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!

So Delicious Candy Corn & Pumpkin Spice Frozen Desserts

Along with the Coco Whip, So Delicious sent these awesome Halloween treats! Candy Corn & Pumpkin Spice Coconut Milk Frozen Desserts. Halloween-specific treats are always going to catch my attention. These just scream fun and I couldn't wait to try them out. I found them at my local Whole Foods the other day, so be on the lookout in your area!    

The Candy Corn pop was the most elaborate and my favorite of the two. The tip is dipped in chocolate followed by vanilla then orange flavored ice cream. It was dreamy! This honestly should be sold year-round, but maybe I'll appreciate it more (like the nog) if they take it away after Halloween. A Vegan work of art.

The Pumpkin Spice pop was excellent as well, but very simple. The flavor is definitely pumpkin (shockingly) but it's a pumped up pumpkin. Sure, a little chocolate dip would have been nice, but pumpkin lovers will go gaga. The cute shape is appreciated.

Thank you again to So Delicious for sending me all of these seasonal goodies (including the nog, which is in non-refrigerated packaging this year.) The key to Veganism is to make it fun and inviting and I can't think of a better way that Halloween treats. Keep up the good work, I can't wait to see what you come up with next!

Zen Almond Milk Chocolate Pudding...And Introducing Gloopie®

I loved pudding growing up. Whether it was homemade or out of a lunch box, I had an appetite for all of it. My newest favorite pudding is the Zen Chocolate Almond Milk Pudding. It's chocolaty, rich, smooth and creamy. I really love it! Let's just say I have almost enough UPCs to get the free t-shirt. So now you know that I love it right out of the cup, but I'm going to let you in on my little secret: one day I was eating vanilla ice cream and I wanted some kind of topping. For some reason I thought of putting the pudding on top of the ice cream, and.... Gloopie® was born.

I know what you're thinking, "John, this is madness, it can not be done!" Yes, it was no small feat to think outside the box and combine two of the world's most loved desserts. The ice cream I currently have on hand is the new So Delicious Vanilla Almond Milk. It was kinda nice to taste almond on almond, but I've also tried the Soy Creamy Vanilla and it's equally as good.

Here is Gloopie® in all its glory. The chilly ice cream covered in rich chocolaty goodness. It's pretty decadent if I do say so myself. I know it's a bold step and some of you are not ready to take the leap. If and when the time comes, I just want you to know that I'm here for you. Gloopie® forever!

So Delicious Almond Milk Ice Cream Minis

I'm back with some more So Delicious Almond Milk goodness! Today we are looking at the Almond Milk Vanilla Minis and the Mocha Almond Fudge Minis. Nothing against coconut and soy, but I've been really happy with the almond ice cream. I guess what I'm saying is that even though So Delicious sent me all of this great stuff, I'll be the first in line when it's on sale here in Omaha.

Let's start with the Vanilla Minis! I'm a sucker for vanilla ice cream bars dipped in chocolate and these are no exception. The chocolate shell was rich and delicious and the ice cream was classic vanilla. I had one problem with both bars, the chocolate fell off of the bars or was already broken in the packaging. It could be how my bars were shipped or some other anomaly. Either way, it wasn't the biggest deal, just something I noticed.

The Mocha Almond Fudge Minis were a delightful as expected. It's the coffee-chocolate tinged ice cream that I already reviewed with the added bonus of dipped chocolate and almond coating. I love the crunchy, nutty texture of the chocolate, it's almost like two desserts in one! I'm gonna predict that these won't last long in your house.

So this brings me to the end of So Delicious's Frozen Almond Milk selections! Tomorrow I'll be looking at So Delicious new Almond Milk beverage. Life is good :)

So Delicious Almond Milk Ice Cream

A couple of days ago I received two mammoth boxes from So Delicious. Inside were all of So Delicious's new Almond Milk offerings. Today I'm delving into the Almond Milk Ice Creams.

Butter Pecan- I don't like nuts in ice cream but this has to be my first exception. Tasty pecans surrounded by rich butterscotch ice cream. Really good, rich, caramel flavor. I'm sure Butter Pecan fans will approve!

Vanilla- No surprise here, the Vanilla is delish. Dare I even say I like it as much as the Soy Vanilla? It's definitely in the same class.

Chocolate- Chocolate is probably my least favorite ice cream in general. I liked this well enough though, just nothing I would eat on a regular basis.

Cherry Amaretto- I'm really diggin' the Cherry Amaretto! I'm gonna go on limb and say I like it better that the coconut stuff. It's a cherry explosion! Lots of tart, sweet, juicy cherries in a creamy almond ice cream.

Mocha Almond Fudge- Coffee ice cream with a hint of cocoa, with lots of toasty almonds and a ribbon of fudge. Someone finished this off in a day. Not naming names.

Overall I enjoyed the Almond flavors. I fact, I may preferred it to the coconut and soy counterparts. At the end of the day I'm excited that there is yet another Vegan alternative!

G.S. Gelato Blood Orange Sorbetto

Just a routine leisurely stroll to our neighborhood Hy-Vee grocery store revealed something very yummy in the frozen section. I noticed this pint of Blood Orange Sorbetto from G.S. Gelato. Flipping the pint around to look at the ingredients, I was happy to see the big V. I always assume that sorbet is Vegan and legit, but it's nice to see a company write Vegan on the packaging.

I tend to like most sorbets, but this stuff is A-MA-ZING! Let it melt a bit and it gets creamy as all get out. The flavor was pure and delightful. The citrus from the orange is intense and it tastes really fresh. I have no doubt G.S. Gelato uses high quality ingredients because you can taste them. This might be the best sorbetto I've ever had. If you see it in the stores make sure give it a try, I have a feeling you'll fall in love!

Good Karma Organic Rice Divine Very Vanilla Bars

I'm still on my streak of frozen rice milk desserts and my next conquest is the Good Karma Organic Rice Bar, specifically the Very Vanilla flavor. As far back as I can remember, I've been addicted to what we call in these parts "Star Bars". That is, vanilla ice cream bars dipped in chocolate. So let's take it back to 1986 and grub down on some ice cream bars!

If we took the Pepsi Challenge and put the Good Karma Bars against traditional chocolate covered dairy bars, I'd bet the Good Karma ones would win. They taste surprisingly refreshing. The chocolate is rich and crispy and the ice cream vanilla-y. You might notice a slight rice taste but this jaded Vegan reviewer finds it delicious. So be on the look out for this yummy frozen treat!