Christmas Dinner, Part One

Last night we celebrated Christmas with Mr. Downright Vegan's family.

I brought along a Field Roast Celebration Roast with roast veggies, and a gluten-free, vegan Christmas cake for dessert.

I enjoyed this very much.

Maple and Toasted Walnut Biscotti

I have been thinking about biscotti lately, and found a number of intriguing recipes on-line, but they all contained eggs and butter.  This recipe is adapted from a Foodland Ontario recipe, but I have veganized it, removing cruel ingredients and replacing them with vegan ones.

These are wonderful biscotti, and are perfect with a cup of tea or coffee.  I am going to make a batch to take to my veterinarian's office for a Christmas gift.  It's a great office that does so much for my furry boys.  On a side note, when my vet was newly qualified, he worked for a while for the federal government, inspecting welfare at slaughterhouses.  What he saw there turned him into a vegetarian.  That's food for thought. 



Maple Walnut Biscotti

1/2 cup (125 mL) vegan butter, at room temperature - I used Earth Balance from the tub
1/2 cup (125 mL) packed vegan friendly brown sugar
2/3 cup (150 mL) maple syrup
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
Vegan egg replacer to the equivalent of two eggs - I used Ener-G egg replacer
2-3/4 cups (675 mL) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp (7 mL) baking powder
1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda
1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
1 cup (250 mL) walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Maple Glaze
1/2 cup (125 mL) vegan friendly icing sugar
3 tbsp (45 mL) maple syrup



I used dark maple syrup for this because i find it has a more intense flavour and aroma, but you can use any maple syrup you like.  Some people prefer a more subtle maple flavour.  My local grocery store has an interesting maple syrup that is flavoured with blackberries.  I think that it might be fun to try this recipe with that maple syrup and maybe add some dried berries to the mix - but that is an adventure for another day!

First, things first: Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread one cup of walnuts on it.  Bake the walnuts for ten minutes until they look toasted.  Your kitchen will take on a delightful scent as the walnuts toast.  Take the walnuts out of the oven and let them cool.

Now reduce the heat of the oven to 325 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda and the salt. A light whisk or stir with a wooden spoon is all that is necessary here.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl using a hand mixer, combine the vegan butter and brown sugar until they are good and mixed, then add the maple syrup,  vanilla and vegan egg replacer.

Add the dry ingredients and mix until there are no pockets of flour left.  The dough will be fairly sticky.   Add the cooled, toasted walnuts and stir them into the batter.

Divide the dough in half.  On a lightly floured surface, with lightly floured hands, shape each half into a roll about 10 to 12 inches long, and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about three inches apart from each other.

Bake them in the 325 degree oven for about 30 minutes, or until they are a nice light golden colour. They should feel slightly firm to the touch.

Now further reduce the heat of the oven to 300 degrees.

When the logs have cooled enough to handle - about 15 minutes - transfer them to a cutting board, and cut them into 3/4 inch slices.  Stand the slices on their bottom so that the cut sides are to the side, not touching the bottom of the pan.  Make sure the slices are not touching - they should be at least 1/2 inch apart.  Bake them in the 300 degree oven for about 30 minutes. At this point they should be almost dry.  Let them cool for about 5 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

When the biscotti are cool, drizzle the maple glaze over the tops of them.  The glaze will be set in about 15 minutes or so.

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Vegan Sloppy Joes

I made vegan sloppy joes this evening with Gardein crumbles and a can of Manwish sloppy joe mix, which is vegan.  I added some sliced carrots and sliced celery for crunch, and also added some freshly ground pepper.

We have not had this in years.  It was fabulous - and very low in fat which is great for my DH who is suffering with a wonky gall bladder just now.

Vegan Sloppy Joes

I made vegan sloppy joes this evening with Gardein crumbles and a can of Manwish sloppy joe mix, which is vegan.  I added some sliced carrots and sliced celery for crunch, and also added some freshly ground pepper.

We have not had this in years.  It was fabulous - and very low in fat which is great for my DH who is suffering with a wonky gall bladder just now.

V-Bites

Earlier last week i was in Brighton, a sea-side town. The day was glorious for the end of October - sunny and mild - the perfect day for a stroll along the strand.

I am travelling with my sister, and she and I had lunch in V-Bites, a vegan restaurant in town. I ordered the burger and sweet potato fries and my sister ordered fishy and chips. Both meals were excellent.

Cranberry Pumpkin Bread

This posting for Vegan Mofo was a bit of a challenge because i was not at home in my own kitchen.  I am staying at my dad's house for a few days, and i am not entirely used to his oven.

I had some leftover pumpkin puree and thought I would make some pumpkin bread for my dad.  He's a big fan of banana bread but he can't have bananas for a week or two, so i thought pumpkin bread might be a good alternative.

To make this loaf, i simply used my banana bread recipe and substituted pumpkin puree for mashed banana.


In a large bowl, or the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, place

1 and 2/3 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
1/2 cup of vegan-friendly sugar
1/2 cup of chopped dried cranberries (or any other dried fruit)
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts (or pecans)

Flour in the mixing bowl

                                                 The spices have been added

Next comes the sugar

Give these ingredients a quick stir to blend them


In another large bowl, place
1 and 1/4 cups of pureed pumpkin
Egg replacer of your choice
3 tablespoons of canola oil

The Pumpkin puree

Stir these ingredients together

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until they are well-combined.  You can use a stand mixer if you like, and I would have done so had i been at home, but this batter mixes up easily by hand.

Prepare a loaf pan according to your preferred way (I spritzed my loaf pan with canola oil.)



Carefully spoon the batter into your loaf pan, and place it on the middle shelf of the oven.  Oven temperatures can vary greatly I have found.   This loaf takes about 50 minutes to cook.  I set the timer for 45 minutes and tested it. It needed five more minutes.

Your loaf is done when a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and dry.

Allow your loaf to cool in the pan on a wire rack for about ten minutes, then carefully slide it out of the pan to continue cooling on the wire rack.   When the loaf is perfectly cool, you can wrap it in waxed paper.  It will keep nicely, if wrapped,  for a few days.

A Vegan Vacation

I have just returned to Canada from a fantastic all-vegan river cruise, and i can fairly say that it was the best vacation of my life.  Everything on the ship was vegan, from the wine to the snacks to all the breakfast, lunches and dinners.  Furthermore, I found out after the cruise that the cruise company which had chartered the riverboat also replaced all of the cruise boat's down bedding with vegan bedding - so it was vegan right down to the blankets and pillows. The room came with a mini-fridge that was re-stocked daily with drinks, and there were cookies and other treats left for us every day.

The cabin on the cruise.

Some wine and cookies!

More snacks!!!

I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I can say that when i spend money to go on a cruise, I don't want to have to pick my way through the buffet offerings to see what I can eat, nor do I wish to subsidize other people's meat dinners, which is what my dollars would do on a regular cruise.  Finally, I don't ever wish to sit near another table and listen to people rhapsodize over the tastiness of the meat on their plate, meat that they must know was obtained cruelly.

All meals were totally relaxed and enjoyable, even more so because there was no need to scrutinize the menu and ask the waiters about ingredients.  How many times have you gone on vacation as a vegan and had to hope against hope that a friendly chef would be willing to make something special for you, or had to hope that perhaps there was a veggie burger standing by in the freezer? That was not an issue here.

A kebab dinner.

Lime mousse with a chocolate wedge for dessert!

A vegan chef supervised all of the meal prep, and the meals were fantastic. The trip was amazing from beginning to end, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in a vegan vacation.  I will definitely be taking another vegan cruise with this company in the future.  Check it out: http://veganrivercruises.com

Vegan Mofo is back!!!

I will be participating in Vegan Mofo again this year!

Watch this space for fantastic vegan food and restaurant reviews and recipes.

International Vegan Junk Food Day 2016

#IVJFD2016

In honour of International Vegan Junk Food Day 2016, I am posting this picture of vegan oatmeal cookies, not homemade, and French fries.

Zucchini and Carrot Loaf

Many, many years ago, when I was still at university, a friend of my American cousins was visiting us for a few weeks.   Like most of my Californian cousins and their friends, I thought she was wonderful and worldly in a way that we were not.

She embroidered intricate designs on her clothing and on bandanas and she was a really good baker.   One day she announced that she would be making zucchini bread, and I thought at the time that nothing sounded more dreadful than bread made with zucchini.  She promised that it would be great, and went ahead and made it.  I tasted it reluctantly and was more than pleasantly surprised to find that it was fantastic.

That was forty years ago.

The other day as I was making banana bread (here is the link: http://downrightvegan.blogspot.ca/2014/12/cranberry-banana-bread.html) I remembered my friend's zucchini bread and decided I would try to invent a recipe that was vegan version of my friend's cake.  I used my banana bread recipe as a base for it, but had to do some tweaking of it.  For starters, I didn't have enough zucchinis on hand for the recipe and was reluctant to go to the store because I had to play Florence Nightingale to my very sick cat.

My banana bread requires three bananas to make 1 1/4 cups of bananas.  I had that muchzucchini but I wanted to make two loaves so I supplemented my zucchini with carrots, and the loaves turned out just fine.



The batter was very thick and I was afraid that baking soda alone would not be enough to make the bread rise so I also added baking powder.

This recipe makes two loaves of bread.

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees

Wet ingredients

Mix together in a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer:

Egg replacer to the equivalent of two eggs.   I used ener-g egg replacer.
2/3 cup of canola oil
2/3 cup of pure maple syrup

Carrots and Zucchini

You will need a total of 2 1/2 to 2 2/3 cups of grated carrots and zucchini.  I measured out a total of about 1 1/3 cups each.  I didn't press the grated veg down too hard in the measuring cup, but the difference in total volume is based on the fact that when I pressed down on the grated veggies to measure them, the veggies expanded back up a little bit.

Add these veggies to the liquid ingredients and mix for for about ten seconds.

Dry Ingredients

Mix together in a large bowl

2 1/2 Cups of all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
Pinch of salt
1 cup of chopped walnuts
1 cup of dried cranberries

Add these dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and the veggies in the bowl of your mixer, or if you are using a hand mixer, add them to the wet ingredients.

Mix until blended.  This batter is very stiff.

Prepare two loaf pans in your usual manner and then add the batter evenly to the pans and press down a bit to make sure there are no air pockets in your batter.

Bake in the oven for 30 - 35.  All ovens differ, and when I checked mine at 30 minutes it was not quite done.

Your loaf is done when a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and dry

How I Became a Vegan

Some conversions come like lightening out of the blue and others take a little longer.  As far as being a vegan goes, I am sad to say it took me a long time to come around to seeing the hidden evils of dairy products and eggs, in fact I was a vegetarian who thought that veganism was a little extreme.  How can not eating eggs or dairy be considered extreme when judged against the actions that bring dairy products and eggs to the table?  The dairy industry is cruel - that's extreme.  The egg industry is cruel - that's extreme, too.

I was already a vegetarian long before I became a vegan, and had been since my child was about eight years old.  One day at school, he had learned that meat was nothing more than the bodies of slaughtered animals.  Prior to that he had thought that meat was an item that was purchased at the store and he was unaware that it was the flesh of animals.  Always a very sensitive child, my son's horror at his discovery was palpable.  He was inconsolable about the harm that he had contributed to, and this made me stop and think.   I took our already-made chicken dinner to an elderly neighbour, and we became vegetarians on the spot.

It took me much longer to understand the cruelty inherent in the dairy and egg industry, and therefore it took several years before I became a vegan.  This is the story of how it happened. One morning, before work, I was reading the paper.  There was an article in the Toronto Star about a woman who had a farm sanctuary for rescued hens.  I was drawn to the article because the photo that accompanied it showed a hen wearing a little sweater.  The article explained that that hen, and the others that were rescued, needed sweaters because they lost their feathers due to being jammed together in the too-small crates that are routinely used in egg-laying facilities. It was October and the hens were cold, plus winter was coming and their feathers would not have been re-grown by the time the really cold weather started.  I was aghast at the implications of this.  I looked up the woman's farm on-line, sponsored a chicken for the year.  I could not get the picture of the sweater-wearing, featherless chickens out of my head. Those images followed me around.

About two weeks later I was sitting in church one morning and during the announcements, our priest was talking about the church Christmas luncheon and was telling us that for that dinner we had our choice of turkey, roast beef or salmon.  That bothered me because I was a vegetarian (but that's a topic for another post). And then that image of the chicken in her little sweater popped into my head, and in that moment, at church, I knew that the answer was veganism.  From that moment on I never knowingly ate animal products again.  I became an avid label-reader.  I no longer wear leather or wool or feathers.  I gave my woolen yarn stash to some women at my church who knit scarves and mitts for a shelter in Toronto, and donated my woolen clothes to charity.

It is hard to explain to non-vegetarians or non-vegans how right this decision was for me and for animals.  Some people think there is no moral aspect to the food we choose, but they are wrong, totally wrong.  When a being must die for a person to eat, when that person has options that are just as healthy that don't involve killing or cruelty, that's morally wrong.   Of course I have been offered the "what if you were stranded on a desert island with nothing to eat but animals, then would you kill and eat them?" question.  The answer is:  I'm living in Toronto.  There are no desert islands around here.  When I travel, I travel to the United States and Europe.  There are no desert islands there.  The odds are definitely against me finding myself on a desert island any time soon, but should I find myself there, I would look first to see the plants that the animals on that island were eating.

I am saddened by the specious arguments that non-vegans use to justify their meat eating, and this is everything from "we have canine teeth" to "it just tastes so good."   Our canine teeth are not canine teeth in the same sense as my dog or cats' canine teeth are.  Our canines are more vestigial and ornamental than practical canine teeth.  And of course meat tastes good: I used to love a good steak, but I'm no longer prepared to participate in the cruelty inherent in getting a steak to the table, and I am angered by people who don't care.  I am totally put off by people who say "Mmm, bacon!" when I am eating a vegan meal.  These people I ignore.

This is a link to the article that started me thinking seriously about the egg and dairy industry, and which helped move me into veganism, and which helped me begin to truly live my values of kindness and compassion.


http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/2009/10/08/how_bald_chickens_help_troubled_kids.html

The Price of Eggs

Germany is the first country to stop grinding up male chicks as part of the egg-laying industry.

I have always believed that shoppers should understand the other price of the eggs they buy, beyond the money they hand over to the supermarket. The ground up chicks, the life of misery of laying hens, even free-range hens, and the trip to the slaughterhouse for hens that can no longer lay hundreds of eggs per year - that's the cost of eggs.
http://animalsaustralia.org/…/germany-stops-shredding-chick…

Veganuary

Here we are at the beginning of a new year.  If you are not already a vegan, why not start the year with a one-month vegan challenge:  eat only vegan food for a month!

Frequently when I suggest this to non-vegans, the answer is "No thank you." And then they follow up their polite rejection of the suggestion with all sorts of reasons why they can't, including "I love cheese too much to give it up, even for a month."

For people who were raised with a meat-centric diet, and I count myself as one of them - meat played a central role in almost every meal of my life - this can be a hard challenge to accept.  But it's not as hard as a confirmed meat eater might think: there are many prepared foods that taste almost like their non-vegan counterparts.  There are vegan sliced meats, vegan chicken fingers, vegan fish cakes, meat loaves, vegan soups, vegan ice cream and cakes, and there are even vegan cheeses.  It's not all tofu! Much vegan food is gluten free or can be made gluten-friendly.  Vegan foods made from scratch are tasty and satisfying and are not difficult to prepare, and are no more time-consuming to make than non-vegan meals.

Most non-vegans are already used to eating all sorts of vegan food, starting with that old stand-by, the peanut butter sandwich.  Other foods that are vegan are baked beans (if they don't have pork or bacon in them), salads with balsamic vinaigrette, fruit cups, other kinds of beans, pasta in plain tomato sauce - the list is almost endless.

There is no need to feel deprived -- the Canadian Dieticians Association says that a well-planned vegan diet is a very healthy diet for any person at any stage of life.  (http://www.dietitians.ca/Your-Health/Nutrition-A-Z/Vegetarian-Diets/Eating-Guidelines-for-Vegans.aspx)

But more than that, there are certain benefits of a vegan diet that go way beyond the food that vegans eat.  Most people consider themselves to be very kind.  They say they love animals and would never intentionally harm animals.  Nonetheless they spend their hard-earned money on meat, eggs and dairy products which can only be obtained through the brutalization, terrorization, and ultimate killing of animals.  When these people purchase meat or other animal products, they have paid someone to do to animals which they could never do themselves - harm and kill animals.  This means that a person who considers herself kind and compassionate, but eats meat and other animal-derived foods is not as kind and compassionate as she thinks she is.  This is a truth that many people don't want to hear.  There is no way to easily kill an animal.  They don't want to die.

So this January, why not try to be true to your values, and try to eat a vegan diet for the month?  It is my guess at you will feel better, both in body and soul, if you do.