What? Tofu parmigiana?

Freaking Oprah, gets me to try these crazy things. So I saw her recent show where the entire staff went vegan for 2 weeks. It featured a very likable and convincing woman, Kathy Freston, whose book I bought LAST year when she was on Oprah, and barely had a chance to look at. I’ve seen some of those movies- Supersize Me, Food Inc, etc, talking about the meat industry and how it’s not like it used to be. Cruelty, horrible conditions for animals, dangerous usage of antibiotics and Mad cow….

The health benefits of veganism seem to be great- potentially curing all sorts of stuff. Should people be eating dairy after they aren’t babies anymore? I’ve been having allergy symptoms for the last year or so that have never affected me in the past. Maybe this could help, maybe it would kick start some weight loss too.

I like to try new things, so I went vegetarian last week. Of course at the beginning after reading her new book AND the old one,  I was going on the 21 day gluten free, no eggs, dairy, caffeine cleanse, but that didn’t last too long. I just didn’t want to give up my coffee- with a splash of milk in it. COME ON! I don’t smoke anymore, or even drink diet coke unless I’m out somewhere for a meal. I couldn’t give up the coffee.

And pecorino romano cheese. I need that to cook with, especially for my regular vegetarian dishes- minestrone soup, cauliflower pasta, pizza, frittata. So I did it- 7 days, no meat. The hardest part was coming up with a menu that varied a bit, in comparison to how I’m used to cooking. Meat, starch, veg. Funny how this would seem like a big deal, but really, I have days where we don’t eat any meat, but not usually consecutive ones.

It was good- I definitely beefed up (haha) my intake of vegetables and fruit, and really didn’t feel like I was missing anything. I don’t know that I’m ready to commit to becoming a full time vegan at the moment, but I am going to do a little at a time. So we’ll be having vegetarian meals here at least 2-3 nights a week, and I’ll be cutting down on the amounts of meat I buy for main dishes, and increasing the volume of vegetables.

One thing that stuck with me from the book was just a thought- is my wanting to eat something a little more delicious or what I am just accustomed to having more important than an animals life?

So tonight I made tofu parmigiana. Eh, not so much. Of course it was ok, it was breaded and fried, and there was sauce and cheese melted over it. Carlitos didn’t like it. Last time I made the tofu I used it in tiny cubes in a stir fry, that he loved. At least I have a head start with him, he likes most vegetables. When I made the minestrone he ate the carrots, celery, string beans and cabbage raw while we cooked.

You can check out Kathy Freston’s website here:  http://www.kathyfreston.com/kathy_freston_veganist.html

We’re leaning into it.