The Most Epic Vegan Sunday Brunch with Friends & Family

Sundays have branded brunch really well, eh? Who came up with this brunch idea anyway? It reeks of bourgeois whimsy. Oh, we want to wake up late, eat a lot and then not have to worry about cooking lunch. Also, we'd like to eat till our guts burst and then sleep till the late afternoon nudges us into some lackadaisical evening activity.


Bourgeois whimsy aside, I must say I do love a good brunch. Tradition and pop-culture have a aesthetic mood board already in place. You're thinking pancakes, eggs, sausage, bacon, fruits, cheese, and sangria. Luckily for the animals, I am here to state otherwise. You can have brunch without all them animal products and it can be a dizzyingly delicious array of slurp-slurp.

My mother is in town and I invited my childhood friend and her husband to Brunch. I also had my cousin sister Disha visiting from Manipal to dig in too. And there was my faithful life partner Indra and our dogs snooping around the table too. So what, pray, was on the menu?

The first thing I wanted to include was something zesty, fresh, and wholesome. I had a packet of quinoa that had been lying around for months. I cooked that, added chopped cucumber, green peppers, jalapeños, tomato, cooked chickpeas, and avocado. Then I made a cheesy-dressing with nutritional yeast, cashews, peri-peri chili powder, pepper, salt, and a splash of jaggery syrup. I just pored it over the quinoa salad and YUM. Fresh, zesty, and nutritious.


Then we had a grand tofu scramble. Just slice 2 packets of tofu into small squares. On a frying pan I added some onions, chilies, tomatoes and olive oil. Add the tofu cubes and mixed dried herbs (oregano, basil, chili flakes, pepper), 2 teaspoons of garlic powder, and a few squirts of chili sauce. Stir fry for a few more minutes and it's good to go.

Scrambled Tofu

I made a pistachio loaf that came out super spectacular. It went really well with the freshly brewed coffee we made. I used 3/4 cup brown sugar, a squirt of maple syrup, a dash of salt, 1/3 rd cup olive oil, and 3/4th cup soya mylk. I then added 1/2 cup of ground pistachio and cashews into it along with 2 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder +baking soda, and 1 table spoon of ground flax seeds (which you can omit). I poured in the batter into a loaf tin, and sprinkled 1/4th cup of whole pistachios on top. Bake for 35 min at 180c.

Out of the Oven. That Pistachio Loaf.

Next up was an experiment. My very own vegan 'meatballs'. You'll need vital wheat gluten for this one, it's basically seitan. You take 1.5 cups of vital wheat gluten flour + 1.5 cups of soaked 'soya keema' which you get at any store. Then you mix up the vital wheat gluten with the soaked soya to make a dough. Add garlic powder, soya sauce, chili sauce, pepper, salt and whatever seasoning you wish. Make little balls and toss them in the oven for 25 min at 180 with some olive oil drizzled on top. The result is chewy meaty plant-based spicy meat!

vegan meat balls out of the oven

All I had to do was make a fruit salad with pineapple, pomegranate, and bananas. Thank god for my mother who chopped up the pineapple like a savage. We also had a fresh tomato jalapeno salsa which was just fresh tomato, garlic seasoning, and 2 jalapeños blended with a dash of water and olive oil. Side accompaniments were store-bought hummus, baguette bread, and olives.

That's the SPREAD.

We all drank a bunch of black coffee (with soya mylk and sugar for some) and chatted about high-school and college which was like last century ago.

What my plate looked like. 

The mother laying out the table

And that was that people. Vegan brunch can be bad-ass amazing. Start planning your own.

I'll see you guys next week! Keep it real.

till next time, pistachio loaf bids you farewell 

The Real Neel Deal (The Vegan 2am Ultra Runner)

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Meet Neelanjan Banerjee. If that's a tongue twister, breath easy, he's better known as Neel. This man can run long-ass distances and make it look easy-peasy. But to run those distances he has to balance his life in the armed forces, be an all-star husband, father, and dog papa. That means he wakes up at, um, 2am on some mornings just so he can run.

Neel was born in Mohali, Chandigarh and then moved to Gurgaon. Now Gurgaonites, haven’t heard a name like his, so you better believe that in addition to butchering his name he was featured in a whole range of class jokes. 

Right after he finished 12th grade he joined the Armed Forces. Today he lives in Gwalior with his wife Tumpa, his 6-year old son and his dalmatian. Fun fact about Tumpa: she was a year senior to Dhoni's wife, Sakshi. She also makes homemade wine and perfume!

Let's get to know this vegan mega runner, shall we?

You run real long distances. You casually talk to your youtube fans about

doing a 10, 15km, or 20km run on a regular morning. What got you started?

N.B: Well, I am in the Armed Forces, so I am used to physical activity. I love it. I've been running since I was in school. I mean, in school it was a different kind of running. More like football and hockey. Later it was all about endurance running.

I think I started running marathons in 2012 . I owe that to a mid life crisis of sorts. I guess my crises came quicker for me. Running helped me overcome it and gave me  purpose. Anyway, after few marathons, the most logical step for me was to run ultras. Just to put into perspective, a half marathon is 21.1 km, a full marathon is 42.2 km and anything beyond it is an ultra. The ultra races are typically distances ranging from 50 km, 80 km, 100 km, 160 km, 220 km, and then the 24- hour run.

In 2015, I dipped my toes in a 100 km race( Bhatti Lakes Ultra). Training for an ultra is bit different from marathon training. The average daily and weekly long runs are  way longer. That’s why running 90-100 km per week mileage is a walk in the park. But it took me a while to reach the place where I am now. I am still a novice. There are many runners who have a higher weekly mileage and run much faster than me.

What time do you get up in the morning to run? How many times a week do you do this?

  I have to highlight my life constraints to answer this question properly. The first being I have to reach my workplace by 8:30 AM. Two, I had been a single parent for a while.That meant that I had to get my run in on time and be back to wake up my kid at 6AM to send him to school.

With those calculations in mind, I have to get up at 3 AM and get back home by 6 AM for my kid. If it’s the weekly long run, then 3 AM gets pushed back to to 1 or 2 AM. I am used to this time now as my wife has now joined me back in Gwalior. She was working in Delhi for a while. Gwalior has bad traffic that's why I need to finish before 7 AM. I do this  5-6 days a week.

  Are you a natural runner or do you have to work real hard at it? What does your son and wife think about your running life?

I am not a natural long distance runner. I can sprint well. I have to work hard enough to run long. Now in ultras, the cut offs timings are quite liberal, so an average runner can finish the distance if he has done the training and has the right mental approach to it. Despite the odds, I love going on for long hours on trails and roads. I love the feeling of numbness while running and the calmness after finishing.The most common remark I get from people is that I don’t look like a runner. I have a pretty heavy build. 

My son is  too young to understand what and why I run ultras but he joins me whenever I workout at home. My wife is not entirely happy about this crazy pursuit but knows that it's the one activity that keeps me happy and healthy. She has every right  to be mad at me because I am not available to her on weekdays, but she is making the sacrifice by letting me train. I try to balance everything out, but I am tired most of the days. I try to make it up to her on weekends after I am done with my weekly long run. But I have been faltering on that aspect for sometime now.

Neel, the little guy, and his wife Tumpa

  When did you get to know about veganism? How has it blended with your running life?

In 2015, I increased my weekly mileage to train for my first 100 km race. That's when I started catching colds and coughs every week. I would be sneezing continuously for hours, my nose wold water like somebody opened a tap inside, and I would cough like crazy.

 I hired a nutritionist, posted questions on ultra running Facebook groups, but nothing helped. I knew that with increased running the immune system would take a hit . It's only the right food that can help maintain it. I read some books and listened to podcasts by vegan ultra runners. That's when it struck me. If I went vegan I could perhaps train without suffering so often. So, in April 2017, I decided to turn vegan.

 I am Bengali by birth and have grown up eating fish, meat, and sweets. People jokingly say that Bengalis must have been cats in their previous life because of our fondness for fish. People around me have a hard time understanding why I have decided to walk this path. It’s no use explaining because in general, people don't get it. After turning vegan, the colds and coughs have stopped completely. I can train more consistently. My recovery time after runs have improved and I feel much better. I even ran a 100 km race on 06 October 2017  virtually on fruits because they served curd rice for lunch. Overall, I feel that going vegan was the next logical step.

Running fuel

Good old south indian vegan

What's a typical food day for you? Get real specific.

My diet is really simple actually. No fancy stuff because Gwalior isn't the place for fancy. Breakfast is a big smoothie with 2-3 bananas and some other fruit like apple/ papaya/mango with a spoon of peanut butter, chia seeds and a handful of cranberries plus mixed nuts. I use plain cold water to mix it with. Lately I have started making Dalia with sautéed onion, tomato with some veggies as well. If my wife is in good mood, she makes me a bowl of Poha.

Mid day snack is a fruit - banana or an apple.

Lunch is rice/roti(3), a katori of dal, and two different kind of veggies. For veggies I mostly eat cauliflower, lady finger, bitter gourd, and cabbage cooked Bengali style. Along with the food, I love a piece of raw onion and some papad.

Evening snack is a handful of nuts or a piece of fruit. If I am famished, then I may make myself a bowl of Maggi with green chillies.

Dinner is same as lunch except I don’t eat rice at night. I am a big black coffee junkie. I drink copious amounts of coffee without sugar throughout  the day.

I drink alcohol once a week and that's only after my weekly long run. No booze on weekdays. Race day nutrition is a whole other discussion. I won't even get into that. 

the winning smoothie

who needs cheese?

 What's the weirdest thing that has happened on a long distance run for you?

I love this question because I've faced one of the most bizarre incidents. I wrote an article on this too. If you want to read it click here. 

 In 2015, I was staying in Bengdubi, a small town near Siliguri, West Bengal. This place is famous for wild elephants. The same year, I registered for a 100 km race.  I had a scheduled 40 km run. I had to get to work in the morning, so I started running at 2 AM. Crazy, right?

On my first loop, there was a dark patch on the road where the elephants used to frequently cross over to the jungle. As I was running in that dark patch, I came face to face with a lone male elephant. He was merrily munching on some leaves. We were about 10 feet apart.We surprised each other. He stopped munching, let out a terrifyingly loud roar and started to chase me with his ears flapping and his trunk raised. I thought I was a dead man. I ran my fastest 100 metre, jumped a drain, and went right  inside some house that was nearby.

I changed my route and finished my 40 km. On reaching home, I woke my wife to tell her the story. She also chased me for waking her up! Just kidding! She heard my story and told me that I was mad. Then she went back to sleep.

It's the life of Neel. For real.

 It's a fantasy world. You are not allowed to run. But you can do any other physical activity on a regular basis. What would that be? Why?

I would do scuba diving. I love that sport. I am a certified Advanced Open Water Diver from PADI. The beauty of the underwater world, the thrill and excitement, well it's something to die for. 

Tumpa has to put up with this

So reader people, isn't this guy wild? 

Yes, yes, I do think this fellow is wild and amazing. How do I make him a part of my life?

Well, just shy of literal stalking, you can follow and keep in touch with Neel in 4 easy ways.

Keep up with Neel and his life and running adventures on his youtube channel 

Be FB friends with him

Follow him on twitter

Keep up with his blog 

Happy Dog

Till then keep it real. Keep it kind. 

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Oddly Flat Vegan Baked Donuts

Ola Rabbits

So I took a long break. And truth be told I am kind of on a pause with the cooking until November. I am hunkering down and working on my novel. I had an epic wave of positive things happen in my writerly life. The biggest one being the fact that I got into Pitchwars! That means really revising my novel manuscript with my mentor until my October 30th deadline.


Between running Write Leela Write and the book, I can't give my best to the blog. So I am giving you one little treat until I take off till the end of the year.

Are you ready for this? Because these donuts kind of worked, but not really. It's all about perspective. I was inspired to make vegan donuts. I was hanging around youtube and was inspired by a youtube video that made these baked donuts. There's that LIE we bakers love to employ: oh here's a 'healthy' donut. Look there is no such thing as a healthy donut, even if it's baked. It might have less oil than a fried donut, but it's got a shit ton of sugar in it. Plus flour. And oil.

So the secret ingredient here is nutmeg which kind of gives it that bakery donut taste. But it has no yeast and relies on the chemistry of vinegar and baking soda. So yeah, kind of worked, but they turned out to be scrawny. They were delicious though and you can kind of eat them as mini-cakes without the chocolate glaze as well.


Let's get right into this


What you need

For the donuts

2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup-3/4th cup powdered sugar (I used 1/2)
2 teaspoons nutmeg powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla essence
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4th cup oil
1/4th cup vinegar
1 cup soya mylk (or almond/coconut/cashew)


For the glaze

1 cup sugar
1/3rd cup water
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
splash of vanilla
pinch of salt
Sprinkles


How to Make


In a bowl dump your flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and nutmeg in. Blend. Set aside.

Secret Ingredient. Check.

In large glass or bowl add your  soya mylk,  oil, vanilla, and vinegar in. Now pour this mix into your dry mix. It will bubble a little ( that's a good sign). Mix into a sticky wet batter.

Vinegar, oil, and soya mylk are an unlikely trio. But it works. Trust.

Now get a baking tray out and slap on a sheet of wax paper on it. In a large ziplock bag or a piping bag pour half the mixture in. Snip the corner and pipe a circle. Make sure to leave a big hole in the middle. It might disappear while baking but later on you can take a shot glass and cut it out. Hey we ain't professionals here ok!

It's gonna be ok. You got this.

Preheat oven to 185c. Bake the piped donuts for 12 min. I could only do 3-4 donuts per tray since I have a small oven.

About to go in the oven. Mad piping skills, eh?

While they are baking get yourself to the stove. In a pot add water, sugar, cocoa, vanilla and salt. Stir continuously until it boils and thickens a bit.

Let your donuts cool. Then dip them in the chocolate sauce and sprinkle that baby! Yay! You're amateur and oddly flat donuts are ready. And they're vegan. And that's freaking amazeballs.


Wish me luck for the coming months. I promise I'll be back. Keep it kind.

Shashwat Rao: The Vegan Ultra Runner (We're Talking 100km+)

Meet Shashwat Rao. He's no ordinary man. Unless you think running 170 km at one stretch (for kicks) is ordinary. Welcome to the God-honest-insane world of ultra running. I was introduced to Shashwat Rao when I went to watch local filmmaker Padmalatha Ravi's latest documentary Soul Run at Atta Galatta last month.

Soul Run gave us ordinary folk a look into the world of Ultra Running. The film tried to answer one simple question : what compels people to run distances that don't seem physically possible? Oh, and of course Shashwat is Vegan, another athlete that is a living demonstration of plant-powered awesomeness.

Shashwat was born in Bangalore, and did a bunch of his education in Madras and Indore. He came from a family that put education on the highest pedestal possible. 'Study, study, study' was the mantra in his household. Although, if given a chance Shashwat would have spent all his time playing cricket. He was a super shy kid growing up, so adolescence was not a hot time in his life.

When he was 25 he had a bit of an existential crises. He figured 'half his life was over' and up until then had been doing things ( like getting an engineering degree and an MBA) on auto-pilot. So what did he do in response to his crises?

'I sold my TV, computer, quit my cushy job, hopped on my motorbike and went around the country. I realized, India is a land of tremendous diversity. The cultural influences, dialects, cuisines, and even habits  changed every couple  hundred kilometers. Traversing the 29 states opened up my eyes. That's probably where the endurance element crept into my personality. Riding those long distances gave me a rich appreciation for the outdoors. It's a lesson no one can learn in any class or boardroom meeting.'

So of course I asked him a few more questions in my attempt to  understand how studious boy from Bangalore became an ultra runner. Let's get to it. 

Do you remember the first times you started running? What was the distance and what did you think about it? How did veganism factor in?

S.R: Yes, my first 'official run' was the TCS Bengaluru 10k in 2012. At the finish, my heart was beating so fast, I really thought I was in the middle of a heart attack. I had never run competitive earlier. Did nothing athletic. As a child, I struggled with asthma. If someone had told me back then (or even 5 years before) that people run these distances, I would have deemed them insane. As a young, reckless city-dweller, I quickly realized that my excess partying and general crappy lifestyle had taken a toll on my health - physically and mentally. I thought running was my only way to solve this. I was broke. I was on a pauper's diet. Simple rice and some raw veggies and fruits. So, it wasn't a conscious choice to turn vegan. There was no "Aha!" moment there. Slowly I realized that it was all I needed. I started reading more, questioning more. Two years ago, I went completely vegan and haven't looked back since. 

Let's talk a little more about ultra running. You've run distances that the average human can't even conceive. I learnt a little about Ultra running watching Padmalatha Ravi's  Soul Run.  How many runs have you completed?

S.R: Any footrace longer than the traditional marathon length of 42.195 kilometres is an ultra marathon. Most ultras are run over technical, uneven terrain, with high elevation changes and inclement weather thrown in for good measure. For me, its a time to eat, be happy and revel in the outdoors. It's also a time to absorb what nature has to offer and meet amazing people. I have a bit of an aversion towards screens - be it TV screens, computers, mobile phones or what have you. Running ultras takes me outside, puts me out of my comfort zone and teaches me problem-solving, withstanding barriers of pain, and pursuing that elusive mindset of bliss. 

Here are a few of the Ultras I've completed:

Javadhu hills Ultra 2015- 50K,

 Run the Rann 2016 - 101K,

 The Spiti Run 2016- 168K,

 BTS Ultra, Indonesia 2016 - 170K,

 Malnad Ultra 2016 - 110 K,

 Chennai Trail marathon 2016 - 50K,

 Bengaluru 24 hour stadium run 2017 - 170K

You've run in altitudes where most runners experience hallucinations during their runs. Have you experienced this? Of course we want the details!

S.R: Honestly,  I find this hard to put in words. Altitude plays a major role in the physiological functioning in humans. At higher altitudes, the air is thinner and oxygen is lower compared to sea level. Improper acclimatization and physical exertion in such conditions are detrimental to one's health. One often feels nauseous and a headache is guaranteed. I think hallucinations are triggered by lack of sleep and calorie depletion. I felt like a zombie just trudging along aimlessly. Vision is usually blurred and the mind  plays tricks on you. Common objects like stones may take any other form and appear threatening. Once in Indonesia, I had an out of body experience. Like I could visualize  'tiny me' from up afar. Such memories are vague and often short-lived. I try to remain in the present. Accept the fact that the mind is wandering and focus on the controllable. One foot in front of the other.

Do people ask you a lot about your diet? Are people usually surprised (or just confused) when you tell them you are vegan? 

S.R: Not really. Food is so significant for everyone in equal measures. That's why people are strongly opinionated about it. We don't normally comply if people tell us to change our food habits, do we? But we observe, learn by example. Meeting one of my heroes, Scott Jurek was instrumental in my diet change. I studied, experimented with what I put into my system and analysed myself. Changes were gradual but certainly positive. For example, I feel fresh and light even after a 50K training run, ready for the next day. No muscle soreness or that heavy feeling you get after belting a plate of biriyani. I do not like to preach to others. I can only shine a light on this healthy path. I suggest people to give it a try and decide for themselves.

What are some of your favourite running sustenance foods? What would be an ideal-after run feast?

S.R: Hmm. There is a difference in running and racing. While I'm racing (pushing hard during events), I prefer sugary drinks, electrolytes, and simple carbs like bananas.  I love sodas too :-) Coke, Mountain Dew and such, but I would not recommend these to others. During training runs, its mostly Ragi powder, homemade energy bars (made of dry fruits) and nut butters. I find Jus' Amazin's range of products to be super tasty and calorie rich. Thank you, Shilpa for those samples. After running for so long, the body doesn't want to eat much anyway. There are many fancy recovery protein drinks, energy gels etc in the market - I can't afford those. Simple carbs and cold beverages are my choice ;-) and I'm not too fussy.

What does veganism mean to you? Does running and veganism intersect with a sense of spirituality for you?

S.R: Veganism is my choice. It's my little contribution to the world. I might have had the odd cup of tea and I have consumed honey. I'm not dogmatic in that sense. It's just a conscious choice to be the best, most authentic version of me and do my little bit for the planet. Spirituality, well thats an interesting perspective. Yes, running does have its spiritual connotations - as mentioned in various studies about the runners high, release of endorphins and the like. In that sense veganism enables me to pursue that state and live a holistic life.

What are the hardest mental and physical walls you've hit when ultra running?

Hitting a 'wall' is common. What makes ultra running unique is that you hit the 'wall', many times. There is always redemption around the corner. Physically, I have had severe cramps, external injuries, total calorie depletion, vomiting, crippling diarrhea, tendonitis and even broken bones. Then, there is that moment when you push through. You find reserves of strength you never knew existed. Physically, I experienced excruciating pain in the mountains. The skin on the soles of my feet were ripped and trashed. Single digit temperatures and persistent rain added to my woes. On seeing the sun rise, I reached light from a dark place - literally and figuratively. I experience a very challenging mental block on a recent 24 hour run around a 400 m track. No start line, no finish line, nobody to push you through - just you against the clock. After running 170kms, the high was unparalleled . All these experiences, I consider lessons. I have lofty goals, which I pursue relentlessly.

Does shashwat's life kind of inspire or at the very least keep you in a state of minor shock?

Check out his website to read about his runs. Oh and here are some books that have influenced him.

Shashwat Recommends

Eat and Run by Scott Jurek

Finding Ultra by Rich Roll

Born to Run by Christopher McDougall

Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl

Seeing the Sunrise by Justin Langer

Documentaries: Cowspiracy, Forks over Knives, What the Health