Ⓥ My cheese free vegan pizza on Vegan Pizza Day

Yesterday, Gramondo told me that it was Vegan Pizza Day on Saturday 29th June. So, I thought it was as good a reason as any to have another pizza. Recently I have stopped using vegan cheese on my pizza and have found that I don't miss it at all.

Last week we put in an order with Essential Trading Coop and amongst other things ordered Sunita organic olives and Organico organic artichokes. So, I put some of those on, together with only basic ingredients, tomato puree, onion, garlic, red pepper, mushroom, olive oil and seasoning. I keep telling myself that in regards to pizza, less is definitely more. Most of the time, I usually end up putting too much on, but this time I think I nearly cracked it.

For the base, I use my Panasonic bread making machine, which always makes a consistently good dough, without much effort from myself.

Ⓥ Artisan Vegan Cheese - Pub Cheddar with Chives

Since I blogged the Air Dried Cheddar  he  recipe in January, I have been going through the Artisan Vegan Cheese book, albeit very slowly, testing various recipes.  Apart from the Smoked Provolone Cheese, (I have realised I don't like smokey flavours in general), I have really enjoyed every one I have made. Gramondo has enjoyed all of them, so we are both very impressed with the book and would highly recommend that you get yourself a copy.

So, here is another cheese from the book to take a look at.

I set Gramondo the task, to find me an ale to use in the recipe.  He did very well, finding one in the Co-op that was not only a vegan ale, but an organic, Fairtrade and vegan ale.  The ale is brewed for The Co-op by the Freeminer Brewery in the Royal Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire.  The malted barley is grown in the Cotswolds and on Salisbury Plain and handcrafted by Warminster Maltings - Britain’s oldest working floor maltings.

First stage is to soak the cashew nuts for 3 to 8 hours.  Then blend them, together with your rejuvelac,
miso, yeast flakes and salt.  You have to leave this to do its thing for 24 to 28 hours at room temperature (about 67f/19c).

Next stage is to thicken the cheese.  You heat the ale, together with the agar powder and then add the cheese.  After you have been stirring it for about five minutes, it becomes smooth and glossy.  You then remove it from the heat and add your chives, I used dried as I could not find fresh.

  

Pour into a glass mould and allow to cool.

Artisan Vegan Cheese

Ⓥ PÜR Gum - Vegan Friendly Chewing Gum

PÜR Gum recently sent us a few samples of their gum to try out.  The gum is available in several flavours including peppermint, pomegranate mint, spearmint and wintergreen.  We tested out all the flavours.  Out of the four flavours the pomegranate mint one is our favourite.

PÜR Gum is vegan friendly, aspartame-free and sweetened with xylitol, which is a naturally-occurring sugar alcohol found in corn cobs and stalks.  It’s also naturally coloured and flavoured and free of genetically modified organisms.  It contains no gluten and is safe for people with celiac disease and any other wheat and gluten intolerance.  Each piece of gum contains 1 gram of xylitol and 2.4 calories.

Xylitol is a natural insulin stabilizer, meaning it doesn't cause a spike in blood sugar and helps reduce sugar and carbohydrate cravings.  It also helps to restore proper alkaline/acid balance in the mouth, inhibits plaque formation and helps prevent tooth decay.

I haven’t bought chewing gum for more years than I care to remember, but if I saw the PÜR Gum available then I would buy a packet or two… especially as it’s vegan friendly.

Links:

• Buy PÜR Gum on Amazon
• Twitter - PÜR Gum
• Facebook - PÜR Gum

PÜR Gum is distributed in the United Kingdom by Eterno Naturals.