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April 15, 2025

Talbot Spy

Nonpartisan Education-based News for Talbot County Community

Food and Garden Food and Garden Food Notes

How to be Vegan on the Eastern Shore: A Survivor’s Guide by Jason Elias

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It’s very hard to be a vegan on the Eastern Shore. In fact I have no doubt that it’s one of the hardest things to be. The Eastern Shore is built on food, the experience of food, the sharing and the preparation. There’s also a monetary footprint that is throughout the region. For example, according to 2020 USDA statistics, the poultry industry earned Maryland 6.7 billion dollars. That’s a lot of money.

For some “food is love” and nothing says love like crabs from the Chesapeake Bay or visiting the best restaurants looking for the best steak.

But what can you do when you’re vegan in a place like the Eastern Shore?

What exactly is “vegan?” According to the stringent definition, a vegan cannot have meat or seafood, basically food from animals. It sounds unfathomable and it sounded unfathomable to me too, until I became a vegan.

My entry in the “vegan business” came about during one bad day of eating and overeating. I was at Harris Teeter one afternoon, waiting for a sandwich that included pretty much everything on the menu. The young woman fixing the sandwich put six extra pieces of bacon on it and smiled like it was my lucky day. Yeah, really lucky. Besides this nadir, I had begun to get headaches from eating too much tuna, and a big fat belly from eating 4 and a half full meals a day. I had to do better.

I credit my girlfriend for helping me go vegan. It’s easier for her, however, she lives in New York. In comparison, Maryland isn’t as vegan friendly as it could be and the Eastern Shore is less so.

That said I’m here one of the statistics and really I should have been a group member decades before I did. Even as early as 11, I had intermittent trepidation with foods like sausage, eggs and scrapple let alone the junk they had for school lunches.

By my teen years I was even worse. I’d spend a portion of the year (for five consecutive years) sick to death, in excruciating pain, always brought on by a bad sandwich, a sub, as I couldn’t even keep down water. But for a while, I’d have a bland diet, and then I get back on the horse and live at McDonald’s again. Only if I knew about the choices out there.

During my “salad days” Maryland didn’t offer many alternative diets but times of changed. According to a 2021 study, there are 480 vegans for every 1 million people in Maryland. I’m sure the number isn’t just concentrated on the Eastern Shore alone. And given that places like the Amish Market routinely have pigs roasting on a spit for all to see, this area doesn’t have many vegan opportunities.

In many respects I had to cultivate a plan, read books and hunt and peck for my food because it’s rarely available on the drive thru but there are some places here where it is.

Thankfully area restaurants have started to offer some unique things on the menu. A lot of times you can omit one or two things from the menu and still have the taste and the ambience of fine dining as well as a guiltless conscience.

Local restaurants like Out Of The Fire, Eat Sprout, Pho Van and Roma Alla Pizza have vegan alternatives. Eat Sprout has a few locations in the area, other restaurants in the area include Sunflower and Greens and The Ivy. I’ve got to mention 4 Sisters and Kabob and Curry also have a lot of vegan dishes.

There aren’t many vegan choices in the fast food realm but the Impossible Burger at Burger King is very good. Taco Bell also has a few things to offer — -when the building is actually there and not on fire.

If I had a measurement to quantify the specifics of my vegan diet, it’s probably 80% vegan, 20% not. I often hope for better but for a person who had scrapple with his scrapple, it’s not too bad.

Since I’ve been vegan, my cholesterol and blood pressure have all gone down. I’m gratified that I can show my newfound love for pigs, cows, and sheep by not filling my plate full of them.

Jason Elias is a pop culture historian and a music journalist

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the photo

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Happy Mystery Monday!  Can you guess what is pictured below?
The answer to last week’s mystery is white oak, Quercus alba, pictured below:
White oak trees are native to the eastern United States and are usually found in forested areas of dry slopes, valleys, and ravines. It is a large, slow growing, deciduous hardwood tree. White oak does not tolerate wet conditions and is best planted in well-drained sites with rich, moist, acidic loam in full sun.
White oaks are in the beech family, and can reach heights of 135′ with an 80′ spread. These massive and stately shade trees grow in an artistic, wide-spreading habit. The bark of the white oak is light gray, with shallow grooves and flat, loose ridges.
White oak is one of the hardest woods on the planet with beautiful grain. It is very resistant to decay and is one of the best woods for steam bending. A unique feature of the white oak is a honeycomb-shaped film in its cells called “tyloses.” Tyloses swell to fill the vessels of the wood so that they can no longer conduct water, which is why white oak is used to make containers for liquids, like whiskey and wine barrels.
Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the photo

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Happy Mystery Monday!  Can you guess what is pictured below?
The answer to last week’s mystery is the northern red oak, Quercus rubra, pictured in photo below:
The northern red oak is a deciduous tree native to the eastern and central United States and southeast and south-central Canada.
It is versatile and hardy in urban settings, and tolerates pollution and compacted soil, making it an ideal neighborhood or street tree.
The northern red oak grows moderately quickly, sometimes maintaining a rate of 2′ per year, especially when it’s young. It commonly attains heights of 70-80′.
This oak displays beauty in all seasons, as many of its leaves stay after they have fallen from other trees. The leaves emerge pinkish-red in the Spring, turning lustrous dark green in Summer, and changing to red, orange-red, and deep reddish-brown in Autumn.
The northern red oak produces acorns that serve as a vital food source for wildlife, including squirrels, deer, and birds.
Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the photo

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Happy Mystery Monday!  Can you guess what is pictured in photo below?
The answer to last week’s mystery is white marbled orbweaver, Araneus marmoreus, pictured in photo below.
Marbled orb weavers get their name from the mottling and spotting patterns found on their bodies. They can be found in residential landscapes, fields, and forests from Spring–late Fall in Maryland. They mostly eat smaller insects, which they capture in their vertically oriented webs. A “signal thread” running through the middle of their webs alerts the spider when prey is caught. Marbled orbweavers spin their web in the morning, and typically spend the day resting in a retreat off to the side of the web.
Mating for the marbled orbweaver takes place in mid–late Summer. Females mate once in their lives, while males may mate several times. Egg sacs, which contain several hundred eggs, are generally deposited in October. The female becomes shriveled late Fall because of lost body mass from laying her eggs.
Marbled orbweavers do not survive the Winter, so adults are not present to provide any sort of care when the spiderlings emerge the following Spring. Their average lifespan is six months.
There are no known adverse effects of marbled orbweavers on humans.
Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum Mysery Monday: Guess the photo!

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Happy Mystery Monday!  Can you guess what is pictured in photo below:
The answer to last week’s mystery is pokeweed, Phytolacca americana, pictured in photo #2.
Pokeweed is a native herbaceous perennial in the Phytolaccaceae family that grows 3-8′ high. It is found in riparian areas, oak woodlands, forest edges, fence rows, forest openings, pastures, under power lines, disturbed areas, cultivated fields, parks, and ornamental landscapes.
Common Pokeweed is a long-lived perennial and can survive for years. Their seeds can remain viable in the soil for up to 50 years! The plant has a thick fleshy taproot up to 12′ long and 4′ thick, making adult pokeweed difficult to remove.
The pokeweed’s white, clustered blooms first mature in early Summer and continue into early Fall. The flowers are born in a raceme that usually starts out erect and begins drooping as the fruit develops.
Pokeweed berries are green at first, turning glossy, dark purple. They leave a deep purple-red stain when crushed. The berries are poisonous to humans, containing chemicals that can damage red blood cells. The berries are, however, a favored food for migrating songbirds and a source of food for some mammals. These animals help to distribute the seeds far and wide.
Pokeweed is one of many hosts of the Giant Leopard Moth.
Pokeweed has an extensive history of being used as a food, medicine, herb, dye for clothing, ink for writing, colorant for wines, and much more.
Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the photo!

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Happy Mystery Monday!  Can you guess what is pictured in photo below?
The answer to last week’s mystery is water oak, Quercus nigra, pictured in photo below:
Water oak is native to North America, commonly found in the coastal plains and Piedmont areas in bottomland forests. In Maryland, these trees can typically be found in the lower Eastern Shore. Adkins is at the Northern edge of its range.
Water oak is a member of the red oak group. They have oblong, spatula-shaped leaves with rounded lobes. When young, its leaves are nearly evergreen. They offer yellow color in Autumn which can persist into Winter. The water oak fruit is a 1/2″-1″ nearly black acorn.
This tree is of exceptional value to woodworkers, and is used widely in cabinet and furniture making. Water oak is the host plant for the larvae of the imperial moth (Eacles imperialis), as well as numerous
butterflies.
Water oak is a very sensitive tree that is vulnerable to illness and pests. Their numbers are in decline due to negative human interactions, such as row-cropping or extensive clearing.  Water oak does not compete well with other species for nutrients required to grow. It is also easily injured by fire and susceptible to butt rot.
Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Thanksgiving for vegans

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The traditional image of a family Thanksgiving meal includes turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes with butter, green bean casserole with cream of mushroom soup, buttered biscuits, and pie made with eggs and milk. It’s all food full of animal ingredients. So, is there any room at the Thanksgiving table for vegans, who ethically eat nothing containing animal products?

Absolutely.

I say this from experience, being a vegan myself. Sure, there were times in the past when Thanksgiving dinner with relatives could be a challenge for me, but not these days. In fact, it doesn’t have to be a problem for anyone. There are not only lots of ready-made products in the supermarket that can replace the classic fare, but there are literally hundreds of creative recipes for sumptuous dishes that will make you forget about the turkey entirely.

Why vegan Thanksgiving?

One reason to eat a vegan meal, or even just substitute certain foods, is to save a bird. Turkeys are gentle, social creatures who form strong bonds and show affection to their feathered fellows and humans they trust. They’re curious and inquisitive and like to explore. They enjoy music and often sing along. They purr like cats when petted. Their personalities are as varied as humans. So, give one a break, eh?

There are also health benefits to a vegan diet. They include reduced risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and some cancers. You can improve your digestion and lower blood pressure. Anyone who thinks vegans aren’t healthy can rest assured. My mother is 71 and doesn’t look it.

So, what is there to eat?

Someone on the vegan section of Reddit asked, “What do you guys eat for Thanksgiving?” Someone else responded, “I still make everything I used to make…but now it’s vegan.”

If you want the traditional dishes, there are vegan versions of them all: green bean casserole (with veggie broth, mushrooms, and coconut milk), mashed potatoes (with plant-based butter), gravy (made with mushrooms or caramelized onions), bread stuffing, and even pumpkin pie (with almond milk and egg substitute). Trust me, you won’t know the difference.

But you can broaden your fare with other favorites, such as vegan meatballs, vegan meatloaf, vegan macaroni and cheese, and vegan cheesecake. For more exotic dishes, try brown-sugar BBQ whole-roasted cauliflower, butternut squash curry, roasted beet salad with horseradish-cashew cream, pumpkin soup with Thai red curry paste and lemongrass, Owamni sweet potatoes with maple-chile crisp, or nutty Baklava pie.

The Main Course

“That’s all great,” you say, “but what do I eat instead of turkey?”

Well, this year, my mom is serving Gardein stuffed roast for the entree. But that’s far from the only alternative. How about Portobello Wellington with red wine gravy, or vegan lentil shepherd’s pie with parsnip and potato mash? If you want something less turkeyish, there’s vegan lasagna with roasted vegetables, zucchini verde enchiladas, and nutty veggie burgers!

It takes no more effort to prepare a plant-based Thanksgiving meal than it does to cook a dead bird for half a day. So, go vegan this year, even if just for the holiday. Your stomach will thank you. Your heart will thank you. Your soul will thank you.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.