"STEEMIT VOICES" - #2: An Interview with Vegan Blogger @lenasveganliving

Welcome to the second interview in this new series, where I pick the brains of fellow Steemians for knowledge and expertise that can benefit us all.  

Last week we talked to Cannabis Coach @rebeccaryan about health and healing... If you missed it you can read the full interview here.

This week we hear from one of my favourite Steemians - @lenasveganliving - a very kind and generous lady from Toronto, Canada.  She is well-known within the foodie community in particular, hosting the very popular weekly "Fruits & Veggies Monday Competition". Lena is an esoteric vegan and blogger, passionate about justice, love, compassion, delicious vegan food & photography.

This time I'm starting at the end!  The final question I asked Lena was "anything else you'd like to add?" but now I think this should go at the top before beginning our discussion of veganism!...
 

One very important thing I would like to add is that veganism is not a diet. Although I am primarily a recipe creator, my intention to promote veganism is based on ethics, justice and love for all living beings and the planet. The word vegan was founded in November 1944 by Donald Watson and this is the definition of veganism:

 
“a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals.” 

(A helpful clarification... Many thanks Lena!  Now for the first question!...)  
 

1.  You are now a well-known face among the vegan community here on Steemit, and have celebrated more than 30 weeks of your competition – congratulations!  What inspired you to begin the Fruits & Veggies Monday Competition in the first place? 

Before I joined the Steemit community I was a member of other monetary, although not very good, social media platforms where I was running this contest, mainly to promote veganism. My intention was to spread the awareness in non forceful way and that’s why I decided to focus on fruits and veggies. However, my two friends - @dswigle and @dutchess that I knew from the previous platforms - invited me to Steemit and they announced the Fruits and Veggies Monday before I was even accepted!  

 

2.  For me, a love of cooking began when I became vegetarian and had to get more creative with my meals.  What about yourself - have you always enjoyed cooking?    

Although, I am a pretty good cook and I always was, I don’t enjoy cooking, lol. What I do enjoy is creating new vegan recipes and photographing them. I love the challenge of converting traditional dishes to vegan and also creating completely new ones. However, the fact that I am doing something to promote health and veganism is a priority.   

 

3.  What is availability like in your country/region for fresh, organic produce, and wholefoods?  Is it mainly locally produced or imported? 

I live in Canada, Ontario, to be more specific, Toronto area where we have plenty of everything. We have wide variety of locally grown produce, especially during the summer and autumn. However, we do have some local produce even during a winter that is grown in green houses. For example my favorite Campari tomatoes. Otherwise, we get lots of produce from Mexico, Florida and British Columbia, Canada, where winter is short and mild. 

 
 

4.  On a personal note, were you raised on a plant-based diet or is this a decision you made later on in life?  What lead you to veganism? 

I was brought up in non vegan family and at the time I lived in Slovakia, I didn’t even know Vegan lifestyle existed. I was only familiar with vegetarian diet, and I actually tried to be vegetarian in 1989 – 90. I remember I was on vegetarian diet when I came to Canada. Unfortunately, I did not stick with it at that time, until 2007 when I took intensive Kundalini Yoga Training. I was vegetarian until 2011 and vegan since. Yoga, meditation, studying esoteric teachings and the influence of my yoga instructors changed the way I see the world and our place in the Universe. I became aware of the fact that we are very powerful beings and our daily choices are creating the future and they have also a significant impact on other living beings and the planet. This is why we must transform to veganism, which is who we truly are to begin with.   
 

 

5.  What advice can you give to anyone considering a 100% plant-based diet? (recommendations, cautions?) 

For people who are ready to jump straight to a vegan living I recommend to do research first. One of the best places to start is PETA.org, nutritionfacts.org and forksoverknives.com. I would also suggest yoga, meditation, consuming super foods, whole foods and raw foods as much as possible and taking good quality B12 supplement. Not to forget, join a vegan community locally, on Facebook and in our case Steemit, or elsewhere they feel most comfortable.   

 

6.  Can people expect to feel noticeably healthy after switching to a vegan diet?   

I know many people feel noticeable improvement in how they feel, however, it is not always the case. Some people may actually feel worse and that’s why they give up too soon. Based on my research this could be due to detox their body is going through, or jumping too fast into a raw diet. Sometimes it is better to take a gradual approach, such as cutting down red meat first and so on. Each individual is different and they need to learn how to listen to their bodies. This is why research and yoga is so important.   
 

7.  Are there any particular websites, or cookbooks, or even fellow Steemians, you can recommend for providing good vegan info or recipes? 

There is truly no lock of vegan cookbooks and recipes online. For our Steemit members I would suggest to follow @heart-to-heart, @vegan.niinja, @amy-goodrich, @isshappy, @plantstoplanks, @pusteblume, @nina.ser, @street.yoga, @proanimal, @awakentolife, @paolapaopoly, birdsparadise @nicoleslife, @celestialcow and many more, simply by following the tag #vegan, #makeithealthy and #fruitsandveggiesmonday. 

If I may recommend cookbooks, it would be my favorite “Kind Living” by Alicia Silverstone. She is the one who helped me at the beginning. I would also like to recommend a book “Stop Eating the World” where thirty of my recipes are included with forty recipes by other authors. This book is bilingual, published in Italy by vegan animal activist group "IO NON TI MANGIO”.   

8.  Any hopes/plans for the future of your Fruits & Veggies Monday Competition?

Fruits and Veggies Monday is growing rapidly with amazing entries and new contestants every week and my only hope is that we will always have generous sponsors. I experienced setbacks not too long ago and I am still worried that it may happen again. So right now, I am not having any big plans, I am just trying to maintain the way it is. Now I would like to take the opportunity to give BIG THANKS to our generous sponsors @progressivechef , @englishtchrivy and @gringalicious with @woman-onthe-wing who were our sponsors in the past.   

In case you missed it, Lena was recently on @pennsif's radio show talking about veganism in a special vegan edition.  Here is the link to the recording:

---  Vegan Edition of @pennsif's Alternatives Lifestyle Show  ---

Some of Lena's wonderful culinary creations for you to browse, admire, and re-create!...

SPRING PRIMAVERA SOUP 

SPRING QUINOA SALAD

RASPBERRY MARBLE CHIA

RAMEN BUDDHA BOWL

INDIAN STYLE DINNER

PEACH & BERRY CRISP

MARCH SPRING ROLLS

QUINOA PANCAKES

And don't forget to join in Lena's competition next Monday...

STEEMIT FRUITS AND VEGGIES MONDAY COMPETITION

* All photos in this interview belong to @lenasveganliving*

If you have something to say about health that can benefit others, please contact me to arrange an interview, either in the  comments thread below or privately on Steemit.Chat.

To find out what my "Make It Healthy Project" is all about, and how you can be involved in growing this project, please click here.
 
 

("5 Cs" shared with kind permission from @kiwideb)