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Vegan Barbecue Ribz
These ribs are cheap and easy to make. They look like the real thing, and are high in protein. We devour these savory, sauce-covered spare ribs as often as we can. Totally animal-free and you’ll get rich, smoky barbecue taste.
read moreVegan Protein Bars
Protein bars are great for a quick breakfast bars and one of our favorite snacks. They can be made ahead of time and take up little space in your bag so you can always have something on hand to eat that you know is good for you.
read moreTop Five Tips for Raising Vegan Babies and Children
Vegans face a myriad of concerns as they make choices in raising a vegan child. Challenges are around every corner and include not only food but family, friends, health care, school and more. Crystal Hansen, a vegan mom of two, shares five important factors vegan parents should be prepared to face. #1 Know the appropriate health requirements: Realize that a vegan diet can meet all of your baby and child’s nutritional needs, but only if it is done correctly. All newborn babies get the greatest benefit by nursing from their mothers. When that isn’t a possibility, soy formulas work for many infants. You may have to contact individual companies if you have questions about whether a soy formula is completely vegan. Make sure to note that there’s a big difference between soy formula and soy milk. Feeding an infant soy milk or rice milk as a substitute for breast milk or infant formula does NOT meet all of a newborn’s nutritional requirement, and has even led to some tragic deaths. Older children often thrive on fortified rice or soy milks. Silk soy milk, for instance, contains 50% of the RDA of vitamin B12 per serving (which can be challenging to incorporate into a vegan diet). It’s also a good source of calcium and protein*. Then of course, make sure your kids are getting enough protein through nuts, beans, and meat substitutes, and don’t forget the whole grains, healthy fats, fruits and veggies! #2 Find the right pediatrician: All pediatricians are not created equal. Before your child is born, speak with several pediatricians to find someone you feel comfortable with and trust, and make sure to ask them how they feel about a vegan diet. Doctors who are open-minded and have up-to-date knowledge about nutrition will recognize that vegan diets can be nutritionally sound, and often healthier than diets including Happy Meals. They can also be a great source of information for how to keep your child healthy if you have specific questions about vegan nutritional guidelines. #3 Enlist supportive caregivers: If you’re a working parent, you may have to search for an understanding daycare provider who will make a valiant effort to stick with your child’s vegan diet. Most often, it works best for everyone involved if the parents of the vegan child provide all meals and snacks. Usually, daycare providers are more willing to work with parents who make it easy, and don’t demand that they learn all of the ins and outs of veganism. Mistakes may be inadvertently made (for example, my two-year-old once grabbed a meatball from another child’s plate and took a bite), but if your daycare provider recognizes that this kind of thing is a problem, and tries vigilantly to avoid it, things usually work out fairly well. #4 Substitute treats: When your child is going to a birthday party or encountering classroom treats, bring a vegan substitute. Your child will probably want to feel included, and being a vegan most definitely doesn’t have to mean being left out of the fun! Each quarter, I give my son’s kindergarten teacher a bag full of Alternative Baking Company cookies, Fruit Leather, and crackers. Around Halloween, or other “candy-heavy” holidays, I give her some extra treats (such as Mambas) and let her know how I’d like my...
read moreFiguring Out Vegan Bread
By E. Ashe When you switch to a vegan diet, you soon discover there can be a surprising number of foods that contain animal products. While many people would assume bread to be vegan, there are many types and brands that contain animal byproducts. This is the same with pretty much any processed food, so when you eat only vegan food, it’s important to check the ingredients of every product to make sure. One of the ingredients most often used in non-vegan bread is whey. Whey, like casein, is created in the process of producing milk and cheese. Vegans know that most of the animals that produce these products are not treated well. Because of this, vegans choose not to consume any animal products, even if the animals themselves are not killed. Lecithin is another common ingredient in many breads. While the modern version is more often made from soybeans, some manufacturers still use a version derived from egg yolks. For this reason, it’s important to pay close attention and make sure you know which type is being used in the product you are looking at. Two similarly confusing ingredients are lactate and lactose. Lactose always comes from milk products, but the similarly named ‘lactate’ doesn’t. Some ingredients that start with ‘lac-‘ are made using a particular fermentation process that might use cornstarch or beet sugar. Of course, this is not true of other ‘lac-‘ products, so it’s important to look closely at labels and determine whether or not they are derived from animal byproducts. Another very popular ingredient, and one that is very often overlooked, is dough conditioner. There are many different types of dough conditioner and many of them use some type of animal product or byproduct. One such conditioner is L-cysteine. Most frequently, this product is derived from duck feathers, but it can also come from pigs’ bristles or hooves. There are also DATEM and Sodium/ Calcium Stearoyl Lactylate. These are both products that can come from plant sources, animal sources or both. The label often won’t specify which source was used, so you may have to get in touch with the company to make sure. There are many ingredients like this that might be derived from either plant or animal sources or both. The problem with this is that it’s often up to the consumer to figure out which is which. There are many resources available to find this information online, but if you don’t find it, you can always call the company and find out. There are many ways to purchase breads that are entirely vegan. Some companies produce special lines of bread for vegans. Other companies produce exclusively vegan bread. There are also companies that produce vegan mixes for homemade breads. Many of these breads can be found in traditional grocery stores, but there are other ways to find vegan breads. Farmer’s markets often host smaller companies and groups that produce these breads. One of the benefits of going this route is that the bread is often fresher than in the grocery store. There are also companies that offer specialty breads online, and many companies will provide great delivery options to maintain freshness. If you have the time, the best way to ensure a good supply of vegan bread is to make it...
read moreAdapt to Veganism or Forgive the Culture – Which is it?
Is Ethiopian Culture way behind in adapting to “veganism”, or do we “forgive” them of eating meat because their geographical/financial/cultural differences?
read moreRoasted Carrot Hummus
This is one of the most striking dishes I have eaten recently. I enjoyed it so much I vowed to try to replicate it so that I could serve it to my family and share it here with you.
read moreSix Foods to Keep You Healthy, Smart and Sassy!
Take a good look at your daily eating habits. Are you really living on a healthy vegan diet? Do you need to cut out some not-so-good-for-you foods and replace them with some of thease beauties? Place these six foods into your shopping list so you always have them on hand as you prepare your meals.
read moreQuinoa & Black Bean Stuffed Peppers
This dish freezes well for future meals! This is also a great heart healthy recipe with whole grains, & lots of protein!
read morePlant Powered Families Review & Giveaway!
This book features over 100 whole food vegan recipes that contain no refined white flour or refined sugar and have nut-free variations. It offers recipes that kids will love and are easy to prepare for parents that are short on time…isn’t that all of us?
read moreVegan Cinnamon Rolls
The vegan cinnamon rolls recipe is the best out there! You dont have to worry about the taste, it hits the spot just like regular cinnamon rolls. It has the cinnamon, sugary flavor that melts in your mouth. Yum!
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