A Vegetarian Thanksgiving

This year is going to be my first Thanksgiving without my family.  In my house, my mother usually cooks for everyone and the relatives on my father's side come over.   We start with the hors d'oeuvres and wine around 1:30, and then eat dinner at 4:00.  My mother always has a large turkey with leftovers that last all weekend, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, cranberries, dinner rolls, and a few different desserts.  My aunt always brings a peanut butter pie, which is heavenly, but probably not the healthiest thing.  Then again, it's Thanksgiving and the whole holiday is about eating and being gluttonous, so calories are the last things we should be worrying about.  For me, Thanksgiving is about being with my family, and following my mother around the kitchen with a full glass of chardonnay at all times.

This year will be different. My coworkers and I will be celebrating potluck style.  I'm in charge of mashed potatoes, asparagus, and a dessert-- of course, all will be made without dairy.  For the best vegan mashed potatoes ever, I use Yukon Gold potatoes because they have a natural buttery flavor.  I cut up the potatoes pretty small, and throw them in boiling water until they break apart.  After draining the potatoes, I return them to the pot and reduce the heat to simmer or low.  Instead of butter, I use just a little bit of Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread with Olive Oil.  Rarely I use plain soy milk, but if I don't have that on hand, I'll use Galaxy Foods Veggie Shreds Cheddar instead.  It melts quickly and adds a nice, creamy texture.  For extra flavor, I use the Penzey's Fox Point seasoning, which is absolutely amazing!  It's a blend of shallots, chives, garlic, onion and green peppercorns.  I'm obsessed with Penzey's spices.  Sometimes I'll turn the mashed potatoes into a meal by adding steamed broccoli and vegan bacon bits.

I haven't quite figured out what I'm going to do with my asparagus yet.   I have to wait and see if it's even in season and if I can find good asparagus to cook with.  I was thinking of experimenting with Panko crumbs.  I found one recipe for a Panko-pecan asparagus, but that might not delight everyone's taste buds.   Another recipe for roasted asparagus calls for dijon mustard, lemon juice, black pepper and Panko crumbs.  I actually might try that one instead, but replace the mayonnaise with olive oil.  If I can't find asparagus, I'm going to make roasted sesame and garlic green beans or balsamic roasted brussel sprouts.

As for desserts... I stumbled across Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet and found this fantastic recipe for chocolate peanut butter cups.  They seem relatively fool proof and sound delicious!  My other option is from the 30 Minute Vegan by Mark Reinfeld and Jennifer Murray.  The vegan chocolate ganache pie requires six ingredients, but might be a little more difficult than the peanut butter cups.  Although my mother did just send me a new food processor in the mail and I would love to try it out on this recipe which requires the maple syrup, tofu, vanilla and sea salt to be pureed.

I will keep you all posted.

Adult Comfort Food

I would never really consider myself a cook.  I've tried a few recipes here and there, but they definitely don't turn out restaurant quality... or something I would serve someone else.  (When I make stir fry, I typically overcook the vegetables until they are almost burnt, which is the way I like it.) And usually, my recipes are low-key and cheap.  I find that following recipes out of a cookbook or magazine can be time-consuming and expensive-- especially when you're eating natural and organic.  But every now and then I find a recipe that I want to make, and I go out and buy all the ingredients hoping that it'll come together.

Recently, I was reading my latest issue of Vegetarian Times and I found a few pasta recipes that promised to be easy and made with five ingredients.  There was one for linguine in lemon cream sauce that caught my eye.  Typically, I avoid cream sauces since they're made with milk, butter, heavy cream, and cheese, and because they really hurt my stomach.  But in this case, I thought maybe I could substitute the dairy for vegan options.  The real recipe for Linguine in a Lemon Cream Sauce calls for low-fat cream cheese, lemon juice, olive oil, parsley and linguine.  My recipe used non-dairy Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese as a replacement for the recipe's low-fat cream cheese.  I also used whole wheat pasta instead of white pasta.  And since I couldn't find any organic parsley in either of the grocery stores, I decided to use a different one of my Penzey's spices.  I felt like the recipe didn't have any vegetables or nutrients in there so I added peas.

Ingredients:
8 oz. whole wheat thin spaghetti (or in my case, I just guessed since I wasn't able to measure that)
1/2 cup of Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. lemon juice
1/2 cup of frozen peas

I started cooking the spaghetti at the same time as I prepared the peas.  I would have started the sauce at the same time, but I only have two pots.  The sauce was simply just the cream cheese, olive oil and lemon juice.  I mixed those on simmer and then added in a splash of water.  The original recipe calls for a fourth cup of water from the spaghetti pot, but I took fresh water and kind of eyeballed it.  After the sauce was mixed well enough, I threw that and the peas with the drained spaghetti.

For such a simple recipe, it turned out pretty decent.  You could really taste the lemon in it, and I felt better about the fact that it was vegan cream cheese.  I'm still not sold on whether I will make it again, but if I do I will alter it a little bit.  Peas were the way to go, and I might also add in broccoli and cauliflower next time.  I had enough for leftovers for a few days.  Again, I guessed as far as how much pasta to throw in, so I'm not sure how many servings there were.  It kept pretty well, although the texture of the sauce wasn't as smooth after refrigerating it and the reheating it in the microwave.

The Crossover

I grew up eating fairly healthy.  My mother always packed nutritious lunches for us, and we had balanced family dinners at the table every night.  There were always lots of fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator.  And as a child I can remember eating snacks of carrot sticks and string cheese.  (I also remember going to the neighbor's house to eat chicken nuggets and french fries, and of course, Kool-Aid-- things that were never in our house.)  We did have a "junk food" drawer when I was in high school, but those things weren't a daily part of my diet.   I've never had any issues with food, nor have I had any eating disorders-- diagnosed or implied.  I've always been pretty slim for my build.  After fleeing the coop, I felt like I was pretty good about taking care of myself.  (Of course, during college I gained a few extra pounds from drinking beer and eating late night pizza, but it wasn't anything to worry about.)  Looking back, I realize the endless flow of Diet Coke, the three for $10 Lean Cuisines, and the occasional fast food runs were actually the opposite of healthy.  Granted, it could be a lot worse.  But it could also be a hell of a lot better.  


It wasn't until I moved to Los Angeles that I began to look at my overall health and well-being differently.  I started looking at food differently.  I was raised as a carnivore.  I loved cheeseburgers and BLTs and filet mignon.  I ate a lot of dairy without even really realizing it.  I probably had a meat protein at least twice a day.  Then something happened.  I went out to lunch at Joan's on Third and ordered a chicken salad sandwich.  Within 24 hours my chin swelled up.  And that's when it all began.  I started looking into food allergies, and even began testing them on myself.  I found that whenever I ate chicken, my face would react to it.  I learned that my body was reacting to the hormones and antibiotics in the meat.  So I cut out chicken first.  


A few months later, I was at Philippe's and ordered a turkey french dip.  I spent the entire night vomiting.  (Gross, I know).  That was when I stopped eating turkey.  Next, was steak.  I had filet mignon at a wedding and my stomach was so nauseas the entire night that I could hardly dance.  That was the end of meat for me.  I realize these three separate incidents were extreme reactions, but in each one, my body was physically rejecting animal proteins.  So I gave up meat and became a vegetarian.


Now I'm a pseudo-vegan pescetarian.  I don't eat chicken, beef, pork, lamb or any animals.  I don't eat eggs.  I avoid dairy as much as I can.  The only time I eat anything with milk, butter or cheese is when I'm at a restaurant.  Even then, I try to modify my order as much as I can.  I rarely eat fish, but still can't fully give it up.  I follow at least a 90-95% full vegan diet.  (As healthy as I am, I do admit I have a weakness for french fries and chocolate.)


Health extends beyond what you're putting in your body.  It also matters what you put on your body... and how you treat it.  A few years ago I bought Two Faced Lip Injection Extreme lipgloss to make my lips look bigger for a wedding that I was attending.  (Saying this out loud, reminds me of how ridiculously stupid that was.  And also, hearing the name "Lip Injection Extreme" makes me want to cringe... or go back in time and smack myself.)  After the wedding, my face broke out into an allergic reaction.  I had this horrible, horrible rash all over my entire face and nothing but time healed it.  I tried everything from hydrocortizone cream to aloe vera, but nothing seemed to work.  That was when I decided to start paying attention to makeup and lotions and shampoos more.  Chemicals are chemicals... whether they're in your food or on your face.  As time passed, I shamelessly gravitated back to the beauty products I used to use.  But I'm still sucker for organic or natural things.  And I will only use natural, unscented bar soap.


I love finding new vegetarian recipes or learning about holistic healing methods or new natural products.  And I love telling people about them.  So that's why I'm starting this blog.  Stay tuned...