The Second Day of Christmas... Fake it 'till you make it.

Well hey there noble reader, nice to know that I haven't scared you off. I know that yesterday's POST was a little challenging. Facing up to the realities of the dairy industry was tough, but I'm proud of you. You didn't tune out. 

I know we haven't even looked at pigs or chickens yet but for now...

Let's lighten things up a little bit and have some fun. The Second Day of Christmas --

FAKE IT 'TILL YOU MAKE IT BABY! YEAH!!!

Making a change in our lives is never easy, be that committing to an exercise routine, restructuring how we make use of our time to be more productive or most especially making any sort of dietary changes. Let's face it, most of us use food as comfort, to celebrate, to help us get through a difficult time, to bond with friends and family, to mark traditions, or in some cases - we might even use lunch just to get us through the damned work day. Not saying that's me {cough, it's totally me}. So why in the world would we want to go and give up our favorite foods?

I think we touched on part of the reason - compassion for animals -- but how about we think about our health. Think you need all that beef for protein, milk for calcium, eggs for... I dunno breakfast? Think again. I'd encourage you to watch What The Health. Fear not faint of heart folks, this is the film for you. It's strictly about the effects of an animal based diet on your physical well being. Once again, this documentary is available on Netflix and YouTube, but for your convenience, I've also added it here --

But I said this was gonna be fun today so lets have some fun. Transitioning to a plant based diet is easier than any other dietary change we'll ever make. Why? Because we don't actually have to give anything up. Like for instance, when I gave up sugar - I had to give up everything that was sweet and good in life and it was hard as fuck! And sometimes I'm still sad about it. But that's another story. As a plant-based eater or PBE for short, all the foods that we love and crave and hunger for around the family table, during a sad movie or hard break-up, or over the holidays - has a vegan substitute.

Ben & Jerry's has even gotten on the dairy-free wagon!

Ben and freakin' Jerry's people!! I'm just sayin'. Our new life isn't going to be without luxury or pleasure. Au contraire. We can still have pizza and burgers, melty ooey gooey good cheese-like product {do I know how to sell it or what?}. Um... did you know that Duncan Hines frosting is vegan! Oreo cookies. Vegan. Oops, sorry. Slipped into a sugar fantasy there for a second.

But what about Turkey dinner. We have a huge selection to choose from. My personal favorite hands down has always been Tofurkey - sadly I can no longer eat it because I have a gluten allergy. {always thought I had cramps after eating it because I ate too much, I mean I prob'ly did eat too much but it was the gluten to blame. Who knew?} But check this out - you can even get a vegan substitute that looks like a real Turkey if you must have the carcass of animal on your dinner table. I mean what will they come up with next, love it...

Crazy right? Want to know where to get it? Check here. Want more options? Check out this post. Again sadly for me, most of these have wheat gluten in them, so this year Ima try my hand at making my own tofu turkey with homemade gluten free stuffing. I'll letcha know how it turns out and I may even post a recipe and pics if it's not an epic fail, deal?

Now let's talk about the real thing holding us back from taking the plunge. Booze. Am I right? My favorite must have holiday drink is of course the one and only Bailey's Irish Cream. To die for over ice. I love it. Guess what?

Oh hell yeah they did.

Or why not try Besos de Oro -- 

The name means golden kisses. It's a mix of brandy and Horchata - a milky like drink made from tiny tubers called Chafa that grow in the ground. They look like peanuts but they're not nuts. It's dairy, nut and gluten free and apparently very popular in Spain served over ice. Is that true Natalia??

All I'm saying is that as we transition into the next phase {should you choose to join me, hoping you will, oh please say you will, won't you} is that we'll never have to go without because pretty much all our favorite foods, snacks, treats and drinks have their own non-animal based version.

Coming up as we continue with the Twelve Days of Christmas, I look forward to discussing experimenting with new foods, playing around in the kitchen, tips for eating out, documentary reviews and other helpful ways to ease into Veganuary by the month's end.

Stay tuned.
Love,
Shan