', lol).  Add some broth.  Stir.  Add a little more.  Stir.  Keep doing this until your broth is gone and your bread is kind of soggy but not too much (I SAID STIR, haha).  Now dump it all in a baking pan (like a 9x11 cake pan) and bake for 25030 minutes.  Enjoy, it will be YUMMY with vegetarian gravy!

Vegan Potluck Extravaganza!

We went to the Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary's "Thanksgiving with the Turkeys" last weekend and it was amazing.  The Washington Post had run an article about the event, so a LOT more people showed than I thought would.  The folks at the sanctuary said that there were close to 1,000 participants which was fine by me because there was so much food!!!  Seriously!  The lines were long but we skipped out on watching the turkeys eat so that we could get great spots in one of the FOUR lines.  We had a wonderful time and will certainly be coming back for more next year. The highlights of the event for me were the desserts and just being around SO many other compassionate people.  I hope that your Thanksgiving is just as wonderful, really!  Here are some photos of the event:

 

Baked Corn

This is the veganized version of my grandmother's baked corn that I ate all the time when I was growing up.  It is very, very good, perfect with Tofurkey and roasted butternut squash!  Better triple the recipe, this one rocks!

Nana's Baked Corn

• 1 can of cream-style corn
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp flour
• Egg replacer for two eggs
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup Earth Balance, melted
• Ritz-style crackers, crumbled

Mix all the ingredients together except for the Earth Balance and the crackers.  Beat the egg replaces till it is foamy before adding it to the mixture.  Pour into a glass baking dish.  I always triple the recipe, so I use a 9x11 dish, but for just a single you only need a 9x9 or similar.  Crumble the crackers and sprinkle generously over the entire mixture and then pour the melted Earth Balance over that.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.  Let cool a bit before serving.  Enjoy, I know I do! 

Thanksgiving with the Turkeys

Last April we went to the Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary to visit the animals and learn more about what they do there.  Check the April/May posts for details on that trip.  I also ran in their "Run for the Animals" and a good time was had by all.  Now that it is almost Thanksgiving, we are putting November 20th on our calendars because it is the annual Thanksgiving with the Turkeys event at Poplar Springs.  It is a GIGANTIC VEGAN POTLUCK.  Yes, folks, I said a GIGANTIC VEGAN POTLUCK!!!  That is exciting, because we love to eat.  Come dine with the animals instead of on them!  I am also excited because it is a way for vegans from Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania to get together and interact.  I always love to meet other vegans because we are such a happy bunch of people.  AND my kids love running around the sanctuary which is basically a farm where the animals never die.  They ask that everyone bring a VEGAN dish that will serve 8 people and a $10.00 donation is suggested to help offset the cost of care for the animals.  Find out more at http://www.animalsanctuary.org/events/index.html.

Grown-Up Beverages

If you enjoy a grown-up beverage once in a while like I do, you need to make sure your drink is vegan-friendly!  What's this you say?  Not all drinks are vegan?  Sadly, no, they are not [sniff!].  Many breweries and wineries use animal products in the recipe, and then they filter with things like egg whites, seashells (can we say ewww!?!?!), and other gross stuff.  That makes me sad.  Therefore, you want to be a little choosy with your beverage, depending on how much you have already had (can we say TOO MUCH!?!?).  OK, it's date night ( let's yell YAY!!!) and you and the better half or just you (you know you are your OWN better half, wink, wink) are at an adult establishment and want to order a beverage.  You have done your homework and gone to the following website: http://barnivore.com/.  So NOW you can order up something that will get you in that "weekend state of mind" before you start laundry and chores first thing in the morning (c'mon, you know you do it).  My personal fave in the beer department is Pabst Blue Ribbon.  It is readily available, tasty, and not too over-bearing as far as taste goes.  I suggest checking ahead on wines...I was very dissapointed that some of my favorite wines were not vegan.  So enjoy your evening, drink responsibly (translation: find a DD), and make all of your drinks vegan-friendly!