My Visit to Vegan Treats!

Ever since I became Vegan, I've had a list of holy grails I wanted to visit. Chicago Diner, Candle 79 and the Vegan Mini-Mall all got checked off a while ago. But the one place that has been eluding me is Vegan Treats in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. I've always wanted to go to Philly to run up the Rocky Steps so I knew Vegan Treats would happen eventually. You'll even remember I got the owner, Danielle Konya, to take The Laziest Vegans Top Ten.

But one thing you have to realize is that Bethlehem is 60 miles away from Philly and you are going to need a car. Or at the very least, have a good bus route. Luckily my buddy Louzilla picked me up at the airport and took me right to Vegan Treats.

Vegan Treats isn't a huge place, but the selection is! Tons of mini-cakes, cookies, donuts, rolls, cannoli, ice cream, etc. It's super overwhelming! I'm sure the employees see wide-eyed stares day in, day out.

 When I went, Halloween was just around the corner. Some really amazing mini-cakes. Works of art!

 Boo!

 Grrr.

The one thing I had been craving is their ice cream. Today their flavor was Chocolate and Cake. Such an amazing combo!

I've had their cannoli before from mail order and OMG, life changing! Delicious donuts too.

I had to say bye to Vegan Treats fairly quickly, but I bought a bunch of cookies to bring back to home for Omaha Vegan Drinks. Everyone loved them! Duh...

The amount of joy Vegan Treats brings to people is unreal. The fact that so many different kinds of dessert can be made Vegan is reassuring. I'm happy to finally say I've stepped through those doors. Make sure you make a point to visit soon!

Vegan Girl Scout Cookies 2014: Peanut Butter Patties & Lemonades

It's that time of year again when your local Girl Scout asks if you want to buy some cookies. Until recently, Vegans were left with little to no options to pick from. But thanks to ABC Bakeries, there are FOUR varieties of Vegan Girl Scout Cookies, that's twice as many as last year! At this rate, they'll all be Vegan in no time. A word of caution, some Girl Scout Troops get their cookies from Little Brownie Bakers and these are not Vegan, sorry! It will say on the order form if the cookies are Vegan. If you want a closer look at the Thin Mints and Thanks-A-Lots, check out my 2013 post. Now, let's take a look at the newbies, Peanut Butter Patties and Lemonades!

Peanut butter and chocolate? Count me in! You really can't go wrong with Peanut Butter Patties. I got a couple boxes anticipating that these would be my favorites, but strangely enough....

The Lemonades are my favorite! I thought these would be the lame duck out of the bunch, but no, they're the best! The best part is the lemon icing on the bottom of the cookie. I also love that it's an oversized cookie. They just seem fun to me. Lemony goodness!

So good luck finding Vegan Girl Scout Cookies! If you can't, here's a reminder to complain to Little Brownie Bakery HERE.

Lucy's Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

While sprucing up my blog for Vegan MoFo, I glanced at my sidebar and noticed Gluten Free was one of my top tags. I was pretty surprised because I don't go out of my way to eat Gluten Free; actually, I eat a lot of gluten! Maybe it's because a lot of Vegan food is Gluten Free by default, which is great for everyone.

On a semi-related note, Omaha recently got a Akin's Natural Foods Market so you know I scoped it out for Vegan goodies. What I found were these Gluten Free Lucy's Chocolate Chip Cookies, and I decided to put them to the Laziest Vegans chocolate chip cookie test. If I know anything, it's a good chocolate cookie. Would gluten free measure up?

My first thought was "Pleasantly Surprised!" I've had some Gluten Free cookies that were straight up blah and tasteless, but these were excellent. They reminded me a little of Chips Ahoy, right down to the crunch of the cookie. Some people prefer a moist cookie but I can go either way. The chips were crispy, sweet and decadent. If you gave me a blind taste test, I'd never guess this was a Gluten Free cookie. So Lucy's Chocolate Chip Cookie is a win-win for everyone: Vegan, Gluten Free and Nut Free!

Girl Scout Thin Mints and Thanks-A-Lot Cookies

If you're American, I'm sure you're just like me and you grew up with Girl Scout Cookies. It was a once a year event that you anticipated for months. Looking though the order form, picking your favorites -- it was a ritual. Recently, the Girl Scouts have introduced a couple of Vegan cookies (depending on your location) so that we can continue to partake in this annual tradition. The two Vegan options that were available in the Omaha area were the Thin Mints and the Thanks-A-Lots.

I always get a kick when I see the word Vegan out in the non-Vegan world. It normalizes the word and makes it a lot less threatening. So chances are your mom or grandma saw the word Vegan and automatically thought of you! But anyway, on to the cookies...

Good ol' Thin Mints! Yes, these were my favorites growing up, hands down. I remember demolishing rows of these. But what do I think now? They're still minty! As far as I can tell, the taste remains the same. They obviously didn't need the dairy ingredients to taste good. If you've been waiting for a Vegan Thin Mint, your dreams have come true!

I have no idea if Thanks-A-Lots were around when I was young, but I don't remember them. Thanks-A-Lot is a gingerbread cookie with the bottom dipped in chocolate. It's a nice contrast and perfect for someone who doesn't want a totally chocolate cookie, but wouldn't mind a dab. I thought they were good! They didn't have the emotional ties the Thin Mints had, but it's still a cute little cookie none the less.

So the good news is it's 2013 and the Girl Scouts are promoting Vegan cookies. And one of those cookies is their best seller, the Thin Mint! What amazing times we live in.

Alternative Baking Company Colossal Chocolate Chip Cookie

You would think that after doing this blog for 3 years now, there would be a post or two about Alternative Backing Company (or as I lovingly refer to them as, ABC) Cookies. Shockingly, there isn't. I really don't know why, because ABC Cookies were there at the beginning of my Veganism. You can always count on them to be at mainstream places like coffee shops or the airport. They've definitely saved my life a time or two! It's hard to pin down a favorite flavor, I mean off the top of my head I would say Simply Vanilla Bean (which is unfortunately discontinued at this time) but I also love Phenomenal Pumpkin Spice, Luscious Lemon Poppyseed, Peanut Butter Persuasion and of course old school Colossal Chocolate Chip.

Colossal Chocolate Chip is about as classic as you can get. A big ole' honking chocolate chip cookie! I think the secret to ABC's success is that their cookies don't taste healthy or, god forbid, "Vegan." For example, if my Dad were to have a bite of this cookie, he would be none the wiser to it's Veganness. It's just a good-ass cookie that everyone can enjoy. It's not low-fat or particularity healthy, but it's cholesterol free, you can pronounce all of the ingredients and it has zero trans fats, which is more than you can say for a typical chocolate chip cookie. If someone reads this and has yet to eat an ABC Cookie (doubtful, but possible) please make your way to the nearest ABC Cookie retailer and buy the whole collection. And don't forget to yell at me because you now have a cookie belly.

Teal Cat Project Valentine's Day Sampler from Obsessive Confection Disorder

Obsessive Confection Disorder and The Teal Cat Project have teamed up to create one of the cutest Valentine's Day boxes out there, The Teal Cat Project Valentine's Day Sampler! I've raved about OCD's Twix and Easter Veggs before, but now Melodi has brought cuteness to a whole new level. In this V-Day sampler you get 2 Mel's Ways, 2 Rose Petal Caramels, 2 Love Bomb Lollies and 4 Love Nips. A nice variety and something for everyone. But the best part is that 100% of the profits go right to The Teal Cat Project, a great organization that I'm proud to be a part of. Teal Cat Project takes used kitty tchotchkes, paints them teal, numbers them and then sells them off in campaigns. Then the proceeds go towards Cat Trap-Neuter-Return organizations around the United States. A great win-win this Valentine's Day! Let's look a little closer inside the box...     

You get 2 lavender & mint shortbread kitties with chocolate whiskers and 2 vanilla bean shortbread hearts dipped in chocolate. I've never had a lavender cookie before, but I'm here to tell you they are delicious. It's about time Meowmy (the Teal Cat Project mascot) had his own cookie, even if he got a little smushed  =^..^= 

OCD is known for their caramels and the Rose Petal Caramel lives up to the legend. Fresh rose petal tangerine caramel with bittersweet chocolate. And an interesting and eye catching addition are the 23-carat gold flakes within the caramel. I don't think I've ever consumed gold (there is a very funny David Cross joke on the subject), but honestly, if you didn't see it, you never would have known it was in there. So, it's a fancy touch that is sure to impress your significant other.

I know Mel's Way very, very well. It's basically a Vegan Milky Way (aka layers of nougat and caramel drenched in dark chocolate.) Rich and decadent just like you like it. Probably my favorite part of the box. 

And of course you can't have a Valentine's Day without a chocolate heart. In this case, it's the Love Bomb Lolly. A salted caramel pop dipped in bittersweet chocolate. I loved the sweet and salty mixture. Quite the treat...hopefully your loved one shares!

So, if you are in the market for some V-Day candy, make sure to take a look at The Teal Cat Project Valentine's Day Sampler. I think it has a lot of variety and I know it's produced with love. And the best part is that kitties will benefit from your choice!

Late July Vanilla Bean With Green Tea Cookies

Cookies are the best dessert! No, I'm not going to argue with you. One thing about being a Vegan, is that there is no shortage of cookies to choose from. My new cookie love is for the Late July Vanilla Bean Green Tea Sandwich Cookies. I used to be a big green tea drinker back in the day, so I was intrigued with how the flavor would represent in a cookie.

If you are expecting a crazy herbal cookie, you are out of luck. The green tea is just a minor note in a delicious sweet sandwich cookie, and I enjoyed it! The mixture of the vanilla bean, the chocolate cookie and the green tea extract is the perfect symphony of flavors. As you can see in the pic, I got a little almond milk to dunk the cookies in and they were sooo good soft. If you love the typical chocolate and vanilla sandwich cookies, give these green tea laced cookies a try. It's a flavor that you might not even know you like, but end up loving!

EatPastry Cookie Dough

Finally, after years of hearing how glorious EatPastry Cookie Dough is, I was finally able procure some! The two flavors I tried were Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip. If that isn't enough, Eat Pastry also makes Chocoholic Chip (that's double chocolate), Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip, Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip, Gluten-Free Snickerdoodle and Gluten-Free Sugar Momma. A flavor for every person!    

I really love the little tub it comes in, it'd cute like a little ice cream pint. Both doughs are yummy as advertised. Chocolate Chip tastes just like the stuff you grew up with. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip satisfied my PB sweet tooth. As you can see, the dough is very scoopable and fun. In fact, I challenge you to not eat the dough...it's impossible. There is no way humanly possible to not eat the dough. In fact, I think you will eat more dough than cookies. Well, maybe that's just me, but you get the point.

The end product! You don't have to be a natural born baker to bang these bad boys out (obviously). Is it blasphemy to say I enjoyed the dough more than the cookie? The cookies are good, and very delicious, but that dough is just so damn addictive. So maybe it's a win-win. Eat a lot of cookie dough and then make a couple of cookies. Either way, I'm thrilled there is pre-made Vegan cookie dough with every flavor you could want.

Eco Planet Vanilla Organic Cookies

If you haven't noticed by now, I'm a sucker for cookies. Be it my Mom's, Isa's, ABC's, Liz Lovely's ....whatever, I just love them. Writing this post reminded me how much I loved those animal cookies with the pink frosting. Holy crap were those ever good! Or the grasshopper cookies with green frosting. I vividly remembering bringing those to Kindergarten to share with the other kids. MMMM! Ok, all I guess I'm trying to say is that cookies are the best and you just need to realize that.

So that brings us to the Eco Planet Vanilla Organic Cookies. These have to be some of the most adorable cookies I've ever seen. Aimed at kids (or adults like me), the cookies are shaped in eco-friendly symbols. And the best part is that they taste awesome. Yummy vanilla wafers of goodness!

Aren't these cute or what! So you have the sun, I assume representing solar power. Next is the wind turbine representing wind power. Anytime I see one of those for real, I'm so amazed. I'd love to see more of our energy produced by the wind. There are a ton of those things in Iowa, not so much in Nebraska. Kind of a bummer. Anyway...cute cookie #3 is the electric car. Hopefully we'll all be driving one of these soon. Or walking. Or riding a bike. Whatever you prerogative is. And last but not least is Mother Earth. So not only are these wonderful tasting cookies, they are a great lesson about the environment.