No, this is not an introductory college course on the captive dolphin industry. One hundred and one is the number of dolphins cruelly taken from the wild over a 6-day tragedy in Taiji. I recently wrote to a journalist the following: I know no other cause as worthy of my time as the dolphin cause. It is painful as hell to be a dolphin supporter.
Why is it so painful? When you know that young ones will never see their parents again, your heart breaks. When it happens one hundred and one times, what do you do to mend your broken heart?
To add lasting insult to injury, what do you do when you see the cove turn red because 23 dolphins are being murdered while their family members are swimming nearby, unable to do anything to stop the madness? Again, how do you heal your broken heart?
You write poems. You listen to music. You find joy and laughs when and where you can. And sometimes, you pour your heart out into a blog...
When I was young -- maybe 4 years old, I want to say -- my family and I went to SeaWorld in California. Can I tell you what my favorite memory was going there? It wasn't the show. (And you might argue that's my animal rights activist self re-writing history. No, it's not.)
My favorite memory from that trip to SeaWorld was riding around in a stroller, pushed around by my family. (To be perfectly honest, the simplest things made me happy.)
I would say, if you're a parent or a grandparent, and you're thinking of ways to entertain your children or grandchildren, please -- for the love of dolphins -- do not take them to SeaWorld or any other place where dolphins are held captive, against their will.
Take them to the park. Take them to the mall. Take them to the library. Take them to see a children's theatre production.
But please don't take them to a place that directly or indirectly supports Taiji's captive dolphin trade / slaughter. These places may tell you they oppose drive hunts / drive fisheries; however, by the very nature of holding dolphins in unnatural habitats, the captive dolphin industry fuels what Taiji is doing.
"If you want to know where you would have stood on slavery before the Civil War, don't look at where you stand on slavery today. Look at where you stand on animal rights."
-Captain Paul Watson
Let's not forget that captivity is a synonym for slavery.
Please help my broken heart.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Sunday, December 09, 2012
Grateful
Believe it or not, this blog was unplanned. Nonetheless, it's a blog that I must write. How far do I backtrack? Well, let me just say that I've been vegetarian since March 2010, and I've been vegan since February 2011. In some ways, that doesn't seem very long, but as I've been saying for a long time now, everything happens for a reason.
Fast forward to actual Thanksgiving Day 2012. For those of you who don't know (and that's pretty much everyone except maybe two people), I spent quite a bit of the day planning for an online rally for the dolphins and whales that swim near Taiji, Japan. Now, some of you may think I'm crazy for doing that. Maybe all of you do. But it was worth it to me. And I would do it all over again. That holiday weekend, we saw five straight blue cove days.
Saturday, December 8
So this past week, I had been obsessing over going to The Cinnamon Snail to get a donut – hopefully a jelly donut. I love jelly donuts. I learned that the Snaily (affectionate term for fans of the award-winning food truck) would be at the Vegan Holiday Shop-up in Brooklyn on Saturday. Recently, on Saturdays,the truck has been serving neighborhoods affected by Super Storm Sandy. For FREE. So I've been missing my opportunities to get my favorite ancho chili seitan burger, but I have no reason to complain: I love the fact that they are helping the victims of Sandy get back on their feet. I arrived at the truck a little bit before noon yesterday. I was the first person in a line of one for about half an hour. Okay, yes, that was totally awkward, but once they opened, a long line formed very quickly, and I didn't have to wait in it! Boom. Worth it. I was greeted with a cheerful "Good morning!" and I ordered a Thanksgiving Sandoo, plus two treats, one of which was a cranberry jelly donut!
I briefly popped into Pine Box Rock Shop for a quick look around the shop-up. I've already bought Christmas presents for my family, so I just wanted to see what the vendors were selling, just in case! I then made my way on foot to Dun-well Doughnuts which, by subway, is one L train stop away. But I used the time to stroll and eat and savor my Thanksgiving Sandoo. I normally don't eat while walking, but that sandwich was perfect for multitasking. It held together nicely, and it was OH SO GOOD. It was heaven in sandwich form. Though I brought my camera with me, I didn't take a picture. Sorry. If you're in the NYC area, get the Thanksgiving Sandoo. You will be singing its praises, trust me.
By the time I got to Dun-well Doughnuts, I was so full that I convinced myself to only get one doughnut to go: traditional glazed. After all, I already had two treats from Snaily to eat later. ;)
Sunday, December 9
During my planning for the Vegan Holiday Shop-up, I browsed the website and took a look at all the vendors that would be there. I got really excited when I learned that Chickpea & Olive was among the food vendors! Now, I honestly can't remember how or when I'd first heard of them, but I have indeed. Their logo is adorable. Then I learned that they'd be at Bread and Yoga's Om Grown Market on Sunday, so thankfully my dilemma over which food to eat on which day turned out to be a no-brainer: I could have both Snaily and Chickpea & Olive in one weekend!
I was originally planning to go to a vegan holiday market down in SoHo on Sunday, but once I learned about the holiday market in my own neighborhood, again, it was a no-brainer. You can't beat local.
I made my way around the market and then stood in line at Chickpea & Olive's table. I heard a few people in front of me ordering the grilled cheese sandwich. They had run out of Daiya, so it would be a ten-minute wait. No worries. I already knew I wanted the Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich!
I had a little chuckle when Danielle, the woman who took my order, said "Another Gracias" to Daniel, the chef. Yes, I notice the little things, and even that was appreciated by me.
My order was ready in a few short minutes. There wasn't really anywhere in the market that I could sit down and eat, so I packaged up the sandwich in a "to go" container that I brought with me and took it home.
I devoured the first half of the sandwich in less time than it takes to boil water. I told myself to slow down, waited for my water to boil, and then savored the second half. The sandwich is perfect. In every bite, you get seitan, you get gravy, you get cranberry jam, you get pumpkin. It's a slightly messy but OH SO GOOD sandwich.
Chickpea & Olive, I bow down to you. I support you because you are more than the amazing food you make. You are the only food vendor that I have seen retweet Sea Shepherd's updates about the horrors in Taiji. To me, that means everything. It's nice to know that someone else in NYC cares about dolphins and whales and is making a difference doing something they love.
So again, dear reader, if you find yourself in NYC, please support Chickpea & Olive. Their food is so incredibly satisfying! I am already a fan and look forward to trying more of their creations.
Full of gratitude and full of Thanksgiving leftovers,
Allison
Fast forward to actual Thanksgiving Day 2012. For those of you who don't know (and that's pretty much everyone except maybe two people), I spent quite a bit of the day planning for an online rally for the dolphins and whales that swim near Taiji, Japan. Now, some of you may think I'm crazy for doing that. Maybe all of you do. But it was worth it to me. And I would do it all over again. That holiday weekend, we saw five straight blue cove days.
Saturday, December 8
So this past week, I had been obsessing over going to The Cinnamon Snail to get a donut – hopefully a jelly donut. I love jelly donuts. I learned that the Snaily (affectionate term for fans of the award-winning food truck) would be at the Vegan Holiday Shop-up in Brooklyn on Saturday. Recently, on Saturdays,the truck has been serving neighborhoods affected by Super Storm Sandy. For FREE. So I've been missing my opportunities to get my favorite ancho chili seitan burger, but I have no reason to complain: I love the fact that they are helping the victims of Sandy get back on their feet. I arrived at the truck a little bit before noon yesterday. I was the first person in a line of one for about half an hour. Okay, yes, that was totally awkward, but once they opened, a long line formed very quickly, and I didn't have to wait in it! Boom. Worth it. I was greeted with a cheerful "Good morning!" and I ordered a Thanksgiving Sandoo, plus two treats, one of which was a cranberry jelly donut!
I briefly popped into Pine Box Rock Shop for a quick look around the shop-up. I've already bought Christmas presents for my family, so I just wanted to see what the vendors were selling, just in case! I then made my way on foot to Dun-well Doughnuts which, by subway, is one L train stop away. But I used the time to stroll and eat and savor my Thanksgiving Sandoo. I normally don't eat while walking, but that sandwich was perfect for multitasking. It held together nicely, and it was OH SO GOOD. It was heaven in sandwich form. Though I brought my camera with me, I didn't take a picture. Sorry. If you're in the NYC area, get the Thanksgiving Sandoo. You will be singing its praises, trust me.
By the time I got to Dun-well Doughnuts, I was so full that I convinced myself to only get one doughnut to go: traditional glazed. After all, I already had two treats from Snaily to eat later. ;)
Sunday, December 9
During my planning for the Vegan Holiday Shop-up, I browsed the website and took a look at all the vendors that would be there. I got really excited when I learned that Chickpea & Olive was among the food vendors! Now, I honestly can't remember how or when I'd first heard of them, but I have indeed. Their logo is adorable. Then I learned that they'd be at Bread and Yoga's Om Grown Market on Sunday, so thankfully my dilemma over which food to eat on which day turned out to be a no-brainer: I could have both Snaily and Chickpea & Olive in one weekend!
I was originally planning to go to a vegan holiday market down in SoHo on Sunday, but once I learned about the holiday market in my own neighborhood, again, it was a no-brainer. You can't beat local.
I made my way around the market and then stood in line at Chickpea & Olive's table. I heard a few people in front of me ordering the grilled cheese sandwich. They had run out of Daiya, so it would be a ten-minute wait. No worries. I already knew I wanted the Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich!
I had a little chuckle when Danielle, the woman who took my order, said "Another Gracias" to Daniel, the chef. Yes, I notice the little things, and even that was appreciated by me.
My order was ready in a few short minutes. There wasn't really anywhere in the market that I could sit down and eat, so I packaged up the sandwich in a "to go" container that I brought with me and took it home.
I devoured the first half of the sandwich in less time than it takes to boil water. I told myself to slow down, waited for my water to boil, and then savored the second half. The sandwich is perfect. In every bite, you get seitan, you get gravy, you get cranberry jam, you get pumpkin. It's a slightly messy but OH SO GOOD sandwich.
 |
| Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich from Chickpea & Olive |
So again, dear reader, if you find yourself in NYC, please support Chickpea & Olive. Their food is so incredibly satisfying! I am already a fan and look forward to trying more of their creations.
Full of gratitude and full of Thanksgiving leftovers,
Allison
Sunday, December 02, 2012
A Letter to the International Whaling Commission
Please e-mail secretariat@iwcoffice.org right now. Copy and paste the below and say you support this letter, or write your own, but either way, please demand change for the Bottlenose Dolphins and Pilot Whales, who need us to speak up for them.
Dear Members of the IWC Secretariat,
I have spent quite some time learning about the International Whaling Commission. I understand that, as of now, you do not have protections in place for whales such as the Bottlenose Dolphins and Pilot Whales that are currently netted in Taiji's killing cove in Japan (2 December, 2012). They await their fate in the morning. What is stopping us -- the world -- from saving all whales, regardless of size and regardless of the mouth make-up they have?
Per your website: "The 1946 Convention does not define a ‘whale’, although a list of names in a number of languages was annexed to the Final Act of the Convention. Some Governments take the view that the IWC has the legal competence to regulate catches of only these named great whales (the baleen whales and the sperm whale). Others believe that all cetaceans, including the smaller dolphins and porpoises, also fall within IWC jurisdiction."
Bottlenose Dolphins and Pilot Whales may be "smaller cetaceans," but they are, in fact, whales. I am among the "others" who believe that all cetaceans should be protected for the future of our planet. We are running out of time.
Please do what you can this very moment to urge Japan, a member of the IWC, to end Taiji's dolphin/whale hunts, live capture, and slaughter. This has gone on for far too long.
Respectfully,
Allison Cabellon
New York, NY
Dear Members of the IWC Secretariat,
I have spent quite some time learning about the International Whaling Commission. I understand that, as of now, you do not have protections in place for whales such as the Bottlenose Dolphins and Pilot Whales that are currently netted in Taiji's killing cove in Japan (2 December, 2012). They await their fate in the morning. What is stopping us -- the world -- from saving all whales, regardless of size and regardless of the mouth make-up they have?
Per your website: "The 1946 Convention does not define a ‘whale’, although a list of names in a number of languages was annexed to the Final Act of the Convention. Some Governments take the view that the IWC has the legal competence to regulate catches of only these named great whales (the baleen whales and the sperm whale). Others believe that all cetaceans, including the smaller dolphins and porpoises, also fall within IWC jurisdiction."
Bottlenose Dolphins and Pilot Whales may be "smaller cetaceans," but they are, in fact, whales. I am among the "others" who believe that all cetaceans should be protected for the future of our planet. We are running out of time.
Please do what you can this very moment to urge Japan, a member of the IWC, to end Taiji's dolphin/whale hunts, live capture, and slaughter. This has gone on for far too long.
Respectfully,
Allison Cabellon
New York, NY
Friday, November 16, 2012
A Letter to President Barack Obama
A handwritten version of this letter is going in the mail tomorrow morning.
Dear President Obama,
Congratulations on your re-election as President of the United States. The results on Election Night gave me a renewed sense of hope for our country and our world. I have thought about writing you a few times over the past four years, but this letter that I write to you today is not about me. It’s about “a civilization of creatures who have never attacked us, who only show us kindness, and who have no defense against us: they are dolphins, porpoises, and whales.”*
A petition signed by over half a million people will be delivered to you, Vice President Biden, and the Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. regarding the dolphins, porpoises, and whales that swim near Japan. These beautiful, intelligent creatures don’t belong to Japan. They don’t belong to anyone. They don’t belong in captivity. They do belong in the ocean.
They do not deserve to inhumanely die by human hands in Taiji's killing "cove."
And yet, this is happening in 2012 and will continue to happen unless we, the people of the world, do something about it. And we are.
Mr. President, I am asking you, as our World Leader and as the Voice of the People, to please work with the Japanese government to end the senseless slaughter in Taiji, Japan.
In your final campaign speech in Iowa, you said, “Don't let anybody tell you your voice can't make a difference.” I took your words to heart and am now using my voice to speak on behalf of the dolphins, porpoises, and whales.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, Mr. President. I know you have a lot on your plate – believe me, I know. But as Captain Paul Watson has said, "If the oceans die, we die! It is as simple as that and, thus, to me, there is no cause more important."
Let’s move the country forward, and let’s move the world forward. Please help stop the killing and live capture of dolphins, whales, and porpoises in Taiji.
Sincerely,
Allison Cabellon
New York, NY
*Quote from "I am a Cove Guardian." Please click here to watch.
Dear President Obama,
Congratulations on your re-election as President of the United States. The results on Election Night gave me a renewed sense of hope for our country and our world. I have thought about writing you a few times over the past four years, but this letter that I write to you today is not about me. It’s about “a civilization of creatures who have never attacked us, who only show us kindness, and who have no defense against us: they are dolphins, porpoises, and whales.”*
A petition signed by over half a million people will be delivered to you, Vice President Biden, and the Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. regarding the dolphins, porpoises, and whales that swim near Japan. These beautiful, intelligent creatures don’t belong to Japan. They don’t belong to anyone. They don’t belong in captivity. They do belong in the ocean.
They do not deserve to inhumanely die by human hands in Taiji's killing "cove."
And yet, this is happening in 2012 and will continue to happen unless we, the people of the world, do something about it. And we are.
Mr. President, I am asking you, as our World Leader and as the Voice of the People, to please work with the Japanese government to end the senseless slaughter in Taiji, Japan.
In your final campaign speech in Iowa, you said, “Don't let anybody tell you your voice can't make a difference.” I took your words to heart and am now using my voice to speak on behalf of the dolphins, porpoises, and whales.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, Mr. President. I know you have a lot on your plate – believe me, I know. But as Captain Paul Watson has said, "If the oceans die, we die! It is as simple as that and, thus, to me, there is no cause more important."
Let’s move the country forward, and let’s move the world forward. Please help stop the killing and live capture of dolphins, whales, and porpoises in Taiji.
Sincerely,
Allison Cabellon
New York, NY
*Quote from "I am a Cove Guardian." Please click here to watch.
Monday, November 05, 2012
Now You See It, Now You Don't
Good morning, world. It is 6:45 AM Eastern on Monday, November 5, 2012. Around 11:45 PM last night -- though the cove was blue in Taiji (that is, a good day for dolphins) -- I could not stop thinking about why Yahoo has not stopped selling dolphin and whale meat when Amazon.com permanently did so. I don't want to go into the entire back story on this blog entry, but what you should know is that I was writing a note to someone who could possibly provide me with advice on bringing about change, and when I went to reference something on my Twitter, what I saw -- or rather, what I didn't see -- floored me. So take a look at the two images below:
1. A screen shot of my Twitter conversation with Yahoo-related Twitter accounts and Yahoo Care's response to me on October 25, 2012:
2. And now, here's what it looked like as of midnight and still looks like today:
Yahoo Care removed their response to me! Don't believe my screen shot? Click here to see it on Twitter. You'll see I had good sense to make a record of it with my RT of what Yahoo Care wrote to me, just in case. Now the "just in case" is a reality.
Please note that on Thursday, November 1, I made a follow-up inquiry to Yahoo on my Twitter.
So, sometime between that question on Thursday and Sunday night, the Yahoo Care team removed their tweet to me.
WHY?
I can't get that question out of my head now... WHY?
Allison
P.S. If you have not already, sign the petition on Change.org. More than any other petition right now, I want this victory. I won't give up.
1. A screen shot of my Twitter conversation with Yahoo-related Twitter accounts and Yahoo Care's response to me on October 25, 2012:
2. And now, here's what it looked like as of midnight and still looks like today:
Yahoo Care removed their response to me! Don't believe my screen shot? Click here to see it on Twitter. You'll see I had good sense to make a record of it with my RT of what Yahoo Care wrote to me, just in case. Now the "just in case" is a reality.
Please note that on Thursday, November 1, I made a follow-up inquiry to Yahoo on my Twitter.
.@yahoocare @yahoo Any update from bit.ly/TELfC7 team re: chn.ge/S4e0Hn petition? 129,273 signed. #tweet4taiji @seashepherd
— Allison Cabellon (@avgc) November 1, 2012
So, sometime between that question on Thursday and Sunday night, the Yahoo Care team removed their tweet to me.
WHY?
I can't get that question out of my head now... WHY?
Allison
P.S. If you have not already, sign the petition on Change.org. More than any other petition right now, I want this victory. I won't give up.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Three Minutes of Your Time
TWO MINUTES: Please watch this video. "My friend is in serious trouble, in fact he is fighting for his life right now."
ONE MINUTE: Please click here and sign the petition to help save Japan's dolphins. We need to reach 500,000 signatures by the end of today, October 31, 2012, and we have about 4,500 to go at the time of this posting.
That's it. Three minutes and done.
THANK YOU!
Allison
New York, NY
UPDATE: Around 6 PM Eastern today (October 31, 2012), Take Part extended the deadline to reach 500,000 signatures to November 15, 2012. So we still have time, but please take 3 minutes if you haven't already to click, watch, and sign.
ONE MINUTE: Please click here and sign the petition to help save Japan's dolphins. We need to reach 500,000 signatures by the end of today, October 31, 2012, and we have about 4,500 to go at the time of this posting.
That's it. Three minutes and done.
THANK YOU!
Allison
New York, NY
UPDATE: Around 6 PM Eastern today (October 31, 2012), Take Part extended the deadline to reach 500,000 signatures to November 15, 2012. So we still have time, but please take 3 minutes if you haven't already to click, watch, and sign.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
A Letter to Ellen DeGeneres
A handwritten version of this letter is going in the mail on Monday morning.
Dear Ellen,
My name is Allison Cabellon, and I have been a fan of yours for many years. I am writing to you on a Saturday night because I need your help as a fellow compassionate animal lover.
In 2010, you recommended on your website that visitors/viewers watch the documentary The Cove. Fast forward 2 years later, and the dolphin hunts and slaughter continue in Taiji, Japan. Last night, Sea Shepherd Cove Guardians livestreamed footage to the world. Three Risso dolphins* were captured for a life of captivity, and the rest of their family, 7 more Rissos, were killed. I will never forget the dolphins’ cries while watching The Cove. Last night’s cries will haunt me, too.
Ellen, can you help me – and all who care about animals – by asking Yahoo! to stop selling whale and dolphin meat on their websites? Amazon.com did. I am asking you not only because you care about animals but also because your show’s website, ellentv.com, appears to be hosted on Yahoo! Your powerful voice could make a big difference for the dolphins.
As of tonight, there are 128,617 people on Change.org who are calling for Yahoo! to stop selling whale and dolphin meat. “We can’t make change without knowing what we’re up against.” That is how you ended your website recommendation for watching The Cove. Now that we do know what we’re up against, let’s make the change.
Thank you,
Allison
New York, NY
*UPDATE: As reported by Melissa Sehgal on the October 24th live stream by Sea Shepherd, the three Rissos in captivity are not eating.
Dear Ellen,
My name is Allison Cabellon, and I have been a fan of yours for many years. I am writing to you on a Saturday night because I need your help as a fellow compassionate animal lover.
In 2010, you recommended on your website that visitors/viewers watch the documentary The Cove. Fast forward 2 years later, and the dolphin hunts and slaughter continue in Taiji, Japan. Last night, Sea Shepherd Cove Guardians livestreamed footage to the world. Three Risso dolphins* were captured for a life of captivity, and the rest of their family, 7 more Rissos, were killed. I will never forget the dolphins’ cries while watching The Cove. Last night’s cries will haunt me, too.
Ellen, can you help me – and all who care about animals – by asking Yahoo! to stop selling whale and dolphin meat on their websites? Amazon.com did. I am asking you not only because you care about animals but also because your show’s website, ellentv.com, appears to be hosted on Yahoo! Your powerful voice could make a big difference for the dolphins.
As of tonight, there are 128,617 people on Change.org who are calling for Yahoo! to stop selling whale and dolphin meat. “We can’t make change without knowing what we’re up against.” That is how you ended your website recommendation for watching The Cove. Now that we do know what we’re up against, let’s make the change.
Thank you,
Allison
New York, NY
*UPDATE: As reported by Melissa Sehgal on the October 24th live stream by Sea Shepherd, the three Rissos in captivity are not eating.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Top 5
Back in October, I wrote the following, and the same applies today, except that it's not so random.
This is random. I clearly haven't been putting effort into my blog, but here are some things that I love/have enjoyed/have learned from this past week:
1. Cooking vegan pancit. The last time I cooked pancit, I was just a vegetarian, and I honestly missed the taste of patis (Filipino fish sauce). Well, I've been a vegan for almost a year and a half now, and my tastes have certainly changed -- for the better. I wanted to get back to cooking Filipino food, vegan style this time. And this video totally helped. I didn't use any soy protein, and I added garlic. Mmmm... garlic.
2. Learning how to riff. On Sunday, I tweeted the following:
What you put out into the universe -- even the Twitterverse -- will come back around. Check it out!
3. Watching videos on NutritionFacts.org. I am addicted to this website -- in a good way. Dr. Greger is entertaining and informative, and he clears up the myths about nutrition. Usually these videos are 1-3 minutes in length -- easily digestible in the YouTube age. Heehee. Get it? Digestible? Okay, his jokes are better than mine. This video is an exception. It's 55 minutes in length, but if you watch, you'll get hooked. I won't spoil my favorite line from this. (Feel free to take a guess, and I'll let you know if you're right!) And this confirms just one major reason why I'll be vegan for life: I don't want heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or any of the other 15 leading causes of death.
Tip: Watch this video in full screen on your computer, so you can see his great, animated presentation.
4. Cooking. No video to accompany this particular love. And I know that it's similar to #1, but at the same time, it's not. Six years ago, when I moved to New York, I didn't know if I'd ever come to love cooking, and now I can say that I do. Seitan adobo, anyone? Homemade taho, anyone? Creamy avocado pasta, anyone? Homemade pancakes, anyone? I can make them all. In fact, I made them all for the very first time this week! :)
5. Keeping track of life on Peabrain. From the creator of 750 Words comes an amazing SMS-based way of keeping track of anything that you want. The best part for me is I've established new habits while using Peabrain. I'm doing push-ups on a regular basis again. I walk more in my neighborhood park. I started composting! (Well, donating food scraps to my local farmers market. It's awesome.) I've started meditating daily, and it is essential to me now. But it's not just for habits. I also keep track of other things, but I'm not telling you what -- it's a private SMS tool, after all!
This is random. I clearly haven't been putting effort into my blog, but here are some things that I love/have enjoyed/have learned from this past week:
1. Cooking vegan pancit. The last time I cooked pancit, I was just a vegetarian, and I honestly missed the taste of patis (Filipino fish sauce). Well, I've been a vegan for almost a year and a half now, and my tastes have certainly changed -- for the better. I wanted to get back to cooking Filipino food, vegan style this time. And this video totally helped. I didn't use any soy protein, and I added garlic. Mmmm... garlic.
2. Learning how to riff. On Sunday, I tweeted the following:
3. Watching videos on NutritionFacts.org. I am addicted to this website -- in a good way. Dr. Greger is entertaining and informative, and he clears up the myths about nutrition. Usually these videos are 1-3 minutes in length -- easily digestible in the YouTube age. Heehee. Get it? Digestible? Okay, his jokes are better than mine. This video is an exception. It's 55 minutes in length, but if you watch, you'll get hooked. I won't spoil my favorite line from this. (Feel free to take a guess, and I'll let you know if you're right!) And this confirms just one major reason why I'll be vegan for life: I don't want heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or any of the other 15 leading causes of death.
Tip: Watch this video in full screen on your computer, so you can see his great, animated presentation.
4. Cooking. No video to accompany this particular love. And I know that it's similar to #1, but at the same time, it's not. Six years ago, when I moved to New York, I didn't know if I'd ever come to love cooking, and now I can say that I do. Seitan adobo, anyone? Homemade taho, anyone? Creamy avocado pasta, anyone? Homemade pancakes, anyone? I can make them all. In fact, I made them all for the very first time this week! :)
5. Keeping track of life on Peabrain. From the creator of 750 Words comes an amazing SMS-based way of keeping track of anything that you want. The best part for me is I've established new habits while using Peabrain. I'm doing push-ups on a regular basis again. I walk more in my neighborhood park. I started composting! (Well, donating food scraps to my local farmers market. It's awesome.) I've started meditating daily, and it is essential to me now. But it's not just for habits. I also keep track of other things, but I'm not telling you what -- it's a private SMS tool, after all!
Saturday, January 28, 2012
It's About Breakfast, Allison
Good morning, world. Yesterday evening I had a glorious time shopping at Whole Foods. Seriously, you're probably thinking that shopping at Whole Foods should not give me that much pleasure, but it does. And I got the ingredients I needed to recreate WaterCourse Foods' Amsterdam Hash. Yes, that is the name of the dish. Don't get any ideas now, just click on the link to refresh your memory.
OK, so I didn't exactly recreate the home fries... I went with mashed potatoes, so I could have it ready for lunch- or dinner-type meals. And I also used the no-egg scramble recipe from The Jazzy Vegetarian. (It's still a tofu scramble, but I kind of like that TJV called it a "no-egg scramble.")
Anyway, I now make an excellent mushroom gravy, and while I've told this to my sister and one of my cousins, I'll just put it out there that you should invite me over for Thanksgiving because of my mushroom gravy. It is that awesome.
I also made some oven-roasted Brussels sprouts for kicks, and I made a Tofurky breakfast sausage link. I only ate half of the said link. I could have done without it, and now I know better. No need for the fake meat when it comes to this dish. Should have known that from the WaterCourse version. All in all, it was a success in my book. It took me ninety minutes to make everything, but I really didn't mind. I love that cooking is creativity in action. I never saw it that way until recently. The floodgates are open...
OK, so I didn't exactly recreate the home fries... I went with mashed potatoes, so I could have it ready for lunch- or dinner-type meals. And I also used the no-egg scramble recipe from The Jazzy Vegetarian. (It's still a tofu scramble, but I kind of like that TJV called it a "no-egg scramble.")
Anyway, I now make an excellent mushroom gravy, and while I've told this to my sister and one of my cousins, I'll just put it out there that you should invite me over for Thanksgiving because of my mushroom gravy. It is that awesome.
I also made some oven-roasted Brussels sprouts for kicks, and I made a Tofurky breakfast sausage link. I only ate half of the said link. I could have done without it, and now I know better. No need for the fake meat when it comes to this dish. Should have known that from the WaterCourse version. All in all, it was a success in my book. It took me ninety minutes to make everything, but I really didn't mind. I love that cooking is creativity in action. I never saw it that way until recently. The floodgates are open...
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Dipping into 2012
Oh, hi there, blog reader! I didn't see you there. Please, sit down and make yourself comfortable.
It's a new year, and with that comes new goals!
Oh wait, haha, I just consulted my 2012 list, and I didn't include goals about cooking. Anyway, it's a new year, and there are new recipes to try!
After searching for fresh artichokes in San Jose last month to no avail, I carried my craving for artichokes over into 2012. I decided to make the vegan artichoke dip from Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet. (I couldn't find any soy Parmesan at Whole Foods, so I used nutritional yeast, and also, I didn't have any paprika to sprinkle on top.)
The result: DELICIOUS! I had it (not the whole thing) with tortilla chips.
Members of The Kind Life website said on the forum board that the dip tastes even better the next day, so I can't wait to eat the leftovers!
In case you're interested...
Ingredients I used:
2 8.5-ounce cans of artichoke hearts
1 cup Vegenaise
1/2 cup nutritional yeast (Alicia's recipe called for 1 cup of soy Parmesan - I only used half because it was my first time using/trying nutritional yeast [mmmmmm])
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (Alicia's recipe called for 1 garlic clove, but I loves me some garlic!)
Optional: Paprika (well, it wasn't optional for Alicia, but I made it optional, heh heh)
Tortilla chips (Alicia suggested crackers or endive leaves, but I already had tortilla chips on hand)
What I did:
Honored Alicia's directions and then took my own. Haha, that was a 10th grade English class reference. But seriously, I drained the liquid from the artichokes and mashed them in a mixing bowl (tore some apart even more with my hands). Then I added the Vegenaise, garlic, and nutritional yeast. Mixed it all together and put the dip into the baking dish which you see above and baked for 30 minutes at 300 degrees (I'm sure you could use a higher temp, but I didn't want it to burn while I checked Facebook, so I used a lower temp). Devoured a portion of the dip and burned my mouth in the process, but it was worth it.
It's a new year, and with that comes new goals!
Oh wait, haha, I just consulted my 2012 list, and I didn't include goals about cooking. Anyway, it's a new year, and there are new recipes to try!
After searching for fresh artichokes in San Jose last month to no avail, I carried my craving for artichokes over into 2012. I decided to make the vegan artichoke dip from Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet. (I couldn't find any soy Parmesan at Whole Foods, so I used nutritional yeast, and also, I didn't have any paprika to sprinkle on top.)
Members of The Kind Life website said on the forum board that the dip tastes even better the next day, so I can't wait to eat the leftovers!
In case you're interested...
Ingredients I used:
2 8.5-ounce cans of artichoke hearts
1 cup Vegenaise
1/2 cup nutritional yeast (Alicia's recipe called for 1 cup of soy Parmesan - I only used half because it was my first time using/trying nutritional yeast [mmmmmm])
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (Alicia's recipe called for 1 garlic clove, but I loves me some garlic!)
Optional: Paprika (well, it wasn't optional for Alicia, but I made it optional, heh heh)
Tortilla chips (Alicia suggested crackers or endive leaves, but I already had tortilla chips on hand)
What I did:
Honored Alicia's directions and then took my own. Haha, that was a 10th grade English class reference. But seriously, I drained the liquid from the artichokes and mashed them in a mixing bowl (tore some apart even more with my hands). Then I added the Vegenaise, garlic, and nutritional yeast. Mixed it all together and put the dip into the baking dish which you see above and baked for 30 minutes at 300 degrees (I'm sure you could use a higher temp, but I didn't want it to burn while I checked Facebook, so I used a lower temp). Devoured a portion of the dip and burned my mouth in the process, but it was worth it.