Blogging For Veggies?

In some industries blogging is more important than others. I think one of the best industries to have a blog in is the food industry. If you’re a restaurant owner then you can pretty much guarantee that Foodies are going to come in and write reviews whether you know about them or not. Therefore it would probably help out to have a restaurant blog of your own and to follow lots of popular food blogs from your area.

For vegetarian/vegan restaurants, they may benefit even more from having their own blogs. Since vegetarians and vegan tend to be more socially/environmentally conscious people (because of the fact that we’ve chosen to be food conscious), restaurants can use their blog to promote the activities they take to support these causes. Whether they sponsor a community program or are buying local only. Having a blog can also allow them to promote themselves by introducing their employees, posting about their food, and writing comments from customers. Likely if they have their own food blog then those Foodies out there, with their own blogs, may be more likely to come in and review it for themselves. the Of course you could also promote yourself through Facebook, Instagram, or twitter, but the benefit of a blog is that the articles can be longer and more intriguing. Overtime people will feel a deeper connection to the writer and the restaurant. Since most vegetarian/vegan places are not chain restaurants then they need to build a following within their community which can definitely be accomplished through telling their continuing story over a blog.

Top Ten Annoying Thoughts About Vegetarians and Vegans

10) You never eat out, because what would you order? Not any of these delicious options surely?

   

9) You only eat salads when you eat out. Again because there is just NO options for you.

8) You miss out on hearty meals in general. This is the awkward moment when you realize that the majority of the foods you eat in those hearty meals are vegetables…

7) Vegans can’t eat pancakes. Lets be honest, no one would be vegan if this was true.

6) Eating meat is a deal breaker for relationships. This is only true if the meat eater feels that way.

5) You must be deficient in EVERYTHING! False; for the most part vegetarians and vegans are actually better off than most meat eaters.

4) You love insects just as much as animals. Nope. I understand that insects are an important part of the ecosystem but they are absolutely not welcome inside my house or near me, and they will come across a serious misfortune if they forget that.

3) You’re either a hippie or a hipster.

 

2) You have to hate the look of fur or leather in fashion. Actually we just get the same look for a better price and a clear conscience by getting fake fur or leather.

1) You must miss meat, because there is simply no better taste in the entire world…..false

The Misconceptions and Solutions for a Vegetarian or Vegan Dietary Needs

Most people assume that meat and dairy are an extremely important part of the human diet, and that by cutting them out we are losing a lot of valuable nutrients. This is a major misconception. Although it is easy to become an unhealthy vegetarian or vegan by simply only eating starches and junk food. It is also easy to fill your diet with a wide range of healthy alternatives.

There are lots of options for vegetarians or vegans to replace the protein in their diets, such as nuts, seeds, beans, soy, and grains. Many of these things people will eat without thinking of them as a protein. The all holy peanut butter is a great source of protein and if you’re feeling festive at this spooky time of year then snacking on some pumpkin seeds is also a great idea. Another delicious seed for protein is the hemp seed which is excellent when sprinkled over granola or amongst a trail mix. Getting into the winter season it won’t be hard to fill your diet of cozy, comforting, bean recipes. It is the season of black bean chilis, and lentil soups. Of course another great snack is pita bread and hummus, which of course is packed with protein as its made of chickpeas. Soy, another protein source means you can mix in tofu and tempeh into your diet as well as binge on the addictive edamame whenever you want. Probably the easiest source of protein are grains, but it seems to also be the least thought of. Easily consumed by simply eating granola, oatmeal, or whole wheat bread, the grain category is almost forgotten. Meat is only one source of protein and needless to say it is easily replaced.

Another concern is where vegetarians or vegans will get their iron from. As someone who is a vegetarian and severely anemic, this is of utmost importance to me. Besides meat, iron is also found in legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, and vegetables. Pumpkin seeds are also an iron source as well as a protein source, so stock up now. Munching on pistachios is also a great way to get your iron. Again soybeans and therefore soy products can also be a good iron source. For grains, brown rice, and quinoa are where you want to focus. More important that what to eat is how to eat it. For the best iron absorption you should start by cooking with cast iron skillets, and try to eat vitamin c rich foods along with iron rich foods. It is also important to eat small amounts of iron rich foods at one time. This is because if you try to consume mass amounts of iron then you will actually absorb less. Coffee and tea will also prevent absorption if consumed with iron based meals. Lastly, spinach is an ironic vegetable in this situation as it contains iron but it also blocks the absorption for other sources, so instead of filling your diet with spinach salads you may want to try a variety of iron rich meals.

Calcium is the nutrient that many people believe vegans may be deficient in. However, there are many channels to gain calcium from. Starting with the obvious almonds,(almond milk is much higher in calcium than regular milk), you can also gain it from white beans, dried figgs, bok choy, kale, oranges( and orange juice), sea weed, sesame seeds, and again soy products. Needless to say if vegans can add at least some of these options into their diet with the right measurements then they’ll be fine or  more than.

Above I have talked about a lot of different ways to to make sure that as a vegetarian or vegan you can get all the nutrients you need without meat or dairy. However, it is most important to make sure that you are not only eating these foods, but also eating them in the right measurements to make sure you are meeting your nutritional requirements. Below I have listed a few places where you can find more information on how to best go about putting together a well rounded meal.

http://greatist.com/health/18-surprising-dairy-free-sources-calcium

http://www.nomeatathlete.com/iron-for-vegetarians/

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=158

Bandidas Taqueria

Bandidas Taqueria is a vegetarian and vegan, mexican restaurant located on Commercial Drive in Vancouver. I first heard of Bandidas through a friend of mine who used to work there, and after looking through their website I decided to use them for this particular post. The food at Bandidas is rich and fulfilling food that is deliberately a healthier choice for the consumer. This is because not only does the brand consider themselves to be vegetarian/vegan, they are also just generally striving to promote healthy living. They are a small business that has been built up by its community, of which they maintain a strong presence. Bandidas supports local sports teams, artists, and events. The restaurant also buys supplies from local distributors, and uses recycled furniture and equipment. At this point it may seem obvious that the restaurant has also taken an environmentally friendly stance. They have a very low impact on the environment by using recyclable and compostable materials.  This is all background information that I was able to gather from their website, and needless to say it all would appeal anyone leading a healthy lifestyle, not just us veggies.

For the vegetarian and vegans out there this definitely a restaurant worth checking out online and in person. Checking them out in person is obviously because the food is great. The reason I suggest checking them out online is because they also have a page on their website that has a list of other vegetarian restaurants in Vancouver that they support. This I found interesting as I have not seen this on any other restaurant website. It has made their website a good place to start if you are a vegetarian or vegan new to the area and looking for places to go out and enjoy some good food. Its even just a good place to check out if you aren’t new to Vancouver as some of these places you still may not have yet heard of or been too.

What I really feel is hurting Bandidas Taqueria is their poor social media presence. Their website has zero links or at least not any that were obvious. Although I was able to find a facebook page for them using the search bar it was a near pointless effort as there is little to no content on it. There is one photo and then some information on the hours and location of the restaurant. It is clear that they have not been taking advantage of this page to promote themselves and their views socially online. The page does have some reviews which are a mix of good and bad, but the lack of additional content makes the bad stand out more because there is simply nothing else to focus on. This seems to cause the opposite effect that is desired by using social media in business marketing.

It is my opinion that Bandidas could greatly benefit from taking a stronger stance on their social media platform or choose to go with another medium such as twitter to promote themselves. Although they have community support they could create even more business for themselves by becoming more present online, because their environmental views are very popular ideals for many in a city like Vancouver. As for the vegetarians and vegans in Vancouver I hope you will put this place on your list of favourite eats because it is definitely worth it!

http://bandidastaqueria.com/gallery.htm

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bandidas-Taqueria/130996886922985

My Journey

My name is Genevieve Robichaud,and I live in the lower mainland of British Columbia. I have started this blog to give tips to both vegetarians and vegans alike. I myself am a vegetarian but after living closely with a vegan I know that there can be some similarities in view points and diets. I hope through this blog that you, the readers, may stay on top of the latest discoveries for vegetarians and vegans, whether its hearing about another great vegan/vegetarian restaurant in the Vancouver area, or learning something new in the science of foods. I must however, begin my blog by explaining my journey to vegetarianism because I was not raised this way and I am still fairly new to the scene. Don’t worry, I won’t be calling myself an “expert” anytime soon, this is simply a channel I wish to use to teach myself and share my findings with others.

My journey to vegetarianism began when I was eighteen years old. The shocker is that previously I was considered quite the carnivore by my friends and family. I never passed up the opportunity to eat meat and I always preferred my steaks on the bloody side. Now that may not be what you want to hear if you are a vegetarian or vegan perusing this blog, but it is the truth. I did also, head over heels, adore every animal known to mankind, which may lead you to think that the jump from a raging carnivore to passive vegetarian was not so difficult. With that in mind I must remind you that my journey was not completely straight forward or simple either.

When I was eighteen and newly graduated from highschool, I decided to take the fall semester off and go travel to South Africa for a volunteering opportunity on the Vervet Monkey Foundation (VMF). Although this venture was much to my mothers dismay and the stress of having her youngest daughter travel through South Africa alone may have added a stress wrinkle or two, I still consider this adventure to be one of my greatest experiences. The foundation was a place for injured or orphaned Vervet monkeys to be aided and eventually rehabilitated. Besides working with the monkeys themselves the most interesting part of my experience was having to truly become a vegetarian for the month that I was there. This was because the foundation did not allow any meat to be brought onto the property. Although we were well supplied for food, this was a completely new approach to meals for me. At this time I still preferred my proteins to be a extra rare steak, and not a handful of chickpeas.

Eventually my time at VMF came to an end and I left for home and my carnivorous ways. Although the realization that I really could become vegetarian sat in the back of my mind for days, months and years, it took a while for me to decide that this was a change I was going to make. The delay was for a number of reasons, one being that I was barely an adult, living at home and therefore still taking advantage of home cooked meals. Another, I feel, was that it was almost as if I was trying to rebel against rebelling. I didn’t want to become a vegetarian just to make a statement that a billion other nineteen and twenty year olds were making. No; if I was going to do it then I had to know that I was serious about it. The other reason that it took so long for me to persuade myself, was the fact that I didn’t feel like I had any real support in the matter. My friends would not have cared either way, but I knew for a fact that my parents would be against it because I do have very severe anemia, which means the I am naturally extremely iron deficient. My ups and downs have never been very affected by my diet, which is why I have always had to manage my anemia with iron supplements, regardless of my red meat intake. It wasn’t until I reunited with my long lost, backpacking sister that I felt like I had the support system I needed to change, because she herself had become pescatarian in her years abroad. Meaning she does not eat meat or poultry but she does eat seafood on occasion.

Eventually I made the decision to become a pescatarian myself. The reason I chose not to jump immediately to becoming a vegetarian is because I personally feel that it would have be harder on my system as well as my overall lifestyle. I think you need time to train yourself how to substitute for proteins properly and not just end up filling your diet full of carb junk food. I believe in always trying to eat the rainbow, which really just means making your meal as colourful as possible but also making sure that you’re filling all your dietary needs. Plus, quitting meat is like quitting any habitual activity which is always far more difficult if its done cold turkey, or in this case tofurky.

I spent a year as a pescatarian until I finally decided to make the full change over to vegetarianism. It was much easier at this time because I was living on my own and I was completely in charge of my own groceries, which makes everything much easier. Although I feel that I’ve largely made this change for the ethical reasons I still strive to stay as healthy as possible. Thats not too say that I don’t indulge in cakes and chocolate when its available, it just means that I do my best to counterbalance those moments with healthy choices too. I hope through this blog I may learn new tips for myself but also that others who lead a similar lifestyle may discover some useful tips for themselves too.