George Straight, All My Ex’s Live in Texas

Living as a vegan is one thing; living as a vegan in Texas is something else altogether. There are myths about vegans: we are skinny, undernourished hippies; we are extremists; we are domestic terrorists. Then there are the myths about Texans: we all wear cowboy boots, live on ranches, and raise cattle. But this podcast is going to present a different view of both vegans and Texans. We are going to dispel some of those myths about both and take a look at what is going on in the movement towards animal rights and plant-based eating.

First up is Ken Botts of Denton, Texas, home of the only all-vegan cafeteria in the nation. Denton also boasts a vegetarian society, a vegan store, and a vegan restaurant or two. Ken and his wife, Lori, also run an animal-based service business and are two of the nicest people I have met in Texas. They epitomize the best: gracious, kind-hearted, and working for a better world. Here is Ken Botts.

Tape of Ken Botts

Then there is Nora Kramer, the innovative developer of the Youth Empowerment Action Camp – an all vegan camp that helps kids find their voice and learn how to get active for things in which they believe. I first heard of Nora through her innovative camp and was impressed with the bios of her camp counselors. I lamented I was not a teen for the first time in decades — I would have loved to attend a camp specifically for young activists. Following an interview with Nora for the Veganacious blog, I began following the success of her YEA camp, which has grown from a single location to now taking place in three states.

Tape of Nora Kramer

Ann Mai and a host of enthusiastic young activists comprise The Vegan Club at the University of Texas at Arlington. Ann and company partnered with Animal Rights & Rescue or North Texas recently at a vegan advocacy and food sampling event on campus. It was great to see the enthusiasm and energy of The Vegan  Club.

Chat with Ann Mai of The Vegan Club

Ann also mentioned to me that UTA offers an Animal Studies course, which allows students to consider alternative views about the human-nonhuman alliance through discussion of literature.

Another strong activist changing hearts and minds in Texas is the cookbook author Christy Morgan, known as The Blissful Chef. Christy actually came back to Texas for culinary school and can be seen at local vegan events such as The Texas State Veggie Fair. I reviewed her excellent cookbook, Blissful Bites, on the Veganacious blog.

Christy Morgan of Blissful Bites

While it might seem that all the vegan advocacy is coming from transplants like me, that is not the case. One of the people who worked at the UTA outreach event in March is Margaret Strebeck, a local woman who came to animal rights through the raw food movement. Margaret is a native of Texas and came to veganism later in life, just like me.

Tape of Margaret Strebeck

Thank you for sharing your amazing journey with us, Margaret.

Now on to a couple of Texas natives, Claire Osborne and Adam Little, who best know — as Margaret does — both the challenges and the delights of being vegan in Texas.

Tape of Adam Little and Claire Osborne

Whether one is a transplant or a native of Texas, we are all now Texans. We face different challenges, but we all face them together. It is encouraging to hear a recently arrived Texan like Nora and a lifetime Texan like Margaret have both found Texas people to be receptive, gracious and open to the vegan message. There are now several vegan meetup groups in the DFW area, and many more in the rest of Texas. Austin is a center for progressive thinking and is home to many vegan enterprises, but there are also vegan groups starting up in San Antonio, Houston, El Paso, Denton, Ft. Worth, San Angelo, and Lubbock. Our local markets now carry many vegan products, and there are a number of local vegan and vegan-friendly options available for those going out to eat.

The work is far from over, but it gets better year by year. With folks like Ann Mai and Ken Botts making university campuses more vegan friendly, with enterprising individuals like Nora Kramer and Christy Morgan reaching thousands of people through their respective camps and classes, and local activists like Margaret and many others trying to reach people throughout the area and beyond, Texas is slowly becoming veganized. If this is happening in Texas, heart of cattle country and animal agriculture, this can happen anywhere! Why not make it happen where you live?

Willie Nelson and Waylen Jennings, Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys

Related links:

UNT Dining

MFA Texas Campaigns

YEA Camp

The Blissful Chef

The Vegan Club at UTA

The Shorthorn (Broccoli Bulletin)

Dallas Vegan

Lone Star Plate

Animal Rights & Rescue of North Texas

Price Tag by Xenia

Witnessing the Road to Health

I recently watched an inspirational film, Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, about a successful man who had overindulged in all the wrong things and whose body was paying the price for his materialistic lifestyle. He was barely into midlife, but his body was bloated, diseased, and wearing out quickly. He was on several medications and he wanted to make radical changes, so he set about a raw juice fast for several weeks and dropped 90 pounds. On his journey he helped other people heal too, using the nutrients in plant foods to recover. Watching two of the men in this video transofrm from bodies with bellies hanging over their waistbands to fit, healthy, and active men was really moving to me.

About the time someone invited me to a raw food cafe in Dallas, I received a review copy of Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Essentials too. Simultaneously, I had been hearing about Green Smoothies seemingly everywhere, and about the high energy eating raw would give you. I checked out the menu at the raw food restaurant and was eagerly looking forward to indulging in this new type of food. Unfortunately, the outing ended up being at a Mexican restaurant in Dallas that offered vegan food – not a bad meal at all, but not quite as adventurous as what I was expecting.  After reading Ani’s book and trying out some of her recipes, I realized there was much more to this whole raw food phenomenon that I had previously considered. It was time to dive in.

Traveling the Road to Raw

One of the few requests I first had when becoming an admin at ARZone (Animal Rights Zone), a (dot)ning site that provides guest speakers from the AR community, forums, transcripts, videos and discussions, was to post one of my favorite recipes on a shared document to go to Lisa Viger at Raw on $10/Day (or less). I shared my carrot/beet/orange salad, which Lisa then turned into a beautiful breakfast beverage. Carolyn Bailey, the ARZone creator, had Lisa develop a recipe that children would like – and she came up with a Mango Ice Cream, sure to please without age restrictions.  Admins Tim Gier and Roger Yates both shared main course meals, with Tim sharing a Marinara recipe and Roger a spicy tofu dish. I tried both with good results, and perused Lisa’s blog further searching for more inspiration. It is a gorgeous food site, with a day’s worth of menus developed weekly.  One of the first things I decided to try was her Pad Thai, a lovely blend of raw “noodles” (created with a spiralizer) and a tangy peanut sauce for the topping. It is difficult to spend any time at all on Lisa’s blog without wanting to dive in and try something. I was held back only by the food I had on hand.

Since I knew that Lisa was a vegan, most likely an abolitionist, and a fan of ARZone, I thought it would be interesting to interview her for the Veganacious podcast, to possibly interest other people in her beautiful blog and an intriguing way of eating a very healthy plant-based, cruelty-free diet. Lisa even gives you the cost per day as well as the nutritional breakdown for each meal, as well as the day’s totals. She even adds helpful hints and beautiful photos to assist you in making these simple foods. I love produce and have always eaten a certain amount of raw food salads and vegetables, along with lots of fresh fruit so this seemed like a great place to discover a more innovative way of appreciating the bounty of plants.

Lisa Viger interview

Rawkin’ On

I am continually impressed with the generosity of so many of the vegans in our community who give of their time and talents to share with other humans and make life better for the animals and all beings on the planet. Lisa is certainly in that camp, a delightful woman who is a talented artist, a photographer, as well as a blogger, who shares her love and joy in discovering raw vegan food with the rest of us.

Another good source for information is Steve Prussack of Raw Vegan Radio. Steve has now joined forces with Will Tuttle in a program to promote veganism and health to the world through The World Peace Diet Facilitator Training program. Here is a clip from Steve’s radio show with some ideas about transitioning to raw foods and how such a change may help promote health.

 Raw Vegan Radio – Steve Prussack

This is just the beginning of one of many interviews Steve Prussack is doing to apprise us of information in the raw vegan movement. Personally, I have no plans to go 100% raw, but will embrace some of the wonderful recipes I have discovered over at Lisa’s blog. Being a vegan has opened up a celebratory world of life-affirming foods to me, and I hope this information about the raw vegan movement will only increase your own exploration of the bounty of the world. I just learned that animal products contain no fiber; is it any wonder that the world is so tied up in knots, pursuing those unhealthy lifestyles  based on the torment and suffering of fellow earthlings, rather than dancing through life with the colorful and delicious foods we were meant to enjoy?

In my mailbox one day I discovered an introduction to the raw food world of Ani Phyo, including a partial view of a soon-to-be-published book on the topic. That book was Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Essentials, and it was a good introduction to a new way of eating: all plant-based, all raw.  Included in that book were basic techniques to get one started adventuring into the world of raw cuisine.

Ms. Phyo’s new book, Raw Food Asia, expands on her prior work. It is more colorful, with nearly every page filled with bright photos from the Asian landscape as well as from the beautiful plant food Ms. Phyo creates. There are also cultural, spiritual, and relational advice interwoven between recipes and food information as well as tidbits of facts about Asian cuisine and spices. Did you know that turmeric is supposed to fight cancer and Alzheimer’s, or that chile is good for the cardiovascular system? That seaweed is believed to promote longevity? Ms. Phyo even has information about non-toxic personal care items and beauty supplies. It is therefore more of a travel guide than just a recipe book, and the journey is one towards health and serenity.

Easy East-West Fusion Recipes by Ani Phyo

This new book, with the tag line “Easy East-West Fusion Recipes,” introduced me to Namul. I first learned that mushrooms contain protein, fiber, B and C vitamins, calcium, potassium and other minerals, so I tried Shitake Mushroom Namul.  Thinly sliced mushrooms with a delicately balanced and flavorful sauce make a nice addition to noodles or tofu dishes. Several Kimchee recipes in Ms. Phyo’s book introduced me to this intriguing food. For a first try, I made the Easy Kimchee, and it was very simple and easy to make, as promised. It is also simple to manipulate the strength of the Kimchee flavors, too, depending on pickling time and amount of spices and garlic. Kimchee, like the Namul, will be a great new side dish or accompaniment for other foods included in Ms. Phyo’s book.

There is a beautiful salad, Rainbow Salad, with Tahini dressing, that is both colorful and healthy, as well as delicious. The dressing was a big too heavily citrus for my taste, but the salad has a variety of textures and flavors to compensate. Be sure to use only a small amount of dressing; the tahini gives it a wonderful flavor and creamy texture but can overpower the fresh salad components if used with too heavy a hand.

Part Recipe Book, Part Travel Guide

There are also some lovely indulgences, too. Sweet Sesame Halvah, Lychee Asian Lime Crepes, Lavendar Ice Cream, Ginger Pear Sorbet, and numerous other enticements are included for special occasions.

Recipes come from India, Indonesia, Thailand, Korea, Hawaii, China,Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, and the Philippines. Following the recipes and other information are menus, raw food theories on longevity, metric conversions, and raw food resources.  While many of the recipes required items I do not have on hand, most were easily acquired by a trip to a multicultural or Asian market. A dehydrator is not essential, either, although some recipes would be much easier if you own one. But there is plenty of raw food adventure within these pages for most anyone from novice to expert. I am still a bit daunted by this book but am sure to enjoy it in small bites over time, much as I enjoy the food it has taught me to create. If you need an armchair adventure, this might be just the ticket!

Luckily for me, my interest in learning more about raw coincided with the arrival of Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Essentials. The book, well-organized and easy to use, arrived at just the right time. Not sure if I was going to become a raw afficianado, but as someone who has always loved eating raw vegetables and fruits, I was ready to dive into the book.  Most of the photos in the book are in black and white; the cover is hardbound and the paper quality is good. Somehow, the book lends itself well to the black-and-white format, yet the color photos in the center of the book give the reader an idea of how lovely raw food can be.

Simple, Easy to Make Raw Food Recipes Abound in Ani Phyo’s Book

First I started with the Pickled Ginger recipe.  I have always loved the ginger given in many restaurants along with Asian cuisine and occasionally would splurge and buy a small container from my local Asian market.  This recipe was easy and quite good; next time I will use my mandolin sliced very thinly to get just the right texture.  Still, this recipe worked for me and is a great addition to my personal recipe collection. This one will be made again. But most of the other recipes did not seem so appealing. I knew I had to dive in and try nonetheless.

Next, I tried the Flax Seed Crackers, made of little more than flax seeds, water and a bit of salt. The seeds get foamy as they soak, and before you know it, you have a solid mass, ready to be spread thinly on a dehydrator or for those of us just experimenting with raw, spread on a large cookie sheet and dried at a low temp in the oven.  (Ms. Phyo has all the necessary gizmos for becoming fully raw on her site, too, if you are interested.) I am not sure how digestible the seeds are, but the crackers are easy enough to make. A little goes a very long way with this one; a few bites and I was full.

The Raw Crepes  - Great Flavor, Wonderful Texture

Growing more adventurous, I tried the raw crepes made with apples, flax seed meal and a little agave. They were surprisingly good and easy to use as crepes. I made the lemon cream filling (raw cashews with water and lemon juice) and had enough for two days worth – they kept very well overnight in an airtight container, and the cream was stored in a glass jar for future use. Again, the food is dense and it doesn’t take much to fill up.  Suddenly, the idea of purchasing a hydrator starting pushing its way into my mind. I had tried some raw crackers made with vegetables at an earlier event and they were excellent – maybe there is more to this raw food thing than just a fad? I was slowly getting hooked.

Finally, I ventured into the Green Papaya Salad. This is a regular around our house, but this recipe was simple with a few new twists. This recipe is extremely easy to make as were the other recipes I tried, and has a fresh, clean taste – a salad that would be sure to please many palates. This one did it – it totally won me over.

Despite my original interest, then my resistance, I would recommend Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Essentials to anyone interested in learning about raw food. You do not need any fancy equipment to get started, but having a dehydrator would definitely make raw cuisine much easier to prepare. In fact, I just started looking for that dehydrator – stay tuned for more raw recipes on Veganacious Recipes blog in the future!