holiday meals with a non vegan fam
so this is my 3rd major family holiday being vegan and i am starting to get a little fed up... for thanksgiving i carted like 3 dishes and an appetizer over to my gma's house so that me and my sis (also vegan) would have something to eat (others ate my dishes...stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry salsa too) and this Christmas i would basically have to do the same...
my problem is that i feel like my family (especially my gma) is making it more difficult on me then it needs to be... i just wish they would ask me if their is anything they could help me with or make something without animal products so i can at least have something to eat...
i am also sick of the comments from family members that are just plain rude and unnecessary... like they are mocking me or something (like for instance my gpa joking, "Can you have turkey? Is that vegan?"with a grin on his face... i am also getting uncomfortable with the fact that a huge dead animal is on the counter and not to mention it is so close to my food :(
sorry about the long rant but how do u guys feel about holiday meals with the fam? how do you deal? how do you feel about the whole meal revolving around a dead animal? i am just feeling fed up at the moment to the point where i don't even want to go to my gma's for Christmas
I was really worried about it. I spent Xmas with my mum's boyfriend's (Gavin) family.
I asked if I needed to bring anything, and she said no...
Basically, I just kinda survived on sides, like, salads, rice dishes, things like that. They were very nice about it though, and separated some otherwise dairy coated asparagus for me.
Dessert, I had fruit salad.
My brother kept shoving meat in my face, it was really irritating. He was a dick about it...
It wasn't really that bad, looking back on it, but I wish I had brought something a bit more substantial. I don't get very filled up on sides.
The great thing was that Gavin is allergic to nearly everything under the sun, he's also lactose-free, gluten-free and sugar-free, and his niece, Sylvie is allergic to eggs. So nobody criticised me about my eating habits. Apart from my brother.
This was my first vegan Christmas...and the first time I hosted on Xmas day because as a nurse I always volunteered to work on Xmas day, so the dinner/family stuff wasn't an issued.
I compromised and allowed a turkey to be cooked. But then I was in charge of everything else and I veganized it all. I used vegan broth in stuffing, I used almond milk the mashed potatoes, and made some veggies and appetizers. One guest brought creamed spinach which wasn't vegan. I served myself and "celebration loaf" and it was a good day.
My sister was excited and couldn't stop talking "it's so good and it's vegan too"..."mom those potatoes have no dairy", "dad those cookies have no eggs and are vegan".
Inevitably the conversation turned to veganism, and my family is quite aware. My BIL stated that "the pet food industry with it's meat production is has harmful to the environment as SUV's".....which is actually something I just red. My dad talked about how chickens never see daylight and some are so cramped they don't ever touch the ground. What is entirely frustrating is that they are enlightened but don't take it to the next level and quit eating it.
My family knows they can tease me and I'm good natured about it. But they also know that they can't be critical in my house as to what I eat and serve because they know they are free to leave, and I'm free to kick them out. LOL
I was pretty stoked about my grandma this year. She never remembers i'm vegan (mainly at dinners when she tries to put meat on my plate). But, she showed me recipes for things she was making and let me read ingredients on things! So she made 3 things i could eat, it was insaneeee. Thats never happened before! (it also helped that my cousin is lactose intolerant, so she couldn't eat dairy. w00t, double team.)
I have a hard time with the smell of meat also. But I was that way before I ever became a vegetarian.
The older generation in particular tend to cook with bacon fat, lard, real butter etc. So They don't understand at times that just because the finished product doesn't look like meant isn't the same.
Of all things Pop Tarts aren't vegetarian. They use gelatin in the frosting.
I have a hard time with the smell of meat also. But I was that way before I ever became a vegetarian.
The older generation in particular tend to cook with bacon fat, lard, real butter etc. So They don't understand at times that just because the finished product doesn't look like meant isn't the same.
Of all things Pop Tarts aren't vegetarian. They use gelatin in the frosting.
u can always get the unfrosted ones... yummy!
My x-mas dinner went great. Everyone loved my veggie lasagna - I knew they would, it's my specialty. The night before, my sister called and asked if she could bring turkey meatballs. I was conflicted, but instead of fighting with her, I told her she could. Nobody ate them. My dad even went as far as to say they were gross. I felt really bad for her. But my huge pan of lasagna was completely gone.
Holiday with the fiance's family went well, I had some tasty pasta w/marinara and rolls. The whole meal was vegetarian! :)
My family's two holiday gatherings went as expected, I brought my own meals to both. At my aunt's everything seemed to have bacon in it, even the green beans. Oh well. ::)
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