For more ideas - check out the cookbook Vegan Lunch Box!

It’s back-to-school time and parents all over the country are looking over hot lunch menus and shaking their heads in disbelief. Today’s school lunches are notoriously unhealthy and if you are raising your children in a vegan home… well, all those hamburgers and “fish nuggets” will make you shudder. That means sending your littlest loved ones to school with lunches that they will actually want to eat and won’t trade away. Kids raised on a vegetarian diet have an amazing advantage: a lower risk of the obesity, cancer, heart disease, and other health problems that will plague their meat and dairy-eating peers as they grow older. These days it is easier than ever to raise kids who are healthy and care about animals.

With vegan alternatives to deli slices and cheese available in most grocery stores, it doesn’t take much to recreate the classic sandwiches. Let’s not forget that the most beloved of childhood sandwiches, Peanut Butter and Jelly, is already vegan. Here are just a few products to check out:

• Torfurky Deli Slices
• Lightlife Deli Slices
• Lightlife Smart Bacon and Smoked Tempeh (makes great BLTs)
• Baked Tofu
• Sheese (it’s a hard vegan cheese you can pack with crackers)
• Eco-Planet Non-Dairy Cheese Crackers (they’re like a vegan version of those cheddar goldfish crackers)
• Late July Organic Peanut Butter Bite Size Sandwich Crackers
• Granola or Snack Bars
• Tofutti Slices
• Pretzels (many of the brands out there are vegan – as always you might just need read a few labels)

Don’t forget all those fresh fruits and veggies that nature has already made sweet like apples and pineapple slices or ‘kid-sized’ like cherry tomatoes and baby carrots. Healthy and happy kids need those more than anything!

Of course, you can always get vegan options in your school cafeteria using these 4 easy steps!

Don’t forget World Go Vegan Week is right around the corner! This year IDA is helping Vegan Pizza Take Over the World! To find out more click here.

New to veganism? Click here to order a Vegan Starter Kit.

World Go Vegan Week (October 24th through 31st) is a celebration of compassion and a time to take action for animals, the environment, world hunger, and everyone’s well-being. This year is going to be extra special… and extra cheesy! We want to help make it even easier to be vegan and what better way than being able to order a quick and easy pizza- with delicious vegan Daiya cheese.

Our goal is to make eating vegan simple, fun, and accessible to every community. You can help with just a few minutes of your time by reaching out to your local pizzeria and asking them to offer a vegan pizza. One of the best aspects of restaurant outreach is that a single person can make a direct and lasting difference for animals.
We want you to go to your local pizza shop and ask if they would offer a vegan pizza for the week of World Go Vegan Week. We are partnering with Daiya cheese and they have offered to provide a free sample of their cheese for the pizza shop to try. Daiya cheese melts, stretches, and tastes just like traditional dairy based cheese. We will provide you with a letter and tips on how to approach the pizzerias. Remember, all it takes is one person to make a major difference in changing everyday restaurants into vegan-friendly havens.

If you would like to be part of spreading the pizza love in your community, please contact Hope Bohanec: hope@idausa.org 415-448-0058 or 707-540-1760.

Vegan pizza outreach not your cup of tea? There are many other ways to celebrate with us! Click here for other ideas to promote World Go Vegan Week.

New to veganism? Click here to order a Vegan Starter Kit.

DeGeneres went vegan in 2008 and has steadily increased her dedication to the diet, shunning Lady Gaga’s meat dress on her show and offering the musician a dress made of veggies instead.

We love Ellen and her passion for veganism, however, she is now the face of Cover Girl Cosmetics, a company notorious for testing their products on animals. We hope that she can make the connection that animals suffer in labs just as much as those that end up on our plates and either discontinue support of Cover Girl or use her celebrity power and get them to stop testing on animals- an even better option!

Order your own FREE Vegan Starter Kit by clicking here!

Get fancy with a Double Taco Burger! Photo Credit : MeetTheShannons.com

We’re in prime BBQ and potluck season right now and it seems like every night someone somewhere is lighting up their grills. For many of us this a great opportunity to experiment with a new recipe or better yet introduce our friends and family to how delicious and easy it is to be vegan. Food is a great form of outreach for the animals. There are a lot of folks that don’t want to hear about the suffering that is inherent to the meat industry but are intrigued by trying out new foods. Bringing a cruelty-free dish to a get together is lighthearted way to change hearts and minds and can even invite questions on how someone can lead a more compassionate lifestyle.

If you’re looking for some new recipes for classic favorites, here’s some of my favorite summery favorites. Don’t worry – these vegan recipes are BBQ and Potluck Tested and Approved.

Beer Can Tofurky
Caesar Salad Burger
Macaroni Salad with Peppered Tofu
Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
Crab Cakes with Tartar Sauce
Tuscan Lemon Cake
Spare Ribs with 3 Different Types of Glazes
Coleslaw
Three Beans Salad
Creamsicle Cupcakes
Mojito Bars
Antipasto Pasta Salad

If you’re looking for something even simpler, you can always just throw some veggie burgers, Portabella mushrooms and vegan sausages on the grill. There are so many great vegan product out there right now from Gardein Vegan Burgers, Tofurky Beer Brats and Field Roast Chipotle Sausages, it’s a great time to really bring the shock and awe. In case you’ve never tried to grill mock meat or veggies before, here are some of the tricks we’ve picked up over the years :

• Lightly brush your grill with olive oil before putting your mock meat or veggies on the grill to keep them from sticking. If you want to skip cleaning your grill, you can always lay down some aluminum foil and brush that with olive oil. You’ll get a little less smokiness in the flavor and those famous grill lines but it can save you time later.

• Make sure your mock meat is defrosted before putting it on the grill to make sure it cooks evenly.

• Mock meat and veggies cook a lot faster than meat so keep an eye on them and brush them with a mixture of equal parts tamari and olive oil to keep you food from drying out. You can always add some Jerk seasoning to your oil to add a little bit of a kick. Here’s a recipe for a Southwestern Rub you can use with any mock meat or vegetables :

1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon agave nectar
2 teaspoons green chilies (diced)
¼ teaspoon Bragg Liquid Amino Acids
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cloves of garlic (minced)

Mix all these goodie together in a small bowl. Nothing tricky here, just blend it all up. Then brush it on to your mock meat or Portabella mushrooms. Wrap in foil and chill for 1 hour before grilling. Keep any extra to brush on your food when it’s on the grill.

So start your grills and let’s make this summer fun for everyone… including the animals!

For more information on how to go vegan and vegan outreach check out our vegan campaign and order a vegan starter kit!

• Beighnets
• Bourbon Chik’n Po’Boys
• Creole Shrimp Po’Boys
• Hush Puppies
• Hoppin’ John
• Fried Pickles
• Creole Shrimp Gumbo
• Red Beans and Rice
• Jambalaya
• Deep Fried Cajun Tofurky
• Beer Can Tofurky
• Strawberry Margaritas
  

Now that Strawberry Margarita is what Our IDA Staffer Mike Winikoff  calls a “junk-food” Margarita. So he was nice enough to share his recipe for Prickly Pear Margaritas – for you folks that want to add a little class to your bash!

Prickly Pear Margarita

2 oz silver tequila

¾ oz Patron Citronge orange Liqueur (or any orange liqueur)

½ oz lime juice

4 oz Prickly Pear Cactus Syrup (available only from Cheri’s Desert Harvest in Arizona, www.cherisdesertharvest.com )

Crushed ice

Put all in blender, blend on low, pour in salt-rimmed margarita glass, enjoy, wake up humming “that’s what you get for waking up in Vegas.”

Going Vegan for Lent? Click here and get a FREE VEGAN STARTER KIT!

Cajun Deep Fried Tofurky with Okra "Giblets" Gravy

Whether you’re calling it Thanksgiving, Thanksliving or Thanksvegan… a master chef or just an eater… you’re hitting that countdown to the Super Bowl of food related holidays!

If you’re like me – you’re plotting and planning what dishes to make this year to “wow” the vegan foodies and win over the meat loving critics. Thanksgiving is the perfect opportunity to really showcase how far veganism has come and how living a compassionate lifestyle doesn’t mean sacrificing any of the beloved traditional holiday favorites. All over the USA, shopping carts are  filling up with sweet potatoes, green beans, squashes, stuffing fixins, a variety of cranberry and pumpkin goodies and a vegan roast or two.

Vegan Thanksgivings have come a long way since my first Tofurky dinner. There are now numerous cruelty-free options to replace the 65 million birds who are killed every November. Tofurky is still probably the most well known and available. Most people can find them in their local grocery store and you might even find some Tofurky vegan gravy to go with it. Over at Meet The Shannons, we tried out a ridiculously dangerous but incredibly delicious Southern tradition and made Cajun Deep Fried Tofurky with Okra “Giblets. If you’re feeling brave – I would recommend giving it a shot!
Field Roast has a Celebration Roast that is stuffed with butternut squash, mushrooms and apples and is more than just delicious – it’s epic enough to create a new family tradition.

Over at Match Vegan Meats they’ve created a holiday roast that is the perfect canvas to glaze, marinade, bake or grill however you like. You can can use soy sauce, ginger, garlic and chili peppers to make a Spicy Hot Schezuan dinner or go traditional and just brush with some olive oil and white wine. You can also get the Match Vegan Chicken and create your own roast using your favorite stuffing. This video can show you how. Over at the Meet The Shannons house we’ll be rocking the Match Vegan Holiday Roast this year!

Check my Meet The Shannons pages this week for recipes including Apple Stuffed Squash, Au Gratin Potatoes, Candied Orange Sweet Potatoes, Vegan Gravy, Citrus & Garlic Glazed Holiday Roast, Pumpkin Tarts, Beer Can Tofurky,  Italian Chopped Salad, Rosemary Garlic Bread,  Smokey Collared Greens with Bacon, Macaroni and Cheese Cups and Garlic – Cheesy Biscuits .

Of course no Thanksgiving will be complete with these two favorites!

Green Bean Casserole

• 1/4 cup of Margarine
• 1/4 cup of Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 1/2 cup of Faux Chicken Broth
• 2 tbsp Braggs Amino Acid
• 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup Nutritional Yeast Flakes
• 3-4 cans of Green Beans – I prefer Italian cut style but it depends on how gravy you like
• 1 2.8 oz can of French-Fried Onions

Preheat over to 350F.
Melt margarine over low heat. Add the flour and whisk until it forms a roux. Add the Faux Chicken Broth, Braggs and Garlic Powder – while still whisking – until thick and bubbly. Add the Vegetable Oil and Nut. Yeast. Continue whisking the mixture. Make sure it is like a gravy – if it is too dry add more Broth – too wet add more Nut.Yeast. Pour into a small casserole dish and then mix in green beans – do it gently so the beans stay intact. Bake casserole for 10 minutes, top with the French Fried Onions and baked 10 more minutes or until brown and bubbly.

Apple Corn Bread Stuffing

• 1 large Red Delicious Apple
• 1/2 Red Onion onion
• 1 Cup Celery (chopped)
• 4 Cups Dried Corn Bread (cubed)
• 1 Cup Vegetable Broth
• 1/2 Teaspoon Dried Sage
• 1/2 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
• 1/4 Teaspoon Dried Rosemary
• Olive Oil for Cooking

Heat oven to 350.
In a warm skillet, heat around 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil. Once the Oil is warm, toss in Red Onion and Celery and cook till tender. Remove from heat and add Corn Bread. Add the remaining ingredients to the Vegetable Broth and pour over the Corn Bread and stir well while heating on low. Place stuffing in a baking pan or glass dish and cover with foil. Bake for 30-40 minutes. Check on it often and remove from the oven when it reaches the desired texture – little crispy – tender but not moist.

If you’re planning a vegan spread this holiday – Please send us photos with a description of what you made to Annie@idausa.org. We’d love to showcase your Compassionate Thanksgiving on our social networking pages!

All Vegan Cheesy Chik-n Fingers! Made with Match Vegan Meats, Daiya Cheddar & Eco-Planet Non-Dairy Cheddar Crackers.

World Go Vegan Week starts Sunday and if like many people you are trying out the vegan lifestyle for the first time, you might find yourself wondering : Do I have to give up everything I loved as kid to try this out? The answer : Nope!

I’ve been vegan a long time and even I – from time to time – get nostalgic for food I enjoyed in my childhood. I loved those little cheddar cheese goldfish crackers. One of my favorite memories was my grandfather putting them in my soup every Fall. I took them to school with me almost everyday in a sandwich bag and when I went vegan I admit I missed them. That’s why when I found these Eco-Planet Non-Dairy Cheddar Crackers I may have freaked out a little. They have filled that space in my heart that thought about those those little crackers from time to time. They also made it possible to veganize Betty Crocker’s cheesy crunchy chicken fingers (see recipe below) which would be a hit at any football or baseball playoff party this Fall… or just a Thursday night dinner.

Here’s a few other childhood favorites that some of you newly veganed folks might be interested in to help make that transition into cruelty free living :

• Marshmallows! There are several brands these days that make vegan marshmallows. Sweet & Sara are a favorite of mine and they even have special Halloween marshmallows shaped like bats & ghosts on sale right now. There is also Chicago Soy Dairies’ Dandies which are pretty perfect in Hot Cocoa.
• Which brings me to Instant Hot Cocoa! Ah!Laska’s Organic Instant Hot Cocoa is a pretty extraordinary treat for those nights when you just want to add water.
• Vegan Corn Dogs by Cedar Lake Foods. That pretty much says all I need to say about that.
• Memory can be kind to some old friends – like Cheetos and I actually think Tings are much better version of the cheesy snack puffs. I think Tings are actually better than most things. To quote Food Fight Grocery “Better than squirrels and kittens hugging.”
• Of course a lot of you are wondering what to do about Vegan Halloween candy. VegNews has a great list of Vegan Candy you can give away that night and of course snack on between trick-or-treaters.

OK back to our recipe…

• 2 Cups Match Vegan Meat – Chicken (defrosted and formed into fingers – this should make around 8-10 – try to make sure they around the same size)
• 2 Cups Eco-Planet Non-Dairy Cheddar Crackers (crushed)
• 1/2 Cup Daiya Cheddar (shredded)
• 1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast Flakes
• Olive Oil Cooking Spray
• Your Favorite BBQ Sauce for Dipping

Heat oven to 400. Spray a cookie sheet with Olive Oil Cooking Spray.

In a large resealable plastic bag, mix Crushed Crackers, Daiya and Nutritional Yeast. Add Vegan Chicken Strips to the bag one at a time, seal the bag and shake. Before removing form the bag gently press the Cracker coating into the Vegan Chicken Strip. Place the Cracker Crusted Chicken Strips in a single layer on the sheet. make sure they aren’t touching.

Bake uncovered for around 10 minutes. The larger the strip the longer it will take to cook so if you went big give them a little longer in the oven. Remove when the crackers begin to brown.

To find other Vegan Recipes for World Go Vegan Week check out IDA’s Recipe Page or Meet The Shannons.

Vegan Sloppy Joes - Always a big hit! Recipe : MeetTheShannons.net

Now is the best time of year to make sure your school cafeteria has vegan options. Here’s how:

Step 1: Become Friends with Your School & Cafeteria

It is always easier to change a system from the inside. Just by stopping by and politely asking your Cafeteria’s food service coordinator for vegan options, you can make a personal statement on why these dishes are necessary and offer suggestions how they can make the changes. By building a relationship with your school’s food service coordinator you can help them locate the best recipes and resources so that these vegan changes can be successfully incorporated into the menu. If you’re too shy, send a kind e-mail or note to the head of your school’s cafeteria or dining hall requesting daily vegetarian and vegan options.

Of course, sometimes that doesn’t work. You can then move on to speaking to your school’s administration. Request a meeting with your school’s principal or, if you’re in college, your school’s Operations Director. Come to your meeting prepared to talk about why your school needs vegan options, what the benefits of a vegan diet are, suggestions for how they can veganize the cafeteria. Of course it doesn’t hurt to do a little research into how many of your classmates would want these options and if your school has had any issues with recalled meat or dairy products in the past (link to recent egg recall story) You can even contact other schools, such as Baltimore’s Public School System and Indiana University that have added vegan options to their cafeterias and get some statistics and suggestions to support your cause.

If you have any meetings, arrive on time, dressed nicely, and be polite. Don’t give them an excuse to ignore or disregard your request. Remember, you are there to advocate for the animals, so making a good impression is very important and, perhaps, this will be the beginning of a relationship with your school administration that could later help you also get dissection or circus field trips also removed from your school!

Step 2: The Petition

If you strike out with both the food service coordinator and the administration, it’s time to start the petition! It is never a great idea to jump straight to the petition. It can make decision makers feel attacked and defensive and ruin chances for potential allies. Give them the chance to do the right thing first.

But if you have reached the point of petitioning, use word processing software to make a professional and friendly petition. Print out several copies and ask coworkers and students to sign up and show their support. Please make sure you are clear when collecting signatures that the people signing don’t have to be vegan to sign. They just need to be supportive of having more compassionate options. This is also a great chance to meet other people on your campus who are interested in animal rights and being vegan.

Chipotle Roasted Corn

• 1/3 Cup Chipotle Salsa
• 2/3 Cup Vegannaise
• 2 Teaspoons Lime Juice
• Dash of Liquid Smoke
• 8 Ears of Corn

Mix salsa, vegannaise, lime juice and liquid smoke.

Fold down each layer of the corn husks. Remove the silks and brush a heavy coating of the salsa mix on to each corn. Fold the husks back up to cover and seal in salsa mix.

Wrap with aluminum foil. Put on the grill for 30 to 45 minutes. Remove foil an put back on grill for 3 to 5 minutes.

Fold down the husks and season with salt and pepper to taste.

For More Recipes – You can always check out out recipes in our Vegan Campaign or order your own Vegan Starter Kit that is full of vegan recipes and tips.