London 2013

I've always wanted to go to England. Part of my being owes a debt to a place I've never been. So many of my favorite bands originated here (Pet Shop Boys, Iron Maiden, Carcass, Talk Talk, Pulp....I could go on forever) and my favorite TV show The Prisoner starts and ends in London. Also, the original Star Wars Trilogy was filmed at Elstree Studios. And most obvious, Veganism has its roots in England; the word was coined there in 1944. So in short, I've been waiting a long time to visit. Isa and I didn't get to do half of what we wanted to, but we'll have to come back soon. Here's a tiny recap of what we did get around to. If you've never been to England, hopefully this blog post encourages you to go. We were in London mostly, but I hear there are other Vegan-friendly cities in traveling distance.    

More than likely, you're gonna have to fly to England. Well, if you called ahead (and call again right before the flight) you should be able to get Vegan food on the plane. We took British Airways and got first class treatment. The food was better than expected and the attendants were super helpful. We received 2 square Vegan meals on the 8 hour flight. Off to a good start! 

We ended up staying in Camden, but we were all over London. I think I hit up every major Whole Foods and obviously I saw tons of new stuff. You gotta love it!

One thing that I have seen before is Isa's beloved Vegusto cheese from Paris. Who can forget? It's not my cup of tea, but I seem to be in the minority.

Another reason I was stoked about the trip is that Quarrygirl moved to London and was going to hang with us. To finally put a face to the infamous Vegan Beer & Pizza blogging Queen was exciting. Well, I'm happy to report that she is one of the nicest people I've ever met. The trip wouldn't have been the same without her tips and company. Nevermind that she gave me this bundle of Vegan goodies....that's besides the point! She's rad and I can't wait to hang again.

You know, if you're going to England, you have to eat Fish n' Chips. Well in this case, Vegan Fish n' Chips! There were a couple places that had it, but we ended up at a Loving Hut. Basically, it was breaded fried tofu and fries. It was pretty good! So I got that out of the way. I also had a lot of inSpiral Cafe because our hotel was close. Manna was delicious too. Oh, and I finally got to meet Jojo aka Vegan in Brighton at Mildreds! Both Manna and Mildreds offered Great Britain's signature Bangers & Mash. There's no shortage of Vegan eats in London, but my favorite of the favorites was...

Amico Bio! I don't know if it's because I never get good Italian food (minus Portobella and Isa, of course) but I tore both locations UP! We ate there three times and I loved it. My favorite was the John Lennon Pizza and the onion rings. And putting the onion rings on the John Lennon Pizza. I can't recommend it enough.

One of the most exciting parts of the trip was Isa's book signing at Ms. Cupcake. If you're seen my Laziest Vegans Top Ten blog post with Mellissa or seen Quarrygirl's YouTube video, you can probably tell Mellissa is a kind, genuine person and a riot to hang out with. The Ms. Cupcake staff was super cool and the shop was so cute, plus it's a good reason to visit Brixton. A MUST SEE.

Really close to our hotel in Camden Lock was this little shop, Cookies and Scream. They had some outstanding baked goods including donuts! But their claim to fame is the Wookiee, which is a bar with double choc-chip and thick chocolate. There's even a chalk board to keep track who can eat it the fastest!

So that's the trip in a nut shell! Bottom line is if you're Vegan you have to visit England in your lifetime, especially London. Lots or history, art, culture, music and of course food!

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!

Mission to Paris: Pt. 1

So after a total off three flights and 13 hours I'm back from Paris. It was an exciting time! I met a lot of new friends and now have a better idea of how global Veganism is. Besides frequenting most of Paris's Vegan friendly restaurants I also got a chance to sample some pre-packaged Vegan treats. Seeing how I don't speak or read a lick of French, it was quite interesting. With all the help of my friends I was able to decipher the labels. If you see Végétal on the packaging it means the item is Vegan.

Hand model: Joshua Katcher of The Discerning Brute

So this is what everyone went NUTS over. It's hard cheese from Vegusto. I'm not a hard cheese fan because it made me sick as a child and I've never had any desire for it. According to everyone that came into contact with this cheese, it is AMAZING. Apparently it has a rich aged cheese taste, so if you love hard cheese seek this out at all costs. The Loving Hut in Paris carries it.

You know if there is falafel to be had, I'll be there. I ate it cold and it was great so I imagine they are the bomb if you to heat them up.

Ok, this was some good hummus. On top of some fresh French bread it really hit the spot. Part of our Vegan entourage felt this was the best hummus she ever ate. I respectfully disagree, how is this trumping homemade hummus? Oh well, it's all good.

Some Vegan margarine for that baguette? Sure why not! Creamy and not salty.

With bread at every street corner (yes they really do eat and walk around with baguettes) you best believe we had every Vegan spread we could get our hands on. This was some kind of fermented tofu spread. Tasty stuff, kind of hummusy.

I didn't get a chance to taste this yogurt but I was told it was excellent. Non GMO goodness!

I did eat one of these puppies and it was delish! This Caramel pudding was so creamy and rich I had to double check the label to make sure it was Vegan. Import these please!

I was thinking the Caramel was the pinnacle of French puddings but these Vanilla pudding cups from Sojasun really won me over. Yummy!

Whew, I've only hit the surface of my Paris Vegan spree...part Two tomorrow!