More questions from a soon-to-be-vegetarian!

[hollywood926]

OK, so I can't have tuna. I can't have lunchmeat. What's a good lowfat alternative for sandwiches? I always bring a sandwich to work!

And what about milk? I always have nonfat milk with my cereal. What are the lowfat alternatives? Soy milk is so fattening and I am VERY concerned about my weight.

[smbolisnch]

1. Wraps!

I buy low fat wraps or tortillas and put a piece of romaine lettuce, some green onions, zuchinni, whatever veggies you like, put some creamy italian dressing on top and wrap it up! It's very good and the wraps and dressing etc are easy to find in vegan alternatives!

Also, there is veggie lunchmeat which people seem to like! I have never eaten it, but maybe someone here has and can give you some pointers on that.

As for the soy milk, I don't have any nutritional facts now, but I find it hard to believe that it would be more fattening that animal milk What makes you say that?? Besides, it is disgusting! :shrug: Either way, you can get light versions and it is delicious on cereal.

On Edit:

Fat 2.5 5
Fiber 1 0.5
Sodium 0 122
Cholesterol 0 20
Calories 80 122

It also contains fiber, and animal milk doesn't.

Check out this website :)
http://www.milksucks.com/index2.html

[hollywood926]

3. I drink non-fat milk, so

it's, well, fat free. And I really only drink it in my cereal (and with the occasional cookie!). It shouldn't be horribly difficult to give up, especially if they have light versions of soy milk.

I'm so excited!

Thanks!

[Maru Kitteh]

4. It's so cool to see you excited about this!

You'll never regret it, not after you notice how much better you feel, fresher breath, etc.

Light soy milk: yes, it is out there. You may want to compare total calories and use that as your judge as well. The fat in soy milk is not going to clog up your arteries the way animal fats do. In fact there is overwhelming evidence that many natural plant fats (including soy) help to balance out and improve your good/bad cholesterol ratio.

I'm not sure what size market you live in but local health food stores may also carry rice milk, which has a very light taste. It would probably resemble the skim cow milk you are accustomed to.

For now, if you always take a sandwich to work could I suggest Morningstar Farms or Boca's meat free chic'n sandwiches? THEY ARE DELICIOUS. Better than the real (dead) deal by far. You can nuke the patties briefly before you take off for work & put them in your sandwich baggie and be right on your way. They taste great hot or at room temp. Eat these while you are expending your culinary horizons and find more things to bring into your lunch menu. My suggestions? A lovely pita pocket with red pepper hummus and your favorite vegetables like red onion, a nice lettuce mix and even a bit of thawed yellow corn.

If you find yourself missing mayonnaise you can also check at almost any health food store and find veganaise. It's yummy. It's made by a company called Follow Your Heart and they also have the best vegan cheese on the planet as far as I'm concerned. You can shop online or try to get your health store to carry it. They can be found here: http://www.followyourheart.com/ . If you miss cream cheese look for Tofutti brand cream cheese, tis the bomb and also very good with veggies in a pita or on a sandwich.

Hope this helps some? :hi:

[hollywood926]

7. I only have one thing to say to you, Veganistan...

:yourock:

[flvegan]

2. Here you go

Yves:
http://www.yvesveggie.com/products_family.php?family_id=4&page=1&pId=lItem6&pIdName=Deli%20Slices

LightLife (my personal choice):
http://www.lightlife.com/deli.html

Both should be readily available at supermarkets (in the produce area, usually) or health food stores.

Tofurkey makes AWESOME slices, as well, but aren't as readily available:
http://www.tofurky.com/products/delislices.htm

Most skim milk should have about 90-100 calories a cup (with NO saturated fats). Skim milk has about 86. Seems pretty close.

[CrispyQ]

5. I make a great tuna replacement from garbanzo beans.

I think it rocks, but my favorite part of tuna salad was always the mayo anyway & Vegenaise is the best darned mayo on the planet! (find it in the refrigerator section of your HFS) If you prefer Miracle Whip, Nayonaise is a decent replacement for that (found on the shelf of the HFS next to the regular mayo). Also, it's less fat that Vegenaise.

If you're interested, I'll post my recipe when I get home. Hummus is also very good & filling & can be spiced up in a variety of ways.

As for meat alternates, Lifeline makes some good stuff (I really like their Smart Bacon in BLTs). Turtle Island's Tofurky rocks & Yves makes a great veg bologna.

As for milk, you might try rice milk -- I don't know if it's less fat than soy, but it's good. Almond milk is really good, but I doubt it's less fat!

[hollywood926]

8. What do you eat Veganaise with?

If you don't eat tuna or lunchmeat, what do you use Veganaise on?

I'm hungry now. :-)

[AlienGirl]

9. Yves faux lunchmeat

Also, you can take 8oz firm tofu, 1Tblsp Veganaise or Nayonnaise, a pinch of cumin, and some dill and food-process for a yummy cottage-cheese-like substance. Good inside sandwiches too.

Tucker

[AlienGirl]

6. Going vegan will help weight problems

If you're eating a vegan diet with lots of variety in it, your body's fat-to-lean ratio will only improve. I've been vegan for more than ten years now (with occasional backslidings into eating dairy--I'm not perfect...) and the only times I've had to worry about weight were when I pigged out on junk food--mostly soy ice cream and corn chips with guacamole. (Yes, I've made meals of just those.)

I had two healthy vegan pregnancies and two kids who were vegan until two years ago when their father moved to Wisconsin with them and started them on cow's milk. x( They are both healthy, though my eldest is getting a little chubby, which I attribute to cheese pizzas.

There are "lite" soy milks, and rice milk is very low in fat as well.

Eggbeaters are eggs, btw, just eggs-mixed-with-stuff. If you like scrambled eggs and omelettes, there are ways to simulate them using silken soft tofu. If you feel you *must* eat eggs, try finding a local hobbyist who has free-range chickens--the eggs will be better for you, and lower in cholesterol.

Tucker