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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 1:05:41 GMT
hi. im new. only gone vegan 4days ago. soya milk i like. so no problem cutting out milk. cheese im finding hard as only one allergy shop on the isle of wight where i live and all so expensive. my daughter chose to go vegan 4days ago so i joined her. i am trying but its hard as tescos here have practically nothing. i really want to make this work but i need to know how to cook nutritious meals as im scared my already slim 17year old girl may go too too skinny. im pleased iv found this as hopefully will give me the motivation to keep going. but iv also been quite hungry :-( will try to keep coming on here to get the support i need to keep going. like many others i just ate meat and dairy without looking into how these animals were farmed. the little iv found on the internet has made me feel so bad. i really truly want to stick this out as i feel this is really right for me and my body and the world. already i feel so much better and healthier and cleaner. thanks x
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Post by veggiesosage on Jun 30, 2007 1:23:22 GMT
What I always say is to get yourself a stock of decent cookbooks. The Vegan Society has loads so have a little look there. www.vegansociety.com/html/You can certainly get nutricious meals on a vegan diet, however, if you just try and replace dairy and meat with 'pretend' products you might be a little disappointed. On the other hand, if you already like lots of different types of cooking from around the world you'll be very happy ;D Good luck to you and your daughter.
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Post by sluggie on Jun 30, 2007 1:29:41 GMT
Hi Emsii. Congratulations to both of you on going vegan. The first few weeks are the hardest as you find your feet. Cheese is probably the thing that most people find hardest to do without. There are vegan cheeses, but they can be hard to find, and are best eaten with pickle as the flavour isn't that great. Most people find hummous is the best thing for filling the cheese-hole. If you're finding yourself hungry, try to eat plenty of complex carbs (muesli, porridge, wholemeal bread, brown rice, etc) and proteins (beans, lentils, soya products, nuts, seeds, falafels, veggie sosages, etc). These foods take longer to digest and keep you full for longer. My can't-live-without store cupboard basics are: brown rice quinoa lentils beans (tinned is easiest when you're starting out, but dried tastes better) tinned tomatoes These, with an assortment of fresh veggies, usually form the basis of my main meal. Extra flavour comes from various combinations of spices, fresh herbs, vegetable stock cubes, miso, blackstrap molasses, yeast extract, soy sauce, tomato puree and mustard. It's worth investing in a vegan cookbook. Most large-ish bookstores have a few, or you can order them online. Good luck.
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Post by maisiepaisie on Jun 30, 2007 8:14:11 GMT
Hello and welcome to the forum Emsii. Sticking to veganism is hard without knowing at least a few basic recipes. Luckily cooking is not rocket science and once I realised that life became easier. My favourite cookbook is Fat-Free Vegetarian by Anne Sheasby. The majority of the recipes are vegan and of the few that aren't, almost all can be veganised. I like to see a picture of what the food should look like so this book is great. Nice big pictures and straightforeward text Redwoods do a fantastic range of vegan cheese called Cheezly. I wasn't keen at first but now I love it. Your taste buds will quickly change and adapt to veganism. If you can't buy Cheezly where you live you can order directly from Redwoods.
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 13:53:12 GMT
hi. thank u all so much. did go on ebay to find the cookbook Fat-Free Vegetarian but no luck! will have to buy and pay for new book. im good at cooking so will hopeully learn this difrent way of cooking. i am baking my own bread in the bread machine. i used an organic wholemeal bread flour yesterday with soya powder milk and soya marg. it turned out denser texture but lovely. have just made some more bread..this time experimented with white & wholemeal (organic) and its turned out beautiful. icecream is my next tas as i normally make my own icecream. thanks for the advice. u are right. i am trying to subsitute meat. i must learn to cook using pulses and lentils etc. these are foods iv never used before. if anyone can help with recipes etc for basic meals i would be so grateful. sweetemsii@yahoo.co.uk its day 5for me today and iv only had one time when i ate a muffin and a cake on thurs at motorway services. but i was so hungry and there was nothing else to get. my daughter bless her just wouldnt have anything. she has the most amazing willpower and she went vegan a week ago and has not veered off once! u are a great bunch...lots of love ...emsii x
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Post by skinnybitchfan on Jun 30, 2007 14:14:09 GMT
Heya!! ^^ Heh, I happen to be the daughter! Lol This site is absolutely wonderful It's great to know there are many others out there who are so welcoming and supporting. I only know one vegetarian, and not one vegan, so it's difficult to talk about it with mates. I hadn't thought there would be an active forum- obviously there are alot more vegans than I thought! This lifestyle is amazing, I feel so much healthier (not to mention being able to get up in the morning!). It's like being introduced into a whole new world of tastes and foods that previously I didn't realise even existed. Luckily, I'm quite fond of Soya (there are some truly gorgeous yogarts!!) but I'm still having to get used to the taste (or slight lack of) in Tofu Tastes nice however, with some mushroom sauces and pasta. Thanks to everyone! This place is really making me feel like I'm not alone... More motivation to not go near Dairy or Meat! It's odd, I'm not even wanting meat now, like... I don't need it, so subconsciously, perhaps that's why I don't crave it? <3 xox
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Post by veggiesosage on Jun 30, 2007 14:21:15 GMT
Well the family's all here ;D
Tofu is usually best when it absorbs other flavours like in a sauce or by marinading it first. Its also good fried or deep fried, especially coated in cornflour. Oh yeah, and you can get smoked tofu which is fantastic for adding a smoky flavour to casseroles and sauces and stuff.
Enjoy ;D
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Post by sluggie on Jun 30, 2007 14:34:46 GMT
Hiya. It's nice to see you both. You are very lucky to have one another for support.
I always keep a cereal bar of some sort in my handbag for emergencies. There's a good range of them that are vegan - just avoid the ones with honey. If you're in need of a snack when you're out, lots of corner shops and service stations sell flapjacks that are vegan - not exactly health foods, but good for emergencies. Some crisps are all right too.
Baked potatos with baked beans are another stand-by that's easy to find when you're out. Just ask them not to put butter on the potato.
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Post by sluggie on Jun 30, 2007 15:32:34 GMT
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Post by veggiesosage on Jun 30, 2007 15:43:20 GMT
As this thread will at some point disappear into the depths of the forum I've copied Sluggie's list and posted it in the 'Recipes' forum and made it a sticky. Should be easy for everybody to find when they feel the need.
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 17:53:29 GMT
hi. thank u so much. im on amazon at the moment odering some vegan cookbooks most especially to make cakes and deserts as that is what i love. i cannot find the book Fat-free vegetarian by Anna Sheasby. amazon dont have it. they only have low fat no fat vegtarian by Anna Sheasby(?) checked my normal cookbooks and will now try learn to cook meals like lasagnas etc with vegemince and dairy free cheese sauce which iv bought. i never ever knew the things i am now just learning in the last couple of days eg. like drinking milk is supporting the veal industry! i want to learn more so i can tell meat eaters when they come out with silly talk..like yesterday i was told that humans are carnivores and that is how we're made. i didnt realise till i found this site yesterday, that that is rubbish and we were herbivores to start with. a whole new world of knowledge is just being opened up to me. i wonder if i can convert my mother?? she doesnt drink milk anyway or red meat cos she has to be on a lowfat diet. but u know what? im not gonna try now.. no. right now..its me i have to sort out first!! xx
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 17:55:15 GMT
thank u mr. snoozey, i didnt even know i could marinate tofu! wow! i love cooking so i will be doing lots of experimenting. and i will post my recipes as i have my successes!! :-)
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 17:57:57 GMT
i only see one problem now. i have a 16year old son who will still eat meat and insist on his dairy milk. i hope over time to cook fully vegan when he's with me in the week. as he stay's with my ex hubby weekends, i can see a lot of grumbling and moaning to come. his dad is a staunch meat eater and already is mocking me and my daughter laughing and saying 'u wont last, ul be back to ur meat, no one can give up their meat'. well....time will tell i say :-)
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 18:01:43 GMT
please why should we avoid honey?? there is a man on the isle of wight in alverstone, he has bees in hives in his garden. they leave in the morning and go back home later. this man loves his bees and only sells thier honey on a small scale in the summer when he can. he has no honey now. in such a situation, can i buy this honey in the summer when he has them? is there a reason not to buy and eat honey on a vegan diet? please help me understand. and would it be difrent if i only buy this man's honey at the short times in summer he has it? if i dont buy the shop ones. his bees are like his family he tells me. he's always begging people to come and meet them...lol. would like to understand why we dont eat honey? thanks x
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Post by sluggie on Jun 30, 2007 18:20:20 GMT
There was a discussion on honey here: everythingvegan.proboards59.com/index.cgi?board=questions&action=display&thread=1166532198 a little while ago. Hope that helps. I have a 15 year old omni son. He mostly eats vegan food (because I'm the cook, hah!) but at that age, you have to let them make their own choices. I am exposing him bit by bit to some of the horrors of the farming industry in the hope that he will make the decision on his own some time. He watched the last half of 'Behind The Mask' over my shoulder when I was watching it online last week, and is now 100% anti-vivisection, so there is hope.
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 18:47:40 GMT
thank u ms lah-di-dah. i have the problem of 3fridge freezers full of meat products in my kitchen and garage. iv started giving some away. will keep a lot to feed to meat eating son over time. plan to give him veg meals with us and the odd meat meal for him and i hope over time as my cooking gets better, he will eat just what we eat. im not confident i wont get hassle and moaning but fingers crossed :-) milk will be a problem as i cant see him giving up his milk so il buy him dairy milk and see how things go. i will try to encourage him to drink soay but will take ur advice as to let him decide. he's 16 and at the end of the day, he has got to eat. i dont want him to refuse to eat. but fingers crossed, i hope to eventually make such nice meals, he wont even notice he's not eating meat when he's with me. all i need now is to make the perfect vegan ice cream....lol! x
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Post by tabitha on Jun 30, 2007 18:56:38 GMT
Its a pity you didnt go to the Viva Veggie Fayre in London today Emsii! There were loads of really gorgeous food samples and some really interesting stands.
Do they have anything like this in your area?
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 19:07:15 GMT
LOL... im laughing here. on the isle of wight.. NO! though we have just had open up 2 weeks ago the first allergy shop in ryde. lovely lady..says its the first in the south of england. but very expensive and mainly geared to wheat and gluten free diets. the vegan ice cream is lovely. another parent was down here and tried it and now says she wants to go vegan.. but mmm.... we'l see. think she thinks its a fashion fad! :-( im on amazon and excitedly getting some cookbooks together. i love cooking so will have fun...lots of it!!
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Post by maisiepaisie on Jun 30, 2007 19:09:45 GMT
i cannot find the book Fat-free vegetarian by Anna Sheasby. amazon dont have it. they only have low fat no fat vegtarian by Anna Sheasby(?) That's probably a very similar book Emsii. I got mine from that cheap bookshop called The Works.
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Post by emsii on Jun 30, 2007 21:03:02 GMT
thank u sluggie (just about working out which are the usernames..lol). the websites are a god send! now it does look easy...iv only been on one and already i can see my dinners on the plate...yummy!! :-)
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