Is Vegan Weird?
Since becoming Vegan 5 years ago I do things I never in my midwestern meat-eating life thought I’d do. Like eat a Tofurky Dinner for thanksgiving. But we won’t talk about that. Ever.
So I guess becoming vegan has made me weird. As if I wasn’t weird enough already. But that’s ok – weird is the new cool. And if being weird keeps me being healthy – then I’m ok with it.
How weird am I? Here are a list of things I do now practically every day that would once upon a time make me stop and pause. I guess it’s a good thing I live in Portland…..
“We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.” -Dr. Seuss
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I Eat Weird Foods
If you would have told me 10 years ago that one day I’d be eating Tofu, I would have laughed in your face and probably spit Mt. Dew out of my nose. Tofu? Seriously? Hell I’m not sure I even knew what Tofu was, let alone weird things like Miso & Tempeh. And Soy Crumbles? How unappetizing does THAT sound.
Nope – no way, I was a strict Midwestern meat & potatoes kinda guy. None of that hippie, yuppie, healthy crap for me. And Nutritional Yeast? Wasn’t that something you bought in one of those weirdo vitamin stores along with your green seaweed powder….?
But today….. have you ever tried Tofu Mayo? it’s really quite good….
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I Make Things From Scratch
Not only do I LIKE tofu mayo – I make my own. I also make my own Tofu Sour Cream and Spinach Dip too, along with my homemade pizza dough, Marinara, and Jalapeño Hummus. Hardly anything I buy today is processed. I make it all from scratch. It’s my Vegan 4 letter word around my friends at work.
It’s called cook. I know, weird huh? Who woulda thunk it…
Not only that – when I am in the store picking up staples – I actually read the nutrition facts on the can…. I know huh!
And did I mention I also made my own homemade HDTV Antenna to pick up all the local stations so I could ditch cable? Damn rebel.
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I Like Whole Foods
And from time to time I actually shop there too. They are kinda spendy, but you got to admit they have one heckuva produce section. Of course mine is about 30 minutes away, so I normally shop closer to home.
But believe it or not, I don’t shop at my local Safeway, which is just 5 minutes away. Why not? Because they’re just as expensive as Whole Foods! And honestly, I guess they’re just not weird enough. I mean they hardly carry any of the weird ass hippie ingredients I’ve gotten used to. So I drive an extra 10 minutes to a Fred Meyer in the next town over.
They have Miso.
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I Love Smoothies
Speaking of weird ingredients….. who in the world came up with the bright idea to drink spinach smoothies. “Hey, Let’s put this Spinach in a blender and see what happens….” I mean really. It just sounds so nasty, and oh my it looks like….. well never mind.
But I got to tell you, when you add that apple and banana in the end, they are one of the yummiest things on the planet. I did try broccoli once and I really, really, do NOT recommend it. {shivers}
I stick to the basics. Spinach – Kale if I’m feeling a little adventurous, an Apple or Pear, maybe some pineapple chunks, and a ripe (but not rotten) banana to finish it off.
You should try one. In fact I have a Green Smoothie Recipe right here.
Sounds weird, look weird, but man they are delicious.
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I Post Recipes on Food Blogs
My friends are playing golf, polishing their guns, or playing the latest MMO on their XBox, and I’m….. well…..
I’m trying to take a good picture of that Jalapeño Hummus Dip I made so I can post it on a food blog.
What a nerd.
It doesn’t bother me really. I have found that there is a real sense of community on some of these blogs. People actually caring and trying to help each other. I like that. There’s nothing like surrounding yourself with like minded people to keep you on track and to inspire you.
Besides – one day I’ll be able to say, “Move over Guy Fieri, there’s a new Food Network Star in town.”
Maybe I’ll have my own line of cookware too…
