For the past week I’ve been making my own meals from scratch, exclusively.  My budget got screwy in July, and I’m determined to recoop as much as I can back into my Savings this month.  This meal was by far the cheapest, and perhaps the tastiest.  Cajun by nature is a mixed bag.  For me the signatures tend to be green pepper, yellow onion and diced tomato for fresh ingredients.  With lots of random spicy goodness, and oddities thrown in.  For vegan (of course!) I use a lot of interesting beans.  Which is fun to work with.  I like cajun because it involves a lot of bravery. The core ingredients:

• 4-5 cloves fresh garlic
• green pepper
• medium yellow onion
• can dark kidney beans
• can diced tomatoes
• black eyed peas (made from dry)
• half some large green hot pepper (I pick what looks tasty)

Probably here in Baltimore that equals about $5 in ingredients and it made a TON of food.   I use a laundry list of basic spices in everything.  The base for this was chilli powder, supplemented with dry basil, cilantro, oregano, cayenne, crushed red pepper.  Also for savory added a pinch of cinnamon and all spice.  Always I make sure to balance the sugars, salts and acids.  Used raw sugar, table salt, a dab of balsamic vinegar, and squeezed in half an orange I had lying around.   I had made a large batch of brown rice on Sunday night, so that was already done. These days when I cook I don’t measure and don’t use recipes.  The whole process is very voodoo and I hope to someday be able to articulate how I go about making food.  I had not made cajun for awhile so this was a nice change of pace.  First I cut up the yellow onion, then peeled the garlic cloves, and slice off a hunk of hot pepper and threw it in the little hand held chopper.  Threw all that in the pan, and started cutting green pepper.  At which point I realized it might be wise to put in black eyed peas.  I threw them in a pot with some water, finished the pepper, and let the beans simmer for a half hour.  At this point I took a small bowl and started mixing the dry ingredients. I opened and rinsed the kidney beans, and drained the tomatoes, started the pan with veggies after adding some olive as the peas finished.   Let the onions and peppers soften and squeezed in some of the orange, and then threw in the kidney beans, and tomatoes, added the dry spices.  Then I drained the black eyed peas, and tossed them in.  I let it all simmer for a minute, then did a taste test.  At this point I added more orange, chilli powder, and the cinnamon and all spice.  Probably a few other things as well. Grabbed a literal handful of rice, scooped on some of the tasty cajun mix, and enjoyed.  As I have been walking a lot, I’ve been eating a lot.  Three small bowls tonight, and this will get me through a few lunches as well.  For $5-7 total, no joke.

My life has been a bit hellish, though I’m not going to bore you with that.  Instead I am going to tell you how I have remained vegan despite 8 days of illness, crazy work hours, and being out at all hours, and having a dysfunctional kitchen.

I must say I have become the expert at ordering out vegan food pretty much anywhere I go.  Somehow I also managed to coordinate a lunch with my parents and in-laws at a restaurant where everyone was happy.  I’ve had cheeseless pizza loaded with veggies, burritos, countless orders of french fries, loads of chana masala and other indian delicacies.  Along with dishes I don’t know the names of from the Yabba Pot, and lots of Thai.

When I’m on the run, which is often, I’ve been getting lots of Amy’s and other varieties of vegan instant food.  My new favorite is Amy’s line of burritos and hot pockets which are filling but come in little tiny boxes.  When I do have a moment to throw something together I’ve been making 10 minute salad with my food processor.  There are times when I just need an easy snack and those are the days when I go for the blue corn chips and salsa.

I’ve been in a survival mode, and those tend to be times when I have trouble eating at all.  A few weeks ago I was in very poor health, but I have quickly turned that around.  If I can manage to be a new vegan in these stressful times, then I think it is really possible for anyone.

Christmas is a special holiday for me and my family. We have reinvented it time and time again to the point where it has actually become a day of love and giving. My parents always try to get me the things I really want but would never buy for myself, and I try to do the same for them.

This year is hard, it is going to be my first vegan Christmas. Many of the typical girly items that I love and adore now have to be vegan. Including candles, lotions, bath gels, and other smelly things. I want to give my family some choice, while ensuring that I won’t get things that I would scowl at and then discard.

I’m also highly considering putting my foot down and making Christmas dinner entirely vegan. While my family is awesome, and my parents are really progressive people, even with them things like that get dicey.

In my head I am pleading with the world that this will be the hardest holiday season for me, and that after this my wonderful family will just know what to do. I have high hopes given my family’s track record with adjusting to my lifestyle that is the way things will play out. Though for the moment it means juggling some hard politics.

Like everyone else, I hate Whole Foods, I had a mixed experience with them this week.  They were completely out of things like black beans, and in house soy (the only kind that comes in recyclable containers).  I went to the kiosk and told the woman behind the counter, she was very apologetic and told me there were major changes going on in the grocery department, but was otherwise ineffective.  I made it clear that I was thinking about no longer doing the bulk of my shopping there, and I was told to try again later.

Instead, I am probably going to place a bunch of bulk orders with my small really cool natural food store.  I think I am going to give up on recyclable soy milk containers, and kill the environment with my waste until I learn how to make my own soy.

Anyways, I want to order canned goods, that often contain refined sugar, the ones I order obviously wouldn’t.  I’d get a case of canned corn, and petite diced tomatoes.  Along with a couple pounds of raw sugar, bulgar wheat, quinoa, rice noodles, barley, a case of pure lemon juice, and pure lime juice.  I might also consider getting a new freezer for the basement and bulk ordering some Amy’s vegan meals.   Oh and several cases of Vitasoy.

I have another local resource for a lot of vegan cosmetics and body products, and everything else I should be able to get at my local grocer, except lemon grass, damn lemon grass!

However, my bathroom is supposed to get ripped to hell starting this coming Tuesday, to become beautiful within the next several weeks, so this may need to be a piecemeal thing.  I also have no idea how much of this she would be willing to order for me at once.  However I think it’s a grand idea.  Avoid Whole Foods, and patronize some local businesses.

Today we decided to head over to my parents’ house. Along the way I knew I would be hungry so we stopped by David’s Natural Market to pick up some bulgar and some lunch. It was kind of a sad homecoming, I used to work there, and when I did the cafe was nearly completely vegan. I had a rough time finding something I could eat there and had to order my food without bread because the only options were whole wheat, which usually contain honey. However, their soups were vegan, and were very delicious. David’s continues to have a very large selection of foodstuffs, though the staff these days don’t seem to be as knowledgeable, though the management is largely the same.

I got a new winter coat today, picture to come, it isn’t anything special, and comes from JC Penney’s. So the labor practices are somewhat questionable. The coat is mostly synthetic (though I prefer cotton), and is very nice looking but practical. It also has a removable lining, and is of course, vegan. It was on sale for $80, which is pretty good for a new versatile, completely machine washable winter coat. Since I lack photos, here is one. I know I could do better, but this was what was feasible this time around. I’ve been searching the union and fair trade companies on the internet and haven’t found anything comparable to this.

Then we went and got new glasses, that actually match our plates, and also I got some bar mops for the kitchen, several different kinds. I am hoping to phase out paper towels completely, but I know that will take awhile. I will soon also be making my own laundry detergent using Dr Bronner’s, Borax, and washing soda (equal parts). I’ve already switched to using citrus cleaner in the kitchen, and it has been working really well. Not only are these products vegan, and not tested on animals, they are also better for the environment which I think is important as well. I say it in nearly every post so I will stop the spiel there.

When we got home I hit the kitchen and started making Seitan and Portabello Stroganoff, from a recipe I got from Vegan with a Vengeance. It came out 110% delicious. Today was also the day we decided to do Thanksgiving at my parent’s house and I will be making a ton of vegan dishes to contribute to the meal. Over the past few weeks I have become so confident in my cooking abilities. I am now tackling more complex recipes, and feeling comfortable making some adjustments. Considering that I started this process barely able to cook at all, I think I am living proof that cooking is a learned skill just like everything else. I don’t think I will ever be a cooking genius, but in a short period of time I feel like I’ve become confident.

Today I consumed at least three servings of fruit, in about three minutes, without chewing a single bite.  After work I want a tasty snack, and all that was available to me was the 7-11.  Tropicana, which I’m not terribly fond of ended up providing me with a fruit smoothie and pure orange juice (most likely from concentrate).  Though something to keep an eye out on with the smoothies, see carmine is all natural, unlike red 40.  AND carmine comes from beetles, unlike red 40.  This is one of those instances where the all natural route becomes a cruel route.

Not to mention I don’t like to eat things with high fructose corn syrup or dye anyways, I find it disturbing.  Such ingredients also wreck my skin and make me feel gross.  Being vegan is not an excuse to eat processed crap just because it’s vegan, no matter what PETA says.  I use veganism as a means to know what is going into my body, and eating purer foods.

I still eat potato chips, but only the kind where the ingredients read potatoes, *insert veggie oil here*, and salt.  Because I am sick of this confusing, so processed it makes my head hurt to find out where it comes from, crap.  Same with juices and candies, though candy usually disappoints me with mysterious sugar-like ingredients.

However, since going vegan and increasing the amount of fruit I eat has decreased my desire to eat sweets.  I can’t remember the last time I ate something that contains high fructose corn syrup.  I’ve had chocolate a handful of times.  I am eating better, and it’s an indirect consequence of me eating more ethically.  I know it’s not good for the environment, and possibly not even vegan to eat highly processed crap like high fructose corn syrup, so I don’t consume it.  Veganism to me is not just about animals, it’s about the environment and people as well.  Not to mention that people are indeed animals.

Being vegan (to me) means making a conscientious effort to recycle, it means making the effort to buy from companies that don’t use sweat shop labor, it means promoting unions, buying eco-friendly products, it is all a part of one big package.  Because what kind of world will we have if we have liberated animals but everything else is falling a part?

I have several recipes I want to prepare this week that require wholesome grains, like barley and bulgar wheat, and I am going out of my mind trying to find them. Yesterday, I had forgotten to put bulgar wheat on my list, but I knew to look for barley. After a tedius time searching Whole Foods I found the empty rack that was supposed to contain barley, they were out of it.

Today I went armed with my shopping list to the local Giant, figuring that barley and bulgar wheat would not be difficult to find. Was I ever wrong, I left with only the barley which was in small boxes stored somewhere with the rice. I couldn’t find it, my husband found the barley when after we scoured the aisle together for five minutes.

When I inquired about the bulgar wheat I was told it was in a completely different aisle than the barley and I spent at least five minutes searching aisle 11 with the cookies, and there was no bulgar wheat to be found. Finally I gave up on the bulgar wheat and decided to call the local natural food store in the morning.

I went to my favorite thrift store today and picked up some vegan vintage shoes, they are cute and glittery. I actually can’t confirm that they are 100% vegan, but they are made from all man made materials, and are adorable.

From there I made my way over to Blue House where my friend works. I got an iced coffee with soy, and looked around a bit. Lots of tasteful home decorating types of things and their policy is:

bluehouse was created around the idea that you can have things that are at once beautiful, good for you, and good for the planet. Each product we carry meets one of six criteria for eco-friendliness and health, and most meet more than one

Doesn’t make them vegan friendly, but it definitely gives them some cool points. After that I walked over to Whole Foods, I think this may have been my first time in a Whole Foods and it was as disappointing as I expected it to be. Sure they had lemon grass and Dr. Bronner soap, but their staff new crap. I was looking at their makeup and a staff person asked me if I needed help, I asked if the makeup was vegan because I didn’t recognize the brands.

I was assured that the makeup was probably vegan and he handed me some literature to prove it to me. My eyes immediately went to the ingredient list, there was carmine, silk, and I stopped there. I informed him that he was wrong, and that their makeup was indeed NOT vegan.

On my way home I spotted a place called Nature & Herbs, they had a wide variety of herbs, homeopathics, essential oils, vegan friendly body products, incense, and all sorts of lovely things that vegans adore. I needed to pee, so I didn’t stay long, but I’m definitely going back.

Stew’s Up, will post stew pictures!