For no other reason than “I wanted to,” I’ve adopted a vegan diet. I’ve been consuming less and less meat anyway… and I figured I may as well go 100% animal-free.

A few years ago, I gave vegetarianism a go and it didn’t turn out so well. (I binged on hard-boiled eggs one day. It wasn’t pretty.) However, I was young and dumb. I wasn’t yet living on my own so I didn’t do much of my own cooking. I just continued to eat the same foods only without the slab of meat on the side. Needless to say, I was lacking in protein (hence the egg-binging) and many vitamins. Things are different now: I cook every one of my meals (except the ones Alex cooks on the weekends when he visits) and I do all of my own grocery shopping. It was partially because of all the wasted groceries (mainly meats and dairies) that I decided to go vegan.

To aid me in my new culinary adventures, I sought out vegan cookbooks. The ones I ended up buying are by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero… and I love them to pieces. Every recipe I’ve made so far has been amazing! They’re appetizing even for those not following a vegan diet: pastas, risottos, sautéed veggies, sammiches, sauces, pancakes, French toast, ice creams… The list goes on and on!

All of the recipes are seriously delicious. Here are some things I’ve already tried:

…and I’ve only had the book for 5 days!

Because I live in a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, I can’t compost all this biodegradable waste at home. But! The local farmers’ market collects food scraps! So I bought a 1.5-gallon compost pail that I’m hauling to the farmers’ market once a week.

…I’m such a hippie, biking to the farmers’ market to compost my vegan scraps. Oy.