New vegan need advice and ideas!!

realpersonal wrote: »

CBD92 wrote: »

The best advice I can give is to make small changes over time if you want it to last. When I was 14 I decided to become a vegetarian, because (looking back) it was "the cool thing to do". As you can guess, it didn't last long and I ended up just buying a Whopper from Burger King one day just cause we were passing by and that was the end of that! Fast forward 5 years and I decided I actually wanted to be a vegan or a vegetarian for completely different reasons. So because I was committed to making it a life long change, I took it super slow because I realized that when I stopped eating meat 5 years previous, I had no idea what I was doing. I just simply took meat out of my diet. I didn't replace all the protein, amino acids, omegas etc with anything else, I just simply took out the meat. So I thought I should take it slow. First thing I did was took out ground beef and replaced it with TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) which kind of looks like/has the same texture as ground beef. That way I could still eat the meals I was used to making (such as lasagna and spaghetti) without using meat. That way it wasn't too overwhelming!

After I was totally used to not having ground beef anymore, I moved onto the next thing. I would always use the vegan "meats", just to get me used to the transition. Once I stopped eating meat completely, I also stopped relying on the soy vegan "meats" and started to really shift into relying a lot on lentils and other legumes and all that kind of stuff. My diet is TOTALLY different now. Honestly, TVP and vegan "meats" aren't the healthiest thing for you, but they will definitely get you through the transitioning phase with ease as you get used to not having meat in your diet.

P.S. I'm not in any way suggesting that you are becoming vegan because it's the cool thing to do, I was just speaking on my personal experience, and just wanting you to understand that it is a difficult change that requires some dedication and persistence, and it really is easier to make slow changes over time! It's not so overwhelming that way, as you slowly learn a new vegan recipe here and there. Being a vegan or vegetarian is great for so many different reasons, but you need to think about yourself first and make sure you nourish your body properly. I suggest doing a lot of research on nutrients you usually get from meat and really understanding all about it so you can go look for plant based nutrients. I have been vegetarian now 4 years and I still do research to make sure I am always nourishing myself properly! Good luck

Cheers!

Thank you for telling me this, this has been helpful! I am currently having meals with chick peas and salads and having the quorn vegan products

HeliumIsNoble wrote: »

How

rainbowbow wrote: »

realpersonal wrote: »

CBD92 wrote: »

The best advice I can give is to make small changes over time if you want it to last. When I was 14 I decided to become a vegetarian, because (looking back) it was "the cool thing to do". As you can guess, it didn't last long and I ended up just buying a Whopper from Burger King one day just cause we were passing by and that was the end of that! Fast forward 5 years and I decided I actually wanted to be a vegan or a vegetarian for completely different reasons. So because I was committed to making it a life long change, I took it super slow because I realized that when I stopped eating meat 5 years previous, I had no idea what I was doing. I just simply took meat out of my diet. I didn't replace all the protein, amino acids, omegas etc with anything else, I just simply took out the meat. So I thought I should take it slow. First thing I did was took out ground beef and replaced it with TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) which kind of looks like/has the same texture as ground beef. That way I could still eat the meals I was used to making (such as lasagna and spaghetti) without using meat. That way it wasn't too overwhelming!

After I was totally used to not having ground beef anymore, I moved onto the next thing. I would always use the vegan "meats", just to get me used to the transition. Once I stopped eating meat completely, I also stopped relying on the soy vegan "meats" and started to really shift into relying a lot on lentils and other legumes and all that kind of stuff. My diet is TOTALLY different now. Honestly, TVP and vegan "meats" aren't the healthiest thing for you, but they will definitely get you through the transitioning phase with ease as you get used to not having meat in your diet.

P.S. I'm not in any way suggesting that you are becoming vegan because it's the cool thing to do, I was just speaking on my personal experience, and just wanting you to understand that it is a difficult change that requires some dedication and persistence, and it really is easier to make slow changes over time! It's not so overwhelming that way, as you slowly learn a new vegan recipe here and there. Being a vegan or vegetarian is great for so many different reasons, but you need to think about yourself first and make sure you nourish your body properly. I suggest doing a lot of research on nutrients you usually get from meat and really understanding all about it so you can go look for plant based nutrients. I have been vegetarian now 4 years and I still do research to make sure I am always nourishing myself properly! Good luck

Cheers!

Thank you for telling me this, this has been helpful! I am currently having meals with chick peas and salads and having the quorn vegan products

protip: most of quorn's products aren't vegan and include egg.

However, the vegan ones have vegan emblazoned across the front of the packet in letters so big you might see them from the top of Mount Sinai, so it's easy to avoid the products with egg.

vegan4lyfe2012 wrote: »

Here are some of my favorite recipes:

VEGETARIAN CHILI

1 ½ cups cooked kidney beans
1 ½ cups cooked pinto beans
1 can Dakota Pride Mild Chili Beans (my secret weapon-only thing I buy at Aldi’s)
1 onion, diced
2 green bell peppers, diced
1 can diced tomatoes (do not drain)
2 ½ cups water
1 tblsp chix bullion powder (vegan)
1 tblsp chili powder
1 tblsp garlic salt
1 tblsp cumin

Bring everything to a boil and cook until onions and peppers are soft – about 15 minutes.


RATATOUILLE HOAGIE

Dice & saute up in a little olive oil:

1 eggplant
1 zucchini
1 green pepper
1 onion
1 clove garlic, minced

Once everything is getting fairly cooked, add in a can of diced tomatoes with juice and a couple tablespoons of tomato paste. Season with salt & pepper, basil and parsley. I like to toast hoagie buns, load them with this, add (vegan) mozzarella and put under the broiler for just a minute - until the cheese is melted.



AVOCADO TOFU SANDWICH

Baked Tofu: Press & drain 1 block firm tofu. Cut into 4 "patties". Brush on mixture of soy sauce and liquid smoke, then sprinkle on garlic powder, salt & pepper. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Flip and bake additional 15 minutes.

Avocado "mayo": Mash 1 avocado and combine with 1 T red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and parsley. Use this in place of mayo.

Serve in a pita with a slice of tomato and lettuce.



VERY VEGGIE “SPAGHETTI”

2 Tbsp Tuscan Herb Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or regular EVOO)
1 Onion, diced
10 oz jar sliced Mushrooms
2 large Zucchini, shredded in food processor
2 large Carrots, shredded in food processor
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 can (15 oz) Tomato Sauce, no salt added
1 can (15 oz) Diced Tomatoes, no salt added - DO NOT DRAIN
2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
2 Tbsp Flaxmeal
1 Tbsp dried Basil
1 Tbsp dried Parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste
Nutritional Yeast (optional)

Using a julienne peeler, make a huge mound of raw carrot or zucchini "pasta"...then top it with very veggie sauce.


DEVILISH CHICK SPREAD

3 cups chickpeas, cooked
1 cup vegan mayonnaise
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 teaspoon curry powder
Season Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped chives

Combine everything except chives in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse on and off until the mixture is nicely melded, but don’t puree—leave a little texture. Add the chives through the feed tube and pulse on and off a few times to whirl in


THREE BEAN SALAD

1.5 cups cooked kidney beans
1.5 cups cooked chickpeas
2 cups cooked green beans
1/2 white onion, finely diced
1/2 green bell pepper, finely diced

Dressing:

2 T olive oil
2 T apple cider vinegar
parsley, salt & pepper to taste

Mix dressing, stir in beans, onion and bell pepper and let marinate for at least 2 hours.


QUINOA VEGGIE PLATE

Ingredients
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
1 cup water
1 tsp vegan chix bouillion (optional)
1 cup frozen green beans
1 cup frozen cut carrots
1 cup frozen peppers and onions

*Sauce:
1/3 cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup diced tomato with juice
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp dried minced onion
Dash of garlic powder
Salt and Pepper to taste

1 tsp Nutritional Yeast
Sprinkling of Adobo Seasoning

Directions
Bring 1 cup water to a boil. Add vegan chix flavored bullion, if desired. After boiling, stir in rinsed quinoa, lower heat to medium low, cover and cook 15 to 20 minutes, until quinoa is semi-translucent.

While quinoa is cooking, steam green beans, carrots, peppers and onions for 8 minutes.

For sauce, combine tomato sauce, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, dried minced onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper and heat on stove for 5 to 10 minutes.*

To plate, divide quinoa onto two plates, top each with half of the veggies and sprinkle on Adobo seasoning. Divide the tomato sauce and pour over each plate and top each one with 1/2 tsp of nutritional yeast.

*To speed this up, you can substitute your favorite pasta sauce for the sauce recipe.



LOADED BAKED SWEET POTATO

(ingredients listed tops 2 sweet potatoes):

Combine 1/4 cup beans (red, black, white, pinto...your choice), 1 diced tomato, 1/2 diced onion, 1 tablespoon ground flax, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper. Mix it all up and top the sweet potatoes.

I usually just stab the potatoes with a fork several times and microwave them for 10 minutes and they turn out perfect!


STIR-FRY SAUCE

I heat up a bag of frozen stir-fry veggies, 1 can of chinese veggies (drained), 1 can of water chestnuts (drained), then pour the following sauce. I know stir-fry is supposed to be quick-cooking, but after I pour my sauce on, I like to keep it on the heat for about 5 minutes, stirring the sauce around and letting it soak in to the veggies.

Whisk together:

1 tsp ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp light agave
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp ponzu sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 tsp corn starch



TOFUNA

Baked Tofu
Press a block of Lite Firm Tofu to remove as much water as possible. Cut into 4 "patties". Spray a baking sheet with EVOO. Mix together 2 Tablespoons of soy sauce and 1/2 tsp liquid smoke. Brush onto both sides of the patties, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Flip over and bake additional 15 minutes. When they are cooled, I roughly break them up and pulse them in my food processor. Put into a mixing bowl and add:

1 celery stalk, finely diced
1/2 cup vegan mayo
3 tablespoons dill pickle relish
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
salt & pepper to taste

Mix thoroughly and thoroughly enjoy!


My favorite “comfort food” recipe…I love to add LOTS of pepper flakes on mine!

PEANUT NOODLES

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup all natural peanut butter
2 tablespoons sesame oil
Red pepper flakes (optional)

In a saucepan, heat water, soy sauce, ginger and vinegar on medium-low heat. When warm, add peanut butter. Allow it to melt a couple minutes, then use a whisk to smooth it out. Just before pouring over cooked pasta, turn off heat and whisk in the sesame oil. Pour over 16 oz cooked whole wheat pasta. Sprinkle on red pepper flakes.