Easter Greetings and Miscellaneous Observations

Happy Easter, readers and lovers of bunnies all! Whether you celebrate the religious or the secular side of this day, I hope it is a special day for you. As always, I pray that more parents are giving their children stuffed or chocolate rabbits this year. The real thing is NOT right for a child. And speaking of chocolate bunnies, am I the only one whose mother used to eat the ears off the bunny? Honestly, I don't recall ever getting to eat the ears growing up. What is up with that?

One totally unrelated observation: Vegan Essentials online store is now selling vegan calamari. Really?? I shudder with skepticism. I am all for veganizing everything we can to help new vegans not feel deprived, but how can one possibly replicate the chewiness of calamari? I grew up in an Italian-American home so I feel almost compelled to try it. Will let you know if I do.

Also saw recently a product called faux gras. Honestly, why would you want to make vegan a product that in itself is a morally despicable item? I suspect--and admit I could be wrong in thinking this--that people who relish the real thing aren't going vegan any time soon. So to whom is faux gras targeted? Just wondering...

Just a couple of observations

First: for a faux meat item, nothing beats Field Roast "meat" loaf. Splash on some ketchup or BBQ sauce, heat in a 350 oven for a half hour, serve with steamed green beans and rosemary potatoes and you have one hearty meal! It is late in the evening as I write this, and I am craving another slice.

Second: why is it that every time I make a conscientious effort to return to a life of yoga and exercise my right knee goes on strike? Tendonitis stinks, that's all there is to that. But I will persevere, especially with the yoga. My rabbits Ruby and Cocoa love to participate.

Remembering Polly

Three years ago 4 April, I lost my beloved rabbit Polly after a sudden and brief illness. (She is the mocha-colored bun in the photo above.) Yes, I blogged about her this time last year; please indulge me in taking more blog space to remember her sweet tough personality and her face, nicked from fights with siblings in the home she was rescued from. Her nose was scarred: one ear had a small chunk taken out of it. These marks only made her more endearing and distinctive. Even after three years, I still miss her attitude. I called her my Jersey Girl for good reason. She never hesitated to head butt you when she tired of you being in her face. I will never forget the day my rabbit Ruby had the audacity to approach Polly's territory. Polly was having none of it. Like a bull, she tucked her head down and charged the cross pen. Bang! I watched Ruby hop up and backwards before running downstairs. That was the last time Ruby ever attempted a visit to Polly.

Polly was as sweet as she was tough. She loved to sleep in our bed with us, at least for part of the night ( the rest of the time she snuggled with her mate Ghirardelli). She did this even the night before she died, sick as she was. Three years ago. Time has flown but not the grief. I will miss my Sweetpea to my dying day. Godspeed, my Jersey Girl. You left us too soon but I am deeply grateful we had you the few short years that we did.

Green Lemonade

I don't want to make this a recipe blog but I must share a smoothie recipe that is out of this world. Rev up your Vitamix'ers for this one. It's called Green Lemonade. All you need is the following:

4 leaves of kale
5 or 6 romaine lettuce leaves (NOT hearts)
2 Fuji apples
juice of 1 lemon
thumb-size peeled piece of fresh ginger

You may want to add an ice cube or two if you want it cooler. The lemon and ginger give this smoothie a refreshing kick. Delicious and healthy--how can you go wrong?

In the Raw

I confess I have been very skeptical when I hear about going all raw when it comes to food. I am not convinced that eating raw all the time is necessarily great for the digestive system. A few years ago I tried a wonderful recipe my mom gave me--it is basically broccoli, raw, marinated with lots of garlic and olive oil, that sits in a marinade for hours before you eat it. Delicious, yes, but not without some odiforous consequences and a little digestive discomfort (yes I know broccoli is a cruciferous vegetable and lends itself to such effects, but certainly not as many as when I eat it cooked.)

Then two things happened. One, while in Boston I discovered a place called The Other Side Cafe and fell in love with their mock chicken salad plate, which I learned was totally raw (made from ground pecans, cashews & sunflower seeds mixed with cucumbers, celery and tart green apples--no soy or tempeh here!) I was amazed at how tasty it was, very satisfying with the hint of cashew lingering on the taste buds. For dessert I had the fresh fruit/chocolate mousse (made from raw cacao)which was a yummy meal in itself (I prefer to call it cold fondue on a plate! Such wonderful fruit--strawberries, grapes, bananas, apples. The mousse had a texture similar to chocolate sorbet, very smooth and rich). The Other Side offers a multtude of vegan choices though it is not exclusively a vegan cafe, and many of the dishes are raw. For example, for an appetizer, you can get the Raw Food Chips & Dip - slices of beet and carrot with a dip of blended macadamia & cashew w/garlic, lemon and Bragg’s. (FYI--for non-raw fans, they offer vegan chili, vegan BLTs, veggie burritos--I mean, a vegan has real choices at this place! Go there if you go to Boston--and if you don't mind loud music playing. It is located in the Back Bay. For more info, go to http://www.theothersidecafe.com/

The second item which gave me pause to consider incorporating raw food into my life is Kris Carr's book CRAZY SEXY DIET. You have to take seriously a woman who has kept a deadly cancer at bay for seven years with her diet. I am currently reading it--so much info to absorb, but it is so well written, I do recommend it to anyone looking to change what and how they eat. The recipes she includes in the back seem simple enough, and how hard can to be to eat raw at least once a day or so? My rabbits are natural raw vegans-seems to work for them. As I have said before, will say it ad nauseum--we can learn so much from our animal companions, if we just pay attention.

So dear readers of my blog, I would love some feedback from anyone out there who really endorses this way of eating and from others who have tried it and may be aren't keen on it. As I said, I could eat this way some of the time, but 100%--not so sure. It was hard enough in many ways to go vegan, going raw seems daunting. Of course, if someone had told me ten years ago that at this point in my life I would be vegan I would have laughed in his/her face. I look forward to getting some feedback/advice/raw cookbook recommendations, etc. Thanks in advance for your input!

The Hoppy Vegan

Thinking Outside the Box

Well, I'm back from my trip to Boston. I will be posting on various places I sampled for my article on being vegan while visiting the Back Bay later on, but for today, I just want to muse about that old phrase "thinking outside the box." Whenever I go home, it is inevitable someone asks me when they learn I'm vegan, "what do you EAT?" It seems beyond comprehension to so many that a meal can be had without an animal involved. "You don't eat fish?" "No eggs?" My God, you can almost hear them think, how do you SURVIVE? (You can also hear them thinking, what a pain in the ass, but that is an issue for another day.)

Here is where the thinking outside the box comes in. You HAVE to do this when you go vegetarian and/or vegan because, face it, if you have been omnivore most of your life, chances are you were raised in believing a meal had to have (1)meat (2)potato and (3)vegetable, the one element that most kids seem to think equates to torture. Going vegetarian isn't simply removing the meat and just having a dinner composed of side dishes (though there is nothing wrong with that, especially if you come up with memorable, savory ways to prepare them.) It means thinking PROTEIN instead of meat. Beans and tofu, and even grains like quinoa, contain oodles of protein. It is so simple to prepare meals around them. With the right seasonings and ingredients, as the hundreds of vegan and vegetarian cookbooks out there suggest, you can whip up some pretty yummy meals. I make a curried potato stew that is very hearty and filling in the colder months. Or one of my uber favorite dishes-- broccoli rabe with grape tomatoes and cannellini beans and TONS of garlic and red pepper flakes. Yummy! I just had that dish on St. Patrick's Day (thank you, Mom, for making it). The eating of the green! Who says it just has to be cabbage?

Here's the bottom line. We need to correct the thinking of people who believe going veg means opening three cans of vegetables and baking a potato to make a meal. Cook a meal for those around you who are cynical. Crack those cookbooks and come up with the tastiest dishes you can. Remember, eating vegan or vegetarian is not just about the veggies. It is about celebrating ALL life at the dinner table and there are thousands upon thousands of recipes that can enhance the celebration. Bon appetit!

The Hoppy Vegan is on the road

I am reveling in being back in Boston's Back Bay twenty years after working and commuting here. Way back then, I wasn't even vegetarian, let alone vegan, so this time I am scoping out vegan-friendly places to write about at a later date. I am staying at a very nice hotel whose sole purpose seems to be to kiss your butt the whole time you are here. (I can get used to this!) They are very environmentally conscious (one reason I chose it) and their bath amenities are all Aveda products! How sweet is that! For once I didn't have to bring my own (honestly? This is the OTHER reason I chose it.) Every room has a recycling bin for paper, plastic, etc. So here is my question--why don't they offer vegan options at their restaurants (other than the room service power breakfast consisting of yummy oatmeal, fresh fruit, juice and coffee)?

Don't worry, friends, the Hoppy Vegan will point out this oversight when it is time to comment. A follow-up letter full of praise and gentle vegan prodding will also be sent. And of course I will share my insights on this trip after I get home. Until then, I will carry on seeking out cafes and restaurants friendly to vegans while I am here in
Boston's Back Bay. A dirty job but someone has to do it.