what food do you miss the most?
Posted by dprince on Apr 30, 2010 · Member since Jan 2009 · 365 posts
I'm sure this has already been addressed in some other post, but there are WAY to many to look through. I was wondering, since becoming vegan, which food do you miss the most from your preveggie days? And please don't say, "I don't miss anything" or something to that effect. I personally miss cheddar cheese. Can't say that i miss anything else as much, seems everything else i can find suitable replacement for, but have not found a good replacement for the cheese. No I have not tried Diaya (sp?) yet, can't find it anywhere near where I live, and not a fan of buying just 1 or 2 items on line.
p.s. Just out of curiosity, why do some spell vegan, veg*n?
I'm sorry, but I don't miss anything. I am a big girl, and if I truly missed something and pined for it, I'd eat it. I'm not vegan to impress anybody else, I'm vegan for myself. And the party that would be let down and disappointed if I missed something and ate it would be me. I'm not upholding this ideal for image, and I don't miss anything about the old way that I ate. I can only imagine the stomachache that would ensue if I were to even consider eating any of that crap. I'm more than happy with the way I eat.
I agree with Ibarte and oww that the lifestyle that went with the old diet was easier, but obviously the vegan lifestyle is worth it, or else I wouldn't do it (as I'm sure they would say, too). Every day is worth it, planning ahead is worth it, taking my own food to potlucks is worth it. A little inconvenience on our part pays out 1000 times for the animals and even for ourselves down the road.
What makes it even better is that we're touching other people in our lives. I've loaned out cookbooks, printed out recipes, baked for other people, and they are cutting out meat, dairy, or processed foods. We're starting other people down the path. If we sit and talk about foods we miss, we're sending the wrong message. The point is to move on with our lives, grow, and never look back with regret. We're all so lucky to have the knowledge we do and to be on the path we are.
I strongly disagree with that. I personally would never go back to the way I used to eat either and I'm 100% happy with the choices I make (Like you, if I woke up tomorrow and REALLY wanted a steak, I would eat it). Saying you miss a certain food doesn't make you a vegan for the sake of "Image", nor does it make you a "Bad Example". I'm glad you don't miss anything, but don't start throwing judgement around at other people because they miss the way nacho cheese tastes.
Jeez.
Wow, I know this is food fight, but calm down. I'm not throwing around judgment at other people. I was defending my answer of not missing anything. You sound a little defensive. Care to explain why?
Jeez.
ETA: Perhaps you did not read the original post, which said:
And please don't say, "I don't miss anything" or something to that effect.
I was defending my choice of saying I didn't miss anything. This is not about judging other people or about you. It's about my justification of why I don't miss anything. Perhaps you should take a deep breath and not be so quick to try to be offended when there's nothing there.
No, wait, I have an addendum to that. As I get older and talk to a wider range of people from various backgrounds, I've discovered I'm really tired of people trying to make other people's words and statements about them. What I have to say is not about other people; what I have to say is about me, about my experience, about my life. If I gave a damn about something and wanted to make a statement to someone, I would make sure they knew that and understood the implication. I would not play around with innuendos or insinuations. It's tiresome that for some reason people are often looking to be offended, looking to try and find something to piss them off, so then they can complain about it. This is often a tireless hurdle that must be circumvented for meaningful conversation to ensue. I think we'd all be a lot happier if we took other people's statements at face value and stopped looking for reasons to be offended to reasons to that they are insulting us.
I am talking about life in general, but this particular thread made me feel like saying something. I don't take things personally, so I guess so do not understand why other people do. It's not about you, and frankly, your statements are not about me. They're about your life and your life experiences--which mean a whole lot more than everyday conversations about people or events. I have just as much right to state my ideas and frame of mind as anybody else, and I don't feel like putting up with people complaining that what I said isn't exactly how they feel.
I'm sorry, but I don't miss anything. I am a big girl, and if I truly missed something and pined for it, I'd eat it. I'm not vegan to impress anybody else, I'm vegan for myself. And the party that would be let down and disappointed if I missed something and ate it would be me. I'm not upholding this ideal for image, and I don't miss anything about the old way that I ate. I can only imagine the stomachache that would ensue if I were to even consider eating any of that crap. I'm more than happy with the way I eat.
I agree with Ibarte and oww that the lifestyle that went with the old diet was easier, but obviously the vegan lifestyle is worth it, or else I wouldn't do it (as I'm sure they would say, too). Every day is worth it, planning ahead is worth it, taking my own food to potlucks is worth it. A little inconvenience on our part pays out 1000 times for the animals and even for ourselves down the road.
What makes it even better is that we're touching other people in our lives. I've loaned out cookbooks, printed out recipes, baked for other people, and they are cutting out meat, dairy, or processed foods. We're starting other people down the path. If we sit and talk about foods we miss, we're sending the wrong message. The point is to move on with our lives, grow, and never look back with regret. We're all so lucky to have the knowledge we do and to be on the path we are.
Well, I'm a big boy and if I pine for something and it isn't vegan, I'm not going to eat it. An example would be the cookies the tech bakes for our patients. They smell so good and if I wasn't vegan I'd be like my coworkers and snatch one up for myself. Craving them doesn't mean I'm looking back with regret and need to "move on".
But like you, most of the time I don't miss anything because there's so much good vegan food out there and I eat more variety and better tasting foods now than ever.
As far as the "message" this post provides, I think we have to acknowledge that not all vegans are the same. There has been post after post after post of people experiencing cravings, or asking for substitutes for the things they miss.
Not all of us live in vegan nirvana like you do. I 100% suport your right to express your lifestyle and you don't have to defend yourself. Vegan Nirvana is a good place to be and a good example to set for all of us. :) It's people like you that made me go vegan helps me to stay vegan.
panera bread's cinnamon crunch bagels.
i don't know which is worse-- the nutrition content or the neverending list of un-pronouceable ingredients.
so good, though.
SB I am tagging you in my facebook photo of my movie nachos. you have to make them-totally like the ones at the movies.
My last meat food was also undercooked chicken...like someone else up there! ^^^
I miss the convenience of fast food (not that i really want to eat it) but when i'm on the road and hungry, just being able to pull up to a drive thru and have someone hand me food.
why cant there be healthy drive thrus?
I don't know what else.....I don't like that at a bagel place I can't get a bagel with cream cheese and eat it there. have to take it home and put on the tofutti.
again, the convenience factor.
I'm sorry, but I don't miss anything. I am a big girl, and if I truly missed something and pined for it, I'd eat it. I'm not vegan to impress anybody else, I'm vegan for myself. And the party that would be let down and disappointed if I missed something and ate it would be me. I'm not upholding this ideal for image, and I don't miss anything about the old way that I ate. I can only imagine the stomachache that would ensue if I were to even consider eating any of that crap. I'm more than happy with the way I eat.
I agree with Ibarte and oww that the lifestyle that went with the old diet was easier, but obviously the vegan lifestyle is worth it, or else I wouldn't do it (as I'm sure they would say, too). Every day is worth it, planning ahead is worth it, taking my own food to potlucks is worth it. A little inconvenience on our part pays out 1000 times for the animals and even for ourselves down the road.
What makes it even better is that we're touching other people in our lives. I've loaned out cookbooks, printed out recipes, baked for other people, and they are cutting out meat, dairy, or processed foods. We're starting other people down the path. If we sit and talk about foods we miss, we're sending the wrong message. The point is to move on with our lives, grow, and never look back with regret. We're all so lucky to have the knowledge we do and to be on the path we are.
I strongly disagree with that. I personally would never go back to the way I used to eat either and I'm 100% happy with the choices I make (Like you, if I woke up tomorrow and REALLY wanted a steak, I would eat it). Saying you miss a certain food doesn't make you a vegan for the sake of "Image", nor does it make you a "Bad Example". I'm glad you don't miss anything, but don't start throwing judgement around at other people because they miss the way nacho cheese tastes.
Jeez.
Wow, I know this is food fight, but calm down. I'm not throwing around judgment at other people. I was defending my answer of not missing anything. You sound a little defensive. Care to explain why?
Jeez.
ETA: Perhaps you did not read the original post, which said:
And please don't say, "I don't miss anything" or something to that effect.
I was defending my choice of saying I didn't miss anything. This is not about judging other people or about you. It's about my justification of why I don't miss anything. Perhaps you should take a deep breath and not be so quick to try to be offended when there's nothing there.
I need to take a deep breath? Maybe if you didnt miss anything, just skipping to the next thread would have been easier than typing out three paragraphs to explain yourself.
Mozzarella sticks. Pizza, not the shitty kind either. Like going to a legit pizza shop and paying good money for a nice thin crust cheese pizza. Other than that I really dont miss anything all too much.
Damn cheese...
VR, I see where you're coming from :)
Honestly I don't really miss animal products, I just crave a yummy vegan substitution...
I only miss cheese and seafood... I accidentally ate some cheese on part of my pizza = yucky poo poo... It tastes gross now, as I have said before "sour"... I have never accidentally tasted seafood as of yet, but the smell of rotting flesh takes care of that...
Meat and cheese smell good when they're being cooked up, but I remind myself where the crap comes from and all the reasons why i don't want to eat it: That's an animal or a piece (Bi-product) of an animal :(
Funny thing: My BF ran out of cream cheese and we have tons of bagels so he used my "cream cheese" because he was hungry... At first he said my vegan cream cheese was "Gross" so I finally bought him some regular (Cheese is the only thing as of now I will buy for him)... After eating mine for a few weeks (He didn't have any) he said his tasted "Weird" and said he would finish up his but likes vegan cream cheese more now! Fuck yes! Getting closer to a vegan lover <3
Funny thing: My BF ran out of cream cheese and we have tons of bagels so he used my "cream cheese" because he was hungry... At first he said my vegan cream cheese was "Gross" so I finally bought him some regular (Cheese is the only thing as of now I will buy for him)... After eating mine for a few weeks (He didn't have any) he said his tasted "Weird" and said he would finish up his but likes vegan cream cheese more now! Fuck yes! Getting closer no a vegan lover <3
Oh weird, my boyfriend has been eating the tofutti I buy (at 4.55 euros a container- yikes) and he mentioned just 2 days ago that maybe I could buy dairy cream cheese for him to use because it'd be cheaper. I was kinda hesitant to say okay but he said that he wanted to do a side by side taste comparison and I'm curious to see what he thinks now that he's used to the tofutti. he eats mostly vegan at home (except for this one bread he likes that has milk in in) but he eats meat for lunch when he's at work so unfortunately the cream cheese isn't going to make a big difference. but I think it's funny that both of us recently had cream cheese/bf situations.
Funny thing: My BF ran out of cream cheese and we have tons of bagels so he used my "cream cheese" because he was hungry... At first he said my vegan cream cheese was "Gross" so I finally bought him some regular (Cheese is the only thing as of now I will buy for him)... After eating mine for a few weeks (He didn't have any) he said his tasted "Weird" and said he would finish up his but likes vegan cream cheese more now! Fuck yes! Getting closer a vegan lover <3
Ha! that's awesome. So much of taste preference is habit... what you crave tends to be what you're familiar with. All the things in this thread, that people miss? They *wouldn't* want to eat them, if these hadn't been familiar foods in earlier days... habit sets taste! we should cook for everyone we know, whenever we can! (that's another reason I don't cook animal junk, despite omni hubby, as discussed on other threads: let's just re-set that taste-o-meter, shall we?!)
I know the OP requested us not to say it... sorry!... but I'm w/ VR: if I missed it, I'd eat it! But at this point, I just want other stuff. Over time, I've developed this handy 'ew' response, to animal stuff that used to look good to me (i'm thinking of cheeses, mainly, but other stuff too)... I guess I missed it at first, but now it just looks gross, & I am hungry for other things. I do miss convenience re: restaurants, but I think that's getting better -- even here in the bacon-lovin' south, most restaurants have at least some veggie options I can work with (except Cracker Barrel & Dixie Cafe! grrr... they practically put bacon in their ice water, for f***'s sake -- EVERYTHING'S contaminated! but anyway)... we should make this thread a contest: 'The No-Need-to-Miss-It Challenge' or something... whoever comes up with the best recipe for any of the stuff listed here gets X prize! Whaddaya think? :-)
But like you, most of the time I don't miss anything because there's so much good vegan food out there and I eat more variety and better tasting foods now than ever.
As far as the "message" this post provides, I think we have to acknowledge that not all vegans are the same. There has been post after post after post of people experiencing cravings, or asking for substitutes for the things they miss.
Not all of us live in vegan nirvana like you do. I 100% suport your right to express your lifestyle and you don't have to defend yourself. Vegan Nirvana is a good place to be and a good example to set for all of us. :) It's people like you that made me go vegan helps me to stay vegan.
The sentence fragment I highlighted is where I am coming from. I think it's important to note that not all vegans are the same, and I think this matters greatly. That's why I was explaining the motivations for my actions and post. I was preemptively covering myself in case someone said "you weren't supposed to say A, B, or C." When the original post says that you can't miss anything, the entire spirit of the thread is flawed.
I don't live in vegan nirvana, silly! I just live in the Midwest,surrounded by people that are salivating and waiting for me to fall and crash, and then they can point fingers and say "I told you so! You need meat to live!" This is great motivation for me to never look back, to never even think if there's anything I want.
I know the OP requested us not to say it... sorry!... but I'm w/ VR: if I missed it, I'd eat it! But at this point, I just want other stuff. Over time, I've developed this handy 'ew' response, to animal stuff that used to look good to me (i'm thinking of cheeses, mainly, but other stuff too)... I guess I missed it at first, but now it just looks gross, & I am hungry for other things. I do miss convenience re: restaurants, but I think that's getting better -- even here in the bacon-lovin' south, most restaurants have at least some veggie options I can work with (except Cracker Barrel & Dixie Cafe! grrr... they practically put bacon in their ice water, for f***'s sake -- EVERYTHING'S contaminated! but anyway)... we should make this thread a contest: 'The No-Need-to-Miss-It Challenge' or something... whoever comes up with the best recipe for any of the stuff listed here gets X prize! Whaddaya think? :-)
I'll get started on the bacon water recipe. ;)b
I used to really really miss cheese pizza, and always made my own which was cool but not totally the same convenience-wise...Then I started going to a pizza place that makes a vegan version w/ FYH and its great.
I also used to miss the "good" kind of cheese like feta, and goat cheese, but I have said this many times and stick by it, cashew/nut cheeses seriously are just as good and better. They are the only cheeses I can eat with omnis where they are like OMG this is better than cheese. If you miss cheese please repeat after me: Cashew cheese, cashew cheese, cashew cheese!
I also liked Alfredo a lot and have experimented with many Alfredo-type sauces, none are totally "the same" but they would be if I was willing to use a whole tub of EB when making them....again cashews make the best ones in my opinion.
In the beginning, probably that first 6 months was when I missed cheese/diary the most. But with time I grew more accustomed to making my own substitutions and a new way of life. I think what I was REALLY missing was the convenience of said foods. And the routine they held in my life, out to eat = some kind of cheesy pasta or pizza or cheesy enchiladas or something. I was vegetarian for a long time so I never missed meat but again just the convenience of eating out with others and picking up something quick. I know this isn't the point of this thread, but I honestly get kinda grossed out at the thought of eating cheese now and have to say I don't miss it anymore. But, I used to and I think its good for newer vegans to hear that first the "sting" of missing it goes away, than overtime you stop craving it, and then even further down the road you honestly are a little sickened by the thought of it. (At least that is the way it worked out for me.)
I'll get started on the bacon water recipe. ;)b
Mmmmmmm.....
(NOT!)
You funny!
:-D
Also, I couldn't agree more w/ BGS: cashew cheese, cashew cheese cashew cheese! dangit, I'm hungry now...
I know, if cashew cheese was faster to make and easier to buy I would eat it for probably every meal...probably a good thing its not then!
I was preemptively covering myself in case someone said "you weren't supposed to say A, B, or C." When the original post says that you can't miss anything, the entire spirit of the thread is flawed.
I think the op was merely saying he only wanted to hear from people who miss something. It was a polite way of saying "if you don't miss anything, then you're really not going to contribute anything useful to this thread, so please don't say it".
I don't think he really meant that he thinks everyone has to miss something, just that he only wants to hear from those that do.
You're response, though true to yourself and I understand your point perfectly, and I love you madly, only served to alienate the OP and those of us with cravings, as if we aren't "vegan enough".
I was preemptively covering myself in case someone said "you weren't supposed to say A, B, or C." When the original post says that you can't miss anything, the entire spirit of the thread is flawed.
I think the op was merely saying he only wanted to hear from people who miss something. It was a polite way of saying "if you don't miss anything, then you're really not going to contribute anything useful to this thread, so please don't say it".
The fact that this thread was in Food Fight (as opposed to Kitchen Sink), made me feel as though it was open to dissension and interpretation. From experience, I've never really seen much tip-toeing around Food Fight. Am I wrong to think this?
ETA: Vegan is vegan. It's not a sliding scale--all vegans are "vegan enough." I just worry about threads like this that are open to the public can send the wrong message, where people like Liere Keith can Google search and find forums where she sees vegans who are "pining away" for foods that they have "forbade" themselves. Then she can adulterate it and put it in a book. She did this to the PPK, and the whole idea of it makes me nervous.
Not sure why this was posted in Food Fight, but you're right. Open season.
Fuck Liere Keith. (I can say that in Food Fight right?)
Fuck Liere Keith. (I can say that in Food Fight right?)
yes, you can say that anywhere! :devilwink:
Fuck Liere Keith. (I can say that in Food Fight right?)
HEAR HEAR.
Now that's something we can all get behind!
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