Isabella became a vegan in eighth grade after being exposed to information concerning the treatment of animals and the environmental impact behind producing animal products. Following are excerpts that she wrote about her outreach activities.

I worked with Food Not Bombs during the beginning of high school. I would help serve fresh, homemade vegetarian meals to the homeless prepared by members along with day-old pastries and breads donated by The Panera Bread Company. We would bring food to two separate locations on the intercoastal where the homeless know they can get a hot meal. For our school Environmental and Cosmos meetings, I contribute by preparing large dishes so everyone can enjoy a healthy lunch. My most popular dishes are quinoa salad, homemade hummus, vegan samosas with homemade mango chutney, guacamole, black bean and corn salsa, pasta salads, vegan chocolate chip rosemary cookies, and pumpkin banana bread. It is my way of proving to my peers that vegan food isn’t bland.

Since sophomore year I’ve sold my vegan granola everywhere at school: at my locker, during lunch, and between classes. It has happened more than once that a friend has interrupted my teacher during one of my classes to buy some of my granola (most of my teachers don’t mind, since they enjoy my granola as well.)

My experience with my school garden has been the true delight of my high school career. Currently, there are plans to erect a greenhouse at my school using the money we received when I wrote a grant request to the Whole Foods Garden Grant. Through my journey of cooking for others and showing them the wonder of plants in the garden and through my art, I hope to extend the joy I have received from living life compassionately.

This summer Izzy will be coordinating vegetarian food for her job leading volunteers on the Appalachian Trail in New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts.

For information on the 2015 scholarship and to see past winners, go to http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

For information on our video contest, see http://www.vrg.org/videoscholarship.php

To support VRG scholarships and internships, donate at www.vrg.org/donate

Thank you to Nora Allen for volunteering to do a VRG booth at the annual
meeting of the Pennsylvania Dietetic Association. Nora reported,

I had about 150 or so visitors to the table. The My Vegan Plate handouts went over great, as well as some of the general information.

Nora was a previous VRG scholarship winner. See
http://www.vrg.org/student/2007winners.htm
http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

Nora, thank you for continuing to do vegetarian education!

If you would like to contribute to VRG scholarships and outreach, you
can donate
at https://www.givedirect.org/give/givefrm.asp?CID=1565
You can join The Vegetarian Resource Group at
http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

If you would like to volunteer for booths, contact Nina at [email protected]

Here are some materials available.
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/MyVeganPlate.pdf

Here are some terrific recipes to prepare for your mom and other guests on Mother’s Day:

Citrus and Greens Salad (From Vegans Know How to Party, by Chef Nancy Berkoff)
Serves 10

Salad:
8 cups mixed green salad (make a colorful combination of fresh baby lettuces, spinach, romaine, etc.)
2½ cups diced pink grapefruit and/or tangerine sections
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup finely shredded red cabbage
½ cup raisins or dried cranberries

Dressing:
½ cup peeled and seeded fresh tangerine sections
1½ cups peeled and seeded fresh orange sections
½ cup peeled and seeded sliced lemon
3 Tablespoons lime juice
¼ cup minced sweet onion
½ cup olive oil
1 Tablespoon orange juice concentrate
1 Tablespoon black pepper

Combine all salad ingredients in a large glass or plastic bowl. Cover and refrigerate.
Place all the dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor canister and process until just smooth. Place dressing in a glass or plastic container, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Toss the chilled salad with the dressing right before serving.

Note: If fresh tangerines are not available, more oranges can be used.

Fruit Pizza (from Conveniently Vegan, by Debra Wasserman)
(Serves 4)

One 12-inch wide pita bread
1 cup unsweetened apple butter
1 kiwi, peeled and sliced
6 large strawberries, sliced
1 apple or pear – peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Spread apple butter over pita bread. Arrange slices of fruit on top of apple butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve as is, or heat pizza in 350 degree oven for 15 minutes and serve warm.

Note: You can substitute several small pita pockets for the large pita bread.

Festive Cashew Cookies (From Simply Vegan, by Debra Wasserman and Reed Mangels)
Makes 2 dozen

2 cups raw cashews
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup maple syrup
½ cup water
¼ cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Small jar fruit-only jam

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grind the raw cashews and rolled oats together in a food processor for a few minutes. Pour mixture into a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients, except the jam. Mix well.
Form 24 round balls and place them on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. With your thumb, form a small well in the center of each ball of cookie dough. Place a small amount of jam in each well.
Bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees. Allow cookies to cool before removing them from the cookie sheet.

Conveniently Vegan, Simply Vegan, and Vegans Know How to Party are published by The Vegetarian Resource Group and can be purchased online here: http://www.vrg.org/catalog/

Honor your mom by giving her a gift subscription to Vegetarian Journal: http://www.vrg.org/member/

According to the Taco Bell, website, these are ingredients for their apple empanada. Note that it is not vegan.

Caramel Apple Empanada*
Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Apples (Apples, Salt, Ascorbic Acid, Citric Acid), Vegetable Shortening (Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Cottonseed Oil), Brown Sugar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Food Starch-Modified, Non Fat Dry Milk, Contains 2% or less of the following: Margarine (Soybean Oil, Water, Mono and Diglycerides, Salt, Whey, Soy Lecithin, Sodium Benzoate, Artificial and Natural Flavor, Vitamin A Palmitate, Beta Carotene Color), Tapioca Dextrin, Dextrose, Sugar, Maltodextrin, Salt, Rice Flour, Dicalcium Phosphate, Sodium Alginate, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Locust Bean Gum, Xanthan Gum, Soy Lecithin, Agar, Carboxymethylcellulose, Carrageenan, Caramel Color, Natural and Artificial Flavor. Oil: High-Oleic Low-Linolenic Canola Oil, TBHQ (To Protect Flavor), Dimethylpolysiloxane (An Antifoaming Agent). CONTAINS: WHEAT, MILK, SOYBEANS

Water, Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Apples, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Shortening (Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and/or Cottonseed Oil With TBHQ And Citric Acid To Protect Flavor), Modified Food Starch, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Canola Oil With TBHQ (Preservative). Contains 2% Or Less Of: Ascorbic Acid, Baking Soda, Caramel Color, Cellulose Gum, Citric Acid, Dextrin, Dextrose, Dough Conditioner (Sodium Metabisulfite), Maltodextrin, Margarine (Palm Oil, Soybean Oil, Salt, Mono- and Diglycerides, Annatto Color, Calcium Disodium EDTA [Preservative], Artificial Flavors, Vitamin A Palmitate), Natural and Artificial Flavor (Natural and Artificial Flavor, Flour, Sugar, Cornstarch, Unsalted Butter, Salt, Soy Lecithin, Dextrose, Polysorbate 80, Xanthan Gum, Annatto Color), Nonfat Dry Milk, Salt, Whey, Xanthan Gum. Oil: High-Oleic Low-Linolenic Canola Oil, TBHQ (To Protect Flavor), Dimethylpolysiloxane (An Antifoaming Agent). CONTAINS: WHEAT, MILK, SOYBEANS

*Will Contain One Of The Ingredient Statements Above, Depending Upon Regional Suppliers

Churro
Their Churro also is not vegan.

Water, Wheat Starch, Corn Flour, Vegetable Oil (Contains One Or More Of The Following: Canola Oil, Corn Oil, Cottonseed Oil, Palm Oil, Soybean Oil), Egg Yolks, Modified Food Starch, Egg Whites, Sodium Caseinate, Leavening (Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate), Salt, Nonfat Dry Milk, Buttermilk, Artificial Flavor, Rice Flour, Maltodextrin, Wheat Flour, Tapioca Dextrin, Mono And Diglycerides, Soy Flour, Caramel Color, Guar Gum, Xanthan Gum. CONTAINS: WHEAT, EGGS, MILK, SOYBEANS

Taco Shell
Here are the ingredients for Taco Bell’s taco shell.

Water, Ground Corn Treated With Lime, Sodium Propionate (Propionic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide), Methylparaben And Propylparaben, Cellulose Gum.

They state:

We do offer meatless options, but none of our products are certified as vegetarian. Please note that in some restaurants we use the same frying oil to prepare menu items that may or may not contain meat. All meatless ingredients are handled by our employees in common with meat ingredients, which may not be acceptable to certain types of vegetarian diets. Product formulations and/or ingredient changes may occur before www.tacobell.com is updated. Variations may occur due to differences in suppliers, ingredient substitutions, recipe revisions and/or product production at the restaurant. Limited time offers, test products, or regional items have not been included.

A reader asked:

I am interested in making my own cashew butter. This far,
experiments in a food processor not so hot. What sort of machine should I use?
Thanks! Oh, also I loathe peanuts though I know they’re healthy. How do cashews,
pistachios, and almonds stack up in comparison?

Francesca Cugini, RD wrote:

The Vitamix makes a perfect nut butter without any added oil. The only
ingredient to blend is the nut itself. It is a bit of a pricey machine,
but there is so much you can do with it and it doubles as a food
processor. It also has a lifetime warranty. The almond reigns supreme, but
all nuts contain heart healthy fats and antioxidants. Be careful to not
eat a ton each day as they are high in calories. Stick to a handful of
nuts or 2 tablespoons of nut butter. -Francesca

These articles may be of interest.
https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2001nov/2001novnuts.htm
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/milk_alternatives/nut_and_seed_milk_table.pdf
http://www.vrg.org/fsupdate/fsu20022/fsu20022nutstoyou.htm
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2011issue1/2011_issue1_soy_nut_free.php

The contents of this post, 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 judgement about whether a
product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or
confirmation on your own.

These vegan restaurants were recently added to The Vegetarian Resource Group’s online restaurant guide. To find restaurants in your area, please visit: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php.

A Fresh Start
120 Main St., Kalispell, MT 59901
(406) 756-3774
Vegan/natural foods/café. A Fresh Start is an all-vegan natural foods café in Montana! Featuring a salad bar, the café also serves sandwiches, soups, veggie burgers, and wraps. They use organic and local ingredients as often as possible. Check out their daily specials! A Fresh Start hosts wellness education and cooking classes, too. Open Monday through Friday for lunch. Closed Saturday and Sunday. Limited service, take-out, catering, fresh juices, smoothies, VISA/MC/AMEX/DISC, $.

New World Café
223 E. Walnut St., Des Moines, IA 50309
(515) 244-0029
Vegan/organic/café/juice bar. New World Café is an all-vegan eatery in Des Moines, Iowa! Although they rotate menu items weekly, some foods that are frequently served include their spicy black bean hummus sandwich, falafel salad, lentil burgers, roasted squash tacos, and Creamsicle orange smoothie. They use organic and local foods as much as possible and compost all food scraps. The business model of New World is unique and community-focused; they provide a non-hierarchical work and service environment with volunteer opportunities. Prices are inexpensive, and there is always at least one sliding-scale option (pay what you can afford) available. The café is closed between lunch and dinner, so please call ahead for hours. Open Monday through Thursday for lunch. Open Friday and Saturday for lunch and dinner. Closed Sunday. Limited service, take-out, fresh juices, smoothies, espresso/cappuccino, soymilk, VISA/MC, $.

PositiviTea
550 Bloomfield Ave., Verona, NJ 07044
(973) 239-2020
Vegan/café/eclectic/juice bar. PositiviTea is an eclectic vegan art space specializing in organic teas and smoothies, burgers, po’ boys, salads, parfaits, ice cream, waffles, and gourmet raw desserts. The menu features a variety of sandwiches and salads including the Thai-style “Peaceful Papaya Salad.” The eatery strives to offer as much local produce as possible and fosters an environment friendly to local artists and musicians. Check out their online calendar for special events, live music, open mic, and culinary lessons and demonstrations. Open Monday through Saturday for lunch and dinner. Closed Sunday. Limited service, take-out, catering, fresh juices, smoothies, special beverages, VISA/MC/AMEX, $-$$.

Sun In Bloom
460 Bergen St., Brooklyn, NY 11217
(718) 622-4303
Vegan/organic/raw foods/juice bar. Sun In Bloom is a quaint little eatery serving an all-vegan menu of mostly organic and raw foods. Breakfast is available all day and includes Rosemary Dijon Tofu Scramble and Apple Pie Pancakes. They also feature a plethora of muffins, cupcakes, and raw cheesecakes — all vegan, of course. Sun In Bloom makes all food, desserts, and beverages from scratch in their kosher kitchen. Don’t miss their weekend brunch! The café is nestled in Park Slope, between 5th and Flatbush. Open Monday through Friday for three meals. Open Saturday and Sunday for brunch. Full service, take-out, delivery, catering, fresh juices, smoothies, soymilk, espresso/cappuccino, BYOB, VISA/MC, $$.

Wild Leek Food & Juice Bar
2156 Windsor St., Halifax, NS B3K 5B6
(902) 444-5466
Vegan/café/juice bar. Wild Leek is a small neighborhood vegan eatery that focuses on seasonal and local ingredients. Everything is prepared fresh daily in-house. The menu features daily specials of three items: soup, quiche, and entrée. Some popular dishes include the BBQ Portobello (with cashew cheese on a baguette) and Banh Mi (homemade seitan with veggies and sesame sauce on a baguette). The atmosphere is very comfortable and charming with local art featured on the walls. The restaurant is located in the West End area of Halifax. Open Monday through Saturday for breakfast and lunch. Closed Sunday. Full service, take-out, VISA/MC, $-$$.

An article about veggie kids in Baltimore’s Child magazine just came out and there’s a great ad for The Vegetarian Resource Group’s My Vegan Plate next to it. Thanks to VRG volunteer Jenny Saccenti and her family for agreeing to be interviewed for this article. See: http://www.baltimoreschild.com/articles/index.cfm?fuse1=activMonth

Also, if you or someone you know is raising veggie kids, you may want to join The Vegetarian Resource Group’s Parent’s List. See: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/vrgparents/info

TCBY™ Puts A Tropical Twist On Dairy-Free With New Silk® Coconutmilk Fro-Yo

On the heels of the popular Silk Vanilla Almondmilk Fro-Yo, TCBY continues to innovate with a spring-inspired, plant-based, dairy-free frozen yogurt made with Silk Coconutmilk

Denver, Colo., – (April 16, 2014) – TCBY™ is thrilled to announce that it is continuing its strong partnership with Silk® with the introduction of a new, purely plant-based ingredient offering. On April 24, 2014, Silk Coconutmilk Frozen Yogurt will be unveiled at TBCY stores nationwide, readying palettes for springtime and balmy weather with the quintessential tropical flavor.

“This is a delicious new way to enjoy our expanding portfolio of dairy-free fro-yo flavors,” said Kelly Miano, Director of Marketing at Famous Brands International. “The new Silk Coconutmilk Fro-Yo is not only a tasty experience for those on some restricted diets, but also an exotic treat for everyone! The nutty-sweet flavor and creamy texture evokes images of swaying palms and beaches, regardless of the day’s weather conditions. Consider it a vacation for your taste buds.”

In TCBY’s consumer testing, the Silk Coconut Fro-Yo pairing ranked considerably high, and the swirl option with Silk Chocolate Almondmilk Fro-Yo – released in 2013 – was “through the roof.” Swirl options will be available at select participating stores.

According to TCBY, the new flavors are all part of the brand’s dedication to evolving with their consumers’ expectations and needs. “We are listening,” said Miano. “Consumers are becoming more savvy about their own dietary needs, more interested in ingredient knowledge and more discerning on taste. We want to consistently exceed their expectations,” added Miano.

In January, TCBY launched its first Silk Vanilla Almond Fro-Yo to rousing consumer feedback and its previously released Silk Chocolate Almond earned a Libby Award from PETA for Best Vegan Dessert in 2013. TCBY’s exclusive partnership with Silk has allowed more consumers than ever to enjoy frozen yogurt by offering dairy-free alternatives.

ABOUT TCBY™

Founded in 1981, TCBY™ was the first, and remains the largest, frozen yogurt brand. TCBY™ has been on the forefront of innovation including being the first brand to market Greek Frozen Yogurt, Silk® Frozen Yogurt, a plant-based, dairy-free frozen yogurt and “Super Fro-Yo.” TCBY™, which currently has over 500 franchise locations worldwide, is part of Famous Brands International and a sister company to Mrs. Fields™. To learn more, visit www.tcby.com, www.facebook.com/tcby or follow us @TCBY.

ABOUT SILK

Silk was founded in 1996 on a promise to make the world a healthier place. As a steward of the environment, we believe that plant-based foods are the best way to nourish people and the planet. Today we offer a broad portfolio of nutritious, great-tasting plant-based options, including soymilk, almondmilk, coconutmilk and soy yogurt. Silk’s entire plant-based portfolio is enrolled in or verified by the Non-GMO Project, and Silk continues to offer three core organic products including Original, Vanilla and Unsweetened. As a brand committed to environmental sustainability, Silk conducted two studies-a “life cycle assessment” and a “water footprint assessment”-comparing the environmental impact of a half-gallon of Silk Original soymilk, almondmilk and coconutmilk to a typical half-gallon of conventional U.S. dairy milk. On average, producing a half-gallon of Silk Original requires less water and generates fewer greenhouse gases than a half-gallon of conventional U.S. dairy milk. In 2014, we will offset 100 percent of our manufacturing water footprint with water restoration certificates. For more information, visit Silk.com.

A reader wrote:

I have a young relative who’s sensitive to wheat, dairy, and soy. I’ve been trying to make gluten-free pie crust, and I’m having a real problem. The dough looks fine after I add the oil, but, when I add water, it tends to get too crumbly. Even when I add a little sugar, the crust doesn’t brown, and it always cracks, no matter how long or short a time I bake it. Also, whether I use a mix of flours or just one, sometimes I end up with a slightly bitter after taste.

Francesca Cugini, MS, RD responded:

By coincidence I just posted on my blog today a Gluten-Free pie crust mix that I made with success. Bob’s red mill pie mix browned perfectly. Here is the product:http://www.bobsredmill.com/gluten-free-pie-crust-mix.html. I just followed the basic instructions on the package.

The key to gluten-free pie crust is adding a Xathan gum to your flour mix to keep it from separating. If you want to make the mix from scratch I suggest potato, rice, and tapioca flour mixed for best results.

Hope this addressed your question
-Francesca
http://energywebring.com/francesca/

For more information on gluten free, see
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2006issue4/2006_issue4_gluten.php#rcps

These books seem to have gluten free pie crusts:
http://www.vrg.org/blog/2012/07/12/are-you-on-a-vegan-diet-with-special-dietary-needs/

Hunter wrote from California:

In the fifth grade, I had the idea to start a movement with a few other students focusing on both personal and environmental health. We spent the year working and researching with my school’s
principal and a local gardening expert before finally planting a “garden wall” of native vegetation as a way to block off the airport to the north of our school aesthetically, and to show that in spirit our school and community was working toward a healthier place. The plants at this stage didn’t provide an edible option as I had hoped, but I was determined to see that part of my dream come true. Though I graduated and went to middle school, I felt the project had room to grow into a movement.
I came back as a Peer Assistance mentor and worked with the Green Team’s
next incarnation and in classrooms with students. What started as the garden wall grew into the idea for an on campus garden, dubbed the Cougar Patch, as a way to help the entire campus community get involved in the spirit of healthful eating and environmental awareness. The garden got backing from the school district after testimony from me and other stakeholders in the program, and it started scaling up from there. Once the teachers saw how students across so many age groups were engaged by
the program, it quickly spread to all the other schools in our district. I still stop by to work in the gardens and have seen first hand how excited the students are during community garden days, as it has truly become part of the campus and its culture.
The programs focused on healthy eating put the founding ideas of my team
into action with the garden’s first harvest. It was determined the harvest from the schools garden could be used in healthy eating lessons for the students. Each class picks some of the harvest together, and then a teacher or parent volunteer prepares a dish with their pickings and serves it to
the students. While preparing the food and eating it, they discuss the benefits of vegetarian options, healthy eating, and fresh food. Since everyone had put so much work into raising the crops
in the garden, you never would have seen a bunch of kids more excited about eating their vegetables.
I am still involved in the programs across the district, though my
involvement varies by program and time of year. For example during the high school’s Grades of Green campaign, I was involved at all the school sites as I tried to bring our composting programs together with those of all the school sites to prepare for a presentation to our city counsel.
I am also heavily involved around Health Fair time each year, when I try to assess what each school is doing and how they compare to the city’s Wellness Day programs. All in all though, the community garden is still my baby. It provides the most engaging long term education and direct
access to healthy, vegetarian foods of any of the activities. I am the most passionate and inspired by those efforts and how they have allowed me to start a movement that spread across my district and community.

Hunter also worked to add vegetarian options at school events in high school. He reports:

The veggie options at school events have been varied depending on the type and size of event. A few examples are at our football snack bar where I implemented veggie patties for hamburgers, vegetarian noodles, and meatless burritos on Mexican nights onto our menu. The football items sold very well, as vegetarianism is a growing movement in my town, and the students and parents alike were excited to have an option to fit their diets. At our Student Government Mixers I made sure that meatless pasta, pizza, or stir-fry (depending on the theme of the evening) was available. It was also important to me to set aside specific vegetarian plates so that regardless of when people got up to get their food, there was still food available they could eat because unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) sometimes people who were not strict vegetarians would eat all of the meatless options early, leaving the vegetarians without food. I also implemented veggie options at our campus dances. At our prom, a vegetarian lasagna was offered and one of the first items to run out, which I believe showed that with an open mind even people who don’t
follow the vegetarian lifestyle can still enjoy the food.

Hunter is working with the The Salad Creations program, which currently
is still in a pilot phase. The company, which focuses on fresh products
and customizable salads, had the option where teachers could drop off
orders ahead of time and the cafeteria could get the salads to them by
lunch.

My role has really been as an advocate for keeping the program
as a full fledged service and opening it up to a wider audience. While I
know it would be harder to scale up to availability to the entire school
population, I have held my stance that the added options for vegetarians
and non-vegetarians alike who are searching for healthier foods at
school are worth the effort.

Hunter said,

In 5 years, I hope to be in Medical School, hopefully
finding a program that allows me to explore my interests in human
health, nutrition, and environmental health as well. This plan for my
future also related to the story of how I became a vegetarian, because
both of my passions stem from an illness … When I was diagnosed with a
rare, chronic disease, I began to look into ways to make my body
healthier. After fully grasping the benefits it could have on my health
while allowing me to take a stand on issues I felt so strongly about, I
finally made the personal commitment to vegetarianism. My health has
never been better and I feel great emotionally knowing that fewer
animals are dying and fewer forest are being clear cut due to my decision.

To apply for next year’s scholarship or read about other scholarship
winners, go to http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To apply for our video scholarship, go to http://www.vrg.org/videoscholarship.php

To support Vegetarian Resource Group scholarships and internships, donate at
www.vrg.org/donate