I love food. The aromas of sizzling onions and vegetables to baking cakes tantalize my nose. The beautiful colors of fresh produce, freshly-made rice, and sauces delight my imagination. The tastes of carefully prepared favorites by your mom, new inventive food, comfort food, snacks and beyond fill me with joy.
However, food and I have a complicated relationship.
Growing up, I had a pretty typical diet of meat, dairy, bread, fruits, and vegetables. I hated milk and cheese, so I ate yogurt instead. I didn’t eat red meat, only chicken, turkey, and fish. I loved to try new recipes with my mom, as cooking was one of my favorite pastimes.
In high school, my stomach started to react differently to food. My ribs hurt and my scalp itched when I ate too much wheat. My skin turned red and splotchy from eating shellfish. I threw up violently after eating a cashew. This also occurred sometimes if I had too much wheat, milk, and/or soy. I had diarrhea after eating soy, milk products, peanuts, and almonds. It felt like my body had turned against me.
I knew I needed to change my diet. I gave up milk products, cashews, almonds, and shellfish first. I slowly shifted to gluten-free foods. The restrictions did not hamper my pre-established diet very much and my body felt fine again. However, my newfound concern over food made me think about where food comes from.
After research and some soul searching, I decided to become vegan. At first, I felt really stuck eating the same food all the time: salad, veggie burgers, rice and vegetables, burritos, and tacos. It took time for my stomach to adjust to more fresh food and a lack of meat or animal products.
One thing made my transition to being a vegan easier: trying new recipes. Nothing makes me more excited than finding recipes and preparing them! I learned that pizza can be good with just vegetables or with Daiya cheese.
I also found that baking vegan and gluten-free is possible, you just need to find the right recipe. I discovered that raw vegan recipes call for extensive cutting but, in the end, they taste just like the same vegetables, so you might as well cut them simply.
Over my two years as a vegan, I have made delicious pizzas, burgers, “roasts,” cakes, cookies, rice and beyond. Some of my favorite recipes are Oh She Glows’ molasses pumpkin loaf, chickpea burgers from Mark Bittman’s How To Cook Everything cookbook, Thug Kitchen’s Hulk smoothie, and cauliflower steaks with barbeque sauce.
I tried new vegan products and loved them! Daiya tastes pretty good and so does Miyoko’s cheese. Beyond meat is actually really close to what I remember meat tasting like, and that shocked me. I kept checking the package to check that it was vegan. Amy’s brand has delicious vegan pizza, curries, and other prepared foods. I also really enjoyed Annie’s jackfruit packages for BBQ and tacos. Health food stores and Trader Joe’s have delicious baked goods for when you are too lazy to make some yourself: luscious chocolate cake, cookies, and coconut ice cream. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
It was hard at first changing to a plant-based diet, but now I am a lot happier. I can satisfy my taste buds and feel good about it! On that note, I need to go get some chocolate that’s on sale from the Davis Co-op from Valentine’s Day!
Cover image source: Pexels