We welcome Simonee from Toronto, Canada as our next participant in the Ghost-Free Journey. Simonee describes herself as being a vegetarian/pescatarian for a long time, and wishes to embark on a vegan lifestyle change. In the past, Simonee has tried a vegan lifestyle, but was unable to sustain the transition to veganism. We’re here to support Simonee, find resources to sustain a Ghost-Free lifestyle, and assist in making her process as smooth as possible.
Day 1 will focus primarily on Simonee’s request to learn about easy, but tasty recipes that will hold her attention and desire to eat vegan foods. Simonee loves good food, so we’ll be asking the community to help with tips and encouragement for cooking yummy vegan meals.
Coach Rosemary and Coach Donna
The opinions we express as GFJ Coaches are ours personally. We are not professional health practitioners. Neither are we treating a specific health care issue. That means we are not offering advice on health-care problems. If you are experiencing a health-care problem, it is important to seek the advice of a health professional. However we are experienced, practicing vegans and we look forward to coaching you on your journey.
Hey Ghost Team!
Thanks for the warm welcome☺ Happy to be on the journey and I’m looking forward to deepening my knowledge, changing lots and hopefully sticking to it. Good news from this camp is that you get my husband Paul in on it too! I do the cooking so it’s a Ghost Free Journey for two!
Like Rosemary and Donna said – I’d classify myself as a Pescatarian right now… I quit meat and chicken sometime ago but stuck to dairy and some fish because I found it hard to do a vegan lifestyle that taste as good and is as low maintenance. I’d love to hear from people that have done it successfully and please feel free to share your recipes as well as your thoughts:)
I’ve already started my day – coffee in hand – and replaced my dairy with Almond milk. I’ve done it before and hope to swing that way permanently but have to say, it’s not as easy on my taste buds. I guess I’ll be used to it by the end of the week. That said I’m off to do a shop for some more food and then I’ll be cleaning my pad with some Ghost Free products. I’ll let ya all know how I make out later today.
Big hug from me, two cats (Blu & Camie), dog Bean and the husband Paul.
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/IMG_0178.JPG[/img]
Hi Simonee! I love love LOVE (like too much, so I can’t buy it because then I drink way too much coffee) Coconut Milk Creamer, it’s SO smooth, and the flavored varieties are quite wonderful!
Hi Danielle,
Who makes the coconut milk creamer? I’d like to investigate that!
https://www.sodeliciousdairyfree.com/products
My fav too 🙂
It’s my favorite too!! It took me a bit to get used to Almond Milk but now I really love it. I didn’t like soy milk either but I love my coffee with Soy now. I guess taste buds change!!
Good Morning Simonee – we are so excited to begin this journey with you. Do you have any favorite types of foods that you are looking to find vegan versions of?
Hi Donna,
I love cheese… I know it’s bad but I do! In the past I’ve tried some awful tasting substitutes – any suggestions would be great! I’d also love to know where I can mimic my eggs for great breakfast food:)
Here is the vegan ricotta recipe. If you are using it to make lasagna (which is what I usually use it for), double the recipe.
Cashew Ricotta (from Veganomicon)
½ cup raw cashew pieces (approx 4 ounces)
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 pound firm tofu, drained and crumbled
1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
1 ½ teaspoons salt
In a food processor, bend together the cashews, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic until a thick creamy paste forms. Add the crumbled tofu to the processor andmix until the mixture is thick and well blended. Add basil and salt and blend.
This is yummy to use as a dip too!
Every time I see this, I feel like I must make some lasagna !
DELICIOUS!
Here is a link to what looks like an amazing vegan egg product. I don’t know if it is available for purchase yet, though.
https://www.hamptoncreekfoods.com/beyondeggs/
I must agree – there are some substitutes that I have not liked very much but there are so many new ones now. Also, there are some amazing developments in the area of faux egg products. I will post some links in a bit. Also, I’ll share a recipe for the most delicious tasting vegan ricotta (cashew based) from the cookbook Veganomicon.
I LOVE the photo that you posted !
Welcome, Simonee! I also agree about the non-dairy cheeses available, but then again, I haven’t tried some of the “artisan” cheeses like Tree Line and some nut cheese brands. We’ll post some links and recipes to make your own.
What kind of taste/flavors are you looking for when it comes to recipes?
I heard really good things about Vegg….
https://www.thevegg.com
You can also try a tofu scramble. If you’re interested in the scramble, I can post my recipe 🙂
Hi Simonee! How fun! Trying out a vegan diet can be a bit daunting if you don’t have the ingredients / resources. Everyone has a different experience with dairy, for me I became healthier when I quit dairy. Good luck, have fun and enjoy this special 5-day experience of being guided and supported.
Liz
Hi Simonee! I find myself missing the ‘creamy’ texture of certain dairy products. I’m not a big fan of using a lot of vegan substitutes, as they are processed food (better than eating animal products, but still). I have been experimenting with other foods to mimic that creamy texture I miss. I’ve had a lot of success with avocados, cashews, and coconut milk. There are some great recipes out there if you’re interested.
Hey Simonee! I think that soymilk is SO much better in coffee and tea than any other kind of non-dairy milk. Soy is the only one that is thick and creamy enough to stand up to this purpose. I personally think Silk brand is the best. I use unsweetened – the regular one is a little sweeter than cow’s milk.
(I tried everything in tea/coffee before I found one that I didn’t find disappointing, so I feel your pain!)
Anna, have you tried Silk Creamer, or other brands that are creamers (soy, almond, coconut)? They have a thicker consistency as well.
Wow dudes – Thanks for all the wonderful comments. I do agree Anna that soy is better in coffee but sometimes my stomach doesn’t respond to soy. Let’s just say a little bloating:) I’ll definitely try the switch into Silk brand and see if that works… I’ll look into the recipe from Rosemary too. Thanks!
The tofu scramble may be too much concentrated soy for you, but here’s a basic recipe with different additions if you’d like to try it out.
https://www.theppk.com/2009/10/tof-u-and-tof-me-scrambled-tofu-revisited/
Simonee – this is a wonderful resource with lots of info – and recipes. I especially love the serach that allows you to input up to three ingredients you have available, and the perfect recipe will be suggested!!
https://happyherbivore.com/recipes/
Hi All,
I cleaned the house – had to be done! It looks and smells much better. Very happy me, now I can’t stop procrastinating on work. Then I ventured out for some supplies for our Tempeh Pasta dinner tonight… I’ll share pics later. I also got some things for the cheese I’ll make tomorrow – I’m gonna try Rosemary☺ Stay tuned for updates.
In terms of my house clean – I did use Ghost Free products but did run into some products from the olden days.
Question:
How do you all feel about waste of bad products? Nearly 2 years ago, I replaced all my Ghost products (Windex, Mr. Clean, etc.) with Ghost Free products. It was finally manageable and financially doable with more income in the household. All to say there are still a few bad guys in the house. Do I use them up? What are Ghost Free Peeps saying out there? Also I’d love to know your take on the products I did buy. As we all know, there’s a lot of misrepresentation out there. I’m pretty sure most of my products have integrity but I’m not entirely sure about this TKO pictured below? If you know anything – feel free to share…
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/photo-4.JPG[/img]
Hi Simonee!
A clean house sounds wonderful – and we can’t wait to hear about your tempeh pasta dinner. Hopefully, you will post the recipe for us – and maybe a picture??
As far as old products, most people tend to use up what they have. The same can apply to other things like leather shoes. People approach these issuse in different ways, and it is best to do what you are comfortable with. New vegetarians/vegans might continue to wear their leather shoes/etc. until they wear out. Others might donate to Goodwill or something similar.
I am not familiar with the TKO product that you have pictured above – a great site for checking on products is the Leaping Bunny site:
https://www.leapingbunny.org/indexcus.php
Cleaning house and starting a vegan lifestyle all in one day? I’m impressed!
Some people use natural, homemade cleaning products, such as baking soda, lemon, and vinegar recipes too. They do a decent job, and is much more economical.
My impression is that most going through this transition use up their products until it’s time to replace, and I’ve been doing that myself with most items I still have around the house.
We look forward to your photo of dinner…and recipe if you have time!
Hi Simonee,
This won’t answer your question about TKO products, but I thought you might be interested to see LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetic’s breakdown of the three main types of cruelty-free (animal testing) policies that are in place in Canada. Each vegan label, including the Leaping Bunny, endorses products that are manufactured according one of these three systems. Unfortunately none of theses systems are perfect, though many consider the Leaping Bunny label to be the best. It is a very complicated landscape, which you will discover if you check out the link.
LUSH are currently campaigning hard to improve the regulations and the tracking systems so that consumers can have a clearer idea as to what they are buying.
I hope you have an amazing dinner!
Nina
https://www.fightinganimaltesting.com/the-lush-campaign/different-testing-policies/
Hey all,
Here’s my tempeh pasta dinner log – Enjoy!
Start with Martini… Bond style. Shaken not stirred.
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/1-Martini.jpg[/img]\
Next get the pan ready with good stuff… Stuff that makes the breath bad but taste good:) along with olive oil, sea salt and pepper. I did onions, scallions, LOTS of garlic, dried chilli peppers and yellow peppers. Basically anything will do.
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/2-FryingPan1.jpg[/img]
While boiling pasta, steam anything that you think you want to add but don’t steam for too long. I did kale because it was in the fridge and taste good.
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/3-Steam.jpg[/img]
After the pasta is ready and strained then go back to the pan. Begin sautéing the “stuff”. After 5 minutes add the tempeh into the mix and add more oil. Keep flipping it over till both sides are equally brown:)
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/4-TempehTime.jpg[/img]
Lower heat to at least below medium and add the strained cooled off, cooked pasta and some more stuff! I did chick peas and cherry tomatoes. Wait 2 minutes then add that kale and tempeh back into mix.
[img]https://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/5-Almost.jpg[/img]
Then you have a tempeh pasta – we liked it!
Hope you guys enjoy!
Nite, nite!
This looks delicious! I’m drooling! yum!
Lovely and creative! What a way to start out the week, Simonee 🙂
Thank you for sharing today, and we hope that you will enjoy the next several days.
P.S. The martini looks great too!
Yes that Martini looks like a pretty fine appetizer!
How fantastic this looks, Simonee!! You are a truly creative chef – I think that we are going to learn a few tricks from you. Thank you for posting the recipe and the photos. I agree with Rosemary – the martinis look great! Your cat seems to think so too.
Looking forward to continuing our conversations tomorrow. Have a lovely evening.
Hello Simonee!!
I did the GFJ back in July. Welcome, I know you can do it!! That pasta looks amazing, it’s inspiring to me and I can’t wait to try it!!