Spicy Hawaiian Pizza

I was doing so well this week, until today. I fell off the wagon, for my partners niece’s birthday. It was a big Serbian get together, so of course the key component of any Serbian party is meat. I had plans to only eat the salad, but that would of meant just eating cabbage. Don’t get me wrong, the Cabbage salad is delicious, but so is Russian salad (ham,  lots of mayo, potato, carrot, peas) and BBQ meats. I figured if I only had 1 small piece of pork, 1/2 a chicken wing and a bit of Russian salad, then it can’t do too much damage. Well that’s at least what I told myself. I think it’s going to be harder for me to give up meat if I make it sometimes ok. Problem is that I really don’t hate meat. I just don’t like the risks to my health if I continue to eat it. Anyway, I expected I would slip sooner or later. The most important thing, for the most part, is I have been learning to live without it. And so has my partner, who can’t cook, so he’s being forced to cut back too. I knew this wouldn’t happen over night, so not feeling too guilty.

Anyhow, tonight for dinner I needed vegan deliciousness. We had left over pizza dough from last night, so we decided to have pizza again. Making our own pizza is so satisfying and really it takes just as long to cook as it would to order it and pick it up. Minus the preservatives and questionable quality of the toppings. Pizza stones have also recently become really popular here and they really are a good investment. Robins Kitchen have a permanent sale of 2 for $20, so if you don’t have one, then I recommend you get one.

Even though I come from an Italian family, I was born in Australia. So pizza with pineapple is what I grew up with. I’ve really miss a typical Hawaiian Pizza. After making this pizza, it really satisfied my craving. It really didn’t need the ham, in fact it tasted like it wasn’t missing. Even my official taste tester, my boyfriend, said it tasted like a ‘normal’ Hawaiian Pizza. I also found that the pizza dough, left for a day to rest, made a better base. It was much more fluffy and it rose in the over more. I’ve heard this before from so family friends, but never tried it myself. Definitely a good tip, if you don’t mind preparing the day before. For the dough we just used this recipe and it makes 3-4 pizzas.

Spicy Hawaiian Pizza (vegan, soy free, nut free)

Ingredients:

1 portion of dough, plu extra flour

3 tablespoons passata sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1-2 tablespoons of sliced capsicum

1-2 tablespoons of sliced red onion, 2-3 tablespoons sliced pineapple

1 teaspoon chopped basil

vegan mozzarella cheese (optional)

sea salt to taste

1 teaspoon olive oil

big handful of baby kale

Method:

1. Heat oven to 250 degrees. If using pizza stone make sure it is in the oven before turning it on and add a bit of flour to the stone, so that the pizza will not to stick.

2. On a floury board roll out or press out the dough with fingers, to form the shape you want your pizza to be.

3. Mix passata sauce with cayenne pepper, then spoon onto the pizza base.

4. Add garlic, onion, capsicum, pineapple, basil, vegan cheese (I used grated Notzarella & 1 slice of Tofutti cheese slice), and herbamare.

Pizza before cooked

5. Carefully place pizza onto the stone or just into the oven. Cook pizza for about 10mins

6. Rinse kale in a strainer, then place in a bowl and add olive oil and herbamare.

7. Check pizza, it should only need another 5mins. For the last 3-5mins add the kale to the top of the pizza. It should become crispy.

8. Once pizza base is crispy, remove from oven and serve.

My Heart Garden

Yesterday I went out for lunch with my Mum and we decided to go to My Heart Garden at St Lucia. It’s a cute little vegetarian cafe on a Hawkens Drive. I had never heard of this cafe before, let alone the rest of the other restaurants on this strip. I saw it mentioned on Happy Cow, so we thought we would give it a try.

The cafe was vibrant, clean and very inviting. The staff were also very nice and allowed us to pay after our meal, since we had to go get cash out across the street.  We only had two meals, but they also offer a range of juices, other drinks and sweets. I had the Satay Bliss Burger. It was really fresh and delicious. Probably the best lentil pattie I’ve tried. It had heaps of salad and lots of soy mayo. My mum had the Sri Lankan Platter. She didn’t really like it that much. So I ended up having to share my burger. She thought it had been microwaved and the Eggplant curry wasn’t really a curry in her book. For me it was ok, but I thought that was a bit over priced.

Anyway I would recommend this place for breakfast, burger or just a coffee and something sweet.

Satay Bliss Burger

Sri Lanken Platter

Key Lime Pie and Sweet Coconut Cream

This first week has been a lot easier then I thought to avoid animal products. I have not been craving anything. The only slip I’ve had was ‘tasting’ my mums gravy, that she made to go with the beef, that she prepared for my friends, that came over a couple nights ago. I didn’t want to prepare meat for them, but my partner was determined if we were having roast, then they were all having beef. I didn’t feel like I wanted it, which is good. I just had the roasted vegetables and some of the barley casserole from the other day.

For dessert I decided it had to be vegan. There is nothing I hate more then preparing a dessert that I can not eat. I just bought the book Vegan Pie In The Sky by Isa

Raw Key Lime Cheesecake, Kind Living Cafe, Maleny

Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero, so I was anxious to try something from this book. I decided to make Key Lime Pie, because I recently had it this when I went to Kind Living Cafe at Maleny. The Key Lime at this cafe was more like a cheesecake. Well actually it was a cheesecake. It was rich, creamy and raw (in a good way). So I thought that the Key Lime Pie that I was making would be very similar. I didn’t know what to expect  because the recipe called for agar agar, which I never used before. I didn’t really know what it was, just that it was gelatinous. I not sure what I was thinking, nevertheless I was wrong. This recipe produced a filling that was more like a panna cotta.  This makes sense, since there was no tofu or vegan creem cheese. However, it was still delicious and everyone loved it! It’s the kind of pie that you can only really have one slice because it is that sweet. I served it with Sweet Coconut Cream, which is also from Isa book.

The recipe for this pie is here, but it doesn’t include the pie crust. The pie crust is also in the book, called Graham Cracker Crust. In Australia I think you can just substitute Graham Crackers for digestive biscuits. It’s hard to find vegan ones so I usually just go to health food section at the supermarket and pick out what ever is a plain sweet biscuit. For this recipe I used Leda Arrowroot biscuits. The only other vegan ‘Graham Cracker’ Pie crust I’ve ever made was from a recipe from Alicia Silverstone’s The Kind Diet, Mixed Berry Cheesecake. For Alicia’s recipe, you only use the biscuits and vegan butter. However, for this recipe I also had to use sugar and plant-based milk. I found that after I cooked the crust in the over, it became more soft and fluffy. However, because it fell a bit around the edges, I thought if I used my fingers to ‘fix’ it then it would be better. Big mistake, it just made all the oil from the butter come out and the beautiful result of the baking disappeared in a crumby, oily mess. I was too scared to fix it further, so I just left it and hoped for the best.

Ingredients for the pie crust

Pie crust after I cooked it and messed with it

Then I made the filling for the pie, which was pretty easy. Squeezing lime juice wasn’t too fun with the cuts on my fingers, I think I need to invest in a juicing device. When I cooked it, I was surprised how quickly it thickened up. I keep tasting it because I was really good. However, it made me feel really sick after. I’m not sure if agar agar should be eaten before setting. I was a bit disappointed when I put the filling into the pie crust. It had these yellow spots, that looked like oil. I thought they would go away, so I put the pie in the fridge to set for 3 hours. When I took it out of the fridge later, it still had the spots so I thought I would make them disappear by adding icing sugar. Also not a good idea, as the icing sugar just soaked into the pie. Not a hug big deal, but unnecessary.

Ingredients for the pie filling

Cooking the filling

Pie filling cooking down, before set

3hrs later the pie has set

At this point I also decided to whip up the Sweet Coconut cream. This was just a can  of coconut milk, left in the fridge for 6 hours, 1/2 cup of icing sugar and teaspoon of vanilla essence.  The water is meant to separate from the milk, so when you open it you just take the cream from the top. This did not happen with mine. So when I went to whip it, it did not became stiff. I realized the next day that the cream needs to sit in the fridge after that and will become more thick. The water also separated at that point, so definitely I think next time I will prepare the day before. The Pie was also extremely had to remove from my pie dish. I did put some vegan butter on the base, but the pie crust still broke up a lot. It still tasted really great, the pie and the cream, but not as spectacular on the plate and definitely not as pretty as the one in the book. Perhaps next time I will not use the glass pie base, maybe it will slide out easier. I also had this problem in the past, with Alicia’s Mixed Berry Pie.

Key Lime Pie with Sweet Coconut Cream

Barley Casserole and Quick & Easy Hummus

Tonight I decided to make a Barley Casserole from Alicia Silverstone’s ‘The Kind Diet‘. This is the first vegan recipe book I bought and it is really inspirational. At first I was confused with some of the ingredients that she mentioned in the book. However, since I’ve been trying out different recipes I have grown more accustom to them. Things like miso paste , brown rice syrup, garlic powder and sea vegetables, usually didn’t enter my kitchen. Since I’ve been trying new stuff I realise how versatile these ingredients are. Many vegan recipes use these kinds of ingredients, so I don’t find that they stay at the back of my cupboard for long. I really recommend this book, not just for vegetarians, but for anyone looking to broaden their horizons to cook healthier meals.

Anyway, this is only the second time I’ve cooked with barley. I think the last time was over a year ago and it wasn’t very successful. I think I must of undercooked it, because I remember it being a bit hard. However, I saw it again at the supermarket, on sale in the organic section and I thought I would give it another try. I’m so happy I did, its a really great grain, with lots of flavour and I found it very easy to digest. According to WHFoods barley is “very good source of fiber and selenium, and a good source of phosphorus, copper and manganese…In addition to providing bulk and decreasing the transit time of fecal matter, thus decreasing the risk of colon cancer and hemorrhoids, barley’s dietary fiber also provides food for the “friendly” bacteria in the large intestine.” So I think barley will become a regular grain in my kitchen.

This recipe was very easy to make and my family loved it. Only thing is that I miss read how to make the tahini dressing. I didn’t blend it or add water. I kind of mixed it and just put blobs of it on. I was wondering why it was so thick and could not be poured on. Nevertheless it still turned out fine. Also I used pearl barley instead of hulled. I could not find hulled, so I guess the pearl took less time to cook. Hulled is more nutritious  so I will be on a mission to find it. Although I only cooked 2 cups of barley, this is enough for a family for at least 2 nights. I accompanied it with some steamed sweet corn cobs, sautéed english spinach and some home-made hummus. The hummus actually went really good with the casserole.  After that meal I feel really great. Don’t feel that heavy sluggish feeling I usually do after dinner. Looking forward tomorrow for hummus on toast for breakfast and barley as a easy side dish for dinner.

Barley Casserole, Sautéed English Spinach, Steamed Corn Cob and Hummus

Barley Casserole (from The Kind Diet) (nf)

Ingredients: 2 cups pearl barley, 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 large sliced onion, 3 cloves  of sliced garlic , 2 grated carrots , 2 stalks of diced celery, 5 tbsp shoyu/soy sauce, 1/4 tsp sea salt/herbamare, 1/4 tsp dried basil, 1/4 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Tahini Dressing: 1/2 cup tahini, 1/4 small sliced onion, 1 tbsp shoyu/soy sauce, pinch of garlic powder, pinch of paprika, 1/8 tsp dried basil, pinch of oregano

1. Take a large saucepan and boil 3 cups of water, then add 2 cups of barley. Cook for about 30mins or till barley is soft. (You may need to add more water during cooking it). Strain excess water once cooked.

2. Pre heat over to 180 degrees. Heat olive oil and large fry pan, then add onion and garlic. Cook for 5 mins. Add bit of water if onion browns to much

3. Stir through carrot, celery, shoyu, salt, basil, oregano, and garlic powder and cook for 5 mins.

4. Add barley and stir through for further 3 mins on medium heat.

5. Prepare tahini dressing. Take small fry pan and cook onion with 2 tbsp of water. Cook for 4 mins till soft.

6. Take blender, add onion, 1/2 cup of water and rest of the ingredients. Blend till creamy.

7. Take large casserole dish and add 1/2 of the barley and then layer with 1/2 of tahini dressing. Add rest of barley then top with the rest of tahini dressing.

8. Cook for 35 mins in the oven, then serve.

Barley Casserole before I cooked it in the oven

Barley Casserole, cooked and ready to serve

Quick & Easy Hummus (gf, sf, nf)

Ingredients: Can of Organic Chickpeas,  1 large clove garlic (finely sliced), 1 tbsp tahini, 3 tbsp cold press extra virgin olive oil, juice of 1 small lemon, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1tsp herbamare sea salt, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Either use a blender or just a hand held mixer. Blend chickpeas, garlic, olive oil and tahini

2. Then add lemon juice, garlic powder, cumin, sea salt and cayenne pepper. (Either blend or stir through)

*I usually go by taste, so add more of the spices, lemon or salt depending on your taste.

Chunky Eggplant & Potato ‘Cheesy’ Lasagna

I finally got hold of the Notzarella, a vegan cheese, which is meant to be the best melting cheese. I could not believe how much it felt and tasted like cheese. Well after not eating cheese for nearly 3 years  it was very similar, but according to my boyfriend it ‘tasted better than most’ vegan cheeses. I was very excited to try it, so I decided to try it out with lasagna. It was good, but didn’t melt as much as I thought. Maybe I should of left the lasagna uncovered for longer or perhaps I needed more cheese. It still tasted great though!

Chunky Eggplant & Potato ‘Cheesy’ Lasagna (gfo, nf)

Chunky Eggplant Sauce- olive oil, 1/2 large onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 large carrots, 1 small italian eggplant, 550g jar passata sauce, fresh basil, herbamare sea salt, black pepper, water

Other ingredients- Lasagna sheets (instant or fresh, normal/gluten free), baby/english spinach, 3 washed potatoes, grated block of notzarella cheese

Cheese sauce- 3/4 cup almond milk, 1 tbsp plain flour, 2 tsp dijon mustard, herbamare sea salt, 6 tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 tbsp soy/other dairy free butter

1. Preheat the oven at 200 degrees.

2. Chop garlic, onion, carrots, and eggplant in small cubs

3. In a sauce pin heat 3 tbsp olive oil and add garlic, onion, carrot and eggplant.

4. Cook vegetables for 5mins, then add passata and then add the same amount of water. Add salt, pepper and basil. Bring to boil, then put on simmer

5. Cut potato in slices and put in a steamer. Cook till soft

6. Put almond milk in a bowl, add flour, then whisk till no lumps.

7. Melt butter in small pot, then once liquid add milk and stir.

8. Add dijon mustard and nutritional yeast and stir on mild heat. Take off heat once thick and consistent.

9. Take baking dish and add couple spoon full of Chunky Eggplant Sauce.

10. Place lasagna sheets on top then add sauce again and notzarella. Then layer with lasagna sheets, potato slices, cheesy sauce and spinach. Continue to layer. The top lasagna sheet should have Chunky Eggplant Sauce and notzarella on top.

11. Put baking dish in oven and cook according to lasagna sheet instructions.

Oh Eggs

Ok so I know vegans don’t eat eggs, since no animal products are included in the diet. I have massively cut down my egg intake and bake without eggs now. My nutritionist originally told me that I should be eating one egg a day for breakfast and this would be a healthy source of protein, which I needed to start my brain in the morning.  However, eggs have always giving me a really heavy feeling and once I eat one for breakfast I tend not to be able to eat lunch. My boyfriend also has an intolerance to eggs as well. We found this out when I finally pushed him to go get a blood intolerance test. He use to egg 1-2 eggs a day for breakfast at least, with Japanese egg mayo to compliment it. So since we found that out I have avoided cooking with eggs.

I have also read that they are not the most healthy food, which is contrary to what I and I’m sure you have always been told. “…eating even one egg a day can be hazardous to your health, because it raises cholesterol levels substantially. Extra cholesterol added to the human body ends up causing plaque which clogs the arteries. The higher your cholesterol, the more susceptible one is to develop coronary artery disease. About 70 percent of the calories in eggs are from fat, and a large portion of that fat is saturated.” (Animal Liberation 2008). “A single egg yolk also exceed the recommended daily intake of eggs” (Nutrition Facts.org). Macrobiotic theory also refers to eggs as a yang food, which should be avoided, due to the highly concentrated animal protein  I remember reading in a macrobiotic book that asian cultures often use one egg in a large stirfry for instance, which would be shared, therefore it would be divided up.

My mum has also gone off eggs since watching a Nutritional Facts video. This spoke of researching linking the cholesterol from consuming  1 egg per day decreases the life span of older woman, which is equal to 5 cigarettes for 15 years (What Woman Should Eat to Live Longer). So she too avoid eggs, however she doesn’t avoid the cigarettes.

The girls when I first got them

However I have one problem, I have 3 chickens, Savanna, Alexandria  and Gabriella. They are extremely well cared for and receive not only their mash but vegetables and fruit. They especially love garlic and mushrooms. My mum is trying to get me to give them away at the moment, as they spend the day digging and have made a real mess out the back. However, I feel bad to give them away, this is their home after all. Usually I give the eggs away or use them occasions. I understand the ethics behind not using eggs because of battery chickens, but mine are not they are free range. The decision is still up in the air at the moment, I guess if I can find a nice home for them I will have to re home them, as honestly I’m not home enough to be with them. So I guess we will see.

Anyway, since I came back from Italy I have began making pasta from scratch. I got a $10 little manual machine from Aldi, which is great  and does the job. When I was in Italy I went to a city, Mantova/Mantua to see the the Gonzaga castle.

Tortelli di zucca from Mantova

I also was very excited to try the famous Tortelli di zucca. It is a delicious filled pasta with pumpkin. It is so sweet and the most amazing thing I have ever tasted. I have started making my own take on it with roasted butternut pumpkin and it has become a family favourite. Only problem is I have been using my eggs to make the pasta. I guess I worry if I make the pasta different to how I learned, then my family wouldn’t like it. I also made yesterday with the my partners nieces and nephew Fettuccine with the Quorn Bolognese. They really loved it and didn’t even known that the Quorn mince wasn’t mince meat. I was so astonished how close it is to meat. The rest of my family also tried it and couldn’t tell. Unfortunately this also has egg whites in it as well. The company has spoke about making a vegan line, as many of the products also have milk, so a no no for me.

My goal is to try to make my free pasta egg free and to try out tvp mince as an alternative. I was a bit worried to use tvp as it doesn’t look very appealing, however my partner loves chilli con carne, Bolognese sauce and mince stuffed capsicum, so I need to find an alternative to satisfy him. Hopefully, Ill find an another alternative soon at vegan supermarket.

Vegetarian Quorn Bolognese with Egg Fettuccine

Roasted Butternut Pumpkin Ravioli with Basil ‘butter’ Sauce (nf)

Basic Pasta dough: 3 eggs, 1 2/3 cup organic plain flour, pinch sea salt, 1 tbsp olive oil (serves 4-5) (use a different dough for vegan of course)

Filling: 1/2 butternut pumpkin, basil (half bunch for filling and sauce), ‘creem’ cheese (optional), sea salt, black pepper, raw sugar

Sauce: Nutlex or another dairy free butter, basil

Roasted Butternut Pumpkin Ravioli with Basil ‘butter’ Sauce

1. Pre heat oven to 200 degrees and cut the pumpkin in thin slices.

2. Put pumpkin on a tray on baking paper, add olive oil, salt and pepper. Cover trays with aluminium foil and cook till soft (about 20-30mins)

3. On a floury board put flour, with a well in the middle then add the eggs (pre-beaten or beat in the well with a fork).

4. Add salt and olive oil and a bit of water if you need and knead the dough for 5-10 mins.

5. Cut the dough into 4 balls and let it rest for 20-30mins. (I usually can’t wait!)

6.Take the first ball and flatten it with your hand and put it through the pasta maker (pasta sheet setting). I usually have it on widest setting first and make sure there is flour between the metal rollers. Fold the sheet in half again and then put it through again. If it is fraying you can just fold it again. As the pasta sheet gets thinner, you can make the setting thinner. Repeat this process till you have got to the thinnest setting and the sheet is consistent. I usually put it through 5-6 times.

7. Place sheets on something it wont stick to and trim the edges straight with a knife.

8. Mash pumpkin in a large bowl with a fork and then add remaining ingredients to taste. If you want more creamer add more ‘creem’ cheese.

9. Now add teaspoon of the filling to the pasta sheet (towards the bottom) and leave a space between and add another dob of filling (about width of a finger). Once you have a line of the filing going across the pasta sheet, then fold the sheet over so that all the filing is covered and then cut between the bumps. Since I don’t have a ravioli cutter I just use a knife and reseal the edges with a fork. Repeat with the rest of the sheets till all used. If you don’t tortelli to stick together add some flour to them.

10. Now cook them in boiling water with pinch of salt, until they have all floated to the top, then strain.

11. In a large pan melt ‘butter’ and add chopped basil and warm on low setting. Then add pasta and salt and pepper to taste. Make sure pasta is covered in sauce and it is warm and take off heat and serve.

Hello world!

Hi all,

This is my first post to my new blog. I’ve never blogged before, but I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time. The reason being is that I am trying to make a transition to a vegan lifestyle. So this is I guess a journal to keep me grounded, to share recipes and share great food finds.

My motives to change my life and in particular my diet is because I want to be healthier, happier and for the most part because I feel fantastic on a vegan diet. I have been ‘flirting’ (as Alicia Silverstone says) with the vegan diet for a few months. But I find it hard to stick in, when it comes to eating out with my boyfriend and going out with friends. I try to stick to vegetarian meals, but often end up ‘trying’ my partners meal or being swayed by seafood, because vegetarian options usually means lots of dairy.

Dairy as in cows milk is the one thing I have committed to avoiding for nearly 3 years. This is because I have an intolerance, which I discovered after getting a parasite back in 2008 in Indonesia. I had become extremely sick with leaking gut syndrome. I actually had no idea that I was sick, all I knew was I was gaining weight constantly and always felt sick after I ate, no matter how healthy I ate or how much exercise I did. I became extremely depressed and withdrew from everyone, embarrass what people would think if they saw me. Luckily I have a great boyfriend who was always very supportive and tried to lift my spirits. Fortunately my mum took me to a nutritionist GP, who did a complete scan of my body, found out I had a leaky gut, pyroluria and that I was deficient in many key nutrients.  He also got me to do a blood test, which picked up so many intolerances, including dairy, gluten, rye, rice and few more. So after a three month detox and changing my diet I have been able to loose the 10kgs and feel much better.

I began to be interested in vegan diet, when I started looking for alternatives to dairy foods. I also saw Alicia Silverstone promoting her ‘kind diet’ on the Oprah show and ordered her book. This really opened my eyes to a new way of cooking, which is much healthier and very delicious. I also saw the documentaries Food Inc and Forks over knives, which both changed the way I thought about meat. After watching these documentaries I really made a conscious effort to avoid meat entirely. I never realised how bad animal products were for both the animals and our health. Like many other people, I thought cows needed to be milked, that protein was the most important nutrient and all vegetarians ate fish. I also found that when I stopped eating animal products I did feel lighter and my metabolism was much faster. I also discovered that carbs and fat were not so important to avoid, but its actually all the preservatives and artificial crap that goes into food, which really does the damage to our bodies. I also noticed when I gave up the dairy that my skin changed and I rarely get pimples any more.

Up until the beginning of this year I began eating a mostly vegan diet and rarely ate gluten. However, then I went to Europe for 6 months on exchange trip. I broke my no gluten rule the first night I was there. Apparently according to my Aunt, the bread was the best in all of Milan so I had to eat it.Then because I didn’t have my apartment straight away I was staying with family. Just asking for dairy free meals seemed to be a bit of a problem as well, let alone asking for gluten free vegan food. I have always been taught to eat what your given so I felt really awkward, but in the name of health I told them I could not eat cows milk, as this is the worst of my intolerances.  It was ok, except for one night when I was invited to my cousins for dinner and the dinner was 2 hours late because they didn’t realise I didn’t eat cheese, which was a big part of the lasagne they prepared. Unbeknown to my other cousin told them, so they quietly prepared something else for me from scratch. After that my boyfriend arrived and finding meals that were vegan and dairy free became very difficult. Even asking for soy milk in my cappuccino often received a laugh as a response. After my studies we then travelled to eastern Europe where we stayed with my partners Serbian family. Meat is a very important part of their life and not something that can be easily avoided either. When I mentioned to one family member that I couldn’t have milk I was told I was like a child and I needed to grow up. So throughout my trip I just gave in to meat. And to be honest I did not feel that bad, as I did eating meat in Australia. I believe this is because there are less preservatives and chemical used. When I returned to Australia I began feeling that heavy feeling again and experiencing a more sluggish metabolism.

For me changing my diet is mainly for health reasons. I also do not agree with the ethics of the meat and dairy industry, but honestly this is not my primary motivator consistently. This makes it harder in some ways to give up, as I do not naturally look at animal products and feel disgusted by the ethics behind it, but rather I worry for the effects it could have on my body.  After reading the China study as well I have been more inclined to really want to avoid meat and dairy. There are so many studies out there that show how bad it is for us and I believe we all need to at least cut back if we want to be healthy and avoid cancer and other diseases.

So my goal is to make this transition to be vegan. I’m not sure how long this will take me or how I will deal with the obstacles but I want to find my way through cooking and exploring my options.

Lastly before I go, I had been stressing all morning about what I was going to eat for lunch. I know it sounds silly, but finding a place to eat that my partner is willing to go to and will have something at least dairy free and vegan is always extremely hard. However, we ended up at Sassafras in Paddington and I had the most delicious Satay Tofu burger with mushrooms and chili jam. They even swapped my salad so it would be vegan as well. For dessert I had the fruit and nut slice. I was happy that I could find something I actually really liked on the menu and the fact that I could actually have a vegan dessert was great. I usually only make desserts at home, but I miss ordering out as well.

Hope you enjoyed my first post and will keep you updated on my progress.

Satay Tofu Burger with mushrooms and chilli jam and Cabbage and sprout salad, from Sassafras, Paddington

Fruit and Nut slice, from Sassafras, Paddington