hiya!

[lilacs]

hello everyone,

i love how old school this website feels! like the old internet. haven't posted an introduction on a website in so long, i feel old and nostalgic :D

anyway! first of all, I'm not vegan and will most likely never let myself be vegan because I have a history of disordered eating, but I have been reducing my consumption of animal products for quite a while now, and I do want to try to cut *almost* all of them out, with the caveat that I will keep practicing mindful eating and will not put strict expectations on myself. although, i will not discuss anything not plant-based on this forum because i'm really not here to cause drama.

i have a series of health concerns that mean that i need to keep my protein+fat intake a lot higher than average and my carb intake a lot lower than average, which is honestly the reason why i first started eating tofu and other vegan meat replacements, because i don't know how to cook legumes in a way that is palatable to me and i couldn't eat meat for every meal. so one of my newly discovered vegan youtube faves is unnatural vegan, given her... general attitude, and how her nutritional requirements seem to be vaguely similar to mine. and she lead me here!

a little more about myself: i'm a 24 year old woman, i'm southern italian but i'm currently based in scotland, i'm politically very left leaning. i'm a freelance writer + wannabe child psychologist, and some of my hobbies are poetry, music, tv shows and hopefully some day gardening.

i'd say that's all! nice to meet you all and wish me luck on my journey not to hate chickpeas anymore :)

[Dream Sphere]

That's cool that you have integrated tofu in your diet as one of your protein sources.

Have you tried tempeh yet? It's basically tofu but with a grainy-er/dense texture that a lot of people prefer to tofu. It's also generally (always?) fermented iirc. though I don't know of any significant differences that makes.

What do you think of mock meats made from beans/pea protein etc? Do you know of any available in your part of Scotland?

Beyond Meat has recently been introducing its products to Canada and they're pretty amazing. I actually haven't tried the burger they make yet but my Dad has and loves it. Also, I have tried their beyond meat "sausage" which is really great imo.

I wish I could help better, but my diet has a pretty large amount of carbs, and I have pretty much no experience in recommending things to fit a particularly low carb diet.

One thing I would be curious about is if you could eat hummus as a way to get some chickpeas into your diet for protein to bring variety beyond the soy and meat that you eat. Not sure if the carbs might be too high for that. Especially when it comes to what you may dip in the hummus. I personally prefer pita, bean/lentil chips, and wheat crackers, but all those have a lot of carbs. But veggies like fresh carrot, english cucumber, and celery may be fine for dipping in hummus and afaik those have fewer carbs.

If you want to compare stuff nutrition wise and plan out your diet if you don't know about this site, I would recommend cronometer. Not sure if the end of the url is (dot) com or whatever, but a google search of the name should bring it up. Only reason why I'm not checking myself is because I'm in a bit of a hurry and on mobile.

Also, what's some music you like, and how would you describe your taste in music? Music is one of my main hobbies, so I'm often interested in seeing what others are interested in when it comes to music.

[lilacs]

oh hello!

i've tried tempeh once or twice but have never cooked with it. it strikes me as a little more intense in flavour than tofu, which makes it less versatile as an ingredient - i put tofu in every dish that doesn't already have a source of protein, from soups to risottos to veggie bakes or stir fries, whereas with tempeh I don't feel like I could do that with the same carelessness. i definitely want to experiment with it some more, and same goes for seitan.

i think my favourite meat replacement for now is quorn! i use the mince a lot in tomato sauce, and i like to have the sausages in wrap (or just by themselves dipped in ketchup...) although i literally just found out they use egg whites, which is really really lame and may mean i'll have to find something else. i'm still debating whether or not i want to keep eggs in my diet, but if i decide i do want to, it'll be eggs from a farmers market that i know isn't abusing their chickens, not from a corporation that puts them in my meat replacement :/

What do you think of mock meats made from beans/pea protein etc? Do you know of any available in your part of Scotland?

i'm not sure i know what you mean! if you're referring to store bought things, i don't really look at the components or list of ingredients beyond checking the protein/carb quantities and the allergens. i have tried vegan burgers (made with red beans, or lentils, or even seitan), but i didn't really like them, both for the texture and the flavour. beans are... always going to taste like beans. which is a dealbreaker for me, sadly, i just can't stomach them.

One thing I would be curious about is if you could eat hummus as a way to get some chickpeas into your diet

nope i really don't like hummus at all which is a bummer, because it's a really healthy snack. i want to try making baked/roasted chickpeas though. if i cover them in enough paprika and salt and mock parmesan cheese, hopefully it'll work! and maybe the roasting will make the texture less..... yucky. have you ever made them? and what are your favourite ways to eat legumes?

thank you for recommending cronometer!! it's going in my bookmark bar, lol.

as for music: that's a really hard question to answer, lol. lately i've been listening to a lot to Hozier and Janelle Monáe, and a lot of 80s and 90s pop classics because it's Pride month and everyone's Pride playlist has so much more Madonna in it than anyone wants. generally it depends a lot on my mood. what are your current favourites?

[Dream Sphere]

oh hello!

i've tried tempeh once or twice but have never cooked with it. it strikes me as a little more intense in flavour than tofu, which makes it less versatile as an ingredient - i put tofu in every dish that doesn't already have a source of protein, from soups to risottos to veggie bakes or stir fries, whereas with tempeh I don't feel like I could do that with the same carelessness. i definitely want to experiment with it some more, and same goes for seitan.

i think my favourite meat replacement for now is quorn! i use the mince a lot in tomato sauce, and i like to have the sausages in wrap (or just by themselves dipped in ketchup...) although i literally just found out they use egg whites, which is really really lame and may mean i'll have to find something else. i'm still debating whether or not i want to keep eggs in my diet, but if i decide i do want to, it'll be eggs from a farmers market that i know isn't abusing their chickens, not from a corporation that puts them in my meat replacement :/

What do you think of mock meats made from beans/pea protein etc? Do you know of any available in your part of Scotland?

i'm not sure i know what you mean! if you're referring to store bought things, i don't really look at the components or list of ingredients beyond checking the protein/carb quantities and the allergens. i have tried vegan burgers (made with red beans, or lentils, or even seitan), but i didn't really like them, both for the texture and the flavour. beans are... always going to taste like beans. which is a dealbreaker for me, sadly, i just can't stomach them.

One thing I would be curious about is if you could eat hummus as a way to get some chickpeas into your diet

nope i really don't like hummus at all which is a bummer, because it's a really healthy snack. i want to try making baked/roasted chickpeas though. if i cover them in enough paprika and salt and mock parmesan cheese, hopefully it'll work! and maybe the roasting will make the texture less..... yucky. have you ever made them? and what are your favourite ways to eat legumes?

thank you for recommending cronometer!! it's going in my bookmark bar, lol.

So, you've tried adding plain tempeh to dishes and found the flavour too strong? I know some tempehs come pre-marinated, so just wondering if that could've been the cause of the stronger flavour? Because I don't find tempeh any stronger in flavour than tofu, though I guess if it was fermented differently that might cause a stronger flavour idk.

That's too bad about Quorn. Do they not have anything that's actually vegan?

Also, the Beyond Meat stuff really doesn't taste like beans, so I would recommend continuing to try different brands in hopes of finding one as good as Beyond Meat. Because I know it can be done, just depends on whether any good veggie burgers, etc. are available in your area.

I've never baked chickpeas before, but they sound like they could be really good. Good luck with trying new ideas like that.

as for music: that's a really hard question to answer, lol. lately i've been listening to a lot to Hozier and Janelle Monáe, and a lot of 80s and 90s pop classics because it's Pride month and everyone's Pride playlist has so much more Madonna in it than anyone wants. generally it depends a lot on my mood. what are your current favourites?

I'm really into metal music, so idk if you would like these, but I've been digging Eluveitie's new album whick is like folk/melodic death metal. Also been digging an experimental black/death metal band called Maladie.

Besides that one of my favourite bands is Blind Guardian, and I've been listening to them more lately. They're what's called power metal, and are probably the one out of these three you might like the most, though some Eluveitie songs you may like too.

Anyways. Do you often listen to themed playlists, like this one for pride month? Or is this a special instance? Do you have any artists or bands you would say will be timeless favourites of yours always?

Was Hozier the artist with the song Take Me to Church? Or am I confusing him with someone else? I remember hearing Janelle's name a lot on 2018 year end best albums lists, but never actually checked her music out. What might you recommend of hers to me?

So, if you're curious about any of the three bands I mentioned, here're a few songs each from them if you wanna check them out. I would rec checking out Eluveitie and Blind Guardian at least, but Maladie probably isn't your thing, though I've been wrong before about thinking some music I like would be too harsh for someone, so idk.

First three are Eluveitie, then Maladie, lastly Blind Guardian. No worries about hearing all or any of them, just wanted to do three each if you're curious and I wanted to provide a variety of how the bands can sound, in particular Eluveitie since some of their songs are very differeny from one another.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hFa2M1QW6UI

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Aio8ORtYKGM

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=d-pSq4MJmy8

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eyApM6qBlsY

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xsS5wxBSez4

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BiUjheCotJ8

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw6SlL9wi6Q

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HPG7gYoqpHM

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WoH6JWm7nfQ

[brimstoneSalad]

Welcome Lilacs, it's great that you're working on reducing, hopefully we'll be able to give you some tips.

Plant based is the best way to reduce carbs since it doesn't come with the drawbacks of animal heavy low carb diets. Do you like nuts?

Regarding eating disorders, that's actually a pretty common concern. Here's a recent thread on the topic with a bunch of tips on how to eat more plant based but avoid food obsessions: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5269

[Minos]

Hello lilacs, have you tried sprouted lentils? It tastes different, than cooked one and easy to make at home. Just an idea

[lilacs]

Thank you all for replying

@@Minos: sprouted lentils... i think i tried to munch on them when we sprouted them as a science experiment in primary school! they tasted weird and haven't tried since, but maybe i'll try! i like pureed lentils with a little fat and a little black pepper and a little smokey-ness, but having more than one way to eat them is definitely going to be good!

@@brimstoneSalad : thank you for linking the thread! i'm very happy to learn that chronometer has a setting to hide calories. i've actually found an old diet plan that a dietitian had drafted for me to deal with my health issues a few years ago, which i can probably use as a starting point to calculate my daily protein needs (the carb consumption wouldn't change, and for the vegetables she basically told me to eat as many as i wanted, provided they were in season and weren't potatoes or carrots or onions).

i haven't tried many different nuts, but i know i like walnuts and different types of seeds, so i will probably use those liberally in my breakfast oatmeal! at the moment i'm in search of a non dairy milk that has a flavouring as neutral as possible so that i can use it both for cooking savoury things and for sweet smoothies.

@@Dream Sphere: as i said, i haven't cooked with tempeh myself, whenever i've tried it it was someone else's cooking (at vegan potlucks and whatnot), and i couldn't quite understand what they did with it, so i definitely look forward to experimenting with it a bit more!

on Quorn's website there's a few different products that are marked as vegan, but not all of them are, and not all the vegan ones are available in my local supermarkets. also in general i tend to stay away from breaded and fried products and ready meals, i gravitate more towards basic stuff that i can season and flavour myself. the only two big exceptions are the non-chicken nuggets and the fauxsages, which will forever be my weakness.

music wise, i tend to go by mood a lot. i almost always like a song because of its lyrics, so my all-time favourite musicians are people whose lyrics i connect with - like florence + the machine and hozier, who yes, is the take me to church guy! he recently came out with an excellent new album, my favourite songs from it are probably sunlight and dinner & diatribes, but his EP from last year is also really good.

if you'd like to check out janelle monae, i would really recommend you watch the short movie she released with her latest album, which is around 40/45 minutes: it's got this really good sci-fi theme that also connects to the concept stories of her previous albums, and i really like that. my favourite songs from her 2019 album are screwed and make me feel, whereas the ones i like the least are i got the juice and don't judge me. it got nominated for best album but it lost to a country musician who i'd never heard of, which was a little disappointing, but eh, not everyone can have good taste lol

i used to listen to a lot more rock/metal when i was a teenager, i was obsessed with stuff like bullet for my valentine, korpiklaani, halestorm, that sorta stuff. the first CD i bought with my own money was the open door by evanescence! i still like those genres, but i guess that in the past few years i've been listening to music more to chill out, or to help me focus, rather than to get myself pumped and energized, so i tend to listen a lot... quieter stuff ahah. i am, however, almost positive that i had already listened to blind guardian at least! maladie is probably my least favourite, you were right, and eluveitie is really in line with my tastes, so i'll probably listen more!

[brimstoneSalad]

@lilacs why onions?

In terms of non-dairy milks, I don't think I could recommend one that's widely available for sweet and savory things. You might need two kinds.
Unsweetened almond milk can work for both, but it doesn't really have any protein in it so isn't necessarily a great replacement.
Soy is better, but the most common brand (Silk) has a vanilla kind of taste (even the unsweetened). Good for smoothies though.

[Minos]

Good non-dairy milk for cooking is Alpro Cuisine, or Alpro Unsweetened, it's made from soy. But I'm not sure, how available is that brand across the world.

[lilacs]

@brimstoneSalad onions have loads and loads of sugar in them, which is why they're so delicious

@Minos i've seen alpro in my supermarket! i'll give it a try.