Vegetarian to vegan?

I have been a vegetarian for 5 years, and it has been very easy for me since I always hated meat. My brother recently stayed with me (has been a vegan for 3 yrs), and taught me a lot about factory farms, animal testing, and the cruel conditions that animals live in. I really want to make the transition, but I really don't know where to begin. I already drink soymilk, and have been researching Peta. I know a basic idea of what to eat and what not to eat, but I would like some examples of a vegan's everyday diet. I want to stay very healthy, and I know it is difinitely possible while being vegan. My brother is a prime example. Could anyone share examples of what they eat on a day to day basis, and what I should start buying when I go grocery shopping? Also, is it extremely more expensive?

There are lots of resources on how to get a healthy vegan diet but please, please, please don't use PETA as your basis for researching the subject of animal welfare.  It would be like using the Al Quaeda website as your sole source for a balanced view on the USA.

There are lots of excellent farmers out there producing  good quality, organic dairy products and eggs etc, and providing safe, healthy, humane living conditions for their livestock at the same time.  Doesn't take much effort to track them down if you wanted to stay vegetarian.

I am currently vegetarian (no eggs, milk, diary products EXCEPT cheese *sigh*)... because well, like many vegetarians wanting to be vegan, cheese is hard... and it's hard to find a decent cheese replacement. That being said, there are a lot of resources out here on the web. You can also buy vegan cook books or check them out at a library.

Even though I am vegetarian, most days than not, I eat "vegan". It's come to a point where I don't even really like eating cheese as much as I used to, but I still do it.

There are a lot of good diary replacements nowadays that contain no partially hydrogenated oils (i.e. Earth Balance margarine, the YELLOW Tofutti Cream cheese containers, Follow Your Heart Cream cheese). Although, I'm not sure if you can find such things at a regular grocery store... But my local grocery stores, as well as the local Whole Foods, also carries these products luckily!

I have found that I buy a lot more food per week and my pantry is filled with a lot more different things. But I have grown to cook more at home, so it's not as expensive for me, at least. And it's still very healthy! PETA does have a nice list of the "accidentally vegan" mainstream products. Ever since I've become vegetarian though, I have been living off reading the ingredients list...haha.

If you want a good idea of what vegans eat on a daily basis or something, you can always check out the thousands upon thousands of vegan food blogs! I do it all the time, and I think it's become a very bad habit. I hope the bloggers don't hate me (if they ever find out!) in referring you to them. Here are some that I frequent:

www.veganbits.com - I like this site because they talk a lot about the benefits of a vegan diet (not in a condescending way!) and include some vegan food. They are a couple who became vegan... 1-2 years ago? and they started this blog when they started their vegan journey... so they have some helpful tips for transitioning.

www.veganyumyum.com - although she doesn't update as often, when she does, it's awesome!!!

http://www.veganmenu.blogspot.com/ - They even have raw food wednesdays! Which is pretty cool if you want to have raw food sometimes.

http://www.vegandad.blogspot.com/ - this is update almost everyday with new recipes

http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/ - Good recipes and calorie conscious. She usually lists the calorie, fat, etc info... so pretty nifty!

So many more..but there are some! Hope that helps and good luck! :D

Original Post by weiing:

I am currently vegetarian (no eggs, milk, diary products EXCEPT cheese *sigh*)... because well, like many vegetarians wanting to be vegan, cheese is hard... and it's hard to find a decent cheese replacement. 

 My best friend and I were vegan for awhile and we found a great cheese substitute.  It is Tofutti sliced cheese.  It comes in mozarella and american flavors.  They don't taste all that great on their own, but if you eat it on a sandwich or what not, it taste pretty good.

Thank you, I have a lot to learn. Thanks weiing for the links, they were really helpful. I spent a while visiting them; I basically just need to learn how to cook vegan items. Especially tofu, I haven't been so great at cooking it in the past, except for in Miso Soup. You can't really go wrong, that soup is delicious.

while i am not going to argue that there are "safe, healthy, and humane" farms, i still believe that exploitation of any animal is wrong and that's why i'm a vegan. that being said, i think PETA is more than a little crazy.

as for my everyday eating habits--i eat alot of whole grains, i try to get as many vegetables as possible, i get alot of healthy fats from flax oil and peanut/soy nut butter, and i try to limit my intake of soy although sometimes that doesn't happen.  i eat tofu often but beans not so much and only on days when i don't have ballet class because they make me bloat a little bit.

being vegan is really only expensive when you rely on store-bought specialty foods. i don't eat many pre-made meat subs because they're really not that good for you; i prefer to prepare my own tofu or seitan. soy yogurt and occasional soy cheese are really the only "special" things i buy but for the most part i eat as natural as possible. so basically if you stick to making your own stuff you can definitely live on the cheap.

Lol I'm a poor college student and I still manage to live a healthy vegan lifestyle! So if I can do it, seriously ANYONE can do it!

I buy dry beans and cook them in a rice cooker. I buy vegetable broth and big bags of long-grain rice, and cook my rice in the broth....and I buy a lot of canned veggies (I know, not nearly as good as fresh or frozen, but I am poor) and I make a lot of different soups that way. I also buy whole grain bread (the Nature's Own 12 grain bread is vegan!) and natural peanut butter, to make pb sandwiches. I have saltines and hummus, and that's a good snack...I buy soy milk, rolled oats, vegan cane sugar (regular cane sugar is NOT vegan) and mix these together to create breakfast...Umm....I splurge sometimes and get Whole Fruit Sorbet. I try to avoid tofu because it's pricey (BUT: its cheaper by the pound than ANY meat on the market!) but I get it sometimes (and when I do, i cut it into cubes and soak it in marinade and then bake the bites in a convection oven! Mmm!). My friends steal me fruit from the dining hall here on campus so I don't have to buy it! hahah! Let's see....well there's tons more things that I eat, but there's a basic example of stuff for you. I do take a multivitamin every day, though, to get my B12.

Being vegan actually opens your mind to new things you can do with food and helps you better understand what exactly you are putting in your body. I love it. :)