♪ Cast 18: Lovely leathers, and they’re vegan and tasty too…

Welcome to VegLiving’s eighteenth cast of the semi-weekly online radio show podcast at iTunes here. Today’s episode features some great fruit leather choices that are the perfect accompaniment to a healthy, on-the-go veg lifestyle. What a way to get in some awesome vitamins, fruit servings and tasty energy in a little snack that can be brought anywhere!

Enjoy and, if you’re liking the show, feel free to subscribe here at iTunes or by email to get future episodes delivered right to you. And be sure to tell all your veg (and non-veg, interested) friends!

This podcast accompanies the post on fruit leathers, located here.

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Be well,

Brian

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Feel free to email or tweet me anytime, or drop us a comment.

Photoblog 3: Scrumptious Salads and then some

Welcome to the third in the series of photoblogs here at VegLiving. In these posts, I post some pictures of food that I’ve taken over the past couple weeks to share with any readers out there looking for some inspiration and/or culinary eye candy. Instead of the commonly found recipe posts in blogs all over the Internet (which VegLiving does do some), these will just be here for enjoyment in looking and getting ideas for making creative and healthy vegetarian food in the kitchen.

As always, please do not copy these pictures, taken all by me on my Samsung SL820. Let me know what you think by dropping a comment or an email or a tweet.

P.S. — Like the new format? Tried it today. It was late and I was fooling around with photos and figured it out. Hope it works. Let me know.

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My all-time favorite Chinese Food dish from SaSa: brown rice with steamed vegetables and tofu. Get it every time. Tasty with no oil, sauce or salt. Love chopsticks.

Two of my favorite Trader Joe’s products: Soy Pita and Harvest Grain Blend with some nice greens

A scrumptious little salad of greens and vinaigrette with sprouted whole wheat soy bread and oil

Favorite little couscous salad thingy with spinach/carrot salad

Lovely little bean and couscous salad thing with greens and whole sprouted bread and oil

A creative little “coin salad” (see the vegetables) with homemade vinaigrette and whole wheat bread with sun-dried tomato hummus.

Delightful salad with hearty multigrain Whole Foods bread and oil

See what you think and comment.

Love to hear from anyone!

Be well,

Brian

Granola bars to live on

I don’t know what I would do without granola bars. For any snack, breakfast, lunch or meal… while traveling, at school, touring the city, or just at home… before, during and after exercise …they’ve always been there. And I’m sure many other vegetarians, vegans, non-veg’s will all find that granola bars have always been there for them as a healthy, tasty, convenient, easy-to-find, non-perishable treat that can, if chosen right, pack in great nutrition.

I’m sure you all have your favorites but in this post I want to share some tasty and trusty choices in the granola bar field that will be a beneficial addition to your nutritious diet. Always remember to go for fiber, protein, whole grains and good fats, and to avoid too much sugar or bad fats and carbs.

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1. Kashi TLC granola bars are without a doubt number one. Longtime readers of this blog will know that I have a religious obsession with Kashi products. What a lovely selection with fiber, whole grains, omega-3‘s and much else. Tasty, too.

2. Läräbars are my recent love. Raw, vegan, soy and gluten free, fiber, protein, good fat. And usually only made with like three ingredients: dates and nuts most of the time. Tasty. Fun. What more could you want?

3. Nature’s Path, another favorite company, makes some tasty granola bars, especially the Pumpkin Flax Plus ones. Probably my second most-loved brand for lots of great products, along with Kashi.

4. Kind bars are a creative one. Great for healthy fats and things. Usually made with nuts and seeds and fruit, and support good organizations.

5. Clif and Luna bars I have known about for awhile but have recently very much began to like. They are great for the busy person as they come in great flavors with great nutrition. One of the most widely available I’ve seen. And please, people. Luna bars aren’t just for women. Men need Folic Acid and things too. C’mon.

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So, those are my top 5 for today. Maybe some more soon. Check ’em out; I know you’ll love ’em. They’re the perfect snack and meal accompaniment and if you haven’t already looked into buying granola bars, I definitely encourage it as part of a vegetarian diet. Oh, and fruit leathers are yummy too. Two of my favorite stores to get these at: Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s.

Be well,

Brian

Vegan and vegetarian vitamin supplements

When a healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables just isn’t enough, it’s always a good thing to have a vitamin supplement. There are some things that are just too difficult or even not possible to obtain in a veg*n diet and a trusty vitamin should do the trick in catching you up on getting the nutrients that your body needs.

Seems like there are just too many vitamin supplements available out there anymore, right? I mean, you walk down the CVS and there’s an entire aisle full of different vitamins to try. Which ones are the best? Well, I can’t tell you that, because I’m not a doctor, medical professional or nutritionist, but I can recommend a multi-vitamin for maintaining optimal health. Don’t quote me on it and always be sure to check with a doctor, but I can say that my taking a daily vitamin each day has helped to improve my over well-being and mood.

Which ones to take… that is the question. Now, it’s a bit easier for us vegetarians and vegans. To keep true to a veg diet, one should not be taking vitamin supplements that contain gelatin, glycerin or other animal products (if vegetarian sources exist). So, that narrows it down to some more specific choices for multivitamins.

There are many websites out there with vegan vitamin supplements available for purchase, and to name a few: www.VegetarianVitamin.com, www.VeganVitamin.com, www.GTVC.co.uk, and others. Always exercise caution and make sure the supplement you’re taking is safe and certified.

But, if you’re interested in buying one at a store, I have a couple suggestions.

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1. Check out your local supermarket (two of my favorite being Trader Joes and Whole Foods) in the vitamin area and ask a specialist there. Or, just look around for some vegetarian supplements. The one I take is pictured on the side (or an idea of the packaging), called Maxisorb Vegetarian. It’s in a green-labeled bottle similar to the picture. This one is great it providing just enough vegetarian vitamin sources without overdoing it (especially on the iron).

2. See your local health food store or vitamin store for vegan vitamin options. The specialists there should surely be able to suggest a multivitamin that fits your needs.

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So, I hope this gives a little look into suggestions when finding a vegetarian vitamin. Now, I understand if it might seem like a lot to be taking pills every day. But for the couple seconds it takes, it’s really worth it. Try a vitamin supplement and see if it works for you.

Be well,

Brian

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Check out the great links in this post for more.

Nature’s Fruit-by-the-foot… Spotlight: fruit leathers

Today’s post is a quick feature on a tasty, convenient and easily-carried snack for vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. For those who can’t get enough of nature’s candy, or even for those maybe not a fan of fresh fruit because it may seem inconvenient or overwhelming, these great snacks: fruit leathers, fruit strips and other varieties made of 100% fresh fruit, are sure to please. In this post I’ll share three of my favorite brands of these tasty versions of what I like to call the “healthy version of fruit-by-the-foot”.

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1. Stretch Island, the king of fruit leathers, offers a ton of amazing varieties like FruitBü Smooshed Fruit, Original Fruit Strips and more. Easily available, reasonable, tasty, nutritious, a serving of fruit, obviously vegan — what more could you want? Check out the company’s homepage and their product list.

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2. Trader Joe’s just so happens to have available some awesome self-branded fruit strips and one of my favorites, their FiberFul fruit bars that provide 6g of fiber per. Another favorite of mine is their “Ends & Pieces” product which is a discounted in-bulk item of the trimmings for their standard fruit leathers — a great way to use the perfectly tasty and fresh but misshapen edges while getting a good value. Funny that I did an article on their store here yesterday. Check out the store’s homepage here.

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3. Whole Foods, coincidentally as well offers their own “365” brand of tasty and flavorful fruit strips in many varieties. Check out the portion in this article written yesterday featuring Whole Foods, and their store homepage here.

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I hope those previously unfamiliar to this type of snack are now eager to maybe try some of the many available fruit leathers, fruit strips and others — they are truly a lifesaver in many situations where fresh fruit might be inconvenient or for other circumstances. Give them a shot and let us know what you think. Feel free to comment, subscribe and spread the word as always! Drop me an e-mail if you like the blog so far.

Be well,

Brian

“Where do I go to get all this vegetarian food?!” Spotlight: Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods

I know something like “oh, just get it at your local supermarket or health food store” is so often heard in blogs, shows and other media, and there are many people out there who just seem to know what that implies and don’t think much of it. But, what about the new vegetarians and vegans — the ones who’ve just started and are in need of learning about all this kind of stuff? Fret not! I am here to help and completely understand and remember being a beginner with healthier food and needing to know where to go to get all this great stuff that supports a meat-free lifestyle.

Well, I can tell you first that nowadays, almost any supermarket does carry a selection of natural foods that may include a lot of vegetarian meals, snacks, and things like produce, cereal, grains, granola bars and the like. But even as that’s still a great source, many want to know where they can get some of the more obscure items or just to have a location where you can go for a vegetarian super-shop.

I have two great resources for you and am happy to share a little overview of what these stores, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods have to offer for your vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. Remember, both are great stores; both are common in many areas (but I am not sure of the situation in all states); and both have tons of great vegetarian choices.

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1. Trader Joe’s

Their specialites:

self-branded prepared foods that are healthy and all-natural, great cereal selection, excellent fruit leathers, top-notch breads and pitas, in-season produce, a friendly market-like atmosphere that’s different and smaller than many supermarkets, very reasonable.

Their drawbacks:

not as many less-common health foods are as available, do not sell many brands like Silk Soymilk and others, self-branded granola bar selection is eh, are not as known or established countrywide.

Price Range: very affordable; great for both the beginning and experienced vegetarian. Surprisingly more reasonable than many stores of this caliber.

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2. Whole Foods

Their specialties:

organic produce and a great selection of it indeed, raw ingredients like nuts and seeds in bulk, extensive cereal and granola bar section, great soymilk and other “milk” products, very convenient and tasty and unique salad bar and prepared foods area, a great source for more obscure or harder-to-find ingredients, amazing bakery and more.

Their drawbacks:

food can be fairly expensive if purchased in large amounts — especially with brands or items that are the same but more cheaply priced at other stores.

Price range: nothing completely outrageous but is often more than other stores. This should not deter one from once in a while stopping there for specialty items or a treat. Plus, for us savvy vegetarians, healthy food is an important part of our life.

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In these review my aim was to be honest but I do not want someone to read into the drawbacks or positives too much; I truly believe both of these stores are excellent. Try them out if you haven’t already and let me know what you think. Remember to subscribe if you like the blog and other posts and I wish the best to any beginners out there in the quest to be veg!

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Be well,

Brian