Guest Post!

Hello!

I’m Samantha, the “Sam” from Suzie’s “It Tastes Like Real Food!” post, and you can attribute the title of that post to my father, Scott. :P

I should probably tell you a bit about me.  I’m a junior psychology major at Barnard College, the women’s college at Columbia University, in New York City.  I’d say that the majority of my monthly budget goes to travel expenses with the MTA and food.  I’m so lucky that my friends appreciate and enjoy food as much as I do.  Last summer, we’d have Food Fridays every week and cook up elaborate dinner parties for 10 to 20 people, or spend our evenings making peach and goat cheese galettes, or cook roasted herb potatoes and spinach and smoked Gouda omelets for brunch.  And that was just when we cooked for ourselves.  Not exactly the menu for a typical college student.  My favorite day in New York City was when I got a free ticket for a food tour of the West Village.  The tour was several hours long a 30-degree windy winter day, but I really couldn’t have been happier.

The Awkward Camp Phase

Suzie and I met at sleep-away camp when we were in middle school, only to learn we actually lived in the same town, and we became close friends once high school started.  As an open-minded, meat-eating (well, until about three weeks ago), will-try-almost-anything, self-declared foodie, I’ve been traveling along the vegan journey with Suzie for the last couple of years.  Mostly, I just taste the delicious meals and baked goods she makes, join her for meals at vegan restaurants to which her parents (my second family) so generously treat me, and occasionally help with the cooking. 

When Suzie returned from Florida during winter break of our senior year of high school, I did read Skinny Bitch, but I didn’t have the same reaction to it as she did.  To be honest, I met it primarily with skepticism.  To me, it seemed to air on the side of propaganda, or perhaps exaggerated the truth a bit, and while I didn’t think that everything in the book was false, I just wanted to get more information and make sure I was seeing the whole picture.  Since then, I’ve come around to respect, and even admire, the vegan lifestyle, even though I have admittedly rolled my eyes a few times over the last few years at some of the things Suzie has said.  But our dear blogger admits to writing the occasional snarky rant, so that reaction is to be expected, right? ;) 

Second Family

As you read Suzie’s blog posts, I’m sure you notice how passionate she is about being vegan, because of both the health benefits and the benefits to the environment and animals.  As her friend, I am thrilled that she has found something she loves and to which she wants to dedicate herself.  I also want to be able to participate in that with her, even if our opinions on the subject may vary.  So, when she came to stay at my house for a long 4^th of July weekend, during which we had not one, but two, barbeques, I wanted to not only learn from her, but I also wanted her to feel comfortable and her values and the habits of my family to be mutually respected.

Suzie has already written about the mouth-watering, satisfying, filling, and healthy dishes we made, and I am telling you that if you haven’t already cooked them for yourself, go do so!  Just, seriously, watch out for the spiciness.  Later that night, as I was in bed trying to fall asleep, I noticed my fingers burning… sort of like the burning nose Suzie talked about.

I decided that for the weekend while Suzie was at my house, I would eat as at least a vegetarian.  She arrived on Thursday evening, and my mom had made a delicious pot of lentil soup (one of my favorite things that my mom makes).  We’re a blended Italian and Jewish family, so many of my most loved dishes contain dairy products and meat.  I needed my grated Pecorino Romano cheese (if any readers do consume dairy products, this is wayyy better than Parmesan—supposedly a little-known secret about Italian cheeses) on my lentil soup, so I happily sprinkled it on my soup, but otherwise, this would’ve been completely vegan.  On Friday evening for our first barbeque of the weekend, I did slip up, and while Suzie wasn’t looking (she doesn’t know this yet), I snuck into the kitchen and had half a hot dog.  But she will be happy to know that it really wasn’t as satisfying as I had wanted it to be, and after a day of eating a vegetarian diet, I felt like I had just violated my body in some way.  I didn’t like that the taste lingered for hours, and worse, I didn’t like picturing the food clogging my arteries and adding fat to my Jewish hips.

As the weekend progressed, I ignored the heaping tray of burgers in favor of channa masala from Whole Foods, veggie burgers (which I believe had just five or six ingredients in it), and our leftover spicy sweet potatoes.  I realized what I love most about food: the flavors, the sauces, the savory warmth that spreads over my tongue and puts a grin on my face.  It was the way chicken or burgers were seasoned and prepared that I liked, while the actual meat was my least favorite part of a dish. 

So I decided that I would give myself a challenge: eating a vegetarian and/or vegan diet for 30 days.  I thought a few things: one, that there was no harm in trying; two, that I owed it to my friend to participate in something about which she truly cares; and three, that my body deserved to be well-fed and treated with respect.  Now it’s two and a half weeks later, and I’m doing fantastically well! 

I was never that big of a dairy eater; I don’t like milk, yogurt, and most cheeses, except for my Italian cheeses (mozzarella, ricotta, and Pecorino Romano).  I don’t believe in depriving myself of things that give me joy, and I’m never going to give up cheese on my pasta, but I’m okay with that.  I do love frozen yogurt, and I don’t see much harm in eating it on occasion.  To be honest, I haven’t yet looked into dairy-free ice creams, but it’s on my list of things to do.  One thing I did not anticipate was how much fish I would be eating, so I guess technically I can’t say I’m a vegetarian… yet.  But, baby steps, right?  When Rosh Hashanah comes around, I’ll figure out what to do about my mom’s mind-blowing brisket…

In the last few weeks, I’ve noticed that my body feels better, and I feel better about myself, which motivates me to keep going and not revert back to my meat-eating days!  And, I’m not sure how many of you have seen Suzie in person, but if you have, there’s no denying that she does have a rockin’ bod… so I am hopeful that I will achieve that too.