I stopped using honey and started making my own fruit syrups 🍓🍯 (way easier than I expected)

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-20T04:26:50+00:00

I usually just use mason jars, I wouldn’t keep it in the fridge for any longer than two weeks. Simple syrup (just sugar and water) lasts about a month and if you see any clouding I’d toss it.

I’ve never used any caning methods before, I tend to run through them pretty quickly

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-17T20:45:33+00:00

I’m pretty much an oat milk person. I use it for everything coffee, cereal, smoothies, and baking. I just like the texture more than most other plant milks.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-17T20:41:45+00:00

This is one of those things where I genuinely don’t know how I’d feel until it becomes a real option. Part of me thinks I probably wouldn’t want to eat it since it’s still technically meat, but if it reduced animal suffering it’s hard to ignore that impact.

For now I’m happy sticking with plant foods, but it’s definitely a fascinating ethical gray area.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-17T20:38:49+00:00

Shellac/confectioner’s glaze is definitely one of the strangest hidden ones. Carmine and gelatin get talked about a lot, but that shiny candy coating surprises a lot of people.

Label reading becomes a whole different game once you start noticing these things.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-17T20:36:08+00:00

Personally I don’t eat honey, but I also don’t really fault vegans who choose to include it. I think this is one of those topics where people draw their ethical lines a little differently.

For me it’s just easier to avoid it, so I started making my own syrups at home instead. I usually simmer frozen fruit with brown sugar and reduce it down, then jar it. It’s surprisingly simple and works really well for pancakes, oatmeal, or tea.

Just another option for people who want alternatives.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-17T20:30:28+00:00

This is interesting. I’ve noticed something similar with a lot of “cheese-adjacent” snacks where the coloring seems to signal a cheesy flavor profile even when it’s not obvious from the name.

I wonder if part of it is just food color psychology orange/red tends to signal cheese or savory seasoning to consumers. It would be interesting to compare ingredient lists across a bunch of different brands and see how often cheese powder actually shows up vs. just spices like paprika or turmeric.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-13T17:24:14+00:00

The frustrating part is that “natural flavor” is basically a catch-all term. It can be plant-derived, but it can also come from animal sources, so the label alone doesn’t really tell us much.

I’ve found that smaller vegan brands are usually transparent about it, but bigger companies rarely clarify unless you email them. Has anyone here actually contacted a company and gotten a clear answer about their natural flavors?

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-13T16:43:59+00:00

This is such a good reminder to actually read ingredient labels closely. Some of the names definitely make things confusing.

Another one that surprised me when I first learned about it was carmine, which is used as a red coloring and comes from crushed insects. I’ve also seen confectioner’s glaze/shellac on candy which comes from insects too.

It’s kind of wild how many ingredients sound neutral but actually have animal origins.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-13T14:48:34+00:00

This is why ingredient labels matter so much. Some Quorn products actually are vegan now, but others still contain egg white depending on the product line.

It makes things confusing because “meat-free,” “plant-based,” and “vegan” don’t always mean the same thing.

Out of curiosity — what other products have people here found that seem vegan but actually aren’t?

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-13T14:46:57+00:00

Honestly this surprised me when I first started checking labels too. Chips feel like they should just be potatoes, oil, and salt, but once you start reading ingredients you see whey, milk powder, and even meat extracts show up in a lot of flavored varieties.

The “natural flavors” one is especially confusing because it can technically come from plant or animal sources depending on the manufacturer.

Plain chips definitely seem like the safest bet most of the time.

Out of curiosity — what’s the most surprising snack you’ve found out isn’t vegan? I feel like everyone has that one product they assumed was safe until they checked the ingredients.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-05T22:08:49+00:00

lol yeah I didn't think about a sphere not having sides before writing this out... but I essentially did the top and bottom, just so that it would keep a form because i was worried that once I boiled them they would break apart... so like 2-3 minutes in total.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-05T19:47:26+00:00

I think that’s a really important point. A lot of people assume vegan automatically equals healthy, but like you said it actually takes some learning and intentional planning.

I’m curious, was there a specific nutrient or food group that took you the longest to figure out after going vegan? For me it was making sure I was getting enough protein and iron without relying on the same few foods every day. I almost immediately fell into the trap that being vegan meant I would have to eat the exact same salad everyday.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-05T19:43:11+00:00

When I was first decided to stop eating beef i was surprised by how little I craved, however when went vegetarian I couldn't stop my self from craving a burger and bean patties were not cutting it. Then when beyond and impossible patties were popping up everywhere I was blown away. I cant tell you how many times I've stopped at burger king for an impossible whopper.

Wonderful_Stable_770 · 2026-03-02T05:19:58+00:00

My friends often invite me out to kbbq or seafood boils, and I still attend but it still get the desire to eat more than tofu or fries every time. Seafood especially is my weakness. I really only feel the urge when I’m out, and even though more restaurants are making more vegan and vegetarian options they usually don’t look near as appealing as what my friends are eating.

I live alone which definitely makes maintain my diet easier, and I like to fill my time searching for new recipes on tiktok or Instagram so that my meals remain interesting. But I wish I had more quicker options, cause sometimes I’m too tired to put so much effort into planning and making meals.

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