Being a Vegan and Kathy Freston

Kathy Freston on the Ellen Degeneres Show

In my opinion, I think so many people are not vegans because they refuse to see the truth about what they are eating. Sadly, our society chooses convenience over our own health and the welfare of others. I strongly believe that if more people would ask questions about where their food comes from and the cruelty that animals endure in our farming industry, I think more and more of us would be vegans. I, like many people, had a hard time accepting these horrible stories as truths. It wasn't until I started doing my own asking and reading, that I realized the horrors that plague our farming industry and the horrible abuse that we humans inflict on defenseless animals.

When I am so often asked, "why are you a vegan?" so many answers run through my head at once. And although I would love to tell that person all of them, they are usually only mildly peaked with interest as to why I, as a big strong human, top of the food chain, would choose to eat plants rather than MEAT. I have found over the last several months of being a vegan an answer that is short and sweet and encompasses the true and honest way I feel about meat. I tell them that I am not interested in having any part in the abuse of another living thing, therefore I choose not to eat meat or any meat by-products.

Having said that, I came across a wonderful book at the book store today. For those of you that watch the Ellen Degeneres Show, you probably caught the episode with Kathy Freston. First let me say, awesome woman! She's just one of those people that I would love to sit down and have a cup of coffee with. For those of you that do not know her, she is a vegan activist that takes a spiritual approach to health and diet. Anyways, while in the book store today, I came across her book Veganist. I of course grabbed it and immediately found a cozy seat and curled up ready to soak it all in. I almost immediately got stuck on the chapter about the horror stories of how and where our food comes from. There were a couple of stories in the book, that to say the least were not for the faint hearted, but that were about undercover "agents" in different aspects of our food industry. There was a story about our chicken industry, one about our egg industry, and another about our dairy industry. This brings me to my first point, that if people would really put two and two together and see our farming industry for what it is, I think more people would be vegans. The atrocities described in these select stories were enough to make my stomach churn and my heart ache. And although I wanted to put the book down, I knew I had to finish the story. I knew that I had to read it for myself. Although that particular chapter made me physically and emotionally sick, above all else, it actually made me glad to know that I don't contribute to those animals' pain.

The rest of the book is not nearly as sad but equally thought provoking. It's filled with wonderful insight and powerful knowledge of how diet heals us, inside and out and how little changes can save the world. Check it out for yourself or buy it here.

You can also read more on Kathy at http://www.kathyfreston.com/

Eat well my friends

and harm none

Only in Austin...

Those of us that consider ourselves to be native Austinites will surely have noticed the influx in trailer eateries all over town. While at first it started out as a kitchy weird Austin kind of a thing, they have slowly but surely infiltrated the entire city. You can now find trailer eateries all over town. They range in type, cuisine, location, and price. What once was a trailer park where people lived has now become local watering holes to eat and hang out. These trailers bring a certain uniqueness to our town that of which can only be "Austin weird."

Being a fan of these cool food trailers, I was, of course, excited when my brother in-law turned me onto a new iPhone app called Austin Food Carts. You can find it at the Apple app store and download it for free or you can check out their website and follow them on twitter at http://www.austinfoodcarts.com/. This nifty little app is great for vegan and ominivores alike. Once you download it, you can use it to find certain cuisine types, including vegan of course :) or you can search your area or search by name. They have categories ranging from African food to Yogurt and everything in between. Once you find a place that sounds good, the app offers you maps, addresses, websites, and even menus. How cool is that? I have already found my next vegan destination, Biscuits and Groovy. Let me kow if you've tried it.

Check it out and see what you think, because only is Austin would trailer parks be cool :)

Conscious Cravings

Although its only a little after eight o'clock, I already find myself wondering what I can do for lunch today. Hmmm.... I'm one of those people that love food and am usually hungry. In fact, to be honest, you can usually find me eating :) so of course you would find me already pondering my lunch endeavors so soon after waking. If you're looking for a new yummy lunch on the go you should check out Conscious Cravings. It's a food trailer just off Guadalupe near campus. It's actually in a cluster of trailer eateries on MLK, but Conscious Cravings is the only vegetarian one. It's a wonderful combination of vegetarian and Indian cuisine (many items are vegan as well). They have wraps, smoothies, and ice cold drinks. My favorite wrap is the spicy chickpea wrap. I promise it will change your life! They have picnic tables to sit and enjoy your food or you can take it to go. Try 'em today!

You can also check out their menu online at http://www.consciouscravingsaustin.com/

Gettin' Fresh with Greenling

I love going to Whole Foods, but as of lately I haven't been able to get to the downtown location early enough and by the afternoon it's gridlock downtown and I usually arrive at the store grumpy. But what's a vegan to do? I have to get fresh produce. Well, I happened to stumble upon this great service that I am so excited to try that can totally be a fix for the grocery store blues. The service is called Greenling.

Greenling delivers farm fresh produce right to your door! You can choose their weekly box or you can customize your own from a long list of seasonal goodies. They use locally grown and organic produce so you know where your food comes from and better yet, on their website you can check out all of their farmers. Once you set up an account and place an order your produce is then delivered right to your front door in a cooler box. It can stay cool in the shade for hours. How cool is that? And my favorite part, when you order the local box they also provide recipes for all the produce you get, so you can plan meals accordingly and nothing you buy has to go to waste! I think they actually may have thought of everything!

Check them out when you get a chance. It's a great way to know exactly where your food comes from and since it's all locally grown you know you will be eating in season which is not just beneficial to you but beneficial to the enviroment as well.

Just a side note, they not only deliver produce, but they can also do gourmet baskets and they also do boxes of local goods that the farmers make, things like beer and wine or jam. You just have to check them out for yourself! Please feel free to post if you used Greenling before and tell me about the experience.

http://www.greenling.com/

Happy Eating!

She's One Skinny Bitch!

   For those of you who have never read any of the Skinny Bitch books, I strongly reccommend them. Now, they are definitely not for everyone because they do give a very no nonsense approach to veganism and how the current eating standards in America is killing us. Authors Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin give you the raw truth, nothing sugar-coated about it. Their style of writing may not appeal to everyone, but the information they are giving is absolutely priceless.

After reading Skinny Bitch, I of course moved on to their other books and their recipe book. I liked all of them and urge you to read them if you can. I however, have discovered and have fallen in love with the newest edition to the series. Enter Kim Barnouin's Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook. I truly love this book. First off, it's got loads of great pictures that make your mouth water. Secondly, the recipes are easy to follow and do not have so many ingredients that they lose you and thankfully Kim explains any technical cooking jargon in simple terms. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, the recipes also rock!

I have had this cookbook for about 5 months now and I have not been dissappointed once. My absolute favorite is the pear crosstini. It is scrumptious! Border's in the Domain is closing their store and everything is on sale. This is a great time to head over and check to see if you can add this cookbook to your collection. If you can't find it there I know Target and Barnes and Noble both carry it and of course you can always find it on Amazon. You can also check Kim out online at http://www.healthybitchdaily.com/

Enjoy skinny bitches!

Plant a Garden

Sunshine Garden Annual Plant Sale

Last weekend my mother and I braved the weather for the Sunshine Community Garden plant sale last weekend. We both stocked up on herbs and vegetables. Here are the fruits of my labor. Let's hope I can keep my dogs out of it.  :)

With Spring just around the corner, right now is the perfect time to start a garden. If you don't fancy yourself a green thumb try starting small like a few herbs. Choose herbs that you like to cook with. My favorite is basil. You can easily grow herbs in your kitchen or on the patio. They are especially good for apartments or house without back yards. For those of you are experienced gardeners take this time to start or refresh your garden.

There are some things to keep in mind when starting your garden. Central Texas weather obviously gets very hot as we get into the depths of Summer so be conscientious about where you put your garden. You probably will not want to put your garden where it's going to get the full heat of the Texas sun. Try and choose some place where it will get a bit of shade but still get about 8 hours of sun a day. Choose vegetables that do well in the full sun and be sure you have the room for plants that vine or the ones that grow big. Good herbs would be basil, rosemary, oregano, and mint. All will do well, but feel free to be adventurous.

So take advantage of the next weekend with good weather and plant a garden. Do you have any tips or tricks for your garden?

An Encounter with Counter Culture

   Looking for lunch in all the wrong places? Well the Two Vegan Sisters have got just the place for you! We met for lunch yesterday and decided to try out Counter Culture on North Loop. I have been meaning to go by there since it's so close to my office, but I had never gotten around to it. So when my sister mentioned it yesterday as our late lunch destination I was immediately stoked! However, in hindsight, nothing could have prepared me for the delighful deliciousness that was instore.

   For those of you who have never been there, Counter Culture is a Vegan Trailer Eatery that is located on the corner of North Loop and Avenue F. It is across the street from Room Service and next to Blackbird. The quaint little trailer is bright turquiose so you can't really miss it. You can order to go or find a seat at one of their picnic tables in the back. My sister and I opted for an outdoor picnic table lunch because of the perfect weather.

We split out lunch and shared. We both had a half of the Philly and a half of their special, Sausage and Sauerkraut. It was so good! So good in fact, I'm planning on going back today! I had the pleasure of meeting Sue and she was kind enough to split our sandwiches for us when she overheard us talking about sharing our grub.

The Philly was my favorite! : ) Truly out of this world! It's seitan with sauteed bell pepers and onions with cashew cheese. It's a flavor explosion like no other. The Sausage and Sauerkraut was also awesome! The sausage was spicy and it was topped with old fashioned yellow mustard. How can you go wrong? Yummy!

If you have not been, you must try it! It comes highly reccommend by the two vegan sisters. Check them out online here or find them on Facebook. If you need their address check out our Restaurants Page.