beautiful vegan: March 2010

The Human Experience trailer... wow

How many animals are slaughtered per second in the United states alone?

This is taken from statistics in 2008- now it's even higher.

Is 'not from concentrate juice' really good for you? Find out how heavily processed it actually is:

Squeeze it yourself... that's all I can say. I am not entirely surprised. 'Not from concentrate' juices are pretty much always pasteurized, which means boiled for at least three minutes, and most companies boil it for much longer just to make it sweeter (water evaporates, sugar stays). Pasteurizing kills all the living enzymes in the juice, which is why it has a longer shelf-life.

Dirt: The trailer:

Ellen on being vegan- really well done my dear.

Kiwi-Lime Pudding! Wicked.

1 avocado (peeled and pitted)
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 kiwi (peeled)
½ cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 or 3 Tablespoons raw sugar or raw
agave (however sweet you like it)
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

This is one of our favourite treats to have for breakfast, as a snack or as a desert. All you do is mix everything in a blender until it’s smooth and creamy. If you don't like kiwi you can change the recipe to make Sunshine Lime Pudding by leaving out the kiwi, and adding 1/4 cup more of water instead. It's sooo good- really quick and easy too! Serves 2 (unless you eat it all).

Raspberry Crepes with French Vanilla Cream!

It's one of my favourite indulgences...sooo good.

Crepes:
2 cup flour
3 cup vegan milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoon vanilla custard powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
a sprinkle of icing sugar (optional)

Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a fork, and then stir in the milk until it is smooth (use a whisk to get out all of the bumps). Heat a pan on medium, add a bit of vegan butter or coconut oil to it, and use a ladle to pour the batter into a circular shape in the middle.
Then hold onto the handle of the pan, lifting it and moving the batter around to fill the whole pan instead of leaving it to cook like a thick pancake.

Let it cook for a minute (there should be some bubbles that appear when it is ready to flip). Turn the heat down a little if you are getting dark crepes. When you are done, see below for the Vanilla Cream recipe.

Vanilla Cream:
1 cup cashews (raw, unsalted)
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon raw agave nectar
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Mix all of the ingredients in a blender until really smooth. In the center of the crepe lay down a bed of raspberries or whatever fruit you like, and cover them with the cream. Roll the crepe and drizzle the cream on top as well.

To replace sweetened condensed milk in a recipe just add another tablespoon of agave nectar, and to make a lemon cream just add 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice. To make a sweet spice cream just add 1/4 teaspoon of allspice and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon.

These lovely crepes are wonderful with any one of the three cream recipes. Love it.