Vegan Effect

  Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 31st of January 2021 What is the Divine Mercy? The Divine Mercy chaplet is a Catholic devotion to the Divine Mercy of God.  St Faustina was visited by Jesus in visions and He gave her instructions for a painting and the chaplet of Divine Mercy.  The painting is of Christ with rays of light emitting from his heart and the words, 'Trust in Jesus' at the bottom.  The Divine Mercy chaplet is an extremely powerful prayer used to combat the evil in the world. It is easy to learn since it uses some well known prayers. What is the Chaplet for? According to the University of Glasgow (n.d.),  " ...the main purpose of Chaplet of Divine Mercy is to appease the Just Anger of the Holy Trinity. " The chaplet is a prayer we can say to ask God to forgive us and heal us.  It shows that God unlike us is willing to forgive.  We can use this prayer to pray for others and not just those in our families: we can use it to pr...

By McDonald, T.   |  Updated 25th of March 2022 I used to love a good sausage roll for a snack or for my dinner, so when i saw these vegan sausage rolls from Birds Eye's Green Cuisine range I had to give them a go.  On first inspection I noted minimal packaging: just a cardboard box, which is great.  Thankfully, they cooked beautifully in the oven and tasted fantastic!  The pastry was perfect too, so light and flaky.  Subsequently, I will definitely be having them again in the future.  I had mine with chips and some veg.  Since writing this blog, I have tried many different sausage rolls both frozen and ready to eat.  All of them tasted great to me, for me at least, sausage rolls have become a regular in diet. Gregg's also has a vegan sausage roll,  I tried this with a friend at work and we both loved them.  The Gregg's one was definitely better hot than cold, but it was great for a snack at work.  Again the pastry was fine ...

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 29 of January 2021  This is a blast from the past.  I remember people telling me about a nut roast when I was in my 20s and still eating meat.  I have put off trying it for decades, but today I tried it and I liked it.  It is very different from any mock meats I have tried, but it stood its ground.   This was very easy to prepare. All I had to do was add some cold water to the mix and let it soak.  Then I had to put it in the provided baking try and bake it for 40 minutes.  I had it with some roasted and boiled vegetables with some gravy over the top.  Today I tried the Cashew And Cranberry Nut Roast, but I have another as well, which Is called Country Vegetable And Cashew Nut Roast.  These where from Artisan grains and are both gluten free.      Please like and subscribe to my blog.  Thanks.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 28th of January 2021 This is a simple little stir fry that is great as a side dish or as a snack.  Marinaded tempeh with mushroom, bell pepper, kidney beans and chilli.  It's relatively quick and easy. Ingredients Tempeh  Mushroom Kidney beans Yellow bell pepper Red chilli pepper Carrot Nutritional yeast Marinade  Olive oil x 1 tsp White cider vinegar x 1 tbsp BBQ sauce 1 tsp Garlic granules 1 tsp Method Cut the tempeh into bit size pieces and put in a bowel or jar then add the marinade ingredients.  Give the whole thing a jolly good stir. Leave in the fridge for two hours or more.  Fry the tempeh pieces in a frying pan with the kidney beans and carrot until the tempeh starts to go a light brown.  The marinade should provide enough oil for frying. Add the mushrooms.  Towards the end, add the yellow bell pepper and the red chilli. You will know when it is nearly reddy by the colour of the tempeh, which s...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 27th of January 2021  Hunters Cabbage is a vegan's Hunters Chicken and not like German Hunter's Stew.  A nice succulent chunk of cabbage topped with facon and vegan cheese alternative.  This dish goes great with mash, new or roasted potatoes and most kinds of veg.  Ingredients Thick slice of white cabbage about 200g. 2 rashers of Naked without the oink facon or some similar facon. Vegan cheese. Oil  For Marinade/sauce  4 tbsp of chopped tomatoes 2 tbsp of coconut milk (optional) 3 tsp of BBQ sauce (I used Levi's ) 1 tbsp of tomato paste 2 tsp of cider vinegar  2 tsp of teriyaki sauce Method  Make the marinade by mixing all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl.   Add the cabbage steaks and cover with a little olive oil and salt.  I find it easier to cut a big thick slice of cabbage from the middle and then trim the stalk off and cut the slice down the centre of the stalk in order to keep it tog...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 26th of January 2021  Fancy a good curry?  This is a great vegan curry that can easily be adjusted to make it hotter.  It has cauliflower chunks with a rich creamy sauce and will surprise you with its texture.  This little beauty has all the goods including coconut milk to give it that authentic curry experience. Serves 1 Ingredients Unless otherwise stated, a teaspoon (tsp) = 1 level teaspoon.   Cauliflower x 170g Mushroom x 1 Basmati rice x 50 Peas for the rice x 20 Coriander garnish Marinade Balsamic vinegar x 1 tsp Soya sauce x 1 tsp Olive oil x 1 tsp Salt to taste Tandoori Masala spice x 1 tsp Sauce Olive oil 50g of  onion, finally chopped 1 Garlic clove 110g of chopped tomatoes 1 tbsp of tomato paste 1 heaped tsp of korma spice 1 tsp of Garam Masala 1 tsp of turmeric. 1/2 tsp of brown sugar 110ml of coconut milk 1 tsp of nutritional yeast with B12 1 heaped tbsp of sultanas Salt to taste Method Mix the marinade t...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 25th of Jan 2020 This is not only a tasty delight, but it is packed with vitamin A, C and K.  Vitamin A is needed by the body for growth and development, maintenance of the immune system and many other reasons.  The carrot, bell pepper and chilli pepper provide a great dose of vitamin A.  Notably, carrots are particularly rich in this multipurpose vitamin.  Cabbage gives a great dose of vitamin C and and big does of vitamin K.  The red bell pepper give a great dose of vitamin A and a big dose of vitamin C, which is good for maintaining healthy skin, blood vessels, bones and cartilage among other things.  In addition, red bell peppers have a good sauce of B6, which helps the body to use and store energy from protein and carbohydrates in food and much more.  Veg is not the only nutrition in this great dish it also has red split lentils that provide the body with much needed protein, roughage, iron and B6 for a bonus...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 24th of January 2021  There are two trees in the story of Adam and Eve in the book of Genesis, but what is the difference?  Why does God not want Adam or Eve to eat from either of these trees?   The tree of knowledge of both good and evil This is the tree in the midst of the Garden.  In verse 16 and 17 of chapter 2, God says:   And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die."   God then creates woman from a rib of Adam.  Then the following happens at the beginning of chapter 3, Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” Eve responds by saying God told them not to or they will certainly die in verses 2 and 3 of this chapter: ...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 23rd of Jan 2021 When you need a brake from bread of any kind, pasta can be a welcome change.  An easy to prepare lunch with just a few ingredients.  If you are an ethical vegan, than the lunch box will be right up your street!   Ingredients  Tuno sweet chilli Wholemeal pasta Sweetcorn Spring onion Red bell pepper Carrot Tuno vegan tuna comes in three flavours: sweet chilli, lemon and plain in spring water.  I find that it helps to add lots of flavours to the Tuno or it will taste a bit bland.  The lunch box comes from Eco Bravo and is stainless steel making it easier to recycle than plastic.  It also comes with a silicon seal to make it leak proof.  I love the fold up cutlery and cotton bag that comes with it.  The compartment separator is removable and adjustable, so it is easy to change the size of the compartments or just have one big compartment.  Please like and subscribe to my blog for more as ...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 22nd of January 2021  So far this is only the second fake bacon or facon i have ever tried.  However, both have been great, but have their own characteristics.  The two facons i have tried are This is not bacon and Naked without the oink.  While This is not bacon has a more meaty texture, without the oink looks more like bacon with its two colours and shape.  Both are great but what i like about without the oink is you can do more with it.  You can wrap it around a vegan sausage, you can lay it on something like a vegan steak or a roasted cabbage for instance.  Without the oink tastes bacon-ish and, I think, has an OK texture, it cooks quick and will start to crisp.   In short I was very impressed with Naked without the oink facon. 8/10 Both facons are great in a sandwich and contain a lot of protein.  For a bonus, they both have added B12.  Hopefully by now if you have been following Veganuary,...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date  21st of January 2021 Creamy delicious vegan coleslaw is easy to prepare. You can make your own vegan mayonnaise or buy some from the supermarket.  Whatever you choose to do, it is ready in minutes. However, it will save on the plastic if you make your own.  With this in mind, if you opt to buy the mayonnaise instead of making your own, go for something in a glass jar rather than a plastic bottle.  Furthermore, shred the carrot yourself rather than buying already shredded carrot in a plastic bag. 4 servings Ingredients Cabbage x 240 grams  Carrot x 70 grams Red Onion x 50 grams Cider vinegar x 1 tbsp Sugar x 1 tbsp Vegan mayonnaise x 1/2 cup Vegan double cream x 2 tbsp White pepper x pinch  Method Shred the cabbage, carrot and red onion. Mix in a bowl. Add the other ingredients and mix with a folk.  Cover and leave in a fridge overnight.  Coleslaw ready to cover and put in the fridge Coleslaw ready to serve Cre...

  By McDonald, T.   |  Date 20th of January 2021 If you want something different from the fancy vegan dinners, this is basic and yummy!  The pie is 100% vegan and so is the gravy.  Why eat vegan food?  Eating too much red meat is linked to colorectal cancer.  In addition, not enough roughage in the diet is also linked to colorectal cancer.  Roughage is also known as fibre and helps to clean out the colon.  With this in mind, it now makes sense to keep the skins on the potatoes when you mash them since it is a way of adding more roughage to the mash. Fry's Pepper Steak-style pie is pretty good.  The pastry is great and the filling is tasty. Put this with some mash, veg and gravy and you got a heart warming dinner.   Remember, that eating too much in the way of processed food even if it is vegan is not considered healthy due to other factors such as added salt.   Now you can see that being a vegan is not that difficult, hop...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 19th of January 2021 As you start out on your vegan journey, you may need some inspiration for breakfast. Vegans don't have to settle for cold options or cereals. Here are some hot and cold options to brighten up the most important meal of the day including porridge. All Day Vegan Breakfasts B12 Bomber Breakfast Vegan Fry Up With Chorizo Style Sausages Yes, with the huge choice of mock meats you can have a full English breakfast with sausages, bacon, beans and even eggs. Look in the vegan section of your local supermarket for the vegan options.  When it comes to the eggs, you might find that you are restricted to tofu scrambled egg substitute.   Notably, many mock meats are fortified with iron and B12, so look at the packaging before buying and get the one best suited to your needs. Vegan B12 Bomber Breakfast All Day Vegan Breakfast Vegan Fry u p Breakfast without the oink   Overnight Oats Yes, these are cold, but you can hot t...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 18th of January 2021  People often say to vegans, 'Yeah, but don't you miss bacon?' Well, no vegan has to miss out thanks to This is not bacon.  Moreover there are plenty of different types of facon too choose from out there, so have a look around and try them.  However, I like This is not bacon from This the best because it tastes great is full of protein and it fortified with B12 and iron.  You can put it in a roll, French stick or between to slices of bread it doesn't matter as long as you have it with lettuce and tomato.  I always add in some vegan mayonnaise from Hellman's, but you can make your own.   I hope that you like my blog.  Please subscribe, share and like. Thanks!

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 16th of Jan 2021 This is a meal that loaded with nutrition.  It will help you get all the iron you need amongst other vitamins and minerals.   While vitamin A is good for the immune system and seeing in dim light, Iron is good for making red blood cells. Red blood cells carry, among other things, oxygen around the body. Ingredients Butternut squash  Spinach Kale Black beans Chickpeas Pasta Paprika x 1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar Nutritional yeast with B12 Method  Soak the beans over night.  Boil the beans following the directions on the packaging until nearly done then add all of the other ingredients.  Cook on a low heat until the veg is ready.  I like to boil the pasta while the beans are cooking and then add them a little after the veg is added.  Very simple and nutritious. Nutrition  Butternut squash:  Vitamins A, B and C.  Notably, the paprika also gives a huge amount of vitamin A and so does the ...

By  McDonald, T.    |  Date 17th of Jan 2021 Jacket potatoes are great!  This one is with Tuno Thai Sweet Chilli and is a tuna fish alternative.Tuno have 3 flavours that i know of: Thai sweet chilli, Tuno in spring water and lemon and pepper. Ingredients  Jacket potato Tin of Tuno Thai Sweet Chilli Red bell pepper Sweetcorn  Spring onion  Method  Wrap the potato up in some tin foil or better still bake it in a dish with a lid for about 1 hr and 30 minutes.   Cut up the veg and mix it into the Thai Sweet Chilli Tuno then add it on top of the potato when it is ready with a little vegan mayonnaise on top.   Nutrition Backed potatoes are loaded with goodness, but i guess you want to know about the Tuno.  So, here it is: ...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 14th of January 2021 You will likely see a lot of great vegan recipes this month that will cover breakfast and dinner, but what about the all important lunch?  What do you put in a sandwich? Well i have done some testing and this is special.  Squeaky Bean Pastrami is vegan and even comes in a neat eco friendly package and, yes, it passes the cold and naked test.  For those of you that don't know about this test it is a simple question: does it taste OK on its own and cold?  I can tell you that it looks OK, smells OK and tastes great!  I thought it best to have in a nice vegan roll with some vegan cheese alternative with jalapeno peppers, Hellman's vegan mayonnaise and some chilli relish.  The cheese alternative was from Free From and is called ' Free From Alternative To Jalapeno Chili Cheese Slices '. I put it in the oven for a bit until the cheese started to melt.  You can, if you want,  just have it cold and ...