Go Vegetarian: change your body - inside and out!

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Jill Ovnik, Vegan-Gal.com: It is my goal in life to share my experience with the changes that I have made with food and hopefully to get people excited about plant-based meals! Becoming a vegetarian and then a vegan has changed my body - inside and out, my mind, my heart and soul for the better. What's not to get excited about?! The best part is that I enjoy food more than I ever have! I now know the secret to good tasting food is in the seasoning. I remember opening up a pound of bloody ground beef. Imagine you're doing it right now. Dump it in your pan to start getting dinner ready. Before you add seasoning ... How does it smell? How does it look? Would you eat it plain? Once I made the decision it only took a short while before ALL desire for meat had left me completely! I now start my dinners with basic plant foods that don't ever gross me out in any way. What a lovely way to eat. The DVD explains how after 32 years of eating ANYthing, I started reading about the enormous health and environmental benefits to being vegetarian. I care about people and my own health but most important to me was to read about the massive environmental destruction and pollution directly caused by eating meat. It's truly staggering. Yet, here was my chance to not be part of the problem, to make a difference for the sake of my children, and the future. A scary proposition but a small sacrifice in the scheme of it all. I cut out all meats but still ate fish and dairy for 4 more years until the time was right for me. I know how important timing is. If you're not ready to make a change, you won't. But, for me, honest facts were like little seeds planted in my head somewhere just needing some time to germinate. I had made strides in this one area, by cutting out all meats, I had begun to feel successful and more comfortable with every passing day. I felt that God was rewarding me for my sacrifice. Giving up a food category that had no merit for my body, the planet and certainly the animals, I was indeed rewarded beyond what I ever thought would happen. Public Speaking Engagements ... I began teaching workshops at Wild Oats grocery store, I did a 2 week nutritional seminar for 14 volunteers at a local company. I got into my son's 2nd grade classroom one hour a week to facilitate the most awesome food curriculum (Food Is Elementary) and I spoke at my women's group. I worked on that speech for 6 months at least. I worked on it so long and hard that my husband suggested we video tape it. Here's where it helps to have talented friends, as we do in the Awesome Bill Youmans, Big time Chicago Director, who came out to tape my presentation. I was proud of my hard work and the factual basis of the video yet another seed was planted when friend said she wanted to know more! She wanted to know how I made those fruit smoothies I talked about on the video. My vision was expanded and we added segments from 2 grocery stores, 3 restaurants, and 3 cooking demonstrations from my kitchen in Hinsdale, Illinois. The DVD and website have only come about because I'm a lucky gal. I have a wonderful family and plenty of supportive, motivating, dynamic girlfriends who inspire me to do more with my passion for this subject. I'm especially grateful for Vida Haried & Carol Little who have seen me slowly change and kept right on pumping me up with more information and new recipes to get excited about. I'm grateful to my husband and children who have a wife and mom that may look a little wacky in this Midwestern culture. They've put up with a lot. And, I'm so so grateful for all the doctors and researchers out there that are more concerned for human health and the truth than for profits. Right now, my vision for www.Vegan-Gal.com is to raise awareness. Educate, motivate and support people to make a positive change in their life if they want to. I also hope to get more people looking at their school lunch program and taking action with Dr. Demas's Food Is Elementary Curriculum, It's awesome! God Bless you on your own Journey, Jill Guilt can be a hurtful, wasted emotion. Don't worry about all the overwhelming changes you wish you could make. Just make a plan for eating a little healthier tomorrow, just one day at a time. It's progress, not perfection! p.s. If you have visions for www.Vegan-Gal.com, please let me know!! To view more clips, or to order the Vegan Gal DVD: "Change Your Food, Change Your Life!", visit Vegan-Gal.com.

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Harvest Vegan Nut Roast

This vegan recipe is can be made with many different variations. Try using different nuts and different vegetable combinations. To make pecan or sunflower meal run pecans or sunflower seeds through the blender until very finely chopped.

Makes 3 to 4 servings

1/2 cup chopped celery
2 onions, chopped
3/4 cup walnuts
3/4 cup pecan or sunflower meal
2 1/2 cups soy milk
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 cups bread crumbs
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a loaf pan.

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Added on: 10-11-2007
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