Recipe of the Week: Old Fashioned (Tofu) Chicken Salad

I’m in love with this tofu salad from fatfreevegan.com. It’s an easy recipe and tastes great. The baked tofu by itself is good too. Next time I make it I plan to double the tofu and marinade — saving half the baked tofu to use on salads, wraps and sandwiches. Give it a try!

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Find Your Tribe

This post originally appeared in 2007. It was the second post on this blog. In honor of It’s Easy Being Vegan’s five year anniversary, I am rerunning it. I still believe that finding your tribe is one of the most important steps a new vegan should take to be successful with the transition.

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You don’t have to go vegan on your own. It’s crucial important when you go vegan to surround yourself with like-minded people. If you are friends with a few vegans, it will make your transition easier. If you don’t know any vegans, then get active and meet some. You will appreciate having their support.

You can volunteer at your local shelter animal shelter. It’s a great way to meet other animal lovers. You are bound to run across a few people who have made the connection between food and animals, but don’t be surprised by how many meat-eaters love to care for homeless cats and dogs either.

Better yet, join a local animal rights group that takes more than companion animals into consideration. There are many groups all over the country. If there isn’t one in your area, start one.

For the social butterflies, check out meetup.com to see if there is a vegan meetup near you. The group in Chicago meets once a month at a veg-friendly restaurant to enjoy a tasty vegan meal. You will meet some new folks while trying some new restaurants. Again, if there isn’t one in your area, start one.

Many people go vegan for their health or for the environment, giving you another avenue for meeting new friends. It doesn’t matter why you went vegan, it just matters that you find your tribe. Surrounding yourself with like-minded people will make all the difference.

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Celebrations and Vegan Cheese

This week marks It’s Easy Being Vegan’s five year anniversary. In celebration, I’m rerunning two of my first blog posts. My first post back in 2007 was on giving up cheese. In just five years, we have seen the birth of several new vegan cheeses — making it even easier to be vegan.

The blog post below originally appeared on July 9, 2007. I have updated it for 2012.

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The End of Cheese As You Know It

Do you think it would be too hard to give up dairy? I felt this way for years until a friend of mine pointed out the link between the dairy and veal industries. (Thanks, Megan.) I knew right then I had to make the change from vegetarian to vegan. For more information on what’s wrong with dairy, click here.

2012: Pizza made with Daiya

Years ago the soy cheese options weren’t so good. They didn’t melt and many included casein, a milk-by-product. Many still do. But now we live in 2012 2007 and there are great vegan cheese alternatives. My favorite is Daiya Follow Your Heart brand. It comes in several flavors and melts. You can use it on pizzas, sandwiches, nachos — anywhere you would normally use dairy cheese. You can buy it at Whole Foods Wild Oats, and many natural food stores. If you don’t live near a store that sells this product, you can buy it online. See how easy this is?

Remember: If you think you can’t give up cheese, switch your thinking and decide to give up supporting animal cruelty instead.

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An Easy Vegan Dessert for Valentine’s Day

Photo by Lindy Stockton

Valentine’s Day is upon us and I think this “fudgy balls” recipe is worth reposting. It’s a simple treat that would make the perfect homemade Valentine’s gift. Enjoy!

This morning I threw out all the refined sugar and flour products in my kitchen. I decided the next time I need a dessert, I will use only unrefined, natural ingredients. For example, if a co-worker is having a birthday, it’s nice to bring in a treat to celebrate. In the past, I would normally feel compelled to bake vegan cupcakes using a recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule. Every recipe is delicious. Always a big hit with omnivores too. But I know there are healthier dessert options. So in honor of my new commitment to optimum health, I wanted to share a simple and sweet recipe I learned from a friend. It’s natural and delicious.

Fudgy Balls
Makes about 12-16

1/2 cup all-natural nut butter (peanut butter is my favorite)
1/2 cup pitted dates
1 tbsp cocoa powder
Shredded coconut, if desired

Soak dates in water for about an hour. Drain dates. Using a food processor, combine the nut butter, dates, and cocoa. Once mixture is well-combined, use your hands to roll mixture into small, bite-size balls. Next, roll balls in shredded coconut as shown above, if desired. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes so the balls will become extra firm. Store in the refrigerator.

For the completely lazy, you can skip making the balls and just store the mixture in a sealed container in the fridge. Eat a spoonful when the desire for a sweet snack takes hold.

Variations:

• You can use any kind of nut butter (cashew, almond, pistachio, etc.).
• Instead of cocoa, try carob powder or raw cacao nibs.
• If you don’t like coconut, try rolling the balls in ground flax-seed or leave them naked, which is my personal preference.
• This dessert could be made completely raw by using a raw nut butter and cacao.
• I have also added a pinch of cinnamon and a bit of vanilla before when using raw almond butter.
• Add dried fruit, such as cherries. Yum.

Get creative with this simple recipe and have fun in the kitchen. You will not miss the white sugar and flour one bit. Enjoy!

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Mercy For Animals’ New Commercial

Donate to Mercy For Animals today, so they can continue doing great work.
Animals are cool. Help them.

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Show a College Student Some Love

Snacks for Study Breaks

The Washington Post ran an article on creating care packages for college students recently. It reminded me of the vegan care package post I wrote a few years ago, when I had one niece in college. She has since graduated and moved on to law school and her younger sister plays college tennis. I suspect they are working very hard and in need of some treats, so off to the store I went to pick up some vegan snacks.

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Maple Squash

Simple and Delicious Delicata Squash

Maple Squash
(serves 2)

• Small delicata squash
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• Pinch of cinnamon
• 1/4 pecans, chopped

Delicata Squash

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut squash in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and place in a baking pan filled with about an 1/2-inch of water. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the flesh is soft. The squash will be hot to the touch, so use an oven mitt to handle. Scoop out the squash flesh with a spoon and place in a small bowl. Add a tablespoon or two of pure maple syrup and a pinch of cinnamon. Mix until well combined. Top with toasted pecans. Serve warm. It’s so simple, it’s ridiculous.

I originally posted this recipe in 2007. I think it’s so good that it’s worth sharing again. Enjoy.

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Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports on Heart Disease

If you haven’t seen this documentary, The Last Heart Attack, about heart disease yet, watch it online this weekend. Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores ways to prevent heart disease including a plant-based diet. Food is medicine. Eat healthy!

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Trick or Treat, Smell My Feet…

…give me something good to eat! Halloween is right around the corner. Before you pick up your goodies, check out this list of vegan treats courtesy of Farm Sanctuary.

If you want to skip the sugar, pass out fun stickers instead. Don’t be afraid to be different. It’s good practice for being vegan.

Happy Halloween!

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Easy Balsamic ‘Shrooms and Pasta

Balsamic 'Shrooms over Pasta

Christine,

You’ve clearly infiltrated my consciousness because I inadvertently made a vegan meal for dinner last night and it was really good. I’m not even vegetarian, never mind vegan.

It would be great if you could share recipes with us that don’t require specialty vegan products like seitan or vegan cheese. Perhaps just the sort of things one might throw together from the ingredients you might already have in the larder?

~Carolyn

Dear Carolyn,

An uplanned vegan meal! Very nice. You made my day and then I made this recipe with you in mind. Mushrooms are a great way to add some “meat” to your dinner without adding any animal products. Enjoy!

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Top 10 Kitchen Tools

Knife Skills 101

It’s easy being vegan ’cause a few kitchen tools are all you need to cook good food.

In a small kitchen like mine, there isn’t room for all the bells and whistles. But if you stock your kitchen well, you won’t need them. Cooking is easy when you have the right tools, and its fun too. It’s a great way to relax or spend time with your significant other. Read Mark Bittman’s new e-book for inspiration, Cooking Solves Everything: How Time in the Kitchen Can Save Your Health, Your Budget, and Even the Planet.

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Make a Healthy Meal in 5 Minutes

A Christine Salad: It's a meal.

It’s easy being vegan ’cause salads make a great meal. It’s a myth that all veg-heads live on salads alone. But! Salads make a hearty and healthy meal when done right.

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Eat Vegan Anywhere, Really

Wherever you go, be vegan!

It’s easy being vegan ’cause you have a Vegan Passport. Make world-wide travel easy by picking up a copy. Thanks to the folks at The Vegan Society, this handy little book makes vegan eating easy and won’t take up much space in your suitcase.

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Favorite Vegan Cookbooks

It’s easy being vegan ’cause there are hundreds of vegan cookbooks. There’s nothing boring about eating vegan.

Just go to any bookstore or browse online to check out the many vegan cookbooks available. More come out every month! Choose from healthy to comfort-food to low-fat to raw food and to every ethnic cuisine under the sun. You’ll find cookbooks for quick and easy meals and books for the gourmet. Just because you’re eating vegan and remove animal products from your diet, doesn’t mean you don’t have choices.

My favorite cookbooks that I use time-and-time-again are:

• Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero
• Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen: Easy, Delectable Living Foods Recipes by Ani Phyo
• Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker: 200 Recipes for Healthy and Hearty One-Pot Meals That Are Ready When You Are by Robin Robertson.

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Just Google It

It’s easy being vegan ’cause you can find anything on the internet. How did we live without google?!

Okay, so you want something egg-like for breakfast without the cruelty. Type in “vegan eggs” in the google box and hit search. Here are a couple of the results:

• Egg Replacements
• Vegan Tofu Scramble and Egg-Type Recipes
• Vegan Green Eggs (and Ham)
• Vegan Zucchini Frittata (While we’re on the subject of vegan egg-like dishes, this dish is my favorite. The black salt is key.)

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