Chickpea Magazine (a beautiful plant-based publication)
Chickpea Magazine is a US magazine, so order discount bundles and paired subscriptions to save on shipping fees, or order the digital version. This magazine makes income from subscriptions so is ad-free and instead the pages are packed with quality articles, recipes and photography.
It also focuses on wholefood recipes (not the ‘latest bag of vegan-flavour crisps etc). Run by three passionate editors and a rotating crew of freelancers, even images are from indie artists, believing that ‘reading should be a source of rest’.
Example themes are low-waste living, ingredient spotlights (oats), how to sharpen a knife, protein from (not boring) beans, sourdough bread renaissance and movie night sleepover recipes. Example articles are:
- Unplugged breakfasts
- Low-spend months to end consumerism
- Screen-free Sundays
- Vegan pot roast recipe
- Cinnamon roll pancakes
The problem is that some are just packed full of ads, not good value considering they are expensive to buy anyway. Here are some better choices (subscribe online for massive savings, over full-price on news stands). Most are also available digitally too.
Before cooking, read up on food safety for people and pets. It’s best to just bin allium scraps (onion, leeks, garlic, shallots, chives) along with rhubarb/tomato/citrus scraps, as acids may harm compost creatures. Remove lids from cans (or pop ring-pulls back over holes) to avoid wildlife getting trapped.
If growing food, make gardens safe for pets (includes indoor plants – avoid facing indoor foliage to gardens, to stop birds flying into windows.
Why Plant-Based Recipe Magazines Matter
There is still a huge market for food magazines, that promote meat and dairy and fish and eggs, without giving a second-thought to source. If you read the average magazine for a chicken stew, it won’t be concerned whether the chicken is free-range organic, or from a factory-farm.
There is no point nagging people. But what is needed are inspirational plant-based magazines to offer a different view, and inspire cooking new dishes, for anyone new to the vegan lifestyle.
Such magazines also include nutrition tips, and the latest brand releases. Once people see it in the magazine, they are more likely to look out for plant-based alternatives in stores.
Vegan magazines also tend to be smaller and more artisan. So unlike the big foodie magazines that just churn out thousands of recipes, you’ll usually find that these ones are created by gifted home cooks or professional chefs, and have been extensively tested, to ensure they work.
They also tend to focus on other environmental issues like seasonal produce. In spring, a vegan magazine is more likely to focus on a tasty asparagus salad, rather than a big magazine telling you to make use of offers on avocados at your local supermarket.
Downloadable Printable Vegan Foodie Posters
As well the beautiful magazine, you can also download and print off low-cost posters, to stick on the fridge (or place in your recipe journal below) to make vegan cooking even easier!
From egg replacements charts to measurement helpers, there are even posters to tell you how to cook different grains, and to know when to use food up, to avoid food waste.
Place Favourite Recipes in a Journal
Rather than just reading these magazines and recycling them, you could keep them as gifts, or recycle them onto others (how about doctor and dentist surgeries?) It makes a change from reading about the Kardashians!
Mark your favourite recipes, or cut them out and put them in a scrapbook. Or even better, leave the magazines intact and do what your mum did, copying out the recipe by hand, and placing it in your very own custom recipe book. This recipe journal is printed on recycled paper, and sent in plastic-free packaging.
It can feel good to have a personal kitchen toolkit built from trusted sources. Plus, over time, you can add notes about changes you made or how the dish turned out.
