Monthly Archives: January 2014

Traveling Vegan in NYC Part II: Restaurant Reviews, Food, Places that Closed, and Heaven on a Plate.

Posted by LD in Traveling Vegan and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

 

 

 

 

I love New York City. It is just really one of the World’s treasures. For vegans it is a resource that is unmatched in the United States. It has ever culinary wish you could make and every creative food your palate could desire. I always talk to my husband about where I want to go eat if I were in NYC right now. He has obviously been listening because the other week he said “Let’s go away for the weekend!” I was excited but careful. For me, money is always tight and I want to budget. So I pre-planned everything, every restaurant and activity and even snacks. We left a little late on Saturday and realized halfway there that although we did plan for the dog’s accommodations, hubby left the house without her leash on. He then fell asleep for most of the ride until he woke up and told me.

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So a short stop in Petsmart (or was it Petco) in Connecticut and back onto the highway. We got there in a reasonable amount of time regardless and I was so excited to start my culinary adventure. First however, we had to check in. My dog Lola was so excited to get out of the car and into the hotel to meet everyone. Did I mention it was about 10 degrees out? Thanks polar blast for that cold wave.

 

IMG_2945   IMG_2944 (Lola arriving in NYC smelling everything and so excited to get out of the car)

 

MARRIOTT CENTRAL PARK: Accommodations

 

The staff at the Marriott Central Park was equally excited. It was a beautiful new hotel that just opened and we were staying in the Courtyard Marriott section but there is also a Marriott Residence Inn section making it the tallest hotel in the Western Hemisphere. Very cool. The staff is great and so was the hotel. I recommend it to everyone and anyone. Can’t go wrong with Marriott especially on Broadway between Times Square and Central Park near 5th Ave.

IMG_3040 (Lola checking out the fountain at the hotel)

 

 

 

DUN-WELL DOUGHNUTS: BREAKFAST / SNACK

After the bellman brought up the luggage and the valet took the car away. We headed across the Williamsburg Bridge to Dun-well Doughnuts. I met a man in line who helped me pick his favorites and a few other fun donuts for our half dozen box while my husband ran across the street to a local Bodega to get money from the ATM. It gave him all tens which he still thinks is the most hilarious thing in the world. I grabbed a vegan hot cocoa and a coffee for the hubby and we sat at the window to begin our feast. WOW was my first words. The donuts are those spot on sweet but not too sweet yeasty dreamy fluffs of heaven. They flavors and coatings are far from average and not at all tasting of “fake” fruit flavors or funny after tastes. They are as close to perfect as I can think. I just wish they were in Boston so I could get fatter by eating them every day.

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Foodswings: Lunch (closed)

Next we decided to walk the 1.5 miles over to Foodswings in Brooklyn on the Park Slope Brooklyn Bridge side of Brooklyn. This place is known for amazing home style eats. Burgers, mac n cheese, and fried chicken but all vegan all the time. One problem when we walked up the gate was down. So we saw a door to the right and walked down a long kinda shady hallway into a speakeasy door to find a girl sitting at a bar eating corn chips and salsa alone. This was not Foodswings. I walked out to find another couple doing the same thing and I agreed to check my phone Facebook to see what was up. They had announced in the beginning of the month that their lease was up and they had a fight with their landlord and would close at the end of the month. It wasn’t the end of the month but this explained it I guess. I was pretty upset that they didn’t bother and update their website, twitter, or FB when they actually closed. It was kinda a stinky move on their part. I met them at The Seed conference a few years ago and had their fried chicken and they seemed cool. But I guess time and business changes folks. oh well! (Note: I checked today on FB and they posted that a few days later (after I left a message on their twitter) they stated on FB they had been closed all week and reopened for a few days and closed again for good, thanks for telling us after you were closed a week. Really not impressed guys.)

 

PEACEFOOD CAFE: LUNCH / SNACK

We caught a cab bag to Manhattan and got ready for the dinner of the year. The vegan epicenter of high end vegan food…. Candle 79. We stopped at Peacefood Cafe first though for a snack since our lunch was now cancelled and because a twitter follower commented that she could eat her “weight” in their chickpea fries. All I know is I ordered a seitan medallion sandwich, chickpea fries, and a key lime pie to go and the seitan sandwich could’ve caused my husband and I to divorce and ask for custody over it so we didn’t have to share. It was THAT good. My only complaint. The key lime pie must have sat near onions in the fridge. The taste transferred into the tofu base. Not good but you could tell it would’ve been.

 

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Then Candle 79 after a quick trip back to the hotel to walk the dog and freshen up for dinner.

 

CANDLE 79: DINNER

I will be honest, I thought Candle 79 was going to be all talk. I had heard it was good but too pricey and that it didn’t live up to the hype. However, it is someplace you just have to go no matter what other folks say because it does have quite a celebrity following. The truth? It is actually THAT good. The menu is daunting. You want to order everything but are unsure. The prices are high but that is the type of restaurant it is. Think Morton’s or the Palm without the meat. The hostess was delightful and took our coats. A rude customer came in behind us and was quite demanding that he be seated before us (we had a reservation as did he) but she handled it with the grace of a ballerina and assured him he had a table and she would be right back. We were brought down the long thin first floor up some stairs to the second floor overlooking 79th. It was a nice view bu there was a huge flower display in the window that blocked some of it. The ceilings were gorgeous and made of several colors of wood. The staff was attentive and polite. I ordered a kola (which reminds me of coke in the Caribbean), a Caesar salad, and the Seitan Piccatta. My husband ordered the dumplings appetizer and the Rosemary-Balsamic Grilled Seitan. My salad was wonderful. I had wanted a Caesar salad since I had gone vegan but had never had one. While we waited a waited came over and told me that the chef sent out a appetizer for us to try. It was a lentil filled spoon with some jalapenos and maybe celery? Whatever it was it was fresh and a little spicy and a perfect bite. I thanked him and the chef immensely, it was an honor. When the salad came it was tangy and filling and the little Parmesan crisp were perfect. The shocker was the grilled “chicken” on it. It tasted 100% real deal like a grilled chicken. Even my husband was shocked. He ate what I didn’t finish. I tried his dumplings which were good but I should’ve dipped more sauce. The Seitan Piccatta was outstanding. They only tiny change I would made. Making it thinner and not stacking it on top of each other. That’s it. Kinda lame but it’s the little things sometimes. My husband was enamored with his seitan as it tasted like real beef. I did not like steak much before going vegan so I wasn’t shocked I did not love his dish but it was real deal beef flavored and textured. The sides were good though! Then dessert was ordered. OMG dessert. This is the best dessert I have ever had at any time in my life. Pure heaven on a plate. We got 3 desserts to share as my husband is a sugar addict. We ordered the flan, chocolate brownie, and the chocolate peanut butter truffle. The flan was heaven on earth. I would probably not have shared if my husband hadn’t just snagged a piece. The brownie was pure chocolate decadence with divine ice cream. The ice cream on the flan was also just sublime. The peanut butter chocolate truffle thing was too chocolatey for me but perfect for my husband. he loves a good death by chocolate flourless cake and this was more chocolate than peanut butter so he was happy. I would eat there every day if I could.

IMG_2961 IMG_2984 Caesar Salad

IMG_2964 Dumpling/Potstickers

IMG_2982Seitan Piccatta

IMG_2968 Rosemary Balsamic Seitan 

IMG_2969 Q-Kola

IMG_2971 Mexican Chocolate brownie

 IMG_2973 Peanut Butter Chocolate truffle

IMG_2985 Pumpkin Flan with Sugared Toasted Pepitas

IMG_2974  IMG_2977 IMG_2979 Bathroom Selfies because its fun!

IMG_2980IMG_2981Restaurant Selfie: Candle 79

 

 

 

 

Blossom Cafe: Sunday Brunch

The next morning we arose bright and early to have brunch with my old college roommate Andrea. She is one of those amazing NYC girls that is so well read and refined yet relaxed and fun that you can bring her anywhere and she will have been there or know the owner or have a story about it. She had been to Blossom but she isn’t vegan. She ordered the grilled cheese, my husband ordered the stuffed french toast (and ate half of it before I could snap a photo!), and I ordered the country brunch platter. Everyone was quiet and cleaned their plates. Like my grandmother would say, we were all part of the “Clean Plate Club”. I especially loved my chutney, scramble, and the fried sweet potato. I mean it was all good but that chutney! Yummm…

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AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

We dropped off Lola with a dog walker for the afternoon so she could play in the upper east side and Central park. I couldn’t bare to leave her in the hotel all day. Then the hubby and I ran off to the Museum of Natural History on the upper west side. It is one of my favorite places in the world. It is so fun and beautiful to look at and if you can’t afford to pay it is free. We paid but you don’t have to or you can pick what you want to pay. It is pretty amazing that they do that for folks. 

 

 

 

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V-NOTE: SUNDAY DINNER

We then embarked on a new high end restaurant and wine bar for an early 5 pm dinner. It is supposed to rival (if not exceed) Candle 79 in food, wine, and service and is owned by the folks from Blossom. It is on the upper east side and although they did have one outstanding item on the menu, I wouldn’t go back. Mainly because of service but the food wasn’t great either except for the one item. It was just barely okay. We changed our reservation from 630 pm to 5 or 530 pm and arrived early. We were seated right away and the place was almost entirely empty. There was a couple at a table and a man who looked like he worked there, drinking at the bar. That was the first not so good sign. A man who looked like his twin was our server (brothers?). He came over and was friendly enough but was slow. He didn’t refill glasses, he had a busboy bring our food, and when the rush came in at 6-630 ish he started forgetting our order but didn’t forget to charge us for what we didn’t get. When I went to the bathroom (which was not very clean), I overheard him saying that an article written on a tablet the other female server (the only two staff on the floor) had was “not good” for their business. I understood right away that they got a bad review and honestly, I wasn’t shocked. I had to bring the bill up to the female waiter to explain the bill was wrong since he refused to come back for us to pay. She said oh okay I will take it off and he came up behind me and said “What’s the problem?” I explained he had charged us for items he never brought us and he said “Well you know we got slammed”. That isn’t an excuse in my book. You are a waiter, you deliver food. I didn’t ask for anything outside of this. You will get slammed every night in NYC. You should still be able to do your job. The only good thing: the mushroom risotto. Order it to go and you will be in heaven.

IMG_3025IMG_3026 Too gingery ginger ale.

 IMG_3027 husbands wine

 IMG_3029 Corn Chowder that was watery and more like corn liquefied, also blisteringly hot. Burned my tongue.

 IMG_3030 Seitan medallion app with potato salad. Bland.

IMG_3031 Eggplant parm. appetizer. Bland and had more zucchini than eggplant.

IMG_3032 Mushroom Risotto. Marvelous.

 IMG_3033IMG_3034 Mexican Stuffed Poblano with Walnut Sauce. Not enough sauce. Bland. Poblano wasn’t roasted well or thin enough. I used to love this dish when I was not vegan. It is a quintessential Mexican holiday dish (I’m part Mexican). They killed it 😦 .

IMG_3035 Fondue. Tiniest amount of chocolate ever with barely any fruit and 2 cookies cut in half and two pretzel sticks for I think $16. Lame.

 

 

 

HOME

We picked up Lola after that from her dog walker and headed back to the hotel to pack and go home. The dog walker was amazing and you should use her services if you are ever in town. I will post a link soon! I was happy with the trip overall and even more happy to have picked up a vegan guide to NYC at Dun-well along the way. Although Foodswings and V-Note were a big buildup with little return. They other places more than made up for it and I have a book of new places to start trying! Please feel free to tell me more places to go next. I can’t wait for another traveling vegan trip! Maybe I will see you in your town!

 

Food is Love.

The Hippie Gypsy.

Preparing Tofu the Right Way

Posted by LD in Beginner Recipes, Meatless Monday Family Dinners, QUICKIES! and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Since I became vegan I have always been afraid of preparing my own Tofu. First it was that I didn’t know how to use the different kinds (lite, firm, silken, extra firm, huh?). Then it was that it was all watery and mushy. Last, it was that everyone told me I had to dry it out or press it down or just buy the pre-baked from Trader Joe’s (which I did). I never knew what exactly to do. Then I started reading blogs and still not completely comfortable. Then I starting asking other vegetarians and cooks that I knew. i got closer to confident. But this past month I got a free cooking school online pass. They taught me so much so fast. I feel so much more confident about my tofu skills now. So here is my simple and best way to prepare tofu successfully. The pictures are provided by my closest friend that currently is living in Florida and doing a fast in which she has to prepare vegan food but was an omnivore prior to this fast. (The fast is called the Danial Fast Click Here to learn more.) I gave her my recipe and she followed it perfectly and topped her veggie bowl with the tofu.

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Pan Fried and Baked Tofu

  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • Kosher Salt
  • 1 block of lite or regular extra firm tofu
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon cornmeal

 

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Prepare!

  1. Slice tofu into sticks by dividing the tofu in half and then half each side again creating 4 slabs. Divide those slabs into half to create sticks.
  2. Take tofu sticks and place on a plate that has 3 layers of paper towels. Let tofu drain on those towels at least 30 minutes. Then take an additional paper towel and press away excess water from the top.
  3. Next sprinkle with kosher salt and make rest 5 more minutes.
  4. In a bowl mix together cornstarch and cornmeal. Dredge the tofu through the mixture. You can add salt and pepper directly to the flour to create a seasoned flour.

 

Cook!

  1. Heat oil in a frying pan until almost spitting. To test heat place a droplet of water into pan and watch it sizzle.
  2. With tongs place sticks into the hot oil moving frequently so they do not stick. Rotate each side until lightly cooked then place on a silpat for the oven.
  3. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-20 minutes until firm and not longer leaking excess water.
  4. Place on a dish with paper towels to drain excess oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  5. Serve.

 

I eat it with a side of peanut satay sauce or over brown rice and veggies with terriyaki sauce. They come out almost with a light crisp like a tempura would but not oily. Its the perfect way to keep it moist, not oily, and crisp. Enjoy!

 

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PS: I have used the following substitutions successfully: Chia Seeds instead of Cornmeal, Arrowroot instead of Cornstarch, Canola instead of Olive Oil.

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Food is Love.

The Hippie Gypsy.

 

 

Purple Potato French Fries

Posted by LD in Beginner Recipes, Meatless Monday Appetizers, QUICKIES! and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I buy purple potatoes frequently. (1) Because they are delicious, (2) because they are healthier, and (3) because they are more fun than regular white or red potatoes. When I was watching a cooking show the other day with my husband, one of the cooks used purple potatoes and they explained the health benefits and now my husband feels savvy in why I use them too. When I made these purple potato french fries he says to me “You know these are healthier than those starchy white potatoes.” I stated that yes I knew that and then laughed. At least all this crazy veganism is teaching him something too (other than how to avoid veggie based dinners by eating cereal and going to Taco Bell when I am not looking). With that, I want to introduce you to the tastiest french fries I have ever made and probably would never have made had I not been vegan. They are easy and better than Ore-Ida from the frozen bags and better than plain old baked white ones that I made as a kid. Enjoy!

 

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Purple Potato Fries

  • (1) Bag of Organic Purple Potatoes (24oz is about right)
  • 1-2 tablespoons of Olive Oil (1 is usually enough but use a little more so they get crispy and then drain them)
  • 1 tbsp or more Kosher Salt

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Cook!

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.

Take each round potato and slice off two sides so that they are lying down flat with a flat top.

Then slice into 6 sticks by cutting another horizontal line to make two flat rounds stacked on top of each other and then three slices across to make 6 sticks (3 on each of the 2 layers).

There is no need to peel the potato. You can however place them in a bowl of cold water to soak if you want.

Do this to all potatoes. Toss with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

Place on cookie sheet and into preheated oven for at least 20-25minutes. You will see them brown, sizzle and crisp.

Remove when done and place on paper towels to drain.

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I add a touch more salt while they are still damp with oil and then serve!

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They are sweet and nutty and so so so good. You will love them, I promise!

 

Serves 4-6.

WW Points for 4 Servings: 5 pts

WW Points for 6 servings: 3 pts

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Food is Love.

The Hippie Gypsy.

Roasted Potatoes with Avocado & Parsley.

Posted by LD in Uncategorized

This sounds like the perfect comfort food. I would eat this for Breakfast, lunch, dinner or as a great brunch dish. Yum!

Eat More Plants.

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When it comes to cooking, the one thing that’s really stuck with me over the years, is that simple is best. Using the best quality ingredients and making sure each flavor and texture is treated with care and finesse should take precedent over everything else.

This roasted potato dish is a bunch of my favorite things all tossed together.

Start with clean potatoes and chop them into even sized pieces. Uneven sized pieces will cause the potatoes to cook unevenly; some will be underdone and some will be overdone.

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Toss the potatoes in a bowl with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and smoked paprika.

Spread your potatoes on the baking sheet without overlapping. Drizzle a little extra olive oil on top of them too.

Roast at 450 for 25 minutes and then raise the heat…

View original post 86 more words

Vegan Sundried Tomato, Onion, and Rosemary Bread from a Bread Machine

Posted by LD in Beginner Recipes and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I have wanted a bread machine since the day I saw one in a thrift store in Imperial Beach, California. It was $10 and looked like a deal to me. Although I am bummed I didn’t buy it back then I am glad now because I think I would’ve lost my love for them. The reviews on the cheaper models are terrible. They look like war stories of collapsed breads and mutilated pasta dough. That should be a crime because honestly breads and carbs are the only thing that make people truly happy sometimes and if they do all that work to make them from scratch and not go buy a slice of 8,000 calorie banana bread from the coffee shop, then they should be rewarded with something wonderful. Instead the bread falls in the center creating a volcano of doughy gooey mess that one must carefully discard without losing the little rudder that helps knead the bread in the bottom of the baking pan. (Yes, I have thrown mine out and had to recover it already). That being said over the weekend I was very sick with bronchitis. I think I may have coughed up my lungs. So what better to do when stuck in the house for a few days but bake.

I made a delicious batch of my low ingredient oatmeal cookies with bananas, hazelnuts, and chocolate and I made two breads. Only one of which survived because…. well…. I wasn’t paying attention and forgot the flour (yes the flour) in one of them. It didn’t dawn on me for about an hour and then I went OH COME ON! Because I knew the baking portion had started and the kneading/stirring had passed. So my bread lovers here is my recipe for my very successful and delicious smelling sundried tomato, onion, and rosemary bread.

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Sundried Tomato, Onion, and Rosemary Bread

Ingredients (see below for sizes and layering):

  • Crisco
  • (1) White Onion
  • Dried Rosemary
  • Sundried Tomato Infused Olive Oil
  • Sundried Tomatoes in olive oil
  • Bread Flour ( I used Gold’s,  DO NOT use all purpose)
  • Kosher Salt
  • Vegan Sugar
  • Dry Active Yeast ( I use fast rising or bread only)
  • Water

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Preparation:

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First you need to cook down and puree the onions. Just place chopped onions in a pan with Crisco and a few pinches of salt and cook down until translucent. Then puree with a hand blender or food processor. Place to the side.

Take the bread baking pan out of the breadmaker and begin layering your ingredients. Many breadmakers come with their own ingredients and settings. I will generally make a 1.5lb loaf in a 2lb machine instead of the max so that any ingredients I add can be incorporated with enough room. I also always use medium settings like a medium crust color. Not light or dark. Moderation helps with a finicky machine I feel.

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Layering:

The layering of ingredients for this bread are as follows (read below before you start layering:

  • Water (3/4 cup)
  • Infused olive oil (2 tablespoons)
  • Few pinches of salt (about 1 teaspoon)
  • 1/4 cup of onion mixture
  • Sugar (1 teaspoon)
  • Bread Flour (3cups)
  • Dried Rosemary (1-2 teaspoons)
  • Optional: dash of granulated garlic or other spices
  • Active Dry Yeast (1 packet) (make sure to read below before this layer)
  • Sliced Sundried Tomatoes in Oil (1/8 to 1/4 cup)

You will layer the above ingredients one on top of the other in the baking pan to be stirred, kneaded, etc. by the bread machine however when you go to add the yeast there is a small trick. Make a crater in the center so that the yeast can get to the sugar and water easier. Yeast eats sugar so this is helping guide the process. If a recipe doesn’t call for sugar but does for yeast I encourage the same process and 2 pinches of sugar into the dough to help it rise better. Also always use bread flour it is different than all purpose containing more proteins, etc.

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BAKING:

Last place the settings on your bread machine to a basic or white bread setting and moderate crust color and size is for 1.5 lbs. If you want you can always take the bread out and knead it a little before the rise setting and add a dash of water or flour if you think it needs it. I do this occasionally. Sometimes I also spray the pan with Pam/Canola or olive oil.

Once it rises and before it bakes add a drizzle of the infused olive oil and a pinch of salt on top. It will make it have a little extra zing on the crust.

Take out immediately after baking and place on rack. if you are not there that is okay. it will just get a little soggy on the bottom if it auto-shuts off.

Enjoy!

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Food is Love. 

The Hippie Gypsy

Beyond Meat Grand Prize GIVEAWAY Winner is JOHN RIFE. @Jrgoblue32

Posted by LD in Shopping Vegan and tagged with , , , , ,

I have to say that I was incredibly impressed and overwhelmed by the entries. You wrote me in emails, private messages, Facebook, blog, comments, twitter, you name it. I heard amazing stories and delicious recipes. I read every single one. I even had to ask my family for help narrowing down my choices. So with that I expanded the winners prizes. The grand prize is still as advertised but I added a few more ” runners up”. They will get the prize listed next to their name. If you won I will try to directly contact you but please email me your address so I can mail you your prize ASAP. I will not give out this info or sell it. Because I don’t have a reason to or know how anyway… but also because I trust my fans and want you to trust me too! So with that here are the winners:

Grand Prize: JOHN RIFE. @Jrgoblue32
1st Runner Up: ANDY JAMES. Prize is one free package of beyond meat, a $1 off coupon, and a guest blog recipe spot.
2nd Runner Up: RODRIGO DIAZ LINUX. Prize is one free package of beyond meat and a $1 off coupon.
3rd Runner Up: KALEIGH MCGUIRE Prize is a $1 off coupon for Beyond Meat.

You are all amazing and I hope you can help inspire more people to love veg options and cook each other amazing food. I am so blessed to have you as fans!

Food is love.
The Hippie Gypsy.

Yogic Principles, Veganism, and Bucket List Item #3: Purging

Posted by LD in Confessions and Rants of the Vegan Persuasion and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

So when I went to the Ananda Ashram, I learned a lot about Yoga. Not the physical exercise that everyone knows, but more of the principles of “yoga” as a more spiritual guide (Check out this page for a brief intro http://www.healthy.net/Health/Article/The_Ten_Living_Principles_Yamas_and_Niyamas/2410 ). That being said, there are “Yamas” which discuss “moral disciplines” or things you should do and “Niyamas” which discuss “moral observances” or things you shouldn’t do. I just think Y = Yes and N = No to differentiate the two. They are both phrased in a positive way so don’t think that Niyama means don’t be pure or content but instead it means don’t be toxic or impatient. Take a look below at the principles:

The Yamas are:

  • Ahimsa” — Sanskrit for “non-harming”
  • “Satya” — Sanskrit for “refraining from dishonesty”
  • “Asteya” — Sanskrit for “non-stealing”
  • “Brahmacharya” — Sanskrit for “wise use of sexual energy”
  • “Aparigraha” — Sanskrit for “non-possessiveness”

Niyamas:

  • “Saucha” — Sanskrit for “purity”
  • “Santosha” — Sanskrit for “contentment”
  • “Tapas” — Sanskrit for “self-discipline”
  • “Svadhyaya” — Sanskrit for “self-study”
  • “Ishvara pranidhana” — Sanskrit for “surrender to a higher source”

So purging falls under “Aparigraha” which is a Yama. This means to not be possessive.  You should instead fill your life with meaning and not with “stuff” and be happy and content with life as it is. This has always been a hard one for me and I am sure it is hard for most in American consumer culture. Being happy with the life you have and not accumulating distractions. I am constantly distracting myself with things. Whether it be my shoe collection or clothes or just “stuff”. I put memories into these things instead of into a compartment in my heart. Aparigraha makes you realize that you need to live in the now and enjoy life for what it is and not worry about things outside of that. This teaching is not just in Yoga/Buddhism/Hinduism it is commonplace in all religions. Mother Theresa was famous for living with next to nothing and Christianity states that you should not overindulge in things or food or anything. That the poor will inherit the earth. I keep lots of quotes on my Pinterest ( http://www.pinterest.com/thehippiegypsy/quotes-that-i-will-cover-my-walls-with/ ) and one of my favorite is “The first step to getting what you want, is having the courage to get rid of what you don’t” another that is not up there is by Mother Theresa that states “You have to be holy, where ever you are, wherever God put you”. I feel like this tells me that where I am in life I need to be the best person that I can be and remove distractions so I can be “here” in the moment. This I am sure merges into “Santosha” or Contentment one of the Niyamas.

Food is always a distraction for me though. Although it is definitely  a delicious one and makes me feel content. I find that eating more “whole” foods and less processed is going to be a goal this year because (1) by purging what I do not need (despite its contentment it brings me), I find that I do need “food” but not junk food to clutter my system like my shoes I just purged cluttered my closet; and (2) If it is broken and no good I don’t keep it and food should be the same. This year I am saving for a bread maker. I think I am going to start making my own bread. I came upon this idea while using my gift card for cooking things and realizing I cannot buy a pretty bowl when i don’t need a pretty bowl. This is an item that is about $6 for a half loaf of Iggy’s at Whole Foods or $2 for a white loaf at Market Basket that is not at all remotely healthy and barely bread but I could make for much less and make much healthier. Do you remember “Wonder Bread”? I can still smell the bleach when I think of it. Purging things that are useless is a good task. It makes you think of what you actually need. I don’t need bleached white bread anymore, it is now useless. It serves no purpose. So I am moving on.

And those 11 pairs of shoes in my closet that I purged, they serve no purpose anymore either so look at the nearest Thrift Shop ladies because those boots were never worn….

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Food is Love.

The Hippie Gypsy.

 

******DON’T FORGET TO ENTER THE BEYOND MEAT GIVEAWAY THAT CLOSES AT 12NOON FRIDAY!!!******

Beyond Meat Giveaway!

Posted by LD in Uncategorized

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Today I announce my Beyond Meat giveaway! We will be doing a giveaway through twitter, FB, and my blog for some Beyond Meat Free Food and swag. Like me on FB ( http://www.facebook.com/veganhippiegypsy ) AND send me a message on Twitter, FB, or my blog as to why you want free beyond meat and what you will make with it this year. It’s that easy! I will pick a winner in 48 hours so start writing! Also I only ship in the US so sorry to all my foreign hippies. Maybe next time! If I really like your recipe for what you want to make and you send me it, I may even feature it as a guest blog next week!

Food is love.
The Hippie Gypsy.