What Vegans Eat

What do vegans eat, anyway?

Lots of people don't know what vegans eat and many don't know there is a difference between being vegan and being vegetarian.  This blog entry should clarify things for you - even though I'm pretty sure my ten followers already know. Still, maybe you'll learn something, and if not, then at least you'll gain some insight into my brain through my words. And, who doesn't want that?

Fresh vegetables

What Most People Eat

Grains, nuts,  beans, lentils, produce, meat, eggs, milk, cheese, yogurt and honey
Keep in mind that meat includes organs and broths made from animal parts as well.

What Vegetarians Eat

Grains, nuts, beans, lentils, produce, eggs, milk, cheese, yogurt and honey
Keep in mind this is a generalized list. There are many types of vegetarians, like lacto-vegetarian, fruitarian vegetarian, ovo-vegetarian and a bunch more. You can google these yourself if you're interested in learning more; for my purposes, I am clarifying the differences between being vegan or vegetarian as it pertains to my own experience.

Vegetarians don't eat meat, but they do eat animal by-products, like dairy. Actual meat is the only thing necessary to abstain from to be a vegetarian, and to be quite honest, it was pretty easy.

What Vegans Eat

Grains, nuts, beans, lentils and produce
Keep in mind that these are categories and contain many, many, many types of food, including pretty much all spices. There is still a LOT of food for us, and much of it is whole and healthy. We eat well, but our meals generally require a bit more preparation since they don't make a lot of vegan processed food. And, what conveniences there are out there, we pay dearly for - or don't, since Laura and I rarely buy that stuff, preferring to eat whole foods when we can.

Our grain pantry

Where's the Protein?

It's true that people actually ask this. I've had people ask me how I get enough protein and I've also had my plate scrutinized then been asked, "Where's the protein?" I don't know quite what to contribute this to, whether it's genuine curiosity, actual concern or maybe even disdain. Maybe all, depending on who it is. Rest assured, it's not difficult to get sufficient protein. It may not be present in significant amounts in every meal, but in the course of the day, we're getting what we need. More concerning to me is getting my B-12 so for this I take a supplement. I also take a multi-vitamin just for good measure.

Lentils, sweet potatoes & spices

Where Vegans Shop

We shop at the Bulk Barn a lot because it's way cheaper, has a lot more variety and you can buy whatever amount you want. Because of this, we use Mason jars to keep or food fresh and more organized than a pile of bags shoved in the cupboard.

We ran out of room in the pantry and had to create a new storage space, so we now keep some of the beans in a basket on our divider. Makes it easy to find them.

Basket of beans

I buy our produce at Sobeys, what we don't grow ourselves. Laura makes a lot of our bread and we grow some of our own food, too. We buy our dairy subs at Sobeys and baking supplies at BB or Sobeys as well. Atlantic has more options as far as some things go, but Sobeys is closer, so it's my go-to for most things. A lot of ingredients are only found in the Natural Foods section, or the "special" freezer. More on that in future posts.

I Miss Eggs

I miss eggs, and sometimes I miss cheese and butter. Not like a craving, but more like, something yummy to put on my everything bagel. Because as much as I like my Skippy peanut butter, it just doesn't go on everything bagels. My favorite thing to have on onion flavored bagels was eggs and cheese, either as a breakfast sandwich or an egg salad for lunch. I miss breakfast sandwiches. I also miss Hollandaise sauce. Eggs Benedict. It's not horrible, and there are still lots of options for breakfast. But, sometimes, I do miss eggs.

Vegetarian breakfast of Eggs Benedict

Future Blogs

Vegans don't eat meat, milk, honey, eggs, yogurt or cheese. Do we miss it? I can only speak for myself, but (with the exception of eggs) I really only miss it in the sense that it's so much easier to find sustenance wherever you are. I intend to do a blog post about the challenges I've faced and still face. And I also plan to create some posts about our many substitutes, for those recipes that contain animals and animal products - some of which I still miss. So, we can still have those meals, we just substitute plant-based products. Stay tuned for more about that. And, I plan to do a blog about why I have chosen to be vegan. It's not just about the attention...