Jessica is always searching for the best of everything vegan/plant based and sharing it all on her IG @plant_based_livin. To her, being vegan is so much more than not eating animal byproducts, but more of a lifestyle choice that she wants to share with others. Meatless Movement recently had a chance to chat with her.
I haven’t looked back since and I love everything I eat now without any guilt.
@plant_based_livin
Tell us more about yourself, please
My name is Jessica, was born and raised in New Mexico and am currently living in Las Vegas, NV. Spent most of my 30’s living all over the U.S. and found warmer climates are where I belong. Not sure how long I’ll be here, but for now it is fun.
Looking back, I should have been vegan my whole life based off how I responded to certain situations. In the fall of 2017, I read The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone and it changed how I saw animal agriculture. I had already been eating a more vegetarian diet months before reading the book, but once I understood what it took for me to get the bacon I was eating and the leather I was wearing, I knew I needed to become vegan. I haven’t looked back since and I love everything I eat now without any guilt.
I just had my four year anniversary on the first of this month, and I celebrated by eating vegan sushi and spring rolls from VeggiEat Express here in Vegas. I was lucky enough to become vegan in the Twin Cities (aka Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota) where it is a mecca for all things plant based. I definitely recommend everyone going there for a vegan food tour if possible and you can read about all my favorite spots in the blog post here.
I was also lucky enough to live within a daytrip of Plant City, the first vegan food hall in the world in Providence, RI. Not only do they have several restaurants and food choices to pick from, plus a small grocery store to buy all your favorite vegan name brand items, and they even do events where you get to listen to incredible speakers in the plant based world. I ended up going to Dr. Michael Greger’s seminar as well as Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn’s later on. I even got to meet both of them, and they were kind enough to sign my books and talk to me for a bit. These are great people to follow and read their books if you need help understanding the health benefits to living a vegan life. You can read all about the food hall and both the seminars in my blog post here.
The hardest thing for me when eating out is when I have to pick a place or a meal on the fly. If I don’t get time to research the restaurant’s menu or find somewhere that seems vegan friendly, I will end up not eating anything or will settle for something I am certain is vegan. The best way to help in these situations is either using the Happy Cow app or the vKind app. They are both great platforms for searching for vegan choices in your area.
Being vegan makes me feel incredible. I just wish I had made the switch years ago. Not only do I feel great, but I love knowing that I am doing everything I can to reduce my carbon footprint and suffering with my life choices. You vote with your money, so I think it is important to make sure you are supporting businesses that help with the reduction of waste, suffering, and murder of innocent animals. Preparing raw meat always grossed me out so I also appreciate not having to cook with it anymore.
There are so many to try and name all my favorites but here are a couple of my go-to’s around the U.S. and a couple of my own recipes.
Plant Power Fast Food in Las Vegas and California (variety of locations): I got to go to the soft opening of the Vegas location, and they have a vegan McDonald’s energy I used to love. Their Big Zac is just like the Big Mac, the strawberry shake is dreamy, and the chicken Caesar salad is one I will be getting again.
The Herbivorous Butcher: The first vegan butcher in the U.S. this is one of the places I miss the most about not living in the Twin Cities anymore. They make all their meat and cheese in house, and they sell other items you can’t find anywhere else. I dream of their salt and pepper bacon, Havarti dill cheese, and their turkey and cheese subs. They also have a food truck which is epic and recently they opened Herbie Butcher’s Fried Chicken which I am dying to try soon.
Pesto Tofu Panini Recipe: This recipe was inspired by one of my favorite sandwiches in a little all-natural grocery store/café in the cute little town I lived in New Hampshire for six months. It’s a sloppy sandwich to eat, but it is worth every linen napkin you will need for this.
Sesame Mushroom Noodles: I make this recipe almost weekly and I love using it as a way to get rid of whatever veggies in my fridge that might be going bad. The base sauce stays the same, but you can switch up the other ingredients to add to the noodles.
Breaded Tofu and Beet Salad: This was inspired by a goat cheese and tofu salad I used to get at a restaurant in Denver, CO. I swap out either Violife Feta block, Treeline Creamy Scallion soft cheese, or vegan cream cheese depending on what I have on hand.) This paired with the breaded tofu and marinated beets makes the most flavorful salad for any meal.
Meaty Lasagna with Homemade “Rinotta” cheese: This meal take some time to make, but it is worth every minute it takes. Filled with two types of homemade cheese, this hearty lasagna is the perfect thing to eat in colder seasons to keep you warm, but it is just as tasty in the summer.
Funnily enough, I started my Plant Based Livin’ blog because I was getting so many requests from non-vegans for the recipes I was posting on my personal Facebook and Instagram accounts. I found that if I just shared how cheap and easy it is to make delicious and nutrient dense vegan food without judgement, people seemed eager to try it out. I have had a handful of people tell me they are either working to make the full switch to being vegan or have added more vegan meals to their weekly menu because of me. It’s a great feeling knowing that just by living this lifestyle, I can help others see how beneficial it is for humans, animals, and the planet alike.
I know becoming vegan can be overwhelming for some people, but if I can do it, you can do it. Pinterest became my best friend, and I searched all my favorite types of recipes and found vegan versions to work with. There are so many incredible vegan name brand foods to pick from too and fast food places are quickly realizing the money to be made to have vegan options.
This is the best time to make the switch and my blog has a list of great resources and links I found helpful when I first became vegan that you can find here. I also have a Pinterest where you can pin all my recipes for easy reference right here. Feel free to contact me through my blog if you need help or have questions on becoming vegan. It’s an amazing way to live and I love being able to share it with others. Thank you so much for having me on your platform and being a part of continuing to bring vegan life mainstream.
plant_based_livin
Plant Based Livin’ Blog she/her
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@jessicarabbit505 Searching for the best of everything vegan/plant based and sharing it all with you. 🥬🥦🌱👩🏻🍳📷🥑🍠🍇🐮🐷🐟♻️🌎
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all images courtesy of @plant_based_livin