If you missed out on September’s London Vegan Potluck, I am sorry to say you also missed out on one of the best vegan dessert products to ever be available in the UK.But don’t be too sad… Pudology tubs are spreading across the country like wildfire.
Dairy-free desserts are becoming increasingly common, but not much of the market can claim to be anywhere near as delicious as these creations. Pudology make their mouthwatering puds in chocolate, strawberry and banoffee flavours.
My personal favourite is the chocolate. You know when something is sweet, creamy, smooth and irresistible all at the same time? Enough said. When Pudology samples were available at the potluck, the banoffee flew off the shelves and many attendees were singing some fairly extravagant praises for the dessert.
FGV eating PudologyDelicious vegan desserts
Grab some of these vegan and gluten free wonders today from Goodness Directand Selfridges.
I am a bad vegan. In all of my time in London, I have never made the effort to drag my ample frame to Manna in Primrose Hill.
What? You don’t know what Manna is?! It’s a good thing my friend Julie Hamill took a recent excursion to this world-famous vegan restaurant and has dropped by to tell you all about it. You would have been waiting an awfully-long time if you were depending on me getting there.
Visit Julie online to read some of here fabulous Morrissey-related interviews and of course follow her on Twitter where she runs the weekly MozArmy quiz… that’s right, a weekly Twitter quiz about Morrissey.
The London Vegan Potluck stormed back into the capital this week and the food was on another level of awesome. New vegan dessert champions Pudology were on board as sponsors to add to the enjoyment.
Because I was too busy eating on the night, my dear friend Cookie Von Stir has kindly dropped in to show you what you missed.
There is one thing I have discovered during my chubby, queer life. If we do not shop at (and support) independent vegan businesses, they will disappear.
Business life is tough enough for small businesses and even harder for the vegan variety. You have got to be extra resilient when you are cruelty-free. You sell to a niche market (admittedly getting larger) and you often have all sorts of accusations and prejudices fired your way, some sadly even from within the vegan community.
One of the true champions of the do-it-yourself vegan scene is the decadently-delicious Ms. Cupcake of Brixton. This one-of-a-kind compassionate bakery pumps out glorious sugary treats and has gotten to the point where it is today through the sheer grit, determination and ferocious hard work of founder/owner/Chief Cupcaker Mellissa Morgan.
Ms Cupcake during the grand opening of the Brixton bakery
In just a few years, Mellissa has moved from humble beginnings selling her homemade wares at London markets to owning her own bakery that employs multiple staff members. Mellissa is a huge contributor to local animal charities and her surrounding communtiy. She has time and time again proven herself as an award-winning business person and highly-decorated baker.
But like every hardworking, independent business owner, Mellissa sometimes needs the help of her supporters and the broader community to get over hurdles as they present themselves. Namely financial hurdles.
The next stage in development for the Ms. Cupcake bakery is to offer frozen goods such as pre-packaged vegan ice cream, cheesecakes and their own frozen creations. The problem with frozen food however is that is requires a freezer to be stored in…. and there isn’t a freezer in Ms. Cupcake.
This is where you come in.
Ms. Cupcake is taking the fan-funded route to raise enough money to make the much-needed purchase. Mellissa is asking for donations from supporters in order to get her freezer and is even offering incentives to people willing to help out.
For a £5 donation you get a kiss from Ms. Cupcake herself. £10 will get you a cupcake and a kiss. Or you could splash out and show your commitment to helping small business with a £50 donation and be rewarded with a kiss, a cupcake, a tub of vegan ice cream AND a £10 voucher to spend at the shop!
Get behind this fundraising drive if you want to support a local business and help keep them away from nasty bank loans. Get behind it if you want to help a vegan business grow. Get behind it if you want to help Mellissa to be able to keep employing a large number of staff. In the long run, your donation will ultimately help Mellissa carry on with all of her charitable and community interactions that she is loved for.
And finally…. get behind this campaign if the thought of cupcakes topped with ice cream makes you do a happy dance.
Isn’t the word ‘flapjack’ a bizarre thing? Where on Earth does it come from? I would love to know the etymology of the word flapjack. Answers on the back of a Morrissey postcard, please.
While I sit back and wait for the mountains of mail adorned with pictures of the Mancunian poet, I might as well inform you of a delicious vegan flapjack I discovered on a recent food expedition.
This guest post was written by Rachel Cousins from hungryhouse, the UK’s leading online takeaway platform that features restaurants across the country including Glasgow, Birmingham and Nottingham. I’ve used this service in the past to order from the vegan menu at The Grove Cafe in Leeds.
Rachel gives a fantastic overview of the recent Vegan & Vegetarian Summer Festival in Berlin. It sounds like a lot of fun and only increases my desire to visit this city.
In some parts of the world, it can be a struggle to be a vegan.
If you are located a long distance from a major city, plant-based foods and cruelty-free supplies can be difficult to track down let alone finding a vegan social event in your neighbourhood. London spoils me for choice, but I never forget what it was like to live in smaller, less vegan-friendly locations. Heck… I was even situated (for a short period) in Rockhampton, Australia. If you care to investigate, I believe you will discover Rockhampton is considered the beef capital of Australia.
For isolated vegans, the light at the end of the lonesome tunnel often takes the form of a local vegan/veggie support group. Likeminded individuals get together to share advice, recipes, food, friendship and interests. Your local support group can often be the only time your choice to be cruelty-free is taken seriously.
There are a huge number of veggie/vegan support groups all over the UK but as Leeds is close to my heart, I would like to focus on the Northern city for a moment… specifically the Leeds Vegetarians and Vegans group.
Pop-up Vegan Pizza Party is set to take London by storm on Saturday September 29, 2012. Be prepared for an evening of delicious dining on mouthwatering pizza, vegan cupcakes by award-winning bakery Ms. Cupcake and socialising in the centre of the vibrant and buzzing Brixton Market.
The evening will feature a huge selection of 16″ vegan masterpieces created by the talented purveyors of takeaway, Village Pizza. You will be treated to such tantalising flavours as Hickory Chicken, Spaniard and Tikka Surprise. These pizzas are huge and not to be missed if you are a serious vegan pizza lover.
But the eating won’t stop there!
Every ticket holder at the Pop-up Vegan Pizza Party will also get to choose a vegan cupcake from the glorious selection on offer in the Ms. Cupcake bakery. That’s correct… a whole lot of pizza AND a vegan cupcake of your very own.
The night will run from 8pm and the pizza will be served at specially-arranged tables inside Brixton Market. You will be enjoying your scrumptious feast as a Saturday night in the heart of Brixton comes alive all around you. Non-alcoholic refreshments will be on sale via Ms. Cupcake and there are currenty whispers of a vegan beer sponsor looking to keep revellers hydrated, too.
If a few hours of vegan pizza and cupcakes sounds like your idea of a good time, act quickly. £20 tickets (+ booking fees) to this feast are strictly limited. Click here to buy.
Do you remember when we all joined together as one vegan superpower and got Holland & Barrett to reverse their decision to not stock the Fry’s Vegetarian frozen vegan product range?
Fry’s Vegetarian original vegan burger
Well, we are about to flex our collective plant-based consumer muscle once again to ensure the same vegan food options are available all over the UK… in Sainsbury’s!
What is this campaign all about?
Consumers choose foods free of animal products for many reasons. Scientific evidence suggests the production of plant-based food contributes significantly less to environmental damage and climate change than animal farming.
Many religions require devotees to adhere to meat and dairy free diets during certain celebrations. People often choose a diet free of animal products for ethical reasons as they don’t agree with modern factory farming methods. Health is another major factor. A plant-based diet is completely free from cholesterol.
With plant-based food choices becoming increasingly popular amongst UK consumers, it is time for major food suppliers such as Sainsbury’s to answer this call for more vegan choices in their aisles. Brands such as Quorn and Linda McCartney have monopolised veggie shelves in UK supermarkets but very few of their items cater to people who want animal-free food. Quorn and Cauldron have the biggest presence of any veggie brands in the UK. The trouble is, they are the same company and clearly have little interest in serving the vegan community. Most of their products are not animal-free and those that are, are not even labeled suitable for vegans.
We don’t want egg in our food. We want burgers, pops, pies, schnitzels, sausages, sausage rolls, chunky strips and everything else made by Fry’s Vegetarian because it is all vegan!
Fry’s Vegetarian traditional vegan sausages
What can you do?
Click here to sign the petition to urge Sainsbury’s to carry vegan food by Fry’s. The petition will be sent to Sainsbury’s on your behalf.
Add extra steam to the campaign by emailing the following Sainsbury’s contacts to strengthen your request:
sarah.lich@sainsburys.co.uk Category Product Developer
alison.atkin@sainsburys.co.uk Buyer
richard.hall@sainsburys.co.uk Head of Frozen
andy.phelps@Sainsburys.co.uk Category Manager
Post a link to this page everywhere. Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest. Google+. Tumblr. Post it on message boards and your own blogs. Email it to family and friends and enemies. Get everyone you know to take one minute out of their day to sign the petition. Use any part of the text on this page in any way you see fit.
Leave a comment below letting us know if you have emailed/signed the petition/heard back from Sainsbury’s. Like all big businesses, they are not going to take notice unless we have big voices.
My recent trip to the gorgeous Mexican city of Xalapa was downright sensational. I enjoyed a long hike through coffee and banana farms, I took in the sights of the glorious Teocelo waterfall and I swam during a torrential tropical rainstorm.
Oh, I almost forgot. I ate a lot of vegan food, too.
The city of Xalapa in the state of Veracruz won’t win any awards for being vegan-friendly. Heck, I even passed a restaurant that proudly proclaimed ‘NO VEGETARIANO’ on its front sign. Yes, it can be difficult to eat plant-based in Xalapa but the addition of a Loving Hut to the landscape has certainly brightened the outlook.
Loving Hut in Xalapa, Veracruz
Loving Hut outlets are seemingly popping up everywhere and it is making vegan travel easier. After our gruelling day of hiking and sightseeing, Josh and I were desperately in need of some recharging. Loving Hut Xalapa came to the rescue in a big way.
