Kettle Brand Maple Bacon And Sweet & Salty Potato Chips

These Maple Bacon and Sweet & Salty chips from Kettle Brand have cause a bit of a stir, specifically the Maple Bacon ones. Why? Because the Maple Bacon Chips are Vegan. Yes, some Vegans are upset that "bacon" is a Vegan flavor. I tend to be a pretty non-judgmental Vegan and I even enjoy the flavor of fake bacon in seitan, tempeh and now chips. As long as the flavor is created without harming an animal, why are you complaining? Go whine about something else while you type on your non-Vegan computer. Anyway...

So let's start this off with the Maple Bacon chips on the left. Do they really taste like bacon? There's definitely a hint, but I would align it closer to a BBQ chip. I do like it! It's sweet with a little bit of tang and some bacon inspired smokiness. Even if you are not a bacon fan, you're not going to cringe at the taste of these. I'm going to say the bacon name is mostly for marketing purposes. Good for Kettle for taking a bacon chip and making it Vegan!

Now, let's talk about the more innocent Sweet & Salty chips on the right. I find them really interesting. It's a basic potato chip that has been sprinkled with a sweet and salty coating. Pretty tasty actually, they remind me of sweet corn. The sweetness is restrained and doesn't take over the traditional potato chip flavor. They're probably best on their own, but I could imagine them tasting good with some Vegan sour cream dip.

Thank you to Kettle for making these flavors of potato chips Vegan! They didn't have to, and I certainly appreciate it.

The Laziest Vegans Top Ten Asks Gary Loewenthal

Gary Loewenthal is the central brain behind the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale. The WVBS is a Vegan bake sale hosted by different groups all over the world, occurring between April 23rd to May 1st. In the first two years, the WVBS has donated $65,000 to different charities. Gary is also behind the non-profit Compassion For Animals. From Veganizing recipes on popular non-Vegan foodie websites, to doing good old fashioned vegan outreach on the streets of Virginia, Gary is a tireless advocate of Vegan food activism (and bunny rabbits!) But what kind of frozen dinner does he like?

What is your favorite veggie burger?

Any vegan burger from a burger joint that has a veggie option. The ready-made ones in the deli section of Whole Foods. I fear they're tasty because they're full of oil. Can I put in a plug for homemade veggie burgers? They're way under-promoted IMHO, and suitable for lazy cooks. Basically you mix everything together in a bowl, shape them into patties, then fry, bake, or broil them. There's a huge variety of recipes online and in cookbooks, so you're almost guaranteed to find one or three that you think are delicious.

What is you favorite frozen dinner?My wife and I probably rely a little too much on frozen Boca Chik'n Patties and Nuggets. But they're so handy! You can serve them open-face, on a bun, with barbecue sauce or secret sauce (Veganaise and Dijon mustard), topped with lettuce, tomato, and red onion, you can chop them up and put them on top of a salad - and much more!

What is your favorite ice cream?Purely Decadent with Coconut Milk - it's so rich and creamy!

What is your favorite chip or cracker?I know this is pedestrian, but I keep coming back to Saltines. Maybe it's because they're so neutral. Peanut butter, non-tuna salad, and everything else goes great with them. I like other flavors though, and buy them randomly.

For chips – Kettle brand; they’re so crispy! Addictive, too!

What is your favorite cereal?I like them all – I’m a cereal enthusiast! Various varieties of Bare Naked Granola are current favorites, but it changes over time. I find a midnight snack of Grape Nuts after a stressful day to be very grounding.

What is your favorite candy?The Go Max Go candy bars are rock stars, but I also like any bar that’s dark chocolate mixed with some other flavor – mint, lavender, raspberry, doesn’t matter – and dark chocolate assortments like you get in a gift package; those are fun.

What is your favorite cookie?I love anything homemade or bakery-made, but I haven’t found one packaged vegan cookie that I like. Friends say “You’ve got to try [fill in the blank], they’re so good!” And I try them and I’m like “eh.” For me, the gap between store-bought and homemade is huge. Possibly that was a subconscious reason for starting the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale – I wanted the public to see how good vegan cookies and other baked delights could be.

What three pre-packaged food items would you take to a desert island?After I built my water purifier, I would want organic peanut butter, whole wheat matzoh, and mandarin oranges.

Name a product you would like Veganized?Girl Scout cookies – all flavors. Imagine if every March, all the tables selling Girl Scout cookies outside grocery stores were totally vegan. What a great run-up that would be to the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale!

What are your favorite local and/or online stores for Vegan products?I’m biased toward Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe and Food Fight! Grocery because I’ve been to the stores and met the owners and they’re awesome! For things like shoes where I have to shop in person, it’s Pangea in Rockville, Maryland. Shout-out to all vegan stores everywhere, many of which have hosted bake sales!

I love supporting all local businesses that add vegan products. And an all-vegan Loving Hut restaurant just opened about a mile from my house, so I‘ll probably be a regular for life.

And that concludes The Laziest Vegans Top Ten. Thanks Gary!

Super Bowl of Nachos!

**Update 12/19/11**

It seems Nacho Mom's used some unethical business practices against Food For Lovers. Please think twice before purchasing Nacho Mom's. http://lazysmurf.wordpress.com/2011/12/16/did-nacho-mama-steal-food-for-lovers-queso-recipe/

Growing up in Nebraska, I was a hardcore Cornhuskers fan (which is pretty much law out here) and then in my teenage years I got into the Washington Redskins. I'm not into football these days and honestly I couldn't tell you the last Super Bowl I watched (I have a feeling it involved the Cowboys and it was the 90's). So I find myself in a strange situation where I'm having a Super Bowl party (thanks Veganette). I don't really care about the game but I do care about the food! Nacho Mom's generously sent 2 jars of their Vegan Queso for me to test drive. And since I had so much luck with Kettle Tias! Salsa Picante Chips, I decided to dip the Queso with Kettle Tias! Roasted Corn Chips. Let's get this Queso heated up and let the games begin!

So I warmed up Nacho Mom's Ultimate Vegan Queso and Fire Roasted Queso and did a little taste testing. The Ultimate Vegan Queso lives up to it's name! Rich Cheesy flavor with a kick. I only used it for dipping but I'm sure they would be great in tacos. The Fire Roasted Queso was delicious too but I'll give the Ultimate Vegan Queso the crown.

Kettle Brand Tias! Roasted Corn Tortilla Chips turned out to be the perfect Queso dip chip! They seem like a higher quality than your normal restaurant style nacho chip. I'm hoping they branch out and throw in some more Vegan flavors in there!

Kettle Tias! Salsa Picante Chips

Sometimes a product is so awesome I jump in the air and high five the invisible Vegan gods. This bag of Kettle Tias! Salsa Picante Chips is such an example. I noticed the colorful bag in the chip aisle and just assumed they weren't Vegan. To my delightful surprise they were animal product free!

When I got home I had to know how good these things were. I mean, are they Doritoish? Do they have any flavor? Did I waste my money? Well Kettle hasn't failed me yet so I opened the bag optimistically. From the first bite I knew these were the chips I was waiting for. The cheesy spiciness hit me and sent me back to my 4th grade lunch room. These are the closest to Vegan Doritos without a doubt. I'm going to start 2011 with a new favorite chip!

Congrats Kettle, please keep them coming!

Love,

John

C.H.I.P.S.

Some random trivia about me: I take my lunch to work everyday and I always have chips. Ever since I can remember I've been around chips. Growing up I loved Fritos, Bugles and Cheetos and as a teenager I worshiped Funyuns and Chili Cheese Fritos. Nowadays I try to buy natural and (obviously) Vegan snacks. I complied a little list of my favorites, I hope you enjoy. Let me know what you like!

Pirate Brands: Tings

I remember Whoa Wren told be about Tings. I've been waiting for a Vegan Cheeto for the longest time and this is the closet I've seen.

Food Should Taste Good: The Works

In the last year I've been tearing these things up! The Olive flavor was my first love but The Works is the new lick. I think of them as half cracker/half chip and all good!

Lundburg Bean & Rice Chips: Pico de Gallo

Normally I would stay away from chips like this because I just assume they aren't Vegan. BUT they say Vegan right on the back! Pretty awesome. These are some spicy tangy chips...I'm making my mouth water!

Popchips: Sea Salt & Vinegar Potato

These are pretty new on my radar. I love the vinegar ones and the salt and pepper ones.

Newman's Own Organic: Pretzels

A lot of Newman's stuff is Vegan which is great because you can find the stuff at normal grocery stores. I think the pretzels are great and I'll give my Aunt Julie credit for buying them like 15 years ago. Ahead of her time!

Kettle Baked Potato Chips: Salt & Pepper

A long time fan of the Salt & Pepper Chips, I'm giving the Baked Salt & Pepper the spotlight since they are 65% less fat and my girlfriend likes them.

Garden of Eden: Blue Chips

I always talk about O.G. stuff and these blue chip are definitely one of the first things I ever bought at Wild Oats. I was intrigued by a "blue" chip and overnight they became my replacement for the normal yellow supermarket nacho chip.