Vegan MoFo 6.1: Vegan Survey Questions Answered

Laura Jill answered this VeganMoFo, a survey and since I enjoyed reading her answers I thought some of you might enjoy reading my answers. As I was answering the questions Dan wanted to know what I was doing and offered to weigh in too. Since you always hear from me I thought you might enjoy getting some insight into my hubby.

What is one food you thought you’d miss when you went vegan, but don’t?

Alicia: Cheese without a doubt. Odd thing now is that I have desire for dairy cheese which even amazes me. I tried Daiya and initially liked it but it did weird things to my GI system which made me think twice about eating it. Lately I have been reading that it does the same thing to others so I am going to avoid it from now on.  The ingredient list is bit too much of a science project to have me be comfortable with consuming it other than rarely and in small quantities.

Dan: Ice cream. Thank goodness for strawberry banana soft serve.

What is a food or dish you wouldn’t touch as a child, but enjoy now?

Alicia: Veggies were not my favorite I used to pick them out of food. Hard to imagine that now huh?

Dan: Mushrooms, I really hated those. As a child these were things that erupted in the front yard after a long rain, and people wanted me to eat them! Now I love Alicia’s mushroom ragu over polenta.

What vegan dish or food you feel like you “should” like, but don’t?

Alicia: I don’t think I have met one that I have eaten. Natto still scares me but I bought some about a week ago. Now I just need to be brave enough to consume it. LOL

Dan: Okra, can’t get past the slime factor. Now my wife wants me to try natto. *runs screaming from the room* LOL

What beverage do you consume the most of on any given day?

Alicia: Water and green or white tea.

Dan: Green and white tea.

What dish are you “famous” for making or bringing to gatherings?

Alicia: Vegan queso dip and caponata.

Dan: Anything my wife sends with me. My wife has made me dependent on her for survival. I wanted to say pretzel salad but Alicia wouldn’t let me.  Can you believe she didn't think that was funny? Louis I know you  understand and are laughing hysterically. LOL

Do you have any self-imposed food rules (like no food touching on the plate or no nuts in sweets)?

Alicia: I have no food rules. I was much pickier when I was an omni, didn’t think that would change.

Dan: No food rules, anything goes as long as it tastes good. I even enjoy green smoothies now. I do have a self imposed okra free zone though.

What’s one food or dish you tend to eat too much of when you have it in your home?

Alicia: Pasta, bread and crackers. See the pattern? ;-) Since I have little self control and they aren’t good for me I just keep them out of the house.

Dan: It used to be iced cream. Now it would be tofu chocolate mousse which Alicia could make more often. Hint, hint.

What ingredient or food do you prefer to make yourself despite it being widely available prepackaged?

Alicia: Basically everything. I don’t buy processed food because it contains things I don’t feel comfortable eating like soy protein isolate, preservatives and other chemical additives.

Dan: Pizza, Alicia’s are great and healthy to boot.

What ingredient or food is worth spending the extra money to get “the good stuff”?

Alicia: I buy fresh organic ingredients whenever possible since I believe organic is better for our health and the health of the planet. I love fresh exotic mushrooms so those go into my shopping cart no matter what the price.

Dan: Most of what we buy is in that category because health and nutrition come before everything else.

Are you much of a snacker? What are your favorite snacks?

Alicia: I am a consummate snacker. I love frozen grapes and walnuts, bananas and nut butter, dates stuffed with nut butter, hummus and raw veggies, collard wraps with hummus or nut cheese and veggies. The snack options are numerous at our house.

Dan: I am not much of a snacker but I do like the trail mix Alicia makes for me.

What are your favorite vegan pizza toppings?

Alicia: This changes frequently but my current favorite is hummus, roasted veggies, pomegranate molasses and pine nuts.

Dan: Cheese, just kidding. ;-) Roasted veggie, basil pesto, balsamic glaze and pine nuts make a great topping on whole wheat crust.

What is your favorite vegetable? Fruit?

Alicia: My favorites fluctuate with the season because I find in season produce to always be the best. At the month I am enjoying winter squash and sweet potatoes. Frozen grapes are always at the top of my fruit list.

Dan: My favorite vegetable is Brussels sprouts. Fuiji or Gala apples are my favorite fruit.

What is the best salad dressing?

Alicia: This also changes but at the moment I make one with Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar and stevia that I like a lot.

Dan: Alicia makes one with white miso, mirin, and lime juice that I really enjoy.

What is your favorite thing to put on toasted bread?

Alicia: I try to avoid toasted bread but if I were going to eat it I would spread it with nut butter, apple slices, and raisins.

Dan: Walnut butter if we had bread in the house. = (

What kind of soup do you most often turn to on a chilly day or when you aren’t feeling your best?

Alicia: When I am not feeling well I always turn to miso soup. However when it is cold outside I want chili.

Dan: Roasted butternut squash soup is perfect when you don’t feel well. When it is cold outside I like bean soup with my wife’s homemade seitan sausage.

What is your favorite cupcake flavor? Frosting flavor?

Alicia: This is something else that we don’t eat because sugar has a negative impact on the immune system not to mention the white flour and fat. If I were going to treat myself I like rose water and pistachio cupcakes.

Dan: Dense yellow cupcake (like pound cake) with a deadly dark chocolate icing. Like a Berger cupcake for those locals that have had Berger cookies.

What is your favorite kind of cookie?

Alicia: No surprise this is something else I don’t eat for the same reasons I don’t eat cupcakes. In the past my favorite was chocolate cookies with chocolate chips and walnuts. Rather like a cross between a brownie and a cookie.

Dan: Alicia used to make a fig preserve and hazelnut cookie that I loved but I don’t get them anymore. My wife is so mean! *stomps foot*

What is your most-loved “weeknight meal”?

Alicia: Soup and salad.

Dan: Whatever Alicia puts in front of me. However I love her Neapolitan Lasagna. She could make that more often too. 

What is one dish or food you enjoy, but can’t get anyone else in your household to eat?

Alicia: My husband isn’t crazy about nutritional yeast so anything that I use a lot of that in he isn’t wild about.

Dan: Sour buckwheat pancakes that my mom used to make. Since the wife doesn’t like them I never get them. See how mean she is to me. ;-)

How long, in total, do you spend in the kitchen on an average day?


Alicia: About an hour, sometimes less but I don’t count the time food is simmering or baking since I am not doing anything then.

Dan: How long does it take to say “what are you making, and do I need to stir”? LOL, seriously I don’t cook because I don’t need to. I always say I am lucky to have my own healthy personal chef to make all my meals. Everyone should be that fortunate.

Signing out:

I hope you all enjoyed that. It is good insight into what we think about food. I need to get back into the kitchen. For the mid day meal with my parents today I opted to make a vegetarian chilli loaded with veggies and a few beans. Since it is such a cold day chili is the perfect food. I hope everyone is having a great Saturday. Talk to you again later when I come back with the chili recipe and this one contains beer. ;-)