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| stuffedveggies! |
So, how is this blog unique, and why should you consider coming back or subscribing?
These are what I consider to be the distinctives of this blog:
- A Christian Worldview (Greek Orthodox to be precise), with ideas for Lenten menus, and occasional posts on Christianity.
- Vegan freezer meals and "Once a Month" or batch style cooking plans (lots more are in the works!).
- Menu plans both for all Vegan meals and for Omnivore & Vegans eating together.
- Ideas for how to accommodate the Omnivore in your life.
- Frugal recipes without a lot of overpriced ingredients - while still some of the healthiest menus imaginable.
- Simple Preparation - generally quick and easy.
- Lots of Crock Pot or Slow Cooker vegan recipes - but where possible other methods are offered too, for those who may not have one of these appliances.
- Recipes to make your own vegan pantry mixes and spice blends, as well as master recipes for versatile sauces and other ingredients.
- Intrinsically Kid-friendly foods - in that I believe ALL foods which are well prepared and not too spicy are kid friendly! My young daughter eats all of the meals featured here (except avocado - she's still thinking that one over ; )
- Mostly health focused, plant-based, whole foods recipes which are usually (but not always) compatible with or adaptable to McDougall, Esselstyn, Forks Over Knives, Campbell, or Ornish ways of eating.
- Ideas for incorporating your vegan diet into your very real life - whether you're a single vegan, living with someone who eats differently, or coming home too exhausted to cook at the end of a workday.
- Occasional posts or tips on basic cooking skills - since not everyone here has 100 years experience in the kitchen.
- Recipes featuring foods that are naturally inexpensive & healthful (or at least healthier than their standard counterparts) - no posts on how you can save a lot of money IF you clip coupons, spend hours researching sale flyers & live on a lot of processed convenience foods- instead, foods that are inexpensive ALL THE TIME - and healthy to boot!
- These are my own recipes for family cooking, many of which I have been using for years. If I remember where I got a recipe idea, I do my best to say so as accurately as possible, and tell how I modified them from the original, if appropriate. Some are my original creations from the ground up, and will have no notes about origin.
- Posts on my other interests, such as Christianity, Homeschooling, Books & Travel.
- I generally schedule one post per week, to go up at 8:00 Monday mornings. I occasionally post at other times if there is a compelling reason (like a post about a Saint might be scheduled for his or her Feast Day)\
- As of 2017, I am expanding to include recipes for Omnivores. If you have a family with family members who eat differently, this might help you. Also, if you're an Orthodox Christian who follows the Feasts & Fasts of the Church, you'll find both Vegan and Omnivore recipes useful.
What you won't find here:
- F00dp0rn/Eye Candy - my photographs are intended to be informational. I'm not an artist, but a Midwestern Housewife. I don't even think it's good to encourage an excessive desire for food, nor do I have the ability to do so if I wanted to!
- A lot of weird food. Of course - that's all in what you define as weird, but most of my menus are pretty supermarket-friendly. Although, you WILL save more money by hitting ethnic markets for items like lentils, bulgur, tahini, capers, tapioca starch, and spices.
- A laid-back, non-militant attitude about vegan diets. I'm fond of vegan cooking, and believe that veganism is best for health, but I am vegetarian rather than strictly vegan - don't be scandalized if you see me eating a cookie at Church coffee hour! If you're just going to be eating ONE vegan meal a week where you used to eat a Bacon Cheeseburger - I think that's a great improvement! One step at a time : ) Since the Greek Orthodox Church, of which I am a member, encourages a vegan diet about half the year, I always have an active interest in vegan menus and recipes, even on days when I don't eat that way.
- Little to no fake food here! I enjoy traditional foods that have been vegan for millennia (most cultures have several dishes to choose from). I'm not a fan of imitation meat or cheese. I use nondairy milk and vegan margarine, and burgers that taste nothing like meat - very sparingly. To be blunt, after nearly 2 decades of vegetarianism, meat looks like roadkill to me. Why would I want a nice piece of fake roadkill on my plate? ; ) Besides being unattractive to me, such foods are generally over processed, less healthy, and overpriced.
- No incredible claims of "Eat for 10cents a week!" Or "Cook dinner in 5 minutes tonight!" If you surf cooking sites much you'll see all sorts of really unbelievable (and unverified) claims of time or money saving. No such things here. I'll suggest the naturally inexpensive ingredients and the naturally efficient cooking methods - but no ridiculous "savings" claims. Just good, basic, sensible frugality & stewardship of time and money.
A note about Copyright:
All pictures and posts and stuff in this blog (that's fancy legalese ; ) are copyrighted. Please don't borrow without asking. Having said that, don't be afraid to ask, I'm a pretty agreeable person!
Just put your request in the comments under the post you'd like to use - and I'll reply there. Please be sure to provide a link to the place where the content will be used (your blog or whatever). Hopefully one day I'll figure out how to do a "Contact Us" page, and make this easier : )
If you ask, and I agree to you using my content, I ask that you use the phrase "Used by Permission" with a link to this blog, and agree that all uses will be consistent and compatible with my Christian and dietary perspective.
