Vegan Vacations by Jessica Percy-Campbell Not that long ago, it was extremely difficult for vegans to enjoy anything other than plain veggie plates in most restaurants on Aruba. But not anymore! In fact, there’s been an incredible explosion of plant-based offerings as pleasing to the eye as they are to the palate now available island-wide. Concept and misconceptions
The vegan lifestyle is a tricky thing for nonvegans to understand. Whether it’s an ethical, environmental, or health-centric choice, the bottom line is that anything consumed should not involve animals in any way. That includes anything dairy, or even dyes that rely on crushed insects for their color. Sometimes there are gray areas like honey, an issue highly debated among vegetarian groups. Basically, if a by-product of an animal is even used in the processing of a food or drink – for example some wines are filtered through egg whites and certain orange juice brands add fish oil – then it’s a no go. Dedicated vegans must learn to be expert label readers. You might be surprised at some products that appear to be vegan such as JellO, which turns out not to be, since gelatin is derived from bone marrow. But you might be equally surprised at ones that do turn out to be vegan-friendly such as Oreo cookies that don’t contain any dairy products at all! Sadly though, until recently, the taste of meat and dairy alternatives has often been uninspiring to say the least.
Almond milk, coconut milk, and even macadamia milk have surfaced as alternatives to soy milk (too much soy isn’t good for you), and the latest trend du jour is pea milk! (No, it’s not green nor does it taste like peas!) But though it’s become easy to be a vegan at home, it’s still an entirely different challenge when dining out, and especially while on holiday. Fortunately, Aruba has come a long way too. Aruba’s vegan revolution
As a full-on vegan for the past decade and the creator of VeganVacationista.com, a blog to help travelers find plant-based fare on the road, I can personally attest to how far this island has come in the past few years. E
Evolution of alternatives
Thankfully, vegan options have come a long way baby since the tofu glut of days gone by. And the premade products have also become much less expensive to purchase as the lifestyle is becoming more mainstream. Beans, grains, and things like nutritional yeast and chia seeds are offering substitutes to meat and eggs while nuts like cashews are making excellent dairyfree cheese.
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