The Compassionate Cook's Diary by Celia Fenn

For meg som ikke husker hvordan kjøtt smaker lenger, er dette en gledelig melding. Av egen erfaring;  Unngå den giften du kan unngå.  Kroppen trenger mat, ikke gift!

"Welcome to this new section on Food and living and eating with Compassion. I hope that this will be an introduction to a new way of Living and Thinking for you if you are just embarking on a Plant Based and Compassionate way of eating. For those who have already taken this step, I hope to share with you some of the ideas and experiences of this wonderful journey.

If you are just about to make this first step, I hope you will see this as a commitment to a new way of life that is based on Awareness and Love. Awareness means beaing aware of what you are eating and putting into your body at all times. Love because you are refusing to eat foods or support food indudtries that are based on the torture and abuse of animals.

Many people who are "vegetarian" are now taking the "next step" and becoming "vegan". This means not only not eating meat, but also any products derived from animals. It is a compassionate way of life because it recognizes that we do not have to eat animals in order to be healthy. In fact, modern research has shown that those who don't eat animals are generally healthier because they make different food choices. They don't eat the fatty and processed "fast food" of our culture, but gravitate towards healthy whole food alternatives.

If you have been eating meat for many years, you will find that if you make the change you may experience symptoms of detoxification and withdrawl. The Digestive system will need to get rid of the residues of the antibiotics, growth hormones and other drugs that are part of the meat that you have been eating. The "withdrawl" is from the "sugar" in meat and processed foods. Cooked meat contains caramalized blood, which is a sugar, and processed foods also contain high amounts of white refined cane sugar. Cutting down on sugars and dealing with sugar withdrawl can be temporary issues to deal with in this switchover to a new way of eating.

In this Diary I want to introduce you to the idea that a Plant based diet can be healthy and delicious! So for the first diary I am going to deal with two things that came up when I switched from Vegetarian to Vegan.....what to eat for Breakfast and Life without Cheese!

Breakfast

In our fast moving society, this is the meal that is often most hastily eaten, often igored in favor of a cup of coffee on the go. Breakfast is important, it gives you the energy you need to get into your day after your night of sleep. A cup of coffee gives you a caffeine boost and the illusion of energy, but there is no nutrient entering your blood stream and so your body becomes stressed.

It is possible to make a quick vegan breakfast if you put a little thought into it beforehand. My favorite "on the go" breakfast is Muesli. Now before you groan and roll your eyes, I don't mean the heavy and sugary stuff that get's sold in shops. I make my own, and I would like to share the very easy recipe with you.

In my experience, store bought Museli tries to appeal to the "masses" and still be profitable, so it is either too sugary or too heavy on the "cheap fillers" such as wheat. I am gluten intolerant like so many other people today, so I don't want to eat wheat, oats and sugar in my breakfast dish. I want something Light and Tasty and nutritious!

Celia's Morning Muesli

Ingredients:

Puffed Brown Rice

Barley Flakes

Rice Flakes

Quinoa Flakes

Omega Seed Mix or Sunflower Seeds, Linseed, Pumpkin Seeds, Sesame Seeds

Goji Berries

Almonds

Cranberries

Mix all the ingredients together in the proportions that you find most satisfying. Food is not an exact science, and I always find it better to experiement with quantities and see what tastes best to you. I use the puffed what as the base and then add the flakes and the seeds, followed by the Goji Berries and the nuts. I chop the Almonds in half so that they are not so bulky.

You can of course, add whatever other ingredients appeal to you.

For those of you who might wonder where to get some of the Ingredients, I buy them from my local Health Shop here in Cape Town.

So, first put the Puffed Rice in the bowl and add the flakes and the seeds.

Then the Goji Berries...a good handful or two!

And then the Nuts and Cranberries.

Then add any fresh fruit.....like strawberries...and add plant milk and xylitol or unrefined brown sugar if you need sweetness.

And then.....enjoy!

You can keep the rest of the Muesli in a Glass Jar so that it is ready for "instant" breakfast whenever you need a fast and nutritious breakfast!

Food Notes

GOJI BERRIES : These Red Berries are considered to be a "Super Food". They are also known as "Wolf Berries" and are grown mainly in the Himalyas Valleys and China. They are considered to have important benefits for the immune system, against cancer, and to support liver function. They are high in anti-oxidants, Beta-Carotene, Vitamins B and C, Proteins, Omegas and Anti-Oxidants. They pack a powerful punch...and oh yes, are also considered by the Chinese to be anti-aging!

XYLITOL : Xylitol is a natural sweetener that is also considered to be good for the teeth (no decay) and safe for diabetics. It is made from a fibre that occurs naturally in Fruit and Vegetables. It is prefered over white refined cane sugar as a sweetener. Personally, I prefer unrefined organic brown cane sugar, but where a "white" sugar is needed, xylitol is good. However, although it is considered safe for humans, it is toxic to dogs, so please don't feed it to dogs, or any foods that contain xylitol as a sweetner."

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