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Vegan Calcium is the Best Calcium

A friend asked me today whether I worry, as a vegan, about calcium. Well, I do worry about it, but not because I’m vegan. Calcium is an issue for all women. No matter what type of diet you follow, it’s important to identify good sources of this mineral.

Plant foods that are good sources of calcium include many leafy greens, like kale, collards, and mustard greens; broccoli; some legumes like black beans and vegetarian baked beans; blackstrap molasses (but not regular molasses); fortified soyfoods; fortified juices; and tofu if it is has calcium listed as an ingredient.

Some […]

By Ginny Messina|2009-01-15T14:26:00-05:00January 15th, 2009|Tags: Calcium, Nutrition|0 Comments

Favorite Vegan Cookbooks: They’re Like Old Friends!

I don’t know whether it’s the cold northwest climate or the chilly economic climate, but I’ve been hunkering down in the kitchen and cooking up a storm lately. My husband is ecstatic. Every time he walks into the kitchen I’m pulling lasagna out of the oven or madly stir-frying a heap of Asian veggies.

I have around 100 cookbooks on my shelves and access to thousands of recipes on the internet so coming up with ideas isn’t a problem. Even so, I often find myself pulling out much-loved older cookbooks—the ones that are tried and true. Some of them […]

By Ginny Messina|2009-01-13T13:53:00-05:00January 13th, 2009|Tags: Cookbooks, Recipes|0 Comments

Protein for Vegans: Old Myths Die Hard

I’ve talked with three different reporters this past month, all with questions about vegetarian diets. All three asked, of course, which nutrients require special attention in vegetarian diets. And each expressed surprise that I didn’t mention protein. They also asked about soy—and whether it was true that it’s the only plant food that is a “complete protein”—ie, the only one that contains all 9 of the essential amino acids.

The answer is no. All plant foods that contain protein—which would be all grains, beans, nuts, seeds and vegetables—provide all 9 of the essential amino acids. So they are all […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-12-13T11:12:00-05:00December 13th, 2008|Tags: Nutrition, Protein|3 Comments

A New Vegan Thanksgiving Feast

I loved my Thanksgiving menu from last year and am not especially eager to make too many changes. But it’s always fun to try something new, so I’m tweaking the menu a little bit. I have some reluctant omnivores coming this year so dinner had better be good!

We’re trying a new sweet potato recipe, made with coconut milk. And there will be three kinds of cranberries on the table (you can never have too many cranberry dishes!) I’m also going to try to create a veggie version of that wonderful green bean casserole with French onions, although I […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-11-20T13:43:00-05:00November 20th, 2008|Tags: Celebrations, Recipes, Thanksgiving|0 Comments

Tapenade: Easy Vegan Gourmet Appetizer & More

My local animal welfare group gave a little wine and cheese reception this past weekend for a group of new members. Although most of the guests were not vegetarian, I wanted to have one nice vegan appetizer on hand. I chose this quick tapenade recipe below and served it with little slices of ciabatta bread. It was a hit; people were practically diving into the bowl! Fortunately, however, I had made a double batch so I’d have a good supply for myself at home.

Leftover tapenade has endless possibilities and here is what I did with mine.

Roasted […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-11-03T11:56:00-05:00November 3rd, 2008|Tags: Recipes|1 Comment

The Gradual Vegan: What’s the Best Approach?

I was a lacto-ovo vegetarian for many years before becoming vegan. When people tell me that they want to eat more ethically but veganism seems too hard, I understand completely. I suggest, of course, that they start out by giving up meat and work their way—at their own pace—toward a vegan or mostly vegan diet.

But I am meeting more and more people who are taking a surprisingly different approach. They are giving up eggs and dairy foods even though they still eat meat. Their rationale is that some of the worst factory farm abuses take place on egg, […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-09-19T17:52:00-04:00September 19th, 2008|2 Comments

Soyfoods for Young Girls Offer Lifelong Protection

My friend Kate recently asked what I thought about the fact that her granddaughter drinks a lot of soymilk. I said I thought it was great!

There are plenty of reasons—mostly from ethical and environmental standpoints—to avoid cow’s milk. Whether there are important health risks associated with dairy consumption is still a question of debate. But there is little to suggest that dairy has any protective benefits that you can’t get elsewhere. Soy, on the other hand, may have some unique and long-lasting benefits for young girls.

Interest in a cancer-protective effect of soyfoods comes, in part, from […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-08-24T10:45:00-04:00August 24th, 2008|Tags: Health, Nutrition, Soy|2 Comments

Celebrate Summer With a Vegan Picnic

My friends Lynn and Steve came to visit for the 4th of July. We had a blast—went to the Fiddle Festival, watched the fireworks from the beach, and drank champagne at the local monthly art gallery event.

But I have to admit that cooking for them made me feel a little stressed. They are not just omnivores; they are foodie omnivores. I’m not always sympathetic to foodie-ism, but they were my guests and my beloved friends and I wanted us all to be happy, and comfortable and well-fed.

For the 4th, I decided on a down-home picnic on […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-07-07T12:56:00-04:00July 7th, 2008|Tags: Celebrations, Recipes|2 Comments

Could You Ever Be A Vegan?

Most of the people I encounter say they cannot imagine completely giving up meat, fish, dairy and eggs. And I always tell them that that’s okay.

Maybe you can’t see yourself as 100% vegan, but you can choose meals with fewer animal foods right now in some pretty painless ways. Don’t worry about never eating meat again or never eating cheese. Just start out with some easy changes and replacements and see where it takes you.

Here are 10 things you can do this week that will reduce your consumption of animal products:

Replace […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-07-01T15:10:00-04:00July 1st, 2008|4 Comments

Vegan Soups: Fast and Easy

Like the television jingle says, soup is good food. It’s great for weight control because the high water content helps to fill you up with fewer calories. Research shows that starting a meal with soup is likely to help you eat less overall. And of course, all by itself, soup makes a very filling lunch or dinner.

You can make a big pot of soup over the weekend and have it ready in the fridge for fast healthful meals later in the week. It’s portable, too—great to carry to work in a thermos.

It’s wonderful to make old-fashioned […]

By Ginny Messina|2008-04-28T11:10:00-04:00April 28th, 2008|Tags: Recipes|2 Comments