Welcome to my new blog!

Hi all,

This is my new blog and I am writing this to share with you my experiences of food, cosmetics and lifestyle choices that are mainly linked to Veganism/Vegetarianism and about being kind to animals.

Firstly, let me introduce myself. My name is Natalie and I am a 28 year old teacher of English and Media. I have been an active and dedicated vegetarian from the age of 11 (so, a long time!) but have recently been trying to transition to a diet that consists of more vegan products for both health and lifestyle choices. I am a lover of all animals, but especially cats and volunteer at a cat rescue in my spare time.

My aim here is NOT to tell you what I believe is right or wrong. My aim here is NOT to tell you that you should be vegan or vegetarian and follow my lifestyle choices. My aim here is merely to explore what exciting and varied options there are out there for the vegan and vegetarian communities. I will be offering reviews of new products I find (never tested on animals) and will offer a range of tried (and tested!) recipes that I have found. This is not just here for the vegans/vegetarians, but everyone who might wish to find out more about what the market has to offer if you choose to skip meat or animal products, occasionally!

I hope, that for some, this might be interesting. I have a passion for this and am hoping to transition to a fuller vegan diet in the future. For now, however, I am taking it slowly and exploring the exciting adventure that veganism offers people. I will also offer some information about vegetarian recipes for those who perhaps feel veganism is just a step too far!

Feel free to comment and give feedback (please be kind, though!) and let me know if you think there are any products you would like me to find/try/review!

This will be a work in progress and I hope that you enjoy reading.

Lots of love!

Natalie

Blog Editor: The Kinder Things in Life

Tried and Tested: Swedish Glace Strawberry soy ice cream lollies

Another range of new 'ice creams' on the market - suitable for Vegans! They aren't packaged as being vegan-friendly, but from what I have found online this is just due to possibilities of cross-contamination in the manufacturing process, rather than because anything in it is non-vegan. Swedish Glace have had (for a long time) sold vanilla-flavoured soya frozen ice cream. Recently I noticed that they have expanded their range, to include strawberry-flavoured, chocolate-coated ice-cream style lollies and new tubs of strawberry and chocolate ice cream. Unfortunately, I am yet to get my hands on the tubs and will update as soon as I've had a chance to try some. 

Tried and Tested

I did however, get the opportunity to try to strawberry-chocolate lollies. They were £2.99 for 5 lollies in Tesco. I was delighted to see that each lolly is only 117 calories each. They are a little high in saturated fat though...7.7g fat - 5.3g saturated fat (all the tasty things are!) so I wouldn't recommend eating them all the time.

I was disappointed when I realised just how little they are! They are literally 4 bites big. The strawberry ice cream, with strawberry sauce was delicious - a decent strawberry flavour and not too much of the traditional soya flavour making its way in to spoil the taste. The chocolate was a little disappointing though - it tasted like really cheap chocolate and had a strange texture - a bit like cheap choc-ices (although, I suppose if you like those, you will like these!)

I would say these are not worth the money. I think the tubs are much better value - you get much more for your money and you get more of the best bit - the ice cream! Not sure i'll buy these again in a hurry. They were tasty, but not extraordinary. However, this is only my take on it!

2.5/5

Ingredients:

Water, Sugar, Vegetable Oils (Palm, Coconut, Rapeseed), Dextrose, Soya Bean Powder (4.6%), Strawberries (2.8%), Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder, Emulsifiers (Mono- and Di-Glycerides of Fatty Acids, Citric Acid Esters of Mono- and Di-Glycerides of Fatty Acids, Sunflower Lecithin), Salt, Stabilisers (Locust Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Pectin), Red Beetroot Juice Concentrate, Flavouring, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid)

Tried and Tested: Alpro Go On Yoghurts

In the supermarkets, up until late, I have only ever been able to find a basic range of dairy-free yoghurts. Usually a soya-based yoghurt in a small pot - supermarket own brands or Alpro have dominated this area of the market, with a range of fruit-flavoured yoghurts. In addition, there are always the larger pots of the plain yoghurts, if these take your fancy. Some supermarkets sell the coconut-based ones, but I am yet to find these in the large supermarkets near to me!

I was SO EXCITED then to hear about these new Alpro yoghurts - Go On. They are marketed as 'an alternative to strained yoghurt' and have been pushed on being a high-protein dessert, or snack - a real shift from what is currently out there on the market. Being dairy intolerant and vegetarian, I do struggle to find decent ready-made products that are high in protein, tasty and make you feel like you are just like everyone else. Having food intolerances/different lifestyle choices to others can sometimes make you feel a bit of an outcast... that you aren't 'normal'. Eating products like this makes you feel like we are finally being catered for and the market is demanding a better range of products for us to consume.

Tried and Tested

This yoghurt is dual-layered, with a fruit (compote style?) base, with yummy fruit pieces and a thick, set yoghurt top. You get a decent amount of both the fruit and yoghurt layer and each time I eat one, I feel full afterwards. I had one after dinner and this was definitely a mistake! Too filling. I would say these are more suitable for breakfast, lunch or a snack where you are still pretty hungry.


At 85p (Tesco) or 90p (Sainsburys), these might be viewed as quite a high-end product for one yoghurt. They are quite expensive - especially if you eat a lot of yoghurts regularly. Nevertheless, these are an exciting shift in the market for dairy-free (and did I forget to mention they are Vegan!) yoghurts.

I personally prefer the mango and blackcurrant ones. I am a little less convinced by the passion fruit ones, owing to the seeds of the passion fruit being quite hard and crunchy. I would say that I give my favourite two a 5/5. An excellent product. I hope they expand their flavours, such as strawberry, or go down a more dessert-style route to include chocolate flavours.

 5/5

Tried and Tested: Linda McCartney 'pulled pork style burgers'

I had seen on many groups online about the new burgers from the Linda McCartney range. I am aware there is also A LOT of controversy from the vegan communities about this burger, due to the fact that the recipe includes honey as an ingredient. Nevertheless, for the veggies out there, these are a must! :)

As I said before, this blog is not solely vegan and as I am not fully vegan (but heavily dairy-intolerant) I thought I would give these a go!

From looking at the packaging, it is clear that these are fairly 'healthy', with high levels of protein. Each burger only contains 150 calories and 0.4g of saturated fat (the one we have to worry about!) Salt is somewhat high, but if you are careful with what else you eat, this shouldn't be too much of a problem. Each burger also contains a whopping 15.6g of Protein (which, for veggie food, is a lot!)

They took about 25 minutes in my oven and I served them in a burger bun with salad, served alongside sweet potato mash. Absolutely delicious!

                                                       

4/5 

Tried and Tested 

Easy to cook. They look tasty and taste surprisingly meaty (I know, it has been a long time - but from what I remember it tasting like). A good amount of BBQ flavouring, with a decent texture - not too hard, or soft. A great, quick meal or for BBQs! Salt content perhaps a little high for the full 5 stars.






Source: Linda McCartney Foods (http://www.lindamccartneyfoods.co.uk)

Ingredients:

Rehydrated Textured Soya and Wheat Protein (62%), Barbecue Sauce (Water, Tomato Paste, DistilledBarley Malt Vinegar, Muscovado Sugar, Black Treacle, Cornflour, Honey, Salt, Natural Flavourings, Spices), Water, Seasoning (Sugar, Tomato Powder, Maltodextrin, Salt, Cornflour, Natural Flavourings, Onion Powder, Spices, Garlic Powder, Sunflower Oil, Spice Extract), Rapeseed Oil, Soya Protein Concentrate, Stabiliser: Methyl Cellulose, Salt, Soya Bean Oil, Natural Flavourings, Malted Barley Extract

Each Burger contains:

• Energy

  630kJ
  150kcal,8.0%of your GDA

• Fat

  4.5g,6.0%of your GDA

• Saturates

  0.4g,2.0%of your GDA

• Sugars

  4.5g,5.0%of your GDA

• Salt

  1.7g,29.0%

Recipe: Vegan Shepard-less Pie!

I decided to make tonight... a Shepard-less pie, which will fall under the veggie and vegan umbrella, dependent on the final ingredients used. I made it using soya mince, veggies and topped it off with a carrot and sweet potato mash. A spin on the traditional shepard's pie, but extremely healthy and I have enough for at least four meals. Definitely a great mid-week meal, or for those just looking to cut out meat a few times a week. You could vary this recipe if you want and add more or less veg, or swap the soya mince for lentils - do whatever pleases you! Quick, simple and delicious. Let me know how yours turn out!

Ingredients

For the sauce...

half a cup of soya mince
half a tin of chopped tomatoes
two tablespoons tomato puree
1/2 red onion
garlic
1/4 courgette
handful spinach leaves
1 tsp black pepper
half a stock cube
1 tsp paprika
1 tbs dried oregano
handful of chopped parsley


For the mash...

2 carrots
half a large sweet potato
1 small blob of vegan butter (I used Vitalite)
Black pepper/sea salt, to taste


To create:

Chop the carrots and sweet potato and put onto boil - cook until very soft. Whilst those are cooking, chop the onions and garlic and soften in some olive oil, or spray oil (I use this to restrict calories). Once softened slightly, add the courgette, soya mince, spinach leaves and cook for a few minutes until this has been heated through. Next, add the tomatoes, puree and any other ingredients to flavour the mince/sauce. Leave this to cook through, until you are happy with the texture/taste (I get it to a thick sauce consistency). Once happy, remove from heat and place in a dish (I had an 8x8 square, glass dish) Just ensure it is deep enough to fit all the mince in!

Whilst this is cooling, remove the carrots and sweet potato from the heat and drain the remaining water. Mash, adding the butter and salt/pepper. Once mashed, add onto the top of the mince and ensure it covers every gap. I like to run a fork over the top to create some 'raggedy' edges, so when it cooks in the oven these bits turn a bit 'crispier'.

Put into a pre-heated oven for 25 minutes if straight away, (or for 45 minutes if completely cool) at 200 degrees, until the sauce is clearly bubbling and the top has browned nicely.

Serve with veg of your choice - I chose peas and sweetcorn - and some veggie gravy. Enjoy!