An Amazing Site With Yummy Recipes

I made these yummy potatoes au gratin last night without the bell peppers and I added a little bit of mustard to the "cheese" sauce. I thought it tasted just like regular potatoes au gratin minus the icky feeling I would get afterwards.  My husband suggested us adding more salt and pepper next time, but overall it's a really yummy recipe.  It's strange to think that this is dairy free and tastes so creamy.  It looks weird the next day after getting it out of the fridge, but when microwaved it still tastes delicious. 

The recipe calls for using a microwave, but I used the oven for 50 minutes at 400 degrees covered with aluminum foil.  I then cooked it another 10 minutes without the foil to brown the top. 

I suggest everyone to check out My Vegan Cookbook's blog  for some more amazing recipes!

Yummy Onion Rings

Alrighty........yes......I forgot to put more of the greens on my plate for dinner, but I did have a huge green salad for lunch.  I made some seitan and mixed it with some sloppy joe mix.  I'm still perfecting the seitan for this meal.  It was just okay tasting.

At least the onion rings were a success.  I'm so bad with measuring out ingredients so this is just a guess with amounts.

Onion Rings
Ingredients:
1 cup garbanzo bean flour  (wheat or white flour works too)
1 cup Planko bread crumbs
2 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
sprinkle of salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
a sprinkle of oregano
1 cup almond milk (you can use any non-dairy milk you'd like)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar (optional.....I used it to make the milk like a buttermilk)
4-8 drops of tabasco (optional)
1-2 onions  (cut into 1/4 inch slices)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray.
3. Slice onions and pull them apart so they become rings.
4. Put the flour into one bowl.  Put the planko bread crumbs and seasonings (onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, salt, smoked paprika, and oregano) and mix together in a second bowl.  In a third bowl mix the milk, apple cider vinegar (optional), and the drops of Tabasco sauce (optional).
5. Dip each onion ring first in the milk mixture, then the flour, then back into the milk mixture, and then lastly in the planko bread crumb mixture and set onto the baking sheet.  Do this with each onion ring until all of them are coated. 
6. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden and crispy.

The dipping process is a bit messy so you may need to make another batch of the flour and the planko bread crumb mixture.  Let the excess milk drip off the onion before dipping into the dry mixtures.  Onion rings don't taste the same the next day so eat them up when they're fresh.  You can fry the onion rings in oil instead, but you get way more calories and might feel icky after.  I'd rather eat more for less calories.

The Best Vegan Ranch Dressing

I wanted to make some homemade onion rings and my favorite dip for onion rings is ranch dressing.  I saw some of the ones in the store, but they looked watered down and not creamy.  I searched and found this amazing recipe.  My husband said it needed some more salt, but I thought it tasted perfect.  You can make it more thick by adding more of the vegenaise.

The Best Vegan Ranch Dressing

Ingredients:

1 cup vegan mayonnaise  (vegenaise tastes the best) 

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons parsley, chopped  (I used dried parsley) 

1/2 cup unsweetened soymilk  (I used almond milk) 

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients together and chill before serving. Add a little more soy milk if you need to thin dressing.

There are ratings and reviews by other people on the site you can read saying what they think of the recipe. 

Enjoy!

Swine Flu Originated from Factory Pig Farm in North Carolina

I watched a clip from Larry King Live of an interview with Jonathan Safran Foer who was promoting his book, "Eating Animals."   It was an interesting discussion because at a certain point Jonathan Safran Foer mentioned that many people didn't know this, but the swine flu originated from a factory pig farm in North Carolina.

Wait a min.....what?  I thought it was originally from Mexico.  Ok.....time for some research.

This is what I found.........

In May 1999, a story titled "Disease detectives untangle mystery of mutant flu virus" reported that the 1998 bug -- a pig virus "wrapped in a shell of human proteins"  -- was isolated by a state government veterinary lab.  The virus was discovered in August 1998 at a 2,400-sow breeding farm owned by Newton Grove, N.C.-based Hog Slat Inc., a leading builder of factory-style hog farms. The virus spread among pregnant sows causing them to abort their litters. The virus then spread to pigs in Texas, Iowa and Minnesota -- putting epidemiologists on alert about the new viral strain and the potential for a human outbreak.

Hog Slat Inc. is also one of Sampson County's largest employers -- as is Smithfield Foods, the Virginia-based corporation that owns numerous hog farms near the Mexican community where the earliest case of the swine flu was identified. 

Hmmm.......now I realize how easy it is for news reports to blame Mexico even though it really originated in pig factory farms in North Carolina.  If you plan on eating a pig in the future make sure it's from a family run farm where you can see the pigs living conditions.  This is just another reason that makes it easier for me to stay away from meat.


For more information: 
http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/05/swine-flu-genes-traced-to-north-carolina-hog-farm.html
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/05/swineflufarm/#
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/apr/28/swine-flu-intensive-farming-caroline-lucas
http://www.riverlaw.us/swineflu.html
http://www.indyweek.com/triangulator/archives/2009/04/27/smithfield-foods-farms-in-mexican-state-where-swine-flu-outbreak-began

Waffles

I recently got a waffle iron as a gift and couldn't wait to make some homemade waffles.  I found the recipe in, "The Joy of Vegan Baking," by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau which is available to purchase on amazon.com.  Her recipes have been great so far!  If you want to find some other waffle recipe ideas then be sure to check out some more on vegweb.com.  These were the perfect start for the weekend along with a homemade almond milk caramel latte. 

Easy to Make Blueberry Muffins

I am amazed how easy it was to make these yummy muffins!  It took about 30 minutes for freshly baked muffins to have for breakfast.  Not to mention the clean up was super easy because I only used one mixing bowl.  I got this recipe from vegweb.com.  It's amazingly yummy when it's fresh from the oven with some Earth Balance Butter on top. 

Very Simple Blueberry Muffins
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups flour  (I used wheat all-purpose flour)
• 1/2 cup sugar     (I mixed 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4cup white sugar)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder    (Find one that's aluminum-free...it's better for you)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup nondairy milk    (I used almond milk)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil     (I used a little less than 1/4 cup)
• 1 cup frozen blueberries          
• This isn't part of original recipe, but I sprinkled in some ground flaxseed to add more nutrients in the muffin

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  (recipe said 400 degrees, but I thought that was too high).  Place baking cups in a muffin pan.  (I used a cupcake pan)

2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Stir in nondairy milk and oil.

3. Fold in blueberries. Pour into baking cups and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  (I left them in the oven for 25 minutes)

Makes: about 8 muffins, Preparation time: 5 minutes, Cooking time: 30 minutes

It's Been 3 Months

When I first started eating like a vegan it was just for fun and as an experiment.  I love meat too much to give it up completely.....or so I thought.  My first week I went cold turkey and gave up everything meat and dairy related.  I thought I was going to die because I always thought you need meat and dairy to be healthy.  I even dreamed about my fridge being full of red meat.  After I did some research I knew I would be healthier without those things and I was able to find replacements for the foods.  This made it even easier on me being able to avoid meat and dairy.  If you're first starting out trying to eat like a vegan then I recommend you trying it little by little.  You can switch out and replace different foods slowly over time. 

I decided to do some research on the food I was eating and what I used to eat while trying to eat like a vegan.  This was just out of curiosity and for fun.  What I found was shocking and made me feel sick to my stomach for even wanting the food I used to eat.  I didn't realize I was making myself sick and making my asthma worse.  I think giving up dairy was the easiest part for me because of my asthma.   

After trying eating like a vegan for a month now I realized that I'm not dead and that I could keep doing this.  The main incentive was the fact that I was losing so much weight without trying and I felt better.  Why wouldn't I stick with this??? 

My husband joined me in eating like a vegan on weekdays and he noticed such great results that he's going to stick with it too.  He still has trouble getting in the veggies because it's hard for him with his job.  His work caters all the food, so he tries his best.

We still have our weakness of sushi, but I'm really cutting back on that due to the mercury levels in fish.  I know I want to have kids someday and that wouldn't be good to have in my system.

It's been 3 months of eating like a vegan and even though it was just an experiment at first I feel as though this is more of a life change for me.  I am also very happy about many family members and friends joining me after seeing my results.....even if it's them giving up one thing like cheese or milk I know that they will be more healthy from it.  I want all my loved ones to be healthy and live long lives.