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Edited by asdzxc57 on 01/29/2012 13:05:59 MST.

Too funny! I met them at Vida Vegan Con in Portland, Or a couple weeks back. Think a conference of food bloggers and food freaks - it was like non-hiking heaven for me ;-)

I have been cooking a lot lately as well - I am pregnant again and slow, not much else to do! This is my personal blog where I post all my home recipes (I do about half vegan, mostly veg friendly for health reasons) : http://gazingin.com/

Yeah...Tater Tuesday was fun to do!

If you add worcheshire sauce it will have meat in it.

Not if you buy vegan Wor. sauce or make it yourself. Very easy to get around.

Jesse -- you got me. I thought there was something odd about a Cajun recipe without Worcestershire. Well... So much for oyster sauce, A1, Thai fish sauce, ... How about dairy? Eggs? Products with milk solids? This is going to get really tedious.

There is something odd about a Cajun recipe that doesn't contain meat. Or at least bacon grease.

FWIW I don't put worchestershire (holy krap did I spell it right?) in my red beans and rice. KISS. I think I'll try the chipotle peppers next time I make it without sausage. Thats a great idea.

Unless you are trying to be vegan I think a little worchestershire sauce is ok. But whatever.

Btw Cesar dressing is an anchovy sauce too. Thats why it tastes so good.

You can make cesar dressing vegan. It tastes just fine. Seriously, you don't "need" anchovies or bacon grease for any recipe.

https://annies.alice.com/products/1276126

http://www.marthastewart.com/258132/homemade-vegan-worcestershire-sauce

The reason we went mostly vegan is for cholesterol. So my goal has been to eat well without animal products and still stay in my whole foods-no artificial coloring/flavorings mode. Cajun foods don't have to contain meat. Nothing needs to contain meat! You can still eat well and enjoy your food highly.

Oyster sauce? You can get veg friendly mushroom sauce instead at all Asian grocery stores and online. It tastes nearly identical.

Fish sauce? You can make your own version of it, google it. Pretty easy. It is how you make veg friendly Pad Thai.

A1 sauce. No way am I going there. That stuff is nasty ... lol!

Dairy? Use almond or similar non-dairy products. Some like the newer coconut versions.

Eggs? You don't need them! I bake almost exclusively with flax seed meal. Vegan baking is my specialty!

Products with milk solids? Don't buy processed food and you won't get that very often.

>>"You can make cesar dressing vegan. It tastes just fine. Seriously, you don't "need" anchovies or bacon grease for any recipe."<<

I've had vegetarian Cesar dressing but not vegan. Not bad but it was missing something. I only brought it up because most people don't know they are in there just like with worchestershire.

As far as bacon grease goes, I'm from the south and couldn't live without it. You can't make southern food without bacon, bacon grease or fatback. You might make some perfectly pallatable food but it's "southern" not southern. Even our veggies aren't vegetarian frendly lol.

Your arteries could live without it though - just saying. When my husband and I dropped the majority of animal products out of our diet our cholesterol levels both dropped by half - in less than 3 months. We don't eat vegan 100% but do about 75% now. One thing I removed was my love of bacon. I ate way too much of that stuff - my last baby I ate it like everyday for breakfast - egg beaters and bacon daily. Oinks.......

As for taste that is why vegan comfort food uses liquid smoke often, for the smoky flavor that bacon produces.

I don't eat fake meat overall though. But one thing is that vegan food often dehydrates very well - and has great shelf life.

Jesse... for vegan Caesar dressing, a few chopped capers (they are the brined bud of a Mediterranean bush) can help alleviate the "something missing" factor.

I can't see a good reason to leave the anchovy out of Cesar dressing I only rat it at restaurants anyway I typically use this low fat berry balsamic dressing at home. Not because it's good for me I actually like it.

Sarah, I try to eat healthy. I eat bacon maybe once a week. I use it in veggies 2-3 times a week but thats just one or 2 slices in a pot of beans or peas. So hopefully my arteries are ok. I eat alot of baked chicken and lean pork. Red meat is rare these days. Usually at resturants.

As far as fake meat goes, yuck. But I have had some veggie burgers that were delicious.

I bet your arteries are fine. I eat mostly vegan, because don't crave the rest that much, but when I buy cheese, quality cheese, I will eat it in two days. When I eat meat, it's with the fat in it. Some people have genetically good cholesterol, others struggle with it. Mine is top notch and for backpacking I am all for high calorie, protein, animal fat and carbs. At home I eat much healthier.

The key I found for cholesterol (and no, it doesn't run in my family) to control it is a diet high in omega 3's (I eat plant source as fish can be sketchy for women in child bearing years, I am pregnant currently and avoiding heavy metals). So I consume a diet rich in flax seeds, chia seeds, hulled hemp seeds, raw nuts and healthy oils. We eat a lot of legumes as well.
Don't get me wrong - I do like meat, bacon and cheese. But.....it isn't worth it anymore to me. On the rare occasion I do eat red meat.

The nice thing is I can buy pricey fun ingredients and not feels guilty - since cutting out meat saves a lot of $$.

As for determining artery health....I say: go visit one's doctor. Have bloodwork done. One never knows.

OTOH, I make some excellent veggie burgers as well :-) Yum! My goal in cooking has been to replicate food I enjoy minus all animal products and have it taste as good or better. My real love is vegan baking! That has been amazing :-) I bake better minus eggs than I ever did before!

Although I will admit anchovies are actually pretty healthy as a condiment - if ya like thems. They are full of omega-3's. And is it Lighthouse brand, but they made an amazing low cal/fat wild blueberry dressing....wow. Stuff was so good, even on steamed veggies!

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Edited by asdzxc57 on 01/29/2012 13:05:06 MST.

Timothy...when my youngest was eating stage 1,2 and 3 baby food (just this year!) I saved all the glass jars, cleaned them up and made a spice rack of my dreams. Hah!
http://gazingin.com/2011/05/06/upcycling-baby-food-jars-the-spice-cabinet/
http://gazingin.com/2011/05/08/upcycling-baby-food-jars-part-2/

And I actually use all those crazy spices ;-)

I am making a green lentil and mushroom soup this week. It looks delicious! And I bet it would dry well. I say don't feel bad you cannot eat the canned stuff - it is a waste of food compared to fresh soups made at home! :-)