Hello friends!
I’m Jess, the vegan recipe developer behind Reverence Kitchen. Welcome to my culinary repository – I’m so glad you’re here!
This blog is home to the vegan recipes I love to cook, from savoury to sweet and snacks to tie you over in between. Everything you’ll find here aims to entice you to get a little more plant goodness into your bellies. I want to share the vegan dishes with you that made me love this way of eating and convinced me that vegan food isn’t just about eating salads, but is as diverse as your regular diet. These recipes are the product of two years of experimenting (yes, lots of failed attempts, which is part of the fun!) with new flavour combos and trialing new ways of incorporating rich and nutritious fruits, legumes, veggies, nuts and grains into delicious creations that keep us full and wanting more. I hope you enjoy these recipes too and they make your transition to a vegan (or a little less meat) lifestyle a little easier and enjoyable! Have fun with these vegan recipes; play around a bit, break the rules, make a mess, add in extra bits and pieces as you like – we’re all chefs in this space!
If you’re still here and I haven’t lost you yet, below are a few questions you may be thinking!
What is Reverence Kitchen all about?
Reverence means having a deep respect for someone or something. To me reverence is a large part of what being vegan is all about; it seemed only right to name this blog after the mantra I chant in my kitchen. I want to create a platform that can show how we can practice reverence by respecting our health, the environment and animal rights through the way we cook and eat.
Food is the bedrock to our lives, what sustains us, keeps us going, and if you’re anything like me, is the main motivation to get out of bed and into the kitchen to get that morning avo toast!
Unfortunately, our food choices also play a large part in many of today’s largest issues including climate change, animal cruelty and extinction, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and growing rates of chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes. But food can also be the solution. As the world population increases and the cost to the environment becomes untenable, we need to adopt a more considered way of eating and take transitional steps to make meat and dairy a sometimes food and then perhaps a none-time food. As big as this challenge may seem, the solution becomes easier when you realise the path to creating a cleaner, healthier, sustainable future that minimises further damage to the planet future, tastes bloody great.
Why go vegan?
I went vegan a little over three years ago. My decision was a reaction to working in policy development where I was exposed daily to the issues that are causing the single biggest threat to life, security and prosperity on Earth, climate change. I learnt about the impacts agricultural farming, particularly in the meat and dairy industry, have on the planet and that adopting a vegan lifestyle is the single biggest way individuals can reduce their impact, not just by reducing greenhouse gases, but also by minimising water acidification, land use and water use.
Over the last few years I have learnt about other, equally important issues that drive me to carefully consider what I eat and purchase. I am talking about the incredibly horrific traumas inflicted on animals in the agricultural industry, the increasing rate of extinction of native animals and the overwhelming evidence suggesting the healthiest, most sustainable ‘diets’ largely focus on eating more plants and less animal products.
Who are ya, anyway?
I am 28, live in Melbourne, Australia and work in health policy. When I’m not cooking, I’m out eating vegan food somewhere or walking with my little side kick, Moose the bernese mountain dog around the suburbs of Richmond.
Thank you for visiting and happy cooking, friends!