Eating Consciously

Since I have been slacking on the frequency of my posts, as I am extremely busy and will continue to be for the next two weeks, I figured this would be a great time to make it up to all of you and give something away. In fact, I will give TWO things away!! Yes, I have in my hands two copies of PETA's Vegan College Cookbook and I must tell you that it's quite amazing. No, I'm not just saying that because I got a free copy ;) As most of you know, I'm pretty anti-cookbook because I feel most recipes are way too complicated and expensive, but this cookbook certainly debunks that theory. In fact, most of the recipes have about 5 or less ingredients and every recipe looks super quick, super easy, and super cheap! So, enough with the endorsement and on with the giveaway! What do you have to do to win a copy? Simply post a comment. That's all. I have two copies to give away and I will pick two random winners. Here's a preview of the prize at hand: So, post yo...

I know I've been slacking on the posts a bit, but rest assured I am working on some really awesome stuff for you guys ;) I would like to make a very special announcement about something I am really proud of. Today marks a milestone in the world of Eating Consciously as this blog has finally hit 100 subscribers! It was only a few months ago that we had merely about a dozen people signed up, so this is really amazing to see so many new readers in such a short amount of time. I want to thank everyone who has been around since the beginning of Eating Consciously, a little over a year ago, and also want to extend a warm welcome to all the new subscribers and those that have yet to come! It really encourages me to continue with the work that I am doing here, knowing that it's having a direct impact on your lives and the lives of countless animals. So, not only should this be a celebration for myself and the blog, but a celebration for all of us and the progress we are making in...

I must admit, I'm not a big soup eater. I enjoy the occasional soup every now and again and one of my favorite meals happens to be my "Chicken" Noodle Soup , but beyond that, I don't enjoy them often. I know there are a TON of soup lovers out there and I was inspired recently by a post over at Eat Air , where they made a different soup everyday for an entire week! So, I got my creative juices flowing and whipped up this soup the other night. For someone who is not a soup fanatic, I must say this one was awfully delicious! Lentil Tomato Soup 1 onion, diced 6 cloves garlic, minced 2 TBS olive oil 1 can diced tomatoes 1 C green lentils 2 tsp salt 1 tsp crushed red pepper 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp turmeric 1 tsp paprika 1 head kale, chopped 6 C water 2 vegan vegetable bouillon cubes In a large pot, heat the onions, garlic, and oil over medium heat until onions turn translucent. Add tomatoes, lentils, and spices, stirring frequently until lentils begin to brown slightly. Add...

The following is a list of stupid questions that vegans get asked with some tongue-in-cheek responses for your entertainment. Please note, I could go into immense detail to seriously address each and every one of these questions, but I will save that for later FAQs. Enjoy! 1) Don't you miss cheese? I miss cheese about as much as I miss drinking Pepto-Bismol as a kid. 2) If everyone went vegan, wouldn't animals take over the world? Yes, animals would take over the world and cows would be breaking down our doors! You do realize that these animals exist only because we breed them into existence, right? 3) Aren't you hurting plants? Plants do not have central nervous systems, therefore are not sentient, therefore do not feel pain. C'mon, really? 4) Where do you get your protein? Newsflash!! Almost ALL foods contain protein and guess what? We don't even need to combine them! This question must be straight out of 1983. 5) Do you eat fish? Biology 101: Fish belong...

I know, I've been holding out on you guys for a while now with this recipe, but alas, here it is: Vegan Crab Cakes 1 package of extra firm tofu, crumbled 1 C whole wheat bread crumbs (about 2 slices of bread into the food processor) 1/2 C vegenaise 2 TBS Earth Balance, melted 1 onion, minced 2 stalks of celery, minced 1 clove garlic, minced 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning 1 TBS ground flax seeds 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp black pepper Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients until well combined. Use a 1/2 C measuring scoop to portion out the individual cakes. You can form them into round, patty shapes with you hands and place them onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve topped some homemade hollandaise sauce if you want to go all out. Makes 8 cakes. I served mine over some sauteed collard greens. Also, in case you didn't notice the banner up at the top, I just opened up the Eating Consciously Cafepress ...

I know I mentioned in my last post that I would give you that vegan Crab Cake recipe and I still have every intention of doing so in the NEXT post, but this sauce is great over the cakes, so I wanted to share this first. It's my take on a hollandaise sauce, which is usually made from dairy butter and chickens egg yolks. I am happy to say you will find neither of those ingredients here, but you will find a delectable sauce that you can use to turn even the simplest steamed vegetables into a fancy side dish. Hollandaise Sauce 1/4 C whole wheat pastry flour 1/4 C olive oil 2 C water 1 TBS lemon juice 2 TBS nutritional yeast 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp black pepper 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 1/4 tsp nutmeg In a saucepan, over medium heat, cook the pastry flour and olive oil together for about 5 minutes stirring constantly. A thick paste will form. Turn heat down to medium-low and begin adding the water 1/2 C at a time, making sure to work out any lumps before adding more. A whisk is helpful, b...

Well, it has only been 6 days since my last post and with all that's going on the world of Eating Consciously, I would say I'm doing a pretty good job at keeping up ;) I just confirmed the date for the next Vegan Drinks Philly event which will occur on 4.20.09! It's great to see how many like-minded people there are just in the Philadelphia area, let alone throughout the world that I am able to connect with via my blog, Twitter , and Facebook . It's really astounding and inspiring. My Spring semester will also be coming to a close over the next couple of weeks, so with two big projects due soon, that should keep me relatively occupied. One of the projects is a food modification project where I have to take a recipe, change it to make it healthier in some way, and do a full taste, texture, and appearance profile on it. It's more involved than it sounds, trust me ;) I have decided I use use my Dark Chocolate Brownie recipe and exchange the fat for pureed blac...