Any Vegans in the house?

I'm not vegan but i have done a vegan diet before.. try cous cous.. lots of varieties of flavour and goes really nice with balsamic vinegar cherry tomatoes..

all you need is about 10 cherry tomatoes, a dash of olive oil, dash of balsamic vinegar, 2 cloves of garlic, a few sprigs of basil and leave them to cook covered in the oven until they go all squishy and lovely (about 15 mins)

serve with cous cous with all the juice and you've got yourself a very tasty meal

Vegan here, yes there appear to be consequences to eating too much soy. "New studies suggest that eating large amounts of soys estrogen-mimicking compounds might reduce fertility in women, trigger early puberty and disrupt development of fetuses and children. I eat lots of legumes, green leafy veggies ie: spinach, kale etc and take whey protein as a supplement. Good luck to you.

Yes, be careful with the soy. I am a woman and had many problems when eating tofu. I had read of some have issues eating processed tofu. I stopped eating it and the issues went away.

I heard you generally people could eat soy beans as the issues with soy come from the processing of soy. For me, that is not true. I cannot eat it, period.

Just do your research and be knowledgeable. Everyone is on the soy bandwagon and it is being touted as a wonderfood. Maybe it is not.

I'm not VEGAN but recently decided to go down to lacto-ovo vegetarian. My biggest advice so far is to find a good cookbook or if you prefer a good recipe website (I prefer cookbooks!). Also, someone told me to embrace the fake meat and I would have to agree. Too much soy can be bad but like everything else moderation moderation. Legumes and leafy greens (and all the other veggies of course) should be the focus! Be careful not to go overboard with breads/pastas!

www.vegweb.com for easy vegan recipes with reivew and everything. It is one of my favorites

Regarding the soy thing, you have to eat truly massive amounts of soy before it becomes a problem. Like, every meal every day sort of massive. I wouldn't be too concerned about it, unless you find it's the only thing you're eating.

The reason many people on MFP worry about it is also related to the whole 'processed foods' as unhealthy thing. However, keep in mind that processed actually means altered in any way from the original form - including cutting or peeling. So, your mileage may vary, since it's a pretty vague definition.

Personally, I find tofu to be a versatile ingredient, and an excellent source of calcium and protein. But you should find your own comfort level.

I second vegweb.com as a good source of recipes. It's my go-to source whether vegan or non-vegan. Also, check the commentary for extra tips and healthier substitutions. Very helpful and delicious.

Hi! I used to be Vegan, but have gone back to Omnivorous eating. I only eat meat a certain amount of times per week. The rest I stick in extra vegetables, seitan, bean curds or mock meats. My sister is also a member of this site and has been Vegan for 3 years, Vegetarian for 2 years before that. She has done courses in Vegan Nutrition and the like, so if you would like to talk to her feel free to let me know; and I will ask her if I can forward on her user name to you.

As for the soy debate, personally I limit it where possible as I don't want to become dependent on it. It is usually overly processed, so I stuck with everything as natural as I could. BUT of course I still allowed myself to have that treat from time to time.

Soy isn't necessarily bad for you as a whole. BUT non-organic soy beans are sometimes processed with "hexane" (feel free to look it up), which is a derivative of gasoline. Foods that don't tell me whether their soy is organic or not? I steer away from as it does have carcinogenic qualities.

Other than that, I see no harm in it. I was told originally by my Doctor to stay away from soy when I was diagnosed with pre-cancer of the breast. This was due to phytoestrogens in soy which supposedly "mimic" human estrogen. There is no correlation between soy estrogen and that found in humans specifically. Any conflicting stories are based on anecdotal evidence that may not have taken other dietary factors into account.

Everything in moderation. I always found that to be the key

Oh - I also wanted to say - Green leafy veg! Green leafy veg! Green leafy veg!

I recently have started to eat 100% vegan almost everyday and I am making the transition. Have been a lacto-ovo vegetarian for awhile and I have lactose intolerance issues that keep getting worse, so going vegan seemed like a good idea for me. For my meals I mainly eat beans, lentils, less processed soy items like tofu, edamame, and tempeh, nuts and nut butter, whole grains, fruits, and veggies. I do eat some processed soy as well, but limit my use of it and I use unsweetened almond milk most of the time in place of milk.

As long as you make healthy choices and carefully plan your meals to fit your nutritional needs, it can be done. Check out the fat free vegan blog for some yummy, healthy recipes:

blog.fatfreevegan.com

Hope this helps and good luck, you can do it.

Saving the planet one meal at a time!!! I love soy but keep in mind, buying organic is important if you live in the US