As the mother of four healthy vegan children I get asked a lot of questions. The questions are often specific to what my children eat. If you are a vegan and want your children to be too, its actually quite simple. I will let you in on a little secret. Make good food. [...]]]>

As the mother of four healthy vegan children I get asked a lot of questions. The questions are often specific to what my children eat. If you are a vegan and want your children to be too, its actually quite simple. I will let you in on a little secret. Make good food. I have an 11 and 9 year old who will eat almost anything I make. The reason for this is a)they have no choice b)they have been eating this way since infancy.

In my pantry post, I highlighted what I generally have in my pantry on a regular basis. The list is long and varied. The staples are tofu (only buy Organic soy products), Basmati rice, lentils, soy and nut milk (organic), oatmeal, grits (polenta), brown rice (for waffles), coconut and soy yogurt, rice cakes, and agave. Keep a rotating stock of in season fruits and vegetables and you’re good to go.

Infants
As a rule, I breastfeed. My children get introduced to food at about six months. I start with liquids. See the sesame seed milk post. I introduce a small bottle with water and a couple tablespoons of molasses. I make fenugreek cereal. It’s a mush that my 4 year old loved as a baby and my daughter refused to have any part of it. Babies know what they like, even at that age. I would also grind up whole oats (organic, bought in bulk from whole foods) and then make a slurry with the oats and liquid (the liquid can be your breast milk, water, apple juice or the sesame seed milk). I also begin to incorporate fruit, mashed bananas mixed with cereal or alone, apple sauce, stewed prunes, rice with coconut milk (my daughter loved it), also so delicious coconut milk yogurt. It’s not necessary to buy baby food. It is so easy to make baby food. Get a coffee grinder. This cheap one has lasted me about 8 years or so. I use the coffee grinder for grinding up oatmeal, fenugreek, and even rice for baby cereal. When their teeth come in or they are screaming with angst every time you lift a fork to your mouth. Expand their repertoire. Cut up fruit into bite size pieces, apples, grapes, strawberries, bananas, peaches, melons, it’s all good for the baby. Don’t forget about grits. All of my children love grits (polenta).

Toddlers

My daughter will be two in February. She is probably the pickiest of all my children. However, my daughter still eats a large variety of food. I make sesame seed milk for her, every other day. She loves coconut milk yogurt, she will eat rice and lentils,whole grain waffles, strawberries (fresh and dried), sliced apples, pineapple, bananas, mango, raisins and cereal.

My 4 year old would live off of our macaroni and cheese if it was possible to do so. However, he too loves grits, rice and beans, yogurt, all fruit (especially blueberries), soup, cornbread, waffles (without the syrup), nuts, pasta and oatmeal.

This is just a sample of what the toddlers eat.

The Big Kids

My older children are 11 and 9 year old boys. They have never been picky and eat what my husband and I eat. I don’t get requests for fast foods because we rarely if ever go to fast food places. We may have an Asian inspired meal one night and then pizza the next night. We may do soup and cornbread and then do raw the next night. They like to eat and almost every meal they eat is homemade. My 11 year old likes to help out in the kitchen too. Some of his favorites are spaghetti, pizza, rice and beans, lasagna, greens simmered in coconut milk. He absolutely loves tomatoes and raw vegetables. My 9 year old loves pretty much the same foods, he just doesn’t share his brother’s same fondness for vegetables.

Do you guys have any specific questions you want to ask me? I will be talking about supplements and recipes next.

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.

This is just a ploy to get you to ignore the fact that this is not a recipe post. Don’t worry, we didn’t run out of vegan recipes that will make your inner thighs touch (unfortunately I know this as fact). This month went by so quickly. Where does the time go?

This Friday, December 4th is the Mercy For Animals’ 2nd annual Celebrating Compassion Gala. Ste Martaen cheese will be there! We’re excited to be one of the vegan businesses involved in helping to honor the vegan change makers in our local community.

We’d like to take this time to thank Delicious for being [...]]]>

This Friday, December 4th is the Mercy For Animals’ 2nd annual Celebrating Compassion Gala. Ste Martaen cheese will be there! We’re excited to be one of the vegan businesses involved in helping to honor the vegan change makers in our local community.

We’d like to take this time to thank Delicious for being awesome and so supportive of us!  We’d also like to thank Vegan Chicago for allowing us to debut our cheese and it’s been crazy ever since!  We’re so thankful for the positive feedback and amazing support from the vegan community at large.  Let’s continue to support one another.

Choose Joy!

Laviyah

The erratic weather here in Chicago has been a welcome reprieve from the imminent winter doom that lingers but now my family is feeling the sick blues. It started with the middle boy, worked it’s way to the little prince and now Momma is down for the count. And I mean down…she hasn’t [...]]]>

The erratic weather here in Chicago has been a welcome reprieve from the imminent winter doom that lingers but now my family is feeling the sick blues. It started with the middle boy, worked it’s way to the little prince and now Momma is down for the count. And I mean down…she hasn’t moved out of bed all day So, looks like a nice batch of a warm and spicy soup to zap the ickies away and tantalize the taste buds as well. What soup can handle this responsibility?…well, the Thai Curry Orange Lentil Soup has answered the challenge. This soup is velvety smooth & nutrient packed with a hint of citrus and a bite of heat. The perfect man for the job.

I use a gallon sized crock pot for this soup. You do all your prep in the morning and let it simmer all day, filling the house with the aroma of good feelings. Let’s start with the veggies:

1 Thai chili (not pictured)
1/2 Bulb Garlic
1/2 medium red onion
1 Cubanelle pepper
2 limes
1 12oz can coconut milk – not the ‘lite’ version or watered down
5 medium red potatoes

Turn your slow cooker on high and add 1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Dice the onion, peppers and garlic and add to the crock pot.

Next up, wash your red potatoes.

Dice your potatoes into small chunks and add to the pot. Stir the veggies around to lightly coat with the EV Olive Oil.

Add two dried Bay Leaves.

Then juice your two limes right into the pot. Don’t worry if some pulp falls in; it just adds to the flavor. However, you may want to watch for stray seeds.

Add two cups of orange lentils.

Time to get wet! Add your can of coconut milk.

Add a quart and a half of water.

Cover and let slow cook all day (approx. 6 hours). Take note: (1) Do not add salt right now…got it? No Salt. (2) Do not stir the pot right now. The soup ingredients are layered right now…veggies on bottom and lentils on top. You can stir everything up after and hour. Why? Cause I said so and you need to learn patience. Some cooking techniques just work…and I really don’t know why I do this, but it makes a difference. Trust me, it does

Fast forward. It’s 6 hours later, get our your hand blender.

Blend up all the yumminess until creamy.

Add 2 tablespoons curry powder and 1/2 tablespoon Kosher Salt. I prefer hot curry powder. If you choose not to add the more hot…that’s cool. But please get your curry powder from your local Middle Eastern or Indian market and please don’t use the kind from your local mega-grocery store. The quality is far better and your taste buds will thank you so much more. Mix in with your hand blender. Taste…if you think it needs more salt…well, add some more til your tongue says…yes! Garnish with some cilantro and serve with some cornbread.

Soup’s ON!!!

Now Eat.

Yeah!!!! That makes me feel better already!

Back in the recesses of my mind is a memory of a Broccoli Burger served by Whole World Natural Bakery & Restaurant that I can still taste. I haven’t been there since the early 90′s when I was a much darker haired, newly turned vegan, college student. However, unlike my brown hair, the [...]]]>

Back in the recesses of my mind is a memory of a Broccoli Burger served by Whole World Natural Bakery & Restaurant that I can still taste. I haven’t been there since the early 90′s when I was a much darker haired, newly turned vegan, college student. However, unlike my brown hair, the taste has stayed with me all these years. Since I’m not going to be in Columbus, OH anytime soon, I decided to tap into my creative side and see if I could concoct a recipe of my own. And you know what? I think I nailed it! This 3-Grain Veggie Burger has a light, fresh taste yet very filling…just like I remember. So let’s give this a whirl and let me know how they turn out for you.

The Grains: Basmati Rice, Quinoa and Hard Red Wheat Berries

Start of by cooking each of the grains separately and according to your packaging directions. I have included a link for the general cooking time for each grain in the parenthesis after the quantities. However, I often find the packaging may call for a different ratio to cooking time.
This recipe calls for:
1 1/2 cup Basmati Rice (see eHow)
1 cup Quinoa (see savvy vegetarian)
1 cup Hard Red Wheat Berries (see Purcell Mountain Farms) – Yes, it takes a long time for these, so start early.

After you have cooked each grain, dump into large mixing bowl and let cool.

The veggie potpourri:
2 Carrots
1/2 Red Onion
1 cubanelle pepper
1/2 bulb of Garlic
3 stems of Broccoli (not pictured)

Rough chop all the veggies and add to a food processor. If you do not own a food processor, then finely dice all your veggies.

Process the veggies on high for a few seconds until you are left with small diced pieces.

Warm a cast iron skillet with 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil on medium heat.

Add the veggies to the skillet w/ 1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt and saute for 7 minutes or until tender.

After sauteing, dump the veggies into the bowl with your grains and get ready for your spices.

The spices:
2 Teaspoons Kosher Salt
1 Tablespoon Mexican Oregano
1/2 Tablespoon Granulated Garlic
1 Teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
1 Teaspoon Coriander
1 Teaspoon Paprika
1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
1 1/2 Tablespoon Vegan Worcestershire Sauce
1 Teaspoon Mustard Powder
1 Cup bread crumbs

I don’t have a pic of the dry ingredients but I did snap one of the Vegan Worcestershire Sauce in case any of you didn’t believe there was such a thing. See…no Anchovies!
Add all the spices to the mixing bowl and let those hands get to workin’. Mix all the ingredients well. Give your mix a taste and add salt if you deem necessary.

To form your patties, you can free hand it or, like me, use a canister lid wrapped in saran wrap to make nice even patties. I used a 4 inch diameter lid that is approximately 3/4 of an inch deep. This yielded me 11 veggie burgers.

You have a couple of options here. You can directly cook the burgers in a skillet on medium high heat until brown on both sides. I did a two step process. First, I placed the patties on a lightly oiled baking sheet.

Lightly brush the top of each patty with some veggie oil. Bake the patties for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Your patties will be “pre-cooked” so you can freeze some for a later date.

For the ones you are going to eat now, cook in a lightly oiled skillet until browned on both sides. For the ones you stick in the freezer, let them thaw before you brown them.

Assemble your 3-Grain Veggie Burgers and eat up. I think they go perfect on a Kaiser bun that is lightly toasted. Nothing like that thin crispy crust and warm soft delicate interior as the perfect chamber for your burger. Slather some Vegenaise and ketchup on the bun, add the burger trinity of lettuce, tomatoes and onions and you are good to go.

Man, I’m getting hungry all over again!

Yea, they enjoyed it too. Knocked out…nothing like the power of a full stomach.

A major milestone was reached yesterday.  My baby younger sister Azania  turned 30.  July is a very interesting month for me because all three of my biological sisters are born in the month of July and I stand alone in the month of August.  My other sister Emily turns 21 this month and [...]]]>

A major milestone was reached yesterday.  My baby younger sister Azania  turned 30.  July is a very interesting month for me because all three of my biological sisters are born in the month of July and I stand alone in the month of August.  My other sister Emily turns 21 this month and that is yet another milestone among birthdays. 

Anyway, my sister had a wonderful surprise party yesterday with friends and family in attendance.  I wasn’t in attendance for obvious reasons and my mother well she has become a slave.  She’ll deny it, but these days I have to drag her away so she can enjoy life.

My sister had a marvelous time and she will never ever forget this birthday.  She even got to wear a couture dress!  Her boyfriend and best-friend planned the soiree and she told me this morning that her day was just perfect!

I’m not a middle child, so I have less of a hankering than my middle sister to be the center of attention.  When we were growing up, I never imagined that we could be such good friends, and that we would need each other so much, that we would call each other every other day or every day or every hour if need be or that I would cry when she surprised me at my wedding. 

There were many days I wanted to push her down the stairs, ring her neck.  As little sisters go, she was probably on the naughty list for a very long time.  She wore my clothes without asking, she purposely embarrassed me in front of my boyfriends, she was a tattletale, a showoff, a knowitall a busybody!  That was the shortlist!  As a woman, she is strong, resilient, talented, intelligent, opinionated, beautiful and intuitive.

Angola, our baby sister was in on the surprise and made her amazing lasagna.  People talk about her lasagna for days!  Angola celebrated her birthday on the 5th and as a single mom, she is most like our mother.  She is finding her way in the world and raising a child all on her own.  Angola wasn’t half as annoying as Azania growing up.  I always had a soft spot for her anyway, she was always my gorgeous chinky eyed scrawny baby sister.  Scrawny no longer and curvy as ever, she is the most giving, sweetest woman you will ever know, did I mention that she is beautiful too!  We all are.  I must say mom, that you did good!

Anyway, my baby sister Emily will turn 21 very shortly and she is the only sister that I don’t know very well.  Unfortunately, my biological father, although he has fathered three children, has only raised two.  To the annoyance of my grandmother (my father’s mother), he has not been very involved in my life, nor has he had me involved in his.  This past May I promised my grandmother that I would reach out to my sister Emily and bring her in to the fold.  We have done OK communicating online, it’s just that yesterday reminded me how swiftly time passes by, so I think I will write my sister a note and invite her to the big city when I make my next trip to NYC.  We’ll see what happens.

Happy Birthday to all of my little sisters!

This has been an up,  down and all out interesting week so far.  My mother had heart valve replacement surgery yesterday.  The surgery went well as determined by the doctors.  It is hard to say something went well after having your chest ripped open, heart stopped and new parts put [...]]]>

Mom & Me

This has been an up,  down and all out interesting week so far.  My mother had heart valve replacement surgery yesterday.  The surgery went well as determined by the doctors.  It is hard to say something went well after having your chest ripped open, heart stopped and new parts put in.  The thought of my mother going through that freaks me out.  Unfortunately, abusing your body through years of  bad diet and smoking takes it toll.  During my youth, my grandfather on my mom’s side had bypass surgery fairly young.  He never said anything directly to me about it, but eavesdropping on family conversations, he said it was the worst pain of his life.  He never changed his dietary or life style habits and developed additional heart issues later on.  Because of the experience, he chose not to have further surgeries.  He chose to live his life as he wanted and left us earlier than he should have.

Grandpa Lissy...Stylish!

Looking back, I believe that had a stronger effect on me than I ever realized until recently.  I changed my diet to veganism over 15 years ago.  I wanted to live healthier and I wanted to live longer than my relatives.  They say heart disease is hereditary.  What is hereditary is part DNA and part what you learn socially from your family.  If you follow the same dietary patterns as the previous generation, you can expect the same results.  I am determined to break the history and heredity.

I love my mother and am pained she has to go through this.  We have been somewhat estranged over the past years; not to the point where we don’t have communication.  But the relationship has been less loving and more matter-of-fact over the past years.  How this happened?  Choices I made, most likely.  I never said F-you family or get out of my life, but I do have some skeletons that hurt my family.  When you make choices in your life, you have to accept the consequences, good or bad.  And you certainly can’t control the emotions of others.  My mother has chose her path and I accept that.

In no way has it diminished my love for her.  I am the baby of my family and every time I see my mother, it is through the eyes of an affectionate 10 year old.  I never see myself older when I am with her.  I just want to sit next to her, tell her I love her and snuggle.  On the surface, my mother is eccentric and loves to be catered to.  Underneath, she is fiercely strong, a go-getter and will go Terminator on anybody she feels is threatening her family.  I have seen Terminator Mom and trust me, Arnold has nothing on her.

Birthday Boys in 2007

This week in June marks two of my son’s birthdays.  The Little Prince turned 3 and the next day Little Z turned 10.  So we had a two day family extravaganza of food, toys and movies.  I generally make a meal per request of the birthday honoree.  For the Little Prince we had grits, scrambled tofu, broccoli and biscuits.  Little Z got a special treat, Laviyah took him out for a special lunch between the 2 of them.  10 years ago, Laviyah became a first time mother & she was feeling extra nostalgic for this birthday.  For dinner I made Sun-dried Tomato Mac & Cheese – Little Z is a tomato nut!  He can’t get enough of that Lycopene.  Well boys, happy B-day’s…now time to get back to the grind…school work through the weekend.

Last week, I came across Food Network on Twitter.  They tweeted about a contest with Bobby Flay called the ‘Flayvors of Washington’.  You basically submit a recipe and 2-minute video showcasing a dish that includes a Washington State ingredient.  Also you have to get inspiration from a Columbia Crest wine (they are the sponsor of the contest).

So I thought – I’m a cook, I drink wine…perfect.  Let’s do this!

I decided to make a Wild Mushroom Linguine with a side dish of Sauteed Asparagus and Swiss Chard.  I used Chanterelles and Morels which are Washington native wild mushrooms.  These mushrooms taste great, but Damn! they are expensive…$20 for an ounce.  They better had tasted great paying that much.  I would say, they are worth the investment.  With the mushrooms I used a Cab reduction to make a light sauce for the linguine and it turned out super delicious.  Asparagus is also a Washington ingredient, so I sauteed them with some garlic, leeks and Swiss Chard.  You gotta try this veggie combination, it is outstanding.  I will be posting the recipe soon.

The recipe part…easy.  Now the catch, the video thing.  I hate being videotaped.  Why?  Because I feel like a complete dork on video.  It’s only for 2 minutes, how hard can it be.  For me it was like pulling teeth.  I had to do about 300 “takes” just to explain my dish.  My wife was my camera woman, producer , editor and peanut gallery.  She rolled her eyes and laughed enough for all of y’all.  Thanks for the confidence love.  For some reason I felt like a nervous school boy about to ask a girl out.  At least, in school I could pass a note and get the results without any verbal exchange.  That’s how I like it…the more I can reduce any emotional exchange the better.  Why?  Hell if I know, it’s just the way I am.

Anyway, I got through that fiasco, barely.  I still haven’t watched the two minute video that took me two days to make.  I’m completely ridiculous…I know.  I have issues…Yes!  You can check out my recipe video debut at the Flayvors of Washington link on foodnetwork.com.  The videos are randomized, so you may have to search through the 6 files to find me.  The caption to my video is Wild Mushroom Linguine & look for the goofy guy in a brown shirt and white apron.  Food Network will choose 20 recipes they like and the public can vote on their favorite of the 20 starting June 18th.  Well, if I make the top 20, I’ll be counting on everyone to vote for me.  Let’s get a Vegan on Food Network!  Even if it is only for one recipe.  Check me out and have a chuckle on me.  Don’t worry about my feelings, my wife already desensitized me with two days of heckling.