Milk replacer tips

When I stopped drinking milk (for health reasons and because of the horror that goes on in the dairy industry), there were two things I missed most of all -

1. Cereal. I loved cereal and ate it all the time.

2. Tea. In Scotland where I live, we are a nation of tea lovers. We drink it all the time even although there seems to be a Starbucks on every corner.

Then I made two discoveries. Firstly, that I could replace milk in my cereal with soya (soy) milk. I tried all the different varities: sweetened, unsweetened and various flavours. I also tried rice milk, oat milk and almond milk. To be honest, I didn't like them much.

Then I discovered Provamel's banana flavoured soya milk and thought, 'Mmm, now this I like.' So, I've been having that in my cereal ever since.

You may find your tastes are different, but there should be one non-dairy milk that you like.

My latest discovery is SoyGo coffee creamer, which you can buy either in a carton or in sachets to carry around with you. One box contains 25 sachets. I bought it from the VIVA online shop, but you may be able to find it in a health store.

I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, that this is the best milk replacer I have used. Tea tastes like tea and if you take away the fact that you need to really stir your tea or coffee to ensure this dissolves, then I have to give it a well earned 9 out of 10.

A vegetarian’s coming to dinner

If all else fails you can always rustle up a salad

For some people hearing that a dinner/house guest is a vegetarian can be a worry. What can you give them to eat that will be quick and easy to make? And, just as important, what shouldn’t you give them to eat?

Bears eat fish, vegetarians don't

Here are some pointers:

What NOT to make –

·         Fish. Vegetarians do NOT eat animal flesh.

·         Poultry like chicken or turkey for the same reason as the one given above.

·         Anything containing meat, fish or poultry products. Vegetarians don’t eat any meat or anything derived from meat such as stew made with meat stock or soup made using a bone.

·         If you’re making dessert, strictly nothing containing jelly. Jelly contains gelatine (also spelt gelatine),which is basically grund down animal bones and muscle. You can get a gelatine-free version of jelly.

What TO make -

·         Omelettes are nice and easy, but if you’re making them an omelette, do it with free-range eggs. Many vegetarians will only eat free-range eggs. You can add things like mushrooms and tomatoes. Ask your visitor what they prefer.

·         Vegetarian sausages and mashed potato (called sausages and mash in the UK). Delicious and easy. Tastes amazing with a thick onion gravy and swede (turnip) and sweet potato mash.

·         Pasta is one of those dishes that most people like. If you can pop some garlic bread in the oven to have with it all the better.

·     Vegetarian  pizza. Easy to make and quick. Cheese and tomato is simple and tasty, but do make sure your guest isn't vegan as cheese isn't suitable for vegans unless it's specifically vegan cheese (available from health food stores).

·         Vegetarian hot dogs. There are so many different brands available and many of my non-vegetarian friends have said that they prefer the veggie versions to the meat ones they usually have.

·         Shepherd’s pie with either Soya, TVP textured vegetable protein or Quorn mince.

·         Noodles. Just a plain plate of noodles with Soya sauce can be tasty.

·         A stir fry. This is ideal because you can make it out of whatever vegetables you have in the fridge and any noodles you have.

Note - all pictures are free images from www.kozzi.com. Why not give them a go?

How replacing meat in dishes can help you slim

These days, people are being warned to cut down on their meat consumption for health reasons.

Those who eat meat are more likely to –

• Develop heart disease (meat is full of fat that hardens the arteries)
• Be obese as many types of meat are high in calories
• Get bowel cancer – the long time it takes for meat to digest has been blamed for this

If you’re looking to lose some weight and get healthier, replacing meat in recipes with some vegetarian substitutes can really help.

Soya mince is ideal for shepherd’s pie and is much lower in calories than the beef that’s usually used as mince. Soya chunks can also be used in casseroles.

You can get Quorn in a number of different foods including sausages (why not have them with your sausage and mash), mince, sausage rolls, fillets and meat balls. Like Soya, it’s also lower in calories than its meaty equivalents. It also contains no cholesterol. Quorn is one of the tastiest vegetarian foods that there is.

As it contains egg, it is not suitable for vegans.

Click on the picture to find out more -

To see how many less calories you’ll consume if you use Quorn in certain dishes instead of meat click here
http://blog.quorn.co.uk/2011/01/calculate-the-benefits-of-cooking-with-quorn-ingredients

Example, if you use Quorn instead of beef to make spaghetti bolognaise, you will save almost 100 calories.

If you live in the UK, why not have a Celebration Roast from Redwood Foods instead of your normal roast? It’s made from wheat protein and in the package you get a meat free turkey roast, and sausages wrapped on vegetarian ham. And, don't forget the gravy and roasted potatoes!

Click on the picture for more details -

Why not ditch the chicken and ham slices for the companies tasty Cheatin' Range? They have ham style, pepperoni style, chicken style, beef style and garlic sausage style and they are all lower in calories than their meat alternatives!

Note - all of Redwood's range contain NO egg, no GMO, no artificial flavorings and colorings and NO cholesterol. They're suitable for vegans. If you live in the USA or Canada, you can buy similar products that contain wheat protein.

6 Reasons I’m going dairy free

After finding out about the cruelty that goes into milk production, I have gone dairy free. This means no more milk, no more margarine and spreads containing milk, and definitely no milk chocolate.

There are other reasons I am shunning milk –

1. Despite what we keep being told, milk is not good for you. In fact, consuming it gives you a higher risk of osteoarthritis and breast cancer. In Asian where most people don’t eat dairy, the rates of both conditions are much, much lower than in the West where dairy is a part of people’s everyday diets.
2. Have you ever woken up with phlegm? That horrible thick sludgy stuff in your throat that’s often green? Then dairy may be to blame
3. Despite consuming more milk that most other countries in the world, the USA and the UK have high rates of osteoarthritis. Much higher than Asian where dairy is not part of their diet. How can that be when we keep on being told we need milk for strong bones? Maybe there’s something in milk that isn’t good for bones.
4. We have sky high rates of breast cancer in the USA and the UK too than countries that don’t drink milk.
5. Humans are only meant to drink their own mother’s milk, not another species. Drinking milk is weird.
6. The dairy industry is a cruel one. Did you know in the UK alone, 100,000 calves (yes, that's babies are killed every year) for no other reason than they are male and don't produce milk? VIVA (Vegetarians International Voice for Animals) have a campaign right now exposing the cruelty that goes into making Cadbury's chocolate. They have a Facebook page. Read more about them their milk myths campaign here

Could milk be making you ill?

Could that bloated feeling you get after eating be down to lactose intolerance? Lactose intolerance is when the body cannot break down the sugars in cow’s milk.

Note – lactose intolerance is not to be confused with a milk allergy. A milk allergy can result in an Anaphylactic shock and can kill. If you have an extreme, adverse reaction to milk, seek immediate medical treatment.

It’s estimated that 40 percent of the world’s population retain the ability to digest lactose (the sugar that’s in milk) after childhood. Some ethnic groups are more susceptible that others. This is usually people who don’t typically have dairy (foods containing milk in their diets).

Symptoms of lactose intolerance include –

• An upset stomach
• Stomach cramps
• Wind
• Diarrhoea
• Nausea

Tip – If you think you have lactose intolerance, try removing dairy from your diet and see if you feel any better.

Remember, many things contain milk. This includes –

1. Cheese.
2. Many brands of crisps (chips in the USA), including ones you might not think of like Walkers smoky bacon.
3. Margarine.
4. Cakes, especially ones with cream.
5. Cereal bars.
6. Trifle.
7. Many dark chocolates.
8. Sauces, especially pasta sauces.

Milk has also been linked with a high rate of breast cancer and osteoarthritis in the West.

The Great Milk Myth

For decades, the British government has spent millions on countless campaigns to promote milk or ‘the white stuff’ as they called it in one campaign as something that is vital to being healthy. They’ve used pop stars like Atomic Kitten and model Nell McAndrew.

In America, the ‘Got milk’ campaign has used everyone from The Simpsons, to Batman and Spongebob SquarePants to try and get more people to drink milk.

Whilst the campaigns may differ they have one common message – milk is good for you.

But is that really true?

Recent news that a new strain of the superbug MRSA has been found in British cow’s milk and in people in both the UK and Denmark would suggest that it’s not. You can find out more about the story here http://uk.news.yahoo.com/mrsa-superbug-found-cows-milk-scientists-220746838.html 

Fact - In Western countries where dairy consumption is high like Britain, there is a higher rate of breast cancer that most other countries in the world. In fact, one in twelve women in the UK will get breast cancer. This is said to be linked to milk consumption.

Fact – In countries where they don’t drink milk like China and Japan, the rates of breast cancer in women are very low.

This isn’t the first research that’s shown that milk might not be as good for you as you’re led to believe.

Scientist Professor Jane Plant believes that avoiding milk is the key to beating breast cancer.

Read more about her here - http://www.rense.com/general35/av.htm

There are a lot of things said about milk that are simply not true. Here are some of the most common -

Myth - humans are meant to drink milk.

Wrong – humans are the only mammals that drink other mammals’ milk. If it were natural other animals would drink other animals’ milk too.

Myth – Cows exist to produce milk for humans. To do that is natural.

Wrong - animals produce milk to feed their babies not humans. Nor is it natural that in order to increase the amount of milk produced, cows have their young taken away from them and are pumped full of steroids.

Myth – milk involves no animal cruelty.

Wrong – dairy cows taken away from their young so that humans can drink milk. What could be crueller? Many of the throwaway young end up in veal crates where they are deprived of light, companionship and space and then slaughtered.

Myth - it’s the best source of calcium.

Wrong – people in non-dairy consuming get more than enough calcium without eating dairy products or drinking milk. They get their calcium from green leafy veg like broccoli, cabbage, chick peas, baked beans and olives.

Ask yourself this, if milk is such a good provider of calcium which is essential for strong bones, then why do Westerners have the highest rate of osteoporosis (brittle bones) in the world?

Alternatives to milk –

Soy milk (this can be sweetened or unsweetened or flavoured). My favourite is banana. I put that on my cereal.

Flax milk

Rice milk

Coconut milk

Nut milks  

Hemp milk