In Other News, I Am Now Gluten-Free

It's been a while since I've posted anything on here! I don't have any recipes of my own to share, but I can talk a little bit about what I've been cooking. Since I've begun making menus ahead of time and buying groceries accordingly, the quality of the food I cook has skyrocketed. I spend all of my free time cooking, and I just can't get over how much I enjoy it. I'm still cooking primarily nothing but recipes out of Veganomicon, and I am beginning to think Isa and Terry must be goddesses, because there's no way that two humans could create that many perfect recipes. I have yet to be disappointed with a single recipe.

Probably one of my favorite meals I've made from that cookbook was the Greek tofu benedict. I seriously cannot describe how much I loved it. I chose to serve it on top of home fries, which was a very good decision (and it felt most Greek to me, considering I ate roasted potatoes two or three times a day, every day, in Greece). The dill-tahini sauce was fantastic, and almost reminiscent of sour cream (I think I put too much lemon juice in it though, so it was more acidic than it was supposed to be - very good though). I might have to make that meal again soon because it was way too fabulous.

Another meal I made that I had to take a picture of because it was pretty was the Walnut-Crusted Apple-Cranberry Salad Pie from Vegan Planet. Essentially a waldorf salad in a walnut/date crust without lettuce. Unfortunately, it didn't serve well, and instead of looking like cute little piece of salad pie, it was more like a weird mess of apples and date chunks. I'm not sure what I did wrong. It tasted good though! I used raisins instead of cranberries, in case you care.

As of April 27th, I am officially gluten-free. My Crohn's is having a flare, and I'm hoping to stop the inflammation naturally. I usually get flares several times a year and, compared with the flares of typical Crohn's patients, mine are pretty mild. I've never gotten diarrhea, and typically only have bleeding (along with severe fatigue). It usually goes away on its own after a while, but this time it hasn't. So after talking with my GI, TCM, and integrative medicine doctors, we're going to try to take care of this using only alternative treatments. My TCM doctor prescribed a new herbal tea formula for me (the tea tastes like poison but hopefully it works), and I might see her soon for acupuncture. I'm also going to add boswellia supplements, in addition to the turmeric I'm already taking. But I've decided on my own to try for at least a couple weeks to eat a gluten-free diet. Gluten is a very inflammatory food, so even if it doesn't cause me to stop bleeding, it's probably still a good food for me or anyone with IBD to avoid. 

These are some gluten-free chickpea cutlets I made. My favorite recipe out of Veganomicon has always been the chickpea cutlets, and when I decided to go gluten-free, the first thing I thought was "oh my god, no more chickpea cutlets!". Thankfully, there's other people who have had the same horrible realization as me and have already come up with a gluten-free version. I used this recipe, and it was great. Instead of using the chia/flax slurry, I used xanthan gum, which worked well.

Unrelated to food, health, or veganism —— On the April 30th, I went with a couple of friends to see MGMT perform in Portland. Totally going to brag about the fact that I've been to that theater three times and gotten front row every time. It's actually ridiculously easy to get front row there; you only have to show up like an hour or two early. But seriously, MGMT was incredible. I'd seen mixed reviews online about how well they perform live, but they were way better than I ever could have imagined. I think the only reason they might not be best live was because they seemed rather uncomfortable on stage; they didn't move at all (well, to be fair, Ben was sitting, so he couldn't), and I don't think they ever made eye contact with the audience. The setlist was perfect, with a great variety from both albums plus several new songs. Siberian Breaks was magical. Electric Feel was fantastic, and the audience went crazy. This was possibly one of my favorite concerts I've attended. Also, shout out to Andrew and Ben for being the two most beautiful people on the entire planet. Here's some crappy quality photos taken on my crappy quality phone (I know my friends took better pictures, but hey, I don't have Instagram, so I'll never see them!).

Vanilla Cake with Banana-Coconut Frosting (Sugar-Free)

Well, it's been almost two weeks since 2013 started, and I still haven't eaten any (refined) sugar. I don't really agree with the concept of "new years resolutions", however, I have been making several decisions lately for my physical and mental health, and one of them has been to cut back on sugar. As you can probably tell, I not only have a major sweet tooth, but I also love to bake. That puts me in a bad situation as I've realized cane sugar has some pretty noticeable side effects for me; it gives me terrible migraines, heartburn, mood swings, and fatigue. Also I'm sure it's not particularly beneficial for my psoriasis (or Crohn's!). So I'm trying to stop eating refined sugar, or cane sugar, except maybe the occasional treat on a birthday or holiday. I've been hearing a lot of nasty stuff about agave nectar lately, so I doubt I'll be using that much either (which is such a bummer considering it's so much cheaper than the other alternative sweeteners). I still eat maple syrup and brown rice syrup, but hopefully some day I will cut back significantly on my intake of those too; I'm taking this one step at a time.

This cake is pretty fantastic, if I do say so myself. Not only does it taste great, but it's the perfect consistency (not even a sugar-eating omnivore would be able to guess it's sugar-, egg-, and dairy-free!). Even if you choose to use a different frosting, this cake a fabulous base. It can easily be doubled (or tripled!) to make a layer cake. This recipe is modified from the book More Great Good Dairy-Free Desserts Naturally, but I changed it enough that I feel okay posting it. The frosting recipe was inspired by this recipe by Chocolate Covered Katie, only I changed it somewhat, mostly because coconut butter is definitely not sold near me and my food processor is not cooperative when I try to make my own. It's not exactly the prettiest color in the world, and I would recommend decorating the top with coconut. Of course, if you're not so strict about avoiding sugar, you could use a different frosting, but this stuff really does have a good flavor and I would recommend trying it. 

Vanilla Cake

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons canola oil, or other mild-tasting oil
• 5 tablespoons pure maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1/2 cup non-dairy milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1) Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly oil a circular 8-inch cake pan.

2) In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

3) In another medium bowl, mix together oil, syrup, milk, vanilla, almond extract, lemon zest, and vinegar until completely combined. 

4) Add liquids to flour mixture and stir until combined and no lumps remain.

5) Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

6) Cool on a wire rack in pan for 10 minutes, then carefully remove from pan and let cake rest on rack until completely cool.

Meanwhile, prepare frosting:

Banana-Coconut Frosting

• 1 overripe banana
• 2/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (okay I have to admit I didn't measure this at all, so have at least 1 cup available, but you might not need it all)
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup, or more, to taste
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• dash of cinnamon
• dash of salt

1) In a blender or food processor, blend banana until smooth. 

2) Add 2/3 cup coconut flakes and combine. At this point, it should be about the consistency of frosting (not smooth, obviously, because of the coconut, but the same thickness); if it seems too liquidy to be spread on cake, add a bit more coconut. 

3) Add maple syrup, extracts, lemon zest, and salt and mix until combined. 

4) Refrigerate until ready to use (it tastes best cold).

To assemble cake, frost with banana frosting, then sprinkle on some extra coconut flakes and lemon zest. 

Enjoy immediately or refrigerate until serving.

 

Reflecting on My Health & Diet in 2012

I can't believe it's already a new year! 2012 seemed to go by so quickly. I spent the first half of the year totally focused on my trip, fundraising, shopping, daydreaming, you name it. After I got back from Europe and had finally accepted the fact that I live in America and not a beautiful city in the Mediterranean, I began to spend most of my free time researching nutrition and plant-based diets. Up until this summer, I was still eating Oreos, Ritz Crackers, and all junk food that can technically be classified as "vegan". I had never heard of seitan and spinach was my least favorite food (which is a shock, considering I eat it at least two times a day now). There were a few things this summer that sparked my desire to try a true plant-based diet. While I was overseas, I do remember the food being one of the most fascinating aspects of the trip. Everything we ate was so pure, whole, organic. I had always hated tomatoes, but in Greece and Italy the tomatoes tasted like an entirely different food. And so did the cucumbers, potatoes, peppers, apricots, cherries, plums... When I got home, I knew I had to find those flavors again and that was when I discovered I can get equally delicious fruits and vegetables at farmer's markets and farm stands. All of these exciting new ingredients challenged and inspired me to eat differently.

 

Another reason I started a plant-based diet was to get my health in order. Rewind back about a month or two before my trip. I was finishing up all final preparations to travel (I had my suitcase packed weeks ahead of time of course) when, in a matter of days, my entire body broke out in an awful rash. It didn't itch or hurt or anything, it was just there, and it was the most traumatic thing I could imagine as I was preparing to leave for three weeks on a trip where I had hoped I could truly be myself and make new friends. I rushed to a dermatologist who said I had developed psoriasis as a reaction to the Remicade I was on for Crohn's disease (which is awfully ironic, considering Remicade is often used to treat psoriasis). He prescribed some lotions which certainly reduced the patches, but it became a battle of chasing the psoriasis around my body, as it would come and go in spots but never truly go away. I had the most difficulty treating it on my scalp, and I began losing hair - lots of hair; eventually, I couldn't even go out in public without wearing a bandana or spending an hour trying to cover each bald patch with bobby pins. Anyway, this summer, as I dealt with the realization that I had been diagnosed with a second chronic auto-immune disease, I knew it was time for me to do something on my own.

My dermatologist and my GI doctor didn't get along. He wanted me to go off the Remicade, she didn't. My Crohn's had been in remission for two years, ever since I started the medication (also when I originally went vegan..hmm), so I definitely understood her viewpoint; but it was making me go bald, and as a fifteen year old girl I knew I couldn't stay on it. So that was when I started really getting interested in health, nutrition, and various diets. I watched about a billion health documentaries on NetFlix, dabbled in macrobiotics and gluten-free, and finally decided on a plant-based diet: vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and healthy fats. Originally I had thought this diet would restrict my food choices even further, and I suppose it technically has, but it doesn't bother me at all because I no longer consider the things I don't eat as food. To me, animal products are not food - they are a sentient being's flesh, they are products belonging to the creatures who created them, they are not my food. Processed and artificial substances are not food - they look like food, they taste like food, but they are not food. This change made me fall in love with the vegan lifestyle all over again. Cooking became my favorite hobby and I even started a food blog to share my thoughts and recipes. :-)

After a few months of eating whole plant foods and feeling like an entirely new person, I had a endoscopy/colonoscopy, and my GI doctor said that my colon was basically as healthy as a colon could be for a Crohn's patient. She gave me her full permission to stop using Remicade (at that point I had actually not had a Remicade infusion for about four months, so it was pretty much completely out of my body). For the first time since I was ten, I was finally able to go off Crohn's medications. It has been so liberating. But at the same time, it's terrifying, knowing that if I ever mess up my diet significantly enough, I could send my body into a flare up. Since then, I have been working so hard to make sure I eat well, and my diet is improving every day. My psoriasis has been gradually improving too; around Christmas, I noticed that I could wear my hair loose without having any bald patches show for the first time since summer (which was odd since only a few weeks before, the hair loss seemed to be at it's worst). I only have a few patches now, and they are so minimal that I hardly notice them. I don't know if my psoriasis will ever go away completely, but I hope that as I continue to eat better food and improve my lifestyle, my symptoms will continue to diminish. Through these experiences over the past year, I've learned to willingly accept the challenges life presents me, and instead of letting them build up and overwhelm me, to face them head on and give them a challenge of their own.

Pictured above (my favorite things I cooked this week!):

Chickpea Romesco served on Garlic-Saffron Rice from Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

No-Bake Brownie Bites (sweetened by dates, best tasting things ever actually) from Vegan Junk Food by Lane Gold

Hamburger Buns from this recipe, using vegan versions (so far this is the best hamburger bun recipe I've tried but it was much more dense then your typical store-bought hamburger bun..it was more like a roll)

Black Bean Burgers also from Veganomicon, served with those fancy hamburger buns and some homemade baked french fries

VeganMoFo Day Eighteen

This post is ridiculously long and not that interesting, so I apologize in advance.

I loved today because I finally didn't have driver's ed! I went on a long walk with my best friend which was lovely because I hadn't seen her in a while. I didn't really take any fantastic photos, but trust me, it was very pretty out today.

We saw like 8,000 geese (actually, 111, if you want to be exact)...flying in the wrong direction. 

I got some herbs from my acupuncturist (I know she has a more official title than that, but I don't remember it) today. They will work along with my acupuncture treatment to hopefully help continue to reduce my psoriasis (amongst other things). I've been surprisingly pleased with the acupuncture so far, as I've been able to fall asleep much easier than before (only a week ago it took me several hours to fall asleep, but now it's significantly better). Even though they look like potpourri, the herbs literally smell like a pile of sticks and dirt, and the tea it makes tastes terrible, but I'm still going to try it anyway because I really trust it will work. Let's see how long I can force myself to drink two cups of this stuff a day.

My cat climbed onto my shoulder and spent most of the evening there. It's cute, but he weighs far more than any cat should and my shoulder killed after a while. Pretty sure the only reason he wanted to be held was so he could get a better view of the food in the kitchen. He's ridiculous.

I finally got to cook dinner again! I got home from my walk just as my mom was starting to cook, so I promptly took over, of course. She/I made Cuban-style black beans, out of the cookbook Vegan Planet. My parents both love that cookbook, and almost everything they've made from it has been great; I don't tend to use it very often though because there's no pictures and I can't stand looking for recipes just by looking at the titles. It's a pretty basic recipe, beans, peppers, onions, and the usual veggies cooked with some chili powder and a few other ingredients (not saying both because it's not my recipe and I honestly can't remember), and I served it on top of a mixed grain mix. It was a pretty perfect meal actually.

VeganMoFo Day Ten

Well, yet again, I don't really have anything worthwhile to post. I've been so busy lately, especially with driver's ed interfering with when I would be cooking. So for dinner today I just threw together a bunch of things (pasta, tomato sauce, tomatoes, garlic, onion, pepper, kalamata olives, pine nuts, and spinach), and it turned out pretty well. I was super hungry though and didn't take a picture.

I went to an acupuncturist for the first time today (actually, I've had acupuncture twice before, but only through a place I had physical therapy, not an actual appointment), and hopefully it should help my psoriasis. I've always had such better results in health problems through naturopathy than western medicine, so I'm interested to see if this works for me.

Today I also received a bunch of mail-order items I've been waiting for! First, I got Animal Liberation, and I don't know if I'll get around to reading it soon, but I mostly got it because it seems like it's a book all vegans read at some point.

Second, a month's supply of Daysoft contact lenses. I researched for a while, and as far as I can tell, they're the only contact brand that doesn't test on animals. I hate wearing glasses (convenience reasons, not vanity), but I hate buying contacts that I know animals have needlessly suffered for, so I am overjoyed to find this brand. There's more pros to Daysoft too, like they're remarkably inexpensive (I'll be saving about $75 or more compared to my old brand for a three-month supply). The lenses themselves are in more efficient packages, so there's a lot less waste involved. This brand really seems like a godsend - now I just have to wait to try them out tomorrow and see if they even work with my eyes. [update: I tried the contacts and love them! They are so much more comfortable than my old brand and easier to put in. And they don't dry out, even if I accidentally fall asleep wearing them. I am definitely going to continue purchasing my lenses from Daysoft.]

And lastly, I received some makeup I ordered from e.l.f., another cruelty-free brand. I've pretty much always buy Almay products, because they're sold everywhere and apparently don't test on animals, but they still include various animal ingredients so I decided it was time for a change. E.l.f.'s website states, "We do NOT test on animals or endorse such practices. Our products do not contain animal derived ingredients. Beeswax has been replaced by synthetic beeswax and lanolin has been replaced by Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladinpale-2." Their prices are also fantastic ($1 mascara?!), and a quick Google search should be able to provide you with a coupon code for 50% off or free shipping. I tried some of it out, and like it all for the most part. My only complaint would be that it's lighter than I had expected. Like, the eyeliner I usually use shows up as a deep brown, but this was really pale (it still looks nice, and works well, just not what I wanted); I will probably try black eyeliner instead next time. The waterproof mascara applies wonderfully! As does the concealer. I didn't order any eyeshadow because I already have an overabundance of eyeshadow at home, but I'll try it someday!

Well, considering I didn't even have a recipe to post, this has turned out much longer than I thought it would.