Tilting--Gasp!--VEGAN

I am an omnivore. I eat everything, including at least a dozen things that I shouldn't. But something is tripping me up as I enter 2012, and that's the increasingly tempting concept of eating vegan.

"Going vegan" is like "going vegetarian," except it's more hard core. Where vegetarians don't eat flesh, they will still eat animal products like eggs, dairy and honey. Vegans take it all the way, eating only plants and plant products. Bye-bye cheese platter (dairy), brioche (eggs) and ice cream (you didn't really think you'd sneak that in, did ya?).

So what do vegans eat? Any plant-based food. Avocados and corn chips; apple fritters and snow cones. You see, it's not all Eureka bread, hummus and sprouts! Processed foods like gummi worms and soda work, as do movie popcorn with fake butter!

I jest because I love, but point being, going vegan isn't total deprivation. You can still have all kinds of crap, and most importantly: raid the liquor closet.

But of course that isn't the kind of vegan I want to be; I want to have an eye towards whole foods and health. In that spirit, here are some vegan menu options:

BREAKFAST OPTIONS
Mashed avocado on Ry-Krisp Crackers
Tofu Scramble Rancheros with Refried Pintos
Fruit Platter with Granola and Hemp Milk

LUNCH OPTIONS:
Tomato Garbanzo Soup
Roast Vegetable Panini
Basil Pesto Pasta
Ratatouille on Crostini

DINNER OPTIONS:
Spicy Thai Soup with Coconut Milk
Sesame Scallion Pancakes
Bok Choy with Black Bean Sauce

The window is closed to animals, but there are a lot of ways to eat plants, and a lot of plants to eat.

You might be wondering: what has tipped the balance for me; why am I considering going all vegan on you?

I can point to the culprits: there are three people and one movie that are buzzing around in my head and making it hard for me to go with animal-based foods:

1. A colleague of mine who is the editor for a major food magazine goes vegan every January; it's part of a cleansing ritual. He always returns with a cleansed mind, body and palate; that can't be a bad thing.

2. I saw Forks Over Knives. Rent it on Amazon for $4, or stream it as you like via Netflix. Doctors presenting research on the clear-as-day impact of a plant-based diet on heart disease. Hard to get psyched about daily meat when confronted with research this clear. [Note: it's not ANTI-meat, it's just PRO-plant]. Nobody's preaching here; just scientists presenting research.

3. My dear friend Katya Lidsky is a passionate human and animal advocate who also happens to be a vegan. She is happy to go out with me as I order a steak, but lives her vegan life so enthusiastically, it's hard to not want some of her miso kale. It's clear that she tastes food differently; I can't help but want to "have what she's having". (Yes, I am referring to that scene in When Harry Met Sally.)

Katya once told me that after going vegan, she feels like her body really uses the food she puts into it. She eats a lot -- and I've always found it a pleasure to watch a woman take a big old portion, enjoy every forkful, and look as great as Katya does. I hate to reveal my vanity but...I've met many plump vegetarians, but never a plump vegan. Vegan women always seem to have killer bodies.

4. Ah, John Salley. You know him, the tall, gorgeous basketball player best known for his contributions to the Detroit Pistons championship teams in the late 80s? He was one of the Bad Boys, and played for the Heat and the Bulls in the '90s.

I had the good fortune to cook with this accomplished man at CES in Las Vegas last week (john salley video-in-the-kitchen-at-ces-with-allison-fishman), and guess what? Salley is a vegan. When his cholesterol went haywire in the late 90s, he became what he calls "a lying vegetarian". But as his interest in health and nutrition grew, so did his commitment to a vegan lifestyle. As you can see from the video (above), eating plants has not dampened his humor, verve, or sexiness. In fact, it has increased all three. This man is a living testimony to the sexiness of a vegan lifestyle.

So now, every time I look at a piece of sausage or steak, I think of gorgeous Katya and sassy Sally. I think about heart disease, and I think about how much I like vegetables; this is really just an excuse to explore more cooking in a new realm.

In the end, I'll likely not go totally vegan, as that could have a severe professional and personal impact. But I am going to play around with some vegan cookbooks for the next few weeks, and you bet your sweet pork chop I'm going to feel very proud of myself when I have a vegan day, or week, or month. I'm not swearing off of the animal foods I've been eating; I'm just going start playing with plants that deserve a bit more of my attention. Just sticking a toe into the inviting vegan hot tub.

Do you have any culinary resolutions this year (besides losing weight)? Would love to hear about it!

Come with Allison Fishman to America's top food festivals, and see who takes home the blue ribbon on Blue Ribbon Hunter.