To be honest, I have been afraid of trying Tofurkey. I used to eat the Yves faux-lunchmeat when I was a vegetarian, many moons ago, but it wasn't very good so I had to hide the taste with Miracle Whip and lettuce. However, sandwiches are really easy for me to make and keep me from visiting Marvin behind the grill in my cafeteria at work, so I gave in and grabbed some of the oven roasted-flavored Tofurkey at the grocery store. When I was on my no-sugar challenge, I concocted turkey roll-ups--turkey laid thinly over a whole wheat tortilla (Vegenaise for me, plain for my little guy) and rolled up "like a map" (according to my son). I subbed Tofurkey for animal turkey and voila! Super deliciousness. Even better when you warm up the tortilla first. My little guy loves them...I might try the Tofurkey on him. Or maybe add a veggie. Tofurkey kale roll-ups?
This morning I went to my doctor's office and had blood drawn for routine bloodwork. I figured that if I'm going to be changing my diet, I should check to make sure everything is in good working order so if I start feeling crappy, I can rule out anything that was already going on. I've been doing research on supplements and vitamins and all that, and was pretty surprised to find out that I may already be deficient in B-12 since I eat so little animal products as it is. My son (who eats the same amount of animal products that I currently do) drinks fortified soy milk, so I'm not worried about him (except this winter we are all taking vitamin D supplements), but I wonder about myself, especially since I'm showing some signs of B-12 deficiency. Veganhealth.org has great information on B-12, as well as other vitamins and minerals. The other thing I'm concerned about is my iron level. I was very anemic when I was pregnant with my son (so anemic I developed pica and had an insane craving for ice--luckily I did not crave dirt or anything else), but my iron levels returned to normal after his birth. I really don't want to take an iron supplement if I don't have to--they really mess up my stomach.
I was so excited to find out that they completely remodeled one of the dining halls on campus and they are making more of an effort to have an array of vegan options. In the cafeteria closest to me, the only thing they have that's vegan most of the time is broccoli. I'll be eating dinner on campus once a week this upcoming semester so I'll have to check it out. I wonder what it'll be like going to a dining hall so long after I've graduated from college...should be interesting.
If you are concerned about iron deficiency then a good way for anybody to get more iron in their diet is to use a cast iron pan. Almost everything you cook in a skillet will absorb enough iron from a cast iron pan that it is basically a supplement. Unless you cook in nothing but cast iron you won't get your full RDA of iron but it will definitely help. If you cook everything in cast iron you are most likely getting all you need from the pan.
ReplyDeleteThe one caveat is that cast iron pans take some getting used to and they require more oil to keep things from sticking. At least until you get them very well seasoned.
Nutritional yeast is a good (vegan) source of B-12 and it's soooo yummy. We put it on popcorn and cook it in eggs, and E just eats it straight out a bowl with his finger.
ReplyDeleteAnother good iron source, too, is Floridex. It's an herbal, natural supplement that you can get online or at the Bin. I take that along with liquid chlorophyll (about a tablespoon a day). Cast iron pans are a great idea!
What does chlorophyll help with?
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