Celebrate Veganuary’s Finale with Purpose and Flavour
Join me for an exclusive, one-night-only dining experience at E3 Vegan, a proudly independent and celebrated restaurant nestled on Roman Road, East London.
This special supper club is your chance to savour an inventive three-course plant-based menu created by Head Chef Marc Joseph, formerly of the iconic Vanilla Black, London’s first vegetarian and vegan fine dining destination.
Born out of a love for sustainability and a passion for exceptional cuisine, E3 Vegan’s hyper-local, seasonal approach has made it a standout on the culinary map.
Last night I attended an event hosted by Viva!, the incredible animal rights campaign charity.
They surprised me by presenting me with the award for Best Vegan Blogger… for 2019! It was a very funny moment.
I apparently won this award six years ago but I mentioned to the charity a few months ago that I didn’t have a memory of the event. So they kindly and humorously went out of their way to reprint the award and frame it for me!
I’d like to send huge love to the Viva! team not only for this kind and funny act, but more importantly for all the incredible work they do for animals.
You can discover more about the work of Viva! online here.
If you think it feels like a long, long time since I’ve posted on the blog you are completely correct.
The reason I’m coming back to speak to you all after all this time is because it’s the end of 2023 and I’m inviting you to a celebration!
To celebrate this blog being alive and well again, I’m thrilled to announce that I’m hosting a vegan mini festive market in conjunction with vegan food charity, Made in Hackney.
Please join us in The Redmond Community Centre on Saturday December 16th, 2023 between 11am and 4pm for festive fun, gift shopping with local traders, tombola, live music, and time to socialise with friends old and new.
Drop in anytime across the day and say hi… we can’t wait to see you! The market is in support of all the crucial work Made in Hackney does around plant-based food security and nutrition.
Independent traders and stalls will include:
VG Coffee– selling hot drinks and hand held nibbles I AM NUT OK– award-winning plant-based cheeses perfect for your festive table Pinkeens Prints – gift ideas including hand-painted mugs in support of London wildlife conservation Ecotricity– chat with Britain’s leading ethically-sourced energy company Made In Hackney– chat with us about or community classes and masterclasses Citizen Cake – homestyle cakes and bakes Con Pasión Perú– cook-at-home Peruvian tamales and snacks Cake Cult– decadent cookies, cakes, and tray bakes Canopy Indoor Plants – plants and pots for you to buy for loved ones… or yourself! Copperhouse Chocolate – handmade artisan chocolates and chocolate drink mixes POH Books – specialist in African and Caribbean books for all ages… including vegan recipes! Singing Santa – the jolly old man will be on the mic singing your favourite pop songs
Extra note: FGV and Made In Hackney would like to thank Ecotricity for financially supporting this event. If you would like to find out more about this ethical energy supplier, click here for a quote. Ecotricity will kindly donate money to Made In Hackney for each new customer signing up via that link.
I was recently gifted this salted caramel vegan cheesecake by the kind and talented people behind @wildhealth_los café and cocktail bar in Leigh-on-Sea, Southend.
How on Earth did they get this hefty cheesecake to me in London? Wild Health now has a nationwide delivery service so you can get a dairy free, soy free, and refined sugar free cheesecake delivered to you.
My gifted cheesecake was DELICIOUS and I got a lot of slices from it.
And don’t forget to visit the Wild Health café next time you are in Southend for a huge range of tasty treats including coffee, juices, smoothies, soups, sandwiches, and more!
Oumph! is phasing out plastic in preference for recyclable cardboard packaging. The multi award-winning Swedish plant-based food producer is rolling out the new cardboard packaging into all markets where Oumph! is sold, starting with the UK, Australia, and the Netherlands.
“Our food is a progressive choice and we wanted the packaging to match that. With our new recyclable packaging the aim is to further further limit our environmental impact”, says Linda Arnason, Global Brand Manager at Oumph! which is one of the LIVEKINDLY Collective’s brands.
Arnason, who is leading Oumph!’s packaging project continues:
“There are certain challenges in creating a more sustainable packaging for frozen food, and we are pleased to announce that we’ve found a solution with recyclable cardboard packaging. Not only is it better for the environment, but we’re also receiving positive feedback from retailers because the packaging is easy to stack, and requires less freezer space.”
The new Oumph! packaging is now available in the UK, Australia, and the Netherlands, and will be rolled out in Sweden, the Nordic countries, Germany, Ireland and South Africa this spring.
The new packaging is designed to match Oumph!’s bold brand attitude, and it has received good feedback from consumers and retailers alike.
“Oumph! has an edge as a brand and we want that to be reflected in the packaging. We believe the new design will stand out in the supermarket freezers for consumers to easily find their favourite Oumph! product”, comments Anders ‘Ankan’ Linden, Co-founder, Corporate Chef and Head of Innovation at Oumph!
“With several new product launches planned for this year, the new cardboard packaging plays an important part as we continue to develop tasty, appealing and innovative plant-based food products.”
HUGE thanks to @stemandglory for sponsoring me to try their current menu today.
This 100% #vegan restaurant is usually an eye-opening and tastebud-pleasing experience, with today being no exception.
The kimchi pancakes and Korean ‘fish’ tacos were packed with flavour. I especially loved the mini blue corn tortillas for the tacos.
The large bowl of Szechuan aubergine (with side of kimchi rice) was a fascinating mix of sweet and spicy tastes.
Before today I’d never heard of Swede gnocchi and I was impressed. The creamy sauce featuring roasted chestnut mushrooms, spinach, and spiced walnuts took it to another level.
The @stemandglory dessert game is no joke, either. Pick from sticky toffee pudding with custard or warm cherry crumble with ice cream. Or be like me and get both.
Get over to stemandglory.uk to book a table at the London or Cambridge locations of @stemandglory and watch for a second London location soon.
Take a look at the Instagram video below to see all the delicious dishes!
As far as Veganuary menus go, this Danish bakery chain has torn ahead of the competition in the UK.
It’s that time of the year when us vegans get inundated with extra options. There are so many plant-based options in January it can be tough to stay on top of it all.
@oleandsteenuk sponsored me to come along to try their Veganuary menu and I was blown away.
The passionfruit slice was heavenly and mousse-y and I want ten more. The berry slice was just as delicious.
I slurped every last drop of the curried sweet potato and coconut soup.
Toasted focaccia sandwich with nduja paste, cheese, and spinach? Perfect.
And… the absolutely stunning raspberry and almond swirl pastry. My life is never gonna be the same. It is buttery and creamy and flaky and my new best friend. I ate two of them.
@oleandsteenuk has 15 London locations and one in Oxford.
Big thanks to @oleandsteenuk and their PR team for the invite.
Just in case you can see the text within the post above, here it is again.
Do you need easy to prepare vegan carbonara that is so foolproof even the most-challenged chef would succeed?
You gotta order this vegan carbonara kit from @pastaevangelists for home delivery. I’m not just saying that because they sponsored this post. It really is that fabulous.
Pasta Evangelists joined forces with award-winning plant-based meat producers @this.uk to recreate their Carbonara of Dreams for vegans.
Their creamy cashew sauce blends with crispy ‘bacon’ lardons from @this.uk to make a dish that is heavenly.
This kit can be ordered and delivered to your house THIS WEEK ONLY so hurry if you want it.
I’ve been helping legendary London restaurant Temple of Seitan for a little while now and the most common comments I see from customers when I’m hanging around their social media have to do with the North of the UK.
People really want to see a Temple of Seitan location up North.
I’m sorry if I got you excited and made you think there is now a full location of the famous food chain in the North, however you can buy and eat Temple of Seitan in Manchester, Leeds, and Liverpool as part of their collaboration with Yard & Coop.
Yard & Coop is not a vegan restaurant chain, so please use caution if you go sniffing around their website. You could stumble across animal-derived foods.
The vegan offerings however ARE gorgeous-looking and they all use Temple of Seitan chick’n.
Visitors to Yard & Coop can choose between:
AbraKEBABra – seitan with sweet pickled cabbage, diced tomato, minted yoghurt, chilli sauce, pickle chilli and crisp fries wrapped in pitta. All Veganuary dishes are served with a portion of fries
Karen’s Doing Veganuary – Temple of Seitan tenders accompanied with crispy bacon, street slaw, lettuce, tomato, BBQ sauce and vegan mayo
Massive Vegan Cock Burger – a 12″ plant-based version of the original Yard & Coop Massive Cock dish. Standing at 30cm tall, piled high with Temple of Seitan tenders, 2 hash browns, salt and pepper cauli flower, and street slaw. There’s also vegan bacon, cheese slices, lashings of chilli and mint yoghurt, iceberg lettuce, fresh tomato, gherkins, and red onion topped with a seitan wing perched on top. This monster is all crammed within a vegan brioche bun with loads of fries.
These Veganuary specials will not be around forever (until February 6, 2022) so if you are interested, get along to Yard & Coop in Manchester, Leeds, and Liverpool ASAP.
You can get all store location info as well as links for ordering delivery on the Yard & Coop website.
Yard Sale Pizzahas a new collaboration vegan pizza!
In celebration of Veganuary, the pizza shop has launched a vegan cheeseburger pizza in partnership with burger joint, Halo Burger. Additionally, as part of their Stuffed Crust Mondays, Yard Sale Pizza will be launching a very special vegan stuffed crust Margherita for January only.
Yard Sale Pizza and Halo Burger are celebrating a month of plant-based eating in a big way. You Had Me at Halo is a fully vegan creation which will feature Beyond Meat burger patties, gherkins, melted American-style vegan cheese, vegan mozzarella, jalapeños and diced onions, finished with Halo Burger’s signature sauce. The mozzarella comes courtesy of Hackney-based vegan cheese purveyors I Am Nut Ok, which has been developed in direct collaboration with Yard Sale Pizza co-founder and director Nick Buckland to be the perfect melting mozzarella for pizza, and is used across Yard Sale’s signature vegan pizza offering.
You Had Me at Halo will be available from 5th January until 1st February and will be priced at £12.50 for a 12” (or £23.50 for 18”) The pizza will be on offer at all Yard Sale locations for delivery and collection, and for dine-in at their Crofton Park, Crystal Palace, East Dulwich, Hackney Road, Leytonstone and Finsbury Park locations. A gluten free version will also be available, meaning everyone’s invited to get in on the action.
Halo Burger are popular producers of vegan junk food including burgers, pink salt fries, and soft-serve ice cream. Originally based in London, with branches in Shoreditch and Brixton, the brand has since expanded outside of the capital, with a Bristol location.
Speaking about the collaboration, Ross Forder, Founder of Halo Burger said, “Halo Burger has always been committed to perfecting the taste of vegan treats and we admire the Yard Sale Pizza team for their shared commitment to leading the charge when it comes to high-quality plant-based eating. We’re excited to be celebrating Veganuary with them with this limited edition pizza.”
Co-founder and director of Yard Sale Pizza, Nick Buckland, added, “It’s very important to us at Yard Sale Pizza that our vegan offerings aren’t just great vegan pizzas, but they’re banging pizzas that happen to be plant-based. Veganuary provides the perfect opportunity to do something special so we’re thrilled to be hooking up with our friends at Halo Burger to make a plant-based cheeseburger pizza – the ultimate new year treat!”
While You Had Me at Halo will only be available for January, Yard Sale Pizza’s is serving vegan pizzas forever! The brand boasts a full-time vegan menu featuring three vegan pizzas, a vegan cheese and garlic bread (with their signature Marmite topping as an option), and a vegan ice cream sandwich featuring cashew ice cream, smoky salted caramel and a corn and miso cookie.
