Читать книгу Spork-Fed - Jenny Engel - Страница 8

Everyone’s path in life is different. Some people know from a very young age that they want to grow up to be a doctor, actor, teacher, or dancer. When we were young, we knew we wanted to run our own sister business—although the focus of our biz didn’t take shape until we both became vegan.

At college our eyes were opened to the global impact and political context of our food choices, and we felt strongly enough to start making a statement with every meal. Heather (older sis) transitioned to veganism first, and Jenny, who had been vegetarian since high school, soon followed.

Jenny later trained at the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City and Heather helped run an 11,000-member environmental nonprofit organization, which gave us the formal training and real-world experience we needed to kick-start our vegan sister biz.

We love cooking and everything it embodies. When you make a meal, it’s the perfect excuse to bring together friends and family. And when you make vegan dishes that appeal to all types of people, even better. That’s why we started our company, Spork Foods, where we provide cooking classes, private lessons, and healthy-eating consultations. We pride ourselves on creating recipes that are approachable, easy, and irresistible to all sorts of palates—cooking that blows the minds of not only vegans, but vegetarians, omnivores and die-hard meat eaters too. Even though a lot of people might have preconceived notions of vegan food, all it takes is one tasty meal to change their opinions forever. We call it “delicious persuasion”—you can’t fight it!

Food is more than proteins mixed with carbs and fats, and it’s more than just a meal. Food is powerful. It’s a huge part of all our traditions, celebrations, religions, health, energy and self-image. By getting to know an array of people through our cooking classes, we’ve discovered that many of us feel guilty about eating “bad” foods. So when we cook, we make recipes that are satisfying, sometimes decadent, and always animal-ingredient- and cruelty-free—because that’s how we choose to live our lives.

Our students keep us going and constantly motivate us to develop exciting new recipes. Some of our favorite moments are when a student tells us how much healthier or more energized he or she is feeling, thanks to our recipes—or how successful our meals are with his or her entire non-vegan family. When students share their culinary successes or ask us questions about what we know and love, it truly makes our job the best job in the world. We’re thankful for being able to teach people how to cook, and it means so much to us to be living our sister business dream.

As soon as students started flying in from Seattle, Texas, and even Japan to take our classes in Los Angeles, we decided it was time to also put ourselves on the web. We launched Sporkonline.com to give the world a fun and engaging website where people can experience vegan cooking and a vegan lifestyle on their own time.

Every food has a history, and many of the natural ingredients mentioned in this book have medicinal qualities that have been coveted for thousands of years. In the “For Your Smarts” and “For Your Parts” sections that accompany each recipe, you’ll learn a little more about how different cultures appreciate these foods, and what these ingredients do for your health. You’ll never look at an eggplant the same way again! (Not to spoil the surprise, but technically—it’s a berry! Wow!)

Use this book to have fun in the kitchen. Our recipes are designed to build your confidence and let you enjoy cooking and, of course, eating. We cover recipes from all over the globe because we want to show how expansive the flavors are in the vegan world. Many of the recipes here are gluten-free, too. You can have it all! And if you’ve been searching far and wide for a vegan version of your favorite dish to no avail—well, hopefully this cookbook will give you the boost you need to “veganize” it on your own, making a meal that’s healthier and friendlier to animals and the planet than the non-vegan equivalent.

We strive to present a cuisine that is modern and sophisticated, as we want anyone who picks up this book to feel proud to serve these dishes to anyone lucky enough to sit at your table.

Thank you for taking the time to enjoy Spork-Fed!

Sincerely,

Jenny and Heather

P.S. When you see a number at the end of a “For Your Smarts” or “For Your Parts” section, make sure you turn to the Notes section in the back of the book for extra info.

P.P.S. Check out our suggested menus on the following pages for a little creative meal planning!