Just wanted to take some time to say thank you to all of the friends of Ste Martaen and the supporters of my husband and what he created.

True story. I invited a bunch of vegans over my house to eat dinner and Gene Baur showed up.

Seriously. I wouldn’t lie to you.

The picture above is the buffet set up in my living room area. Gene dug in, as did all my other guests.

It was just a [...]]]>

True story. I invited a bunch of vegans over my house to eat dinner and Gene Baur showed up.

Seriously. I wouldn’t lie to you.

The picture above is the buffet set up in my living room area. Gene dug in, as did all my other guests.

It was just a light meal of swiss chard simmered in coconut milk and curry, roasted cauliflower, barbecue tofu, mashed potatoes and gravy, spinach quiche, cinnamon rolls, pecan pie and peach ice cream. Yep, just a meal I threw together. lol!

I ate the peach ice cream for dinner. Mainly because it was all that was left because I forgot to put it out and everyone ate everything else.

Because of the Vegan Foodtruck, I have met and befriended some of the most amazing vegans! Because of the Vegan Foodtruck I have invited total strangers into my home and they leave as lifelong friends. Because of the Vegan Foodtruck, PETA knows who Ste Martaen is. Because of the Vegan Foodtruck our vegan line of cheeses has gained major exposure. Because of the Vegan Foodtruck, Gene Baur showed up to my house for dinner as a stop on the Just Eats Tour. I didn’t know who he was until Meagan and Lauren came over to help me out with dinner. Everyone I invited knew who he was except for me, which was cool. I was well informed by the time he arrived.

Some of you have asked me when is the truck coming back, some of you have asked how can you help bring the truck back. Well I didn’t realize how serious you guys were about helping to keep the vegan foodtruck alive until I got an anonymous donation of $500 bucks. The donor asked that you guys help out as well by matching that generous donation. Donations can be sent via PayPal or by snail mail to our PO Box in whatever increments you feel comfortable with. We will also be accepting hugs, vegan chocolate and smiles. I was thinking hard about starting a kickstarter campaign when this check arrived in the mail. Kismet? We can certainly start right here and right now. This is just one of the many ways to support your local and small businesses.

Thank you so much for supporting Ste Martaen, this is just the beginning!

Peace & Blessings,
Laviyah

Ste Martaen
PO Box 5563
Chicago, IL 60680

I really want to get back to posting delicious vegan recipes.  I made corn chowder tonight. It was most excellent. Recipe soon come.

Thank you everyone for being so supportive during this challenging time.

Love.

I’ve been waiting to update everyone on the goings on around here.  Well, truthfully I didn’t know what to say.  Nahum is not here.  In the interim, until he is back, I am running the business as well as the website and the house and the children.  I asked my husband where did [...]]]>

I’ve been waiting to update everyone on the goings on around here.  Well, truthfully I didn’t know what to say.  Nahum is not here.  In the interim, until he is back, I am running the business as well as the website and the house and the children.  I asked my husband where did he hide his cape because he had to have had super powers.  His phone will not stop ringing which is a testimony to his true character.  Mr. Always Available, Mr. Reliable, he is superman.  I got back on Thursday and have not had a moment to catch my breath.  This person needs that.  This person needs the recipe for this.  This person needs Nahum to help him with something or other.  This child needs this, this child needs that.  It really was never ending when he was here and the ball keeps on rolling.  I am trying to figure things out right now while maintaining the integrity of everything he started in Chicago.   Between the vegan cheese and the foodtruck, he worked incredibly hard.  Anyway, I didn’t write this post to tell his story.  Nahum and I have a place for that — for him to communicate where he is and why.  It’s a loooong story, so be patient as he eeeks it out post by post.  Meanwhile I am on the grind, because I’ve got 4 kiddies to keep track of and a business to run.  Still curious? Nahum speaks.

P.S.  There will be a permanent link on the sidebar to access his personal blog. Thank you for all the well wishes for the recovery of his mother.  She is recovering nicely.

We’ve been soooo incredibly busy for the past few months.  Took the kiddies to Legoland during the break.  They got to take a picture with President Barack Obama…the lego version.

Legoland was a blast.  It was so worth it, just to see the light in their little faces.  We’ll be back to our [...]]]>

We’ve been soooo incredibly busy for the past few months.  Took the kiddies to Legoland during the break.  They got to take a picture with President Barack Obama…the lego version.

Legoland was a blast.  It was so worth it, just to see the light in their little faces.  We’ll be back to our regularly scheduled programming shortly.

Supplements My children take most or all of the above supplements on a daily basis. They pretty much mirror what my mother fed my sisters and I growing up. This supplement thing is a good habit I maintained from my youth.

I give my children vitamins not because I feel that they [...]]]>

Supplements
My children take most or all of the above supplements on a daily basis. They pretty much mirror what my mother fed my sisters and I growing up. This supplement thing is a good habit I maintained from my youth.

I give my children vitamins not because I feel that they will become ill without them, but because I think a daily supplement in addition to their healthy diet is a good idea.

B12 deficiency in vegans/vegetarians has been debated back and forth for years. My mother did nothing to shore up our B12 reserves when we were vegetarian children and as a vegan mother of four I am certainly not deficient nor have I ever been. The same goes for my children. The B12 myth/debate is explained in great detail on this website.

However, I will add that as children Nutritional Yeast (nooch) was used as a daily seasoning, so I guess my mother did something although not deliberately. Lol!

UPDATE: The B12 issue is still up for debate. However one of my wonderful readers gave me a link to a vegan nutritionist rethinking her stance on the issue. http://www.theveganrd.com/2010/07/vitamin-b12-supplements-how-much-is-enough.html

She recommends visiting this website veganhealth.org for vegan nutritional info and supplemental dosage information. Here is the link for B12 dosages for vegans. http://www.veganhealth.org/b12/rec

The best thing about being vegan is the wealth of information that is available to us all and there are so many of us willing to help each other on this journey!

These Lovites are the same brand and taste from my childhood. My children love to take these every day. These vitamins taste like candy. Vitamin C, check.

Animal Parade, a vegetarian multivitamin. The older children take two of these every day and the toddlers 1 each. The Lovites and the Animal Parade are made by Nature’s Plus.

I put Brewer’s Yeast on top of our salads, sprinkled on the toddlers food (they don’t notice), in peanut butter banana smoothie’s (a favorite around these parts) and I also make a mean gravy with it.

Brewer’s yeast contains all of the essential amino acids, 14 minerals, and 17 vitamins

Read more: http://www.brighthub.com/health/diet-nutrition/articles/28790.aspx#ixzz10Jkza2mg

Nutritional yeast aka “nooch” is another inactive yeast. This yeast is very popular with many vegans because of the cheesy flavor it adds to recipes. We use it in the production of our vegan cheese and in so many of the dishes we create on a daily basis.

Read more: http://www.suite101.com/content/benefits-and-uses-of-nutritional-yeast-a71903

Kelp is sprinkled on our salads as a topping as well. Kelp is high in iron, calcium and potassium.

Vanilla Spirutein is used in my daily milk production. I make sesame seed milk every day for my daughter and Vanilla Spirutein protein powder is an essential ingredient.

EmergenC is a treat for the kids. It’s a fizzy drink mix they mix with water. They consume EmergenC about once a day when I have it on hand. There is no threat of scurvy at my house, lol.

OK, so that was the essential list of supplements. Feel free to ask questions.

This photo was taken over a year ago, when my daughter was just a wee one. I was sifting through the recipe folder, looking for a recipe to post and finding none, I came across this photo. So much has happened in this year. Our small business has grown and we have celebrated [...]]]>

This photo was taken over a year ago, when my daughter was just a wee one. I was sifting through the recipe folder, looking for a recipe to post and finding none, I came across this photo. So much has happened in this year. Our small business has grown and we have celebrated birthdays and cried over the passing of my beloved Grandpa. I want everyone who comes across this to be happy in knowing that love is such an infinite force. It cannot be contained, bottled or canned. I spent two weeks in Georgia with my grandma who had just lost her partner of 65 years. I am so amazed by her strength and her foresight. She was prepared to lose her husband, I wasn’t prepared to lose the man who had stepped in as my father for the past 30 years.

When my grandparents still lived in NYC, they took me everywhere with them. I went on countless road trips from NYC to Georgia. I remember my grandmother always making more food than we could eat and my grandfather always impeccably dressed. He was a proud man and he was always loving, affectionate and proud of me. I was their first grandchild and the only grandchild for ten years. My father being their only child, they welcomed me, an unexpected gift as their daughter. As I write this, the love and positive example that he showed me is engraved permanently in my heart and my soul.

Like my grandfather, I am quiet, choosy even with the folks that I share my life with. However, “I love you” should never be left unsaid. I am grateful that I have the loving memories of the times that I spent with my grandpa. He could always make me laugh. He didn’t miss much and often had colorful observations to share.

As you read this, you must know that love is a powerful choice and it feels so good to have it in your life. If you are out there seeking it, stop, for it is first found within. Everything is already there, just open your eyes. If you are going through a hard time, if there are troubles in your midst, remember to love. Give love freely in kindness to others and receive love through forgiveness.

I am just sharing with you a portion of my journey because I have found that love always wins, the spirit lives on and we are all magnificent beings with an amazing capacity for love.

Anyway, on a positive note.  We are still making vegan cheese, our children are still healthy and my mom is still awesome.

There are a couple of updates I am going to add, like other stores we are currently in, what new services we are offering [...]]]>

I’m so glad April is over.  It sucked.

Anyway, on a positive note.  We are still making vegan cheese, our children are still healthy and my mom is still awesome.

There are a couple of updates I am going to add, like other stores we are currently in, what new services we are offering and just some all around house cleaning.  Things were getting a little dusty around here.

In the meantime; I found the cutest vegan couple: http://www.meettheshannons.net/ Please check them out!  In the spirit of Julie and Julia, they are veganizing the Betty Crocker cookbook!

Speaking of veganizing.  I have veganized many of her recipes, but I am so unofficial about it…lol

Thank you for being awesome!

You know who you are…

P.S. Someone goes vegan with Ste Martaen cheese!

http://planetverge.com/2010/03/going-vegan-episode-6-whats-cooking/