Chapter Five: Going the ‘V’ Way Costs Too Much
(Author) Thanks Mary. You have given us some great insights. Nutrition is a concern that a lot of people have and I think you have discussed it well. But there’s another thing that I am pretty sure frightens away some would-be vegans. It’s very expensive.
(Mary) You said that being a vegetarian costs a lot of money. Have you looked at the price of meat lately? Even hamburger and eggs can break the family budget today and in many homes the biggest food expense is meat. If you were a vegetarian and all you ate was lentils, rice and beans, then it would be a very inexpensive lifestyle indeed.
Many interesting Vegan foods have been developed to fill that hole in the plate that you spoke about some time back. You can spend as much or more on vegetarian food as on a menu of meats. Many of these foods are high priced gourmet items.
Even if you avoid the rare and expensive things, it can be costly to live a vegetarian lifestyle. Part of the blame is that we are a minority. Prepared vegetarian foods and vegetarian only restaurants are scarce. To be able to stay in business and avoid the fate of Salad-Mania, the restaurant you liked, restaurants and specialty stores must charge higher prices simply because they are specialty businesses, established for a niche market.
If you are going to be on a full vegetarian diet, then you will have subtracted an entire food group from your diet. You will need to replace the meat with healthy alternatives. But if your alternatives are not diverse, you may become bored and revert to the meat diet.
It can be a balancing act. The specialty shops have the advantage of having more food items that fit your lifestyle, but those items may not fit your wallet.
In season, farmers markets are a great source of fresh fruits and vegetables that are just as valid veggie options as those you find in the specialty shops.
For anyone thinking about trying the ‘V’ lifestyle, some basic gear is required. You need a blender. You need a good food processor. Using these items you can slap, tap, drop, chop, slice and dice just about anything and make your own meals as good or better than you can find in a restaurant.
Vegans eat a lot of steamed, fresh vegetables. Those people who eat their greens from cans, cannot imagine how wonderful is the taste of steamed carrots, broccoli, corn, onions and potatoes. You asked about recipes. Here’s one. Take a potato (don’t peel it), an onion (do peel it), some carrots, some corn, and a few slices of green pepper and steam this mixture. It will take a while on the stove, but can be done in less in about five minutes in the microwave – depending on how many potatoes you use. Add some vegan butter and you will have a true vegan meal that anybody, even Colonel Sanders, would love!
Mr. Russo, I read one of your books once where you had a fictionalized prizefight between Presidents Richard M. Nixon and John Kennedy. You used the achievements of each Chief Executive as figurative punches. It was an interesting concept and I have borrowed it. I made a comparison of the benefits of hamburger and lentils and wrote it up as a fight. With your permission now, I would like to give you the blow by blow description of a boxing match between Larry Lentil and Harry Hamburger.
(Author) Ok Mary. You be the announcer and I will introduce the fight. Ladies and Gentlemen. From your kitchen table comes the fight of the year. It’s 12 rounds or less, of boxing between the heavily favored Harry Hamburger and the lightly regarded Larry Lentil. We take you now to tableside and your announcer, Mary.
(Mary) The two fighters come to the center of the table and face each-other. Harry Hamburger weighs one pound and the entry fee to get him in the contest was $4.00. His opponent, Larry Lentil also weighed in at one pound and his cost was $1.00.
There’s the bell for the start of round one. Hamburger throws a three ounce left jab that contains a whopping 218 calories and 24 grams of protein. Lentil counters with a glancing right cross of a half cup of cooked legumes that have 116 calories and 9 grams of protein.
Larry Lentil takes a step back. It looks like he might have been hurt by that punch. Hamburger charges him and launches a round house right hand of 15 grams of fat but there’s no fiber on the punch.
Lentil shrugs off the blow and jabs a speedy left filled with less than half a gram of fat.
Then lentil throws a right hook that lands flush with eight huge grams of fiber. Hamburger is stunned as the bell sounds ending round one.
The two pugilists retire to their respective corners where their trainers are trying to get them ready for the next round of what is shaping up to be a rugged battle. Round one clearly went to Larry Lentil, but Harry Hamburger is a wily veteran and is sure to bring something new to round two.
There’s the bell and Lentil sprints to the center of the ring, but Hamburger is sluggish in getting out of his corner. Lentil wastes no time and like a rocket, blasts an uppercut of 32 per cent of the daily fiber value right into the chest of hamburger who feints weakly with a fake jab of zero fiber.
Hamburger looks greasy and sweaty as he tries a left-right combination which misses wildly because of his 23 per cent daily value for fat and 25 per cent of the DV for saturated fat.
Larry Lentil, with no fat, fires a left upper cut and crosses with a right to the chin and Harry flops to the tablecloth. The referee is counting over the sweaty hamburger…one…two….three…four…five. He’s on his knees. Can he beat the count? ….. seven….eight…He’s up. Harry Hamburger barely avoids a kayo as round two ends. Don’t go away folks, the fireworks continue in 60 seconds.
During the break, Hamburger’s seconds have tried to stop the blood welling from his face. They are putting all kinds of chemicals on Harry in hopes of getting him back into the fight.
Here’s round three…..
Once again Larry Lentil springs to the middle of the ring, looking fit and trim. Hamburger looking like spit and grim, plods painfully out for the start of the round.
Lentil goes right to work serving up a jab packed with 45 per cent of the Daily Value of folate. Hamburger misses a left counterpunch that only had 2 per cent of the folate DV.
There’s blood at the mouth of hamburger. He’s shaky and seems to be out on his feet. Hamburger backpedals and leans on the ropes. Lentil goes after him with his arms out straight like the horns of a charging bull.
Hamburger goes into a shell under a relentless barrage from Lentil. Larry slams home a right loaded with ‘lentils may reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer’. Hamburger throws a pitter pat punch consisting of ‘meat may cause cancer and heart disease’. Hamburger desperately tries another punch, powered by his 76 milligrams of salt.
Lentil drives home a crashing right hand at a blazing speed due to his 2 milligrams of salt.
Hamburger is down.
The referee isn’t even bothering to count. Hamburger is out cold. Lentil wins the battle by a knockout in the third round.
(Author) That was an interesting little battle Mary. I am thinking that if the meat industry wrote the script the fight could have gone to Hamburger. But you gave your perspective and you certainly present a thoughtful and cogent case for the vegetarian lifestyle. Thanks for an informative interview. Before you go, how about a few more recipes.