Vegan Vox Reviews...Amy's Kitchen Rice Mac & Cheeze

I love Mac'n'Cheese. I missed it so much when I became vegan. Sure, I have made cheesy style sauces with nutritional yeast, but they never tasted quite like the real thing. Then I found Amy's Kitchen Rice Mac & Cheeze and I'm back in love!

The texture and taste are spot on, the sauce is the right thickness and creamy. It's made using Daiya cheese from the USA and is gluten-free and soy-free too! It is also Vegan Society Certified. The only downside is that is it expensive - around £3 for a small portion, which would only serve as a side dish or a snack. Obviously you could make your own for much cheaper, but this wins on the taste front.

Amy's Kitchen products are available from selected supermarkets, health food shops and online.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

Vegan Vox Reviews...The 100% Vegan Shop in Birmingham

Some of you may remember last summer I reviewed a little vegan shop in Birmingham called The One Earth Shop. Well, they sadly closed down a few months ago but it has now reopened with a brand new owner, new design, new name and new products... I give you... The 100% Vegan Shop in Birmingham!

I went along recently to meet with Ray, the owner, and to see what the new shop offered.

Ray took over the lease for the shop around Christmas and opened the store at the beginning of February, 2014. The inside of the shop has had a make over, with the counter being moved, a new hot food display and lots of new stock. Ray wanted to create a shop which sold the type of vegan products he would like to be able to buy, not just whole foods, pulses, seeds and nuts (although he does sell these too!). The great thing about the whole food items he does sell is that he portions them up himself into packets which are the perfect size for a meal or two rather than you having to buy a 1kg bag of pulses. He is very aware of the other vegan delights that are available nearby and leaves those foods to the experts. For example, the store is a few minutes walk from the fabulous fresh fruit and veg markets and Birmingham's Chinese Quarter. For this reason, Ray doesn't sell fresh fruit, fresh vegetables or many types of tofu as they are all available competitively so close by. He does, however stock those hard to find (in Birmingham) vegan ingredients and snacks, like Henderson's Relish, Space Bars, Amy's Rice Mac & Cheeze, 25 different types of vegan cheeses, vegan steaks, nutritional yeast, Pudology, whipped cream, good organic teas and coffee, Razzle Dazzle Ices, vegan Bakewell Tarts, cupcakes, snack wraps, sos rolls and good vegan chocolate. He also stocks vegan and eco friendly household products such as bamboo toothbrushes, cleaning products, toiletries and even vegan guitar straps!

Ray is very passionate about his business and is open to suggestions, if there are vegan ingredients, snacks, food items or household items which you would like to get hold of, he will try and source them for you, and will look at importing goods not yet sold in the UK if there is enough interest.

There are a range of vegan pastries, wraps, hummus and cakes delivered in fresh several times a week, and whilst I was there I was given a gorgeous Banana Choc Chip Muffin to sample :-)

Here are some of the items I purchased whilst on my visit:

So if you are in the Birmingham area and fancy a quick snack, some lunch, some ingredients for tonight's dinner or just to say hi to a lovely friendly vegan shopkeeper, pop over to The 100% Vegan Shop, located next to The Warehouse Cafe - a vegetarian restaurant with vegan options, in Allison Street, Digbeth, Birmingham, B5 5TH.

You can also follow the shop on Twitter 

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

The Ordinary Vegan - Innocent Veg Pots

This week on TOV, I'm looking at convenience food. I have hardly been at home over the last few weeks as I am caring for a terminally ill family member, and it is at times like this when we may not have the time or inclination to cook that we turn to convenience food. Whilst we know convenience food is usually not very good for us and full of processed rubbish, I have found Innocent Veg Pots to be a vegan friendly convenience food without the rubbish. They contain no artificial colourings or flavourings. They are low in fat and high in fibre and taste lovely.

These pots are healthy, full of fresh ingredients, they can be microwaved, warmed in a pan over the hob or even over a fire or BBQ. They contain 3 of your 5-a-day and 80-90% of your fibre GDA. All of the ingredients are vegetables, grains and spices.They come in 8 different varieties and are Vegetarian Society approved. They are labelled as suitable for vegans and are available at all major supermarkets. They retail for around £3.90 each but can be found on offer at the moment for £2.00 each at Tesco and 2 for £6.00 at Sainsbury's. So, they are not cheap but they are healthy and convenient and are a better option than going to a takeaway.

I have tried the Mexican Chilli and Indian Daal in the last week and they were both delicious! If home cooked vegan food is more your thing, come back tomorrow for another Vegan Recipe of the Week.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

The Ordinary Vegan - Tesco Vegetable Grills

Tesco Everyday Value Vegetable Grills are a great freezer staple to have in. 

They are labelled as vegan on the box and are a patty made up of potato and mixed vegetables and contain no artificial preservatives, flavours or colours. They can be grilled, oven cooked or barbecued so are really versatile and go with lots of things.

For example, we have them in a homemade bun with a vegan cheese slice and salad, or as a main meal with salad and vegan cauliflower cheese. 

I also sometimes have them chopped up with some vegetable rice and BBQ sauce. Delicious! They are only £1 from Tesco for a box of four. Let me know in the comments below what your freezer staple go-to item is.

If you prefer home cooking from scratch come back tomorrow for another tasty Vegan Recipe of the Week.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

The Ordinary Vegan - Falafel

This week, The Ordinary Vegan is all about falafel. This Middle Eastern dish , originally from Egypt is sold in the Middle East as street food and is popular throughout Lent and Ramadan when some people give up meat, therefore it is a perfect ordinary vegan food. Now this dish has become popular in the UK at street markets, food vans, restaurants, take-aways, ready-to eat and even 'make your own' packets in supermarkets. Many of the street vendors actually have 'vegan' written on the side of the stall or van or on a board nearby, but some do not advertise it as vegan so just ask. Every street vendor I have seen selling falafel has been vegan. Falafel is usually made from chickpeas and flour with herbs and spices, which are then shaped into balls and deep fried in vegetable oil. It is often served in a pitta bread with salad and sauces or just with salad, on even just eaten alone. They make a tasty on-the-go snack and are great for sandwiches and picnics. Falafel is great value too, at around £1-1.50 per box mix. Click on the product pictures for product information and links. They can be purchased from most major supermarkets and health food shops.

You can buy packets such as these to make at home in around 10 minutes:

Or you can buy them from the supermarket ready to eat such as these:

There are a few of the new flavoured varieties which contain milk/milk powder so please check the packets before buying. Even better you can make them yourself from scratch. If cooking from scratch is more your thing, come back tomorrow for the Vegan Recipe of the Week.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx