Vegan quick Cooking Tips Even though recipes don't say VEGAN before every ingredient, it is, of course, assumed as such... When cooking Use ONLY soy milk with just water and soybeans on the label. Never use a whipped, tub margarine in place of stick margarine or shortning! Tubs are mostly air and water and will alter the recipe dramatically! I strongly recommend using frontier brand, beefy broth powder. It is very mild and won't over power any recipe. (Unless you have tried others and know what you prefer...) As in all cooking, one should alter recipes for personal tastes, and things such as sodium levels... Use the freshest ingredients and spices. It is assumed here that anyone reading these will know the basics of cooking... how to thicken a soup, how to knead bread, t = teaspoon, T = Tablespoon... Test for doneness! (cooking times vary!) For more information on using vegan substitutions and ingredients, visit the substitutions page...    What do vegans really eat? Follow two of us on Twitter. A single vegan with no time to cook. and a married vegan with a big social life! Links to recipes too! MORE TIPS for great cholesterol free vegetarian vegan cooking!  Get rid of your pepper shaker, and put a pepper grinder on your table! Makes all the difference in the world! A quick fix to add flavor to something, whether a casserole, a vegetable, or ??? Sprinkle with vegetable broth powder . (I prefer Frontier Brand) If you aren't familiar with Nutritional yeast... become! It is another great flavor enhancer you can add to many foods! When a recipe calls for green pepper, or "bell pepper" try using a red bell pepper (yellow, or orange ) instead. Their flavor is much better to most people ( although usually more expensive!) Find local farmers markets in your area and support them! Try growing a few pots of herbs, like basil, thyme, chives... A little snip added to the top of your plate adds color and lots of flavor. Use Olive oil or Canola oil for frying or baking when you can. Look for old fashioned cast iron frying pans and use it all the time! Besides being naturally non stick once it is seasoned, it actually will add iron to your food! Buy a thermometer for testing water temperature when proofing yeast in baking. 110 - 115 degrees, you'll never wonder... Add wine at end of cooking for best flavor and Don't Boil wine in foods unless you want to reduce it. Acids and vinegar's will hurt metals such as copper, zinc, aluminum, iron, so use glass if possible. Add soy flour with oils. For stringier cheesy like... use tapioca in place of cornstarch or flour and cook it longer... Roast and crush poppy seeds for more intense flavor. Before Baking Sweet breads, brush with oil and sprinkle with sugar. Brush with fruit juice for more flavor too. To harden and gloss breads, brush with cornstarch and water several times. Add garlic to a sauté when the onions are almost done... garlic cooks a lot quicker and will become bitter if overcooked... Use a potato masher to crumble tofu. Rinse pasta in cold water right away if you won't be coating it with sauce right away, to prevent sticking. Reheat quickly by dunking in boiling water for a minute. When using rolled oats in place of quick oats in cooking, add a little more liquid and sit for 20 minutes longer before baking.

"We are the living graves of murdered beasts, slaughtered to satisfy our appetites. How can we hope in this world to attain the peace we say we are so anxious for?" George Bernard Shaw "The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as now they look upon the murder of men." - Leonardo Da Vinci, Renaissance artist/inventor.-  Make it look good! Turn it into an art piece! People do eat with their eyes... Serve it in a different plate or glass.... Cut it different than normal Color it with contrasting colors Different textures Swirls, patterns, words... Just about anything can become a garnish... Do something! GARNISH Carrot curls Carrot Shreds apple rings Chives/onions Flowers Herbs Lemon Oranges Olives Paprika Parsley Peas Pimento Pepper Tomato Shaped Pasta Color sauce/ red/green pepper carrot soy cream Mustard BBQ Ketchup ANYTHING Spices Vegis Vegi Oils Fruit Bread Toast Nuts Seeds Popcorn Nutritional yeast Colored Tapioca pearls Use your imagination! Shred it Slice it Cut it in a fun or unusual shape What else?   SWEET GARNISH Again....ANYTHING! Use your imagination! Jam/jelly Peanut butter Maple syrup cinnamon/sugar Nuts Raisins Granola Vegan chocolate Chips Blueberry Syrup Apple Syrup Fruit, fresh or sauces Frosting Candy Bars Bread Coconut