A reader recently requested information and recipes on veganism and I am pleased to focus on this topic. Having lived both as a vegan and a vegetarian, I respect both lifestyle choices. The decision to become a vegan or vegetarian is often based on pro-environment and anti-animal-cruelty concerns while others opt for the dietary regimen mainly for the health advantages; for many, it’s a combination of factors.
So, what’s a vegan? A vegetarian? Many mistakenly use the words interchangeably. While neither group eats meat, vegetarians may allow themselves some dairy and egg products whereas vegans do not eat eggs and dairy. Members of both groups restrict themselves from any animal-based products like honey and gelatin (made from the hooves of horses). The word vegan, coined in 1944 as the Vegan Society was formed, is made up from the beginning and end of the word vegetarian. According to the Vegan Society, “A vegan eats a plant-based diet free from all animal products, including milk, eggs and honey.” In contrast, the Vegetarian Society’s Web site posts this definition: “A vegetarian is someone living on a diet of grains, nuts, pulses, seeds, vegetables and fruits with or without the use of dairy products and eggs.” Long-term vegans and vegetarians make up their own rules – as you transition into either lifestyle and are immersed in it, you are faced with making dietary decisions that work best for your health and personal needs.
When you do not consume milk, you must concern yourself with getting a sufficient supply of protein and nutrition for your body. A vegan or vegetarian’s main food sources include fresh cereals/grains, legumes (peas/beans), nuts, seeds, fruit, vegetables, dairy or soy products, vegetable oils and vitamin supplements. One cooking technique I used frequently as a vegetarian is “protein complementation.”
Without getting too technical, here’s how it works: We all need protein in our diets. Specifically, each of us needs amino acids in a specific ratio to each other. Given healthy eating, our bodies can make many of the amino acids we need but there are eight amino acids we can’t make on our own. Protein complementation is combining plant protein sources to achieve a better amino acid balance than either would have alone. Because of differences in amino acid makeup, when certain plant sources are combined, the strengths of one make up for the deficiencies in another. One example is beans and grains – beans offering high lysine content and grains offering high content of the sulfur-containing amino acids. By combining them or eating them close together, they can complement one another, creating a complete protein. Lucky for us, many ethnic dishes combine complementary proteins – Mexican rice and beans, Middle Eastern Tabouli, California Rolls with rice and seaweed, etc. You might try the tasty protein-complemented M’judra, a Middle Eastern recipe below.
One of the biggest challenges in being a vegan or vegetarian is not about feeling like an outsider to mainstream meals, or feeling deprived of consumer-popular foods but the extra time and effort it takes to find, buy and prepare meals. Because vegans try to buy the freshest, most whole-grain and organic products possible, food shopping and preparation can take two to four times longer than the average meat-and-potato meal. Just consider the difference in cooking time between white and brown rice or between juicing your own drinks and pouring pre-squeezed juice from a carton. Also, non-meat-eaters must pay close attention to their protein intake and be sure they are eating balanced meals over time. However, for a happy vegetarian or vegan, the benefits of good health, extra energy and weight control seem to offset the extra efforts.
Even if you don’t consider yourself a true vegan or vegetarian, there’s a benefit to us all in appreciating these lifestyles and eating healthier, sometimes borrowing from vegan or vegetarian cookbooks. All of the recipes included here are tasty, and none would do harm to a meat-eater’s diet. Have you ever tried Morningstar Farms’ Breakfast Patties or Soyrizo, both available at Safeway stores? “Foodies” and Epicure readers should value those who choose these dietary lifestyles. In many ways, they make alternative foods and nutritious ingredients available to us as our health needs, dietary interests and eating curiosities evolve. If you can’t be a vegan, at least love one! Jacqui Love Marshall lives in Danville with her vintage-car-loving husband, two pugs and binders of recipes. E-mail her at Epicure@DanvilleWeekly.com.
Types of Vegetarians:
* Lacto-ovo-vegetarians – eat both dairy products and eggs; the most common type of vegetarian
* Lacto: Eats dairy products but not eggs.
* Vegan: Does not eat dairy products, eggs, or any other animal product.
* Fruitarian: A type of vegan diet where very few processed or cooked foods are eaten.
* Macrobiotic: A diet followed for spiritual and philosophical reasons; aims to maintain a balance between foods seen as ying (+) or yang (-).
Source: The Vegetarian Society, www.vegsoc.org
Resources: Vegan/Vegetarian Books & Cookbooks
“Diet for a New World,” John Robbins
“Vegan Planet,” Robin Robertson
“Flavors of India: Vegetarian Indian Cuisine,” Shanta Nimbark Sacharoff
“Vegan Vittles,” Joanne Stepaniak
“A Taste of Mexico: Vegetarian Cuisine,” Kippy Nigh
“Becoming Vegetarian,” Brenda Davis & Vesanto Melina
“Chinese Vegetarian Cookery,” Jack Santa Maria
“Cookin’ Southern-Vegetarian Style,” Ann Jackson
Recipes
M’judra (makes 3-4 cups)
1 cup dried lentils
1 cup brown rice
5 cups water
1 onion, chopped
Salt or herbs to taste
1/2 cup plain yogurt or sliced cheese (optional)
1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for one hour.
2. During the simmering time, sauté the onion until brown. Mix half of the onion into the lentil/rice mix and use the other half for garnish.
3. Top each serving with yogurt or cheese slices as desired.
Note: This dish freezes well and can be made in multiples.
Chilled Cantaloupe Soup (serves 6)
6 cups cantaloupe, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup orange juice
3 Tbl. lemon juice
1 cup plain soy yogurt
2 Tbl. brown rice syrup
Thin slices of melon or edible flowers (optional garnish)
1. In a blender or food processor, combine the cantaloupe, orange juice, and lemon juice, and blend well to form a smooth puree.
2. Transfer the mixture to a glass bowl and whisk in the soy yogurt and brown rice syrup. Cover and chill for several hours.
3. Pour into individual bowls; garnish as desired.
Indian Spiced Rice (serves 4)
1 Tbl. canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. ground coriander seed
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 1/4 cups dry jasmine rice
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup dry lentils
3 cups water
1 potato, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup green peas
3 tablespoons raisins
1. In a large skillet or saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, and cook, stirring frequently until they have softened. Sprinkle in the ginger, garlic, coriander, cardamom, nutmeg, and cumin. Cook for 3 minutes more, stirring frequently.
2. Pour the rice into the saucepan and saute the rice with the spices for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour the lentils and salt into the saucepan. Pour 3 cups of water into the pan, stir.
3. Place the potatoes into the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover the pan and turn the heat to low. Cook for 10 minutes.
4. Place the bell pepper, peas, and raisins into the saucepan. Stir well, then cover the pan again.
5. Cook 10 minutes more, or until the rice, potatoes, and lentils are tender.
Easy Veggie Samosas (makes 18)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 (19 ounce) cans garbanzo beans, drained
2 tablespoons curry paste
1/2 cup apple juice
3 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour for dusting
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion until browned, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat and add garbanzo beans. Mix curry paste with apple juice until smooth, then add to skillet. Simmer mixture 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more apple juice or water as needed to keep mixture moist.
3. Cut each sheet of pastry into 3 equal-size rectangles, then cut each rectangle in half. (You will have 18 pieces total.) Dust a clean, flat surface lightly with flour, and roll each piece of pastry until it is double in size. Dust pastry with flour as needed, to prevent it from sticking to rolling pin. Spoon an equal amount of filling into center of each pastry square. Fold in half and press edges to seal. Place on nonstick baking sheets.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, until golden brown. Serve hot or cooled.
All-Vegetable Vegan Broth (makes 6-8 cups)
This broth is an all-purpose base for soups and other dishes that call for chicken or beef broth. The recipe has lots of vegetables, but you don’t have to follow it exactly. Use whatever you have on hand but definitely include the leeks, parsley and mushrooms.
Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 unpeeled carrots, sliced
2 leeks, both white and green parts, washed and sliced
Greens from 1 fennel bulb or the bulb itself, sliced
2 turnips, peeled and sliced
3 unpeeled cloves garlic, cut in half
1 bunch of parsley or the stems from 2 bunches
4 fresh thyme sprigs or 1 tsp. dried
1 cup mushroom stems
2 quarts (8 cups) water
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 cup dry white wine, optional
1/2 tsp. monosodium glutamate (optional)
Salt to taste
1. Combine all ingredients except the peppercorns, wine and seasonings in a 4-quart pot. Pour over just enough water to cover and heat on high heat until the liquid comes to a boil. Turn the heat down, cover the pot and keep the broth at a slow simmer.
2. When the vegetables have simmered 30 minutes, add the peppercorns and white wine and simmer for 10 minutes more. Strain through a medium-mesh strainer into a clean pot. It may be reduced over medium-high heat, if you want to concentrate the flavor.
3. Let it cool, uncovered, for an hour before putting it in the refrigerator; or freeze in small baggies.
