The U.S. Office of Personnel Management has approved a special solicitation and has opened the Combine Federal Charity (CFC online) pledge portal and mobile giving app from April 20 through June 30 to accept supplemental, one-time or recurring donations to the CFC-participating charities of your choice via credit card, debit card, or bank transfer. This is an opportunity to help even more if you are able. If you did not make a payroll pledge during the 2019 campaign, you have the additional opportunity to pledge via payroll allotment. See: https://cfcgiving.opm.gov/
Have you ever had an urge to bake bread at home? Peggy Rynk’s article “Whole Grain Vegan Quick Breads” previously ran in Vegetarian Journal. Peggy stated, “The following pages offer a sampling of whole grain vegan quick breads using a variety of flours. Because some people are allergic to wheat, several of the recipes are wheat-free.” Recipes included are:
So, some of your residents have requested vegan menus. Easy-peasy! Look at your menu and think which items on today’s menu don’t have meat, eggs, or dairy and build a vegan menu from there. For example, if you are serving pancakes, using a non-dairy pancake batter (US Foods, Smart and Final and Sysco have these), your vegan residents can enjoy these along with maple syrup and sliced bananas. Making omelets for your omnivore residents? Grill or sauté your mushroom, pepper, and onion filling then set aside some for your vegan residents. Vegans can have the cooked mushroom/pepper/onion filling with hash browns, half a baked potato, or corn tortillas.
Think about “building” salads and entrées without meat, dairy, or eggs and set these aside for your vegan residents. For example, if you are creating a macaroni casserole, cook and combine the macaroni, pea or veggies, then add some vegan margarine, and set aside to bake for your vegan residents. (You would then add other items and complete your omnivore preparations.) Preparing burritos? Create your cooked beans, tomatoes, onion, potatoes, and peppers filling and set aside for your vegan residents (and then you might add other items for your omnivores). Of course, if you have access to vegan meat alternatives and/or vegan cheese you could add these to your dishes.
If you have only one or two vegan requests, you can easily locate vegan canned soups, such as some Campbell’s Well Yes! (See: www.campbells.com/well-yes/vegan-soups), Amy’s, or Pacific Foods brands, as well as frozen veggie burgers. You can rotate these when your regular menu does not easily adapt for your vegan residents. Frozen veggie burgers can be served as a “stacked” burger (romaine or spinach, sliced tomatoes, pickles, shredded carrots, diced onions, relish, etc), crumbled and used for tomato “meat sauce,” or as the “meat” for casseroles, chili, or soups.
Here are just some of the items you probably make on a regular basis for everyone… and vegan residents can join in as well:
BREAKFAST
Hot cereal (leave out the butter and milk); fresh or frozen (thawed) fruit; dried apricots, apples, cranberries, and prunes; toast (with vegan margarine and fruit preserves); pancakes made from Bisquick (or equivalent, without added eggs or milk) served with maple syrup; and baked apples. (Always read current ingredients on products.)
Try baked oatmeal for a make-ahead breakfast or hot dessert. Spray a baking pan with vegetable oil and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together equal amounts of oatmeal and boiling water, and allow mixture to sit for about ten minutes, until oatmeal begins to soften. Add small amounts of chopped apples, raisins, or chopped canned peaches (or a combination), sliced ripe bananas, cinnamon, ginger, and maple syrup and bake until “set,” about 30 minutes. Serve warm as a breakfast casserole or dessert or chilled as a dessert.
LUNCH AND DINNER
Vegetable soup, split pea, navy bean, or lentil soup (prepared without meat), tomato soup, chili beans (prepared without meat), spinach salad, romaine salad, mixed greens salad, fresh tomato and cucumber salad, four bean salad (made with four types of canned beans, chopped onions, oil, and vinegar), fresh mixed fruit salad, fresh grapes, cooked rice or cooked grains (without chicken or beef stock or butter), cooked pasta, baked, steamed or roasted potatoes, baked sweet potatoes.
FOOD STORAGE AREAS
Your food storage areas most probably already contain many vegan items; no need to budget or shop “especially” for vegans:
IN THE PANTRY: canned fruit (in juice), unsweetened applesauce, canned pie filling, canned pumpkin, peanut butter, almond butter, nuts, dried fruit, dry pasta, rice, barley, quinoa, couscous, corn meal, canned beans and lentils, dried beans, split peas and lentils, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, canned vegetables, canned mushrooms, some canned soups (review the labels for meat or dairy ingredients), vegetable oils and vegetable oil spray, tomato sauce (review label for meat or dairy ingredients), vegetable base (rather than beef or chicken), Shredded Wheat, hot cereals, Bisquick, pancake mixes (review for dairy or egg ingredients), maple syrup, graham crackers (without honey), some cake mixes (check for egg or dairy ingredients), Ocean Spray cranberry sauce (check other brands, may contain gelatin), pudding mixes (can be made with soy or almond milk), shelf-stable (doesn’t need refrigeration) soy, oat, or almond milk
IN THE REFRIGERATOR: many breads (check for egg or dairy), corn tortillas, fresh fruits and vegetables, hummus, prepared mustard, pickles, olives, relish, ready-to-serve polenta, vegan margarine (check for dairy ingredients)
IN THE FREEZER: frozen pie crusts (check for dairy or egg ingredients or lard), frozen fruit (without sugar), frozen vegetables (without sauce), frozen hash browns and other potato products, sorbet (not sherbet, which has dairy)
Be sure to work with your purveyors for easy-to-prepare vegan entrées:
The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.
Mother’s Day is May 10th this year. Perhaps you would like to surprise your mom with a beautiful homemade cake. Lois Dieterly’s article “Vegan Cakes Made Simple” previously ran in Vegetarian Journal. She provides a wide variety of delicious cake recipes including Mango Cake, Vanilla Cake, Gingerbread Cake, Wheat-Free Carrot Cake, Banana Chocolate Chip Cake, and Chocolate Cake. You’ll also find recipes for cake frosting and toppings. See: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2003issue4/2003_issue4_vegan_cakes.php
While the Coronavirus Pandemic is going on, more and more people are doing their shopping online. If you’re searching for a vegan belt, some of the options below may work for you. This is a cruicial time to support vegan companies!
Avesu is a German company that sells a wide variety of belts in different colors. Check their site to see which countries they deliver to.
Kat Mendenhall is an American company selling belts in various colors. You also get to choose the type of non-leather grain you want your belt to be made out of.
The Nutrition Facts label on packaged foods is being
updated. New labels are being phased in. As of January 1, 2020, large
manufacturers – those with $10 million or more in annual sales – were
required to switch to the new label by January 1, 2020. Smaller manufacturers
have until January 1, 2021 to comply. This means that for the time being, you
may see a mix of new and old versions of the labels at stores. A sign that you
are looking at the new version of the label is that it includes added sugars,
vitamin D, and potassium. These were not required to be included in the older
version of labels.
Daily Values are established by the FDA. The Daily Value for
a nutrient is a single value, often similar to the Recommended Dietary
Allowance (RDA), that is selected to be used for the labels of foods and
supplements. Daily values are amounts of
nutrients that people are recommended to consume or not to exceed each day. The
Daily Value may be somewhat different from the amount of a nutrient you need.
For example, the RDA for calcium for adults ranges from 1,000 milligrams for
younger adults to 1,300 milligrams for pregnant and lactating women. The new
Daily Value for calcium is set at 1,300 milligrams. If you are a young adult, you would not have
to get 1,300 milligrams, but the label could still help you to see whether a
food is high in calcium. The label actually provides the %Daily Value so that
consumers can see how much (what percentage) a serving of the product
contributes to reaching the Daily Value. The new labels give both the %Daily
Value and the actual amount of the nutrient in a product. For example, the
Nutrition Facts label for 1 cup serving of one brand of fortified soy milk says
that it has 450 mg of calcium, 30% DV (note that this %DV is rounded since 390
mg is actually 34% of 1300 mg).
Calcium is one example of a nutrient whose Daily Value has
increased. Others include potassium, vitamin C, and vitamin D. Nutrients whose
Daily Value has decreased include zinc and vitamin B12. These changes don’t
mean that an individual’s need for the nutrient has changed; rather, the change
is with the amount on the label. You can see all of the changes here.
By Amy Dell, Former Vegetarian Resource Group Intern
Your favorite vegan, allergen-free muffin company has released a line of gluten-free mini muffins! The “Abe’s Mom’s” collection currently features three flavors: Double Chocolate, Coffee Cake, and Lemon Poppy Seed. These little bites are school-safe and filling for their size, perfect as a special treat in a lunchbox or paired with a hot beverage during an afternoon tea party. With no individual wrapping, these muffins also reduce the waste of a traditional mini muffin experience.
The Double Chocolate are filled with chocolate chips and have a crumbly, brownie-like texture sure to please the chocoholic in your life. The Coffee Cake variety would be perfect paired with a cup of joe as a quick morning snack at the office. The slight citrus flavor and cinnamon crumble on top add a level of sophistication to the tiny snack. The Lemon Poppy Seed are moist and pack lots of flavor into each bite, hitting you with sweet lemony goodness and an almost creamy texture. All of Abe’s Muffins are soy-free, nut-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and sesame-free. See: https://www.abesmuffins.com
Create and submit a video relating what you want to tell others about veganism.
Some possible topics: food, nutrition, your feelings about veganism, water usage and vegetarianism, veganism and animal rights, or other vegan topics which appeal to you. Humor and feelings are appreciated. All videos should be positive, not be critical of anyone, and not include any footage of animal cruelty. You may submit a video you have already made.
Aspects of judging include accuracy and judges wanting to
share the video with others. Entrants give permission to The Vegetarian
Resource Group to post and share the video, to link to and from the video, and
share the video with the media. Deadline to enter this year is July 15, 2018.
Stuck at home
and in the mood for vegan take-out food? Many vegan restaurants are offering delivery and/or take-out during the coronavirus pandemic. The next few days we’ll
be listing restaurants in various states that are still cooking up vegan food
for delivery and/or take-out. Here’s a few places you can support:
Pancakes make any breakfast, brunch—or even dinner—feel like
a special occasion. This recipe dresses up regular boxed pancake mix by adding
chai spices and topping with marmalade infused syrup. It comes together quickly
and tastes quite fancy. Serve with sliced oranges and hot tea for a complete
experience.
Chai Spice Pancakes with Marmalade Syrup
Makes 13 pancakes.
By Rissa Miller, Senior Editor Vegetarian Journal
Dry:
1-1/2 cups vegan-friendly pancake mix (such as Arrowhead Mills,
Bisquick, Aunt Jemima, or Bob’s Red Mill – check individual packages; Bisquick
used in this recipe)
2/3 cup rolled or old fashioned oats
1 Tablespoon arrowroot powder or cornstarch
1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed meal
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garam masala (optional)
Pinch ground clove
Pinch nutmeg
Pinch ground allspice
Pinch ground pepper (optional)
Wet:
1-2/3 cups unsweetened unflavored vegan milk (soy and oat
tested well; other types not tested)
2 Tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
Zest of one orange
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-3 Tablespoons of canola oil or vegan margarine, to prepare
Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
Add all wet ingredients except for canola oil/maragarine. Stir with a whisk or
wooden spoon until just mixed. The pancake batter should be runny but not thin.
If it’s thick or chunk, add more vegan milk by the Tablespoon to get to a
smooth consistency.
Preheat a large pan or griddle to medium heat. Coat with
some canola oil or vegan margarine.
Scoop out 1/4 cup portions of batter onto the hot
pan/griddle. Pancakes will spread to be approximately 5-6 inches in diameter.
Cook on the first side until the pancake is bubbly and edges
start to look done, then flip and cook on the second side about 2 more minutes
(time may vary depending on your stove’s heat settings).
Repeat with all batter, occasionally adding more canola
oil/margarine as needed. Serve warm with Marmalade Syrup (below) or maple syrup.
Marmalade Syrup
1 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup marmalade
In a saucepan love low heat, gentle warm 1 cup of maple
syrup and 1/4 cup of jarred marmalade. Stir frequently and do not allow to
boil. As soon as the marmalade has melted and infused into the syrup, remove
from heat and serve warm.
The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG) is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on veganism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, ecology, ethics, and world hunger. We have been helping health professionals, food services, businesses, educators, students, vegans, and vegetarians since 1982. In addition to publishing the Vegan Journal, VRG produces and sells a number of books.
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