Meat Analogues and A New Food Pyramid

As I said before, I use meat analogues.  I also use dairy analogues, oils and vegan margarine.  Again, these are all vegan, but some are just as processed as the animal based items they mimic.  For transitional vegans, analogues might be an important bridge to the new world of a plant based diet.  Sometimes, we just need great comfort food and that might come in the form of a (or several) delicious vegan chocolate chip cookie(s), some awesome coconut ice cream, or a trip to Mighty-O Donuts here in Seattle where they serve nothing but vegan donuts and fritters--yes, vegan apple fritters!

We have cut out refined white flour from our diet for the most part, and when I make sweet treats I use organic sugar or other organic sweeteners, but my family is prone to type 2 diabetes, and if I'm going to be vegan, I may as well seriously reduce my sugar and simple carbohydrate intake so that I can drop some weight and avoid the family curse.  So far, my blood sugar has been fine at my annual physicals, and my wife and I have been walking regularly, but I could still stand to drop about sixty pounds.  There is certainly room for me to reduce simple carbohydrates, fats, and processed vegan foods from my diet, so I guess that 2012 will involve even more transition.

The following link is to a blog by a plant based dietitian and includes a plant based food guide pyrimid.  It very much mirrors the RAVE diet (RAVE stands for no Refined foods, no Amimal foods, no Vegetable oils, no Exceptions and Exercise).  Plant Based Diet Food Pyramid   A Plant Based Diet is a very radical way to eat when compared to our typical western diet, but the western diet has deteriorated into processed and fast foods, empty and overly abundant calories, and an abnormally obese population fraught with cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancers of all kinds.  Now, we all need fat in our diets, but rather than using refined oils to cook with or dress our greens, the goal on a plant based diet is to get that fat from nuts, seeds, avacados and olives as whole foods, in moderation.  This is one of the reasons that I started making the cheesy sauce made primarily from oats, nutritional yeast, sesame seeds and pimientos.  It's made from whole foods rather than refined ingredients and so is a better choice than even Daiya Vegan Shreds.

Meat analogues are often rather processed and may contain high levels of sodium for flavor.  I make a great vegan club sandwich from Dave's Killer 21 Seed Bread, Smoked Tofurky Slices, Smart Bacon, romaine lettuce, tomatoes and Vegannaise. But, it's an occasional special treat rather than a frequent menu item in our house.  My meat analogue of choice is TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) which is also used in many processed meat analogues.  Dehyrated TVP granules and chunks, however, are made solely from defatted soy flour and have the following macronutritional value:

• One quarter cup of dry TVP, which is equivalent to about 24 grams, contains 80 calories, 12 grams of protein, 3 grams of sugar and 7 grams of total carbohydrates. It also contains 4 grams of fiber, which is equivalent to 16 percent of the U.S. recommended daily allowance of fiber.

I reconstitute TVP with vegan Merlot and Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base to mimic beef chunks, vegan Pinot Grigio and Better Than Bouillion No Chicken Base to mimic chicken chunks, and a combination of the two to mimic pork.  TVP is considered a processed food, but it's made from soy beans, so I really am eating legumes!  You can certainly make great whole food stews, chilis, curries and soups without anything that mimics meat, but I still need the meaty chunks in these dishes to round out the gastric experience.  Eating a hearty, vegan Irish stew is more pleasurable to me knowing that no creature had to sacrifice it's life for me to enjoy the experience.

Original Vegan Boca Burgers are processed, but some times my family and I are just in the mood for a burger, or a patty melt.  I will be working on my own whole foods burger recipe soon, so I will post the results when I have hit the right mix of ingredients. In the mean time, if you have created or found the recipe for a great whole foods burger patty, please share with me!