Guest Cindie2dds Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 I've wanted to become a vegan for a long time, but I have had a hard time with putting a nutritious daily plan together. Do you have a favorite book for a new vegan? I'm looking for kid friendly ones also. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy at Home Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Somebody put an APB out for Tara the Liberator . . . Blessings, Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 You know, you might be over thinking it. Did you have a daily nutritional plan all worked out as a meat eater? Apparently most people (yeah, generalisation) who eat animal products are deficient in iron, calcium and iodine. I don't know about kid friendly books. I tend to see those sorts of books as being rather gimicky, but I have been blessed with kids who'll eat pretty near anything. I found this list on amazon, though: http://www.amazon.com/Vegetarian-and-Vegan-Kids/lm/R1FKLNAOGHHJOS The books I found helpful in learning were: http://www.amazon.com/Raw-Food-Revolution-Diet/dp/1570671850 http://www.amazon.com/Seaweed-Balancing-Metabolism-Fighting-Revitalizing/dp/1584795387/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257129761&sr=1-7 http://www.amazon.com/Miso-Book-Art-Cooking/dp/0757000282/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257129816&sr=1-1\ http://www.amazon.com/Sprouting-Book-Sprouts-Maximize-Vitality/dp/0895292467 The Raw Food Revolution book has lots of good info, and actually has some recipes that don't require a dehydrator. It doesn't waffle on about juice fasts either, so while it is not the only recipe book you'd ever want, it's the best one I've seen. Not that I've seen many. I don't necessarily recommend buying the seaweed book. If you have anything like that in your library, read that. Unfortunately I live in a very boring food town, so there wasn't anything in our library. It has great information, but few recipes so I've outgrown it very quickly. The miso book has some great info, and simple recipes. I was concerned at first that they'd be too simple for me, but they aren't. The simplicity of the recipes really allowed me to learn how the stuff works, and I've made many of the dishes with different types of miso for comparison. The sprouting book isn't all you could ever want to know about it, but it is a good and perfectly understandable starter. I recommend Donna Klein's books. They should be pretty kid friendly, the Italian and Mediterranean ones, at least. I've not bought the Tropical Kitchen yet, but am hoping for Christmas money ;) Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Nava Atlas does kid friendly stuff: http://www.amazon.com/Vegan-Express-Nava-Atlas/dp/076792617X I also like her soups and stews. Even my kitchen-kultz hubby can cook from that book (although he looks like he's having a nervous breakdown). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindie2dds Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Thanks for the links to the books. I feel like I'm preparing side dishes all the time. I have a gift certificate to B&N, so I'm going to try to find a more complete book than I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helena Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Our kids love this book:http://www.amazon.com/Vegan-Cupcakes-Take-Over-World/dp/1569242739/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257132070&sr=8-1 and this:http://www.amazon.com/Joy-Vegan-Baking-Compassionate-Traditional/dp/1592332803/ref=pd_sim_b_3 I don't really use cookbooks, much less vegan ones. I mostly convert my family recipes (mexican). Basic things you need to do that are vegan chicken broth (I use powdered), vegan sour cream, vegan cheese used sparingly, and if it doesn't gross you out, some fake meats. There are some amazing recipes in this:http://www.amazon.com/Mexico-Beautiful-Cookbook-Susanna-Palazuelos/dp/0067575862/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257132504&sr=1-1 This book isn't vegan or veg but it has important sauces, for that "main dish". If the sauce is killer, than you don't mind that the meat has been replaced, it maintains the flavor. There are also tons of soup, and rice dishes that I can't live without. I just pulled this one out the other day and made BBQ tofu. My husband laughed when he saw it. This cookbook is funky(there is a recipe for flour tortillas using tofu), and outdated but we've each had a copy for at least 20 years.http://www.amazon.com/Tofu-Cookery-Anniversary-Louise-Hagler/dp/1570672202/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257133258&sr=1-3 I have to admit the are a couple of good recipes in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 I don't use a cookbook. When I want to make something, I google a vegan recipe for it. For example, the last three recipes I started making are: Mashed potato burritos: http://www.chow.com/recipes/14280 (notice the recipe is not vegan; I veganized it to some degree but basically just took my inspiration from the chipotle suggestion to create chipotle mashed potato burritos. I served them with broccoli and fruit. Another recipe suggested using a green enchilada sauce over them, which I will try next time.) Indian-style Chickpeas http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=8896.0 (I googled "vegan indian recipes" and scrolled down the page until I found something that a) looked good and b) I had the ingredients for.) Louisiana Red Beans and Rice http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/02/real-louisiana-red-beans-and-rice.html I don't enjoy cooking and I am not a whiz in the kitchen, but making nutritious vegan meals for my family has not been difficult. I usually look at 2 or 3 vegan recipes and then synthesize my own based on what we have and what we like. That's why I don't like cookbooks--they generally just have one recipe for each meal, whereas google has hundreds. With a cookbook, if you don't have the ingredients, you're out of luck. With google, you can look at several recipes and combine them based on what you have. My main recipe websites are vegweb, allrecipes, and vegetarian.about.com. With a little practice you will learn to veganize just about any recipe or combine recipes to get what you want. Trust me on that. I am serious when I say I am not handy in the kitchen. My dd can't have soy, so I don't use soy cheeses or sour creams in my cooking. I use unsweetened almond milk when milk is called for. My main two cheese stand-ins are avocados and nutritional yeast. I use Ener-G egg replacer (you can make your own egg replacer from flax seeds and other things, but Ener-G is quick and easy (and relatively inexpensive). If you want me to send you some of my favorite quick, easy, and tasty recipes, pm me and I will send them to you. I don't worry too much about a "nutritionally balanced" meal plan. We eat very few processed foods and almost no junk food. My kids get fruits and veggies for snacks. I know that they are eating well. My dd grew more in the first year we were vegan than she did in any of the years we were vegetarian. Throughout the course of the day/week, we all get everything we need to be healthy. Be aware, however, that you will need a vitamin B-12 supplement. I have read some things that say people can reliably get B-12 form vegan foods, but my research has convinced me otherwise. My kids and I just take multi-vitamins that have B-12 in them. My husband takes a specific B-12 supplement. Good luck! Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 www.vegweb.com is a totally awesome site. They have a huge recipe database. You can do vegan several ways; if you have the money, and don't care how much soy you put in your diet, there's a substitute for just about anything (except a really satisfactory substitute for melty cheese). It's not that hard to get enough protein, etc. Just remember your combination rule (legume plus grain). I stopped being veg because I felt I was eating too many carbs. Of course, now I'm omni and I still eat too many carbs. :tongue_smilie: One of these days I'll get back on the whole foods bandwagon, at least. I've quite thoroughly fallen off into junky convenience food land... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindie2dds Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Thank you! I fell off the wagon, so to speak, also and I think it was because I wasn't fully prepared and fell back into old habits. I don't want to do that again. I'm trying to get as much help as I can. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindie2dds Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Tara, Sent you a pm. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 There are a lot of Indian food recipes that are naturally vegan or easily made that way. We are making a ton of Indian food now because the Sponge is allergic to cow's milk, and I'm 99% vegetarian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devotional Soul Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Here's another linky: http://vegkitchen.com/ We also really like Vitamineral Green on everything. Thanks from the innocent animals on Earth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeaTotaler Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Not vegan or vegetarian but our family eats meat in small quantities. I have borrowed Nava Atlas' bks from the library and made quite a few recipes for quick and easy ones. Her website Vegkitchen.com has several on there that you could try. Another poster mentioned Indian cooking. If you are interested, a book was recently published by Madhu Gadia called the Indian Vegan Kitchen. I have not seen it but do own her first book. HTH I've wanted to become a vegan for a long time, but I have had a hard time with putting a nutritious daily plan together. Do you have a favorite book for a new vegan? I'm looking for kid friendly ones also. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindie2dds Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Thank you for all the links and recipes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Just wanted to add a yummy vegan meal I made tonight: Spaghetti with creamy artichoke sauce. http://vegetarian.about.com/od/maindishentreerecipes/r/ArtichookePasta.htm I found that the recipe calls for too much lemon juice; next time I will halve it. But it was still yumtastic. Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrystal Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Vegan with a Vengancne and Vegamonicon both by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. Not just a collection of side dishes and not just how to change what are traditionally main dishes containing meats, but both truly good books. I love, love, love these books and they are funny too. You can see some of her work on Post Punk Kitchen and there is a forum board that is helpful too. http://www.theppk.com/ She also wrote Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and Vegan Cookies Take Over Your Cookie Jar. I have the cupcake book and love it. I have the cookie book in my wish list until I get a little money to buy it I have lots of others, but these are my faves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trixie Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Also Myra Kornfeld's "The Voluptuous Vegan." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CactusPair Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 try borrowing some vegetarian times magazines from the library. lots of good recipes there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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