Happy World Vegetarian Week! May 21, 2008

Posted by Ryan at May 21, 2008 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 1 ) | TrackBack

The world looks so much happier during World Vegetarian Week, doesn't it? So in keeping with the theme of going vegetarian, here's my story:

I'm a huge fan of traveling. During college, I went on a road trip across the country by myself (one of those "find yourself" kinds of trips). Notice how I set the timer on my camera for this "soul-searching" photo of me at the Grand Canyon:

What I didn't expect to find though, was a stretch of the highway in northern Texas nicknamed "Slaughterhouse Row". I was unfortunate enough to have a convertible at the time, so all of the sights and smells of the meat industry hit me... hard.




The rest is history. I made the connection that the animals I was eating were violently killed in bleak surroundings like this one, and I stopped supporting it. I went vegetarian, and a few months later, I went vegan.

NOW FOR THE FUN PART. Here's my favorite vegetarian meal (can be consumed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner):

Blueberry Pancakes

These fluffy pancakes are packed full of delicious blueberries, and are the perfect start (or end) to your day.

2 cups flour
3 Tbsp. sugar
3 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 cups vanilla soy milk
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup fresh blueberries

• Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and sift together. Add the soy milk and oil and mix until the batter is smooth.
• Ladle the batter onto a hot pancake griddle. Add frozen blueberries. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
• Serve with fresh blueberries.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

If done properly, they should look like this:



Mmmm mmmm good.

- Ryan!

P.S. - A final word of advice to those who want to venture across the country on a road trip: Don't camp next to the Grand Canyon. The wind coming out of the canyon will knock you (and your tent) over in the middle of the night. Don't be a fool; sleeping upside-down isn't cool.