At 2:56 AM +0000 11/16/07, ktowner1 wrote:
>I'm still trying to learn and get completely off meats. Any suggestions
>for alternatives to ham and turkey? Also, I've been diagnosed with
>gout. If you know of any veggies which would be good to combat it,
>please feel free to email me. Thanks!

First, congrats on choosing a diet that is healthier, less cruel and
better for the environment. Just by cutting out meat you will
automatically improve your odds of avoiding attacks of gout, which is
caused by the formation of uric acid crystals on the cartilage in
your joints, most often the big toe. Especially avoid dark red meat
and seafood. Also, I'm afraid, beer (other spirits are much less
risky). The main protein culprit is purine, but, for some reason,
high purine vegetables don't cause the problem

As to alternatives to ham and turkey, there are plenty of meat
analogs available to take the place of most popular meats (sadly, no
analog for my childhood favorite, tripe). Some are much closer to the
meats they represent than others. Which doesn't mean you might not
come to like the less authentic ones for their own unique tastes. To
be honest, the meat analog market is still a small one, there is not
a massive investment in improving them, and I've got a hunch the
perfect analogs are yet to come. But some, on the other hand, are
remarkably close. I especially liked the TV dinners from
Gardenburger; I think if their faux chicken was served to
unsuspecting diners at a convention few would notice the difference.

You can find ham and turkey analogs at the food co-op on Broadway; I
think they're pretty good. Try different brands till you find the one
that suits you best.

Yours truly,
John Mayer
http://www.vset.net