Vegan users on Etsy, an online marketplace community for handmade goods, now have their own hub. Started by a team of users with completely vegan shops, Vegan Etsy is a blog featuring Etsy shop owners selling vegan goods, like Hilaaary and Cupcakes & More, both of which sell vegan baked goods. [via Slashfood]
Posted by Jamie Forrest, December 25, 2007 at 3:30 PM
File under pointless: VegCooking.com has a recipe for vegan eggnog, which calls for soy milk (fine), instant vanilla pudding powder (uhh...), and Rich's non-dairy whipping cream (yikes). Well, I guess you could feel good that your holiday beverage consumption required no chickens to give up their eggs nor any cows their milk, but, honestly, this kind of drink is inhumane—to the humans drinking it!
Granted real eggnog isn't exactly humane either, with beaten eggs, whole milk and heavy cream. But you don't drink it every day. And I would even argue that eggnog could be considered the world's first protein shake. The vegan version is not only bad for you, it's also just plain bad. Non-dairy whipping cream and instant vanilla pudding powder are two of the most vile substances in the supermarket, and though they may be more "animal-friendly," they certainly can't be good for the rest of earth's creatures.
So if you don't eat eggs or milk, which is certainly fine by me, please don't try making a vegan eggnog. Just drink a good fruit smoothie instead.
About the author: Jamie Forrest publishes Curdnerds.com from his apartment in Brooklyn, New York, where he lives with his wife, his daughter, and his cheese. | Photograph of real eggnog from decor8 on Flickr.com
Posted by Lia Bulaong, May 4, 2007 at 5:30 PM
I'm a carnivore who doesn't drink very much wine so it never really occurred to me that wine could be vegetarian or vegan, but it turns out that the majority of wines are fined (clarified, softened or stabilised) with clay, milk or egg products like casein or albumen, which are vegetarian but not vegan; some wines are fined with gelatin or products made from fish and shellfish and are not vegetarian at all. The Observer's Tim Atkins picks out twelve solid vegetarian wines so you can stick to your diet without compromising your tastebuds, and if you can't find them at your local shops the Vegan Wine Guide lists where to best order wines online in the US and UK.
Posted by Lia Bulaong, February 23, 2007 at 10:38 AM
The NYT's Mark Bittman makes a pudding promise: " You can make not only a credible but elegant and delicious chocolate or vanilla pudding in 20 minutes flat, not counting the time it takes to chill. That’s not much longer than it takes to start with a box of powdered mix, add milk and heat it." I have to admit that for some reason I've just always assumed pudding was fairly complicated to make and so had never so much as looked at a recipe for it before; Bittman is also sure to make the point that starting with quality ingredients (like with natural milk, not ultrapasteurized, and maybe purchased from a farm or farmer's market) is the best path to good pudding. He also demonstrates the art of pudding making in a short video, which is a nice touch and something I'd love to see more of in the online food sections of newspapers.
Maki Itoh's Righteous tofu pudding in under 5 minutes should do the trick for you quite nicely, if you're lactose intolerant or vegan. She says, "Now I do not pretend to you that this tastes like a proper pudding or mousse made with cream and such, and if anyone tries to convince you that a tofu based dish like this is ‘just as good/rich as the real thing’ they are either lying or have no taste buds. It’s different, but still good. It’s a lightly sweet, cool and creamy dish that will quiet a sudden urge for Something Sweet."
