Our Recent Vegan Essentials

So long without a post! I always miss my veggie friends when I'm offline. I have so many pictures of food, I hardly know where to begin...

This was the last order we had placed with Vegan Essentials several months ago. There's nothing like a big box of vegan food delivered to our door to get us excited!

We ordered a lot of candybars. But if you want to get your fair share in a family of five, you have to make sure there's plenty to go around. And I had really wanted to try all of the new types. We also like to get as much as we can when we're paying for 2 day shipping.

I was excited about trying all of these bars because as tasty as the Go Max Go candy bars (which are sold at our Whole Foods) are, the ingredients are too un-organic for my preference (corn syrup, soy protein, etc.). The ingredients for all of these are much better, I think.

First up in the Eli's Earth Bars line ($2.49): the Dream Big Bar. Yum! (But small!) The ingredients: Organic dairy-free “milk” chocolate (organic rice milk, organic evaporated cane juice, organic cocoa butter, organic cocoa paste, organic non-GMO soy lecithin, organic vanilla), organic peanuts, organic rice syrup, sea salt.

This was the Dark Angell Organic Candy Bar. It was definitely good, and I would order one again. I might have preferred the Eli bars, but this one is good for a dark chocolate taste. The ingredients: Organic and fair-trade dark chocolate (organic and fair trade chocolate, organic and fair trade vegan sugar, organic and fair trade cocoa butter, organic soy lecithin, organic natural vanilla), organic tapioca syrup, organic oats, organic almonds, organic Dutch cocoa powder, sea salt, organic almond extract.

Another one of Eli's Earth Bars, the Treasure Bar. So good! The ingredients: Organic dairy-free “milk” chocolate (organic rice milk, organic evaporated cane juice, organic cocoa butter, organic cocoa paste, organic non-GMO soy lecithin, organic vanilla), organic evaporated cane juice, organic peanuts, organic rice syrup, organic palm oil, organic rice milk, sea salt.

I don't have a picture of the coconut flavor. I'm not a huge coconut-in-candy bars fan. I ordered a couple of those because I thought my son would like them.

We Can't Say It's Cheese Spreads by Wayfare Foods. I liked the taste of this. My oldest kid who likes most things also liked it. My 4 and 6 year olds did not. Between the two of us, though, we didn't end up quite finishing the tub before it had to be tossed. I should have planned my meals toward it better because I'm not a big snacker. I probably wouldn't order it again for that reason and because I like the cheese dips I made from scratch just as well. But if you don't have time to cook from scratch, try it out. The reviews on Vegan Essentials recommend the Hickory Cheddar flavor.

Cheddar ingredients: Non-GMO Whole grain oatmeal (water, oats), vegetable oil blend (may contain the following: safflower, olive, and coconut oil), sesame, pimentos (pimentos, water, citric acid), nutritional yeast, sea salt, calcium carbonate, onion powder, evaporated cane juice.

Eco-Planet Cheddar Organic Crackers ingredients: Organic wheat flour, organic sunflower oil, and / or organic safflower oil, and or organic canola oil, organic palm oil, salt, organic flavor (non-dairy), leavening (monocalcium phosphate, sodium bicarbonate), autolyzed yeast extract, paprika, natural vegan flavor, organic onion powder, annatto powder, organic red pepper, papain (enzyme).

These aren't really something I want my kids to snack upon on a regular basis (autolyzed yeast extract, etc.). HOWEVER. Those of you who are around kids might understand that Goldfish Crackers are constantly being thrust into my little one's hands. It's unreal. It's like people think the only things kids can eat are Goldfish and Dum Dum suckers because I can't begin to believe all of the situations and places that hand those things out. Get creative, people! One of my pet peeves in life: handing out food to my kid without my permission or during times when food shouldn't even be a factor, and I wasn't prepared! It's THE snack handed out to my kids at homeschool co-op snack time. And although my daughter would pass it up for her alternate snack, my 6 year old would not, unless he has another "cheesy-type" food substitute. So I had to stock up on these for the rest of the school year.

Audrey's Pleasure Royal Cheeze Veggie Bar snacks. I LOVED these. I think 3/5 of my family liked them.

Royal Cheez ingredients: Macadamia, cashews, bell peppers, lemon, spices, sea salt. If I was better about using my dehydrator, I'd try to make something like these babies all of the time.

Of course, we had to throw in some of Justin's Organic Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. I had gotten really excited when my Whole Foods got an order of them in, but it's lookin' like that was a one-time deal. I keep forgetting to find the ordering guy and ask him to restock. I know they sold out the time they had them, and I know this because I bought most of them.

When I was in highschool, one of my favorite places to spend my time was the Battlefield Mall (in Springfield, Missouri). Whenever I got a hold of an extra $20, I'd head to the mall. It would get me a new shirt with enough money left over to purchase an unmentionable product at an unmentionable frozen yogurt establishment. (This was when I was a vegetarian, not quite vegan.) What I ordered looked something like the above. So I couldn't help from make it for my son when he asked for icecream one day.

Organic Chikin Fillets by Viana ingredients: Tofu (organic soybeans, water), water, organic wheat protein, organic sunflower oil, organic almonds, sea salt, yeast extract, organic rice flour, organic cane sugar, organic palm oil, organic maltodextrin, organic turmeric (added for color), organic locust bean gum, organic spices.

This is one way I enjoyed those. Tomato, lettuce, and warmed tomato sauce with melted Daiya.

Gone Nuts! White Chocolate Cashews, Almonds & Cacao Nibs - ingredients: Organic raw cashews, organic agave, sprouted almonds (organic and/or transitional), organic coconut, organic cacao nibs, organic cacao butter, Himalayan crystal salt, organic vanilla, organic mesquite pod powder.

Raw and sprouted, these are one of the things I was trying to help fatten up my oldest son. They were good.

Overall, our order was a success, and plenty of vegan treat-induced smiles ensued.

School Lunches Galore

Most of an Alternative Baking Company Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, Ella's Kitchen Organic Fruit pouch, baby carrots, strawberries, and macadamia nuts. As far as the sandwich goes...can't remember what was in that one. I'm guessing hummus, avocado, and lettuce.

Mini-bean burrito, carrots, bell pepper slices, strawberries, and sweet potato chunks with sprinkled hemp seeds. Plus, a Cocoa Pistachio Whole Food Meal Bar. My kid is thin, and I like adding these meal replacement bars to his meal - or giving them to him at home for a snack. If I ever pack too much food, he will eat it on the drive home.

This lunch was the day after Valentine's Day so a pink heart cookie was added to his nut butter crackers, baby carrots, strawberries, macademia & Brazil nuts, grapes, and a Vruit Box.

Sandwich with hummus, hemp seed, lettuce, and mustard, Blueberry Lemon Muffin, So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt, carrots, Brazil nuts, and a little bit of leftover bean salad.

Romaine with vegan caesar dressing and hemp seeds, apples, mixed nuts, toasted frozen waffles, and So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt.

Pasta with beans, quinoa & broccoli meatballs, Brazil nuts & walnuts, carrots, Late July Mini Organic PB Crackers, pineapple cup, and caesar salad.

Nut butter & fruit spread on French Meadow Bakery Hemp Bread...this isn't his favorite type of sandwich, but he does like when I cut it into strips so he can dip it in his yogurt. Hail Merry soaked/dehydrated/seasoned pecans, strawberries, carrots, bell peppers, and grape tomatoes.

Amy's Bean & Rice Burrito, avocado chunks, carrots, bell pepper slices, and grape tomatoes, and half of a Hail Merry Chocolate Miracle Tart.

Garlic bread, Just Veggies (freeze-dried peas, corn, carrots, bell pepper, and tomatoes), pineapple cup, Yummy Earth organic sucker, Barbara's Bakery Snackimals, marinated/pan-fried tofu, and tomatoes.

Pasta with homemade cheese sauce & hempseeds, lentils, kiwi fruit, olives, and half of a Hail Merry Chocolate Miracle Tart.

*These lunches all belonged to my 10 year old who fortunately will eat almost any vegan food in the world. And a few of you asked: he was homeschooled for 4 years and attends public school this year. My other two are homeschooled and attend a homeschool co-op twice a week, where they occasionally bring their lunches, too.

Recent Celebrations: Easter and the Royal Wedding

If I may back up a little bit...

Easter

Easter baskets were a little scanty this year because I forgot to order things online in time (and there were so many great-looking treats I wanted to get myself the kids). But I was okay with that because I feel like we've had quite a few celebrations lately - and I wanted to use these Peter Rabbit pails I'd bought once and put away; they were the perfect size for the amount of stuff I had. They each got a Where the Wild Things Are sticker scene set from the $1 bins at Target, a candy bar, a Lake Champlain dark chocolate square (*ambiguous sugar), Divine dark chocolate eggs (*ambiguous sugar), and some Surf Sweets gummy bears. (We also re-use green paper shreds for our Easter baskets.)

We paint wooden, ceramic, or paper mache eggs every year for Easter.

For breakfast, we had yogurt (sprinkled with flax) in egg cups,

fruit in the shape of a cross,

and Bitt of Raw's gluten-free Carrot Muffins with Cashew Cream Cheese.

my little sweeties, after church

(Sweetie #3 had a black eye.)

Royal Wedding Party

I became fanatically excited about the Royal Wedding. (Sorry to those who are terribly sick of the coverage. Don't read any further!) I think I watched every possible "secrets behind the royal family" and "how Will & Kate met" show possible. We planned a fun little event (just me and the kids) for Friday morning. We dressed up - my 10 year old would only don a knight's cape for a brief period...

but my 6 year old (who is surprisingly quite fond of fashion and dressing up) went all out.

And we girls were very serious about choosing our outfits and headwear.

(I'm wearing a formal from my sister's highschool days.)

The Spread

(on my daughter's little table set up in my bedroom)

How cute are they all? I don't really have an opinion about the monarchy in general (and it's not my tax money; sorry, Penny!), but I do love a good celebration. And they seem pretty nice and down to earth. I was obsessed with finding out what her dress would look like - it was perfect! And strangely, I cried. The kids asked me WHY I was crying and to please stop.

"It should have been ME!"

Scones

I was really proud of my scones (because I don't know if I've ever made them before and didn't know what they would be like). I can't point you in the direction of a recipe because I kind of combined two. I made part of them with fresh strawberries and used Just Cherries for the other half. I will make these again because they were a hit in this house.

English Muffins

The English Muffins were also a hit. I made them cinnamon toast style, using Food For Life Gluten-Free, Multi-Seed Muffins and toasting them in the oven with Earth Balance, cinnamon, and a little sugar.

I printed off the Royal Bunting to hang around part of the table. I found this at Make Merry!. Since the kids aren't big tea drinkers, we mixed in a little apple juice with the tea.

For some reason, I was absolutely enamored with my Will & Kate plates. I got the idea from a party planner on Regis & Kelly. :) I happened to have a pack of Chinet hard plastic plates, leftover from an event. All you have to do is print off a picture, cut it to size and put it between two plates. I told Ryan I loved my Will & Kate plates so much, it's going to be hard to go back to eating off regular plates.

I'm going to wash and save these plates and use this idea for future events. And try to hide it in future blogging photos that I may or may not still be eating off Will & Kate.

This was the perfect time to try out Bitt of Raw's Raw Vegan Cranberry Cheesecake. I topped it with the love birds' wedding topper from my wedding, hee hee. Her cheesecake looks a "bitt" different than mine (better, of course), but I was pleased.

I thought this was really, really good. I made it the day before and gave it plenty of time to chill. I loved the texture and consistency, and it is my favorite raw cheesecake I've made so far (as well as one of my favorite cheesecakes period). I also love how the cranberries give it such a strong color.

I was in a hurry while making it so I did not make the crust raw and homemade (but I will next time!). I just crumbled up an Arrowhead Mills Organic Graham Cracker Crust into the bottom of the pan. (This would have been better if I'd melted in a little oil or Earth Balance to make it stick together, but I was trying to watch my calories.)

We reconvened back to Party Central for lunch (and more royal wedding coverage!). This time, it was baby carrots, apple slices, Tofurky deli slices, avocado slices, and cucumber sandwiches.

My little Brits had to eat their sandwiches on wheat bread with crusts and not too terribly fancy. Since I'm trying to avoid soy protein isolate now as much as possible (which isn't 100% easy but getting easier), I made homemade cream cheese for the first time.

Pip, pip cheerio!

E.A.T. World! Challenge: Korea & Ireland

We recently explored the country of South Korea during our homeschool studies.

I wrote about it on my family/homeschool blog.

I made a Korean meal to culminate our studies: stir-fry, kimchi, rice, and Bulgogi.

Bulgogi is Korean barbecue. We got the recipe from a fellow homeschool blogger mom who adopted her sons from South Korea. Here is the veganized version:

Bulgogi (Korean BBQ)

Marinade:

4 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 tsp. sesame oil

2 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 clove of garlic - finely chopped together

Mix together. Add 1 lb. chopped seitan. Marinade for a few hours or overnight. Cook in wok or frying pan. This was really delicious!

We began learning about Ireland around St. Patrick's Day and finished up tonight with an Irish meal (complete with Irish flag paper confetti on the table).

I was a little nervous I wouldn't get supper finished before our power went off in all of the storms swirling around tonight. We spent a portion of time in the closet under the stairs while the storm sirens blared and possible tornadoes were reported near our house. Therefore, meal prep was a little touch and go.

Potato Soup

I based it off this recipe, which uses pureed tofu. So it's actually Potato Tofu Soup. I also added freeze-dried dill. It's extra thick because my husband requested it as such.

We have been reading some Irish folktales about a man named Jamie O'Rourke. In this particular book, Jamie plants a magical potato seed which results in such a huge "pratie," the entire town grows sick of eating potatoes. We don't eat too many potatoes around our house, for some reason, so I bought a bag the other day - in honor of Jamie O'Rourke - and we've been trying to see how many ways we can eat them (so far - fried, roasted, mashed, and in soup...we've got plenty of potatoes to go, too).

Corned "Beef" and Cabbage

This is based on a recipe from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen. I didn't have a few of the ingredients, including horseradish and wine. It was good, regardless, although my 6 year old wanted no part in it.

Irish Apple Mash

I used this recipe. It's basically mashed potatoes mixed with mashed apples. Pretty good stuff, if you like mashed potatoes and cooked apples.

Irish Soda Bread

This came from the same Fat Free Vegan Kitchen post as the seitan recipe. Ryan has requested that I now make this regularly. As I am not a maker of bread, I will say this one was super, super easy. It's just whole wheat flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, and plain soy yogurt. Stir, throw the resulting ball of dough on the cookie sheet, and bake.

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Next, we're moving on to Great Britain. We're planning on dressing up fancy to watch the Royal Wedding on Friday. And drink tea and eat crumpets and cucumber sandwiches all day. Ooo, maybe we'll even make a wedding cake.

Wing-it Vegan's E.A.T. (Eating Around The) World! Challenge: