To Live and Eat in L.A.

Well ok, I’m really stretching the meaning of the word “featuring”, but they did use one of my photos (by permission of course) to illustrate a very tasty sounding recipe by Robin Robertson for vegan Vietnamese Pho soup (she of the infamous couscous cake contest). You can see the recipe along with my photo here: Vietnamese Faux Pho.

Now the odd thing is that while the recipe is for Pho soup, the picture of mine used is not of Pho but of a tofu appetizer that came served with Pho. You can see my original article where this photo was used on my post about vegan Pho soup at Blossom restaurant. I explained to them when they asked for it that the picture they were requesting is not of Pho but of tofu, but for some reason they wanted that particular picture instead of my pictures of actual Pho. Odd, but I ain’t gonna argue!

They did credit To Live and Eat in L.A. for the photo but sadly it is not actually linked back to my blog. Their new website looks nice but I’m finding that it’s a bit wonky in some sections… seems like it might have been released before they thoroughly tested it on all browsers, but overall they did a nice job and it’s a big improvement over their old site. I’m hoping that in the future they’ll have a better system for crediting solicited contributors who offer their work for free, and also that they’ll turn the links on in their comments section… I tried being sly and posting my link in the comments but they’ve got hyperlinks turned off. Hey VegNews, why not spread the link love around a bit?

Anyhow, my minor grumblings aside, it’s nice to see all the great articles and info on their new site… there’s a lot more content than there was before, so check it out when you get a chance, and don’t let me discourage you from bombarding them with comments about what a freaking amazing picture of tofu that is! One of these days someone’s actually going to pay me (or at least link to me?) for my talents… just you wait and see.
www.vegnews.com.

The wait is over. Sarah Kramer’s brand spanking new vegan cookbook is now available! Here’s the description:

Vegan A-Go-Go!: A Cookbook & Survival Manual for Vegans on the Road
By Sarah Kramer

Sarah Kramer is a vegan superstar; she was named “The World’s Coolest Vegan” by Herbivore Magazine, and her first three cookbooks have sold a combined total of over two hundred thousand copies. Vegan Go-Go! represents a change of pace for Sarah: it is a cookbook and more for vegan travelers, many of whom are daunted by the idea of going on the road and being able to locate and/or prepare the kind of nutritious animal-free meals they enjoy at home. The new book includes 150 recipes, many of them new, and others that have been adapted from her earlier books. All of the recipes are easy to prepare with a minimum of ingredients and are guaranteed to deliver energy, nutrition, and great flavor. The rest of the book contains information and advice pertinent to vegan travelers, from how to deconstruct a restaurant menu to what food items are best suited to carry around in your luggage or handbag. There’s even a section on “How to Say I Am Vegan’” in numerous languages. The book is also designed with the traveler in mind: it is small enough to slip into one’s pocket or purse, yet has a reinforced cover to ensure durability under the harshest conditions. Full of Sarah’s high-energy wit and verve, Vegan Go-Go! makes life for vegan travelers a lot less stressful and a lot more fun.
For more info or to order, CLICK HERE

Sarah Kramer is the author or co-author of three previous bestselling vegan cookbooks, How It All Vegan, The Garden of Vegan, La Dolce Vegan.

I promise that my food blog will not turn into an animal blog. However this story I just came across about live pigs which have been tattooed with Louis Vuitton logos as art so sickens me that I just had to bring it to the attention of sympathetic eyes and ears.

So, the Laist.com pointed me to the Shanghaiist.com, reporting about these pigs to be on exhibition at the Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair. Shanghaidaily.com says:

“The tattooed pigs, two of them with Louis Vuitton logos, will form part of an exhibit titled “Art Farm” by 43-year-old Belgian conceptual artist Wim Delvoye. Delvoye had tattooed the designs on the animals when they were piglets and tracked the “canvases” as they grew.

The stage is now set for these unique exhibits in Shanghai. A large pigsty will be set up at the fountain square of Shanghai Exhibition Center, where the eight pigs will be put up for display.

Delvoye brought the pigs from Europe and has kept them in a farm near Beijing. They were displayed at a Beijing art show, triggering widespread concern and controversy. The live pigs will not be sold now since they are “artistic works,” but their skin could be auctioned at a high price after the pigs’ death.”

Eastday.com is reporting that the show has been canceled. I’m sure this atrocity exhibit will soon find itself another home though, and more morons will go stand in line and pay money to go see it. What is it about people that brings them enjoyment from watching animals either deliberately hurt like these pigs, or humiliated and pushed to extremes as in circuses, any “sport” involving animals (horse and dog racing, rodeos, etc…), or jerks like the other “artist” in Spain who put a stray starving dog on display as art. It turned out later to be hoax, but only to the extent that the dog had supposedly been fed and cared for during the exhibit, but no less messed up in that once the show was over, the poor dog was simply discarded back out onto the streets where they had nabbed him from in the first place. Or Banksy and the elephant in the room. When did it become fun to make animals suffer? Or at best, bore them to death?

It’s all so gross. Our species has such a bizarre and disturbing obsession with subjugating animals for fun and profit. It goes so much farther than the food issue. I can understand why it’s so difficult for people as a whole to not grasp or accept the concept of vegetarianism. That’s one thing… but hurting, mutilating and forcing animals to do ridiculous things while people stand around and watch (or gamble)… I just don’t understand. I don’t want to ever understand.

Thank you for listening. Rant over, more food soon.