Since word has started to spread just a little in my locality about my blog I’ve been getting asked more and more about the vegan diet. People are still perplexed as to what it is vegan’s eat or how we manage to create tasty looking/sounding food, particularly when it comes to baking!
Brownies, lasagnes, frittatas, breakfast scramble and pesto…none of which sound particularly vegan friendly; particularly when you consider people have tendency to think I literally survive off of vegetables. A life without meat and dairy is in comprehendible to some merely because the alternatives and ease by which they can be created are unknown. When you through in to the mix that I avoid wheat and gluten (though can tolerate spelt) I can understand the confusion.
A cheesy mushroom filled “omelette”!
Veggie loaded frittata…anything really is possible with the right ingredients at hand and a little imagination!
Although I by no means think the vegan diet is for every one, I do think incorporating some of the principles in to the average diet could work wonders, increasing people’s intake of whole food nutrients and at the same time reducing their intake of refined processed food devoid of any nutrients…it’s a win win!
So what do I eat, what do I buy and what do I consider staples….that is the million dollar question! I’m starting with the store cupboard and will do a follow up post on my favourite fresh ingredients that are bought on a regular basis. All those below only have to be purchased every 2 – 6 weeks on average, depending on the particular ingredient (and how much of it I’ve been eating 
)
When it comes to buying plant foods, particularly anything dried or that has a long shelf life I recommended buying in bulk to save yourself some bucks. Eating primarily plant based food or going vegan or even vegetarian a couple of nights a week might help you build up some extra spare coins to spend as you please!
My Favourite Grains (Carbs)
- Pearl Barley
- Millet
- Short Grain Brown Rice
- Biona Wholegrain Spelt Pasta
- Old Fashioned Jumbo Oats
- Quinoa/Buckwheat – not technically grains but a great fluffy carb & protein rich substitute; actually fruit/seeds
Favourite Flours & Alternatives (Carbs – Homemade Cakes, Bakes, Pancakes & Breads)
- Whole grain spelt flour
- Chickpea/Gram Flour
- Quinoa Flour
- Buckwheat Flour
- Coconut Flour
- Almond Meal/Flour
Beans/Legumes/Protein
- Puy lentils
- Green lentils (bagged raw)
- Chickpeas
- Red Lentils (bagged raw)
- Black Beans
- Haricot Beans
- Tempeh – refrigerated block
- Tofu – firm
- Tofu – silken
I tend to buy tinned organic varieties, BPA free whenever possible of those without a side note!
A meaty tempeh bolognese to please even the meat eaters!
Nuts & Seeds (all raw)
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Pecans
- Pistachios
- Walnuts
- Pumpkin
- Sunflower
- Sesame
- Flax
- Chia Seeds
Seeds are such nutritional powerhouses! Toasted seeds make for a delicious salad topping…
Or a unique pesto!
Dried Fruit
- Cherries
- Cranberries
- Raisins – Golden and Californian
- Prunes
- Un sulphured Apricots
- Banana
Vinegars/Oils etc…
- Cold Pressed Organic Coconut Coconut Oil
- Coconut Butter – Artisana from iHerb as you can’t get it in Ireland!
- Bragg’s Aminos
- Bragg’s Raw Apple Cider Vinegar
- Rice Vinegar
- White Wine Vinegar
- Balsamic Vinegar
Vegan scones made magical thanks to coconut oil!
Nut/Seed Butters
- Organic All Natural SunButter– Best seed butter ever and is my favourite of all time!
- Justin’s Maple Almond Butter
- Maranatha No Stir Almond Butter Creamy
- iMonk Organic All Natural Cashew Butter
- iMonk Organic All Natural Almond Butter
- Peanut Butter & Co. Smooth Operator
- Chocolate PB2
Pretty much every good French toast of late has been topped with SunButter…can’t get enough of it!
Sweeteners
- Raw Coconut Sugar
- Truvia Granulated
- Organic Unrefined Dark Brown Sugar
- Pure Maple Syrup
- Organic Blackstrap Molasses
- Organic Brown Rice Syrup
Other Uncategorisable staples
- Engevita Nutritional Yeast Flakes with B12
- Alpro Plain Soy yoghurt– consumed on a daily basis
- Alpro Almond Milk
- Organic Passata
- Light Coconut Milk
- Biona Organic Dijon mustard
- Biona Organic Sauerkraut
- Sunwarrior Vanilla Raw Protein Powder
- Canned Pumpkin!!! Couldn’t live without it!
From baked oats…
To a pile of the most super pancakes! It makes everything bigger and better!
And of course a cheesy pumpkin lasagna, loaded with the goodness of nutritional yeast!
Spices and Herbs (Dried)
- Cinnamon
- Cumin
- Coriander
- Turmeric
- Chili Powder
- Cayenne Pepper
- Paprika
- Garam Masala
- Nutmeg
- Basil
- Oregano
- Thyme
- Chili Flakes
- Black Pepper – whole for freshly grinding
- Sea Salt
Not forgetting chocolate!
- Green and Blacks Dutch unprocessed cocoa powder
- Cacao Nibs
- Carob Powder
- 85% Lindt Dark Chocolate
Carob sauce… heavenly!
Do you have a long list of cupboard staples? Pick your top five and share below!
I’ll on doing a supplement post soon. I’ve only to begun to embrace them and want to share my top five that everyone should consider taking and why and what exactly I take…as well as the benefits I’ve experienced as a result!
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Great list! My top 5 would have to be: dark chocolate, extra virgin coconut oil, oats, quinoa, dried lentils
Good picks!
Oh my gosh! What a great post with so much great information, recipes, and it’s always neat to see the staples.
Thanks Tina and thanks for the mention on Twitter!
SUCH an informative and helpful list. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Hannah!
Happy Monday!
This list covers most of my favourite staple! My top 5 staples would be quinoa, dried chickpeas, sunwarrior/vega powder, coconut oil, and almonds to eat or make nut butter
Good top Five! I don’t know if I could pick just five! If I had to I’d go SunButter, chickpeas, Sunwarrior, Quinoa flakes (so I could make flour too!), short grain brown rice…though there is a fair few I’d miss!
My five staples: orange juice, apples, black beans, yogurt, and eggs. Every week, no question about it!
I am not a vegan but one of my favorite meals I’ve made this winter is macaroni and ‘cheese’ where I use a butternut squash purée and spices as the cheese. Some of your items look really good.
Your list is very well done! I am not a vegan (or even a vegetarian) but that list makes me want to reconsider (almost).
My top 5 cupboard staples:
- dark chocolate…lots of dark chocolate
- Isagenix Isalean shakes
- rolled oats
- PB2
- chia seeds
Brilliant, you should give it a go one day a week
my 5 picks would be cannelini beans, flaxmeal, oats, quinoa flour, almond milk yogurt. what are haricot beans, i’ve never heard of them before!
I think you guys might call them navy beans?
oh cool. i’ve only used them once in a soup so far. its so hard to pick a favorite bean. sometimes its chickpeas, sometimes its cannelini beans, sometimes black beans…