A WEEK OF VEGAN EVENTS / GRAIN AND BEETROOT SALAD WITH SWEET MISO DRESSING
A WEEK OF VEGAN EVENTS / GRAIN AND BEETROOT SALAD WITH SWEET MISO DRESSING
The week of vegan adventures:
Wednesday: Vegan Cheese Making Workshop ran by lovely Mel Rogers of Mel’s Kindness Kitchen - http://melskindnesskitchen.co.uk/workshops-and-catering/ - Mel strives to create delicious vegan cheese recipes on a budget. We were taught how to make 4 different plant based“cheeses”. My favourite was Me’s creamy tofu cheese, it will become a staple in my kitchen as it can be adapted to so many different flavours . Mel’s cheeses taste miles better than any vegan cheeses I have bought from shops (you know the plastic bag taste…). Mel will be running a cheese workshop at the Bristol Vegfest in May so do go see her if you get a chance.
Friday: Dr Michael Greger’s talk : Uprooting the UK’s Leading Causes of Death! Definite highlight of the week!!! Indeed I have been a huge fan ever since his discovering his fantastic website www.nutritionfacts.org, I did walk up to him just to call him my hero (think he appreciated it). Dr Greger is one of the biggest advocate of the plant based diet’s health benefits out there. And what more, all his claims are backed by science! His talk was fabulously entertaining and informative, I loved that he tailored it to reflect the health issues here in the UK (the US version of his talk is on the internet) making it very topical. My, soon to be 14, son left very inspired too. We were discussing nutrition and health during the whole car journey back and yes this time he initiated it. I have a photo and signed copy of HOW NOT TO DIE book to remember this day. An amazing experience meeting an amazing man. Start struck I was. If you haven’t already please do buy his book!!!
My personal proud moment: As I sat down at the auditorium I realised there were leaflets everywhere with my face on it!!! The College of Naturopathic Medicine was the co-organiser of Dr Greger’s talk together with the amazing Viva! (proud to have such an organisation in Bristol). The leaflets were there to advertise the upcoming CNM Open Day event I am part of with my talk on vegan nutrition.
Finally Saturday, a delicious (even not so healthy) hot dog experience at a LD’S Bitchin' Kitchin vegan pop up at the Golden Lion pub. This was an attempt to make the pub owners realise that there is a demand for vegan options that are currently missing from the pub’s menu. We were happy to help the cause :) Hot dogs were delicious, mine was smothered in delicious barbecue beans sprinkled with vegan bacon and gherkins. Yum. I had a taste of my husbands Satan’s Seitan and hiccupped all the way home…Fiery! Perfect for the Punks Vs Mods event the pub was hosting.
A quick recipe to round up this blog.
GRAIN AND BEETROOT SALAD WITH SWEET MISO DRESSING
Makes about 5-6 servings, keeps well in the fridge.
3 cups cooked mix grains ( I used mix of quinoa and bulghur)
1 large beetroot
3 medium carrots
1 red onion
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
Dressing
2 Tbs sweet white miso
5 Tbs sushi seasoning
1 Tbs soya sauce (tamari)
Place the grain in a large bowl.
Grate the beetroot and carrot. Add to the grain together with thinly sliced red onions.
In a dry pan lightly toast the sunflower seeds till just beginning to colour, add to the salad.
To make the dressing just whisk all the ingredients together and pour over the dressing. Mix well.
Top with herbs if desired.
BULGUR WHEAT SALAD WITH CRUNCHY VEGGIES AND HERBS
Couple days ago, Daily Mail ran a poll on their website. The question asked was: Is a vegan book aimed at children appropriate? (Unfortunately I am unable to find the exact words from the website but this is close enough) When I added my vote to the tally, there was about 10% more people convinced that veganism shouldn’t be taught to children.
The article that started this poll was a review of Ruby Roth’s new book Vegan is Love. I must give the usually judgmental DM a credit for a well balanced article. There was a quote from Nicole German, an American dietician, who deemed the book dangerous, leading to possible malnutrition in the young impressionable children. Rest of the article was however very reassuring (quoting the likes of Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) about the safety and health benefits of a well planned vegan diet for children.
Finally the tide seems to be changing and plant based/vegan diets are getting the recognition they deserve, with more and more research confirming their benefits in preventing and even reversing many chronic diseases. Of course not every vegan diet is healthy, chips and Oreos are vegan too.
There were number of comments that followed the article, one especially disagreeing with veganism being promoted to children and calling for charges to be pressed against parents whose child suffers through their negligence. In this case the legal system should brace themselves, there are plenty malnourished obese kids around who suffer by being fed low nutrition calorie dense fast foods. Most vegan parents know far more about nutrition than the average parent, simply because they have to. Yes there are few stumbling blocks, like vitamins B12 or D (in our climate) but there are easy to deal with. In my opinion a plate of lentils with brown rice and veggies on the side is a much healthier meal than Big Mac with chips any day!
As far as the book goes I am planning to order it very soon for my children, we have Ruby’s previous book That’s Why We Don’t Eat Animals, which is a fantastic way to introduce kids to the way animals are treated in today’s food production. Since I started to take dairy out of my diet, I decided not to impose the same decision on my kids. I do cook vegan dishes but if they want a cheese sandwich to take to school I wan’t going to argue. I wanted them to make their own decision. After reading the above book both of them decided to be “more” vegan. They still want to have the option of eating a pizza at friend’s house or at a party. And I will respect that but in a way wish they were never introduced to dairy in the first place.
Amazon US allows to have a peek at some of the pages of the book and from what I saw there is nothing I wouldn’t want my children to know. Such knowledge will lead to a more compassionate way of living. It is a shame that this book is most likely going to end up in vegan/vegetarian households only, it should be in every library and read at schools.
The original article:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2131090/Ruby-Roths-new-childrens-book-Vegan-Love-sparks-outrage-graphic-images-unhealthy-diet-message.html
BULGUR WHEAT SALAD WITH CRUNCHY VEGGIES AND HERBS
This salad is very lightly dressed just with lemon juice and tiny bit of olive oil, if you want a stronger flavour you could add a tablespoon of white balsamic vinegar. I like to be able to taste all the veggies and herbs without being over powered by dressing.
Serves 4 as a main dish salad.
ingredients
180g (1 cup) bulgur wheat
375ml (1 and 1/2 cups) just boiled water (or vegetable stock)
1 tin chickpeas, drained
2 medium beef tomatoes, seeded and finely diced
1 small kohlrabi, peeled and finely diced (about 1 cup)
8 radishes, finely diced (about 3/4 cup)
1 small red onion, finely diced
1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 large lemon
heaped handful (1 cup ) smixture of parsley and mint, finely chopped (I used ration 3-1 parsley to mint)
method
- First cook the bulgur wheat; put the grain into a large bowl, pour over the just boiled water (or stock). Cover with cling film and let sit for 10-15 min or until all the water is absorbed.
- Add the drained chickpeas to the hot bulgur wheat. Season with salt and let cool down.
- In the meantime chop all your vegetables.
- Mix all the ingredients into the cooled bulgur-chickpea mixture. Mix well.
- Serve :)
QUINOA AND BULGUR WHEAT SALAD
There is no doubt Type 2 diabetes is sweeping the world, as I learn at college yesterday, there are about 180, 000, 000 cases worldwide. 90% of those are Type 2 diabetes. As Type 1 means a lifetime insulin injections, Type 2 can be, in most cases, prevented, managed and even reversed.
I was always aware that this is a very serious condition, but my lecturer opened my eyes to just how serious it really is. Complications are numerous, heart failure, stroke, loss of feeling to extremities (which often lead to amputation), kidney failure and loss of eyesight. Photos of leg ulcers and gangrene would put anyone off. These are risks everybody should be aware off.
Unfortunately people are still in denial, just google Paula Dean and diabetes, the queen of American high calorie high fat cooking, who still will not admit her diet could have anything to do with her diagnosis. On the other hand, doctors like Neil Barnard, John McDougall or Michael Klapper have had amazing results treating this disease with diet only for many years.
Where the “western diet” and fastfood chains go diabetes Type 2 follows. China and Japan are seeing rise of cases. I think we have to take a step back, take a long look on our diet and lifestyle and act. Prevention is always better than cure.
QUINOA AND BULGUR WHEAT SALAD
I have cheated here and bought a pack of quinoa and bulgur wheat mix, very convenient. You can mix your own, half and half, 4-2 whatever you fancy. In that case however cook the grains separately, drain and mix together. I am not a great fan of raw tomatoes but I can imagine a few halved cherry tomatoes would go wonderfully with this recipe.
I have used dairy free Plamil mayo, which is more tart in flavour that regular mayonnaise. Red peppers are from a jar, preserved in brine not oil.
ingredients
250g pack of quinoa and bulgur wheat mix
2 roasted red peppers, from a jar
3 Tbs of dairy free mayonnaise
2 Tbs white wine vinegar
1 carrot, grated
1 small red onion, finely chopped
half a cucumber, chopped into 1cm dice
15 olives, halved
2 Tbs parsley
method
- Cook the grains according to package instruction. My mix took only 10 min. Drain, rinse under cool running water. Make sure all water drips out.
- For the dressing, in a blender (or small food processor) blend together red peppers, mayo and vinegar, pausing to scrape the sides.
- Mix the dressing into your cooled grains.
- Add the carrot, cucumber, olives and parsley.
- Serve as it is, or mix with green baby leaves.