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CONTENTS VegWorld Magazine - December 2013

THE FUN SIDE OF VEGGIE LIVING 8 Vegan Holiday Gift Guide 16 Vegan 101 20 Yoga For The Veggie Soul 21 Fit Quickies Looking for the perfect veg-friendly gifts this holiday season? We gotcha covered. pg. 8

FAMILY & LIFESTYLE 25 Five Ways to Get the Gift of a Healthy Immune System This Holiday Season 29 How to Get a “Healthy Glow” Just In Time for the Winter Season

Organic food is expensive, but is it really worth it? pg. 33

NUTRITION & THRIVING 33 Are Organics Worth the Price? 36 Smart Kids Eat Plants

MAIN FEATURES 40 God, Christianity and Meat 47 Vegan is the New Kosher Stay away from getting sick this winter season. Tips on how to strengthen your immune system. pg. 25

VegWorld Magazine

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CONTENTS VegWorld Magazine - December 2013

SPOTLIGHT ON COMPASSION 51 The Power of Our Food Choices

RECIPES FOR FOODIES 60 Perfect Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms 61 Chef AJ’s Disappearing Lasagna 64 Cranberry Apple Ginger Cocktail 65 Hibiscus Rosé 66 Baked Potato Latkes

What can religion teach us about the moral issues surrounding meat consumption? pg. 40

67 Stuffed Cabbage 69 Blueberry Blintzes 72 Asian Asparagus Wraps 75 Apple Puffs with Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce

ORDINARY PEOPLE/ EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS 80 Getting Kids Lean and Green: One Mom’s Quest to Make Lunches Healthy

REGULARS 5 Credits VegWorld Staff & Contributing Writers 6 Editor’s Note A Message from the Founder of VegWorld Magazine, Steve Prussack 84 Reviews and Recommendations Vegworld’s Pick of the month Veggie World Travels Blintzes are a delicious traditional holiday treat. Get the healthy veg-friendly recipe on pg. 69

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CREDITS Founder/ Publisher Steve Prussack

VegWorld staff

Associate editor Julie Varon Content editor Carol Sudakin Graphic design Veronique Zayas Magazine layout Lise-Mari Coetzee Media Raw Edge Productions

Contributing writers

Janice Stanger

Lani Muelrath

Ally Hamilton

Chef AJ

Mark Reinfeld

Dr. Michael Greger

Dr. Pam Popper

Cherie Soria

Carolyn ScottHamilton

Robin Tierney

Tess Challis

Dr. Mary Clifton

Kathy Freston VegWorld Magazine

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EDITOR´S NOTE om A message fr of the Founder azine, VegWorldMag ack Steven Pruss

is the season. We welcome you to a brand-new edition of VegWorld Magazine with an issue packed with great information as well as holiday recipes your family will love.

y ill find as the w y il m fa r u o ght y year” “What a deli ergized this n e le b ta y a lid leave the ho

oliday traditions in the United States always include the familiar turkey in the oven, ham on the table and other assorted animal products as staples for a complete holiday dinner.

ou can hear it in the words of such classic holiday songs as Nat King Cole’s “The Christmas Song.” Nat sings “Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe help to make the season bright.”

VegWorld Magazine

e may make the decision not to consume the traditional meat-based holiday recipes this year but then what? That’s where this issue of VegWorld Magazine comes in handy. heck out our recipe section and you’ll find a delectable array of holiday delights that will satisfy the most negative naysayer at your table this year.

hat a delight your family will find as they leave the table feeling energized instead of the usual holiday fatigue the standard fare bestows upon us. e also include our favorite holiday gifts this year to make sharing the veggie message with your loved ones a snap (or a tap, in this case). Wishing you love and joy this holiday season.

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THE FUN SIDE OF VEGETARIAN LIVING

Holiday Gift Guide Vegan 101: Ask the Experts Fit Quickies Yoga For The Veggie Soul

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e d i u G t f i G y a d Holi LET IT GROW Vegan Seeds specialize in Organic Vegetable seeds and Emergency Survival Seed Kits. Their goal is to help feed the masses in the coming Century of Change. What a great gift for anyone you care about this holiday season.

BEAUTY BOX TO GO

etit Vour is a monthly delivery of cruelty-free beauty products, hand-picked from businesses that align quality with progressive standards. In your box, you’ll receive beauty & grooming samples from brands like Acure, AHAVA, Beauty Without Cruelty, DuWop, Hourglass, LUSH, Pacifica & Tarte.

COMPASSIONATE CONNECTIONS

ward-winning photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur has been documenting the plight of animals on all seven continents for over ten years. Her documentary project, We Animals, is internationally celebrated, and over 100 animal organizations, among them Igualdad Animal, Sea Shepherd and the Jane Goodall Institute, have benefited from her photography. Buy one of her incredible prints for your home. VegWorld Magazine

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VEGWORLD HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

GET YOUR KICKS HERE

f you haven’t heard of Nicora Johns Shoes yet, you’re truly missing out. Not only does this Agua Dulce, CA based company produce the cutest shoes you’ve ever seen, but they are also vegan, eco-friendly, and 100% handmade in the USA! And we’re not talking outsourced materials put together here…we’re talking down to every last thread was made in America. How about putting this one on your holiday gift list? Gift certificates are available.

HEALING SKIN THE NATURAL WAY

elle’s Healing Solutions is an all natural, vegan friendly skin care company. We love their use of select herbs, vitamins and essential oils to provide high quality healing, all while remaining natural, organic, and vegan friendly. Makes for a great stocking stuffer for everyone on your list this holiday season.

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LEAVE CHUNKIE DUNKIES

FOR SANTA

hy not forgo the traditional unhealthy cookies and leave Santa these delicious raw vegan goodies created “for healthy monsters.” Chunkie Dunkies are raw, vegan, glutenfree, dairy-free, cholesterol-free, but they are NOT taste-free! With nine flavors from chocolate chunk fudge brownie to almond butter crunch, Chunkie Dunkies may just become your new best friend. You may want to snack on them yourself. So, so good.

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VEGWORLD HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

ESSENTIAL

HOLIDAY READING A PERFECT BOOK TO SHARE WITH THOSE YOU LOVE THIS HOLIDAY SEASON.

GU N I RM

THIS

perfect book to share with those you love this holiday season. The book is filled with amazing stories about the empathy, grief, and love we can observe in both wild and domestic animals, whether it’s humpback whales protecting gray whales from orca attacks or what we’re learning about PTSD in dogs who serve alongside soldiers in combat. (The book includes a special emphasis on the canines that Bekoff has spent his career studying.) The author also calls our attention to policies toward animals that are not keeping pace with the developing science about what animals feel and think, such as in biomedical research or industrial agriculture. This collection is a call to begin the important work of “rewiring” ourselves and the way we treat our fellow animals.

rape your loved ones in warmth, with an amazing print to boot! This open, luxurious, cruelty-free scarf is the perfect winter accessory. You’ll love that this scarf is Certified 100% Organic cotton knit interlock, made with Eco-friendly, vegan, water-based pigment inks. No additional chemicals are used in the printing or preparation process. So warm, soft, & oh so chic.

TE N I W

N O S SEA

WEAR COMPASSION ON YOUR SHOULDER

e are huge fans of Herbivore Clothing and their unique line of quality veggie clothing (and other vegan stuff) with a message. Have a look at their selection, they even offer gift certificates. What a great gift to share this holiday season.

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VEGWORLD HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

FRESH, CLEAN, AND CRUELTY-FREE nyl® skincare is a collection of fresh allnatural products, handmade weekly — in a kitchen, not a factory. The result is clean yet effective products that won’t harm you or the environment. nyl products are free of man-made chemicals, toxins, parabens, animal products and petroleum products. Everything they make is vegan (they don’t use beeswax), never tested on animals, gluten-free, and contains organic ingredients. We recommend this essential package to get your loved one started this holiday season.

LIFE IS LIKE A

OUR LIPS ARE SEALED

BOX OF CHOCOLATES

more di Mona have achieved the impossible: crafting European-style chocolates, caramels, and cookie bars that are remarkably decadent, vegan and free of common allergens. Made in Louisville, KY with high quality, mostly organic ingredients, their product line can be enjoyed by everybody. They have gift boxes ready to ship just for the holiday season. What a great gift for your loved ones.

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his premium line of amazing lipsticks are made with organic and wildcrafted, natural oils and waxes and only natural mineral pigments. 100% vegan, bee-free, gluten free and chemical free! These lippies are made with certified organic Castor Seed Oil, Jojoba seed oil, Carnauba Wax, and Shea Butter for the smoothest, creamiest finish, and super pigmented with natural minerals. Vegocentrics are moisturizing and long lasting, and will not bleed. Makes an excellent stocking stuffer.

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VEGWORLD HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

HIP HANDBAGS

amaste Inc. is a family-owned-andoperated vegan-friendly handbag and accessory company based in Los Angeles, California. They offer products and accessories this holiday season that are hip, innovative, and fashion-forward. This is a perfect gift for the fashion conscious one in your life.

A GAME WITH A MESSAGE

ur & Feathers is NOT YOUR TYPICAL BOARD GAME! Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a fun, fact-filled game about animals and how our everyday choices can affect their lives. This educational board game is rated for ages 6 and up with some reading required. However, the instruction sheet includes an alternative, nonreading way to play and children as young a 4 years old LOVE this game but need to play with an adult. Fur & Feathers teaches counting, reading, comprehension, strategy, compassion, responsibility and sharing.

GET â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;E M SPROUT I N G

his kit includes everything you need to sprout seeds and legumes, including recipes. Embark on an exciting new culinary adventure when you sprout scrumptious lentils, mung, and garbanzo beans. Your loved ones will discover easy to follow recipes for delicious new salad, stir fry and stew creations. The protein-packed superfoods you grow will energize your body with enzymes and nutrients, while providing anti-aging antioxidants to make you glow from the inside out.

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Vegworld Magazine Holiday Discounts

All back issues of VegWorld free, plus a full year for only $29.99. Gift certificates are available. Tap here.

We are offering 84% off Dr. Thomas Lodiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Healing from Cancer Naturally Program. Through this exclusive home program, Dr. Lodi will show you that your health is in your own hands. Tap here.

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We are offering a 75% discount on Veganpalooza vegan living program. Program features over 30 leaders in the vegan movement. Tap here.

We are offering a generous 75% discount on Rawpalooza. This program features over 50 sessions with leaders in the raw food and conscious living movement. Tap here.

The BE Book is a book that literally changed every aspect of my life over 10 years ago! This lost treasure will show you how to manifest financial abundance, optimal health a loving relationships so you can start experiencing joy beyond your imagination. Tap here. Issue 017 - December 2013 |

Vegworld Magazine Holiday Discounts

We are offering a discount on Jay Kordichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s School of Juicing. This program features The Father of Juicingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 90 year life work, all in one program. Tap here.

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VEGAN 101

Our monthly Q and A gives you the opportunity to ask the experts anything you want to know about a veggie lifestyle. To submit a question, JUST TAP HERE.

BEANS AND GAS: CLEARING THE AIR This month, our favorite doctor Michael Greger answers the following:

uestion: I want to transition from eating meat to eating more beans and nuts for my protein, but am worried about getting too much gas. Is it true that beans cause gas?

nswer: More than a decade ago, the Quarterly Journal of Medicine published a review entitled: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Vegetarian Diet: Panacea for modern lifestyle disease?â&#x20AC;? The answer was in the affirmative, noting those eating vegetarian appear to have less obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, cancers,

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kidney disease, maybe less stroke, less age-related vision loss, less diverticulosis, fewer gallstone and of course, less constipation. But after going through the laundry list of benefits, the researchers did identify two drawbacks of a plant-based diet: 1) the risk of vitamin B12

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VEGAN 101 deficiency, which VegWorld has covered previously, and 2) increased intestinal gas production. So on one hand, we have lower risks from half of the top 10 causes of death in the United States, and on the other hand, flatulence.

Gas is Just a Fact of Life Let me start off by saying that intestinal gas is normal and healthy. Americans report passing gas an average of 14 times a day, with the normal range extending up to a frequency of 22 times daily. Many people who think they have too much gas fall well within the normal range, concludes famed flatologist Michael Levitt, M.D., “and they simply have to be informed of their ‘normality.’” Wondering who funded this research? You may be surprised that the real ground-breaking work Do beans cause gas? Concerns about excessive flatulence from eating beans may be exaggerated.

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in this area was done by NASA in the 1950s — our grandparents’ tax dollars hard at work. NASA was genuinely concerned that astronauts might suffocate, or some spark would ignite the methane. So papers with names like “Recent Advances in Flatology” represent space age research!

Are Concerns About Beans Just “Hot Air?” Beans have been christened the musical fruit, but could it just be a lot of hot air? A recent randomized controlled crossover study concluded “People’s concerns about excessive flatulence from eating beans may be exaggerated.” Noting that “An increasing body of research and the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans supports the benefits of a plant-based diet, and legumes specifically, in the reduction of chronic disease risks,” they started people on pinto beans, blackeyed peas, or vegetarian baked (navy) beans.

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VEGAN 101 During the first week, 35% reported increased flatulence but that fell to 15% by week three, 5% by week five, and 3% by week eight. Much of the bad rap for beans grew out of short-term studies in the 60’s that didn’t account for our body’s ability to adapt. Long-term, most people bulking up on highfiber foods do not appear to have significantly increased problems with gas. In the beginning, though, “A little bit of extra flatulence,” reads the Harvard Health Letter, “could be an indication that you’re eating the way you should!” The buoyancy of floating stools from trapped gasses can in fact be seen as a sign of adequate fiber intake. The indigestible sugars in beans that make it down to our colon may even function as probiotics to feed our good bacteria and make for a healthier colon.

We don’t often talk about it but the fact remains that a little bit of extra flatulence could be an indication that you’re eating the way you should..

Even if at first they make us gassy, beans are so health-promoting that we should experiment with ways to keep them in our diet at all costs. Lentils, split peas and canned beans tend to be less gas-producing. Tofu usually isn’t an offender. Repeated soakings of dried beans and tossing the cooking water may help if you boil your own.

Really Get Less Gas in Your Life: Cut the Dairy, Eggs and Meat

Flatulence can be caused by swallowing air. Did you know chewing gum, sucking on hard candies, drinking through a straw among other airswallowing activities can cause gas?

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For those wanting to cut down on emissions, here are some tips (I’ll try not to be too longwinded…). Flatulence comes from two places: swallowed air, and fermentation in the bowel. Things that can cause you to swallow extra air include gum chewing, ill-fitting dentures, sucking on hard candies, drinking through a straw, eating too fast, talking while you eat, and cigarette smoking. So if the fear of lung cancer doesn’t get you to quit smoking, maybe fear of flatulence will. The main source of gas, though, is the normal bacterial fermentation in our colon of undigested sugars. Dairy products are a leading cause of Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VEGAN 101 excessive flatulence, due to poor digestion of the milk sugar lactose, though even people who are lactose tolerant may suffer from dairy. One of the most flatulent patients ever reported in the medical literature was effectively cured once dairy products were removed from his diet.

of flatus would be a better solution, for we tamper with harmless natural phenomena at our peril.”

Intestinal gas is normal and healthy. As Hippocrates once said “passing gas is necessary to well-being.”

Other poorly digested sugars include sorbitol and xylitol in sugar-free candies. The fizziness in soda is carbon dioxide, which gets absorbed by our gut, but the high fructose in the soda’s corn syrup may be another culprit. Cruciferous vegetables may also contribute (kale-force winds?). Some grains can do it—the word pumpernickel stems from Middle German and means, roughly, “goblin that breaks wind.” Odor is a separate issue. The smell appears to come primarily from the digestion of sulfur-rich foods, so to cut down on the stench, experts have recommended cutting back on foods such as meat and eggs (hydrogen sulfide is called “rotten egg gas” for a reason). In “Contribution of Dietary Protein to Sulfide Production in the Large Intestine” researchers found that meat-eaters generated as much as 15 times the sulfides as those eating vegetarian. To reiterate, though, intestinal gas is normal and healthy. No less than Hippocrates himself was quoted as saying “passing gas is necessary to wellbeing.” As one chair of gastroenterology wrote in a review of degassing drugs and devices (and yes, Dr. Fardy is a real name), “Perhaps increased tolerance

About the Author Dr. Greger’s recent scientific publications in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Biosecurity and Bioterrorism, Critical Reviews in Microbiology, Family & Community Health, and the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition, and Public Health explore the public health implications of industrialized animal agriculture. Dr. Greger is also licensed as a general practitioner specializing in clinical nutrition and was a founding member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine. Dr. Greger’s nutrition work can be found at NutritionFacts.org, which is now a 501c3 nonprofit charity. Tap here to check it out.

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YOGA FOR THE VEGGIE SOUL

ello Yogis,

gears. Perhaps we’re attached to an idea of how our life should look.

Do you ever feel like you’re holding on a little too tightly? There’s no doubt the experience of being human is a vulnerable one. Everything is always in a state of flux, and it’s natural to want to create some order out of the chaos. But sometimes we’re gripping so much, we’ve lost sight of reality. Maybe we don’t want to see things as they are. Maybe we have a plan we’ve been working for so long, we can’t imagine changing

This sequence is designed to help you let go. Clenching your fists and closing your eyes is no way to experience the beauty in this world. The more we can face and embrace reality as it is, the less we suffer. Wishing you peace and sending you love, Ally Hamilton

About the Author Ally Hamilton practiced yoga in New York City with the incomparable Dharma Mittra. She has been teaching yoga to students and instructors in Los Angeles, California since the beginning of 2001. In 2009, Ally opened an extremely popular and successful yoga studio, Yogis Anonymous, in Santa Monica. Ally also instructs a world-wide audience at www.yogisanonymous.com. VegWorld readers can try Ally’s Online Yoga Training for 15 days free using the coupon code “VegWorld.” Tap here to sign up for your free trial.

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FIT QUICKIES

FIX YOUR

SHOULDER

SLOUCH IN JUST MINUTES A DAY

ounded shoulders are, these days, epidemic. With all the time we spend seated with forward focused posture, our upper bodies seem in perpetual slump. It is no wonder that we have horrific posture and pain in the neck and upper back – pain caused by impingement of the neck vertebrae and shoulder joints, a forward head, and poor movement patterns. Let’s face it. Human evolution (devolution?) has taken us from crawl - to stand - to slouch.

“Back Beauty” Fit Quickie to the rescue! Back Beauty comes to you straight from physical therapy with the purpose of offsetting and reversing rounded upper back and posture that is painful and pitiful. Unless we specifically counter the forward slouch and over-stretched condition of the muscles of the upper back, along with correcting our sitting

Spend a little time on the exercise ball a few times a week to strengthen your muscles and get rid of the unsightly “slouch” in your posture.

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FIT QUICKIES and standing habits, these pain and posture problems will persist. The video below contains all the instructions you need to get yourself on the path to a beautiful, pain-free upper back. All you will need is a large swiss ball or physioball. In a pinch, a bench or edge of the bed will do. Perform two sets of 15 repetitions in each position, two to three times a week, and be sure to follow with the stretch. Always work your way up to the number of repetitions while keeping good form.

About the Author Award winning Lani Muelrath, M.A., CGFI, CPBN, FNS - The Plant-Based Fitness Expert - is author of the Best Selling book “Fit Quickies: 5 Minute Targeted Body Shaping Workouts.” Lani created and starred in her own CBS TV show, “Lani’s All-Heart Aerobics.” She overcame her own lifetime struggle with weight over more than 15 years ago when she lost 50 pounds, which she has maintained easily with the tools that she uses to coach others to be successful with in weight loss, body shaping, and health. Learn more about Lani at www.lanimuelrath.com by tapping here.

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FIT QUICKIES

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FAMILY & LIFESTYLE

5 Ways to Get a Healthy Immune System How to Get a “Healthy Glow” this Winter

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HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM / Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

FIVE WAYS TO GET THE GIFT OF A

HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM

This Holiday Season

e are in it, the holiday season. And with the holidays comes lots of stress, lack of sleep, travel, crowds and unhealthy food. With all of this going on, it’s a wonder we’re not all racing to the emergency room. But, take heart. Here are our top five tips on how to stave off stress and sickness all winter long! VegWorld Magazine

Sugar Plum Fairy: The Immunity Killer

Who can deny that we have entered the season of treats, sweets and general over-indulgence. Sure, it’s totally fine to enjoy a hot cocoa or a slice of

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HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM / Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

Be sure to wash your hands often during this time of year to eradicate easily-passed germs on shopping carts and door knobs.

pumpkin pie during the holidays, but not every day. Do your best to eat healthy and clean as much as possible. Build up your immune system with lots of veggies (dark & leafy are the best) and whole foods. Keep up your exercise routine as much as possible as well as your sleep schedule. Be choosy when you do enjoy desserts and overly processed foods – and try to keep in mind that, with every sugary bite, you’re suppressing your immune system. Snack safely and take your vitamins!

Natural antibiotic lotions should be kept on hand and used generously throughout each day.

So if you’re sick, cough into the crook of your arm and steer clear of any physical contact. Wash your hands often. Carry antibacterial lotion (there are many natural brands available at health food stores). And try to avoid shaking too many stran-

When you have a cold, be sure to sneeze into the crook of your arm rather than your hands. This will keep your germs at bay and you won’t infect other friends and strangers.

Sneezin’s Greetings

Flu season reaches its height in late fall and early winter. This is because viruses circulate better in the colder weather. But it’s not only cold and flu bugs that become active during colder seasons. Other viruses, such as the norovirus and rotavirus, become more active during winter. Norovirus, known as the stomach flu, easily spreads through contamination in food, drink and surface contact. The virus is found in the stool and vomit of infected people. Rotavirus also causes diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and abdominal pain. VegWorld Magazine

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HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM / Carolyn Scott-Hamilton

Counteract the stress of the holiday season by staying hydrated. Be sure to drink an ample amount of water each day.

gers’ hands.

Jolly Holiday Crowds

Think of the holiday traditions: catching a show, shopping at a crowded mall, attending holiday parties. All this means you’re indoors in crowds and exposed to everyone’s germs. As people cluster indoors, they use the same doorknobs, banisters and surfaces after wiping their noses or sneezing. During the winter season, we’re more subject to touching something that’s not hygienic and we tend to get less fresh air, as well. Because it’s so dang cold out, we stay indoors, windows shut, making any virus that may be present spread easier. So, this holiday shopping season limit the time you are stuck in stifling public areas like malls, and when you need to be in one, try not to touch too VegWorld Magazine

many public surfaces. Be sure to practice frequent hand-washing (at least 20 seconds wiping both the top, bottom of hands and between the fingers prior to eating and drinking) or use hand sanitizer. Also, when you can, be sure to occasionally open a window to let fresh air circulate.

Over the river and through the woods…Germs travel too!

Air travel means if there’s a small flu outbreak on the West Coast, that virus could be in New York in less than five hours. Germs don’t pay to travel! When family members travel across the country, they’re bringing along pathogens that have been in their communities and exposing them to new places.

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HEALTHY IMMUNE SYSTEM / Carolyn Scott-Hamilton It’s not only the act of being in an enclosed cabin of a car, bus, train or plane. We’re also subject to germs while making our way through the crowds in the airport. Again, frequent hand washing and low contact with strangers will help. And hey, if you’re not opposed, wear a mask to filter out airborne yuckiness!

It’s the most stressful time of the year

But while stress may be unavoidable, you can avoid or counter the effects by getting enough sleep, eating well and hydrating. Also, do your best to find things to do that bring you joy to counteract your stress. Prevent the stress hormones from wreaking havoc by better planning, avoiding traffic, buying presents earlier, etc. Follow these simple steps and you can ensure that you are well enough to truly enjoy the holidays with your loved ones!

End-of-the-year projects, reports, final exams, shopping, family gatherings, money problems — all of these cause spikes in stress hormones in your body. This increase in your cortisol levels, in turn, induces the likelihood of infection during the holidays. Cortisol is a natural hormone that responds to stress, lowering immunity and making you more susceptible to infections. It also contributes to weight gain! The interval between acquiring a virus and becoming sick takes about 48 to 72 hours. You may have become infected when you were stressed and the symptoms may start to show right when you go on holiday break.

Be sure to take some YOU time to relax, decompress, center and align yourself with peace. Yoga, exercise, meditation and other relaxation techniques should be incorporated into your daily routine.

About the Author Carolyn Scott-Hamilton, aka The Healthy Voyager, is the Executive Producer, Creator, Host and Writer of The Healthy Voyager web series, site and overall brand. A holistic nutritionist, plant-based vegan chef, best-selling cookbook author, sought-after speaker, film-making, screen-writing, traveling, singing, dancing, fun-loving, healthy and green-living wife, The Healthy Voyager aims to help people live well, one veggie at a time! Click here to find out more about Carolyn.

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HOW TO GET A “HEALTHY GLOW” / Dr. Pam Popper

HOW TO GET A

“HEALTHY GLOW” JUST IN TIME FOR THE WINTER SEASON

omen often spend outrageous amounts of money to look and feel beautiful. From high-priced face creams, to frequent trips to the tanning salon, to expensive makeup, women will do just about anything to create the illusion of a “healthy glow.” But getting the real thing is as simple as ABC (Apricots, Bananas and Carrots, that is…). According to a recent study, eating fruits and vegetables high in carotenoids causes improvements in the appearance of your skin in only six weeks. And you don’t even need to eat that much…

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HOW TO GET A “HEALTHY GLOW” / Dr. Pam Popper

Getting the Glow is Quick and Easy Recently, researchers conducted two studies to look at the effect of carotenoid-rich plant food consumption on skin. Both studies involved following 35 subjects and measuring their fruit and vegetable consumption and its effect on their skin. In the first part of the study, the researchers observed that skin color improved quickly – after only six weeks of eating more plant foods. The second part of the study looked at how many veggies you have to eat to get the “glow.” The researchers reported that “… changes in skin tone associated with fruit and vegetable consumption are seen as ‘healthy and attractive.’” Perhaps more interesting, these changes “are detectable even at a relatively modest level of dietary change.”

It’s the Carotenoids in Your Cantaloupe That Make the Difference

It’s true! You need not wait for summer to get your “healthy glow.” Eat more carotenoid-rich plant foods and you’ll be shining this winter season.

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Carotenoids are phytochemicals found in fruits and vegetables like carrots, cantaloupe, apricots, cherries, grapefruit, mangos, watermelon, kale, spinach, parsley and butternut squash. One of the benefits of eating foods that contain them is that they change the color of the skin to red and yellow hues, which give skin a healthy appearance. You may have noticed people who have a pasty, white appearance to their skin. This can often be a sign of a poor diet, which usually includes lots of meat and dairy products; the skin is usually an outward reflection of inner health. Another benefit of eating carotenoid-rich

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HOW TO GET A “HEALTHY GLOW” / Dr. Pam Popper foods is that they tend to reduce sensitivity to sun. The reason is that these foods contain phytochemicals, including carotenoids, which protect plants in their natural environment against sun damage. Many people find that after adopting a plant-based diet that they are able to tolerate sun exposure without burning, when previously they had to stay out of the sun.

You Can’t Get The Same Benefits From a Pill The carotenoid that almost everyone is most familiar with is beta carotene. But there are over 600 different carotenoids found in food. Taking beta carotene pills or eating foods fortified with beta carotene floods the one carotenoid receptor on our cells. This, in turn, prevents your body’s utilization of the abundant carotenoids naturally occurring in plant food. This is why eating foods containing carotenoids is better than taking supplements containing only one carotenoid. Now you know that plant foods not only reduce your risk of diseases like cancer and diabetes, but they make you beautiful too! For some, this may be a better motivator than health improvement.

Eating a clean plant-based diet provides you with a healthy body on the inside and out. Our skin is a reflection on the state of our overall health.

About the Author Dr. Pam Popper is a naturopath, an internationally recognized expert on nutrition, medicine and health, and the Executive Director and Founder of The Wellness Forum, which, among other things, offers programming in schools designed to improve children’s health through better nutrition. Dr. Popper is the author of several books; her most recent is Solving America’s Healthcare Crisis. She serves on the Physician’s Steering Committee and the President’s Board for the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington D.C. Dr. Popper is one of the health care professionals involved in the famed Sacramento Food Bank Project, in which economically disadvantaged people were shown how to reverse their diseases and eliminate medications with diet. Tap here for more about Dr. Popper.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

NUTRITION & THRIVING

Are Organics Worth the Price? Smart Kids Eat Plants

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ARE ORGANICS WORTH THE PRICE? / Dr. Mary Clifton

ARE ORGANICS

WORTH THE PRICE? Y

Do you ever wonder if organic foods are worth the extra price tag? You might see two versions of broccoli, and ask yourself “Should I really spend the extra $1 for the organic?” It’s a good question. And, the answer is a resounding “yes.”

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ou probably already know that organic produce is safer for you and your family because it is not sprayed with harmful pesticides. What you may not also know is that organics, while often more expensive, are generally more nutritious than their “conventionally grown” counterparts. Here’s an interesting study that might surprise you. Researchers at Rutgers University purchased both non-organic and organic versions of the same fruits and vegetables at a supermarket. They then analyzed them to see how their nutritional profiles compared. The findings were absolutely amazing! Not only were the organic foods higher in minerals, but they

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ARE ORGANICS WORTH THE PRICE? / Dr. Mary Clifton

Eating organic produce protects you and your family from poisons that are routinely sprayed on conventional crops to protect them from insects. The problem is these poisons are terribly harmful to humans!

were so by huge percentages! Here are just a few examples of their findings: • Inorganic lettuce was found to contain 16.0 mpg (millequivalents per 100 grams dry weight) of calcium while the organic contained 71.0 mpg. Inorganic lettuce contained 9 tep (trace elements parts per million dry matter) of iron while the organic version contained a whopping 516 tep! • While inorganic tomatos registered at 1 tep for iron, the organic tomatos came in at 1938.0 tep of iron! No, that’s not a misprint. Kind of makes you want to eat organic to get the most out of your veggies, doesn’t it? • Our fine friend potassium is present in nonorganic spinach in the amount of 84.6 mpg. In organic spinach, potassium registers at 237.0 mpg. Known for its high iron content, spinach (when grown conventionally) registers at 19 tep for iron. However, organic spinach came in at 1,584 tep! Go Organic! VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ARE ORGANICS WORTH THE PRICE? / Dr. Mary Clifton

Transitioning to Organic Foods If switching to an exclusively organic diet overnight sounds intimidating, you may wish to begin by phasing out the foods that are the most contaminated. Plus, the following information also comes in handy when all of the produce on your shopping list isn’t available organically.

Foods that should only be eaten if organic (most contaminated when non-organic): Apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, spinach, strawberries, green beans, tomatos, lettuces, citrus zest, Mexican cantaloupe, and apricots. Notice a trend here that includes many thin-skinned fruits and veggies.

Foods that are the least contaminated when non-organic:

Your grocery bills will be higher when going mainly organic, but you’ll end up saving with your lack of doctor’s bills and thriving health.

Asparagus, avocados, broccoli, sweet corn, kiwi, mango, onions, papayas, pineapples, sweet peas, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, eggplant, oranges, grapefruits, okra, plums, radishes, bananas, and watermelon. Notice that several of these “safer” nonorganic items are tropical fruits. Keep in mind some of these foods, such as corn and papaya, are likely to be genetically modified so organic is your better choice.

About the Author Dr. Mary Clifton, MD has been an Internal Medicine doctor for almost twenty years. She specializes in weight loss, osteoporosis and menopause, disease prevention, management, and reversal. She regularly speaks at health and inspirational seminars, medical and heath conferences, corporate wellness events, Universities, and for private groups. Dr. Mary is the author of the best-selling book, Waist Away, co-author of the book Get Waisted: 100 Addictively Delicious Plant-Based Entrees, and co-founder of the healthy weight loss program Get Waisted. Click here to find out more about Dr. Clifton.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

SMART KIDS EAT PLANTS / Dr. Pam Popper

SMART

KIDS

EAT PLANTS A

ccording to a new study, kids who eat a healthier diet have slightly higher IQ scores than those who do not. Researchers looked at the diets of 7079 children at ages 6, 15, and 24 months and compared their IQ scores at age 8. Kids who were breastfed until 6 months and ate a diet that included legumes, cheese, fruit and vegetables had a 2-point advantage over kids who ate a junk food diet with cookies, chocolate, sweets, soft drinks and chips. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s almost hard to believe that anyone is feeding foods like these regularly to kids between the age of 6 and 24 months, but just watching people at a shopping mall or airport will confirm that many kids are eating this type of diet very early in life.

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A recent study indicates that children who eat a healthier diet have slightly higher IQ scores than those who do not.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

SMART KIDS EAT PLANTS / Dr. Pam Popper

Feeding your child more fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, sprouts and seeds will offer your child a significant advantage over friends being fed a standard American junk food diet.

The researchers concluded that a better diet consistently offers kids a slight advantage, and that poor diets consistently place kids at a slight disadvantage, and the influence starts very early in life. This information emphasizes the importance of parents paying careful attention to the food given to children. Kids cannot be expected, particularly at the age of 6-24 months, to address this issue on

their own; they have to rely on parents and caregivers. It’s unlikely that children who develop a taste for these awful foods will, on their own, change their diets and begin to eat a health-promoting diet in grade school or during adolescence. Therefore it’s our responsibility as adults to make sure that they are fed well and taught both at home and in their schools the importance of and eating a healthy diet and maintaining a healthy body.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

IMAGINE

THE DAY WHEN ALL ANIMALS ARE FREE TO BE.

Working together, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s within reach. For over a decade, Mercy For Animals has been campaigning diligently to prevent cruelty to farmed animals and promote compassionate food choices and policies. Through education, undercover investigations, corporate outreach, and legal advocacy, we are changing the course of history for animals -- inspiring both compassion and change.

Join us. MercyForAnimals.org

FEATURE

God, Christianity, and Meat Vegan is the New Kosher

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat

GOD, CHRISTIANITY

AND MEAT Tis the season â&#x20AC;&#x201D; that time of year where we gather with our families and get in touch with our spirituality. But for many, there is a sense of inner disharmony at this time of year: We are celebrating peace on earth, yet the centerpiece of most Christmas and Hannukah dinner tables is a turkey, pig or cow from a factory farm. VegWorld Magazine

by Kathy Freston

s this what God intended? And what is the historical religious significance of eating (or not eating) meat? We asked two VegWorld Contributors to ponder these questions. First, Kathy Freston answers back about Christianity and meat; and then Mark Reinfeld talks about the Jewish perspective. A while back, I began considering my diet as a way to practice my spiritual beliefs, and as I weighed what would be right for me, I came up against inner turmoil. Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat As a southern gal, I grew up going to church and enjoying various get-togethers with other parishioners over BBQ dinners and Sunday brunches of eggs with grits. It all seemed lovely and warm at the time, so I struggled many years later with the question of how eating meat, dairy and eggs could be ill-advised when so many (good) people do it daily and with gusto. If longstanding faith traditions hold that eating animals is acceptable, why in the world was I questioning those traditions? And yet, especially after watching behind-thescenes video of what happens to animals as they become our food, I remained troubled, on a spiritual level, at the thought of eating them. The more I meditated on it, things began to clarify in my mind:

Jesus Christ was incredibly compassionate towards animals. Would Jesus be a strict vegetarian if he saw the state of meat-production in society today? Religious traditions often include the eating of animals but there is ample evidence in the bible that this may not have been the original intention.

Choosing to move away from eating animals is not just about my physical health, it’s about the wellbeing of all creatures of this planet. It’s a vital part of an awake and aware spiritual practice as well.

The Religious Dilemma of Eating Meat is Age-Old Back to the traditions, though: How could a religion that has endured for thousands of years not have reflected on so fundamental a question as how we relate to these fellow creatures? Animals are so totally in our power, after all, and isn’t spirituality in part a matter of how we choose to treat the powerless? I decided to do some searching – both soul

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat

Eating meat is often condemned in religious traditions and, if not, it is surrounded by cautions and restrictions as in the case in Christianity, Islam and Judaism.

searching and researching the Christian tradition to get to the bottom of the question of eating animals.

every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food.” (Genesis 1:29-30) A clear call for vegetarianism, it would seem.

The first thing that became clear was that the question of whether it’s ethical for humans to eat animals has indeed been considered. It seems that spiritual leaders throughout the ages have grappled with the contradictions inherent in following and advocating a peaceful, humane existence while killing and eating animals. For Christians and Jews the dilemma is so central that it’s addressed in the very first chapter of the first book of the bible, Genesis, preceding even the Ten Commandments!

Aaron Gross, Ph.D., professor of theology and religious studies at the University of San Diego and who holds graduate degrees from Harvard Divinity School and the University of California, explained to me that, “One of the most striking things one discovers in comparative religion is that the potential moral danger of meat eating is a major theme across religious traditions. Eating meat is often condemned and, if not, it is surrounded by cautions and restrictions as is the case in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.

It says that the first thing God does after creating humans is call humanity to steward the earth and its creatures. And the second thing God does is declare, “See, I have given you every plant-yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and

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Mircea Eliade, arguably the most influential scholar of religion in the 20th century, in fact argued that the ancient hunter’s sympathy for the animals he killed was one of the origins of religion itself.”

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat Eating animals, it seems, has never been taken lightly.

Today’s Scholars Agree: “Veggieness” is Next to Godliness And today, it appears that Christian theologians are rediscovering the links between our dietary and spiritual choices. Many are arguing that vegetarianism is the diet most compatible with Christian values like mercy and compassion. Anglican priest and Oxford professor, Andrew Linzey, Ph.D., argues that “to stand with Jesus is to ... honor life for the sake of the Lord of life ... to stand for Jesus is to stand for active compassion for the weak, against the principle that might is right.” For Linzey, this means Christians should be vegetarian. Theologians like Linzey, I learned, are part of a long tradition of meat abstainers that stretches back to the origins of Christian faith. The Desert Fathers, 4th-century Christian saints, abstained from meat. The 1,500-year-old “Rule of Benedict,” a pillar of

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monastic spiritual practice, severely restricts meat eating. Under the influence of this rule many contemporary monastic orders, especially in Eastern Christianity, are vegetarian to this day. Some later Christian leaders were semi-vegetarians, like St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226), who avoided meat as best they could. Others, like the founder of Methodist Christianity, John Wesley (1703-1791), were fulltime vegetarians. Many more were vegetarian for limited periods. Still today there is a vibrant Catholic tradition of giving up some or all meat for Lent, the period before Easter.

Vegetarianism is the Pathway to Greater Spirituality While contemporary Christian vegetarianism is usually rooted in ethical concerns about the abuse of creation, historically Christians who chose not Many Christian theologians argue that vegetarianism is the diet most compatible with Christian values like mercy and compassion.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat

The ancient hunter’s sympathy for the animals he killed was one of the origins of religion itself. Today’s factory farming stands in clear opposition to the principles of compassion and sympathy.

to eat flesh also saw their diet as a path to greater spirituality and increased sanctity. Even simply by searching “Christianity and vegetarianism” on the internet, it’s easy to see just how important the idea of peace between all creatures has been in the Christian moral imagination. You don’t need to look any farther than the first 30 lines of the Bible: Genesis 1:29-30 (as mentioned above). According to many religious scholars, this passage shows that the ideal spiritual diet was meat free. The vision was of a world where humans did not eat animals but instead lived on the gifts of food growing on trees and in the ground. According to the biblical narrative, it was only after the fall that humans started eating animals, the ideal being to

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strive to return to the original perfection. In sync with this is the prophet Isaiah describing the messianic era in which the world is again made perfect, declaring that “[t]he wolf shall live with the lamb ... and the lion shall eat straw like the ox” (Isaiah 11:6-7). Given this, it makes perfect sense that today more Christians are questioning the rightness of eating meat and are turning toward vegetarianism.

God’s Permission to Eat Meat: A Concession to Human Weakness The endorsement of vegetarianism in the first chapter of Genesis is sometimes ignored by Christians who like to emphasize that by the ninth chap-

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat ter human beings have been given permission to eat meat. So I decided to look into how that “permission” to eat animals is portrayed in the Bible. One thing all commentators seem to agree on is that the late tolerance of meat eating doesn’t mean that God just “made a mistake” and realized that slaughterhouses were actually a good idea. A long history of Christian and Jewish commentators have taught that granting permission to eat meat is portrayed in the bible as a concession to human weakness.

With the abundance of natural food markets, there is no reason why our food choices can’t conform to the principles of compassion underlying all major religions.

In the very same biblical verses where permission to eat meat is given, all humanity is required to drain blood, an ancient symbol of life, from the animals. At first, draining the blood from animals — still practiced in virtually all slaughterhouses today — just seemed bizarre to me. But scholars have deciphered its meaning. That is, it is meant to remind human beings that meat eating was not part of God’s original plan, and we must show “reverence for life,” symbolized by draining away the blood before eating. Rather than giving humans carte blanche to eat meat, the Bible saddles the practice with restrictions such as this.

What Would Jesus Think of Factory Farms? If eating the meat of animals raised back in the good old days — before intensive confinement and industrial slaughterhouses — wasn’t easily endorsed, I have to wonder: What would Jesus think of a factory farm? It’s one thing to concede that meat eating is temporarily tolerable to ancient herders. But, when all you have to do is order something different from a menu or reach for a different part of the supermarket shelf, wouldn’t the Christian thing be to choose the more peaceful option? Things were becoming clearer for me. Everything the churches I attended taught about the life of Jesus — his love for creation, mercy, compassion, and special concern for the powerless — led me to think he would never have accepted a diet that contributed to the suffering I’ve seen animals go through on those videos. At the end of the day, I don’t see how the ultimate Good Shepherd, the Prince of Peace, could be okay with a lifestyle that promotes misery for billions of creatures per year. Maybe Jesus wasn’t a strict vegetarian 2,000 years ago, but there sure is something to the idea that he would be today.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / God, Christianity and Meat

I’m reminded of the reflections of the Jesuit priest, John Dear, who explains that, “today Jesus ... would want us to change every aspect of our lives, to seek complete physical, spiritual, emotional, and ethical wholeness ... So, when we sit down to eat ... we should also choose to adhere to his life of compassion and nonviolence by maintaining a vegetarian diet.” He adds that, “we know that as we practice mercy to one another and to all God’s creatures, we too shall receive mercy and blessings, as Jesus promised in the Beatitudes.”

my diet with my beliefs and principles, thus becoming more the person I want to be. In this manner, moving away from a diet of animal products has become a living spiritual exercise to cultivate compassion, and I’m glad for the daily opportunity.

Kindness to Animals Promotes Peace Among Humans The Christian teaching of compassion for animals was especially emphasized by St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis not only spoke eloquently about compassion for animals but also taught that kindness to animals is good spiritually and promotes peace among humans. “Not to hurt our humble brethren, the animals, is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission: to be of service to them whenever they require it. If you have people who will exclude any of God’s creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity you will have people who will deal likewise with other people.” And so I faced a kind of spiritual choice. I could press the images of those animals in fear and pain from my mind and pretend that the violence I was supporting by eating animal products was someone else’s responsibility. Or I could begin to align

The Jesuit priest John Dear explained “as we practice mercy to one another and to all God’s creatures, we too shall receive mercy and blessings.”

About the Author Kathy Freston is a bestselling author and health and wellness activist. She is the New York Times bestselling author of “The Lean,” “Veganist,” and “Quantum Wellness.” A media favorite, Kathy has appeared frequently on national television, including Ellen, The Dr. Oz Show, Charlie Rose, Good Morning America, The Talk, The Martha Stewart Show, Extra and Oprah. Tap here to learn more about Kathy Freston.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / Vegan is the New Kosher

VEGAN IS THE NEW

KOSHER by Mark Reinfeld

The Jewish dietary laws of kashrut, or keeping kosher, are a complex system of regulations with numerous theories circling around their origin. Many of the regulations seem to have the health benefits of humans in mind. Others clearly point toward a respect and compassion for the suffering of the animals. VegWorld Magazine

here are, for instance, very strict rules surrounding the slaughter of animals. They must be killed as painlessly as possible, with a sharp blade free of nicks, and with respect for the life being taken. Rules separating dairy from meat also have compassion at their root, based on the Torah’s prohibition of avoiding “boiling a kid in its mother’s milk” (Exodus 23:19). The evolving laws of kashrut have developed over the centuries and have been a reflection of the necessity of including animals in our diets for survival. However, with the development of modern farming practices and the great availability of supermar-

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / Vegan is the New Kosher

The Jewish dietary law known as “kashrut” includes regulations that have health benefits of humans in mind, but others clearly point toward a respect and compassion for the suffering of animals.

kets, natural food stores, and farmers markets, this is no longer a necessity. We now have a choice. Why not make the compassionate one? Vegan Jews believe that choosing not to include animals in our diets and lifestyles honors our health and respects the creatures with whom we share this amazing planet.

Factory Farms Violate the Talmudic Laws of Compassion The Talmud has guidelines that attempt to create a more compassionate humanity. Tza’ar Ba’alei Chayim, “the suffering of living creatures,” is a Talmudic law (Bava Metzia 32) that prohibits cruelty to animals. It is meant to extend to all animals, including pets, beasts of burden and livestock. When it comes to our everyday food choices, the reality is that factory farm-produced meat, eggs and dairy (whether kosher or non-kosher) are raised and treated in a way that is a blatant violation of the principle of Tza’ar Ba’alei Chayim. This fac-

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tory farming method of agribusiness views animals in terms of how much profit can be generated, and this view has created inhumane conditions that would shock most people. Animals are confined to an overcrowded and unsanitary environment and are often treated with antibiotics and hormones to produce as much meat, milk and eggs as possible, at the lowest cost possible, and in the smallest amount of space possible, and as fast as possible.

Remember the Sixth Commandment: “Thou Shalt Not Kill.” To Jewish vegans, it’s clear that the logical extension of Tza’ar Ba’alei Chayim is to avoid killing animals altogether. The guiding principle for such dietary choices is “Thou shalt not kill” (Exodus 20:13). I recall a meeting that I had with my childhood rabbi, who was serving as the vice chancellor for the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, shortly after I became vegan. He pointed to an entire row of books in his bookshelf devoted to the laws of kashrut. He told me that this demonstrated

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

FEATURE / Vegan is the New Kosher

The laws of kashrut take up an entire row of books on a bookshelf. Instead, we could just conform to god’s clear commandment “thou shall not kill.”

the mindfulness and compassion that went into the act of kosher slaughter. I somewhat teasingly replied that it would be simpler instead to have a small plaque that stated “Thou Shalt Not Kill”. Plants are the natural food for man, as affirmed in Genesis 1:29: “And God said, behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food.”

As far as our health, we now know that eating animals is not necessary. It is the official position of the American Dietetic Association that “appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.” As Albert Einstein eloquently expressed, “Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty ... Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” With this in mind, please enjoy my recipes for vegan Latkes, and Stuffed Cabbage in this month’s “Recipes for Foodies” section.

About the Author Mark Reinfeld is the winner of Vegan.com’s Recipe of the Year Award for 2011 and has over 20 years experience preparing creative vegan and raw food cuisine. Mark was the Executive Chef for the North American Vegetarian Society’s 2012 Summerfest, one of the largest vegetarian conferences in the world. Looking for more great videos and recipes from the award-winning vegan chef Mark Reinfeld? Check out “Cooking Healthy Lessons”, a fantastic online vegan cooking program with a huge selection of vegan recipes. Click here to find out more.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

SPOTLIGHT ON COMPASSION

The Power of Our Food Choices

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas

THE POWER OF OUR

FOOD CHOICES

LAUREN ORNELAS AT TEDX GOLDENGATEPARK

ecently, Lauren Ornelas, the founder of the all-volunteer Food Empowerment Project (F.E.P.) gave a moving and influential TEDx talk on the power of our food choices. Her talk was incredibly inspiring and touched on many pertinent topics — from the plight of animals in factory farms to children on chocolate plantations — that we felt compelled to share it with you (video below). We’ve also included the full transcript of her im-

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pactful words, with Lauren’s permission, so you won’t miss a single word.

The Unforgettable (Yet Sometimes Forgotten) Lessons of our Youth “Where’s papa going with that ax,” said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast. Fern’s mother explains that a piglet was born a runt

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas and is unlikely to survive. Fern’s father intends to kill him. Fern runs outside.

Early childhood books like “Charlotte’s Web” teach about compassion for animals. They serve as an excellent way to introduce children to the ideas of compassion.

“Please don’t kill him! It’s unfair. He couldn’t help being born small, could he? If I had been very small at birth, would you have killed me?” “Certainly not … A little girl is one thing, a runty little pig is another.” “I see no difference … This is the most terrible case of injustice I’ve ever heard of.” Maybe it was those lines from “Charlotte’s Web” that made an impact on me as a child. Just as Charlotte’s web was woven to save Wilbur’s life, my mind started to think about how we are all connected. Or maybe it was Disney’s fault for helping me see and hear Bambi’s fear after losing his mother to a hunter or the tears streaming down Dumbo’s face as his mom caressed him with her trunk when she was chained in the circus car.

It could have been growing up in Texas and seeing cows in the fields and imagining, “What would it be like if one of them didn’t come home because of my hamburger?” The worry, the fear the others would experience. Or perhaps it was my parents’ divorce. I can’t say there was just one thing that started me thinking about the families of all sentient beings, but it is a part of who I am and helps form the choices that I make in my life. The thought of losing my mom or one of my sisters was a very real fear for me growing up. I was even hurt when my sisters went away for college. This was my family. I didn’t want us to be separated. What if we really think about where “chicken nuggets” come from? Would we still call it a “Happy Meal?” VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

Whatever the cause, I decided at a young age that I would help make choices that would minimize the suffering of sentient beings, such as wearing non-leather boots. If you remember one thing from my talk today let it be this: Uninformed food choices can contribute to the suffering of sentient beings; therefore, your food choices can change the world.

The More You Know, the Deeper the Commitment I went vegetarian for the first time when I was young and my mother told me that the chicken I was eating was, well, a chicken.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas

I remember being in the line in elementary school in the cafeteria and asking the server not to put “meat” on my cheese enchiladas. She asked if was a vegetarian; in my young mind I wondered why she thought I was old enough to treat sick dogs and cats. I told her no. When I was a teenager I was able to stick with my commitment better. My mom would make me a separate meal such as enchiladas with corn inside. When I was in high school, she had just learned to make quiche. And then … I went vegan. She said, “I give up.” And I told her I will eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches every day if I had to, to stick with my decision to go vegan. Over time I have learned more about the tragedy of the separation of these animals and the bonds that exist when they are together, and I’ve adjusted my choices not to contribute to this. Mother cows used in the dairy industry have their babies taken away from them after birth because these large, magnificent mothers will fight to be with their babies. In southern Georgia, I had the heartbreaking opportunity to videotape a mother cow crying af-

VegWorld Magazine

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THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas feel pain. We are so detached from animals in our society and we are also so detached from the means in which our food is produced.

Our Food Choices Make a Difference! I eventually made a decision that I wanted to focus my energy on our food choices and how they can make a difference. We eat several times a day, and each food choice says something about ourselves. I believe our individual food choices and collective voices can have an impact. You would be shocked to learn that approximately 400,000 farm workers are children, exposed to agricultural chemicals and forced to work under horrendous conditions.

ter she’d been separated from her baby. Her calf would bellow and she would respond. I sat in a meeting with a small-dairy farmer from Washington who told a story about a cow who had enough of him taking her babies away. According to him, the cow had given birth to twins, and when he couldn’t find one of them, he went looking. He eventually found that she had hidden one of them. According to him, she was trying to protect her baby. I have since learned this happens often. But it’s not just cows. Pregnant pigs in more natural environments build nests before they give birth, collecting branches in their mouths. Mother hens will use different vocalizations to protect their chicks from predators. Just like any mother, they want to protect their babies from harm. And just like human animals, these animals

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By going vegan, I knew I was doing my part not to contribute to the suffering of non-human animals. But what about my food? What about the farm workers?

Humans Suffer in Agriculture Too I could simply stop eating animals as a means of not contributing to their suffering, but it’s not as easy with farm workers – everyone needs their fruits and vegetables. In the US, millions of farm workers pick our food, not just the food of vegans, but all of our food. It is estimated that approximately 400,000 of these farm workers are children. In California, many farm workers live in substandard labor camps or are homeless. They don’t make enough to put a roof over their heads, and yet they put food on our plates. They work in extreme temperatures, exposed to agricultural chemicals. Many can’t even afford or have access to the types of fresh fruits and vegetables they are picking. It is estimated that in California the average lifespan of a strawberry picker is 49 years.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas

Groups like the Coalition of Immokalee Workers are making strides in this area by using consumer pressure to get corporations to make changes, such as getting tomato buyers to pay just a penny more per pound for the tomatos that they pick. My organization, Food Empowerment Project, organized a school supply drive to help with the education of the children of farm workers so they can choose an easier life. I still struggle with what more I can do.

Who Picks Your Chocolate? “When people eat chocolate, they are eating my flesh.”

child labor, all while picking cocoa for the chocolate industry. Here they are forced to work with dangerous equipment such as machetes — some children as young as seven years old. Many children have been documented with scars on their arms and their legs. If they don’t move fast enough while carrying these heavy cacao pods, they are beaten. Many children are locked in at night, and if they try to escape, they are beaten or killed. We all have families — biological or not — so let’s make choices that respect all families and the bonds that they share. How can we do this?

That is what one former slave told a reporter when he was asked what he would say to Westerners who eat chocolate.

Make a Difference with Wise and Compassionate Food Choices

In West Africa, 1.8 million children in Ghana and the Ivory Coast are the victims of the worst forms of

If you have access to fresh produce, go vegan! Support the rights of farm workers through legisla-

In California, the average lifespan of a strawberry picker is 49 years! Most workers cannot even afford to eat the fruits and vegetables they are picking.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

THE POWER OF OUR FOOD CHOICES / Lauren Ornelas tion and corporate campaigns. And stop eating chocolate. Okay, okay, you don’t have to stop eating chocolate. But please only buy chocolate that is not sourced from the worst forms of child labor in West Africa. You can contact the companies or you can use our list at www.foodispower.org. I make the most informed food choices that I can make because I want to lessen the suffering of sen-

tient beings. To me, I wanted to turn this pain I felt into power. So much of this has been about loss, and what I gained was a feeling that I could make a difference. I hope you will join me and put your ethics where your mouth is. To me, these issues are as connected as Charlotte’s web. You and your food choices can change the world and mitigate the suffering the world over.

About the Author Lauren Ornelas is the founder/director of the all-volunteer Food Empowerment Project (F.E.P.), a vegan food justice nonprofit seeking to create a more just world by helping consumers recognize the power of their food choices. F.E.P. works in solidarity with farm workers, advocates for chocolate not sourced from the worst forms of child labor and focuses on access to healthy foods in communities of color and low-income communities. When Lauren was head of Viva!USA she investigated factory farms and ran consumer campaigns. In cooperation with activists across the country, Lauren persuaded Trader Joe’s to stop selling all duck meat and was the spark that got the founder of Whole Foods Market to become a vegan. She also helped halt the construction of an industrial dairy operation in California. She served as campaign director with the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition for six years. Find out more about Lauren at www.foodispower.org (tap here).

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

RECIPES FOR FOODIES

Perfect Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms Disappearing Lasagna Cranberry Apple Ginger Cocktail Hibiscus RosĂŠ Baked Potato Latkes Stuffed Cabbage Blueberry Blintzes Asian Asparagus Wraps Apple Puffs with Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

PERFECT PESTO STUFFED MUSHROOMS

PERFECT PESTO

STUFFED MUSHROOMS by Chef A.J. When Rip Esselstyn came to my home for dinner the first time, he ate the whole dozen by himself!

Organic Ingredients: • 12 Crimini mushrooms • 1 cup pine nuts

Preparation: Destem mushrooms and set aside. Remove some of the center if necessary. Place the rest of the ingredients in a food processor fitted with the “S” blade and process until smooth. Fill the mushroom caps and dehydrate 2-4 hours until warm.

• 2 cloves garlic • 1 tablespoon yellow miso • 1 cup fresh basil • juice of one lemon, or to taste

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Chef’s Note: If you don’t have a dehydrator, bake in a 350 degree F oven for 45 minutes or until soft.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

CHEF AJ’S DISAPPEARING LASAGNA

CHEF AJ’S

DISAPPEARING

LASAGNA People always ask me how well this freezes. I honestly don’t know as there have never been any leftovers! by Chef A.J.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

CHEF AJ’S DISAPPEARING LASAGNA

Organic Ingredients:

Preparation:

• 2 boxes of no boil rice lasagna noodles (De Boles)

Make the filling in a food processor fitted with the “S” blade, by adding one box of tofu, 2 ounces of basil 2 cloves garlic, 1/4 cup each lemon juice, miso and nutritional yeast, 1 cup of the pine nuts and 1/8 of a teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Puree until smooth. Add drained spinach or kale and process again.

• 6 cups of your favorite no oil marinara sauce • 1- box of extra firm water packed tofu (19 ounces each, I use Trader Joe’s) OR 2 cans (15 ounce each) Cannellini Beans, drained and rinsed • 2 ounces of fresh basil leaves • 1 cup of pine nuts, raw cashews or hemp seeds • 2 cloves of garlic (or more, to taste) • 1/4 cup of low sodium miso • 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice • 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or more to taste) • 4 ounce can of sliced olives, rinsed and drained (optional) • 2 pounds of frozen, chopped spinach (defrosted, drained with all of the liquid squeezed out) OR 1 pound frozen kale (defrosted, drained with all of the liquid squeezed out)

In a large non-stick sauté pan, sauté the onion in 2 Tablespoons water until translucent, about 8 minutes, adding more water if necessary. Add garlic, mushrooms and tamari and sauté until browned. Taste mixture, adding chopped garlic and more tamari according to your taste. Cook until mushrooms appear to be glazed and there is no more liquid left in the pan. Pour 3 cups of the sauce in a lasagna pan or 9” by 13” pan. Place one layer of the no cook noodles on top. Cover the noodles with half of the tofu/spinach mixture, then with half of the mushroom mixture. Place another layer of noodles on the mushroom mixture and add the remaining half of the tofu/spinach mixture and the remaining half of the mushroom mixture. Place one more layer of noodles on top of the mushroom mixture and smother evenly with the remaining 3 cups of sauce. Sprinkle the sliced olives on top of the sauce along with a liberal sprinkling of faux parmesan . Bake uncovered in a preheated 375 degree F oven for an hour. Let set 10 minutes before slicing.

• 2 pounds of sliced mushrooms (I like to use Crimini or baby bellas) • 1/4 cup low sodium tamari • one large red onion, finely diced • Faux Parmesan (see recipe below)

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Chef’s Note: If you have time, marinate the sliced mushrooms in the Tamari several hours in advance or even the night before. Make sure the top layer of noodles are fully covered with sauce.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

CHEF AJ’S DISAPPEARING LASAGNA

FAUX PARMESAN Organic Ingredients For Faux Parmesan:

Method For Faux Parmesan:

• 1 cup raw almonds or cashews or walnuts

In a food processor fitted with the “S” blade or in a blender, combine all ingredients until a powdery texture is achieved. If you like it more chunky, process less.

• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast • 1 Tablespoon salt-free seasoning (I prefer Benson’s Table Tasty)

Chef’s Note: You can also use store bought almond flour in place of the almonds. We use this on everything from air popped popcorn to potatoes to steamed veggies and as a topping on chili and soups.

About the Author A noted vegan/raw pastry chef in Los Angeles, Chef A.J. is a popular keynote speaker and culinary instructor across the United States. She is the author of Unprocessed: How to Achieve Vibrant Health and Your Ideal Weight, and the creator of Healthy Taste of L.A., an annual event where the finest in plant-based cuisine meets the best in nutritional science. Tap here to find out more about Chef A.J. VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

CRANBERRY APPLE GINGER COCKTAIL

CRANBERRY APPLE GINGER COCKTAIL When creating your holiday menu, don’t forget to include a healthy cocktail everyone can enjoy. One of my favorites is a fresh lively drink made from just three ingredients: cranberries, apples, and fresh ginger root. The ginger really makes it come alive and even served chilled it is warming to the body when the weather is cold. So get out your juicer and get ready to make a refreshing cocktail!

by Cherie Soria

SERVES 4 Equipment needed: Juicer or High-Power Blender

Organic Ingredients: • 3 pounds of apples, quartered (Galas or other sweet apples, preferred) • 3 cups fresh organic cranberries • 1 (½ -inch) piece fresh ginger

Tip: If your apples are not very sweet or the cranberries are especially sour, you may need to adjust the recipe a little, so taste and adjust the flavor by adding a little sweetener, if needed. Or, include a little more apple to sweeten it up a bit. Juice is always best served as soon after you make it as possible, but if you need to make it in advance, store juice in a sealed glass container and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

HIBISCUS ROSÉ

HIBISCUS ROSÉ by Cherie Soria

SERVES 8

Organic Ingredients: • 2 quarts filtered water • 1 orange, chopped (including the peel) • 1 apple, chopped • 1⁄4 cup dried hibiscus flowers • 1⁄4 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint • 1⁄4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley • 1⁄4 cup sun-dried pitted cherries or unsulfured raisins • 6 dates, pitted • 6 dried prunes, pitted

Preparation: 1. Combine all of the ingredients in a glass gallon jar. Cover the jar with a clean dish towel and place it in a warm place for 24 hours. 2. Strain out and discard the fruit and herbs. 3. If you prefer a cool beverage, refrigerate for 3 hours and serve chilled. Note: Store rosé in a sealed glass gallon jar in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Remove from the refrigerator a few hours prior to serving if you prefer to serve at room temperature.

About the Author

Raw food revolutionary, Cherie Soria, is the founder and director of Living Light Culinary Institute, and has been teaching the art of gourmet raw foods to individuals, chefs, and instructors for more than 20 years and vegetarian culinary arts for 40 years. Cherie is also the author of four books, including “Raw Food Revolution Diet” and “Raw Food For Dummies.” Cherie and her husband, Dan Ladermann own and operate several raw food businesses besides Living Light Culinary Institute, including a Living Light Cafe, Living Light Marketplace, a retail store providing gifts for chefs and products for healthful living, and the historic, ecofriendly Living Light Inn, all located on the beautiful Mendocino coast of northern California. Tap here to find out more about Cherie. VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

BAKED POTATO LATKES

BAKED POTATO LATKES by Mark Reinfeld

MAKES 8 LARGE LATKES

Organic Ingredients: • 1 large russet potato, peeled and grated (2 cups) • 1/4 teaspoon minced onion • 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour, try gluten-free or white spelt • 2 tablespoons ground flax seed mixed with 6 tablespoons water • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt • A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes, optional • 1/4 teaspoon paprika, optional, try smoked

Preparation: 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. 2. Scoop approximately 1/4 cup of the mixture for each latke on to a very well-oiled baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. 3. Flip the pancakes and bake for another 10 minutes before serving.

Variations: So many are possible! Make smaller latkes by using 2 tablespoons, instead of 1/4 cup of the batter in each pancake. Replace 1 cup grated potato with grated sweet potato or yam. Add 1 tablespoon of minced fresh dill, parsley, or basil. Add 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion. Add 1 clove pressed or minced garlic and 1/2 teaspoon seeded and diced chile pepper. Add 1/2 cup peeled and grated parsnip or carrot. Go Mexican by adding 1 tablespoon minced cilantro and 1 teaspoon each of chile powder and cumin. Add 1/2 cup grated vegan cheese for an over the top latke experience.

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Note: For best results, allow the batter to sit for at least 10 minutes before creating the pancakes and baking. For traditional latkes, you can fry the pancakes in a liberal amount of oil. Cook until both sides are golden brown, approximately 5 minutes, pressing down with a spatula and flipping occasionally to ensure even coating. Place on paper towel after frying to absorb some of the oil.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

STUFFED CABBAGE

STUFFED CABBAGE This recipe, courtesy of The 30 Minute Veganâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Taste of Europe, takes me back to my roots. I can almost see my grandfather, Chef Benjamin Bimstein, preparing these rolls at our family feasts. Popular throughout Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, and a cornerstone of Jewish cooking for possibly 2,000 years, they traditionally include meat.

SERVES 4 -6 VegWorld Magazine

by Mark Reinfeld

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

STUFFED CABBAGE

Organic Ingredients:

Preparation:

• 1 large green cabbage

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Cut the very bottom portion off of the cabbage. Carefully peel away 6 to 8 of the largest leaves. Place a steamer basket in a large pot with approximately one inch of water over high heat. When the water boils, add the cabbage leaves and cook until just soft, approximately 5 minutes. Carefully remove the leaves and place on a plate to cool.

Rice • ¾ cup white basmati rice (for a variation on this dish, use brown rice, millet, or quinoa) • 1 ½ cups vegetable stock or water • ½ teaspoon sea salt Filling • 1 tablespoon cold-pressed coconut or olive oil • ¾ cup diced onion • 2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced • 4 ounces of tempeh or extra firm tofu, finely chopped (3/4 cup) • 3 tablespoons tomato paste • ¾ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper • ½ teaspoon seeded and diced hot chile pepper • 1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley • 2 teaspoons minced fresh dill • 2 tablespoons raisins (optional) Sauce • 3 tablespoons tomato paste

2. Place another pot over medium high heat. Add the rice, vegetable stock, and salt if using, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until all of the liquid is absorbed, approximately 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow it to continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so. 3. Meanwhile, place a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add the oil, onion, and garlic, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the tempeh and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently and adding small amounts of water if necessary to prevent sticking. Add the remaining filling ingredients and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, and adding small amounts of water if necessary to prevent sticking. Remove from the heat. 4. When the rice is done cooking, add to the sauté pan and mix well. 5. Place the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Place 1/4 of the sauce in a well-oiled 8 x 8-inch casserole dish.

• ¾ cup water • 1 teaspoon sweetener of choice • ½ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste • ½ teaspoon fresh minced dill (optional) • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional) • 2 tablespoons raisins (optional)

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6. Create your cabbage rolls by placing a small amount of filling at the center of each cabbage leaf, towards the bottom. Fold in the sides and roll tightly away from you. Place in the casserole dish. Top with the remaining sauce. Cover and bake for 10 minutes.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

BLUEBERRY BLINTZES

BLUEBERRY BLINTZES To make them from scratch, and to make them vegan, was a true revelation. Of Slavic origin, blintzes are part of the Eastern European culinary tradition. Many fillings and toppings are possible for both sweet and savory versions. Here is one of the most popular. For a healthier blintz, you can leave out the sautĂŠing at the end.

MAKES 6 BLINTZES VegWorld Magazine

by Mark Reinfeld

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

BLUEBERRY BLINTZES

Organic Ingredients: Crepe Dry Ingredients: • 1 cup white spelt flour • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt • 2 tablespoons organic sugar • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda Crepe Wet Ingredients: • 1 cup soy milk • 1/4 cup water • 2 tablespoons vegan butter • 1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or apple cider vinegar • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Procedure to Make Crepes: 1. Place the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. Place the wet ingredients in another bowl and mix well. Add the wet to the dry and mix well. 2. Place a crepe pan over high heat and lightly oil. Pour a rounded 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan and spread as thinly as possible. Cook until bubbles form over the entire surface, approximately 3 minutes, depending on the heat of the pan. Carefully flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Repeat until all of the batter is used. Mix the batter in between crepes to maintain a uniform consistency.

Filling Ingredients:

Procedure to Make Blintzes:

• 7-ounces extra firm tofu

1. Prepare the crepes and stack them on a plate.

• Coconut oil for the crepes

• 8-ounces vegan cream cheese • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast • 2 tablespoons tahini • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice • 1/4 cup organic sugar • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt Blueberry Sauce Ingredients: • 8-ounces frozen or fresh blueberries • 1/2 cup water (add 1/4 cup more water if fresh blueberries) • 2 tablespoons organic sugar, or to taste • 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom • 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder dissolved in 2 tablespoons cold water

2. Prepare the filling by placing a pot with 1 inch of water and a steamer basket on high heat. Place the tofu in the steamer basket, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the tofu and rinse well under cold water. 3. Meanwhile, place the remaining filling ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Crumble the tofu into the bowl with the filling ingredients and mix well. 4. Prepare the sauce by placing all of the ingredients, except the arrowroot mixture, in a small pot over medium heat and stir well. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the arrowroot mixture, reduce the heat to low, and stir well. Cook over low heat until the blintzes are finished cooking, stirring occasionally. 5. To prepare the blintzes, place approximately 1/4 cup of the filling in the center of each

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

BLUEBERRY BLINTZES crepe, towards the bottom. Fold in the sides, and then roll the crepe away from you, pulling the bottom portion towards you to create a tight wrap. Repeat with the remaining crepes and reserve approximately 1/2 cup of the filling to garnish the blintzes. 6. Heat oil in a large sauté pan. Place the blintzes in the pan and cook for 3 minutes on each side.

Serve warm topped with confectioner’s sugar if using, a liberal amount of sauce, and a dollop of the filling. Garnish with mint leaves if using.

Variations: Replace the blueberries with strawberries, peaches, mango, or your favorite fruit.

About the Author

Mark Reinfeld is the winner of Vegan.com’s Recipe of the Year Award for 2011 and has over 20 years experience preparing creative vegan and raw food cuisine. Mark was the Executive Chef for the North American Vegetarian Society’s 2012 Summerfest, one of the largest vegetarian conferences in the world. He is described by VegCooking.com as being “poised on the leading edge of contemporary vegan cooking”. He is the founding chef of the Blossoming Lotus Restaurant, winner of Honolulu Advertiser’s ‘Ilima Award for “Best Restaurant on Kaua’i”. Tap here to learn more about Mark Reinfeld.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ASIAN ASPARAGUS WRAPS

ASIAN

ASPARAGUS WRAPS MAKES 6 Makes 6 asparagus wraps; 30 Minutes or Under! by Tess Challis

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What an easy way to impress guests! These crunchy munchies will have people thinking you went all out, when actually they take only about 15 minutes to prepare. The key is to make sure you have very flavorful asparagus spears before wrapping them. In fact, they should taste a bit too flavorful as is, since wrapping them in the phyllo will “dilute” their flavor a bit.

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ASIAN ASPARAGUS WRAPS

Organic Ingredients:

Procedure:

• 3 large (or 6 small)* sheets phyllo dough, thawed

1. Place the asparagus, sesame oil, lime juice, tamari, and garlic in a medium-large skillet. Sauté over medium heat, stirring often, just until the asparagus is bright green and barely tender. You will want them to be slightly underdone, as they will cook a little more in the oven. Remove from heat and set aside.

Overly Flavorful Asparagus: • 12 thin (or 6 fat) asparagus spears, trimmed • 2 teaspoons toasted (dark) sesame oil • 1 tablespoon each: fresh lime juice and tamari, shoyu, or soy sauce • 6 cloves garlic, minced or pressed The End (Happily Ever After): • Non-hydrogenated margarine (or toasted sesame oil) for brushing** • 2 tablespoons raw sesame seeds (preferably black)

Notes: *If your 1 lb. package of phyllo dough contains twenty large sheets of phyllo, you’ll need to use three sheets. However, if your 1 lb. package of phyllo contains forty smaller sheets, you’ll need six sheets. **You may instead spray the phyllo with oil, as it’s quicker and lower in fat. Of course, the more “buttery” and time consuming approach of brushing the phyllo yields a more intense, rich flavor.

2. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Gently remove three large (or six small)* sheets of phyllo and set them aside. Immediately roll up the remaining phyllo dough in plastic. Place in another airtight plastic bag and put it back in the fridge. 3. If you are using three large sheets of phyllo, cut them in half width-wise to make six sheets. 4. Place one sheet of phyllo on a clean dry surface and brush it with margarine or toasted sesame oil (or spray it with oil**). Place two thin asparagus spears (or one fatty) at the bottom of the phyllo sheet, making sure to scrape some of the garlic and flavorings from the pan onto the asparagus. Roll the phyllo up and over the asparagus. Continue rolling up until you have a phyllo “cigar.” 5. Place it on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Brush the top with more margarine or toasted sesame oil (or spray with oil). Sprinkle with some raw sesame seeds. Repeat this process with the remaining asparagus and phyllo. 6. Bake until golden brown, about 5-10 minutes. Be careful not to over-brown, as phyllo cooks very quickly. Serve immediately.

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Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

APPLE PUFFS WITH VANILLA BEAN CARAMEL SAUCE

APPLE PUFFS WITH VANILLA BEAN

CARAMEL SAUCE by Tess Challis

SERVES 6

Hoping to get a marriage proposal or a raise, but short on time? Yes, these are that good. No one will ever guess how easily you threw this together either, especially when you use words like “vanilla bean.”

Organic Ingredients: • 6 large (or 12 small)* sheets of phyllo dough, thawed • Oil for spraying (non-virgin olive, sunflower, or safflower) Filling So Good:

Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce: • 6-inch segment of a vanilla bean

• 2 apples, very thinly sliced (unpeeled if organic)

• 6 tablespoons each: pure maple syrup and nonhydrogenated margarine

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 3 tablespoons brown rice syrup

• 2 tablespoons organic sugar or sucanat • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt

• 4 tablespoons organic “white” sugar (not powdered)

• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

• 3/8 teaspoon sea salt (scant ½ teaspoon)

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

APPLE PUFFS WITH VANILLA BEAN CARAMEL SAUCE

Procedure: 1. Mix the items for the filling together in a medium bowl and set aside. 2. Spray or lightly coat a cookie sheet with oil and set it aside. 3. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Gently unwrap the phyllo dough. Remove six (or twelve)* sheets and lay them flat on a clean, dry surface. If desired, cover them with a slightly damp towel. Re-wrap the remaining phyllo in airtight plastic and place back in the fridge. 4. Remove one large (or two small)* sheet(s) of phyllo and place on a clean, dry surface (covering the other phyllo with the towel again). If you are using two small sheets, just place one on top of the other. Spray or brush the phyllo with a little oil. Fold it into thirds (the long way) so that it resembles a tall, skinny rectangle. As you go, you will want to spray or brush each portion of dry (unoiled) phyllo, so that all the exposed portions of phyllo have been lightly coated with oil. 5. Place about one-sixth of the apple mixture at the base of the phyllo rectangle. Fold the bottom of the phyllo up and over the mixture. Continue to fold up, forming it into a triangle as you go. Once you have an apple-filled triangle, place it on the cookie sheet and give it one last hurrah of oil.

6. Repeat step five with the remaining phyllo and apple mixture. If you like, dust the triangle puffs with a little ground cinnamon. If you want total cuteness, you can sprinkle the cinnamon on top in a stripe pattern (or make swirls with the cinnamon using your finger or a small brush). 7. Place the puffs in the oven and bake them until they’re golden brown (about 15-25 minutes). Remove. 8. To create the sauce, make a lengthwise cut all the way down the vanilla bean with a sharp knife and open it like a pod. Scrape out all of the gooey insides with a table knife (or the back of your fingernail) and place in a small pot. Add the remaining caramel sauce ingredients to the pot and set to medium-low heat, stirring very well to combine. When the sauce comes to a boil, turn the heat down to the lowest setting your stove can muster up. Then allow it to simmer gently for another 3-5 minutes, stirring often. 9. Top the apple puffs with the sauce. Dust with a little powdered sugar and serve immediately. Say yes. *If your 1 lb. package of phyllo contains 20 (large) sheets, you will use 6 of them. If it contains 40 (small) sheets, you will need 12 of them.

About the Author

Quintessence (“Tess”) Challis is an author, vegan chef, and wellness coach. Tess began her holistic health journey in her late teens. After a lifetime of numerous health ailments (including severe acne, obesity, constant illnesses, anxiety, and depression), she found that a vegan diet along with an inner wellness regime made all the difference. Tess’ books include “Radiant Health, Inner Wealth,” “The Two-Week Wellness Solution” (foreword by Dr. Neal Barnard), “Radiance 4 Life” (foreword by Robert Cheeke). and “Get Waisted: 100 Addictively Delicious Plant-Based Entrees” (co-authored by Dr. Mary Clifton). Click here to find out more about Tess.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

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Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

ORDINARY PEOPLE

EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS

One Momâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Quest to Make Lunches Healthy

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

GETTING KIDS LEAN AND GREEN / Dr. Janice Stanger

GETTING KIDS LEAN AND GREEN

ONE MOM’S QUEST

TO MAKE LUNCHES HEALTHY

arbara Cole Gates is a mom on a mission – to teach kids that “nuts and beans are powerful proteins.” This mission launched when her two children were very young. Barb was a daycare provider. She served the youngsters in her care plantbased meals and snacks. “All the kids loved my food, including the beans” she observed. “Kids just need the

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by Dr. Janice Stanger

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

GETTING KIDS LEAN AND GREEN / Dr. Janice Stanger opportunity to experience them with a positive perspective.”

This Mom’s Goal: Replace Animal Proteins with Nuts and Beans

Founder of “Lean and Green Kids”

At the 2009 CA School Wellness Conference, Barbara realized something was missing from the discussion. “All the health experts were advocating for fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, which is great. But then they would round out the “mantra” by promoting lean meats. There was no mention of nuts and beans.” Lean and Green Kids wants to change that mantra.

Now, as the founder and director of the nonprofit Lean and Green Kids, she is reaching a broader (and older) audience, which includes students, educators, school food service providers, and food policy makers. Her nonprofit is impacting the choices children have in school cafeterias and the way teachers teach nutrition education. In Oceanside, California for example, elementary school students benefited from “Lean and Green Mondays,” with healthy plant-based choices.

Here’s the new idea. “Health advocates need to start including nuts and beans in the discussion, especially in regard to child and school nutrition

Barbara Cole Gates’ goal is for school districts to at least offer replacements for animal protein. Her mission is to replace the meat with nuts and beans.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

GETTING KIDS LEAN AND GREEN / Dr. Janice Stanger programs, where the majority of the participants have a higher risk for diet related disease.” Momentum for her message is growing – to the national level. Lean and Green Kids sponsored the first ever government legislation calling for plant based vegetarian school lunches. With gratifying support from major health, environmental and educational organizations, the Lean and Green Kids resolution (ACR 16) passed! Three more states followed suit. And now, at the national level, policymakers are – at this moment – creating legislation to include plant based vegetarian options in school lunch programs according to a source with the non-profit organization, California Food Policy Advocates.

Believe it or not, this is a typical school lunch offering at public school. To ensure that kids are focusing and learning in school, there needs to be a significant change in what we serve them for lunch.

Vegan Roots Run Deep for this Mama Lean and Green Kids has deep roots for Barbara. About a dozen years ago, when her first child entered kindergarten, she was dismayed by the lunch options in the school cafeteria. Pizza dominated, followed by chili con carne with cheese and other such nutrient-poor offerings. Barbara realized that while many health-conscious parents had the option to send their kids to school with home made bagged lunches, the kids who were relying on free and healthy meals through the National School Lunch Program were not being served. French fried potatoes and sauce on a slice of pizza should not be considered a serving of vegetables for our children. But current regulations do.

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Barbara dived right in, not bothered by her lack of expertise in school politics. She became known as a rabble rouser, not taking no for an answer in her quest for helping children. She partnered with two other women, and together on the PTA, they made a difference. First, they taught a special awardwinning curriculum in a number of classrooms over three years. Kids learned hands-on how to embrace healthy plant foods by preparing it themselves, and teachers learned a new way to educate their students on nutrition. Just as important, the three women shifted the culture in the cafeteria and got new and better choices for all the students. Barbara’s passion for plant-based eating goes back to when she was only thirteen. She and her friends Jennifer and Veronica were upset when they realized what meat was and where it came from. The three decided to have a contest to see who could stay vegetarian the longest. Barbara won, maintaining a meat-free diet for nine years. She started to eat meat again at age 22, and lots of it. But when her second child was born, Barbara read John Robbins’ “Diet for a New America.” Barbara explained “I felt transformed, like a different person,” She loved going back to an animal-free

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

GETTING KIDS LEAN AND GREEN / Dr. Janice Stanger from young motherhood to the end of life. In this play, she deeply expresses her personal feelings about the cruelty of the livestock industry and the choices each one of us can make. But that is only one strand in this complex production, which also conveys messages about parental love, romance, betrayed love, and the many happy and painful vagaries of human relationships and personal awakening. In her life, as in her play, Barbara weaves all these strands together.

Let Her Motto Be Yours: “Faith, Patience and Gumption” Programs put in place by moms like Barbara Cole allow kids to learn hands on how to embrace healthy plant foods.

diet. “The food was exciting, adventurous, – heavenly.” It was that good. Barbara’s husband decided to read “Diet for a New America” while on a two-week business trip. As soon as he returned, he told her “I understand. I’m in.” She still smiles thinking of this landmark moment in her marriage. Her whole family celebrates a plant-based diet now, about fourteen years later, and eats “pretty conventionally.” Some meals are built around whole plant foods, while others rely on meat and dairy substitutes to create pasta, tacos, and veggie burgers. As a gifted actress and passionate writer, Barbara has created a moving one-woman show, Surviving Chrysalis. Aptly named, a chrysalis is the stage during which a caterpillar transforms itself into a butterfly. In just an hour, Barbara takes her rapt audience through the arc of a woman’s life,

We marvel at how much work this mom, with all the responsibilities of family and ordinary life, puts into a bean-based mission. In dealing with bureaucracy, Barbara finds three qualities essential for success – “faith, patience, and gumption.” None of it is easy. By staying so powerful and focused,while overcoming endless obstacles, Barbara shows us that we each make a difference. We can choose to lead change, or we can just go mindlessly along with the status quo. Let’s be inspired by her example. Educate. Talk to people. Make new choices. Write letters. Use all your gifts and channel your energy. Our kids and our planet need every one of us. Intrigued? Tap here to find out more about Barbara Cole Gates and her organization. (www.leanandgreenkids.org).

About the Author Dr. Janice Stanger has a Ph.D. in Human Development and Aging from University of California, San Francisco. As an adult, she went through multiple unsuccessful weight loss attempts, binge eating, and numerous chronic illnesses and debilitating pain. Since following the Perfect Formula Diet the author is now in Perfect Health, at her Perfect Weight, and takes no prescription drugs (with ideal cholesterol, blood pressure, and glucose level) at age 58. Find out more about Dr. Janice Stanger by visiting her website here.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

REVIEWS

AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Pick of the Month: VegWorld Gift Certificates Veggie World Travels: Salinas Valley

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

PICK OF THE MONTH

PICK OF THE MONTH:

GIFT CERTIFICATE

hat an incredible Stocking Stuffer! Gift your loved ones with an Annual Subscription to VegWorld Magazine. We will include EVERY BACK ISSUE to date plus offer the annual subscription at a significant discount.

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Our magazine continues to be featured as “What’s Hot” and is a top-grossing health related magazine in the Apple Newsstand. Gift certificates are a great way to spread the word about the veggie lifestyle. In fact, with more high-profile celebrities climbing on board, the vegetarian lifestyle is the hottest trend right now. So is VegWorld Magazine, according to its reader’s reviews. “The future of Vegan is here,” proclaims one 5-star reviewer. Another is “blown away by this magazine” which offers “everything [she] needed.” The magazine has garnered a stream of 5-star reviews since its inception by readers similarly “blown away” by its features and cutting-edge delivery.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VEGGIE TRAVEL

WATCHING WILDLIFE AND SAVORING ARTICHOKES

IN CALIFORNIA’S SALINAS VALLEY,

THE WORLD’S SALAD BOWL by Robin Tierney

Viewing exhibits at the National Steinbeck Center, I think of John Steinbeck’s passage from his 1941 work, The Log from the Sea of Cortez:

“W

e have never understood why men mount the heads of animals and hang them up to look down on their conquerors. Possibly it feels good to these men to be superior to animals, but it does seem that if they were sure of it they would not have to prove it. Often a man who is afraid must constantly demonstrate his courage and, in the case of the hunter, must keep a tangible record of his courage. For ourselves, we have had mounted in a small hardwood plaque one perfect borrego [bighorn

VegWorld Magazine

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VEGGIE TRAVEL sheep] dropping. And where another man can say, ‘There was an animal, but because I am greater than he, he is dead and I am alive, and there is his head to prove it,’ we can say, ‘There was an animal, and for all we know there still is and here is proof of it. He was very healthy when we last heard of him.’” The center inspired by this great writer anchors downtown Salinas, which is close to Monterey Bay. This part of California’s Central Valley offers many attractions. Local art fills venues like Valley Art Gallery, 4Word Art Gallery and newcomer @Risk. Farm tours reveal how growers raise crops in the Salinas Valley, the “Salad Bowl of the World.” During an hour tour of The Farm, I learn about certified organic farming practices, sample heavenly strawberries and view John Cerney’s super-sized painted cut-out figures depicting farm workers. And just north, Moss Landing offers whale-watching cruises and tours of Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Reserve, where you observe animals in their native habitat but not so close as to disturb them.

An early start I start my Salinas visit at the Cherry Bean Gourmet Coffeehouse, where roasting’s done twice-weekly. “Our varietals are all shade-grown, bird-friendly and we don’t buy from anybody who does clearcutting,” says owner Todd Williams, who began here two decades ago as a barista. Bring your own cup and save 25 cents. It’s a colorful place: walls of works by local artists, a long communal freestanding bar and characters such as a dapper guy wearing a jester hat. The coffee’s great, and you have a choice of soy, almond or rice milk. There’s even agave for those with a sweet tooth. Vegan eats include raw cookies and plant-based healthy burritos made by Sweet

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VEGGIE TRAVEL

VegWorld Magazine

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VEGGIE TRAVEL

Reaching seven miles inland to 3,000 acres of marsh and tidal flats, Elkhorn Slough is one of the largest areas of undisturbed wetlands.

Earth Natural Foods in Moss Landing. I got the smoky blend of green chilies, Anasazi beans and butternut squash. I could hang out here all morning, but thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a boat to catch -- a silent electricpowered Duffy operated by Whisper Charters. Captain Brian Ackerman gives ecofriendly tours of Elkhorn Slough, setting off from Moss Landing. Reaching seven miles inland to 3,000 acres of marsh and tidal flats, Elkhorn Slough is one of the largest areas of undisturbed wetlands. Over 90 percent of Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s estuaries and coastal marshes have been destroyed since the 1950s, so this is critical habitat -- and an amazing place to observe animals in nature. In every direction, we spot ducks, snowy egrets, harbor seals, sea lions, endangered

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VEGGIE TRAVEL sea otters (once hunted to near extinction) and California brown pelicans, who, years ago, were nearly decimated by DDT and other human impacts. More than 300 species of birds, 100 species of fish and 400 species of invertebrates have been identified in Elkhorn Slough. Part of the Pacific Flyway, the slough provides feeding and resting ground for migrating water and shorebirds. Pointing to a “ladies club of otters,” Ackerman describes their matriarchal social structures in which vital skills are taught to offspring. Like us, they don’t live by instinct.

When it’s time to eat…. Vegan food’s easy to find. In Moss Landing, the Whole Enchilada’s www.wenchilada.com festive dining room and patio are perfect places to enjoy the locally harvested, brightly flavored

artichoke appetizer and tasty refried beans, free of animal products and served with fresh avocado and corn tortillas. Back in Salinas, don’t miss Pajaro Street Bar & Grill www.psgrill.net. Owner/chef Deamer Dunn enjoys creating such vegan dishes as savory mashed potato-encrusted veggie cakelets, soy pesto tortellini and a fresh four-berry pie. Music is often provided by Million Dollar Ticket, which mixes eclectic pop, standards and beautiful Spanish guitar. For a quick sandwich, Ike’s Place www.ilikeikesplace.com serves vegan-able selections like the Steinbeck, which uses vegan turkey. For traditional Cal-Italian fare, go to Gino’s www.ginospasta.com. Run by the same family since 1975, Gino’s serves a superb local beet and citrus spinach salad and hand-tossed pizzas with medium-thick crust (a gluten-free alternative’s available for small pizzas) that are topped with fresh produce. I chose local artichokes and pineapple.

Plant-based vegan food is easy to find in Moss Landing. Gino’s serves a superb hand-tossed pizza with medium-thick crust and even offer a gluten-free alternative version.

VegWorld Magazine

Issue 017 - December 2013 |

VEGGIE TRAVEL

VegWorld Magazine

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VEGGIE TRAVEL

You’ll find many treasures as you explore Salinas, California. Historic sites, natural beauty, animals in nature, delicious healthy vegan food. There’s something for everyone in this unforgettable destination.

This is an early-to-bed agricultural town, but that’s makes it easier to rise by dawn, breakfast with the locals and then enjoy the great sunny outdoors. LODGING: Laurel Inn Motel isn’t boutique-y, but the nice clean affordable rooms offer super-comfy beds, updated bathrooms, refrigerators and Wifi, and the continental breakfast includes decent coffee, fresh fruit and a tasty honey-free granola. It’s right off Highway 101.

EVENTS: * Whalefest Monterey January 26-27 * Castroville Artichoke Festival May 31-June 1 * Try to time your visit to catch the First Friday Art Walk, which features art, poetry and live music (listen for the Dan Beck Trio) in downtown Salinas galleries, coffeehouses and the Steinbeck Center. Visitor information: www.destinationsalinas.com

For luxury, Captain’s Inn at Moss Landing offers rooms with fine furnishing, fireplaces and big water views, plus made-to-order breakfast using fresh local produce.

About the Author

Robin Tierney is a travel, outdoors and food writer who gets her energy from an all plant-based diet. Her whole household is made up of vegan athletes, including their adopted American Pit Bull Terriers. Reach Robin at travelveg@live.com. Photos by Robin Tierney.

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