Need help becoming Vegan-ish

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ttrttrttr
ttrttrttr Posts: 34
in Food and Nutrition
I worry about writing this topic as I saw earlier someone was just cutting out red meat and she was totally slammed but I'll risk it anyway. I am trying to cut out all meat, dairy and eggs from my diet. As I am doing this for health reason and not because people eating animals offends me, I know I still will be eating those items from time to time. I realize that means I'm not a true vegan For me it's a diet choice not a morals one. I just want to cut back on those items to less than 2-3 times a week. What I was needing help on was recipe books or websites. In order for me to be successful I'll need lots of recipes to choose from. Can anyone here help me by sharing some of their favorite Vegan recipes resources? Thanks everyone

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  • NuttyBrewnette
    NuttyBrewnette Posts: 417 Member
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    I have similar thoughts/goals on this topic. I saw a post that described the vegan lifestyle as a political stance. For me, it's about health, not politics, so I have cut back. I am not vegan, but I do eat a primarily plant based diet. I tend to try to eat clean (check out www.eatcleandiet.com) Vegan and Vegetarian sites have great recipes using real/whole food...

    Here are a few sites I like:

    www.findingvegan.com


    http://www.vivalavegan.net

    VegSource.com

    http://pickyvegan.com

    http://fromatovegan.com
  • spinachdiva
    spinachdiva Posts: 45
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    way to go for taking the plunge! i have been a vegetarian for a couple of years, and I have some tips:

    1. moderation is key. cut things out of your diet slowly, and don't deny yourself. if you're going to be really heartbroken over the fact that you can't eat chicken, this might not be the right diet for you. ---> it's good that you know that you'll be going back to eggs/meat from time to time. there's nothing wrong with this, just keep your goals in mind :)

    2. don't rely too much on fake meat products a.k.a boca burgers, chik'n products, etc. these are good from time to time but are really pricey! and sometimes not that great for you. i really like tofu, so i eat it relatively often--products like tofu, seitan, tempeh are good things to learn how to cook, and are better than the boca/garden stuff.

    3. find friends who are also vegetarian/vegan: MFP is a great place for this! you're not alone, a lot of people start cutting out animal products to eat healthier.

    4. vegan =/= healthy. you can still overload on pastas, oils, and other bad stuff...just because it's not an animal product, doesn't mean it's ultimately that much healthier.

    some great recipe websites are:
    happyherbivore.com
    vegweb.com
    blog.fatfreevegan.com/

    feel free to message or add me if you have more questions!
  • awkwwward
    awkwwward Posts: 73
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    I worry about writing this topic as I saw earlier someone was just cutting out red meat and she was totally slammed but I'll risk it anyway. I am trying to cut out all meat, dairy and eggs from my diet. As I am doing this for health reason and not because people eating animals offends me, I know I still will be eating those items from time to time. I realize that means I'm not a true vegan For me it's a diet choice not a morals one. I just want to cut back on those items to less than 2-3 times a week. What I was needing help on was recipe books or websites. In order for me to be successful I'll need lots of recipes to choose from. Can anyone here help me by sharing some of their favorite Vegan recipes resources? Thanks everyone

    Hi there,

    Firstly, ignore what the F others say or peg you on. Your body, your life, your intake. So long as you're staying healthy - that is all that matters. There are a lot of really great vegan cookbooks out there like Veganomics, Happy Herbivore (also a great website), Vegan Planet, and a lot of great vegan-ish recipes in the Whole Foods cookbook. A few really good blogs with recipes include:

    Post Punk Kitchen

    Hungry Vegan

    C’est La Vegan

    Little House of Veggies

    Vegan Dad

    Urban Vegan

    Vegan Feast Kitchen

    Vegan Appetite

    Vegan Crunk

    Vegan Food: More Than Tofu & Sprouts

    Vegan Planet

    Your Vegan Mom

    Vegan Eats & Treats

    I Eat Food

    Eat, Drink and Be Vegan

    Hangry Pants

    The Vegan Butcher

    The Tolerant Vegan

    The Kind Life

    I'm the same way with vegan diet, by the way. For me, the pounds started FLYING off after become vegan and I was eating more than I ever really had before. Because of unrelated issues, I've had to allow fish and eggs here and there but it's really been a good choice for me. Good luck with your dieting!
  • Pepper2185
    Pepper2185 Posts: 994 Member
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    In addition to the sources already listed, I enjoy the blog www.myvegancookbook.com

    I feel much healthier eating vegan. But I do have sushi or a tuna sandwich from time to time...
  • frugalmomsrock
    frugalmomsrock Posts: 1,123
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    I honestly think that you should contact an Adventist health systems hospital and see if their nutritionist can get you a book on it.

    That being said, I know a great delicious recipe that I want to share. It's one of our favorites.

    3 cups frozen corn, thawed
    1.5 cans black beans-drained & rinsed
    1 pkg cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
    2 bunches green onions, chopped
    1 seedless cucumber, cut in quarters long way then sliced
    1/2 c. yellow peppers, diced
    1/2 c. red or orange peppers, diced
    1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
    1/2 c. sliced olives (this was my own addition)

    dressing:

    1/4 c. lemon juice
    1/4 c. lime juice
    1/2 c. olive oil (I used 1/4 c. olive and 1/4 c. smart balance oil)
    1 tsp. cumin (I used more like 2-I love cumin!)
    1 tsp italian seasonings
    1 1/2 TBSP salt (I only used 1 tsp-I try to not get too much salt)
    3 cloves of garlic, pressed

    shake together until creamy and pour over veggies. Mix. Serve immediately.

    Delish.


    *I don't like the raw fresh tomatoes, so I use a few TBSP of a chunky salsa instead-it also gives it a little more zip. I also use the full 2 cans of beans because really-how could extra black beans EVER be bad? :)


    Here's a site that is awesome-absolutely not because it's Peta (I love steak), but because it shows the stuff that's vegan that a lot of people would not really expect to be: http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/accidentally-vegan.aspx

    Here are some recipes (again, not pushing Peta-they are just a good resource for this kind of thing). http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/recipes/default.aspx

    recipes: http://www.vegweb.com/

    http://www.food.com/recipe-finder/all/vegetarian

    http://fatfreevegan.com/

    My very favorite: http://vegandad.blogspot.com/



    Information: http://www.vegsource.com/
  • ewebber88
    ewebber88 Posts: 33
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    I'm gunna bump this because I am a vegetarian thinking about becoming vegan as well.
  • Spedden
    Spedden Posts: 207
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    Try fatfreevegan.com for a ton of recipes! Have fun with it, and here's to your good health! :drinker:
  • beckiboo
    beckiboo Posts: 32 Member
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    I've been thinking about it for ages too (health reasons) but it's sooo much easier to keep eating 'normally', and I've got a toddler who I'd be too scared to make 'vegan' just in case I didn't get the right amount of protein etc into her (plus she'll eat fruit until it's coming out of her ears but will only eat one veg - mushrooms)

    I've seen plenty of long term studies on veggie/vegan diets being great for heart disease etc, and plenty of theories on why that's wrong and we should actually be living on mainly meat, but no actual long term studies to prove it.... But like all things, it's a case of picking one that *you* think is right.

    Thanks for all the websites, will take a look.
  • lmelangley
    lmelangley Posts: 1,039 Member
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    Don't know if anyone has said this, but Fleischman's makes a salt free margarine that's vegan. My nephew is super allergic to dairy and that's been a god-send. Since you're not going veganish for animal rights reasons, you may or may not want to stay away from anything made with geletin - which includes marshmallow products.

    My husband makes a lovely vegan pancake using sourdough. You might want to google online for the recipe - I think that's where he got it.

    Unfortunately, most of the recipes I know are for vegan deserts, which I'm sure you're not wanting. Good luck!
  • ttrttrttr
    ttrttrttr Posts: 34
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    Thank you everyone for all of the positive feedback and the helpful information. You've all given me some great resources. alright here I go on a new leg of this journey.
  • NoDairy
    NoDairy Posts: 88
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    Im on a 30 day vegan diet after im going flexitarion, which is a part time vegetarian, im doing it for skin health than animal rights.
    The library has many books and cookbooks. Just google and youll get tons of info thats how ive been learning,

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