Eggs were the last animal-based product that I gave up when I went vegan. First of all, I believed that I needed the protein. Second, I thought they were healthy. Third, I didn’t see the harm in eating eggs. After all, a chicken lays them and now you pick it up and eat it. No biggie, right?

Wrong.

Here are just a few of the issues:

• Chickens are raised in hideous conditions, often with their beaks cut off so they don‘t peck each other.
• The public has been duped to believe that many eggs are laid by free-roaming chickens. Yes, some are, but very few, and their lives are significantly more restricted than the idyllic scenario we are envisioning.
• When chicks hatch there are people whose job it is to find out their sex. If they are female, they get to live. Male chicks are (WARNING, this is graphic) ground up and discarded.
• Eggs are animal protein which is a cause of many of the diseases we encounter in western society like: cancer, heart disease, diabetes and more. The egg industry has a lot of power to sway public opinion. But even small numbers of eggs consumed each week are potentially harmful.

I was eating so many eggs before I stopped that by the time I did give them up, I was actually a little grossed out. But then I started missing eggs (absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?). Now, however, I have a few really satisfying alternatives. Here are my three favorites: 

1. I love the idea that Just Egg and other egg alternatives exist. I was so excited when I first tried this product. They have a few different versions. One comes in a squeeze container and mimics liquid eggs and can be found in the refrigerated plant-based section of the grocery store. It’s fine, but not my favorite. Just Egg also offer some pre-cooked egg dishes. One is Sous Vide Plant Egg Bites and they have a couple of different flavors. The other is their pre-made omelets. Both the egg bites and the omelets are found in the frozen section. I really like the omelet and will eat that with toast on occasion when I’m in the mood. They are not whole food plant-based, but if you miss eggs, it’s a darn good substitute. And their website has a ton of recipes (like the scramble in the image above. YES, that scramble is plant-based!) that use their liquid product.

2. The one dish that I missed a lot was egg salad. My mom has a really good simple egg salad recipe that I made regularly.  I was so happy to learn that Sam Turnbull, from the blog: It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken offers a recipe for tofu egg salad sandwiches. (Hint, if you want to cook it along with us, join our Facebook group for tips and suggestions when we post it.) 

3. Tofu scrambles. I love making tofu scrambles, though I also love finding them on brunch menus in restaurants. In the class I took with Sam in 2020 we made a delicious breakfast burrito that uses her tofu scramble recipe. We will be making a version of that in the group and you can always search for scramble recipes online.

I attempt to eat a balanced diet. Really it’s more of living a balanced lifestyle by eating as much whole food plant based as possible. But part of that balance means enjoying veganized versions of the foods I loved and enjoyed.

When eating these non-egg products, I’m not harming animals and I have a smaller impact on the environment. I usually endeavor to make the best choice for my health (though sometimes yummy wins out. But it’s always plant-based yummy.) 

How about you? Do you still eat eggs? Have you switched from eggs but don’t have any good alternatives yet? Let me know what would help make this easier for you!

To bean or not to bean. That is the question. Let’s discuss.

We all have foods that we like or dislike. Foods that agree with us or don’t. And foods that for some reason, perhaps an allergy, we just cannot eat.

Some people in our What’s Plant-Based Cooking Good Looking? community will not eat tofu, others won’t or cannot eat nuts and others won’t eat beans. The beans issue, I have learned, is less from a health concern standpoint, but more from a comfort standpoint. 

We all know the old rhyme:

Beans beans the magical fruit, the more you eat the more you toot. (Did I just write that? It appears I did. And I used to say it a completely different way when I was a kid too.)

Honestly, when I eat too many beans, well, you know what happens. (I’m pretty sure I did not just write that.) 

Some people find that soaking them first helps, other people find that taking Beano works, and others find that nothing works and it’s just easier to stay away.

I find that some beans always make me a little gassy (Am I still writing about this?) and others not at all.

For example, I don’t think I ever have problems with lentils. And I’ve heard others who are the same. But the white bean dip that I make…Oh boy. That I have to eat in moderation. Maybe I’ll do an experiment and try soaking them next time (they are already canned, so it might not help, but it’s worth a try). 

Last week I had bowls of chili with three types of beans, and I was fine. So, it’s all a big personal experiment.

All of this leads to why it’s worth eating beans.

🍃 Beans are an excellent source of plant-based protein

🍃 Beans are versatile and can be used in many dishes

🍃 Beans are lower on the glycemic index and won’t spike blood sugar

🍃 Beans are relatively inexpensive

🍃 There are many different types of beans and pulses- i.e. black, kidney, pinto, white, soy, chickpeas and others

🍃 You can buy dried beans and soak them yourself (super easy) or you can buy them canned (even easier).

According to just one of many studies:

“Beans are an inexpensive yet nutrient-dense food… A ½ cup serving of cooked beans provides up to 25 g of protein…The micronutrient content of legumes and pulses consists of an array of vitamins and minerals necessary to human nutrition.” — Health Benefits of Plant-Based Nutrition: Focus on Beans in Cardiometabolic Diseases

I have definitely increased the number of dishes I make with beans. And the dish I am sharing in the group this week uses lentils instead of meat to make a Bolognese sauce. I have a couple of different Bolognese recipes that I will be sharing over time, but my husband thought this one really tasted like meat. In fact, to our knowledge, this was the first time he ever ate beans! I told him afterward that he just ate beans and he was rather surprised. Win!

There are many creative chefs using beans to mimic meat and omnivores are enjoying the dishes.

Let me know if you eat beans, and/or if you are willing to try again. And for sure join us in the group to check out the recipe. The chef is really fun, has great energy and her recipes are wonderful.

For those of you in our Facebook group, you saw the question I asked when you asked to join the group.

The question is: What are some of your questions or concerns about eating plant-based?

Many of you answered it which was very helpful. One thing I’ve learned is that if one person has a question, then many others do too.

Some of the questions have quick answers (i.e. simple cooking questions), and others take a bit more explaining (i.e. getting enough protein), but they are all equally important and we will get to them all.

I’m going to start out easy because my response this week actually dovetails with the recipe.

Since summer is in full swing and my kids will be home to visit soon, I pulled out my favorite gazpacho recipe that they love too. (As always, you will find this recipe in the group.)

Many gazpacho recipes call for pureeing your veggies into a smooth cold soup. But not this recipe, which is a) why I like it and b) why it’s the topic of this post today.

One of the comments/questions I got in the group resonated with me. She said, “I really don’t like chopping vegetables, is there a better way?” 

The answer is yes and no. If you are going to cook with fresh vegetables, it may require chopping. In fact, it will, at some point, require chopping.

Here are some tips:

🌱 Personally, I can’t stand too long in one position so if a recipe I’m making does require a lot of chopping I will either chop some of it earlier in the day (or the day before) and then go do other things, or sit down while chopping.

🌱 I’m more than ok with cheating a little and buying some pre-chopped vegetables when I can. Mushrooms can often be found sliced in a package and I always have chopped garlic in a jar. I have, in the past, bought pre-chopped onions too. If they are super fresh, it’s great. But if you’ve ever cooked with onions, you know that the flavor (and smell) gets stronger each day. So sometimes it can be overpowering to cook with pre-chopped onions.

🌱 Sometimes cooking with chopped frozen veggies will work too (spinach is a good example that I have used in the past, and I know that many other vegetables come frozen. In fact, my son makes smoothies with frozen strawberries because the smoothie stays colder than just adding ice).

I know some purist cooks would never in a million years buy pre-chopped or frozen anything. I get it! And I get that the pre-chopped requires more packaging, which isn’t great for the environment. But if it’s a make-or-break situation, then I’d rather buy some pre-chopped items and still cook the food. There are a bunch of ways you can do it and still end up with a home cooked meal.

Either way, it’s kind of like other tasks that we don’t really like to do. If we want to get into a neatly made bed at night, we make our beds in the morning. If we want to wake up to a clean kitchen, then we clean up after dinner. And if we want the benefits of a healthy plant-based diet, sometimes it’s best to just set aside some time and get Zen about the whole experience. Put on some music and just get into the chopping. 

This week’s gazpacho recipe calls to roughly chop the veggies. I like “roughly chopped” because it doesn’t take very long. Then they go into the food processor which does the rest of the work (though as I mentioned above, they do not get pureed which I like because it ends up tasting more like a salad than a soup). Be sure to join us in the group to find out which recipe I’m sharing!

Another question I received from a friend was about how to actually chop and slice veggies.  Many people have zero experience cooking and this is all new to them.  Let me know if you already have a handle on this or would like for me to make videos. Remember, I’m not a chef, but I’m happy to show you how I do it. Email me at diane at whatsplantbasedcooking dot com and let me know!