But why make it look like meat?!

If there is one question that comes up probably even more often for vegetarians/vegans than "but you eat chicken and fish, right?", it is the question, "If you don't eat meat, why make fake meat and why make it look and taste like the real thing?"

This can be answered so many different ways and it really just shows how much people do not understand what being vegetarian/vegan really is all about.

First - let me start off with the conditioning response...


Sadly to say, for the majority of the population, we are conditioned from the time we are babies to love everything meat and dairy.  Why do our parents teach us that meat and dairy are healthy and the best thing for our bodies? Because their parents taught them the same thing and their parents did the same. The dairy council passes out booklets in schools to teach us all about how great milk is for us and how Mrs. Cow is positively exuberant that you eat her and her children for every meal. It's called brainwashing folks - I love having these conversations with people who rebel against the religion their parents have pushed upon them, but fail to see all of the other ideals their parents taught them which they don't question in the slightest.  "Don't you tell me what to believe!!"....except that and that and that and that. Not to say your parents don't have the best of intentions, but where exactly did they go to school and study nutrition and health? Same place you did...nowhere...you let special interest groups and companies selling you a product tell you what is "healthy". 
Hey folks.....the Dairy Council could give a shit about your health, their job is to sell you their product. They work for dairy farmers to keep them in business. Their job is to create studies to make dairy products seem healthy in order to sell more dairy products and make money. This of course means they must do marketing and advertising.....and as anyone who is in marketing and advertising knows....where is the best place to start?? that's right...kids. Get them while they are young and they don't know any better. Disguise your marketing as education, what an ingenious idea.
This goes back to conditioning......We are conditioned from a young age that meat and dairy is the healthiest food we can eat. Animals love to be eaten and they go down with a smile. People!! Study, educate and learn...don't rely on what has been passed down to you! Never let anyone tell you what to believe, especially those selling a product. Why question some things and not others?


Now that we have conditioning out of the way...

There is a very miniscule amount of people who go vegetarian simply because they do not like the taste, smell, texture or look of meat. The majority of us vegetarian/vegans grew up with the same conditioning. We grew up loving meat and dairy. We then educated ourselves on either the health benefits of going without, the horrors of today's factory farming, or simply just compassion towards all animals, or all three.  Sadly to say, once we make the change, it doesn't mean we hate the taste of meat, it simply just means we don't want real meat anymore.  It can be hard to explain, I personally loved the texture, the taste, the smell, everything about meat, but I know that is solely because I ate it for the first 20 years of my life. You know how hard crack would be to give up after 20 years of use (if it didn't kill you first)?  If I can find a substitute with which to cook that has similar properties, hell yeah I am going to use it...and I am going to love it; not because deep down I really want to eat meat, but because I have been conditioned my entire life to like everything about meat, until I opened my eyes and educated myself. I could care less if it looks like meat, and I highly doubt any vegetarian does, but it sure does make the transition easier for those who are trying to make the switch.

"Why make it look like meat?" - in my opinion, that is for the newbies and for those not yet converted. It goes back to conditioning, if it looks similar to what someone is used to, it may be easier for them to make the switch, even more so if it tastes similar.  Becoming vegetarian is not easy, I won't lie. At first you probably have the same cravings a cokehead would after giving up that lifestyle. What makes it a little easier on you? Having something there that is similar to what you are giving up, but without the guilt. If I am a new veg and having a craving, I don't wan't a giant portobello mushroom on a bun, I want something that looks like a burger and tastes like a burger slathered in BBQ sauce, mustard, lettuce, tomato, special sauce....blah blah blah. Makes my transition so much easier.

Anyone not veg reading this, please understand, we don't eat meat substitutes because we secretly want meat, it is because the majority of us have been conditioned since the day we were born to like the taste and texture of meat in our meals. Yes, some of us do even eschew fake meat (my wife being one of those rare folks who went veg because she didn't like the taste or texture of meat), but in my "travels" they are few and far between.

Veg's reading this, I know there are probably those of you who have other reasons for eating fake meat or for not eating fake meat, but I really think my explanation covers a lot of those who turned veg in the past couple decades and who were raised as meat-eaters.

I would love to hear your thoughts, please share: Eat fake meat....Don't eat fake meat...why?

Cheers,

JD

Find the Best Veg with Your iPhone!!

If you own an iPhone, are vegetarian (or just like healthy food)  and always have trouble finding veg restaurants when you travel or even in your own city, then you really need to get this app. 


The App is called VegOut and is powered by Happy Cow, which has one of the largest listings of vegetarian/vegan and veg friendly restaurants from around the world.  Using your phone's built in GPS, it can recommend restaurants within a certain distance of where you currently are, or you can search for restaurants in other areas as well if you are planning ahead for a trip.  The app sorts restaurants by "vegan", "vegetarian" or "veg friendly" and also shows the ratings and reviews of each restaurant as rated by Happy Cow users (to see reviews it takes you outside of the app to the Happy Cow website). The app does cost $2.99, but is probably the best $2.99 I've ever spent.


I use this app all the time when I travel and I would imagine if you live in a larger city, you'd use it at home quite a bit as well.  I do admit...I have used it a few times in SLC when out in areas I don't frequent too often.  Be forewarned, it doesn't find much in rural areas....but it's not the apps fault, it's the rural areas themselves. I think we've all been to at least one of those podunk towns and had to settle for fries and a grilled cheese at the local drive-thru.  And ouch for the strict vegans.....better just keep on driving.  Small towns have nothing to offer you.


JD

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

One of the most unusual and tasty grain salads I have ever stumbled upon is a salad made by Wild Oats (now Whole Foods) called Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) and Black Bean Salad. This substantial salad offers a healthy balance of vegetables and protein. It provides a wide range of textures, colors, and seasonings.
When I first moved to Utah in 2007, I worked at Wild Oats (before it was bought by Whole Foods) for a year in the prepared food section, so I had an opportunity to learn a lot about nutrition and about some unique ingredients. Quinoa is an amazing food that is (or should be) a staple of any vegan diet as it has a high protein content (12-18%) and is an unusually complete protein source. “Complete” means that it contains ample amounts of the essential amino acids which cannot be synthesized by your body, so you have to ingest them.

Anyway — working at Wild Oats, I saw many versions of recipes. Our production employee was a machine that pumped out various versions of this salad since he couldn’t be bothered with measuring anything. (Now Whole Foods ships many of their salads to their stores to maintain quality control and our dependence on foreign oil.) I did manage to learn quite a few tricks from Dick though, and I will supplement will that knowledge. The original recipe is below and I will add more commentary afterward.

1 1/2 cups quinoa
1 1/2 cups black beans, drained and rinsed (I used 2 cups)
1 1/2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cups corn, fresh, canned, or frozen (I used frozen without cooking them to keep their enzymes intact)
1 red bell pepper
4 scallions, chopped (I used 6)
1 garlic clove, minced (jar of chopped garlic was in my fridge)
1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped ( i used a tsp of coriander seed powder)
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/3 cup olive oil (I used 2 Tbs)

Rinse* quinoa in a fine sieve under cold running water. Put quinoa into a pot with 2 1/4 cups water. Bring to a boil**, then cover and simmer 20 minutes, or until water is absorbed. Fluff it a bit with a fork now and then to keep it from sticking. While quinoa is cooking, toss the beans, vinegar, corn, bell pepper, scallions, garlic and coriander in a large bowl. In another small bowl, whisk the lime juice, salt and cumin and pour in the oil while whisking. When quinoa is done cooking, toss it with the beans and vegetables. Then, drizzle the lime mixture over quinoa and vegetables and toss well. Serve warm or at room temperature. (I like it better the next day when all the tastes have had a chance to combine and be absorbed.)

*Natural quinoa contains bitter-tasting saponins, but most quinoa available in stores is ready to cook. I didn’t read that the quinoa was ready to cook until I was putting it away …and that was after a trip to the store for a fine sieve to wash it under. Whoops. You can also find it sold in bulk at local alternative food stores.

**Dick had the luxury of our commercial steamer and cooked the quinoa that way. You may want to use a rice cooker if you are comfortable with one. When the quinoa was done cooking, he spread it on parchment paper and refrigerated it to cool it before preparing the salad. You can find quinoa at Smiths or Whole Foods.

Lessons learned:
scallions = chives = green onions (right?), fresh coriander leaves seem difficult to find in SLC.  The lady at Whole Foods said I may be able to find them at Indian/ Asian stores.  I used a teaspoon of coriander seed powder from Whole Foods instead.  Many people used cilantro or parsley.  If you use fresh limes, rolling them on the counter with your palm will make the juice more available when you open them (thanks mom!) My first taste was very lime-y. The next day I could taste more of the flavors.

Some other versions of this recipe I found online added the following ingredients: sun-dried tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, oregano and chipotle powder, different fresh herbs for the coriander, shredded carrot, green pepper, etc.

BOTTOM LINE: easy to make, keeps well, portable, get creative with the veggies and seasoning and let me know how it comes out!

PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS!! Suggestions as to where to buy any of the ingredients (cheaply or cheaper) in the valley are very welcome as we intend this blog to be a community experience.

- miss deb henry

Exploring the produce section

I am used to buying apples and oranges, even occasionally some avocados and broccoli (these things are edible immediately upon walking out of the market, and I rarely go to the store unless I am hungry).  This time though, I picked up a spaghetti squash, not knowing how it was cooked, but confident the internet would let me know.

The spaghetti squash sat in my kitchen for over two weeks...which is part of what is wonderful about these types of vegetables, they have a long shelf life. They're easy to grow in your backyard when the season is right and will keep you stocked with food long after the tomatoes are gone.

The squash is a tough veggie that takes some work to cut through. It is filled with seeds and mush like the innards of a pumpkin. The recipe said to halve it, drizzle it with some olive oil, add salt and pepper and seasoning (I chose cumin and curry), and stick it in the oven on 400 for an hour.

Right as I was about to put it in the oven, my roommate suggested taking the seeds out of the middle as it would cook faster, so I did.  I also had seen her made a similar vegetable and wrap it in tin foil...so I did that too -- thinking it would help keep the moisture in the veggie. After over an hour, closer to an hour and a half, a fork went easily through the squash indicating it was done. I let the squash cool and then opened up the tinfoil to find a delicious soft moist veggie waiting to be scooped out.

Since I didn't want to waste the seeds (and they looked like pumpkin seeds) I decided to roast them. I untangled the seeds from the innards, put them on some parchment paper with salt and put them in the over on 225 for 15 minutes. They are delicious!

My roommate suggested adding butter and eating the squash warm, but the vegan alternative to this is product called Earth Balance, sold near the butter in most alternative foods stores. It tastes like butter but is made from healthy vegetarian alternatives.

- miss deb

"Imagine you're a girl, just trying to finally come clean..."

Good morning Salt Lake City, my name is Deb Henry. I am the third of the trio of people who will be writing entries on this blog. I have lived in Salt Lake City for what is going on three years, and am constantly exploring the city to find new local foodstuffs, new experiences to broaden my world-view, new restaurants, and new friends to color my my world.

While I am not consistently vegetarian or vegan, I aim to be. This
blog is an exercise in exploring vegetarian and vegan options, eating
foods grown locally, growing my own food, and satisfying my palate
...without animal products. Once upon a time I was obese, and in my
quest to lose weight I have learned a LOT about nutrition. I also
worked at Wild Oats (now Whole Foods) for about a year, so I have that perspective as well. Working there was just as much like being in school as being at work. I learned about supplements and homeopathic medicine as well as of foods I had never heard of such as quinoa. The byproduct of my work there means that I cannot eat certain things anymore, as I know enough to make myself physically sick.

It's embarrassing to admit, but I have never really cooked for myself consistently. Cereal has been an easy way to satiate my hunger, and living around the corner from Whole Foods makes it exceedingly easy (and expensive!) to never have to cook for myself. Thus, my new years resolution was something that would be "difficult" but eventually would make my lifestyle quite a bit more healthy and self-reliant. The only way you can know what is in your food is if you grow it and prepare it yourself, or at least know the intimate details of where it came from. I cannot even begin to explain how rewarding it has been so far to cook wholesome meals. It is an incredible experience setting out to do something and realizing you are better at it than you may have thought, or that it is not as difficult as you might have imagined.

Reading about eating well has introduced me to a movement of people who want you to have the information to make good choices in your life. The operative word here is choice, as doing anything worthwhile is an active decision and a commitment to yourself and the world around you. I invite you to do your own research, ask questions, and to feel healthier ...as our world unfortunately gets sicker and sicker.

- miss deb

Learn about Veganism!

BVA Vegan Outreach Pamphlet (Updated Ed.)    

Going Vegan & Being Healthy

PCRM Health Free Vegetarian Starter Kit

Here is a great resource is you have questions about being healthy and going vegan.  It answers those nagging questions like, "How do I cook without eggs?!", "How will I get enough protein?!" and of course, "BUT WHAT CAN I EAT?!!" and the millions of questions you have about the health benefits of a vegan diet.

VegSLC Person #2 - Hi I'm JD

Hello everyone, I'm JD and I am the second of 3 writers for this site. The tiny lady I am holding is my daughter Olive, she and her mom are pretty much everything that matters in my life. 


I have been vegetarian for about 15 years, with short bouts of veganism thrown in there on occasion. It all started with a bet from a former girlfriend who was vegetarian. She bet me I couldn't go meatless for 30 days.....like I said, it's been 15 years now.   I needed to go longer just to rub it in a bit, but then I noticed that I had more energy and actually felt healthier, so I stuck it out. 


The real sticking point came after reading "Diet for a New America" by John Robbins, heir to the Baskin Robbins ice cream throne believe it or not. I have never read a book with so many good studies and proven evidence behind it, but also so much compassion and true heart.  It covers everything: health benefits of going veg, environmental impact of being veg, world hunger, the horrors of factory farming, animal welfare and rights. If you have not read it.....please pick it up and read with an open mind. As random as it sounds, Richie Birkenhead from the band Into Another and Moby also had a lot to do with making me stick with it.


Currently I am a pretty strict vegetarian, no meat (if it had eyes when it was alive, it's meat folks! Yes, shrimp, fish, etc have eyes....let's not argue about clams and mollusks though, I don't eat them), no eggs, no milk, no gelatin, no lard, no leather, fur, etc, etc....but I just can't seem to ween myself from cheese and I will eat some products made with eggs on occasion.  My wife is also veg, so it makes cooking and eating out extremely easy. We are also raising our daughter veg until she can make her own lifestyle choices. I try to have compassion for all earthlings and am pretty opinionated when it comes to animal rights...it is extremely hard for me to comprehend how people can harm animals, especially eat them. One thing that has always baffled me is how someone can call themselves an animal lover and yet eat animals; they should probably call themselves domestic animal lovers or only cute animal lovers.  Anyway...I am ranting, this is one thing I do which you will probably notice in my future blog posts.


I look forward to sharing recipes, local restaurant reviews, general vegetarian info and more about boring old me.  I would really like to make this a one stop shop for finding great veg restaurants in SLC, as well as finding decent veg food at non-veg places....you know, those places you go to for family birthdays, when friends are in from out of town, etc.


Thanks for visiting the site, we all hope you find it useful, beneficial and maybe even enlightening.


JD

I'm FIRST! I'm Amanda!

 

I guess I'll be the first to introduce myself!  My name is Amanda and I live with my amazing husband (we've been together ever since we met in 1994!!), two black cats and two dogs that are kids.

My vegan journey has been long. And windy. I've been a vegetarian (with occasional short bouts of carnism) for twenty years and have been vegan the past four. The book, Becoming Vegan  made being vegan seem like the only moral choice if you love animals, while answering every single question I could think of. The now-defunct magazine, Herbivore (they have back issues on sale for $2.00) made being vegan seem perfectly normal and fun! There were also cookbooks that made vegan food look fun and exciting. The year I was became vegan, I read everything I could get my hands on;  I can't remember what affected me the most!  But I did take away knowing eating vegan food for the rest of my life seemed awesome and that I could not  eat animals because they tasted good.


I have another blog, Vegan Mafia.  I write about easy and good vegan food. My theory is that if people see how easy veganism is, they'll jump aboard! If not, they get whacked. Kidding. Mostly. 

Recipe: Vegan Tortilla Soup

I am a bit of a soup fiend, and if there is one thing I really like about the winter, it's that I get to make soups, stews, chilis, etc. a lot more frequently. Tortilla soup is probably one of my all time favorites and it is extremely simple to make vegan. The below recipe is a modified version of the recipe found in Sarah Kramer's "La Dolce Vegan" cook book. I added a few of my own elements and will include tips on how you can do so yourself as well.  One thing you'll notice is using canned products which are low sodium or have no salt added. Soups are infamously high in sodium, so no point in making it even higher.


I am a fan of making enough soup to last all week long, so if you only want enough for one meal to serve 2-4 people, make sure to cut this in half, as this recipe makes enough for probably 8.  


1 can corn (no salt added)
1 can black beans (no salt or low sodium)
1 can diced tomatoes (no salt added)
5 cups (1 box) organic vegan soup base
1 large white onion
1 small can green chilis
1 can (12oz) tomato paste
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp cumin
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
freshly chopped cilantro


optional:
1 package crumbled beef substitute (i use Morningstar farms, but it is not vegan) 
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp Cholula chili lime seasoning
vegan sour cream
tortilla chips

• Saute diced onions in olive oil in a deep soup pan until translucent.
• Add minced garlic and green chilis - saute for an additional 2 mins
• Add soup base, corn, beans, tomatoes, tomato paste, ("beef" crumbles if wanted) - stir to mix thoroughly
• Add chili powder, basil, cumin, sea salt & pepper (also add cayenne at this point if you want to spice things up quite a bit) - stir to mix thoroughly
• Bring to a boil and then turn down to low, cover and let simmer for 15 - 20 min

Stir one last time really well and then serve. This soup is even better the longer it's been sitting, so if you can, let this soup sit for a few hours before serving. 

Garnish with vegan sour cream and cilantro if you'd like. The mix of the cool flavors of cilantro and sour cream contrast perfectly with the spice of this soup.

You can also line the bottom of your soup bowl with tortilla chips or just eat this soup as a dip for tortilla chips, it is thick enough. 

If you are feeling up to it or really want to impress, you can also buy a bag of soft corn tortillas. Cut about 4 tortillas into approx 1/4" strips, toss in a bowl with about 1 tbsp of olive oil until coated and then sprinkle with Cholula chili lime seasoning.  Spread on a cookie sheet and cook in the oven for about 30 minutes at 450 or until crispy. You may want to broil for about 2 minutes on the bottom rack at the very end.

As ou can see there are all sorts of things you can add to this recipe or modifications you can do. Make it a few times like this and then get creative. 

Please come back to comment and let me know what you think.

Cheers!!

Here We Come!!!

Please excuse our dust as we get this project off the ground. 
We hope to soon bring to life a site aimed at living a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle and everything that encompasses: becoming veg, recipes, restaurants in and around SLC; plus,  tips for eating in non-veg restaurants, our own life experiences/stories of being veg, and much, much more. 

Who knows,  maybe we'll become your one stop shop for everything veg in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Of course that is our goal....conquer the world and convert the masses. ;)