I need help - New Vegan here?!
After reading the book the China Study by T!. Colin Campbell and just watching for the first time Meet your Meat, I am a changed person, at 31 years old!. For all the reasons in the book and in the video I want to begin a vegan lifestyle!. This undertaking seems somewhat overwhelming to me, but I am willing to do it and have been for a week so far!. I am however a stay at home mom to 4 young children (2 sets of twins ages 3 and 5) and a wife to a meat/dairy lover!. He is very flexible though and is willing to give it a shot too after I told him what I have learned!. I need to know what to feed a newly vegan family ( I know it sounds silly) but I do not want to rice and bean them out!. We eat a lot of veggies already and dont particularly care for the block tofu!. The transition to silk has gone smoothly - my kids and I were never big milk drinkers anyway!. Anyone with kid/family freindly vegan recipies I would love to hear from also the easier the better since I am new to all this!. We are also not a big fan of highly processed stuff so I do not want to go hog wild on the fake chickennuggets etc!. We have been doing some rice/bean soy type veggie burgers though!. also do I tell my kids that we are not eating meat anymore or do I just do it and if I do tell them - how much do I tell them!?!!? Any support systems out there because I know no vegan personally!. Thank you so much!Www@FoodAQ@Com
Answers:
Hi!.!.Wow 2 sets of twins !.!.!. where do you find the time to cook !? !.!.Just kidding !.!.
I answered a question about meals for a vegan that might help you , you can substitute marinated tofu for the processes soy meat as well, I hope you do not mind I am repeating this:
1) Morning star chicken strips ( they are Vegan come frozen in a bag) I sauteed them separately and added them to sauteed Bell Peppers and Onions , Roasted Potatoes with parsley and rosemary , cranberry sauce with crushed pecans , poached pears
2) simple rice curry with cauliflower ( very easy to make 1 1/2 cups rice , 3 cups water , add 1 veggie broth cube , 1 sliced onion , 1 head cauliflower (remove leaves and cut up) 3 tsp curry , S&P , Put ALL in pot at once , bring to a boil, lower to simmer about 20-25 minutes ) it is really great! , you can serve this with plain soy yogurt , make a salad
3) Vegan stew or soup with potatoes , celery, carrots , onion, garlic ,Pepper , veggie broth 2 cubes , and add any other veggies you like , serve whole grain bread warmed or make simple biscuits ( buy Earth's balance butter spread !.!.it is like margarine , they have it a whole foods)
4) Tacos with Veggie Crumbles ( vegan beef) and taco seasoning , have sides of lettuce, chopped tomatoes, avocado , Vegan cheese serve with a Spanish rice and refried beans
5) Pasta dish , almost any with out meat even spaghetti marinara is fine !.!.that is easy , have salad with this and Garlic bread
6) Steamed broccoli (when you steam it use 1/2 a lemon and 2 cloves of garlic in pot of water !.!.it will flavor the broccoli) , mashed potatoes, tofurkey slices with vegan mushroom gravy , creamed corn
7)Vegan onion soup!.!.really easy to make and tastes great , vegan rice pilaf , and wilted spinach
I make desserts as well !.!. This is basically one weeks dinner meals for me , you can mix and match parts as well , but it will give you an idea I make Pasta with beans , or peas, or broccoli , or prima vera !.
I switch up many Rice dishes and add Pineapple and tofu for a hawaiian flair ,or lentils and rice curry as another dish
Actually Indian curry dishes are delicious! Try different Mexican dishes and any Nationality you can think of!.
A site with Great Meals is: http://vegweb!.com/
I make different breads including corn bread to eat with collard greens , There are so many !.!.look over the site!.!.
Last I wanted to comment about the children !.One way or another you are going to influence them in basically every aspect of their lives !. Religion , Education , TV , Morals , Right and Wrong , etc etc!.!. Teaching them about eating good healthy food that does not involve animal slaughter is More than Wonderful !.
As a Mom who raised two Vegan Sons , they have told me as adults , They were glad I did !.!. when they were Old enough , it was thier choice and they would Not even consider eating an animal !.
I taught them to respect life , people and animals !. How can that be wrong !? When they ask about food , tell them , Animals are not food , plants are !. Take them to a Place they can see animals and explain !.It is not hard and children are smart !.As they say Put an Apple and a live Chicken in the room with a child!.!.which do you think they will eat!? !.lol!.!.
Good luck in all
Vegan ForeverWww@FoodAQ@Com
I answered a question about meals for a vegan that might help you , you can substitute marinated tofu for the processes soy meat as well, I hope you do not mind I am repeating this:
1) Morning star chicken strips ( they are Vegan come frozen in a bag) I sauteed them separately and added them to sauteed Bell Peppers and Onions , Roasted Potatoes with parsley and rosemary , cranberry sauce with crushed pecans , poached pears
2) simple rice curry with cauliflower ( very easy to make 1 1/2 cups rice , 3 cups water , add 1 veggie broth cube , 1 sliced onion , 1 head cauliflower (remove leaves and cut up) 3 tsp curry , S&P , Put ALL in pot at once , bring to a boil, lower to simmer about 20-25 minutes ) it is really great! , you can serve this with plain soy yogurt , make a salad
3) Vegan stew or soup with potatoes , celery, carrots , onion, garlic ,Pepper , veggie broth 2 cubes , and add any other veggies you like , serve whole grain bread warmed or make simple biscuits ( buy Earth's balance butter spread !.!.it is like margarine , they have it a whole foods)
4) Tacos with Veggie Crumbles ( vegan beef) and taco seasoning , have sides of lettuce, chopped tomatoes, avocado , Vegan cheese serve with a Spanish rice and refried beans
5) Pasta dish , almost any with out meat even spaghetti marinara is fine !.!.that is easy , have salad with this and Garlic bread
6) Steamed broccoli (when you steam it use 1/2 a lemon and 2 cloves of garlic in pot of water !.!.it will flavor the broccoli) , mashed potatoes, tofurkey slices with vegan mushroom gravy , creamed corn
7)Vegan onion soup!.!.really easy to make and tastes great , vegan rice pilaf , and wilted spinach
I make desserts as well !.!. This is basically one weeks dinner meals for me , you can mix and match parts as well , but it will give you an idea I make Pasta with beans , or peas, or broccoli , or prima vera !.
I switch up many Rice dishes and add Pineapple and tofu for a hawaiian flair ,or lentils and rice curry as another dish
Actually Indian curry dishes are delicious! Try different Mexican dishes and any Nationality you can think of!.
A site with Great Meals is: http://vegweb!.com/
I make different breads including corn bread to eat with collard greens , There are so many !.!.look over the site!.!.
Last I wanted to comment about the children !.One way or another you are going to influence them in basically every aspect of their lives !. Religion , Education , TV , Morals , Right and Wrong , etc etc!.!. Teaching them about eating good healthy food that does not involve animal slaughter is More than Wonderful !.
As a Mom who raised two Vegan Sons , they have told me as adults , They were glad I did !.!. when they were Old enough , it was thier choice and they would Not even consider eating an animal !.
I taught them to respect life , people and animals !. How can that be wrong !? When they ask about food , tell them , Animals are not food , plants are !. Take them to a Place they can see animals and explain !.It is not hard and children are smart !.As they say Put an Apple and a live Chicken in the room with a child!.!.which do you think they will eat!? !.lol!.!.
Good luck in all
Vegan ForeverWww@FoodAQ@Com
veganstore!.com
You can order anything off of there, and then substitute the "cheese" for cheese and anything!. It all comes in the mail and it is AMAZING! (:Www@FoodAQ@Com
You can order anything off of there, and then substitute the "cheese" for cheese and anything!. It all comes in the mail and it is AMAZING! (:Www@FoodAQ@Com
Something easy is pizza with tomato sauce and pineapple!. You can use soya cheese, but you don't have to, because the sauce is nice enough on it's own!.
Make a pizza base (google 'thin pizza base recipe') and cover it with half a tin of chopped tomatoes, two tablespoons garlic puree and fresh chopped herbs!. The yeast in the pizza base gives it a natural cheesy flavour, and the garlic makes it extra nice!. You can put chopped pineapple or any other vegetable on there!.
Lunches for the kids could be peanut butter and jam sandwiches, most bread is vegan, look for ones without milk powder!.
Or
Wraps with hummus (for that tangy flavour cheese would usually bring), falafel, cucumber, cherry tomatoes and lettuce!. & potato wedges!.
Or
Vegan soup with crusty Italian breads!.
A site that I think you might like is http://veganyumyum!.com/ - it's my favorite vegan recipe site!.
This is a site for parents raising vegan families http://www!.vegsource!.com/parent/growing_!.!.!.
It's great that your husband and children want to support you, but remember that if they don't want to be vegan, it's okay!.
P!.S!. You should get some B12 vitamin, it's found in it's highest quantities in animal products, and the average person needs 3mg a day!.
x
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Well, it's up to you!. I prepare meat several times a day because I have a cat and a dog, but I would never buy animal products for another person!.
You have to think about why you're vegan!. If it's health reasons, stick to vegan meals, as they would be healthier!.
Ethical reasons!? Well, if they're going to insist on buying it, you might as well cook it, since the damage was done when they payed for it at the supermarket!.
If it makes you feel sick, just get the hubby to help :)Www@FoodAQ@Com
Make a pizza base (google 'thin pizza base recipe') and cover it with half a tin of chopped tomatoes, two tablespoons garlic puree and fresh chopped herbs!. The yeast in the pizza base gives it a natural cheesy flavour, and the garlic makes it extra nice!. You can put chopped pineapple or any other vegetable on there!.
Lunches for the kids could be peanut butter and jam sandwiches, most bread is vegan, look for ones without milk powder!.
Or
Wraps with hummus (for that tangy flavour cheese would usually bring), falafel, cucumber, cherry tomatoes and lettuce!. & potato wedges!.
Or
Vegan soup with crusty Italian breads!.
A site that I think you might like is http://veganyumyum!.com/ - it's my favorite vegan recipe site!.
This is a site for parents raising vegan families http://www!.vegsource!.com/parent/growing_!.!.!.
It's great that your husband and children want to support you, but remember that if they don't want to be vegan, it's okay!.
P!.S!. You should get some B12 vitamin, it's found in it's highest quantities in animal products, and the average person needs 3mg a day!.
x
&&&&&&
Well, it's up to you!. I prepare meat several times a day because I have a cat and a dog, but I would never buy animal products for another person!.
You have to think about why you're vegan!. If it's health reasons, stick to vegan meals, as they would be healthier!.
Ethical reasons!? Well, if they're going to insist on buying it, you might as well cook it, since the damage was done when they payed for it at the supermarket!.
If it makes you feel sick, just get the hubby to help :)Www@FoodAQ@Com
Your children are to young to decide for themselves!. I'm a vegetarian, but my partner's parents are vegan and she has stuck with the vegan diet!.
These websites will help, but I'd get a couple vegan cookbooks too!.
-- Simple Vegan Recopies
http://www!.simpleveganrecipes!.co!.uk/
-- Vegan Recopies
http://vegweb!.com/index!.php!?action=recip!.!.!.Www@FoodAQ@Com
These websites will help, but I'd get a couple vegan cookbooks too!.
-- Simple Vegan Recopies
http://www!.simpleveganrecipes!.co!.uk/
-- Vegan Recopies
http://vegweb!.com/index!.php!?action=recip!.!.!.Www@FoodAQ@Com