Meat Subs

I apologize for the delay in posting. I was having some health related issues. Long story short I have hypertension which at the moment there doesn't seem to be a known cause. Anyway, I am on medication for now until they can determine a cause or whatever.


u. I have found some new interesting vegan products I'd like to share that are meat replacements which are great to use if you are just starting out vegan/vegetarian, cook for meat-eaters, or just want to use them to cut down your meat intake. I'm going to try and focus on ones that are more readily available in case you don't have a specialty grocer near you. These you can find at most grocers like walmart and heb.


Quick, interesting facts about meat: You don't need meat for protein. I know lots of vegans/vegetarians get asked this. Also, when you consume meat or animal products you are also in taking cholesterol which can lead to health problems like hypertension and heart disease in excess. You can get protein without cholesterol from plant sources like beans, nuts and grains.


Yves makes some sandwich 'meat' that's fairly decent. I got the bologna since it was all I could find at walmart. You can probably find more at specialty grocers. They also make 'hotdogs' and 'meat' crumbles. www.yves.com

Next there are meat crumbles. Many brands make these but my favorite so far are the boca ones. Morning star makes them too and they are also in most markets. You will find these in the frozen section. These are great and easy to make. I used to get them anyway because they were cheap and last longer than ground meat. You can use them in place of meat in just about any recipe, just add your seasoning. They're great in burritos.





Now chicken alternatives. Again many brands make these too. I'm posting some by gardin brand. I found these at heb, but I believe morning star makes some too. You can find grilled or crispy varieties. Some also come preseasoned.


Of course, you can also find tons of veggie burgers on the market, some made of soy and others of black beans which I heard are really good. I hope to try them soon. You can also get more variety at other shops or ask your grocers to carry them. I'll do another blog on dairy alternatives soon. I hope this helps!

Unflavored Tofu! NO!

So I've had my fair share of meat subbies like boca and morning star and for the most part I've liked them. I even had the meat crumbles before going vegan. I try nd not rely on them and seek protein from other sources like nuts and beans.

I'm not sure if any of you are familiar with ghengis grill, but it's a 'mongolian' stirfry place. I like it and my boyfriend loves it so we decided to go there today and I decided I'd go with the tofu. Usually I'd have the chicken...but yea...today I found it odd that the tofu was not with the 'proteins' like it usually is. It was with the veggies which is weird. They seem to have changed things up since we last visited. So I tried it and loaded up on my regular things like tons of pineapples, some water chestnuts and other veggies.

The tofu was weird! It has no taste! I don't think I like it this way. I added spices but I think it would have been better if the tofu had been marinated in them. I'm not swearing off it but I think there is a trick to cooking it. I will find it!

Is Pizza Vegan? It can be!

I know a lot of people think that once you become vegan, or realize you have a dairy allergy, that you cannot have pizza. Not true! Also, typically vegan pizza is healthier because you are either doing no cheese or a vegan cheese and likely you are adding more veggies.

For pizza, you have many options. Take out, frozen, or make your own.

Take out

For large pizza chains you will need to go through their ingredients, don't assume you can just not order cheese. Many places include dairy or egg in their sauces or crust. Papa john's original crust and sauce is vegan so you can load up on veggies. If it's a smaller pizza chain, you can ask them if they have a truly vegan pizza. Most places will not have vegan cheese on hand unless it's a specialty place.

For frozen, amy's makes a vegan pizza I believe, and there is also a brand called turtle's island I believe, and they make an amazing tofurky pizza which is very filling and has vegan cheese. It's actually labeled as 'vegan', some brands will do this.

Or you can always make your own! You can use tortillas or bagels that are vegan or you can go all out and make your own crust and buy vegan cheese and toppings. Watch out when buying 'vegan' cheeses because some brands will have casein which is a dairy protein. I like 'Daiya'. You can find it at specialty shops or request for your local markets to carry it. Some might since they know dairy allergies are common. I am trying to get mine to carry it so I will update on how that goes.

You can find recipes for vegan pizza in vegan cookbooks or online such as youtube. I personally love the vegan zombie's videos.

Welcome!

I decided to start this blog to document my journey on a vegan diet in Texas which outside of large cities, may not always be the most vegan-friendly place I think. So, I'll do updates about how it's going and things I encounter. I'll try and update regularly, so please follow and comment. Peace, Love, & Kale!