Social situations can make eating healthy vegan or vegetarian food difficult. I find it a bit sad that eating healthy plant foods can be challenging in the face of all the unhealthy options, and can create social awkwardness.
The topic of conversation at a dinner table never seems to be about why someone’s eating meat or a rich dessert, yet I often get asked why I eat big salads and have tea or fruit for dessert.
Fair or not, I find it best to think about certain things ahead of time to minimize awkwardness and potential temptations.
Whether you have trouble explaining to friends and family why you don’t want turkey, feel rude as a guest, aren’t sure about the ingredients of certain dishes, or find yourself tempted by all the treats, you need to have a plan to make it through with your goals intact.
Social situations bring a totally different set of challenges to your healthy eating plan than what you deal with on a day-to-day basis, and if you’re following a vegan or vegetarian diet plan it’s even more difficult.
As A Guest
Let Them Know:
Don’t shy away from telling your host in advance what foods (specifically) you can and can’t eat. It’s much less embarrassing than having to tell them as they’re serving you dishes and having to refuse to eat them.
Offer To Help:
You don’t want to make your host feel incompetent, but you also don’t want them to stress about what to make for you. Depending on your host, you could offer to bring a dish, help with substitutions in their recipes, or come up with recipe ideas.
Be Relaxed:
Try to be laid back about your eating habits. Your host will probably be stressed enough about making sure everyone is enjoying their food, and that you have enough to eat. It’s usually not the best time to go on about why brown rice has more nutrients than white rice.
As A Host
Fatten Things Up:
For people who aren’t used to healthy eating and/or plant foods, adding fat to the meal can make it much more satisfying. While it might not be what you would make on a regular basis for yourself, it can win people over to something that’s healthier than their current diet. You don’t have to go overboard with the fat, and you can use whole-food fats (like nut butter or avocados) instead of oils.
Season Things Up:
Use lots of flavors – herbs, spices, vegetable broth, fruit juice, raisins, olives – to make your dishes irresistible. Also, be sure to use enough salt to bring out and bring together all the flavors of the food. Again, it’s about a step in the right direction, not about being perfect.
Be Relaxed:
Not everyone is going to be pumped about a healthy vegan meal. And that’s ok – they might not know what to expect. Try not to harp on the fact that the meal is vegan. Make some impressive food, and let it speak for itself.
Answering Questions
Be Prepared:
The usual questions are about how to get certain nutrients (protein, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, iron) on a vegan diet. Look into the plant foods that have these nutrients so that you can give a quick and confident answer.
Be Positive:
In most cases, talking about the negatives of eating meat (while that person is eating meat) makes the other person defensive and angry. Instead, tell them about the positive sides of a vegetarian diet plan, and the benefits you’ve seen from healthy eating habits. You don’t have to convince them all right away – let the seed of that idea grow in their mind.
Know When To Move On:
Social meals can be a great opportunity to show how much you enjoy the healthy eating choices you make, and explain the benefits of a vegan diet if you’re confortable with that. They’re also a great opportunity to spend time with the people you love, so if you feel the conversation getting a bit too intense, or descending into an argument it might be better to agree to disagree, or suggest continuing the conversation another time.
Managing Temptation
Indulge In Moderation:
Don’t cut yourself off totally from enjoying the delicious food around you. Instead, just take a small portion and savor it slowly.
Find A Healthy Treat:
Some treats are healthier than others. Go nuts on the fruit, but take it easy on the chocolate cake. Have some healthy cookies or other treat on hand at home to indulge after, or bring them if you’re going to a pot luck so that you know you have a healthy option.
Go For What You Really Want:
Sometimes you just know that if you don’t have a piece of chocolate, it’s going to haunt you for days until you do. You might try stuffing yourself with lentil loaf in an attempt to avoid it, only to give in later anyway. Go for the special treats that you really want – just keep them in moderation.
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Suspect Dishes & Easy Swaps
Mashed Potatoes
They’re usually made with butter and milk or cream. You can make them just as tasty with vegetable broth, nut/grain milk and/or coconut or olive oil.
Gravy
Pure gravy is the juice from the roasted meat. Try making a mushroom gravy, flavored with balsamic vinegar or red wine and thickened with arrowroot powder.
Cranberry Sauce
The sauce is often thickened with gelatin (pure, or from jell-o), which is sourced from animal bones. The natural pectin in cranberries will thicken the sauce if you let it cook long enough. Otherwise, ground flax seeds or agar powder will set your sauce perfectly.
Green Bean Casserole or Brussels Sprouts
So many recipes call for milk and cheese to cover up the healthiness of these green veggies. Pairing them with creamy squash, or a tahini-based dressing, is a healthy vegan alternative.
Biscuits
Bread is usually egg- and dairy-free, but homemade biscuits unfortunately are often made with butter. Luckily, you can easily make them with coconut oil instead. Pureed sweet potato makes an excellent base for a biscuit, too.
Pumpkin Pie
The filling is usually made with cream and egg, along with butter in the crust. Coconut oil is a great substitute for butter in pastry, and the filling can be made with nut/grain milk and thickened with arrowroot powder.
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