What is it? Why go vegan? How do vegans eat?

 Introductions  Who are we  Who is our audience  Why are we here  Definition of veganism  Why go vegan  Health  Nutrition  Environmentalism  How do vegans eat  Health messages aimed to daily eating  Restaurant food is special and aims toward pleasing tastes  Substitutes for health, substitutes for taste and texture  Questions and Answers

 Nutrition  Taste  Comfort  Our relationship with other living beings  Our relationship with the earth  Restaurant food offers all this to customers with convenience and ambience  Restaurant food offers a livelihood to its staff

 The abstinence of all animal products  That means NO to:  Meat (beef, pork, chicken), poultry, fish  Dairy (milk, cheese, yogurt)  Honey (for some)  Leather, wool, silk, fur, etc in clothing…  And it means YES to:  Compassion  Health  Environmentalism

 Decreased incidence of heart disease  lower levels of dietary cholesterol  Prevents cancers : breast, prostate, colon, other  Lowers risk of arthritis  Anti-inflammatory-  Lower amounts of protein = lower amounts of calcium loss -> lower risk of osteoporosis  Treatment and prevention for type II diabetes

 Supports weight loss  For vegans who carefully choose healthy foods  More energy  Healthy skin from the inside out  Longer life  Health benefits of compassion

 If we can limit the harm to other beings, we help to create a better world  We assume people understand the violence involved in slaughter for meat  Many don’t understand the suffering of dairy cows  Fed artificial diets with grains and other high protein animal based meals  Forced pregnant with artificial insemination  Attached to milking machine  Frequently infected; mastitis and other open sores  Separated from their calves  Lives shortened considerably  Many don’t understand how dairy production is linked to slaughter  Male calves confined in crates, raised and slaughtered for veal  Older dairy cows slaughtered for low grade meat  If we don’t consume meat and dairy, we remove the reason for the violence to continue

 Vegans use the least amount of resources to produce food  pounds of grain needed per pound of beef  2500 – 5000 gallons of water needed per pound of beef  Only gallons for tomatoes, wheat, apples  3.25 acres of land needed per meat-eater  1/3 acre for a vegetarian  1/6 acre for a vegan  78 calories of energy needed per calorie of beef protein  Only 2 calories needed for soybeans  Vegans pollute the least amount into the environment by avoiding the wastes from animal agriculture: 120 pounds of wet manure produced per day by average dairy cow resulting in water pollution, methane gas resulting in global warming, etc  Some have said the while going vegetarian is like driving a hybrid car, going vegan is like riding a bike – it’s that much better for the environment!

How can we go vegan? Common questions--  What can we eat besides fruits and vegetables?  Can we get enough protein?  Can we get enough calcium?  Will it taste good?

 That one pound of kale has more protein than one pound of beef?  That high amounts of meat intake causes calcium to leach from the bones?  That cow’s milk calcium is not usable by the body to make the bones stronger?

 How much? 0.8g/kg  People need less than they think; studies have shown that even US vegans get more protein than they need, vegetarians and meat eaters get way too much  Excess protein leaches Ca from bones  What kinds?  Beans: mung, adzuki, black, lentils  Nuts  Grains: quinoa (18g); brown rice (12g); millet (22g)  Vegetables: KALE  Tofu, Tempeh  Seaweed  Mushrooms -- shitake

BROWNWHITE  Higher Fiber content- slower blood sugar increase  Nutrients: Vitamin E, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Potassium, Magnesium, Iron  Higher in protein Fiber husk removed Nutrients removed- 1/4 th to 1/6 th of all nutrients in brown rice More processed so takes more resources to produce Higher in carbohydrate content Turns into sugar in the body

 Some higher in starch, some higher in protein  Carbohydrates also necessary for sustained energy. Whole grains and beans are not “bad guys”, refined ones are  Beans: Mung, Adkuzi, Black, Lentils  Grains: brown rice, quinoa, millet  Bread, pasta

 Tofu  Tempeh  Seiten (wheat gluten)  Textured vegetable protein gives meat like texture  Vada in Indian stores  More granular in health food stores  Soy and gluten products developed in Asian Buddhist culture  Soy and gluten products developed in modern America  Each one has its nutritional pros and cons. Best to eat processed products sparingly

 Milk substitutes  Almond milk  Hazelnut milk  Oat milk  Hemp milk  Rice milk  Coconut milk  Soy milk  Some are more processed, some creamier with higher fat content, some have more protein.  Yogurt substitutes  Soy yogurt  Coconut yogurt  Sweeter than dairy yogurt to allow cultures to grow.  Each one has its nutritional pros and cons.

 Cheese substitutes  Tofu for paneer, feta and ricotta cheese  Daiya vegan cheese for cheddar and mozzerella  Tofutti cream cheese  Nutritional yeast for parmesan  The Un-Cheese cookbook gives recipes for many other types of cheese  Butter substitutes  Earth Balance spread  Oil  Olive oil for bread  Other oils for cooking  Avoid trans and saturated fat  Cream substitutes  Cashew cream (made from blended cashews)  Blended tofu  These are generally foods for taste, not health foods; best to use these sparingly in daily diet

 Many vegan ice cream varieties  Fruit based sorbets  Soy based ice creams  Nut based ice creams  Coconut based ice creams  Rice Dream  Vegan kulfi based on coconut and soy milk with nuts and spices  Like soy milk, each base has its pros and cons.  Like cheese and butter, these are not health foods and should be used sparingly.

 Scrambled tofu with kala namak= omelet  Banana, tofu, applesauce, soy yogurt, or soaked and blended flax seed= egg in baking  Ener-G egg replacer= non-perishable egg in baking  Special cake recipes with vinegar and baking soda to produce effect of rising

 Ask and understand why your customers choose vegan  Offer them choices and they’ll feel they are home  Think about your own and your families tastes and health situation and consider trying vegan options yourself!  Welcome to the world of veganism!!

 The 57 Health Benefits of going Vegan  benefits-of-going-vegan/ benefits-of-going-vegan/  Norris, Jack RD.  Vegetarian Resource Group.  Robbins, John, “What about Soy?”  you.htm you.htm  Robbins, John, “The Truth About Calcium and Osteoporosis,” Juice Matters, Nov 2009  Dharmananda, Subhuti Ph.D., “The Nutritional and Medicinal Value of seaweeds used in Chinese Medicine”  Nutritional resources

 Postpunk kitchen: has recipes, videos, etc  Vegetarian times: searchable recipe database with vegan limit option  Vegresource group  The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook by Jo Stepaniak  The Indian Vegan Kitchen by Madhu Dadia  CalciYum! By David & Rachelle Bronfman  The Candle Café Cookbook by Joy Pierson  Vegan World Fusion Cuisine by Mark Reinfield  Conveniently Vegan by Deborah Wasserman  Meatless Meals for Working People by Deborah Wasserman  The Single Vegan by Leah Leneman  Sinfully Vegan by Lois Dieterly