Give me your vegetarian ideas and opinions!

[missmetal]

Originally Posted by Debrah

Excellent that you got on track with that. I was quite surprised in my reading, to discover that there are so many issues that can affect ones B12 status and how important it is for so many functions in our bodies.

Do you feel better now that you got that straightened out? Hope so and just out of curiosity, how is your diabetes doing with the vegetarian foods?

Not too sure if I feel better or not taking the B12 (I still really need to get a blood test done so they can really see the levels), I think if anything it might give me a little extra energy and I don't feel as lethargic, but taking it once a fortnight, I find that maybe by the end of the week or close to week 2, I start feeling tired again. So maybe I should up the dosage to 1 tablet a week, instead of 1 tablet every 2 weeks.

Diabetes is totally under control for sure, I honestly don't really check my blood sugars that often, but when I do they've always perfect.

From Fast Food To Vege, my diabetes would be MUCH more controlled anyway, since I am not eating **** anymore.

My diet used to be absolutely appalling as a teen / early twenties. I don't blame anyone but myself for the way I got out of shape, unfortunately at the time I was suffering from severe depression and anxiety for 10 years. So I would comfort eat a lot, and comfort foods to me were large fast food meals 3 times a day, soft drinks, and junk snacks in between.

These days I only ever drink water, maybe a cup of tea or coffee 3 times a week.
Food wise, I eat only twice a day.
Lunch would probably be a vegetarian hot dog, or a can of beans on toast, a salad sandwich or left over vegetarian dinner from the night before.
Dinner I always cook a vegetarian meal for my husband and I.
(Well, I still enjoy the occasional nibble of a packet of crisps once a fortnight, or maybe a small chocolate or a piece of fruit for a snack.)

Diet has definitely changed for the better!

[missmetal]

Hey all, just wanted to mention I have made the swap to vegan cheese to see what it is like.
So far my husband and I have only tried the cheddar cheese, which is actually quite nice! Smells & Tastes exactly like cheddar cheese! (this product is from Greece, but was imported to Australia for anyone interested in trying it, it was roughly $6 each AUD)









Quick lunch husband made for us - Pesto, Baby Spinach, Vegan Cheddar, Green Olives.

[dianamadalina]

I think it is quite expensive to live as a vegan.not everyone can aford this lifestyle unless they grow theyr own vegetables and fruits

[mogenblue]

Originally Posted by dianamadalina

I think it is quite expensive to live as a vegan.not everyone can aford this lifestyle unless they grow theyr own vegetables and fruits

Well, that depends on how you do it. Eating meat can also be very expensive when you buy it at a quality butcher instead of the supermarket.

Pigs and cows need to be feed at least a couple of years before they produce one portion of meat. So basically plant based food has to be cheaper by default.

Organic food is more expensive then regular food. But organic food is something different then plant based food.

Since I went vegan my cost for food went down month by month. When I still used meat and dairy I would spend on average about 80 euro's a week on shoppings. That has now dropped to about 35 euro's a week. Plus about 6-8 euro's for fruit from the daily market. So total about 42 euro's a week.

That's how I initially developed a drinking habit. hahahaha. I'm getting that under control. I now only drink in the weekends.

[missmetal]

Originally Posted by dianamadalina

I think it is quite expensive to live as a vegan.not everyone can aford this lifestyle unless they grow theyr own vegetables and fruits

I somewhat agree, I guess it depends on if you buy processed vegan foods (like the cheese or 'free from' snacks in the health food aisle in a supermarket) or you buy nothing but fruit and vege, and create meals with that.

My husband and I would spend roughly $180 a week easily when buying meat and junk foods.
Now we spend $120 on vegetables and fruit alone, cat food for our 3 cats, and household essentials like toilet paper or boxed water. (We can't drink the tap water here unless we filter it, it has a lot of calcium and other chemicals in it from the towns water that just isn't nice to drink and looks white when you put it in a glass! so its better off for us to spend $3 on a 10 Litre box of spring water)

We just use pinterest for recipes and I was given a vegan cookbook yesterday as a birthday gift which has a lot of easy meals we can make with ingredients we already have in the house! :)

But yeah, like I said, I think buying all vegan or even gluten free products that have been processed and packaged can be very expensive.

[mogenblue]

If you have to look after your budget it might be a good idea to buy a soy milk machine. That's how making my own food started for me.

Regular soymilk from the supermarket cost about 90 eurocent overhere. My homemade soymilk cost me about 35 eurocent. That includes the vanilla flavor for better taste.

You can also use it to make nutmilk, like hazelnut or almond. I also make buckwheat- and cornmilk with it. Oatmilk is good too.

If you have bought almond milk at an organic store you know how expensive that is. Not to mention hazelnut milk.
But when you make them yourself and vary between nut, bean and grain milk on average you may well be cheaper off then regular cow milk, yoghurts and the like, from the supermarket.

Home made milk is also much more nutritious. Many recipes state you get rid of the pulp that comes free from the milk, but I always put it back in the milk so that nothing goes to waste. The pulp still contains a lot of nutritions.

So it's not only good for your purse, but definitely also for your health.

How you want it to taste is up to you. You can add cocoa or lemonade sirop for different flavors. Sugar is a matter of personal taste.

[Debrah]

Originally Posted by missmetal

Not too sure if I feel better or not taking the B12 (I still really need to get a blood test done so they can really see the levels), I think if anything it might give me a little extra energy and I don't feel as lethargic, but taking it once a fortnight, I find that maybe by the end of the week or close to week 2, I start feeling tired again. So maybe I should up the dosage to 1 tablet a week, instead of 1 tablet every 2 weeks.

Diabetes is totally under control for sure, I honestly don't really check my blood sugars that often, but when I do they've always perfect.

From Fast Food To Vege, my diabetes would be MUCH more controlled anyway, since I am not eating **** anymore.

My diet used to be absolutely appalling as a teen / early twenties. I don't blame anyone but myself for the way I got out of shape, unfortunately at the time I was suffering from severe depression and anxiety for 10 years. So I would comfort eat a lot, and comfort foods to me were large fast food meals 3 times a day, soft drinks, and junk snacks in between.

These days I only ever drink water, maybe a cup of tea or coffee 3 times a week.
Food wise, I eat only twice a day.
Lunch would probably be a vegetarian hot dog, or a can of beans on toast, a salad sandwich or left over vegetarian dinner from the night before.
Dinner I always cook a vegetarian meal for my husband and I.
(Well, I still enjoy the occasional nibble of a packet of crisps once a fortnight, or maybe a small chocolate or a piece of fruit for a snack.)

Diet has definitely changed for the better!

Just curious how much B12 you are taking. I have heard that a 1000mcg tablet of the sublingual stuff and taken once per week is adequate for maintenance and that came from Dr. Michael Greger who is a vegan doctor who has done numerous short videos on health and veg'n diets. I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better by the way and watching your diet better! We get away with lousy eating habits when we are young but at that point our 'life force' is strong, but as we age, not so much.

[missmetal]

Originally Posted by Debrah

Just curious how much B12 you are taking. I have heard that a 1000mcg tablet of the sublingual stuff and taken once per week is adequate for maintenance and that came from Dr. Michael Greger who is a vegan doctor who has done numerous short videos on health and veg'n diets. I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better by the way and watching your diet better! We get away with lousy eating habits when we are young but at that point our 'life force' is strong, but as we age, not so much.

I take 1 of these tablets per week :)

[Avilucis]

I've heard a lot about nutritional yeast being an good source of B12 and protein - and can be used in a cheesy way.
Has anyone tried it? I have tried it years ago, but not in cooking.

Here is a little bit of info/ideas: http://rabbitfoodformybunnyteeth.com/cheesy-kale-chips/

[mogenblue]

I use nutritional yeast. It's ok. nice taste.

I don't use it for the B12. I rely on supplements for that.

Price may differ significantly in various shops. Overhere it cost about 10 euro in an organic store and 3,5 euro in another for about 200 grams. Didn't notice any difference in taste.

I sprinkle it over my dinner and use it in seitan.