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Are You Vegan Minded?

by | Feb 11, 2025 | My Story

I just finished a wonderful book called Vegan Minded. It’s part memoir and part overview of many things vegan. I loved so much about it. Here’s a taste of what I loved:

First of all, the author, Christine Cook Mania wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s real and vulnerable which is a breath of fresh air.

She’s vulnerable about her social qualms specifically when she was a new vegan not wanting to be different. She’s vulnerable about her romantic relationships. She’s vulnerable about her concerns about climate change… and more.

Second, while the book is informative about all things vegan, it’s a personal book. I’ve read many wonderful books about plant-based eating, health, and veganism. Though many are excellent, they can be dense. Vegan Minded, however, is a quick read. Yes, some of the information is heavy. But it’s important for context and impact and it’s not belabored.

Third, Ms. Mania offers tons of tips not only about being vegan, but also about being a good steward of our planet, people and the animals. She touches on subjects that you’ve probably heard about as well as some more tangential subjects that might be new to you. You will finish the book with actionable items too.

Fourth, Ms. Mania is originally (and currently) a Midwesterner and refers to herself as the Vegan Girl Next Door. The Midwest isn’t known as a mecca for vegans. Yet, she managed to figure it out. I can relate too. Even though I’m in California which is more vegan-friendly, I am still a lone vegan in most of my social circles. If Ms. Mania can figure it out, it’s figureoutable by just about anyone.

I can also relate to “figuring it out” because as a home cook, I figured out how to cook basic vegan meals. Just like Ms. Mania didn’t have to live in a vegan mecca to be vegan, she made it work. And just like you don’t have to have formal cooking skills you can still cook (or at least cobble together) healthy, delicious vegan meals. What one needs is a yearning to make a difference in one’s life and the life of animals and to our beautiful planet. She embodies that yearning and shares it with her readers.

Fifth, while reading Vegan Minded, I often thought: Wow, we’re so much alike about some of these issues. (And of course, there are many ways in which we differ which is what makes the world go round too!) It felt like I was making a new friend while reading the book.

Lastly, while we are alike in many ways, Ms. Mania has a unique perspective and a host of different experiences from me. It’s wonderful to be able to learn new ideas or at least hear them explained in a new light.

As a bonus, Ms. Mania, or Christine as I know her (we were in the same Main Street Vegan Lifestyle Coaching program cohort) is a yoga instructor. I’ve been taking her classes online and she’s a wonderful teacher and human. I’ve been a yogi for 30 years and had some terrific teachers over the years. Christine is one of them. We even left yoga class on Sunday with empowering actions we can take off the mat.

If you are curious about what being Vegan Minded could mean to you, pick up a copy of the book. If your local bookseller does not yet have it, ask them to order it. Or, as Christine likes to do, ask your library!

And if you are curious about yoga with a wonderful teacher, check out Christine’s yoga class. She teaches classes in her local studio, and one class weekly online so anyone can attend. (And her class is structured for most beginner and intermediate levels and for many bodies.) You can find more about Christine, her book and classes on her website.

Can an Ethical Vegan Also Be a Healthy Vegan?

by | Jan 7, 2025 | My Story

My vegan journey began for ethical reasons. I could no longer eat sentient beings (such as pigs, cows and chickens) who were really not too different from my dogs and cats.

My “why” for going vegan was and is clear and once I got into the groove, eating plant-based became easy and enjoyable.

Then I learned how to cook plant-based and realized how easy that was and I wanted to let everyone know. If I can be vegan and learn how to cook, so can anyone. It’s really not hard at all.

(I know some people really don’t like cooking, but I’ve also coached people who think they don’t cook when in fact they prepare many more meals and dishes than they realize.)

But before I started shouting my newfound discovery of cooking and eating vegan from the rooftops I wondered: What if being vegan isn’t even healthy?  Would I be doing humans a disservice by proselytizing veganism to spare non-human animals? I was eating vegan food, some of it healthy fruits and vegetables but some of it very processed.

I know a number of people who are vegan for the animals (the same as I started out) which is admirable. And there’s a chance that the vegan food they eat is still healthier than the animal products they eschew. But can it be a win-win for everyone? We don’t eat the animals (good for the animals and the earth) and also good for us? (Not just better than the awful alternatives, but actually good?)

Diane and friend at Rancho Compasión

I sought out some education on the topic and studied plant-based nutrition through the eCornell program and learned that indeed, with a few tweaks to the recipes I was already cooking, I could be eating and living a healthy plant-based lifestyle.

I was eating well. Yet, I had a nagging gut issue for decades. Long before I went vegan. In 2023 and early 2024 it became more acute, and I was missing out on trips and other fun stuff in life.

Last July, I searched on the Physician Committee for Responsible Medicine’s website for a local plant-based Registered Dietitian who specializes in gut health and found one in Los Angeles named Jocelyn.

Within two weeks of working with my new dietitian, Jocelyn, and following her protocol, I was feeling better. And because I was already vegan and eating a healthy plant-based diet, the modifications she had me make weren’t drastic. But making them changed everything for me. And now that my gut is feeling better, my whole body feels better.

What health professionals say about the importance of the gut microbiome is true. I’m experiencing it for myself. (My bloodwork at a routine physical, which has traditionally been very good, was excellent this time.)

Jocelyn was super excited to know that I teach plant-based cooking and help coach people new to plant-based eating or veganism. (It made her job pretty easy.) We created a three-session course called: Food as Medicine: Cook and Learn Series. I teach the cooking and she teaches about the health benefits.

The course begins January 22nd and will meet once in January, once in February and once in March. While I’m cooking, Jocelyn will be speaking about the health benefits of a plant-based diet. Additionally, each month, she will delve deeper into the benefits of a plant-based diet on lifestyle diseases such as Diabetes, Heart Disease and Cancer. You can learn more here.

Our meeting is a perfect example of an ethical vegan finding a healthy plant-based lifestyle (me) meets healthy plant-based practitioner who is now also vegan (Jocelyn). We started down a plant-based path for different reasons and ended up at the same place.

Swinging back to my original question- can an ethical vegan can be healthy too?  Absolutely. It might take a few tweaks to a vegan diet but the answer is yes.

It is gratifying to know that I can follow my ethics AND be healthy… healthier in fact than I’ve been in years.

And now I feel comfortable shouting it from the rooftops.

We Said Goodbye to My Dog, Gonzo

We Said Goodbye to My Dog, Gonzo

by | Oct 11, 2024 | My Story

Saying goodbye is the hardest. We adopted Gonzo in 2009 when my kids were 7 and 9 years old. He was 6 months old, and I didn’t want a puppy. 

We had gone to the rescue group to look at a different dog who was adopted minutes before we arrived. None of the other dogs at the shelter seemed suitable for a family with small children. 

The woman was pretty determined to get one specific dog adopted and opened the door to the puppy room and let him out. Simultaneously, my children and husband squealed: A PUPPY.

I was doomed. 

I also wanted a big dog, and I could tell he was going to be on the smaller side. But I was outnumbered. (The reasons the woman wanted to get him adopted were twofold. His sibling had been adopted the day before, and she explained that it’s almost worse for puppies to languish at the shelter for socialization reasons.) 

Anyway, we agreed that if our senior dog, T-bone was ok with him, he could stay. T-bone was fine and Gonzo became our newest family member. Even though we named him Gonzo, he was our Little Man and we called him Little Man more than we called him Gonzo.

Gonzo & T-Bone snuggling

Needless to say, we all fell in love. Despite not wanting a smaller dog and not wanting a puppy, I fell hard. 

And T-bone showed Gonzo the ropes and how to be (for the most part) a well-behaved dog. 

We had a few issues along the way; he didn’t like people coming through our front door and oopsie, might have bitten a few people. But we figured it out and overall, he was a wonderful dog. 

He not only slept on our bed, but he slept under the covers snuggled into all my nooks and crannies. When we were awake, he was often found under a blanket on the sofa with whichever family member was there. 

After T-bone passed, we adopted Ninja who was the same age and the two of them ran and ran and ran together. They were two peas in a pod, and we never felt bad going out and leaving them because they had each other.

Gonzo & Ninja snuggling

If not under a blanket with a human, Gonzo was snuggled with Ninja.

And when we would return (even 3 minutes later) he would make a hilarious howling sound that sounded like ROOOOOOO. We called it Rooing. 

Best Buddies

After Ninja passed, Gonzo made it clear, at the age of 13, that he was ready to be a solo dog. So, for the past two and a half years, Gonzo has had our full attention. Our relationship changed too. Ninja was my Velcro dog until his passing and then Gonzo became my Velcro dog. 

Gonzo was one of the toughest little dogs I knew. In 2020 he was attacked by two big dogs who escaped from their yard, and it was bad. Then in 2022 he got into a fight with a dog we were fostering and that was bad too. More recently, due to heart disease, I kept thinking the end had to be near, but he had no intention of going anywhere. Such a fighter. Until it just got too hard on his little body. 

15 years just isn’t long enough. I miss him so much. I can’t believe he isn’t here snuggling with me anymore. 

Gonzo- you are forever in my heart. 

How Does Your Garden Grow? (Mine was mostly a disaster)

How Does Your Garden Grow? (Mine was mostly a disaster)

by | Aug 21, 2024 | My Story

Do you have a vegetable garden? I didn’t until this year when I attempted a small one in some garden boxes. I mentioned it in passing on a few posts because I had harvested lettuce from the garden. 

Here’s my Hollywood garden story- from happy, to sad to what’s the moral of the story. 

When everything first sprouted and began to grow I shared a few photos with my friend, Valerie. She has a lot of gardening experience. I was so excited, and she couldn’t believe how nicely everything was growing. 

Welp, it kind of went downhill from there. Not kind of. It went downhill. 

First rookie mistake: 

I put too many seeds in the boxes, and they got overcrowded fast. So, I thought it would be a good idea to trim it from the top. Nope, my friend, Beca (another gardener), told me, they need their leaves. Duh, of course they need their leaves. I needed to thin it from the bottom.

Next rookie mistake: 

I had expected critters to eat my veggies and planted basil in hopes that it would ward them off. I think that worked, but, the little bugs didn’t mind the basil and attacked. This all happened while I was traveling and by the time I came back, it was totally infested.

Third rookie mistake:

I made a vinegar, water and soap mixture to spray the leaves, but I did so during daylight hours and the leaves burned. That was the beginning of the end.

But I kept watering and waiting to see what might turn up.

I did harvest the lettuces and some basil early on which were tender and delicious.

And I got one or two mini radishes.

Lastly, my sister warned me that growing your own carrots could yield teeny tiny little stubs. Well, she was wrong. Mine didn’t even get to stubs. I finally pulled these up (months and months later) and you can see for yourself. That’s my pinky fingernail.

Cucumbers should be really easy to grow, but I think my whole box got too much direct sunlight. I say this, because the only one that grew at all, was on the other side of the trellis out of direct sunlight.

I decided a few things about my garden.

  1. I actually enjoyed gardening and I’m going to try it again but do it a little differently this time. (I pulled all the sad leftovers out this morning and planted more lettuce which seemed the happiest out of everything I originally planted.)
  2. Instead of trying to grow five plants at once, maybe I’ll start with one or two.
  3. This whole experience of having early success and then somewhat of a failure was a great metaphor for other areas of my life:
    • It ended up being a fun learning experience.
    • I didn’t take it too seriously.
    • I actually laughed a lot. (Come on, look at that cucumber. And who harvests carrots smaller than a pinky fingernail???!!!!)
    • I did harvest some good tasting vegetables, even if it wasn’t what I had imagined it would be. 
    • I’ll try again armed with more information next time (and go more slowly).
    • It really wasn’t a failure. It was just my first try at something new.
    • While most of my plant-based cooking works out, it doesn’t always, and that’s ok too. It’s all a grand experiment. 

My friend, Stephanie (Chef Steph!) has an amazing garden and inspires me with images of her beautiful veggies.  I live vicariously through her planting successes.

If you have a garden, I’d love to see what you grew!

Plant-Based Roundup- A Glimpse at Possibilities

Plant-Based Roundup- A Glimpse at Possibilities

by | Jul 10, 2024 | My Story

It dawned on me that I share photos of some of the foods I eat (whether I’ve cooked them or not) on social media. But not everyone sees everything I post on social media. So, this post is a little tour of some of the foods I enjoy, (when I actually remember to take a photo. I can’t tell you how often I finish a meal and say “oops, I should have taken a photo.”). 

Here’s why I’m sharing these photos. When I first went vegan, I thought I was doomed to a life of boring salads and pasta. (I LOVE salads and pasta, but it felt so limited.) 

Alas, there is so much amazing plant-based food available to cook and eat. It just takes a little commitment and willingness to learn something new. (Learning new stuff is good!) These photos just scratch the surface of what I’ve learned to cook and what I now eat (and what I’ve shared). Cooking and eating this way is delicious, healthy, creative, compassionate and fun. This is all possible for you too. 

Enjoy the photos! (Where there are recipes available, I share how you can find them.)

A few months back I shared that I had the opportunity to take a cooking class with Miyoko. We cooked Moroccan Lentil Pancakes with her, and I was able to duplicate the recipe at home!

Remember the Bundle back in March? I discovered many new wonderful recipes. One of my favorites on dinner rotation is Falafel. For a minute I had a garden box with lettuce on it and this falafel was super special because it was atop greens from my very own tiny garden.

I now always have Healthy Raisin Walnut Oat Muffins (from Ellen’s Healthy Kitchen) on hand. They freeze well so I can make a batch and freeze what I don’t eat immediately. If you didn’t get the bundle, you can buy her ebook on her website.

In addition to the falafel that I learned to cook from the bundle, I also learned to make a Greek Buddha Bowl. (Below)

While I do cook most nights, we sometimes get takeout and love Café Gratitude in Los Angeles. I love this colorful take on a Greek salad. (Above)

And then there’s travel. When I was in Manhattan, I discovered the grain bowl below from Slate Restaurant which has multiple locations around the city.

The photo above is one of my favorite bowls. It’s from Ann and Jane Esselstyn’s cookbook Be A Plant-based Woman Warrior.

I recently shared that one of my favorite summer breakfasts is a simple bowl of berries atop plant-based yogurt with a sprinkle of granola.

We shared this plant-based eggplant parm in March, but I never shared my very homespun photo. Both my husband and I love eggplant parmesan. It did take more time than I usually spend on a weeknight dinner, but it was totally worth it and we had leftovers for two more meals.  If you would like to cook this dish, you can find the recipe at The Almond Eater’s blog.

Stay tuned here at What’s Plant-Based Cooking Good Looking? for more opportunities to learn how to cook and enjoy healthy plant-based food. 

My Plant-Based Trip to Maine

My Plant-Based Trip to Maine

by | Jun 20, 2024 | My Story

I grew up in the suburbs of New York and was fortunate to attend sleep-away camp in Maine. My experience at camp was idyllic. Camp Truda was on a lake in which we swam and went boating every day. 

We played sports (always encouraging, rarely competitive and when we did compete, it was always loving), sang songs, danced, acted, made art, had color war (also loving), went camping under the stars, went on field trips, and picked wild strawberries off the soccer field.

Diane’s second year at camp in the 70’s. 9 years old.

Most important were the people. I always felt like I belonged. 

Due to unfortunate circumstances, this idyllic camp closed after my fourth summer and my favorite childhood memories remain locked there. I’ve wanted to return to Maine for decades but it just never happened. 

There was talk about a camp reunion which didn’t materialize, yet I had my heart set on going to Maine. My cousin Susan and I have been discussing traveling together for a while. I asked if she felt like going to Maine and she immediately said “yes!”. 

My women’s group was meeting in Pennsylvania this year, and I decided to take advantage of being part way across the country (I live in California) when planning our trip. I rendezvoused with Susan in Boston, picked up delicious vegan fare from Lulu Green and off we went. 

We stopped en route (though totally out of the way) to visit my sister and niece in Vermont. My sister cooked us a wonderful dinner of vegan sushi, tofu and broccoli and scallion pancakes. Oops- I should have taken a photo. The colorful veggie sushi was beautiful.  Thank you though, Julie!

We stayed in Maine at a Bed and Breakfast called the Inn at Bath. We had a variety of meals in Maine- some meh and others wonderful. Notably, the breakfasts at the Inn were spectacular. The new owner, Kelly, goes above and beyond to deliver quality food. She asked ahead about food preferences and was more than happy to provide vegan fare for me.

Every day breakfast was three courses! Breakfast began with either a yogurt, homemade granola and fruit, or melon slices with a ginger jam.  On the first morning, she cooked me a vegan waffle (it tasted great but didn’t fluff like the non vegan one so I didn’t take a photo). The next day Kelly was off but a wonderful chef, Corinna (more about her in a minute) made me a tofu scramble. Also delicious. 

Savory Oats

Tofu Scramble with Cheese

And on the third day, Kelly served savory oats with beans, sauteed onions, mushrooms, zucchini and avocado.  The savory oats were exceptional.

Each meal ended with fruit, like the citrus, berries and lime with gorgeous edible flowers pictured. Or chocolate covered strawberries. Wow. Just wow. I had no problem finding at least one vegan option everywhere we ate (I always check ahead of time). 

We stopped in at Corinna’s restaurant, Back River Bistro in Wiscasset for a glass of wine and the kitchen was able to veganize their mushroom toast for us. (More edible flowers!) Thanks, Corinna! It’s a lovely spot and even though they don’t have vegan options on the menu, they were happy to accommodate.

Mushroom Toast

Popham Beach

Yes, we did more than just eat in Maine. Here are a few highlights: 

  • We took a boat tour to see the puffins and other sea birds! Sponsored by the Audubon society, the boat leaves from New Harbor daily. I did capture photos and video, but my phone doesn’t do the birds justice. I highly recommend the boat tour. 
  • We walked along Popham beach which is truly otherworldly. 
  • We visited the Botanical Gardens, and on our way out of town on our last day,
  • We visited a lighthouse! It’s tiny and looks like the leaning tower of Pisa in this photo. It’s upright in real life.  

All in all I loved my time in Maine and can’t wait to go back. It is beautiful and peaceful and the people I met were lovely. From my experience it is also community-minded which is refreshing. And the best part was the quality time I spent with my cousin. We had lots to catch up on and had plenty of relaxed time to do so. Plus, we created new memories. 

Susan and Me