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New to becoming a vegan.
Started
by Lisa DePina
on March 5, 2013
I am new to becoming a vegan and before I get started I would just like some information foods I can substitute for cheese which is my favorite. I have tried veggie burgers in the past and they are really good just need more ideas on what to eat and what to stay away from. I am 49 years old and I want to start eating healthier I want to take it slow I know I will have cravings for meat I don't eat a lot of red meat mainly fish and chicken and I would like to continue to eat especially fish. So if anyone can help me I would appreciate it.
Hi welcome to the life of a Vegan. I call my self Vegan-ish purely for the fact that I still eat eggs but only because they are from my chickens that I am raising....I found it very easy to quit meat as along I kept up with the same nutrients The kind life book by Alicia silverstone really helped me get motivated and then I started doing more research online..........the recipes out there are never ending My fav is a kale and squash Quesadilla (excuse the spelling)...made with vegan cheese which you can find at most grocery stores depending where you live. I live in rural PA so considering i live in a small town full of hunters finding vegan and veggie food is tricky, but after a while you get used to it. Since being Vegan(ish) i am feeling much better more energy sleeping better at night, better mood and a general feeling of enlightenment.
Just start by cutting out meat. and then gradually fade out dairy and then if you want to go full vegan then do fish because by then you will have found out so many recipes that when you fade out fish you wont feel deprived.
Good Luck
Thank you so much for the good advise and information I can not wait to get started. I am going to take your advice by starting out gradually and eliminating a little at a time. So I won't feel like I am depriving myself and I would be less likely to cheat.
Good I am glad the best thing I did was replace all my meat dishes with a fish kind for example when I had made tacos for the kids i made fish ones for m and now I make a chick pea kind which is amazing. I found the recipe on happy herbivore.com. I aslo make a tofu quiche which is amazing and you can add so many greens kale spinach, chard etc etc that it bumps up your green intake any recipes you want just ask will be more than happy to send them to you.
Hi Lisa! I am right there with you. I've been vegetarian for years, and I am just now making the leap to vegan. I completely agree with everything vixjoy had to say. Start gradually and don't be too hard on yourself! You're making lots of big changes. Once you get to replacing dairy, be sure to look for Daiya- the cheddar substitute is incredible! They just came out with frozen pizzas as well, which I can't wait to try. There are lots of great blogs for recipes, like Happy Herbivore, Fat Free Vegan, and Healthy Happy Life. I love Chocolate Covered Katie for desserts too! Hope all goes well as you are starting out! I think you will start noticing how much better you feel right away.
A great cheese substitute is Nutritional Yeast. You can get it in any health food store in the supplement aisle. It comes in a can in flake form, just sprinkle it over your food and it gives it a cheese-like taste. My favorite thing to put it on is my morning tofu and veggie scramble. Makes it taste like cheesy scrambled eggs!
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