Blog

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) publishes—in addition to their peer-reviewed journal—a glossy bi-monthly magazine with short articles on food and nutrition topics. It’s a nice magazine (although needless to say, the content doesn’t always make me very happy.)

The latest issue is devoted to vegan diets. I was invited to write an 800-word article on vegan diets and heart health for the magazine’s website, which you can read here. Unfortunately, they omitted the references I included with the article (it’s for dietitians, after all) so I’ll list them at the end of this post for those who are interested.

You can also read an article on the website that actually links to Vegan Outreach. I love this since you don’t find too many ... Read More >

When I requested stories from readers who had gone vegan after the age of 50, I expected to hear from maybe 10 or 20 people. It was a surprise—a very nice one—to have close to 100 responses within 24 hours of publishing my request.  And they continue to trickle in.

I’ve been gathering this information for a book I’m writing with Carol J Adams and Patti Breitman called Never Too Late to Go Vegan: The Over 50 Guide to Adopting and Thriving on a Plant Based Diet. It will be published in 2014.

As we pull together the information for this book, I wanted to hear about personal experiences of those who went vegan a little bit later in life (as well as long time ... Read More >

For a project I’m working on for next year, I’m hoping to chat with people who are vegan (or transitioning to veganism) and are over the age of 50. I’d especially like to hear from you if you started your transition to veganism after the age of 50.

Please tell me why you went vegan, whether or not it had any effect on your health, how you see the challenges and joys of being vegan at this stage of your life, how it has affected your relationships–and anything else you’d like to share.

You can share your story in the comments below or send it to me via the contact page on this site, (or shoot me an email if you’re an email subscriber.)

My new food guide The Plant Plate made its debut on VeganForHer.com today. This is a colorized version of the guide that will be in the book Vegan for Her (which will provide a little more detail on using the plate.)

The information is almost identical to the food guide that Jack and I created for Vegan for Life. But I wanted an appealing graphic and was thrilled to find artist Ari Evergreen from Shirari Industries to illustrate it for me. (Side note: Ari went vegan after finding a Vegan Outreach pamphlet that someone left in a coffee shop. Now she uses her art in her activism for both human and non-human animals. So thank you to VO and that savvy activist who left the ... Read More >

If you are subscribed to the Vegan for Her website, then you already know that it went live this morning. Our very first email should be sitting in your mailbox.

If you haven’t subscribed, please head on over to check out the welcome message, a short article on calcium supplements, and a quick, fun  recipe from JL for Curry Peanut Butter. And please introduce yourself in the forums, too.

We have much more to come—including the book, which is just a few weeks away!

Vida Vegan Con (VVC) has to be the most fun event on earth. I’ve been to lots of veggie fests, and they are all wonderful (every last one of them). VVC is a little bit different though; it’s a more intimate gathering that nurtures vegans to help us become more effective, joyful and confident advocates for animals.

As described by the organizers, Janessa, Jess, and Michele, the conference is about “community, celebrating veganism, and becoming better bloggers and sharers.”  There were also plenty of non-bloggers in attendance and I would imagine they got as much out of the event as anyone. Much of the information presented could easily translate to all kinds of activities aimed at helping animals.

There were tons of practical workshops for ... Read More >

I have lots of travel to fun vegan events in the next couple of months (off to Vegan Paradise this week for Vida Vegan Con). I hope to see some blog readers as I trek around the continent (twice to beautiful Canada!) talking about the joys of healthy and compassionate eating. Please take a look at my updated schedule and stop by to say hello if you’re in the area.

And you also may want to take a peek at my latest article on Our Hen House about meeting protein needs on a vegan diet–and how easy it is to do so. It’s followed by a wonderful recipe from JL for Grape and Brazil Nut Chickenless Salad.

On a recent trip to Costco, I found seaweed salad (vegan in my Costco, although in some areas it contains fish sauce), big cheap packages of tofu, little travel packs of hummus, and delectable stuffed grape leaves.

I was thrilled to come across these and other vegan goodies. But when I reported my finds on facebook, a few people voiced concerns. Was the tofu GMO? Wasn’t there sugar in the seaweed salad? And shouldn’t I be shopping locally?

I do shop mostly—but not exclusively—locally. And there is no shortage of tofu in my life since I live five blocks from the local food co-op. I’m still excited to see tofu at Costco, though, and happy to buy it there. Because the more that people see ... Read More >

Mother’s Day is not an especially important holiday around my house. I no longer have a mother and I’m not a mother (except to five cats who never get me anything). Ever since my mom died, it’s a been a day tinged with a little bit of sadness, but mostly one that slips by unnoticed.

Sometimes a new twist on a holiday can make it as good, or even a whole lot better than the way it used to be, though. Thanks to the efforts of Canadian animal advocacy group Liberation B.C., and their brilliant Cow Ribbon campaign, Mother’s Day has become the perfect day to advocate for farmed animals.

A cow ribbon is a symbol of concern for dairy cows—suffering mothers who are forced ... Read More >

One of my vegan cooking gurus, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, recently posted directions for producing perfectly browned tofu. She advises making it in a well-seasoned cast iron pan. I don’t have a cast iron pan, but am thinking about getting one. I eat tofu every single day, and love when it’s perfectly browned, so it deserves its own cookware.

Lately, though, people seem to be abandoning their cast iron pans. They are worried about the iron leaching into their food and causing iron overload.

It’s true that cooking in cast iron (and also stainless steel) can increase the iron content of your food. (1)  It’s also true that high stores of iron may be unhealthy, promoting both heart disease and cancer, although this is a theory ... Read More >