Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Veggie burgers: A diet disaster?

If you’re like me, all the holiday goodies have left you with a few extra pounds and a desire to eat healthier in the new year. However, if you’re eating at a restaurant, ordering the veggie burger might not be the best option.

The November issue of Cooking Light compared the fat and calorie counts of veggie burgers from three restaurants with meat burgers. You’d be better off with the veggie burger in all cases, but only by comparison: Burger King’s veggie burger (a Morningstar Farms patty) has 420 calories and 16g of fat; Red Robin’s (a Boca burger) has 458 calories and 13g of fat; and Ruby Tuesday’s homemade version has a whopping 952 calories and 53g (!!) of fat. The comparison didn’t specify how much of the calories and fat was from the patty itself and how much was from the toppings (cheese, mayo and the like). But be wary of those seemingly diet-friendly veggie burgers! (Of course, at some of these restaurants, a veggie burger is your only option….)

The magazine also included some recipes for much healthier make-at-home veggie burgers:

Quick Black Bean Burgers
Middle Eastern Chickpea Miniburgers

Monday, December 21, 2009

Daiya taste-test

Daiya brand “cheese” has generated a lot of buzz in vegan circles this year. In March it won VegNews magazine’s “best of show” award at Expo West, a major natural-products trade show. More recently, VegNews named it product of the year. Bloggers have been posting rave reviews. It melts…. And even more, it stretches!

So I’d been eager to try it. The opportunity arrived a few weeks ago with an email from the Vegan Essentials mail-order company. They had five-pound blocks of Daiya available. I ordered a cheddar block immediately, fervently hoping that it wouldn’t be gross. Five pounds is a lot of fake cheese. Luckily, it freezes well. And Vegan Essentials also offers smaller packages of shredded Daiya – although, alas, both the blocks and the shreds are currently sold out.

The flavor has just a hint of the fake-cheese flavor that plagues many vegan cheeses; otherwise it’s pleasant if not overwhelmingly wonderful. But its ability to melt exceeds any other vegan cheese I’ve tried. The texture is fantastic. I’ve enjoyed it in macaroni and “cheese,” atop English-muffin pizzas and various casseroles; and best of all, in nachos. So far, that is my favorite way to use it. I’m conserving the remaining blocks, hoping Vegan Essentials will get more stock in before I’m left Daiya-less and needing nachos!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

What’s cooking?

I think cookbooks make a fabulous gift for vegetarians—especially if they’re fond of cooking, of course. (And if they don’t cook often, maybe a great cookbook could inspire them to get into the kitchen, saving themselves money and calories.)

Delicious Living‘s blog recently picked the best new vegetarian cookbooks of 2009. I wasn’t familiar with any of their picks, but as you know if you read this blog regularly, I’m a sucker for cookbooks. So I’m especially eager to get my hands on Vegetarian Dishes from Across the Middle East, since Middle-Eastern cuisine is one of my favorites. I love so many of the ingredients used in it—eggplants, pomegranates, figs, dates—and having a cookbook of strictly vegetarian dishes is wonderful.

Anybody have any particular favorite vegetarian cookbooks—new or old—to recommend?

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Another favorite discontinued

I’m still cranky over Boca discontinuing their vegetarian sausages (and apparently some of you are, too, since I’m still getting comments from that old entry). Now I’ve discovered that Morningstar Farms has discontinued their steak-style Meal Starters strips. Bah!

They still make their frozen chicken-style strips, but I always preferred the steak-style strips. And they were the basis for my vegetarian Irish stew, so I don’t know what I’ll do this St. Patrick’s Day! Trader Joe’s does have refrigerated steak-style strips, but I don’t like them as much, and they require an hour-and-a-half drive to buy.

I called Morningstar Farms, and, again, the explanation is “low sales.” If you would like to complain about the discontinuation, you can call Morningstar Farms at 1-800-962-0120, or fill out an online form at the Morningstar Farms Web site.

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Mooney’s Wine Dinner

One of the most vegetarian-friendly restaurants in the city, Mooney’s Mediterranean Cafe, will have a wine-paired dinner at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 15 – and the dinner will include a completely vegetarian option. According to an email from Mooney’s, courses will include an assortment of appetizers, soup, pumpkin kibbe, stuffed zucchini over couscous, and dessert – with each course paired with wines from the Middle East. At other restaurants, such special dinners as this often don’t often a vegetarian option. I’m thrilled that Mooney’s does. The cost is $35; for information or reservations, call Mooney’s at 722-4222

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

The Frozen Vegan

As I was admiring the gelato and sorbet selection in the prepared foods section at Whole Foods on Miller Street today, a pan of Vegan Chocolate Mint sorbet caught my eye. Of course, I couldn’t turn that down. In between bites of the very rich chocolate confection, I asked whether they always had a vegan flavor. As it turns out, all the sorbets—at least a half-dozen or so—are vegan. How lovely to have that much choice!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

PETA Thanksgiving ad

According to this article, four local NBC affiliates are refusing to air an ad that PETA had wanted to run during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. One of the affiliates is WNCN in Raleigh; the station’s general manager said he banned the ad because it wasn’t in the spirit of the parade. (The article is unclear about whether the ad will run on other affiliates or whether PETA tried to place the ad only on those four affiliates that rejected it.)

In the commercial, a young girl gives thanks for the turkey—and all the unsavory turkey-farming processes that brought it to the table—as surprised and uncomfortable relatives look on. Frankly, I found the commercial rather amusing, as well as effective in getting the point across. Certainly it is less outrageous than some of PETA’s past ads (for instance, women cavorting provocatively with vegetables). And I know that I find ads for, say, erectile-dysfunction medicine, not in the spirit of many of the shows I watch!

To see the ad for yourself, go here.

Now That’s Living

Thanksgiving is coming, and vegetarians looking for ideas can turn to the source of all domestic wisdom—Martha Stewart.

Yes, last week Stewart did an entire episode of her TV program on vegetarian Thanksgiving, and the episode is now available online.

The site offers two menus, complete with recipes. One is for a hearty menu built around a main course of celery root, persimmon and swiss chard stuffing; the other for a “Fresh and Festive” menu, with the main course of quinoa pie with butternut squash. Many of the recipes look interesting and tasty, for Thanksgiving or any other meal.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Buying Spree

  Sometimes I look at the bookcase full of vegetarian cookbooks in my kitchen, and declare that I do NOT need another cookbook…. But these days, appealing vegan cookbooks are being published at a lively clip—and it’s a market I want to support! Here are three recent ones with so much personality and originality that I could not resist taking them home:

  The Urban Vegan, by blogger Dynise Balcavage is fun because it is arranged around themes—such as “Cafe Culture,” “Lunch Cart,” and “Happy Hour”—so that you can imagine you’re on vacation in some sophisticated urban vegan paradise. The recipes are intriguing, but “do-able”—such as Quince-Cranberry Sauce and Parsnips St. Jacques—and Balcavage’s commentary is lively and charming. The recipes I’ve tried, such as a rich Spaghetti Carbonara and Winter Pesto (based on spinach rather than basil) have turned out well.

  The Kind Diet by actress Alicia Silverstone first lays out the reasons for going vegan – for the animals, for your health, for the planet. Then Alicia—after reading her friendly writing, you’ll feel like you’re on a first-name basis with her—offers three plans, to help readers ease into veganism at their own pace, from “flirts” who are interested but not yet committed to veganism; vegans ready to cut out meat, eggs and dairy; and “superheroes” who add a macrobiotic slant to the vegan diet. The recipes I’ve tried have been very clearly written, straightforward and delicious. I’ve made the tasty Ginger-Baked Tofu twice already, and eaten my way through an entire pan of the Crispy Peanut Butter Treats with Chocolate Chips. Next on my agenda: the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. Alicia has a blog, too, The Kind Life.

  The Conscious Cook by chef Tal Ronnen presents gourmet recipes, the kind whose descriptive names go on almost forever: “oven-roasted Banana Rum Cheesecake with spiced pecan crust and maple rum sauce.” Some of the recipes may challenge my kitchen skills –- but should be fun and rewarding to make. The book has nice layout and photography, and includes profiles of vegan chefs and restaurants, as well as interviews with vegan pioneers, such as the man who introduced quinoa to the U.S. I just got it Monday, and think the paella (full name “Paella with ‘sausage,’ nori-dusted oyster mushroms, and wine-braised artichoke hearts”) may be the first recipe I’ll try. Ronnen’s Website is also rewarding because it includes a few recipes and videos of Ronnen cooking them.

Monday, November 09, 2009

No “Bones” about it

Last Thursday’s episode of Fox’s “Bones” featured a storyline involving animal rights. The murder victim of the week ran a poultry-processing plant, and the investigation brought up issues about how the chickens are treated. There were images of thousands of chickens crowded into one large room, as well as brief video footage of baby chicks being de-beaked. The episode also included a storyline of one character trying to raise money from her co-workers to save a piglet from being turned into bacon, resulting in some interesting discussions.

I’m fairly certain that star and producer Emily Deschanel had something to do with the conception of the episode, since she is a staunch vegan. And I was thrilled to see a popular, mainstream TV show tackle the issue of animal rights.

By the way, veganism runs in the Deschanel family: Her sister, Zooey, was a guest on an episode of Bravo’s “Top Chef Masters,” in which the chefs had to create a vegan (and also gluten-free) meal for her and her friends. I’m always amused by the horror with which many chefs greet the prospect of meat-free meals and how other chefs fully embrace the concept and relish the challenge (this was also evident in an episode of this season’s “Top Chef”). Generally, the latter tend to be more successful with their dishes, not surprisingly. (Though not always.)