Are there any other vegans here?

I know of a few on the board.  I'm a veggie who tries to go vegan 2-3 times a week.  I'd like to see a vegetarian/vegan forum here as well.

Hey there! :)

Those people are nuts! :)

I'd like to see a vegetarian/vegan forum here as well.

That would rock! Should we pester Richard?

I think we should!

Question -  have any of you had issues digesting TVP? I just made the Cholent from Vcon and it was amazing! The problem? I don't think I can digest TVP. I have had horrid stomach pain for two days now. I think I may have a soy sensitivity?

That would rock! Should we pester Richard?

Yes, let's pester.  I'll be happy to contact him.

What's TVP?  I think I might like to become a vegan.  How hard is it?  Where do you purchase your food?

What's TVP?  I think I might like to become a vegan.  How hard is it?  Where do you purchase your food?

TVP is textured vegetable protein. It wasn't that hard for me, but I had already been dairy free for a year. I buy most of my groceries at the local supermarket. I do have to make a trip to the health food store a couple times a month for things that the grocer doesn't have like nutritional yeast or if I want a specialty item. Our local Publix has a decent selection for vegans. They carry Bragg's, vegan bullion, gluten, vegan cream cheese, various kinds of tofu and even tempeh now among other things. I did alot of recipe research by browsing the vegan blogs and got some great ideas for meals.

Are those items a lot more expensive than non-vegan items?  Sorry if that sounds like a stupid question, I'm just curious how regular bullion, for example, would compare in price to the vegan version.

Depends on where you get it. At the supermarket, vegetarian bullion is the same price as regular. Vegan versions of cream cheese, mayo and such tend to be a bit pricier. Since I don't buy meat anymore, it hasn't really changed my bill. Some think that being vegan is more expensive, but if you do your research and eat more of a whole food lifestyle, then it's not a big deal. I don't eat alot of the processed vegan foods like the fake ground meats, burgers, tofurkey etc. On occassion I might pick something up, but they are expensive and I can make alternatives here at home. Instead of tofurkey sausages, I can make seitan sausages etc. The thing I have found is that in order to eat healthy and inexpensive, I have to make more foods and it is a bit more time consuming. I usually have a day where I'll prepare for the week by making a batch or two of seitan, I'll prep some raw veg to keep in the fridge to snack on, I'll make hummus, I'll make up cookie or scone dough to keep in the fridge. It's possible, and I know a few of these, to be a junk food vegan. I'd rather not eat that way so the extra time I spend preparing is well worth it to me. The expense for me has been in other things. Buying cruelty free beauty products gets expensive. I've been vegan for about 6 months now and I'm still finding stuff in my house that's not vegan, whether it's body wash, mascara etc. I'd love to live a completely vegan life, but I don't know how possible it is in this day and age.

Okay.  I think I'm ready.  Have any good suggestions of reading material that I should check out for recipes and particular ingredients to avoid, also ready made products that I would be able to eat.

Thanks!

Here are a few great links to get you started, also check out the different vegan blogs. They are a great source of recipes! There's a link to mine in my siggy and I also have a ton of links there for recipes, info on veganism, the abolishist approach, cruelty-free products and lots of other things.

http://www.peta.org/accidentallyVegan/default.asp

http://www.vegfamily.com/lists/animal-ingredients.htm

http://vegweb.com/

http://www.theppk.com/

Thanks, those sites are great!  I've just borrowed some vegan books from the library as well.  Have you seen the racy PETA Superbowl ad that was turned away??  www.aol.com has an article about it.

I'm slowly working my way into vegetarianism, but my wife is a die-hard Vegan (so really, I eat mostly vegan.)

We're incredibly poor, but have been doing wonderfully with our diet (we were a little worried, as my wife has congestive heart failure has special dietary needs.)

We've had to be pretty creative-- I hate tofu, seitan, and hummus, which cuts out a big portion of most vegan meals (though I do make my wife fried tofu a few times a month.) It's really just a matter of different ways of cooking and matching up the same ingredients. At least it keeps me on my toes!

Getting general vegan products is a lot harder. We do a lot of homemade things (baking soda toothpast, etc.)

I like meat too much.