Huntsville Vegans

Welcome to our monthly newsletter!

November 2011 Volume 1, Issue II

The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man. Charles Darwin, English naturalist (18091882)

Oktoberfest Outreach
By Robyn Corry

In this issue:

Oktoberfest Outreach Farm Sanctuarys Walk for Farm Animals

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Flesh is for Zombies 3 Vegan Outreach @ UAH

Vegan Potluck Recipe: Seitan Buffalo Hot Things Upcoming Events About Us

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Want to get involved?

Huntsville Vegans members take a break from handing out free Tofurkey samples to smile for the camera. Left to Right: Peter Young, Mike Cross, Little Piggy (Jon Corry) and Robyn Corry.

Come to our weekly meetup, Fridays at 6pm @ Olde Towne Coffee Friend us on Facebook: facebook.com/ huntsville.vegans Email us with your questions: huntsvilleveg@gmail.com Visit our website: huntsvillevegans.com

Huntsville Vegans participated in a community outreach project on Saturday, October 8th at the Cullman Oktoberfest held annually in Cullman, AL. This event went splendidly! We gave out over 750 free samples of Tofurky Beer Brats (topped with brown mustard and sauerkraut) and over 1,000 pieces of literature about the cruelty of factory farming and the benefits of a plant based diet. We also gave away Tofurky coupons, along with stickers, pins, temporary tattoos, and candy for the kids. Another treat for the kids was Little Piggy, Huntsville Vegans lovely friend. Many children

and adults had their picture taken with him and lots of hugs were given, all the more to drive home the fact that animals are friends, not food. Passersby were overall friendly and curious, and most were receptive to the message we were sending. An overwhelming majority of people loved the faux meat, and seemed very open-minded to this alternative that most did not even know existed. It was a long day but very much worth it to continue to get the word out about what being vegan means in a fun and friendly way.

Farm Sanctuarys Walk for Farm Animals

By Lucy Roberts

Atlanta, GA, Piedmont Park, Saturday morning, October 29th @ 10:00 am. A few sleepy folks from Alabama climbed out of a car they had been in for about 3 hours. We were ready and excited to participate in Farm Sanctuarys fund raising event Walk for Farm Animals. And walk we did, for 2 miles. We walked with about 100+ other humans, lots of dogs and of course our favorite, Frances the pig! Farm Sanctuarys Walk for Farm Animals is a series of annual fundraising and outreach events that take place in cities across the United States and Canada, as well as virtually. Farm Sanctuary works to protect farm animals from cruelty, inspire change in the way society views and treats farm animals, and promote compassionate vegan living. Farm Sanctuary runs the largest rescue and refuge network for farm animals in North America. All money raised during the Walk for Farm Animals goes directly to helping care for and rescue abused farm animals. Alabama Advocates, aka Huntsville Vegans, raised a total of $680.00. We were the top fund raising team at the Atlanta, GA walk. Thanks to all of our generous donors! All walkers were rewarded with a banquet of delicious vegan food and some great music after the walk. Jenni, Glen and I were proud to be a part of this event and support such an amazing organization. We look forward to next year and the possibility of organizing a walk for our area. We hope to continue to be a voice for the voiceless. May all beings be free and at peace, Lucy Jenni Moody and Lucy Roberts proudly display their signs.

Walking through Atlantas Piedmont Park to raise awareness and support.

Frances the adorable pig!

Flesh is For Zombies: Protest at McDonalds

By Robyn Corry

With Halloween right around the corner, Huntsville Vegans grabbed some fake blood and white make-up, tattered some old clothes, and headed out to tell the world that Flesh is for Zombies! On Saturday night, October 22nd, we set up camp in front of the McDonalds on Memorial Parkway with our signs stating things like Flesh is for Zombies- Go Vegan and Grains not Brains to let the public know how creepy and gross it is to eat the flesh of other living creatures. We did not get to hand out much literature due to low foot traffic in the area, but we received quite a few honks and thumbs up during the hour we were there and numerous double-takes at the zombies on the side of the road (hehe). A good time Zombie protestors, Left to Right: Mike Cross, Robyn Corry, Peter Young, Jenni Moody, Alex Ura, Natalia Ura was had at our first peaceful protest.

Vegan Outreach at University of Alabama Huntsville

By Jenni Moody

Info on helping animals? Have you gotten one of these yet? Students entering the University Center on the University of Alabama Huntsville Campus were greeted by Melissa Baker, Peter Young, Mike Cross and Jenni Moody with a smile, a simple question, and a booklet from Vegan Outreach. On two Wednesdays we distributed a total of over 1,000 booklets from Vegan Outreach and Mercy for Animals directly into the hands of young people. One of our friends from the Green Club said she heard a girl in the cafeteria discussing the booklet with her friend, and proclaim, "Well, I'm going vegetarian now." Another guy held up the booklet and smiled at us as he walked away, "I totally agree with this!" We also met a student who wants to help us hand out booklets, "I have a whole box of

these in my car. Let me know what I can do to help." It is great to start connecting with more vegans and vegetarians in our city. At first handing out booklets can be frightening, but people are much more receptive and polite than you might expect. Many people go vegan or vegetarian after receiving booklets. Lets keep spreading the compassion! If youd like to get involved, send us an email at huntsvilleveg@gmail.com and keep an eye on our Facebook page for upcoming college visits. If you cant make it to one of our scheduled leafleting events, you can still do Vegan Outreach! Visit veganoutreach.org to order some booklets, and leave a few around town at local libraries and community centers. We hope to visit more colleges and universities in North Alabama and continue to spread the truth behind factory farming to young people. Mike Cross giving out information at UAH.

November 2011
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

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6:00PM Meetup

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6:00PM Meetup

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4PM Potluck

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6PMBook Discussion

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6:00PM Meetup

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Fur Free Friday 6:00PM Meetup

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Weekly Events

Wednesdays University of Alabama Huntsville Outreach Leafleting with information from Vegan Outreach various locations on the UAH Campus10:30AM1:00PMemail us for a meetup point to get booklets to hand out Thursdays Sister organization, AREA (Advocacy for the Respect of All Earths Animals) Meetup @ Main Library, 2nd Floor, Meeting Room D 6:008:00PM FridaysHuntsville Vegans Meetup @ Olde Towne Coffee6:008:00PM

This Months Events

Potluck Sunday, November 13th, 4:00PM7:00PM @ Elissa and Jaimes house, 317 Harvestwood Court Book Discussion Group Thursday, November 17th, 6:008:00 PM @ Main Library, 2nd Floor, Meeting Room DWell be discussing the first 3 chapters of Melanie Joys Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows Fur Free Friday Friday, November 25th Join us to raise awareness about buying fur on Black Friday as we hold signs outside of a local shopping mall Location and time TBD, please check the Facebook page for updated information

National Campaigns

Adopt a Turkey from Farm Sanctuary For $30, help support and rescue abused turkeyshttp://www.adoptaturkey.org/ Gentle Thanksgiving Spread the message of a cruelty-free holiday http://www.gentlethanksgiving.org/

Potluck Recipe: Seitan Buffalo Hot Things

By Mike Cross

Start with 3 cups of vital wheat gluten. This maybe purchased from bulk bins or prepackaged (Bobs Red Mill has a good 1 lb bag). Working with VWG is pretty easyyou just have to be sure youre starting with a good ratio of liquid-to-VWG, because once the seitan begins to form theres not much you can do to change its consistency. Ranch dip: If you can get fresh dill and parsley, theyll be fantastic. Otherwise, dry herbs are fine. Youll need a 16 oz jar of Vegenaise, 1.5 Tbs finely-ground garlic powder, 1.5 Tbs finely-ground onion powder, 1 Tbs Dill, 1 tsp black pepper, 2 tsp parsley, 1 Tbs fresh lemon juice, 1 Tbs apple-cider vinegar, and 2 Tbs unsweetened almond or soy milk. Mix all ingredients well and allow the mixture to sit chilling for at least an hour. You may want to add more of the spices to taste, but beware adding saltinessthe Vegenaise is already pretty salty. Broth: Buy or make some tasty vegetable broth, or use vegan bouillon cubes (not nearly as goodveg boullion tends to have funny added flavors). You want your veggie broth to be double (or more) of the concentration of flavors (including saltiness) youd want if you were using it to make soup. Be sure to add some parsley and nooch in addition to any other flavors you like. Remove the broth from heat and allow it to cool to room temperature. Seitan: Bring a large steamer pot of water to a boil while you prepare the seitan to be steamed. Filter the solids from your broth, so youre only adding liquid (3 cups of it) into a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of light olive oil and mix the liquids as best you can. Now dump in your VWG, all at once, and mix quickly with a large wooden spoon. Very quickly youll need to switch to kneading by hand. Dont be afraid to stretch the seitan to near-breaking. As the stretched fibers are exposed they solidify a little more. Keep stretching and folding for several minutes. If your seitan becomes too difficult to stretch, try folding it and then pounding the resulting bundle somewhat flat, and repeating. Take your ball of seitan and place it into a microwave-safe bowl that just barely fits it. Sprinkle a little water on top and microwave for 2 minutes. Turn over the seitan ball so the previously exposed side is now on the underside of the loaf. Sprinkle with water and microwave for 1.5 minutes. Remove your bowl from the microwave oven and put it in the refrigerator to cool for a few minutes. Loosely wrap your seitan loaf in foil and place it on a steaming rack in your large pot. Reduce the heat to low -medium and let your seitan steam (covered!) for 45 minutes. Allow it to cool and remove it from the pot. On a cutting board, slice your seitan loaf into -3/4 slices. By hand, tear the slices into strips 1.5-2 wide. Tear each strip into a wide thumb-sized hunk. Once youve torn all your seitan, place into a bowl with two tablespoons of broth and mix it all around so the pieces are very lightly coated. The final buffalo battle: Begin heating cup of Franks Red Hot sauce with cup of vegan margarine. Dont worry, this little pot will go a long way. Simmer this, stirring pretty frequently until its warmed up well. The Red Hot fumes may be pretty intense. In a clean, dry bowl, add 1 cup of AP flour, 1 Tbs chili powder, 1 Tbs paprika, and 1 Tbs garlic powder. Mix well. Dip the seitan strips into the flour bowl and coat them all evenly. Put them on plates (dont stack them) and stow them in the fridge for an hour. Heat up some canola oil for frying, at high heat. Even a small pot will cook a large amount of seitan at once fairly quickly. Place a couple of handfuls of seitan at a time into your hot oil, and remove the pieces when they appear to be nice and crispy on the outside. This shouldnt take more than a few minutes, but be careful not to overestimate the crispiness. The pieces should be browned a little. Remove them from the oil to drain on a rack or on paper towels. Repeat until the whole batch is ready for the final step. Place the seitan into a bowl and add the sauce. Mix thoroughly. Serve in a foil-lined container with vegan ranch dip.

Madison Street Festival Parade

By Jenni Moody

On Saturday, October 1st, members of Huntsville Vegans gathered in the surprisingly cold morning air in Madison to walk in the Madison Street Festival Parade. Our new banner made its first appearance, and this was the first public outreach for Little Piggy, sporting his Friend Not Food badge. We were also proud to wear our new Huntsville Vegans t-shirts, printed by the wonderful Green Pea Press. We handed out 400 vegan suckers from Yummy Earth, many Amys Gummies, and a large number of Vegan Outreach booklets. The parade moved at a brisk pace, so we did not have as much time for individual conversations with festival attendees. Next year we hope to have a table where we can spend more time talking with prospective vegans and can hand out information to people individually. At the end of the parade we were all tired, but excited to have given out so much vegan materials.

Getting ready to greet the people of Madison on a cold morning (L to R): Robyn Corry, Little Piggy (Jon Corry), Mike Cross, Valerie Mead, Robby Geren, Lucy Roberts, Jenni Moody.

Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace. Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher, physician, and musician (Nobel 1952)

A b o u t H u n t s v i l l e Ve g a n s
Huntsville Vegans was formed in the summer of 2011. We meet regularly to socialize, collaborate, and make the world a better place for all creatures. We are working to develop our group into a force for good in the Huntsville area by promoting ethical consumption and asserting the presence and consideration of Vegans and Veganism in our city. Animal exploitation happens every day, and not just on the way to your neighbors plate. Our Purpose:

Meet like-minded people, share food, and have fun Provide educational resources about ethical consumption, vegetablebased nutrition, and vegan outreach for our community Provide information, friendship, and support for new or prospective vegans Attract and promote veg*n businesses and organizations in Huntsville Find opportunities to actively change our community, and the world at large, for the better Partner with Food Not Bombs, local community gardens, or provide a vegan/group presence with local secular aid
organizations to help human animals

Secure and sponsor guest speakers and special events Stop some killing. Or torturing. Or exploiting. For human or non-human, our ultimate aim as individuals and as a group is to
minimize suffering, as much as we can