Veganacious

Posts Tagged ‘vegan’

Yellow split mung beans are a versatile and healthy addition to your diet. They can be purchased in Asian markets, in the ethnic food section of some general markets, and are also available online.  I discovered them originally when I stumbled upon a great Asian soup recipe that utilized them.  Since that time, I have found them to be invaluable.  One of my favorite uses is in Korean-style pancakes, called Pajeon.  These easy pancakes can be cut into strips and dipped into a delicious sauce; they can be served for lunch or dinner and are great reheated.  Here is an easy way to make them your favorites, too.

Use one cup of split mung beans; rinse and soak in clear water for two or more hours.

Recipe for Korean Pancakes Vegan-American Style

Drain the mung beans.  Prepare shredded and chopped vegetables (1 large carrot, shredded; 2 stalks scallions, finely chopped; 1 C. shredded cabbage or squash (optional).  Other vegetables may be substituted, according to taste, but be sure to add the scallions!  Set the vegetables aside.

Add to blender, along with the soaked and drained mung beans:

4 cloves garlic

2 TB. sesame oil

1 – 2 TB. water

Blend with the soaked mung beans.

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As if it is not horrible enough that animals are being slaughtered by the billions, the truth is that we are killing babies.  Most of the slaughtered animals are just youngsters; many should never have been taken from their mothers so early.  Imagine what life must be for a newborn calf, dragged away form a grieving mother and forced into a horrible life without solid food in a tiny crate.  Or a newly hatched, perfectly formed male baby chick, who suddenly finds himself flying through a long frightening tube into a grinder – terror, pain, suffering, death.  All of it is crafted by man for man’s enjoyment and pleasure; it is incredibly cruel and disturbing that the healthy offspring of another species should be treated like trash.  A few people make a lot of money from these ugly enterprises; most people just are unwilling to deal with what their consumer choices cost others in misery and suffering. Some people are unaware and choose to remain unaware.

The Cost for Eggs and Cheese is Borne by Babies of Other Species

The male baby chicks are usually killed when they are only one day old!  If you have ever witnessed a mother hen, you know why that saying developed about the protectiveness of mother hens. Or if you have witnessed the grief struck cows whose babies are dragged away from them, bellowing and cutting themselves on barbed wire – stealing people’s babies so you can steal their mother’s milk is particularly odious.  But most people participate because it is so habitual that it seems normal – NORMAL! Nothing about stealing babies from their mothers and murdering them is normal. It is completely unnatural. When I see someone eating cheese or drinking milk, I mentally get an image of an adult human suckling on the cow’s teats – hardly a normal thing to do.

All those pigs and cows are usually slaughtered when only a few months old.  They are the human equivalent of toddlers. A few dairy cows may live into the animal equivalent of young teens, but then with abnormally enlarged and engorged milk sacs, often filled with pus. I have been a nursing mother and I wince when I see the distortions and know the discomfort that practice must cause those young beings that are cows. None of what the cow is capable of, none of what would give joy or seem natural, none of that is allowed. They are solely commodities on legs for an unhealthy and callous world.

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As a young teenager, I used to surf the coast of Southern California. My vision was poor, so I learned to feel the currents of water beneath me. When there was a light drawing back, it meant a swell was coming and I needed to get paddling. If I delayed, I would miss the ride, and if I was too fast, I would have the wave crash down on me and would wipe out. Lately, I have been feeling a shift in the currents beneath me once again, only this time I do not plan to miss it.

PETA’s Failed Policies

There have been rumblings on the vegan blogosphere about some of the latest new lows reached by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.  Their pie-in-the-face disrespect to a person in authority seems contraindicated when requesting more respect for other beings.  It is assaultive and inappropriate behavior not becoming adults with serious intentions. Then there is the full frontal nudity of a young woman in their State of the Union Undress (deliberately not linked here) – disrespectful not only to women but also to our elected leaders. Even Ingrid Newkirk’s response (A pragmatic fight for animal rights) to Victor Schonfeld’s article, Five fatal flaws of animal rights activism, in which she defends “silly antics” as being part of animal rights activism misses the mark by a mile.  While Ms. Newkirk may be well-intentioned, her behavior is the same old tired tactics that have been failing to do anything but increase the PETA budget and gain some press for many years.  At every turn, Ms. Newkirk sells out the animals and any chance to show respect for their lives, whether it is by cooperating with fast food enterprises that kill animals for food and profit, or partnering with corporations by buying stock in animal exploitation schemes. Ms. Newkirk never draws a line in the sand, never acts as if she believes what she says that animals are not ours to use; she uses and exploits them freely to draw attention and financial support to her organization while they remain in a living hell. I have noticed lately that when an outrageous behavior occurs in the news, such as the recent intrusion into Senator Mary Landrieus’ office by men dressed as phone company repairmen, the allusion on a recent MSNBC news discussion was to liken them to “PETA protesters.” Meanwhile, only 7 animals were saved in PETA’s “shelter” in 2008, while nearly 2,000 were killed.  With millions of dollars in annual income, it seems impossible that those lives were valued, because with the will to save them, they could have. If PETA wants ethical treatment for animals, they should begin by delivering some themselves.

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Since one of the my grandsons was gone over the Christmas holiday, I decided to make him some gingerbread, which he loves. I found a great recipe on VeganYumYum, where you just cannot go wrong. The above photo was my attempt to recreate the great recipe offered on that site.  If you haven’t tried VeganYumYum, now is a good time to get acquainted. There are all kinds of recipes, too, not just goodies. The frosting is made with vegan cream cheese with a lemon flavor added; it is hard not to like it.

The gingerbread is cooked in two pans and cut out with a small biscuit cutter, then assembled once complete cooled. These are best eaten right away! Read the rest of this entry »

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My son says that tortilla chips are just a salsa delivery system.  I think that may be why his son loves aebleskivers – they are a delivery system for all the sugar and jams he wants to devour!  Whatever the reason, seeing my Chinese-American grandson relishing these funny round pancake balls from my mother’s cultural heritage gave me great pleasure; it would have delighted her.  She was born in Randers, Denmark and came to the United States via Ellis Island, along with her mother and all their Danish recipes.  On the Chinese side, they employ a huge pan that makes round little dumplings, so I guess this is just the Scandinavian variety of the same idea – a doughie ball; and this one is vegan!

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I go to the greatest dentist; his entire staff are kind and friendly people, and he is technically very skilled.  He loves dogs, and brings them to work with him – they have their own room in the back.  He donates time and products to help others and works on a fundraiser every year. These are good people and have made me feel welcome when I was a new Texan.  They have taken good care of my teeth, too.

My last visit, I brought a copy of Mathew Scully’s Dominion to read while I waited.  The cover has a picture of a lamb, tied at the feet with rope.  My dentist saw it and turned the book over, finding it obviously distressing.  He said there was nothing one could do about what happens to animals; I told him that was not true. He then began placing instruments in my mouth so I was unable to continue the conversation, but I was left thinking about what to say or do. He scooted out before I could become verbal again, so any opportunity that was presented, I had missed.

Here is the letter I wanted to write to him:

Dear Dr. S:

First of all, thank you for the great ambience of your office and the wonderful people in your employ.  It is always a relaxing experience to come to an appointment, knowing how efficient and capable everyone will be and how kindly I will be treated.  But I decided I need to write to you because of something that happened during my last appointment.

If you recall, I had Matthew Scully’s book, Dominion, with me. The cover has a picture of a small lamb, tied at the feet. You couldn’t bear to look at it and turned the book over; that act led me to believe you are a compassionate man who cares about animals. Your comment to me was, “there is nothing we can do about it.” As someone who has been studying and learning about the horrific way billions of animals suffer and die each year in this world, I wanted to share with you some of the things I have learned, because there is much we can do about it.  For one, we can quit giving money to people who abuse and murder animals.  Every product you buy that has meat, dairy, eggs, animal secretions, leather, wool, fur, honey, and a host of animal ingredients too numerous to mention; any time you buy these products, you are in effect paying someone to harm animals.  No animal that ends up slaughtered is treated humanely.  The efficiency of modern factory farms brings diseased creatures filled with antibiotics and other chemicals into your diet. Did you know that even dairy cows are killed while still children? That newborn male chicks, those adorable and perfect little creations, are ground alive when they are separated out as useless at one day of age?  That newborn calves are sometimes dragged to slaughter before they can even walk, all so humans can steal their mother’s milk. If you choose to participate in these horrors, you must not believe that you truly love animals, only that you enjoy using them, dead or alive.

Not only does giving up eating animals and their secretions help one remain healthier, it helps the entire planet remain healthier. Animal agriculture contributes to global starvation, water pollution, deforestation, global warming and human health issues.  Ending the purchase of animal products opens up a new vista of healthier, greener choices and cheaper, better food.  Even if you give up a portion of meat, you will be saving an entire year’s worth of water for showering, so water-intensive is animal agriculture.

Watch the film Earthlings; you can rent in on Netflix or see it on YouTube. It will explain more than I ever could about animals.  You can also watch Meet Your Meat on You Tube if you care about what they do to animals to turn them into meat for you to eat.  You can read any book by Gary L. Francione, a Rutgers University professor, about the status of animals and how we can help them.  (I even have one you may borrow.) I have dozens of vegan cookbooks you can borrow and several personal recipes, as well as two sites that promote veganism: http://veganacious.com and Arlington Vegan Examiner.

I am suggesting this because it is so very important that we stop the senseless slaughter and suffering of animals of all kinds, including dogs, for unnecessary purposes. I am doing this because from what I know of you, you do care.  (By the way, my cholesterol went down over 100 points when I went vegan and I eat whatever I want.) I am doing whatever I can to save the animals; I hope you will, too.

Or, you can simply turn the book over and turn your back on the suffering of animals.

Stay well,

Barbara

I haven’t yet sent the letter; I am trying to decide what is the best and most effective approach to take. I may bring in a package of information when I return in December. I may send the letter. I know one thing for sure: I don’t want to just turn the book over, either.

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