Oprah Winfrey and heavenly, heavenly mousse cake.

What do Oprah Winfrey and the slice of mousse cake I had at lunch today have in common? If you don’t know the answer to this one, you might visit the “About” page of this blog for a quick hint.

Ready? Wait for it…..wait for it….

They’re both vegan.

For the next twenty one days, at least. Let me explain. Oprah just announced that she is about to embark on a 21-day “cleanse” in which she will drop the caffeine, sugar, alcohol, and animal products from her diet. Sounds like a heck of a lot of food to forgo, no? Well, from what I understand, the cleanse has multiple purposes–it will be both a health cleanse and a spiritual cleanse, she says, in which she makes an effort to think about the “animals whose lives are sacrificed in the name of gluttony.”

Now, Oprah has touched upon the topic of vegetarianism on her show in the past. Several years back, when she found out that cattle are fed the remains of other cattle–that they are quite literally made into cannibals–she announced that she would never eat a hamburger again. And guess what! Sales of red meat dropped noticeably. And, well, the Texas Beef industry got a little miffed and delivered her a big, fat “food disparagement” lawsuit. Because, gosh darn it, how dare she infringe upon their right as Americans to turn a profit through cruelty and exploitation! The suit was dismissed, but Oprah has been reluctant to touch vegetarianism with a ten foot pole ever since.

And that’s why, when I found out about Oprah’s 21 day flirtation with veganism, I didn’t believe it. Granted, she does not use the words “veganism” or “vegetarianism” to describe her experiment. But this is for the better, I think. The word “vegan” is still quite scary to many people. But the fact of the matter is, vegan recipes are starting to pop up on Oprah’s website!

Who knows what will come of this. Maybe she’ll be miserable and give up on the third day. Or maybe she’ll love it and keep this lifestyle for good. I sure hope so! Either way, the thought that legions of Oprah lovers across the country might be inspired to think about the impacts of their diet and maybe even make some small changes is incredibly exciting to me.

In other news, I found vegan goodness in another unexpected place today! To celebrate being my receiving the student worker’s award at the library where I work, my wonderful supervisors at work took me out to lunch at Aladdin’s Natural Eatery, a Mediterranean restaurant in Ithaca. When we were done with our fabulous meal of pita-falafel-olives-hummus-eggplant happiness, I took a cursory glance at the dessert case, which I expected to be barren of vegan delectables. But lo and behold, there it was: Vegan Chocolate Mousse Cake. I kid you not. Now, this was before I heard about this Oprah business, but had it been afterward, it might have been too much for my fluttering vegan heart to bear. Here is what remained of it after everyone had tasted a forkful:

I have made vegan chocolate mousse before, and with highly satisfactory results. But this mousse was unlike any dessert I have ever tasted. I defy any lover of sweets–omnivorous, herbivorous, or otherwise–to distinguish it from it’s non-vegan counterpart on the basis of taste, texture, or mouth feel. I was so in awe of it that I asked the gentleman at the front desk for a list of ingredients. “How, good sir, is this accomplished?” I begged him. Alas, the restaurant orders its dessert from, well, God himself, and there was not a box to be found in the back room. But I will ask again next time I visit. Mark my words, Gadget, next time…