Going Vegan

[coralyn]

Hello, everyone! I am new here. I signed up because I have decided to change the way I live my life. My mom was recently diagnosed with colon cancer. To support her, we've talked about eating ONLY the healthy food. This is the second week, and she's tired of just tofu and tossed veggies.

What recipes would you suggest?

Thanks, everybody!

 

[Amy SF]

Welcome to VeggieViews! I'm sorry about your mom's diagnosis.

One thing you can do is make familiar dishes that can easily be made vegan. For example, spaghetti and meatballs can be vegan if the sauce is a meatless marinara sauce and the "meatballs" are made with a meat substitute. You can also add a ground beef substitute to the marinara sauce such as Lightlife Gimme Lean beef style, which is all vegan. You can buy vegan "meatballs" or use the Gimme Lean "beef" to make your own.

You can make a chicken and veggie stew and use a vegan chicken substitute for the real thing. Or, instead of vegan chicken, you can add grains and/or pulses such as quinoa and lentils.

Normally I wouldn't recommend using a lot of meat substitutes, but they ARE helpful when you're transitioning to a vegan diet, and if you use them in moderation. Vegan brands to look for:

Gardein
Boca
Lightlife
Tofurky (they make a Tofurky roast which is a good substitute for a holiday turkey)

Good luck!

 

[PTree15]

Hi, and welcome!
Soups (using veggie stock instead of meat stock) are always good along with veggie chili.
I also like to make veggie pot pie and casseroles as well. You could try making a tofu quiche, which is delicious and a different way to eat tofu.
Check this site's recipe section. There are tons of vegan tasty recipes.

 

[Nightshade]

I am so sorry your mother is ill, Coralyn. I think that your best bet would be to see that she is eating plenty of greens, fresh vegetables and beans. I think you really want to avoid anything processed including ready made vegan foods because they often have a lot of sodium as well as unhealthy sweeteners and other ingredients she probably should not be eating in light of the cancer. Soups are easy to make and easy to digest, so are vegetable stews and chilis. This is a link to an excellent, informative website that will give you an idea of foods that will be beneficial for your Mom. This is another one that has a ton of helpful information that might give you some ideas about the types of food you should be making.

These are some recipe sites that I've used a lot. The recipes are generally low (unhealthy) fat, no salt, vegan and use fresh ingredients:
http://ohsheglows.com/
http://www.healthygirlskitchen.com/p/healthy-recipes.html
http://virtuallyveganmama.com/
http://fatfreevegan.com/

 

[Everleigh]

Hi,I tend to agree with the others here.I think that the simple recipes would be best for someone that is ill.Also I prefer them myself as I think I feel better overall when I eat something that is simple.I would recommend The Kind Life by Alicia Silverstone.She also has a website http://thekindlife.com/recipes/

The actual book has the more simple recipes in it though.If purchasing it is not an option you could check it out at your local library.