The Vegan Diet

Anyone who has ever considered a vegan diet probably has heard plenty of arguments against it.

There's not enough protein. The selections are too limited. Life without ice cream and cheese is just not acceptable. To that, Carlsbad resident Janet Hudson says: How about a cheesy artichoke fondue? Some hot chicken wings? Lobster wontons? Beef burgundy fondue? Those and more than 400 other recipes are included in Hudson's book, "The New Vegan: Fresh, Fabulous and Fun" ($19.95, HarperCollins UK).

People get scared and think, 'I can't have this and I can't have that,' but you can," Hudson said. "What I'm trying to do with the book is make it easier for people to be vegan. I'm not trying to pressure people into being a vegan. That's not what it's about. It's about being healthy and doing what your body needs."

In the introduction to her cookbook, Hudson admits she once thought vegan diets were rather bland. She had been a vegetarian since the 1970s, never touching red meat but still using dairy products and occasionally eating chicken and fish. Vegans don't eat any animal products, including dairy or eggs.

Hudson and her husband made the change 11 years ago. Their motivations were the same as those of many people who adopt a vegan diet: He did it for health reasons and she did it for ethical reasons.

"I worked around animals all my life," she said. "I'm a registered veterinary technician to the present day. I worked in the L.A. Zoo for a while. I did a lot of different things, so I'm very much aware of animal suffering and what goes on."

Hudson said her husband made the change because he had high blood pressure, a condition that since has improved.

The couple was not about to live on bland salads and oatmeal for their new diet, however. By 2001, Hudson had learned enough about vegan recipes to start her own catering business, Vegan Feast.

"I'm a cook, so I'd add a little here, a little there," she said about how she prepared food for events she'd cater. "They (the recipes) weren't as consistent as I wanted them to be. Once they were perfect, I put a little gold star on them, and there they were."

After some years, Hudson had perfected 443 recipes, which are all in her book. The book came about through a chance meeting with a book agent when she was catering a party for an author. The agent told Hudson that an author had dropped out of a deal to provide a cookbook, and suddenly Hudson had an offer. Her book was released in February.

"It is much easier these days to be vegan," she said. "There are so many meat substitutes, soy products, cheese and dairy alternatives. It is easy compared with 10 years or more ago."

Most grocery stores these days stock soy milks in the dairy case, vegan cheeses in the deli and dairy-free ice creams in the freezer. Going out to eat can still be tricky, but Hudson said restaurants usually will say how their food is prepared and will substitute vegetable for beef or chicken broth if asked.

"Soy products have a lot of protein in them," Hudson said about another concern people may have with vegan diets. "Beans have a tremendous amount of protein. Some beans and legumes have more protein than meat. Protein isn't that much of a factor."

Although she cooks with fresh vegetables, Hudson said she shops only twice a week. Preparing the food also is not as time-consuming as some might think.

"My husband always calls me 'Quick Draw McGraw,'" she said. "I can get a dinner on the table in 20 or 30 minutes."

In her foreword, Hudson writes about serving "beef" burgundy fondue at an event where a man loved the dish so much he asked her where she had bought the sirloin, which he called "the most tender beef that I have had in quite some time." She had prepared the dish with mushrooms.

With the right ingredients and proper seasoning, Hudson said, there is almost no dish that she can't re-create as vegan. The exception, however, may be souffles. So far she hasn't been able to make one that rises correctly without real eggs.

These recipes are from "The New Vegan":

Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Stuffed Starburst Stew

Tempting Tempeh Cacciatore