Plant-Based FUN Guide (FREE)

FUN G U I D E

07 DAYS 07 WAYS to add more plants and entertainment into your life!

Most people don’t associate the words plant-based,vegan or vegetarian with the word FUN, but we’re here to change all that!

Here you will find 7 Veg-Related ideas to try… whether you’re stuck at home or are able to get out and about.* How about challenging yourself – and maybe even your whole family – to have fun with one new idea every day for a week?

DAY

01 taste DAY

02 chill DAY

03 shop DAY

04 laugh DAY

05 travel DAY

06 party DAY

07 care

Play with Your Food!

Concoct interesting creations and learn about international foods

Binge Watch!

Get the popcorn out for a TV/movie night

Attention Shoppers!

Explore new veg-friendly stores in person or online

Laugh Your Plants Off! Follow comedians and other entertainers

Find the Greener Pastures!

Discover [even virtually] new places and restaurants

Party with Your Plants!

Throw a party [even for 1 or 2]

Be Dr. Dolittle for a Day!

Visit an animal sanctuary and ask about volunteering

* F irst and foremost, we sincerely hope you and your families are staying healthy and safe during these times of uncertainty. We recommend following all the health and safety protocols in your area, practicing smart social distancing, and sanitizing. Monitor the latest news and guidelines from the CDC as well as local, state and federal officials before engaging in public activities with large or small groups. Always err on the side of caution to protect both yourself and others.

DAY

01 taste Play with your Food!

CONCOCT INTERESTING CREATIONS AND LEARN ABOUT INTERNATIONAL FOODS. FUN FOOD CREATIONS Making bugs, flowers and other edible artistic creations out of fruits and veggies is fun for both kids and adults—and kids are much more likely to eat their own masterpieces! Hold a contest to see who can make the coolest or tastiest creation. Here are a few links to start you off: CELERY SNAILS

CUCUMBER FLOWERS

GO FOR THE GREEN – SMOOTHIES, THAT IS Many people who find it hard to get enough veggies in their diet have discovered that a green smoothie every day makes all the difference. It’s fun for kids if you let them select their own ingredients, throw them in the blender, and name their creation (just steer them away from the onion bin—trust us, from experience). Green Blender is one source for inspirational recipes.

Even better, start an indoor or outdoor garden to grow your own ingredients!

VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE So make yours the spiciest ever! Variety makes eating plants so much more interesting and so much more healthful. Set a goal to pick out one new food at the grocery store every trip (another fun kid activity), hold an international theme night with a new recipe every week, and/ or order from a new restaurant. Subscribing to a produce or meal shipment company or CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) makes it even easier!

RESOURCES… • The Help Yourself Cookbook for Kids: 60 Easy Plant-Based Recipes Kids Can Make to Stay Healthy and Save the Earth is a colorful and fun book by Ruby Roth • Yummy Yoga: Playful Poses and Tasty Treats by Joy Bauer • Directory of Meal Delivery Services: www.vegmealdelivery.com © 2020 Plant-Based Network

DAY

02 chill Binge Watch!

GET THE POPCORN OUT FOR A TV/MOVIE NIGHT

While we don’t advocate being a slug on the couch all day, there are some great movies and shows that can both entertain and inspire you and your family about plant-based living. Here are a few ideas that will give you a greater appreciation for the “couch potato!”

MOVIES • 101 Dalmatians [G]

• Finding Nemo [G]

• The Lorax [PG]

• Babe [G]

• The Good Dinosaur [PG]

• Pete’s Dragon [ PG - 2016]

• Chicken Run [G]

• Happy Feet [PG]

• Wall-E [G]

• Ferngully: The Last Rainforest [G]

• Hoot [PG]

• Finding Dory [PG]

• Jane [PG - 2017]

TV SHOWS

ON THE PLANT-BASED NETWORK® • Pauli Broccoli

• Vegan Mashup

• EatMoveRest

• Cook Vegan For Me

• The Vegan Roadie

• International Vegan Film Festival

• Conscious Traveller

© 2020 Plant-Based Network

For a DELICIOUS & NUTRITIOUS popcorn topping, try a sprinkle of nutritional yeast, which gives you a “POP” of cheesiness!

DAY

03 shop Attention Shoppers!

EXPLORE NEW VEG-FRIENDLY STORES IN PERSON OR ONLINE

Why shop the big box stores when there are so many small companies and entrepreneurs with great values and fantastic products you can support instead? Many of them especially need our business right now so they can stay IN business. Plus it’s lots of fun to wear a t-shirt - or cook a special food that just can’t be found in the average store.

Many of these items are unique conversation starters as well, if you’re looking for more conversations! There is also a movement that encourages plant-based people to wear a “message” t-shirt on Saturdays in order to spread the message (and you can never have enough t-shirts!)

Do you miss shopping at the dozens of exciting vegetarian and vegan festivals held throughout the year which are likely cancelled or postponed? While we can’t hand you the lunch you would have had, we can give you the link to

www.VirtualVegfest.com

where you can still “Get Your Veg On.” Virtual Vegfest is recreating as much of the fun vegfest atmosphere as possible, while helping to support some of the hundreds of plant-based businesses affected by the shutdowns this year. Some of the other festivals are also making alternate plans and websites and online events, so it’s worth exploring.

SOME OF OUR OTHER FAVORITE ONLINE SHOPPING SITES INCLUDE: BILLION VEGANS www.billionvegans.com T he world’s largest store for vegan and plant-based products, where you can shop from many categories including woman-owned businesses, fashion, beauty, pets, groceries and more. They even publish their own digital magazine, so check them out! © 2020 Plant-Based Network

VEGAN ESSENTIALS www.veganessentials.com A re the winner of the 2020 Veggie Awards, and you can find unusual products including incredibly authentic, delicious vegan fried eggs (obviously we’ve tried them)!

DAY

04 laugh Laugh Your Plants Off!

WE THINK IT’S SAFE TO SAY WE COULD ALL USE A LITTLE MORE HUMOR RIGHT NOW! FUNNY BOOKS

COMEDY SHOWS For some comic relief plant-based style, check out Eric Lindstrom’s comedy sketch show on the Plant-Based Network called The Skeptical Vegan.

If you don’t know the name Preacher Lawson, a muscular vegan who was a finalist on the 12th season of America’s Got Talent and took 5th place on America’s Got Talent: The Champions, you soon will. He is pretty unique in the comedy world since he not only weaves veganism into his act, but he has a droolworthy cooking show on his Youtube channel that already has half a million subscribers! www.youtube.com/user/ComedianPreacher

If you get tired of the internet, books are a nice change of pace. An oldie but a goodie is the all-cartoon book The Joy of Soy: Vegetarian Cartoons by cartoonist and writer Vance Lehmkuhl. A funny but seriously practical book is The Skeptical Vegan: My Journey from Notorious Meat Eater to TofuMunching Vegan—A Survival Guide by show host Eric C. Lindstrom.

MORE COMEDIANS TO CHECK OUT Other comedians who are reported to be vegan or vegan-ish include a few people you may have heard of: Ellen Degeneres • Steve Martin Sarah Silverman • Russell Brand Myq Kaplan • Kevin Nealon • Pete Holmes and even Weird Al Yankovic!

Did we miss anyone? Who are your favorites?

Drop us a line at info@plantbasednetwork.com © 2020 Plant-Based Network

DAY

05 travel Find the Greener Pastures!

DISCOVER [even virtually] NEW PLACES AND RESTAURANTS Traveling is already fun for most people, and trying new restaurants or local foods, making new friends, and checking out new stores makes it even more memorable.

Travel can be anything from a day’s outing to a nearby town to several weeks at a resort or guided tour. You can also make up your own agenda and include dining out, shopping and entertainment!

There are veg-friendly guides in most if not all of the major cities who will take you to their favorite hangouts.

CHECK OUT THESE TRAVEL IDEAS… Veg Voyages: www.vegvoyages.com

PETA’s list: www.peta.org

Veg Jaunts and Journeys: www.vegjauntsandjourneys.com

Green Earth Travel: www.greenearthtravel.com

Holistic Holiday at Sea: www.holisticholidayatsea.com

Vegan Rentals: www.VegVisits.com

© 2020 Plant-Based Network

DAY

06 party Party with your Plants!

THROW A PARTY (even just for yourself) Pick a theme, add some music from the internet and a few DIY decorations and activities for a low-cost party.

FIESTA: Set up a taco bar with lots of toppings, vegan cheeses and sour cream, and a few spiced up protein sources such as black beans, refried beans, tempeh or baked tofu. Just add margaritas—virgin or otherwise—and your old copy of “Hot Hot Hot!” LUAU: A healthier alternative to traditional pulled pork is jackfruit.

Flava My Plate: Your Tasty Vegan Guide to Health-Wealth by one of PBN’s Advisory Committee, Dawn Hilton-Williams, has a recipe for BarBQ jackfruit and many other “flava-filled” dishes.

HOLIDAY: It’s fun to make meatless holiday dishes for skeptical omnivores and watch them devour them! On Vegan Mash-Up’s Holiday episode, Miyoko Schinner (owner of the popular line of non-dairy products called Miyoko’s) creates a gorgeous veggie and puff pastry “turkey!”

POTLUCK: Potlucks are one of the most popular plant-based parties, especially great for the veg-curious who get a chance to explore new dishes. People who hate to cook can just bring fruit or cut-up veggies and dip.

Cheers!

COOKBOOKS WE RECOMMEND… • Epic Vegan: Wild and Over-the-Top Plant-Based Recipes by Dustin Harder, PBN show host f ull of unique creations like: Kale Me Crazy Ice Cream

• Party Vegan by Robin Roberts

• Caribbean Vegan by Taymer Mason

• Party in Your Plants: 100+ PlantBased Recipes and Problem-Solving Strategies to Help You Eat Healthier (Without Hating Your Life)

by Talia Pollock

• Hawaii Diet Cookbook

by Dr. Terry Shintani

• Vegan Christmas

by Gaz Oakley

© 2020 Plant-Based Network

DAY

07 care Be Dr. Dolittle for a Day —

VISIT AN ANIMAL SANCTUARY

What can be cuter or more heart-warming for the whole family than to visit animals who are having fun and enjoying themselves, instead of abused or on someone’s dinner plate. There are sanctuaries for many types of different animals including farm animals like pigs, cows, and chickens, but also abandoned and rescued animals like monkeys, zoo animals, hamsters, and more, and many of them are located in relaxing rural areas.

Most sanctuaries need volunteers and money to help with general animal caretaking, veterinary care, feeding and cleanup, but many also have visiting days, parties, dinners, and other fun.

Some support themselves by selling bumperstickers, t-shirts, jewelry or photos or artwork of the animals, which can be treasured souvenirs forever. Some have “adoption” papers where you help feed and care for a certain animal, which is particularly fun for kids!

Others have incredible galas or parties every year, and other sanctuaries bring in speakers and hold special events and classes. All of these activities go to a very worthy cause – helping rescued animals live long, healthy and happy lives.

Don’t forget to volunteer, buy their products, and support them however you can!

A comprehensive list of animal sanctuaries can be found at Vegan Navigator

© 2020 Plant-Based Network

Thanks for reading the Plant-Based Fun Guide!

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