-Real first name? Isabelle
-Age? 42
-Sex/Gender Identity? Sex? I'm a human female, living with a human male.
-Relationship status? Married
-Location (as specific as you are comfortable being)? Québec (still part of Canada)
-Religious beliefs (or lack thereof)? That one: lack thereof
-Political leanings? Left (it's ingrained North of the border)
-Are you a vegetarian, vegan or raw foodist (or something else)? Vegan
-What is the meaning behind your username? The obvious one is that I'm French speaking, and the French have been called frog for ages. But as I registered on VB as a vegan, I couldn't help thinking about the only animal I ever killed for food with my own hands. I was 6, and my friend's father had us catch and kill frogs so we could have a "feast". I remember my friend not really having the knack for it. She'd slammed the frogs over and over before they died. I cried at some point, I think, but we still ate them all. My username makes me think about that whenever I log in. Something I had buried so deep I had to wait over 30 years to face it for what it was: slaughter, cruelty. So I suppose it's sort of a tribute to all the frogs I ate in my life. Call me crazy.
-Have you ever met anyone famous? Actually, quite a few. Many local personalities, but among some youmight have heard of: Jean Chrétien, when he was Prime Minister of Canada. Bryan Perro, author of Amos Daragon. Céline Dion (and that's when I started hating her - I was 11, I still hold a grudge). Luc Plamondon, author of Starmania and Notre-Dame-de-Paris. But maybe this is getting too obscure...
-Do you live with any companion animals? Yes. I live with two Maine **** cats, Azraëlle (female) and Barbouille (male). They are great cats, but I will not buy from a breeder again. I'm looking into vegan cat food, but I still have too many questions unanswered to take the plunge. Talk about complicated ethics. I also have a human husband, and two human kids, a girl and a boy. My husband is still an avid omnivore outside of the home, but we all eat vegan in the house. My kids would be vegan all the time, if it wasn't for their grandparents.
-Where is your favorite place that you have visited? I lived in Uruguay for almost a year, and I sometimes wish I never left. I felt so at home there: the rythm of life suited and soothed me, I loved the weather, and, mostly, the people.
-What do you enjoy most about being veg*n? The discovery! The experimentation! I've always been known as a great cook, but I was in a low point in my cooking life when I became vegan. I felt like "been there, done that" too often. And I was annoyed in restaurants, because it was never as good as at home (that hasn't changed!)... You know, when things get too comfortable, sometimes they just get boring. Turning vegan changed all that. It opened so many possibilities I would have never thought of exploring: recreating a taste with vegetal products, making my own cheese, all those new products i didn't know even existed... Cooking has become a chemistry experiment, and it's real fun again. I feel I've been reborn in my kitchen. Even my screw-ups are fun!
-With whom would you most love to have dinner? Josée Blanchette. She's the newspaper columnist who opened my eyes to the treament of animals, and she's something all right. I would actually like to be with her, but also to cook for her, as she seems to believe being vegan means eating mostly soft foods. My experience is the opposite: never before have so many things "cracking" and "snapping" undermy teeth. I'd like to show her she can still have texture in her culinary life.
-Do you have any secret talents? Secret talents? Secret? Nothing secret, I'm too much of a show off!
Well, if you really want to know, I published a novel when I was 19. Unfortunately, I didn't pursue that career... Sigh. Well, at least I have plans for my retirement!
-What dish/recipe can you make that knocks people's socks off? My creamy chèvre has had people drooling!
-What's your favorite restaurant? Right now, none. For a while it was an obscure restaurant in my home town, because they would cook my meals with my very own cheese or sauce, but it's closed now. Since turning vegan, I haven't been anywhere else (except Subway and Boston Pizza). I'm planning on trying a few vegan places in Montréal, among them Crudessence.
-What do you do to cheer yourself up when you're feeling blue? f there are adult humans in the house to take care of the kids, I put on my shoes and go out running.
-What's your biggest cooking/baking disaster? A vegan "ham". I threw the whole thing away. It didn't smell right, it was all mushy, and it tasted like crap. Oh, and it looked so weird... Like... vomit, really. The kids werescreaming "Yew! Gross!" at the top of their lungs whenever they opened the compost bin to throw something in it!
-What's the one food/product, that you'd love to "veg*nize"? Ham! I'm still working on it!
I've been an omni for over 40 years, and I didn't go herbivore because I didn't enjoy animal products. Well, I couldn't enjoy them anymore, but on another level. Anyway, it tasted good, and it smelled good, back then. And I find that it helps my whole family living vegan to have familiar foods around. It helps me, too. I mean, how could I ever miss "real" bacon? My tofu bacon is just so good, it's become the "real" stuff.
You guessed it I'm not party of the school of changing my whole approach when it comes to tastebuds and textures. My idea is to make it as easy as possible to stick to veganism. And so far, "faux" is working out pretty good.
Hence, I'm still trying to veganize ham.
Some things you will definitely want to know about La Grenouille!
