Until I found out about the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 lists, shopping for produce seemed like a game of Let’s Make a Deal. I loaded my cart with a mixture of organic and conventional produce, trying to stick to a reasonable food budget, but with no system or info…

Since I recently hit the dating scene again, the difficulties the vegan diet can present when navigating eligible singles has been at the forefront of my mind. Sometimes I think it’s no big deal. And then I read something like this, a question excerpted from the New York Post’s “Ask…

It’s that time of year when we count down to New Times’ Best of Miami 2012 issue in June. Until then, Short Order will serve up 100 of our favorite dishes in the 305. If you have any nominations of your own, please send them to cafe@miaminewtimes.com.45. The Rio Acai…

This past weekend, the LA Times published an editorial suggesting pregnant women who adhere to a vegan diet and subsequently raise vegan children are irresponsible. The writer, Alexandra Le Tellier, was responding to the release of Vegan Is Love, a new children’s book that explains and advocates a vegan diet…

When I first read about Victoria Moran’s Main Street Vegan, I thought the book was beneath me. After all, it’s primarily a guidebook for aspiring vegans, and I’ve been on the vegan wagon for a few years now.In reading it, though, I learned some powerful new things about the ethics…

For those who shy away from the prospect of going vegan or vegetarian because they think it’s too new-fangled, you might find it interesting that in 1722, one of the smartest, most productive, versatile, and respected men in our nation’s history adopted vegetarianism at a very early age.I read a…

“You’re a vegan?””Uh huh.””Oh. So where do you get your protein?”Every vegan who’s been at plant-eating for any length of time has been faced with this question. Ironically, it often comes from the mouths of the unhealthiest and least conscious eaters in the world, and is directed at lean, immensely…

During many of my workouts at CrossFit Miami Beach, I’ve noticed Nick Valencia, a tanned and shredded little guy, smiling, sweating, and tearing up the black rubber floor with his aggressive approach to the W.O.D. (CrossFit speak for “workout of the day”). Until a mutual friend tipped me off this…

Which would you rather drink: chemical coloring, beet juice, or dead bugs?Apparently, Starbucks thought you’d pick that last option.In an effort to remove artificial ingredients from its menu, Starbucks recently replaced the food dye in its Strawberry Frappuccinos with a “natural” substitute: beetle juice.The stuff is actually called “carmine,” and…

The outside of Annette Larkins’s pastel-pink Kendall home looks like it belongs to a grown-up Barbie doll.In a way, that’s not far from the truth. Her curvaceous chest-to-waist-to-hip ratio must be close to that of America’s favorite doll. One big difference, though, is there’s no plastic on this all-natural 70-year-old…

Going to the doctor is hardly an option for me. It hasn’t been since I left my last full-time job — and the health insurance it offered — about a year and a half ago, when I decided to pursue my writing career.As a freelancer, I’m lucky to enjoy a…

The typical South Beach Sunday brunch often includes a bloody Mary/mimosa budget that hovers around $25. Tack on some half-cooked eggs slathered in glorified mayonnaise and some breakfast rib eye or butter-soaked French toast, and you’ve got yourself a $50 to $75 tab that serves only to postpone your weekend…