Vegan Thumbprint Cookies

Hi All!

Here is the recipe for the raspberry jam cookies that I brought to the vegan potluck last week. Enjoy!

Vegan Thumbprint Cookies

This recipe for thumbprint cookies comes from the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, the legendary Buddhist monastery in California. And I’ll say this, those monks make some mean cookies. Actually, since they are vegan, I guess they’d be more properly classified as kind. All I know is that they are as wholesome and healthy as they are delicious, a bit of a Buddhist miracle.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup unbleached flour

2 cups almonds, ground

4 cups baby rolled oats

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup maple syrup

1 cup canola or vegetable oil

1/2 cup jam, thinned with water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, almonds, oats, and salt.

2. In another bowl, mix together the syrup and oil. Add to the dry ingredients using your hands to mix well. Let dough stand for 15 minutes before using.

3. Roll dough into 3/4-inch balls. Place close together on baking sheets. Make a little dent in the top of each ball and fill them with 1/2 teaspoon (or less) of the jam. Bake for 15 minutes or until slightly brown. Do not over bake. Cool on a wire rack.

Variation: You can replace 1/4 cup of the oil with 1/2 cup of peanut butter.

Great interviews with mentor and pledge - Shannon and Jim!

Check out www.ChallengeOppression.com for interviews with Baltimore Vegan Pledge Program mentor Shannon, and pledge Jim!

Direct link to Shannon's interview - http://tinyurl.com/4vm6rbn
Direct link to Jim's interview - http://tinyurl.com/4j9dxtz

Congratulations, Vegan Pledges!

Wow! I can barely believe yesterday was the last official meeting of the 2011 Baltimore Vegan Pledge Program! Way to go, everyone!



While official Pledge month has come to a close, it looks like a lot of positive changes, and some new friendships, are here to stay.

To all pledges: Huge congratulations!!! It was an honor and a pleasure to get to know many of you over the past month. You truly inspired me with your commitment, creativity, and openness to change - even when it's difficult. Hope to see you again next year, as vegan mentors in the next program!




These are just a few photos from yesterday's meeting, when mentors presented certificates of completion to pledges. More photos will be posted to Open the Cages Alliance's Facebook page within the next day or so, so be sure to visit http://www.facebook.com/openthecages and "Like" us!

Let's stay in touch! Please keep blogging here about your continued experiences with vegan living. Like most things, living vegan is much more fun with the company of friends!

Love,
Erin

Erin Marcus, Event Coordinator
Open the Cages Alliance
www.OpenTheCages.org
www.facebook.com/openthecages
erin@openthecages.org

How Diet Can Effect Future Generations

A new study published this week in Cell shows environmental cues — in this case, diet — influence genes in mammals from one generation to the next, evidence that until now has been sparse.
http://www.utexas.edu/news/2010/12/23/paternal_diet/

Vegan Health, Beauty and Fashion Blog

Hey, good people! Last night's dinner at Mr. Chan's was so great. I ate so much good vegan food that I was stuffed for hours afterward! What a good night and a great way to support a local restaurant that is vegan-friendly!

So who has photos? I was so busy eating that I didn't take any pictures =)

I also wanted to let you know that my blog, "Vegan Health, Beauty and Fashion" is now available for subscription on Amazon.com. You don't have to have a Kindle to subscribe. You can download the free Kindle app for your smart phone or computer and still enjoy the blog. Here is the link so you can check it out:

"Vegan Health, Beauty and Fashion" Blog

I plan to update the blog about 5 times per week in order to stay up to date on trends, news, and other great info.

That's it until next time!

-- Wendy
http://twitter.com/wendystewart
http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart

Photos from Vegan Pledge Program

Looking for some cool photos from the 2011 Vegan Pledge Program? Check out these from the day we learned about vegan nutrition:

Vegan Pledge Program 2011 - Learning About Vegan Nutrition

-- Wendy
http://twitter.com/wendystewart
http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart

Five Ways to Go Green on St. Patrick's Day

Five Ways to Go Green on St. Patrick's Day: "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals"

Been wondering how to encourage others to truly go green for St. Patrick's Day? Check out these 5 simple tips from PETA and you'll be on your way!

-- Wendy

http://twitter.com/wendystewart

http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart

Long Live Loreen!

Happy birthday to Loreen Dinwiddie, a Portland woman who celebrated her 108th birthday on February 4th. Her secret? A vegan diet! Click here for a Youtube video video of local news coverage.

Below is an article, excerpted from this website:

CENTENARIAN VEGAN WOMAN 108 YEARS OLD CREDITS HER VEGAN DIET FOR HER HEALTHY LONGEVITY


Vegan Centenarian Loreen Dinwiddie enjoys 108th Birthday Party.

KGW TV NEWS, United States of America

February, 2011


NEWS: KGW CHANNEL 8 TV NEWS


A Vegan woman celebrating her 108th Birthday is the oldest in Multnomah County, in the US, and may be the oldest in the entire state.

Strict Vegetarian Centenarian Loreen Dinwiddie lives at Cherry Blossom Cottage in Southeast Portland, in United States of America.

A centenarian is a person who has accomplished living to over 100+ years of age. A SuperCentenarian is the rarest of all, and is a person whose longevity has reached 110 years old.

Only 2 years shy of being a SuperCentenarian, Loreen Dinwiddie looks amazing for her age, her mind is still sharp as a tack, she speaks eloquently, and looks better than many other centenarians. Her skin is clear and radiant with hardly any of the wrinkles you would expect for her age. She eats no red meat and credits her healthy vegan diet of vegetables, nuts and fruits for her long life.

As yet another Vegan Centenarian she attributes her youthfulness and good health to her vegan diet and says it has been instrumental at keeping her feeling wonderful all these years.


KGW CHANNEL 8 NEWS

I hope I look that good when I turn 108!

Veganjoy: Vegan for Lent

If you are considering how to take your Vegan pledge to the next level in your spiritual life, then you have to read this post and download a great e-book on how to go vegan for Lent.

veganjoy: Vegan for Lent

-- Wendy

Wait, you mean *that* is vegan?

Sunday night, after the meeting, a few of the OTCA organizers went on a mini field trip to Safeway. The mission: Map out the store for next week's shopping trip. The reward: +1 EXP for finding things I forgot were vegan.

The evening's top treasure:











Safeway's store brand Fudge Stripes! They're not organic, they're not home made, and they sure aren't healthy. But they *are* free of eggs, milk, honey, and lots of the other animal ingredients in many store-bought desserts! They're also pretty tasty.

Grocery Store Treasure Hunt runners up included chocolate sorbet that tastes just like old-school Fudgesicles (dip a Fudge Stripe in it for bonus points!), Tresemme's large line of non-animal-tested products, St. Ives apricot face scrub that has been reformulated (yay!) to remove the lanolin, and chocolate-covered graham crackers. (If you've noticed a theme, yes I love chocolate, and yes, I love scrubby and shampoo-y things. And also parentheses.)

What surprisingly vegan-friendly items have you found on your own treasure hunt?

Latest Shopping Trip to Whole Foods

Thanks to the Baltimore Vegan Pledge Program I was able to step back into Whole Foods with some confidence and awesome coupons. Aren't sponsors awesome?!

So, I was able to pick up almost $20 worth of groceries for only $5.83 (because I had one full price item) and the cashier was so amazed that I was able to tell her where I got the awesome coupon.

In case you were wondering, I shopped today at the Whole Foods at Harbor East on Fleet Street. Unfortunately they do not have WayFare products so I guess my vegan mac and cheese will have to wait for another day =)

So, if you're wondering what my big score was, here is a link to my photo album on Facebook:

Good Food from Whole Foods

At this coming Sunday's meeting we'll be touring the Safeway at Charles and 25th street. I'm excited to see what good vegan stuff I can find there! And stay tuned tomorrow for the results of my first attempt at vegan blueberry pancakes for Shrove Tuesday!

-- Wendy
http://twitter.com/wendystewart
http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart
http://30daystovegan.blogspot.com

Top 5 Hidden Animal Ingredients to Avoid

I want you all to know that I have a fresh, new article on hidden animal ingredients.

Check out the article and let me know what you think!

Top 5 Hidden Animal Ingredients to Avoid

-- Wendy

http://twitter.com/wendystewart

http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart

http://30daystovegan.blogspot.com

Dangers of Casein Protein

Hey, everyone!

I thought that I would go through some of my health and wellness articles from my pre-vegan days and share some with you.

With that in mind, here is one I wrote that was published on Livestrong.com on the dangers of casein protein:

Casein Protein Dangers

Let me know what you think!

Until next time!

-- Wendy
http://twitter.com/wendystewart
http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart
http://30daystovegan.blogspot.com

Fun and Food at Sweet Sin Bakery

What do you get when you combine great vegan food, vegan baked goods, and great company? Office hours at Sweet Sin Bakery in Baltimore.

If you're in the Baltimore Pledge Program, then you may noticed that there are weekly office hours each Wednesday at Sweet Sin Bakery. Tonight was the first office hours at Sweet Sin and it was a blast! I'm used to just getting coffee from the Bakery, but tonight's menu for me included a veggie plate of basmati rice and vegetables, collard greens and carrots, and chana masala along with my decaf coffee with vanilla almond milk. Let me just say that even though that was only one order, the plate/bowl was so big that it took some time for me to finish! That's okay though because it was soooo good.

Sweet Sin Bakery has vegan and gluten free options for just about any meal, including breakfast, and does offer catering. The environment is small, but friendly and lots of friendly people came and went during the two hours we stayed at Sweet Sin.

So, whether you join us for office hours next Wednesday from 6-8 pm or want to stop by Sweet Sin on your own, it is definitely worth your trip.

Learn more about Sweet Sin Bakery by going to their website: Sweet Sin Bakery, Baltimore.

That's all for now! See you next time!

Have you been to Sweet Sin? Leave a comment and let everyone know what you think!

-- Wendy
http://twitter.com/wendystewart
http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart
http://30daystovegan.blogspot.com

Vegan Cooking in Bulk

Thanks to twitter I have found a link to a story by @VegNews to give those of us who are seriously pressed for time a way to cook once each week and still have great food. 

I am so down for that!

Here's the link: Cook Once All Week

What do you think about this? How easy does this sound? Leave a comment and let me know and share your tips for making cooking easier!

-- Wendy

http://twitter.com/wendystewart

http://facebook.com/sisterwendystewart

Great site for all things vegan: LiveVegan.org!

Hi Vegan Pledges and Mentors!

It was great to meet you all (and see the people I already know) yesterday. Thank you for being a part of this great program!

I wanted to let you know about a very useful new site by Farm Animal Rights Movement (FARM) (and designed by yours truly): www.livevegan.org! You can find all sorts of information about living a vegan lifestyle on this site, including recipes, advice on dealing with family and friends who aren't vegan (and might not support you in your vegan goal), helpful links, important reasons for becoming (and staying) vegan, and more. I hope you check it out!



See you next Sunday!

xo Robin

Almost here!

The very first meeting of the Baltimore Vegan Pledge program is just 13 hours away! This is so exciting. But what am I still doing awake?!?

(Mail merging and eating dark chocolate chips, for the inquiring minds.)

Welcome to the very first Baltimore Vegan Pledge Program, everyone! We are the third city in the entire US to implement a VPP. Participants will pledge to live vegan for 30 days, with the guidance & support of a vegan mentor. We will have meetings each Sunday for the duration of the program, addressing such topics as nutrition, animal-friendly household products, and grocery shopping. There will also be optional social & extracurricular events throughout the month, including wellness workshops, dinner night at Mr. Chan Szechuan House (home of the best orange yuba in the state), and "office hours" at local coffee shops where pledges may come to just sit & talk, or ask questions they missed inside the meetings.

Not sure how you would dine out, what you would cook, or how you would obtain sufficient nutrients without animal products? Steve was kind enough to compile several posts addressing those very topics! He'll also be involved with the Vegan Pledge Program as a mentor. We will also cover these topics (and more) at the meetings.

Mentors & pledges are also invited to blog about their experiences. We would love to have more than one of each, for a variety of perspectives.

I hope all the pledges and mentors are sound asleep, dreaming of General Tso's tofu and coconut milk ice cream! See you at Cyclops.

*a

Where To Get Things?

Do you want to find a restaurant where you can get a vegan meal? How about a bakery or a grocery store ? Got an event you need catering for?

You are in luck!

You can use the free, online "Veg Baltimore Guide." which covers Baltimore and the surrounding areas.

If you are traveling further south you can use the free, online "VEG-DC Guide" which covers the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area.

You can also order a free hard copy of each guide from each site!

Vegan Recipe Sites

There are mountains of free vegan recipes on the www. No need to buy a book. Here are some of the better ones:

Vegan Recipe Search Engine

Choose Veg

COK

Fat Free Vegan

IVU

NutritionMD.org

PCRM

The Post Punk Kitchen

Veg Cooking

Vegan Food Net

Daily Recommendations

Many people mistakenly believe that you need to read a lot to know everything you need to know about vegan nutrition. Pleasantly, this is not true. Jack Norris R.D. is a registered dietitian and a cofounder of Vegan Outreach. He maintains the free site Vegan Health which includes his Daily Recommendations

The list is so short ( vegans only need to do one more thing than non-vegans ) that you can print it out on a single page and use it as a checklist until you feel settled.