Bless you, Kimberly, for starting this group. I am a single vegan who finds it challenging to find enlightened friends. This group may give comfort to those who feel that they are alone on an island.

Hey =] I've been meaning to find some good vegetarian/vegan recipes to cook so I look forward to the sharing in this group. I just got a vegetarian cookbook recently so I'll post some finds soon.. I don't know many vegetarians or vegans either so I can relate to y'all there.
I've tried to stay disciplined in maintaining a healtyh/natural diet and I've found some good combos that I can share :)

herbal and green tea -- mmm.. I try to drink 2 cups a day and I feel like it's a rewarding habit... great for antioxidants and for warming of the soul -- white tea is also very healthy.. black tea is good too but has more caffeine if you don't get the decaf version

raw fruits and veggies -- of course :) grapes/an apple/citrus or any fruit really makes for a good nurishing snack multiple times a day and it's nice to be able to just eat something as it was made naturally, same with the veggies, I usually go with baby carrots/tomato/broccoli

nuts -- good source of protein and they provide good fats needed to keep us going.. i really like the combination of fruits and nuts.. again something about it just feeling right and natural :P also i am thankful for the tasty combination of raw almond butter and honey on some good natural whole grain bread.. something that treats the body well which i also enjoy almost daily

combination of rice and beans -- this combination (or beans with any grain) provides the body with necessary protein/amino acids so it is a helpful combo for maintaining balance. I like to use black beans (one of the healthiest kinds) with brown rice (same thing) and add some lightly olive oil stir fried veggies

along with these things, I sometimes have dairy products as long as they are naturally produced and no hormones!... i also love the brand Kashi. they produce all natural cereals, oatmeal, granola bars, and many other great healthy snacks and they also do a lot of positive outreach work.

sticking to this diet, I've been able to maintain a good physical/mental/spiritual state for quite a while.. also eating small portions and keeping it raw/natural is, as you probably know, beneficial for meditation and for staying centered in general... which is always good :)

Kimberly, thank you for all of the love and energy you give and for bringing people together in bright ways as we grow and transform as One
You are a beautiful inspiration~

~Namasté

I have a very simple recipe for lentil dal if anyone is interested. It's what I had for dinner.

Vegans & Vegetarians Unite! We can and will make a DIFFERENCE!

Link to Vegetarian Resource Group. Good stuff!
http://www.vrg.org

One good easy food is beans and brown rice. Then corn tortillas. I have a gas stove so I just put the tortillas on that to heat up. I then put the rice cheese on on the warm tortilla. I have my rice and beans nice and hot. Adding pepper, green and red. It is fast and easy, you feel full and have energy. Think I will make some now!!!!!

I have a Jack Lalane ;-)

all kinds! I love carrot/apple/ginger :)

cucumber! grapes! pretty much all of these are good together....you can also use the shavings for recipes...(it comes with a brochure with all kind of stuff to inspire you!)

it's great for breakfast, especially if you do not have much of an appetite in the morning...

it's almost as if your body is saying "Thank You!" when you are drinking it, it's so fresh and yummy! & it gives you a great energy boost! :)

mmmm I have been wanting to try beets in the juicer! sounds good! :)

it's great b/c none of your fruits/veggies go to waste, you can juice them before they go bad! :)

here is a video I found recently on why eating meat is bad for you.....

I just bought some hummus for the first time :D

Rock on~

This video has some really great info!

Nice find, Kimberly! Thanks for sharing this.

Kimberly, I just now saw your post about vegcooking.com - I actually spent a while looking at all the recipes on that site earlier tonight with this group in mind! Imagine that :P I ended up trying a version of the Pasta e Fagioli soup and it turned out great so I'll post the recipe I used tomorrow cause it's getting late.. Peace to you all~ good night and good morning :)

Pasta e Fagioli Italian Soup - Vegan Version

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, minced
1 celery stalk, minced
1 carrot, minced
2 cloves garlice, minced
1 can (28oz) crushed tomatoes w/ liquid
1 can (15oz) cannellini beans & 1 can (15oz) mixed beans, both drained and rinsed
4 cups organic vegetable broth
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, minced or 1 tsp dried
1 bay leaf
dash of ground black pepper
salt to taste if you like
fresh basil, minced

In a large stockpot, heat the oil. Add the onion, celery and carrot and saute for 5 minutes. Add garlic, tomatoes, beans, broth, thyme and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Transfer 1 cup of the soup to a blender and puree. Return to pot and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let it simmer for a few more minutes. Remove the bay leaf, garnish with basil and enjoy :)

I have taken the next step and have embraced raw food. I could not have imagined the immediate benefits to mind and body. Are there other raw foodist among us?

I eat lots of raw fruits and veggies, but not solely. I love to cut up a tray of tomatoes, mini sweet peppers, cucumbers, carrots, avacado. It makes for lots of goodies for the compost pile also. We're getting our own garden going, it should go pretty well this year. It'll be our fourth year so we're still learning. Can't wait for home grown veggies! They definately have the best flavor. The farmers market starts soon too so that'll be great.

Anybody have an Aero Garden? They are great! Grow your own veggies, herbs, flowers, ect., year round. We've got lots of cherry tomatoes right now. Yummie! Eventually I would love to have a greenhouse or a room for growing lots of goodies year round.

Maluhia, you've seen a noticable difference? In how long? Do you keep track of nutritional info, like you probably get enough protein from nuts and leafy greens?

I went 100% raw 3-1/2 weeks ago and I can already say it's the best thing I've ever done for my body. I have greatly increased energy, more clarity of mind, and a general enhanced feeling of well-being. I don't miss cooked food, and I don't have a need to snack any more in the evening. I have a fruit smoothie for breakfast, almonds for lunch, and a green smoothie or greens/broccoli/carrot salads for dinner. The fear of protein deficiency in the U.S. is a pure myth, cooked up by the meat & dairy companies. There's more than enough in veggies and nuts. Check out the book "Green For Life." It explains it all, and gives recipes for green smoothies. I only wish I had been enlightened earlier. I thought I had a good vegan diet, but going raw is everything rawist have said about it. Bonus: natural weight loss.

One of the only problems with an all-veggie diet - and you probably all know this, but I'll say in for anybody just looking in here [and aside - of course - from ensuring a balanced veggie diet] - is that you have to make sure that you're getting vitamin B12, which is available in only one or 2 garden vegetables (and I can't remember which they are), but can be had in brewers' yeast. Now I like the taste of unmodified brewers' yeast - I put it in salads and on popcorn FOR the taste - but enough people DON'T that most providers "sanitise" theirs: bland bland bland, making it difficult for me to find the real stuff. And - for those of you who don't even like the bland version - you can spend a lot more money and take it in capsule form - just make sure that the capsule isn't made out of gelatine (cattle hooves).

I have lots of great recipes I would love to share with you all, when I get a chance....I love to cook and I love to eat...and I love to feed people delicious vegetarian food! <333

cooking veggie is so easy and fun! once I get settled I will def. get some recipes up ;-)

Much L♥ve to you All

apple bake



Chop the apples the night before, and combine with the rest of the ingredients in the morning. Serve these juicy baked apples over slices of Spiced Pumpkin Bread, warm bowls of oatmeal, or pancakes. Ida Red and McIntosh apples also work well.

2 cups dried cranberries
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
6 Gala Apples, cored and chopped (about 3 pounds)

Combine all ingredients in a large microwave-safe dish. Microwave at high 20 minutes or until apples are soft, stirring occasionally.

Not sure where I got this dish,but it works for me!

that apple dish would probably be so much better if you baked it and let them carmalize. cooking in the microwave is not good.

Vegetarianism is the practice of following a diet based on plant-based foods including fruits, vegetables, cereal grains, nuts, and seeds, with or without dairy products and eggs.Vegetarians do not eat meat, game, poultry, fish, crustacea, shellfish, or products of animal slaughter such as animal-derived gelatin and rennet.Variants of the diet exclude eggs and/or products produced from animal labour such as dairy products and honey. A vegan diet is a form of vegetarian diet which excludes all animal products, including dairy products, eggs, and honey. A lacto-vegetarian diet includes dairy products but excludes eggs, an ovo-vegetarian diet includes eggs but not dairy, and a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet includes both eggs and dairy products.

A semi-vegetarian diet consists largely of vegetarian foods, but may include fish and sometimes poultry, as well as dairy products and eggs. A pescetarian diet, for example, includes fish but no meat. The association of semi-vegetarianism with vegetarianism in common use has led vegetarian groups such as the Vegetarian Society to note these diets are not vegetarian.

Fruitarians (or fructarians) eat in principle only the fruit of plants. Some fruitarians will eat only what falls (or would fall) naturally from a plant, that is: foods that can be harvested without killing the plant.

Some fruitarians believe fruitarianism was the original diet of mankind in the form of Adam and Eve. They believe that a return to an Eden-like paradise will require simple living and a holistic approach to health and diet. Some fruitarians wish to avoid killing in all its forms, including plants.

FYI: watch out for sugar, it is often whitened with animal bone charcoal!!! Even Brown sugar!!! It is only brown b/c they add molasses.

Check this link to make sure the sugar you are buying is ok.....

http://www.veganproducts.org/sugar.html#Avoid

You may not realize that the nearly 9 billion animals raised and killed for food each year in this country are denied everything that comes naturally to them and are abused in ways that would result in jail time for the abuser if the
animals were cats or dogs. Yet chickens, cows, and pigs can feel pain and suffer in just the same!



Alice Walker once wrote,“The animals of the world
exist for their own reasons. They were not made
for humans any more than black people were
made for whites, or women for men.” Please
consider vegetarianism as a way of rejecting the
violence and injustice that takes place behind the
slaughterhouse wall.

Excellent interview on being a Vegetarian- The conditions the animals are raised in- Where Swine Flu really came from- And the number one thing you should do when making this shift- Surprisingly it is to "STOP EATING EGGS!"


SO GRATEFUL TO ELLEN FOR RAISING AWARENESS ON THIS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT SUBJECT! <3

Do you know that THOUSANDS of cows (from numerous factories ) end up in ONE PACKAGE of ground beef?!?!?! Did you know that most farm animals are standing in manure all of their so called "life"? Did you know that most farm animals NEVER see daylight ? Did you know that most cows are not even fed grass anymore?-- the unnatural corn diet they are fed leads to the production of deadly strains of E. Coli...PLEASE TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW TO STOP EATING ANIMALS...THERE IS AN ANIMAL HOLOCAUST GOING ON RIGHT NOW AND WE NEED TO PUT IT TO AN END!!! WE MUST STOP THE SUFFERING!!!

That is ridiculous, that innocent animals have to be slaughtered for some stupid game....God forbid they use "pleather"-- they'd probably come up with some excuse like "the ball won't throw as good"! Not to mention all of the meat that is consumed for "tailgating parties" etc. Don't even get me started on how much these guys are paid- It is outrageous!!! I recently watched a special on the hallmark channel (last Sunday) it was sponsored by mostly religious groups, but it was not what I would consider religious- It was about humanity and individuals- it was really enjoyable. Anyway, they were talking about "sports" and how people subconsciously "like" sports b/c they just want to fit in with the crowd- they attend these events to feel like they are "part of something"- when really you don't need to go anywhere or be with anyone to know that you are connected to everything and everyone.

Hopefully the time will come when pretend games and peabrain players are not glorified and real connection amongst real people is what we choose to participate in....

A friend sent me this comment on myspace just a couple days after I posted the "genesis" synchronicity in "Observers of Synchronicity"- the day she sent me that comment- Genesis came up on TV on "the early show" ( I only caught a few minutes of it) - talking about the people who live in Loma Linda, CA- one of the healthiest communities in the world- "they take their diet directly from the Book of Genesis"!!

"The Essene Gospel of Peace, was discovered in 1923 in the secret archives of the Vatican. The following are some sections of the words that Jesus shared with the Essenes taken from this scripture:

"‘Thou shalt not kill,’ for life is given to all by God, and that which God has given, let not man take away.
Kill not, neither eat the flesh of your innocent prey, lest you become the slaves of Satan. For that is the path of sufferings, and it leads unto death. But do the will of God, that his angels may serve you on the way of life. Obey, therefore, the words of God: ‘Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is breath of life, I give every green herb for meat. (Book 1) also: (Genesis 1:29-30)



p.s. That show is called "Odyssey network presents"- I turned on the T.V. and it was ON! It airs from 7-8 a.m (east coast) on Sundays. today they are talking about Precious Water...

PETA Thanksgiving Ad: Should It Be Banned?

Ad Encourages People To 'Go Vegan'

http://www.wesh.com/news/21722752/detail.html

sometimes people need "shocking" in order to "get it".

Making a few side dishes is more than enough! Corn, mashed potatoes, squash, sweet potatoes, stuffing, fresh cranberry sauce, green beans and mushroom gravy- you don't need any butter, milk, or turkey- it is healthy,
tasty and cruelty free!



for dessert (if you have any room) some baked apples or poached pears are delicious and light.

if anyone needs recipes- just let me know- I would be happy to share-

Grateful for my vegan and vegetarian brothers and sisters during the Thanksgiving holiday and always <3

The Oprah Show discussed the documentary "Food Inc." yesterday- you can buy the DVD on amazon.com for a discounted rate of 9.99 until Friday at midnight. I'm glad they are spreading the word on this important issue. More people need to be informed about the food they are eating, where it comes from and what they are supporting. WE the PEOPLE are the ones who make CHANGE happen! Do not underestimate the power that WE have! Please eat and buy CONSCIOUSLY!

As long as man continues to be the ruthless destroyer of lower living beings he will never know health or peace. For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. ~Pythagoras (582 B.C.)