Contemplating the vegan life.
Posted by taintedlove908 on Sep 25, 2009 · Member since Sep 2009 · 1060 posts
Considering leaving being vegan behind and returning to vegetarianism... :-\
I'm the pickiest eater I know. I hate most vegetables. I hate tofu. I hate nuts. I hate chickpeas.
I'm a horrid cook. I like microwaves.
I don't miss meat at all. I thoroughly miss simple comfort foods like cinnamon rolls, pizza, icecream.
I hate eggs and milk unless they're in something like a cookie.
I feel like it's a lose-lose situation. If I stay vegan, I will continue feeling sick, eating rarely (today I've had an apple, a banana, and triscuits), but if I go back to being a vegetarian, I'll now know where everything, even regular sugar, has come from, which will make me sick to even think about. ARGH!!!!!
Help..
u can do it!!! vegweb makes it possible with an endless amount of recipes... i personally love veggies but don't really eat much fruit... i think u will be ok and maybe u cooked the tofu wrong? if u buy extra firm, drain out the excess liquid by putting it in a dish towel and putting something kinda heavy on top (i use a kettle with some water in it), cut into relatively small pieces, fry up in some oi till golden, and flavor with any type of sauce it's actually good! checkout some of my recipe pic's most of the recipes i tried so far have been awesome... plus people here r always able to help... do it u will love it!
I'm considering the opposite situation. I've been eating vegan for a while now probably around a month and am ready to officially start calling myself vegan.
oh ya have u read Skinny Bitch? i will buy it for u and send it to u if u don't have enough $... i think it's really inspirational... i see that u love animals, especially doggies! and i remember reading that book and then looking at my poor little dogs and crying :( animals aren't our to eat or use in anyway... i know a vegan diet can be restrictive in some aspects but it does a body good :) living a compassionate live makes life worth living... sorry i could go on forever... i know u live in a state where u might not be able to get some of the hard to find ingredients but if u ever need recipe recommendations just let me know
wayneshep- i say doooo itt!!
:( Don't shoot me.. but. I gave in and had half a pb & banana sandwich (reg pb on white bread).. :-[
I know it's horrible what is in products. In reality, everything harms something. Drive a car? Think about the gas output, the roads that now lay where open fields once were, the amount of insects killed and animals squished. I don't even want to know all the details of everything, because if I did, I'd realize how much more harm I'm doing than good. No, I don't drive a car though. I think I'll stick to what I know and help in the ways I know how- which is direct contact. Letting animals stuck in kennels know that it's not forever. Promoting humane society adoption rather than pet stores. Encouraging kindness, rather than abuse or neglect, and reporting any signs of mistreatment. Helping out with the "lost causes" that otherwise may have been given up on. Giving animals a good home where they'll be treated humanely and even spoiled. Making sure that even the undomesticated critters I see around are doing okay, and help in any way I can. I love my beagles, but they live with my parents across the country. I'd like to visit them soon. Once I get a new apartment in December, I'm setting my sights on adopting a puppy or maybe even a kitten (I saw one today that I fell in love with.. half of it's whiskers were burnt off and it was being treated like an outsider.. but it was the chillest, most amazing kitten I have ever met) once I have enough to be able to fully support a healthy lifestyle for him or her. I'd like to do more volunteering. Maybe when I move I'll be closer to an animal hospital or day care.
I may not be strong enough for the vegan lifestyle, but I will always keep helping the little guys I meet.
are you sure the bread wasn't vegan? a lot of bread is vegan. dont beat yourself, everyone slips up sometimes. if you want, go to peta2.com and look for the "i cant believe it's vegan" article in the recipes section. it'll help you alotttt. good luck!
actually, here's the link:
http://www.peta2.com//STUFF/s-accvegan.asp
yeah, I'm sure it wasn't. I checked the ingredients before and had actually given it to my roomies.
I'm curious as to what you ate before as a vegetarian. Maybe if you listed some vegetarian foods you like, we could suggest some vegan alternatives. Also, if you do your own grocery shopping, why not just find some white vegan bread that you like?
I haven't found any white vegan bread. I'm also on a very limited income. To add to that, I live in Idaho, where it's almost considered some horrible disease to even be vegetarian, so vegan foods are extremely hard to come by.
The win situation is to experiment! You have access to tons of great recipes here (lots of them really easy), and I think there are even some microwave vegan cookbooks? You're going to have to teach yourself to like vegetables. Even if you are vegetarian, your body needs vegetables; not just pizza and cinnamon rolls. I know it can be done! You have to experiment with different preparations, and lots of different foods. You are going to have to step outside of your comfort zone a bit, and do a bit of cooking. It's the best thing for you. You don't need specialty ingredients either. The best are whole foods. I know several people who have taught themselves to like certain foods. Have you tried roasting vegetables? It's extremely simple-cut up veggies, potatoes, what not, add to pan, sprinkle with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roast! It adds so much yummy flavor. Asparagus, carrots, potatoes, squash, other root vegetables....all great roasted. It might be difficult in the beginning, but you will be so much better, healthier, and happier!
I think if I do end up going vegan, I'll have to do it more slowly, cutting out a few things at a time. It's overwhelming when everything is bad.
You've only had tofu once right? If so that is definitely not the right time to give up on tofu. It took me so long to figure out cooking and seasoning it just right. Lots of experimenting is necessary.
And you have to try new foods, even if its things you dont like, or dont think you like, just make them in different ways. Make them so yummy that you have to like them. Kind of a challenge for yourself.
.........uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum....
If the 'big' town of 800 people across the river from my family's property in Idaho has had veggie products in its grocery store since mid 90's you should find boca, Amy's, and morning star farms products too. This is in the heart of the logging/cattle industry. Even the next town over w/ 300 pop, the grocery store carries boca products.....
To me it sounds like you're most in need of finding a few quick, easy meals that use common ingredients to be found at nearly any grocery store.
I'd also recommend you setting a goal/task/challenge for you to try 1 'new' food/vegetable per week. Instead of saying you 'don't like _____' tell yourself, you've yet to try ______ cooked in a way you liked.
I know what you mean, once you have the knowledge of veganism it's hard to partake in animal products. Frist of all be kind to yourself. Don't beat yourself up over eating a piece of bread. Allow yourself some time to not be the perect vegan, otherwise you'll fall into a trap of "all or nothing". If you're making yourself sick with guild and worry, and starvation, what good are you doing? Give yourself some time to learn, experiment with what is available within your means.
Stay encouraged because you are doing an amazing job.
It's tough being vegan in an area where there are few other vegans, because things like vegan ice cream, cream cheese, and other substitute products are non-existent. When I lived in Houston I worked myself up to vegan, just making exceptions for when I went out to eat with friends once or twice a month (and even then I think most of what I ordered was vegan). But now I live in a medium-sized town in Spain and I've gone back to vegetarian. IT SUCKS. I miss my soy dream ice cream like none other.
But even though I've "reverted," I still try to keep vegan as much as I can. So maybe I'll eat ice cream when I'm craving it (otherwise I would be miserable); I still make vegan meals and buy soy milk instead of cow milk, etc.
Tofu doesn't really have a taste, if you marinate it or sprinkle herbs/spices on it and saute or fry it it should be pretty good. I prefer the hard texture over soft.
Oreos might be vegan in your area.
Just about everyone is a horrid cook when they start out. But being vegan requires time and effort (or money for someone else's time and effort), so you have to be willing to commit. This site has tons of great recipes, try making a new dish once a week until you have a repertoire of 6 or 7 meals and desserts, trust me it will be easier than you think.
If you cave in and buy a slice of pizza don't beat yourself up over it. 80% vegan it is still better than 0%.
I've recently just became a vegan from a vegetarian and I'm in Japan right now where they put fish in everything... so me and you can go through this together! ;)b Yeah... moral support, b/c not only is there fish everywhere but I can't read the label so I really only buy what I know is vegan and there are only a few meat substitutes here like tofu, not like in the us where you can get boca burgers, lightlife smartdogs, and lightlife deli stuff... I miss that stuff and baked potatoes, potatoes are really expensive here!
Considering leaving being vegan behind and returning to vegetarianism... :-\
I'm the pickiest eater I know. I hate most vegetables. I hate tofu. I hate nuts. I hate chickpeas.
I'm a horrid cook. I like microwaves.
I don't miss meat at all. I thoroughly miss simple comfort foods like cinnamon rolls, pizza, icecream.
I hate eggs and milk unless they're in something like a cookie.
I feel like it's a lose-lose situation. If I stay vegan, I will continue feeling sick, eating rarely (today I've had an apple, a banana, and triscuits), but if I go back to being a vegetarian, I'll now know where everything, even regular sugar, has come from, which will make me sick to even think about. ARGH!!!!!
Help..
So you want to give up apples and bananas so you can eat more cinnamon rolls, pizza, ice cream, and cookies? That doesn't sound like the best idea, health-wise. Perhaps being vegan is exactly what you need.
I want to piggy-back a bit on what AC and Tweety said. You shouldn't try to be the world's most perfect vegan. You should try to be the best vegan YOU can be. Many people became vegan by a two-steps forward, one-step back method. Everyone has a moment of weakness. But, giving it all up would be silly, considering you seem to be coming from an animal rights point of view. Look at it this way, you have to learn to cook for and feed yourself, now that you are an adult. Wouldn't it be better to start learning healthful ways? As far as not liking certain foods, you can still eat well. When my husband went vegan, he didn't like tofu, brussels sprouts, mushrooms, squash, asparagus, sweet potatoes, eggplant, um....probably others. But he had never had these foods prepared well. He eats most of them now, and the others can at least deal with or pick out. And, you can make pretty kick-ass vegan junk food easily enough! ;)b
http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/
If you read Why Vegan? and explore this website, I think it may help you sort out your stuff? I love vegan outreach.
Do you want us to suggest recipes? for certain stuff?
Pages