Ⓥ Quick and Easy Vegan Truffles

As usual I have taken a long time to put together a blog post. This one is about some vegan truffles my friend Victoria made for me for Christmas. Just before I scoffed them I managed to spare a few minutes to take a photo of them and thought it was probably a good thing to put on the blog. So just five months later I've managed to get around to doing it.

I hope you will agree that they do look very good. Here is how Victoria made them.

Ingredients:

125g/4oz vegan cream cheese
300g/10oz sifted icing sugar
60g/2oz ground almonds
250g/8oz plain chocolate
A tablespoon of dark rum or brandy or anything else that takes your fancy
To coat - cocoa powder, desiccated coconut, chopped nuts
Mini paper cases

Method:

Soften the cream cheese with an electric whisk in a bowl. Then gradually add the icing sugar and ground almonds. Melt the chocolate, stir in the rum or brandy into the chocolate and add this to the cream cheese mixture, mix it in fast and thoroughly. Roll into small balls and put them in the fridge for about 20 minutes (this makes it easier to put the coating on without it all melting all over your hands) coat in the cocoa/coconut/rolled nuts.Pop into the paper cases and chill. Enjoy!!

Ⓥ One vegan and two meat eaters destined to see the vegan light.

Here is a photo of myself and my sister Gillian in the early 1970s spending some quality time with a beautiful brown cow (i am the one with the bunches in the middle); but shockingly only hours later to happily eat meat and dairy fed to us by our parents.
The cow sadly would not have "enjoyed" many more years on this planet before being slaughtered. Luckily both my sister and I saw the vegan light and stopped participating in animal abuse over two decades ago now. But what I wonder triggers the individual to turn vegan, why are most humans missing that empathy that causes them to question what is thought of by the masses as normal, the slaughter and consumption of other sentient beings.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the photo.

Ⓥ Clear Spot Tofu for My Dinner

Recently I put in a wholefood order with Lembas, my local wholefood wholesalers. Amongst the various vegan delights was one of my favourites - Clear Spot Organic Tofu - As it says on the pack "The complete and versatile vegetable protein food". To me, it puts all other commercial "tofu" to shame. I have to hold back from eating it straight from the packet. Another bonus for me is that it is local to where I live, starting its life at R&R Tofu Ltd on a small industrial estate in Malton North Yorkshire. http://www.clearspottofu.co.uk/
R&R started producing their tofu in 1985, so are by now experts in everything tofu related.

So, anyway, I ordered half a case of the 450g packets expecting half a case - three packets to arrive. Due to a cock up on the Lembas front they delivered a whole case - six packets. Now there was a three week use by on the tofu and even though I do live on the edge when it comes to "use bys" choosing usually to use my own common sense and extend the "use by" by several days/weeks/months depending on the item in question. In this case I was aware that tofu can be a little bit of a stickler when it comes to when it wants to be eaten by.
So for the past two weeks I have made two cheesecakes, one spinach and tofu curry, butternut squash soup with added tofu and today a butternut squash spring onion and red pepper with satay sauce concoction with basmati rice.

So I thought I would pass on my knowledge of this wonderful tofu to anyone who wandered by and read this blog.

Ⓥ A festive message from Peteronsax

As I begin to prepare tomorrow’s Christmas lunch, I realize how much my tastes have changed over the last 6 months - since giving up animal products. Now that I eat only what’s good for me, I really have developed a taste for it. For example, if I’ve eaten a lot of fruit and vegetables, I feel hunger for beans and peas, and also the other way around. My newly developed tastes lead me to a healthy and balanced diet. And I have almost no cravings for any animal products or their by-products.

In fact, I feel revolted when walking past the meat fridges in the supermarket. Other shoppers see beef and pork and lamb and chicken – while I just see mutilated dead bodies.

Yesterday in Aldi I imagined a fridge full of human body parts, skinned and deboned of course, except for the occasional severed hand and a head with the eyes still open. (I don’t think anyone else saw it).

To lighten my mood, I pictured a cartoon of a flesh-eating zombie, surrounded by human and non-human meat. And from his blood-stained mouth came the words “What! You don’t eat dead bodies? So where do you get your protein from?”

Merry Christmas and enjoy your Christmas lunch.

Peteronsax

Ⓥ The Great Vegusto No Moo "Cheese" Sauce Trial

Recently we were lucky enough to receive a couple of samples of Vegusto No Moo Sauce from Vegusto UK.

Now, I am a long time advocate of Engevita nutritional yeast flakes, which I use to make a great "cheese" sauce for one of my favourite dinners - Lasagna; so I was very interested to see how the No Moo Sauce compared.

The first obvious benefit from using No Moo Sauce rather than making an Engevita sauce was that all I had to do was open the packet and pour it out.




So, having already purchased some organic lasagna sheets, I made up a tomato sauce from some chopped garlic, onion, mushroom and pepper fried up with added tomato passata, frozen TVP mince and of course a good glug of vegan red wine.  After a quick layering of the two sauces and the pasta sheets, ending of course with some of the No Moo sauce, I bunged it into my oven and waited a long thirty minutes.  Gramondo has pointed out to me to mention that it did smell nice while cooking, and when I opened the oven I was pleasantly surprised to see that the No Moo sauce had bubbled and browned very nicely.

Now trying our best not to burn our mouths we tucked into the expertly made lasagna.  Our taste buds were not disappointed. Golden brown on the top and all melted and hot inside the sauce was very good indeed.  It was I must admit even tastier than my old friend Engevita.  Now not being an expert in conveying flavours of food into the written form, I feel as if all I can say from here is that I recommend you give the No Moo a go, and make sure you don't burn your mouth.

Ⓥ Banoffee Pie made with Soy Condensed Milk

I thought I would have a go at Banoffee Pie as it well within my cooking capabilities.  The ingredients needed are, soy condensed milk, bananas, box of vegan cream, digestives, margarine.

First, instead of being sensible and eco-friendly as my good friend from Brazil later suggested, and using a pressure cooker for 30 minutes, instead I simmered my precious can of soy condensed milk for four hours.

I left my cooked soy condensed milk in the fridge for a day and it thickened up quite a lot.  Then all you do is break the digestives up into crumbs, melt about 1oz of margarine and add the biscuit crumbs to it.  Put this mix into a flan dish and press down.  Then slice up bananas and layer them on top.  Then put a layer of condensed soy milk.  Then after whisking your soy cream blob that on top.

If you can resist eating it for 24 hours i would recommend doing this as it really does taste a lot nicer a day later. I would give it a big 8 out of 10 but if you don't like it please feel free to post it to me in an air tight container, first class mail preferred.

Soy Condensed Milk is currently available in the United Kingdom (last checked July 2013), through Ananda Foods.

Ⓥ Tesco advert banned by ASA

I received the letter below from the ASA regarding the butchers choice sausages. 

Tesco Stores Ltd	Case number:	A11-158670/DJW
Tesco House Delamare Road Cheshunt Hertfordshire EN8 9SL	Media:	Television
	Sector:	Retail
	Agency:
Number of complaints : 4

Ad

A TV ad, for sausages, viewed on 11 May 2011.  The voiceover stated “Why not try specially selected, British farmed, expertly produced, deliciously fresh butcher's choice bangers on your barbie?  Quality and freshness at Tesco ...”.  The ad contained a scene that showed pigs roaming in a field.  Three pigs were then shown in a hay barn and walking with a farmer down a lane.  A sign that displayed the name of the farm was also shown.

Issue

Four complainants challenged whether the ad was misleading, because they believed the meat used for Tesco branded sausages came from pigs that were bred and reared indoors.

Response

Tesco believed that the ad was not misleading. They stated that the ad showed pigs both indoors and outdoors. They also said that a combination of standard trim and outdoor bred trim had been used in the product. They explained that standard trim referred to meat produced by indoor bred pigs. They said that the pigs had been reared to Red Tractor standards and ensured world class standards of husbandry and welfare to nationally agreed levels.

Tesco stated that the farm shown in the ad was a supplier for the product. They explained that the farm farmed both outdoor sows and indoor finishers. They said that the outdoor sows did not supply the meat for the product and that the farm supplied meat from pigs which were born outdoors and finished indoors.

Clearcast said that prior to filming the ad, Tesco had given an assurance that the footage would be shot at a farm from which the pigs were slaughtered to create their Butcher’s Choice sausages.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA acknowledged that the pigs were shown in both indoor and outdoor environments. We also acknowledged that the farm shown in the ad supplied meat for the product from pigs which were outdoor bred. We understood that the term outdoor bred had an industry-wide, recognised meaning: that pigs were born in fields, where they were kept until weaning, and then they were moved indoors. We understood that the Butcher’s Choice Sausages were made from a mixture of both indoor and outdoor bred trim.

We noted that in all scenes the pigs were shown to be in a spacious and free environment. In particular, we noted that the pigs were shown wandering unrestricted outside and, within the indoor barn scene, the barn door was shown to be open and the pigs’ movement unrestricted. In that context, we considered that consumers were likely to interpret the ad to mean that the pigs used to make the Butcher’s Choice sausages were reared in an unrestricted environment and had access to outdoor pasture. Since we understood that that was not the case, we concluded that the ad was misleading.

The ad breached BCAP Code rule 3.1 (Misleading advertising).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.

Ⓥ Complain against Tesco advert for butchers choice sausages.

Please take the time to complain to the Advertising standards authority about the new Tesco advert for butchers choice sausages. This cons the public into the idea that their pork is from free range pigs when in reality it is from factory farmed pigs. Don't let them get away with it.

Just to help you when you fill out the complaints form here are the details of when i saw the advert.

8th September at 17.25 on ITV3 during a broadcast of "Terry and June"

Below is link to the advertising standards agency and a link to a you tube showing of the advert.

.youtube. Tesco butchers choice advert

http://www.asa.org.uk/

Ⓥ Free vegan ice cream tasting

Ice Cream Sunday: free vegan ice cream tasting at The Beached Lamb Cafe, Fore St, Newquay, Cornwall tomorrow (Sun 14th) 11:00 - 15:00.

Organiised by Cornwall Animal Action, Truro Vegans and Cornish Cool Cats.

cornwallanimalaction

Ⓥ Foie Gras Petition

Dean & DeLuca—a U.S.-based gourmet grocery chain are using foie gras in doughnuts. PETA have put together a petition to send to them letting them know how cruel foie gras is and asking them to stop selling it. Please take a moment to sign their petition.

PETA foie gras petition

Foie Gras doughnuts spark protests