Our bodies have a natural pH, which stands for “power of hydrogen” or “potential of hydrogen,” that denotes the level of acidity and alkalinity of our bodily fluids.

We want our bodies to be alkaline, not acidic. Why is this important? It’s important because if our bodily fluids become too acidic, we will be at increased risk for disease. The pH of our fluids affects every cell in our bodies. When our bodies remain in a constant state of acidosis or are overly-acidic, this can result in prolonged stress to our bodies, and can impair our immune system, which can lead to disease.

An acidic bodily system can also result in an increase in harmful free radicals, the development of kidney stones, and an environment that prolongs the life of harmful viruses and bacteria. On the other hand, these conditions do not arise in an alkaline environment.

What we eat is the biggest factor in our pH level. It’s our diet that determines how acidic or alkaline our bodily fluids are. The over-consumption of foods that are acid-forming leads to an overly acidic body. 
So what foods should we eat to maintain the neutral pH level of our body?

First, the most important foods are those that contain chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is the green pigment in plants that allows the plant to absorb light from the sun, and that light is synthesized into energy or glucose. This process of photosynthesis is responsible for life on earth.

Chlorophyll not only nourishes our body, but it’s instrumental in the constant production of red blood cells—cell regeneration—and it rids our body of excess dietary and environmental toxins.

So, chlorophyll-rich foods like dark green leafy vegetables are the first foods of choice to keep our bodies alkaline. Some whole grains are more alkaline than others, as well, and these include amaranth, buckwheat, millet, quinoa, and wild rice. 

Alkaline-forming fruits include grapefruit, lemons, limes, mangos, papayas, cranberries, plums, prunes, and sour cherries. Now you may be wondering why citrus fruits are considered alkaline instead of acidic. Well, although citrus fruits, as well as apple cider vinegar, are naturally acidic foods, they actually have an alkaline effect on the body once they are digested and metabolized. And that’s the key.

Now let me give you some examples of foods that are acid-forming in the body that you want to avoid: white rice, white pasta, white flour, and white sugar, as well as meat, poultry, fish, butter, margarine, cheese, milk, and whey.

Now the difference here, besides the obvious difference of plant-based versus meat-based, is that the more acidic foods are those that  have been refined and processed.

When we eat those acid-forming foods, our bodies use calcium and other minerals from our muscle and other tissues in an effort to restore our pH level to alkaline. Our kidneys work overtime excreting this calcium and other minerals through the urine. In time, this can eventually lead to loss of muscle mass—or muscle wasting—and depletion of bone mineral content. 

Also, as part of this process, kidney stones can develop from the high amounts of calcium salt acids deposited in the kidneys as they excrete calcium from the body.

So the key takeaway here is that a whole foods vegan diet is more alkaline producing and that diets of processed foods and meat and dairy are more acid-producing, which can lead to chronic disease.

Much Love,

+ The 21-Day Vegan Fresh Start will take place online October 5-25.

+You’ll be part of a community of 10,000 black women going vegan together to get healthy, feel great, and support each other along the way.

+ On the first day, you’ll get a link to download an all-new 21-Day Fresh Start Guidebook. 

+ The Guidebook includes preparation guidance, nutrition 101, meal plans, recipes, grocery lists, and meal prep tips for the 21 days.

+ For the first 7 days, we’ll be taking the first week to get ready, preparing our minds and kitchens to go vegan. We won’t be eating vegan yet.

+ Then, for the next 14 days, we’ll be cooking and eating 100% vegan, following the meal plans and recipes in the Guidebook. 

+ We’ll also have live online calls twice a week, for guidance, Q&As, tips, and support. 

+ We’ll have a private Facebook group to get to know each other and provide support and encouragement throughout the 21 days. (If you’re not on Facebook, don’t worry, it’s not required.)

+ We’ll have a live online cooking class, where we cook a vegan meal together in real time. We’ll also have cooking videos demonstrating some of the meals. 

+ We’ll have 6 free online fitness classes, led by a certified fitness coach, who’s also participating in our free 21-Day Vegan Fresh Start.

+ We’re putting the finishing touches on a few more surprises.  

+ And at the end of the 21 days, we’ll have an online celebration of your successful completion of the program and you’ll receive a certificate of completion! 

To get ready for the program, all you have to do is keep your mind and heart open to the journey you’re about to take.

And if you haven’t signed up yet, now’s the time. I don’t want you to miss out come October 5th. Here’s the link to keep spreading the word.  

Much love,

Ida B. Wells is my all-time shero. A groundbreaking investigative journalist, anti-lynching crusader, pioneering suffragist, radical activist, and now posthumous Pulitzer Prize winner, she was truly ahead of her time. (If you don’t know her full story, I highly encourage you to read Ida: A Sword Among Lions by Paula J. Giddings.)

The only thing that could possibly top what Ida B. Wells means to me is if she was also vegan! She wasn’t.

But her courageousness is something that absolutely does apply to going vegan. I have long said that being vegan is a revolutionary act. In a society whose federal policies, medical and educational institutions, food industry, and popular culture constantly center meat and dairy, it takes real courage to go vegan. 

It takes profound self-awareness to eat healthy plant-based foods when most people around you aren’t doing it – and will probably question your choices. 

And it takes a true commitment to justice to go vegan to help create a more equitable food system, combat climate change, and end the factory farming of billions of animals.

So whether you’re going vegan for one, all or other of these reasons, know that your choice absolutely takes courage. It makes you both of your time and ahead of your time. 

So go on ahead with your vegan or soon-to-be vegan self! You’re a badass! May the world see you and be inspired.

Much love,

And my great nephew’s birth got me to thinking about a question I get asked quite a bit: Is it healthy to raise children vegan? The answer is yes – as many lifelong vegans can attest.

And here’s what Dr. Ruby Thomas, MD, a board-certified pediatrician based in Atlanta, who raised her own children vegan, has to say. This is an excerpt from our free African American Vegan Starter Guide.

Many women who are vegan and become pregnant wonder if they should adjust their diets to ensure a healthy pregnancy, but a vegan diet can be totally healthy for you and your baby.

Vegan Pregnancy
A vegan diet can be completely healthy for pregnant women. In fact, it may actually help lower your risk for pregnancy-related complications, such as elevated blood pressure or gestational diabetes. The key to nourishing yourself and your growing baby is to eat as many whole foods as possible from each plant-based food group, including whole grains, fruit, vegetables and legumes, as well as healthy fats. And make extra sure to get adequate amounts of folic acid, vitamin B12, calcium, vitamin D and iron, found in your standard prenatal vitamin. Your doctor may also recommend an extra vitamin D supplement because many women are deficient in this vitamin. Also, be sure to drink plenty of water each day.

Vegan Diets for Infants and Children
A vegan diet can be one of the best ways to ensure a healthy start for your baby, and can help decrease the risk of obesity, heart disease, and cancer later in life. Vegan children may also have fewer problems with allergies and digestive problems. Breastfeeding is best for your baby during the first year of life, and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding exclusively for the first 4-6 months. All exclusively breastfed babies should also receive a vitamin D supplement, since it is very important for bone health and development. Vitamin D deficiency is very common in the United States, and breastfed babies and African Americans are at increased risk for this deficiency and its complications.

For your child’s first foods, you can start with pureed fruits and vegetables, such as bananas and sweet potatoes. Avocado is also a great first food for vegan babies due to the high amount of good fats that it contains, which are important for brain growth and development.

As your baby gets older, you can introduce an even greater variety of food such as whole grains, seeds and nut butters. You can also begin to introduce plant milks such as hemp, almond or coconut milk into your child’s diet once breastfeeding is complete. At this time, you may also want to begin your child on a children’s multivitamin supplement that includes vitamin B12.

By starting your child on a vegan diet from birth, you’re ensuring
that your child is exposed to a wide variety of food that will help to
enhance the immune system, lower the risk for childhood obesity,
and help to guarantee a healthy future.

To hear more guidance from Dr. Thomas about raising children vegan, check out her interview on the Brown Vegan podcast, hosted by my friend Monique Koch. And check out Dr. Thomas’s website and book.

Much love,

One of Chef Cola’s primary goals is to spread awareness of the beauty of plant-based African vegan culture and cuisine by giving people the information and resources they need to actively integrate plant-based eating into their lifestyles. 

I recently interviewed Chef Cola to find out how she went vegan, to learn more about her incredible work with the Akashinga women anti-poaching rangers in Zimbabwe, and to find out what inspires her.

TM: How did you go vegan?

CC: I spent my childhood in New York City, where my mother was a diplomat, so my worldview and cuisine were influenced by my time there. But it was while working at PLANT restaurant in Cape Town that I was introduced to veganism and began to train in plant-based cooking.

TM: How did your work with the Akashinga women anti-poaching rangers and Back to Black Roots come about?

CC: Back to Black Roots (BTBR)  was created in 2017 as a collaboration between Damien Mander, the founder of the International Anti-Poaching Federation (IAPF), and myself. it provides the 100% plant-based food that fuels the Akashinga women through their training, daily duties, and short- and long-term patrols, as they protect nature and endangered species from poachers. In 2019, BTBR served more than 54,800 vegan meals to 150 Akashinga conservation rangers and support staff, many of these as field rations for consumption while on patrols.

The broader mission of BTBR is to provide nutritious vegan meals to Akashinga rangers and staff, while offering the broader African public the knowledge and skills to lead a plant-based life.

Our BTBR team in Zimbabwe currently consists of 9 woman and 2 men, all Zimbabwean nationals and native Africans. Everyone on the kitchen team came from underprivileged backgrounds and began with no culinary experience. I train them to clean, prep, cook, preserve, and serve plant-based, vegan cuisines in support of IAPF’s conservation mission. The goal is to continue growing and serving alongside IAPF, while expanding BTBR’s educational capacity.

It is significant to note that one of the male chefs used to be a poacher and skinner of animals and is now an aspiring vegan chef helping to protect nature and wildlife. He’s a passionate animal advocate!

TM: Why is spreading veganism important to you and how is it changing people’s lifestyles?

CC: I believe that most people in Africa are living on plant-based vegan diets due to the high costs of living in Africa. In the areas I work in rural Zimbabwe, they are plant-based and vegan mainly, but due to pride of eating animals, they do not say they cannot afford meat or basics like electricity and food. As Africans we are taught that meat is everything so they would rather lie. In rural Zimbabwe they eat a lot of soy chunks and call them ‘’nyama,’’ which means meat. These soy chunks have meaty flavors and textures. I guess it is a psychological thing.

African Vegan on a Budget teaches people how to make affordable and tasty meals on a budget in any area, rural or urban. Spreading vegan culture is very important especially amongst people of color because we cannot literally afford to catch illnesses because the resources that are available for cures are not readily available to us. Plant-based or vegan diet promotion allows the spread of preventive measures and also the spread of positive lifestyles. 

TM: What is the vegan scene like in Zimbabwe? What about In Africa, in general, if you have a sense of it?

CC: There is a huge vegan scene in Africa amongst the different countries. Each of our cultures has dishes that are very plant-based or vegan. These dishes are traditional, but still very modern and relevant in our diets today. This is because their ingredients are readily available amongst the different cultures.

In Zimbabwe, the vegan market is still small but growing at a fast pace now. I see more vegan brands coming up and more gatherings that are plant- based, although mainly digital now. I am also based in Cape Town, South Africa and the vegan market there is global and international, with basically everything you would find in a city like Dubai, New York or London.

There still needs to take place processes like unlearning what Africans of color think veganism is. Most people think veganism is a very white thing and expensive, which is why they shy away from it — but it is not. 

TM: Traditionally West and Central African foods have been plant-based, but not necessarily plant-exclusive. Do you find that to be the same in traditional Southern African and Zimbabwean food? 

CC: Yes, very much so. However not as rich in plant-based foods as countries like Ethiopia and Kenya. Our Zimbabwean dishes are not as plant- based or vegetable-based as those. In Southern Africa, half the plate is meat, the other half is starch, and a spoon of green veg on top of all of that, for example. You have to be health-oriented to watch what you eat, in general. 

TM: Who are the vegan leaders and trailblazers in Africa, besides yourself, that you admire?

CC: I would say anyone who is African and pushing the vegan movement, I look up too. We are all in this together because we believe in the same rights and causes. To push it a little further, the vegan movement as people of color goes hand in hand with the Black Lives Matter Movement. The vegan movement is about raising your voice for the voiceless — not just animals, but every one. 

TM: What are some of the current projects you’re working on? And what is your ultimate goal?

CC: I am currently working on a YouTube podcast called African Vegan On A Budget with Chef Cola and a vegan cookbook. I have also launched a line of customized African-inspired chef jackets made in Zimbabwe, with a portion of proceeds donated to underprivileged, young African women in Zimbabwe and Cape Town to help improve their sewing skills. 

TM: How do you want to change and/or grow veganism in Zimbabwe and Africa, in general? What’s your ultimate goal? 

CC: I want to grow it by educating people learning and unlearning the knowledge they have about veganism. My ultimate goal is to work for the United Nations.

To stay connected with Chef Cola, follow her on Instagram and Facebook at @africanveganonabudget.

Much love, fam!

We used to have Sunday dinners at my grandmother’s apartment and she was the best. cook. ever. We lived for Grandma’s fried chicken, homemade biscuits, macaroni and cheese, pound cake and apple pie.

But when we went vegan, we had to break the news to Grandma (my dad’s mom) that we couldn’t eat her food anymore. When we told her, she looked at us indignantly and said “Oh, ya’ll done got sanctified!” Then she turned to my mother in disbelief. “And Mary, you done joined em!”

Since cooking was one of the ways Grandma showed her love — as many grandmothers do — she was not happy about this turn of events at all.

Well, it took a few years, but Grandma finally softened up. One day, out of the blue, she called me and said she wanted to make me an apple pie. I nearly dropped the phone. Grandma’s apple pies were legendary and I truly missed them. But since she used dairy products, I couldn’t eat them anymore.

But on this day, Grandma asked me to go get all my ingredients and bring them over. That I did, along with some vegan ice cream, and we spent the afternoon together in her kitchen while she made me a vegan, whole wheat crust, organic apple pie from scratch. When I finally got to taste it, I realized that Grandma had substituted the same amount of maple syrup for white table sugar, so the pie was way too sweet. But I just smiled and said it was delicious. It’s one of my sweetest memories!

That afternoon with my grandma 30 years ago let me know that food could still bring us together. That our food traditions could include veganizing family favorites and that our bonds of love and family could still be nourished and cherished.

In fact, when my mom went down south to visit her older sisters during those early vegan years, they just took her greens out of the pot before they added the meat, and kept it moving.

So I share this with you to say don’t let the fear of losing family food traditions and bonds hold you back from going vegan. Your relatives just might surprise you!

Food traditions are always evolving, anyway, as new generations put their twists on family recipes.

And as more and more people go vegan to live longer, healthier lives, the health legacies of entire families can change for the better. You just might be that spark for your family.

Much Love,

1. Feeling Pain Instead of Joy

When people think about going vegan, they often focus on how hard they think it will be. They focus on the foods they’ll be giving up, instead of all the new foods they’ll be adding on. They worry about being different than their family and friends, instead of the beauty of their own personal transformation. In other words, they fixate on deprivation, instead of abundance.

To avoid this mistake, shift your mindset. My mantra is “Liberate Your Mind and Your Mouth Will Follow.” So view going vegan as an exciting new journey that you’ll enjoy. Embrace the adventure of this new path you’re taking and keep an open mind and heart.

2. Comparing Instead of Inspiring

Do you know how long it’s going to take you to go vegan? The answer is, however long it takes you! I tell people all the time that it’s not a race or a competition. Your vegan journey is your own. It’s great to read the vegan transition stories of other people for inspiration. But there’s a big difference between inspiration and comparison or competition.

Inspiration can make you feel excited and motivated that you can do it, too. Comparison or competition can make you feel deflated and doubtful that you can do it. It’s not necessary to feel bad to grow. So be kind and gracious with yourself, and seek encouragement and support from folks that will lift you up.

3. Giving Up When You Slip Up

This one is key. When you’re transitioning to vegan foods, it can be common to take one step forward and two steps backward. So you might be doing great one day by eating all vegan food, then the next day or two, you might slip up by eating meat and dairy. Understand that this is usually part of the transition process. So don’t beat yourself up and don’t give up. Just start again the next day.

And at the same time, continue to read vegan books and blogs, watch vegan cooking videos and documentaries, and get support from others. So that even on those days when you slip up, know that all the things you’re doing are still working together in the background to help you mentally and physically transition. Keep your eyes on the prize and know that you are in the process of going vegan and you will do it.

Much Love,

Even when the label says “Plant-Based,” it’s best to check the ingredients list because, technically, plant-based doesn’t necessarily mean plant-exclusive. And as a general rule, products with the labels “Meat-Free” or “Dairy-Free” aren’t necessarily vegan, because they can still contain other animal-based ingredients.

The obvious animal-based ingredients to look for are beef, chicken, fish, turkey, pork, duck, lamb, and other animals, as well as milk, cheese, eggs, and egg whites.

But there are also hidden animal-based ingredients that show up in products that you might otherwise think are vegan. Check out the list below:

CARMINE

This is a red dye in food products that comes from the bodies of dried female beetles or cochineals. It’s found in juices and other drinks, fruit fillings, yogurt, ice cream, and other dairy products. 

CASEIN

This is a milk protein that can be found in supposedly nondairy cheeses, as well as in ice cream, bakery products, and cereals. This ingredient can also be listed as calcium caseinate and sodium caseinate.

GELATIN

This is an animal protein from pigs or cows that’s used as a thickening agent in foods like puddings, juice, frozen desserts, and the capsules used for vitamin supplements and pills. 

NATURAL FLAVORS

These are additives that give a food product its flavor. In general, the FDA allows companies to hide ingredients under the term “Natural Flavors” as a way to protect their secret recipe — so that no one else will know exactly what flavorings are used in the food product. The concern here is that the natural flavors could be animal-derived or plant-derived. Unless the product explicitly states that it’s vegan, we have no way of knowing if the natural flavors are vegan, unless you check the company’s website or contact the company directly. 

WHEY

This is a watery substance that is derived from the fat and protein in milk during the cheese-making process. Whey is often found in foods that we might expect to be vegan, like some soy cheese and rice cheese brands, to help them melt, so pay careful attention. Whey is also typically found in dry mixes, bakery products, ice-creams, and other processed foods. 

So there you have it. Now you’ll know how to tell if a packaged food product is vegan or not, when it doesn’t have “Vegan” on the label.

And if you want to explore the world of food ingredients even more — both plant-based and animal-based — check out the Vegetarian Resource Group’s Guide to Food Ingredients.

Much Love,

To start, here are my 4 top tips for going vegan when your family isn’t joining you:

My first tip is to be confident and sure about why you’re going vegan. Is it for your health, the animals, the environment, the planet, spiritual practices, or other reasons? Whatever your reasons are, be sure you’re committed to them. This will help you stand on firm ground as you face the initial challenges that may come your way as you transition to veganism but your family is not.

My second tip is to find a strong support system outside of your family members. That fact is that even though your family may not be going vegan with you, there’s no need to be on your vegan journey alone. Look to your inner circle of close friends. Are some of them already vegan, going vegan, or otherwise very supportive? If so, that’s wonderful! Look to each other for ongoing support during your transition and beyond.

You can also seek out support by joining your local vegan Meetup group online and in person (when it’s safe to do so again). Or if there’s no vegan Meetup in your area, consider starting one yourself. You might be surprised at how many like-minded people you can help bring together to share vegan activities. And of course, stay with the 10,000 Black Vegan Women movement as we officlally launch our online program in October.

My third tip focuses on cooking. If you’re the one who cooks most of the meals for the family, you may want or need to make some adjustments to accommodate both your vegan food and your family’s omnivore (plant and animal) food. So for example, that could mean making a curry vegetable stir-fry over brown rice for everyone, and adding chickpeas, cashews or tofu on top for you, and meat on top for them. Or it could mean making two separate meals altogether. It also might mean that your partner and/or children may need to cook or help to cook more of their omnivore meals. You have to do what works best for you and your family’s circumstances. But the goal here should be to ensure that you’re taking care of your cooking needs as a new vegan first, especially during the transition period.

My fourth tip is about what to do if you want your family to go vegan with you. I would really encourage you to focus first on yourself and be an example. As a new vegan, you may want your loved ones to know how healthy plant foods are; how unhealthy animal foods are; how terrible conditions are for animals on factory farms; how harmful factory farms are for workers, nearby residents, and the planet; the inequity of our food system, and more.

But even with all that urgency, it’s important to first be an example. If your loved ones ask about veganism, then cook vegan food with or for them; visit vegan restaurants together; and talk, watch films, read books, and go to vegan events together. If they want to learn more for themselves and be supportive of you at the same time, that’s great. If they don’t, just continue on your vegan journey and let things flow organically. You never know when you might inspire them!

And for more on how to put this into practice, here’s what Annette had to say:

MY INTERVIEW WITH ANNETTE HARRIS POWELL

TM: How long have you been vegan and how old were your children when you went vegan? 

AHP: I’ve been vegan for 5 years. My son, Cole, was 16 and my daughter, Ella, was 11… They weren’t very young at the time.

TM: What thoughts helped you to commit to going vegan when your family was not joining you? 

AHP: I thought that life is too short and that I’m trying to take care of me and what I put into my body… I didn’t think that my husband and children should feel compelled to eat what I was eating because this was my journey. This was something I was doing for me. I also believe in exploring different things that make life more interesting, [and by going vegan], I’ve introduced myself and them to new ways of thinking about ourselves.

TM: What have been some of the challenges with being vegan when your family is not?

AHP: Although my family has grown to like some vegan foods — and they’ve actually fallen in love with a few dishes — there are still some small challenges. It takes a lot more time to grocery shop because I’m shopping for them and for me. Also, I often have to guard many of the ingredients that I buy that are specific to my meals, because otherwise they might get used or completely eaten by my family, including snacks and specific fruits that I might use for breakfast. For example, my daughter, who never really liked apples, has developed an affinity for them. My son now asks for bagels only if he can use Miyoko’s cream cheese. And my husband has suddenly discovered dates! He always says my vegan food looks so good. 

TM: Since you cook most of the food for your family, how do you handle preparing vegan and non-vegan meals?

AHP: I mostly make separate vegan and omnivore meals. Or I make vegan sides with vegan and meat main dishes.

TM: Are there any tips you would give women who are going vegan when their family is not? 

AHP: Do you! All you can do is explain to them why you’re doing what you’re doing. 

TM: Has your being vegan inspired your family to eat more vegan meals?   

AHP: Yes, all of them have definitely been more influenced to eat vegan meals. My son, especially, has taken a big interest in vegan cuisine and most often prefers plant-based meals.

Thanks to Annette for sharing her perspective. And now I’d love to hear from YOU! Are you the only vegan in your family? How are you managing it? Do you have any tips you’d like to share? Please let us know in the comments below.

Much Love,

Chances are, whether you’re a vegan or a soon-to-be vegan, the meanings of some of these terms may not roll off the tip of your tongue — despite how often you may say them yourself. So to help you to have a general understanding of these 10 common vegan and vegan-associated terms, here are their definitions.

1. Vegan (pronounced “vee-gun”) — Someone who does not eat any animals or animal products (including chicken, fish, turkey, beef, pork, duck, milk, eggs, and cheese). And someone who does not eat or use animals or animal products (including for clothing, skincare products, and furnishings), and does not support the use of animals for entertainment (including zoos, circuses, marine parks, and aquariums) or for research and testing. There is disagreement about whether people who don’t eat animals, but do use animals or animal products in other ways are actually vegans. In my view, they are vegans. People enter into veganism for health, animal, environmental, spiritual, and/or other reasons. And many times, the longer people are vegans, the more likely they are to expand their practice of veganism to multiple areas.
2. Plant-Based — Usually used to describe food that comes exclusively or mostly from plants and contains no animal products. Typically, people use the words vegan and plant-based interchangeably. However, many people refer to themselves as plant-based instead of vegan to make a distinction between eating plants for health reasons and eating plants for animal advocacy or animal rights reasons.
3. Vegetarian — A person who does not eat the meat of animals, but does consume the milk and eggs of animals, or products made with them, such as cheese.
4. Whole Food — Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds that are eaten closest to their natural, unprocessed, and nutrient-rich state. For whole grains, that means black, brown, or wild rice; quinoa; oats; millet; barley; and more. These whole foods contain an abundance of vitamins, minerals, and essential fiber.
5. Processed Food — Food that is packaged in boxes, cans or bags, and often contains additives, artificial flavorings, and other chemical ingredients. For processed grains, it refers to white rice, white pasta, white bread, and bakery products made with white flour that have had most of the essential fiber, vitamins, and minerals removed.
6. Organic — A set of practices used by growers that promote ecological balance and conserve biodiversity by not using pesticides, fertilizers, irradiation, industrial solvents or synthetic food additives. Commonly used to describe fruits, vegetables, and other ingredients grown using these practices.
7. Conventional — A term commonly used for fruits and vegetables that are not organic, but typically have been sprayed with pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides.
8. GMOs — Genetically Modified Organisms are plants, animals, and microorganisms whose genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination. This is done to food crops to create a resistance to the direct application of pesticides. Almost 80% of non-organic processed, packaged foods in the U.S. contain GMOs. Bioengineered is another word for GMO.
9. Gluten-Free — A label that indicates that the product does not contain gluten, which is a general name for the proteins found in wheat, rye, barley, and triticale. If a product is gluten-free, it does not mean it’s vegan (although many people seem to think so!). The product can be gluten-free and contain animal ingredients.
10. Cruelty-Free — A label that indicates that the product (typically cosmetics, skincare, and hair care) does not contain animal-derived ingredients and was not tested on animals. Not all vegan products are cruelty-free. Some are tested on animals, even though they don’t contain animal ingredients.

So there you have it. Ten common vegan or vegan-associated terms you now know, for wherever you are on your vegan journey. Now go out and give someone else a pop quiz!

Much Love,

Meal planning has other benefits, too. It can help alleviate the daily anxiety about what to eat and it can help you gain confidence in your ability to whip up a great meal with what you have on hand. Meal planning can also help you eat healthier because you’ll be more likely to eat at home, where you’ll have better control over ingredients and portion sizes. And you might even save money on groceries because you’re more likely to shop for the meals you planned for, instead of buying on impulse.

So let’s dive right into how to plan meals in advance. (Keep in mind that you may have more or less time to cook during COVID-19, so feel free to tweak these tips accordingly.)

Here are 10 time-saving tips for easy meal planning:

1. Plan meals for one week at a time. — Look at your schedule for the week to see which days and evenings are extra busy. You can make quick and easy meals on those days or heat up food that you’ve batch cooked ahead of time.
2. Batch cook on the weekends. — Pick a Saturday or Sunday to make a big pot of whole grains, like black, brown or wild rice, quinoa, millet or barley, and then portion them out and freeze them in airtight containers for weekday meals. To determine how much to cook, just follow a whole grain recipe (see my whole grains cooking chart) and double, triple or quadruple it. You can also batch cook a big pot of vegetable soup or beans, like black beans, red beans or lentils, and freeze them for the week ahead.
3. Wash and dry dark leafy greens in advance. — For fresh greens, like collards and kale, wash them in advance (see how to wash fresh produce), dry them in a salad spinner or pat them dry, and store them in the fridge. Then during the week, they’ll be ready to add to salads, wraps or stir-fries. If the greens start to wilt before you use them, just freeze them in airtight containers for cooking or smoothies, or make a pot of vegetable soup or broth and freeze it.
4. Freeze bananas for smoothies. — If you like adding bananas to your smoothies, peel a bunch and store them in freezer bags. They’ll make your smoothies creamier and save you a little more time in the mornings. You can also freeze other fresh fruit, especially berries, or just buy them frozen.
5. Chop staple ingredients in the food processor. — Chop onions, garlic, mushrooms, peppers, carrots, cabbage (or any of other faves) in the food processor and store them in airtight containers in the fridge. Then, voila! They’re ready to add to your weekday meals. If you have any left over, just freeze them or add them to that vegetable soup or broth mentioned above. Right about now you might be thinking about all those airtight containers you’ll need, but, trust me, they’re worth it. They’ll save space in the fridge and they’ll look nice and neat. I personally recommend glass containers in various sizes for maximum freshness and sustainability.
6. Plan your meals with similar ingredients. — To keep your meal planning as simple as possible, choose meals for the week with similar ingredients, so you can make multiple meals out of them. For example, black beans can be used for tacos on Tuesday and black bean soup on Thursday. Or wild rice can be used in wraps for Monday and stir-fries for Wednesday.
7. Plan the same meals for lunch and dinner. — You can also streamline your meal plan by focusing on dinner and just making extra for lunch the next day. That way, you can save you time, energy, and stress around what to eat for lunch and dinner each day.
8. Keep it simple for breakfast. — In addition to making smoothies with frozen fruit (as I mentioned above), you can also have overnight oats or granola with nondairy milk for a quick and easy weekday breakfast.
9. Make a grocery shopping list based on your meal plan. — Once you’ve done your meal plan for the week, create a grocery shopping list on your phone to update weekly, as needed. Then go out and get those ingredients — and stick to your list!
10. Keep your meal plan for the week where it’s visible. — Whether it’s on your phone, fridge, blackboard, cabinet, or wall, keep your meal plan where you can see it. You’ll spark anticipation for all the healthy and delish meals you’ll be enjoying during the week!

So there you have it. Ten tips that will make meal planning easier. Try it next week and let me know how it goes. And if you have other meal planning tips that I didn’t mention here, please share them in the comments below.

Much Love,