Gift ideas from vegan boutique

by

My buddies Angela and James are the founders and owners of glorious vegan shoe shop and ethical boutique, The Third Estate.

They started the store many years ago in Leeds but for almost a decade they have been serving customers on Brecknock Road, North London.

The store is overflowing with ethical footwear, clothing, accessories, bags, wallets, belts, and gifts.

I recently popped into the store to pick out my top 5 Christmas gift recommendations currently being sold in The Third Estate.

Click on the Instagram post below to watch the short video I made.

What do you think?

In addition to my choices, the store has so many products for people searching for high quality, compassionate gifts.

You can see the exact location of The Third Estate thanks to Google Maps.

Click here if you would like to explore their online store. Shop by December 18 to ensure Xmas delivery!

Follow The Third Estate on Instagram.

Vegan pies for Xmas delivery

by

You all know about Young Vegans, right?

Young Vegans have made a name for themselves by making and serving delicious vegan pies (followed up by delicious vegan pizzas).

Their pastry creations are decadent and mouthwatering. They used to trade at Hackney Downs Vegan Market regularly and their own pie shop in Camden.

Time marches on and neither of those locations are with us, but Young Vegans are still going strong with their pies via a takeaway counter inside Planet Organic on Tottenham Court Road and their online shop for home delivery.

It is the online shop I’m here to tell you about today, especially the Xmas delights you can order right now for Christmas delivery.

Take a look at this Christmas pie. So stunning.

Santa’s Little Gobbler Christmas Pie is everything you need for a festive dinner, but inside a pie crust!

Back for the 5th year running, the pie features handmade vegan turkey goujons with stuffing, buttered leeks in a creamy white sauce, and cranberry sauce all inside the buttery pastry.

Once you’ve finished the main course, you are gonna need a mince pie.

Each handmade pie is filled with a traditional inspired mincemeat (currants, raisins, sultanas, ginger, and apple) and laced with Amaretto.

These mince pies are available in a six pack.

If you place your order by December 20, Young Vegans are going to make sure you get your delivery by Christmas Day.

Click here to browse the online shop and get ordering. There are so many tasty treats in the Young Vegans online store including frozen pies, pizza, cheese, and sweets. You can also follow Young Vegans on Instagram.

New episode of weekly roundup

by

There was a bit of a gap in the weekly roundup schedule due to me being a bit under the weather.

Ever since COVID visited me a few months back, I get knocked sideways very easily. Even the simple cold I’ve had has made me feel tired.

Enough complaining. Here is the episode if your ears need it.

FGV mini news round up December 28, 2022 – final of the year – Fat Gay Vegan

As the year ebbs away join me for a chat about the tough task of going home, Whitney Houston, and vegan food on QANTAS planes.
  1. FGV mini news round up December 28, 2022 – final of the year
  2. FGV’s Mini News Roundup December 7, 2022
  3. FGV’s mini news roundup – news, views, and reviews from the plant-based world and beyond
  4. Fat Gay Vegan mini news roundup March 17, 2022
  5. FGV mini news roundup December 23, 2021 – vegan news and reviews

Thanks for listening. Please let me know if there is anything you would like me to chat about in future episodes.

Vegan taco night in Hackney

by

Black Cat Hackney and Huitzmil present Tacos Against Borders, a benefit for Akwaaba.

Akwaaba is a Hackney-based social centre for migrants. They offer a space for rest, play, learning and mutual support. Akwaaba is for all migrants regardless of immigration status, ‘race’, religion, country of origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and (dis)ability.

Akwaaba doesn’t currently have a venue and they are putting all their efforts towards securing one, so you can support them by attending this event (and letting them know about a spare venue if you know of one!). They need space every Sunday so a school hall in the Hackney area would be perfect.

Now… onto news of the event taking place inside Black Cat Hackney this Sunday December 5, 2021 at 6:00PM.

Talks and activities

  • Huitzmil speaking about how he crossed from Mexico to USA and the challenges he faced
  • Andres Posada from Colombia speaking about how he arrived to the UK and the challenges he faced as a migrant
  • Mini market
  • Acoustic set by Hugh Vivian from the anarcho punk band Omega Tribe

Menu

  • Marinated lamb style seitan , vegetable escabeche, pineapple, tomatillo salsa , avocado
  • Drunken fish pieces cooked in tequila , chilli and coriander , vegetable escabeche and charred salsa.
  • Beer battered Oyster mushrooms , guacamole, escabeche
  • Nachos :Freshly fried corn tortillas, spicy smokey beans , jalapeños, shitake bacon and cheese sauce

Everything served on corn tortillas or house made flour tortillas.

And of course you can follow Black Cat Cafe on Instagram.

Extra note: if you cannot attend this event in support of Akwaaba but would like to donate to help the important work they do, please donate via their website.

New vegan chocolate

by

New vegan chocolate alert… and I have a discount code for it!

Fellow Creatures sent me their chocolate range for free, along with some information about the brand.

It is independent and LGBT-run. They pay 60% over market price to support cocoa farmers and their communities.

Isn’t that all just too fab?

If you go to fellowcreatures.co.uk and use code FATGAY at checkout, you get £5 off (minimum order £25) plus free shipping.

Buy all your festive chocolate needs in one place!

You can also find Fellow Creatures in Sainsbury’s and WH Smith.

Flavours include Raspberry White Choccy, Creamy Milkless Chocolate, Salted Caramel Choccy, Matcha White Choccy, and Creamy Hazelnut Chocolate.

The bars come in two sizes.

Yay for ethical chocolate! You can follow Fellow Creatures on Instagram.

Free stuff I got this week

by

Every now and then, I like to jump on here to share my latest haul of freebies.

I don’t get sent lots of stuff for free but it comes semi-regularly. I also get a few invites to dine with restaurants in exchange for sharing on my social media. I’ve included a few of those opportunities in this latest roundup.

First up, my mate Mirel and I were invited to try the menu at Holy Carrot. This swanky vegan restaurant is in the even swankier neighbourhood of Knightsbridge.

The menu is inventive and it was nice to have a change from burgers and fries. No, I haven’t gone off fast food but I do appreciate a change now and then.

Click on the original post below to scroll through out food photos.

Belle et Bleu is a vegan candle company based in Chesterfield, UK.

They sent me some super cute soya candles, all handmade in their home.

I’m not the biggest hot sauce fan but with a Mexican husband in the house, we have quite a few bottles on reserve at all times.

These bottles from Kumana were happily welcomed into our pantry!

The sauce is Venezuelan-born and is available via Ocado.

Another meal invite and this time it was from Follow Your Heart who wanted me to try a new brunch dish at Wulf & Lamb.

I adored this ackee toast topped with FYH Greek-style crumbles.

And more food!

Pizza Pilgrims invited me along to their Covent Garden restaurant to try their vegan pizza range.

I was pretty impressed and couldn’t get through them all, so had plenty of leftovers at home.

I love these illustrated vegan cooking cards I was gifted!

Artist Michi Mathias has crafted a stunning set of cards designed to guide people through the basics of quality vegan cooking in the home.

It has so many neat features including a fold out poster showing all the basics you should have in a vegan pantry.

If you don’t wanna wait until I get myself in order to post on here, the quickest way to see what I’m getting given for free is to follow me on Instagram.

Mini news round up podcast

by

The podcast is out this week and I drool on about Sunday roast dinners.

I also natter away about the new vegan social event I am starting next week. I hope some of you can make it along!

FGV mini news round up December 28, 2022 – final of the year – Fat Gay Vegan

As the year ebbs away join me for a chat about the tough task of going home, Whitney Houston, and vegan food on QANTAS planes.
  1. FGV mini news round up December 28, 2022 – final of the year
  2. FGV’s Mini News Roundup December 7, 2022
  3. FGV’s mini news roundup – news, views, and reviews from the plant-based world and beyond
  4. Fat Gay Vegan mini news roundup March 17, 2022
  5. FGV mini news roundup December 23, 2021 – vegan news and reviews

Wild food walk in London

by

Hey! How about a fun and informative wild food class that also raises funds for a crucial vegan charity?

Read more.

Saturday 18th December 2021

10:30am – 12:30pm

Cost

£40 (£30 concession/£12 unwaged).  All proceeds help fund the Made in Hackney community meal service which continues to provide free nutritious, tasty meals to households struggling to access food.

Location

Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, Southern Grove, Mile End, London E3 4PX (a short walk from Mile End Tube Station in E3)

Join wild food enthusiast, Ken Greenway, for a foraging experience at the amazing award-winning Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, one of London’s Magnificent Seven Victorian Cemeteries. Closed to burials since 1966 and a designated public park and Local Nature Reserve, the park has an extraordinary diversity of both woodland and meadow plants.

The event will include:

  • A guided walk to safely identify wild foods and enjoy samples of the plants along the way
  • Tips on where and how to forage
  • Learning to identify edible plants
  • Take samples home to turn into your own wild creations
  • Information on the health benefits of wild foods
  • Opportunity to ask Ken questions
  • Digital foraging info recommended by the park supplied after the walk 
  • Numbers limited to 15 with Covid-19 safety guidelines in place


Ken Greenway is site manager of THCP and is also an accredited Humanist celebrant, Horticulture Manager for Grounded Ecotherapy and the course leader on Forage London’s event ‘Wild Food, Wild Nature’. Ken studied Environmental Biology at the University of Greenwich and has worked at THCP since 2002 where he has developed his intimate knowledge of the site as well as his passion for wild food and foraging. Ken is also a Come Dine with Me winner!

Fee: £40 (£30 Concession/£12 unwaged*) inclusive of VAT. Please come weather-prepared (the class will not be cancelled in case of wet weather).

Doesn’t this all sound wonderful?

Learn about foraging from an expert AND raise funds for this community kitchen that works hard to feed vulnerable people in our community.

Click here to read more and book your spot.

Saag aloo recipe for vegans

by

I recently told you about a new vegan cooking guide called RootyFuel.

Available as a 7-day e-book or a 31-day fully supported collection of videos and recipes, RootyFuel is designed to help you get to grips with down to Earth vegan cuisine.

It has been designed to help vegan and vegan-curious cooks learn what works best for them in their own kitchens.

To celebrate the end of a competition I was running for RootyFuel (winner announced soon), I am thrilled to be sharing their recipe for vegan saag aloo.

Be sure to follow RootyFuel on Instagram and head to their website to see if their curses are right for you or a friend.

Saag Aloo

Serves 2

Ingredients

  • 300g new potatoes
  • 150g baby spinach leaves
  • 200g frozen peas
  • 4tbsp tinned coconut milk
  • 1 red chilli
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 knob ginger
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 vegetable stock cube made with 150ml boiling water
  • 1 tsp nigella seeds
  • 1/2 tbsp curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
  • 1/2 tsp of ground tumeric
  • 1tbsp coconut oil

Method

  • Slice the new potatoes into quarters then Boil for 10 minutes or until cooked Place the spinach in a colander and pour boiling water over to wilt then run under cold water
  • Once the spinach has cooled squeeze the water out of it
  • Cook the peas according to packet instructions
  • Place the coconut oil into a pan with the cumin seeds on a medium heat for 2 minutes or until they become fragrant
  • Add the ginger and garlic, curry powder and turmeric, tomato paste and coconut milk (just use the film milk from the top of the can
  • Add the cooked peas and potatoes
  • Cook for 3-4 minutes then add the spinach
  • Cook for 2 minutes
  • Serve with nigella seeds and fresh sliced chilli on top
  • If you don’t like it too hot leave the chilli out

Follow RootyFuel on Instagram

Online vegan cooking course WIN WITH FGV

by

Are you interested in delicious, down-to-Earth, and easy to make vegan food?

If you answered YES you will be very interested to learn more about @rootyfuel and their practical vegan cooking courses that take the guesswork out of plant-based food preparation.

AND I am also giving away two copies of the @rootyfuel 7 Days of Plant Power e-book so stick around until the end.

Rootyfuel is an interactive online cooking school that equips you with all the tools and support you need to become a confident vegan food creator in your own kitchen.

Available as a 7-day e-book or the full 31-Days of Plant Power course, Rootyfuel gives you easy-to-follow recipes, video tutorials, shopping lists, and meal plans that will make bringing plant-based meals into your life easier than you thought.

It’s a vegan cooking course that will get you up to speed with preparing vegan breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks without leaving your own kitchen!

Follow @Rootyfuel to find out how you can subscribe to either the 7 or 31 day courses. Both courses would make a perfect gift.

COMPETITION

I am giving away a copy of the 7-Days of Plant Power e-book to one winner and their friend! Read the rules below and get entering.

To enter:

– Follow both @fatgayvegan and @rootyfuel on Instagram
– Tag a friend in the comments under this post
– Enter multiple times by tagging a different account each time

T&Cs:

– Winner and their tagged friend will be picked at random by @fatgayvegan to receive a copy of the 7-Days of Plant Power e-book
– All entrants must be over 18
– Closing date is midday on Monday 22nd November and the winners will be contacted within 24 hours

Learn to cook irresistible yet simple vegan food with @rootyfuel