When Sneha Sethupathy decided to go vegan, she knew her friends would never let her live it down. She stayed strong the first nine times they called what she ate rabbit food. The tenth time around, she snapped.
However, she didn’t set on a rampage to defend the honour of all things botanical. Instead, the 21-year-old law student decided to start a blog, titled ‘More Than a Leaf’, where she discusses her passion for eating vegan food and showcases her own recipes. Inspired by blogs like Deliciously Ella, My New Roots, and Oh She Glows, she was inspired to vocalise, document and justify her quest to achieve a healthier lifestyle.
“I started to cut out meat, gluten, dairy, refined sugar and processed foods and saw an increase in my energy levels,” she says, “I wasn’t hungry all the time, my skin started to clear up and I felt amazing.”
Deciding to wave goodbye to chocolate, burgers or chips could be heartbreaking for many, but Sneha found her farewell easy. “I have the biggest sweet tooth, so I thought it was going to be really hard to give up,” she says, “Surprisingly enough, it was just a matter of substituting one thing for another; dates and natural maple syrup for candy, carrots with hummus instead of chips. It’s hard at first, but the confidence you gain about your body makes it worth it.”
Her blog is full of pictures of ingredients, tips on where to buy products like milk frothers, rose water and garnishes, and recipes she’s created after experimenting in the kitchen. “Sometimes, I base recipes on what I crave for,” she explains, “For example, I’ll look at an ingredient like a potato and ask myself how I can make it healthy; what flavours and textures would work best. I don’t have a set method, it’s more of a trial and error process with different ingredients; but I usually create a successful recipe on my first try, like with my sweet potato chips.”
Even with her restrictions, she believes that eating out in Chennai isn’t that hard since it has a lot of vegetarian restaurants. “South Indian cuisine doesn’t use much ghee or dairy when compared to others,” she says. Shopping for products, however, can have mixed results. “Your local fruit and vegetable markets are your best friends because you get all your basics there.” Prices, however, can be a catch. “There are some items, like almond milk sold in cartons, that taste really artificial and have poor quality,” she adds, “I decided to start making my own because of the prices.”
Though she thinks the city still has a long way to go when it comes to providing more vegan-friendly restaurants, she believes that change will come with awareness, courtesy of the Internet. “I think people are starting to educate themselves and are becoming aware of what they put into their bodies,” she says, “I would love to see smoothie bars and health food cafés pop up in Chennai. There’s definitely a growing market.”
Her blog now receives hits from all over the world — India, the United Kingdom and the United States. She’s enthusiastic about new followers and has one key piece of advice for them: take things slow. “Start by making small substitutions and eat lots of fruits and vegetables. If you feel bloated after just a bowl of mac and cheese or a slice of cake, then you know something is wrong. Listen to your body and do what feels best for it.”
“The following recipe is my go-to breakfast, especially when I’m in a hurry to get to university. The bananas and oats give a slow release of energy to last until your next meal and the berries are wonderful for colour and flavour. Though spinach seems unusual, it does not change the taste in any way.”
Ingredients
1 large banana or 2 small ones — chopped and frozen for at least six hours
2 handfuls of strawberries (or your favourite berry)
A handful of spinach
2-3 tablespoons of steel cut oats/jumbo oats (anything but the quick oats)
1 pitted soft date for sweetness
A tablespoon of almond butter (or any nut butter)
Almond milk — 3/4 of the glass you will be drinking from
Optional: A tablespoon of chia/flax seeds, baobab fruit powder.
Method
Place all the ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend for 30 seconds to a minute until smooth and creamy.
