I haven't been posting much, because other than being super busy, I haven't had much to say! I've gotten into a wonderful schedule of cooking on the weekends and eating leftovers throughout the week. I'm still working on my yummy vegetable soup and crazy banana-nut-blueberry bread, and am planning my weekend cooking for either Saturday or Sunday. I've been careful to consider the nutritional elements of a vegan diet. I got a book I ordered today called Recipes for a Small Planet. It talks extensively about complementary proteins, and NPU's or Net Protein Utilization, which has helped me to understand our human needs so much better. The book contains hundreds of pages of recipes with complementary protein information provided for each. Though it relies heavily on dairy products and soy, and is a little outdated (copyright from 1973, and I have a feeling this was before science had come to discover soy's negative effect on estrogen levels), it provides a solid framework from which I can extract recipes and obtain an optimally healthy vegan diet.
In all the books I've read concerning nutrition, raw fruits and vegetables are key elements. I've been extremely satisfied making these staples of my diet, having fruit for breakfast like a banana, apple, or berries, and a salad for lunch, which usually contains the following: spinch or spring mix lettuce, bell peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, sprouts, tomatoes, and topped with dried cranberries and almonds. I've enjoyed nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, and my homemade bread as yummy snacks. Almond milk has also proved to be the perfect milk-substitute, great for smoothies, baking, or drinking alone. Overall, I've been pleased and satisfied with my diet, and my body is adjusting accordingly. I'm still careful to buy organic food, though local is virtually impossible now with the few feet of snow we have on the ground. It feels good to be promoting sustainable industries, and fueling my body with high quality, optimally nourishing real foods.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
Some new recipes
On Sunday I had the pleasure of spending the afternoon in the kitchen (and the evening watching the Steelers!). I've gotten much more confident experimenting with recipes and I LOVE the results.
First, I made vegetable soup. This was nothing new for me, but I've been very nutrient-conscious especially after adopting a vegan lifestyle. So, for my soup, I used the following organic ingredients: vegetable stock, canned tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, celery, green and red bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, onion, collard greens, and garlic. This isn't much different from what I've made in the past, with the exception of adding collard greens. I'm really pleased with this decision - I need to be eating leafy greens in order to get iron, and collard greens are hardier than spinach and hold up nicely in the soup.
I was a little more nervous about my experimental baking. Baked goods tend to require a specific recipe, as things like flour or baking soda are usually needed in exact amounts. I went a little crazy and decided to make what I guess you could call a banana nut bread. I used the following ingredients, mostly organic: 2 ripe bananas, a cup of applesauce, a handful of blueberries, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, a small handful of brown sugar, a bit of vegetable oil (and used this to grease the pan), peanuts, sunflower seeds, baking powder, baking soda, about 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour, about a half cup of flaxseed meal, cloves, ginger, and cinnamon. I wasn't particularly careful in any of my measurements, and I baked the bread for about an hour at 350 without any high expectations. It turned out delicious! I'm pleased with this recipe for several reasons. First, peanuts and sunflower seeds are complementary proteins, and taste great. Likewise, flaxseed meal contains all the essential GOOD fats, and not the bad ones! Finally, I used small amounts of sugar and oil to keep it healthy, and the fruits and spices make it moist and delicious. I'm so thrilled this worked out so well and I can't wait to keep experimenting!
First, I made vegetable soup. This was nothing new for me, but I've been very nutrient-conscious especially after adopting a vegan lifestyle. So, for my soup, I used the following organic ingredients: vegetable stock, canned tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, celery, green and red bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, onion, collard greens, and garlic. This isn't much different from what I've made in the past, with the exception of adding collard greens. I'm really pleased with this decision - I need to be eating leafy greens in order to get iron, and collard greens are hardier than spinach and hold up nicely in the soup.
I was a little more nervous about my experimental baking. Baked goods tend to require a specific recipe, as things like flour or baking soda are usually needed in exact amounts. I went a little crazy and decided to make what I guess you could call a banana nut bread. I used the following ingredients, mostly organic: 2 ripe bananas, a cup of applesauce, a handful of blueberries, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, a small handful of brown sugar, a bit of vegetable oil (and used this to grease the pan), peanuts, sunflower seeds, baking powder, baking soda, about 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour, about a half cup of flaxseed meal, cloves, ginger, and cinnamon. I wasn't particularly careful in any of my measurements, and I baked the bread for about an hour at 350 without any high expectations. It turned out delicious! I'm pleased with this recipe for several reasons. First, peanuts and sunflower seeds are complementary proteins, and taste great. Likewise, flaxseed meal contains all the essential GOOD fats, and not the bad ones! Finally, I used small amounts of sugar and oil to keep it healthy, and the fruits and spices make it moist and delicious. I'm so thrilled this worked out so well and I can't wait to keep experimenting!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
New Year
Now that the holidays are over, my computer troubles are finally solved (somewhat), and I'm getting back into my school routine, I'm happy to be posting to my blog again. The last month has been truly fantastic; I had an amazing time at home with my family, and I had lots of time to experiment cooking and baking. For the Christmas holidays, I made a ton of delicious baked goods from scratch, like gingerbread, coffee cake, and different muffin, cookie, and bread varieties. Once the holidays had passed, I began reading books that I had been meaning to read for ages, and my lifestyle has been greatly impacted as a result.
The first book I read was Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about the environmental impacts of meat production as well as the moral and ethical issues surrounding its consumption. It illuminated elements of meat-eating that I hadn't considered during my three months of strict local eating. For example, during my project I was certain that the animals I consumed were free-range, organic, and never treated with antibiotics or hormones. In some cases, like my buffalo, I knew that the animals had happy lives with their farmers. What I had not considered, however, was the slaughter process. Though they are government regulated, the vast majority are dirty and inhumane (Foer goes into much greater detail in his work). Further, I began to think about the fact that meat is actually an animal that has been killed...and the more I thought about it, the more I became averted to it. I've learned that meat is not essential nutritionally, and I feel morally "cleansed" having removed it from my diet.
I continued my pursuit of a greater understanding of food, nutrition, and health, reading books like Mindful Eating, Skinny Bitch, Diet for a Small Planet, and some of the works of Adelle Davis (that began in the 1950's) and the more contemporary writings of Michael Pollan. I learned that many of the things that consumers wish to avoid in meat are also present in dairy products (like antibiotics and hormones), and further that animals raised for dairy products are still treated poorly (to say the least). Likewise, humans through evolution were not intended to digest dairy products - they are difficult for our bodies to handle, and contribute to things like mucus build-up. As someone who has chronic sinus problems, my doctor long ago advised me to stop eating dairy, and I'm finally taking his advice. I've adopted a vegan diet, and although my reasons for doing this are not entirely logical (as I could get milk and eggs from local farms that I know meet the highest standard of quality), it feels right and I'm enjoying this process of discovery. I've been making new dishes and creatively exploring means of obtaining proper nutrition with the absence of animal products. It is truly exciting!
My life has evolved dramatically, and I owe it in great part to my senior project. It has shaped the way I see the world in many ways and has allowed me to obtain a healthier and happier relationship to food. I am eager to share some of my recipes and dishes and will continue to observe the impact my diet has on my health. In fact, I will soon be getting blood work to help gain a greater understanding of my current nutritional needs, and the results will also be useful as I write my comp. Most importantly, I feel fantastic, enthusiastic, and passionate about life and am eager to continue to explore my interests - especially at Chatham University, where I will be attending graduate school for a Masters in Food Studies degree!
The first book I read was Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about the environmental impacts of meat production as well as the moral and ethical issues surrounding its consumption. It illuminated elements of meat-eating that I hadn't considered during my three months of strict local eating. For example, during my project I was certain that the animals I consumed were free-range, organic, and never treated with antibiotics or hormones. In some cases, like my buffalo, I knew that the animals had happy lives with their farmers. What I had not considered, however, was the slaughter process. Though they are government regulated, the vast majority are dirty and inhumane (Foer goes into much greater detail in his work). Further, I began to think about the fact that meat is actually an animal that has been killed...and the more I thought about it, the more I became averted to it. I've learned that meat is not essential nutritionally, and I feel morally "cleansed" having removed it from my diet.
I continued my pursuit of a greater understanding of food, nutrition, and health, reading books like Mindful Eating, Skinny Bitch, Diet for a Small Planet, and some of the works of Adelle Davis (that began in the 1950's) and the more contemporary writings of Michael Pollan. I learned that many of the things that consumers wish to avoid in meat are also present in dairy products (like antibiotics and hormones), and further that animals raised for dairy products are still treated poorly (to say the least). Likewise, humans through evolution were not intended to digest dairy products - they are difficult for our bodies to handle, and contribute to things like mucus build-up. As someone who has chronic sinus problems, my doctor long ago advised me to stop eating dairy, and I'm finally taking his advice. I've adopted a vegan diet, and although my reasons for doing this are not entirely logical (as I could get milk and eggs from local farms that I know meet the highest standard of quality), it feels right and I'm enjoying this process of discovery. I've been making new dishes and creatively exploring means of obtaining proper nutrition with the absence of animal products. It is truly exciting!
My life has evolved dramatically, and I owe it in great part to my senior project. It has shaped the way I see the world in many ways and has allowed me to obtain a healthier and happier relationship to food. I am eager to share some of my recipes and dishes and will continue to observe the impact my diet has on my health. In fact, I will soon be getting blood work to help gain a greater understanding of my current nutritional needs, and the results will also be useful as I write my comp. Most importantly, I feel fantastic, enthusiastic, and passionate about life and am eager to continue to explore my interests - especially at Chatham University, where I will be attending graduate school for a Masters in Food Studies degree!
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