Vegan Cookout Ideas

#whatveganseat #4thofJuly pic.twitter.com/PmC5gMCQ0G

— Catherine Gill (@theDirtyVegan) July 4, 2017

Just wanted to share what we ate today for lunch for some vegan summer cookout inspo. We grilled asparagus, veggie burgers, veggie sausages, boiled sweet corn on the cob, and had homemade ice cream pie for dessert. During lunch preparation we snacked on fresh watermelon, which was so refreshing because it was hot in New England today.

The veggie burgers were Dr. Praeger's (prepared with melted Daiya provolone cheese, Vegenaise, dijon mustard, ketchup, lettuce and natural pickles. The sausages were Tofurky (spinach pesto flavor) with relish, mustard and ketchup on them. The ice cream pie recipe was whipped up so quickly yesterday and topped with soy whipped cream.

Just a super easy lunch idea for some vegan cookout stuff that was put together without hardly any thought. Basically grab some cold, fresh fruit to snack on while grilling, some vegan protein to grill, buns, condiments, some veggies to grill or go along on the side, a dessert, beverages, and some snacky stuff like chips with hummus or guacamole is my go-to base for cookouts and then adding more, like fruit salad, other desserts and snacks, or more stuff to grill, if you like variety or are expecting more of a crowd. I get a lot of messages asking for inspiration and ideas for vegan meals, especially summer ones, so this is a simple way to approach cookouts or grilling without stressing out about it.

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off - Happy and safe Fourth of July!

3 Postum Party Cocktails (Even a Virgin One)!

Today's post is going to be some cocktail ideas for any upcoming cookouts or parties you plan on hosting. Two of the three recipes are alcoholic, however one is non-alcoholic, so I think you'll have something for everyone serving these drinks the next time you entertain guests.

In these recipes I use all three Postum flavors: Natural Coffee Flavor, Postum Cocoa Blend, and the original Postum flavor. Feel free to substitute one for the other to suit your preference. Postum is the perfect product to swap around flavors in recipes because doing so won't ruin the recipe whatsoever. The flavors will change slightly but in such an enjoyable way, that is really what I love about using this products in my recipes: the versatility of the product as well as how tasty it is in everything that I have made so far!

Let's get to these boozy recipe! The next cookout holiday that we have here in America, will be Independence Day next month, so if you are having a party and want to serve something different and fun, you should give these cocktail recipes a try!

Postum Martinis for a Crowd (makes 4 martinis)

2 teaspoons Postum (in original flavor)
6 ounces boiling water
6 ounces vodka
Simple syrup to taste (optional)
ice

Prepare Postum by mixing it with boiling water and set aside for a few moments to cool. In a cocktail shaker, place ice, prepared Postum and give it a shake. Serve by pouring into martini glasses (without ice using the strainer lid), and enjoy!

There is this drink called a Tootsie Roll, that is made with coffee flavored liqueur and orange juice. It is a really tasty drink and almost does taste like a candy lolly pop. I thought that this would be the absolute best drink to make non-alcoholic, and I was right! So tasty and fun. You wouldn't have thought to mix Postum with orange juice, now would you?

Virgin Tootsie Roll (makes 2 drinks)

2 teaspoons Postum (in Natural Coffee flavor)
6 ounces boiling water
8 ounces orange juice
ice

Prepare Postum by mixing it with boiling water and set aside for a few moments to cool. In a cocktail shaker, place ice, prepared Postum, orange juice and give it a shake. Serve in glass of choice (fun with a paper umbrella for garnish) and enjoy!

Out of this World - Banana Split Cocktail (makes 1 drink)

1 teaspoon Postum (in Cocoa Blend flavor)
4 ounces boiling water
ice
1 ounce banana liqueur
2 tablespoon vanilla soy coffee creamer
splash of pineapple juice
maraschino cherries to garnish on top (optional)

Prepare Postum by mixing it with boiling water and set aside for a few moments to cool. Fill a tall glass with ice. In a cocktail shaker, place more ice, prepared Postum, banana liqueur and give it a shake. Pour contents of shaker strained into glass, then add coffee creamer and top with pineapple juice. You can garnish with cherries or whipped topping or just enjoy it the way it is!

I hope you get a chance to try these recipes. They came out awesome! And big thanks to the folks at Postum for sponsoring this recipe post and for generously supplying the product. Stay tuned for a Postum giveaway coming soon where I'll be giving away a jar of each fabulous flavor!

*As always, drink responsibly and the recipes that have alcohol in them are intended to be prepared and enjoyed by people who are 21+ and older*

This blog post was sponsored by Postum

Neopolitan Fountain Float & Almond Joyful Postum Cocktail Recipes!

This is the second part of yesterday's post where I introduced Postum Cocoa Blend. Today, we are going to look at two super fun recipes using this awesome new cocoa stuff, one being a cool summer cocktail.

I was initially planning on posting two alcoholic drink recipes, but since not everyone drinks alcohol and a portion of my readers are under the age of 21, I wanted the post to be fair and have one boozy drink and one non-alcoholic kind. Of course the cocktail can be made non-alcoholic by using another type of liquid, like coconut milk or maybe even coconut water instead. These are both really fun drinks and seriously so yummy! Get creative and don't forget to keep sharing pictures of your Postum creations with us on social media!

Neopolitan Fountain Float
makes 1 drink

What you'll need:

-2 teaspoons Postum Cocoa Blend
-6 ounces boiling water
-3 scoops vanilla ice cream
-3 ripe strawberries, sliced

What you'll need to do:

Prepare Postum by mixing it with boiling water and set aside to cool. Once cooled, fill a tall glass with ice cream scoops, strawberries, then fill with prepared Postum. Top with whipped cream and an additional strawberry for garnish, if desired. Enjoy!

Every Postum recipe I make I really do say that it is my favorite one, but this has got to be my favorite one! HA HA! They are all so good, but I drank this down the fastest of them all! Just so absolutely tasty! The flavors melded so well together and it really does taste like neopolitan ice cream!

Almond Joyful Postum Cocktail
makes 1 drink
(*21+ to make and enjoy this one!*)

What you'll need:

-1 teaspoon Postum Cocoa Blend
-4 ounces boiling water
-1 ounce coconut flavored rum
-.5 ounce almond flavored liquer
-splash of vanilla coffee creamer
-ice

What you'll need to do:

Prepare Postum by mixing it with boiling water and set aside to cool. Fill a cocktail shaker about 2/3 up with ice and add rum and liquer to the shaker. Then add cooled prepared Postum and coffee creamer (a splash or to taste) to the shaker (you can even add the creamer in afterwards and just float it in the glass, like I did in the photo - which I think looks more beautiful!); shake it up! Then fill a tall glass with ice and pour shaker contents into it. This drink can be topped with whipped cream, if desired.

Please, as always, drink responsibly! This one was really interesting to make and I loved the way it turned out! It tastes just like drinking one of those classic candies that has coconut, almond, and coated in chocolate - and the drink is just as decadent as I remember the confection being!

I hope you enjoyed this one! I always have a good time creating and I truly love what I do, but this one was big fun for sure! Please stay tuned for more recipes using Postum; the next one is totally unexpected and will be awesome, so get excited for it!

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off - hope your day is soda fountain and candy shop sweet!

This blog post was sponsored by Postum.

Introducing Postum Cocoa & Recipe!

When I found out about Postum's new addition to their product line, Cocoa Blend, I could hardly contain my excitement on wanting to review it! And then my mind started racing with recipe ideas. My mind is already filled with so many Postum recipe ideas that I have yet to create and share, but now with adding Cocoa to the mix, I never want to leave my kitchen. This post is a review of the new product and a very exciting recipe at the end!

If you aren't familiar with the Postum brand, please check out my other Postum posts - they are an all-natural, vegan, kosher, non-GMO brand that specializes in an instant warm beverage in original, coffee and now cocoa flavor; a caffeine-free alternative to drinking coffee or tea, or a wonderful beverage to add to your life in addition to the other drinks.

I felt like a kid on Christmas getting this package! I couldn't wait to open the jar and smell it! Yummm...smells just like hot cocoa mixed in with that familiar and comforting aroma of Postum. I noticed that it is still only 10 calories, no sugar and same carbs, just 2. 

I prepared a cup as usual. I usually take my cup of warm Postum by mixing 2 teaspoons of the product with 6 ounces of boiling water, Sometimes I add soy creamer or vegan milk, sometimes I drink it black. My initial reaction upon tasting it, was that it wasn't sweet like hot cocoa, but has that nice and subtle chocolate flavor intertwined with the flavor of Postum; it is simply delightful. It is also so very accommodating to customization since you can add sweetener or creamer/ milk of choice, that really brings out the cocoa flavor. I personally liked enjoying it both ways - plain and sweetened with creamer. Just like the other Postum products, very versatile in terms of beverage as well as recipes you can do with it.

I can also see this flavor being amazing made with steamed milk, or prepared then cooled to enjoy cold, and of course in so many fun drink recipes. Let's take a look at the recipe I created - like a frozen s'more in a cup!

Campside Frozen S'mores Hot Cocoa

makes 1 large beverage

What you'll need:

-2 teaspoons Postum Cocoa Blend

-6 oz. boiling water

-sweetener (optional)

-vanilla creamer, to taste and for marshmallow sauce

-ice

-1 graham cracker

-3 large vegan marshmallows

Optional toppings: vegan whipped cream, chocolate syrup for drizzling or for rim, crushed graham crackers to garnish or for rim, marshmallows for garnish.

What you'll need to do:

In a mug designed for hot beverages, mix Postum with boiling water until well combined. Sweeten to taste if using sweetener and add creamer to taste. Let the beverage cool. In a blender, blend prepared Postum drink, ice and graham cracker; set aside. In a microwave safe dish or cup, place marshmallow and creamer then microwave in 15 second increments, stirring when needed, until marshmallow is a liquid sauce. Drizzle marshmallow sauce in the inside of a glass or tumbler cup designed for cold beverages, then pour in your icy Postum from the blender. Top with toppings, if desired.

ENJOY!

Vegan<3

You can find Postum on social: twitter, instagram, facebook!

Tomorrow will be Postum cocktails!!! You won't believe what I came up with either. And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off - have a sweet day!

This blog post was sponsored by Postum.

Summer Prize Pack Flash Instagram Giveaway featuring Postum!

InstaFlash #GIVEAWAY! Winner chosen on Tuesday, just Like this post and follow me @theedirtyvegan and @wholesomepostum to #WIN this awesome #Postum #prizepack filled with both flavors, two awesome cold cup tumblers, an inflatable pool lounger and a 3-pack of inflatable beverage boats! Perfect for making the coffeeccino recipe featured on my blog and to enjoy your #iced Postum all #summer long! #vegan #whatveganseat #natural #poolside #poolparty #win #sponsoredpost

A post shared by The Dirty Vegan (@theedirtyvegan) on May 27, 2017 at 5:57pm PDT

Since my last post Postum post where I shared the most refreshingly delicious frozen iced coffee recipe, I have been getting so much positive feedback about it and so many of you are interested in trying it (here is the store locator to find Postum in your area! Or read on for a chance to win some too)! I have decided to do a flash giveaway on my Instagram. 

All the details are above, but basically just follow me and Postum on the gram and give the above post a Like! That's it! Here is the link to the instagram giveaway post in case for any reason the above image is not loading properly on your device. And since this is a flash giveaway, the winner will be chosen and announced in just a couple of days, on Tuesday!

Click here for this amazing summery recipe! And make sure to enter the giveaway, it is so quick to do, and you can score an awesome Postum prize pack (both flavors plus two sweet cold cup tumblers, an inflatable pool lounger and floating drink holders!) that you can enjoy all summer long!

Good luck!

Testing Exciting New Vegan Products: Enjoy Life Foods!

This is such an exciting time for vegan food and I'm so grateful that companies send me care packages to try out the latest products. There are so many amazing new food items just recently released or that will be available very soon, and I am over-the-moon happy about this!

The latest Enjoy Life vegan stuff! Yay!!!

I wanted to talk about the latest three delicious and gluten-free Enjoy Life products added to their line of wonderful vegan offerings and allergy-friendly foods.

The red bag is the Dark Chocolate Regular Size Morsels, which I thought they always had but maybe these are new because they are 69% cacao. Anyways, these are for baking and other recipes but are so good straight from the bag! What?? I didn't eat the whole entire bag before getting a chance to use them for a recipe post. What? There's a recipe using these scrumptious chocolate morsels coming soon...maybe.

Then there's the brand new protein bites, ProBurst Bites that I'm most excited about! They are nut-free, made with sunseed butter (sunflower seed butter), they are completely natural, they pack a 6g of protein punch, but most importantly...they taste more like a dessert than a snack. I was expecting these to taste like the protein balls that I sometimes eat (you know when I'm in workout mode, occasionally) but they actually taste like the best chocolate truffles I've ever eaten! You get 5 servings per (resealable) bag, however that's 3 bites per serving and they are so rich and decadent that I can easily eat one or two and be satisfied. These are a great value and nutritional, but yummy, offering.

And last but certainly not least, the Muffin Mix with Ancient Grains. My favorite aspect of this muffin mix is that the mix has 5g of protein per serving developed with probiotics. I absolutely love when something like muffin mix isn't void of nutritional value. These muffins are coming in at only 170 calories each prepared muffin, and you can make about 10- 12 muffins per box, so if I am in workout mode (haha, yeah right) I won't feel guilty at all eating them...all...eating all the muffins. Damn, they are tasty muffins - don't judge me.

Big thank you to Enjoy Life Foods for sending these new products over to me to try. I am a big fan of this company and they really continue to make vegans lives so much easier with their delish and revolutionary products. Bravo!

Which of the latest Enjoy Life products are you most exciting to try out? 

Homemade Vegan Chocolate Malt Candy Cookie Bites Recipe featuring Postum

I have been really enjoying my morning cup of Postum. I'm sure you guessed that from my Postum review, if you read it. I like to drink a variety of beverages, like many of us do, so I don't limit myself to just coffee or tea. I have added Postum to my daily beverage intake, just like I enjoy water and other drinks throughout the day. What has been perfect about drinking Postum, is that it is ideal for those mornings that I want the taste of coffee or a nice warm drink (and that distinct and comforting flavor of Postum), but don't want the caffeine. I would drink coffee all day if I could, but the caffeine often makes most of us feel jittery, for me even decaf can do that, so enjoying a Postum has been awesome lately! I'll have one in the morning or sometimes if I fancy a coffee first thing, I'll sip a nice cup of warm or iced Postum at night, without worrying that it'll keep me up for hours! I'm loving the Postum product so much that I thought to myself, what else can I do with it? The flavor is amazing and there are so many servings (a whopping 75!) per can. How about experimenting with some recipes?

I was sitting down with a cup of Postum and a book the other day, and was really stuck on what it had reminded me of, in that one sip, in that moment. Then it struck me! Remember those chocolate malt candies that you get at the movies or they came in a speckled candy coated Easter egg version at this time of year? Those types of candies have been off limits for us vegans but also for people who avoid overly processed foods and candy, and those who prefer to make their own sweets. After countless hours and testing in my kitchen, I perfected the recipe inspired by what I remember, what my childhood memories recall of those chocolate malt candies, but with a healthier twist and in the form of cookie bites! It was all possible because of this wonderful and versatile product, Postum. So here is the recipe! I hope you enjoy them! When you try this recipe, I'd love to see your pictures or hear what you think about it. Feel free to mention or tag me and Postum on Twitter!

Homemade Vegan Chocolate Malt Candy Cookie Bites Recipe featuring Postum
Makes 2 dozen cookies

Cookies Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 cup Postum (or more for stronger malt flavor), I used Original (Roasted Wheat-bran Molasses) Flavor
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup vegan milk (use a little more if needed to achieve cookie dough consistency)
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Coating Ingredients:

1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
2 tablespoons coconut oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with baking-safe parchment paper. In a mixing bowl, mix first five ingredients (dry ingredients) then add in vegan milk and vanilla extract. Drop small balls of dough, about one teaspoon in size, on parchment lined baking sheet, about one inch apart. Bake for 8- 10 minutes then remove from oven and allow cookies to cool. Place cookies in freezer for about 5 minutes. Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil together and blend well. Dip each cookie in chocolate to coat, then place on parchment paper. Freeze cookies for 30 minutes, or until coating is dry, to set then enjoy! Cookies can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Coming soon: a Postum prize pack giveaway!!! Keep an eye out for that in my next Postum post!

This blog post was sponsored by Postum.

Dolcedi Me!

Did you ever have a moment when you were like, I need something to sweeten my coffee, tea or whatever else but I'd like something new and interesting and low glycemic...possibly made from apples?

Just go along with it.

So this stuff is like really cool. Seriously, like really really cool. 

What is it like? What does it taste like? HONEY. Legit, it tastes exactly like honey. Vegans rejoice!

The ingredients are just: concentrated apple juice. That is it! And it tastes like honey. How? I don't freaking know - all I know is that it is good and it is vegan.

I'd like to thank the awesome folks at Rigoni di Asiago for sending over this sweet bottle of amazing Dolcedi! I am hooked on this stuff for sure.

*pours dolcedi over entire life*

Pumpkin Blondies a La Mode with Salted Caramel Sauce

The former newbie vegan that I once was, believed that vegan caramel was a myth, sort of like unicorns or gremlins. However, the seasoned vegan that I am presently, who has weathered out the storm of the first vegan foods - which let me tell you, were much different than the cruelty-free delicacies that we enjoy today - continues to be amazed by the fact that anything is vegan-possible. I continue to create recipes that not only shock my non-vegan friends and family, but also even surprise myself sometimes...pleasantly of course.

The other day I made a delicious pumpkin bread that was really screaming "I am more like a blondie!" So, a pumpkin blondie it is. It isn't super sweet, but the ice cream and salted caramel sauce takes care of that brilliantly. When this dessert is devoured as a whole, the warm pumpkin blondie, the scoop of creamy ice cream melting slightly on top, and the caramel sauce, feels like heaven in your mouth. You'll see.

Pumpkin Blondies a la mode with Salted Caramel Sauce

What you'll need:

Pumpkin Blondies:

2 cups flour

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup vegan milk (I used vanilla soymilk)

1/3 cup vegan butter, softened

2 tsp Vegg egg replacer mixed with 1/2 cup water OR vegan equivalent of 2 eggs

Ice Cream:

Scoop of vanilla vegan ice cream of your choice. I used So Delicious creamy vanilla and it was perfection in this recipe.

Salted Caramel Sauce:

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp creamy almond butter
1 tbsp pure maple syrup
Dash of fine sea salt (or more to taste)

What to do:

Preheat oven 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, dump all of the blondies ingredients in and mix. Let's not make things difficult on ourselves. Pour the batter into a greased pan and bake for about 45 minutes or until toothpick test comes out clean.

While blondies are baking, make your caramel sauce by heating all of the ingredients in a small saucepan on low, stirring constantly, then let cool.

When blondies are done baking, allow them to cool enough to handle, then turn pan over onto a plate, and cut into whatever shape you like. I cut them into circles, just slightly bigger than my ice cream scoop.

Scoop ice cream on top of blondie piece. Drizzle with caramel sauce. Eat and enjoy!

Enjoyed these with the kiddo...and she LOVED them just as much as I did!

Amazing 4 Ingredient Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!

The concept of peanut butter cookies has always baffled me. You know, the true flourless peanut butter cookies that you probably made in home ec. class when you were a kid. Not only did the recipe perplex me then, but even more so as a vegan. Now I understand that eggs played an important role in that recipe from home economics.

When we were challenged to perfect the recipe for eggless, flourless, 4 ingredient, vegan peanut butter cookies, we jumped at the chance, as well as added chocolate chip cookies. Peanut butter is awesome... combined with chocolate, it is perfection.

You must try this vegan cookie recipe. It is life-changing. Plus, you won't believe that there isn't flour involved and that this took just 4 ingredients. We still can't believe it, as we are eating the entire batch right now!

What you'll need:

- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup smooth peanut butter
- 1 vegan "egg" equivalent (we used Vegg)
- 3/4 cup vegan mini chocolate chips

What you'll need to do:

Preheat oven 350°. Combine all ingredients. Form into balls using 1 tablespoon of dough per cookie. Place dough balls on greased cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart. Flatten slightly. Bake for 12- 15 minutes or until cookies are slightly brown, firm, and no longer doughy. Let cool then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

You are VERY welcome ;)

Vegan Blueberry Brown Sugar Coconut Muffins Recipe

Blueberry Brown Sugar Coconut Muffins

What you will need:

1.5 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup vanilla soy milk
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup shredded coconut

What you will need to do:

Preheat oven 400°. Line 12 spots in a muffin pan with liner cups. Combine first 3, dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine next three (wet) ingredients. Combine both dry and wet ingredients, then fold in blueberries and coconut. Divide batter evenly among 12 spots in muffin pan. Bake for 20- 30 minutes, or until toothpick can be inserted and come out cleanly. Enjoy!

Edward & Sons: Review, Lactation Cookie Recipe, and GIVEAWAY!

I have always been a huge fan of Edward & Sons food company. If you don't already know, they are also the makers of Road's End Organics, Native Forest, Premier Japan Organic, Let's Do Organic, and The Wizards. The quality of their food products is outstanding, and with their slogan, Convenience Without Compromise, you can understand why. Edward & Sons aims at making healthy packaged food products, and it never misses the mark. Here are some of the new or popular products that I wanted to show you today.

Who doesn't love Chreese? What is Chreese, you ask? Well, it is Road's End Organics deliciously healthy, nutritional yeast based cheese, and I love it! Not only do I love it, but my 13 month old kiddo does too! And this is great for me because this stuff is good for her! Each serving of Mac & Chreese contains a whopping 13g of protein and tons of Vitamin B12 (the goodness increases when you mix it with vegan milk and butter)! This is important for vegans, and everyone, to be including B12 in their diets, making this product a slam dunk in the natural community. These are so super easy to make and pack a nutritional punch. My daughter definitely gives these her seal of approval. She especially loves the 123, ABC's & Chreese 4Kidz pasta; these are incredibly easy for older babies and small children to eat because of their tiny shape and size. Love this.

Edward & Sons are like masters in coconut. Their coconut is always amazing tasting. Their Let's Do Organic fine shredded coconut and toasted coconut flakes are so amazing, fresh, and delicious, that they taste like you harvested them right from the island yourself. You rarely come across a shredded coconut product that has that cool coconut taste that is completely saturated in tropical coconut. You can tell it is minimally processed and doing amazing things for your body as you're eating it. This is the only shredded coconut that I buy. And toasted coconut flakes save you time when you are going for that in recipes. Well done.

Speaking of coconut, Native Forest has amazing coconut oil. It is great quality and gets the job done. I can't say enough good things about it. We all have heard of the amazing benefits of coconut oil, and this particular brand has the quality and flavor that a consumer deserves. Love it! I use it for oil pulling, cooking, baking, on my skin, and anything else that I can use it for! 

I also really enjoyed the Native Forest canned okra. They are organic, whole pods, and I must admit that before trying this, I had only used fresh or frozen okra. It is refreshing to have the convenience of a canned product with the organic quality that Edward & Sons continually deliver.

My pals at Edward & Sons also make amazing soupy-type products. I love their bouillon, which makes the best broth around! They come in flavors like "Chicken", "Beef", and Vegetable, but I definitely enjoyed their new Red Curry bouillon. It would be fantastic in any Indian or Thai dish, or just on its own as a cup of yummy broth with a spicy kick. I recently made a great Thai soup and this bouillon perfected it. You know what else I love about these vegan bouillon cubes? Because I'm a freak, I love the packaging so much. The name of the broth flavor is on the side of the box, so I stack them up on top of each other in my pantry, and I can easily grab the flavor I need without sorting through all of them. I know, wicked nerdy... whatever.

I'm also a fan of their Miso-cup. It is not like using fresh refrigerated miso paste, so you're not getting that freshly made taste, I hate to admit, but it is the best in a packaged miso that you can get since it uses a packaged paste that mixes with the water. It is definitely tastier than the powder miso soup pouches, plus you get the convenience of taking this soup with you on the go. If you were to take freshly made miso soup, it would obviously spoil, however it is nice to be able to take this along with you to places like work, travel, camping, etc. Plus, it doesn't taste overly salty and has a really nice, balanced flavor.

Would you like to WIN a box full of Edward & Sons goodies, just like mine? The fabulous folks at Edward & Sons are generously providing two of my readers with their very own package of goodies! Stay tuned after the recipe...

RECIPE TIME!!!

I used Native Forest Coconut Oil and Let's Do Organic Fine Shredded Coconut in this cookie recipe. Technically, they are "Lactation Cookies", but my family has been eating them and they are not producing any breast milk like I am, so it is safe to say that these are also "regular oatmeal cookies". Wink, wink. This is an amazing oatmeal cookie recipe, the ingredients just so happen to be lactogenic and support a nursing mother in making extra milk.

Oatmeal, Coconut, Raisin "Lactation" Cookies

Makes about 56 cookies

What you will need:

2 cups oats

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp fine sea salt

2/3 cup Native Forest Coconut Oil, melted

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 cup oat milk (or vegan milk of your choosing)

2 tbsp ground flaxseed

4 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup Let's Do Organic Fine Shredded Coconut OR Toasted Coconut Flakes

What you will need to do:

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Grease about two baking sheets. In a medium bowl, mix oat milk and flaxseed, and set aside. In a large bowl, mix oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, mix you melted coconut oil, sugar, maple syrup, yeast, and add in your flax mixture. Now, mix together your wet and dry bowls, then fold in raisins and coconut. Roll into balls about the size of a large tablespoon and bake for about 10 minutes. Enjoy these yummy cookies!

Now, I bet you're eager to know more about this giveaway that I mentioned earlier. To enter: 

• Follow me @theDirtyVegan on Twitter and also follow @EdwardAndSons on Twitter. 

• I will tweet a giveaway tweet and all you have to do is retweet that. I will be choosing two winners. Winners will be chosen and announced on Monday morning, 5/19/14. 

Let the tweeting begin!

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Go coconuts!

SoDelicious: They Ain't Kiddin'!

I thought that I have tried all of the SoDelicious vegan products. From the beverages, creamers, frozen desserts, and other vegan dairy products, SoDelicious seems to always be coming out with something new. With that being said, there is always something new to try! Lucky for me, they sent me a couple coupons to try some of their new, or new to me, stuff. I perused Whole Foods and found a couple things that I hadn't tried before so that I can review them. Here it goes...

I decided to try SoDelicious Almond Milk Minis ice cream sandwiches in Vanilla. I have tried their other Minis sandwiches that are made with coconut milk and soy milk, so I was curious to try these. They were delicious but not as creamy as the coconut and soy ones. They tasted lighter than the others. If given the opportunity, I would definitely get them again, however if I had a choice, my favorite minis are their coconut milk ones. I'm a huge fan of their Coconut Milk Minis bars in Coconut Almond flavor. Aside from their Coconut Creamers that I use in my coffee and recipes, those minis are my favorite item in the line.

I then chose to try their soy ice cream in Chocolate Velvet flavor. I have had practically every ice cream of theirs whether it be soy, coconut, or almond, but haven't tried this flavor. I am a fan of their Chocolate Obsession and Chocolate Peanut Butter flavors, so I thought that this would be pretty similar. I thought wrong! Chocolate Velvet is hands down the best chocolate flavored vegan ice cream that I have ever tried. It is so smooth, creamy, and downright velvety! Even the look and texture is like frozen velvet, it is just beautiful! I had this by itself and also made milkshakes with it. Once I made a chocolate and vanilla shake and the next time I made a chocolate peanut butter shake. The peanut butter paired with this chocolate flavor was out of this world! This is my new addiction and definitely the only vegan chocolate ice cream that I will be buying.

SoDelicious has so many products out there that it is hard to keep up! I recently found out that their super new products are their Culinary Coconut Milk (I imagine would be great in Thai recipes), Mini Dessert Bars that are organic, Gluten Free ice creams, and Cashew Milk. All of which, I am extremely interested in trying! Hopefully I'll get my hands on those soon so that I can let you all know what I think of them.

On a side note, and a random one at that, I would love to see SoDelicious make a vegan cream cheese. I think that they would be great at that since they certainly have a way with vegan dairy.

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Sweet velvety deliciousness to you my friends!

For the Love of Zevia... and Cola Cake Recipe!

I'm basically in love with Zevia soda now. See, way back when, I used to be a huge diet soda junkie. In fact, my girlfriends and I could polish off several bottles of diet cola while pulling all-nighters and playing cards. Oh, to be a teenager again. If I were a teenager in 2014, I would have done the whole soda thing a lot differently. I would have chosen Zevia. For anyone who has not heard of Zevia, it is zero calorie soda that is naturally sweetened with stevia, erythritol, and monk fruit extract (the monk fruit is a new addition to their product). These non-sugar sweeteners have no effect on your glycemic index and therefor do not trick the body that you are getting sugar or not getting sugar; there is just no effect at all. Zevia has 15 flavors of soda (sweet, right!?) and so far my favorites have been, cream, cola, ginger ale, and black cherry. I'm super excited to try their root beer, dr. zevia, orange, lime cola, and grape flavors; if they are anything like what I've already sampled, I can say for sure that they all taste amazing! 

Upon initial tasting of the cream Zevia, it was hardly noticeable that this was a "diet" soda at all. At first, it almost tasted like a cane sugar soda, but then after a few seconds you get the stevia aftertaste, which is similar to the diet soda aftertaste except this is not a chemical aftertaste at all like with aspartame or saccharin. The cream taste was crisp and delicious and the same goes for ginger ale and cola. I absolutely loved the cola because it tasted more like a regular cola than a diet one. With black cherry, you can taste it as soon as you open the can and bring it towards your mouth, that is how powerful the flavor is. The cool thing with these flavors are, that they are so apparent yet so natural and clean tasting. Some other sodas that are artificially flavored have that strong flavor but taste so disgustingly chemical. I love the fact that Zevia is naturally flavored and has that really delicious way of representing each of it's flavors. It is actually very difficult to choose a favorite flavor because of how much I enjoyed each one. Bravo to the folks at Zevia!

So, since I have all of these cans of Zevia handy, I wanted to do a recipe. Yes, a recipe with soda in it! I decided to do a cake and let me tell you, it came out freaking amazing! I tried this cake a few different ways while I was experimenting; I tried it once with cream and once with cola. Also, I made this in two variations; once with chocolate chips and once without them. In all variations this cake came out super delicious! It is very moist and easy to work with and tastes amazing without any frosting at all. Yes, it is that cake, you know the cake that you can eat without having to make frosting as an additional step. However, this cake would be perfectly yummy with whatever frosting or glaze you choose. I might be trying this recipe with frosting, but I truly did enjoy the cake just itself. So here it is, the only cake you will ever love!

Chocolate Cola Cake

(with variation to make it as Chocolate Cream Soda Cake or Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cola Cake)

What you will need:

• 2 tbsp ground flax seed
• 3 tbsp water
• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups cane sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 cup vegan butter
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup Zevia cola (or flavor of your choosing)
• 1/2 cup vegan milk
• 1/4 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• OPTIONAL: 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips, 3 tbsp for sprinkling on top

What you will need to do:

Preheat oven 350 degrees and grease your pan (I used an 11 inch round but you can use your favorite pan). In a small bowl, mix together flax and water and set aside. In a large bowl, combine your dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt) and set aside. In a sauce pan combine butter, cocoa powder, Zevia soda, and vegan milk and stir constantly on medium/high heat until brought to a boil, then remove from heat. Add vanilla to the sauce pan mixture then mix in your flax mixture. Lastly, combine your dry and wet ingredients and pour into your greased pan. Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted and removed cleanly.

To make this a chocolate chip cake, after combining dry and wet ingredients, fold in 1/2 cup chocolate chips, pour into greased pan, then sprinkle 3 tbsp chocolate chips on top. Bake the same as above.

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Cake wishes and soda dreams!

What's Vegan-New at WholeFoods

I love going into WholeFoods because it feels like vegan Christmas (that you pay an arm and a leg for, but nonetheless vegan Christmas) every time. It feels like there are new vegan products constantly rotating and I love checking out the goods! 

WholeFoods bakery has added some new cakes and has a great selection of house-made vegan cupcakes. Pictured above is the chocolate chip chocolate cupcake with strawberry frosting and a pretty glazed strawberry on top. They do a great job with their cupcakes corresponding with seasons and holidays also; I love that! They've done really neat ones for Halloween; this seems to be their Valentine's Day one.

Whole Foods has an awesome vegan dairy selection. Unlike other grocery stores that will carry a few items, you'll find a vegan alternative to any dairy product at Whole Foods. I've seen vegan kefirs, sour creams, cream cheeses, shredded cheeses, Parmesan cheeses, cheese slices, cheese blocks, yogurts, milks, creamers, and ice creams at Whole Foods. Recently we found an amazing almond cheese that is cultured and made just like dairy cheese and located in the artisan cheese section. Please read my full review on this awesome vegan cheese in tomorrow's post. 

Another cool new vegan dairy item I've discovered there is Nancy's Cultured Soy. I tried the vanilla flavored yogurt. My first impression was that I loved the container and plan on washing and re-using it for various things. Initially the soy, brown rice, and maple syrup taste was a little overwhelming, but then once I took a few more bites and got used to it, I actually found it quite delightful! This yogurt is extremely natural and simple with only a few recognizable ingredients. So natural that I gave my baby a try and she loved it! I've been wanting to start her on vegan yogurt and I think this brand is great. Nancy's also has 4 grams of protein per serving, is GMO-free, and is low sodium. I plan on getting more containers of this yogurt to keep on hand for the family. I can't wait to try the other flavors.

So those are a couple new vegan products at WholeFoods. I will be sure to report back again soon! And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Have a strawberry-glazed-sweet day! 

New Products I'm Loving Right Now!

You know how I love checking out cool new products, right? I take great pride in trying vegan products to review and give you the scoop on the best ones. Who am I kidding? This is the most fun job ever! Here are some new products that I have come across recently and am totally in love with. I found these in local grocery stores, in the natural isles, so they are not hard to find or only located in specialty health stores. Not only are these crazy-good, they are easy to obtain. Let the yum begin!

Go Veggie! Vegan Strawberry Cream Cheese

Go Veggie continues to get me into trouble with their delicious vegan cheese products! This strawberry cream cheese is phenomenal. It is all that I remember about strawberry cream cheese as a kid and then some. I ate this on bagels, soft fresh baked bakery bread, and even made cake balls with it! On the fresh bread it tasted like a pastry dessert! This would also make a mighty fine cheesecake. Perhaps that will be one of my upcoming dessert recipes! I definitely recommend this cream cheese, it is superb and my favorite Go Veggie product next to their vegan parm.

Lara Bar ALT Fruit and Nut Bar in Peanut Butter Cookie

 I love Lara Bars, and although they are absolutely delicious and even dessert-like, they were somewhat lacking in the protein department...until now that is. ALT bars contain a whopping 10 grams of protein per tiny bar. What an easy and delicious way to get your protein, especially on the run. These are great for before or after the gym and the Peanut Butter Cookie is absolutely delicious!

SoDelicious Mini Coconut Milk Coconut Almond Dessert Bars

SoDelicious is another vegan food brand that gets me into a lot of mischief. If you remember what Almond Joy candy bars tasted like, well this is their vegan ice cream twin. I literally savored each and every single bite of these scrumptious little frozen treats. Get this one, each bar is only 170 calories and even has 2 grams of protein! Now that is a reason for me to eat one of these with each meal! This is my favorite new product right now and I am absolutely crazy over it.

Popcorn Indiana Fit Popcorn in Sea Salt

We found this popcorn in the store by chance, checked the ingredients, and found that they were vegan and really natural (only 3 ingredients). This popcorn is just 37 calories per cup but tastes like movie theater, buttery popcorn! Not sure how they do it, but it has now become my favorite popcorn. Another cool fact is that it is Biggest Loser approved. If Jillian Michaels says its okay to eat this on our weight loss diets, than I'm all for it! Another neat fact is that if you eat the entire bag it is still less calories than one serving of the fattening popcorn that you might get at the movie theater.

So that was my latest installment of New Products I'm Loving Right Now! Hope you enjoyed! If you have any ideas for new vegan products that you would like me to review, or you are a company with a product that you would like me to try, please e-mail me at: thedirtyvegan@thedirtyvegan.com or tweet me at: @thedirtyvegan

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Hooray for vegan snacks!

Make Candy Bird's Nests! Kiddo Friendly!

A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song. -Chinese Proverb

This recipe is so much fun! This is such a great recipe to make with your kiddos, whether you are a parent, teacher, caregiver, babysitter, or a big kid yourself. There are lots of things that your children can help with, like mixing the nests, molding the bird's nests, spreading the chocolate, and decorating with jelly beans. Just be sure that you let your ingredients cool before you or your child start messing with them with your hands. 

Happy Spring 'Peanut Butter & Chocolate Granola Cereal Bird's Nests'

recipes makes 16 nests

What you will need:

• 2 cups granola (I used Nutty Steph's Vermont Granola)
• 2 cups of your favorite cereal (I used Erewhon's Crispy Brown Rice & Trader Joe's O's)
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/2 cup vegan cane sugar
• 3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (think about texture when choosing cereal and pb, it makes your nests more beautiful)
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
• splash of almond milk
• About 80 of your favorite vegan jelly beans, about 1/4 of the bag 
• 1 tbsp vegan butter, for hand buttering (I used Earth balance. Great for hand buttering!)
• 1/3 cup measuring cup for molding nests with
• baking sheet lined with parchment paper (I always use If You Care brand)

What you will need to do:

In a large mixing bowl, combine granola and cereal. In a saucepan on low heat, melt maple syrup and cane sugar until smooth, then add peanut butter. Continue mixing until smooth and well combined. Remove from heat and let sit for a few moments so that your mixture is not too hot to handle. Butter your fingers and hands with the vegan butter. Pour sugary peanut butter mixture into your granola and cereal bowl. Mix and mash with your hands until it seems good enough for forming nests with. Take your 1/3 cup measuring cup and scoop some mixture, indent the middle with your finger, packing down into the cup, then tip cup over in the palm of your hand, placing the indent-side up on your parchment paper. Once you make all of your nests, place in the freezer to set while you melt chocolate chips and almond milk in a saucepan on low heat, making a thick ganache and let it cool for a little bit. Decorate the tops of the nests by spreading chocolate on top with a spoon (when ganache is cool enough to work with), and placing jelly beans on top. Place these in the freezer (or refrigerator for longer) for a moment or two to set, then enjoy! You can also color shredded coconut and place these on a serving dish for a pretty presentation. 

Or you can use shredded brussels sprouts for "grass" like I did!

This is also a great opportunity to talk to your children about nature. You can make this a fun activity about nature. If it is a nice day outside, maybe take your nests, chocolate, and jelly beans outside to decorate them on your deck while you look at birds and nature together. Or you may want to talk to your children about birds and tell them some nature facts like, "There are about 9,865 species of birds alive today.". Or, "The largest bird egg produced is by the Ostrich, and it can measure up to 9 inches long.". You may also want to talk to your children about how birds start their families by laying eggs and caring for their babies in their nests once they grow out of the eggs. Starting this respect and understanding for nature early, makes it easier when your children grow and wonder why you don't eat eggs in your household. You can then refer back to your discussions about animals and their lives. Knowledge is power! Talk with your children and you will be surprised on how they will come to their own conclusions about this. In the end, no one really wants to hurt another living being. If you provide alternatives, eating animal products seems like an odd concept and outside of the norm. Making these fun and yummy bird's nests, offers a great chance to have a thoughtful discussion about nature and possibly observe nature while you are doing so. If you are making and decorating these nests indoors, later on you may want to take some outside with you and enjoy them with your child in the park. These can also be a fun Easter dessert. Enjoy!

Chocolate Covered Granola?! Wha, Wha, What???

I absolutely love granola. I'm like a granola freak! Sometimes it is hard to find a good vegan granola since many seem to contain honey or milk products. I also adore chocolate. Cocoa is like nature's way of making your day more awesome. Now imagine, just imagine...chocolate covered granola clusters. I know, in our wildest dreams right? WRONG! Nutty Steph's has made this fantasy a reality. I honestly had never thought about this nutty combination, but now that I know about Nutty Steph's, I can't see how I lived without chocolate covered granola for this long.

 

Nutty Steph's is a Vermont-based granola company that specialize in handmade treats like granola, trail mix, dried items like fruit, chocolate candy, and their special creation called Magic Chunks.

 Magic Chunks!

Nutty Steph's has their ingredients on the website with their products, so you can see that they offer many vegan options. I love that their granola is sweetened with pure maple syrup and not honey. Pure maple syrup just so happens to be a favorite of mine. Plus, Vermont is known for excellent maple syrup. Their products are handcrafted, which is really neat. They also have a gluten-free selection, so everyone can enjoy these.

I tried the following vegan Nutty Steph's products, and here is what I thought of them:

Magic Chunks in Dark Chocolate flavor: using chocolate grown in protected forests by Ecuadoran farmer cooperatives to cover these granola chunks, the flavors you get are vast and intense! They are 70% cacao and you get nutty notes from the chocolate, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, and sunflower seeds. You can also detect the beautiful flavors of cinnamon and vanilla. Marvelous to get all of these elements in one scrumptious bite!

Magic Chunks in Chewy Fruit Chocolate flavor (Black Forest): My favorite of the two chunks I've tried. You can really taste the coconut, sun dried bananas, and cherries with every bite. What a lovely combination along with the delicious granola. Amazing and addicting!

Vermont Granola: this is definitely a great granola. The flavor combinations are superb and I loved trying it with almond milk and also over my vegan yogurt. The oats combined with nuts, cinnamon, and maple syrup make this a very special treat. Try not to eat the whole bag in one sitting, I dare you. I have tried a lot of granolas and Nutty Steph's is one of the best.

Blackbird Dark Chocolate with Three Seeds: what an interesting way to experience your candy bar. Seeds in this smooth and buttery (from cocoa butter) chocolate make this a yummy and nutritious treat. And think about it, the antioxidants and omegas you are getting from the cocoa and flax seeds make this a health-worthy indulgence.

Lemon Ginger Pecan Dark Chocolate: if you like zing in your chocolate, this one is for you. Nutty Steph's chocolate is super delicious along with refreshing lemon, spicy ginger, and pecans to balance it all out, which make this a really fun one! I'm definitely a fan.

If you want to get your hands on some Nutty Steph's, they are available on their website and they also have a Flagship store for anyone who is in the Vermont area.

And for now, the Dirty Vegan is signing off. Hope you have a sweet and nutty day!

Weird (but Delicious) Brownies (and NOT the Wacky Tobacky Kind).

I've heard about black bean brownies and I really wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Out of straight fear of eating black beans in my brownies, I delayed in this exploration. However, I finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and I must say this is a very interesting wagon indeed.

I did some research on the interweb and came across some rather odd recipes. Some were no fat, some were no flour, some were even no sugar! How dare they! I finally stumbled upon the recipe on the No Meat Athlete's website, and decided to give it a try. In true Dirty Vegan fashion, I had to put my own Naughty spin on it. I also made these gluten-free, which if you haven't noticed, I have been doing more of. I received requests from vegan and gluten-free readers who wanted to see more GF-friendly content. Needless to say, thank you NMA for giving me the recipe guideline! I only changed a couple of things anyway, so I totally give you the credit. Before your recipe, I wouldn't know the first thing about putting black beans into desserts.

These were delicious! The picture doesn't do them justice whatsoever.

Here is what I did:

• 1 1/2 cup all purpose gluten-free flour
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 1/4 cup vegan cane sugar
• 1 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 4 tsp instant coffee powder (not gonna lie, I just busted open a K-cup)
• 1 cup vegan chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup nuts (use whatever nuts you like - walnuts or hazelnuts seem perfect for this)
• 1 15oz can black beans, drained & rinsed then placed back into can and fill the can with water
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup water (additionally)

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients (first 8 ingredients) in a large mixing bowl. Puree can of black beans with that new water you added to it. Mix puree with vanilla and that additional cup of water. Mix wet ingredients into bowl of dry ingredients. Grease a 9x13 inch pan and pour batter into it (batter will be watery, don't worry about it). Bake for about 30 minutes, carefully rotating pan a couple of times during baking. When your brownies are not watery or runny in the middle and they seem to be pulling away from the sides of the pan, they are done. Let cool and then cut into squares and enjoy! These retain heat very well, so when I enjoyed my brownie, I got nice oozy chocolate chips inside. Yum!

Thanks No Meat Athlete! I wouldn't have tried black bean brownies, like ever, if it weren't for your recipe. I'm glad I did, these were surprisingly fantastic!