The Laziest Vegans Top Ten Asks Ginny Messina

Ginny Messina is a registered dietitian and is the creator of the website, The Vegan R.D., where she talks about Veganism and how it relates to your health. She is also an author, co-authoring the books Vegan For Life, Vegan For Her and Never Too Late To Go Vegan. I've followed her on Twitter for a while and I like that's she very informative and knows her stuff but still knows how to party. Also, Ginny is a cat lover and volunteers at her local animal shelter and is involved in feral/spay/neutering programs.

So I've always been curious about what kind of Vegan goodies Ginny likes. And now we finally get to know!    

What is your favorite store-bought veggie burger?
I just tried the Gardein sliders (chicken variety) and they are pretty great. But my favorite vegan meat is actually a sausage product—Field Roast Apple and Sage Sausage.

What is you favorite frozen dinner?
Tofurky Chik’n Pot Pies. Comfort food at its best!

What is your favorite ice cream?
I’ve been a Tofutti Cutie fan for a long time and I especially love the mint chocolate chip variety. I like that they are mini ice cream sandwiches, so I can have one for a treat without too much guilt. And they are really good!

What is your favorite chip or cracker?
Stacy’s Simply Naked Pita Chips. Talk about hyper-palatability. I can’t have them around but buy them once or twice a year for parties.

What is your favorite cereal?
I’ve never been a fan of cold cereals, although I occasionally eat them as a snack—never for breakfast. I do eat rolled oats in soy yogurt every day, so guess that’s my current favorite.

What is your favorite candy?
Go Max Go brand Mahalo bars. A decadent, but compassionate alternative to Almond Joy.

What is your favorite cookie?
I love the accidently-vegan Maple Leaf Cookies from Trader Joe’s.

What three pre-packaged food items would you take to a desert island?

Tasty Bite brand Chunky Chickpeas (I buy them at Costco); Trader Joe’s Rice Medley, made with brown rice, red rice, and black barley, and cooks up in 3 minutes in the microwave; Peanut Butter and Company’s Dark Chocolate Dreams.

Name a product you would like Veganized?
It’s been wonderful to see the selection of vegan cheeses growing and improving, through both commercial products and great recipes. But we still don’t have a good vegan brie. I can’t say I actually ate brie that much in my pre-vegan days, so it’s not as though I especially miss it. But it would be great to serve one up for omnivores at a party.

What are your favorite local and/or online stores for Vegan products?
My local food co-op has a reasonable selection of vegan foods even though their philosophy tends toward the “happy meat” perspective. I also find good vegan choices at the local Safeway and at Costco and Trader Joe’s. For harder to find items, I am very grateful for online vegan stores like Pangea and Vegan Essentials.

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

Trader Joe's Frozen Falafel

I'm an absolute falafel connoisseur. I eat it a lot. I was introduced to falafel later in life, so I guess I feel like I have a lot of catching up to do. The best part about falafel love, is that any falafel worth its chickpea will already be Vegan. My first falafel sandwich was from Sultan's Market in Chicago and I have to admit, it's still my favorite. So the bar is set pretty high.

I've never been gaga over pre-packaged falafel. It's ok, but it's usually dry or just not tasty. However, on my last trip to Trader Joe's, I noticed they had some frozen falafel. It's Trader Joe's, it's falafel and it's Vegan, what the hell, I guess I'll try it. You only live once!  

So right off the bat I notice the direction stating that the preferred method of cooking is the microwave. What? You almost never see that. The preference is usually the stove or toaster oven, but never the microwave. Well, I was smart about it. I put half of the falafels in the microwave and the other half in the toaster oven. That way I could determine MY preferred cooking method.

Well, I hate to say it, but the falafels were pretty uninspired. The texture reminded me of a reheated tater tot. Absolutely no moisture, no crisp, no crunch. I think the only thing that might have saved them is deep fat frying. Neither cooking method yielded great results. Yes, the microwave was quicker, but that's about it. And I thought the toaster over would make the falafels crispier but that wasn't the case. I'm so bummed!

The taste left much to be desired. Not very flavorful, you would definitely need hummus or something to spice it up. The only saving grace is that maybe I've had so much good falafel that the Trader Joe's Frozen Falafel never stood a chance. Whatever the case, buy at your own risk. I hope you have better luck than me!

Fritos Corn Chips

My favorite chip growing up was Fritos. Sure, Cheetos and Funyans weren't too far behind, but Fritos and I have an emotional attachment. I vividly remember being at my Grandmother's during the summer, running through the sprinkler, eating popsicles and Fritos. Of course, growing up in the Cornhusker State, anything with corn was super popular. Years later I became a Chili Cheese Frito fiend (I'll admit I miss them.) And I've also had a couple Frito Pies in my time.

Chicago Vegan Foods even put a Frito Pie Kit with Teese in the Vida Vegan 2013 Swag Bag! How rad is that?

Another thing I love about Fritos is the size. They are tiny and manageable. Eat them one by one or by the handful! Now for the sad news... I'd love to eat Fritos more often than I do, but there's a little problem, GMO's. Frito Lay uses GMO corn for Fritos.

I don't talk about GMOs much because most of the stuff I review is Organic or Non-GMO. I don't know if you've noticed but I don't usually review products that use GMOs, so I would feel weird posting these Fritos without mentioning it. And while we're at it, if you love Fritos and would like to see Frito Lay stop using GMO's, here is a link to contact them. Every little bit helps! I know there are a couple Non-GMO Frito alternatives out there like the Trader Joe's Organic Chip Dippers, but it's just not the same.

So, now my love of Fritos is known and I'd love them even more if they were GMO Free!

  

Trader Joe's Vegan Mozzarella Style Shreds (plus John's Laziest Pizza)

Trader Joe's has a new Vegan cheese and it's not Daiya! Trader Joes's Vegan Mozzarella Style Shreds are basically Galaxy Vegan Mozzarella Style Shreds, which I've never had before. Since it's Mozzarella, I thought I would put it to the true test and try it on a pizza. Lazy pizza anyone???  

I keep my pizzas pretty simple. First, I procured some Whole Foods pre-made dough and marinara sauce. Both are super tasty and obviously very easy to work with. For toppings, I grabbed Tofurky Pepperoni Slices and some black olives. The Tofurky Pepperoni Slices are great if you miss that old pepperoni flavor. I normally would do green pepper with the olives but I totally forgot. Now let's see how the cheese and pizza turned out!

The Trader Joe's Mozzarella was really interesting. If you eat it raw, it honestly doesn't taste very good. But when I melted it all over the pizza, I found it to be quite good! When it melts (and it does melt), the mozzarella gets a bit gloopy almost like a glaze. It's definitely a different beast than Daiya. So if love Daiya and think it has no faults whatsoever, this probably isn't the cheese for you. I like Daiya too, but I find it to be too rich in large quantities, the flavor taking over whatever you put it on. It's just nice to have another option out there. This cheese is pretty mild and didn't overwhelm the other flavors. The pizza itself was great and I really love those Tofurky Pepperonis.

In closing, I'm always happy to see new Vegan products, especially cheese. I thought the Trader Joe's Mozzarella tasted great when melted and had a nice neutral flavor. It is almost an anti-Daiya cheese, which I feel the world needs.

Trader Joe's Veggie Wrap With Hummus

I stopped by Trader Joe's the other day looking for a Vegan Falafel Wrap that @Raqueliiita posted on Twitter the other day. While I didn't find that Falafel Wrap, I found a Veggie Wrap With Hummus! For only $3.99 you get a ton of veggie wrap and should have more than enough to share.  So how does it taste?

With pre-packaged sandwiches you never know how fresh they will be. I've had a couple of airport sandwiches that were past their prime. I thought the Veggie Wrap was pretty fresh, and not soggy. It had tons of veggies and a liberal amount of hummus. Those were the pros. The cons: somehow the wrap was still a tad dry. I suspect it's because there are no tomatoes or sauce, maybe to keep it soggy-free. Also, I found it to be a touch bland. Perhaps TJ could add a little flavor to the hummus? Get some olives up in there or something?

So wrapping up, even with a couple of flaws, the Trader Joe's Hummus Wrap is a nice cheap meal in a jam. If you have a little time, add some tahini or tomatoes and it will be a more enjoyable experience.

Trader Joe's Chile Mango Fruit Floes

Just another average shopping trip to Trader Joe's revealed a hidden gem I knew nothing about, the Chile Mango Fruit Floes. My first reaction was, "What the hell are those?" and then, of course,  I bought them. Fruit floe doesn't really register with me, but I figured they were some kind of frozen concoction. Well basically it's a popsicle, with a kick!
  

I open the box and see that it's popsicle-shaped, so that's a good sign. I take my first bite and get the sweet hint of mango and then BOOM, the kick of chile! I'm not accustomed to spicy sweets so this is a whole new world to me. Terry Hope Romero just happens to be in town and she loved them. Apparently, these are similar to Mexican paletas. I had to give it a minute or two for my farmer's palate, but now I'm totally on team spicy. A spicy mango vacation in your mouth!

Trader Joe's Vegan Chips: Part II

It's Super Bowl Sunday and you are probably huddled up on the couch with your chips and soda. No Super Bowl party for me this year, but let's pretend. Known to change up their product selection (check out Part I), Trader Joe's has a couple new chips for me to try and this is the perfect day for it!

Before anything else, I have to say that I'm a huge Fritos fan and my one gripe is that they aren't organic. So I was pretty excited to see these Organic Corn Chip Dippers and tore them open right in the store (not really). The flavor is actually tame compared to Fritos. I know they are supposed to replicate Fritos Scoops size-wise, but flavor-wise the salty, oiliness wasn't there. Not to say they were bad, just not what I expected. It's still a great organic chip for dipping.

Trader Joe's Vegetable Root Chips are made of sweet potato, taro, batata and parsnip pieces. I like the wide variety of earthy flavors. Also, aesthetically they will brighten your spread.

Trader Joe's never fails to surprise with new and interesting products. Trader Joe's Crunchy Curls are pretty innovative. It's a lentil and potato puffed curl. Texture-wise I would compare it to a super puffed Cheeto or something similar. It had strong potato flavor, which I found delicious.

If you are lucky enough to have a Trader Joe's by you, go grab some of these chips and tell me what you think!

Vegetarian Plus Vegan Kung Pao Chicken

Recently, VegeUSA contacted me about reviewing some of their Vegan products. Snarky Vegan referred me to VegeUSA because I complained about never getting free stuff. Well, that paid off in spades because they sent me a ton of free stuff! Interestingly enough, I'd never had any Vegetarian Plus products before. So I had no expectations, only an empty tummy.

The first dinner I chose was the Vegan Kung Pao Chicken. It sounded really good to me. This wasn't your typical frozen dinner, you microwave the bag and then incorporate it with either rice or veggies. Trader Joe's Rice Medley was my rice of choice. Good stuff!

But down to the Kung Pao! I was really impressed with with the flavor of the meal. It really tasted like the Vegan chicken you get at a Supreme Master restaurant. It might be the same stuff, I have no idea. It was sweet and spicy at the same time. Generous amount of sauce which is always welcome. The amount of food you get is also impressive. It took me two sittings to finish off my meal.

So if you are looking to re-create your first Chinese Vegan restaurant experience or you are just bored with your usual frozen dinners, you should give Vegetarian Plus's Vegan Kung Pao Chicken a shot!

Trader Joe's Vegan Chips Galore!

The thing I love about Trader Joe's is that you never know what you are going to find. On a recent trip I found three bags of chips that had the magical "V" on the packaging. It seems a lot of Trader Joe's products are seasonal, so get them while you can. Let's see what I found!

Trader Joe's Popped Potato Chips are a nice light potato chip. I'm going to take a huge guess and say they are basically Popchips. I found them to be a decent dipping chip but great out of the bag, too.

Pita Puffs are cute little puffed pita chips. Thin and light, they kind of melt in your mouth. There's not much to them but they sure are tasty! Great for soups and chili.

Whoa! When I picked up these Rice & Bean Chips I really didn't think I would like them. I saw that they were Vegan so I felt obligated to buy them. When I finally had a chance to try them I was blown away. I guess it must be the power of Adzuki because I ate the bag in one sitting. They are a tad salty but I think they are delicious.

So three thumbs up for Trader Joe's Vegan Chips!

Trader Joe's Peach Pops

Yesterday I went to Trader Joe's to pick up some essentials, not expecting anything new. Well look what was staring at me out of the freezer case!

Holy crap these are good! At first you are probably like "these look like normal Fla-Vor-Ice pops, what's the big deal?" Well the big deal is that the first ingredient in the pops is peaches. With the first and last bite, you'll be eating real peaches. Delicious! Did I mention I'm so happy to have a Trader Joe's near me? Summer just got real, go get 'em.

Trader Joe's Vegetable Burritos Featuring Daiya Pepperjack Cheese

I asked the Laziest Vegans Facebook page for suggestions on what to use with my recently purchased Pepperjack Daiya Cheese. Trader Joe's Vegetable Burritos was one of the suggestions. I've never bought the burritos before (or even noticed them for that matter) so I pretty much had to pick them up. I made this a couple days ago and it was delish!

First off, the burritos were excellent. I have to wonder if they are actually Amy's burritos in Trader Joe's packaging. They come two in a package so you have to be really hungry or you are going to have left overs. But it's nice to be able to cook them in the tray and not have to wrap them in paper towels. Taste-wise I found them spicy and very beany.

I've been a Daiya supporter from the start and I'm happy to see them branch out to new flavors. The Pepperjack tastes like a spicy version of the Cheddar to me. I microwaved the Daiya after the burrito was already cooked and it melted just fine. It tasted great on the burrito! I'm sure it would be a great addition to tacos or nachos too.

Vegan Friendly Trader Joe's

Having been to Trader Joe's in Oregon and California, I kind of knew what to expect when they came to Omaha this winter -- but it was still exciting. On my last trip, I noticed a big "V" on some items. I figured it meant Vegan but I had no idea it was on so many products! So this post is pretty much dedicated to my shopping trip where I found nuggets of Vegan gold.

Probably my greatest find and the answer to my prayers, these Trader Joe's Baked Onion Rings are delicious! In the 90's I was a Funyuns fiend. I would eat so many that my mouth hurt. Now I'm able to re-live the days of Tearjerkers, Girbauds and C&C Music Factory. The Baked Onion Rings are sweeter than Funyuns but that's not a bad thing. Also, they're a bit smaller than Funyuns so you can actually fit them in your mouth.

A close up picture of the "V" and the Vegan label on the back. If this blog post ended right now I'd be more than happy, but there's more...!!!

I saw this in the freezer section and froze. Trader Joe's Fruit Frenzy Bars = yum city! What a flavor combination! The lemony center is my favorite. I'll be stacking up on these when it gets hot this summer. Good stuff!

My next find is Trader Joe's Organic Brown Rice Marshmallow Treats. These were some tasty treats, but mine were a tad hard. I'm not sure if they are normally like that but if they are Trader Joe's should definitely soften them up a bit.

Holy crap, these Trader Joe's Soft-Baked Snickerdoodles are AMAZING! They are so moist and flavorful that I can say without a doubt that they are my favorite cookie right now. Totally a must have.

These Trader Joe's Reduced Guilt Wheat Crisps are AMAZING! I'm more of a chip person than cracker person but damn these are good. They have a sweet taste and are excellent for dipping (tastes great with We Can't Say It's Cheese). Vegan power!

Have a Vegan Pepperminty Christmas!

While I'm not the biggest Christmas fan, I can appreciate all of the treats associated with the holiday. Candy Canes, check. Cookies, check. Soy Nog, check. The common thread is the overabundance of peppermint. If you love peppermint then you must be doing cartwheels right now. My advice is to chow down out on this stuff while it's around!

The legend...Candy Cane Joe-Joe's. I've heard about these cookies forever. Now that Omaha has a Trader Joe's, I can finally try them out and see if they warrant all of the hype. The verdict? They are one of the most amazing cookies I've ever had! It's a basic sandwich cookie but the little candy cane pieces in the frosting make them divine. Seek them out.

These Dark Chocolate covered cookies from Late July has some similarities to the Candy Cane Joe-Joe's but ultimately I didn't enjoy them as much. They are dipped in chocolate and have peppermint sprinkled on the outside with a hint of a salt to go with the sweet. The cookies are fancily individually wrapped so you feel guilty when you eat 6 at a time. I see this as more of a gourmet cookie for all of you foodies out there.

Good ol' candy canes from Tru Sweets! I think everyone can agree Christmas isn't Christmas without a candy cane. These are pretty much the most awesome candy canes ever because they are Vegan and organic. I'd love it if they introduced other flavors like cherry or bubble gum, just because I'm weird like that.

This Chocolate Peppermint Stick Soy Beverage from Westsoy is the jam! I'm not sure if I'm under the spell of peppermint right now, but I enjoy it almost as much if not more, than the Silk Nog I reviewed last month. I even drank it a room temperature and it blew my mind. The chocolate/peppermint combo is a match made in heaven. I'm definitely going back to the store to stock up on this stuff.

Trader Joe's in Omaha!

It's been a long time coming and it is finally here! Trader Joe's opened this Friday and I picked up a couple of goodies to try. For non Nebraskans, AK-SAR-BEN is Nebraska spelled backwards but it also used to be a race track/sports and concert venue. Nirvana played there! Now it is considered a part of town.

Maple Leaf Cookies

These were quite the surprise! I like maple but I didn't expect to enjoy the cookies as much as I did. Super maple taste in a cute maple leaf cookie sandwich. Win!

Vanilla Joe-Joe's

A vanilla cookie with vanilla bean filling? Nothing groundbreaking but damn good. Count me in.

Dark Chocolate After Dinner Mint Thins

Fancy mints! Eat two or three of these and you are good for the night. Great mint taste with rich chocolate.