Vegan Grilled Cheese and Soy Yogurt

What's for lunch ?? Vegan grilled cheese using Daiya mozzarella shreds & Earth balance butter and Silk strawberry soy yogurt!

 It was delicious!

I was a little worried about the Silk soy yogurt, mostly because I'm not a huge fan of yogurt to begin with and all of the flavors were dark colored (except vanilla). It was actually really good! Very full of flavor (almost too much flavor). My daughter either eats it alone or I put it in our morning smoothie! 

Shopping trip

I have totally been slacking in updating ever since I got my tooth pulled! I can finally eat normal foods again so we decided to do some food shopping. We took an hour trip to Wegman's and this is what we came home with...

 A healthy alternative to fruit snacks 

We had never tried this before and its really good! We bought strawberry, blueberry, vanilla, and raspberry! Will definitely be buying again :)

 If buying this mac and cheese, buy the one that says dairy free and soy free on the top! they make 3 different kinds

 Never tried these before but they look good. I was never a big fan of hot dogs but my daughter loves tofu pops

 Of course Daiya :) They only had mozzarella tho!

 Never had these before either. I don't think you can screw up pita chips though!

 These were expensive. Made by Caesar's . I hope they are good!

I'm really excited to try these. I'm a fan of Tofurky's products since they have never let me down.

Question - Becoming a Vegan

"I've been thinking a lot about trying to go vegan (even if it's only for a week), but I get overwhelmed because if animals aren't IN something that I want to eat or use, they were harmed to make it. I'd really love to hear about your transition to veganism. I'd also be interested in a post about your favorite vegan-approved products (health & beauty AND foods!)"

This is a really great topic to discuss. I get asked a lot how to transition from your old lifestyle into the life of being a vegan without feeling overwhelming guilt for not knowing everything. Even if you don't stay a vegan, you still have the option to pick products that are animal friendly. Being educated is key!

Its very important to decide why you want to make the change and to draw guidelines for yourself.  For some people, easing into the change will be easier, while others will want to jump in 100%. You'll need to decide which products you want to cut out first if you are going to ease into the change. When I first became a vegan, I started with food products first, then transitioned to other lifestyle products (clothing, material, beauty products, etc.). The most immediate change you can make is to your diet. My transition was quick due to my milk allergy but you can go at any pace that is comfortable for you.

• Learn to read labels. The main things you want to avoid are any kind of meat (lard, by-products, chicken/turkey stock), dairy products (milk, cheese, whey, buttermilk, butter, lactose, lactic acid, casein), eggs, and anything made from animal bones (gelatin) . Most companies will bold products for allergy reasons, but at least glance over the entire list for anything that could possibly sound like it might be related to an animal. They only have to list things that will cause an allergic reaction. You will also have to decide for yourself if you will consider honey to be vegan or not vegan. If a product is labeled to be a 'cheese alternative' or 'meat alternative', check to make sure it is vegan. Many cheese alternatives have milk or casein in them, as well as many meat alternatives. When it comes to food, home made is best. Eating out will be tricky but always ask questions. Some companies, like Amy's and Whole Foods, are proud to put 'vegan' on their products. Learning vegan recipes or how to use vegan foods will also help your transition. I started this blog to teach people how to make simple meals that won't cost a lot and don't involve crazy ingredients that you have never heard of before.

Here is a great site that shows some hidden animal products http://www.cyberparent.com/nutrition/hiddenanimalsfoodproducts.htm

• Reading labels can also be applied to clothing and beauty products. My biggest secret - Trust most store brand products and avoid almost every major brand.. 'Knock off' products are made to be cheaper, and usually contain different materials. Avoid suede, fur, and leather when buying shoes, belts, couches, cars, etc. Most store brand clothing will use a fake suede, fur, or leather. Always read the labels of cosmetics and beauty products. Almost every big cosmetic company does test on animals. If a company does not test on animals, they will be proud to say so. Question any product that does not state that no animals were used in testing. Google search a list to print out and keep with you when you go to the store. There definitely are some gray areas, where companies will test the ingredients on animals but not the final product. It is incredibly hard to know whether or not they did use animals but you can always call or write to the company and ask questions.

• Reward yourself! Being a vegan is a huge lifestyle change that shouldn't be taken lightly. Whether you go vegan for a week, a year, or a lifetime - YOU can make a difference in the life of animals. We, as consumers, have the ability to control what is in demand. We can successfully lower the prices of healthy foods and animal friendly foods. Remember - if you mess up or accidentally consume something not vegan - it's okay! Accidents will happen. I didn't become a vegan years ago and get where I am today without making mistakes! I've accidentally eaten products that had eggs or dairy in them. We learn from our mistakes and move on. Education is so important and google is your friend in this. Google and ask every question you have. If you are having doubts about why you are doing this or ready to give up because it is too hard, google some images or videos of what happens to these animals. It is truly heartbreaking and enough to make anyone want to be cruelty free.

Some of my favorite food brands 

• Boca
• Earth Balance
• Amy's
• Wegmans
• Whole Foods
• Dominex
• Silk
• Tofurky
• Annies
• Yogi
• Purely Decadent
• Van's
• Vegan Gourmet
• Daiya

My favorite non-food companies that don't test on animals

• Wet N Wild
• Almay
• MAC Cosmetics
• Mary Kay
• Nature's Miracle 
• Physician's Formula
• Revlon
• Seventh Generation
• Tressa
• Urban Decay

Here is a nice list of animal friendly companies  http://punkrockbarbiedoll.tumblr.com/donottest

My biggest tip - If you are going to try veganism, please give it a month of serious commitment. If after a month you find it just isn't for you and that you can't make it work, then at least you gave it a good shot. If you give up before then, you really haven't had enough time to get used to it. It really is a lifestyle change and you can't change your whole life in a month.

Good luck to everyone and I always welcome questions! 

Pizza Pizza!

One of my favorite foods to make is pizza! This is a very easy, cheap recipe for vegan pizza.

You will need

Daiya cheese (or any vegan cheese)

Pizza or pasta sauce

Crust

Seasonings

How to make

The crust that I use contains honey. This is a personal preference. Some find it vegan while others don't. If you are uncomfortable eating honey, then I recommend looking at the ingredients of different crusts or making your own. This crust contains very very little honey. My daughter is allergic to honey but can still eat this crust without any issues. It comes in three different sizes! This one fits into the toaster oven no problem :)

 

Preheat a toaster oven or regular oven to 300/350F. I like my pizza to be softer, so if you like it crunchy, preheat to 350F. 

Pour sauce onto the crust, add seasonings (I like garlic powder), add cheese, and cook! Let cook for 10-15 minutes and enjoy!

My little helper! She enjoys the pizza more than I do!

Rich, Easy Vegan Mac and Cheese

This is the quickest, easiest recipe for vegan macaroni and cheese ever. It isn't as complicated as the last one, and tastes really rich and delicious. I've been sick lately and this has been my comfort food. It might be too rich for some, but I love it. This recipe can be altered for any size serving, but I only made one bowl.

What you'll need

Pasta noodles

Earth Balance butter

Daiya Cheddar cheese

Soy or Coconut milk

How to make

Bring water to a boil and toss in your noodles. While that is cooking, pour about half a cup of soymilk into a pan. Depending on how rich you want it, put between a tablespoon - 2 tablespoons of Earth Balance butter. Once that melts, pour in about a cup of Daiya cheddar cheese. You can put in as much as you want, since some like it cheesier than others.

 

When the noodles are done, strain, put into a bowl, and pour the cheese on! Simple, right? This recipe is very comparable to Amy's Vegan Mac and Cheese, except much cheaper!

What's for lunch?

Our local grocery store finally started carrying this! Its delicious, although expensive and a pretty small serving. You could easily eat two of these in a sitting, so they are great for lunch when you're not too hungry but still want to eat something. Oddly enough, this is the one food my daughter won't eat.

Vegan Mac and Cheese

When I became a vegan, the only real meal I missed was macaroni and cheese. I had tried in the past to make a few recipes and they just tasted awful. I managed to not give up and found a recipe that tastes pretty close to macaroni and cheese. It is one of my least favorite to make but my favorite to eat. I'll warn you - it is a mess to clean up, but it is worth it! You can cook a single serving but this recipe is for a bigger serving. This will last about a week in our house with 2 people eating it. The first time my daughter had this, she could not get enough of it! We had it every night for a week!

What you'll need

Pasta noodles

'Follow your Heart' Vegan Cheddar Cheese

Earth Balance butter

Daiya Cheddar or Mozzarella cheese

Tumeric

Onion powder

Garlic powder

Nu-Salt (or regular salt)

Pepper

Soy or Coconut milk

How to make

Start boiling your water. You want to immediately start making your sauce so it will be finished at the same time.

I love using Follow Your Heart cheddar cheese, mostly because it tastes pretty good and it is a good filler cheese. I wouldn't make this recipe with only this cheese, but you definitely can! I ran out of Daiya cheese, but I really suggest using that as well. Daiya cheese melts better and becomes sort of 'sticky' so it holds everything together. Follow Your Heart melts nicely but doesn't stick unless it isn't as hot.

  
You'll want to cut about half of the block of cheese and a little bit of the butter. You don't want to put all of the cheese in at once. It melts better if you cut it into squares and put it in piece by piece.

These are all of the spices you'll need. You don't have to use them, but I find it gives it more of a flavor.

 I really want to talk about Nu-Salt for a minute. It is a salt substitute that is absolutely wonderful. The bottle will last you a few months and it isn't all that expensive unlike other salt substitutes. You can find this just about anywhere and it goes great on so many foods. You don't get that 'salt bloat' the next morning after eating a really salty meal.

 Put a little bit of soy or coconut milk into the pan with the cheese and butter. I used a bit more cheese than usual only because I wasn't using the Daiya cheese as well. I usually use coconut milk for this recipe since it is thicker and cooks better.

Within a few minutes it should start melting and looking more like a real cheese sauce. If you have the Daiya cheese, you can add it in now. It will make everything thicker. I usually use the shredded Daiya cheese for this recipe.

 Add your pasta once the water starts boiling. You can use any kind - I used long pasta since it is easier for my daughter to eat.

 Your cheese should be starting to melt. You can put in the spices whenever you want. I just sprinkle a little bit of each on top of the cheese.You can add more cheese blocks as you need, depending on if you like thick or thin sauce.

 Your noodles should be just about done. I take them out first and make sure to drain all of the water completely so the cheese really sticks to them.

 Your cheese sauce should be done as well. Be careful not to burn it while cooking - it doesn't take too much to do!

 Mix it all together in the pot after you drain the water from the noodles. One suggestion I have is to make sure you let the dishes soak while you are eating. This cheese tends to stick very very hard to the sides of the pan. If you don't soak it, you are almost better off just buying new dishes.

 And that's it! You are all done. As I said earlier, I didn't use the Daiya cheese since I was out, but that really makes the recipe pop. It tastes pretty good without it, but it tastes AMAZING with it. Don't skip out on that part if you make it! I can only really find that at Wegmans, but depending on where you live, it might be in your local store.

 

I like adding Boca chicken nuggets. They go GREAT with mac and cheese

 

Enjoy!