A Hole in My Heart

Well, Animals Do It...

My new answer to the statement:

"Well, we should eat meat because it's natural. Animals do it."

Yeah well:

"Some animals also eat their own young. Some eat their own feces. Just because animals do it doesn't always mean it's a great idea for people to do it."

Meet Clarence!

Say Hi! to Clarence.

Clarence just came to us via Red Dog Farm. He is a 8-9 year old parakeet that was surrendered due to his previous caretaker's health issues.  He's a senior but he's got quite a lot of energy and pep!

We were told that he was very shy and quiet but thus far he's been quite a chirper.  He came to us in, what I think, was a very small cage and you could tell he'd been a bit neglected.  His cage was a bit of a mess and his nails are very long to the point of curling. He didn't even have a way to wear down his beak!

Well, we've changed all that!

I'm working on trimming his nails so I don't scare or hurt him but the first thing we did was get him a much roomier home with new clean toys and perches perfect for exercising his feet and mind. I love his new home.  The front has a plexi door so he gets unobstructed views out.

He likes to get close to the door and peek out at us.

We're working on the best toys and treats for him but this environment has lots of "enrichment pods" we can add on to keep him engaged and happy. I'm also working on getting him used to being touched and petted.  He's not too sure about it right now but he's getting there!

Clarence is in the sunroom for now, up on top of our built-ins.  It gives him a sunny place, free from drafts.  The room is warm and he can see out.  The radio stays on and we check on him throughout the day too. The cats were curious at first but haven't tried to get at him (not that they could!).

So now we have an even dozen (OMG!)

Restaurant Review - Cafe Curryleaves

We may have a contender for "New Favorite Restaurant".  We have many loves in the Favorite Restaurant category, which obviously is great, because they are each unique. Each restaurant usually makes something amazing that we realize our life has been an empty shell without.  Cafe Curryleaves in Morrisville, NC is one of those restaurants.

The restaurant itself is small and casual.  A bit of a combination of counter service and sit-down, you walk in and can place your order or have seat and peruse the menu.  The menu isn't huge but it is filled with great Southern Indian dishes that are not as common as their Northern counterparts. We'd read a few reviews on Yelp before we impulsively made an hour and a half drive to check it out and they all sounded great.

We were not disappointed. We knew from the reviews that we had to get the Imli fries as a starter.  The fries, along with an order of the Samosa Chaat (Chaat meaning starter), were an AMAZING start to the meal.  I am not kidding you.  These fries, covered in tamarind sauce and fresh onions are ridiculously good. They were inhaled in just a few moments.  If I could have eaten another order, I probably would have.

There were a ton of other starters I wanted to try but I know those fries will have a permanent spot on our appetizer list.

For our main meal, SL (the husband) go the Mixed Vegetable Uttapam which is a lentil and rice pancake mixed with fresh veggies. It's served with a small bowl of soup and a tomato chutney and a fresh coconut chutney. Think light but crispy deliciousness.

I got the Masla Dosa which also comes with the same soup and chutneys. Dosas are a huge, very thin rice-lentil crepe which is cooked and then folded in half with a filling.  In the case of the Masala Dosa, the filling is a gently spiced potato filling.  This is comfort food at its best.

And were talking huge here.  There is actually a tray under that Dosa somewhere! Also note the empty fry bowl in the center.  Picked clean.

The Dosa is deceptive, though.  It isn't filled to the brim with potatoes, just at the fold, so I don't feel like a total glutton. Although afterwards, I slept the whole car ride home.

So, yes, Cafe Curryleaves is amazing and affordable. I think our whole meal was just over $20.  They have desserts too but I was too stuffed to try them.  Maybe next time because, in spite of the drive, we are totally going back. If you are going to be anywhere near the Raleigh-Durham-Cary area you have to stop by!

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too

I just wanted you to know that while not the healthiest thing to eat and something you probably wouldn't indulge in every day, you can have cake as a vegan.  Even a pretty, sugary, decorated cake.

I used to bake a ton and people would hire me to do wedding cakes, baby shower cakes and birthday cakes and even goodies for parties and work events.   I used to bake every week for fun, just to test out new recipes.  I took 3 courses in cake decorating and would make multi-tiered cakes just for fun.

I have quite a collection of tools and tips to assist me.

So when we went vegan, I didn't want to give that up.  And I haven't had to. I made this 10" yellow cake with lavender-tinted sugar icing for a young lady's birthday last week.  She wanted a lavender cake with white trim and powdered donuts. 

In the interest of full disclosure, I picked up donuts for the topper. I may get a donut baking pan to do my own next time.  So the donuts were not vegan but the cake and icing were (as well as being nut free too).

But not everyone has time to make a cake from scratch. No problem!  Cherrybrook Kitchen has vanilla and chocolate cake mixes, as well as a whole slew of other mixes, for you and they are available in most grocery stores.  All you need are EarthBalance sticks to add to the mix and you are good to go.

I keep a box on hand for quick and easy cupcakes.  Never be without cake again!

Beautiful Diversity

Nature, in it's glorious diversity, is wonderous.

Behold the floral bower of the Osmia (Ozbekosima) avoseta bee from Turkey.

Scientists recently discovered a rare, solitary type of bee that makes tiny nests by plastering together flower petals.


Each nest is a multicolored, textured little cocoon — a papier-mache husk surrounding a single egg, protecting it while it develops into an adult bee.


Building a nest takes a day or two, and the female might create about 10 nests in total, often right next to each other. To begin construction, she bites the petals off of flowers and flies each petal — one by one — back to the nest, a peanut-sized burrow in the ground.

She then shapes the multi-colored petals into a cocoon-like structure, laying one petal on top of the other and occasionally using some nectar as glue. When the outer petal casing is complete, she reinforces the inside with a paper-thin layer of mud, and then another layer of petals, so both the outside and inside are wallpapered — a potpourri of purple, pink and yellow.

These meticulous shells are just over a half-inch long and usually will house just one tiny egg. To prepare for her offspring, the mother collects pollen and nectar, which she carries back to the burrow in a nifty part of the digestive tract called the crop. She deposits this gooey blob of nutritional goodness in the bottom of the flower-petal nest. Then, she lays the egg, right on top of the gelatinous blob.


At this point, it's time to seal in the egg. The mother bee neatly folds in the inner layer of petals, smears a paper-thin mud layer and then folds the outer petals. The casing is nearly airtight, which helps protect the vulnerable egg (and later larva, then pupa) from flooding or excessive dryness or hoofed animals.
In only three to four days, the egg hatches into a larva. When it finishes feasting on the nectar, the larva spins a cocoon (still inside the shell, which has hardened into a protective casing by this point) and then hangs out. Rosen says he isn't sure whether it spends the winter as a larva or as an adult. But at some point the creature's tissue begins to restructure itself, and it transforms into an adult. Come springtime, the adult bee emerges from its flowery bower.
Then, the cycle starts all over again.


Source article - NPR

Junking the Junk

While I think eating vegan is one of the best ways to take control of and improve your health, there are many ways to eat "junk food" in the vegan world. Just because you eat vegan doesn't mean you are eating healthfully. 

If you live on an endless rotation of fries, non-dairy cheese pizza and Oreos, you aren't doing your body much of a favor.  You're just exchanging one type of food for another.

Vegan Hope wrote a great post today titled: "Say good-bye to vegan junk food" where she states -

... As much as we want to believe that consuming the vegan version of our old favorite junk foods is healthier, it is really not that much healthier. (except of course, it is healthier for the animals).

But what message does it send to our friends, family and close circle if we as vegans start to get the very diseases that we keep saying that vegans don’t get? And what if our doctors see this in us and tell us it is the vegan diet that is making us sick?

I think as vegans, often we think that we have already given up SO much just by going vegan. And it is true, we have given up a lot. But at the same time, I don’t think we should see being vegan as a sacrifice, but more as something that set us free from a horrible industry. Giving up junk food should be seen in the same light. It is not a sacrifice, it is not a punishment, rather, something that sets us free from some pretty awful industries.


Read the rest of the article above because she makes some great points.
This post really hits home.

We are vegan as, but I would say were somewhere in the mid-way point of eating whole foods and healthfully all the time and eating junk. We go out to eat and will eat Daiya-filled calzones. Maybe once every few months I'd eat some Oreos. I don't really like Tofurkey but we will get stuff like Smart Ground for tacos. And I know I use way to much EarthBalance on my toast.  Plus I bake a lot, roast veggies in oils etc.

The challenge we have is sugar and oil. The stuff we add when we cook at home. We cook a lot and eat out a fair bit (where I can't control what's in the food as easily) and I think that is where I am going to face the biggest challenge. It was easy to adapt the foods that I made before to being vegan. But we were big "gourmet foodies" and used lots of rich ingredients. Now I'm just doing that same thing with different vegan options that are possibly just as "junky" in their own way.

I've been a good cook and known how to cook my whole life. Now I feel I need to scrap that and start over. It feels like we made a big change and now we need to do another whole overhaul. It's kind of exhausting to think about and being a busy couple who works long long hours, its daunting. And, of course, no one likes change.

That said, I know this is more the direction we should go in. I just need to find a way and time to clear my head and preconceived notions of how and what to cook and add in some new meals that are even better for us than what we are doing now.

Milk Does What?

I get an eNewsletter from my Insurance provider at least once a week.  I am always amazed at the contents, or at least one element in the newsletter, each time.  Whether it's pushing a new pharmaceutical or giving insufficient food advice, I don't really feel they are telling the full truth.

So I shouldn't have been too shocked by one of the articles in today's piece that claims: Does Dairy Fat Reduce Type 2 Risk?

In this post they (and most of the rest of the online press) have picked up the news that a compound, trans-palmitoleic acid, in full-fat dairy products may help to reduce Type 2 Diabetes risk (per the Harvard School of Public Health scientists).

I felt I had to do more research as this "news" brought up many questions.

 1. Who funds the Harvard School of Public Health?
 2. Was this finding because the participants had eaten a diet filled with non-fat and therefore more concentrated diary and by eating the full-fat version the risk is less?
3. Why are so many news outlets picking up the story without doing further research.

It seems as if the news and sites are not giving the full story.  They position trans-palmitoleic acid as "not produced by the body" but they fail to note that there are other non-animal based ways to obtain this compound.   They also don't note that this study was a single study based on a single survey. 

What's needed next, says Leonid Poretsky, MD, director of the Friedman Diabetes Institute at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City, is an interventional prospective study. "In this type of study, you would give people the substance over a period of time and then observe whether there are indeed fewer cases of diabetes," he says. "This study was just an association study. It doesn't prove cause and effect."
Even Diabetes groups are coming out in opposition to how this finding is being presented:

Research reported in the 'Annals of Internal Medicine' involved 3,736 people over 20 years. They were asked once about their diet and other factors which might affect their health. Three years later they had their blood tested to measure fatty acid levels, including the amount of trans-palmitoleic acid, and after that information about their health was collected annually.


The journal draws attention to several limitations of the study. Participants were asked only once about the foods they usually eat, and dietary habits may change over time. The blood levels of trans-palmitoleic acid measured several years later may have no longer related to the types of foods the participants originally reported eating. Therefore it is not possible to conclude from this study which foods, if any, result in greater levels of trans-palmitoleic acid in the blood. In addition, this kind of study cannot say whether trans-palmitoleic acid or some other unidentified factor was the cause of the positive health effects seen.


My advice: make sure to learn more about the whole picture and not just read the headlines.
Personally, the results don't matter to me.  I'm not eating dairy. Health factors are just one reason we're vegan.  The other is this is a compassionate choice that I make not only for myself, but also for the environment and the animals.  

Friends Don't Let Friends: Loaf out on Loaves

The other day I spotted this cute individual "cupcake" dinner image and have been dying to recreate it ever since.

So last night we made individual Lentil Loaves (in my jumbo cupcake tin) and mashed potatoes, with a green salad on the side.

We didn't get to do the twice baked potato "frosting" because we were just too hungry but now I've got an excuse to make this again soon.

If you're looking for a hearty and comforting dinner, this is it. I love the contrast of the loaf and tomato paste topping and the husband even roasted some garlic to add to the potatoes. He's a star!

Individual Lentil Loaves

(modified from The Clean Eating Mama)

Ingredients

•Ketchup or homemade tomato topping (see below)

•1 1/3 cup plain oatmeal

•1/2 block firm tofu

•1 cup chopped onion

•1 cup chopped bell pepper

•1 cup chopped mushrooms, button’s are fine

•2 tablespoons tomato mixture or ketchup

•3 tablespoons corn meal

•1 cup cooked lentils

•1 tablespoon soy sauce

•1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

•2 tablespoons olive oil

•2 tablespoons dried parsley

•1 tablespoon dried red pepper flakes

•1 tablespoon garlic powder

•1 tablespoon onion powder

•1 tablespoon poultry seasoning, or a combination of thyme, oregano and rosemary

•1 tablespoon stone ground mustard

•salt and pepper to taste

Tomato Sauce Topping

•1 6oz can Tomato Paste

•1 tablespoon sugar

•1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

•1 tablespoon onion powder

•1 teaspoon garlic powder

•pinch of salt


Cook lentils – I always have leftover lentils, but I love lentils so I don’t mind! Be sure to rinse and sort lentils as they could have stones or debris in them. Add 2 cups water to one cup of lentils in a pot and turn burner on high. Once boiling, turn heat to medium low and let simmer for 30 – 45 minutes. The lentils should still be whole yet mushy.


Make tomato topping while lentils are cooking. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix with a spoon. Taste to see if it may need more salt.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Chop onion, bell pepper and mushrooms. In a large skillet add one tablespoon olive oil and put on medium heat, then add chopped vegetables and a pinch of salt. Stir and cook until onions are soft and transparent – about 5-8 minutes.

In a food processor, pulse oats for a few seconds until oats are small.

Drain tofu well and press between a towel or a few paper towels until all moister is gone. Place in a large mixing bowl and break up with a fork. You want to make sure they are in small crumbles.

In the same mixing bowl, add oats, lentils, vegetables, 2 tablespoons of tomato mixture and the rest of the ingredients. Mix until it is all combined – if it is too dry you can always add small amounts of water. You don’t want it too wet, but it should be able to stick together nicely.
A note about the spices – I know there are a lot of spices but I just took what I had in my cabinet and threw it in. You really do not need to add ALL of my suggested spices, but you want to try to make is as flavorful as possible. Taste the mixture before you put it in the pan, making sure it tastes good and is seasoned to your liking.

Spray the muffin wells with non-stick spray or olive oil. Spoon mixture in, then spread the rest of the tomato topping on top evenly. If you are using ketchup, use enough to cover the top evenly.

Cook for 20 minutes, then cover with foil and cook for another 10 minutes.

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

(from The Vegan Chef)

 
12-14 garlic cloves (to taste), unpeeled


4 lbs. potatoes (preferably Yukon golds), peeled, and cut into cubes

2/3 cup soy milk, rice milk, or other non-dairy milk of choice

salt and white pepper, to taste

2 T. freshly snipped chives

paprika, for garnish


Place the unpeeled garlic cloves in a pie pan and bake at 450 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until cloves are soft. Remove the pie pan from the oven and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, in a large pot, place the cubed potatoes, cover them with water, and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain the potatoes, saving the cooking liquid for use in the mashed potatoes, and the remaining cooking liquid can be used in soups or sauces. Transfer the drained potatoes to a mixer (or return to the large pot if using a hand mixer or potato masher) and set aside for 5 minutes to dry.

Using your fingers, squeeze the cloves of garlic from their skins, and place them in a small bowl. Using a fork, mash the cloves of garlic to form a paste. Add the mashed garlic, soy milk, sprinkle with a little salt and white pepper, and whip the potatoes until smooth. Add a little of the reserved potato cooking liquid, if needed, to achieve a creamy consistency. Taste and adjust seasonings, as needed.

Transfer the mashed potatoes to a large bowl, sprinkle with the snipped chives and a little paprika before serving.

This is warm and yummy food  at it's best, without making you feel comatose!

Retribution and Sorrow

The following is a story of accidental retribution. A rooster in India resisted being forced back into the cock-fighting ring and slit his owner's throat.

As told in The Sun:

Indian police say the "dangerous rooster" is thought to have killed Singrai Soren after being forced back into the ring soon after his last fight.

The animal had emerged victorious, but witnesses said the victim died after the feathered fiend cut his throat with razor blades attached to its legs as he tried to immediately force it into another bout.

Villagers were warned not to approach the animal cops described as "an unknown rooster with black and red feathers".

Police want to find the bird to strip it of the deadly blades he killed with, but said with so many roosters matching his description the chances of catching him were slim.
A friend of the victim, named only as Dasai, said: "The rooster tried to get away from the ring several times but Soren tried to push him into the ring repeatedly.
"This upset him and he attacked."

The razor blades were attached to the rooster to fell opponents but sliced Soren's jugular vein instead.

Those around the ring only realised what had happened when blood started pouring out of him.

Dasai said roosters are used to an hour-long break between bouts.


He said: "Most masters are satisfied with the cash reward of £28 for every fight and a dead opponent to feast on but Soren seemed unsatisfied.

"He wanted him to go into the ring within a few minutes of his first fight and that is when the rooster began to complain."

Six days on, police suspect the prized rooster is being sheltered by a rival trainer keen to put the champion bird back in the ring.

It had notched up a four fight winning streak in the village of Mohanpur.
...
The bolds above are my own. 

Cock fighting is nothing unique to India.  In fact my own state of North Carolina has a huge problem with this.  What you see above is the vicious cruelty and unrelenting abuse these animals are subjected too.  Most consider roosters to be mean and to like fighting but they do not.  Even a "fighting" bird wants to get out.

I think the animal fighting sports are some of the worst abuses we humans do to animals. We make them into killers through our own brutality.  Their actions are mirrors of our own inner sickness.

I was lucky enough to spend time with a rescued rooster, my Napoleon.  This is how I think of them.

Napoleon came to us as an adult but he loved to be in my arms.  He would run and jump into my lap, snuggle down and fall asleep.  He would make little purr sounds and try to protect me just like Meg and Gertie.  He nearly died protecting them from a stray dog that came into our yard.

Yes, he was feisty and temperamental but he was loving and fun. I don't wish harm on anyone but I do hope that this rooster (who doesn't even get a name) finds some peace and freedom away from the brutality of the ring.  I hope it opens some eyes for the people involved there and in this whole group of sick participants around the world.

Aspirational

Two great stories about low-impact, zero-waste families:

The Johnson family in CA

and

Amy and Adam Korst of Oregon

Check out their techniques!

Friends Don't Let Friends: Not have their cake & Eat it too

I'm a baker from way back. And a cake decorator.  I actually took 3 courses on cake decorating and have shelves of cookbooks on making things like sugar flowers and tiered cakes etc.

Devil's Food Cake

(modified from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) EarthBalance, softened, plus more for pans

• 3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for pans

• 1/2 cup boiling water

• 3 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 1/4 cups sugar

• 1 Cup unsweetened apple sauce

• 2 Tbl ground flaxseeds whipped with 6 Tbl water
• 1 Tbl pure vanilla extract

• 1 cup soy milk


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease with EarthBalance or vegetable shortening three 8-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment; coat parchment. Dust with cocoa powder; tap out excess. Set aside. Sift cocoa powder into a medium bowl; whisk in boiling water until combined - a thick paste. Set aside to cool.

2. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl; set aside. Put the softened EarthBalance into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until creamy. Gradually mix in sugar until pale and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add applesauce and flaxseed/water mixture , a bit at a time, mixing well between each addition; mix until well blended. Mix in vanilla.

3. Whisk soy milk into reserved cocoa mixture until combined. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the cocoa mixture.

4. Divide batter evenly among prepared pans; smooth tops with an offset spatula. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Turn out cakes onto racks; remove parchment and re-invert. Let cool completely.

5. Using a serrated knife or cake leveler, trim tops of cakes to make level if needed. To frost: Place the first layer on the cake plate. Spread the top of the first layer with 1 1/2 cups of frosting. Place the second layer on top and repeat process with another 1 1/2 cups of frosting. Place the remaining layer on top of the second layer, bottom side up. Spread entire cake with remaining 3 cups frosting. 

Note: See information about frosting thickness below.

Chocolate Ganache Frosting

(modified from Mrs. Millman's Chocolate Frosting)

Ingredients

• 24 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate morsels (Ghirardelli are my faves)

• 4 cups soy creamer

• 1 teaspoon light corn syrup


Directions

1. Place chocolate morsels and cream in a heavy saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until combined and thickened, between 20 and 25 minutes. Increase the heat to medium low; cook, stirring, 3 minutes more. Remove pan from heat.

2. Stir in corn syrup. Transfer frosting to a large bowl. Chill until cool enough to spread, about 2 hours, checking and stirring every 15 to 20 minutes. Use immediately.

Note: my frosting was not as thick as the original recipe produced.  I've been reading more and will test using a combination of soy cream and silken tofu which should add in more of the fat that helps to thicken this up. 

My frosting resulted in a thick ganache style frosting.  Too thin to spread but thicker than traditional ganache.  It set up on the cake after a few minutes and I ladled it on in 3 sets, collecting the run off chocolate and continuing to add it to the cake until is was mostly all used - resulting in about an inch of frosting on the top layer.

This is a very intensely chocolate cake and frosting and is very rich.  The frosting is very milk chocolate-y combined with dark cocoa of the cake.  I'm going to be doing some more experimentation but overall this was good and great for a larger group or party because you don't need to cut big slices to get your chocolate fix.

We're Going Coconuts

Last year on New Year's Day we got a great juicer.  And this year we invested in a great blender - the VitaMix Professional Series 500.  It's a beast!  I love it!

We've eaten at New York's Pure Food & Wine restaurant several times, which is amazing by the way, and finally got one of their great cook books.

So we were inspired to try out new ingredients too.  First up are Thai young coconuts.  We had to get a new cleaver to crack into these guys, but I was excited.  We have a cool supermarket here that specializes in asian and south american foods so the produce and prices are amazing.

We cracked open two coconuts and got over 3 cups of coconut water - which is a great natural source of electrolytes (much better than something like Gatorade!). Both are young but you can see their at different meat stages.  The very young one has the soft purplish meat while the second was more mature and firm.  What's cool is it comes out almost in one piece.  I had a delicious bit with chocolate for dessert.

We saved both the water and meat which can be used in a bunch of different recipes.  We added some to a fruit smoothie for breakfast today.  I usually get hungry around 10am but I've lasted until noon.  Lots of good energy!

If you want a laugh, check out the coconut opening process!

Veggie Dogs

So, we've started a new "experiment" here in the house.  Basically, our dogs love to eat veggies and often fruit.  Carrots are their particular favorites but they'll eat bites of apples and bananas, etc.  Knowing that dogs can be somewhat omnivorous (unlike cats that are obligatory carnivores, dogs are preferentially carnivores) and that many of the commercial dog foods found on the market today have a mix of vegetable and meat ingredients, we thought we would supplement their diet with fresh veggies and grains cooked ourselves.

As people spend more time and money on their pets, now fully members of the family, we are right to be concerned about the quality of their foods. The problem is there is not a lot of education on what a dog "food pyramid" should be and not a lot of transparency around the source or percentages of the ingredients in their kibble. 

We've been reading more about the meat industry and have found that not only is the meat people eat of poor quality and sanitation, what goes to our beloved pets is even worse.  What they are getting, often the scraps or 4 D's animals  - dead, downed/dying, diseased, disabled - is considered unfit for human consumption and not what I want to feed my pups.   Dog food can be substandard nutritionally, filled with corn, little meat, etc.  How are we to know that what they are getting is healthy?

We've decided, after reading a few books on the subject, to try out giving the dogs veggie meals just at dinner.   They will remain on their regular kibble for breakfast but have home-made meals at night. That way they will at least be getting what they've had in the past 50% of the time.  We've kept the ingredients simple and prepare them simply too - mostly through boiling or steaming and not adding salt or oil.  We'll probably look more into fatty supplements very soon, just to be sure we're covering all the bases.  Here is an example meal mixture:

 - Steamed carrots - carrots chopped, then steamed until soft and mashed
 - Carrot water from the steamer to add moisture
 - Black beans (or lentils or any bean) - soaked as needed, boiled until tender and mashed
 - Organic no salt/sugar puffed millet or puffed brown rice
 - Rice (brown preferred) - steamed
 - Green beans or peas - bought frozen, steamed until soft and mashed in
 - Sweet potato, pumpkin or other squash - steamed or microwaved until cooked/soft

I use my hand masher to blend all this together and add some of the saved carrot water to make it moist and sticky, very much like the consistency of canned dog food.   But there is no added salt or oils so my pups aren't gulping water after they eat.   A bonus. I make a good amount and give the dogs about 1 to 1.5 cups for their meal, so this batch will last about 3 meals for two dogs. 

I've been keeping a close eye on their energy, behavior and bathroom habits.  They haven't had any stomach issues and seem to be going #2 okay as well. 

As far as I can tell they LOVE IT!  I mean, check this out:

One of the books we read is this one - The Simple Little Vegan Dog Book.  It's not a nutritionist book.  Mostly it gives high level information and some good recipes plus foods to avoid.

After seeing how this goes and talking with our vet, we may try out a commercial food like V-Dog to replace their kibble.  But our first goal is their health.  We want to make sure our pups get what they need before any other concerns or issues.

If you have any experience with dogs eating an omnivorous or vegan/vegetarian diet, I'd love to learn more so please share.

For additional options (I have not checked these out), PETA listed Companies That Sell Vegan Dog and Cat Food:

Evolution Diet
Dog and cat kibble and canned food, ferret kibble, fish food
651-228-0632

F&O Alternative Pet Products
Vegan dog and cat kibble and canned food
1-877-376-9056

Harbingers of a New Age
Vegecat™, Vegekit™, Vegedog™, Vegepup™, and digestive enzymes
406-295-4944

Natural Life Pet Products
Canned and kibble dog food
1-800-367-2391

Nature's Recipe
Canned and kibble dog food
1-800-237-3856

Newman's Own
Organic vegan dog treats

Pet Guard
Canned dog food and biscuits

Wow-Bow Distributors
Canned and kibble dog food and biscuits
1-800-326-0230

Wysong Corporation
Dog and cat kibble
989-631-0009

If you decide to prepare your own vegetarian dog or cat food, we recommend that you read Vegetarian Cats & Dogs to ensure that you understand the nutritional needs of dogs and cats. Do not rely on this factsheet for complete information. The book has several recipes and helpful hints. If your library or bookstore doesn't have it, you can order it from Harbingers of a New Age.

Friends Don't Let Friends: Gripe About Grits

You may not know this about me, but I'm from the South.  Sure I live in North Carolina now and, yeah, I grew up in Miami (so far south it's actually north) but I was born in Georgia and my Grammy is from a small town in South Carolina, so I grew up with sour creme cake, super sweet iced tea and grits. 

And man, do I love me some grits. 

And what's not to love, in my opinion.  Warm and soft, topped with butter and plenty of salt, they are the perfect food anytime of day.  Of course, where they shine is breakfast, because they absorb the flavors you add to them.  Scoop them up with toast, serve them with a savory tofu scramble, or on their own, they're delish.

And we're lucky enough to live right next to a very historic (founded in 1767) and kind of famous (featured in Martha Stewart's listing of artisanal specialties from around the country) grist mill - the Old Mill of Guilford. 

People from all around stop into the beautiful mill with it's tiny store to get flours, dried fruits, mixes and, of course, grits.

Now there are tons of ways people serve grits, they're a great base, but as I mentioned I love them simple - salt, Earth Balance and some fresh pepper.  But I have been known to jazz them up with olive oil and fresh rosemary too.

And cooking grits is easy.  All you need is boiling water, grits and some salt. Boil the water.  Stir in the salt and grits (see amounts by serving below). Reduce the temperature to low (be careful, they can boil over easily and dried on grits are like cement) and cook about 10 -15 minutes until the water is absorbed, stirring occasionally. Serve.

Servings -

1/2 Serving

Water - 1 Cup

Grits - 3 Tbl

Salt - Dash

1 Serving

Water - 1 and 2/3Cup

Grits - 1/3 Cup

Salt - 1/8 tsp

4 Servings

Water - 6 and 2/3 Cups

Grits - 1 and 1/3 Cups

Salt - 1/2 tsp

6 Servings

Water - 10 Cups

Grits - 2 Cups

Salt - 3/4 tsp

Just an FYI - these are pretty generous servings.  Your yield will be equal to the amount of water shown. 

Slap on some Earth Balance and enjoy!

The Daily Dinner: Classic Risotto and Dijon Green Beans

We make risotto fairly often in the cooler months of the year.  It's the perfect comfort food dinner that fills you up and makes you feel all warm and cozy inside.  It's also a great base for experimentation, with sides or additions.

I like to have a good green veggie side with risotto - sometimes asparagus, a green salad or broccoli but since we made the mustards for our Christmas gifts, I've been thinking about green beans sauteed in a mustard sauce.

While the risotto was becoming magically creamy from my homemade stock, I snapped the ends off of the fresh beans and popped them in the steam for about 10 minutes - enough cook them but keep some of their crispness.  As the rice was almost finished, so were the green beans. 

To save on washing dishes I used the same pot the stock had been warming in and in that I melted over medium-low heat a few tablespoons of Earth Balance, about a 1/2 cup of white wine (the same I used for the risotto, actually) and about a tablespoon or two of Dijon mustard.  I whisked that together to combine and then tossed in the steamed green beans.

I left the beans in the sauce for a few minutes so they could absorb the flavors and served on the side.  Some fresh ground pepper and a sprinkle of kosher salt and you're done.

The Daily Dinner: Pumpkin Gnocchi with Shitake and Broccoli

I need to get better about putting up more of our actual dinner and meals.  We love to cook and we love to talk about food - especially great food that just happens to be vegan too. So I'm going to try and take more pictures, even if they are phone pics, and write up what we made so you can see that we're not deprived or starving over here!

Last night we wanted to make something quick.  We had gone to World Market last week and I'd bought two packages of gnocchi.  Some gnocchi do have eggs but most shouldn't.  They come in a vacuum sealed package and these were pumpkin gnocchi. 

Gnocchi couldn't be easier to make and they are as versatile as pasta.  I personally like them in a wine-butter-garlic sauce, so that the gnocchi are nice and squishy after soaking it up.

To cook the gnocchi, boil a pot of water and when boiling, add some salt.  Bring back to a boil and drop in the gnocchi (make sure you have separated them as they will be squished together from the packaging.  They only take a few minutes to cook.  As they start floating to the top, spoon them out into your saute pan which has the sauce.

For the sauce, I melted a few tablespoons of Earth Balance (from the sticks) along with fresh grated garlic (as much as you like) and about a half cup of white wine.  I also like to add fresh squeezed lemon juice, to taste, and salt and pepper.  If you have any favorite herbs, you can add those in as well.  I have this started when I had dropped the gnocchi in the water so it is all ready to go as they are ready.

I had steamed the broccoli separately and cooked the shitakes in a separate pan (we are a divided household - I'm the mushroom lover, the hubby is not) so they could be added to just my serving.  When the broccoli is done, add it to the large saute pan as well and stir everything to cover with sauce.

Plate it up and serve with crisp romaine salad.

Silent and Still

We only expected flurries, but around mid-morning we started to get a pretty steady snow fall.  It's so beautiful in our yard and the songbirds appreciated the seed and water we put out for them every day.

Badger had the right idea and curled up near the radiator.

We didn't have a lot to do other than a friend's party so the next day we watched movies and put up our Christmas decorations.  We don't go too crazy. A wreath, a tree, our stockings and a few other pieces here and there.   But combined with the warm wood of the library, our shiny black living room mantle and some pumpkin spice candles, the rooms seemed warm and cozy.

Then we settled in for a holiday snuggle.

I love the early darkness, the light snowfalls that are still new to this Miami-bred girl, and the snuggly pups and kitties.

What's your favorite part of winter?