Cooking: Vegan

[frigilux]

Are there any vegans/vegetarians in the family at AW?

After time spent researching and reading, I decided to adopt a vegan (no meat/dairy/eggs) diet---more for reasons of health than ethics. I was a vegetarian (consumed eggs/dairy) for seven or eight years in my 20's-30's, so this isn't exactly foreign territory. If you keep a vegan diet relatively low-fat, there is medical evidence you can actually reverse some aspects of heart disease, like plaque build-up in arteries.

It's been about ten days since the switchover, and I have to say I'm enjoying the food. Finding dairy replacements has been easy. I love Silk light soy milk, and Earth Balance vegan butter is good. I'm finding rice-based shredded cheeses actually melt, compared to their soy counterparts (which are great in salads).

I'm a huge carbohydrate addict, and am trying to eat a normal amount of breads/pastas, rather than their making up 80% of my diet. I've switched to whole wheat pasta (the Bionature brand is awesome; none of the gummy/weird texture issues), whole wheat/multigrain bread, and brown rice. After a few days, I noticed I naturally eat less bread/pasta because the whole wheat versions are more filling.

I'm using textured vegetable protein (TVP) sauteed in onion with a touch of Kitchen Bouquet and A-1 Steak Sauce to replace ground beef in recipes. It's really very good when prepared this way.

Bonuses: Have dropped four pounds; don't feel sluggish after meals; less wheezing/fewer asthma issues. I'm eating a much wider range of (mainly plant-based) foods, despite the loss of meat/dairy/eggs.

Anyway, it's been quite an exciting (and frankly, major) change in my life! If there are any vegan/vegetarians aboard with suggestions about products/cookbooks/recipes/etc., please share.

 

[appnut]

Wow, am shocked!! What about when you cook all those meals for people you have over as well as food you prepare and take elsewhere?

I've been eating whole grains and whole wheat products for years, mainly for the fiber content for my diverticulosis. I find the pasta and brown rice aren't nearly as "addictive" in nature to my tastebuds, which is good.

 

[mattl]

Interesting, I've adopted and partial ovolato-vegan diet over the past 2 months. I'm not very strident about it, I do 4 days meatless and 3 with meat- usually.  I'll adjust as I go on. I'm aware of the health benefits.  Mine at this point is bean based.  I can enjoy a large bowl of cooked Great Northern beans with a vegetable and salad for dinner and be happy.

 

Over the past moth I've expanded to include black bean burgers, and chickpea cutlets, both very good.  I only use dried beans that I cook myself, trying to avoid as many additives as possible.  One thing I've noticed is that after a plant base dinner I don't have the sweet cravings I usually have after a meat based dinner.  Bread wise I usually make a loaf on Sunday or Monday and it lasts for the week, I've cut out processed lunch meat, might have some tuna or eggs for breakfast or lunch,or some cold chicken breast sliced thin- as I said I'm not strident about it.

 

I feel for me this works, walking away from barbecued ribs and such would be hard, but now it's not the focus of my dining.  i think if something is not off limits you crave it less.

 

[frigilux]

Matt---You are exactly right about not craving sweets/carbs as much as before. I bought some tofu-based chocolate ice cream, and just a little spoon or two once in awhile satisfies my dessert needs. I haven't been eating cookies, etc. There are vegan versions of desserts, but I want to wait awhile before introducing them to my diet. It is possible to eat a junk-food vegan diet, after all, LOL.

 

Bob--- Yes, this has been quite a major change for me.  However, I still make meat/dairy items for my dinner guests.  Some of them have been curious to try what I'm eating.  They find it really isn't weird.  Oddly, I'm not tempted to eat meat or dairy at all, even though it's in the house.  I suppose that shouldn't surprise me; I kept a pack of cigarettes in the house for the longest time after I'd quit smoking, and there's wine/liquor in the house for guests even though I quit drinking over six years ago.

 

I had a vegetarian guest overnight and made an awesome brown rice/tofu/vegetable stir fry for our breakfast.  I have some left for lunch tomorrow.  I'll continue to bring baked goods to the work room each Monday, too.  My co-workers would go into withdrawal if they didn't find an array of sweet rolls/coffee cakes/scones on the food table on Monday mornings, LOL!

 

I have to find better recipes for 100% whole grain breads.  Bought some 'dough conditioner' from the Pampered Pantry, which should make whole grain loaves a little more moist and less crumbly.  I'm definitely learning new cooking techniques, which is also fun.

 

[aegokocarat]

I am a flexatarian
Tom

 

[maytagbear]

I could go vegetarian fairly easily........

Vegan, however, would be a challenge. I love dairy. I tried Tofutti (frozen dessert) a number of years ago, I did not find it to be delicious.

Get away from me with that Tofurkey. I would rather have real dishes of vegetables and grains rather than nasty imitations. Would rather have olive oil than imitation butter.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[lordkenmore]

The last few years, I've been for practical purposes vegetarian. And, at times, I've probably even been--for practical purposes--vegan. But I haven't been horribly rigid about this. It's just my daily eating habits. Meat isn't exactly cheap these days.

In my case, meat would be ruinously expensive. I'm not sure what is the right ethical position of meat eating vs. vegetarian. I have read good arguments on both sides. But I have also read enough to know I can't support the factory farm model. At least on a routine basis. Thus, I'd get put into the category of buying "beyond organic" which is usually "beyond expensive."

Past this, it's a pain dealing with the realities of various bacteria and the need to properly prepare the meat or die. In some cases "die" literally. It's more of a pain than it's worth to me.

I don't miss meat very much. But then I have never been a very heavy meat eater. Growing up, my mother actually did vegetarian meals regularly. I'm not sure about all the whys and wherefores, but a big factor was, I'm sure, that it saved grocery dollars. Grocery dollar savings also meant that what meat we did eat was usually cheap, and usually part of a dish. My weak "dream of meat" moments involve memories of my mother's beef stroganoff, or her stifado (Greek beef stew), not a steak.

 

[petek]

Eugene,, re the bread "conditioners". Adding soy lecithin, either liquid or granular helps keep the bread fresher longer.. I use the liquid, about 1/2 tsp per cup of flour. You can probably find it at a health food store. Also you can try adding small amounts of ascorbic acid powder, (vitamin C)also available at many health food or baking supply stores.. (measure carefully) The ascorbic acid helps in the rising and as a preservative

 

[mixfinder]

Resitance Starch

Is a derivative of corn and adds texture and a stretchy quality to dough.  It is designed to bind the gluten and carbohydrates in breads making them less digestible and reducing the glycemic factor.  Xanthan Gum is also added to non gluten breads to make them rise better.  With whole grain breads the coarse edges of grain cut gluten stands making holes in the dough and lessening the bench rise of dough.  I pour hot water over the roughest grains and soften them before mixing to make softer doughs and increase the volume in bench rising and oven spring.

 

[frigilux]

Thanks for the tips, guys! The place I bought the dough conditioners (one for loaf bread and one for pizza dough) is actually called The Prepared (not Pampered) Pantry. I used it for several batches of white sandwich bread, and it does make the dough a little stretchier. The loaves also stayed moist longer, and didn't get crumbly. That goes double for the pizza dough enhancer, which wrapped itself around my food processor blade like taffy, but it makes it very easy to stretch the dough to the edges of the pan quickly.

Kelly, thanks for the tip about pouring hot water over the whole grains to soften them. I'll give that a shot.

I have Friday off work, and plan to make a few different whole grain bread recipes to see which I like the best. I actually bought a premium-style loaf of 100% whole grain bread at HyVee and it was quite good. I haven't bought bread in ages and was shocked to pay nearly $4 for a freakin' loaf. But I'd miss baking bread at home, so I want to experiment rather than cave to convenience. Few things perfume a house the way baking bread does.