a cow says... moo.

Milk, it is everywhere. Kind of like a white, creamy ghost that haunts you at every turn. One of the most difficult, okay more just annoying parts of this journey thus far has been all the incessant label reading. Still, two full months into vegan living and I am still checking, rechecking and triple checking labels. Talk about time consuming.
But I do it because just when you think it is safe to eat... BOOYA, it is not! For instance, Rice Cheeze. I haven't been eating it too much but my son loves it on a grilled "cheese" sandwich. Pricey, but a little goes a long way when you are feeding a toddler (Unless it is Oreos- those go real quick. Which by the way are vegan. Whoda thought?). Anyhow, when I bought the Cheeze the first time I must have assumed that it was vegan. It is rice cheese for goodness sake. Last night, after making Hayden the sandwich, I checked the package. Sure enough, has whey (milk protein) in it.
Whey is in just about all processed crackers and just about everything for that matter. I bought a box of graham crackers awhile back and they did not have animal product in it. So, when I needed graham cracker crumbs I just grabbed a box, not thinking I needed to check. I got home to make the most delicious treat ever and to my dismay... whey was present, looming like a goblin on Halloween.
I was making Alicia Silverstones vegan peanut butter cups for Cutter for Valentines Day. It is his favorite candy and I thought it would be a special treat. They looked so darn delicious that despite the whey, I tried one. I had to. No, really, I had to. Cutter ate 12 whole cups in just one day. Definitely a treat you will want to make someday. I will remake them for Easter, except this time I am checking the label. Cutting corners never works out well, especially when it comes to whey.
Since the vegan quest began, I have substantially cut back on the amount of processed foods that we buy. If there was one thing I should cut back on it would be the amount of tortilla chips that I buy. We eat chips and salsa on an almost daily basis. There is so much trans fat and salt in the darn things, but I love them nonetheless. I need a good substitute. I have tried eating carrots and hummus when a chips craving hits, but it doesn't seem to do the trick. Too bad there isn't whey in my favorite chips. Whey has the power to quash my cravings. Or, maybe I am just not meant to give up my chips and salsa... Oh whey, why can't you be where I need you the most?