THE VEGAN NEWS THE VEGAN NEWS
The Vegan News is written and edited by P M Lloyd. Please e-mail your contributions to the editor at: pauline@bury-rd.demon.co.uk or fill in the form provided.
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Recipe of the Month(Source of recipe unknown.)
Note: When I make this dish I don't use any tins. The equivalent of a tin of chopped tomatoes can easily be made up by chopping up 4-5 tomatoes and mixing them with the tomato puree and 150ml of water in a bowl. I also use home-cooked beans instead of canned ones. Use 115g (4oz) of kidney beans and a similar amount of white beans. This will be enough for two servings. And if green beans are not available, then it's possible to use frozen peas instead.
Readers' Contributions I just thought that I would write in to challenge the notion that one has to water (and feed) outdoor tomatoes. Most books go on about this, but I do not believe it to be necessary. I grow my tomatoes in Herefordshire, in the rain shadow of the Black Mountains and rainfall is typically about 25-28 inches. The site where I grow my tomatoes is on a 20 degree south-facing slope and it is a dry limestone soil. I do not feed or water them and also supply about 20 plants to my daughter, living in Bicester and she tells me they are thriving in this very hot weather and that she never waters hers either. I did read somewhere that deep planting (6") is recommended. I tend to do this and this must surely help?
Mike Ibbotson (UK)
Editor's Reply:
July was a really dry month down here in the south of England this year and my soil was as dry as dust, down to a depth of about one foot at one stage. My tomatoes certainly needed watering then, along with quite a few of my other crops which were all clinging on for dear life! I have never tried deep planting tomatoes - although perhaps I should if these very dry spells continue. What do other readers think?
October
Product Review And following on from last month's sprouting article:
The Being Fare Salad Sprouter
The Being Fare Salad Sprouter is a complete bean and seed growing kit, consisting of three square sprouting trays (measuring approximately six inches square) and a drip tray, plus a starter packet of alfalfa seeds. Produced in a tasteful beige colour, this sprouter will sit unobtrusively on your kitchen work surface. The enclosed instructions are maybe a little bit vague, but the kit is nevertheless very easy to use. Simply sprinkle your seeds onto the trays and flush a glass of water through the system once a day. There appears to be no need to soak seeds before sprouting - just throughly wet them by adding an extra glass of water on the first day of use. So far, in mine, I've successfully grown chickpeas (I do still soak these first), sunflower seeds, wheat, barley, aduki beans, green lentils, radish, alfalfa and mustard and cress.
It's a pity that a meshed lid isn't provided with the kit, as there's nothing to stop flies and other undesirables from getting into the top tray (I usually cover mine with a piece of muslin or a clean tea towel). And some sort of removable partition would also be useful, so that small amounts of different types of seeds could be grown in the trays at the same time - they all tend to get a bit muddled up otherwise.
The Beingfare Salad Sprouter can be purchased by mail order from The Organic Gardening Catalogue for £8.65. (Telephone: 01932 253666 for a catalogue.) And it's worth looking out for one in your health shop, or local Suma stockist too.
Sunnyvale Organic Sprouted Wheat Bread
A lovely rich, dark, moist loaf which is surprisingly good for you. It contains no added sugar, yeast, fat, eggs or dairy products, the only ingredients being sprouted whole organic wheat and pure filtered water. Yet despite its lack of ingredients this loaf is so nice that it could easily be eaten instead of cake - the sweet (almost treacly taste) being the natural result of the sprouting process, whereby complex starches are converted into simple sugars. A good item to keep in your store cupboard, as it will keep, unopened, for quite a long time - that is of course provided you can leave it alone! It can also be toasted, although it seems a shame to do this to it. Look out for Sunnyvale Organic Sprouted Wheat Bread in your health shop. I paid £1.30 for a 400g loaf.
Survey ResultsFirst of all I would just like to thank all of the readers who took the trouble to fill in this summer's questionnaire. I now have a much better idea of who you all are and about what you like about Vegan News.
I thought that you might be interested in the survey results too. So here they are, hot off the press! As regards your diet 83% of you follow a vegan diet and the remaining 17% of you are vegetarian. Sixteen percent of you are quite experienced and have been following a meat-free diet for over ten years. However, 52% of you are relatively new to the game, being vegetarian or vegan for two years or under. You are all fairly young - or else some of you are lying about your age! Most of you (40%) are in the 21-35 age group, closely followed by readers aged 36-50 (34%). The remaining 26% were under 20. No vegans of over 50 filled in the questionnaire, possibly because older vegans aren't yet on the Internet. On the whole, those of you who have followed a vegan or vegetarian diet for over 10 years tend to be in the 36-50 age group, with the majority of the new vegans being in the under 20 age group. I was, however, rather surprised to see that no one in the 'under 20' group had been vegan/vegetarian from birth.
Nearly all of you seem to consume at least some organic produce. Well done! And 52% of you manage to grow some organic produce, even if it is only on your window sill. Thirty-nine percent of you live in the UK, with a further 36% visiting Vegan News from the USA. The remaining 25% of visitors come from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and European countries such as Holland, Italy, Germany and Finland. A surprising number of people who filled in the questionnaire were visiting Vegan News for the first time (44%), but 36% of you read Vegan News every month. And finally a whopping 94% of the people who replied to the survey rated Vegan News as either excellent or good!
In the comments section of the survey many of you expressed interest in being able to contact other vegans and it was suggested that a 'Contacts Notice Board' would be a good idea. So, if any of you would like your name placing on this notice board, please send in your name, e-mail address and the name of the town/city and country in which you live. (You can also include your telephone number if you wish.) Don't forget to mark the e-mail with the words 'Contacts Board' in the subject box - you send in all sorts of things and it's not always clear what they are for!
What's
Happening in the Veganic Garden This Month?Not much left to sow now, but autumn sowings of field beans (Vicia faba) can be made from September through to November. Field beans are usually grown for animal fodder, but can also be eaten by humans. They make an excellent nitrogen-rich green manure crop, so sow some on any spare land you have left-over, rather than leaving it bare over the winter. Seeds can be obtained from the Organic Gardening Catalogue. (Telephone: 01932 253666 if you would like a catalogue.) A 112 g packet of seeds is enough to sow 60 sq ft and costs £1.21. Don't forget to plant out spring cabbage plants (e.g. Offenham or Flower of spring) and many new fruit bushes can also be planted out this month.
Continue to tidy up the garden for the winter. See the January 1997 issue if you want more information on how to make new raised beds, or visit the October 1996 issue to find out how to make your own leaf mould from fallen autumn leaves. Lift remaining beetroots, potatoes and carrots and store them for the winter. And now is the time to pick the last remaining runner beans before the frosts arrive. Large, tough beans can be dried and kept for next year's seeds.
Autumn leeks, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, cauliflowers, celery, parsnips, turnips, sweetcorn, globe artichokes and apples, pears and plums.
I made a good start on my butterfly garden this year and I am pleased to report the following wildlife sightings:
My oregano plant, in my herb area, remains a favourite with many butterflies. Most years it is covered with small tortoiseshells when it flowers in July and August. However, for some mysterious reason there haven't been that many small tortoiseshells in my garden this year. On one occasion it was visited by a blue butterfly this year, but unfortunately I didn't get the chance to identify which species it was before it flew off again. It has also been quite popular with cabbage whites. And in July I was pleased to see loads of gatekeepers flying round and visiting this plant.
This year I also grew the French marigold 'Naughty Marietta' (Tagetes patula) in troughs on my patio. The plants flowered nicely all summer, making a lovely orange display. Visiting butterflies included: peacocks, a small tortoiseshell and cabbage whites. And incidentally, this plant is also very popular with bees. I have plenty of spare seed left. So if any UK readers would like some free seed, please send a SAE to: 48 Bury Rd, Old Harlow, Essex, CM17 OEE.
The aubrietia 'purple cascade' (Aubrietia deltoidea) is also doing well, but hasn't flowered yet and probably won't until next spring. Consequently it has not yet been visited by any butterflies. I am growing it inside an old, white chimney pot and hope that once it is established it will cascade down the sides of the chimney and make a nice display.
It was my second attempt to grow Sedum spectabile this year. Therefore, I was very disappointed when the seeds failed to germinate once again. Similarly the wild thyme also failed to germinate, but I will have another go with these this autumn.
The poached egg plants (Limnanthes douglasii) I grew were wonderful and their lovely yellow and white flowers attracted many hoverflies into the garden. However, perhaps the most successful plants for attracting butterflies into the garden this year were my brassicas - cabbages, kale, pak choi, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. Although this wasn't exactly what I had intended when I planted them!
And around about the 20th of September I suddenly noticed lots of red admirals flying around my garden - the ivy was in flower again! It's so nice to see these brightly coloured butterflies basking in the sun, all over the walls of my house and on my terrace, after they've been feeding. And I even spotted a speckled wood butterfly feeding on the ivy's nectar too. I shall make the most of these lovely creatures, for soon they will all disappear for the winter.
Your QueriesDo you know of any kosher vegan marshmellows or cheese. I really miss these foods?
Afraid I don't, but if any other readers (USA) know the answer to this query perhaps they could e-mail the answer to Lori at: asklar@juno.com
Vegan Lake DistrictThis year, whilst walking in and exploring the Lake District, I decided to check out some of the places listed in *VIVA'S Vegetarian and Vegan Guide to the Lake District.
* VIVA!s Vegetarian and Vegan Guide to the Lake District (1999-2000) costs £1.00. It is available from many Tourist Information Offices in the Lake District area and can also be purchased by mail order direct from VIVA! for £1.00 plus £0.50 postage. It's well worth the money and especially helpful if you want to find out where to eat or sleep in the Lake District.
Finally, I would just like to mention Derwent Bay Bears. Derwent Bay Sawmill is located in Derwent Bay (Portinscale) near Keswick. It produces lovely hand-carved timber bears and other wooden garden creatures. Here you can meet Bruno, Bertie, Barney, Freddie, Brewster, Honey and Fleur. The bears are all made from home-grown timber from renewable resources. And are stained with woodstain which according to the manufacturers does not contain any animal products. Don't miss the bear's bedroom, upstairs in the showroom! Be warned these bears are big and can be difficult to get into the car. They are nice to look at though and you can also see them being made. Incidentally, they can be purchased by mail order - prices range from £85-125, plus £18.00 delivery. To find out more about these bears visit The Derwent Bay website.
Other
Interesting Vegan WebsitesAn excellent site and a particularly good starting point for obtaining information for the new or intending vegan. You can now visit their online shop or become a member.
Do you want to find out more about the benefits of eating raw food? The FRESH Network provides information and offers support, as well as selling a wide range of raw food books/booklets and equipment such as juicers and dehydrators.
Mount Oso Organics produces certified organic, international ethnic lentil dishes. They're low in fat, completely wheat and gluten free and of course vegan. Visit their website to find out more about these gourmet products.
This website offers ideas rather than recipes. Find out how to make nut milks, what to use instead of eggs in your recipes and discover how to save time when cooking beans. Many other areas covered as well.
Very similar to the UK's Ethical Wares. Vegan Wares sells many types of non-leather footwear - made from breathable, recyclable material. So if you live in Australia and are finding it hard to find non-leather shoes why not pop along and have a look at what they have to offer?
Anarchista's Vegetarian Recipes
If you're looking for vegan recipes, then you'll find plenty of quick n' easy recipes here.
Working With Nature: A Practical
Philosophy For Health And Sustainability by Steve Charter
(Printed by Unique Publications 1999).
A thought-provoking booklet covering many interesting
concepts, including the vegan raw food diet, sustainable living,
permaculture principles, intuitive eating, paradise and forest
gardening and the use of perennials and wild foods as a source of
food. In 'Working With Nature' Steve Charter carefully
studies the connections, clearly showing how the way we choose to
live can affect our own health and the health of the planet.
Above all he offers insight into how we can change things for the
better - simply by altering our values and our patterns of
thinking. An inspiring little booklet which offers hope for the
future. Note: This book does carry a health
warning. This should be taken very seriously and anyone who
wishes to avoid improving their health should not go anywhere
near this booklet!
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Copyright © Pauline Lloyd 1999
October
Book Review