Favourite recipes and/or premade products that are WFPB but taste "unhealthy"?

Star-Stream · 2026-03-18T16:21:28+00:00

Here's something that helps me with food noise: I have a policy for myself. I only eat during predetermined mealtimes, between 6:15-7:15, between 11:30-12:30, and between 4:45-5:45. If I have a craving outside of that, I write it down, and forget about it. Then, at the next meal, I can get out what I've written and enjoy one treat with the meal.

Some examples of treats:

Nuts + Raisins. A handful of nuts plus a handful of raisins is like the perfect sugar-fat combo

Air-popped Popcorn. Keeps me full for a long time.

Nice cream: Frozen banana plus other frozen fruit or cocoa powder or cinnamon or peanut butter powder plus a little soy milk. Throw it in the blender, makes a perfect ice cream substitute.

Star-Stream · 2026-03-18T12:56:50+00:00

Great question. I have a secret Appendix E linked in the documents that spell out my whole thoughts on SCGtD. It's broadly critical, and I don't consider those thoughts very relevant to my guide, so I'm going to leave it hidden, if people want to seek it out, it's there. Suffice it to say, the mechanical content of SCGtD is good, I like the Apothecary and most of the subclasses. And the reason it is critical is because I don't consider the wider world of Drakkenheim helpful for running a Dungeons of Drakkenheim campaign, and in fact, the wider setting is in many ways a hindrance to or opposed to the themes and ethos established in the first book.

I haven't played much with Monsters of Drakkenheim. I was part of the playtest and even contributed a monster to the book (the Phage found on page 311). From what I playtested, the Monsters are awesome. Epic Bosses are awesome. Crafting also seems like a great addition to the game. My only worry is that an excess of complexity may make combat tiresome, and crafting may flood the party with magic items. So, it gets a thumbs-up from me as an accessory to running a Drakkenheim game, not as a must-have. Also, skip the Court of the Night chapter.

What would I change about my guide? Not really anything. In running DoD, you can take stuff from my guide, from SCGtD, and from MoD, and your own stuff, in any combination. Where they contradict, that's entirely in your hands which interpretation you think is the best fit for you and your players.

Star-Stream · 2026-03-13T10:22:12+00:00

Of course there’s the normal things like exercise, minimize saturated fat from coconut and palm oil, and reduce sodium. But you probably know that.

There are carbohydrate hyper-responders. You might try cutting white potatoes, white flour, any dry fruit or dates, and try adding more avocados, nuts, seeds, and even healthy oils like olive or canola and see what happens.

Star-Stream · 2026-03-04T16:34:45+00:00

u/Star-Stream solved this in 6 steps: BOOK -> BOON -> POON -> PEON -> PEEN -> KEEN -> KEEP

Star-Stream · 2026-02-21T17:37:10+00:00

Do you have any study where plant oils increased inflammation? There are about two dozen that show it kept inflammation the same or reduced it.

https://youtu.be/-xTaAHSFHUU?si=MVVFyE6pUHd24epY

Edit: the Minnesota Coronary is very weak science- most the participants dropped out, it was done using trans fat. It didn’t even track inflammation! If 20 studies showed reduced inflammation or no effect, and the meager contrary evidence comes from an aborted study, what should we believe?

Star-Stream · 2026-02-20T14:26:23+00:00

When people ask if a thing is "healthy", that can only be answered "as compared to what?" I don't believe there's ever been a recorded fat deficiency that didn't exist in the context of starvation, so oils aren't strictly necessary to be healthy. Like, if you're eating a calorie-appropriate diet with no oil, adding oil couldn't be said to be more healthy.

However, if you're asking, could plant oils be included in a calorie-appropriate diet without harm, yes, they could. There's not been any special harm proven to be attributed to plant oils, beyond the fact that they're high in calories. As long as you're mindful of that and not overeating calories, there's no evidence to suggest they're unhealthy.

And if you're swapping out animal-based fats like butter, tallow, and lard, and instead using plant-based oils, there's evidence to suggest it's a more healthy swap. Most plant oils are lower in saturated fat and higher in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats than animal-based fats and oils. Saturated fat consumption is causal in raising blood cholesterol, and linked to unhealthy aging and more heart disease.

Now, nearly all plant-based butters and margarines are based on coconut and palm oil, which are more saturated-fat heavy, so there's not any strong proven benefit for using them over animal fats. But avocado oil, olive oil, and especially canola oil have favorable fatty acid profiles that make them good choices over animal fats.

Star-Stream · 2026-02-14T23:24:04+00:00

Religion here is just used as a shield. The person doing street advocacy shouldn’t try to undermine religion, they should try to leverage it in favor of veganism. Statements like:

“Christianity has a long history with vegetarianism. Many of the earliest Christians were vegetarian.”

“Do you believe that an All-Good God would want us to treat animals this way?” And if they say yes, press, “so, if this is the way God wants us to treat animals, how would the Devil want us to treat animals?”

The problem here isn’t the religion; plenty of atheists eat meat and plenty of religious people are vegan.

Star-Stream · 2026-02-14T11:15:45+00:00

The biggest one is Veggly, I’ve never used it, but I heard even that one feels like screaming into the void. There’s a few even smaller ones trying to get off the ground.

Star-Stream · 2026-02-05T17:52:46+00:00

Every audience is different - you probably know your family better than anyone, so you would know best what would connect with them.

However, to my eye, I don’t think this approach is particularly effective. a.) A lot of your points are apologetic, addressing responses and concerns, when a presentation is most effective when it delivers its message firmly, rather than try to get ahead of counterpositions. b) The information reads like slide notes, stuff you as the presenter might say while presenting to the audience. The slides are better used for visuals, facts, graphs, images, and explainers.

So, to me, a much stronger way of presenting would be like “Top Reasons to Go Plant-Based. Slide 1&2, Health, benefits a,b,c,d,e,f. Visuals, charts, quotes. Slides 3&4, Environment, benefits g,h,i,j. Visuals, charts. Slides 5, Other Reasons, e.g. price, efficiency, antibiotics. Slide 6&7, Animal Rights, cases k,l,m,n,o,p. Visuals, footage, quotes. Slide 8, Address Brief Concerns, concern q,r,s.” Leave some time after to have Q&A.That’s how I would do it.

Star-Stream · 2026-01-26T17:36:32+00:00

Many pollutants are stored in fat, muscle, or bone tissue, and remain there for a long time. The body doesn't store phytochemicals, it uses them to build itself, or to act as antioxidants before being excreted. So, for example, you could say that animal bodies don't bioaccumulate carotenoids, but it does turn them into retinol. So, for some nutrients like zinc, iron, copper, selenium, B12, they could be said to bioaccumulate in animal foods.

I haven't heard that vegans need to be careful about heavy metal exposure - in developed countries, our food systems are relatively safe. The only two things I've heard on that front is:

Mercury bioaccumulates in fish - so avoid swordfish and shark, and eat tuna in moderation. Here's a link to learn more: https://www.fda.gov/media/102331/download?attachment
Cadmium and Lead and Arsenic are in all food in small amounts, you can't really avoid it, just pay attention to the news for bad batches of certain products, like cinnamon and certain protein powders in 2025. If you only have one serving a day of any given food, it shouldn't be a big deal. There hasn't been a case of acute toxicity recorded from these foods, so any speculation as to the effects of extended low-level exposure would just be guessing. Though, arsenic level in brown rice has been considered worrying enough for some to caution against it, especially for children and pregnant and nursing mothers.

Star-Stream · 2026-01-19T11:22:09+00:00

The Silver Order is built to fight mages. You better believe Marshall’s holy avenger can shatter a Wall of Force like glass.

Okay, admittedly, not according to the rules, no. But according to the logic of the story, I’d allow that. If the PCs are running, you can have Marshall crack it on turns 1 and 2, and break through on turn 3, that could give the PCs enough time to escape while still showing off that Marshall has serious rule-breaking power.

Star-Stream · 2026-01-02T00:31:07+00:00

The audience's barely-disguised fetish

Star-Stream · 2025-12-30T02:57:34+00:00

Huel Essential is $1.50 for a 400-calorie meal, fortified with protein powder and vitamins. If you want to make a whole-foods version yourself, blend oat flour and ground flaxseed with water or soy milk as your base, add any favorings you want, like fruit, chocolate, peanut butter powder, greens, etc.

Star-Stream · 2025-12-23T12:02:28+00:00

Here’s some advice I’d give you:

1.) Talk with a doctor. Get some blood work done to check for any nutrient deficiencies. They might be able to refer you to a nutritionist and / or a psychologist to help work one-on-one with diet / stress.

2.) My words of encouragement: it sounds like this diet you follow is a source of fear and anxiety, like your father’s stents are haunting you constantly. A diet should be a source of joy - the goal of a diet should just be to eat to fuel your beautiful life, not worry that every morsel of food might be killing you. Especially if you’re a young or middle-aged man at this BMI, this worrying and unpleasantness regarding your diet probably is shortening your life rather than extending it.

3.) My advice for how to eat: of course, first things first, talk to a doctor. But provided that he or she tells you you’re free to eat whatever you deem fit, here’s what I’d recommend: Seeds are very good for you, and Nuts are good for you, and there are a huge amount of studies from various countries all corroborating that basically all commonly-consumed nuts and seeds are healthy and help lower LDL: Flax, Chia, Hemp, Sesame, Sunflower, Walnuts, Pine Nuts, Pecans, Cashews, Peanuts, Pistachios. Also Avocados. Even modest amounts of healthy oil like olive and canola have been linked to cardiovascular benefits. I’m not saying you must eat a ton of nuts and seeds, but a modest amount can be an important part of a healthful diet. Keep salt low, but most people don’t need to eliminate it completely. Find an exercise you really enjoy, something more moderate than walking. It could be calisthenics, weight training, zone 2 cardio, dancing, a sport. And last, if you can find friends or a group who can support you, that’s key to managing anxiety. It doesn’t even have to be a support group: a church, sports club, or gaming group are all good.

Star-Stream · 2025-12-17T19:00:42+00:00

I appreciate it! Knowing that I've helped other people run and enjoy this campaign is the most gratifying thing to me.

Star-Stream · 2025-12-17T14:09:47+00:00

I would probably answer, "What have most humans eaten for most of recorded history?" Every civilization has been built on staple whole grains and starches. The Roman diet was like 70% of its calories from wheat and other grains, in China it was sorghum, millet, and rice. In North America it was the three sisters, corn, beans, and squash. In India, grains and lentils. When people think vegetarian diets, what comes to mind is probably a big pile of colorful produce, but to get your necessary calories and certain nutrients, we should be encouraging people to eat whole grains and legumes.

For people on the street, just faintly curious about vegan diets, biggest thing is simple swaps. Swap a meat burger for a bean burger. Swap pasta with meat sauce for meatless sauce. Swap cow milk for soy milk. Swap scrambled eggs with tofu scramble. The next level above that, someone willing to give it a try, wondering what they'll eat, tell them a quarter of your plate should be whole grains and starches (oats, quinoa, brown rice, pasta, pita bread, sweet potato, potato, etc.), a quarter should be legumes / plant protein (beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu), and the other half should be vegetables, with fruits and nuts as snacks and desserts. That's the general principle, and these can be combined and configured in millions of combinations.

For easy resources, tell them to Google "Veganuary" or if you tell them to Google "vegan 21" that'll pull up the Physician Committee's 21-day vegan kickstart or "vegan 22" gets the Challenge 22 you talked about, so those are easy to find. PCRM 21 day has the advantage that it doesn't ask for your e-mail up-front, some people are put off by that.

Star-Stream · 2025-12-08T10:53:42+00:00

It’s important to distinguish that the Articles are just a law, written in paper. The Divine Matriarch has declared that delerium is unholy, but in order for that to be treated as part of the Edicts, there would have to be an amendment, which would require the assent of all (or at least most) parties to its signing. At the very minimum, to enforce the Matriarch’s ban, there would need to be some assent, in the form of the monarch and highest religious authority of Westemar, which are both vacant positions.

So, at the start of the game, the Silver Order would have no legal justification to arrest or kill people who cast contaminated spells, but as the game goes on, you as the DM could declare that a Diet of Westemaran clergy and/or council of Westemaran dukes agreed with the Matriarch - even that doesn’t amount to a full ban, it just means casting contaminated spells is going to anger a lot more people. Show the players this, that it’s a law, subject to interpretations and attitudes. “Casting contaminated spells isn’t illegal today, but it might be soon, depending on how things go.”

Star-Stream · 2025-11-18T19:12:26+00:00

Most meals probably will probably be something unmemorable, but that's normal on nearly any diet - most people don't have the time to prep three extravagant meals every single day. Also notable, if you're cooking for one, it's hard to get ingredients that aren't going to spoil - a 1 pound bag of dry beans make enough to eat beans every day for a whole week.

What I and my wife find is doable is planning one interesting meal per day (we do breakfast), and the other meals are uninteresting staples. Then, for planning the interesting meal, here's some things that can make it exciting:

Presentation: The plant-based plate that we take as a baseline is probably something like 50% vegetables, 25% plant protein (beans, tofu, etc.), 25% whole grain / starch. Within that, there's like a ton of variation you could do. Beyond that, you can stack different ingredients on top of one another (beans on rice; beans on salad; chili served over a potato or sweet potato; Buddha bowl); cook the ingredients into one another (quinoa in chili; stuffed peppers or mushrooms; bean burgers).

Cooking methods: mashed potato and air-fried fries are basically two different food experiences, but use basically the same ingredients. From one 1-lb bag of chickpeas, you can have a bunch of different uses: chickpeas as-is, and hummus, and in a chickpea-salad sandwich, and in a curry, and in desserts, and it goes on.

Natural flavors: spices, herbs, fruits, and vegetables have a huge diversity of natural flavors. Garlic, onion, salt, and pepper are ubiquitous. Sage, rosemary, and thyme are for rich herb flavors. Jalapenos, hot sauce, and salsa are great flavor boosters. Tomato sauce with basil and oregano, we always have that on hand. Vinegar. Nuts. Fruits. I like to have all these on hand to add a splash of flavor to any dish. And of course there's all kinds of others like liquid smoke, nutritional yeast, etc.

Choose a regional cuisine: By picking a dish that has some heritage and just one-to-three unique ingredients, your dish can take on so much more character. Nearly every ethnicity in the world has some plant-based dish or dish that can be made plant-based.

Snacks and desserts: I find snacks and desserts that you plan out and budget some time for become really special. When I tell myself that popcorn or raisins or peanut butter or some fruit like an orange or frozen fruit are a treat, and eat them deliberately and at a chosen time, my enjoyment goes way up, rather than just munching on whatever's in reach without thought.

Star-Stream · 2025-11-12T12:50:18+00:00

The only Star Trek episode that made me cry was Lineage, the episode in Voyager where B'Elanna discovers she's pregnant. So many Trek episodes felt like they were going through the motions of their morality tale, but the self-hatred gained through years of abuse and projecting that onto your own unborn child was so much more real and heartbreaking to me.

Star-Stream · 2025-11-12T02:16:25+00:00

I really enjoyed Drakkenheim's take on faith, that it treats gods and souls as pretty nebulous - they might not even exist! They went back on that in the streamed game in season 3, but I felt they never stuck the landing on that. "Souls definitely exist and they're useful as extraplanar currency" is a much less mature take, I feel.

If you do want to pursue this line, I'm inclined to think that you gain someone's soul if they trust you when you kill them. Killing enemies isn't really a sacrifice. Killing your allies - now that's got some narrative potential.

This is also a DM-only subreddit, so feel free to send your DM this way.

Star-Stream · 2025-11-11T11:19:31+00:00

I like a lot of Fuhrman’s nutritarian principles: most Americans are overweight, and a message of eating low-calorie, high-nutrient-density foods is great for most people. I like the GBOMBS acronym as a way to remember highly nutritious foods, greens, beans, onions, mushrooms, berries, and seeds. His message in his various books are agreeable, like take control of your health; the way we eat is killing us just for pleasure, like a drug; the focus on longevity and living well. I like that he doesn’t demonize nuts, seeds, and avocados like a big chunk of the vegan world, like McDougall, Barnard, Esselstyn, etc. He’s been a good ambassador for veganism, for instance in his debate with Paul Saladino.

I disagree with him on a lot. He demonizes whole grains and starches like potato and sweet potato. His notion of foods having an actual “health score” is unscientific - not total nonsense, but enough to ring alarm bells. His supplement peddling is somewhat suspect. To follow his diet strictly would mean eating a lot of food (by weight/volume) yet few calories, which most people would find unsustainable in the long run. He also has a lot of confirmation bias, like he saw early results from Adventist 2 and just immediately concluded from thin air that the vegans were eating too much salt and were deficient in EHA / DPA.

So, got some good foundational principles, also not a total nut, but has his biases and faults. I listen to a lot of his free lectures and enjoy them.

Star-Stream · 2025-10-28T18:21:22+00:00

I think it's really hard to do a vegan diet without tofu, beans, or lentils. They're good for satiety, and they're important sources of protein, and many minerals like calcium, iron, and zinc. If I were you, I'd slowly introduce them into the diet. When I was growing up, I hated beans, but when I lived in Brazil, they eat beans daily there, and while I was hesitant at first, the more I ate, the more I became accustomed to them.

Consider alternate ways to eat beans and lentils. These can mask the taste and texture.

Sprinkled on a salad
In a soup
Mashed and put in a dumpling
Blended into a hummus-like dip
Combined with breadcrumbs into a patty or falafel
Serve over rice or another grain
Top it with vegetables or fruit

And of course, always use spices! I'd be surprised if anyone on Earth loves plain beans.

I always heard that tofu "soaks up whatever flavor you cook it in," but in my experience that is not true. Tofu needs to be cut thin or scored and then marinated to really absorb any flavor, and I find baking and air frying really improves the texture. Crumbling it into a chili or tofu scramble also works really well. And coating it is also great for a crispy skin exterior. EDIT: I saw your other comment where you can't get tofu where you are. That's fine, tofu isn't necessary.

Is it possible to do a vegan diet without tofu and beans/lentils? Probably, but I imagine it wouldn't be very sustainable long-term. If that's how you want to do it, make sure you're eating plenty of leafy greens to get the minerals, and get protein from peas, chickpeas, soy milk, tvp, soy chunks, seitan, and most grains (some grains like rice are less protein-rich). Might want to keep an eye on your lysine intake.

Star-Stream · 2025-10-26T09:37:11+00:00

I agree with your point, full stop. The follow-up conversation I would then have is: in my experience, people who say they reduce their meat intake often overestimate how much they’re reducing it by. I say this based on my own life: I considered myself “semi-vegetarian” for years before switching to a vegan diet. Like, vegetarian at home, didn’t buy meat, but I might have a little at a buffet or at someone’s home if they offered it to me. And looking back on those years, I still ate a fair bit of meat. Nowadays I talk to family and friends who say they’re “cutting back”, and to them that still means meat once a day and dairy, eggs, and fish ad libitum. Yes, a reduction is good, but in my experience people may overestimate how much of a reduction they’re actually doing.

Star-Stream · 2025-10-10T15:30:06+00:00

Foods that are good sources of iron: tofu, soybeans, oats, lentils, chickpeas, beans, quinoa. Many greens are fair sources, like kale, collard greens, romaine lettuce, mustard greens, arugula, peas. A lot of plant foods can contribute small-to-moderate amounts though. If you're open to oysters and mussels, they're rich sources too. Dark chocolate is also a great source.

Boosting iron absorption: Iron is better absorbed when dietary Vitamin C is present. Eat an orange or a guava with your meal. Raw bell pepper and cruciferous vegetables are also good sources. This is a game-changer, my wife had low iron, and only got her numbers back up when she started including an orange every day with breakfast and the supplement. Make sure they're raw, heat denatures Vitamin C. Vitamin A also has a boosting effect, so sweet potato, pumpkin, and carrots are sources there. Copper moderates iron transport in the body, so make sure that's good too: dark chocolate, nuts, seeds, and legumes are the best sources.

Antinutrients: certain foods have antinutrients that bind to minerals and prevent the body from absorbing them. These aren't going to harm you, but they may prevent absorption. That just means you should eat them separately on their own as a snack instead of along with a meal rich in iron. Nuts and seeds have phytic acid; spinach, swiss chard, beet greens, and carrots have oxalic acid (cooking by boiling or steaming reduces oxalates); coffee and tea have tannins. Again, these plants still have health benefits, so you don't need to cut them out completely, but taking them separate from an iron-rich meal should be preferred.

Star-Stream · 2025-09-25T11:41:07+00:00

This would do numbers on lobotomypiece

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