Articles

March 5, 2018 By Hayley

Let Food Be Thy Medicine

Eating is the new smoking.

Take a moment and let that sink in. Shocking isn’t it?

Sound like a sensationalist media headline? Its not. Its based on a worldwide clinical study of the leading causes of death around the world – The Global Burden of Disease study, the largest study of disease risk factors in history.

Many of the leading causes of death in the UK and even those we accept as part of the ageing process have been proven to be avoidable and treatable with diet.

In the United States cigarettes now kill about half a million Americans every year, whereas diet kills hundreds of thousands more.

But don’t take my word for it. Hear the full story in this video of Dr Greger presenting a recent TED talk. If you’re not familiar with Dr Greger, he is a physician and founder of http://www.nutritionfacts.org A non-profit organisation providing science based nutritional information.

February 6, 2018 By Hayley

Top Tips for New Vegans

You’ve decided to go vegan or veganish or maybe someone in your family is and you want to support them. Congratulations! But what now? Where to start? Well you couldn’t have picked a better time, being vegan has never been easier. Theres an abundance of help available online and in vegan magazines, no end of vegan options in restaurants as well as completely vegan restaurants, many products and previously hard to find ingredients appearing in mainstream supermarkets and online shopping for the less easy things to source, vegan festivals, organisations you can join for more information and recipes, social media groups. In fact there is so much info out there its easy to become overwhelmed for new vegans.

So lets keep it simple and break it down. Here are my top tips to get you started on your vegan journey:

Don’t be intimidated by ingredients. There can be alot in vegan recipes and if you haven’t heard of them before that can be daunting. Most of them are easy to find in supermarkets, health food shops or online. If you can’t find something thats listed well feel free to leave it out or google for a substitute.
Start with a simple repertoire of meals that are quick, easy and tasty so you always have something you can ‘go to’. Maybe veganize some of your favourites. Shepherds pie, chilli, spaghetti bolognese, curry, a roast. Tasty filling comfort foods for Winter and soups and salads in Summer. Once you have a basic repertoire you can start experimenting with new ideas. Check my recipes section for inspiration.
If entire recipes seem daunting to begin with then just start by simple substitutions. Nut, soya, oat or rice milk instead of dairy (find your favourite, this is mine), vegan butter and mayonnaise, soya or coconut yoghurts.
Do check ingredients on product labels. You’ll get to know whats what after a while but initially new vegans will need to read the labels.
Have a wander through the ‘free from’ aisles and vegetarian sections in your local supermarket. There are so many cheeses, creams and meat alternatives available now, don’t forget the frozen sections. Also in the regular aisles you can find vegan products side by side with burgers etc too.
When you’re cooking something freezable make extra for those days when you don’t have time to cook but you still want to eat some real food.
This is a top tip I got during a recent visit with a great friend. Roast a selection of your favourite veggies and caramelise some onions, keep them in a big tupperware in the fridge then you can easily throw together a pasta, rice or quinoa dish or use them in salads for quick nutritious meals on the run. Just reheat the veggies gently in a pan with or without oil, add some balsamic, spices and garlic or any flavourings you like.
Going vegan does make you much more conscious of getting essential nutrients in your diet which is a good thing. Did you even know your recommended daily intakes before? I certainly didn’t. Download the cronometer free app and track what you eat for a couple of weeks every now and then. Its easy to get hung up on whether you are getting enough protein/calcium/iron etc but this handy app will take the guesswork out and show you exactly how you are doing, enabling you to tweak things where necessary. If you don’t have a smartphone you can use their website instead www.cronometer.com
See your Doctor and ask for a blood test so you have a baseline to compare to in 6 months or a year down the line. I was shocked to find myself pre-diabetic, low in iron and with high cholesterol. 3 months into being vegan everything was back in the normal range and has improved in the 3 years since. Get yours done so you can see what eating a plant based diet is doing for you.
Make sure you are getting enough Vitamin B12. Its a common vitamin to be deficient in but more so for vegans and vegetarians. The cronometer app will let you know how you are doing and if you are in any doubt or don’t want to be bothered with fortified foods for your B12 intake (non-dairy milks, yoghurts, nutritional yeast, marmite) then a simple supplement means you got it covered and theres one less thing to think about.
If you’re invited out for dinner and worried about vegan options on the menu just call ahead and let them know. Most places are very accommodating as long as you give them enough notice or may have a selection of vegan options or complete vegan menu. If its not possible to do that and theres nothing on the menu that you can have or like, see what you can put together from the appetisers and side dishes instead, make your own vegan tapas.
Download the brilliant Happy Cow App or check their website for vegan/veggie restaurants in the vicinity wherever in the world you happen to be!
Don’t do it alone. If you don’t have any vegan friends or family join social media groups, check out vegan youtubers and bloggers, watch documentaries, go on a vegan holiday or volunteer at an animal sanctuary. You are so not alone although sometimes it can feel like it if your friends and family are not vegan and don’t really get it.
Don’t be disheartened if you ‘cheat’ whether its by mistake or design. Its ok to take as long as you want or need to transition. Don’t feel intimidated by the overnight vegans and never feel as you are not good enough. Its your journey.
Allow yourself time to get used to different textures and flavours and let go of the old ones. If you just keep trying to recreate the taste of meat and cheese you will be disappointed. Let your taste buds adjust. When people talk about transitioning it takes time to acquire “new” tastes. You are eating higher fibre, lower fat foods all of a sudden, try things once, try them again and give it a few weeks before you decide you don’t like something. Your taste buds definitely do adjust. Oh and so does your gut so don’t be alarmed if there’s a sudden onset of wind. Our stomach bacteria is clever stuff and adapts to be able to digest the food you’re eating and will deal with that. In the meantime let your bum rejoice!
Dont believe everything you read or hear. Check for a reliable source based on clinical trials like www.nutritionfacts.org or pubmed.
Do it because it feels right for you.
Do your best.
Keep it simple and enjoy!

January 16, 2018 By Hayley

Hail Seitan!

What is Seitan?

Seitan, or wheat meat, is a very versatile mock vegan meat which actually looks and tastes pretty like meat. Which meat depends on the seasonings you use in it but can be pretty much anything from roasts to ribs. Like I said… versatile!

Its made by using vital wheat gluten flour to make a dough. You then cook the dough in a variety of ways depending on the end result you want to achieve. Its packed full of protein, though not considered complete protein due to low levels of the amino acid lysine. You can add blended chickpeas or beans to your mix to counter that. It does contain fairly decent levels of iron, is very low calorie, fat and carbohydrate and has ZERO cholesterol.

Is it Gluten Free?

It goes without saying if you’re gluten intolerant its a no no and since consuming high levels of gluten can kick off allergies then its definitely not something to eat every day.

That said, its great for new or transitioning vegans to cook something that resembles meat, looks and tastes delicious, is guaranteed to please vegans and meat eaters alike and will leave everyone completely full and wishing they’d worn elasticated pants!

How do I cook Seitan?

There are many ways to cook it depending on what kind of result you want. This article gives you a good overview.

Seitan can be a bit tricky and recipes don’t always seem to turn out so great. The high hopes and excitement you start out with can soon turn to disappointment, wasted ingredients and an unappetising lump of goo in your bin. No-one wants that! In the recipes section you will find tried and tested recipes so you can go straight to the good stuff.

Recommended Recipe Books & Resources

If you prefer a recipe book, The Gentle Chef’s Seitan & Beyond is a great resource, he doesn’t have photos in the book itself but you can find the pics on his website here. It’s pretty much the Seitan lovers bible. Talking of Seitan lovers, another great resource is The Seitan Appreciation Society group on Facebook. You will find recipes there, see what other people are making and always find someone ready to answer any questions you may have.

For more instant gratification pop over to youtube and check out Avanteguard Vegan, BoshTV and Connie’s Rawsome Kitchen who all have some great Seitan recipes.

Where to buy Seitan?

If you can’t find any vital wheat gluten flour in grocers locally then have a look online, I usually buy mine from www.wholefoodsonline.co.uk but if you’re not in the UK then I would suggest looking on Amazon.

Go forth, good luck and keep me informed!

I’ll be in the kitchen with a Seitan ham and mustard sandwich (as featured in the free Holiday Recipes ebook by The Gentle Chef, downloadable here). oh happy day 🙂

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