Take the Dairy-Free Challenge
I’m the first one to say that I thought that giving up dairy last–rather than first–was the best path to veganism (I now feel the opposite). I realize that though most people can easily eliminate flesh from their diet, when it comes to eating out (and let’s face it, that’s the only time being vegan can come close to being difficult), dairy can get in the way via dessert. I have yet to find a restaurant of any kind where I can’t get a vegan entree. I don’t like Indian food, so that’s not the reason. It’s because it’s EASY to ask for a plate of pasta and veggies or some rice and veggies or a salad with grilled veggies or a potato with veggies, or even a giant fruit plate. Any meal, any restaurant, you can do it.
Ah, but dessert. I don’t consider fruit dessert, and most sorbets are made with egg whites. What I’ve found for dessert is the opposite of what I’ve found for entrees: it’s practically impossible at a restaurant geared toward omnivores. Luckily, your local health food store, or Whole Foods, and of course, the Internet, all have loads of options for vegan treats (I’m partial to Laura’s Wholesome Junkfood and Liz Lovely’s Cowgirl Cookies–the chocolate chip ones taste like raw cookie dough!).
Here’s a suggestion for those wanting to ditch the dairy: Take the Dairy-Free Challenge. The Challenge involves going 10 days without eating dairy. I strongly recommend choosing 10 days when you won’t be going out to dinner, if dessert is your weak spot. If that’s not possible (I know I don’t go 10 days without going to a restaurant or dinner party), buy plenty of vegan snacks, immediately say NO to dessert (don’t even look for an option), and look forward to returning home to your dessert. If you must, stash a tasty vegan morsel in your purse or pocket. Whatever it takes, just go dairy free.
What I promise you’ll find, is that you will feel better, you might lose weight, your skin might clear up (if that’s a problem), you will experience less mucous, you’ll have less swelling in your joints, and . . . your conscience will be clear. In addition, once your home has been dairy free for 10 days, it will smell different. It’ll smell cleaner (particularly if you were eating cheese). You’ll especially notice the difference in your refrigerator.
If you can go 10 days, you can go 10 more. The beginning is the most difficult, as you’ll be donating or throwing out more food than you thought. Once you get used to looking for dairy in ingredient lists, you might be surprised to see how much of what you used to eat was filled with it, or derived from it.
Good luck, and let Alisa at Go Dairy Free and me know how it goes!
