About moi

Originally posted 4/28/2009 

Salutations! So I've been plant-based for a super long time and when I started, there were few guides for people who cooked what I liked to eat. Normal food.
You see, even as a kid, I could not stand the idea of eating meat. My Mom still made all of her Mother's (bomb) old-school, meat-heavy recipes. It all smelled so delicious, but the idea of it made me sick. I grew up with this love/hate relationship with meat. I knew it tasted good, but I never felt good about eating a once living thing.

When I was 13 or so, I watched a piece on Oprah about factory farms. It was the gasoline to my little plant-based fire. I immediately told my mom that I'd no longer be eating meat. She immediately said: "I guess you're going to have to learn how to cook."


Challenge accepted. I'm now a Mom w/ kiddos who love chicken nugs, Happy Meals and the like. I refuse to impose my personal beliefs on anyone though. I instead choose to show people that life and food can be just as delicious without chewing organs, skin, and blood. (I kid, I kid!) Seriously though, there's no reason why you can't sit down with the pickiest of eaters and enjoy an awesome meat-free meal. Am I gonna lose my junk if they eat a grilled cheese at school? No. Life's short, y'all.
My hope is that they'll grow up and make good choices. That's all one can do. Since it's just me on this crusade, I jokingly call myself a solotarian. But it works. (Until, of course, I convert the masses of your smug little meat filled faces :P I'm sharing my favorite recipes in hopes that you love them enough to make them with or for the people you love. These recipes are all love letters because I just love them so much! It makes me happy to eat, happy to cook, happy that I'm privileged enough to get to choose what kind of food I want. And I'm so super happy to have a place to keep all my favorite food memories. I hope they make you happy too. And if you're a new vegan or vegetarian, take heart. It's a big change and don't beat yourself up if you slip up. I'm just hoping these recipes inspire you to move onward in deliciousness! With so much love,
tish