Back in 1985, Tina Turner may have contended that We Don’t Need Another Hero, but I for one certainly find it important to draw inspiration from the examples of other activists who are out there raising awareness about animal protection issues and veganism in innovative, exciting, and – most of all – effective ways.  Since meeting her at the 2002 Animal Rights Conference in the United States, one of my personal ‘AR Heroes’ has been the media activist, spokesperson and author, Karen Dawn.

Karen in person has so much energy, enthusiasm, and passion for promoting animal rights, but it’s matched with equal amounts of knowledge about a multitude of issues and also the communication skills to get the message across in an engaging way.  Plus, there’s a huge sense of fun and playfulness in the way she approaches the serious issues of how animals are viewed and treated, which helps to draw in those who are not already interested and involved in the movement.

Karen with Katie Manitsas, a director of Samadhi Yoga

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Sometimes I buy cookbooks and they sit on the shelf until I finally get around to using them. Recently I used a cookbook for the first time after owning it for three years.

This was not the case with Viva Vegan! by Terry Hope Romero, co-author of Veganomicon, Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.

I’d seen photos from recipe testers and everything looked delicious. I pre-ordered Viva Vegan! from the Book Depository (free worldwide shipping!) and patiently waited for the book to be released.

The day it arrived I eagerly sat down to mark recipes that stood out to me, I found myself marking almost every page as each recipe sounded better than the last.

Viva Vegan! consists of over 200 vegan latina recipes, being a Venezuelan-American, you can tell Terry really knows what she’s talking about. Each category has a detailed description of the food you’re about to make including how it’s traditionally prepared and eaten.

The first meal I made consisted of the Basic Onion-Pepper Sofrito, Venezuelan-style Black Beans, Creamy Avocado Tomato Salsa and Crispy Fried Green Plantains (tostones).  This was such a delicious and filling meal. The smell of the sofrito cooking will make your tummy rumble in anticipation and adds so much flavour to the black beans. The tostones went perfectly with the zingy salsa.

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