Vegan Pizza Day. Review: Redwood Vegan Pizzas

UK Vegan Review: Redwood Vegan Pizzas (frozen)

What better review for #VeganPizzaDay than Redwood's meat and dairy free frozen pizzas? The pizzas which launched earlier this year come in three varieties, Cheezly & Tomato, Meatless Feast and Ham Style & Pineapple. We first sampled them at VegFest Bristol and today we're reviewing the Meatless Feast and Ham & Pineapple pizzas. Are they worthy of a place at the dinner table on Vegan Pizza Day?

Salad Days. Review: Granovita Salad Cream

UK Vegan Review: Granovita Vegan Salad Cream

Salad Cream...the salad dressing of 1970s Britain....and now vegans can reminisce too. Salad cream is different to mayo...thinner, sweeter and more tangy. Granovita produce both a vegan mayo and a vegan salad cream for the UK market. We grabbed a squeezy bottle of the Salad Cream for our review....but will it take you back to your salad days?

Delamere Delicious. Review: Delamere Dairy Soya Milk

Delamere Dairy Soya Milk - vegan review

Dairy companies can sometimes make the best non-dairy alternatives too. Vitalite made by Dairycrest is about the best tasting vegan margarine for example. We reviewed Delamere Dairy's soya shakes earlier this week and thought they were pretty good, so we sought out their soya milk too. We've never quite understood the attraction of 'fresh' soya milk and most of them taste worse than their UHT versions...so how does Delamere's version fare?

Review: 'Wholesome Pots' from The Food Doctor

The Food Doctor Couscous and Lentil Wholesome Pot

We were going to start this review with a gag about vegans and 'wholesome pot' but it sort of writes itself...

New on the market from The Food Doctor "The UK's leading nutrition consultancy"(what a mouthful) are Pot Noodle style vegan snack pots. The instant hot lunch pots come in three varieties, one based on couscous and two on a mix of bulgar and quinoa. We took the couscous and lentil pot for a lunchtime spin.

Review: New Alpro Yoghurts Blackberry Raspberry

Alpro Yoghurts Blackberry Raspberry

Alpro have added a new flavour to their range of fruity soya yoghurts with a new Blackberry flavour joining Raspberry in a four pack. You get two raspberry and two blackberry yoghurts in each pack. Alpro's yoghurts are usually great, so how does the new Blackberry flavour compare?

Review: Choc/Vanilla Soya Shakes from Delamere Dairy

Delamere Dairy Chocolate and Vanilla Soya Shakes

The soya shake market gets bigger by the day. Delamere Dairy have secured a place in the Free From aisle at Tesco with their new drinkable chocolate and vanilla shakes. We haven't come across Delamere before but they appear to produce soya milk and soya desserts too. We grabbed one each of their soya shakes to see how they taste.

Review: Redwood Gourmet Vegan Gravy Powder

Redwood Gourmet Vegan Gravy Powder

Redwood have launched an instant gravy powder in what could be their quest to fill every untapped niche in the vegan foods market. This isn't the first instant vegan gravy as many of the vegetarian gravy granules available in supermarkets are suitable for vegans. Perhaps that's why Redwood added 'Gourmet' to the label as a selling point....although we suspect vegan gourmets are capable of making their own gravy... So what are Redwood bringing to the table with their new gravy?

Review: Provamel Orange & Rooibos Yoghurt

Provamel Orange & Rooibos Yoghurt

Provamel's latest fruity yoghurt is Orange & Rooibos. The organic soya yoghurt is available in large 500g pots from wholefood shops. Rooibos or redbush is a type of herbal tea originally from South Africa which has been growing in popularity in the UK over the last ten years...but isn't to everyone's taste. So if you're not a Rooibos lover...should you give this yoghurt a miss?

Diary Date: Aug 11th - Leicester Vegan Fair

Leicester Vegan Fair August 11th  2012

Returning for the sixth year with a brand new venue for 2012 is Leicester Vegan Fair. The event takes place on Saturday August 11th at Avenue Primary School, just behind the University. Stalls confirmed so far are Currant Affairs catering, All About Daisy, Animal Aid, Animal Equality, Athene Skincare, Bo's Kitchen, Bohemian Chic Minerals, Chocs That Rock, Create a Goodlife, Green and Pleasant, Leicester Vegetarian and Vegan Group and the Ethics and Health Foundation. The event runs from 10:30am until 3:30pm. Full flyer after the break...

Weird Science: The Apricots and Soya Milk Trick

Add soya milk to apricots

Dried Apricots + Soya Milk + 8 Hours = Creamy Dessert. 

Thick and creamy apricot dessert!

This is weird and we don't know how it works, but it does. It tastes great too. Here's how to do it:

Review: Moo Free Faux Milk Choc Pralines

Moo Free Faux Milk Choc Pralines

Dairy-free pralines are not uncommon, but are usually based on dark chocolate. Moo Free have taken a different route with their caramelised hazelnut pralines which are covered instead in their popular faux-milk chocolate. The pralines are sold in an attractive gift box, but are they worthy of being gifted to that special vegan friend?

Review: Sheese Melty 'Red Cheddar' vegan cheese


There are twice as many vegan cheeses on the market in the UK as this time two years ago, but the two 'big cheeses' are still Redwood's Cheezly and Bute Island's Sheese. Bute Island have recently joined in the 'melty' cheese revolution with their new line Sheese Melty. We put the red cheddar style Sheese to the test to see how it fares against the competition..

Review: Tofutti 'Better than Ricotta Cheese'


'Better' than Ricotta Cheese is quite some pledge. Of course, anything vegan is better than something for which animals have suffered, but you know what we mean. Tofutti is something of a dairy-free specialist with everything from cheese to ice cream in their product range. The faux Ricotta has been available in the US since last year and recently launched here in the UK, but at a price (a fiver a tub)...that means it had 'better' be good! Is it?

Vegan Ricotta Bruschetta made with Tofutti Ricotta

Vegan Bruschetta made with Tofutti 'Better than Ricotta Cheese'

We're currently reviewing Tofutti 'Better Than Ricotta Cheese' and just made some herby ricotta bruschetta with dill, chives, spring onions (scallions) and garlic... Yep lots of the allium family in the seasoning but for good reason...this vegan ricotta is pretty bland on its own. Full review coming once when we've made some tagliatelle sauce for pasta with it.

Vegan Sunday Brunch - Vegg 'n' Bacon English Muffin

Vegan-VEGG-egg-bacon-english-muffin

More experimenting with The Vegg vegan egg yolk. Runny Vegg yolk and a Vegg egg patty, with crispy tofu rashers, all on a toasted english muffin. Vegan brunch heaven. Read on for what we did and what we might do better next time.

Taste Test: Best Vegan Cream...for Strawberries

Vegan Dairy-Free Cream selection

It's Wimbledon...strawberries and cream season is upon us. We've taste tested 6 vegan creams to see which should have the honour of topping our great British strawberries. We trailed this Taste Test two weeks ago and frankly we've been waiting for the sunshine to return ever since! At the first sign of a blue sky we grabbed some kentish strawberries and our 6 dairy-free creams...but which will take the title of Cream of the Crop?

Mango, Banana & Brazil Cereal Bars from Doves Farm

Doves Farm Banana, Mango and Brazil nut cereal bars

Doves Farm have a decent range of vegan offerings and the latest is Banana, Mango and Brazil nut cereal bars. Arriving in boxes of five, they offer a flavour not seen before in a cereal bar. The bars are pretty substantial at 40g each and will keep your hunger at bay. You're unlikely to get bored half way through like you can with some bland cereal bars though...these have a tasty tropical fruity flavour. They're also nice and moist, quite chewy and not too sweet.

Free From: Soya Shakes from Tesco...in multipacks!

Tesco Free From Chocolate Soya Dessert Shakes

Five packs of soya shakes from Tesco? What's the vegan-friendly world coming to?...we're not sure, but we like it. The latest addition to the Free From aisle at the UK's biggest supermarket shows how far dairy-free alternatives have come lately...forget niche markets...we're into the multi-buy age. These 5 packs of shakes are cute little 65ml tetrapaks...more of a shot than a drink, in fact they're labelled as "dessert shakes". How do they taste?

French Toast made with The VEGG

The VEGG vegan egg yolk french toast

We're currently working our way through a review of The VEGG vegan egg yolk and wanted to share this picture of the great French Toast we made from the recipe here. It really is an improvement on tofu-based recipes with its golden colour and pancake-like taste. When you make up the VEGG with water you'll be amazed by the eggy smell which stems from the Black Sea Salt which is high in Sulfur (old spelling: Sulphur). French Toast (or Eggy Bread as some Brits call it) is simply bread dipped in an eggy mix and shallow fried. The eggy-sulfur taste of the VEGG is lost a little in the cooking but the flavour is really rounded and fulfilling and this is great French Toast.

We're currently perfecting a better potato Frittata recipe using The Vegg.

A toast to: Vegan Lemon Curd

Vegan Lemon Curd

Lemon curd is normally based on eggs and this is the first time we've seen a vegan version on sale. You won't find it in stores however as this is an artisan product on sale at UK festivals only. Made by Nottinghamshire producer My Cupcakes, it appears in one of their vegan cupcakes and is sold by the jar in three sizes. Great for afternoon tea, or on your breakfast toast.

Free From: Vegan Creme Caramel pots from Tesco

 Tesco Free From Vegan Creme Caramel Desserts

The Free From sections of the big supermarkets are getting better for vegans. Tesco has recently added several non-dairy options that are vegan friendly including these Creme Caramel desserts. Sold in packs of four individual pots and clearly labelled as vegan, they promise a new easy dessert option...but do they deliver?

Something Fishy? Redwood's Fish Free range.

Redwood Making Waves Fish-Free range

Redwood's ever expanding range of meat and dairy-free foods now includes a fish-free selection. Under the 'Making Waves' banner the company offers fish-less fishcakes, fish fingers and fish steaks. The idea of replicating fish flesh may seem odd for some vegans, but once you've eaten your first veggie sausage this is where it will end... Most vegans are not born that way and will have eaten and perhaps miss the taste and textures of animal foods...so why not do it the cruelty-free way? 

So on with the review...have Redwood created the perfect fish-less fish?

Coming Soon on Veganoo: Best Vegan Pesto

vegan pesto dairy-free

There are at least 4 types of vegan pesto on sale in the UK, which surprised us when we set out to look for them. Pesto is easy to make yourself, but if you're looking for the readymade stuff there are plenty of dairy-free options to choose from. The brands we'll be testing are Suma, Zest, Sunita and Florentino. They all differ in their make-up, some with pine nuts, others with less traditional brazil nuts...but which is best? Coming soon on Veganoo.


Web: veganoo.net   Twitter: @veganoo   Facebook: fb.com/veganoo.net   Flickr: veganoo


Vegan Ice Cream Cones: Swedish Glace -v- Tofutti

Vegan non-dairy ice cream cones (tofuline / swedish glace v tofutti)

Forget the wet summer weather, let's eat ice cream! We're talking ice cream cones today, the type you buy from the freezer cabinet. Like a Cornetto, but for vegans. There are two on the market in the UK in the form of Swedish Glace 'Peak' cones and Toffuti 'Rock n Roll' cones. They both come in multi-packs but if you're lucky you can find them sold singly too, which is handy if you can't eat four at once! They cost about the same, and look very similar...but which is best?..

Banned by the Vegan Police. How Vegan is Vegan?

Banned by The Vegan Police

If the fabric on your restaurant chair is made of wool, is your meal still vegan? Undoubtedly. How about if the conveyor belt in a biscuit factory contains wool fibres, are the biscuits still vegan? We say yes, and here's why..

10 things you can do with Leafu (leaf curd)

Leafu leaf curd leaf protein leaf protein concentrate recipes

If you followed yesterday's link to the plantfoods.org guide for making your own leafu, you might be wondering what you can do with the stuff. Here are ten ideas for making the most of your calcium and iron rich treasure...

Plantfoods: Make your own Leafu (leaf curd)

Leafu leaf curd

Our sister site plantfoods.org has a new demo available for making your own leafu (leaf curd) from stinging nettles. Leafu is the protein curd extracted from edible leaves such as nettle, and is high in iron and other nutrients, but is not widely available to buy. Leafu can be made at home with low-tech kit, although the yield is pretty low for the amount of effort required, even if you don't get stung picking the nettles!

Diary Date: Oct 27 - West Midlands Vegan Festival

West Midlands Vegan Festival 2012
Now in it's 5th year the West Midlands Vegan Festival is one of the largest UK vegan events and promises to be bigger and better this year.

The 2012 festival is scheduled for Saturday 27th October at Wolverhampton Civic Centre. The event will have over 100 stalls filling two large halls and will run from 11am until 6pm this year.

For the latest information, ignore the web address on the printed flyers (which is out of date) and visit:

http://www.veganmidlands.org.uk/events.html
or see the facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/events/417809864898883/


Gluten-Free Vegan: Biscotti Amaretti by Orgran

Orgran Biscotti Amaretti pack

Orgran produce a massive range of gluten-free foods, all of which are vegan too. Their line of Biscotti Amaretti are the only vegan amaretto biscuits available in the UK as far as we can tell, so it's gluten-free or nothing for us vegans! They also happen to be yeast free, soy free and nut free. These biscotti are free-from pretty much everything, but are they free from flavour too?

Crumbs! New vegan biscuits: Fox's Munch

Fox's Munch vegan biscuits

Bad news if you're dieting...Fox's new Munch biscuits are vegan friendly. These are great everyday biscuits, perfect for dunking in tea. They look a bit like ginger nuts but are softer and chewier...and not ginger. The oat and coconut biscuits have a slight coconut flavour but generally are just a buttery (plant butter...) crunchy, chewy biscuit. The 'Golden' flavour biscuits are the ones to go for, as the Chocolate Chip ones list dairy as an allergen despite no milk ingredients being included.