Guest guest Posted February 6, 2002 Report Share Posted February 6, 2002 Today's SJ Mercury News Article on BAVF http://www0.mercurycenter.com/premium/arts/food/docs/vegfair6.htm Published Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2002, in the San Jose Mercury News Vegetarian food festival assembles some greats BY CAROLYN JUNG Mercury News Mad cow disease. Foot-and-mouth disease. It's enough to drive a person tofutti. And in this day and age of food frights, vegetarians are touting the benefits of a diet rich in legumes, grains, fruits and vegetables and low on animal products. As bestselling vegetarian author John Robbins of Santa Cruz points out, ``We know the impact on us from cholesterol, saturated fat and hormones used in meat production. We know vegetarians live about five years longer than meat-eaters. We know animal products in general can easily be host to pathogenic microbes. We know there is mad cow disease, but there is no mad broccoli disease.'' Robbins, author of ``The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World'' and ``Diet For a New America,'' is a keynote speaker Saturday at the Bay Area Veg Fair at the Santa Clara Convention Center. More than 2,000 people are expected to attend what is billed as Northern California's largest vegetarian food festival, hosted by VegNews, the nation's only vegetarian newspaper. There will be cooking demos, food and other speakers, including Dr. Neal Barnard, author of ``Turn off the Fat Genes,'' and Linda Blair, actress and author of ``Going Vegan,'' at the fair, which is free to the public. Vegetarians make up only a small percentage of the population. But they are a growing sector. According to a 2000 poll by the Vegetarian Resource Group, a non-profit educational organization, 2.5 percent of adults in the United States are vegetarians, meaning they eat no meat, poultry or fish. That's up from 1 percent in 1994 and 1997. Those most likely to be vegetarian tended to live on both coasts, in large cities and be women working outside the home, the poll said. Later this spring, people will be asked to kick the meat habit -- at least for a day -- during the 18th Great American Meatout on March 20, a nationwide event that will include cooking demonstrations, public dinners and festivals. Roxanne's, a new fine-dining establishment in Larkspur, also is trying to entice diners to go meatless. Opened in December, the elegant restaurant serves no meat, fish, poultry or dairy products. What it does serve is organic ``living foods,'' which aren't cooked in a traditional sense but put through alternative processes such as soaking, low-temperature convection ovens, blenders and juicers so they retain more nutritional value. Think creamy carrot soup with white truffle ``sour cream,'' yellow curry winter vegetables with creamy parsnips and wild mushroom pizza with baby arugula and herbed cashew ``cheese.'' All of this is prepared by Roxanne Klein, who is working on a living foods cookbook with famed Chicago chef Charlie Trotter, and served with wines chosen by Master Sommelier Larry Stone of Rubicon restaurant in San Francisco. Which just goes to show, says Veg Fair coordinator Colleen Holland, that a vegetarian diet need not be boring. ``This fair is not a vegan pow-wow or anything militant. It's a foodie event,'' she says. ``I'm a vegan, but I know that's not the way to market vegetarianism, to tell people they have to get the dairy out, they have to get the meat out. We just want as many people as possible to include more soy, more grains, more vegetables in their diet.'' IF YOU'RE INTERESTED To learn more about the 18th Great American Meatout, check www.meatout.org or call 800-MEATOUT. Roxanne's restaurant is at 320 Magnolia Ave., Larkspur, (415) 924-5004 or online at www.roxraw.com. Contact Carolyn Jung at cjung or (408) 920-5451. Fax (408) 271-3786. Bay Area Veg Fair Billed as Northern Calfornia's largest vegetarian food festival. Where: Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Parkway. When: From 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Price: Free. For information, check www.vegfair.com. © 2001 The Mercury News. The information you receive online from The Mercury News is protected by the copyright laws of the United States. The copyright laws prohibit any copying, redistributing, retransmitting, or repurposing of any copyright-protected material. Mercury News privacy policy Send FREE Valentine eCards with Greetings! http://greetings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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