A while back, I was contacted by the makers of Primal Strips about trying some free samples.  The product was described to me as being “delicious vegan jerky snacks made from soy, seitan and shiitake mushrooms.”  They are also all natural and non-GMO.  I took them up on their offer and received 2 sets of all of the flavors they come in: Hickory Smoked, Thai Peanut, Hot & Spicy, Teriyaki, Texas BBQ, and Mesquite Lime.

Upon opening the box when it arrived in the mail, I was surprised to see the product packaging.  The image that I had in my mind of jerky didn’t match what was in the package.  These strips come in a package similar to– and this is a horrible description given that this is a vegan blog– sorry!!– string cheese.  And they look sorta moist, not dry like I remember jerky being.  In my mind, I was expecting small bits of chewy dried stuff.  You know, like jerky.

Since I had so many of these things I didn’t want to hog them all for myself.  To spread the goodness, I tested them out on some friends.  One friend who tried it (Mesquite Lime) didn’t mind the taste and texture, but it wasn’t something that he’d do cartwheels over.  Another friend tried the Hot & Spicy and didn’t mind the texture so much, but had an issue with the flavor.  There was a bit of sweetness to it and she didn’t care for, but all in all, seemed to enjoy the product.  It should be mentioned that both sets of guinea pig friends are meat-eaters.

I wondered how my experience with them would compare… I haven’t eaten meat in over 8 years and I don’t particularly care for seitan or other faux meats:

Smell: The smell of Hickory Smoked flavor and possibly the Texas BBQ too permeates the package and will singe your nose hairs.  I’m not a super huge fan of smoky foods and I found this smell to be overwhelming (like I could smell it without even getting close to the package) and somewhat offensive.  If I’m going to be completely honest, some of these things smell like dog treats and I couldn’t get past this smell to try some of the flavors.

Texture:  I thought that the teriyaki would be my best bet at finding a flavor that would appeal to me, given that it’s not a smoky, BBQ flavor.  When I opened the package and cut a small piece off, I was surprised to see that it is stringy like meat (imagine shredded chicken).  The texture in my mouth was firm, like a seitan-based faux meat.  It was just ok– didn’t knock my socks off, but I didn’t need to spit it out either.

Taste:  The taste was pretty mild.  There was nothing really overpowering about it.  Again, it was just ok.

Verdict:  Not bad.  I don’t think that I would purchase these things for myself, but someone who enjoys vegan meats may really enjoy them.  You can eat them straight out of the package or cook them in a variety of dishes– burritos, stir fry-type things, etc.  They’re super versatile and shelf-stable and would be a really great addition to any vegan or vegetarian emergency kit.  Since I was only lukewarm about the one I tried, I wasn’t brave enough to attempt a cooked dish with it.

Wanna try some yourself? I’ll share!  Post a comment here with a valid email address and I’ll contact you to get your mailing address.  Just because I’m not crazy for them doesn’t mean you won’t like them.  Again, if you are a fan of meaty things, I bet you’ll like these.

I was a busy bee on Saturday baking and setting up this cupcake display.  A friend from Emma’s former playgroup asked me to donate to her daughter’s preschool auction.  I thought a dessert donation would be more fun than a gift certificate, even though it means more work for me.  The theme was Mardi Gras and it was a really fun project for me to work on.

Here are some photos:

I was really excited to use my new cupcake tower.  I had bought it back in November for a holiday party in December, but one of the stems broke and I couldn’t use it then.  The person who made it was kind enough to send me a replacement piece in time for me to use it for this event.

In total, I think I made around 300 mini cupcakes.  The flavors were: chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream, chocolate cake with cookies & cream buttercream, butter pecan cake with whiskey buttercream and chocolate ganache, and chocolate cake with mocha kahlua buttercream.  Some of the cupcakes are topped with a gum paste round that I stenciled a fleur-de-lys on using a powdered food coloring.  On top of the cake stand is a cake dummy covered in white fondant.  I made the mask out of gum paste and it is completely edible.  I’m really happy with how this turned out and I hope the auction-goers enjoyed them.

I’m all about kitchen gadgets, don’t get me wrong, but the popcorn popper is one gadget that I just can’t fathom purchasing.  Unlike the food processor or blender, a popcorn popper only serves one purpose– making popcorn.  Call me old fashioned, but I like to make my popcorn in a big ol’ soup pot right on the stove.  It’s so super easy that I thought I’d take a minute to describe the process here to people who may not know how easy it is.

1. Take the biggest soup pot you’ve got and put it on the stove at medium-high heat.  On my stove, I do this at 5, with 6 being the next hottest before “high” which I would use to boil water.  You want it pretty hot, but not so hot that it burns the kernels.
2. Drizzle about a TB of oil in the bottom.  You don’t need much.
3. Sprinkle 1/3 to 1/2 cup of kernels in the bottom of the pot.  Try to get them to land in a single layer, if  you can.
4. Put the lid on it!  This is pretty important or you’ll have a mess on your hands.
5. Wait til you hear some popping, then give the pot a little shake.  When the popping has stopped or slowed down considerably, remove from heat.
6. Remove the lid and top with your favorite toppings or seasonings.  We like popcorn salt on ours (it’s a finer grain than regular salt and sticks better to the popcorn).  I’ve also read that some people like nutritional yeast on theirs for a cheezy taste.
7. Enjoy!

It’s really that easy!  And you don’t have to pull out some heavy piece of machinery to get it all done.  Popcorn is one of Emma’s favorite snacks and I feel good giving it to her when I’ve made it myself, know exactly what’s in it and where it all came from.  Besides that, it’s SO cheap!  I buy the kernels from the bulk bin at Whole Foods at something like $2 per pound (hey, the organic stuff is a little more expensive than the Jiffy Pop), but this is one snack where you can get a lot of bang for your buck.  A $2 pound of kernels makes A TON of popcorn.

What’s your favorite way to make popcorn?

Round donut with maple filling and rainbow sprinkles.  Maple donuts are my absolute favorite!  I really hope they start offering vegan ones soon so that I can have one.  It’s been so long!!  If you need more incentive to enter the contest, the winner will get $12,000.  I know my donut won’t be chosen as the winner and I don’t really care about that.  The important thing here is that enough people submit vegan entries so that they can see that vegan donuts would sell.  The contest ends March 8, 2010 so get to it!

This post is all about Genetically Modified products.  While not really related to veganism, it is important to avoid these foods for good health.  It’s important that everyone know at least a little bit about these things, so that you can make informed decisions at the grocery store.  I’m not a scientist, doctor, nutritionist or anything like that… the information contained within this post is stuff that I’ve learned through reading and researching interjected with my opinion (it is my blog after all).  And since I live in the United States, I’m focused mostly on products /foods sold here and our laws regarding GMOs.  If you’re lucky enough to live in a country that actually cares about your health, the following may not apply to you.

From Wiki:

A genetically modified organism (GMO) or genetically engineered organism (GEO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. These techniques, generally known as recombinant DNA technology, use DNA molecules from different sources, which are combined into one molecule to create a new set of genes. This DNA is then transferred into an organism, giving it modified or novel genes. Transgenic organisms, a subset of GMOs, are organisms which have inserted DNA that originated in a different species. Some GMOs contain no DNA from other species and are therefore not transgenic but cisgenic.

So what’s the big deal?

The big deal is that these foods are not good for any living creature:

• Rats fed GM potatoes had smaller, partially atrophied livers.[22]

• The livers of rats fed GM canola were 12-16% heavier.[23]

• GM soy altered mouse liver cells in ways that suggest a toxic insult.[24] The changes reversed after their diet switched to non-GM soy.[25]

• GM soy, reproductive problems, and infant mortality

• More than half the offspring of mother rats fed GM soy died within three weeks.[26] Male rats[27] and mice[28] fed GM soy showed changes in their testicles; the mice had altered young sperm cells.

• The DNA of mouse embryos whose parents ate GM soy functioned differently than those whose parents ate non-GM soy.[29]

• Many offspring of female rats fed GM soy were considerably smaller,and more than half died within three weeks (compared to 10% of the non-GM soy controls). [30]

• Bt crops linked to sterility, disease, and death. (Bt = Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium commonly used as a pesticide.  Bt crops refer to crops that have been genetically modified with genes from this bacterium.)
  

• When sheep grazed on Bt cotton plants after harvest, within a week 1 in 4 died. Shepherds estimate 10,000 sheep deaths in one region of India.[31] Farmers in Europe and Asia say that cows, water buffaloes, chickens, and horses died from eating Bt corn varieties.[32]  (Ladies, this bit about Bt cotton is pretty important to you since it may be used to make the brand of tampons you use.  Read this.)

• About two dozen US farmers report that Bt corn varieties caused widespread sterility in pigs or cows.[33]

• Filipinos in at least five villages fell sick when a nearby Bt corn variety was pollinating.[34]

• The stomach lining of rats fed GM potatoes showed excessive cell growth, a condition that may be a precursor to cancer. Rats also had damaged organs and immune systems.[35]

(The above all taken from this source.)

• GM foods are particularly dangerous for pregnant moms and children. After GM soy was fed to female rats, most of their babies died—compared to a 10% deaths among controls fed natural soy.² GM-fed babies were smaller, and possibly infertile.³

• Testicles of rats fed GM soy changed from the normal pink to dark blue.⁴ Mice fed GM soy had altered young sperm.⁵ Embryos of GM soy-fed parent mice had changed DNA.⁶ And mice fed GM corn had fewer, and smaller, babies.⁷

• In Haryana, India, most buffalo that ate GM cottonseed had reproductive complications such as premature deliveries, abortions, and infertility; Many calves died. About two dozen US farmers said thousands of pigs became sterile from certain GM corn varieties. Some had false pregnancies; others gave birth to bags of water. Cows and bulls also became infertile.⁸

• In the US, incidence of low birth weight babies, infertility, and infant mortality are all escalating.

• Soon after GM soy was introduced to the UK, soy allergies skyrocketed by 50%. Ohio allergist Dr. John Boyles says “I used to test for soy allergies all the time, but now that soy is genetically engineered, it is so dangerous that I tell people never to eat it.”

• GM soy and corn contain new proteins with allergenic properties.¹⁶ and GM soy has up to seven times more of a known soy allergen.¹⁷ Perhaps the US epidemic of food allergies and asthma is a casualty of genetic manipulation.

• In India, animals graze on cotton plants after harvest. But when shepherds let sheep graze on Bt cotton plants, thousands died. Investigators said preliminary evidence “strongly suggests that the sheep mortality was due to a toxin. . . . most probably Bt-toxin.”¹⁸ In one small study, all sheep fed Bt cotton plants died; those fed natural plants remained healthy.

• In an Andhra Pradesh village, buffalo grazed on cotton plants for eight years without incident. On January 3rd, 2008, 13 buffalo grazed on Bt cotton plants for the first time. All died within three days.¹⁹ Bt corn is also implicated in the deaths of cows in Germany, and horses, water buffaloes, and chickens in The Philippines.²⁰

• In lab studies, twice the number of chickens fed Liberty Link corn died; 7 of 40 rats fed a GM tomato died within two weeks.²¹

(The above are from this source.)

When we eat genetically modified foods, the functioning GM genes remain inside you.

• Unlike safety evaluations for drugs, there are no human clinical trials of GM foods. The only published human feeding experiment verified that genetic material inserted into GM soy transfers into the DNA of intestinal bacteria and continues to function.[36] This means that long after we stop eating GM foods, we may still have their GM proteins produced continuously inside us.

• If the antibiotic gene inserted into most GM crops were to transfer, it could create super diseases, resistant to antibiotics.

• If the gene that creates Bt -toxin in GM corn were to transfer, it might turn our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories.

• Animal studies show that DNA in food can travel into organs throughout the body, even into the fetus.[37]

Wow!  With information like this, is it any wonder people get cancer like crazy, are on medication for everything under the sun, and that we are a country of fat, unhealthy people?  If you care about what fuels your body, I hope you decide to avoid these foods like the plague.  Here are some great tips and resources for ensuring that the foods you buy do not contain any GMOs.

1. Buy organic whenever possible.  Certified organic products are not allowed to contain any GMOs.
2. Download this Non-GMO shopping guide or install the free iPhone App.  I’ve done both and think the App is quite handy, especially when you’re at the store.  After scanning the list of products with possible GMO ingredients, I noticed that if it’s cheap and a convenience food, it’s probably got some GMO ingredients in it.  This goes for fast food too… remember, corn is one of the most GM foods out there.  Here’s an interesting Time article about this that I meant to blog about a while ago and never got around to it.  I encourage you all to read it– it’s a very interesting look at why fast food is just so darn cheap.  If you’re reading this blog post and find it to be of value to you, then that article is a must read.
3. In the U.S., labeling products as being from GMO sources is optional.  Companies who manufacture products that do not contain any GMOs are gonna be pretty happy to point that out on their label.  Don’t count on a company that uses GM ingredients to tell you, but you may be able to figure it out yourself by looking at the PLU codes at the grocery store (at least when it comes to fruits and veggies):

• If it is a 4-digit number, the food is conventionally produced.
• If it is a 5-digit number beginning with an 8, it is GM. (Remember that PLU labeling is optional.  Those that are GM may not be labeled as such.)
• If it is a 5-digit number beginning with a 9, it is organic.

1. Boycott Monsanto!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, there ya have it!  It’s scary to think about just how tainted our food supply is (hello!  down to the genetic level!), but it should shed some light on why we are so sick, why so many couples experience infertility, etc.  For me and my family, GM foods is just not an option.  I would rather pay more money for organic, wholesome, non-disease causing food because I can’t think of anything more important to spend our money on.

The birthday girl happened to have several Little Mermaid character figurines that I was able to use as a cake topper.  At that point, though, the cake was all boxed up for transport and I was unable to get any photos of the finished product.  Here are a few photos that I was able to take before boxing everything up.  The cake was chocolate with chocolate buttercream.  The cupcakes were chocolate and lemon.  AND, I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve been enjoying the leftover lemons for breakfast the last few mornings. 

We always get pizza from Amici’s since they are the only pizza parlor that I know of to offer vegan cheese.  It’s also within walking distance to our house.  They used to use Cheezly, but now they use Daiya.  I think I preferred the taste of Cheezly over the Daiya, but the Daiya is still good and has the added bonus of being soy free.  Some Amici’s locations even offer a gluten-free crust.

Close up of Daiya's melti-ness

We always go for the Asante pizza, which is crust, vegan cheese, spinach, onions, tomatoes and broccoli.  The nice thing about Amici’s is that you can substitute vegan cheese for dairy cheese on any of their pizzas for at additional cost.  I wish Starbucks was the same way with milk… ahem.  Seriously, Starbucks, you make oodles and oodles of money every year, yet you charge 50 cents to substitute soy milk for cows milk.  Would you really go bankrupt letting the few people who prefer soy milk to order it at no extra charge… especially when drinks cost more than $3 to begin with?  But I digress.

After dinner, we moved down the strip mall to Milkshake Werks which, despite it’s name, always offers a vegan ice cream.  Yay!  I like to think that I played a part in that.  I would occasionally stop in for ice cream only to discover that they didn’t have ANY non-dairy ice creams or sorbets.  Bummer!  I mean, dairy or lactose intolerance is pretty big these days… you’d think that they would continuously have at least one non-dairy option.  Well, in cases like this, I like to email the company or owner with my requests/recommendations, but I couldn’t find any method to contact them via email at the time (and I’m not ballsy enough to call them on the phone… LOL).  Anyway, I resorted to giving them a lame (but honest) review on Yelp, which prompted the owner to contact me, which I responded to with Vegan Dad’s Chocolate Ice Cream recipe, which they now offer all the time (and it’s super delish, by the way).  AND the best part is that I can still show my face in there and they have no idea that it was me.  Hee hee!  I have since updated my Yelp review to give them more stars and praise for their willingness to offer a vegan ice cream since many places don’t care.  They also have sugar free options.

And I know you’re all very curious… I did try this same email-writing tactic with Starbucks to get them to offer soy milk as a complimentary substitution.  It didn’t work and yet I still go there.  Shame on me.  Imagine the impact, though, if all of you do it…  won’t that be a fun experiment.  To contact Starbucks to ask them to offer soy milk for FREE, click here and fill out this form.

Part of the fun of Valentine’s Day is picking out your valentines at the store. Since I knew Emma wouldn’t be into handmaking 24 Valentine cards, I let her pick out some from the store. We ended up with Disney princesses and Scooby Doo. Then, I ended up finding these fun Valentine bags at Target for cheap and I filled them with all kinds of goodies.

Each bag had a (homemade) CD of some of Emma’s favorite songs, a bag of cookies– chocolate chip using this awesome recipe, and heart shaped sugar cookies from The Joy of Vegan Baking, and an organic lollipop… not that organic makes candy any healthier, but at least I know it’s made with real sugar and doesn’t have any weird colors in it.

I hope her friends like them!