VEGANUARY REVIEW - highs and lows
That's right. I did it. Veganuary is a charity (https://veganuary.com/) which helps to raise awareness for veganism by people making pledges to not eat any products which have come from animals. To the horror of my family this means no eggs, dairy (butter, milk, cream, cheese), meat or fish of any kind. This is my second year doing Veganuary so I sort of already knew what I could and couldn't eat. And as I'm sure you've been told before, it is actually easier than you think.
WEEK ONE:
Stock up on the essentials. There will be a few things you won't be able to live without so you will want to get substitutes. Hazelnut milk and coconut milk are delicious. You can get dairy-free spread to replace butter. Alpro do great dairy-free yoghurts and chocolate dessert puds. Best discovery this year was Violife cheddar flavour. You can get blocks of these in Waitrose and Tesco for around £2.50 and they melt pretty well to make a peng vegan pizza. Veggie Colin the Caterpillar sweets from M&S and dark chocolate for those with a sweet tooth.
WEEK TWO:
You may start to notice some changes to your digestion. I didn't experience much this time as I eat quite a lot of vegetables anyway but if going vegan has increased your fibre intake then your body's digestion might change. Remember to switch up your meals so you're not always just having pasta or rice. There are tonnes of great vegan recipes out there.
WEEK THREE:
Some people may say that vegans don't get the necessary vitamins and minerals but this can easily be avoided. If you eat a balanced and varied diet you are sure to get all the good stuff your body needs. 7 walnuts, half a tin of chickpeas or 2tbsp of nut butter should give you your daily dose of protein. Some cereals, dairy-free milks and spreads will contain added B12 or you can take supplements as this is the only thing you can't get from plant products.
WEEK FOUR:
At this point you may see changes in your skin complexion, weight, energy levels and general happiness. For me, I just felt better in myself that I'd had a month of eating nutrient dense food which isn't harmful to animals and is more environmentally friendly. It wasn't the biggest change from my normal diet but if you're going from eating high-calorie microwave or takeaway meals to a plant-based diet then you might lose weight and/or energy levels may increase.
EATING OUT:
I happened to be in London one weekend so me and my Dad went to a plant-based restaurant we'd been recommended called The Gate at Seymour Place. This was one of the best meals out I've had in a long time; not only was the food amazing but the fact that it contained no eggs or dairy was so clever! For a starter we shared three-onion tart (vegan pastry!), tofu tikka, miso glazed aubergine, beetroot ricotta and dill (vegan ricotta!!) and artichoke terrine. For a main I had potato dauphinoises (vegan dauphinoises!!!) with veggies, couscous and cauliflower. Dessert was the most incredible thing ever: coffee cheesecake (vegan cheesecake!!), coconut cream, the BEST brownie ever and a chocolate mousse filled dome (vegan mousse!!) as in the kind of dome where you pour over hot chocolate sauce and it melts to reveal the amazingness of the mousse. Considering it was gourmet dining it wasn't even that expensive. Another pro of vegan/vegetarianism is that often the meals are much cheaper.
HAZELNUT HOT CHOCOLATE RECIPE:
Put 15g of dark dairy-free chocolate into a mug and pour over 300ml of hazelnut milk. Microwave for a few mins and give it a stir. Voila you have a delicious dairy-free hot chocolate.
COCONUT CINNAMON LATTE RECIPE:
Make an espresso of coffee (I use instant coffee, I know I suck). In a separate container, microwave 300ml of coconut milk until it's pretty boiling hot. Life hack- if you can't afford a proper milk frother then you can get these mini hand held whisker type things which do the same kind of thing (https://www.amazon.co.uk/aerolatte-Milk-Frother-Storage-Black/dp/B0001RT2C4) Froth your coconut milk then pour it into the espresso. Sprinkle with cinnamon and put a drizzle of syrup over the top.
VIETNAMESE SPRING ROLLS RECIPE:
Wash a cut up a variety of vegetables into thin slices. Prepare your Vietnamese spring rolls according to the packet instructions. Fill with vegetables then roll up like a pancake and tuck in the ends. (in photo shows a prawn spring roll for the rest of my family).
There are so many arguments for and against veganism so I think I'll do a separate post after I've done a bit more research!! Gotta get the facts right
I did Veganuary primarily for my health and to improve my diet. I am also aware that meat consumption and the keeping of cattle can have negative environmental impacts. The moral and ethical aspect I initially gave little care for but the more I have thought about it as the month goes on, the idea of eating animal flesh seems more and more bizarre.
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