Vegan vs. Paleo

Since beginning the paleo-vegan diet with Rachel, which took a lot of wearing me down on her part, I have been learning the benefits of being paleo, and comparing them to the benefits of being vegan. When I went vegan two years ago, it was for all the reasons people go vegan: compassion for animals, my health, and the health of the planet.  I learned about these reasons while listening to my favorite podcast, Citizen Radio.  I can go into the details of my choice elsewhere, but when I went vegan, I started taking vitamins and iron to avoid the usual pitfalls that people warn vegans about.  I followed recipes that I found online and through friends on Facebook.  In the beginning, I may not have been getting all the protein I needed.  I haven't really proselytized veganism to anyone (maybe some family members) unless they have asked. They don't usually ask why I'm vegan - they ask things like:

1. where do you get your protein?
2. what do you eat?
3. can vegan babies drink their mother's breast milk?
4. so what if the farmer who raises your vegetables eats meat - can you eat those veggies knowing that they wouldn't be here but for the meat that fed the farmer?

There's a podcast dedicated to the paleo diet...The Dr. Rob (Maki) Show.  It's billed in the description as dealing with weight loss.  I listened to an episode in which they Dr. Rob  argued the paleo diet over vegan - I'd say lifestyle, but - diet.  His conceding point was that both diets ideally call for eating whole foods, and so both are a pretty good option because whole (unprocessed) foods are a better option.  I agree - although I was used to eating things like seitan, tofu, pakora, store-bought veggie burgers, etc. until we began the paleo vegan diet.  Things like seitan and tofu, in addition to being processed, have ingredients not allowed on the paleo diet.

Dr. Rob repeatedly stated that you had to find your own diet that works for you, and the drive behind the choice was directly related to which diet would help you lose weight.  To his credit, that seems to be the audience he targets - those concerned with losing weight.  He noted several times that people who crave protein would like the paleo diet, and that the vegan diet (as promoted especially by Forks over Knives) was too high in carbs to help anyone lose weight.

As Rachel has shown me the way of whole food paleo veganism, I've realized there doesn't need to be a choice between the paleo and the vegan diet.  An important concept regardless of your diet is to "vary" your food choices to keep your body, um, guessing, I guess.  But in saying "crave protein," Dr. Rob repeatedly clarified and said, "I mean, crave animal protein."  I will go into how to get your protein as a vegan in another post.  But suffice it to say, as just this one source demonstrates, you can get plenty of protein in the vegan lifestyle, and not get the cholesterol that is in meat, not kill animals, not harm the environment, and not get fat on carbs.

Bottom line is, as I said above, I went vegan for several reasons - and any one of those reasons would be sufficient.  Actually, I'd like to just say to people, "Because I said so," but that wouldn't be polite.  Now excuse me while I go fix a paleo-vegan dish I am adapting from Forks Over Knives - just have to sub the kidney beans with pistachios and we're all set!

Vegan Veggie Layer Bake Lasagna- Yummm

Vegan spinach burger on spouted grain bread; V
With leftover spinach and peanut sauce or leftover mashed yams I make "burgers" out of the ingredients by just adding almond meal or quinoa flour until the mixture is firm but sticky.  Grease a pan and bake or fry the patties- make them about the size of a burger- and enjoy them on bread or with a lettuce wrap!  A good choice for the next day's lunch.

Veggie layer bake; V, GF, P 
This is a crowd pleaser; being vegan, gluten-free and paleo it can satisfy nutritional preferences and is large enough for four or so hungry appetites.  I use eggplant, sweet potato, tomato and red pepper- all sliced into long, thin (but wide) strips as the "noodle" layers and as filler: grated cabbage, parsnips, spinach and leek leaves.  Layer as show below with a bit of olive oil on each layer as well as basil, Italian seasoning and black pepper.  Cook at 400 for about 40 minutes with tin foil and then 20 without.  We covered it with soy-free, gluten-free vegan cheese but you could just use nutritional yeast for a nutty, cheesy flavor.  Cool, cut and enjoy!

Fine Young Coconuts

We found out how to get into those coconuts that are at the store.  The ones that have the brown shell shaved off and it just looks like a big bowl with a pointy top.  This guy is holding one.

We asked a lady here how she does it.  She apparently had a technique all worked out.

1. Tap three holes (2 for air and one for draining) in it with a hammer and a screwdriver.

2. Drain the water.  Chill it and it tastes great plain, and is great for you.  Surely there are recipes that call for it...

3. Double bag the coconut, take it outside to some concrete, and bash it a few times.

4. Split it and spoon out the flesh.  We eat it plain but it's good on sorbet and of course probably great in recipes.  Look here's a paleo site with some ideas!

While we don't feel the need for the tool demonstrated in this clip, there is a nice visual of what the young coconut's meat looks like when you extract it.