We get a lot of mail… I mean a lot and since we have jobs and are falling woefully behind in our day to day correspondence we created this page. If you don’t see your question here please check back. We’ll be updating this regularly.

Do you and/or Dan play World of Warcraft? If so would like to join our quest and or guild?

No. Although we play Civilization like addicts and several other video games, we don’t actually play WoW. Thank you for the invitation though. We’ll let you know if we decide to try it out.

Why Betty Crocker?

The Betty Crocker brand has a well deserved reputation as being the very best at teaching American amateur chefs how to use products and ingredients to their full potential. When we were putting together this project, we really wanted to help people see how easy it is to be vegan, and that you really can make anything vegan once you know the tricks. I do have to admit that the little girl in me who still worships Laverne & Shirley is enchanted by everything Betty. This project not only encourages me to make some outrageous casseroles and use all these crazy kitchen gadgets, but also gives me an opportunity to share with other people how easy this lifestyle can be.

How do we get you two to try our vegan products?

Please send us an email to Shannons@MeetTheShannons.net and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!

Do you just replace the meat with mock meat?

Oh man – if only it was that easy. We put that extra effort in to really try and do these recipes right by adding extra flavor, sometimes olive oil or whatever is necessary to replace not only the juices, savory flavor but “fats” that come with a meaty recipes – except our flavor and oils come from compassionate sources like olives, Braggs Amino Acids and liquid smoke.

Are you guys really as cute as you seem?

We’re pretty cute.

What is nutritional yeast? Isn’t it just MSG?

I was thinking about writing this all out but Wikipedia pretty much covers it. Oh and in case you didn’t see the answer to the second question. Nutritional Yeast is not monosodium glutamate.

Why do we only sometimes see pictures of Dan and never pictures of Annie?

Dan’s the Face. Annie’s the Muscle.

What cleaning products do you use in your “Cruelty-Free Kitchen”?

We do our very best to make sure that all the cleaning, health-care, hygiene and beauty products we buy are environmentally friendly and not tested on animals. I am a big fan of Method products and use them whenever I can. Please check out this website if you want find out if your favorite products is cruelty-free.

You seem to use your cast iron skillet a lot; more than Betty calls for. Why’s that?

Whenever anyone asks what we spent our book advance on – I can honestly say student loans and greening our kitchen. We replaced our plastic tupperware and old pots and pans. See it took me a long time to find someone to love and share my life with, (I’m kind of a picky person) and I want Dan to live as long as possible. So I try to avoid using the Teflon covered pots and pans; when they’re heated, they emit toxic particles and gasses, linked to countless health problems. I’m also pretty sure some of our old pots had aluminum in them, which has raised health concerns recently due to it’s effect on the human nervous system, and is linked to Alzheimer’s Disease. There was also our stainless steel pots, which contain both chromium and nickel. Both of these substances (in the form they’re used to make stainless steel) are considered toxic to humans, causing a wide range of adverse health effects. There’s a question about how much leaches out while you cook… but why take any chances? Cast iron doesn’t have any of that, and whatever leaching that happens is iron, which is good for you. Here’s an article about it that I thought was helpful. We also invested in a set of ScanPans – a nonstick cookware certified to be PFOA free, so it’s safe for your family and the environment.

I can’t find Match Vegan Meat in my area, and shipping costs a lot. What can I do?

I’d say the first step is to go to the website and use their Match Locator Search Box in the homepage. If there isn’t a retailer near you, you can always ask your local co-op or Whole Foods to start carrying it. That’s what they did in Boulder, CO recently.