What can a veggie eat?: McDonald's

***11/6/2013 Edited to add: ***
Ever since I went GMO-free and organic in January 2013, I have been debating with myself about whether or not to delete this post and the others regarding fast food restaurants. My dilemma is that this post brings in more readers than all my other posts combined, and I don't want to lose that if even just a few of you stay around to read more than this post -- yet I also don't want it to seem as if I am promoting or condoning eating at these restaurants. Even the menu items which appear to be free of animal ingredients or which are marketed as "healthy" options are still crammed full of unnecessary filler ingredients, chemicals, GMOs, and preservatives. Yes, even the fruit.

If this post brought you to my blog, I strongly encourage you to read my more recent posts starting with this one. Thank you.

Fast food restaurants aren't generally known for being very veggie-friendly (or health-friendly, or animal-friendly, or earth-friendly, or ...), though some are better than others. But sometimes circumstances beyond our control place us in a fast food restaurant reeking of beef, with a growling stomach and few options. What can you do? Well, you can give them the finger and go hungry, or you can try to make the best of it. And if you should choose the latter, your friend Jazzhands is here to help.

Today I'm here to help you find something you can eat at McDonald's. Yes, I know you're groaning right now, possibly gagging, maybe even cursing my name -- but hear me out. We veggies may not choose to ever eat there, but you do have to give them a little credit: at least their website gives pretty thorough ingredient lists for all of their menu items (even demystifying those sketchy "natural flavors" by specifying whether they come from vegetable, dairy, or animal sources). And I have gone through the trouble of combing through the ingredient lists for you to find things you might not have known you could eat -- and some things you might have thought were safe, but aren't. There are even a few items that appear to be vegan -- nothing very substantial, but food nonetheless!

These appear OK for veg*ns (items marked with a "V" appear to be vegan):

southwest salad w/o chicken (has cheese; dressing is on the side)
caesar salad w/o chicken (has cheese; dressing is on the side)
side salad - V
vinaigrette dressing - V
english muffin - V
biscuit
hot cakes
apple dippers (but they have the flavor and peel removed -- bleh) - V
ice cream sundae
shakes
apple pie - V
cinnamon melts
mcdonaldland cookies
chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, and sugar cookies
ice cream cone

These are definitely not OK:

caesar dressing (contains anchovy)
italian dressing (contains anchovy)
ranch dressing (natural flavors from animal source)
southwest dressing (natural flavors from animal source)
french fries (natural beef flavor)
hashbrowns (natural beef flavor)

These items are iffy:

fruit and walnut salad/fruit and yogurt parfait (contains gelatin)
mcgriddles, mcmuffin (these have meat by default, but you might be able to order them w/o. The griddle cakes and biscuits themselves are ok)
bacon ranch salad w/o chicken (you could possibly order this w/o the bacon, unless they are pre-made)

Disclaimer: This list is a guide, but isn't absolute. This list only pertains to what does or does not contain animal ingredients, but items on it may contain other ingredients you might find unsuitable (soy, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, etc). Or, you may find items on this list or at this restaurant unsuitable for other reasons not listed here. So: Don't just take my word for it. Do your own research. Ask questions. Make sure they don't cook your food in animal fat. Etc, etc. If you see any errors in my list or if you have additional information, please notify me kindly, but no flames please. :)

More restaurants to come!