Living Without Meat

This weekend I met up with my mother and sister, with her two tots, to have a picnic in a park before a Johnny Cash tribute concert.

As we sat down at the picnic table, and began setting out the food that we had each brought, my contemplative 3-year-old nephew speaks up:

Nephew: Aunt Sally? Mommy says that you don’t eat anything from an animal.

Me: That’s true, I don’t.

Nephew: Well, then, you can eat … this, and some of this, and …

Apparently he reminds my sister every time she is cooking and I am coming over of my diet. I also noticed that it is apparently an instinctual response to tell a veg*n what food they can eat. It was super cute!

We had a delicious spread that was “accidentally” vegetarian (and completely homemade). With one veg head and four meat eaters, our dinner included:

* vegan version of tomato, basil, mozzarella salad
* hummus with whole wheat pita and carrots
* gazpacho
* eggplant parmesan
* water

No soda. No packaged, processed foods with unpronounceable ingredients. And no meat. I was in heaven … and continue to be, as mom gave me the leftover hummus and gazpacho!

Lunch yesterday was hummus, carrots, and whole wheat pita. Today I’m having a baked potato with gazpacho. And that potato? It comes from my dad - he’s working a delivery route for a local farmer and sent me a box full of fresh-picked, local, organic vegetables!

My family sure knows how to spoil a vegan!

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For more great vegan picnic ideas, check out the recent post over on the Urban Vegan titled “101 Fast Recipes for Inspired Vegan Picnics.”