The end.

It's all over. 

This morning I had French toast. Not the anti-egg egg replacer type of French toast either. I had eggy, buttery, syrupy French toast at a diner, and after I had a CONOLI. 

It was all extremely delicious, and I thoroughly enjoyed consuming every last bite. Then, I sat back and contemplated what I had just swallowed into my body, and I felt kind of gross. 

The strange thing is, I had read other blog posts saying that after being a vegan for a long period of time, other animal product-y food tastes dirty in a way, and I concur with that. Not only did the food not taste as clean and fresh as vegan foods, but after I ate, I felt as though I needed a shower : greasy, bloated, and sluggish. 

I have already voiced my opinion on the issue of Veganism and continuing it even after the end of February already in "The Arrogance of Veganism", and "Miami". To make it clear, I feel gross about myself, so I wish to continue to eat healthy. Not vegan, but healthy. Perhaps this is what caused my body to feel so much more powerful was the lack of junk foods, and not the lack of animal products. 

The finality of it all has hit hard. The challenge affected my life in ways I never knew I could achieve. I became conscious of what I was eating every day, I learned to cook, and I grew empowered. The challenge did not only affect my physical health. Mentally, I know that I have the ability to carry out a long term goal, and to stick to a diet. I did not break down and eat a cookie alone for the entire month. The only situations in which I cheated involved the consequence of inconveniencing members of my family, such as when I went to Miami, and when I went out to lunch with my grandfather. 

This month has taught me that food is something to be cherished, not something to be shoved in one's mouth and gulped down. I can go to restaurants now and be able to taste the specific ingredients in a dish. I can compare my own cooking to theirs. I appreciate food as an art form, and not as pure sustenance. 

If the journey has taught me one thing, it is: 

Determination is an extremely valuable skill. 

This doesn't apply only to food, but to many other things. 

I am extremely glad that I accepted the vegan challenge for this month, and I learned invaluable lessons. I recommend it to anyone who is skeptical. I loved my experience. 

So, keep on keepin' on vegans. I respect you immensely for your dedication. 

THE END

Last day blues

Today is February 28th, the last day of this extravagant experiment. I got a little nostalgic this morning over my breakfast of fresh fruit (without Nutella) about the impact Veganism has had on me. 

I ate a lunch of spaghetti with a lemon olive oil and spices dressing, carrots, hummus, an apple, and wasabi peas and thought about whether or not this would ever be a lunch I would eat again. I nearly began to tear up. 

For my last vegan dinner, I wanted to create something extra vegan. Something luxurious. Something that would memorialize this final vegan moment for-ev-er. For-ev-ever. FOR-EV-ER. So, in honor of this day, I created...

Nothing. 

I bought sushi. 

But it's pretty!

I'll have to present my last sentiments tomorrow morning, when the end of Veganism truly rears it's ugly head. Until then, stay vegan my friends. 

The Vegan Valentine: A Love Story

Enter the two lovers: 

Katherine, the newly vegan, sugar-deprived youth with an insatiable lust for desserts she can't have…

and

chocolate, the magical, elusive remedy to all her woes.

When mixed together on a sleep-deprived night of a very mushy, very lonely holiday, you get:

CHOCOLATE VEGAN FUDGE!!!

Yes folks, you heard me right, there is a god in this world. Close to midnight on Valentine's Day, I felt a sudden impulse to make something delicious. I don't remember much of what happened after that, but i woke the next day to find a pan of fudge in my fridge and an immaculately clean kitchen. We can only speculate what went down. 

In reality, I did stay up until one in the morning making vegan chocolate fudge and I don't regret it. This simple dessert tastes sinfully sweet and is the perfect addition to the holiday famous for its non-vegan treats. I felt like a ghiradelli master chocolatier swirling the molten chocolate with the spoon. 

My only complaint to this recipe is the consistency of the fudge does not keep well at room temperature. It didn't harden to the typical chewiness of fudge when left out or even in the fridge. I kept mine in the freezer and this seemed to resolve the problem. 

I cut mine into little hearts and other shapes under the guise of being cute and romantic, but really I was trying to make this scrumptious dessert last as long as possible. 

'Til next time!

Miami=Vegan

Canelones de Verdura

TURNS OUT MIAMI IS TOTALLY VEGAN FRIENDLY AND HAS SO MANY VEGAN PLACES TO EAT

Not only did my Aunt Kristen generally cook vegan for me, but yesterday we hit up a vegan café called "It's not just mi vida, it's yours too!"

They had some awesome dishes that I plan to whip up when I get home, and I really admired the entire place. Their smoothies were divine, and so was everything else. 

Kristen got a "vegan sloppy joe" and I ordered the "Canelones de Verdura" along with the Purple Power smoothie. 

Menu @ It's not just mi vida, it's yours too!

The place was relatively expensive, but worth it for the experience. Everyone in there had just come from yoga, and I did not see one man in my entire experience. There was also a zen garden next door, which just added to the crunchy/naturalistic effect. We had a good laugh, and were stuffed by the end of it. Go vegan!

"sloppy joe"

Zen Garden wall art

Aunt Kristen's Recipes

So, turns out my Aunt Kristen was a vegan in college, and she cooks vegan all of the time still! She gave me some recipes to share, and I might add more later. Sorry about the lack of pictures!

Avocado Corn Salad
-4 ears corn
-2 ripe avocados (chopped into chunks)
-one squeeze fresh lemon
-halved grape tomatoes
-handful of fresh cilantro chopped
-green onion (4, but that's sometimes too much)
-jalepeño pepper (seeds out if you want it more mild)
-splash of sea salt (himalayan)

Quinoa Salad
Sauteé
-half an onion chopped (sweet onion)
-2 cloves garlic chopped
-EVOO
until the onion is more clear
-1 cup of quinoa and turn up heat to medium heat
-fry quinoa, onions, and garlic in oil for 2 minutes
-add two 1/2 cups of water, bring to a boil
-after boil, simmer with lid on for about 15-20 minutes until quinoa is soft

-while that is cooking, in a bowl chop 3 green onion
- zest of one lemon
-grape tomatoes, halved
-quickly chop half container of arugula (2 handfuls), half container of spinach (2 handfuls)
-squeeze zested lemon on ingredients in bowl
-pinch of salt and pepper

then, when quinoa has cooled to room temperature, add to arugula spinach mixture
add other things for fun!

Tomato Soup 
halve 6 tomatoes (Kristen likes to use 12 Campari tomatoes because they're sweeter)
and put them on a roasting pan in the oven at 450 degrees ...with
2 cloves of garlic (can be whole or chopped)
one slice of sweet onion
cover with olive oil
keep in at 450 degrees for 45 minutes
stir once or twice
switch oven to 350 degrees, and cook for an additional 30 minutes
in the last five minutes, add fresh basil

after roasted, put in a blender until smooth
THERE YOU HAVE YOUR SOUP

*tip: if you use beef tomatoes, throw in a carrot while roasting to add a creamy sweetness, or add almond milk or rice milk
*if the tomatoes aren't ripe enough, throw in a little water into the roast when switching to 350 degrees

Chocolate Cherry Brownies

CHOCOLATE CHERRY BROWNIES

Hello all. The other day, I had a severe chocolate craving. And when I say severe, i mean EVERE. So, I set out to make a vegan recipe that I found for chocolate cherry brownies. 

I had never before had even non-vegan chocolate cherry brownies, so I thought this experiment would be interesting. The recipe will be included on our recipe page (with all of our other recipes). 

Now, what I found, as the other baker found, was that these brownies are fudge central. 

I also found that the extra cherry pie topping on top of the brownies was unnecessary, and did not allow them to cook well enough.

Advice from me:

Do not top the brownies with cherry topping

Do not make a brownie sandwich as the recipe suggests (that makes too much brownie to eat)

Include a little more of the cherry filling in the batter

Cook for longer (the recipe suggests 25-30mins, I would say 30-35)

Otherwise, they were delicious and a hit. 

Miami

ATTENTION: THE FOLLOWING IS A SIMILAR RANT ON THE CONCEPT OF VEGANISM

I am headed off to Miami Beach, Florida tomorrow morning. Yes, it is still February. Yes, I am supposed to be a vegan, and I have been since February first, using only one cheat to have lunch with my grandfather.
This trip to Miami was a gift from my other Grandfather, Aunt, and Uncle who reside in a house on Miami Beach. They wanted me to come down to visit them for a few days (and it's Miami Beach, who am I to refuse). In light of this situation, and even taking into account the accepting nature of my family, I do not wish to inconvenience them in any way with my Vegan pledge. If they have a plan to take me out to a restaurant, or to feed me a meal that has cheese or animal products, I intend to gratefully accept what they offer me.
This brings us back to my previous post on the arrogance of Veganism. I feel as though I will project myself as ungrateful if I accept their gift to Florida, yet force them to buy food specially for me. Perhaps it is that I am only 17, and this problem is one of authority and age superiority. Yet, if you were invited as a guest to stay at a house on Miami Beach, would you not accept the food you were given?
My parents and family always taught me to eat all of the food on my plate. Before I became a vegetarian, I sat at the table many times after everyone else had finished with some type of unappetizing meat. Eventually, I always forced myself to eat it, because that was the proper thing to do. When I became a vegetarian, it was at first difficult for my family to accept, but still relatively easy to accommodate. I could eat side dishes, and what did not include meat in a meal, or I could quickly whip up something for myself. With veganism, the diet is so strict that this is not possible. Virtually nothing that is regularly served in households is vegan.
So, is this a problem with society in that they include animal products in all of their foods, or is this a problem with vegans?
In Miami, I may not eat vegan for the majority of my meals. I do not, however, see this as a problem. I believe one's individual cause must come secondary to the hospitality of others at times.