Practically Vegan

With Kimberly Steele

Why Vegan?• You care deeply about the animals• You’re concerned about your health• You want to leave a cleaner, happier, more

verdant Earth for the people of tomorrow

About Me

• Vegetarian/Pescetarian since age 17, Vegan since age 37 (I am 40)

• Own a small music lesson and recording business in Naperville called Kimberly Steele Studio

• In October 2012, the company my husband worked for went out of business

But how do I go vegan???• Myth 1: Being vegan is expensive• Myth 2: Being vegan will make you pale, sickly, and

protein deficient• Myth 3: In order to be vegan, you have to be

“perfect”• Myth 4: If you go vegan, your friends and family will

suddenly abandon you because you will become a radical ALF ninja

• What is an ALF ninja, you ask?

You six months from Now:

Thanks for liberating the minks BTW!!!

SDA and SAD fall in love

My husband, raised SDA, has never eaten meat. I was raised SAD, and ate meat until age 17 when I became ovo-lacto vegetarian.

Be ready for possible withdrawal

• Nobody tells you meat, dairy, and eggs are ADDICTIVE

• Animal products are the new tobacco• You might feel weak, get headaches, have

digestive issues, or feel enervated• Your body was most likely in a state of chronic

dehydration• You will have to eat often and abundantly

during the transition, keep the calories coming

Plant-based diets are not a panacea!

• Just as quitting smoking or drinking is not a panacea, going plant-based may help, but it is NOT A CURE ALL.

• That said, plant-based diets are shown to stop or reverse heart disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and are recommended by the AHA and by the world’s largest health insurance organization, Kaiser Permanente

YOUR NEW FOOD PYRAMID

The Only Two Vitamins You Need

•B12

•Flax seed (or other plant source of omega 3 fatty acids)

When all else fails, eat some chard!!!

Getting Enough Protein

• The American diet is fiber-deficient, not protein deficient

• Kwashiorkor not a common American disease• Simple albumin blood test tells you if you are

truly protein deficient• You do not have to eat soy to get protein, but

you might have to eat kale• Even fruits have protein, for instance dates and

raisins have it

Tricks of the Trade

• Buy some gently used appliances: rice cooker, food processor/blender, crockpot

• Soak some nuts and beans• Visit Korean and Indian grocery stores• Make a list of your favorite foods, including

ones that had animal products in them you can veganify

Deconstructing Food

• Stop overcomplicating / trying to be perfect• How many times have you not made a recipe

because you didn’t have every single ingredient?

• Be grateful for the small, simple things

Let’s Replace Cheese!Making Uncheese for mac & cheese, nachos, quesadillas, cheezdogs, cheesy soups, etc.

1. Something RED

• Red bell pepper• Pimento• Ketchup

2. Something bulky and creamy

• Unsweetened oatmeal• Cooked white beans

• Tofu• Potatoes

• Soaked, pureed cashews• Cooked cauliflower

3. Salty, Tangy, and Sour Flavors

• Nutritional yeast• Lemon juice• Miso• Mustard• Pickled Plum (umeboshi)

Thicken with cornstarch or arrowroot

Books!

This is what a happy cow looks likeKayli at Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary

Karma (mom) and Mr. Rojas (baby) at The Gentle Barn

Ideas for your first vegan trip to the grocery store

• Plan at least one all-produce meal• Purchase some bulk beans and rice to make

frozen dinners• Buy ingredients for vegan cheez and then

decide how you’ll use it: soup, cheez fries, nachos, mac & cheez?

• Buy a small amount of one new item you’ve never tried (daikon radish!)

Asian Groceries

• Spices• Sesame seeds• Nuts • Dates• Seaweed• Tofu• Gluten free flour • Boxes of fruit• Basil• Cilantro

• Dried mushrooms

• Quick-cooking noodles

• Coconut water• Tea• Soy sauce• Mushroom

sauce• Cooking wine

• Rice• Rice paper

wraps• Coconut milk• Eda mame• Spicy

chutney• Beans• Pickled

plums (umeboshi)

• Flatbread flour or “atta”

Korean and Asian Grocery Stores

Buy at the Health Food Store/Whole Foods

• Vitamin B12 and flax meal• Organic apples, lettuces, grapes and other “dirty

dozen” produce• Texturized vegetable protein and wheat gluten• Veggie broth paste or cubes• Sweeteners (agave nectar, stevia)• Plant milk• Vegan “junk” food like veggie meats and non-

dairy ice cream

Buy in Bulk

• Beans• Nutritional yeast• Oats• Sugar• Flours

Make-Ahead Bulk Frozen Dinner Ideas

• Chana masala (Indian chickpeas in tomato sauce) & naan

• Hoppin’ John and millet• Fried plantains, black bean stew, and corn• Tofu pot pies• Minestrone soup• Veggie chicken soup• Fried rice and veggie stir fry• Pasta primavera

AAAGH! 10 minutes until dinner!

• MIXING BOWL of fruit for supper• Fried rice• Tortilla or pita bread pizzas• World’s fastest soup or chili non carne• Unchicken parmesan• Asian noodle stir fry / jap chae• Fastest Japanese snacks and sides• Tomato toasts• Quesadillas• Greens, avocado, apple, orange, walnut, and balsamic vinegar salad• Rice, kale or other greens, finely chopped kale, olive oil, and

nutritional yeast

How to properly fry riceUse cooked rice that you’ve REFRIGERATED OR FROZEN

Make sure all the ingredients are ready to go stove-side

Get the oil so hot it smokes

Fruit for dinner

• Tortilla, bagel half, or pita round

• ¼ cup of jar spaghetti sauce• 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast• 1 teaspoons of vegan

mayonnaise (optional)• Toppings of choice such as

olives, basil, onion, mushrooms, sweet peppers, pineapple chunks, etc.

World’s Fastest Pizza

Jap chae (Korean glass noodles)

Unchicken Parmesan

1 portion cooked spaghetti or angel hair pasta

1 unchicken patty (I used Boca) microwaved and then toasted

2 tablespoons of hummus

Spaghetti sauce

Little Wayne at Harvest Home Sanctuary

One Egg A Day

• Cuts a woman’s life short as much as smoking five cigarettes a day for five years

Harvard Nurse’s Health Study, 2012

Replacing Eggs the Healthy Way

EQUIVALENT TO ONE EGG:

1/4 cup silken tofu1/3 cup apple sauce1/4 cup soy or almond yogurt1 T. flax seed meal and 3 T. water1/2 cup pureed banana

Eating at Restaurants

• Cheapest chains: Noodles & Company, Naf Naf, Taco Bell, Chipotle, Panera, Omango, Green Chilli, Jason’s Deli

• Thai: watch out for fish sauce, eggs• Chinese and Japanese: soups often contain fish or chicken

broth, eggs• Indian: Tell your server that you are a strict vegetarian, no ghee

or paneer• Not all veggieburgers are vegan, however, most pastas and

breads are• Don’t wait for restaurants to catch up with the vegan trend,

communicate with the restaurant owners, email the corporation, and make your voice heard

TRY VEGAN FOR 30 DAYS• Get Help: Colleen Patrick Goudreau’s

30DayVeganChallenge.com only $20• Find Recipes: 365 days of vegan lunch recipes

in 2013 at kimberlysteele.wordpress.com• Find Friends: Join Plant-Powered Naperville!

Come to the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale!!!

Esther the Wonder Pig

EstherTheWonderPig.Com