By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Sesame seeds are used in many products from being sprinkled on burger buns to being ground into sesame seed paste, which is also called tahini. Approximately 0.23% of children and adults in the United States are allergic to sesame and have reactions to sesame ranging from hives to anaphylactic shock. Until now, sesame was not one of the major allergens that must be named in plain language on the ingredient labels of processed foods. On April 23, 2021, President Biden signed a law making sesame the ninth major allergen that must be listed clearly on the ingredient label of foods. The other major allergens are milk, eggs, wheat, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, and soy.

     All products that use sesame seeds or items derived from them will have to be explicitly labeled after January 1, 2023. Passage of this law will make it easier for those with a sesame allergy to identify products containing sesame. Currently, according to FARE (Food Allergy Research and Education), consumers may see terms like benne seed, tahini, gomasaio, halvah, tehina, and sim sim on products containing sesame. In approximately 18 months, these products, and others containing sesame will have to have a statement on the label that indicates the common or usual name of the major food allergen followed by the food source in parentheses in the list of the ingredients. For example, the ingredient label for packaged hummus containing tahini, would say “tahini (sesame).” The manufacturer could also add “Contains sesame” although this is not required.

References

Warren CM, et al. Prevalence and severity of sesame allergy in the United States. JAMA Network Open 2019;2(8)e199144.

Food allergy advocacy win: the president signs the FASTER Act and makes sesame a major allergen. Kids with Food Allergies. https://community.kidswithfoodallergies.org/blog/sesame-allergy-and-food-allergy-research-supported-by-faster-act. April 23, 2021.

Sesame allergy. FARE. https://www.foodallergy.org/living-food-allergies/food-allergy-essentials/common-allergens/sesame

By Julia Comino, VRG Intern

It is no secret that finding vegetarian and vegan-friendly restaurants in the rural American South can be quite the feat. Having been a vegetarian for the past four years and a Hattiesburg, Mississippi resident my entire life, I have made it my mission to seek out plant-based dining in my area. While often my search has led me to make the trek to the advertised vegan restaurants of New Orleans and other larger cities or into whole-food groceries, I was excited to stumble upon the Petra Café in my own hometown.

Petra Café is a small business dishing out authentic Mediterranean and Greek meals to Hattiesburg locals with a variety of vegan and vegetarian options. The Hattiesburg location is just minutes from the University of Southern Mississippi, and although this restaurant’s exterior is not immediately remarkable, any local can attest to the restaurant’s uniqueness. After taking just one step through its doors, one is met with the heavenly aroma of spices and simmering flavors. The interior is vibrantly decorated with traditional Middle Eastern art and elaborate wall designs. Combining the indoor and outdoor tables, there is enough seating for approximately 50 people.

Although indoor dining has recently been reopened for Petra Café, I opted to order using their limited-exposure pick-up option. I was able to easily place my order online, using their website’s ordering option that clearly labeled which items were vegan, vegetarian, Halal, and gluten-free. Although there are multiple dishes that contain meat on their menu, with the removal of the Grecian sauce or feta cheese, most vegetarian dishes can be customized to be vegan. I only had to wait 15 minutes after ordering, and then my food was ready to be picked up. As I entered the restaurant to receive my meal, I was pleasantly welcomed by the employee at the counter. During our polite conversation, she remarked that Petra Café was like a family and mentioned her appreciation for the restaurant’s owner.

Petra Café was founded in 2007 as the brainchild of Ayman Al-Bataineh. Having moved to Mississippi from Amman, Jordan, Ayman decided to share the flavors he loved from his mother’s kitchen with the residents of Hattiesburg offering up traditionally veggie dishes such as Baba Ghanouj and Dolmas (stuffed grape leaves).

For my order I decided to try Petra’s hummus appetizer. This thick, creamy, chickpea dip was accompanied by slices of warm, freshly made pita bread. The hummus was topped with roasted chickpeas, a drizzle of lemon, a sprinkling of spice mix, and a sprig of cilantro. To fully enjoy this wonderfully composed classic I recommend incorporating each component of this dish into one flavorful bite. 

For my entrée, I chose Petra’s Falafel Sandwich. This item was composed of toasted pita bread stuffed full of homemade falafel (a crispy chickpea fritter), tomatoes, lettuce, and a generous spread of tahini and hummus. This sandwich requires two hands and biting into the packed pita is quite an accomplishment. Although I only tried a few items from their wide selection of flavors, I was more than satisfied by the portions of my meal.

Petra Café’s exuberant atmosphere and the exceedingly well-crafted traditional dishes offered have ensured me that I will become one of this restaurant’s regulars. I must admit, I have been back once already since my initial visit. Should you find yourself in Hattiesburg, Mississippi anytime soon, make sure to stop by Petra Café for amazing veggie Mediterranean and Greek flavors.

For more information about Petra Café, visit: https://petracafe.net/

For more information on vegetarian and vegan restaurants around the United States and Canada see our Restaurant Guide at: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

Create and submit a video relating what you want to tell others about vegetarianism/veganism.

Some possible topics: food, nutrition, your feelings about veganism/vegetarianism, water usage and vegetarianism, veganism and animal rights, or other vegan topics which appeal to you. Humor and feelings are appreciated. All videos should be positive, not be critical of anyone, and not include any footage of animal cruelty. You may submit a video you have already made.

Aspects of judging include accuracy and judges wanting to share the video with others. Entrants give permission to The Vegetarian Resource Group to post and share the video, to link to and from the video, and share the video with the media. Deadline to enter this year is July 15, 2021.

Details on the contest can be found here:

https://www.vrg.org/videoscholarship.php

By Shantika Bhat, VRG Intern

(Makes 9 servings)

1 cup moong whole dal (lentils)

1 cup masoor dal (lentils)

7 cups water

5 teaspoons oil

2 teaspoons mustard seeds

2 teaspoons cumin (jeera)

2 broken dried red chilies

1-4 curry leaves

A pinch hing (asafoetida)

1-1/2 medium-sized onions, chopped

3-4 teaspoons minced garlic

3-4 teaspoons minced ginger

⅓ cup chopped green bell pepper

1 cup chopped cabbage

2 cups chopped carrots

4 medium-sized tomatoes, chopped

½ cup chopped cauliflower

3 teaspoons turmeric

2 teaspoons red chili powder

2 teaspoons garam masala

1 teaspoon coriander powder

4-5 cups water

Salt to taste

In a large pot put moong whole dal and masoor dal and rinse them (drain water). Add 7 cups water and let the dal cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes until soft. Set that aside. In another pot, add oil, mustard seed, dried red chilis, cumin, curry leaves, hing, and fry in oil for 4 minutes. Then add onion, garlic, and ginger and continue to fry. Add turmeric, red chili powder, coriander, and garam masala and prevent from sticking to the pot by quickly adding tomatoes and green bell peppers and continue frying slowly. Once that’s cooked add cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, and 1 cup of water. Let that cook for 4 minutes. Add the dal from the other pot into this pot and add around 3-4 cups of water depending on how thick you want the dal. Add salt. Cook for 10-15 minutes.

Doesn’t vegan pizza and calzones sound like the perfect comfort food during a pandemic? Debra Daniels-Zeller’s Vegetarian Journal article “Dairy-Free Pizza & Calzones” serves up these delicious recipes that you can prepare in your own home:

Basic Pizza, Calzone, or Focaccia Dough

Quick Fruit Pizza

Mushroom and Artichoke Calzone

Pesto Potato Calzone

Vegan Pesto

Amaranth-Kamut Individual Pizzas

Black Bean Fiesta Pizza

Roasted Vegetable And Sun-Dried Tomato Pizza

Debra also shows you how to rescue overrisen dough and describes pizza essentials. See: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2002issue4/2002_issue4_pizza.php

To subscribe to Vegetarian Journal in the USA, see: https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

By Clarissa Hauber, VRG Intern

My high school internship with The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG), which took place over the 2020-2021 school year, was a fantastic experience. While VRG internships typically occur in an in-person workplace, my internship was entirely virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before applying for the internship, I was unsure of what kind of internship I wanted and if I would even be able to find one during COVID-19. However, it did not take many Google searches before I found VRG. Having been vegetarian for three years and vegan for about a year, I knew I wanted to get more involved with the veggie community but was unsure how – interning for VRG was the perfect opportunity. Working for VRG allowed me to get involved, discover interests within the food studies field, and develop critical workplace skills.

     Even before my internship began, Charles Stahler, my supervisor, reached out to me during the summer and gave me a list of every assignment I would be doing, and instructed me with building a plan for the next six months. At first, having to digitally map out my work calendar seemed overwhelming and a bit intimidating, but it became a beneficial experience, as it taught me how to time-manage and plan for months’ worth of online projects.

     Soon after starting, Debra, one of Vegetarian Journal’s editors, asked me to help with The VRG country-wide online restaurant guide – researching a different restaurant each week and filling out a template with the restaurant type, address, menu, etc. Working on the restaurant guide was simple, but with each entry, I felt productive. Not to mention how great it was to see all the unique vegan dishes that so many restaurants had to offer.

     Not long after, I began writing my first article. The topic was a teen FAQ, and I wrote about going vegan while living in an omnivorous household. I had never written an article, and it proved to be a valuable experience in developing my writing voice. In the article, I talked about my own experience going vegan with an omnivorous family and provided the reader with steps to do the same. I even had two of my vegan friends provide some of their own insight!

    One aspect of the internship that I enjoyed was how centralized it was around cooking. During the internship, one of the Vegetarian Journal editors, Rissa, invited me to write for the Veggie Bits column of the VRG magazine. The first Veggie Bits I completed was a review of four different variations of a veggie-based pasta. I got to cook each pasta and write a review at the end. Aside from Veggie Bits, Rissa also provided me with different Vegetarian Journal recipes to test and provide feedback on. Some of my favorite recipes that I tried for her were a BLT made from rice paper, tofu benedict with hollandaise sauce, and maple oat milk popsicles!

     While the internship was virtual, I still had great opportunities to collaborate with others and develop strong online communication skills. In one instance, a student at Loyola University reached out to me, asking for my opinion on some vegan food advertisements. I sent her a few sentences of commentary for each ad, and she was able to use those in an article she was writing. On another occasion, I compared the experiences of three vegan teens in three different regions of the United States. I interviewed two interns through email about their experiences as vegan teens. I then compiled their answers and my own answers into an article. It was a unique experience, as I got to talk to fellow vegan teens and gain insight into what it’s like to be vegan in different parts of the country.

     One of the last assignments at VRG was reviewing my favorite Baltimore restaurant, One World Café. This was an especially fun assignment as I got to ramble about all the yummy foods they have. One World Café is such a staple restaurant for me as a vegan; I was glad I had the opportunity to encourage others to try it.

     Whether I was writing cookbook reviews, restaurant reviews, essay commentary, articles, or was testing new recipes – my internship at VRG was an exciting step into the world of vegan advocacy and food studies. I look forward to applying what I’ve learned at VRG in my future studies as a Global Public Health and Food Studies student at NYU next school year.

For more information about VRG internships, see vrg.org/student/index.php

To support VRG internships, donate at vrg.org/donate, call (410) 366-8343, or mail a check to VRG, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203.

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

If you’ve ever wondered if your vegetable consumption is similar to that of the average American, you will enjoy scrolling through reports from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA keeps records of how much food is available each year, on average, for each person in the United States. They do this by tracking domestic production, initial inventories, and imports of a particular food (for example broccoli) and then subtracting exports and end-of-year inventories. The national supply is divided by the U.S. population to calculate an estimate of food availability per person. While these estimates of food availability cannot tell us how much of a food an individual person eats, they provide an estimate of what is available for the average American individual. These estimates can be used to identify trends in food production.

The most recent report looks at the years 2000 to 2019. The part of the report that examines vegetables shows that over these two decades, the total amount of vegetables available decreased by 4 percent from 417.4 pounds per capita to 400.1 pounds. These totals include fresh, frozen, canned, and dried forms of vegetables.

The largest increase in vegetable availability was in the red and orange subgroup which includes sweet potatoes, chile peppers, and bell peppers. In 2019, 49 pounds of these foods were available per capita, compared to 35.1 pounds in 2000. Dark green vegetable availability also increased going from 21.7 pounds per capita in 2000 to 27.5 pounds in 2019. This subgroup includes broccoli, kale, spinach, and romaine and leaf lettuce.

More legumes were available in 2019 – 11.1 pounds per capita compared to 8.5 pounds per capita in 2000.

It’s encouraging to see that more red and orange and dark green vegetables and legumes are available since these are important sources of nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, and zinc.

Other vegetables with greater availability over the past 20 years include

• Asparagus 1.3 lbs/capita à 1.9 lbs/capita
• Brussels sprouts 0.3 lbs/capita à 0.8 lbs/capita
• Carrots 13 lbs/capita à 16.6 lbs/capita
• Kale 0.4 lbs/capita à 1.1 lbs/capita
• Squash 4.4 lbs/capita à 5.9 lbs/capita

And with lower availability:

• Lima beans 0.56 lbs/capita à 0.37 lbs/capita
• Cabbage 10.3 lbs/capita à 7.1 lbs/capita
• Corn 27.1 lbs/capita à 18.9 lbs/capita
• Green peas 3.7 lbs/capita à 1.9 lbs/capita
• White potatoes 138 lbs/capita à 119.1 lbs/capita

It’s fun to speculate about what led to these changes.

Resources

https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2021/february/us-supplies-of-vegetables-available-to-eat-in-2019-down-slightly-from-2000-but-variety-has-grown/

https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-availability-per-capita-data-system/

See The Vegetarian Resource Group’s 2021 YouGov poll of 8- to 17-year-olds in the United States at https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/Yougov2021youthteenwriteup.pdf900

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Here are some recent vegan restaurant additions. The entire guide can be found here: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support the updating of this online restaurant guide, please donate at: www.vrg.org/donate

Here are some new additions to VRG’s guide (Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic many are doing take-out and/or delivery now):

Apron Strings, 434 Porter Ave., Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Located in the greater Biloxi area, Apron Strings is a fully-vegan bakery with a rotating menu of lunch foods offered as grab-n-go items. A small selection of retail products is available as well. Diners rave about the cupcakes and po-boy sandwiches. Parking is available in front.

Bar Vegan, Ponce City Market, 675 Ponce de Leon Ave. NE, Ste. N-215, Atlanta, GA 30308

This minority-woman-owned bar and lounge (from the same owner as popular restaurant Slutty Vegan) is upstairs in the Ponce City Market Food Hall, which has a number of other cocktail bars and wineries.  It has a cool, classy ambience, with a DJ, velvet chairs, and big screen TVs. Bar Vegan serves a very wide range of drinks, specializing in cocktails combining nutritious vegan ingredients with alcohol. Vegan food — a delicious Vegan Philly cheese steak and tater totz — is also available, under the ‘Dinkies’ label. Food and soft drinks can be ordered to go from a take-out window as well as for eating in the bar.

Eliza’s Vegan Café, varies, Florence, SC

This fully vegan café focuses on organic, local café dining—“on wheels”! As a food truck, you can see their locations and schedule on their website or social media accounts. Order can range from popcorn chicken salad, bacon cheeseburgers, three layered lasagna, and much more!

GuacStar, 920 E. University Dr. #204, Tempe, AZ 85281

GuacStar is a refined way to eat Mexican plant-based cuisine. They “want to make healthy food sexy.” They have a great variety of flavorful tacos, rice, nachos, desserts, and drinks. Examples include: Tres Leches Cake, Seasonal Guacamole, Chimi Cheeseburger, and La Casa Maragarita. Located in the heart of downtown across the street from Arizona State University Campus.

MeDiet Café, 7293 W. Sahara Ave., Ste. 8, Las Vegas, NV 89117

MeDiet Café has a unique and heartwarming story, as the founder’s mother inspired him to always eat healthy. He dealt with cancer, which further made him want to promote healthy eating with blogs and his variety of healthy items offered at his cafe. MeDiet has wonderful options of pancakes, acai bowls, juices, smoothies, tacos, soups, and more. Examples include: Cauliflower taco, avocado BLT, vegan cake pops, French onion soups, and blueberry pancakes. Located near Spring Valley in Las Vegas, this definitely is a hot place to check out!

Planta, Rosemary Square, 700 South Rosemary Ave., Ste. 142, West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Planta promotes environmental sustainability. Their menu includes vegan sushi, their signature Planta burger, spicy lumaconi pasta with cashew mozzarella, and unique pizza combinations (gluten-free dough available). Several items are available to share with friends including cauliflower tots with truffle almond parmesan. Planta has an outdoor bar.

Vegan Café Jax, 2624 Atlantic Blvd., Ste. 3, Jacksonville, FL 32207

They serve smoothies, bowls, wraps, quinoa, sandwiches, black bean burgers, soups, salads, beverages, and desserts. The BBQ’d jackfruit and “el vegano” salad look particularly delicious and the “rotating” desserts may be worth the visit alone.

Yummvees, 3511 Courthouse Rd., Richmond, VA 23236

Their brunch menu offers main, sides, and sauces and the dinner menu includes small plates, soup & salad, sandwiches, main dishes, sides and sauces, desserts, and smoothies. You might want to order artichoke lasagna or the butternut squash mac and cheese.

See: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210506005414/en/Impossible-Foods-Secures-Child-Nutrition-Label-for-Impossible%E2%84%A2-Burger-Launches%C2%A0-Insights-Report-on-Kids-Climate-Change