V for Vegan: easyVegan.info » Quick Links http://www.easyvegan.info Heathen. Vegan. Feminist. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 01:49:43 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 vegan nomz roundup!: pizza ed. http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/14/vegan-nomz-roundup-pizza-ed/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/14/vegan-nomz-roundup-pizza-ed/#comments Sat, 14 May 2011 22:10:35 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=17731
2011-04-12 - Pizza To-Do List 01

Make pizza, photograph pizza, eat pizza, blog pizza, repeat.
THE ONLY TO DO LIST THAT MATTERS. LIVE BY IT!
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Lately I’ve been all about food and furkids. More specifically, pizza & ice cream and cats & dogs. It’s my own form of escapism, yo. (Burnout, who me?) So, while it might seem like I haven’t been up to much lately – particularly to those of you who just follow me here – the truth is that I’m still blogging, just in other spaces, including a few new places.

For instance: fuck yeah vegan pizza and fuck yeah vegan ice cream. I started these sister blogs on tumblr after realizing that my food self can basically be boiled down to these two foodstuffs. (And further realizing that posting mouth-watering photos of gooey, oozy, melty, cheesy pizza slices and delightfully decadent frozen desserts is worlds more fun than beating my head against the twin walls of speciesism and misogyny that encircle the feminist and animal advocacy communities. End: rant.) If you’re on tumblr, please follow and submit! (Photos, not yourself!) If not, sign up. I need you!

Also, I’ve been cooking up a storm in my real-world kitchen too, experimenting with new pizza and ice cream recipes, some of them developed by my own bad self. (Which would explain why I’ve gained ten lbs. since x-mas, but I digress.) Possibly you might be wondering where in the worlds I’ve been hoarding these delicious new dishes? Though I’ll save the ice cream not-porn for another day – this post is called “vegan nomz roundup!: pizza ed.” for a reason, peoples! – today I’d like to talk about some of the many pizzas I’ve made so far this year. All of the recipes are available on the PPP blog. (ETA: I also post uber-adorable photos of adoptable animals every Friday! You’ve been warned!)

(Certainly you remember the Perfect Pizza Press, yes? It’s a pizza cutter-esque kitchen utensil that Shane invented in ’09. He hired a welder to make a prototype based on his design and, when it proved a success, we decided to sell it online. While the website has been functional for months now, the presses are not yet available for purchase. Obtaining samples from local manufacturers has proven slow-going, and my recent health issues haven’t exactly sped things along. During the limbo we’ve been feasting on vegan pizza – for the blog/business, of course – so it’s a wash I guess!)

Possibly you’ll find that some of these pies are a repeat; if so, this is only because they rocked so hard the first time that they could not be denied an encore!

Listed in reverse chronological order; if you do nothing else, you simply must scroll through for the awesomness that is the Garbage Plate Pizza! Look for it in the middle.

And yes, I realize that these are all terribly unhealthy, over-processed, fat-laden dishes; again, see: my recent unexpected weight gain. (Unexpected? What did I think would happen when I bought Daiya in bulk? Play with fire much?) The good news? Now that I’m overhauling my diet to include pizzas with less or no cheese; thinner crusts topped with more fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds; and dough involving a greater variety of flours, future dishes will (mostly) be on the healthy side. Consider this the junk food pizza roundup.

Personal Pita Pizzas!

2011-04-02 - Kelly's Pita Pizza - 0002

2011-04-02 - Shane's Pita Pizza - 0002

Made with freshly baked pita bread from the Jerusalem Cafe (their hummus? AWESOME!), these (fraternal) twin pizzas are topped with mozzarella Follow Your Heart, black olives and Lightlife Smart Pepperoni (top) and cheddar Follow Your Heart, black olives and a few diced cutlets of Harvest Direct Soy Chiken (from a box!; bottom). Mine is by far the better looking of the two, don’t you think?

Taco Pizza I

2011-04-09 - Taco & Cheesy Crust Pizzas - 0018

Seeing as I’m no fan of spicy hot foods, this pie is Shane’s baby all the way. So named because there are infinite variations on the “taco” theme, this version sports salsa, Protean taco “meat,” cheddar Follow Your Heart, black olives and jalapenos. Probably some hot sauce as well, if I know Shane. (And I’d like to think I do!)

Cheesy Crust Pizza

Since I’m still tweaking the formula, I don’t yet have a recipe to share. But this pizza was so melty good that I couldn’t pass it up!

2011-04-09 - Taco & Cheesy Crust Pizzas - 0013

2011-04-09 - Taco & Cheesy Crust Pizzas - 0061

2011-04-09 - Taco & Cheesy Crust Pizzas - 0061 [modified-fullfrontalpizza]

Full frontal Daiya, fuck yeah!

(I accidentally set this image as my desktop background. It’s so ginormous, most of the screen is dominated by the tips of the slices. Good morning, pizza! I guess it beats Peedee’s tail – also accidentally set to background – but still. Easy on the eyes; the diet, not so much.)

Not-So-Thin Whole Wheat Crust Pizza

2011-04-03 - Pizza - 0007

I wanted a thin crust pizza, and Shane delivered with mixed results. Yummy, but not exactly a “thin” crust – more like medium in thickness. But the edges of the crust crisped up quite nicely where they met the pizza press. SCORE!

Fluffy White Pizza Crust, DIY Vegan Styley

I’m fairly certain I blogged this recipe years ago, but just in case.

2010-04-30 - Daiya Pizza - 0018

Also, see how I went all nom on that pie’s ass? I AM THE KELLY MONSTER! Like Cookie but vegan, and with more diverse palate!

Cheesy Vegan Tater Tot Pizza and Cheesy Vegan Tater Tot Pizza II (aka, Cheesy Vegan Tater Tot Garbage Plate Pizza)

2011-03-20 - Cheesy Tot Pizza - 0010

2011-03-27 - Cheesy Tot Casserole II - 0017

Perfection, you’re looking at it. Inspired by this delicious Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole dish from Snarky Vegan are two different – but equally lovely – cheesy vegan pizzas.

In the first incarnation (top), we omitted the white sauce and instead spread some margarine directly onto the dough to keep things nice and moist. On top of this, we added a generous layer of Daiya cheese, followed by the casserole fillings: mixed veggies and tater tots. On top of this, more cheese. (Always add cheese! Joking! That was a joke!) Carbs on top of carbs: let’s do this shit!

(Incidentally, the newest working theory is that I’m a longstanding, undiagnosed hypoglycemic, which over time has caused an assortment of seemingly unrelated health problems. So my days of triple-stacked carbs may soon be over. Sad monster.)

Later on, Shane got it in his silly head that he could improve upon perfection – my perfection – so he tried his own version, using the white sauce in the original casserole the way you might use red sauce on a traditional pie. Unbelievably delicious, but also super-messy. Though you need a fork and bib to eat it, I must confess: I think my favor tilts ever-so-slightly toward his recipe. Shhhh, don’t tell!

Veggie Lover’s Pizza With a Whole Wheat Flaxseed Crust

2011-03-13 - Veggie Pizza, Flaxseed Crust - 0016

Probably this seems lacking after the Garbage Plate Pizza – seriously, that one damn near ruined me for all other pizzas! (not!) – but this Veggie Lover’s Pizza has got it going on!: A whole wheat flax seed crust! Sweetenedd with agave nectar! Topped with sundried tomatoes! Black olives! Broccoli and cauliflower! Daiya cheese! There’s nothing about this pizza that I don’t love. Except that it’s not in my oven, like, right now.

Crispy, Crunchy, Somewhat Buttery (& Totally Vegan!) Cornmeal Pizza Crust

2011-03-05 - Cornmeal Crust - 0011

Another win, this greasy, cheesy, buttery-tasting pie is best enjoyed with a copy of Bitch magazine and the latest installment of Resident Evil. One hot Saturday night date, I tell you what.

Vegan Bacon & Cheddar Double Potato Pizza

2011-02-26 - Potato Pizza FTW! - 0010

2011-02-26 - Potato Pizza FTW! - 0012

Okay, so I’m positive that I’ve already linked to this recipe once, but it’s too epic not to include in post titled “vegan nomz roundup!: pizza ed.” ALMOST AS EPIC AS THE GARBAGE PLATE PIZZA. A bold statement, but one I stand behind.

This is my own take on the traditional Italian potato pizza; while most everything is the same, I incorporated cheesy mashed potatoes into the recipe, using it as a sauce to add moisture to the pizza. (All the old school recipes I’ve tried are rather dry.) The result is heavenly, and in keeping with my love of carb on carb action! If you only try two recipes in this roundup, let this be one.

Kelly’s Loaded Tomato Lover’s Pizza

2011-01-29 - Vegan Pizza Day! - 0047

If there’s a vegetable I love more than potatoes, it’s tomatoes! (Yes, I know that a tomato is a fruit, but roll with me here!) This Tomato Lover’s Pizza has got quadruple the tomato action: tomato sauce, tomato powder, diced tomatoes and sundried tomatoes. All it’s missing is a tomato-flavored cheese. Someone get on that stat!

Shane’s Red Hot, Heart-Shaped Pizza

2011-01-29 - Vegan Pizza Day! - 0009

Along with the Tomato Lover’s Pizza, this was one-half our Vegan Pizza Day eats. (That really should be a monthly holiday, don’t you think?) Red hot and heart-shaped, the crushed red pepper, hot sauce and sun-dried peppers on a “hearty” crust seasoned with cayenne pepper, cumin, thyme and basil made for one fiery hot vegan Valentine’s Day entrée. So hot that I dared not even sample it! (Maybe that was Shane’s nefarious plan all along?)

We also entered this recipe in a Vegan Valentine’s Day cooking contest (hence the heart shape), but lost. Though there are no real losers when vegan food is on the table, amirite peeps?!

Pizza Humor!

Last but not least, and because this post simply wouldn’t be complete without a little Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, I bring you: animated pizza-themed gifs!

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Great moment in television history, or the greatest moment in television history?

Liz: You want to see me shotgun this?
Jack: Oh god, she means the pizza!
Pete: Nooo, she’s unhinging her jaw!

- 30 Rock, 5×08: College
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null

I am Ben, Ben is me, and CALZONES ARE THE SHIZ!
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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/14/vegan-nomz-roundup-pizza-ed/feed/ 2 Tweeting Mother’s Day (Again!) http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/09/tweeting-mothers-day-again/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/09/tweeting-mothers-day-again/#comments Mon, 09 May 2011 16:39:46 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=18284

A vegan vanilla cupcake topped with vanilla buttercream and
shredded coconut. Staked in the middle is a cute, pink and yellow sign
wishing the nom-er a Happy Mother’s Day!
CC image via flickr user mishl982.
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In honor of Mother’s Day, I spent much of yesterday tweeting about veganism, motherhood, and the exploitation of female bodies in animal industries (with an obvious emphasis on agriculture). In fact, those of you who follow me on twitter probably saw your feeds flooded by my steady stream of tweets! (Sorry for that, y’all!) In comparison to last year, I planned ahead this time: the day prior, I queued up a bunch of tweets using Hoot Suite, so that they’d begin posting while I was still snuggled up, all warm and cozy in bed (under a dog pile several layers deep, no doubt). Once I awoke and was reassured that it was working correctly, I scheduled the rest of the day, with a tweet going out every five or ten minutes until nearly 11PM. Way easier and more consistent than doing it by hand throughout the day! (Also, possibly less obnoxious, though only slightly so.)

After the jump you’ll find a digest of all of yesterday’s tweets (minus the ones for which I used twitter’s built-in RT feature. For some silly reason, those don’t make it into the list. Sigh.) If you compare this to last year’s round-up – which I totally don’t expect anyone to do! – you’ll find that I recycled many of 2010′s tweets, but also added quite a few new ones as well. This is partially due to laziness on my end, I admit. But also, when I went over last year’s list, I had a hard time trimming it down: so many of the posts, articles, photos, pamphlets, etc. were that compelling. I hope you agree!

I’m already working on a list of resources for Father’s Day (June 19) so if you have a blog, post, idea or theme you’d like to suggest, I’m all eyes!

Smooch!

“Smooch!: Both Tommy (left) and Freedom (right) were rescued from slaughter. Tommy is an Angus, raised for meat consumption. Freedom is a male Jersey, a dairy breed. Male dairy calves are unwanted and sent to auction and raised for veal or backyard slaughter. Now both live at Animal Place and obviously Freedom loves Tommy!”
CC image via Marji Beach on flickr.
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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/05/09/tweeting-mothers-day-again/feed/ 0 Intersectionality ‘Round the Interwebs, No. 25: Vegan nomz & Bowl-a-thons! http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/03/06/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-25/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/03/06/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-25/#comments Sun, 06 Mar 2011 18:00:13 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=15580
Vegan cookies are distributed

Vegan cookies are distributed at a Prop 8 rally in Riverside, CA, circa 2008.
CC image via Flickr user lierne.

For this edition of Intersectionality ‘Round the Interwebs, let’s start with some shiny happy news for a change, shall we? Namely, cross-movement bridge-building with vegan nomz and bowl-a-thons!

(Take note, carnists and defensive omnivores: vegans are not, in point o’ facts, all single-minded activists who prioritize nonhuman over human animals. Also: we are quite capable of multitasking, thankyouverymuch.)

Vegan Protest Fuel: Feeding the protesters in Madison, WI

Vegan Protest Fuel is the first of two projects I’d like to share with y’all (and, if you happen to have a little extra scratch laying around, encourage you to contribute to). Started just last week in response to the ongoing protests in Wisconsin, the good folks at Vegan Protest Fuel deliver vegan food to peaceful protesters defending their rights – because “Everyone Needs to Eat.” Naturally, their first campaign is feeding “the tenacious heroes in Madison, WI, who are fighting to preserve their precious collective bargaining rights and for economic justice in their state against a radical conservative governor and assembly.” Over time, they hope to expand their program throughout the United States and, possibly, the world.

Powered by tofu: it’s not just a slogan on a tee, yo.

See also: Food Not Bombs, Food for Life Global, HIPPO, A Well-Fed World and Ample Harvest.

Team Vegan Vixens: Bowling for abortions in the National Abortion Access Bowl-a-Thon!

Team Vegan Vixens needs your support in the National Abortion Access Bowl-a-Thon! Held throughout the month of April,

The Bowl-a-Thon is a nationwide series of local events that allow community members (you!) to captain your own bowling team, participate in a kickass national event – and raise money to help women and girls pay for abortions they couldn’t otherwise afford.

Abortion Funds are local, grassroots groups that work tirelessly to help low-income and disadvantaged women who want an abortion and do not have enough money to pay for it. Abortion Funds help women pay for their abortions, help them buy bus or plane tickets, and even offer women a place to stay when they have to travel for an abortion. Abortion Funds make a difference in women’s lives…and you can join them!

With $236 raised so far, Team Vegan Vixens is currently the top fundraiser for the Chicago Abortion Fund, which ranks #8 overall. Help Team Vegan (Vixens!) represent by pledging your support. Or sign up to participate your own bad self!

Fuck yeah, pro-choice vegans.

Katrina Fox @ The Scavenger: Racism versus speciesism: A moral battleground?

In the course of attending a feminist conference in Sydney in April 2010 – and subsequently planning for the next conference in 2011 – the subject of vegan catering became a point of contention between vegan and non-vegan attendees. Vegan feminist Katrina Fox writes of the debate that ensued in online forums; whereas some non-vegan women of color took the position that an all-vegan menu would be racist and colonialist in its imposition of western values on indigenous Australians, vegans argued that defending the exploitation of nonhumans on purely cultural grounds is speciesist. (Incidentally, I’m one of the white vegans quoted in the article.)

While I come down firmly in the former camp (meat and animal byproducts, I asserted, hold great cultural significance in Western societies as well; Thanksgiving Day corpses and attendant family dramas, anyone?), I hope that all vegans and animal advocates will read this piece with an open mind. On Facebook and elsewhere, I spotted a disheartening number of class- and race-privileged comments along the lines of “what’s race got to do with it?,” “why must people be so divisive?,” and (my personal least favorite) “omg special interests!”

Though I disagree that animal exploitation can be justified by “tradition,” I’m also in disagreement that we’ve entered some new “post-racial” era, where race and class privilege (etc.) are suddenly rendered moot. In industrialized nations, for example, people of color, urban dwellers, and those living in poverty face a number of barriers to obtaining fresh, healthy foods – not to mention, health care, a good education, employment and the like – than those with privilege. Recognizing and addressing these issues can only make us stronger as a social justice movement.

On Nonhuman Slavery: Speciesism, Racism and Sexism Intertwined: Presentation by Nekeisha Alexis-Baker

Wake Up Weekend – Nekeisha Alexis-Baker from Calvin Video Network on Vimeo.

Along these lines, Fox also cites this presentation by Nekeisha Alexis-Baker. A self-described black woman vegan, Alexis-Baker links the oppression of nonhuman animals to that of marginalized humans, including women and people of color.

“The same ideology that supports speciesism is present in ideologies that encourage and justify sexism and racism…As a black woman who is vegan, I am particularly sensitive to the ways in which forms of exploitation are intertwined… So rather than being concerned with animal liberation or women’s liberation or black and other people of color’s liberation, I think we need to understand how they are all tied together and to know that we can’t free one group if we allow the same kinds of oppressive ideologies to enslave another group. Liberation has to come for all.”

The presentation was part of Wake Up Weekend 2009, “a two day celebration of animal-friendly food, art, education, and advocacy,” held in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Clocking in at 36 minutes, the video is a bit lengthy – but well worth a watch. (If anyone knows of an online transcript, please share? I was unable to find one.)

vegansaurus!: HOT GIRL-ON-VEGETABLE ACTION! Great move, Peta!;

Time: Cracking Down on the Super Bowl Sex Trade; and

Reuters: Super Bowl a magnet for under-age sex trade

Although I briefly addressed PETA’s 2011 Super Bowl ad last week (see: “PETA is about as feminist as it gets.”), the links bear repeating. In addition to everything that meave said, over on her FB page, Carol Adams observed that sex trafficking – including that of underage girls – was expected to increase in Texas during the Super Bowl:

Because the hoopla surrounding the Super Bowl has expanded beyond Game Day to an entire week of parties and other festivities, large numbers of pimps and their workers flood into the host city each year. In Miami last year, police estimated that as many as 10,000 prostitutes from outside the area arrived for Super Bowl week.

The numbers alone have provided a challenge for law enforcement. But only in the past few years has it become clear that child prostitution is a feature of Super Bowl revelry as well. Two men were arrested last year for an ad on Craigslist’s Miami board advertising sex with a 14-year-old girl as a “Super Bowl Special.” And in 2009, Florida’s Department of Children and Families reported 24 children — most of whom were runaways — as victims of sex trafficking for the Super Bowl.

In light of such fears, PETA’s softcore pseudo-porn – complete with sleazy, uncomfortable casting session clips – is especially troubling. Also: decidedly un-feminist.

(fwiw, I refuse to link to the website or embed the video, but you can view a few screenshots here.)

Grist: Male-dominated Big Ag woos women with paternalistic marketing blitz

Grist reports on Big Ag’s new, $30 million campaign to convince the public that women are farmers, too – and since women are apparently so delicate and flower-like, you should go easy on ‘em already! (Certainly don’t strip them of their federal subsidies!) In reality, women operate a scant 14% of U.S. farms, with greater representation in eco-friendly (friendlier) farms, such as small and organic operations. Unfortunately, there’s no breakdown given for animal ag.; much of the focus is on corn, soybean, wheat, cotton, and rice – i.e., “the five crops that together collect 90 percent of federal farm subsidies.” (Even so, subsidies for feed crops help to prop up animal agriculture and keep the price of meat, eggs and milk artificially low.) This new coupling of green-washing with pink-washing (woman-washing? gender-washing? does there exist such a term for this?) is enough to make any vegan feminist gag.

Lauren Denitzio @ I Live Sweat…: “You know what makes me feel unsafe?” Lauren Denitzio of The Measure [SA] on her experiences of sexism in the punk scene

Let’s play a game! Replace the word “punk” with “vegan” (“concert” with “potluck,” etc.) in this kickass article by musician Lauren Denitzio, and see what happens:

No one is perfect, and I don’t expect that. What I do expect, however, is the ability to be held accountable for your actions, to apologize and hear everyone’s experience as valid. If you’re doing something that makes me feel unsafe at a [conference], I don’t care how long you’ve known me, or your history interacting with women, or how much you love [Natalie Portman]. If you can’t be held accountable and apologize, then none of those other things really make a difference to me. This applies to anything from jokes in poor taste to sexual assault. Just because we’ve all known someone for years at [demos] doesn’t change them calling me a cunt, or assaulting their partner. Once people stop making the excuse of “we’re all on the same page” and start being honest with each other, we start creating real, physical, safer spaces for everyone, not just women.

Word.

Non-vegan readers (if you exist!): substitute in your own social movement of choice. It doesn’t matter which; any will do. Like sexism, this analysis transcends borders. Play and learn.

Journal for Critical Animal Studies: Volume VIII Issue 3 2010 (Special Issue – Women of Color in Critical Animal Studies)

The final issue of ICAS’s Journal for Critical Animal Studies in 2010 is a special collection, dedicated to “Women of Color in Critical Animal Studies.” Contributors include A. Breeze Harper, Maneesha Deckha, Claudia Serrato, Laura Shields and Anastasia Yarbrough. You can download an issue (for free!) in either pdf or doc formats.

George Carlin: Pro Life, Abortion, And The Sanctity Of Life

An oldie but a goodie, and one that I’ve been holding onto ever since it made the rounds on Facebook oh, say, eight months ago? Just overlook the pap about chicken eggs being abortions (not unless they’re fertile) and the equation of gang affiliation with moral failings (one word: poverty), mkay?

Here’s another question I have: How come, when it’s us, it’s an abortion, and when it’s a chicken, it’s an omelet? Are we so much better than chickens all of a sudden? When did this happen, that we passed chickens in goodness? Name six ways we’re better than chickens. … See, nobody can do it! You know why? Because chickens are decent people. You don’t see chickens hanging around in drug gangs, do you? Nah. You don’t see a chicken strapping some guy to a chair and hooking up his nuts to a car battery, do you? When’s the last chicken you heard about that came home from work and beat the shit out of his hen, huh?

RIP, George.

I really haven’t been keeping pace with my Google Reader in the last few months – I could blame it on work, but that’d be a lie; in reality, the headlines have just been so damn depressing lately – so please, drop your own links or suggested reading in the comments!

]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2011/03/06/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-25/feed/ 1 tweeting thanksgiving http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/26/tweeting-thanksgiving/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/26/tweeting-thanksgiving/#comments Fri, 26 Nov 2010 17:27:30 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=16520
someecards - tofurkey

In this someecard, a woman sits at a dining table, seemingly ashamed as two older men berate her. The remnants of the night’s meal, including what looks like a bird corpse, scatter the tabletop. The caption reads, “Your Tufurkey has brought shame to this family.”
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As with several holidays past (most notably, Mother’s Day), I spent some of yesterday sending out Thanksgiving-related tweets. Most of these focused on the 45-48 million turkeys who were enslaved, slaughtered, dismembered and consumed in order to “show thanks” for [insert your irony here: friends? family? freedom? life?]. A few also addressed the racist and colonialist origins of the holiday. (Such a Debbie Downer, I am. Errr, make that Kelly Killjoy.)

For those of you who don’t follow me on twitter, I’ve included a digest of yesterday’s tweets. There’s lots of interesting reading there – some of which I linked to in yesterday’s edition of Friday Food – so enjoy!

Perhaps you’ll join me in tweeting the next problematic holiday or observance? It’s a surprisingly satisfying – and relatively simple – form of protest, though I’m not sure whether it has any practical effect beyond the personal. But hey, it made me feel a teensy bit better. That counts for something, right?

Oh, and at the end of the digest is a snarky little video from Sarah Silverman and the folks at Funny or Die: Sarah Silverman’s ThanksKILLING Special. “God bless America, and its greedy, self-righteous heritage.” Definitely check it out, even if you’re already familiar with the story of how Silverman became a vegetarian.

]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/26/tweeting-thanksgiving/feed/ 0 Friday Food (on a Thursday Holiday): Season Finale! http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/25/friday-food-on-a-thursday-holiday-season-finale/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/25/friday-food-on-a-thursday-holiday-season-finale/#comments Thu, 25 Nov 2010 18:34:00 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=14964 Friday Food…on a Thursday, you ask? Yes, ma’am! I shall be too busy chowing down on frozen pizza and pie – not to mention catching up on The Walking Dead – to bother with a “real” post today. And it’s the veganmofo Friday Food Season Finale, at that. How exciting!

(Seriously, the husband and I are opting/lazing out of the traditional Tofurky and mashed potato feast this year. But feel free to visit ghosts of meals past, mkay? See, e.g., 2009, 2008, 2007 and 2006.)

Whether you choose to observe the holiday or not, may your Thanksgiving day be a gentle one, friends.

 

Feed the Turkeys ceremony at Animal Acres Thanksgiving!
They got pies, salad, and stuffed squash!
CC image via Flickr user prideandvegudice.
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Food, delicious food!

Caramel Apple Pie from Apryl Knight @ Vegan Etsy

Vegan Lemon Bars from I Eat Trees

Chocolate Chestnut Tart from The New Vegan Table

Chocolate Covered Potato Chips from Manifest Vegan

Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers from Cooking at the Pacific Outpost

Cornbread Casserole, Dirty Dumpling Soup and Coconut Fudge from bite me, I’m vegan.

Smokey Maple BBQ Beans from Vegan Guinea Pig

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes from Sweet Treats and Vegan Eats

Hindbærsnitter from Seglare in Copenhagen

Lentil Walnut Pate Lettuce Wraps from thefrenchvegan

Garlic-Glazed Green Beans and Candied Sweet Potatoes from the vegan crew

Thousand Island Dressing from Our Veggie Kitchen

Sweet Potato Power Cookies from vegan cookbook critic

Garlic Mushrooms and Lentils from Vegging out in T-Town

Thyme Bread and Pizza Pretzels from tahinitoo

Green Risotto with Fresh Herbs from How Not To Be A Skinny Vegan

Vegan Coconut Macaroons from seitan is my motor

Caramel Pecan Cookies from Musings From The Fishbowl

Peanut Butter Kisses from megatarian

no-bake chocolate pumpkin pie from sweet beat and green bean (photo below)

Raw Pizza Crackers from christine cooks vegetarian

White Chocolate Matcha Truffles from veganbaking.net

Pierogies from Meg’s Cooking Addiction

Caramelised Pineapple Turnovers with Chamomile Soy Cream from vegalicious

… and, for the dog-kids …

Pumpkin Pie Muffins from It’s A Vegan Dog’s Life

 

Mmm, carbs.

Thanksgiving at Animal Acres! Stuffed “turkey” roast, mashed potatoes and gravy,
and sautéed veggies from One World Vegetarian.
CC image via Flickr user prideandvegudice.
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Bonus food!: Thanksgiving / Thanksliving / Tofurky Day / Save-a-Turkey Day ed.

Frugal Thanksgiving Recipes Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4 from MELOMEALS: VEGAN FOR $3.33 A DAY

Thanksgiving Recipes from FatFree Vegan Kitchen

Vegan Thanksgiving Menu Ideas: Cornucopia of Recipes from Happy. Healthy. Life

Vegan Thanksgiving Ideas from C’est La Vegan

The Tofurkey Day Countdown from Get Sconed!

Vegan Mofo Comfort Food: Vegan Thanksgiving Suggestions for Americans from It Ain’t Meat, Babe

A Vegan Thanksgiving: The 2010 Version from The Veg Blog

Vegan Thanksgiving Menu Suggestions from I Eat Trees

What Vegans Eat, The US Holiday Way from Mylène @ My Face Is On Fire

Token Thanksgiving Post from The Token Vegan

Vegan Thanksgiving Ideas from the Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG)

Holiday Recipes for Your Vegan Kitchen from WholeSoy

 

yummy yams, and tofu cashew loaf, and bbq tofu

yummy yams, and tofu cashew loaf, and bbq tofu
CC image via Flickr user massdistraction.

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Contests

Voting for the L4 GAY CAKE CONTEST is now open – from MONDAY 11/22 through SUNDAY 11/28, stop by Loony Louzilla Lovegood Letters and show some love for your favorite, kay?

The Raidoactive Vegan is giving away one copy of Vegan on the Cheap. The deadline to enter is Thursday, November 25 at 8 PM.

Vegging Out in T-Town is giving away a copy of Veganomicon. The deadline to enter is Sunday, November 28th @ 11:59 PM CST.

Manifest Vegan is giving away a rhino-print messenger bag by Saraparelle. The deadline to enter is Friday, November 26th @ midnight EST.

I Eat Trees is giving away a copy of Vegan Vittles. The deadline to enter is Saturday, November 27th @ 11 PM EST.

Molly @ It’s A Vegan Dog’s Life is giving away a copy of her book, also titled It’s A Vegan Dog’s Life. The deadline to enter is Sunday, November 28th.

Vegan Planet is giving away a copy of Party Vegan. The deadline to enter is Monday, November 29th at midnight.

Vegan Appetite of giving away a copy of 500 Vegan Recipes. The deadline to enter is early next week, when veganmofo wraps up.

A complete list of veganmofo giveaways is available @ the PPK forums.

 

no-bake chocolate pumpkin pie

no-bake chocolate pumpkin pie (recipe here)
CC image via Flickr user sweetbeatandgreenbean.
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Frugal Vegans

In Part II of the Barebones Vegan, chooseyourownfoodchain shows you what a barebones vegan pantry, fridge and freezer might look like – and also shares a few sources of free or cheap vegan food!

 

Thanksgiving Table

A Very Vegan Thanksgiving Table
CC image via Flickr user QuintanaRoo.
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Miscellaneous

First up, some festive holiday reading! (“Festive” from a grumpy vegan’s perspective, that is.)

* Thanksgiving without blinders… from Marla @ Vegan Feminist Agitator

* Thanksgiving Boycott from Laura @ Peace Chicken

* Walle’s Shadow from Marji @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression

* To My Friends at Thanksgiving from Mary @ Animal Person

* Thanksgiving and Tradition from Ryan @ The Veg Blog

* Rethinking Tradition from jenna @ LOVE

* “We Should All Be So Lucky” from Stephanie @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression

* A Tribute to Turkeys by Karen Davis of United Poultry Concerns (UPC)

* Our Turkey Celebration at Catskill Animal Sanctuary by Kathy Stevens @ The Huffpo

* Why turkeys RULE! from Megan @ vegansaurus!

* Thanksgiving and Turkeys by Doris @ AnimalRights.About.com

And, should you find yourself needing an avenue of escape from your deer-slaughtering uncle or a break from that bacon-loving hipster doofus cousin-in-law of yours, take a copy of this awesome veganmofo crossword puzzle to your family holiday dinner. Five minutes of vegan trivia should scare even the most tenacious of meat-eaters away, no?

Finally, I know that August feels a long way off (’cause it is!), but if you plan on attending Vida Vegan Con, don’t delay – book your ticks by March 11 for Early Bird registration rates!

What’s Vida Vegan Con, you ask? Lucky mofo, have I got the press release for you!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 16, 2010

VIDA VEGAN CON: THE FIRST EVER VEGAN BLOGGER CONFERENCE

PORTLAND, OR — August 26-28, 2011. Vida Vegan Con will bring together vegan lifestyle bloggers from around the globe for a weekend of learning, mingling, and exploring led by the vegan community’s top talent.

University Place Hotel & Convention Center, of Portland State University, will act as base of operations as an estimated 200 vegan bloggers and professionals participate in workshops, panel discussions, and classes covering topics from food photography to activism, social networking to overcoming writer’s block. Speakers include The Post Punk Kitchen’s Isa Chandra Moskowitz, FatFree Vegan’s Susan Voisin, and Urban Vegan’s Dynise Balcavage.

Registration is open at VidaVeganCon.com/registration.

Vida Vegan LLC is an independent body formed by bloggers Janessa Philemon-Kerp of Epicurious Vegan, Jess Scone of Get Sconed!, and Michele Truty of Vegtastic Voyage.

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Vida Vegan LLC
VidaVeganConference@gmail.com
503.395.8432
vidavegancon.com
@VidaVeganCon
VVC on Facebook

Love turkeys, don’t eat them!

For those of you who, like me, are not lucky enough to live near a vegan farmed animal sanctuary, here’s some shiny happy turkey-friendly Thanksgiving goodness, in bite-sized video form. Enjoy! (Preferably with your omnivorous family members.)

Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary’s 5th annual “ThanksLiving” benefit banquet,
October 10, 2010. www.woodstocksanctuary.org
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Poplar Springs’ Thanksgiving for the Turkeys, 2009. www.animalsanctuary.org
(This video, filmed by Deb of Invisible Voices, focuses on piglets Izzy and Morty; a 2008 video from AFB offers a nice overview of the celebrations, but embedding is disabled.)
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Farm Sanctuary’s Celebration FOR the Turkeys, 2006/2007. www.farmsanctuary.org
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Animal Acres’ Thanksgiving FOR the Turkeys, 2006. www.animalacres.org
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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/25/friday-food-on-a-thursday-holiday-season-finale/feed/ 0 Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (Friday Food) http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/19/gimme-gimme-gimme-friday-food/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/19/gimme-gimme-gimme-friday-food/#comments Fri, 19 Nov 2010 23:31:13 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=16131 Another week, another veganmofo wrap-up! Entering the home stretch, I cannot adequately express the sense of relief that comes from having started my mofo blogging a month in advance. Because, lemme tell you something – I’m 26.5 posts down with 3.5 left to go (the .5 being a book review that’s 99% finished, but just needs a quick spit & shine before publication), and I am forking exhausted. As in, ready for an 18-hour nap followed by a week-long vacation. And I haven’t even done that much cooking!

mashed cauliflower

“mashed cauliflower: This Mashed Cauliflower recipe (which I make in place of mashed potatoes) is perfect for a gluten free, Paleo Thanksgiving.”
CC image via Flickr user elena’s pantry.
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Food, delicious food!

Mashed Cauliflower, Carrot French Fries and Vegan Pumpkin Ice Cream from Elena’s Pantry (pictured above and below)

Vegan Butterflake Rolls from Inspired Eats

Best Vegan Pecan Pie from My Vegan Cookbook

Twice-Baked Colcannon from Miso for Breakfast

Thanksgiving “Pie” with Variations and Spiced Two-Apple Tart with Cider Crème from Vegan Planet

Vegan Green Bean Casserole from Vegan Etsy

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes With Chocolate Ganache from Isa @ the PPK

Tasty cream horns from vegalicious

Graham Crackers from VeganYumYum

VEGAN Battleship Chocolate Bundt Cake with Sour Cherry Compote! from Terry Hope Romero @ vegansaurus!

Quick(er) Pierogies from Vegan Nom Noms

Vegan Peppermint Stick Ice Cream from I Eat Trees

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread from Musings From The Fishbowl

Buckeye Candy (with a Hint of Cardamom) from Manifest Vegan

Beer Breaded Garlic Mushrooms from Lustrous Musings

 

carrot fries

“carrot fries: My boys love these gluten free carrot fries hot out of the oven. I like baking them as it eliminates the messy splattering that results from the typical preparation.”
CC image via Flickr user elena’s pantry.
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Contests

Bitt of Raw is giving away a copy of Becoming Vegan or Becoming Raw (winner’s choice). The deadline to enter is Sunday, November 21st at 11:59 PM.

C’est La Vegan is giving away two bags of Pistachio Aniseed Biscotti and two bags of Pumpkin Pecan Biscotti with Chocolate Chips to one lucky mofo. The deadline to enter is Sunday, November 21st, at 6:00 PST.

Robin Robertson is giving away a copy of her cookbook Vegan Fire and Spice @ Vegan Planet. The deadline to enter is Monday, November 22nd at 12 midnight EST.

An Opera Singer in the Kitchen is giving away four coupons for free Turtle Mountain products to ten lucky mofos! The deadline to enter is Monday, November 22nd at 12 midnight EST.

And, as always, do be sure to check out the dedicated contest thread over on the PPK forums.

 

pumpkin pie ice cream

“pumpkin pie ice cream: This vegan and gluten free pumpkin pie ice cream is a delicious fall frozen treat whether served at Halloween or Thanksgiving.”
CC image via Flickr user elena’s pantry.
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Miscellany

‘Twas the week in which the MEAT CAKE! dominated veganmofo. To wit: check out these beautiful monstrosities from Mo @ Mo Betta Vegan and Janet @ vegansaurus! Laugh or cry? You tell me, folks. You tell me.

(Yes, that was a link to a “meat” pie that I posted earlier; and no, I’m not losing my mind. Maybe I just find the idea of a vertically-challenged “meat” dessert easier to wrap my head around? Fewer layers, at least. Less food mixage. Food mixage, no like.)

Also – and I know it’s still a little early to be thinking about x-mas, but – gift ideas from I Eat Trees!

Marla at Vegan Feminist Agitator has been blogging tips for World Vegan Month all November. You should totes check it out!

Last but not least, Isa is reminiscing about the five cookbooks that changed her life. If, like me, you’re old enough to remember the ’90s with some fondness, you’ll get a real kick out of this!: Cookbooks That Changed My Life: Soy Not Oi! (Part 2) and Cookbooks That Changed My Life: Tofu Cookery (Part 1)

Share those links if you got ‘em, mofos!

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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/19/gimme-gimme-gimme-friday-food/feed/ 2 Friday Food: Sharing is Caring! http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/12/friday-food-sharing-is-caring/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/12/friday-food-sharing-is-caring/#comments Fri, 12 Nov 2010 18:15:49 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=15984
2010-09-20 - Kelly's Last AM (Kelly's Cam) - 0006

Miss Hash Brown – my parents’ beagle/terrier mix-breed dog-kid – tries to sweet-talk me into sharing a piece of my sun-dried tomato bagel with her. And by “talk” I mean “kiss.”
Needless to say, she had me at *sad eyes*.
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It took me a good six hours, but I finally finished working through this year’s veganmofo blogroll earlier this week. Everything looks so nice and neat and sorted now! Of course, this means that I have even more Friday Food to share with y’all! Enjoy the links, and try not to drool on your keyboard or, worse yet, lick your monitor (it’s not real, it’s just an illusion!).

Before we get started, though, I have got to direct you to the following blogs – or, more to the point, blog titles, which tickled me every shade of pink whilst browsing through them. Most are rooted in pop culture, which is totally my thing.

bite me, I’m vegan | bitemevegan.blogspot.com
Duchess Of Kircaldy | duchessofkircaldy.wordpress.com
It Ain’t Meat, Babe | www.itaintmeatbabe.com
It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Cooking…) | imonlycooking.blogspot.com
meansoybean | meansoybean.com
Meatless in Seattle | meatlessinseattle85.blogspot.com
No Murders in the Rue Morgue | nomurders.wordpress.com
Thyme Bombe | thymebombe.com
Vegan Dance if you want to. | vegandance.blogspot.com

Also be sure to visit Seitan Said Dance, who’s cooking up comic book themed dishes all week. Totally awesome. Bonus smiles: Mozilla recommends that I change “Seitan” to “Satan.”

 

Oat Pumpkin Pancakes

“Oat Pumpkin Pancakes” (recipe here). CC image via digiyesica on Flickr.
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Food, delicious food!

Tempeh Roulade en Croute from VegSpinz

Sweet Potato and Apple Bake from megatarian

Mint Chocolate Shots from Lustrous Musings

The (vegan) Soup Post! and Molasses Ginger Cookies! from Healthy. Happy. Life.

Cappuccino Muffins and Vegan Apple Hand Pies from Vegan Nom Noms

Rooibos Chai from Vegan Junk Food

Dad’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Bon Bons from In My Vegan Life

The Vegan Nacho from Unhealthy Vegan

Vegan Pizza Bites from Toast and Tofu

Braised Maple Tarragon Carrots from The Elizavegan Page

Easy Ganache from Musings From The Fishbowl

Vegan Fried Mac and Cheese from MidwestVeg

Lime Coconut Custard Pie from Wasabi Peas

Amazing Homemade Vegan Bacon from The Ordinary Vegetarian

The Homemade Hummus Challenge: Are Dried Chickpeas Better Than Canned? from the paupered chef

Carrot Cake Pancakes from Isa @ the PPK

(Vegan) Garlic and Chive Mashed Potato-Stuffed Crust Pizza from …and it’s vegan.

Vegan Loaded Potato Soup from Down Home Vegan

Mashed Potato Pizza (Personal Size) from Pixie & Dusty Eat

Vegan Needham Recipe. (Maine Regional Potato Candy) from Killer Bunnies, Inc

Po’rn Puppies from Grow’n Boy

Chai Pumpkin Pie Ice Creem Sandwiches from vegan cookbook critic

Vegan Pizza Bites from Another Healthy Habit

Miss Pumpkin Whoopie Pies from The Daily Coop

Homemade Tofurkey with Brown Rice Stuffing Recipe from CHOW

…don’t forget the dog-kids!

Sweet Potato Muffins from It’s A Vegan Dog’s Life

 

DSC_4500

“Canada’s next top Vegan competition blindfold taste test.” CC image via paulr_42 on Flickr.
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Contests

I forgot to link to it last week, but the PPK forums have an entire thread dedicated to veganmofo giveaways. You should totally go there if you like free stuff, ’cause this is but a partial list.

Joni Marie Newman is giving away two copies of 500 Vegan Recipes at justthefood.com. The deadline to enter is tonight at 10PM PST.

I Eat Trees is giving away a copy of Lick It. The deadline to enter is Saturday, November 13th at 11 PM EST.

Robin Robertson is giving away a copy of Vegan Unplugged: A Pantry Cuisine Cookbook and Emergency Guide at Vegan Planet. The deadline to enter is Monday, November 15th at midnight.

An Opera Singer in the Kitchen is giving away one TofuXpress tofu press. The deadline to enter is Tuesday, November 16th at midnight EST.

The Health Sleuth is giving away a jar of Nacho Mom’s Vegan Queso. The deadline to enter is Wednesday, November 17th.

Bitt of Raw is giving away a sample pack of Emmy’s Organics macaroons. The deadline to enter is Wednesday, November 17th at 11:59 pm PST.

Finally, Our Veggie Kitchen is giving away one copy of American Vegan Kitchen. The deadline to enter is Tuesday, November 30th.

Normally, I’d ask y’all which contests you’re itching to win, but probably that’s top-secret, yes?

 

Dumpstered

“Dumpstered: A dozen slightly-out-of-date Clif Bars rescued from the trash can.”
CC image via hoveringdog on Flickr.
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Frugal Vegans

In a new-to-Friday Food feature, I’ve also decided to feature those veganmofo posts that focus on saving money. After all, this whole roundup is an outgrowth of my “Frugal Vegans…” series, so it only seems natural to include my fellow mofo’er’s forays into frugality, dontchathink?

Apropos yesterday’s conversation about how to be an awesome vegan through food reclamation, Joni @ justthefood.com gives us: The Garbage Pizza! Ain’t nothing trashy about that bad boy, I tell you what.

Katie @ Don’t Eat Off The Sidewalk! shares her tips for eating vegan while on a budget in the awesomely titled Let’s get this party started as cheaply as possible!

Mo @ Mo Betta Vegan (another shiny happy blog name!) shares her dollar and discount stores finds. If you’ve never shopped at a Dollar Store, friends, you haven’t lived. Dog’s mouth to your ears.

Nicole at Vegan Nom Noms goes dumpster diving and returns home with a CSA’s worth of produce. Her finds? Impressive!

Also impressive: her mad coupon blegging skillz. Mission: Vegan Coupons is a must-read. (I’ve tried this one before; several times, actually. It really works!)

Finally, in the first of what promises to be a series – The Barebones Vegan – chooseyourownfoodchain suggests a list of relatively inexpensive must-have vegan kitchen appliances and accessories. Stay tuned for more!

So, mofo’s. Which veganmofo posts have you been loving on this week? Remember: sharing is caring!

 
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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/12/friday-food-sharing-is-caring/feed/ 3 Thank dog it’s Friday Food! http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/05/thank-dog-its-friday-food/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/05/thank-dog-its-friday-food/#comments Fri, 05 Nov 2010 16:22:46 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=15769 As promised, today I bring you a monster link roundup of all the yummy recipes I bookmarked with delicious during the past week. Though the series title is shamelessly lifted (“borrowed”) from Stephanie, this Friday Food is different in that it includes recipes published at any time in the history of the intertubes. I do a lot of browsing and surfing – even more so given the massive Vegan MoFo blogroll and RSS feed bundle – and thus, not a little backtracking. Most of these recipes are newish – many posted just for Vegan MoFo – but don’t be surprised if you stumble upon one from 1999. In which case, par-tay like – well, you know the drill.

And also, I am a junk food junkie. Judging from the unhealthy bent of this list, even more so than I realized. Problems, I got ‘em. Sigh. So many sweets, so little time.

 

Chocolate-coconut truffles (recipe here). CC image via floridecires on Flickr.
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Food, delicious food!

Homemade Tofurkey with Brown Rice Stuffing Recipe from Chow, by way of vegansaurus!

White Trash Tater Tot Casserole with Daiya, Mac ‘n Teese® Cheese Casserole, and Cranberry Apple Crisp with Maple Syrup from SnarkyVegan

Blueberry and Earl Grey Scones from Cookin’ Vegan & Jessica @VeganFood

Vegan Black Bean Tostadas with Corn Relish from Veggie Terrain

Vegan Sweet Potato Naan from Cook’s Hideout

Kelly Beth’s Vegan Deviled Eggs (a.k.a. Potato Angels) from Vegan Etsy

Chocolate Coconut Truffles (above) from Veggie Wedgie

Super Fudgy Brownies (AKA Crusty Fudge) and Chocolate Viennese Whirls from Not a Rabbit

Chocolate Cake with White Chocolate Mousse, Berry Compote and Almond Milk Ice Cream and Fried Lemon Pie and Salted Caramel Ice Cream from vegansaurus! (and Project Just Desserts guest-chefs Melisser and Bianca)

Black Bean and Chipotle Dip from Wednesday Food Blogging

Apple Gingerbread Upside-Down Cake and Mapley Apple Oat Muffins from Vegan Appetite

Isa VS The Cookiepuss from Isa @ the PPK

Croissants from The New Vegan Table

French Onion Soup from Miranda Writes

Vegan Tomato Pie with Heirloom Tomatoes from Bird and Belle’s Excellent Adventures in Marriage

Morbid chocolate skull cakes from Parsley Park

Whiskey Apple Crisp from It Ain’t Meat, Babe

Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups from Inspired Eats

Pierogi (Potato and Mushroom Sauerkraut) by Isa from epicurious

Step by Step Sweet Potato Gnocchi from Vegan Soul Power!

Banana Vodka from Lustrous Musings

…don’t forget the dog-kids!

Sage Muffins and Pumpkin Carob Muffins from It’s a Vegan Dog’s Life

 

The 3rd Annual Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-off

“The 3rd Annual Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-off” – CC image via Sean Ohlenkamp on Flickr.
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Contests

Over at Vegan Appetite, Tamasin Noyes is offering up one copy of her latest cookbook, American Vegan Kitchen. The deadline for submissions is 11/7, so don’t delay!

Enter to win a copy of Robin Robertson’s Vegan on the Cheap @ Vegan Planet by 11/9.

Also at Vegan Appetite: leave a comment, win a copy of Kelly Peloza’s The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur. Or not. I seriously want this cookbook – hello, cookies! – so “not” works for me. The deadline for entry is 11/10. Wait, did I say 11/10? I meant 11/17. *wink*

Loony Louzilla Lovegood Letters is hosting the awesomest contest ever, namely, a gay cake decorating contest! The rules are simple: bake and decorate a “gay” (presumably vegan) cake and send her a photo by 11/21. On 11/22 through 11/28, check back to vote for your favorite. The winner scores a rainbow tote bag, rumored to be stuffed with “some awesome stuff.” See what I mean? Awesome!

Vegan Etsy gets in on the Grab Bag of Awesomeness fun with a short answer contest. Stop by the blog and leave a comment about why you’re vegan (or transitioning towards veganism). The winner will be chosen randomly – but, given all of the goodies Etsy team members are contributing, make your answer a good one, kay? (Okay, yeah, I went a wee bit overboard. Join me so I don’t look like a total dweeb?) That’s some badass prize bag there! The deadline to enter is 11/31.

Finally, Miso for Breakfast – which I keep typing as “A Cup of Miso,” for some odd reason – is hosting one giveaway daily for the entire month of November. Yay Miso!

 

Vegan Food Served Here

“Vegan Food Served Here…in Barcelona.” – CC image via cogdogblog on Flickr.
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Miscellany

The Cinnamon Snail needs our help, y’all! Faced with expanded vending ordinances – including new street restrictions – in Red Bank, NJ, this vegan food truck may be forced to shut its doors until the spring season. Baking Vinyl has more, including a list of contact information for those wishing to intervene on behalf of vegan noms and the peoples who love them.

This has nothing to do with food or veganism, but wev. It’s hilarious, and who doesn’t need a laugh, especially after the week we just had? In 492 parts, The Funniest Signs From The Rally To Restore Sanity And/Or Fear! If you can’t view the photos – it’s a neverending slideshow, yo! – here’s a list of the various slogans, courtesy of Rally the Cause.

So what’s your favorite recipe, contest, or blogger thus far? Share your Vegan MoFo picks in the comments!

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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/11/05/thank-dog-its-friday-food/feed/ 8 Intersectionality ‘Round the Interwebs, No. 24: Three months o’ links! http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/10/27/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-24/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/10/27/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-24/#comments Wed, 27 Oct 2010 16:48:09 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=14583 Considering I haven’t posted a link roundup in more than three months, this one actually isn’t all that long. What can I say; I’ve used what little free blogging time I’ve had to prepare for the upcoming Vegan MoFo madness. Speaking of which, brand spanking new graphics and an up-to-date press release are now available. Go grab some and spread the word! 400 participants and counting – let’s make it 500, kay? Come November 1st, you can follow the fun on Twitter (VeganMoFo, #veganmofo), the (new!) PPK forums, and Vegan MoFo Headquarters International. See y’all then.

Joel Burns tells gay teens “it gets better”;

Stephanie @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression: “You Coming Out or What?”; and

The Bullies Suck T-shirt

In the wake of a spate of suicides, committed by gay teenagers who were each the target of homophobic bullying, the LGBTQ community and its allies celebrated National Coming Out Day on October 11. Together, these events have focused attention on movements to prevent bullying – particularly those aimed at LGBTQ (or perceived LGBTQ) youths – including the It Gets Better Project and The Trevor Project. The former invites members and allies of the LGBTQ community to upload encouraging videos to its website, the message being that “it gets better”; the latter operates a hotline for LGBTQ youths and young adults in crisis, and also provides resources to parents and educators.

As part of this anti- anti-gay backlash, a number of celebrities and public figures have shared their own experiences publicly – including Fort Worth City Councilman Joel Burns, whose heartbreaking speech went viral and was aired in full on various media outlets, including CNN (where I first saw it). I’ve embedded the video above; even though it’s rather long, clocking in at almost 13 minutes, I urge you to watch the whole thing. It will bring you to tears.

And, while you’re already a sobby, snotty mess, head on over to AR&AO, where Stephanie shares her own “coming out” story. These issues – homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, and the like – are relevant to animal rights activism simply because so many activists belong to marginalized groups; nonhumans are not the only animals exploited and mistreated en masse, for no reason other than the simple fact of their birth. All oppression is bad oppression, and all forms of oppression harm individual activists, as well as social movements and the beings for whom we advocate. These are not “special interests,” to be addressed only after the “important” work is done; these are our interests, to be tackled in concert with other “isms.”

To this end, Ari Solomon of A Scent of Scandal, Josh Hooten of The Herbivore Clothing Company and Jennifer Martin of Ink Brigade created a line of t-shirts to show solidarity with the victims of anti-LGBTQ bullying. Called “Bullies Suck,” the tees are available for purchase through Herbivore (just $20, with kids’ sizes, to boot!); all proceeds will be donated to The Trevor Project.

vegansaurus!: Hello, Friends! It’s WTF Wednesday!

KFC has been struggling as of late (apparently they lost 7 percent of revenue in the last year?) and it turns out that their target audience can’t even recognize the Colonel anymore. So instead of thinking “Dude, our problem is that our food is super-gross and also unfit for consumption, so maybe we should get rid of that monstrosity we introduced last year and rethink our horrible horrible menu as well as our choice to be known as chicken murderers,” they decided that their best course of action was to rent ad space on the behinds of college women.

“Keep quiet for the cause”: on sexual abuse in progressive movements

The insistence that women’s liberation is anti-revolutionary, or insignificant, or just so much liberal navel-gazing, allows rape culture to thrive in far too many radical political and ethnic organizations. And brave young women like Dinah get raped and tossed aside.

Vegan Feminist Agitator: Lady Gaga’s Meat Dress Statement, zzzzz….

In the end, this woman who presents herself as an iconoclast and an artist is just like anyone else in line at the drive-thru, consuming animals for her reasons, basking in a set of privileges she is not challenging. A blasé sense of elite entitlement is every bit as ordinary and unoriginal and stupefyingly normal as someone in line trying to decide between a cheeseburger and a Big Mac.

Vegan Feminist Agitator: There is no Y.O.U. in Unity

People may claim that disagreements within the movement creates disharmony and is a waste of our resources: we should be unified, we are so small in number anyway, we don’t need to fragmentize further. I don’t “harmonize” with misogyny, though, just as I don’t with other forms of exploitation. I tend to think of this as a good thing. Those of us who speak out are often told that we hurt the movement. You know what really hurts the movement? When people use shaming, idiotic and mean-spirited tactics and the rest of us remain mute, bullied into silence, taking it on faith that there’s some amorphous benefit in maintaining the illusion of unity. What helps the movement? A diversity of views and voices and talents and people. Creative, truly progressive, smart advocacy.

Charlotte’s Website: The Egg Recall: Exposing the Problems with Reform

This is the reality of a capitalist economy: control of wealth and resources is concentrated in the few hands of an elite owning class. Choices then, for the majority of people, are indeed limited. If you don’t like what’s on the menu, you may be free, in theory, to choose none of it. But if the next closest restaurant is across town, and you can’t afford both subway fare and the price of the meal, what will you do? There are only so many times you can walk away before you starve. If there is no other way to meet your basic needs for enough food, good-tasting food, and varied food, you will eat what you can get.

Philosophía and Animal Liberation: Exploiting Femaleness and Violating Consent: Intersectional Abuse Across Species

Female animals are exploited both because they are not human and because of their femaleness.

Female humans are no strangers to this sort of exploitation. Women’s bodies have been being sold and exploited for centuries and there are always new ways that it is occurring. Even today, things like human trafficking, forced prostitution, and arranged marriages follow this suit. One of the more problematic industries that has been exposed in recent years is the “outsourcing of pregnancies” to India (Associated Press). [...]

The concern for consent is absent in most of humans’ dealings with other animals. The dairy industry is one of many examples of how both the nonhuman nature of the cow and the femaleness of the cow are exploited and how other animals’ differing communication styles- lacking our verbal language- are used as an excuse to ignore their (lack of) consent.

Courtney Desiree Morris @ make/shift: Why Misogynists Make Great Informants: How Gender Violence on the Left Enables State Violence in Radical Movements and

Stephanie @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression: Power Dynamics, Abuse, and Violence, Inside Relationships and Inside Our Movements

The entire make/shift piece is worth a read, but here’s a taste:

To save our movements, we need to come to terms with the connections between gender violence, male privilege, and the strategies that informants (and people who just act like them) use to destabilize radical movements. Time and again heterosexual men in radical movements have been allowed to assert their privilege and subordinate others. Despite all that we say to the contrary, the fact is that radical social movements and organizations in the United States have refused to seriously address gender violence as a threat to the survival of our struggles. We’ve treated misogyny, homophobia, and heterosexism as lesser evils—secondary issues—that will eventually take care of themselves or fade into the background once the ‘real’ issues—racism, the police, class inequality, U.S. wars of aggression—are resolved. There are serious consequences for choosing ignorance. Misogyny and homophobia are central to the reproduction of violence in radical activist communities. Scratch a misogynist and you’ll find a homophobe. Scratch a little deeper and you might find the makings of a future informant (or someone who just destabilizes movements like informants do).

Using this as a jumping-off point, Stephanie offers her own thoughts on sexual harassment, abuse, misogyny and bullying in social movements. The comment section very quickly veers toward events that took place at AR2010, with some disturbing examples of…well, just go read it. There are 69 comments at last count, so consider this set leisurely weekend read, yes?

Food Empowerment Project: F.E.P.’s Food Availability Study, “Shining a Light on the Valley of Heart’s Delight: Taking a Look at Access to Healthy Foods in Santa Clara County’s Communities of Color and Low-Income Communities”;

lauren @ Appetite for Justice: Further Insights on Our Report; and

Marji @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression: Food is Power

The Food Empowerment Project recently published the results of a year(+)-long study in which volunteers canvassed grocery stores in Santa Clara County, CA, in order to assess the available of healthy foods – defined here as “fresh, canned, and frozen fruits and vegetables as well as alternatives to meat and dairy” – in both low- and high-income areas. The 20-page report is available as a free .pdf download (click through the first link), with addition discussion and commentary on the FEP’s blog, Appetite for Justice (link #2). Marji also does a nice job of summarizing the findings for AR&AO readers (link #3). If you’d like to help fund the FEP’s invaluable work, please do!

Feminism & Psychology: Volume 20, Issue 3 (August 2010): Feminism, Psychology and Nonhuman Animals

The academic journal Feminism & Psychology recently devoted an entire issue to the topic of nonhuman animals. Featuring pieces by pattrice jones, Carol J. Adams, Donna Hathaway and Lynda Birke, the ten articles examine a wide range of subjects, such as gender differences as they relate to vegetarianism, anti-/speciesism in ecofeminist psychology, and what the gendering of nonhuman animals says about human society. While none of the articles are currently available for free, you can either purchase short-term access for $25 – or sweet-talk a college-attending friend or family member into downloading a copy for you. Unless you have access through a university your own self. In which case, shouldn’t you be studying or grading papers or something?

Marji @ Animal Rights & AntiOppression: Cow Shot At State Fair Was Not A Nutcase

Every year at county and state fairs, farmers drag heavily pregnant mothers, stick them in small cages in full view of the public and wait for them to give birth.

Yesterday in California, at the site of the state fair, a pregnant Holstein cow became frightened and bolted. The fair was not open to the public at the time.

Instead of backing off and letting the obviously stressed animal calm down, police decided to hop in a large SUV and drive after her. When that brilliant technique failed, it was decided the cow should be killed.

Ultimately, both mother and fetus died; “experts” – including a veterinary – swiftly commenced a shameless round of victim-blaming that was both ableist and misogynist in nature. For trying to escape her captors, a pregnant cow was labeled “crazy”; “a nutcase.” Meanwhile, the enslavement of billions of sentient nonhumans for human want and convenience – resulting in untold environmental degradation and no small threat to human safety and health – continues unchallenged. Who’s “crazy” again?

Vegans Against PETA: Thanks PETA, now I just spit all over everything.

PETA, on Janet Jackson’s decision to model for “luxury fur” company BlackGlama:

“It’s amazing what celebrities will do when their careers are on a downslide, but we didn’t think that Janet was this desperate. Surely, she knows enough about suffering and unjustified death to recognize that both occur in the production of a fur coat. We are asking her to think again and to donate these stolen skins to be used as bedding for animals orphaned by other human-caused disasters, such as loss of habitat,” PETA spokeswoman Amanda Schinke said in a statement.

Click on through to deconstruct this press release with The Venerable Vegan Empress.

Suicide Food: Sexy Hot Dog Tattoo

In which some shitbag actually shells out money to have the image of a sexy, busty, makeup-wearing, climaxing hot dog/lady hybrid tattooed onto his person. The upside? Vegan feminists the world over will know to steer clear of this loser. It’s like a Scarlet Letter, but in reverse.

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]]> http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/10/27/intersectionality-round-the-interwebs-no-24/feed/ 0 The Season of the Vegan: VeganMoFo, Halloweegan & Birthday Kisses http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/10/09/the-season-of-the-vegan/ http://www.easyvegan.info/2010/10/09/the-season-of-the-vegan/#comments Sat, 09 Oct 2010 20:57:57 +0000 Kelly Garbato http://www.easyvegan.info/?p=15053 If you’re vegan and on the internets, then probably you already know all about the awesomeness that is VeganMoFo. But a reminder never hurts now, does it?

Vegan MoFo IV logo banner

VeganMoFo is a month-long celebration of all things vegan food-related, in intertubes carnival form. Throughout the month of November, vegan bloggers the world over pledge to post about the joys of vegan food once a day, with the goal of generating at least 20 posts for the month (weekends are optional!). Topics run the gamut, from original recipes to theme days and photo essays to contests and giveaways. Last year, over 500 bloggers participated, yours truly included. (You can browse an archive of my VeganMoFo contributions here.)

If you’re interested in being a MoFoer – in blog or in spirit – check out VeganMoFo Headquarters International, where a team of MoFoers will be recapping all the hot, sticky, NOMy vegan action in real time. You can also follow them on Twitter (@veganmofo), where you should totally share your own #veganmofo links – tagged according, natch. For the Flickerites among us, there’s even a VeganMoFo group; join and share, mkay?

The sign-up deadline to be included in the RSS feed / “official” list of participants is 11/2, but you can jump in at any time! (Sign-up sheet here.)

Last year, there was a push to garner media coverage for the event; I don’t know whether something similar is planned for 2010, but you should definitely keep an eye on the PPK forums for more. If necessary, last year’s sample press release can easily be reworked for VeganMoFo IV.

lol ozzy - cannibalizin

  • Not being a PPK regular, I initially thought that, as in years past, VeganMoFo IV was scheduled for October. But, not so much. Luckily, October is home to its own brand of awesomeness: Halloween!

    Wing-It Vegan is leading the Halloween festivities with a month of Halloweegan treats. (Halloween + vegan = Halloweegan, silly!) Spider Cupcakes, Vampire Cookies and Veggieloaf Coffins, oh my! You can browse an index of her Halloween-themed recipes here; she’s helpfully included links to other vegan creations ’round the interwebs, too. And if you’re on Flickr, join her newly-birthed Halloweegan group so you can get in on the fun.

  • Similarly, the good folks at VegWeb.com have assembled a dedicated Halloween page. Hit ‘em up for Halloween-themed recipes, costume and party ideas, leads on yummy vegan Halloween candy and more.
  • Last Thursday was Kaylee and Jayne’s adoption day (four years) and observed birthdays (twelve and six years, respectively). I meant to at least mention it on the 30th, but happily we were too busy celebrating! At nine days past due, you’d think I’d just accept that the moment has passed, and maybe it’s silly, but…I feel a little remiss if I don’t at least give the kids an on-blog shout-out. Guilty, even. I know, I know, I’m such a mom.

    Anyhow, Shane and I drove the girls to nearby Smithville Lake, where we took a leisurely stroll along the water (2.11 miles in 53 minutes!). Kaylee is a naturally slow walker (she doesn’t walk so much as meander); whereas Jayne, possibly owing to abandonment issues, won’t walk more than five feet in front of you without stopping and/or retreating back, presumably to confirm that you haven’t ditched her while she wasn’t looking. It’s rather sad, actually. But it was a beautiful, shiny day and I think we all were happy to get out of the house.

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    I was curious to see if Jayne would venture into the lake (or try, anyhow); while she doesn’t appreciate baths and hates the rain, she seems drawn to larger bodies of water, like rivers and ponds. Walk her within ten feet of the pond at our place, and she’ll make a b-line towards it, as though compelled. While she seemed interested in the animals living on lake’s edge, she didn’t make a move to jump in; perhaps she sensed that the drop-off was greater than what she’s used to? Or maybe she just wasn’t feeling it. *shrug*

    [The day before, we'd taken Ralphie, Peedee and O-Ren walking along a different section of the lake. It was warmer that afternoon - at least ten degrees - and we kept a much quicker pace. At one point, we reached a shallow, swampy pool off of the main lake - and all three dogs promptly waded in to lay down in the muck.

    2010-09-29 - R-O-P Walking (Shane's Cell) 0002

    Naturally, we had neglected to bring towels. *headsmack*]

    After we returned home, the husband and I took our rowboat out on an inaugural trip around the pond. (Seriously, we’ve been here three years, and we only just got around to using the boat last month!) Jayne came with us, and once she finally settled down – floating out in the middle of the water, how very strange! – I think she dug the hell out of it. (Ditto: Shane.) Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures of it – I forgot to bring my camera out on the water. Ah, well.

    Overall, it was a shiny, happy day! Specialness, quadrupled.

  • And tomorrow is Ralphie’s birthday! Our dirty old bastard will be thirteen years young.

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    Aside from a recently-discovered melanoma in his eye (which is being closely monitored and hasn’t gotten appreciably worse), he’s in damn fine shape. Happy birthday, old man! Maybe we’ll take a walk into town tomorrow, where we can find you come little children to gnosh on.

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