Taco Cabana

What can I do?  

Most Vegans will tell you that they were duped at some point because someone gave them some food that  they claimed was "animal free."  But it's hard to know for sure and it's an uncomfortable situation to turn down food when some has labored to make it.

I have a great friend that works at Taco Cabana and he has often brought me food that he's bought after his shift.  They claim that the tortillas there are Vegan friendly.  This particular friend was vegan at one time and prefers to eat healthy when he can - thus he often ate these tortillas.  One night he was looking at the ingredients list and INDEED they are not.

I will gather more information and update this post, but be aware that(and it may depend on your location) it might not be vegan, though they may claim that it is.

New information coming...

Refried Black Beans (Day68)

Ok, so they're not fried.  But they are beans.  And I intend to devour them with some tortilla chips.
Tortilla chips are vegan most of the time, though they might not be all that healthy in massive amounts.  But if you're at a social function and they have food out, the tortilla chips are likely vegan.  Google for items that meet vegan standards as I couldn't find a simple list.
You can find this on Wiki:

Tostitos Wiki

"Some Frito-Lay brand seasoned products, including some flavors of Tostitos, contain pork enzymes in addition to herbs, cheese and other seasonings. Frito-Lay's web site^[1] states that they use enzymes from pigs (porcine enzymes) in some of their seasoned snack products to develop 'unique flavors'. The presence of pig-derived ingredients makes them unsuitable for Vegetarians, Vegans, as well as non-kosher (forbidden for observant Jews to eat), and haraam (forbidden for Muslims to eat)."


As far as I know, Tostitos regular white corn chips are vegan.  If someone has more info on that let me know.


I grabbed a large can of pre-cooked Black beans this evening and boiled the hell out of them.
didn't have a potato masher because I'm dead broke and trying to rebuild (more on that later - maybe).  But I added some water, oil and salt and went to work with a fork after boiling for about an hour and here is what we got:

I never claimed to be a class-act photographer, so you get what you get from my iPhone.  Like I said, I'm broke.  Better pictures when I have a better camera.(better recipes too!)


I'm getting after this with some Mission tortilla chips.  It tastes great with almost nothing in it -except, oh...the massive amounts of protein and fiber that we all need.

Curried Yellow Split Peas (Day63)

I'm giving up on the green peas that I spoke about in my last post.  They simply take too long to cook even if I soak them for 48 hours.  My best guess based on reading is that they are very old and too dried out.  Let's move on to a staple that I've grown to love: The Yellow Split Pea.

First, they are already split, unlike the green peas I bought. Thus, they only require 45 minutes to cook fully.  The peas will break down quite easily and if cooked beyond 45 minutes will be a mush, but I love it.  With ample spices and some vegetables, it's an enjoyable meal, and at only $1.66 per bag, a steal.

When it comes to the spices, I like to buy the bulk bags that are available at our local natural foods store.  I imagine most of these type stores will carry bulk and there are a couple of advantages.  One, there are organic options and they come in large quantities with prices ranging from $1.50 to $4.00.  Buying a bottle/sm jar of 1/4 of that amount in organic form is usually priced anywhere from $3 to $8 depending on the brand.  Way too high!
I also would like to mention a new-found ingredient that I've grown to love.  I like to make creamy dishes, but when going vegan, you need vegan options.  Normally using Coconut milk for something like this, I was hunting for something in the store with more concentration.  I found Creamed Coconut.
This is not coconut cream, a more dense version of coconut milk, squeezed from the plant's meat.  This is actually the creamed version of the meat itself.  It's thick and hard as a brick at cool temperatures.  For use, soften the bag in a bowl of warm water and squeeze out a TBlsp or more into your dish. It gives it a rich and delicious flavor.  I'm not a fan of coconut itself, but this stuff has opened up a new world of flavor.  This is the product I found and it was inexpensive:
ORGANIC CREAMED COCONUT

It's recommended that one remove the matter that is residual from the collection process(Much like you see on a label of dried beans).  But I've never worried about the extra matter and normally throw whatever is in the bag directly into the pot and get started.

Again, I rarely measure exact quantities when I make a batch of curry or other homemade recipes, so make adjustments as desired.  I'll give my best guess, but who doesn't like a ton of curry?  The recipe will make about 3-4 servings and the cost is super low.

Ingredients:

1-2 cups of Yellow Split Peas
3 cups of Water (add more as needed- and you will likely need to)
1 Tblsp Curry
1 tsp ground Coriander
2 tsp Garlic powder
1 Tblsp Creamed coconut
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
optional: (any vegetable would do, right?)
Chopped onion
Minced garlic clove
Small broccoli florets

Directions:
Boil for 40 minutes or more.  Be sure to check often that you're not running out of water and that the peas aren't sticking to the pot.  It can also froth up and spill over if over-heated.  This is just a recommendation, but I normally add my spices and optional vegetables about 75% through the process.  You can boil longer if needed, taste as you go and so on.  It's hard to mess up this dish, and as I'm cooking it right now(live pictures indeed), I'm getting excited.  When it's achieved the consistency you prefer, remove from heat and serve - or contain it and enjoy it later.  This tastes soooooo good.

Please comment if you try this insanely easy recipe.  I'd like to hear what you think.

Peas.......PLEASE(Day57)

Lesson learned.  Have I mentioned the name "Clumsy Vegan?"

I often buy yellow split peas because they are so very cheap, easy to cook/season, and they have a lot of protein and fiber(among other positives).  So I thought I would grab a huge bag of the raw, dried green peas and add it to the cooking menu.  Little did I know that the dried green pea needs to soak overnight.

I cooked a pot of indian for 6 hours straight trying to get these guys tender!  Granted, the outcome was amazing, but I used a lot of gas just to get things done.  I don't like that at all.

In addition, I came home tonight to find that my electricity was turned off!  Thank god for the iPhone.  Unfortunately, there was some sort of problem with my email and I was supposed to initiate the start of my service through various online means. I didn't get that email.  All the while, the vegetables and other goods in the fridge are potentially going bad.  I got it figured out and I'm boiling some peas now.

But guess what.....  I soaked this second batch of peas, just as suggested.  They've been soaking for 2 days.
And after boiling for 3 hours, they are still not breaking like the yellow split pea.

Don't forget that.  The dried green pea is a tough pea.  Most of us just want to cook it up and eat it, like a can of black beans - especially when we're doing it meal by meal.  I look forward to how great these peas are going to be.  But the time and energy put into these little thangs has been more than I anticipated.
     A little bit of curry powder, Garlic powder, Ground Coriander, and a drop of oil and salt.
     I'll let you know how it turns out.
     More boiling ahead...

Valentine's Day





:(

Allergies (Day51)

I had hoped that Veganism would help with seasonal allergies, but that doesn't seem to be the case.  The rains came and in a matter of minutes I was headed for a sinus infection.  I read sometime in the past that Oil of Oregano was supposed to be a good natural remedy for allergies so I'll need to look into that.  If anyone has any ideas, let me know.  Otherwise I will need to bite the bullet and take Claritin everyday for the rest of my life - and that is the last thing I want to do.

Edit:  Upon a quick google search...
Live Strong
http://www.inlightimes.com/archives/2007/04/help-alergies.htm

It's worth a try.

Fruity Pebbles

Please dear God, tell me it's Vegan.  Probably one of my favorite sugary cereals ever, I had a craving for it last night.  So why don't we take a look at the ingredients:

...Rice and Sugar
Ok, we can do that.

...Hydrogenated Vegetbale oil 
Damn.  We're only down to the third ingredient and we've already hit poison!  Hydrogenated oil is Vegan so we can go ahead and eat that, but read a bit about it before you decide to keep buying things off the grocery shelf.  It's in more than half of the products.  Look at this site for a scary explanation:  http://www.treelight.com/health/nutrition/PartiallyHydrogenatedOils.html#pageToc1
...Natural and artificial flavor, Red 40, Yellow 6
Probably plenty of synthetic stuff there.

...Turmeric and Oleoresin (Plant based Oil and resin)
Finally, some fairly normal/natural ingredients.

...Blue 1, Yellow 5, Blue 2 and BHA
More color and Food additives

Holy cripes.  Other than a few ingredients, Fruity Pebbles is either synthetic or poisonous. ("Poisonous" is a matter of opinion,  but I can assure you that almost any health professional would highly recommend  against ingesting Hydrogenated oils).  So we can eat this cereal because it's Vegan, but at what health cost?  Not only is that an issue, but many of these synthetic dyes and preservatives are tested on animals before approval or disapproval by the FDA.  This is really disappointing because I love Fruity Pebbles.
Well, I'm gonna have to find a natural/organic alternative, but I guess this isn't it:  http://www.nr2you.org/items/fruity-pebbles/

I'll let you know if I find one.  Gonna have to have some soon.

Thai Stir Fry

Thai Stir Fry      ALL RECIPES


I could eat this for every meal if I had the opportunity.  I suppose I could, it costs a total of around $1.00 to make if you don't count the gas required to cook it.  It's so damn good, I'm upset when the bowl is gone.  
Be aware that I'm listing the ingredients and the amounts to be used, but I honestly don't measure any of it - and you probably won't need to either.  It will be incredible no matter what you do.

1 full-sized Carrot

1/4 Onion

2 Green Onions

1/4 sliced Red Bell Pepper

1/2 cup of Broccoli

1-2 Cloves of Garlic sliced thin

2 TBsp Olive Oil (oil of your choice)

2 TBsp Brown Sugar

2-3 TBsp Soy Sauce

1 TBsp Sriracha sauce

1 TBsp of of fresh ground Peanut Butter

1/2 cup Rice

Directions

Heat the Oil, Sugar, Soy Sauce and Sriracha sauce to med/high heat

Throw in the vegetables and stir fry on high heat for 2 minutes

(Make sure not to overcook the veggies to keep them fairly firm - you don't want them soggy)

Throw in the Peanut butter and mix thoroughly for 30 seconds. Toss that stir fry on to some rice and be amazed.

Don't use Peter Pan or Skippy peanut butter.  It won't taste right with all of the added sugar and processed junk they use.  Use some fresh ground PB and it will make a huge difference.  It helps the sauce stick to the veggies.  Also, note that I've sliced these veggies very thin.  

This is a philosophy that contrasts with cooking meats and other non-vegan meals to keep the moisture in.  People often want to keep the veggies large as well.  But the trick is to slice everything thin so that you increase the surface area and get that fantastic flavor married throughout the dish.  You can even add some sliced tofu and it's even better.  Let me know your opinions if you try this.  It's unbelievable and you'll think twice about paying $8 at the local thai restaurant once you've had this!

Black Bean Salsa

Black Bean Salsa     ALL RECIPES

I personally change this one up quite a bit based on what I have around.  I add it to salads or just eat it with tortilla chips.

2 cans black beans - drained and rinsed

1 can corn - drained and rinsed

1 or 2 jalapeno peppers - seeded and chopped

1 clove garlic - minced

3 Plum/Roma tomatos - chopped

1 medium red onion - chopped

2-3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

lime juice of 2 limes

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions
Mix ingredients to ether and let sit 4-6 hours
Option: Add chopped Avocado just before serving