Just kidding.

I recently received an e-mail from a reader asking me the simplest way to graciously host a vegan in her omni household and I wanted to share my response with you guys (should any of you ever be in the same sitch). I’ve also added a few other relevant notes that I will list first:

1. Ask What “Vegan” Means to Your Guest. It’s a misconception that all vegans have the same taboos and food “no-no”s.  Check with your pal just as you would anyone else coming to visit.
2. Ask your guest about his/her favorite meals. No point standing their wringing your hands and chanting “I will not, I repeat, will not eat tofu for breakfast, lunch and dinner!” I think you’ll be surprised to hear some of your pal’s favorite dishes (and don’t worry, we don’t all eat a ton of tofu — though I certainly could, I love the stuff!). It’s always fun to learn what others love to eat and try something new, so do your pal a solid and try recreating one of his or her fave meals!
3. Think of all the things you already eat that are vegan. I don’t know why many people tend to think that eating “vegan” is foreign to them — we’ve all eaten veggies, fruit, rice, bread, pasta, peanut butter, etc., right? Chances are you have tons of vegan things in your pantry already! It will depend on your pal, but you’ll usually want to check the back of pastas to make sure they don’t have eggs; and check bread labels for both eggs and honey (typically, those are two vegan “no-no”s).
4. Think of your day-to-day staples, and plan on having a few alternatives. Drink milk every morning? Use butter or cream cheese on your bagel? Keep a stash of almond, soy, or rice milk; or whole grain “drink.” These are great because you can keep them in your pantry (they don’t need to be refrigerated until opened). For butter, I recommend Earth Balance; for cream cheese, I recommend Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese (non-hydrogenated, plain version).
5. Think Beyond the Side Salad. I don’t get why salads have to be so blah. Rinse and drain a can of black or kidney beans, add corn, jicama, cucumber, onion, etc. You can break up some baked tortilla chips for a southwest feel, add bbq tempeh or tempeh bacon. You can add cranberries and cooked quinoa with a spritz or two of lemon. You can use my deconstructed taco salad idea and turn it into a legit salad.
6. Lost in confusion? Think of your favorite meals! It’s seriously a cinch to make anyone’s favorite meals vegan! Even if your fave meal is steak and potatoes — in which case, alright, serve some grilled tempeh, eggplant or mushroom (all three have “meaty” texture) with mashed potatoes (use soy milk or veggie broth instead of milk or cream; use vegan butter). Fave dish enchiladas? Use tofu or sweet potatoes as a filling. Omit cheese or use Daiya-brand shredded “cheese.”
7. When Stumped, Imitation is Flattery. If you’re not feeling the “recreate your fave meal” tip and really want something outside of the norm to wow your vegan pal (you must be crushin’! just sayin’!), then take inspiration from vegan restaurant menus! You don’t have to buy a fancy cookbook or spend hours scouring food blogs (though it is fun, lemmetellya!); all you have to do is search google for vegan restaurants, or even take a look at the menus of my two fave local vegan restaurants: Native Foods and The Veggie Grill, for ideas!

Here was my original response to my reader:

“Ok, here’s a list of options!

1. Grab some whole-wheat spaghetti and tomato sauce. Cook as you normally would. Saute some Tofurkey brand Italian Sausage (sold at Trader Joe’s) to go on top. The sausage is vegan and AMAZING, trust me!
2. Saute diced white onion in a tbsp of olive oil until translucent, add vegetarian refried pinto beans and cook until warm. Put beans in whole-wheat tortillas, topped with guacamole, salsa, more diced onion, cilantro, and soy sour cream if you like.
3. Make either of these two pasta dishes — both are delicious! Here or here.
4. I also love to cut up a pound of sweet potatoes, mix in a bowl with one tbsp. olive oil, fresh rosemary, salt & pepper. Put in a baking dish (sprayed with Pam) and bake at 450 until soft with crisp edges. You can serve these as a side dish.
5. You can make sandwiches with jarred roasted bell pepper, avocado and spinach. Use a pesto spread instead of mayo, or use vegenaise. You could also use tempeh “bacon” slices. I love just plain veggie sandwiches with loads of cucumber, sprouts, spinach, red onion, mustard and avocado.
6. One of my fave dishes my mom makes is cooking brown rice as directed then putting it in a large saute pan and adding tomato sauce (you don’t want to over saturate, you want it to absorb, so it will depend on how many servings of rice you’ve made). Then add a can of garbanzo beans and season with salt and pepper. You can serve with my breaded sesame tofu.

Since I’m sure you don’t have all day to spend in the kitchen, my best bets are always to go with a pasta dish, sandwiches, or even buy the vegetarian chili from Trader Joe’s (canned; it doesn’t say vegan on it, but it is) and serve with tortilla chips or in a burrito.

You can serve a nice green salad with all of these meals, if you like. For breakfast, you can keep it simple by providing fresh fruit and whole wheat bagels. The bagel’s can be topped with Earth Balance vegan butter or vegan cream cheese (I love the Tofutti brand). I also have a recipe for vegan French toast here, if you’re interested. Oh, and toast with pb is always vegan!

Hope that helps! Oh! and I forgot to add that whole-wheat pita bread and hummus dip is always a wonderful addition to any meal.”

When you have friends visiting, how do  you accommodate their eating habits/lifestyle?

Tune in tomorrow for my whimsical brownie bites:

<3,

The Cranky One

Any lifestyle change is going to, invariably, be met with intrigue…and sometimes criticism. Veganism is definitely one of those changes that might be met with concern (there’s a lot of myth that vegetarians and vegans are protein and nutrient deprived) and/or met with a scoff and the question, “well, what will you eat? Rabbit food?”

I assure you that while I do love me some rabbit food, carrots and celery yum yum, etc., I also like to feel full and to eat a variety of delicious foods. Most simply, vegans do not eat or use anything that contains animal products (so no meat, eggs, dairy, etc.). It can seem a challenge to find things without animal products when you go out to eat at non-vegan restaurants (for realz!), but making your own vegan recipes at home is a cinch!  Just start with the basics:

• Whole grains — Brown rice, whole wheat pastas, whole wheat bread (Note: Don’t fall for marketing gimmicks! “Multi-grain” and “whole wheat blend” are NOT the same as “100% whole wheat”; also read labels since some breads use eggs)
• Legumes/beans
• Vegetables

Then, if you’re feeling saucy, add:

• Tempeh — Fermented meat substitute made from whole soybeans (and sometimes whole grains, too). Has a more “rugged” and meaty texture than tofu and also higher protein.
• Tofu — A meat substitute made from a bean curd made from soy milk.
• Seitan — A meat substitute made from wheat gluten.
• Nuts — Adding chopped nuts to a salad is so cliche (yet delicious).  Add chopped nuts to everything for added protein (but still watch yer calories, yaknowwhatimean?)!
• Oils — Olive and canola are the best
• Herbs, spices — Fresh herbs and spices make a bland meat substitute go from meat mockery to meat flattery.

and:

• Soy sauce
• Marinade
• Hot sauce

and voila! you’ve got a hearty and healthy vegan meal!

Some of my vegan staples & faves include:

Fried brown rice, black beans and steamed vegetables

Sweet potato enchiladas

Strawberry bread

Thai-style stir-fried tofu

Sweet potato and asparagus quiche

Corndog minis

Homemade lemon Larabars

BBQ tofu pizza

Refried bean tacos with homemade potato chips

Lemon basil brown rice

Lentil bolognese tacos with avocado and hot sauce

Black bean and yellow and red pepper tacos

Don Lee Farms veggie patty with whole wheat pita and veggies

Miso soup and avocado rolls
[photo cred]

Whole-wheat cold pasta salad

Tofu/veggie spring rolls

Whole-wheat spaghetti
[photo cred]

Don’t worry — veganism doesn’t steal away your nostalgic foods either. You can still have PB&J and many cereals (including Puffins — my fave!), just eat the cereal with soy milk, almond milk, rice milk or whole grain drink (a mix of whole grains like brown rice and quinoa).
[photo cred]

Pissed that cheese comes from animals and not the heavens above? No worries — try a cheese substitute (but keep your expectations low, let’s be real lol).  Vegan Yum Yum has a delicious-lookin’ vegan recipe for mac and cheese here.

And, seriously, let’s not forget dessert (the most important meal of the day!   Vegan desserts just so happen to be the love of my life and nemesis of my hips. My fave vegan dessert recipes are here, here, here and here. You can also check out all dessert books by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. If you want to go out for a vegan treat, visit my fave vegan restaurant Native Foods in the LA & OC area, or visit Baby Cakes Bakery in Los Angeles, CA or NYC if you’re near there.

Food News

• Corner Bakery announces “Combos Under 600 Calories” here. 600 calories is still a lot for a sandwich (calorie counts DO NOT include the side-item the sandwich comes with), but I guess it’s better than eating a salad worth 1000 calories (jeebus — these horrific salads are everywhere, it’s shocking!). Note: Not many vegetarian options at Corner Bakery and maybe a couple vegan options if you remove the cheese…

Related Posts

• Vegetarian and Vegan Resources – Recently updated
• How to Eat Vegetarian Everywhere
• Vegan Thai Dishes

What restaurant do you think needs a healthy-foods option makeover the most? I recently went to California Pizza Kitchen and found that the only options under 500 calories were a cup of their soups.  I don’t know about you guys, but a cup of soup for a meal leaves me feeling pretty deprived and cranky as hell.

<3,

The Cranky One