Saturday, May 12, 2018

Vegan 101 Cooking Demo



I love introducing people to vegan food. Whenever I give library presentations, I never know who will show up or what their interest will be. Sometimes people a curious but cautious, sometimes people are already vegan, and sometimes they just come for the free food! But nearly always, everyone leaves pleasantly surprised realizing how delicious and easy it is to make.



That was the case this afternoon when I gave a food demo at Canton Public Library. It was a full house with about 30 people, about half of whom identified themselves as either newly vegan or semi-vegan. There was even a whole vegan family with three young kids!



I made one of my favorite recipes for this time of year:  Spring Quinoa Salad with Asparagus, Pistachios, and Dijon Vinaigrette. I talked about the health benefits of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory foods, where to get protein on a vegan diet (hint: quinoa is a complete protein!), and how to prepare food that has a balance of color, taste, and texture.

Everyone appreciated the step by step instruction and explanation of how to cook the perfect pot of quinoa. And of course, they loved getting samples of the finish recipe!



It's a colorful salad which is perfectly fine served straight from a bowl. But, because I like to get creative, I demonstrated how to serve for a party dressed up with a scallions, chopped pistachios, and edible pansies for garnish. It was almost too pretty to dig in!

As always, if you know a school, library, or organization that would enjoy having me give a presentation, please contact me to schedule a speaking engagement. I'm happy to help make eating vegan easy for you!

Monday, May 7, 2018

Vegan Cooking Lesson


I love love LOVE experiences like these! It's so wonderful when we cook together and share delicious food! 



I was asked to put together a Mexican themed menu for a Mother's Day celebration. This morphed into a cooking lesson since my client wanted to learn how to prepare the food along with her niece.  



It was such a pleasure to cook with a budding young chef who was very interested in learning and share some chef's secrets that I hope will make cooking a fun adventure. 

Here's what my client had to say:

"We had such an amazing, fun, educational and delicious day with personal instruction by vegan personal chef Mary Lawrence of Well on Wheels! 
Abby and I had so much fun in Mary’s cooking lesson. Abby is a serious Sous Chef!! ðŸ˜Š

We celebrated an early Mother’s Day Compassion Feast with an awesome Mexican flare, that coincidentally just happened to fall on Cinco de Mayo weekend. Vegan black bean and zucchini enchiladas, tostadas, Mexican rice, fresh guacamole, fresh salsa and cashew nut cheese." 
This was also such a great example of vegan activism since my client is the only vegan in her family and is interested in getting everyone interested in learning more about a plant-based diet. Delicious food helps make that happen!



If you'd like to learn more, contact me to schedule your personal, customized cooking lesson!
  

Friday, May 4, 2018

Main Street Vegan Interview


Image may contain: 3 people, including Victoria Moran and Mary Lawrence, people smiling, text


It was such a pleasure to join the incredible Victoria Moran on her Main Street Vegan podcast this week to discuss creating community through compassionate cuisine. We talked about cooking tips, food justice, animal rights, communicating effectively with non-vegans, and how to stay positive as a vegan activist. If you've ever felt discouraged as a vegan, tune in to this uplifting show!

You can listen to the full interview on the following link:

http://www.unity.fm/episode/MainStreetVegan_050218