Ahoy, gang! It’s been a hot minute since we did a video review, so here’s a quick and dirty of New Planet’s Off Grid Pale Ale.
Let us know if you have a vegan, gluten-free beverage of choice for us to review.
From Christie and Brent, peace out, my vegans.
Yes, this is my second Lazy Vegan post in a row, but I choose not to feel too guilty about it because I know my time is spent doing other worthwhile things like getting ready for the holidays. Ho ho ho! Amy’s is a trusted brand among all of us at Turning Veganese. I stepped away from the frozen section (where I usually shop for Amy’s Kitchen products) and meandered to the canned section, where I found this lovely item:
Now I know that making chili is really easy but I’m glad to know that there’s a vegan option out there for when I don’t have time or simply don’t want to make a giant pot of chili. Amy’s Organic Chili is a great vegan chili that consists of red beans and tofu (textured to look like ground meat). I tried the Medium spice level which wasn’t terribly spicy at all — it’s more tart/salty than spicy. The directions are simple. Maybe a little too simple: heat and serve. Um… how about a little guidance, Amy? I definitely didn’t want to have to wash a pot to I poured half the can into a microwave-safe bowl, heated it for 60 sec, mixed it around and then heated it for another 45 seconds. This seemed like a perfect amount of time. Warning: it will explode so make sure you cover the bowl before heating it.
The chili tasted good, but there’s a weird sweetness to it and I found that it improved exponentially after I added some raw onion and crushed red pepper. Cheese, such as shredded Daiya cheddar, would probably be a good addition as well. I found the beans to be a little mushy. It doesn’t compare to homemade chili, but I would definitely buy it again to keep in the cupboard when I’m looking for something comforting and easy on a cold winter night. I also think that this would work great on nachos or maybe even on fries or a vegan hot dog. At any rate, I am a big fan of Amy’s and have been so long before I turned veganese. I’m really happy to see more Amy’s products, including gluten- and dairy-free products, in my grocer’s freezer and canned food aisle.
On to the fun stuff!!! This week’s winner of a Bubble & Bee Lotion Stick is… Lle Schreiber! Woohoooo! Check out her blog, Living, Learning, Eating. There’s still one more chance to win a lotion stick as well as a chance to enter our TofuXpress giveaway. Get all the details here! –Melissa
One of our bunnies recently taught us that plants are full of calcium. Our Flemish Giant is sensitive to the calcium content of certain plants so I had to do some research on which green leafy vegetables would be gentler on his urinary tract. It turns out that leafy dark green vegetables contain significant amounts of calcium.
100 grams of kale or parsley contains 14% of your recommended daily intake of calcium.
100 grams of dandelion greens contains 19%.
100 grams of spinach contains 10%
One hundred grams of skim milk contains only 12% of your recommended daily intake. That’s less calcium than an equal weight of dandelion greens, kale or parsley per 100 grams. Those plants also are free of fat and cholesterol, have way fewer calories and just as much protein as skim milk. Weird, right? Conventional wisdom says that milk is the best source of calcium. Period. End of story.
This is where marketing has cheated us out of healthier alternatives. What I’m getting at (particularly with the holiday buzz) is that a big part of being vegan is fact checking, educating yourself and challenging conventional wisdom. I’m a little biased as a scientist and I hope you’d feel the same way: the plural of anecdote isn’t data. If someone says they knew someone who ate only vegetables and their teeth fell out of their head (or insert other horror story here), keep in mind that few vegans or vegetarians meet this fate. I’m not sure if you’ll be surprised or not but there’s actually a dearth of scientific literature regarding food choices and health. This literature is peer reviewed. That means other experts, usually friendly competition, have challenged every detail of the study before it was permitted to become part of the body of work scientists present to society as justification for the money we give them every year to continue doing research. In other words, scientists are incentivized to produce accurate thoughtful studies that are relevant to society that charitably portray data and thoughts of competitors in their field.
On the other hand there are books. Anyone can write a book. Just about anyone can self publish a book. If the contents of a book aren’t quite factual (or are in fact fictional) the author’s speech is protected. Critics who point this out have “a difference of opinion” and unless the book makes a claim about your health (without a disclaimer in the fine print or a hokey reference that affirms the point) it’s impossible to tell what’s good for you and what isn’t. I’m not saying all books are bad, I’m just saying that appeals to common sense or conventional wisdom are the easiest way to bamboozle people with advice that might be bad about their health.
On some level I’m sure I’m preaching to the converted. If that’s the case, just know I’m waxing on about people who have read one bad book, perused the crummy references and treated it all like gospel while dismissing the critiques. This is something we all do from time to time, just know there’s always someone smarter than you out there and when you’re humbled (like me, every day at the lab… talking to my boss) treat it as an opportunity to learn something instead of retreating inward with your wounded hubris.
Thanks for letting me shout into the void of the internet and know someone might see it.
This is Christie, signing off!
Happy Monday, Vegans! Let me take a minute to remind everyone about our December giveaways! There are still two more chances to win a Bubble & Bee Lotion Stick as well as enter to win a TofuXpress. Be sure to read the rules and enter to win some awesome prizes!
Awhile back, I reviewed Viana’s veggie gyros. It was a decent product so I thought I would try out another Viana product:
The bratwurst is made up mostly of wheat protein and tofu, so it is neither gluten-free nor soy-free. Preparation is easy — it does say “HEAT AND SERVE!” right on the package — but I have to wonder what one has to do in order for the brats to look the way they do on the package. Viana is vague on how they season their products. The texture of the bratwurst is slightly more rigid than that of your standard vegan hot dog and is definitely a bit more spicy. In terms of taste or texture, there’s no mistaking that this is a meatless product.
I heated up a brat in the microwave for a minute (hello, I am lazy and didn’t want to have to wash a pan) and ate it with garlicky fried rice. It went really well with some mustard. I won’t say I don’t like the product, but I thought it tasted a lot better with the strong garlic and mustard flavors than it did on its own. I think my general complaint about vegan sausages is that the texture is just not that appealing (read: rubbery).
I don’t think I’ll buy this product again. I would definitely try another Viana product again, though. It was good and if you have any interest in trying it, you definitely should! –Melissa
Okay… so we’re exploiting our bunnies for their cuteness but it’s a victimless crime… right?
They love kale, spinach, Brussel’s sprouts and everything else green and leafy. Clearly they’re smarter than most of us were at the age of 4.
This is Christie and Brent, signing off!
We’ve got a lot of experience with vegan cheeses here at Turning Veganese. This is because I compulsively buy vegan cheese. What can I say; I’m vegan and I’m a hedonist.
As far as vegan cheeses go, some are good. Some are awesome. Some are not. Here’s a quick list of all our previous posts on cheeses we’ve tried.
The Cheese Post 1.1 covers some commonly available vegan cheeses.
The Cheese Post 2.0 includes the cream cheese challenge.
The Cheese Post 3.0 reviews some cheeses that are worth seeking out and some that aren’t.
The Cheese Post 4.0 looks at some sour cream and queso alternatives as well as ricotta and mozzarella substitutes.
So why all this emphasis on vegan cheese? It’s one of the hardest things to kick when you go vegan and probably the best source of saturated fat, cholesterol and bovine (goat or sheep) sex hormones that comes to my mind. I can’t have vegetables sauteed in butter without breaking out in acne. It makes me crazy… except that options are out there. We’re talking about some more options today so get your cheese loving muscles ready.
Nutty Cow cheeses come in 3 flavors; garlic herb, maple walnut and ricotta. Before I was vegan I was not a big fan of ricotta and even now “maple walnut” and “cheese” together kind of weirded me out conceptually but the ingredients were unobjectionable (unless you’ve got a nut or soy allergy) and the price was right (free with our regular order from Vegan Essentials) Normally they cost $5.62 for 10 ounces. That’s a big container, for the record and a great price for a vegan cheese. Unfortunately it has a very short shelf life but it does freeze and thaw relatively well (I don’t think this is recommended). The maple pecan was very sweet. It wasn’t what I expected but it’s maple so when I moved on to the garlic herb and ricotta I was surprised to find it was also very sweet. The sweetener in this case is maple sugar which is a personal favorite, just that there was a little too much. It did make a great addition to sauces which was what happened to most of it. It was also somewhat grainy in texture which isn’t a problem for a spread but is a problem for sauces. I’m hoping they reformulate because they’re doing everything else right.
Parmela is a nut based parmesan that I have to revisit. The first time I reviewed this product, I loved everything about this product except the price EXCEPT that they changed their packaging and reduced the price to about $1.75 per ounce. If you come across it in your search for good vegan cheeses, give this a try. It’s great on pizza, pasta or whatever you’d normally dust with parmesan cheese. There are definitely better values out there but Eat in the Raw parmesan might not convince ardent carnists.
Pure Market Express has a line of nut cheeses that I got off Vegan Cuts and they were worth E-V-E-R-Y penny. Cheddar, tomato basil, gouda, creamy herb and jalapeño cilantro were all exactly what you’d expect: creamy, cheesy and lightly flavored to mimic (but not ersatz) their intended subject. The texture is prefect for spreading on crackers or toast though the tomato basil was full of welcome pieces of tomato. The ingredients are great (raw, whole foods) and it comes in a recyclable package. Another bonus is that this product is meant to be stored frozen. I like frozen foods because I don’t feel pressured to eat them before they spoil. On their website you can buy these cheeses at $8 for 8 ounces which is a great value as far as I’m concerned. Ours arrived melted, we refroze it and it thawed creamy and delicious. I recommend this to anyone who doesn’t have a cashew allergy, vegan or not. It was awesome on a teff wrap with spinach, smoky maple tempeh, a touch of mustard and royal gala apple slices.
I’m sad to report that this is all we’ve got for you today. We’re still big on Punk Rawk Labs cheeses for cheese and crackers-type applications, Daiya of all shapes, sizes and flavors for casual cheesiness, Nacho Mom’s Voodoo queso for late night snacking, and a few others including Parmela for our pasta and pizza needs (I got some for cheap on Vegan Cuts; when it runs out I might go back to Eat in the Raw). Pure Market Express might very well replace Punk Rawk Labs (which replaced Dr. Cow’s) given the price and variety of flavors. That about wraps it up.
This is Brent and Christie, signing off!
Brent and I were feeling lazy and Amy’s strikes again. This time we’re trying the black-eyed pea and vegetable bowl.
I’m a big fan of black-eyed peas: they offer the texture and flavor of beans but without as much gas causing power. TMI? I think so. Let’s talk about food instead.
This particular bowl looked pretty good right out of the box. I’m a little bummed (as usual) with the sheer amount of packaging but it’s pretty earth friendly with the dearth of it being printed cardboard which is recyclable in most communities.
After microwaving we were greeted by something that’s rather attractive for previously frozen food. The broccoli and carrots were kind of mushy which was surprising given the color. The peas themselves were well seasoned (it was supposed to be a ginger sauce but I didn’t notice any ginger) but was definitely improved by the addition of our own condments: Brent chose sriracha and I used buffalo wing sauce.
This is a good go-to for something with a decent nutritional profile, simple ingredients and versatile flavor.
This is Christie, signing off!
If you’re in the United States, you may be aware that McRib is back at McDonald’s. Wait, don’t go anywhere! There is a vegan point to this post! I used to be one of the many who love the McRib. It’s tasty stuff! Tasty, nasty, unhealthy stuff! Now that it’s back and I see the ads and the signs or read tweets about it, I MUST FEED MY MCRIB CRAVING! VEGAN STYLE!
The Baked BBQ Tofu requires only two ingredients: 1 block of firm or extra firm tofu, cubed, and about 1/3 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce. Just mix it all together and let it sit for at least 10 minutes.
I baked the tofu in my toaster oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, turned the pieces over and coated with some more BBQ sauce, and then baked for another 7 minutes.
I made some red cabbage slaw to accompany the tofu. I mixed shredded red cabbage with 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp lime juice, about a tsp of balsamic vinegar, and seasoned with salt and pepper. I mixed it all up and let it sit in the fridge while the tofu was baking.
I ended up making BBQ tofu tacos since I had tortillas. I adorned the tofu with only some onion since McD’s only puts onions and pickles on the McRib. I would have added a pickle, too, but I think that would have been a little much with the slaw. The tacos and slaw were a great combination! I was worried that they wouldn’t mesh well but the flavors were great. I did add some more BBQ sauce to the tacos for extra flavor.
Now, onto this week’s giveaway winner… our randomly selected prizewinner is theveganpennypincher! Whoohoo! Readers, be sure to visit theveganpennypincher blog. It’s excellent!
If you haven’t already, go here to enter our December giveaway. There are still two more chances to win a Bubble & Bee lotion stick as well as enter to win a TofuXpress. Yay! –Melissa
Winter feels like fall in Florida… well, kind of like fall. We’re getting some lovely apples from the North and I’m about to share a special one with you: mountain rose apples. These apples don’t seem like much special until you cut them open: PINK!
These apples are crisp and sweet in flavor like a Fuji apple but with the skin texture of a golden delicious apple. Personally I’m a fan of royal gala apples but these are great for making pink apple cobbler or applesauce. They’re really spectacular. I hope you find some at your market!
This is Christie, signing off!
I like pasta. It’s easy to make and easy to request with no meat or cheese at restaurants. The problem with veganizing pasta (other than the obvious, which is doing your best to ensure that the actual pasta is vegan) is that it very often will lack a good amount of protein. I like having some Italian sausage or ground turkey or meatballs or chicken or fish with some pasta. I love hot dogs in my spaghetti! But I’m vegan now. I had a pressed block of tofu and some vegan spaghetti waiting for me in the fridge, so I had to get creative.
I “ground” up the tofu with a fork and mixed it together with the following:
1/2 tsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
minced garlic
Italian seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
I took my leftover spaghetti out of the fridge, put some on a plate, topped it with some of the tofu and heated it up in the microwave.
Mix it up a little and it just looks like there’s some cheese in there! It was delicious on the pasta and also on its own. I’ll be making this tofu mix again. –Melissa
Turning Veganese 