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Vegan coming to visit - HELP!

(18 posts) (13 voices)

Started 6 months ago by MamaSofi
Latest reply from fritchbeetle

Tags:

vegan

MamaSofi
Member

My vegan friend is coming to visit me next month. We both love to cook, and I really want to cook super yummy meals for her while she is here. However, I couldn't imagine two more opposite diets. Yes, we overlap in veggies and nuts (although I like to cook my veggies in butter or bacon fat usually!). I guess I will have to use olive oil and make meals where I simply replace our meat with tofu for her. Does anyone know any yummy vegan-primal hybrid/crossover recipes?

Also, any links to articles I should read before she comes over would be great. I have heard of the Vegetarian Myth and plan on reading that, but anything else? I don't want to challenge her vegan ways, but I want to be ready to defend any possible debates that might arise.

Posted 6 months ago #
dragonmamma
Member

Keep in mind that these are diets, not religions, and you should be able to eat together in peace and harmony.

Put all your effort into killer veggie dishes, then have meat on the side for you, and a loaf of whole-grain bread or a pot of brown rice and beans for her on the side.

Posted 6 months ago #
Katt
Member

Those squash fritters cooked in coconut oil are awesome and something both of you could probably enjoy.

I'm having mine with pork loin though... :)

Posted 6 months ago #
PrimalGoddess
Member

well my oldest daughter is on Atkins and her husband is a vegan she makes her meat dish and makes vegetables for him(well she makes x tra veggies) and does some sort of bean dish for him.
they get along wonderful on 2 different ways of eating!

Posted 6 months ago #
fritchbeetle
Member

I had a vegan friend here for three weeks! One of those weeks was the Health Challenge!! Ack! I made fish soft tacos for my husband and myself and made quinoa for him to eat instead of the fish. I had black bean dip, homemade guacamole, lettuce, onions, bell peppers, and mahi mahi. Yum! You might try a quiche for you and a egg-substitute quiche for her. I also like dragonmamma's suggestion of creating killer veggie dishes with meat on the side for you and brown rice or ezekiel break (or sourdough) on the side for her. Also, sweet potatoes might be okay to throw in as a starch for her.

I would suggest against using tofu. Soy is evil. Read "The Vegetarian Myth" for more about soy. And use coconut oil to cook your veggies in instead of olive oil. Read "Nourishing Traditions" for information on why it's bad to heat (and then eat) olive oil.

Not sure how to approach defending your diet. Just be patient and full of grace. :)

Posted 6 months ago #
maba
Member

This post might be useful should a debate arise:
http://nourishedkitchen.com/49-reasons-vegetarian-rebuttal/

WAPF article on Soy:
http://www.westonaprice.org/mythstruths/mtsoy.html

Posted 6 months ago #
MamaSofi
Member

Thanks everyone! My library doesn't have Vegetarian Myths, and not sure if I actually want to spend the money to order it. But I would like to read it.

Anyways, I am making sure I understand why I do everything I do exactly. For example, I knew cooking with olive oil was bad, but I forgot exactly WHY, so I looked it up and now I remember why (oxidation). I know I am gonna get the "Why don't you eat tofu? And why can't you eat legumes?" I think the canned answer for most things will be "Because we weren't adapted to eat those things and my body performs at peak function without them." But I want to have all my ducks in a row and be able to stand strong in my defenses and not just say "Well, I know it's unhealthy and there is a reason, but I can't remember exactly what it is."

Posted 6 months ago #
nina_70
Member

If you do get into a discussion on foods, I think the book "nourishing traditions" is a good resource. Do you know if she sprouts her grains? Or, uses fermented products? Even if she's not interested in alternative ways of eating, sprouting grains & using fermented foods could help to neutralize some of the anti-nutrients in the food & help her long-term. Western A Price also has some good sources on this.

Main page:
http://www.westonaprice.org/

On soy & fermented soy products:
http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/ploy.html

On sprouting grains:
http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/be_kind.html

Posted 6 months ago #
primalpanda
Member

Everyone is different, so I can't speak for your friend, but as a very recent ex-vegetarian/vegan the excerpts I've read from The Vegetarian Myth didn't speak to me at all. I was totally turned off from ever reading the book because of the bits I read. Some vegetarians (many, belief it or not) are reasonable, cool-headed people--which the author, I got the distinct impression, is NOT, regardless of her diet. So tread lightly with that one. I think as far as boning up on your research, go at it from the approach of what is healthy and good about both your diets, and see where that leads.

Anyhoo, you asked about food! If you don't avoid soy entirely, tempeh is something that you can both enjoy. It's fermented (good), minimally processed, and traditional. You could also do a Japanese meal with sashimi for you and vegetarian rolls for her, with tamari on the side. Asian greens or a seaweed salad on the side, and maybe if you want to throw in more cooked foods a few teriyaki kabobs (meat and veg). A hearty vegetarian soup or stir-fry can be for both of you, just serve her and toss in meat after that.

There are some low-carb vegetarian cookbooks out there that you might check out, as well as recipes online. Those books might have some primal veg recipes that you can both happily enjoy. But don't be afraid to cook veggie sides and meat for you. If she's like most vegans out there, she will just want both of you to eat well, and will be "live and let live" about it. As a vegan guest I was always really gracious and appreciative for the vegan food people cooked for me, and while I was happy if we all ate the same thing it wasn't required :)

Lastly, ask her! She knows what she likes and might have some great ideas.

Posted 6 months ago #
SassaFrass88
Member

Sofi, how about a veggie soup? You can always add a whole bunch of cooked meat into yours right before eating it.

Also, you could cook (steam) a variety of steamed veggies and tubers with natural spices and then drizzle your final meal with warmed Coconut Oil! (With your choice of meat on the side).

Bake some of Elana's pantry's baked goods, since she does have some vegan items and should make your friend feel right at home!

Posted 6 months ago #
Geoff
Member

One way that might "bridge the gap" would be to shop together for ingredients. If you have a local farmers' market to which you could bring her, you could have a ball checking out the season's bounty and planning meals together that you'll both enjoy. As suggested above, supplement those meals as with meat on the side for you and a vegan side for her.

You might also want to try a day of fasting with her. It would be an interesting test to see who fares better on a day without food. My money's on you, the Primal. After a day of fasting you'll definitely have something in common with your friend that should make meals easy - hunger.

Rather than focus on what's different, focus on the vast common ground you share (eating vegetables, nuts, and fruits) and maybe explore some new common ground with a short fast.

Posted 6 months ago #
MamaSofi
Member

Thanks again for a bunch of good info. I plan on reading Nourishing Traditions (placed a hold at my library) and will certainly do some tempeh and veggie soup. And I like the idea of trying to find COMMON grounds instead of differences. She doesn't preach her veganism on her friends and even cooks fish just for her friends. She has a PhD in anthropology and is very smart, which is why it bothers me (only recently) that she chooses this lifestyle that I think is wrong on so many levels. I know she honestly believes she is living the most healthy lifestyle for her and the planet and I would love to be able to have her truly understand why her diet is far less than ideal (though better than most western CW diets). Maybe she hasn't read any nutrition books in the last 5 years and she needs an update, ya know?

Anyways, thanks again.

Posted 5 months ago #
Sue
Member

I don't think you have to prove Paleo is good for us but its good to know why.

The author of Vegetarian Myths damaged her health from her lifestyle but believed she was doing the best thing. She had clues all along (hypoglycaemia etc) but kept attributing it to something else and not the inadequacies of her diet.

Posted 5 months ago #
arthurb999
Member

I would just buy a bunch of carrots and celery for her :D

Posted 5 months ago #
maba
Member

You could watch Fathead with her perhaps and emphasize on the lipid-hypothesis part of the movie and not the red-meat part, so as not to appear like you're pushing the Primal diet.

Posted 5 months ago #
fotakou
Member

Try to look for some recipes here.

I particularly liked the kale chips and the hazelnut nutella,although to tell you the truth the girls were so cute in there that i would suggest them even if they were giving recipes for normal chips and nutella lol :P Primal girls are really cute damn it!We need more Primal Eaters here in Greece!

Posted 5 months ago #
SassaFrass88
Member

I agree. I kept watching cute little Pellegrina while she was making the hazelnut Nutella and thinking she was so dang adorable! (And I'm a woman!).

Primal woman definately are down-right cute! If I do say so myself! ;-)

Posted 5 months ago #
fritchbeetle
Member

Aw, thanks! :)

...

MamaSofi - How'd it go with your vegan friend?

Posted 3 months ago #