This is another step you can take that will benefit your weight loss efforts. When you want to lose weight, dairy products (whether fat-free, low-fat etc.) can be your worst enemy. You don’t have to give up dairy completely, you will instead push out the bad stuff and introduce the good stuff. On some level, we all know that a vegetarian or vegan diet is the optimal diet for good health but we either avoid the truth, listen to erroneous information, believe the commercial manufacturers or just plain old afraid to go without meat. I do not label myself as a vegetarian but I do enjoy vegetarian meals. I have to admit that I was one of those people who thought a vegetarian was a part of some cult or something, that they reject social norms or even that they were like the Amish. Boy was I misinformed until I began running into more and more vegetarians, shopping at food co-ops and Whole Foods Market. The produce would always be so fresh compared to the local grocery stores. Plus I decided to try almond milk and liked it. I could never really stomach drinking straight milk, it had to be in cereal and loaded with sugar.
Why is it better for you to trade up your dairy? As with any meat or meat by product (dairy) that is not certified organic or hormone free, it has lots of added hormones that can cause all kinds of health problems. What you should opt for instead is plant-based versions of your favorite dairy product. Milk has casein which is the main protein found in cows milk to help the calf grow big, fast (like 1000lbs). Casein keeps the calf bonded to its momma. It is very addictive and breaks down into a host of opioids called casomorphins, in other words, morphine. That’s why people drink warm milk to soothe them or eat ice cream to make them feel better, it acts like a drug.
Most of the fat in milk is saturated butterfat which clogs the arteries. A China study has shown that casein promotes cancer and milk protein can fertilize cancer cells. Skim milk can make you fatter than regular milk because all that’s left is milk sugar. Dairy farmers have been known to feed skim milk to calves for the sole purpose of getting them fat very quick. Once again, giving up certain things may take time. It takes your taste palate about 21 days to adjust to new flavors and textures so be patient and don’t throw in the towel right away if you don’t like the taste of non-dairy milk or yogurt. You may have to start off with trying hormone free dairy instead, until you build up to non-dairy versions. It is said that cow’s milk is physiologically addictive, we have been fed milk since we were infants and it may not be doing a body all that good. There are millions of people who live dairy-free and have strong bones, have fewer ailments and sicknesses, so don’t be fooled into believing you have to drink milk. Do your own research and of course, check with your doctor to make sure you can safely use a milk alternative.
Trade up your milk to a milk alternative like almond milk, soy milk, hemp milk, rice milk, coconut milk. There are more and more nut milk choices out there that you can choose from. I have begun to see walnut milk and hazelnut milk in the health food stores. Your milk alternative does not include goat’s milk which some claim to be better than cow’s milk, but if you must and only as a last resort, then choose this alternative after attempting non-dairy versions. Trading up your milk also involves your yogurt choices. They do have yogurt made with rice milk, hemp or soy. Try different ones until you find the one that taste best.
Even though eggs are considered a protein/meat substitute, I mention them here because they’re an animal by-product and usually found in the dairy department. A good egg substitute is Ener-G Egg Replacer which is made from potato starch and tapioca starch and is really good for baking. You can also trade up your mayonnaise which has eggs in it, so it too is dairy. There are more mayo alternatives now on the market that you can chose. Follow Your Heart’s Vegannaise comes to mind as well as Nasoya’s Nayonnaise. You can find Vegannaise in the refrigerator section and Nayonnaise in the dressing aisle or refrigerator section. I’ve tried Nayonnaise and it tastes pretty good.
Being that cheese is dairy, you need to trade up your cheeses too. In the past, vegan/vegetarian or non-dairy cheeses wore horrible. I remember about 10 years ago or so when my sister decided she was gonna be vegetarian, she would try to get me and my niece to try all these vegetarian products. The cheese just didn’t taste good at all and it didn’t melt good either. The bologna was just nasty to me, so I really didn’t have a good taste experience back then, which may have put me off to trying vegetarian products for so long. But, vegetarian products are indeed much more tastier by today’s standards.
Today’s plant-based cheeses are made from nuts, tapioca, soy, rice or nutritional yeast and are pretty tasty, lower in calories (usually), lower in fat and contain some fiber. For the waistline, soy based cheeses are best, so swapping in soy protein can help slim the waist. Here are a few cheese alternatives now on the market.
1). Daiya cheddar style shreds that melts good especially the mozzarella shreds
2). Follow Your Heart Mozzarella Gourmet contains fiber and has a good cream cheese alternative.
3). Tofutti Plain Cream cheese, has a sour cream alternative too.
4). Soya Kaas soy based cheese that is good-tasting, good-melting and easy slicing. Check the labels to determine which products are dairy-free
The same goes for you trading up your butter, you want to chose some of the non-dairy versions that are now on the market, usually labeled as vegan butter. Earth Balance is a well known butter substitute you can get in tub form or in sticks. You can make your own homemade vegan butter if you don‘t find a suitable alternative. I’ve come across a vegan butter site in my search for trying vegan baking because I love to bake. This site has a lot of detail about the composition of butter as well as making different flavors of vegan butter. The regular vegan butter recipe is designed to mimic your favorite commercial variant. Use it wherever you use butter or vegan butter. Vegan Butter is designed to mimic real butter in vegan baking applications. Like real butter, Vegan Butter is more solid than tub margarine and not as spreadable. This is so it can perform optimally in vegan baking applications. If your goal is to have a conveniently softer, spreadable Vegan Butter, swap out 1 Tablespoon of the coconut oil with 1 additional Tablespoon canola, safflower or sunflower oil.
Regular Vegan Butter Recipe
Ingredients:
¼ cup + 2 teaspoons soy milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
¼ + 1/8 teaspoon salt
½ cup + 2 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon refined coconut oil, melted
1 Tablespoon canola oil, safflower oil or sunflower oil
1 teaspoon liquid soy lecithin -or- liquid sunflower lecithin -or- 2 ¼ teaspoons soy lecithin granules
¼ teaspoon xanthan gum
Directions:
1) Place the soy milk, apple cider vinegar and salt in a small cup and whisk together with a fork. Let it sit for about 10 minutes so the mixture curdles.
2) Melt the coconut oil in a microwave so it's barely melted and as close to room temperature as possible. Measure it and add it and the canola oil to a food processor. Making smooth vegan butter is dependent on the mixture solidifying as quickly as possible after it's mixed. This is why it's important to make sure your coconut oil is as close to room temperature as possible before you mix it with the rest of the ingredients.
3) Add the soy milk mixture, soy lecithin and xanthan gum to the food processor. Process for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway through the duration. Pour the mixture into a mold and place it in the freezer to solidify. An ice cube mold works well. The vegan butter should be ready to use in about an hour. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month or wrapped in plastic wrap in the freezer for up to 1 year. Makes 1 cup (215 grams), or the equivalent of 2 sticks vegan butter.
For more vegan butter recipes go to the Vegan Butter section. “How to Make Vegan Butter - Regular Vegan Butter” by Mattie. If you don't like the taste of coconut, then look for the flavorless kind.
Trading up your dairy and breaking into eating non-dairy foods may take a little time for you to adjust. Just remember that it takes about 21 days for your taste buds to adjust to a new taste and new texture. I was skeptical about trying nayonnaise, (I referred to it as fake mayo), it does have a slightly different texture and taste but it wasn’t at all what I expected. I knew it was there but I couldn’t say it was nasty, it tasted different and it served the same purpose as mayonnaise, which is to moisten the bread, so why not go for the healthier non-dairy version, my body will thank me.
There are thousands of people who are lactose intolerant. Lactose is a milk sugar that many people are unable to digest easily. This is not a disease but intolerance. This may suggest that the human body was not meant to digest cow’s milk (I’m just saying). There is research out there that suggests that consuming animal and animal by products cause all kinds of diseases ranging from cancer to infertility to premature puberty because the animals are injected with antibiotics and growth hormones that pass on to those who consume them. You still may not be convinced to give up meat entirely and will remain on the beginner or intermediate level of this project, just make sure you know the benefits of consuming a more plant-based diet and take steps to chose certified organic products. Like myself, not everyone is ready to go completely vegetarian or vegan. You can still make better food choices and be better educated on how today’s food manufacturers produce the foods you eat.
Assignment
Based on this weeks tweak, your assignment is to trade up at least one dairy item that you consume regularly. For example, trade up your milk you use in your cereal or trade up your butter. You can trade up as many dairy items at one time that you wish, but for the remaining weeks in this project you will trade up one dairy item each week to slowly and successfully make these adjustments. For instance, next week trade up your yogurt (Greek is good for beginners but soy or rice yogurt is better) and then the following week trade up your cheese. Remember that each week in the project is cumulative. Slow and steady progression leads to sustainable healthy habits.
Weekly Checklist
Drink 8 glasses of water every day
Eat a Hearty Healthy breakfast
Get movin’ by walking or aerobics
Eat an Apple or Pear everyday
Say no to your poison, ditch the junk food
Go a little nuts by eating a handful of nuts
Toss Up a Big Bowl of Salad
Take Your Vitamins
Pump It Up!!!
Trade Up Your Drinks
Sprinkle Some Flax on It
Abs are made in the kitchen
Trade Up Your Dairy
References
“The Lean - A Revolutionary and Simple 30 Day Plan for Healthy, Lasting Weight Loss” by Kathy Freston
“How to Make Vegan Butter - Regular Vegan Butter” by Mattie
http://www.veganbaking.net/fats/vegan-butters/735-vegan-butter
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