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Vegan community thread - Give Peas a Chance

Zakalwe

Banned
I have a frustrating combination of Ulcerative Colitis and a Vegan diet. For those who don't understand UC, it's an IBD that can cause extreme weight loss.

A symptom of my disease is joint pain. Mainly manifest in my elbows which makes working out incredible difficult. I can run, swim, yoga, etc... but exercises for putting on bulk are difficult to manage.

My diet is pretty balanced, I eat a fair amount of protein, but I'm struggling to gain weight and I'm incredibly thin.

I'm doing my own research, but I'd appreciate anyone with experience here to chime in and lend it. Any supplements or specific diet regimes that worked for you? I'd love to hear, thanks.
 

Famassu

Member
Made this today. Seitan in oat cream sauce with rice and salad (red bell pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, pineapple, salad leaves, broccoli), some cut.. Ummm.. "grass onion" (don't know what it's called in English) on top.

e6ein7j.jpg
 

riotous

Banned
Some great food at Vegan Beer Fest PDX today; I'm not a Vegan buy my wife is in heaven. A chance to try some popular Vegan food from LA (Doomies for instance.)
 

Futureman

Member
do you guys and gals want to talk about animal ownership?

My vegan friend owns a dog but he thinks it's wrong for people to own horses. Isn't that hypocritical?
 
do you guys and gals want to talk about animal ownership?

My vegan friend owns a dog but he thinks it's wrong for people to own horses. Isn't that hypocritical?

only if he "buys" dogs from a breeder. rescue animals from the shelter and such are totally fine. they need help. in a perfect world they wouldn't but that's not the reality right now.
 

derFeef

Member
do you guys and gals want to talk about animal ownership?

My vegan friend owns a dog but he thinks it's wrong for people to own horses. Isn't that hypocritical?

My SO stopped riding a horse after she went vegan. It makes no sense at all enslaving them and forcing them to do thing they naturally would refuse, like showjumping.
 

Celegus

Member
Getting my tonsils ripped out in a few weeks, any tips for easy soft vegan things to eat? I know people always talk about ice cream, so I stocked up on coconut cream to make in the ice cream machine.
 

Famassu

Member
Getting my tonsils ripped out in a few weeks, any tips for easy soft vegan things to eat? I know people always talk about ice cream, so I stocked up on coconut cream to make in the ice cream machine.
Carrot soup. 6-8 carrots, 2-4 potatoes, 1-2 onions, 2-3 vegetable stock cubes, 2dl of some kind of vegetble cream (oat & coconut creams work). Sautee onions, throw in pieced carrots & potatoes, pour water until it covers the root vegetables. Throw in the stock cubes. Cook in boiling water until they are done. Pour most of the cooking water into some kind of bowl or whatever (not down the drain, you'll need it soon after). Use some kind of blender to blend the Cs & Ps. Add cream and some of the cooking water and keep blendin' until the soup's texture is to the thickness of your liking.

You can also add stuff like red curry paste (3-4 small spoonfuls) & cauliflower. Though not sure how well the spicy-ish curry paste fits someone in your condition.

God tier food, especially with some freshly made buns or the like, if you can eat it.
 

Daigoro

Member
Just sweet potatoes cut and put in the oven with some oil and seasoning.

but they look so crinkly! (in a good way)

Getting my tonsils ripped out in a few weeks, any tips for easy soft vegan things to eat? I know people always talk about ice cream, so I stocked up on coconut cream to make in the ice cream machine.

yeah soups for sure. Lentil soup!. Chili. indian style potatoes, dal, chickpeas.

make some refried beans with guacamole, salsa, carmelized onion.

apple sauce. fruit and spinach smoothies.

good luck!
 
Getting my tonsils ripped out in a few weeks, any tips for easy soft vegan things to eat? I know people always talk about ice cream, so I stocked up on coconut cream to make in the ice cream machine.


One of my favorite nutritionally dense soups. I like to add some potatoes and lentils to it for something heartier.

ASPARAGUS PEA SOUP
Olive or avocado oil
12 ounces (1 large bundle) asparagus, trimmed
10 ounces (~2 cups) fresh or frozen peas
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
Salt + Pepper
1 1/2 cups Almond Breeze unsweetened plain almond milk
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1-2 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional | for a slightly cheesy flavor)
1/2 lemon, juiced (optional, for brightness)
GARLIC HERB CROUTONS
2 cups bread (any kind), cubed
1/4 cup olive oil (or other neutral oil)
1/4 tsp each garlic powder, salt + pepper, dried oregano, dried basil

Instructions
1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and spread asparagus on a bare baking sheet. Drizzle with oil of choice and season lightly with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
Roast for 15 minutes, then set aside. If making croutons, reduce heat to 325 degrees F at this time.
2.Heat a large saucepan or pot medium heat. Once hot, add 2 Tbsp oil and shallot and garlic. Season lightly with salt and pepper and stir to coat. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant and translucent. Reduce heat if garlic begins browning.
3.Add peas, vegetable broth and almond milk and season with salt and pepper once more.
4.Transfer soup to blender along with asparagus (reserve some for garnish if desired). Blend soup until creamy and smooth. Transfer back to pot and bring to medium heat and simmer.
5.Add nutritional yeast and whisk. Continue cooking until warmed through and simmering, then reduce heat to low.
6.Taste and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more salt and pepper if desired. 7.Remove from heat and add lemon juice.
If serving with croutons, prep while soup is simmering by lowering oven heat to 325 degrees F.
8.Add bread crumbs to a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil and seasonings and pour over bread crumbs and toss to combine. Season once more with a bit more garlic powder, salt and pepper. Toss once more.
9.Spread on a clean baking sheet (or the one you used earlier) and bake or 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip/stir at the 10-minute mark to ensure even baking.
10.Serve soup with croutons and a touch of black pepper and/or vegan parmesan cheese. Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for up to a few days, though best when fresh.
 

Celegus

Member
Yeah soup is probably gonna be the way to go, some of those look real good! Anything even remotely spicy or acidic is a no-go though.
 

Zakalwe

Banned
do you guys and gals want to talk about animal ownership?

My vegan friend owns a dog but he thinks it's wrong for people to own horses. Isn't that hypocritical?

Depends.

I disagree with the way animals have been domesticated. I couldn't own my own pet in a conventional way and feel ok.

However, if I lived somewhere with a great deal of open space and could build a dog or cat its own shelter to sleep in and let it freely roam the grounds, I'd consider rescuing animals and taking care of them.

As long as you treat your pets well and provide all the things they need, I think its ok. I'd definitely only ever consider a rescue animal, though, and I just can't agree with anything in a cage (especially birds).

Using animals for sport, any kind of racing or show jumping, etc... I don't agree with either.
 

wildbite

Member
Thank you all for the recipes :) I have to try these out!

Would anyone recommend some breakfast ideas? I hate eating in the morning and often only have a Vegan Orgain shake.....but I'm trying to bulk up so I am not meeting my calorie goals.

Here are my typical breakfasts (one of the three):
1. Smoothie - coconut oil, peanut butter, vegan protein powder, almond milk, 1-2 bananas, frozen fruit, chia seeds

2. Overnight oats - steel cut oats, peanut butter, chia seeds, cashews, almond milk

3. Beans, rice, tofu, and avocado in a tortilla and heated in a for a few minutes to crisp the tortilla

I get tired of eating the same thing every day that I often lose motivation to make breakfast, even though I really have no excuse because they are so easy to prepare.

What else do you all eat for breakfast that is quick and easy?
 

Pinkuss

Member
Lazy option but I live on Wheatabix (all Vegan; even the chocolate) with shedloads of raisins/any other dried fruit.

Edit; dried, not fried... although...
 

McLovin

Member
Im giving this vegetarian thing a go, been doing it for 4 days now(5th today). Ended up eating vegan yesterday. Hopefully I can maintain this lifestyle. I workout a lot and heavy. Haven't been taking protein either, hopefully I can find a plant based protein powder that doesn't cost a million dollars:(
Reason: cancer in my family, plus I always hated eating cows. Every time I tried going vegetarian as a kid my mom would sabotage me with my favorite meat dishes. But hopefully I can make it since I cook my own food now.
 

Surfinn

Member
I read some time ago (don't remember where) that by switching to a vegan diet actually kills animals because the increased demand for vegetables leads to deforestation since you have to create farms to cultivate these, opposed to cattle raising that uses existing resources to feed their animals.

Do you think is there any truth to this?
Lol, is this sarcasm?

The lengths purple go to to demonize veganism.. Such a shame (not directed at the person I quoted).

Been vegan for 6 months now and feel great by the way.
Im giving this vegetarian thing a go, been doing it for 4 days now(5th today). Ended up eating vegan yesterday. Hopefully I can maintain this lifestyle. I workout a lot and heavy. Haven't been taking protein either, hopefully I can find a plant based protein powder that doesn't cost a million dollars:(
Reason: cancer in my family, plus I always hated eating cows. Every time I tried going vegetarian as a kid my mom would sabotage me with my favorite meat dishes. But hopefully I can make it since I cook my own food now.
You don't need any extra protein for working out, this is a myth. As long as you're eating enough calories you're good. I've been working out and gaining muscle.
 

yonder

Member
Im giving this vegetarian thing a go, been doing it for 4 days now(5th today). Ended up eating vegan yesterday. Hopefully I can maintain this lifestyle. I workout a lot and heavy. Haven't been taking protein either, hopefully I can find a plant based protein powder that doesn't cost a million dollars:(
Reason: cancer in my family, plus I always hated eating cows. Every time I tried going vegetarian as a kid my mom would sabotage me with my favorite meat dishes. But hopefully I can make it since I cook my own food now.
That's great! Let us know if you have any questions.

This might be of interest to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk0UGmiYiCA&list=FL0RbECcoFP03rVrrA3-Rhag&index=2 Two bodybuilders discussing their progress since having gone vegan a year ago.
 

McLovin

Member
Lol, is this sarcasm?

The lengths purple go to to demonize veganism.. Such a shame (not directed at the person I quoted).

Been vegan for 6 months now and feel great by the way.

You don't need any extra protein for working out, this is a myth. As long as you're eating enough calories you're good. I've been working out and gaining muscle.
Ok cool I'll avoid the protein powder for now and try getting it from tofu, quinoa, nuts, etc. I'm usually anal about my macros but I'll try a just eat lots of healthy foods approach.
That's great! Let us know if you have any questions.

This might be of interest to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk0UGmiYiCA&list=FL0RbECcoFP03rVrrA3-Rhag&index=2 Two bodybuilders discussing their progress since having gone vegan a year ago.
Would be nice to get lean like these guys, i went overboard bulking to try to get my bench up. I'm just gonna focus on bringing my body fat down.
 

Surfinn

Member
Ok cool I'll avoid the protein powder for now and try getting it from tofu, quinoa, nuts, etc. I'm usually anal about my macros but I'll try a just eat lots of healthy foods approach.

Would be nice to get lean like these guys, i went overboard bulking to try to get my bench up. I'm just gonna focus on bringing my body fat down.
Really cool to hear you're eating healthier and plan on bringing your body fat down. I've been eating this way for months now and have plenty of energy to work out. Just make sure you're eating lots of food, as long as it's whole foods you'll start to lose weight. Nuts are s great thing to snack on, I usually go for a mixed can, lightly salted.
 
Our move to the US is only a week away and I am curious to see how the culinary palette will change.
I guess LA is probably the best place to be for Vegan food in the US, so I am not particularly worried about that, but when we go off for the weekend to other places I guess the choices will be greatly limited once we hit up a regular diner.

Any general vegan tips or must tries/must visit in LA?
We will be living in Woodland Hills to be more precise.
 

ElTorro

I wanted to dominate the living room. Then I took an ESRAM in the knee.
Our move to the US is only a week away and I am curious to see how the culinary palette will change.

Every time I visited a large city the US, finding vegetarian/vegan food was actually easier than in Germany.
 

Futureman

Member
what's everyone's favorite sources of protein? I'm not vegan but started eating vegetarian 2 months ago. I'm thinking I'm definitely not hitting the recommended 56 grams for a male.

I know quinoa and avocados are good which I eat both. Any other suggestions?
 

derFeef

Member
what's everyone's favorite sources of protein? I'm not vegan but started eating vegetarian 2 months ago. I'm thinking I'm definitely not hitting the recommended 56 grams for a male.

I know quinoa and avocados are good which I eat both. Any other suggestions?

No. 1 would be Seitan I think. Then tofu, oatmeal (with soyghurt). Lentils, amaranth and nuts.
 

Hypron

Member
what's everyone's favorite sources of protein? I'm not vegan but started eating vegetarian 2 months ago. I'm thinking I'm definitely not hitting the recommended 56 grams for a male.

I know quinoa and avocados are good which I eat both. Any other suggestions?

I eat oats in the morning and a metric ton of black turtle beans for lunch and dinner, which are pretty high in protein.
 

Futureman

Member
thanks!

obviously nutrition can be a field with lots of disagreement. I'm seeing a wide range of recommended daily intake...

WHO says 38 grams per day and then I found a USDA calculator and for my height/weight/activity level it's telling me 68 grams.
 

Famassu

Member
Cycled some 40km the day before and hadn't eaten in almost 24 hours.


Oat-creamy seitan-chanterelle-onion-garlic sauce, salad (red bell peppers, grated carrots, cucumber, iceberg lettuce, pineapple) & some rice. A kind of a big portion but I was starving. :S

Also tested some Aquafaba-pancakes some time ago. Easy enough recipe: 1,5 dl aquafaba, 1,5dl wheat flour, 1,5 of some kind of milk, some salt, suger & a little bit of olive oil or something. Whipped the aquafaba for a little while until all of it was a bit foamy (but not firm), then mixed in the other ingredients, let it rest for 30-40 minutes and then fry it on a frying pan. Not quite the same texture/firmness & taste as egg-y pancakes, but as food-vessels for coconut whipped cream and some raspberries, it works perfectly fine. This first batch had a mild taste but that might be because I was really careful with the salt & sugar. Might also try black salt to get that bit of egg-like flavor, see if that makes it better.
 

derFeef

Member
Aquafaba is still on my list to try out, sounds really interesting. Also that meal looks great and you propably needed it :D
 

Famassu

Member
Plz halp. I'm currently obsessed with my tortillas, filled with curry or garlic flavoured seitan, some greens (iceberg lettuce, spinach, chinese cabbage or something), red onions or leek, red bell peppers, pineapple, medium hot salsa and oat creamy sauce (with varying spices/flavors, sometimes smoky paprika, often use nutritional yeast to get a bit cheesy a flavour).

I could just eat an endless amount of them. -_-
 

derFeef

Member
Send some over to me :) Just got home from work and too tired to cook something :(

edit: Also nice snark from a colleague today (sorry, today was shit and need to let off some steam)
"Those vegetarians are then those, who order specific things and then only one spoon [because look at them]!"
I should have told him I am vegan.
 

Surfinn

Member

yonder

Member

Futureman

Member
The pasta sauce was decent. I used firm tofu instead soft though I'm not sure that really matters because you end up blending it anyways.

the recipe has cheese but was totally fine to me w/o it. Full disclosure I'm vegetarian but try to eat vegan often.
 

yonder

Member
The pasta sauce was decent. I used firm tofu instead soft though I'm not sure that really matters because you end up blending it anyways.

the recipe has cheese but was totally fine to me w/o it. Full disclosure I'm vegetarian but try to eat vegan often.
Thanks, good to know! My guess is that silken tofu might make a creamier sauce. Also, some nutritional yeast on top would probably work well instead of the parmesan. I'll report back if and when I make it myself.

Edit: aw crap, top of the page.
 
Hello vegan gaf!!

I am going Vegan from Monday!!! 100% for cooking at home and will dial it back when eating out big time...aim to be free by the new year. I'll see how it goes, if I can go cold turkey straight away might as well.

Any advice for a newcomer to the field?

I love loads of veggie food anyway so I don't anticipate it to be the biggest most difficult change ever. And holland & barrett has replacements for basically everything haha!!

My main questions right now are:

- I want to avoid any non fermented soy products...with this in mind what do you think my best bets for protein are? I love beans, pulses etc already. Is there anything else?

I read this article about proteins

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/natural-health/soy-free-vegan-foods-that-have-more-protein-than-beef/

Does it seem sound to you guys?

- Almond or Rice milk?

- What is the best butter type spread you have found for toast?

- Do any of you take B12 & Omega 3 supplements? If so any cheap finds?
 

Famassu

Member
Hello vegan gaf!!

I am going Vegan from Monday!!! 100% for cooking at home and will dial it back when eating out big time...aim to be free by the new year. I'll see how it goes, if I can go cold turkey straight away might as well.

Any advice for a newcomer to the field?

I love loads of veggie food anyway so I don't anticipate it to be the biggest most difficult change ever. And holland & barrett has replacements for basically everything haha!!

My main questions right now are:

- I want to avoid any non fermented soy products...with this in mind what do you think my best bets for protein are? I love beans, pulses etc already. Is there anything else?

I read this article about proteins

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/natural-health/soy-free-vegan-foods-that-have-more-protein-than-beef/

Does it seem sound to you guys?
Just try to get it from as many sources as possible (not only beans and other legumes, but nuts, whole grain products, certain protein heavy-ish vegetables, mushrooms and stuff). That not only resolves the problem of some vegetable protein sources lacking in certain amino acids, but you'll get a healthy dosage of all kinds of nutrients.

And why avoid unfermented soy products? Have you bought into the baseless scaremongering or do you have some legitimate reasons to avoid them? Soy is one of the best sources of protein, offering every amino acid the human body needs, & has somewhat plentiful amounts of some other nutrients like iron as well. It's not harmful to the human body, unless you eat, like, 5kg of it per day. All of the "evidence" of soy being bad touted by some sources are either not even properly quoted/linked to (as in, they have no source other than Pulling Shit Out of Their Asses) or are based on very flawed studies (studies made on animals that don't have digestive systems that are as good at handling soy as the human body does, the amounts of soy they fed to these animals has been completely ridiculous as well and nowhere close to the kind of amounts that even heavy soy users get to daily etc.)


And remember, don't get too hung up if you make mistakes and occasionally slip up. We are all human, after all, and humans err. Just try to do your best and take it one day at a time. In the end, even if you decide that full on veganism isn't for you, it's better to be "mostly vegan" & making the effort to focus on vegan food (even if you sometimes slip up) than being all "ah, fuck this, it's too hard. Since I can't be 100% vegan, it's back to meat 7 days per week, twice a day!" If all that you're left with after this "experiment" is that you'll mix up your diet with lots of vegan foods instead of always choosing the meaty & dairy alternatives, that's already tons better than not even trying or giving up and going back to your old ways and taking nothing away from it.

- Almond or Rice milk?
Not almond, unless it's chocolate almond milk. Rice plantations aren't the best thing for the environment so I'm kind of iffy using too much rice products. Nowadays I mostly use oat (can be grown in very modest conditions & environmentally low-impact ways) and sometimes coconut cream/milk when I want to cook something a bit more Asian. Occasionally pick up soy products as well but as oat products are readily available where I live (and lots of it made in Finland or Sweden), I try to support close(r) by production instead of stuff produced on the other side of the planet, even if soy that goes to humans really isn't all that problematic (it's the, like, 80-90% of all soy produced that goes to feeding cattle that is the reason for super huge soy plantations that cause environmental problems)

- Do any of you take B12 & Omega 3 supplements? If so any cheap finds?
Yes, occasionally when I don't buy products with added such. Hard to say what to recommend, the products I buy in Finland probably aren't (named) the same everywhere else. Just make sure that they haven't used any animal based products in the pill's outer layer and you're good to go. I also use this one (German, I think?) imported nutritional yeast that a couple of stores around here sell that has some vitamins like B12 added into it.
 

yonder

Member
Hello vegan gaf!!

I am going Vegan from Monday!!! 100% for cooking at home and will dial it back when eating out big time...aim to be free by the new year. I'll see how it goes, if I can go cold turkey straight away might as well.

Any advice for a newcomer to the field?

I love loads of veggie food anyway so I don't anticipate it to be the biggest most difficult change ever. And holland & barrett has replacements for basically everything haha!!

My main questions right now are:

- I want to avoid any non fermented soy products...with this in mind what do you think my best bets for protein are? I love beans, pulses etc already. Is there anything else?

I read this article about proteins

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/natural-health/soy-free-vegan-foods-that-have-more-protein-than-beef/

Does it seem sound to you guys?

- Almond or Rice milk?

- What is the best butter type spread you have found for toast?

- Do any of you take B12 & Omega 3 supplements? If so any cheap finds?
Hey, congratulations and welcome! :) Going vegan has been one of the best things I've ever done and I hope you'll feel the same.

That article on protein is a bit misleading. Saying that broccoli has more protein than meat is technically true if you compare them calorie-wise. Realistically, however, the amount of broccoli you have to eat to get a comparable amount of protein to, say, a steak is huge. But you don't have to worry about protein. Nearly everything you eat will have protein, and you likely only need to get around 50-60 grams a day which is easily achieved. Don't worry about mixing and matching amino acids. All foods have all the amino acids you need, but in different ratios. As long as you eat enough calories and in a fairly varied way, you'll be good. Don't be afraid of non-fermented soy, either, unless you have a specific allergy. It's not only harmless in normal quantities, but healthy. If you want references, I'll be happy to provide some.

Do take a B12 supplement. It's a cheap and easy way to ensure that you won't get deficient which could lead to permanent neurological damage. I do a 2500mcg cyanocobalamin once a week. I don't take an omega supplement, but I do eat flaxseed almost daily. I also take some vitamin D on most days since I don't get a lot of sun.

Check out www.veganhealth.org for good info on nutrition.

Some random tips:

- youtube is a great source for recipes
- keep trying new recipes! I recently learned to love tahini and I'm currently making some awesome, creamy sauces with it
- don't beat yourself up if you have a slip-up. do the best you can!
- keep educating yourself to stay motivated. youtube and books are good for this
- 7 Habits of Happy, Healthy Vegans

Good luck and don't be afraid of asking more questions :)
 
Thanks, good to know! My guess is that silken tofu might make a creamier sauce. Also, some nutritional yeast on top would probably work well instead of the parmesan. I'll report back if and when I make it myself.

Edit: aw crap, top of the page.

3/4 cup (90 g) raw cashews
3 Tbsp (9 g) nutritional yeast
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder

this is the best vegan parmesan recipe i have used. Soo fucking great.
 
Anyone know a good recipe for veggie/bean burgers? :)

My wife just made some incredible black bean burgers with a recipe from The Homemade Vegan Pantry. Unfortunately I'm at work, so don't have the recipe handy (which makes this post horribly unhelpful, I know), but I can highly recommend that one if you can get your hands on the book.

It also has a great recipe for homemade pickles, if those are your thing.
 
Why is it that many raw vegans are fruitarians and preach with tons of anecdotal evidence that it's THE diet to go on. And why does it seem to rise in popularity within the Vegan community? At least the YouTube one. Every diet video on YouTube is populated by raw fruit eating vegans claiming that the food digests better and gives them so much more energy. With many upvotes and yet no one to debunk them flat?

This is why veganism is not being taken seriously because this Evangelical rise of raw veganism
 
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