I am going to switch from vegetarian to vegan for a month. Any ideas for menus, or just eating out-of-hand?

Nuts to you ! and seeds… and avocados. Those are the most satisfying surrogates for cheese when I give it up. On a sandwich you may already be familiar with Veganaise.
Lots of folks will put Brewer’s yeast on things to add texture and B12 and its flavor.

Tempeh Creole

For the Marinade:
8 Tbsp. shoyu (soy sauce)
2 Tbsp. Creole seasoning
8 slices fresh ginger
2 1-inch pieces kombu (sea vegetable)
¼ tsp. sea salt
2 cloves garlic, sliced
6 cups water

For the Tempeh:
2 8-oz. pkgs. tempeh
3 Tbsp. Creole seasoning
½ cup unbleached flour
4 Tbsp. canola oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped bell peppers
1 cup chopped celery
2 cups peeled, seeded, and chopped tomatoes
1 Tbsp. chopped garlic
5 bay leaves
¼ tsp. dried thyme
¼ tsp. dried oregano
¼ tsp. dried basil
½ cup dry red wine
Salt, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 Tbsp. chopped green onions
2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley

• Combine all the ingredients for the marinade.
• Cut each pack of tempeh into 12 thin slices on a bias and simmer in the marinade for minimum of 45 minutes. Remove the tempeh and reserve the marinade liquid.
• In a mixing bowl, add the Creole seasoning and flour and mix well. Dredge the tempeh, coating completely.
• Heat a large pan and add the canola oil. When the oil is hot, brown the tempeh on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside. (Might need to do this in two batches.)
• Add the onions, bell peppers, and celery. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are wilted. Add the tomatoes and garlic. Cook, for about 3 more minutes.
• Add the tempeh back into the pan along with bay leaves, thyme, oregano, basil, marinade liquid, and wine. Season with salt, cayenne pepper, and black pepper. Bring the liquid to a simmer, and cook for about ½ hour.
• Remove the bay leaves before you serve. Garnish with green onions and parsley.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

PETA

I’m a fan of seed or nut based sauces to add richness and flavor. Especially enjoy tahini sauce:

1 C tahini
1–2 T shoyu or soy sauce
1–2 T water as needed to thin
mix well

Or pepita sauce:

1 C raw pumpkin seeds, toasted in a pan until fragrant and hollow sounding
1 garlic clove
1 t shoyu or soy sauce
1 T olive or flax oil
1 T ume (plum) vinegar
⅓ – ½ C water
blend all ingredients well

Both are delicious spooned over rice, greens, or tofu.

Have to say though, I don’t think I could live without cheese! Let us know how it goes.

I was a vegetarian for a long time but only two weeks as a vegan. I was done in by a big crock pot full of queso at a party and that was the end of that. I was so desperate for something even remotely resembling cheese that I fell off the vegan wagon for something that remotely resembles cheese. Yes, the queso was made with America’s favorite “cheese food:” Velveeta.

I don’t know whether you like sweets or not but I do and when I tried to go vegan I knew, of course, that there would be no more ice cream and I’ve never been a fan of tofu ice cream so, I depended on puddings, which I like anyway, to take care of my sweet tooth. They don’t taste all that much different that dairy based puddings. I didn’t feel like I was giving up much. All my veggie cookbooks are packed away in the attic somewhere so I did some internet searching found some vegan pudding recipes that look pretty good:

Vegan rice pudding variation of the Joy of Cooking recipe

Vegan chocolate putting

And here’s a page with a plethora of puddings

The banana chocolate mousse from the page above sounds pretty good!

Also, I don’t know if you use phyllo dough but it was a staple for me during my vegetarian years. I’m not absolutely certain if all phyllo dough is vegan, sometimes egg yolks are used, but there are brands that certainly are. I think the stuff is great. You could wrap an old shoe in phyllo dough and bake it and it would taste good, and look good too in my opinion.

Well … seriously, you can wrap just about anything in phyllo dough and it tastes good, in my opinion. I wish I could find my copy of The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, I think that’s the one, that has this wonderful spinach and phyllo baked thing, that you roll up so it kind of looks like a big donut or something you baked in a bundt cake pan. When you slice it looks like spinach Beef Wellington. But, here’s one recipe that looks pretty good, though maybe not so complicated, but it has a lot of ingredients.

Moroccan Phyllo Rolls with Balsamic Maple Sauce

It’s also nice to use to make tarts in a muffin pan. You can put anything in them and when you but into a nice little sweet or savor phyllo pastry tart it’s a little harder to feel deprived. Here’s more fun with phyllo. With any recipe that instructs you to brush the layers with butter, olive or safflower oil can be used instead.

Also, egg or spring roll wrappers were a favorite of mine to. And there are vegan options for those too according to this site. Another way something can be made a little better by just wrapping it up in some dough. Egg or spring rolls are also a nice way to use use up the bits and ends of vegetables. We used to even fry lettuce and add it to the roll filling.

And since I just stumbled across it moments ago I will end this rather long, rambling post with PETA’s Ultimate Vegan Baking Cheat Sheet.

Anyway, I’m done. I hope you find this helpful rather than over the top. If you are already a proficient phyllo dough user I didn’t mean to patronize you. :-).

I’m just glad I composed this ridiculously long post in textedit rather than in fluther’s comment box because second I posted the text into the comment box my browser crashed. If I had lost this entire comment every single user on fluther, no matter how distant, would have heard the sound of me screaming and cursing with rage: and the sound of glass breaking? That would have been the sound of one violently frustrated Lilly hurling her computer through her bedroom window. Then you would have heard the pitiful whimpering as curled up in a ball and cried.

What? Do you have some sort of running bet with @janbb on how quickly I would find this question? LOL

Alright, first I’m really big on entree salads and soups, plus I love me a good samich.

Here are 2 products your home should never be without: Vegenaise and Smart Balance Buttery Spread

And you can make or buy some brands of vegan breads.

Here’s a recipe for Vegan Hamburger Buns (Note: the author, and then some of the other bakers who made the buns have suggested flax seed or tapioca starch as an egg replacer. The author’s note is on the main page, and the other ideas are on the page when you click on the recipe link)

Then, find your favorite vegan veggie burger and add Vegenaise and Peanut Butter along with sliced onion, lettuce tomato and pickle. I had this combo awhile back and fell in love with it, even though it sounds odd. I think you will like it, so far everyone that has tried it on regular beef burgers or veggie burgers has loved it.

Now for the recipes:

Eggless Tofu Salad (I make similar recipe, only I also add pickle relish and scallions. Note: the tumeric doesn’t add flavor, it just adds the requisite yellow color)

I made Cold Soba Noodle Salad with Peanut Butter Dressing and Tofu last night. (I like to use broccoli instead of asparagus). It’s delicious cold or at room temperature (so you can take it to a potluck) and keeps as long as a week.

This is my mom’s and my favorite vegetable salad, Raw Kale Salad with Root Veggies (Note: if you don’t want to make the nuts yourself, just get Trader Joe’s brand of sweet spicy pecans. My favoite combo is beets, turnips and rutabagas)

I love Thai food and I love Tom Kha soup.

I also love Chinese Hot and Sour Soup

And since fall has arrived, you might like Roasted Butternut Squash Soup (I make a very similar recipe, but I also add a can of rinsed and semi-pureed white beans and a jar of Trader Joe’s Indian Curry Simmer Sauce, but be aware that the Masala Simmer Sauce and the green and yellow Thai Curry Saces are not vegan.

If you are going to hollow out that squash, anyway, why not roast the seeds? Just separate them out from the pulp, rinse and dry them with a paper towel, then put them into a small bowl with a tiny bit of olive oil, about a quarter teaspoon, and a pinch of sea salt and a pinch of fresh ground pepper, coat the seeds, then spread them out onto a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray and then roast them at about 35 degrees for about 10 minutes, turning once during cooking. If you hear some seeds start to pop, you know they’re done, but you don’t have to wait until you hear that, or else they might start to burn.

If you’re like me and you love cabbage you might like this Tofu and Red Cabbage Salad with an Asian flair.

Or Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage and Apple Salad if you like more of a Scandinavian dish.

Or this traditional Danish dish of Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage (note: use Smart Balance instead of butter. This is especially good served with your choice of Vegan Dogs, Brats or Sausages

The cabbage and brats are also good with mashed potatoes and Mushroom Gravy

You can also make some pretty tasty gravy with Kitchen Bouquet (Note: Ikea makes their tater gravy with this and it’s super yummy. They use cream as a base, but you could just as easily use soy milk or other non-dairy milk product.)

Course there’s always Vegetarian Chili (You can omit the TVP or add it in, if you like a “meatier” feeling chili).

And if you want an alternative to a frozen veggie burger, you might want to make some grilled Portobello Mushrooms

If you’re feeling like a little bit of the Middle East, make some Hummus and Tabouli

For a tasty Thai appetizer, you might like Fresh Spring Rolls

Chips and salsa are always good and so are bean burritos. Here’s a few salsa recipes you might like:

Tomatillo Salsa

Mango Salsa

Cranberry Salsa

Pineapple Salsa

Want a little something to go with your veggie burger or dog? How about some tangy Barbecue Beans and some Tropical Cabbage Slaw

Want some dips to go with your tortilla chips or pita chips or tater chips? How about some Spicy Black Bean Dip or some Artichoke Hummus or some Cowboy Caviar (note: you can also use fresh corn, right off the cobb, instead of canned, you can also use thawed out frozen corn)

Want some comfort food? How about some Corn Chowder or Pasta Primavera or Mushroom Stroganoff (I think they make some noodles that have the shape of egg noodles, but any kind of thick, or flat eggless noodle will work fine too) or Lasagna

Hungry for dessert? Did you know that you can make a delicious whipped topping from Coconut Milk?

OK, so there you go. And I’m just getting started LOL

Wow, you’re getting wonderful advice with great recipes.. but clearly everyone else has more time or is less lazy than me..because when I eat vegan it’s typically heavy on Indian foods (take out) and Amy’s vegan entrees (my favorite is this one).
If I was as ambitious as you and planned to eat vegan for a month I’d probably go to the Amy’s Kitchen website product search page and sort on “Vegan” and make a shopping list from that. :)

These are wonderful ideas, but I forgot to add that I am becoming lazier and lazier in the kitchen.

No matter how noble I pretend to be, I know that I will never fiddle with phyllo dough. The lazy me would saute the spinach in oil with onion and garlic, scrape a little fresh nutmeg on top.

I have found that a T. of almond or cashew butter satisfies my need for a sweet or even a little Vermont maple syrup off the spoon.

And I have discovered a magic beverage that I carry around, over ice, and drink off and on during the day.

10 oz. water
2 t. organic (Bragg) vinegar with its mother
A splash of organic grapejuice

I do feel very heartened and so does my waist line. I wish that I liked avocado but so far, I haven’t been able to. Maybe a few more tries will do it.

I need, also, to remind myself that I can buy wonderful soups, vegan spring rolls, and giant bags of washed mesclun in my little ‘hood.

@gailcalled If you prefer not to cook, check out this list by the Vegetarian Resource Group it lists which frozen entrees are vegan (and which are only vegetarian) along with fat, calorie, protein and sodium content.

And here is another list with a lot of Vegan Snack Products

Good thoughts, all.

@marinelife‘s tempeh is too labor-intenstive; @Kardamon’s soba noodle peanut salad looks delicious.

The pre-prepared frozen or bagged snacks are loaded with salt.

But, hark, I am getting the hang of this.

Snacks; raw carrots, celery, fennel, sugar snap peas, snow peas, green beans, cherry tomatoes, and sweet peppers, peanuts in the shell.

Staples; a cooked pot of brown rice, barley, quinoa or amaranth lends itself to salads, soups and out-of-the-pot with a spoon.

Cravings I solve with 1 T. almond or cashew butter or a t of Vermont Maple syrup.

My next chore to to find a milk substitute for tea and cereal. Today, soy milk, tomorrow almond and rice.

The really good news is that I am losing weight, slowly and painlessly. I will be attending a large family Thanksgiving along with my ex-husband and his girl friend, so there we go.

@gailcalled IMO Rice milk tastes the most like regular milk. But 2 others that I have tasted recently, So Delicious brand Coconut Milk (especially the unsweetened) is marvelous and so is Pacific brand Hazelnut Milk and of course the Silk soymilk products are all good.

Any kind of plain, high fiber cereal is good for snacking right out of the box, if you need some crunch, such as Kix or Barbara’s Puffins, or any of the Chex cereals or Cheerios or Crispy Rice. Trader Joe’s makes their own brands of similar products, which are probably even better, so does Whole Foods.

I don’t know about you, but I love plain rice cakes. They’re super crispy and you can put a thin spread of peanut butter, or Smart Balance or even a little bit of Vegenaise with some shredded veggies on top of that.

Trader Joe’s has some really tasty Organic Olive Oil Whole Wheat Wraps (tortillas really, not thick like a wrap) onto which you can spread some fat free refried beans, or whole beans, with some salsa and a bunch of chopped broccoli florets, or some fresh sliced cabbage or some chopped romaine lettuce. Super yummy and very quick to throw together. You can also spread a little bit of Smart Balance Buttery Spread on them and sprinkle them with cinnamon, then pop them into the oven until they’re crispy. You can also spread them with prepared hummus from Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods or Sprouts, then add some diced tomatoes, chopped radishes and some fresh parsley. And of course they’re always tasty spread with Trader Joe’s Fat Free Spicy Black Bean Dip You can also spread a little bit of fat-free non fat yogurt on top of some beans, or simply add some salsa and shredded lettuce or cabbage. The more crunchy and tangy stuff you add, the more satisfied you will feel.

@Kardamom: Lovely new suggestions. However, is not yogurt made from milk (cow’s or goat’s or sheep’s)?

What is Smart Balance Buttery Spread? The label sound suspicious.

@gailcalled Oh, I forgot to put the word soy in front of yogurt! There’s a bunch of brands out there such as Fage, Stoneyfield Farms, Grano Vita and Wildwood. Smart Balance Buttery Spread is a vegan margarine that has added plant sterols that help to lower your cholesterol. It has no dairy or trans fats, and no partially hydrogenated anything, but it tastes terrific. I’ve been eating it for years.

I just had a soya noodle, pea, ginger and peanut sauce cold salad today. It was wonderful

And I had forgotten the perfect snack…a jar of artichokes in water.

And I am going to slice some extra-firm tofu, coat with oil, sesame seed, lo-sodium soy and roast in the oven until they are crispy and ready to eat the way you would a cracker.

Here’s another easy, tasty and nutritious choice.

Start with a lot pot of cooked quinoa. It will last for a week.

Add some black bean chili to a C. of grain and heat. Then add several T. of salsa.

I just thought of something else that’s really good and very versatile. Trader Joe’s Marinated Bean Salad. You can serve it as a side dish, or add it to a grain or greens salad or even put some into a potato salad or pasta salad or even dump it into some soup. It’s super yummy!