The “V” Word continues its celebration of VeganMoFo, the month of vegan food, with this year’s theme: “If TV Celebrity Chefs Went Vegan.” Most of the celebrity chefs I will pick are ones I like, some may be ones I don’t like but have something to say about. Today’s celebrity chef fits both categories. Gordon […]
If I were granted a wish where I could choose just one TV celebrity chef to go vegan, it would be Rachael Ray. As I’ve written before, Rachael Ray is my favorite TV celebrity chef, though she would be the first to say, “I’m not a chef, I’m a cook.” Finding and watching Rachael on […]
It’s October, my favorite month of the year. The weather is cooler and the leaves are turning to all my favorite jewel-toned colors: orange, green, brown, red and purple (hey, there are purple leaves!). It’s the month of Tom’s and my anniversary (our 5th wedding anniversary and our 9th since we met). This year will […]
Other than making scrambles, my favorite way to eat tofu has always been to fry it. Whether it’s coated with flour and lightly pan-fried or double-dip dredged in vegan buttermilk and bread crumbs and then fried a bit deeper, I love, Love, LOVE tofu. But it’s not the healthiest way to eat such an […]
Tonight begins one of the holiest holidays in the Jewish religion: Rosh Hashanah or Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah means “head of the new year” and is observed for 2 days beginning on the 1st of Tishrei, the first day of the Jewish calendar. It is the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve and […]
You know how there are some dishes you can’t eat out at restaurants or when anyone else makes them because they just aren’t the same as how you had them when you were growing up? I have a million of those dishes – meals that no one could make the way my mother made them. […]
It’s September and if you have your own vegetable garden, you are probably trying to find ways to use up all the bounty you harvested. Here is a simple and delicious dish to help you enjoy some of those juicy tomatoes and fragrant basil you planted. Tofu Pomodoro is crispy, pan-fried slices of tofu topped […]
Today The “V” Word turns 3 years old. My baby is growing up now and has become bigger, stronger and more than I could have ever imagined.The story of how The “V” Word came to be can be found here in the very first post I wrote 3 years ago today. It was not meant […]
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” – Hippocrates There’s bad news, there’s worse news and there’s good news. The bad news is that I’m currently suffering from a relapse of my autoimmune disorder. The worse news is that because I need to keep my skin away from heat, my doctor has ordered […]
“For success, like happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one’s dedication to a cause greater than oneself.” – Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning In bookstores, “The Lucky Ones: My Passionate Fight for Farm Animals,” by Jenny Brown with Gretchen Primack, will take its […]
“Chi Chi Chia..” Who would have thought that the fad gift of the Chia Pet would end up being the source of a superfood decades later? But it’s true. Chia Seeds are an amazing food that you should add to your diet! This edible seed which comes from the mint family has some great nutritional benefits. […]
Last summer was the 2nd worst summer of my life. I’m not exaggerating. Between personal problems, illness and staying with my in-laws upstate who hate me, I felt like I was in the deepest level of Hell. I was lonely, mistreated and very depressed. The only bright spot was on the weekend when Tom and I would […]
Since I wrote the first part of my Farmers Market Daughter post, some good things have happened. I heard from Dammi who is in Sri Lanka with her mother again. It was nice to reconnect with her. She was very touched by my story about her. I also have been in contact with Save Animals […]
Today is my 4 year veggiversary. It was 4 years ago today that I gave up meat (including fish) and became a vegetarian. Within 7 months of this date, I would become a vegan. Some people think that this date “doesn’t count,” that it is not as important as the day one becomes a vegan. […]
Here is something that always confuses me when I’m watching a cooking competition on TV: the same chefs who can create wonders with whatever challenges they are faced with or strange combinations of ingredients they are given go stone-cold frozen when they are given a vegetarian, or worse, vegan challenge. They look at a block of tofu […]
The first time I ever tried Thai food, I didn’t like it. I didn’t like it the second time I tried it either. There was a Thai restaurant near my job in Tribeca and everyone loved it. My coworkers always insisted we go there for lunch. To me, everything tasted like it was covered in […]
Just when we got used to non-dairy butter, now we are hearing we shouldn’t buy anything that contains palm oil. Why? Isn’t it vegan? Here’s the short story : “the increased demand for palm oil, which is grown only in tropical environments, is fuelling destruction of the rainforest habitat of Sumatran and Bornean orangutans, pushing those endangered […]
During my child psychiatry fellowship I had an attending physician I greatly admired. Dr. G. was one of the smartest people I had ever met. She was compassionate and caring, choosing to work with needy adolescents in a municipal hospital rather than make money in a private institution. Dr. G. exposed me to great books, films and […]
They say good things come in 3’s and that has never been more true than right now. I’ve done 2 reviews for places in New Paltz, NY before: the amazing, mind-blowing, organic eatery, Karma Road, and the hip, fun Italian restaurant filled with vegan and gluten-free options, Rock Da Pasta. Now this college town hits […]
On the 4th of July as we celebrate Independence Day of the United States, we should of course remember all those who are not free, humans and non-humans alike. And we should set an example for how easy and essential it is to liberate oneself from a lifestyle filled with cruelty so that one day all […]
