UN urges global move to meat and dairy-free diet

An interesting article I randomly found......"A global shift towards a vegan diet is vital to save the world from hunger, fuel poverty and the worst impacts of climate change, a UN report said today." click here.

Alo Awaken and Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter

Two (vegan) products that I've happily discovered.

Alo Awaken: A mix of water, aloe vera juice and pulp, wheat grass and NATURAL sugar....Ever since I discovered aloe juices I've been a huge fan of the taste and aloe vera pulp. However, most products have too many artificial ingredients and unnatural versions of sugar sources (inverted sugar, high fructose corn syrup etc). I love wheatgrass shots but often am too cheap to order them at shops or buy a juicer. The two together equal my new favorite non-tea drink. And yay for a real sugar ingredient i.e. cane sugar. So far I've only seen this brand at Whole Foods, $5 for 51 oz. (* * * * *)



Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter, is a vegan and less sugary version of Nutella. Having not purchased Nutella since college I didn't realize there is milk in it. However, Justin's version is mostly organic with ingredients like real sugar :) cocoa and palm fruit oil. One serving of Nutella has 21g of sugar while Justin's has 7g. And if you're wondering, Justin's variety IS still just as good (* * * * *). It's semi-expensive $10 for 16 oz although I purchased a jar on sale for $8 at whole foods yesterday.

2011 Marathon??

I have secretly wanted to complete a marathon ever since I knew what they were. However in the last 6+ years I've been afraid my bad knees would suffer and training for one would do permanent damage. So I settled for running half marathons (13.1 miles of sane fun) and 10-mile races.

Then I read "Born to Run" and discovered the art of forefoot running (read about my findings here). And I've noticed that my knee pain is almost non-existent. I still can't run for longer than 3-4 miles in my vibrams but it's helped me none the less. So now I'm inspired!

I want to do a less sane race, I want to run until I feel I can't run any longer and then run some more. I want to test myself....I want to run a marathon.

2011? My preference would be to run the NYC marathon since I live there. But it's so hard to get into. I've applied for the lottery and will find out in the spring. I was thinking about doing NYRR's 9+1 program but that would mean delaying the marathon until 2012. Now I'm looking into doing the Mohawk Hudson River Marathon in Albany, NY. Anyone ever run this one? ~~Update: I am going to run the Steamtown Marathon in PA~~

Requests:

• Any good training programs, inspiring running books/quotes?
• Recommendations for a NYC marathon substitution? I would prefer the cheapest option (i.e. I won't be paying for a flight + hotel to do the Las Vegas marathon for example)

Labels and other ramblings

Last week a friend compared vegans to Hezbollah. His joke was about how militant and extreme vegans are. I defended vegans at the time. Though the joking comparison is still too harsh, recent comments instantly reminded me of it.....let me explain...

When I first started this blog (in Feb 2010) it was to talk about my journey as a vegan. The more and more information I read, the more I was motivated to cut remaining animals products from my life. I would say over the past 9 months I’ve been 99% vegan. Mainly a trip to the UK where I had to eat catered food at a business trip caused me to eat non-vegan items.

It was surprising to me that the blog entry that received the most feedback is one where I discussed eating fish last month. Even more surprising is the overwhelming feedback that I can no longer call myself a vegan because of one month out of 9. I guess this is a demonstration of the extreme militant characteristics my friend was talking about. It made me think of all other words/identity/label that people all over the world wouldn’t be able to use if the same thing applied…..What about someone from a certain religion who generally believes but has one month of doubt? Who decides if that person can or cannot call themselves Christian/Buddhist/Muslim/Jew/Baha'i etc?....I'm a Baha'i. Baha'i law says not to drink alcohol. However, if I ever found out a Baha'i friend was drinking I would never tell that person they can't call themselves a Baha'i.

I understand that vegans/vegetarians do not eat fish. I understand the arguments against the eating/killing of fish. What I do not understand is the intense response about me and my struggle as a vegan. If you do not want me to call myself vegan because 1 out of 9 months I ate fish, don’t call me a vegan. However, I can call myself whatever I choose. If you disagree, don’t read my blog. If you do want to read my thoughts on vegan foods, running and trying to lead a pure life then by all means continue to read.

Moroccan-Inspired Lentil Soup (in slow cooker)

Another good recipe from Vegan on the Cheap. I was looking for something new and different....this Moroccan-Inspired Lentil Soup with interesting ingredients like dried fruits and apple juice did the trick. Chalk full of spices....cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, turmeric it sure it tasty.

It took me 45 min to prepare for the slow cooker. Then I woke up the next morning to a great lunch item for work.

Ingredients
1 tbs olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 med carrots, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1.5 tsp cumin
1.5 tsp coriander
0.5 tsp cinnamon
0.25 cayenne
0.25 turmeric
1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup brown lentils
3 cups vegetable stock
1 cup apple juice
0.5 cup mixed dried fruit, chopped (I used mango and apricots)
salt and black pepper
2 tbs minced fresh parsley
1 tbs fresh lemon juice

Directions:
1. Pour oil in 4-quart slow cooker
2. Add onion, carrots, bell pepper, garlic and ginger. Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and turmeric, then stir in tomatoes and their juice and lentils.
3. Pour in veggie stick and apple juice, add dried fruit. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place lid on slow cooker and turn heat to low. Cook until lentils and veggies are tender, about 8 hours. When ready to serve, stir in parsley and lemon juice.

Fish eating vegan nonsense (and oven-roasted chestnuts)

I've been a terrible vegan this November. A week in London for a trip business led to eating lots of diary and seafood products. It's like the Brits have not fully embraced tofu. At least their animals are treated slightly better and they have higher food standards. My vegan self could not handle the porridge made whole milk. It made me realize how much I actually prefer the taste of soy milk. I was so happy to discover Pod Food.

Now back stateside I've become more of a pesce-vegan. I think I opened a flood gate with all the fish eating in the UK. Hmmm. Fish was always a tough thing for me to give up. I've been a vegetarian for 14 years now. During that time I've alternated between eating fish and abstaining. I think part of the problem is I don't feel bad about killing fish. I've been fishing before and gutted my own catch. However, I'd never want to kill a goat, sheep, cow etc. Plus there are some health benefits to fish (Omega fatty acids and all that jazz). Hmmmm.

While I ponder what to do with my fish eating vegan self. You can roast some chestnuts in the oven. Chestnuts are awesome and so appropriate this winter season. They can be quite filling.... "Chestnuts have twice as much starch as the potato. They are the only "nuts" that contain vitamin C, with about 40 mg per 100 g of raw product, which is about 65% of the U.S. recommended daily intake. The amount of vitamin C decreases by about 40% after heating."


How to Roast Chestnuts in the Oven:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Clean off chestnuts.
• Use a sharp paring knife to cut an X into one side of each chestnut, or prick chestnuts with a fork to allow steam to escape. (Or you might have some exploding chestnuts)
  
• Arrange chestnuts on a baking sheet or in a shallow pan, with the cut or pricked sides up.
• Roast in oven for 15 to 25 minutes, or until chestnuts are tender and easy to peel.
• Peel the nuts when they are cool enough to handle, and enjoy

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To read my thoughts on all the comments below click here.
Everyone smile and have a great day.

Kale Spinach Mango smoothie

I've often come across recipes for smoothies with kale/spinach but I assumed they'd taste terrible. However, after reading Nima's blog entry I felt compelled to try it....Nima, a 20 something with leukemia (A.L.L) wrote "Its my birthday and the best gift you can give me is to dedicate one day a week to doing something healthy for yourself....like having my smoothie ;)" So really, it was the best time ever to try it out. Plus I love kale.

Turns out it tastes pretty good, basically a purer version of Odwalla's Superfood. Next time I'm going to try it with juice (instead of water)

Ingredients
1 whole mango (I used frozen mango)
2 bunches of spinach
3 leaves of kale
4 ice cubes
1 cup water/juice
honey to taste

blend and drink....mmmm kale :)