The quick solution is to replace milk with soy "milk", eggs with egg replacer, cheese with soy "cheese", butter with margarine, and honey with maple syrup. Hmmm... it may take some work.

Breads and other baked goods: If you do your own baking, you can almost always use egg replacers and soy "milk". Your baked goods may not rise quite as much and the texture may be denser, but they will be just as delicious - plus no cholesterol ! If you buy bread (as most of us do) you really have to check the ingredients. Some that are less likely to have animal products are bagels, multigrain bread, "subway" type rolls, and some French bread. If you are lucky enough to have a breadmaker, you can, of course, make your own vegan bread - delicious !

Margarine: Margarine is much easier to cook with than butter as it tends not to burn as quickly. If you use margarine directly on toast or vegetables, you may have to try a few brands to find one you like. There is also a butter replacement called "Earth Balance" that can be used just like butter.

Soy "cheese": Tofutti Brand "Better than Cream Cheese" and "Yoso Spreadables" are replacements that taste and spread just like cream cheese. There are also other types of soy based "cheeses" with familiar flavours such as cheddar and mozzerella. They are quite tasty, although they tend not to melt the way cheese does. Some soy "cheeses" contain cassein that is a milk product, so you must check the label to be sure it 100% vegan.

Other ideas:

• Salad dressings tend to contain eggs. We use a vegan product called "Nayonaise" to replace mayonnaise. Also, we like vinaigrettes made with olive oil and different vinegars such as balsamic, cider or red wine.
• Use vegetable broth to mash potatoes instead of cream and butter.
• With toast or bagels, skip the margarine and use just jam, peanut butter, or Tofutti "Better than Cream Cheese." You won't miss the margarine and will save some calories too.
• Add some toasted nuts such as pecans, walnuts, or cashews to vegetables. You can also make a sauce with margarine and lemon juice for veggies.
• Use a pressure cooker for cooking vegetables - it is faster and the vegetables retain their flavour. For those of you who live at higher altitudes, pressure cookers are useful, too, as they are faster than boiling. There should be a guide to cooking times at higher altitudes in the book that comes with the pressure cooker.

Minor housekeeping note: Dishes, pots and pans used to cook vegan meals are much easier to clean than those used for animal products. No scrubbing with all vegan ingredients !