Before I came to University of Puget Sound this fall (as a freshman), I made one of the biggest decisions of my life — I cut out dairy, and called myself vegan. Albeit a markedly hasty one, this decision seemed like a natural segue from my already vegetarian/pescatarian lifestyle (only much more strict). In fact, it felt like it was a slow work in progress since the spring of 2016 as I had begun to avoid dairy almost entirely (easily abstaining from milk and yogurt, and only succumbing to the siren call of cheese). To me, veganism was a no-brainer that required little effort and only a dash of creativity.
Now, if you read that and felt overwhelming incredulity, you’re not baseless. In this case, die-hard carnivores and die-hard vegans unite — being a vegan is damn challenging. The level of discipline required is certainly not inherent, especially if you grew up in a family that consumed meat and dairy products on the daily. Yet, this summer felt like the opportune time for me to dive into this new lifestyle, largely in part by my family fully supporting my culinary endeavors and thus giving me access to a myriad of dairy and meat substitutes. I’m a broke college student now.
I’ll admit my optimism that veganism was a walk in the park (even on a college budget) may have been a tad bit overzealous, but it wasn’t ignorant. I just needed to learn to the tricks of the school diner. Like the Nancy Drew of creative nourishment, I set out sleuthing for the hidden gems of the SUB in order to bring you this set of tips, tricks and hacks to eat like the healthy vegan you are in the sea of chicken strips and carnivores. Don’t let this list be your be all, end all; it’s just your starter pack. I challenge you to surprise me with even more recipes and ideas (I’m convinced the options are endless).
Yo, where these ingredients at?
While not considered the mecca of veganism, all of these ingredients can be found IN the SUB (unless otherwise noted). In case you’re not acquainted with some of the nooks and crannies of the diner, here’s a quick cheat sheet of where to find things.
Avocados: Hidden in a basket in the right refrigerator by the cashier (where the cake and Kombucha are). Shipments usually come in at the beginning of the week. See below for a quick tutorial on the best way to transfer ‘cado to toast.
Spreads and Vegan Cheese Shreds: In the same refrigerator as the avocados, however they are usually more reliably stocked. Spreads include hummus, pesto, and chipotle mayo (neither pesto nor mayo are vegan, but I’m not discriminating here). You can find cream cheese in the mini-fridge under the cereal counter (again, not discriminating on your tastes, but vegan cream cheese can be found at Metropolitan Market).
Nutritional Yeast: Can be found by the Allergy Friendly Station or purchased at the C-Store.
Veggies: Common during lunch time, found in the salad bar (includes tomatoes, greens, carrots, etc). You can also find olive oil and balsamic vinegar here.
Seasonal Fruits and Veggies: More common during lunch time. Options in the fall include spiced butternut squash, apples with cranberries and walnuts, roasted mushrooms, and various beans. On this note, legumes and pulses are found at the salad bar. For your own personal dictionary, a legume is a fresh pea, peanut or soybean. A pulse (crazy name, I know) are actually what you consider beans such as black beans, chickpeas, lentils, etc.
Eggs: These aren’t technically vegan, but hey who really makes the rules for veganism around here (the answer is you). You can get a fried egg (or two) made to order, but this service is only available on the weekdays and until 9:45. At least you can get veggies here too.
OK, what can I actually make with these hidden gems?
(Glad you asked) My favorite non-guilty pleasure is avocado toast. I eat at least once or three times a week. Okay, so it’s honestly an addiction, but it’s fueled by its accessibility within the confines of the sub so #notmyfault. Enjoy it for breakfast, for a snack between classes or after a workout, for lunch, for dinner, forever. . . Now you get to enjoy three levels of glorious toast combinations.
Dear Beginner: Hey, maybe you’re just starting out here. Maybe you’re in a hurry. Or, maybe you’re just a minimalist — either way, you’ve got this basic avocado toast formula down.
Beginner’s Avocado Toast
Ingredients
Instructions
Toast your bread to your liking (the toastier it is, the more toppings you can add). #SpoonTip If you’re feeling fancy, keep your eyes peeled for rosemary, sourdough, or rye Vegan bread or Gluten Free white or wheat bread.
Spread your base on to the toast. #SpoonTip I recommend using bases like hummus, olive oil/balsamic, pesto, or cream cheese (the Met’s got vegans covered).
Peel your avocado and then slice it into thin slices. You can decide if you’re into presentation and fan the slices out all pretty, or you can be into practicality and mash the avocado with a fork. Top with salt and pepper.
Dear Intermediate Avocado Toast Crafter, you take that basic formula, and up the ante with some quick and easy toppings. That salad bar never saw it coming.
Intermediate Avocado Toast
Ingredients
Instructions
Assemble your avocado toast according to the Beginner’s recipe.
Add on your veggies of choice.
#SpoonTip: The SUB gets seasonal and has goodies like butternut squash and roasted mushrooms. There are also always raw veggies.
Top with a u0022cheeseu0022 of your choice.
#SpoonTip: The SUB has Daiya cheese shreds and the Cellar has nutritional yeast.
Dear Advanced Avocado Toast Master, others are blinded by your power and effortless chill vibes. You can’t live without your bulletproof coffee and copy of Kinfolk in the morning. You reek of the major cool hipness of a New Yorker who is just too cool to eat open faced sandwiches. You put everything on a bagel and boom, bagel sandwich. This is what Insta-dreams are made of.
Advanced Avocado Bagel Sandwhich
Ingredients
Instructions
Toast or don’t toast your bagel (crazy, I know).
Prepare your bagel following the Beginner and Intermediate recipes. Make sure to mash your avocado for this one.
#SpoonTip add protein by making a fried egg.
Veggie Power Bowls
Veggie power bowls are just what they sound like — veggies, in bowls, that give you power. If you need inspiration or just want to get acquainted with the concept, I advise you to check out these college friendly recipes. If you couldn’t tell already, I like to boil things down to formulas because they make the perfect blueprints for building your own creations. However, this one is much more basic than that for the avocado toast because it hugely depends on what’s offered that season or even that day in the SUB. So, put your creative thinking beanie on and let the good veganism vibes flow.
Veggie Powerbowl
Ingredients
Instructions
Gather your grain in a bowl plate from the salad bar area.
#SpoonTip: Go for rice (Asian or Mexican stations) or quinoa, bulgur or couscous (salad bar), or polenta (Allergy station).
Place your veggies in a section of your bowl.
#SpoonTip: Grab raw veggies from the salad bar or yummy warm veggies from the Allergy Friendly station (sautéed onions and kale, sweet potato fries/tots, roasted cauliflower and carrots, green beans, etc.).
Next add a section of legumes/pulses.
#SpoonTip: Un-true fact: superpowers start at the salad bar or Mexican station.
Add your toppings.
#SpoonTip: Refer to the avocado toast toppings or salad bar’s nuts and seeds for extra fat and proteins.
Now dress it up.
#SpoonTip: Don’t go for the pre-made dressings like Caesar or Italian — they’re just not packed with enough nutrition to balance out the amount of fat they have. Make your own at the salad bar with lemon juice/olive oil/balsamic.