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About Amazon Smile: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_rspo_laas_aas

 by Lucia Rivera, VRG Intern

Beyond the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich and accompanying side of fruit, vegan lunch options range from school-offered healthy offerings, to personalized salads, soups, sandwiches, and more! For vegan kids in any grade, a delicious and satisfying lunch can have an amazing effect on their day. Whether or not a school offers lunch and snack options for vegan students, the possibilities are endless of what can fill one’s lunch box every day.

My high school in Southern California did start providing daily vegan options for students in 2018. They present these on a smartphone school lunch app, which indicates all options students have on respective days. For daily lunches, the school cafeteria prepares items such as three bean salad, baked butternut squash, and spicy lime cucumber rounds that are all indicated to be free of eggs, dairy, meat, and fish. These all can be picked up relatively quickly by students at the cafeteria whether a student is vegan, vegetarian, or just wants to eat something new and healthy.

Depending on personal preference, however, preparing lunches at home may be part of one’s daily routine. This only widens the opportunities for amazing vegan lunches. If preparing homemade lunches, it is never a bad idea to start by trying out the basics. For example, as mentioned previously, the traditional peanut butter and jelly sandwich is a coincidentally vegan recipe that has room for modification. There are a variety of nut and seed butters that each add their own twist to a sandwich, just as there are many marmalades, jams, and spreads that can complement a specific flavor! I personally have enjoyed using almond butter with raspberry jam and substituting sunflower seed butter for my brother who had nut allergies. Nut or seed butter also tastes amazing with bananas or another kind of sweet addition. If sandwich form gets repetitive, lunches can also consist of fruit slices with peanut, almond, soy nut, or other butter. Vegan soy “deli meat” can also be used in sandwiches along with lettuce, tomato, avocado, vegan cheese substitutes, and anything else that one likes. Other optional ingredients include vegan cream cheese, hummus, sliced tempeh or tofu, and vegan margarine.

Another great tool – thermos containers – are not to be forgotten! These can keep any variety of soup warm throughout the day, ranging from vegetable noodle to miso soup. Penne pasta with marinara sauce can also retain its heat in a thermos, as does vegan mac and cheese. Tofu and rice can be mixed and packed in a thermos too, with a dressing included or kept on the side. Warm lunches can also include other vegan options like bean chili, veggie burgers, veggie hot dogs, warm wraps, and more! An alternative way to keep lunches warm for a couple hours is by using insulated lunch bags or wrapping sandwiches/wraps in aluminum foil. Warm wraps usually include a choice of vegan meat and melted vegan cheese with a kick of cooked or fresh vegetables. For example, one warm vegan wrap recipe is a vegan chicken ranch wrap.

Cold lunches, on the other hand, can focus on main dishes of pasta salads, cold wraps, fresh spring rolls, and to-go Buddha bowls. Buddha bowls can be personalized to include one’s preference of vegetables and beans (like sweet potato, broccoli, and edamame beans) and sauce to add to the bowl’s tofu component. Cold wraps are a lunch choice that can often be overlooked, but are perfect for personalization, like sandwiches are. Yet, their use of tortilla, pita, or other type of wrap distinguishes them from the typical sandwich. One of my personal favorite vegan lunches is a store-bought hummus and vegetable wrap that is perfect to eat on the go, without requiring heating up or preparation. Lunches can also be easily made at home, whether made during weekly meal prepping, or separate every morning.

In addition to a delicious main dish, lunches can also include specific snacks and side dishes. Some snacks include granola bars, dried fruit, fresh fruit or vegetables, vegetable chips, pretzels, rice cakes, vegan muffins, and hummus with carrot sticks. There are also dozens of other snacks that can complement lunch daily. Many grocery stores offer even more varieties of vegan snacks, including roasted and salted edamame beans, which I have brought as a snack to school on a variety of occasions. Side dishes can easily be created with a small green salad of spinach and cherry tomatoes, or roasted broccoli and potatoes. More complicated side dishes include tempeh potato croquettes and vegan scalloped potatoes.

Overall, whatever one may be craving as they wait for the bell to ring before lunch, there is always a vegan option that can satisfy their needs. From salads, to sandwiches, to wraps, vegan lunches can become the highlight of a great day—whether from home or the cafeteria.

For other school lunch ideas, see:

https://www.vrg.org/teen/#food
https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2007issue4/2007_issue4_pb_j.php

Due to the generosity of an anonymous donor, The Vegetarian Resource Group each year will award $20,000 in college scholarship money to graduating U.S. high school students who have promoted veganism/vegetarianism in their schools and/or communities. Vegetarians do not eat meat, fish, or fowl. Vegans are vegetarians who do not use other animal products such as dairy or eggs.

One award of $10,000 and two awards of $5,000 will be given. Entries may only be sent by students graduating from high school in spring 2019. Deadline is February 20, 2020. We will accept applications postmarked on or before February 20, 2020. Early submission is encouraged!

Applicants will be judged on having shown compassion, courage, and a strong commitment to promoting a peaceful world through a vegan/vegetarian diet/lifestyle. Payment will be made to the student’s college (U.S. based only). Winners of the scholarships give permission to release their names to the media. Applications and essays become property of The Vegetarian Resource Group. We may ask finalists for more information. Scholarship winners are contacted by e-mail or telephone. Please look at your e-mail.

For details on the contest, see: http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

The promo is for a 6-count Variety Medley only. Your promo code is: VGR25. The regular cost for the 6-ct Variety Medley is $35.99 PLUS shipping for a total cost of around $50.00.

The promo code provides a discount and FREE shipping at the final cost of $25.00 (50% off).

Go to: https://www.vegetariantraveler.com/product/medley-variety-6case/

Vegetarian Traveler® was formed by founders Christy and Chuck. They have been vegetarians for decades and found that, like many of us, eating away from home presented a challenge. They developed Toasted Bean Blends that offer single-serve, convenient, shelf-stable vegan proteins using simple ingredients.

See: https://www.vegetariantraveler.com/product/medley-variety-6case/

Offer ends December 31, 2019!

The Vegetarian Resource Group is a vegan activist non-profit organization that does outreach all-year-long. For example, VRG tables at different events throughout the USA and also sends literature free of charge to other groups/individuals doing educational activities in schools, hospitals, camps, restaurants, libraries, offices, etc. Our ability to continue doing this depends on people like you! Your donations allow us to promote the vegan message whenever we’re called upon for assistance. Please consider becoming a monthly or quarterly donor to The Vegetarian Resource Group.

Thanks so much for your support. You can donate online here: vrg.org/donate

By Lucia Rivera, VRG intern

4 Day Menu of Latin American Vegan Dishes

Abuela’s tamales, your favorite soups and stews, and the best tacos you have ever had – and all vegan. The sphere of Latin American traditional and adapted recipes include some amazing vegan options for anyone who wishes to enjoy the culinary aspect of the Latinx culture while staying true to their own ethical lifestyle. As a vegetarian Latina who loves food, I can undoubtedly say that despite the most common Latin American dishes being stuffed, flavored, mixed with, or primarily consisting of meat and dairy products, Latinx vegans and vegetarians do, in fact, exist! There are numerous ways for someone used to traditional Latin American food to enjoy that part of their culture while adapting to veganism, whether it be through replacing ingredients or simply avoiding them. As a large part of the Latinx culture, food is central to connecting with others and can be enjoyed by all eaters, including vegetarians and vegans.

Any Latinx recipes can be altered to replace chicken, beef, pork, or any other meat with soy or vegetable faux meat. Tacos are a classic example of a popular Latin American meal that can easily be made vegan with some black beans, soy-based ground beef, and any choice of vegan toppings. Toppings range from vegetable-based salsas, to sour cream-free guacamole, to the simple additions of lime, salt, chiles, and diced onion. It is also not uncommon for taco trucks or shops to offer a vegetarian or vegan option, which goes to show how simple these changes can be. I have personally had delicious jackfruit tacos, soy “fish” and chip tacos, and vegetable and mushroom fajita tacos that each offered an amazing vegan alternative to traditional taco recipes.

As someone with Mexican and Nicaraguan heritage, I am mostly writing about Mexican and Central American dishes in this article. Therefore, options I mention in this article are only a few of the thousands of recipes from Latin America. For example, in some South American countries like Venezuela, quinoa is used as a great, nutritious vegan option that can be added to taco recipes.

When eating out however (especially at traditional restaurants), some orders that may appear vegan could surprisingly contain animal products. Examples of this are when some restaurants fry beans and tortillas in lard, or when chicken broth is used to cook rice. It can help vegans to ask the waiter or chef at a restaurant to confirm a dish is animal product-free, especially if one has concerns about a specific ingredient like refined sugar. While sweet corn tamales made by a relative might not include sugar or sour cream, at an unfamiliar restaurant it would be safer to double check. For home cooking, all dairy and meat ingredients can be replaced with a number of plant-based alternatives of one’s own preference. It is easier to enjoy these possibilities in one’s own home where you have the opportunity to experiment with your own cooking.  Whether Latin American vegan dishes are prepared at home or enjoyed at a restaurant, they fully transmit all the tradition, culture, and deliciousness of traditional Latinx recipes.

Alternatively, if one does not want to put replacement meat and dairy to use, there are other options that can satisfy comfort food cravings. For example, even though Salvadoran pupusas (stovetop-cooked tortilla-like dough encased around a filling) can be stuffed with chicken, they also can be ordered or prepared filled with delicious beans or loroco, which is an edible flower that is grown in Central America. Important staple ingredients for many Latin American dishes are also coincidentally vegan. These include both corn and wheat tortillas, guacamole (most of the time), rice, and lots of salsas. Luckily, many different vegetables are staples in Latin American foods, ranging from corn to squash to chile.

Legumes of different kinds are also found all over Latin America at almost every dinner table and restaurant, offering the perfect chance for a vegan meal. Someone who refrains from eating meat can still get tons of nutrients from the daily serving of beans that is common in most Latinx households. Most Latin American countries and regions have a specific type of bean that they mostly use. In Nicaragua it is a smaller reddish bean, while in Mexico more often recipes use pinto beans. Besides many different types of beans, varying kinds of lentils and peas are popular in recipes like pigeon peas used in the Puerto Rican, arroz con gandules which can be vegan-ized with a soy “pork” alternative. Overall, vegetables and fruits are typically found in breakfast, lunch, and dinner, whether in a main dish or as a side. An example of this is the avocado, which is used to give many vegan salsas a creamier texture and used as a topping on a range of dishes. As a side dip, guacamole is an essential component to Mexican meals, as is an option of cabbage to top off one’s platter.

For people who have recently become vegan and wish to find ways to adjust their own favorite recipes, the internet is a great place to get inspiration. Although it may not have been true a few years ago, there is now an abundance of cookbooks, blogs, and single recipes aimed right at the Latinx and vegan demographic. Some examples of recipe alterations that are suggested include replacing lentils for ground meat, using cashew-lime cream, tofu on tostadas, or jackfruit in tacos. Another option to try is using a replacement for cheese in Latin American dishes, which can be done at home with nutritional yeast and vegetables, or can be bought at many grocery stores. Vegan cheese is another way to adapt a non-vegan recipe without falling far from its traditional components! With recipes like these available on the internet, it is not such a daunting task to take on veganism and stay connected with the food of your culture.

To view more Latin American vegan recipes, peruse the links below:

Peruvian Vegan Cuisine

Vegan Mexican Meal Plan

Guatemalan Vegan Cuisine

Colombian Andean Vegan Cuisine

Mexican Vegan Cuisine

Vegan Tamales

Brazilian Vegan Cuisine

Ecuadorian Vegan Cuisine

Argentine Vegan Cuisine

South American Soup Recipes

Glossary:

Chilaquiles – traditional baked Mexican dish of layered tortilla, filling, and sauce

Empanada – Crispy outer dough encased around a choice of filling (can be sweet or savory)

Plantain – a fruit, similar to a banana, used in many Latin American recipes

Pozole – type of Mexican soup traditionally made with hominy, meat (you can use a vegan meat), and vegetables

Pupusa – stovetop-cooked tortilla-like dough encased around a filling

You may want to attend Earthsave Baltimore’s final potluck event of the year, our annual “Thanks-Living Vegan Celebration.” We’ll enjoy some great vegan food and fellowship, and live music as well. You’ll have a chance to introduce yourself and share a success story or some thoughts on gratitude. That’s Saturday, November 30th, from 6:00 until 8:30. We’re looking forward to a special evening. Join us if you can.

Dinner Guests may choose to either bring a dish made without animal products (to serve 8) plus $5 (members pay just $2) donation; pay $15 (members pay just $12) to enjoy dinner and presentation; or pay $5 for presentation only. We eat first, then make announcements, and then hear the presentation. Let us know in advance, if possible, if you plan to pay for dinner rather than bring a dish. RSVP by calling 410-252-3043, or emailing [email protected]. Meetings are held at Govans Presbyterian Church, 5828 York Rd, Baltimore, 21212. Please RSVP and join us! See for more news and upcoming events.

Church is located next to the Senator Theater at 5828 York Road, near Towson, in Baltimore. Drive around church to large parking lot, where you’ll see white Earthsave banner near the Fellowship Hall entry. http://earthsavebaltimore.org/node/77

Please RSVP by phone or email as to whether you plan to bring food to share.) 410-252-3043 Invite Facebook friends: www.facebook.com/events/2398083150403719/

There are so many ways to prepare vegan stuffing for Thanksgiving! We thought we’d once again share an article by Chef Nancy Berkoff that previously ran in our Vegetarian Journal that includes recipes for Eggplant-Tomato Stuffing, Oatmeal-Walnut Stuffing, Goodies-From-the-Garden Stuffing, Chock-Full-of-Corn Stuffing, Fruited Bread Stuffing, Apple and Raisin Stuffing, and Spinach and Roasted Pepper Stuffing.

Read the entire article here: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj97nov/97bstuff.htm

Subscribe to Vegetarian Journal in the USA only by visiting https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

You can also subscribe to the Kindle version of Vegetarian Journal in the USA and United Kingdom.

In the USA, visit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07LBY2Y7K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1544727482&sr=8-1&keywords=B07LBY2Y7K In the United Kingdom, visit: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07LBY2Y7K/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1544731957&sr=8-1&keywords=B07LBY2Y7K

The Vegetarian Resource Group is hosting our 38th Annual Pre-Thanksgiving Vegan Potluck Dinner on Sunday, November 24th, 2019 at 5 PM. The event is taking place at:

North Baltimore Mennonite Church
4615 Roland Avenue
Baltimore MD 21210

We will be showing appreciation for turkeys by not eating them! Come join us for a variety of festive, delicious vegan dishes! Please bring a vegan dish – free of meat, fish, poultry, dairy, eggs, honey, or any other animal by-products – that serves 4 per adult attending.

Adult admission is $5 and children eat free! Any questions call (410) 366-8343 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.

Also, you may want to bring a vegan canned good for the church that will be used for feeding the hungry. We hope to see you there!

The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG) is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on vegetarianism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, environment, ethics, and world hunger. Our health professionals, activists, and educators work with businesses and individuals to bring about healthy changes in schools, workplaces, and the community. Registered dietitians and physicians aid in the development of nutrition-related publications and answer questions about the vegetarian and vegan diet. For the past 25 years, we have commissioned polls exploring vegetarian-related issues, results of which are often used by researchers, the food industry, and the media. Financial support comes primarily from memberships, contributions, and book sales.  

We welcome the opportunity to comment on Horizontal Approaches to Food Standards of Identity Modernization. We commend FDA for their commitment to protecting consumers against economic adulteration; maintaining the nutritional integrity of food; and providing flexibility to encourage manufacturers to produce more healthful foods. As a consumer organization, we also prioritize providing clear, helpful label information that consumers can use to make an informed choice and to be able to find the foods that they are looking for. It is important for Standards of Identity to be modernized so that label information is relevant to today’s consumers.

We recognize the need to update Standards of Identity. Regardless of the approach used to update these Standards, it is important to meet the needs of a variety of consumers.  We have both specific and broader suggestions for meeting the needs of vegetarians, vegans, and those who wish to eat vegetarian and vegan foods.

According to our most recent poll (1), about 4% of adults in the United States consistently follow a vegetarian diet, about half of these are vegan and do not eat any animal products. People choose to follow vegetarian or vegan diets for a variety of reasons including health, ecological, and religious concerns, dislike of meat, compassion for animals, belief in non-violence, and economics. Many other people avoid dairy products and/or meat products due to environmental concerns; health issues such as allergies, lactose intolerance, or hypercholesterolemia; or for other reasons. Our most recent poll (1) finds 46% of American adults sometimes or always eating vegetarian (including vegan) meals. This segment is likely to increase since 60% of 18-34 year olds always/sometimes eat vegetarian (including vegan) meals when eating out. Clearly, a large and growing segment of the population needs products to be labeled in a way that meets their needs as consumers of plant-based products.

Vegetarians and those interested in reducing animal product consumption commonly use plant-based products (milks, cheeses, yogurts, meats) in place of animal-based products. The plant-based products are used to add variety, to enable users to prepare foods similar to those made with animal-based products, and, in some instances, to supply nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, and protein. Label information should allow consumers to recognize plant-based products that replace meat or dairy products using familiar words like “burger,” “milk,” “cheese,” or “bacon.”

Our understanding of dairy terms like milk, yogurt and cheese, and meat terms like burger, sausage, or bacon, when they are used to label plant-based products is that these products are plant-based alternatives to animal-based products. In many, although not all cases, plant-based products can be used in food preparation and will behave similarly to animal-based products. For example, plant-based cheese may be used to top pizza; plant-based milk used to make a cream soup. Just as different dairy milks and cheeses have different tastes, characteristics, and uses, so do plant-based milks. For instance, chocolate milk, even though it’s labeled as milk, would not be used to make a savory dish. Similarly, replacing Cheddar cheese with ricotta cheese in macaroni and cheese would result in a very different product. Despite these differences, these products are all identified as milk or cheese. Considering the wide variety of animal-based products identified as milk, cheese, or yogurt, it does not seem incongruous to also identify plant-based products as milk, cheese, or yogurt with a modifier identifying the main plant ingredient (e.g. soy milk, cashew cheese, almond milk yogurt). Similarly plant-based meat replacers could be identified as “soy burger,” “tempeh bacon,” or “tofu-based sausage.”

The Nutrition Facts and ingredient list on food labels along with front of label information allows consumers to evaluate the nutritional characteristics of plant-based products. Our website, and those of other vegan organizations, encourage consumers to seek out plant-based products that are fortified with nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin B12 if they rely on these products as a source of these nutrients. Consumers are aware that there are nutritional differences between plant-based and animal-based products. We note that terms such as coconut milk and peanut butter have been used for many years without confusion as to their plant origins or to these products’ nutritional differences from cow’s milk or dairy butter.

We believe that prohibiting plant-food labels from including words like milk, cheese, burgers, sausage, and yogurt in the name of these products would lead to consumer confusion. We urge you to permit the labeling of plant-based products with names that include milk, cheese, burgers, sausage, and yogurt.

Our suggestion for allowing for increased flexibility and for providing useful information is to use standardized label terminology. The following terms are proposed:

• Plant-based: Used to indicate a product that contains exclusively ingredients not originating from animals
• Mainly plant-based: Used to indicate a product that contains mainly ingredients not-originating from animals
• Animal-based: Used to indicate a product that contains mainly or exclusively animal-based ingredients
• Vegan: Used to indicate a product that
  • Does not an contain animal products (meat, fish, fowl, dairy, eggs, and honey) or ingredients derived from animals such as vitamin D3 from lanolin
  • Is not produced with animal-based processing aids or with processing procedures using animal products such as bone char for cane sugar
  • Does not contain insects or insect-derived ingredients, or insect secretions
  • Does not contain animal genes and is not genetically derived from animals

Nutrient Content Claims such as “high in” or “good source of” could be used to indicate plant-based or vegan products that provide significant amounts of key nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, iron, and vitamin B12 that consumers may expect to be in animal-sourced products.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this issue.

References

1. Stahler C. How many adults in the U.S are vegetarian and vegan? How many adults eat vegetarian and vegan meals when eating out? Asks the Vegetarian Resource Group. https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/Polls/2019_adults_veg.htm Published 2019.