-The biggest challenge for new vegetarians\vegans is, of course, getting the nutrients your body needs without eating animal products. Meat, fish and dairy products are the principal source of protein, calcium or iron for a lot of people, but they can all be found in other ingredients. Yesterday, I was looking for retail stores that sold organic\vegan food in Ottawa and I found an amazing local store called Herbs and Spices that is literally heaven for vegetarian\vegan\gluten-free\environmentally-caring people! It’s really cute and cozy and has a LOT of varieties of products and brands. You can also buy some of their products, like beans and rice, in bulk which is great because it means less packaging! Here is some of the stuff I bought:
I admit it, I will miss my dairy products! I usually eat cereal every night before going to bed and yogurt in the morning, but I decided to go with Earth’s Own Almond Milk Fresh (Zinc, Calcium, Vitamin D, B12) instead and it actually tastes a lot better than I remembered! I bought organic bread that contains a high amount of protein and splurged on natural/GMO free Dark Chocolate Dreams Peanut Butter Co. (protein, iron) and organic garlic hummus to go with it. I’m not exaggerating when I’m saying that this is the best peanut butter I ever tasted and the hummus is a strong candidate!
Other:
– Black beans (fiber, iron and protein)
– Kidney beans (fiber, iron, protein, vitamin C)
– Kale (vitamin A/ C, calcium, Iron, protein)
– Rolled oats (fiber, protein, calcium, iron)
– Chia seed (calcium, fiber, omega-3/6)
– Almonds (protein, calcium, iron, fiber)
– Camino 80% Dark chocolate (iron, fiber, protein)