Invitation to my vegan journey

Breakfast is anything you want

2012-02-04T09:22:00.003-05:00

Breakfast does not have to be the typical cereal, oatmeal, pancakes, fruit, etc. If you wake up and feel like having something "designated " for a later meal make a change!!! Breakfast will have more variety and that's a touch down!

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Gnewvegan

The dishes I made for Christmas

2012-01-29T22:09:00.003-05:00

Stringbean Tomato Potato Salad, Orzo Pilaf & Sweet Potatoes..

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Gnewvegan

Some holiday Dishes

2011-11-27T06:50:00.007-05:00

Happy Holidays,

Here are some photos of side dishes. Even before I was vegan it was always about the sides for me. The sides end up making a meal and these are dishes that I had even as a non-vegan. There are only a few substitute ingredients needed to make the same dishes. And If you can't find vegan ravioli you can just have a different kind of pasta.

Sweet potatoes

Must have some salad.

Vegan Ravioli

Picture a bit blurry but these are mashed potatoes

Broccoli with garlic

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And once again, Happy Holidays.

Gemma (AKA Gnewvegan :)

Homemade Vegan "Hamburger"

2011-11-20T12:47:00.002-05:00

Being vegan does not mean I can not enjoy a burger! Vegan living is cruelty free and tasty all in one.

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Gnewvegan

More product photos

2011-11-06T09:15:00.005-05:00

These are one of the best soups I have tasted store bought. They are in the frozen aisle, two pouches to a box. Not all varieties are vegan but a nice variety are.

I was happy when I saw they made a vegan chili. You can serve this with a side of salad, veggies or even garlic bread.

I finally tried a Sunshine Burger. There were a few varieties to choose from. This was one of the tastiest vegan store bought burgers I have had.

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Gnewvegan

Quick Veggie Meal

2011-06-12T08:56:00.004-04:00

For a quick, meal look for multiple mixed veggie combo's like this in your freezer section. Steam in the microwave or on the stove top. Mix with whatever you like..Vegan butter by Earth Balance, dressing of choice, or browned garlic and oil. Then enjoy!

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Gnewvegan

Some vegan frozen foods I like

2011-06-12T08:31:00.007-04:00

Some of my favorites by Amy's. From tasty Indian food, to veggie pockets , veggie loaf and more, Amy's is sure to please!

Ravioli!!

This is very tasty with a nice, smooth , "kick" of spice not too hot but just right.

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Gnewvegan

Explore a new culture in your kitchen

2011-04-25T13:27:00.006-04:00

I really Enjoy Indian food. In the past I have made some recipes that called for some Indian spices. But recently I started learning how to cook Indian dishes. I look forward to more tasty dishes. Here are some photos of some of the recipes I made. I bought a cookbook and did add some more things to the recipe per my liking. That's the fun thing about cooking how you can be creative and change things to your taste. Exploring different cultural foods is enjoyable and Indian food is top on my list. So explore online or buy a new cookbook and mangia!

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Gnewvegan

Flax Milk

2011-04-15T10:41:00.004-04:00

I have not heard of this before but thought I would share it. Thanks Vegan Mainstream for sharing.

http://vegansaurus.com/post/4609876929/walmart-is-selling-flax-milk

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Gnewvegan

Edamame

2011-03-05T10:17:00.001-05:00

At the market yesterday I bought a nice variety salad and fresh edamame pods. You could pop the edamame out of the pods as a snack or pop them into the salad. They are nutritious as you will see from this link.. One of the nutrients in them is protein..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edamame

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Gnewvegan

Products I use

2011-02-18T09:48:00.002-05:00

I posted some pictures of more products I use in my group on facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105131089519354

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Gnewvegan

“Baked” Sweet Potato Soup

2011-01-05T14:35:00.008-05:00

When I began to make this recipe I thought I want to make this similar to the taste of baked sweet potatoes made on special occasions like my Nan would make. This is indeed a tasty variation of that yummy treat. It is also thick and filling.

Serves 3 at 1 cup and 4 tablespoons each

Yields 3 ¾ cups

1 sweet potato, about 10 0z- peeled and cut into chunks

1 pound of baby carrots

1 vegetarian bouillon cube that would be used for 2 cups broth (or one to two broth packets to equal the same)

2 0z onion, sliced

½ tsp dry ground ginger

Pinch of ground cinnamon

1 Tablespoon vegan butter

1 Tablespoon agave nectar

Drizzle of syrup like pancake or maple (optional)

Golden Raisins (optional)

1- Put the potato, carrots, onion and bouillon cube into a pot, about 3 qt size. Cover with water just enough to completely cover all ingredients. Mix together, cover and bring to a boil.

2- Uncover and add in the ginger and cinnamon, mixing well. Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes until tender, stirring occasional.

3- In batches puree in a blender. Mix in the butter and agave and mix through in blender.

4- Ladle into bowls and drizzle syrup on top if desired. Another option is instead of using the added syrup you could mix in some golden raisins for added sweetness if desired.

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Gnewvegan

A Mimosa for Everyone

2010-12-25T11:48:00.010-05:00

Here is a Mimosa even the Kids can enjoy. Martinelli's sparkling apple cider with orange juice. Here I have used Apple-Mango flavor.

Happy Holiday's.

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Gnewvegan

Product and snack Photos

2010-12-24T14:30:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone,

Please check out my group on facebook for a few photos I just posted. Some snack photos and vegan products.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105131089519354&ref=mf

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Parmesan-Carrot Risotto - By Everyday Food- Veganized

2010-11-27T11:10:00.007-05:00

The other day I made a recipe from Everyday Food and simply veganized it. It was very tasty and I enjoyed the leftovers the next day. I will write about my changes and post the link to the recipe.

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/parmesan-carrot-risotto

I used vegetable broth, vegan butter by Earth Balance, a regular onion (I did not have the red), Arborio rice (I did not have white long grain and I really don't use white much), white cooking wine, vegan parmesan cheese, chopped the carrots and onions in a chopper instead of grated and halved the recipe. As you can see it is possible to veganize a recipe with positive results. Especially with the available products we have. As far as risotto it is really not that much of a chore. You just have to stay close by to the pot to stir and add broth frequently. If you do other things like the dishes time goes by quicker and you have made your risotto.

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Gnewvegan

Oodles of Noodles Vegetable Soup

2010-11-25T09:08:00.008-05:00

I use to love Oodles of noodles as a quick bite to eat before I became vegan. There is only one flavor I find now that I can have which is the Oriental one. But just make sure to read the ingredients. I do not remember which brand but I recall there was a brand where the Oriental one may have had something in there not vegan. I could be wrong but I seem to remember that. But here is a quick noodle veggie soup with only a few ingredients. I did not measure the final amount but I would say this would serve two people for a meal.

1 package Oriental Oodles of Noodles, break apart into small pieces when added to the pot
1- 10 oz box of frozen mixed veggies (carrots, corn, green beans, etc)
4 cups water
1 packet of broth mix or 1 bouillon (for 1 to 2 cups to taste)
Vegan parmesan cheese

1- In a pot add the water, bouillon/or packet, and seasoning packet from noodles. Mix together and bring to a boil.
2- Add the frozen veggies and noodles then reboil. Stir occasionally.
3-Simmer for five more minutes or until the veggies are done. Stir occasionally.
4- Serve and season with parmesan cheese if using.

The only other ingredients not in this photo are the packet/bouillon for broth and the vegan parmesan cheese.

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Gnewvegan

Raw Veggie and Black Bean Salad

2010-11-13T08:56:00.007-05:00

This is another quick salad where there is no cutting required. In the produce section buy a package of fresh cut up stir fry veggies. A nice combination is one that has broccoli, cauliflower, green/yellow/red peppers, snow peas, celery, carrots, and onions. Of course you can choose your veggies of choice but be sure to get a nice full package. Add this to a drained and rinsed can of black beans. I used 1 -15 oz can to one package of veggies. Then season with dried spices such as garlic and onion powder, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and parsley to taste. Add extra virgin olive oil and either a balsamic or a red wine vinegar to moisten or to taste. Mix and enjoy. The one thing I love about this recipe is that you do not need to add a grain such as pasta or rice to make it fuller. If you eat a nice bowl of veggies and beans you will find yourself full.

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Gnewvegan

Past Thanksgiving posts-

2010-11-06T10:46:00.005-04:00

If anyone needs some Thanksgiving recipe ideas please type in the search bar "Thanksgiving". You will see previous posts I did on Thanksgiving. Also I posted a pumpkin pie recipe I still have not done. Just type in Pumpkin pie in the search bar to see that post. You will also see a recipe with the pumpkin pie on chocolate chip muffins. Here is the link to a post I did when I finally had a chance to make the muffins.

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2008/01/i-made-chocolate-chip-muffins.html

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Gnewvegan

Veganize a Recipe Time - “Sausage” and Kale Soup

2010-11-03T19:14:00.003-04:00

Tonight’s Dinner – “Sausage” and Kale Soup

Here is a recipe I made from Woman’s day Magazine. Besides making my own recipes I like to show people that you can also veganize recipes. My blog is a combination of many things including the last statement. I will share the link here so you can see the original recipe and what I did to make it vegan. Now, I did not measure anything when I made this tonight. It was tasty and a recipe I will be saving.

http://www.womansday.com/Recipes/Sausage-Kale-Soup-Recipe

My Changes-Ingredients

Of course I did not use meat sausage. You can choose vegan sausage that you like. I like the brand Tofurky and used their Italian sausage. I think the Kielbasa would also go nice here.

I used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

I used Russet potatoes

I did not use fresh kale as I had the frozen kale on hand

Cooking Changes

Step one and two are combined excluding the sausage part. After the pot was heated I added some extra virgin olive oil to the pot until heated. I added the onions and garlic I chopped and browned /softened lightly. Add the broth and boil per the directions.

Step three I followed adding the potatoes and kale. At this point I also added the sausage that I cut into bite size pieces. (I actually thawed out the kale mostly by putting it in a colander and ran hot water over it until it was loosened before I added it to the pot.) Then I cooked it per the directions until the potatoes and kale became tender. I cooked it about 20 minutes stirring occasionally. At the end if you did not add enough broth you could always add some. I did not add the red pepper flakes and instead added vegan parmesan cheese.

I like to do this to show people that recipes can be veganized and you do not have to follow recipes exactly as written. Do not be afraid, change it to your taste, to what you have on hand and mangia!!!

Buon appetite.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Steamed Broccoli and Caulifower

2010-10-26T09:38:00.004-04:00

Steamed Broccoli and Cauliflower

If you do not feel like messing up a pot, pan or chopping this is a quick and easy veggie snack. You can either buy a regular bag of precut frozen broccoli and cauliflower and steam desired amount in the microwave or buy the frozen bag you can actually steam the veggies in the bag. Then season with onion /and/ or garlic powder, dry minced garlic to taste. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil mixing in and enjoy.

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Gnewvegan

Quick and Easy Veggie meal

2010-10-15T09:11:00.011-04:00

For a quick healthy meal buy a 7 - 1o oz box of frozen mixed veggies that come in a steamer bag for the microwave. You will find many combinations of veggies to choose from. Some varieties have barley or beans in them and some are already seasoned with olive oil. Steam in the microwave per box directions. Then I use the microwave brown rice that cooks in one minute.It comes in individual servings. They are really great to have and are so quick and easy. I cook that after the veggies are done and just mix all together. You can also add beans of choice if you prefer instead of rice. If you want add more seasonings. Having a healthy quick meal is easy...

Enjoy

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Gnewvegan

Parmesan Rice Burger

2010-07-21T20:43:00.013-04:00

Parmesan Rice Burger

Makes 2 burgers

These burgers have a very nice cheese taste and are easy to make.

1 cup cooked brown rice, set aside until cool enough to handle

3 Tablespoons vegan bread crumbs

2 Tablespoons vegan parmesan cheese

¼ cup (4 Tablespoons) vegan shredded mozzarella or Monterey jack

¼ cup (4 Tablespoons) marinara sauce plus some for topping after cooked

2 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

2 Tablespoons warm water

1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch or egg replacer *

Olive oil spray

1- Preheat toaster oven to 350 degrees. Line the baking tray with aluminum foil and spray generously with oil spray.

2- Mix all ingredients together except water and cornstarch in a bowl.

3- In a small bowl mix together the water and cornstarch or egg replacer and using a small whisk or fork make sure there are no lumps and it is thoroughly dissolved. Then add to the rice mixture and mix well.

4- Form into two burgers. Place burgers on tray and bake for 20 minutes.

5- Open oven and let sit for 2 to 3 minutes.

6- Top with warmed marinara sauce and enjoy. (About 4 tablespoons each burger or to taste)

G Notes- You can save the other burger in a container in the refrigerator for later. To reheat the burger place it in a microwave on top of a paper towel. Microwave for 2 minutes. (microwave times vary). Top with marinara.

Serving ideas- Steamed veggies go nice with this burger. You could also make a salad.

* Egg replacer has a powder consistency and can be found in an organic or health food store. The Brand I use is by Ener- G.

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Gnewvegan

I posted a video series on You Tube- Freezing Tofu

2010-07-14T11:57:00.003-04:00

For the first time I uploaded videos to you tube. This is a 4 part series of short videos on how to freeze tofu.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlxLLnZzNO8

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Gnewvegan

Repost of my Fiesta Bean Salad

2010-07-10T12:24:00.005-04:00

This is a post I did almost two years ago. I thought with the summer here and barbecues and parties going on I would repost this recipe. The link is below. I hope you enjoy this salad if you try it.

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Gnewvegan

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2008/07/fiesta-bean-salad-by-gnewvegan.html

Curiosity about boiling water

2010-07-01T09:54:00.002-04:00

The other day I wondered is boiling water an effective way to remove germs and bacteria? I personally do not like the taste of tap water. Part of my growing up we would drink water directly from a spring or bottled water. Now I could taste the difference of the tap so I only drink bottled water. But with bottled water you also have the problem of plastic which is not good for the environment. I know there is also a filter one could pass their water through. I did a quick research online to see about my question. From the few sites I read although boiling does not get rid 100% everything it does the job adequately for the germs and bacteria that could be harmful to us. I found a site also that compared boiling water to filtered water and basically it said either or does the trick. With the boiling you do have to have it at a bubbling boil for at least one to two minutes from what I read for this to be effective. Regarding the taste I saw two different opinions. One site said that the boiled water may taste better than a filter because the filter may have a charcoal type taste. Then I read that some people may not like the boiled water because it may leave it with a flat taste due to oxygen being removed from the water. But a way to assist with that is to pour it between two containers after it has been boiled (and I assume cooled) to add back some of the oxygen. I thought this would be interesting to share and it is nice to know you have a few choices.

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Gnewvegan

Not All Vitamins Are Vegan

2010-06-29T12:13:00.010-04:00

This is post I have been wanting to do for a while. I am always learning something new about being a vegan. Throughout my journey one of the things I learned was that the vitamins I was taking were not Vegan. I was not happy about that when I found out. I started doing some research on the internet to find out what is in vitamins that make them not vegan. I won’t get too technical instead just give you the jist of it. Vitamins are made from plant and animal sources, or synthetically in a lab. Examples of non vegan ingredients are lactose, gelatin, insects, and the actual vitamin component. In reading about gelatin there are vegetable gelatin alternatives available. Although I am not sure how their consistency is compared to the animal derived. But, the point is if you see gelatin as an ingredient know it can be from an animal. So what is one to do in this situation? Well, luckily there are companies who make vegan vitamins. The first thing you can do is to call the number on the back of the vitamin bottle/s you currently take and ask them if the product has any animal ingredients in it. I have never had trouble having that question answered. It is from these calls I learned that remnants of insects can be in vitamins and that sometimes the actual vitamin type itself may be derived from the animal. I do not remember the vitamin derivative I was told I had that came from an animal but for reference I am talking about the letter for example Vitamin D or C. Once I found out I needed to change the ones I had I looked at the type I was taking, the mcg/mg/g amount on the back of the bottles and then went looking on line. I typed in vegan vitamins in the search bar and also browsed through vegan stores. There are choices so it is just a matter of choosing what is best for you. When you find vitamins of interest see if you can view the details of the content so as to compare it to what you are taking and then order. To name a few Deva, VegLife, and calcium soft chews by Nutrition Now are brands I currently use. I will re-post here web links to online vegan stores so you could browse through. And when in doubt for the requirements that you may need refer to a nutritionist or your primary care provider. I hope this information is helpful.

Sources of Information
http://www.madehow.com/Volume-3/Vitamin.html

http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/faqingredients.htm

http://www.archure.net/salus/hidden.html

Online Vegan Shopping
http://www.veganstore.com/

http://www.vegangoods.com/

http://www.veganessentials.com/

http://www.cosmosveganshoppe.com/

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GnewVegan

Banana, Strawberry, Pineapple Cantaloupe Smoothie

2010-06-04T12:17:00.006-04:00

This is a quick fruit smoothie I made today with fruit I had on hand. You can make smoothies with what ever fruit you have or like. Have fun with it, get your fruit and cool down at the same time.

Banana, Strawberry, Pineapple Cantaloupe Smoothie

Makes 2 ½ cups

1 banana, cut into chunks
½ cup cantaloupe, cut into chunks
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons crushed pineapple from a can with their juice (no added sugar)
2 strawberries, remove stem and any white part at the top, cut into a few pieces
½ teaspoon agave
¼ to ½ cup ice
2 tablespoons water

1- Blend all ingredients together in a blender or smoothie maker. Use up to ½ cup ice to make desired consistency.

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Gnewvegan

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

2010-06-03T11:14:00.005-04:00

This is a post I did last year when I made this salad with ingredients on hand. I made it yesterday and thought I would re-post it. You can use whatever salad dressing that you like. Or you can make your own. I used rasberry vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and various seasonings like basil, parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste . These are all dry spices and typical spices you would find in Italian dressing. You just use what you like the same way you would when making a salad.

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

Serves two

1/2 cup lentils, sorted and rinsed
1/2 cup Israel Couscous
3 cups water
1/2 of a 3 oz small onion, sliced (I like to leave in small rings)
2 medium tomatoes, sliced and halved if pieces are too big
salad dressing of choice or make your own

-Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a 2 quart pot.
- Add the lentils and simmer uncovered, stirring occasional for ten minutes.
- Then add the couscous and the other 1 cup water. Cover leaving a slight opening for steam to escape. Bring to a boil, uncover and simmer for another ten minutes stirring occasional.
- Taste the mixture and see if it is soft and tender.
- Drain into a collander and run cold water over it until it is cooled down.
- Put in a bowl and mix the rest of the ingredients.

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Gnewvegan

Corn and Tomato Salad

2010-05-22T10:02:00.002-04:00

Here is a quick salad I made yesterday.

Corn and Tomato Salad

Serves one

1 medium corn on the cob (about 7 oz), remove husk and rinse off excess strands
1 plum tomato (about 4 oz), sliced and then halve the slices
1 medium fresh basil leaf, finely chopped
Smidgen of salt
Pinch of onion powder
Pinch of garlic powder
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar

1- With knife slice off the corn kernels into a bowl.
2- Combine the rest of the ingredients in the bowl and mix well.

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Gnewvegan

I made homemade Jam

2010-05-07T12:30:00.003-04:00

Check out my post in my group on facebook. I made homemade Jam for the first time.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105131089519354&ref=mf

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Calcium in Foods

2010-04-24T14:20:00.002-04:00

I posted this in my group on facebook and decided to post these links here also. It is very good information on foods and calcium by the Vegan RD.

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-5670-Vegan-Examiner~y2010m4d22-Five-foods-for-vegan-bone-health

http://www.examiner.com/x-5670-Seattle-Vegan-Examiner~y2009m4d7-Meeting-calcium-needs-tips-for-vegans

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Gnewvegan

Video I made for my facebook group

2010-04-18T15:47:00.004-04:00

Hi everyone,

Just thought I would share a link to a video I did telling a bit about me and why I started my group , Sharing the Vegan Journey, on facebook. I also talk a bit about why I started this blog. So, If you are interested please check it out. I will be doing another post here soon.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105131089519354&v=app_2373072738#!/video/video.php?v=410156686825&oid=105131089519354

If for some reason the above does not work you can copy and paste this link which will take you to my main group page. You will see the video on the wall.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105131089519354&ref=mf

Steamed Veggie Salad

2010-04-07T23:29:00.004-04:00

This is one of my no measure recipes. I think it is nice to remember that you do not always have to measure everything that you cook. Cooking is fun and like tossing a salad together it is nice to have those recipes you just toss together. You are creating what you like and so what if there is a bit too much or too little of this or that. It is an art that can be interpreted in many ways. I have spoken about steaming veggies for a quick snack before in the microwave and how I have a mini microwave steamer which I love. You could steam the veggies on the stove top if you prefer but I think the microwave is quicker. Today I decided to make a quick veggie salad. I always keep frozen veggies on hand not only to be prepared, but they are healthy picked and frozen at their best and also already cut for you. Yeah!! You can use whatever you like. I used a combo bag of broccoli, cauliflower and crinkle cut carrots. I steamed them in the microwave, drained when done and then ran cold water over the veggies until they were cool. Then I mixed with the veggies golden raisins, slivered almonds, chopped walnuts, chopped onions, and raw green squash which I peeled and sliced. Then I mixed in a balsamic dressing and some salt and pepper. It was yummy … Now as I said you can mix and match as you like. When you make a salad you toss in various ingredients and put dressing on to moisten to your taste. That is what you are doing here! Other ideas to mix in with the veggies are tomatoes, cucumbers, beans (drained and rinsed), canned corn drained and rinsed or frozen corn steamed as one of your veggies. Dressings I think that go nice here are the one that I used, a sesame soy ginger or Italian. You could also just season as you would a salad with herbs and oil and vinegar. You could even use lemon juice. This is your play recipe. When you are hungry and want something quick or a quick snack and are trying to get your veggies in this no measure recipe will do the job. I just love the quick go to recipes. I will post the link to my blog post that I did about steaming veggies. There is a link there to the microwave steamer I use.

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2009/03/steamed-veggies-as-snack.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Easter Cookie Photos

2010-04-01T10:58:00.005-04:00

These are cookies I made in 2008. You can have a colorful, yummy vegan Easter. These were enjoyed even by non vegans.. :) You can scroll down in this blog or look up in the search bar about Easter for some posts on the holiday and cookie making.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan Diet and Nutrition Information

2010-03-31T11:44:00.004-04:00

I am posting a link to a brochure I have which is a nice overview on the vegan diet and nutrients.

http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/vegan.htm

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Tofu Scramble with Spinach, Peppers and Sausage

2010-03-30T11:27:00.007-04:00

Here is my recipe for a tasty tofu scramble.

Scramble Tofu with Spinach, Peppers and Sausage

Serves 1 to 2

1 small potato (approximate 5 oz), peeled, rinsed, diced

4 oz block of tofu (1/4 of a 14 oz tub) firm or extra firm tofu

1 Tofurkey Kielbasa or Italian sausage, sliced into about ¼ “thick pieces

3 oz roasted red and yellow peppers (or just red) from a jar, finely chopped

4 tablespoons frozen chopped spinach, thawed (put it in a small bowl , like a ramekin, with warm water then drain in small colander when thawed or put in a small colander and run warm to hot water over it until thawed, a few minutes)

1 tablespoon store bought sofrito*

¼ teaspoon sazon goya con culantro y achiote (the orange packet)

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1- In a bowl place the tofu in between a few paper towels and press out excess water. Drain the water and then mash the tofu with a potato masher.

2- Heat a 9 to 10” non stick pan for 1 minute. Then heat the oil for 30 seconds to 1 minute. (When heating oil to make sure the oil is ready, flick a small sprinkle of water into pan with oil. If you hear a sizzle then it is ready. )

3- Add the potatoes to the pan and on a low to medium flame stir occasionally for 10 minutes.

4- Mix in the tofu and continue to stir occasional for 3 more minutes.

5- Mix in the peppers, sofrito and sazon. Continue to cook on a low to medium flame stirring occasional for 5 minutes.

6- Then mix in the spinach and sausage. Cook about 3 minutes more until the spinach is cooked and sausage is heated through.

Serving ideas- This can be a main meal for one saving leftovers for another meal. If you have leftovers store in a sealed container and reheat in the microwave about 1 minute and 30 to 40 seconds with the cover off. This can also serve two people with a side of toast for breakfast.

* Sofrito is a Spanish cooking sauce with a mixture of tomatoes, peppers, onion, cilantro and garlic. Goya makes this and can be found in supermarkets. There is Sofrito in the jar and in the frozen section. I used the one in the Jar for this recipe.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Annisette Toast (Biscotti)

2010-03-27T09:32:00.003-04:00

Recently I veganized this recipe that my nan had. I just love cooking, creating my own recipes and veganizing the recipes we know and love. I had this for breakfast this morning along with my coffee. They will be eaten tonight at earth hour.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Sweet and Sour Seitan

2010-03-26T21:33:00.006-04:00

I made a recipe tonight for Sweet and Sour Seitan over Rice.. It was yummy. Here is a photo.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegetable Shortening

2010-03-23T11:27:00.003-04:00

I was going through old recipes of my Nan and saw recipes with Crisco as an ingredient needed. I had a feeling it was vegan because it is vegetable shortening but went online to find out for sure. From what I read it appears it is vegan. However, because I also remember a cooking show saying to use non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening I read further. When researching this I read that hydrogenated shortening is not good for you related to the trans. fats. I saw on line there is a product by Spectrum that could be found in an organic or health food store. Here is the link for that product:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/318762/review_of_spectrum_organic_vegetable.html

I also saw non hydrogenated butter as a suggestion. Earth Balance makes vegan butters and margarines that are free of trans fats and hydrogenated oils. I use this product and have never been disappointed. I really do not use vegetable shortening but I thought this would be good information in case I needed to or if anyone else had this question.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Recap of previous Easter Posts....

2010-03-14T13:45:00.009-04:00

With Easter approaching I thought I would do a recap of previous posts that I did pertaining to the holiday. I am reposting them all here. They are: Are Food Colorings vegan, Easter Candy, My first Easter as a Vegan, and It's Cookie time..

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Are food colorings vegan?

I used yellow food coloring today and remembered that I have seen natural coloring , pretty expensive in an organic store. So I wondered is food coloring vegan? Then I thought this post would be a good one at this time because Easter is around the corner. Yes, I do not eat eggs so I do not color them anymore. But I have used food coloring in cookies. So, in case you use it in some way for Easter besides eggs I thought let me read up on this. So I did some research online and this is what I found. Some answers by some people stated that some red food coloring is made from beetles but that the other food colorings are ok. I read that yellow number 5 and 6 are vegetarian.. (yahoo) In regard to the red dye when reading another site it also stated that not all red dyes are made from bugs. It stated it would be labeled cochineal, carmine, or carminic if made from the cochineal beetle. FD and C and red number 40 are 99% coal derivatives. (Vegetarian resource group). The latter site also talks about a food guide you can order to help decipher food ingredients. Click on the link number two below in sources. As I was doing further research I began to see why a person would choose to buy natural food coloring. It seems to have to do with additives that are in some of them such as coal tar deritatives (Ehow.com) Spices such as turmeric, saffron, and papikra are also used for some food colorings. Some natural dyes are made of caramelized sugar, beet juice, the seed of the achiote shrub, and algae. Answers.com has a table that shows you where various sources for food coloring come from. An article from the FDA has a table of the various color additives and additives which are certifiable by the FDA. These regulations have to do with the purity and safety of the substance used in the dye. Link number 7 in my list of sources is a short video telling you some of the things I mentioned about natural food coloring and that red may sometimes come from insects. Another source talks about how some people may be concerned with the health risks of certain products used, such as the color derived from coal tar. That source is number 8 on my link list. You can then read about the product that was mentioned in the latter article, FD & C yellow number 5 in the link below from the FDA which talks about that issue. I am not making any claims that I have knowledge that specific additives cause health problems in this post. I have not done the research to support or negate the comment. I just wanted to write about the various possibilities that may impact a persons decision one way or the other. I guess what it boils down to is personal preference. There was only one site I found that had a table showing that yellow may have a source of eggs, or organic meat. But I did not see that anywhere else. There is agreeement that some red comes from insects. That is very good to know so I can look at a label and make sure it does not have the words carmine, cohineal, or carminic in it indicating it came from an insect. The majority I saw was from either the natural spices or coal tar. So it appears that most of these items are vegan/ vegetarian. If one is concerned with safety of the additives that are not from natural sources such as the coal tar then maybe you may want to make sure it is all natural, for example from a spice or plant. Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon. Gnewvegan

sources-
1- http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061204155216AAj616x
2- http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/faqingredients.htm#red
3- http://www.ehow.com/about_4596406_what food coloring made.html
4- http://www.answers.com/topic/food coloring
5- http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/colorfac.html
6- http://pubs.acs.org/cen/whatstuff/stuff/8134foodcoloring.html
7-http://www.expertvillage.com/video/165231_what food coloring made.htm
8- http://www.wisegeek.com/what is food coloring made of.htm

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Easter Candy

With the holiday approaching I wanted to post these online stores again. Just because you are vegan does not mean you can not enjoy that Easter Bunny. The first link brings you to Easter candy. You can look through the others for their chocolate or candies. I do not remember which site I ordered from last year but the candy and chocolates I purchased were well received even by non-vegans. I also had made Easter cookies last year which I plan to do again. I used a sugar cookie recipe that I veganized by just using vegan ingredients and bought Easter cookie cutters. In my archives there are two posts, 12/17/08, and 3/26/08 where I talk about cookie making and my first Easter as a Vegan.. Hope these websites and my posts are of some help.

Online vegan stores

http://www.veganstore.com/gifts-and-candles/easter-gift-ideas.html

http://www.vegangoods.com/

http://www.veganchocolate.com/

http://www.cosmosveganshoppe.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvchttp://ethicalplanet.com/food-and-snacks.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

My First Easter As A Vegan

As with my first Thanksgiving and Christmas Easter was no exception to a nice holiday. I went to a friends house for dinner and she is really great. I have known her for many years and she is like family. She so kindly told me to bring my soy milk and margarine and she would put mashed potatoes aside so I can make it my way. She liked them too when she tasted it :) I used some vegan margarine in a dish of pasta.. The sauce had meat in it so a dish was taken out for me pre the sauce added. The veggies her and her husband made were delicious and they purposely did not put anything in them I could not eat. She also made a very nice salad and put oil and vinegar on the table because the other dressings had ingredients I could not have. I made the orzo I posted in the “Thanksgiving post” and sugar cookies. I never made sugar cookies for Easter but I saw these really cute Easter cookie cutters so I decided to make cookies. I did it just like Christmas as I wrote on my post “It’s Cookie Time”. I just substituted vegan ingredients and everyone enjoyed the cookies.. As always I had my vegan sugar with me and this time I had the soy milk for my coffee. At the end of the day I was full and had a very nice Easter dinner.. It is not impossible to have a holiday dinner when you are the only vegan. It has worked out well and it always is made easier when you have wonderful friends that do what my friend's did when cooking.. I am touched at the caring and find it really wonderful when people are interested in learning about my veganism. I will be posting one of my pasta recipes in a few days.. Come back soon and maybe try it out. Thank you for coming to blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Monday, November 12, 2007

It is cookie time :)

I was not going to talk about sugar so soon in the blog but being that the cookie season is approaching I thought it would be a good idea. Recently I learned that sugar is not vegan. I did research and here is a website I found about this topic. It also lists brands of sugar that are non-vegan and vegan. I thought the information may be of interest especially around the holidays when sugar cookies are popular. And do not worry about finding the sugar because it is out there. I found it at an organic whole food store and the local supermarket.

http://www.vegfamily.com/articles/sugar.htm

When I looked into colored vegan sugar I did not find that. But I did find vegan sprinkles that one uses on ice cream on one of the web sites I listed in my previous blog for vegan groceries. I thought to myself you could probably make your own colored sugar with vegan sugar and food coloring. Well I researched it and others had the same idea. This website has a recipe for making your own colored sugar.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Colored-Sugar/Detail.aspx

I also noticed that some other recipes use cinnamon plus sugar for coating. Here are some web sites I found with sugar cookie recipes that seem worth trying.

http://www.vegfamily.com/vegan-recipes/desserts/holiday-sugar-cookies.htm

http://www.vegout.info/recipe_show.php?title=Vegan%20Sugar%20Cookie&ID=43
http://www.johnandkristie.com/archives/2005/10/perfect_sugar_c.htmlhttp://www.recipezaar.com/202592

( this person uses applesauce instead of margarine. I saw someone mention that on a website. Thought I would plug it in here for more options) If you have your own sugar cookie recipe you use either from a book or your family recipe, read through the ingredients and see what really needs to be substituted. I compared a recipe I use from a cook book to the ones in the web sites I mentioned above and it was very similar. I would only need to replace sugar with vegan sugar, the egg with an egg replacer ( see note following this paragraph), and the sour cream with tofutti’s sour supreme. I have not tried the latter product yet so I can not comment. In one of the above recipes someone uses tofutti cream cheese. And if you are not really comfortable changing things around yet then try one of the above recipes. I suggest doing a trial run before the holiday. Cut the recipe in half and then in half again if you want (depending on the yield of the original recipe) and give it a test try. You do not even have to decorate if you do not want for the trial run, just make the cookie and see if you like the dough. And then you will be on your way to a vegan holiday. Note: I bought the Ener- G egg replacer in an organic food store. It is in a box and I think it was in the baking section. You can not make scrambled eggs with it because it is for baking purposes. It is a powder that is mixed with water. I have used it in some recipes which called for egg and it worked fine. I have also seen the other products I have in bold in the organic food store/ whole food store. A note on margarine: Butter is dairy so it is not vegan. According to the PETA handout I talked about in the previous blog most margarines are vegan. In case you want to have an idea of particular brand names I have copied and pasted a paragraph on margarine from a website. The website also talks about other products and replacements.
"Butter is obviously made from milk so it is easiest to switch to margarine, many of which are vegan. Some margarines contain milk derivatives such as whey or E-numbers from an animal source, but most supermarkets stock at least one suitable own brand margarine or look for Pure’s Dairy Free Soya Spread or Dairy Free Sunflower Spread. Health food shops will also stock a selection of vegan margarines including: Granose’s Vegetable margarine; Suma’s Sunflower Spread, Organic Reduced Fat Sunflower Spread, or their Soya Spread; Biona Organic Vegetable Margarine and Organic Olive Extra Margarine – made with olive oil; Vitaquell Extra Dairy Free or Bio Organic margarine. If you like a block of ‘butter-style’ margarine for baking, try Rakusen’s Tomor, available from Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and many health food shops"

http://www.viva.org.uk/guides/l-plate/vegan/p02.htm.

After I make the cookies I will post how they came out and any tips used to make them that I may use. I always welcome your experiences as well. Happy cookie making. :)

Thank you for visiting my blog. Come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Facial Products

2010-03-10T16:35:00.001-05:00

Here is a link I saw on twitter and thought it would be good to share.

http://www.thekindlife.com/post/natural-products-facial-cleansers

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Interesting article on the food pyramid

2010-03-08T23:14:00.006-05:00

I thought I would post this article about the food pyramid. I saw the link on twitter from Vegetarian Dish whom I am following.

http://www.thisdishisvegetarian.com/2010/03/0181doctors-introduce-new-healthy.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Tomato Noodle Soup With Roasted Garlic

2010-03-04T14:09:00.005-05:00

My Nan liked Tomato soup so I came up with this to make for her. I was very happy that she enjoyed it. She also use to like to have her soup with crackers.

Tomato Noodle Soup With Roasted Garlic

Serves 4 or 2 for a main meal(Yields 4 ½ cups,1 cup equals 1 serving)

Do not let the roasted garlic deter you. In thirty minutes the soup is done because you cook the soup as the garlic is roasting.

Ingredients

3 to 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled, cut off tips only (* see G note)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
½ cup (4 oz) spaghetti, break apart with fingers into 1 inch pieces
4 cups water *
Bouillon to equal 4 cups * (see G note)
1 (8) oz can Tomato sauce
½ teaspoon dried parsley

G note- * When choosing the garlic, if one clove is large and looks like it could be two cloves then use 2 of that size. If not then use 4 average size cloves.
* For the bouillon you can use 4 cups of boxed vegetable broth instead of 4 cups water plus bouillon.

Directions

1- Preheat toaster oven to 400 degrees. Put unpeeled garlic in aluminum foil. Drizzle oil over garlic. Close foil over garlic leaving a small opening at the top to vent. Bake for 30 minutes.

2- Meanwhile in a 2 qt pot add the water plus bouillon (or boxed broth), tomato sauce and parsley. Mix, cover and bring to a boil over medium flame. Stir at least two times.

3- When soup boils, uncover and add pasta to pot. Mix well stirring occasionally on a low- medium flame and simmer for 10 minutes.

4- When the garlic is done take out of toaster oven, unwrap foil and let cool a few minutes. Peel off skin (will come right off) Mince the garlic into the tomato soup and mix well. You will notice the broth will become slightly thicker. (If you do not have a garlic press then you can use a small chopper. Put the garlic in a small chopper and add a small ladle of broth. Chop until garlic is completely chopped like a puree. Then add to the pot and stir as above)

Meal tip- This could be a light dinner for two with salad and garlic bread or a light lunch at 1 cup and 2 Tablespoons per serving for 4. Salad and bread would also go well if serving as a lunch.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan Tip for a Quick Chick'n Parmesan Sandwich

2010-03-02T00:02:00.006-05:00

Chick'n Parmesan Sandwich

Preheat toaster oven to about 375 degrees. Cook one vegan chicken patty (I use Boca) per box directions in the microwave. Put the cooked patty on a slice of bread. Top it with 1 ½ Tablespoons of slightly warmed marinara sauce , spread 1 and ½ Tablespoons of shredded vegan mozzarella evenly on top of sauce (can use less if you like) and top with the other slice of bread. Put in toaster oven and bake about 4- 5 minutes until cheese is melted. Keep an eye on the bread so it does not burn. I use the brand follow your heart for Cheese. Cut on a diagonal with a serrated knife and enjoy. I made this with steamed broccoli. I am going to put the link here for an earlier post I did on steaming veggies in the microwave with the steamer I use.

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2009/03/steamed-veggies-as-snack.html

This post was done on March 10, 2009. If the above link does not work right you can find it by clicking on my archives.

Thank you for coming to blog. Please come back soon.

Gnewvegan

I am on twitter

2010-02-24T12:34:00.003-05:00

I am on twitter and thought I would post the link here . Hope everyone is gearing up for the snow storm.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back soon.

Gnewvegan

https://twitter.com/Gnewvegan

It is Ok If you Slip......

2010-02-23T09:44:00.005-05:00

I wanted to write about the occasional slip up in the life of a vegan. I remember one time I had went out with a group of people. There was a person there talking about how she had some kind of fish and she was vegan . Fish is not part of a vegan diet. You could sense that she was trying to rationalize this and her sense of guilt. I could hear the hesitancy in her speaking voice. We are all human and we can slip. I do not feel we should have to rationalize or excuse our behavior to anyone if we do slip. Yes, we will feel guilty but that is human nature. Think about how you are vegan or vegetarian most of the time and that is what counts. That you are actually making a difference, even with your occasional slip, compared to the person not doing anything at all. For example, sugar is in practically everything and occasionally there may be a product you want that has sugar in it that you are unsure where it came from. It is a personal choice if you have it and do not come down on yourself if you do. The same thing goes with honey. You may slip when you are under stress, at a special occasion or just because. I remember a friend said to me once if you have to have that “one thing” once a year to get through the other days of the year, that’s ok. You are still doing so much more then the person who does not do anything at all. So, if you slip do not come down on yourself so hard. You are human and veganism goes on.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegetable and Tomato Stew

2010-02-10T22:53:00.007-05:00

It has been some time since my last post. I am very sad to say that the reason why is because my nan, whom I loved so dearly and forever will, passed away on Dec. 21, 2009. I decided to post a recipe that I made for her when I was trying to find things that she would still enjoy. She was ill and it was not always easy to find the right thing for her. Either because her taste buds had changed or she just was not up to eating what she normally would. I would make variations of soups and this was one of them. I hope you enjoy it.

Vegetable and Tomato Stew

Serves 4 at 1 ¼ cup per person

(Makes 5 cups)

(4 oz) 1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 14.5 oz can vegetable broth (or bouillon mix)
1 cup water
½ teaspoon dry parsley
½ teaspoon fresh basil, finely chopped
Pinch of black pepper
1 16 oz bag frozen stew vegetables or soup, (carrots, celery, onions, potatoes)
½ cup elbows
Vegan parmesan cheese, as desired

-Heat up a 3 qt pot for one minute and then the oil about one minute.
- Add the onions and garlic to the pot, brown lightly, stirring occasional.
-Add the tomatoes with their juice, broth and water. Cover and bring to a boil.
-Add the vegetables and seasonings. Cover and bring to a boil.
-Uncover and simmer on a low to medium flame, stirring occasional.
-After 10 minutes add the elbows, and continue to simmer, stirring occasional for 8 to 10 minutes more
until vegetables are tender.
-Serve and sprinkle with parmesan cheese if desired.

Note- After a while if this is not served right away you will have to add a bit more water just to keep a stew consistency and then adjust seasonings if desired. If you reheat the next day you can add some water at that time or do not add water and heat and serve like a pasta dish.

Thank you for coming to my blog.

Gnewvegan

Yummy Acorn Squash

2009-12-17T22:16:00.007-05:00

I finally had a chance to try a recipe from Everyday Food I have had for a while. It was an Acorn Squash Soup. I have never made Acorn squash before and It was easy to do in the microwave per the recipe. I will post the link here if you want to take a look. When you put it in the microwave pierce the squash in a few areas with a knife first. There were a few ingredient changes I did to make it vegan. I used vegan butter, vegetable broth and soy milk instead of half and half. I had tasted it before I added the milk and it was also good without it. So now I have made butternut squash, spaghetti squash and acorn squash. This was a tasty recipe.

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/acorn-squash-bisque

Thank you for coming to my blog.

Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Easy Lentil Soup

2009-11-20T23:32:00.005-05:00

Here is the lentil soup recipe I made recently I stated I was going to post. I hope you enjoy it.

Easy Lentil Soup

Serves Four
(Makes 7 cups, 1 ¾ cup per person plus a ladle of rice)

1 cup lentils, sorted, rinsed
4 carrots, peeled, rinsed, sliced about ¼ inch thick (10 oz pre-cut and 7 oz post cut)
4 oz onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
6 cups vegetable broth
1 (8 oz) can of tomato sauce (Goya Spanish Style)
2 medium size potatoes, {russet or all-purpose} peeled and cut bite size, (11 oz pre cut or two cups post cut)
1 bag of brown rice, boil in a bag
1 ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon adobo all purpose seasoning with pepper
Vegan parmesan cheese, grated, as desired

Heat a 4 qt pot about one minute. Then add the oil and heat about 30 seconds to a minute.

Add the garlic and onion and lightly brown, stirring occassional, 4 to 5 minutes.

Add tomato sauce and broth, cover and bring to a boil.

Add Lentils, adobo, and vegetable’s, cover and re-boil.

Uncover and set a timer to 20 minutes.

Cook on a low to medium flame, stirring occasional, until carrots and potatoes are fork tender and the lentils are tender. (do not overcook potatoes)

While the soup is cooking, cook the rice per package directions. When the rice is done keep it separate from the soup.

When soup is done put in bowls, a ladle of rice in each bowl and season with cheese as desired.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Simple Meal

2009-11-14T16:31:00.004-05:00

This is a quick post to give a quick meal idea. Yesterday by the time I got back from the store it was late. I had purchased an Asian Salad in the pre-packaged bags in the produce department. Along with that I heated up a potato Knish. It was nice and satisfying.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Next post will be a lentil soup recipe I made the other day.
Please come back soon.

Gnewvegan

Butternut squash and shopping at the health food store

2009-11-11T23:19:00.010-05:00

The other day I was out and about and I went into a health food store I have never been. I am always like a kid in a candy store when I come across a health food store. Especially one of those small ones that have jam packed items going multiple shelves up. You never know what you will find. One of the items I purchased was a soy milk powder. I usually order a non dairy creamer from a vegan website but I wanted to see if I could find it in the store. So far I have not found it but on the back of the powder it said you just mix it with water. So, I figured I would try it as a creamer for coffee or tea when I am in need. I carry around with me the creamer so when I am somewhere that has no soy milk, I just pull out my powder. I will let you know how the soy milk powder works out. Other items I bought that day were bean sprouts (a mixture of them), carrots, tofurkey deli slices, my favorite tofurkey Italian sausages, mozzarella by follow your heart and vegan parmesan cheese. I like to stock up with the vegan parmesan cheese. Oh, and I did buy a vegan veggie roll for lunch which I ate with the carrots. (like a veggie roll in a Chinese restaurant) I only needed a few things that day and usually those are items I need to get in a specific store. I do find that the regular supermarkets are starting to sell some more vegan items. But I still have to go to a health food store for certain items.
I had wanted to share with you a Butternut squash risotto recipe that I tried from the Woman's day magazine but I could not find it online. Maybe because it was in the October issue it is not there yet. But this was my first time cooking a fresh butternut squash. I have had it before and always enjoyed it but I usually bought it frozen and pre-cut. It was not hard to peel or cook. I veganized the recipe by simply using vegan butter and cheese that it called for. The next squash I am going to cook for the first time also will be acorn squash. I think it is wonderful to try new vegetables and you may find a new favorite.

Thank you for coming to my blog and I hope to see you again soon.

Gnewvegan

Saving Lions and Tigers

2009-11-08T11:34:00.004-05:00

I watched a show today on an actress that devotes her life to saving and caring for lions and tigers. It is a very good cause and I thought I would share the link.

http://www.shambala.org/

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Adopt - A- Turkey Sponsorships

2009-11-03T22:06:00.004-05:00

The Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, NY is a compassionate place which rescues, cares for, educates, and offers new beginnings and hope to animals that without them, had no hope. Animals that were seen as a means to justify an end instead of as loving and innocent. I had the pleasure a while back of going there and when it was over I adopted a pig named Joan Jett whom I sponsor. For the Thanksgiving holiday the sanctuary has what they call adopt a turkey where for 25 dollars you sponsor a turkey for yourself or as a gift. This donation helps the farm continue its valued work while educating people about other ways to enjoy Thanksgiving without a Turkey having to be the main course. I thought I would share this link with my readers.

http://www.adoptaturkey.org/

Thank you for coming to blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

New Frozen Dinners

2009-11-01T22:38:00.005-05:00

As much as I enjoy cooking there are times when I am just not up for it. There are not many vegan frozen dinners that I have found. Usually I would buy a dinner by "Amy's". I like the veggie meat loaf the best that she makes. Lightlife sells products that I use for my cooking such as the bacon and veggie crumbles. When I was looking through a store circular I saw that they now have come out with frozen dinners, six variations. The store that I went to only had three of them. I was excited thinking they would be vegan being I use their products already. Well, of the three the store had (a pasta one, Mexican one and Asian Teriyaki) I was only able to have one which was the Asian Teriyaki. It was good but I had hoped I could try the other ones. I looked online at their site and wrote to the company to request they consider making more of their dinners vegan friendly. They wrote back right away and did say they would send the request to the designated department. Hopefully, I will come across the other variations to see if they are vegan. Here is the website.

http://www.lightlife.com/product_category.jsp?c=entrees

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Hello Again....

2009-10-24T18:45:00.004-04:00

Hello again to all,

The last time I wrote was back in June. I was hoping at that time to be able to write like I had been. But, Life continued to take me on a journey that did not permit much writing time. I enjoy doing the blog sharing my recipes and experiences with my readers. Now that I finally have a computer again that will indeed help. Today is a rainy day and the pretty colored leaves are falling to the ground as the wind and rain surround them. It is a warm feeling driving being surrounded by the multitude of colors so enriching with flavor. I can not believe how quick the year has gone by and soon the Thanksgiving feast will be upon us , snowflakes and santa and his reindeer. Even though I have not been able to write I have continued to cook and see what recipes I can "cook" up. :) Today I will share a quick microwave dish I did the other day. I did not measure this one, just threw it together in a pinch. It was tasty.
I found organic brown rice that you put in the microwave and in less then two minutes it is done. I had not seen that before and found it really good when you do not have a lot of time to cook. First I took my microwave steamer and steamed some frozen broccoli. After that I cooked the rice. Then I cooked a vegan "chickn" patty by Boca. In a dish I mixed the rice with the broccoli and broke up the broccoli throughout the rice. Then I broke up the chick patty into bite size pieces and added that to the rice and broccoli mixture. I mixed some marinara sauce in there with some vegan parmesan cheese. Yum... Quick and easy.. This is my tip for a quick meal.

Thank you for coming to my blog and I hope to see you again soon.

GNewvegan

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

2009-06-20T11:07:00.008-04:00

It has been some time since I posted anything. Life has just been busy. So I like to make recipes that are quick and easy. I made this salad recently with ingredients on hand and I was pleased. You can use whatever salad dressing that you like. Or you can make your own. I used rasberry vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and various seasonings like basil, parsley, onion powder, etc . These are all dry spices and typical spices you would find in Italian dressing. I think I may have added adobo all purpose seasoning. You just use what you like.

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

Serves two

1/2 cup lentils, sorted and rinsed

1/2 cup Israel Couscous

3 cups water

1/2 of a 3 oz small onion, sliced (I like to leave in small rings)

2 medium tomatoes, sliced and halved if pieces are too big

salad dressing of choice or make your own

-Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a 2 quart pot.

- Add the lentils and simmer, stirring occasional for ten minutes.

- Then add the couscous and the other 1 cup water. Cover leaving a slight opening for steam to escape. Bring to a boil, uncover and simmer for another ten minutes stirring occasional.

- Taste the mixture and see if it is soft and tender.

- Drain into a collander and run cold water over it until it is cooled down.

- Put in a bowl and mix the rest of the ingredients. Enjoy.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Sharing more recipes

2009-04-29T21:31:00.010-04:00

Besides creating my own recipes I enjoy trying various recipes. As from the previous post where I shared a chickpea recipe that I enjoyed, I am posting two more links for recipes I have enjoyed. The first one is a recipe by Goya which I veganized. This was easy to do by simply using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth and vegan sausage instead of chorizo. I used the Italian style sausage by Tofurky. Because these sausage really only need heating up this dish took less time to cook. I just cooked it until my desired consistency of the sauce. I made it not to be a soup letting the sauce thicken and adhere to the ingredients.

http://www.goya.com/english/recipes/recipe.html?recipeID=&isSearch=1&searchFor=chickpeas+garbanzos&whichpage=1

The next recipe I had tonight and it is by Woman's day. It was a nice spring orzo salad. I did not have to change anything. I just realized I did not add the sugar to the orzo recipe, I forgot. But I enjoyed it. Both recipes were simple and quick to prepare. These are nice dishes to do especially when you are tired and want to spend limited time in the kitchen.

http://www.recipezaar.com/spring-orzo-salad-362121

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Zucchini and chickpea ratatouille by Family Circle

2009-04-19T15:50:00.005-04:00

The other day I made this recipe from family circle magazine. Below is the link to view it. It was yummy. All the ingredients in this recipe are among my favorites.. I hope you enjoy it if you try it..

http://www.parents.com/recipe/vegetables/zucchini-chickpea-ratatouille/#pluckbottom

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Preparing for Easter Dinner

2009-04-08T10:19:00.010-04:00

With the holiday approaching I wanted to write a post of the meal I will be making. It will be a small gathering with myself as the only vegan. But the cooking is a bit easier because it will be a vegan/ vegetarian dinner. When I was little my nan would always make ravioli for the holidays. And we would fill up on them and have to digest a bit for the rest of the food. So, we have not been doing that for a while now. But this year I decided to make the ravioli especially after I came across vegan ravioli in a natural food store. So here is the list of things I plan to make:

Regular ravioli and vegan ravioli (you could substitute with pasta of choice if you can not find vegan ravioli or make the same pasta for everyone)
Marinara sauce
Salad
Garlic Bread
Sweet potato's
Mashed potato's
Stuffing

Easter Sugar cookies
Chocolate Pudding Pie

As I have written in previous holiday posts the holidays have been wonderful since I became vegan. I have had some hosts make some vegan dishes or simply put part of the dish aside so I can add my own fixings like vegan margarine or cheese. I will also do that for example with the mashed potatoes. I make them and put mine aside so the others can mix it with what they like. When it comes to dinners when not everyone eats the same way there are ways for all to be happy. I am going to put the link below to a previous post I did with recipe ideas. The stuffing will be on that list. I did tweek the stuffing a bit but the original version is tasty also. I usually make toasted orzo pilaf (In the link below) and broccoli but I will not this time. I hope everyone enjoys their holiday. Tonight I will begin my cooking with the marinara sauce and the dough for the cookies.

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2007/11/my-first-vegan-thanksgiving.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Interview of me by vegfamily magazine

2009-04-07T15:00:00.005-04:00

I am happy to share that I was interviewed by vegfamily online magazine. I thought I would share the link here..

:)

http://www.vegfamily.com/why-vegan/gemma.htm

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Sprout Salad

2009-03-31T20:12:00.001-04:00

One of the things I do often is use various sprouts in salads instead of lettuce. Broccoli sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, sprout salad mix, are all examples of what you could use. Here are two recipe ideas that I did showing you the variations you could do. Simply make a salad the way you like but instead of using lettuce use the sprouts.

Serves One

1 cup mixed sprouts or of choice, (you could give a chop once over if you like)
1 small tomato, sliced
3 baby carrots, sliced
2/3 cup canned corn , drained and rinsed
Dressing of choice*

I like this with a balsamic dressing. You can buy dressing or make it at home. I usually just pour some balsamic, and extra virgin olive oil on the salad. Then I use various seasonings like salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried parsley, dried basil, etc. Then toss and enjoy.

Variations- Another variation to the sprouts is to add corn, garbanzo beans and red kidney beans. Add dressing and seasonings of choice as above.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Easter Candy

2009-03-19T10:45:00.006-04:00

With the holiday approaching I wanted to post these online stores again. Just because you are vegan does not mean you can not enjoy that Easter Bunny. The first link brings you to Easter candy. You can look through the others for their chocolate or candies. I do not remember which site I ordered from last year but the candy and chocolates I purchased were well received even by non-vegans. I also had made Easter cookies last year which I plan to do again. I used a sugar cookie recipe that I veganized by just using vegan ingredients and bought Easter cookie cutters. In my archives there are two posts, 12/17/08, and 3/26/08 where I talk about cookie making and my first Easter as a Vegan.. Hope these websites and my posts are of some help.

Online vegan stores

http://www.veganstore.com/gifts-and-candles/easter-gift-ideas.html

http://www.vegangoods.com/

http://www.veganchocolate.com/

http://www.cosmosveganshoppe.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc

http://ethicalplanet.com/food-and-snacks.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Steamed veggies as a snack

2009-03-10T08:52:00.009-04:00

One of the things that I do often when I want a snack is to steam veggies. A while back I purchased a mini microwave steamer which I love. I always have a variety of frozen veggies in my freezer. It is a wonderful thing because you can have steamed veggies in five minutes (microwave times vary) with easy cleaning. I will have the link to the website where I purchased mine at the end of this post. I also found the steamer by another company called progressive. That link will also be at the end of this post. But of course you can use whichever one you prefer. What I do is steam the veggies, drain them by lifting the slotted bowl part over the sink (be careful because it is hot and steaming when you remove the top cover), and then pour the drained veggies into the bottom bowl. Then I simply mix with whatever I feel at the moment and also depending on what veggies I am having. For example, for broccoli sometimes I use lemon juice and lemon and pepper seasoning, vegan margarine with/without seasoning/ vegan parmesan cheese, or salad dressing. There are many varieties and the good thing is you are eating your veggies. In many of my recipes when I am making a small portion of veggies and I say to steam them, this microwave steamer is what I use. Here is the link to the one I use:

http://www.mileskimball.com/MilesKimball/Shopping/ProductDetail.aspx?CID=Kitchen&SCID=Microwave&ProductID=0000069969

In case for some reason the link does not work correctly go to the miles kimball site and put mini microwave steamer in the search bar.

Here is the other link to the other website which sells the one by progressive.

http://www.organize.com/mini-steamer.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Link for products not tested on animals & link for vegan products by Victoria Secret

2009-03-04T11:31:00.004-05:00

I received an email regarding a site where products that are not tested on animals can be found. I was reading through the article about the company that is marketing the leaping Bunny logo which would indicate particular products which are not tested on animals. I thought it would be interesting to share.
http://www.aavs.org/campCompassion.html

I also wanted to post a link concerning Victoria Secrets. A friend of mine told me that Victoria Secret has come out with a line of vegan products. To view these products click on the link below:

http://www.victoriassecret.com/

Then click on the word Pink on the top list of product departments. Then click on beauty on the list of products to your left. It is down at the bottom.

I am always happy to learn of products which are vegan and not tested on animals.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Are food colorings vegan?

2009-02-26T14:32:00.011-05:00

I used yellow food coloring today and remembered that I have seen natural coloring , pretty expensive in an organic store. So I wondered is food coloring vegan? Then I thought this post would be a good one at this time because Easter is around the corner. Yes, I do not eat eggs so I do not color them anymore. But I have used food coloring in cookies. So, in case you use it in some way for Easter besides eggs I thought let me read up on this. So I did some research online and this is what I found. Some answers by some people stated that some red food coloring is made from beetles but that the other food colorings are ok. I read that yellow number 5 and 6 are vegetarian.. (yahoo) In regard to the red dye when reading another site it also stated that not all red dyes are made from bugs. It stated it would be labeled cochineal, carmine, or carminic if made from the cochineal beetle. FD and C and red number 40 are 99% coal derivatives. (Vegetarian resource group). The latter site also talks about a food guide you can order to help decipher food ingredients. Click on the link number two below in sources. As I was doing further research I began to see why a person would choose to buy natural food coloring. It seems to have to do with additives that are in some of them such as coal tar deritatives (Ehow.com) Spices such as turmeric, saffron, and papikra are also used for some food colorings. Some natural dyes are made of caramelized sugar, beet juice, the seed of the achiote shrub, and algae. Answers.com has a table that shows you where various sources for food coloring come from. An article from the FDA has a table of the various color additives and additives which are certifiable by the FDA. These regulations have to do with the purity and safety of the substance used in the dye. Link number 7 in my list of sources is a short video telling you some of the things I mentioned about natural food coloring and that red may sometimes come from insects. Another source talks about how some people may be concerned with the health risks of certain products used, such as the color derived from coal tar. That source is number 8 on my link list. You can then read about the product that was mentioned in the latter article, FD & C yellow number 5 in the link below from the FDA which talks about that issue. I am not making any claims that I have knowledge that specific additives cause health problems in this post. I have not done the research to support or negate the comment. I just wanted to write about the various possibilities that may impact a persons decision one way or the other. I guess what it boils down to is personal preference. There was only one site I found that had a table showing that yellow may have a source of eggs, or organic meat. But I did not see that anywhere else. There is agreeement that some red comes from insects. That is very good to know so I can look at a label and make sure it does not have the words carmine, cohineal, or carminic in it indicating it came from an insect. The majority I saw was from either the natural spices or coal tar. So it appears that most of these items are vegan/ vegetarian. If one is concerned with safety of the additives that are not from natural sources such as the coal tar then maybe you may want to make sure it is all natural, for example from a spice or plant.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

sources-
1- http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061204155216AAj616x
2- http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/faqingredients.htm#red
3- http://www.ehow.com/about_4596406_what-food-coloring-made.html
4- http://www.answers.com/topic/food-coloring
5- http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/colorfac.html
6- http://pubs.acs.org/cen/whatstuff/stuff/8134foodcoloring.html
7-http://www.expertvillage.com/video/165231_what-food-coloring-made.htm
8- http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-food-coloring-made-of.htm

Link to Information on Organic Produce

2009-02-21T10:19:00.004-05:00

A Friend of mine posted this link and I thought that it would be great to share. It is about buying organic produce and has an interesting guide to which produce should only be bought organic. Here is the link:

http://girliegirlarmy.com/blog/20090220/top-15-fruits-and-vegetables-to-buy-organic/

http://girliegirlarmy.com/blog/

You can download a mini guide in the last paragraph.

Thank you for coming to my blog and please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Veganized Recipes and Chit Chat

2009-02-10T09:04:00.011-05:00

When I first started this blog one of the things I said I will do from time to time is post a veganized recipe. When you first turn vegan it may seem overwhelming not knowing how to eat or products to use. That was one of my goals for this blog was to show people that being vegan can be done and once you learn how it is like second nature. I am still like a kid in a candy store when I am in a store like Whole Foods when I find vegan products. Yesterday I was happy when I found chocolate syrup that was dairy free. I read the ingredients and did not read anything in there that I could not have. So in my basket it went ! And yummy chocolate it was. :) It is by Ah!Laska organic products.. When I was younger (now also) I only drank milk with chocolate or strawberry in it. This way I can have my chocolate soy milk whenever I want. You can also buy chocolate soymilk already made if you like.
Now I will turn this post over to the recipes. The first recipe is about making home made waffles. If you have a waffle maker you can still make waffles even when you become vegan. I looked at a few waffle recipes and the basic ones have pretty much the same ingredients. There is even a waffle recipe on the back of the bisquick box. The one I use I found online somewhere but I did not save the link so I can not post it. But the only changes I had to make was to use soy milk instead of regular milk and enough egg replacer to equal one egg per the box of the brand I use. I use Ener G egg replacer. As you will see from the pictures below they were nice and fluffy. I have a Belgium waffle maker so I am not sure if a regular waffle maker would be smaller in thickness.

The other recipe I am going to talk about is "Italian Pot Pies" by Everyday food. I will post the link to the recipe below. I found this tasty, easy to make and filling. There were only a few changes I had to make. In reference to the ingredients I used veggie protein crumbles by Light life, vegan parmesan cheese, vegan butter by Earth balance, and soy milk. I only made half of the recipe so I had to figure out how much of the crumbles to use. It was easy because thanks to light life they state on the back of the box that "2 cups of the crumbles equal one pound of browned, drained ground beef". When I calculated the serving sizes on the box that one 12 oz box was equal to one pound. So I just used half of it and it worked out well. The only thing I changed in the cooking method was how long to cook the crumbles in the pan. Because it is not beef it does need the specified time to cook. So, I did not time it but when I put the crumbles in the sauce I stirred occasionally for approx. 5 minutes I would say. I was making the topping mixture while I was cooking on the stove. And when It seemed thick and well combined I put the mixture into the ramekins. And ten minutes later I had a tasty pot pie. I loved to cook before I became vegan and love it more now because veganizing a recipe is really fun. It is great to see how you can enjoy tasty vegan food.

Link to pot pies:

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/italian-pot-pies

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Italian- marinated vegetable salad by Kraft Foods

2009-02-03T17:32:00.007-05:00

I am posting the link to a recipe by kraft foods which I have been wanting to try. It is simple and very tasty. I did not add the olives because I do not care for them. I used my own mixture of oil and vinegar and seasonings. And I ate it right way :) When I steam veggies if it is a small amount I use a microwave vegetable steamer. I use it often and used it here for the veggies. Microwave times vary. Usually I steam for 5 minutes for most veggies I want fully cooked. Potatoes are a bit more. Here I steamed it for a little under three minutes. Here is the link and I hope you enjoy the recipe if you try it..

http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/italian-marinated-vegetable-salad-66113.aspx

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

I tried TVP for the first time

2009-01-18T23:40:00.015-05:00

On 2-10-08 I wrote a post about what TVP is. Here is the link to that post:

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2008/02/what-is-tvp.html

I decided I wanted to try it so I did some research on the net to find the simplest recipe I could to make this. Here is the link to the recipe I used. I did not do the recipe exactly as it stated because I used seasonings I had available. But I cooked it the way the recipe said to. I really just wanted to get a taste of TVP and the consistency so I could apply it to my own recipes. I also decreased the amount of ingredients just enough for me. I found TVP in a container in an organic grocery store. It was on an open shelf, not refrigerated.

http://vegetarian.about.com/od/maindishentreerecipes/r/tvptacos.htm

I took pictures as I was cooking in different stages and then the final product which you will see below.

The first picture is when the TVP was first in the pan being reconstituted with water.

This is when I added the peppers and onions plus seasonings.

Now It is ready to put in my tortilla.

And here is the finished product.

All in all I enjoyed my dinner. At first, maybe it is just my sense of smell, the TVP had a chicken odor when it was being reconstituted. I have started to develop an aversion to certain smells since I have been vegan so maybe that is why I was sensitive. But that quickly dissipated when I added my seasonings. I could see how this could be used for things like sloppy joes and this taco. It has a thick type consistency needed for those recipes. This is kind of like tofu to me where you may have to acquire a taste for it or play around with it to get the consistency and taste you like. I did like it but it is different so I would need to make some more recipes. But I would use this again and had a nice filling dinner. I had that same full feeling I got when I started eating tofu for the first time. I always find it enjoyable to try new things and then creating new recipes with that ingredient.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Quick and Easy Soup

2009-01-08T12:08:00.004-05:00

I love to cook and create new recipes. But there are those days when I come home and I do not even want to chop an onion. Well, yesterday was one of those days. So, I wanted to make something quick with what I had available. Recently I had bought frozen soups in a bag that you cook similar to the rice in a bag which I had never seen before. It was on sale so I read the ingredients and once I saw it was vegan I thought why not try it. I had bought the split pea soup and there were two packs to a box. I like a bit more seasoning so when I had it the first time I added some vegan parmesan cheese and some adobo seasoning. I wanted to make a fuller soup yesterday without much more effort. So, in a soup pot I boiled the water per the soup instructions and then put the soup pack in the pot. Total cooking time of this soup was 15 minutes. After 5 minutes I added a bag of the boil in a bag brown rice for it’s cooking time of ten minutes. After the 15 minutes was up I simply drained the pot and emptied both bags into the pot. I added some sliced tofurkey sausage to it and I wanted a bit more broth so I simply added some veggie broth. Then I sprinkled on some parmesan and I had my quick soup for dinner. No fuss and hardly any cleanup. There are other quick versions of soup you can do but this I guess you could say is my bag in a pot soup combo. :) You could use any soup you want and if you do not like brown rice you can use white. It has been chilly outside so soup was just what I needed. Today it is windy and I do feel a chill so luckily I have some left over soup in the fridge which I can heat up for lunch. I have it stored in these microwave soup mugs which are ideal. Another way to store your soup and to quickly heat it up without any fuss especially when you are on the go. I love soups and make them often in the fall and winter season. I hope everyone stays warm and that a nice bowl of soup can be enjoyed on a cold winters day however you make it.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

My Monday chit chat

2009-01-05T19:09:00.014-05:00

Before I started my day of errands which was to begin with doing the laundry I had a cup of coffee and cereal. I use soy milk as my dairy for the cereal and coffee. I alternate between granulated sugar or agave nectar for my coffee or tea. The granulated sugar I usually use is by Florida crystals. By the time I got back home from my morning of doing laundry I was hungry again. I wanted a BLT and usually I use the frying pan. But this time I used my George Foreman grill to make the bacon. I use a vegan bacon by light life called smart bacon. I have always liked my bacon crisp and wanted to see if the grill worked and it did. I had my bread in the freezer so first I turned on the grill and put two slices of whole wheat toast in the warming section of the grill. I took two slices of the Bacon not thawed and placed them right on the grill and closed the lid.. I cooked them until my desired crispiness. I layered the bacon on the bread with sliced tomatoes, onions, broccoli slaw and ketchup. You could just make it with lettuce and tomato and put vegan mayo if you like the way you would normally find it when you were non vegan. Why not serve it with a pickle if you have one. I did not have any pickles so I steamed some shelled edamame in the microwave.. Edamame are soybeans and per the bag it says that ½ cup is 12 grams of protein. I have stated before and would like to state again I am not a nutritionist so this is not nutritional information I am giving in place of you seeing your primary care provider or dietician. I just thought it was a good tid bit to share. I have a mini microwave steamer that I love and use almost daily. It really helps to have the quick serving of veggies and I sometimes even make them when I want a snack. I always keep frozen veggie’s in the freezer so I always have them. I put the amount I want in the steamer part with the grates, put that in the bowl part, fill with water till it reaches the slats, cover and microwave usually 5 minutes but with the edamame about 8 minutes. Microwave times do vary. Then you just drain the water and serve the way you like. Today I sprinkled some Mrs. Dash on the soybeans and then a small bit of Earth Balance Butter. As a snack during the day I had some almonds. Daily chores continue and it is always nice to have a smile in the midst of it all. I knew that when it came time to make my bed my cat butchy would not be far. Now what is that lump in the bed momma bear said?

Why it is Butchy...

My precious kitty :)

When it came time for dinner I wanted to make something quick and easy. I felt like a "stir fry" combo. So in a pot I cooked Lo Mein noodles together with non-thawed stir fry veggies. When they were done I drained the water from the pot, put the combo back in the pot and added some sauce. You could add any stir fry sauce you like either store bought or home made. You could cook rice separate if you prefer instead of noodles. Back in November of 2007 I wrote about making a stir fry with rice. If you want to view it go to the side bar on the left and click on o7 posts. As you scroll down that post was on November 13th and you will see other posts on my tofu crisp strips and my peanut sauce written on 12/23/07. Later on in the evening as I was watching Friends I was a bit hungry so I munched on the broccoli slaw which eased any hunger. And now I head to bed until the sun rises upon the darkened sky with the newness of dawn beckoning the call of new light.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Happy New Year

2009-01-04T15:21:00.011-05:00

Happy New year to all. I hope your new year celebrations were wonderful. Mine was a nice evening spent with friends. I made my hummus dip and made a nice veggie platter. My friends had some other munchies, good music, some vino, and Dick Clarks rocking eve on TV. A nice way to bring in the year with good friends. I find it a bit nippy today so soon I will make some tea. Had some oatmeal for breakfast and just finished a nice broccoli slaw, chickpea, tomato and onion salad. I Started to like Mrs. Dash spices so I used some of that, a bit salt, rasberry vinegar and extra virgin olive oil as my flavorings. I love broccoli slaw. It is so versatile for example using it in salads and sandwich rollups. You find it in the produce aisle and usually the mix has some shredded carrots and red cabbage in it. If you can not find it then if you are using broccoli just cut the stems into shreds like cabbage slaw and there you have it... Add some carrots and cabbage if you want and you have homemade broccoli slaw. Not sure what I will eat tonight. I usually like to have pasta on sunday's . But I ate alot of pasta yesterday and had the tiny bit that was left over earlier so I will make something else. I love pasta and could eat it everyday. But of course the diet should not just be pasta and variety in my daily eating is something I love. Well, off to make that tea now. Keep warm and I hope the new year brings love, peace and happiness to all.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

A yummy vegan Christmas

2008-12-27T10:53:00.011-05:00

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful holiday season. This was my second Christmas as a vegan and the food went over very well. I made many side dishes from years past only veganized. I was happy to hear some of my vegan dishes were liked the best by a family member. Because there were some non- vegan dishes there as well (I am the only vegan) I said to my family now you can do a taste test to see if they can tell a difference for example between vegan and non-vegan sweet potatoes. I was happy when a family member preferred my vegan sweet potatoes over the non-vegan ones. :) Some of the things I made were broccoli with browned garlic and oil, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, orzo pilaf, pumpkin pie, chocolate pudding pie and sugar cookies. The pumpkin pie is the one I posted last year and this year again. I have been wanting to try it and I can now say it was very good. I could not tell the difference from a non- vegan version. It did take longer to cook then the recipe said but it was still worth it..I do not have pictures of the food except for the cookies which I will post. All I did with the cookies is what I said in my cookie post by veganizing a recipe I had. I used vegan sour cream, vegan sugar and egg replacer as substitutes for some of the ingredients in the recipe. And they were enjoyed as they were last year.

Have a Happy New Year.

Thank you for coming to my blog and please come back again soon.
Gnewvegan

Post from 2007 on making cookies.

2008-12-17T09:19:00.007-05:00

Monday, November 12, 2007
It is cookie time :)

I was not going to talk about sugar so soon in the blog but being that the cookie season is approaching I thought it would be a good idea. Recently I learned that sugar is not vegan. I did research and here is a website I found about this topic. It also lists brands of sugar that are non-vegan and vegan. I thought the information may be of interest especially around the holidays when sugar cookies are popular. And do not worry about finding the sugar because it is out there. I found it at an organic /whole food store and the local supermarket.
http://www.vegfamily.com/articles/sugar.htm
When I looked into colored vegan sugar I did not find that. But I did find vegan sprinkles that one uses on ice cream on one of the web sites I listed in my previous blog for vegan groceries. I thought to myself you could probably make your own colored sugar with vegan sugar and food coloring. Well I researched it and others had the same idea. This website has a recipe for making your own colored sugar. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Colored-Sugar/Detail.aspx

I also noticed that some other recipes use cinnamon plus sugar for coating. Here are some web sites I found with sugar cookie recipes that seem worth trying.

http://www.vegfamily.com/vegan-recipes/desserts/holiday-sugar-cookies.htm
http://www.vegout.info/recipe_show.php?title=Vegan%20Sugar%20Cookie&ID=43
http://www.johnandkristie.com/archives/2005/10/perfect_sugar_c.html
http://www.recipezaar.com/202592 ( this person uses applesauce instead of margarine. I saw someone mention that on a website. Thought I would plug it in here for more options)

If you have your own sugar cookie recipe you use either from a book or your family recipe, read through the ingredients and see what really needs to be substituted. I compared a recipe I use from a cook book to the ones in the web sites I mentioned above and it was very similar. I would only need to replace sugar with vegan sugar, the egg with an egg replacer ( see note following this paragraph), and the sour cream with tofutti’s sour supreme. I have not tried the latter product yet so I can not comment. ( 12/08- addendum- I used the tofutti sour cream last year for cookies and they tasted good) In one of the above recipes someone uses tofutti cream cheese. And if you are not really comfortable changing things around yet then try one of the above recipes. I suggest doing a trial run before the holiday. Cut the recipe in half and then in half again if you want (depending on the yield of the original recipe) and give it a test try. You do not even have to decorate if you do not want for the trial run, just make the cookie and see if you like the dough. And then you will be on your way to a vegan holiday.
Note: I bought the Ener- G egg replacer in an organic food store. It is in a box and I think it was in the baking section. You can not make scrambled eggs with it because it is for baking purposes. It is a powder that is mixed with water. I have used it in some recipes which called for egg and it worked fine. I have also seen the other products I have in bold in the organic food store/ whole food store.
A note on margarine: Butter is dairy so it is not vegan. (12/08- addendum- I use the brand earth balance which I found in my local organic store. They have a few variations from margarine spread to buttery spread. I find it works well with cookie recipes and every day purposes.

Last year I made quite a bit of cookies and they were enjoyed by even the non-vegans. I did what I stated above using vegan substitutes and the finished product worked out well. I made my own sugar sprinkles. One recipe I had called for jello so I used vegan jello. The brand is by "natural desserts" and it is called jel dessert. Orginally I found it online (I have the sites listed on my very first post) and then I found it in my local organic store. I hope this information helps and that you enjoy your cookie time. :)

Happy Holidays

Gnewvegan

Thanksgiving will soon be here.

2008-11-19T01:23:00.003-05:00

It is that time of year again when the hustle and bustle of holiday cheer has come knocking on our doors. Family, friends, love, and food..... The time when you have an excuse to eat to the point of needing those stretch pants. :) I have not written in a while because life has been a circle of time which has not giving me the opportunity to write. Those twists and turns that halt your life and make everything but the situation at hand stand still. But I wanted to at least write and say I have not forgotten my readers and give links to recipes I posted last year for the holiday. Following this post you will see a link to two posts I wrote last year. Click on the link and scroll down to 1- Dec. 12 07 and 2- Dec. 1, o7. The December 12 post was about my first vegan Thanksgiving with recipes. The Dec. 1 post is a pumpkin pie recipe (I have not tried) and chocolate chip cookies I did try and were yummy. I hope that this will help give some recipe ideas for the holiday. I wish everyone a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving.

http://invitationfrom-gnewvegan.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

May the circle of life bring not only stillness of uncertainty but a fresh breeze of calm.

Gnewvegan

Brussel Sprouts and Cherry Tomatoes over Rice by Gnewvegan

2008-10-05T08:33:00.008-04:00

Brussel Sprouts and Cherry Tomatoes over Rice

Serves 4

This is a recipe I made in my rice cooker. If you do not have a rice cooker that is ok. Simply cook the rice per package directions in a pot and steam the vegetables separately with the same seasonings per the recipe.

1 lb brussel sprouts, cut off stems, remove loose outer leaf and cut each in half
3 cups of brown rice
1 pint of cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved
3 large or 4 regular size garlic cloves minced
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Dash of adobo with pepper seasoning
Vegan parmesan to sprinkle

1- Mix the brussel sprouts and the tomatoes in a bowl.
2- Preheat a 7 or 8 inch skillet for one minute and then heat oil one minute on a low flame.
3- Brown garlic about one minute or until a light brown.
4- Pour garlic over vegetable mixture and mix .
5- Add the rice to the rice cooker and add appropriate amount of water per package directions.
6- Put steamer from rice cooker in place and add to it the vegetable mixture, cover, set to cook.
7- When the button pops up to warm, carefully open cover because of the steam. Add Adobo and salt and pepper to the vegetables. Fluff the rice with a fork, put on plate, top with vegetables, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese if desired.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan Chit Chat and my trip to the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary

2008-09-05T11:48:00.012-04:00

I realized I have not written a post since August. This summer has just been so busy. I am still thinking of my amazing trip to the farm sanctuary in Watkins Glen.. I am excited to walk in the NYC walk in September.. It is going to be a wonderful experience for a precious cause. I look forward to going back to Watkins Glen one day. I recently took another trip to the Woodstock farm sanctuary which was also another lovely trip. It was such a treat to be sitting down at a table outside and have goats and lambs around you. One in particular is Albie, the goat who was found in Prospect park after escaping from a Brooklyn slaughter house. Albie now wears a prosthesis after loosing part of his leg that could not be saved with medical treatment.. He does not always wear it and it is amazing to see he can walk on three legs. But what is more amazing, is that he is here and happy. I sat on the grass with him, petting him as he ate the grass. I looked around me and saw the mountains surrounding me and felt at peace. The goats were so friendly and they all just wanted to be loved. It was like my kitties when they rub up against me showing their affection. Then there was this lamb just "BAAAAAA " in away. I am not sure exactly what he/ she wanted but whomever called out to her/him this lamb would run to you with such excitement. Like a child running to their mom, so sweet. I was really impressed to see cats and dogs running around with these animals. The kitty was actually in the area where the pigs were, rolling around. I had compared the pigs liking their bellies rubbed to my kitties liking their bellies rubbed when I went to the farm in Watkins Glen. It is a wonderful thing to see these animals living together showing they are all loving beings. The pigs were so cute and had a jealous streak. I was petting one pig and all of a sudden he was making it known he did not like it when the other pig came over also. He wanted all the attention to himself. Then you had one of the pigs just rolling around in the mud and another behind him in the water.. The cows were grazing in the green pastures and the air was a crisp rainbow of peace. I wrote a poem about my experience there which I will now share.

Eyes of forgiveness,
Amazing to see,
Trust in your touch,
Now roaming so free,

Mountains surrounding,
Stories of tears,
Peace,
Serenity,

Standing in the midst,
calling out for love,
Running to reaching hands,

Many souls combined as one,
now they see
a rising sun,
others may never see this day,

The planted seeds of renewal
must continue,
surrender not,

Motionless in time,
together we breathe,
beside me,
the one that got away,
his name,
Albie,

Greener pastures,
the breeze so fresh,
an everlasting moment,
a sign of stones overturned,

The bridge of hope,
above troubled waters,
growing chains of love not sorrow,

This I hold onto,
for many more tomorrows .

Written on Sept. 1, 2008 By Gemma M. Carrara

Each experience I have touches my heart and I hope you enjoy reading about them. I will end this with a picture of Albie.. Soon I will post another recipe.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Here is the website address for the newspaper story about Albie.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/nyregion/01goat.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin

My Trip To The Farm Sanctuary

2008-08-17T09:35:00.004-04:00

This past month I had the privilege of visiting the farm sanctuary in Watkins Glen , NY. They had their annual yearly Hoe Down where they have guest speakers, vegan food, dancing, and the visit with the farm animals. The farm sanctuary is a non-profit organization that rescues animals that were going to be slaughtered, or in need of rescue , i.e.: the most recent Iowa floods. There many pigs were losing their lives and the farm sanctuary team went out there in horrid conditions and rescued those animals. They spend countless hours doing their best to try and help these animals reform to a healthy state. They take them for medical care and take time with them to help with the transition to learn that humans can be care takers of them instead of harm them. They place them in loving homes when they are well and keep the ones that need their constant care. Their work is remarkable and they are saviors of those animals. My favorite part of the tour was the pigs. They are so friendly and loving. All they want you to do is rub their belly and they make such cute noises.. Similar to my kitties. :) There are all kinds of animals there such as cows, goats, chickens, roosters, sheep, and of course the pigs. This experience is one I will never forget and I look forward to going back. In September there will be a “walk for the farm animals” in NY to help raise money for the farm sanctuary. I was so touched by this experience that I will be one of the walkers. I created my own personal fund raising page. If you would like to see some pictures of my trip and read a poem that I wrote after the journey please go to:

www.firstgiving.com/gemmacarrara

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Fiesta Bean Salad By Gnewvegan

2008-07-30T17:44:00.020-04:00

It has been a while since I posted. This summer has been a busy one. So before I post my recipe I am going to write about a few things. One of my past posts was about the plants I have in my mini garden. Here is a picture of one of my first tomatoes this year in a pot. I planted the tomato last year but the pot I used was too small and I only got about two tomatoes. So far I grew three and two more are growing right now. It is great to be able to pick a tomato fresh from the vine and the other herbs I planted. I had made a sandwich with the tomato one day with fresh basil, onion and hummus. On 2/16/08 , in my post titled, "Broccoli Sprouts and my Saturday Morning" I wrote about another sandwich with hummus..

Next I am writing about a delicious vegan chocolate cake that I made for my nan's birthday. Unbelievably moist and rich.. I have found the special occasion chocolate cake and It is all because of Nava Atlas. I posted on another post about her new book "Vegan Express". This is one of the recipes in her book and I highly recommend this book. Thank you Nava for a chocolate cake that even non-vegans could love.. I can not wait to make it again. Here is a picture of the cake before it was eaten up. I had some fresh strawberries on hand so I decided to add that to the cake. Yum Yum and thanks again Nava.

Next is my recipe for the Fiesta Bean salad. I had two potluck events to go and came up with this salad to bring. I learned about using the juice from marinated artichokes from a recipe by Nava Atlas. This recipe is best made the night before so the flavors can blend together. But you can make it the day of and have it sit at least one hour or more in the refrigerator. I hope you enjoy it if you make it.

Fiesta Bean Salad

Serves 10 or more
(Yields 11 cups)

1 pound (16 oz) Red baby potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed (leave skin on)
1 15.5 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15.5 oz can white cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 of a one pound bag of frozen cut green beans, thawed
1 pint cherry tomatoes, rinsed, halved
4 oz red onion, peeled, sliced and cut into about 1/2 inch slices
4 oz jarred roasted red peppers, finely chopped
1 (6) oz jar (saving juice) marinated artichoke hearts, coursely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 tablespoon adobo all purpose seasoning (the one with pepper)
2 1/2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 Tablespoon cider vinegar

1- Put potatoes in a 3 to 4 quart sauce pot and fill with water to cover potatoes completely. Pot will be at least half way full. Cover and bring to a boil. When boils, uncover and simmer on a low - medium flame for 20 minutes. (set timer)

2- Put the drained beans (not green beans) in a big bowl or big pot.

3- Add to the beans the tomatoes, onion, peppers, garlic and artichokes.

4- When there is 7 minutes of cook time left to the potatoes add the green beans and stir the vegetables in the pot to mix together. Continue cooking until the twenty minutes is up.

5- To the jar of artichoke juice add the vinegars and seasonings. Close lid and shake well. Refrigerate until ready for use.

6- When the potatoes are done (should be fork tender) pour them into a collander to drain. Rinse under cool water until cool to touch. Cut the potaoes into bite size pieces. Usually cutting each potato into 4 pieces will do. If it seems to big you can cut adjust accordingly.

7- Put the potatoes and green beans with the other ingredients. Pour the dressing over the mixture and mix well but lightly. (You do not want to mix too harsh or else you could smash the beans. Mix like you are folding batter)If you have mixed in a pot transfer to a serving bowl.

8- It is best to keep this covered in the refrigerator over night but if not at least keep it in for one hour or more for flavors to blend. Mix lightly again and serve.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Carob Powder or Cocoa Powder

2008-07-07T09:15:00.003-04:00

I had wondered why some vegan recipes call for carob powder and not cocoa powder. I thought is cocoa powder not vegan and if so why? I looked at some web sites to find this answer. From the information I read here is what it appears to be. Carob powder is used as a substitute for cocoa if someone has a chocolate allergy or needs less caffeine. The carob is caffeine free. Here is an excerpt on what carob powder is:

"Carob powder is made from the toasted, then ground, pods of the Carob tree. Carob is used as a substitute for chocolate although totally different substance."
source:
http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/equivalents_substitutions.asp?index=C&tid=1968

another source on carob powder is :
http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/what-is-carob.htm

Here is an excerpt on cocoa powder:
"Cocoa Powder: A product of the cacao bean. The cacao beans are removed from large pods that grow on the trunk of the tree then they are fermented and dried. The beans are sent to chocolate factories where they are roasted, the outer hulls removed, and the inner nibs ground to produce chocolate liquor. Most of the cocoa butter is extracted from the chocolate liquor, leaving a dry paste, which is further dried and processed to become unsweetened cocoa powder. The cocoa is called Dutch-processed if it is treated with alkali to produce a dark, mellow-flavored powder. (VEGAN!)"
Source:
http://www.compassionatecooks.com/word/chocolate.htm

Another source on cocoa and being vegan or not:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080321123936AA5yetp

The above source mentions how certain products like breakfast chocolate drinks may contain some milk product in them but that pure cocoa powder is vegan and does not contain any milk or animal product in it. I hope that this information helps for anyone who may have thought of this question also. I will just look on the back of the products as I have been doing and utilize this information.. It seems from reading the information on line that carob powder does not taste the same as cocoa powder. So, being that I have no allergy to chocolate and have no problem with caffeine, I would rather the cocoa powder. As far as hot chocolate I think the packets in the store have milk in them so I could just make it from a non dairy source of cocoa powder or hot cocoa mix. You could find these products in the health or organic store. Unfortunately, because of the way foods can be processed you will see on the back of some products may contain traces of milk, nuts, etc. The products may be processed on the same equipment as products with milk, eggs, nuts, etc. I learned from an online resource that the manufacturing of products on sole equipment for just vegans would be difficult because there are not enough vegans for a company to invest money in that purpose. So, hence we see the statement I mentioned on the back of products. It will be a personal decision whether you choose to have the product or not.

Thanks for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Watermelon Slushy by Gnewvegan

2008-06-23T09:48:00.006-04:00

With the summer time here the one thing I enjoy making is slushy's and smoothies. Especially on those hot days or mornings when you are too hot to drink coffee. I made a very nice smoothie today with protein powder but I forgot to measure the quantity. I was too in a rush to drink it. :) So that will be for next time. Today I am posting my recipe for a watermelon slushy. I drank the whole thing but it can be for two people as well, 1 cup each. Here's to the beginning of summer.

Watermelon Slushy
2 servings (1 cup each)

1 cup chopped watermelon (seedless or remove seeds)
1/2 teaspoon powdered lemonade mix
3/4 cup pineapple juice
1 and 1/4 cup ice

Blend together and enjoy.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Fresh Herbs from the garden

2008-06-17T09:43:00.012-04:00

One thing about the summer approaching that I look forward to is planting some herbs and flowers. There is nothing like fresh herbs to give your food a wholesome flavor to it.. In the winter I have to rely on store bought but I love going to my garden and picking my own freshly grown herbs.. I also like to plant some flowers as well. In the pictures below you will see everything I planted except the tomato plant. That is in a container as well. The tomato plant is called "patio" container plant and hopefully cherry tomato's will grow. Last year was the first time I planted a tomato plant in a container. Only two grew because I learned the container was too small. This year I bought a nice size pot so we will see what happens.

Thyme and Oregano

Parsley, Chives and dill

Dahlia's

Petunia's

Mint and Basil

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan French Toast by Gnewvegan

2008-06-10T11:00:00.004-04:00

On the weekends I enjoy spending a little more time on breakfast because during the week it is usually not possible. French toast is one of those recipes I enjoy. Here is my recipe for veganized French Toast. Treat yourself to a tasty breakfast treat. You can serve this with fruit, vegan breakfast sausage or bacon..

French Toast

Serves one

Ingredients

2 slices whole wheat toast
1 Tablespoon apple sauce (not chunky)
4 Tablespoons plain soy milk
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon vegan margarine (or more if needed)
Ground cinnamon, desired amount. (optional)

Directions

1- In a breading pan (or dish) combine the apple sauce, soy milk, water, and cinnamon if using. Mix well to have a smooth mixture.
2- Preheat a non- stick griddle for about one minute. Melt margarine in pan, spread over pan with spatula.
3- Dip each slice of bread in apple/ soy mixture and coat both sides well. (* see G note)
4- Place on griddle and brown both sides, about 4 to 5 minutes each side, until desired level of brown. (* see G note) Serve as desired.

G Note - * When coating the bread sometimes I find you have to take a fork and smear some parts of the bread that may not have been fully coated.
* When browning the bread I find that 4 to 5 minutes is the general time of browning I like. Sometimes it may take 3 minutes when doing the second side due to increase heat on the griddle . My suggestion is to lift up one side of the bread with a spatula and see if there is a nice even coating of brown.

Thank you for coming to my blog. I hope to see you again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan eats at a Caribbean Restaurant

2008-06-03T20:39:00.008-04:00

A few friends of mine and I went to eat at a Caribbean restaurant. I was not sure that they would have something to eat that I could have but to my surprise they had a few vegetarian items. I inquired about what was in one of them and was happy to find out I could eat it. They had a jerked spice tofu, a vegetable chop suey, I forgot one of them and the rasta pasta... I was in the mood for pasta that night so the rasta pasta it was.. I had penne style and it had a vegetable like spinach (I can not remember the name), red, green, yellow peppers and a wonderful flavor to it.. I have a picture to follow. The music and atmosphere were wonderful. It was great to sit and eat while listening to jamming Caribbean music played by a two man band. It is really a nice surprise when you go to a restaurant that you did not expect to find a dish you can eat and see some nice options on the menu. I am finding more places seem to be expanding their menu to suit a variety of dietary types. Happy vegan eating. I will definitely go back and inquire about the other vegetarian dishes for some more Caribbean dining.

Thank you for coming to my blog. I hope you come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Veggie Pride Parade

2008-05-20T09:34:00.009-04:00

On May 18, 2008 the first veggie pride parade in America was held in Greenwich Village, New York City. I was very excited to have been able to be a part of this day. I have never marched in a parade in New York City and this was a wonderful experience. Some people were dressed in costumes such as banana's, peppers, pea pod, and a pig to name a few. Various signs showing support for the vegetarian, vegan, and going green lifestyle where soaring for all eyes to see. One guy was ringing a bell from his window as we walked by. We marched through the streets and onlookers were taking pictures and smiling. What a feeling actually walking in the street as traffic had to be diverted or wait for us to pass by... It really was an amazing feeling.. The march ended at Washington Square park where there were various booths and a performance by the Cheryl Hill band. Even when it started raining the pride in this day could not be dampened. Below are some pictures of the the first veggie pride parade..

Thank you for coming to my blog and I hope to see you again soon.

The chant of the day was be green, go veggie!!!

Gnewvegan

Interesting vegan websites

2008-05-02T16:32:00.001-04:00

While I was on the internet I came across the vegan society web site and a hospital catering book that they made.. I looked at it and it is interesting. It has information on what vegan is, why people become vegan, vegan foods, and some recipes. I thought it would be interesting to share. I am also posting another website that has useful information on being vegan, substitutes, etc.

http://www.vegansociety.com/images/HospitalCateringBooklet.pdf

http://www.vegansociety.com/html/food/

http://www.veganoutreach.org/starterpack/foods.html

Thank you for coming to my blog.. Please come back again soon.

My Vegan Chit Chat :)

2008-04-26T14:14:00.007-04:00

This is just a post for chit chat. As I have written about before I enjoy trying new things more now since I became vegan. It is a nice feeling to add a new addition of food style to my food choices. When I was not vegan and I would have something with cheese I never like pieces of cheese, only melted or in a ravioli for example. So when I eat tofu I prefer thin or small pieces. I had not tried tofu scramble before and thought it was time. I was reading a blog that talked about options for tofu scramble. A seasoning packet made for tofu scramble was mentioned (I can not remember the name) and Amy’s frozen entrees was also mentioned. She has a tofu scramble entree. I had mentioned Amy’s entrees before in a previous post. Once in a while I may use a frozen entree and it was nice to find good tasting, vegan, frozen entrees. So, I decided to try Amy’s tofu scramble before I start trying other’s recipes and then making my own variety.. Well, it was filling and very tasty. Of course it does not taste like scrambled egg’s but It hits the spot.. I will now be trying recipes and a creation of my own will be in the works.. :)
One of the last restaurants that I went out to was an Indian restaurant. And there I experienced the dosa.. I had never heard of a dosa and when I first saw it I could not imagine eating it all. But I did and it was yummy.. It looked like a giant crepe in the shape of a log. In it you can have choices such as potatoes with spices and rice mixtures . It is served with varieties of chutney. I believe I had coconut, lentil, and I forget the third type of chutney. I folded the dosa in half as I saw others do and broke off pieces dipping it into the chutney. It was yummy. Some of the chutney was spicy to me so I had plenty of water.. But it was worth it... Chatting that night I learned that Southern Indian food is usually vegan. You have to just make sure there is no Ghee in your food which is a form of dairy. So now I know to ask for no ghee in my food when I go to an Indian rest. Here is a website that tells you about ghee.
http://www.food-india.com/ingredients/i001_i025/i007.htm
Next time I will take a picture of my dosa but here is a website which shows you a picture of a dosa.
http://www.top-indian-recipes.com/indian-dosa-recipes.htm
Some time ago I wrote about another Indian restaurant I had went to where they had a buffet and one half the buffet was vegetarian and the other vegan. I am really enjoying my taste of Indian food and experimenting at home. I also find it very interesting to go into an Indian grocery store. There are so many varieties of spices and foods.. And it is there I found ready made dough in various forms without egg. I had been looking for that and was so glad to have found that. It is really nice to add different cultures into my eating habits as it opens up new doors of food enjoyment.
And on a sweet note , one night I wanted a sweet treat and remembered a post on a blog I read "A vegan life" (It is on my list of blog’s I read). The author showed a picture of a french twist vegan treat and gave the website to the products. Here is the website:
http://barrysbakery.com/
Well, I went into the grocery store and saw french twists in two flavors and they said non- dairy, no eggs.... I read the ingredients and happily bought them because they were vegan.. It was the store brand not the one posted on the latter blog site.. But I thank Allie for that post because my craving was fulfilled. Happy Vegan eating...

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

A weekly menu of what I have eaten as a vegan

2008-04-15T14:01:00.009-04:00

One common question people ask me is what do I eat. I did a post a while back on that subject and decided to make a table of a week’s menu to show some of my days eating as a vegan. As I have said before in previous posts I am not a nutritionist so my information is not a substitute for you to seek advice on what you should eat from an MD/NP/Nutritionist. This is just to help show new vegans there are many food choices out there. I did have this originally in a table but it does not copy and paste well so I typed it this way.

Sunday:

Breakfast-
Oatmeal, 2 pieces of wheat toast with soy margarine, and tea with soy milk and vegan sugar.
Snack-
soy nuts: raisins
Lunch-
potato /squash soup
Snack-
apple, steamed broccoli with peanut sauce ( peanut sauce was posted 12/23/07. One of my recipes is steamed broccoli with peanut sauce)
Dinner-
pasta
Dessert/snack-
Handful of shredded wheat/sugar coated

Monday:

Breakfast-
oatmeal, 1 slice wheat toast with apple spread, tea with soy milk and vegan sugar
Snack-
apple
Lunch-
Moroccan tofu with sweet potatoes and couscous (Posted on 11-13-07)
Snack-
carrots
Dinner-
Tofu cutlet with vegetables; cherry tomatoes
Dessert/ Snack-
Banana; Air popped popcorn

Tuesday:

Breakfast-
cereal with soy milk and banana; tea with soy milk and agave nectar
Snack-
soy nuts
Lunch-
sauteed spinach; soy dog and baked beans
Snack-
apple
Dinner-
veggie burger on wheat pita bread; mixed veggie’s with vegan butter

Wednesday:

Breakfast-
oatmeal with sliced banana; tea with soy milk and agave nectar
Snack-
raisins
Lunch-
Peanut butter and jelly on wheat bread; carrots; handful of shredded wheat; crackers
Snack-
soy nuts
Dinner-
Stir fry veggie’s with tofu crisps over rice (stir fry recipe posted 11-13-07 and the tofu crisp strips were posted on 12-18-07- you could make this without the tofu and just follow the recipe on 11-13-07)
Dessert/snack-
apple

Thursday:

Breakfast-
cereal with soy milk; coffee with soy milk and agave nectar
Snack-
banana
Lunch-
Peanut butter and apple spread on wheat bread (posted 11-13-07); carrots; soy nuts
Snack-
small salad; raisins; carrots; soy nuts
Dinner-
store bought vegan veggie loaf with veggie’s

Friday:

Breakfast-
oatmeal/banana; 1 slice of wheat toast; coffee /soy/agave nectar
Snack-
apple
Lunch-
salad; steamed veggie’s over rice
Snack-
raisins; soy and edamame nuts
Dinner-
Vegetable shell and soybean soup (posted on 1-9-08)
Dessert/snack-
Tofutti icecream

Saturday:

Breakfast-
French toast/ vegan breakfast sausage links; coffee/soy/agave nectar (I will post my french toast recipe soon)
Snack-
banana; soy/edamame nuts
Lunch-
Lentil soup/ crackers
Snack-
sliced tomatoes/cucumbers mini salad; apple
Dinner-
veggie quesidilla; pickles

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.
Gnewvegan

Eggs and becoming vegan

2008-04-12T09:10:00.005-04:00

When I first was learning about why someone would choose not to have eggs or dairy, I thought that maybe if I used organic eggs, or cage free that would be better. I even thought that maybe I could find a local farm where the chickens were raised properly and not have a dreadful outcome. So I bought the latter eggs, but still could not bring myself to have it. Then after research I knew that organic eggs or cage free were no better then the regular ones. The conditions and final outcomes for the animals were the same. I am writing about this to tell other new vegans that it is normal for you to doubt why you may or may not be eating something. This is a new way of life and sometimes we may tend to try and justify why doing certain things is ok. I thought I had to have meat and milk growing up because that it was the surrounding society and my upbringing seemed to focus on as the mainstay of meals. Even on pasta days we had the meatballs. The milk moustache commercials telling you that milk does your body good and meat always being the main course with veggies as your secondary was a way of life. At weddings I would see three choices which are fish, chicken or beef. And please , I do not want anyone to take offense at me mentioning society/ family as a reason behind food choices. I think it is a combination of what you are raised in and what you see in your surrounding society. And I was not raised in a vegetarian family. Now as an adult I learned things I never knew before and made a choice for me that I feel is the right one. I learned and realized that being vegan is a way of life that is not harmful to me, and makes me feel better as a whole. I have added here some web-sites that I found when making my decision on eggs in the beginning in case a new vegan is wondering about my earlier thoughts as well. As with any new journey learning is the key and is a powerful tool.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1027/p15s01-lifo.html

http://www.goveg.com/organic_products.asp

Happy vegan Living. I hope to see you again.

Gnewvegan

Going Green

2008-04-08T00:03:00.005-04:00

I know this is not about how to be vegan however in my profile I stated how being vegan has expanded on my world of living. I had always recycled before but as I began to learn to become vegan I wanted to do more to help the environment. I thought about buying the canvas grocery bags before. I remember one day I was in the grocery store and saw a young man in front of me with a canvas bag. Of course, maybe he was not doing it for the same reason I am. But, for whatever the reason, it will help by decreasing the amount of plastic used. I saw the stores selling them more and more. So, I decided to buy my green bags and use paper bags more often to decrease the plastic use. I was watching the Oprah show one day and it was on going green. I try to use some of the suggestions. I have the power plugs and do my best to remember to turn them off to conserve energy, replace regular bulbs with CFL bulbs when it is time to change, conserving water, and I started buying eco-friendly products as I need to replace them. Step by step, person by person. You never know what will inspire you. The person in front of you, changing your way of eating as I have done with veganism, or an array of things. It is true, I think, one person can make a difference. Because one person can turn into two people, and so on. So, I am not only proud to say I am vegan, but that I am doing my best to go green. April 22, 2008 is Earth day.. I read on another blog about an act of togetherness called “Earth Hour” which was on March, 29, 08.. When cities globally turned out the lights at a certain time for their support of the environment.. Here is the website:

http://www.earthhour.org/

I wish I had known about it but I know about Earth day and thought this post would be appropriate. Here are some web sites about Earth day:

http://ww2.earthday.net/

http://www.earthsite.org/day.htm

I will end this post with a poem I have written and say Happy Earth Day everyone..

The purity of the sunlight is in the path,
The light of life, to start a new,
The path that is within our reach,
The ocean waves reaching over the horizons,
The height of nature is the power we breathe,
The wind, snow, birds, flowers and trees,
Mountains, rivers, animals, living beings,
The purity of our earth is for us to seek,
It is the choices one makes,
That will encircle what is to be,
It is the color we choose,
And I choose green.

By Gnewvegan

Thank you for coming to my blog. I hope to see you again soon.

Penne With Peas And White Beans by Gnewvegan

2008-03-30T10:56:00.009-04:00

Serves 4 to 6

I was inspired to make this recipe from a family recipe that my friend made.

Ingredients

1 pound penne pasta
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, peeled, finely chopped
1 (15) oz can of small white beans, drained , rinsed
1 ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
½ cup vegan margarine (I use Earth Balance)
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup pasta water
Salt and pepper to taste , as desired

Directions

1- Boil water for pasta and cook per package directions. When done drain and put back in pot.

2- When the water boils and the pasta is put in the pot start the sauce. Preheat an 11 inch pan for about one minute. Add the oil to the pan and heat for one minute.

3- Add onions and garlic to the pan and on a low- medium flame, lightly brown, stirring occasionally until the onions begin to become translucent; 5 to 7 minutes.

4- Add margarine to pan and melt stirring one to two times.

5- Add beans and peas to pan and 1 cup pasta water. Add salt and pepper to taste. On a low- medium flame simmer ten minutes, stirring occasionally.

6- Add sauce to the cooked pasta in the pot and mix well. Season with more salt and pepper if desired. Serve and enjoy.

Below are pictures of the finished dish... I get hungry just looking at it... :)

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

My First Easter As A Vegan

2008-03-26T10:38:00.000-04:00

As with my first Thanksgiving and Christmas Easter was no exception to a nice holiday. I went to a friends house for dinner and she is really great. I have known her for many years and she is like family. She so kindly told me to bring my soy milk and margarine and she would put mashed potatoes aside so I can make it my way. She liked them too when she tasted it :) I used some vegan margarine in a dish of pasta.. The sauce had meat in it so a dish was taken out for me pre the sauce added. The veggies her and her husband made were delicious and they purposely did not put anything in them I could not eat. She also made a very nice salad and put oil and vinegar on the table because the other dressings had ingredients I could not have. I made the orzo I posted in the “Thanksgiving post” and sugar cookies. I never made sugar cookies for Easter but I saw these really cute Easter cookie cutters so I decided to make cookies. I did it just like Christmas as I wrote on my post “It’s Cookie Time”. I just substituted vegan ingredients and everyone enjoyed the cookies.. As always I had my vegan sugar with me and this time I had the soy milk for my coffee. At the end of the day I was full and had a very nice Easter dinner.. It is not impossible to have a holiday dinner when you are the only vegan. It has worked out well and it always is made easier when you have wonderful friends that do what my friend's did when cooking.. I am touched at the caring and find it really wonderful when people are interested in learning about my veganism. I will be posting one of my pasta recipes in a few days.. Come back soon and maybe try it out.

Thank you for coming to blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

I bought Hemp Seed

2008-03-22T14:11:00.000-04:00

This is a follow up to my last post. I went into a natural food market and was looking at the hemp products. There were quite a few of them to choose from. Products such as hemp powder, hemp oil, and hemp seeds. Some of the powders were geared towards making shakes although there was a recipe on the back of the bag with the seeds using the seeds as well to make a shake. I asked someone who worked there what was the difference between the oil and the powder or seeds because I did not see protein content in the oil but I did in the other ones. I was told that the reason why the oil does not have the protein is because it is cold pressed which removes the protein. But the essential amino acids and omegas are in there. I decided on the seeds that were not ground so I could sprinkle them on what ever I want. I first tasted them straight out of the bag and they had a nice nutty flavor. This morning I had them on my cereal. I put in a bowl a vegan spelt flake cereal, sprinkled the hemp seeds, drizzled a little agave nectar, sliced a banana, and added soy milk.. It was a nice vegan breakfast. Here are some photos of the product bag and the seeds themselves..

Happy Holidays to all..

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Is Hemp the super seed?

2008-03-17T14:11:00.000-04:00

I came across this topic when I was reading through a store circular. There was a section which stated the following:

"Hemp- The super seed "

"Hemp is one of the most sustainable and nutritious crops on the planet. Similar to a sesame seed in size, and nutty in flavor, hemp seeds are a hot new food trend found in everything from waffles and cereals, to protein powders and now even hemp milk. This super seed is one of the plant kingdom’s most complete sources of digestible protein, with all 10 essential amino acids. Hemp seed also contains a balanced source of Omega- 3 & 6 essential fatty acids with GLA, live enzymes, vitamins, minerals and an excellent source of fiber.
An 8 oz glass of Living Harvest Hemp milk includes 700 mg of Omega- 3 essential fatty acids; all 10 essential amino acids; GLA, vitamins A, B12, D and folic acid; naturally occurring minerals like magnesium, iron, potassium and phosphorus, as well as 40% of recommended daily calcium”.

This caught my eye because I am always looking to learn about new foods that can enhance my vegan lifestyle. It further caught my interest when I learned it is a member of the cannabis family wondering is it the same thing and how could that possibly be safe/ legal if it was. Here are a few web sites that I found helpful in learning about Hemp. One of them I will note next to it is a site for Living Harvest products. If you look on the lower left side you can click on a web address to see a broadcast about Hemp seed and products on the Channel 11 News.

Sites-

http://www.ratical.org/renewables/hempseed1.html

http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/story/0,,1614319,00.html

http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce/ExecMacro/livingharvest/home.d2w/report
(The above site is the one with the Channel 11 news story)

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan Express by Nava Atlas

2008-03-15T23:44:00.000-04:00

I have written on my blog before about a book by Nava Atlas that I use called , "The Vegetarian 5 ingredient gourmet" and highly recommended it.. Nava now has a new book called the "Vegan Express" and I already had a delicious soup from the book this evening. When I first changed my eating habits Nava's book helped me discover my new way of eating. The recipes are very tasty and easy to follow. Her new book follows in the same path and I look forward to cooking up those recipes.. I am posting a picture of her new book and highly recommend it. Thank you Nava for another delightful book.

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Vegan Chocolate Chip cookies

2008-03-11T07:08:00.001-04:00

One day I was browsing around online to see if I could find some yummy vegan chocolate chip cookies. I came across a recipe that looked good. And they were indeed yummy.. :) Here is the link to the recipe and a picture I took of the cookies.. I will definitely be making these again..

Note: when using the egg replacer as stated in this recipe I did mix it with the water that the box states to mix the powder in. The recipe did not state to do that or not, but it was dry without the water. I only made half of the recipe because I was testing it out so I only added water for one egg amount. I think you are suppose to be able to view the making of the cookies on the site but I was unable to , so I made the choice of adding the water. I wanted to save part of the dough so I made two log rolls, wrapped it in glad press and seal and then put that in a freezer safe bag. So when ever cookies were desired I sliced what I wanted and baked it.. I also enjoyed eating the uncooked cookie dough. :)

http://www.chooseveg.com/vegan-chocolate-chip-cookies.asp

Thank you for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

Spinach Soup with Low Mein Noodles by Gnewvegan

2008-03-02T19:31:00.001-05:00

I was inspired to make my own Chinese Noodle bowl after having a rice noodle soup bowl I bought in the store.

4 or more servings
(yields 5 2/3 cups, 1 cup per 1 serving)

6 oz frozen chopped spinach
5 cups water
* Vegetable bouillon to equal 4 cups (see G note)
* 4 oz wide Lo mein Chinese noodles, broken in half (see G note)
1 small onion, 3 to 3 ½ oz , thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon adobo all purpose seasoning with pepper
salt and pepper to taste

*G note : For the vegetable broth you could use 4 cups of vegetable broth in a box and add 1 cup water.
* If you do not like your noodles long in a soup then break the noodles into three pieces instead of just two.

1- In a 2 qt pot put the appropriate amount of water. Put the bouillon in the pot and stir (break apart with fingers if you can) . If using broth from a box just pour the broth and water amount into the pot and bring to a boil.
2- Put all the vegetables, noodles, seasonings, salt and pepper as desired, and the oil in the boiling water, mix well and bring to a second boil.
3- Simmer on a low- medium flame, stirring occasionally for 8 minutes.
4- Serve and season with more salt and pepper if desired.

A reader of my blog requested pictures of the recipes and I am glad to say I am finally able to do that. Here is a picture of the soup.

I hope you enjoy the soup if you try it.

Thanks for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

My Sunday Lunch at an Indian Restaurant

2008-02-27T00:32:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday I had a delightful lunch with fellow vegans and vegetarians.. We went to an Indian restaurant. When I first walked in, the place was divided into a store and then the restaurant. The store sold a variety of things from Jewelry, pillows, blankets, incense, frames, clothes, etc.. I was told that everything in the store came from India. The colors were so exotic in detail on practically everything they sold. And the detail on the items were impressive. Then off to the restaurant side where you could choose to have the buffet or pick from the menu. I was very hungry when I arrived and was very happy to learn that a good portion of the buffet was vegan. You had a choice to have the buffet or items from the menu. On the menu they kindly wrote next to the item if it was vegan. But there were plenty of vegan items already prepared to be eaten right away!! So buffet it was and it was good.. There was enough spice to make me drink plenty of water but I enjoyed it. I do not like things too hot but this was just right.. They did have signs that would tell you if a particular food was on the very hot side. I will do the best I can to remember what I had. There were vegetables sauteed in a delicious sauce, rice, chutney, chickpeas with spinach and tomato , spinach soup, a pancake type food with some sort of vegetables on top and salad with a very tasty dressing. The restaurant was very nice to make us a vegan bread... A wonderful dining experience I would do again.. I do like to use spices such as curry, turmeric, and garam masala. As I have developed a love for cooking I have become more open to exploring new things. What I have learned is that creating a nice balance of spices to the food being prepared can be a wonderful dining experience. And you do not always need many spices to make a dish work, just the right ones.. Some recipes may only call for a few spices and some a column full. But the fun is in the creating and taking the spices you enjoy and making that dish your own.. Last year some time there was a recipe I tried with chickpeas, spinach, tomato, turmeric, and garam masala.(I was reminded of this flavor combo with the chickpea and spinach dish in the restaurant) That is when I went looking for garam masala and found it.. You did not need too much and the flavor was a unique taste in a good way. Here is the link to the recipe which is on the Rachel Ray website:

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/appetizer-side-dish-recipes/chickpeas-and-spinach/article.html

Do not be afraid to explore new food choices including the spices which add such a uniqueness to foods. You might create a dish that you find yourself craving...

Thank You for coming to my blog. Please come back again soon.

Gnewvegan

My entry in a writing contest

2008-02-24T00:24:00.000-05:00

When I was reading another blog (http://veggiesyarnsandtails.wordpress.com/) the author wrote about another blogger who is having a writing contest. I went to the site and after reading about the contest decided to give it a try. I was inspired from the picture on the blog which is to aid in the idea of each writers story.. I sent it in tonight. Here is a copy of what I wrote and the site URL. To understand my story you will need to see the picture. I am not sure when it will be posted on the site.

Blog site: http://clarityofnight.blogspot.com/

A Moment

As I look in the distance at the gray of the sky I ask, where have all the leaves gone? The sun was just shining and the birds were singing their song. I heard a whisper amongst a sudden wind that touched my shoulder so gently. It made me look away for a brief moment in time. When I looked back the flowers were gone, the birds were silent, the clouds formed a wall of mystery that I do not understand. What does this all mean? Why am I standing here so confused when I was encircled in a rainbow of peace and serenity.

But then, I looked beyond the gate and saw a man and a woman holding hands. A child so sweet, in between them, skipping to every beat. Pointing to something in the sky .. I looked, and saw the answer I searched for. The light of the horizon was creeping through the darkness and grasping the call of the blossoming wind. For flowers need to reep and sow and then you will see the essence of it's growth. For every drop of rain in the sky is a teardrop that will bring a new beginning to one's breath.. The gray is not an everlasting moment. It is only a moment in time that precedes the path of the meaning of ones spirit, being, and the answers one will find.

Thank you for coming to my blog. I hope to see you again soon.

Gnewvegan

Store bought vegan soup

2008-02-23T13:19:00.000-05:00

Well, Yesterday we had the snow storm. It is quickly turning into slush. Luckily for me I did not have to drive in the snow because public transportation is pretty good. I wanted to post during the week but time did not allow. A few days ago due to time constraints I knew I would not be able to make a soup that I wanted to. That day was a cold, windy day which is perfect for soup. So, while in the grocery store I looked to see if there was a vegan soup.. I came across a soup I had seen before by Thai Kitchen.. The one I bought was the spring onion rice noodle bowl. I normally always cook so I usually have some soup saved in the freezer.. But it is always good to know fast alternatives for the once in a while you just need something quick. It was pretty good and the best part is , it’s vegan... There are red letters on the back which say vegan and I read the ingredients and I did not see anything in there I could not eat. I do not know if their other products are vegan but I know this one is... :) When I make recipes I enjoy creating them from my head, veganizing recipes already known, and recreating a dish I enjoyed out. I definitely will be make my own version of this soup.. Here is the website of the company and you will see on the list of products the one that I had.

http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/CategoryDisplay?cgmenbr=1279010&cgrfnbr=1339446

Here is the main site:
http://www.thaikitchen.com/

And on another note, that day I added more snacks to my snack bag, dried banana chips and cereal pieces... The cereal is a vegan cereal by Arrowhead Mills, sweetened shredded wheat bite size cereal. I bought it in the organic food store. As I have said you can add anything you want like dried fruits, pretzles, other nuts, etc... I take what I have and put it in my snack bag. So that would make the things I used so far edamame and soy nuts, golden raisins, vegan chocolate chips, cereal, and dried banana chips.

Thank you for coming to my blog. I hope to see you again soon.
Gnewvegan

Invitation to my vegan journey

Breakfast is anything you want

The dishes I made for Christmas

Some holiday Dishes

Homemade Vegan "Hamburger"

More product photos

Quick Veggie Meal

Some vegan frozen foods I like

Explore a new culture in your kitchen

Flax Milk

Edamame

At the market yesterday I bought a nice variety salad and fresh edamame pods. You could pop the edamame out of the pods as a snack or pop them into the salad. They are nutritious as you will see from this link.. One of the nutrients in them is protein..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edamame

Products I use

“Baked” Sweet Potato Soup

A Mimosa for Everyone

Product and snack Photos

Parmesan-Carrot Risotto - By Everyday Food- Veganized

Oodles of Noodles Vegetable Soup

Raw Veggie and Black Bean Salad

Past Thanksgiving posts-

Veganize a Recipe Time - “Sausage” and Kale Soup

Steamed Broccoli and Caulifower

Quick and Easy Veggie meal

Parmesan Rice Burger

I posted a video series on You Tube- Freezing Tofu

Repost of my Fiesta Bean Salad

Curiosity about boiling water

Not All Vitamins Are Vegan

Banana, Strawberry, Pineapple Cantaloupe Smoothie

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

Corn and Tomato Salad

I made homemade Jam

Calcium in Foods

Video I made for my facebook group

Steamed Veggie Salad

Easter Cookie Photos

Vegan Diet and Nutrition Information

Tofu Scramble with Spinach, Peppers and Sausage

Annisette Toast (Biscotti)

Sweet and Sour Seitan

Vegetable Shortening

Recap of previous Easter Posts....

Facial Products

Interesting article on the food pyramid

Tomato Noodle Soup With Roasted Garlic

Vegan Tip for a Quick Chick'n Parmesan Sandwich

I am on twitter

It is Ok If you Slip......

Vegetable and Tomato Stew

Yummy Acorn Squash

Easy Lentil Soup

Simple Meal

Butternut squash and shopping at the health food store

Saving Lions and Tigers

Adopt - A- Turkey Sponsorships

New Frozen Dinners

Hello Again....

Israel Couscous and Lentil Salad

Sharing more recipes

Zucchini and chickpea ratatouille by Family Circle

Preparing for Easter Dinner

Interview of me by vegfamily magazine

Sprout Salad

Easter Candy

Steamed veggies as a snack

Link for products not tested on animals & link for vegan products by Victoria Secret

Are food colorings vegan?

Link to Information on Organic Produce

Veganized Recipes and Chit Chat

Italian- marinated vegetable salad by Kraft Foods

I tried TVP for the first time

Quick and Easy Soup

My Monday chit chat

Happy New Year

A yummy vegan Christmas

Post from 2007 on making cookies.

Thanksgiving will soon be here.

Brussel Sprouts and Cherry Tomatoes over Rice by Gnewvegan

Vegan Chit Chat and my trip to the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary

My Trip To The Farm Sanctuary

At the market yesterday I bought a nice variety salad and fresh edamame pods. You could pop the edamame out of the pods as a snack or pop them into the salad. They are nutritious as you will see from this link.. One of the nutrients in them is protein..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edamame