What is a Vegan, Anyway? Interview With Running2Ks

I have quite a few friends who are vegetarian or vegan (vegetarians often eat eggs and milk; vegans don't eat any animal-derived products). Although I doubt we'll ever go completely vegan, the topic interests me. I cook vegetarian meals every now and then, and we are adding as many organic, hormone-free, and free-range products into our diet as possible.

Since many people aren't familiar with the vegan lifestyle, I thought it would be fun to have a guest blogger tell us a bit about veganism.

Running2Ks is no longer blogging (to our great loss), but she has made herself available to "guest blog". She kindly allowed me to ask some questions about veganism and post her answers on my blog.

R2Ks, how and why did you become interested in becoming vegan?

Eleven years ago, my husband and I were driving along the countryside, enjoying the beautiful day, mooing at cows, basking in the wintry sun. My spouse broke the peace by sharing a fact with me: “You know, some pigs have a heart attack on the way to the slaughterhouse because they know what is coming.”

I burst into tears.

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My husband, from a family of sport fishermen, farmers, and butchers, went on to share more tidbits about cooped up (miserable) chickens, how cows are killed, and the torturous demise of other fine creatures. As the tears still stung my face, we pulled into a fast food restaurant for dinner. On the spot, I vowed to become vegetarian. My first veggie meal was a baked potato.

I struggled, for about a year and a half, as a “macaroni and cheese” vegetarian, scrimping and relying on dairy and over-processed “fake” meats for my diet. Finally, my husband joined me—made the ethical leap—and we started learning how to eat more healthfully. I successfully went through both wonderful pregnancies as a vegetarian, giving birth to bouncing, 8 pound-range girls. Because of my commitment to better living through a compassionate and balanced diet, I even started researching more homeopathic options to health; our second baby joined the family through a miraculous (breech) homebirth in Colorado.

Last summer, through more research into ethics and health, I made the transition into veganism. For the uninitiated, vegans are strict vegetarians who do not eat dairy, eggs, or any animal-derived product. My husband and daughters have joined in this lifestyle, with gusto. Our reasoning includes compassion, environmentalism, and the major health benefits we have discovered along the way—including lowering cholesterol. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that I’ve gotten a new-found yen for creative cooking and lots of fabulous recipe books. I’ve even met vegan friends through online sources, including an area potluck group.

How does vegan eating work out for you in daily life?

Naturally, veganism impacts every aspect of our life. At church, at birthday parties, on playdates, at the library, and during other events, I monitor the food. Often, we bring our own treat and meal alternatives. People remember to check with me before serving my children. My daughters even know when to decline, and they ask me before consuming unknown food.

When we go to a restaurant, I ask (sometimes in Spanish) how the food is prepared before we frequent the place. Subway, Taco Bell, Panera Bread, Chipotle (and many others, including Mexican, Italian, Asian, and Indian fare) are favorites of the family. I feel good, even though there is extra planning, that my kids are getting organic, non-hydrogenated, vegan foods. And there is the added benefit of my kids learning how to eat this way while they are young, instead of struggling to learn this as adults. Once you know, you can’t “un-know”.

Often, people comment that they wouldn’t know where to shop for vegan/vegetarian foods. Surprisingly, our local grocery stores are wonderful for this. I find that a lot of checkout people are very curious about the contents of my grocery cart. Another great find is the new, reasonably-priced “Organics” line of foods at one of our supermarkets. Despite my deep longing for a Trader Joe’s in my city, we also do well with a local health food store for specialty items we can’t find elsewhere.

We don’t feel deprived, with so many options open to us. Whenever I go area businesses, I mention that I would love to see more veggie options. I feel that a lot of small business owners are open to this lifestyle in ways I didn’t find 11 years ago. I’m hopeful that compassionate, healthy eating will gain local popularity.

Probably the first thing most people wonder about when they think of veganism is how you meet your body's nutritional requirements. How do you make sure you're getting enough calcium, protein, iron and other nutrients in your diet?

Beans, nuts, green leafy veggies (broccoli, spinach, etc.), fortified orange juice, enriched soy, rice, or almond milk, "meat" substitutes, nutritional yeast flakes, lentils, chick peas, breads, veggie burgers and veggie dogs, juicing (fresh, organic fruits and veggies), bananas, avocados, potatoes, organic soups, pastas, sauces, etc. are many of the ways we get calcium, iron, and protein into our diets.

We don't take vitamin supplements and we don't need them. I have bloodwork drawn annually for myself, and for my husband, and I know our iron is great (even after donating blood). The kids grow at a terrific rate and are much healthier than their friend, getting sick less often--especially once we cut the dairy out of the diet (they were vegetarian until last summer, and have been better off since we eliminated all cholesterol and dairy).

Does your vegan lifestyle apply only to the foods you eat, or do you not use animal products in your cosmetics, clothing, furnishings, etc. as well?

Veganism is a big transition, so we do what we can to eliminate animal products from our lives--the food was a faster change; the rest is coming along. We still have animal products in our closet from before becoming even vegetarian. We aren't buying any new leather, though, for example (or wool or down). We are trying to elminate many of the chemical cleaning products as well. We won't purchase leather furniture or car interiors, as another example. Just doing our best at this point to rid one thing at a time and replace it with a more compassionate and/or environmentally-friendly alternative.

Would you ever keep an animal as a pet?

We used to have dogs. We aren't doing the pet thing anymore. It just doesn't fit into our lifestyle. Not as a vegan issue--and if we ever did dogs again, they'd also be vegan. But just as a time commitment and cleanliness commitment and cost factor, we just aren't into having pets at this stage in our lives.

Do you find that you're spending more or less on groceries compared to a non-organic, non-vegan diet?

I'm spending about the same on groceries--because although the organic food costs more, I'm also buying less pre-fab stuff and cooking more. It evens out that way.

Would it be possible for someone who can't eat soy, nuts, yeast and several grains to successfully become a vegan and still get enough protein and iron?

For people with food allergies, it is more challenging to become vegan. However, one fantastic vegan cookbook I have found is the "Food Allergy Survival Guide: Surviving and Thriving With Food Allergies and Sensitivities (Paperback) by Vesanto Melina, Dina Aronson, Jo Stepaniak". This has been a great resource. For example, my girls are addicted to the quickie chocolate shake in there. And (shh!) it's a healthy dessert, too.

Do you have any favorite vegan recipes you'd like to share with us?

Chocolate Milkshake:
1 banana
2 tsp cocoa powder
3/4 non-dairy milk (vanilla or chocolate rice, soy, or almond)
Blend it all up in a blender--this recipe is from the Allergy Survival Guide

Vegan Mac N Cheese
1 1/2 cups of plain soymilk (or non-dairy milk)
1 cup of water
1/3 cup of soy sauce
1 1/2 cup of nutritional yeast flakes
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 of a block of firm (not silken) tofu
1 cup of canola or vegetable oil
1 1/2 lbs of pasta of your choice preferably macaroni
a relatively large baking pan

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Boil water in a big pot for the pasta.
All of the ingredients sans pasta can easily go in a blender liquid and powdered this is by far the easiest way and the only was I do it.
Once pasta is cooked drain I and put it in the baking pan pour the "cheese" sauce over the pasta. Bake until the top of the pasta looks slightly browned and crispy about 15 minutes

Lentil Pate
1 cup lentils
4 cups water
1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
2 to 2 ½ cups chopped onions
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add lentils, cover pot, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes until lentils are tender. Drain excess water. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook until nicely browned. In a food processor, combine lentils, cooked onions, salt and pepper. Process until smooth. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Makes about 3 cups.

Crazy Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

MIX dry ingredients together, then
ADD the wet ingredients and MIX well

3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups cold water

Pour all into a 9 x 13 inch ungreased pan (you could probably spray the pan),
and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes (try 35), until toothpick inserted is clean

Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Balls
(From Sinfully Vegan, with my notes)
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup powdered sugar
(Blend this in a food processor, make these into small balls and place on wax paper; freeze 15 minutes)*
10 oz bag of vegan chocolate chips, melted (I do microwave melting)
*The book suggests that these small balls will be hard after 15 minutes in the freezer. I didn’t find this to be true at all. So the whole using a wood toothpick to dip it in chocolate…not so much.
Take the balls and lift each one from the wax paper, drip chocolate down on the paper and put the ball down onto the chocolate. After that is done, cover the top of each ball with chocolate–just use a spoon. Chill until hard. If you want it prettier, I guess using silicone mini muffin pans would work. Size matters, though–too big, and it is more than a mouthful. It can get very messy. But it is delicious.

Chocolate Truffles
1 8-oz. package nondairy cream cheese (Tofutti brand works well), softened at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, melted (vegan/milk-free chocolate chips work great)
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
unsweetened cocoa

Beat the nondairy cream cheese in a mixing bowl until it is smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar, beating until it is well blended. Add the melted chocolate (microwave for 2-3 minutes to melt) and vanilla and mix well. Refrigerate for about 1 hour. Shape the mixture into 1-inch balls or egg shapes and roll them in the cocoa. Store the finished chocolates in the refrigerator. Makes approximately 5 dozen chocolates--or 2 dozen. Or even use this--without the cocoa--to fill a pie crust for a "chocolate cheesecake". Could roll in nuts, coconut too.

"Sausage" Stuffed Mushrooms
Container of stuffer or button mushrooms
1 package of Morningstar Farms recipe starters, sausage style (defrosted)
1 tbl garlic (minced or chopped)
1/4 c nutritional yeast flakes
Creole seasoning (or salt and pepper)
1 tbl olive oil

Take the stems off the mushrooms, and blend with the other ingredients in a food processor or blender. Stuff into the mushrooms and bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes, or until mushrooms are cooked through. Serve hot.

Cold Veggie Pizza
Toppings:
Container of vegan cream cheese
Container of vegan sour cream
Shake in dill, garlic powder, chives, salt, and pepper
Put in finely chopped veggies (if you can get salad confetti or pre-chopped, even better): broccoli, cauliflower, onion, carrot, celery
Mix well and set aside in the fridge.
Crust:
1 1/2 cups warm water
yeast packet
tsp salt
3 cups whole wheat flour
Whisk the first 3 ingredients together, add in flour and knead. Set aside for 30 minutes. Then spread out on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 F for 15 minutes. Let it cool completely before topping.

Uncle Jim's Chilled Cucumber Soup
10 oz can veggie broth
8 oz sour cream (not fat-free)
Large cucumber chopped really small with no seeds
1/2 small onion, minced
Clove garlic, crushed
1 tbl fresh minced dill (fresh is best)
1/4 tsp salt
Pepper to taste
Mix the first 2 ingredients well. Then add the rest and serve the soup really cold. 4 servings.

California Rolls (Kid-Friendly too)
Large soft tortillas (but not corn because they won't roll)
Cream cheese, softened
Spinach leaves
Shredded carrots
Garlic salt and black pepper to taste
Optional: vegetarian cold cuts - found in the tofu/veggie section of the grocery (Lightlife is best)
Optional: chopped olives
Optional: sprouts
Optional: avocado (mashed up)
Toothpicks
Casserole dish
Spread the cream cheese (and/or optional avocado mash) on the tortilla. Put 1 thin layer of spinach and carrots and optional vegetarian cold cuts, olives, and sprouts on top, and season lightly. Don't overfill. Roll the tortilla up and put toothpicks in about 2 inches apart along the length to keep it rolled. As you roll, you can add more cream cheese to "glue" the tortilla together. Make enough to fill the casserole dish, layering the rolls as needed. Chill for about an hour (or more) in the fridge with plastic or foil over the top. Before serving, slice 4 inch wide rolls and remove the toothpicks.
Chocolate Muffins (kid-friendly)
· Can of pumpkin (small like 12 oz or 1 ½ cups)
· Box of chocolate cake mix
Mix and bake according to cake directions for cupcakes.

Vegetarian Sausage Stuffing (Dressing)
1/2 pkg. Gimmme Lean Sausage Style (in the tofu/veggie section of the grocery)
1/4 cup onions (minced)
1 cup water
3 cups of Pepperidge Farm seasoned stuffing (comes in a bag), vegetarian
1/8 tsp. pepper
4 tbl veggie broth
1/4 cup celery (finely chopped)
1 bouillon cube (vegetarian)
1 tsp. poultry seasoning
1 cup apple sauce
Saute onions and celery in veggie broth. Cook until soft. Crumble Gimme Lean into the pan to brown; chopping into fine pieces with spatula as it cooks. When browned, add water, bouillon, stuffing, and seasoning. Remove from heat and mix well, adding the apple sauce. Lightly oil pan and add sausage stuffing. Bake in 400 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Thanks so much for sharing about the vegan lifestyle with us, R2Ks. It's always beneficial to learn about different approaches to food and life in general.