It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that appropriately planned vegetarian, including vegan, diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. These diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes. Plant-based diets are more environmentally sustainable than diets rich in animal products because they use fewer natural resources and are associated with much less environmental damage.
The paper contains a review of all the nutrients of concern for vegetarians and a summary of the research on the health and environmental benefits.
The Academy’s position paper is the most authoritative, scientific statement on vegetarian diets and I encourage all vegetarian advocates to read it. As of this writing, a free PDF was available.
One of the most frequent questions I get from non-vegans when discussing cooking and baking is, “What do you use in place of eggs?”
That question is easy to answer when it comes to things like cupcakes and cookies, but when it comes to food that calls for a foam-like texture, like meringue, mousse, and angel food cake—which is traditionally provided through whipping eggs—the answer hasn’t always been easy…until now.
Ok, so let’s back up a bit and discuss how this is even possible.
As Zsu describes in her book, this long awaited egg-free substitute surfaced only within the last year or two as several people across the globe were experimenting with plant-based foods in hopes of finding something that mimics an egg.
All finally came to a head when U.S. software engineer, Goose Wohlt, announced in a Facebook community, called “What Fat Vegans Eat,” that he’d successfully made a stable meringue utilizing leftover chickpea water—liquid left after cooking chickpeas—and sugar. Goose named his wonderful discovery aquafaba, which is a combination of the Latin root words for water and bean.
While the answers are still not cut and dry, the theory behind the success of aquafaba is that—
…[s]ome properties of the beans (carbohydrates and protein) leech into the cooking liquid and that these ingredients, with the proper consistency, mimic certain qualities of eggs. It is also thought that aquafaba can act in some respects like egg yolks and in others as egg whites.
The difference of protein amounts in an egg versus aquafaba, in addition to the difference of fat and carbohydrate content, are thought to be the limiting factors. This is why aquafaba can’t be an ingredient that stands alone, nor can it make foods like custards or omelets.
And no matter where you access a recipe utilizing aquafaba, whether it’s online or in Zsu’s book, it will most likely call for chickpea water. Why? The water of light color legumes is less detectable.
I’d go as far to say that Zsu’s book is essential when opening the door to the aquafaba world. She details every “how” you’d need to know—how to make it, how to whip it, how to use it, and how to store it. There are variations within all of these “hows” and it’s important to know those differences.
With this very basic background information on aquafaba, I leave you with a recipe for Coconut-Key Lime Cream Pie from Zsu’s cookbook. I also strongly encourage anyone who is interested in incorporating aquafaba into their culinary know-how to buy her book! From meringues to fritatta, Zsu will walk you through all the wonderful creations aquafaba has to offer.
Photo: Zsu Dever
Coconut-Key Lime Cream Pie
Yields 8 servings.
Ingredients
¼ cup aquafaba (for convenience and simplicity, canned chickpea water will work fine)
1 ½ teaspoons agar powder
½ cup granulated organic sugar
½ cup fresh key lime or lime juice, divided
1 14 oz can coconut cream (not canned coconut milk)
Combine the aquafaba and agar in a small saucepan, mix well, and set aside for 3 minutes. Add the sugar and ¼ cup of the lime juice, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until the agar comes up to 195°F, about 5 minutes. Immediately add the sugar syrup to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a balloon whip attachment. Whisk on medium-high until the syrup flows in thick ribbons, about 7 minutes.
Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add the remaining ¼ cup lime juice. When well incorporated, add the coconut cream 1 heaping tablespoon at a time. Incorporate and emulsify each portion before adding more. Add the vanilla and continue to mix until very smooth. Transfer the filling to the prepared crust. Garnish the pie with the lime zest and chill in the refrigerator overnight to firm up. Serve with the whipped topping, if desired.
An Important Recipe Note from the Cookbook Author: The cookbook has a whipped topping recipe for this pie, but because it’s one of the more challenging recipes in the book—you really have to know all the information regarding peaks, adding fats to meringue, humidity, etc.—it was best to omit it from this pie recipe. It just leaves too much chance for a miss without the needed background. Using store bought vegan whipped cream will work just fine until you become a master at aquafaba!
Do you love the holidays or hate the holidays? Buy gifts well in advance, or wait ’til the last minute? Either way, we have a simple gift-buying solution for you—Vegan Outreach merchandise!
Whether you’re looking for a warm, durable hoodie with the VO logo on the front and back, a tank top or t-shirt to wear to the gym to defy the “vegans are weak” myth, a dog collar that lets people know that compassion extends beyond companion animals, or a PopSocket that multi-tasks as a phone kickstand and a handle—and is a great conversation starter about animals—we’ve got it all!
Visit our online store and find the perfect, fun gift for the loved humans and non-humans in your life!
By Lori Stultz, VO Rocky Mountain Outreach Coordinator
Photo Credit: Renee Press / Fire and Earth Kitchen
If you’re a peanut butter fan then this Peanut Buttery Sandwich Cookie is sure to hit the spot!
And if peanut butter isn’t your thing, try swapping it out with your favorite kind of nut butter! The cookie will still meet your sweet and savory expectations!
A huge thanks to Renee Press with Fire and Earth Kitchen—the genius behind all this deliciousness—for letting us share yet another one of her fantastic recipes!
Peanut Buttery Sandwich Cookies
Yields 7 sandwiches or 14 cookies.
Ingredients
½ cup coconut oil
⅓ cup creamy peanut butter + ½ cup for filling
⅓ cup brown sugar
2 ½ tablespoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons flax meal
¼ cup water
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour (gluten-free or wheat)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, combine coconut oil, ⅓ cup peanut butter, and brown sugar. Cream together using a fork.
Add vanilla extract, flax meal, and water. Mix well to combine.
Add salt, baking soda, cinnamon, oats, and flour. Stir well to incorporate.
Roll dough into golf ball sized balls and place on parchment paper. Gently flatten with the palm of your hand. Leave a few inches between each ball of cookie dough.
Bake for 12-15 minutes until the cookies are golden and lightly crisped on bottoms.
Remove from oven and let cool thoroughly—10 to 15 minutes—before adding the peanut butter filling. Once the cookies are cool, gently coat the bottom of one cookie with a tablespoon or so of peanut butter and spread with a butter knife. Attach second cookie and gently press to adhere. Enjoy!
By Lori Stultz, VO Rocky Mountain Outreach Coordinator
Stop what you’re doing. Now.
I mean it.
Put whatever you’re doing aside and join me in celebrating the Wanyama Box—a 100% vegan gift box to send to your non-vegan friends and family.
I’ve got your attention now, right?
The goal of Wanyama Box—Wanyama means animals in Swahili—is for vegans to order them for their non-vegan family and friends. Each box will be filled with 9 to 11 plant-based snacks, promotional offers from vegan brands, and a Vegan Outreach leaflet!
The goal of these gift boxes is to dispel myths about vegans eating twigs and berries. If vegans can show their non-vegan loved ones that vegan food is delicious, then there’s one less barrier between them and veganism.
A little about and from Nzinga Young—the genius behind the Wanyama Box.
I had trouble finding an activism strategy that worked for me during my first vegan year. I did a lot of writing and kept a vegan Instagram account, but I knew I should’ve been doing more to advocate for animals.
I remembered something I did as a kid. I was raised vegetarian and got teased all the time for eating fake meat. To show my classmates my food was actually delicious, I’d share it with them every chance I got. I wondered if the same tactic would work as a vegan, so I started sharing plant-based food with my family and friends.
In the past eight months, I’ve gotten one friend to go vegan, three to go vegetarian, and even more to eat vegetarian in my presence. Sharing food worked so well for me that I wanted to give other vegans an opportunity to recreate the strategy.
We don’t all live in metropolitan areas with access to great vegan food. To make this accessible, I sampled hundreds of vegan food items and put the best into each Wanyama Box.
I hope the packages dispel negative assumptions of vegan food and open lines of communication. The grand gesture of a surprise package will show our family and friends how serious we are about a vegan lifestyle and encourage them to make a change.
Now that you’re as excited as we are, we strongly encourage you to visit the Wanyama Box website to sign-up for email notifications about the project. It’s set to launch this fall.
By Steve Erlsten, VO Northern California Outreach Coordinator
It was the morning on the third week of my seven-week leafleting road trip. My day in San Bernardino, CA started when the alarm went off at 6:45 am. I quickly brushed my teeth and hustled to my car, which was packed with boxes.
I’d left my apartment in Berkeley, CA at the beginning of my tour with 25 thirty-eight pound boxes, each containing a thousand animal-saving booklets.
After I jumped in my car, I ate a Trader Joe’s vegan cinnamon roll while zipping through the beginnings of rush hour traffic. By 7:30 am, I was in action—trying to catch the initial arrival of students at Cal State in San Bernardino!
I like to start leafleting early in the day because the initial rush of students usually has a great take rate—it’s often effective to catch them coming in from the parking lot or their dorms.
I’d checked AdoptACollege.org—a website maintained by VO that contains a wealth of information about each school that volunteers and VO staff have done outreach at—and I’d also spoken with VO’s Director of Outreach, Vic Sjodin, the night before. Vic had previously leafleted Cal State San Bernardino, and I wasn’t familiar with the layout or the best leafleting spots.
I was disappointed by the flow of foot traffic at the first location I tried. I checked out a couple of other suggested spots, but they didn’t seem promising either. I decided to skip ahead to the prime mid-day spot near the library. It worked out great!
There was a steady stream of students with huge rushes at every class change. Most importantly, there were new students passing me at each class change. I wasn’t repeatedly meeting the same students or having to rotate leafleting locations.
I started the day with 2,000 booklets—I handed out booklets continuously for 6 and a half hours. By 2:00 pm, there were still plenty of new students arriving for afternoon and evening classes, so I decided to stay on campus and continue leafleting.
As I trekked back to the car to get a few hundred more booklets, I realized I could set a new record for the number of booklets passed out at this school if I leafleted for just a few more hours! I re-energized with a Clif Bar and refilled my water bottle.
Throughout the day, I had dozens of great conversations! Too many to recount in detail!
Some of my favorite conversations included a chat with a woman named Glenda, whose daughter had been asking to go vegan. I spoke with her for 15 minutes or so, answered her questions, and gave her two of VO’s Guides to Cruelty-Free Eating (GCFE).
The most rewarding moment, however, was meeting James—pictured below. He’d been vegetarian since receiving a booklet from VO last year. He and I spoke for a few minutes, and he told me he was excited to try to go vegan with the help from the GCFE booklet I gave him.
I took an hour break from 2:00 to 3:00 pm and from 4:00 to 5:00 pm when foot traffic was slower. By 6:00 pm, I’d set a record for this university for the most number of booklets handed out in one day.
When the campus started to empty out, I left to get dinner—I was hungry! I ate a cheeseless pizza at a nearby Papa John’s. At 9:00 pm, after watching a few episodes of Better Call Saul in my car and returning a few emails, I drove to my host’s house in a nearby city.
I’d contacted this host on CouchSurfing.com—we’d never met before. We spoke for an hour or so after I arrived. He wasn’t familiar with VO, but was enthusiastic about the work we do. Interestingly enough, he told me that he’d been vegan for four years and applies his experiences of being vegan to his work with respiratory patients.
Sometime shortly after midnight I fell asleep. My alarm rang again at 6:00 am that next morning and I was up and ready to drive to another school to do it all again!
I love my job, and I love that VO has such amazing donors and volunteers to keep our work going! And I want to give a huge shout-out to our other VO Outreach Coordinators who are doing this work in different parts of the world!
VO Executive Director Jack Norris and Steve Erlsten
Your donations make Steve’s work possible. If you want to see even more people go veg next year, donate now to our Half Million Dollar Challenge and your donation will be matched! Thank you!
By Lori Stultz, VO Rocky Mountain Outreach Coordinator
At Vegan Outreach we are working against several forms of injustice—both directly and indirectly. The most obvious injustice we’re working to end, animals being exploited for food.
The clothing industry faces issues with many forms of injustice to both animals and humans. Animals, humans, and the environment are brutally mistreated and exploited, and it’s a problem of which many people are unaware.
We’d like to introduce you to a friend of ours who’s actively working against this type of injustice: Jean White.
Jean, a Seattle resident and vegan boutique owner, is improving the fashion industry. Jean’s boutique, Drizzle & Shine, is a unique clothing and accessory store that only carries a combination of fair trade, organic, local, USA-made, and/or recycled items—allowing customers to shop with a peace of mind.
Inspired by her dedication helping to alleviate the injustices of the fashion industry, Vegan Outreach caught up with Jean to find out more about her.
Let’s meet Jean!
Lori Stultz: Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Jean White: I’m a Canadian transplant to the Pacific Northwest. I moved to Seattle from Toronto in 2000—the same year I went vegan!
Growing up in a big city like Toronto was a lot of fun. I had access to great museums, parks, and restaurants. But I was very removed from my food sources in this urban environment. Meat was just a frozen package in the grocery store.
I had the opportunity to live in a small town in Germany when I was ten years old. I’ll never forget the day I saw a pig being slaughtered! I went vegetarian right away. I didn’t even know the word for it but I stopped eating meat. My parents were very supportive. After graduating from university, I read Diet for a New America and learned about how laying hens and dairy cows are mistreated and killed for eggs, cheese, and milk. I went vegan and my family soon followed.
I was really fortunate to get connected with the Seattle vegan scene early on. I have a great group of compassionate friends and activists. I love volunteering with NARN (the Northwest Animal Rights Network).
When I’m not working or volunteering, my husband and I enjoy the Seattle music scene and the natural beauty of the area. We have three rescued cats and an old, rescued dog.
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Lori: How old were you when you started taking an interest in fashion? Did you attend school for fashion design or business management? Or was this something that came about in a totally different way?
Jean: It’s funny, but I’ve always liked fashion. I had influences from my mom—who grew up a very stylish boho hippy in the 60s—and my grandmother—who was into more tailored, high fashion.
I found my own style early on and really just enjoyed clothing as an artistic expression. Even as a four-year-old, I picked out my own clothing and reminded my mom that, “I have my own taste, you know.”
I’ve worked in clothing stores in the past but my background isn’t fashion-related. I studied English literature in school and worked as a technical editor and writer for over 15 years.
Lori: How did you come to learn about the ethical issues of the fashion industry?
Jean: Working in technical writing was challenging and interesting, but I needed an outlet for style and fashion. That’s why I started my style blog, Jean of all Trades.
At that time, I was still buying some second-hand, non-vegan items (vintage clothing with wool or silk, for example). I figured the items existed, so why not use them and keep them out of landfills?
But the more I thought about it, the more uncomfortable I was. I didn’t want to promote animal products or send the message that one can’t be stylish without exploiting animals. So I learned about fantastic vegan lines like Vaute Couture, Cri de Coeur, Mat & Nat, and NICORA and I started incorporating them into my wardrobe.
By Lori Stultz, VO Rocky Mountain Outreach Coordinator
Kim Sujovolsky, founder of Brownble, has provided a tasty, flavorful, and simple salad idea!
Keep in mind that this recipe doesn’t necessarily require fresh corn, as it may not be available everywhere this time of the year. Kim has provided additional instructions in the recipe below if you need to use frozen corn.
Roasted Corn and Bean Salad
Yields 2-4 servings.
Ingredients
Salad
2 ears of corn, silk and husk removed or 1 large package of frozen corn (if fresh corn is not available)
A drizzle of high heat oil for grilling the corn
2 cans of black beans, rinsed and drained
½ yellow bell pepper, diced
½ red bell pepper, diced
1 tomato, chopped
1 small red onion, finely diced
½ cup fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
½ jalapeño pepper, finely diced (optional)
Avocado slices or guacamole for serving (optional)
Dressing
2 minced garlic cloves
3 tablespoons of lime or lemon juice
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt and a few cracks of pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
½-1 tablespoon mustard
1 ¼ teaspoon agave nectar or maple syrup
Directions
Brush the ears of corn with the oil and place them on a hot, oiled grill pan. Turn them every few minutes to create a nice char all around. Remove from the pan and cut the kernels from the cob using a knife. Place them in a bowl.
If you’re using frozen corn, saute the kernels in a pan using little bit of oil and place them in a bowl.
To make the dressing, add and shake all the ingredients in a jar and let it sit while you assemble your salad.
Add the rest of the salad ingredients except the avocado (if using) to the bowl with the corn.
Add the dressing and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. If possible, chill the salad in the fridge for all the flavors to come together and toss occasionally.
Top with avocado slices or guacamole when serving and enjoy! This salad is also great as a filling for tacos or burritos!
By Lori Stultz, VO Rocky Mountain Outreach Coordinator
Photo: Erin Parker / TheSpeckledPalate.com
I remember the first time I made no-bake cookies in my 5th grade Home Economics class. I was thoroughly confused since the only type of cookie I’d made up to that point was chocolate chip and sugar cookies. I remember thinking to myself, “how can we make cookies without baking them?”
The world of no-bake cookies slowly opened its door to me that day, and the door swung wide open when I became vegan and started reading more food blogs. It’s incredible what you can do with a few ingredients and zero heat.
When I started sharing recipes for this blog, I knew it was only a matter of time until I shared a recipe for no-bake cookies. And when I recently came across this No-Bake Pumpkin Cookie recipe, I knew the time had come.
