I'm having a bit of a vegan adventure at the moment. I say adventure because I've been vegan for over two years now and it's only just started to become interesting. Before it was all about what I couldn't eat. Now it's all about exploration and stuffing my face.
The flip switch for this was in Nelson, BC two weeks ago. I was on a trip travelling from Calgary to Vancouver, skiing as many resorts inbetween as we could. I had eaten pretty much salad every day as BC loves its meat dead and on a plate with little thought for any creative veggie/vegan options. And hell I know being vegan is sad so I'm used to compromising and pretending I simply love rocket. But eating salad every day is not good for a girl's soul nor is it good for hiking ridges and dropping insane tree lines in Whitewater and frankly I was pissed off. (On a side note I love Whitewater - 'yeah we don't really cater for beginners. What are you gonna do?' says Anne Pidgeon the marketing lass.)Just so you get an idea of the terrain:
One night we ended up in Bibo in Nelson, a low-lit bistro with a spectacular wine list and a beautiful menu. Full of meat. Even the one veggie option was covered in cheese. I ordered another Faceplant beer and settled in for some bread. Then: shocker. The waiter said the chef will simply rustle something up for me. This was unheard of. Back in Davos in December when the five star hotel I was staying in said it could cater for a vegan diet I was presented with a plate of steamed broccoli. I shit you not.
But at Bibo the chef obviously had talent and within 20 minutes I was presented with a plate of risotto in oil and white wine, roasted fennel and toasted almonds - without doubt the best meal I had in Canada. Apparently the lambshanks, the chowder and the salmon were ace too but I can't vouch for that directly.
The same thing happened staying at Chalet Aurianne in Verbier in January. The chef David rose to the challenge and made fantastic vegan meals every night - as well as vegan cakes. At the end of the week he actually thanked me for putting the playful and creative stuff back into his cooking.
So now I'm inspired. No longer will I suffer steamed vegetables (Switzerland you have been warned) and crap salad (oooh iceberg lettuce and a tomato, thanks so much.) I am on an adventure - I have bikes and skis to power and salad aint gonna cut it.
