168. Vegan Tips for Newbies & Veganizing Cultural Meals with Aida

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If you’re a new vegan or someone interested in becoming vegan, this episode will be so valuable to you!

Today I have Aida Habte on the podcast.
Aida’s family is from Eritrea and her cultural upbringing as a first generation Eritrean-American helped shape her food choices later down the road. Growing up, she understood from an early age where meat comes from since her family and community would buy fresh meat from local farmers and would often see the animals being slaughtered.

While it was a normal experience for her culture and community, Aida does share with me on this episode that seeing the realities of animals being killed from a young age definitely played a role in her initially going pescatarian.

As so many of my guests share, watching documentaries about our food systems, health impacts of animal products, and the realities of animal agriculture played a huge role in helping Aida decide to go vegan.

She thought, “If I care enough about these issues to stop eating meat, I should probably go all the way and go vegan.”

Aida talks about this transition and how she made the final decision to go vegan in 2020.

Like I mentioned, this podcast will be so relatable for new vegans since Aida has only been vegan for two years herself. As a newer vegan, she brings a great perspective about transitioning to veganism, and shares some amazing tips that you all will definitely benefit from.

She is also a vegan mom and we have a powerful conversation about letting go of having complete control over your children’s food choices, educating and empowering them to make their own decisions, and how we all need to release judgment around vegan parenting.

In this episode we chat about:

  • Aida’s personal journey going from being a pescatarian to a vegan, and what inspired her to go vegan

  • Veganizing cultural dishes

  • Being a vegan mom, raising vegan children, and the complexity of transitioning a family to veganism

  • Nutrition myths about meat and dairy that we all were raised to believe

  • Strategies for staying full and feeling satisfied as a vegan

  • Why raw vegans need to eat larger portions

  • Tips for new vegans to help them transition easily, make delicious & simple meals, and feel satisfied when eating plant-based

  • Why you need to find what works for YOU as a new vegan

Connect with Aida:

Instagram

167. Being Vegan in the South and Why A Peace of Soul Has THEE Best Chicken Sandwich with Folami Geter

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I’ve been looking forward to this week’s episode for a long time! In this episode, I chat with Folami Geter, the chef and owner of A Peace of Soul Vegan Kitchen in Columbia, South Carolina. 

Folami Geter is the self-taught chef and owner of A Peace of Soul Vegan Kitchen in Columbia, South Carolina. She was raised vegetarian and spent ten years working in her family's restaurant business before branching out on her own in 2014. She has an award-winning gift for transforming southern comfort food favorites like fried chicken and macaroni and cheese into healthier, but still delicious fully plant-based cuisine. Food Network, Thrillist, The Local Palate, and more have recognized A Peace of Soul as one of the nation's foremost vegan restaurants and food trucks. When she's not in her food truck or brick and mortar restaurant, Folami is a true foodie who enjoys traveling and eating her way across the globe.

I knew I wanted to have Folami on the podcast as soon as I first stepped into A Peace of Soul while on a trip to South Carolina. I ordered the fried chicken sandwich and, I’m not trying to be dramatic, but it changed my life!

When I say you have to get to Columbia, SC just to try her food, I mean it. 

Unlike most vegans and vegetarians, Folami was actually raised vegetarian and has never eaten meat before. Her parents decided to go vegetarian for health reasons right before she was born. In the episode, we talk about what growing up vegetarian was like (there was no Miyoko’s cheese or Beyond Sausage in the ‘90s, ya’ll!) and how Folami transitioned from vegetarian to vegan when cheese was always a big part of her diet. We also touch on being vegan in the South and accepting that it can be harder to find vegan food options. 

Of course, Folami’s amazing food and menu at A Peace of Soul Vegan Kitchen is why I wanted her on the podcast in the first place, so you already know we are diving into the food (again…that vegan chicken sandwich), the menu, and the behind the scenes of opening a vegan restaurant. The restaurant and menu was made with vegan-curious or newly transitioned vegans in mind, so you know that food is out of this world good! 

Folami also shares her experience with non-vegan customers that are skeptical of eating vegan food and how she kindly talks them through the menu and turns them into regular customers.

In this episode we cover:

  • Growing up vegetarian + being the only vegetarian in school

  • What inspired transitioning from vegetarian to fully vegan

  • How giving up cheese can be the hardest for new vegans and prevent vegetarians from going vegan

  • Being vegan in the South and finding vegan food in grocery stores

  • Folami’s parents’ restaurants and entrepreneurship and how that influenced her own career

  • How renovating the restaurant taking 2 years turned into a huge business opportunity 

  • Purchasing a food truck and how food trucks increase brand awareness for restaurants 

  • A Peace of Soul’s rotating menu and the why behind it

  • Work life balance as a entrepreneur and the constant attempt to get more of it


Visit A Peace of Soul Vegan Kitchen:

Website

Instagram

Resources mentioned:

HappyCow app

Soul Vegetarian in Atlanta, GA

166. Gluten-Free Vegan Tips, Food Styling, & Cooking with Jessica Carter

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On today’s episode of the Brown Vegan Podcast, I’m joined by Jessica Carter for a conversation about veganism, recipe development, and gluten free-eating. 

Jessica is a vegan recipe creator and wellness educator on a mission to make vegan living more accessible and sustainable. She went vegan in 2016 after beginning her transition to more plant based eating in 2011. She is the creator of Love Vegan Soul, a food brand focused on exploring global flavors and plant-based traditions. Her recipes have been featured on Good Morning Washington, Fox 45 Baltimore, and Let's Talk Live. She is the Director of Programming at Afro-Vegan Society where she develops digital content and resources to educate and engage communities nationwide on the importance of vegan living.

In this episode, we’re startin’ out how we usually do around here: discussing Jessica’s vegan journey and what her transition into veganism looked like back in 2016.

These conversations are always interesting because they’re so relatable to most long-time and beginner vegans.

For Jessica, her health journey began a couple of years before going fully vegan when she–like sooo many millennials out there–watched the documentary Food Inc. on Netflix.

After learning how devastating the industrial food systems are and wanting to make bigger changes around her health and contribution to the world, Jessica started eating mostly organic plant-based food (as best as she could on a small budget).

Five years later, the documentary Cowspiracy opened her eyes to the cruelty of animal agriculture and the role it plays in environmental destruction.

Jessica decided to make the leap and go full on vegan.

In our conversation, we talk about what that time in her life looked like as a new vegan, and her strategies for cooking delicious vegan meals as a beginner.

Jessica shares that initially, she was so intrigued by experimenting with new vegan recipes that she didn’t think much of trying to veganize old favorite meals. When “missing out” on food is such a common worry for so many vegan-curious people, I loved hearing Jessica’s different approach.

We also dive into the business side of things for all my listeners who are interested in becoming a vegan content creator or food photographer.

Jessica takes amazing photos of all her recipes, and I asked her to share her secrets with us here on the podcast.

In this episode, we chat about:

  • Experimenting with recipes as a new vegan

  • Documentaries about industrial food systems

  • How Jessica began creating content online after being an observer for years

  • Food photography, food styling, and the best equipment to take great photos easily

  • Jessica’s secrets for making plating simple

  • Virtual live vegan cooking demonstrations on Kiitch

  • The process of recipe development

  • Jessica’s gluten sensitivity and the symptoms she experienced before finding out

  • The search for the best gluten free pasta, and the brands to avoid

 

On top of Love Vegan Soul, Jessica is also the Director of Programming for Afro-Vegan Society where she helps create resources about going vegan, provides support for staying vegan, and offers education on the impacts of animal agriculture on black communities. The work of Afro-Vegan Society is amazing, and all my listeners should absolutely check them out!


Contact Jessica:

Instagram

Recent Kittch Video

YouTube channel

Resources Mentioned:

Food Inc. documentary

Cowspiracy documentary (Netflix)

Happy Cow - app to find vegan-friendly restaurants and grocery stores around the world

Donut Run

Jovial gluten-free pasta (most of their products are vegan)

Explore Cuisine - gluten-free pasta

Afro-Vegan Society

Jamila Anahata (Multi-Media Marketing Director at Afro-Vegan Society)

165. I Won VegNews Best Vegan Podcast + Why YOU Start Before You're Ready

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I have a short ‘n’ sweet episode for you this week that means a lot to me!

In this car-ride-home special episode, I’m taking a moment to chat with you and reflect on a huge moment for this podcast: winning Best Vegan Podcast in the VegNews Veggie Awards 2022! If you are at all immersed in the vegan community, you likely know VegNews is huge.

But even beyond the accomplishment part of this, I am feeling SO proud of how far this podcast has come and the community I’ve created with you all.

In this episode, I wanted to share with you my gratitude for what this podcast has grown into and say a huge thank you to each and every one of you that voted for Brown Vegan Podcast in the awards. I’m sharing a bit about my initial hesitation in starting a podcast and about the struggle earlier on in showing up consistently through this platform.

The purpose of this episode really is to encourage any of you who are wanting to start a new project (whether that be a podcast, YouTube channel, blog, or something completely different) to stop getting stuck in fear and ‘what ifs’ and just start creating now! I share a bit about my own journey, how I learned through trial + error (and help from my sons sometimes!), and what prevented me from starting sooner.

Building community on this show and this platform has been my favorite part of it all. From recording early episodes all on voice memos on my phone with no mic or headphones, to putting myself out there and interviewing new creators every single week, the challenges and rewards have been huge.

If you’re one of my listeners dreaming of starting your own podcast, I’m offering a huge discount on my Podcast Consultation Call as a way to say thank you for your support and share what I’ve learned with this community! I would absolutely love to help you get started.

Resources:


Listen to a preview of the episode…

164.The Business of Being A Content Creator with Plantifully Based

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On this episode, I am joined by Francesca Bonadonna of Plantifully Based and we are focusing on all things BUSINESS! 

Seriously, get ready because this episode is jam-packed full of valuable information about what it takes to start your own vegan business and create sustainable, long-term income as a vegan content creator. 

Francesca Bonadonna is the food blogger behind Plantifully Based.

She’s a full-time food photographer, recipe creator, social media content creator, and cookbook author. She’s been running Plantifully Based for 6 years and says she is still learning a lot about food photography, food styling and living a vegan lifestyle.


Francesca went vegan somewhat accidentally after participating in a 30-day vegan challenge for health. During the challenge she found herself researching animal agriculture and learning about the horrors of the dairy industry. She realized that if she can eat vegan for 30 days and feel great, why not fully go vegan and stop supporting the inhumane treatment of animals? 

During the vegan challenge, she shared photos of her meals on Instagram and when she saw she had gained over 1,000 followers, she saw the possibilities for creating a vegan business as a content creator.


If you are at all interested in starting a food blog, making Youtube videos, or learning to market your vegan journey on social media, you’re gonna want to tune into this episode! Together, we’re giving details on the behind the scenes of our businesses and sharing what we’ve learned about marketing, blogging, SEO research, brand sponsorships, and creating multiple streams of income. 

This will be an amazing resource for so many of my listeners so tune in and share with us what you learned!

In this episode we chat about:

  • Francesca’s vegan journey and how she learned to recreate traditional Italian dishes

  • What we would go back and do differently when starting our businesses

  • The best social media platforms for vegan bloggers and vegan creators

  • Why consistency is key on Youtube (or anywhere!)

  • Making mistakes and learning as you go when starting your own business

  • How to optimize your blog posts and do SEO research

  • The word ‘influencer’ vs ‘content creator’

  • Dealing with burnout as a content creator and how to manage overwhelm as an entrepreneur

  • Advice for beginner entrepreneurs and vegan creators who are just getting started (hint: get started now and show up consistently!)

…and so much more! 

Contact Francesca Bonadonna:

Plantifully Based YouTube channel

Plantifully Based blog

Plantifully Based Instagram

Vegan Thoughts podcast

Resources: