THE VEGAN NEWS

WINTER 2004/05

Vegan News is written and edited by P M Lloyd. Please e-mail your contributions to: paulinelloyd1@btinternet.com

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In This Issue:

Winter Recipes

Broccoli and Mushrooms in Creamy Almond Sauce

Source:  Based on a recipe in A Vegan Taste of India by Linda Majzlik (Jon Carpenter, 2002).

Ingredients

Method

  1. Place the vegetables and spices into a pan. Add the water and mix well. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently, cooking until the vegetables are just  tender.
  2. Dissolve the cornflour in the soya milk and add to the pan, along with the ground almonds. Mix well.  Bring back to the boil and simmer for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened.
  3. Remove from the heat and stir in half the flaked almonds.  Serve garnished with the remaining almonds.

Serves 2 for a main meal or 4 as a side dish

You can order a copy of A Vegan Taste of India direct from Jon Carpenter by phoning: 01689 870437 (UK orders). Please email: jon@joncarpenter.co.uk for overseas enquiries.

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Winter Product Reviews   CHRISTMAS SPECIAL!

Sheer Bliss Soap

I tested out four different types of Sheer Bliss soap. All of the bars lathered up well, were pleasing to use and had fairly smooth edges.  Sheer Bliss soaps are handmade from the finest vegetable and plant oils using a cold process, with some of the soaps containing vegetable butters such as shea or cocoa butter for additional richness. Aromatherapy oils and herbs and spices provide fragrance and natural clays are used for colour and texture. These gentle and moisturising soaps are ideal for delicate skins. What's more they make great Christmas presents!
Each 100-110g soap bar costs £2.95 (wrapped) or £2.50 (unwrapped).  Guest bars (25g) are also available for  £0.95 and 1kg Soap Logs for £20.00 (cut/uncut). To order and for up-to-date information on Sheer Bliss products please visit the Sheer Bliss website. Incidentally, if you prefer unscented soap, then Golden Calendula & Camomile is a mild, unscented soap that is suitable for babies and for those with a sensitive skin. Note: Some Sheer Bliss soaps contain milk products and are thus unsuitable for vegans. Please check before purchasing. Sheer Bliss, PO Box 541, Folkestone CT20 2WF. Tel: 01303-211085, e-mail: Franca@sheer-bliss.co.uk.

Rebar REBAR
Made from more than 20 different fruits and vegetables including wheatgrass, these vegan bars contain no artificial ingredients and are completely GM, gluten, sugar and fat-free. Each 50g bar contains 8 servings of organic fruit and vegetables and as well as being high in fibre (6g/bar) will supply chlorophyll, iron, calcium and vitamins A and C. Rebars are only gently processed to maintain enzymes and they are also easily transportable. Ideal for lunchboxes and for Christmas stockings too! Tasty, satisfying and so much better for you than synthetic sugary snacks, they have a moist, chewy texture and a unique but pleasant taste that's not too sweet.   Look out for them in your local health food shop.  They can also be purchased online from Euroviva (or by ringing Freephone 0800 960 708) where they are available in boxes of 12 x 50g bars for £15.00/€22.50. 

The Cocoa Tree

The Cocoa tree offers a range of delicious organic chocolates, all of which are currently dairy free and suitable for vegans.  Cocoa Tree chocolates are handmade using fair-traded chocolate and traditional techniques.  Choose from five generous-sized, flavoured bars: Ginger, Fruit & Nut, Noisette, Roast Almond and Orange.  There's also a mini tasting bar, made from 61% cocoa solids. I tested out the Ginger Organic Chocolate Bar, which consisted of crunchy pieces of crystalised ginger embedded in smooth, dark chocolate. I thought that the ginger went well with the chocolate, with the chocolate nicely toning down the ginger's heat. I also tested out the Roast Almond bar, which I found exceptionally tasty with the embedded crunchy, crispy almonds again contrasting nicely with the dark chocolate.

For those who fancy something rather more sophisticated than a chocolate bar, the Cocoa Tree also sells various boxed sets of chocolates. Packed in attractive wooden boxes with nine elegantly-arranged chocolates to a box, these would make ideal Christmas gifts. Currently being offered are four different fondant centres: Coffee Creams, English Elderflower Creams, Rose & Violet Creams and Blackcurrant Creams (made from homegrown blackcurrants).  I really liked the Coffee Creams, which not only tasted delicious, but were attractively arranged in their box, with the six outer unwrapped chocolates contrasting well with three central foil-wrapped chocolates. The Rose and Violet Creams were decorated with real, crunchy crystallized violet and rose petals and consisted of a delicately flavoured cream filling coated in dark chocolate. Similarly, the English Elderflower Creams had a plain creamy white centre, with each chocolate being simply  decorated with several dried elderflowers. Those who like nuts and a slightly firmer centre may prefer the Marzipan Assortment, which consists of three of each of Valencia Almond, Indian Walnut and South American Brazil Nut. And last but not least, there's Chocolate Ginger -  a boxed collection of  eleven chocolate-coated, crystallised ginger chocolates, which unfortunately I wasn't able to test.

For more product information write to: The  Cocoa Tree, Fairfield Meadow, Chillington, South Devon, TQ7 2LB, email: info@thecocoatree.co.uk, or telephone: 01548 580009. Visit the Cocoa Tree website to view the chocolates, or to obtain an order form. Cocoa Tree chocolates are also available by mail order from Animal Aid for £4.25 per box. (Tel: 01732 364546 ex22)

Finally, I would just like to briefly mention vegan Christmas puddings, something some of you may be looking for at this time of year. I would especially recommend Sunnyvale's Rich Plum Pudding, which can be purchased in Holland & Barretts (see review in the Spring issue for further information).  The Dr Hadwen Trust also sells an Animal-Free, Luxury Victorian Christmas Pudding (454g) by mail order. Great value at £3.69. Telephone: 01462 436819 to order, or you can order online at the Cruelty Free Shop.  Or visit Nutties to view an excellent range of vegan  hampers, delivered straight to your door!

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What's Happening in the Veganic Garden this Winter?

What's New in the 2005 Seed Catalogues?

Well now that the nights are drawing in and it's starting to get colder, I've been amusing myself by thumbing through next season's seed catalogues. If you're still undecided as what to grow in your garden next year, then you  might like to consider some of these suggestions:

The latest Thompson & Morgan catalogue contains some interesting offerings. There's Green Goddess an attractive pale green, pear-shaped Chinese radish. Or alternatively, you could try out the tennis ball sized Chinese radish Mantanghong F1 Hybrid (Beauty Heart), which is green and white skinned with an inner magenta core.  Both of these radishes are fairly mild in flavour and are sown in June/July.  I also noticed that Thompson & Morgan are selling seeds of  Ferline. This blight resistant tomato is well worth considering, just in case 2005 turns out to be another damp summer. Do you like BIG strawberries?! Then why not try out Maxim, which is the biggest strawberry currently available? Six plants cost £7.99. I was also rather intrigued by Indian Summer, a multicoloured sweetcorn and Red Strawberry (which is not a strawberry at all!) but a fun variety of mini-corn that can either be placed in the microwave and popped, or the cobs can simply be used as colourful autumn decorations.  I would also like to remention Thompson & Morgan's Healthy Eating Multipack, which consists of a one packet of sprouting broccoli, brussel sprout, carrot, red pepper and tomato seeds. Excellent value at £2.99, you'll also be helping to raise funds for Cancer Research UK who will receive 50p for each packet sold. To order any of the above seeds ring Thompson & Morgan's orderline on 01473 695225 or order online.
 
For an interesting homegrown salad try Baby Leaf, a multi-coloured cut and come again salad mix, available from Tamar Organics (small pack (LTBB) £1.99/large pack (LTBX) £9.99). Their new Slug and Snail Shocka could also be worth trying, if slugs are a problem in your garden. This roll of fabric is coated with copper, which slugs and snails won't cross and can be cut to size and placed under pots, or around susceptible plants. Alternatively, you could experiment with their new slug rings, which are also made from copper.  To order these products phone: 01822 834284, or email: sales@tamarorganics.co.uk. Finally, for an interesting and informative read, the Organic Gardening Catalogue is now selling the updated version of Pauline Pear's Beds Book, which clearly explains how you can do less work in the garden yet still increase your yields by adopting a bed system.

Crops In Season: 

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Christmas Gift Ideas

Why not avoid the Christmas crush by doing some of your Christmas shopping by mail order this year? Here I have gathered together a few gift ideas. Firstly, the Green Shop is offering a range of rather unusual banana paper products, including notepads, A4 pads, envelopes and writing paper.  These are made from recycled paper and banana skins at Frogmore Mill - a small working mill in Hemel Hempstead (which incidentally also has a museum where you can learn about the history of papermaking) without the use of any animal products in the paper making process. The pads cost between £0.68 and £5.20 and each pad has an attractive cover featuring an animal. You can purchase banana paper products online from www.greenshop.co.uk (Email: enquiries@greenshop.co.uk for a catalogue). The Greenshop also sells quite a few other items that are suitable for vegans, including the traditional Indian Chandrika Ayurvedic soap, produced from pure vegetable oils and costing £0.75 for a 75g bar. 

Especially for Christmas, the Oxford Bee Company is offering a set of three children's books for £15.00, entitled Ladybird-Ladybird, The Nesting Box and Pollinating Pet. Also on special offer is their Wildlife Pack, which consists of a ladybird house, a bee nest, a book about ladybirds and a book about the red mason bee.  Excellent value at £34.95.  Both of these items can be ordered from the Oxford Bee Company by phoning 01509 261654 before the 24th december.

The Dr Hadwen Trust is once again offering a good selection of Christmas cards. 'Amongst the Berries' is an especially attractive Christmas card, featuring a rather sweet looking cat standing in the snow (£2.85). Alternatively, try 'Rabbit in the Snow' or a pack of 10 Christmas Robin cards. There's also a 'Bargain Pack', consisting of at least 20 cards in 2/3 different designs, which is excellent value at only £4.95. The latest 2004/05 Dr Hadwen Trust catalogue also contains a number of fairly traded and ecological fashion items produced by People Tree. For the person who already has everything how about a Dr Hadwen Trust Sponsor Certificate?  Citing research to help save animals from experiments, these certificates are available in two sizes (A4, Card-Size) for a minimum donation of £10.00. Choose from: dogs in septic shock research, guinea pigs in wound healing research, monkeys in testing drug effects on the brain, mice in breast cancer research, or a general certificate to replace all animal experiments, featuring a cat.

Get ready for those December gales by purchasing one of these lovely fairly traded Indonesian sailing boat kites! Hand made in the hills of Bali from bamboo and offcuts of nylon, the kite is designed to fit together without any glue. Adult supervision required, which means that you get a chance to play with it too! Available from the Natural Collection for £15.95. Or how about a 'Stress Reduction and Relaxation' CD?  Slow down and unwind this Christmas with the very latest in relaxation music, an excellent stocking filler that uses neuro-linguistic programming to speed the descent into relaxation. Price £12.50.  Shop online, or phone the Natural Collection on 0870 331 3333.

The Organic Gardening Catalogue is now offering a Seed Gift Box Service, which costs £2.95 for the box, decorated with famous and quirky garden quotes, plus the cost of the seeds  (select up to 15 packets of seeds). This would make a great birthday/Christmas present for a keen gardener. And for mushrooms lovers how about a ready-to-fruit Shiitake Log from managed Scottish Highland forests, price £19.95?

Finally, I would just like to mention the RSPB's rather unusual and attractive handcrafted Owl Christmas tree decorations, made from jute, dried grasses and wood. A pack of three costs £4.99. Order online or phone: 0870 112 5421.

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In the Wildlife Garden  

Many of our wildflowers and commonly grown garden plants are beneficial to animals and can be used to attract wildlife into your garden. Here, I will cover another three plants that are especially attractive to wildlife. Details of other suitable plants are given in earlier issues and these are now listed in The Wildflower Index for easy reference.

Thistle (Cirsium spp.) Thistle
Thistles are excellent plants to grow in a wildlife area, providing nectar for many species of butterflies. Look out for brimstones, small tortoiseshells, painted ladies, clouded yellows and skippers visiting your plants! They are also the larval  food plant for red admiral caterpillars and birds such as finches, linnets and siskins will eat the seeds. Thistles usually have purplish-red flowers on spiky stems and are best grown in a sunny position. Plant welted, musk or globe thistles as a nectar source for butterflies and bees and milk, musk, scotch and woolly thistle to provide food for birds. Incidentally, some ground beetle larvae eat the seeds of spear thistle.  The thistle shown in the picture on the left is being visited by quite a few hoverflies. Thistle seeds can be purchased from John Chambers (Tel: 01933 652562) or from  Suffolk Herbs (Tel: 01376 572456). That's if you don't already have enough of these plants growing naturally in your garden!

Teasel (Dipsacus fullonum subsp. sylvestris)

Teasel
Commonly found growing by the roadside, on waste land, or on canal and river banks in the wild, this stately plant will also grow well in the garden, where it is best planted at the back of a border. Teasel has small purple flowers, followed by prickly heads on tall stems. These look especially attractive, if left in the garden throughout the autumn and winter, but the heads can also be dried and used in indoor flower arrangements. Teasel flowers will attract a wide range of wildlife, including the humble bee and many kinds of butterflies. In the autumn goldfinches feed on the seeds.  Seeds are available by mail order from John Chambers (Tel: 01933 652562).

Iceplant  (Sedum spectabile)

Iceplant Iceplant has clusters of lovely, dark pink flowers that are very attractive to bees. It is also an excellent plant for attracting butterflies into your garden, being visited by many species, including red admirals, painted ladies, peacocks and small tortoiseshells. It's also the caterpillar food plant for chequered blue, small tortoiseshell and magpie moth larvae. Plant sedum in a sunny border for a brilliant autumn display. Iceplant can be very difficult to grow from seed (although seed is available from John Chambers, if you want to try this), so it is better to purchase ready-grown plants from a garden centre.  It is also easily propagated from cuttings. Avoid using the variety 'Autumn Joy', which is unattractive to butterflies.  Despite its flowers not yet being fully open (and hence paler in colour) the sedum in the picture is already being visited by a bee!

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Other Interesting Websites

The Vegan Society (UK)

An excellent site and a particularly good source of information for the those who are new to veganism, or for anyone who is thinking of going vegan. You can  also  shop or become a member online.

Mariposa

Online shop selling organic skincare and natural beauty products.  All products are earth friendly and vegetarian and many of the products are also suitable for vegans. As well as a wide range of skin and bathroom products, you'll find baby care products, deodorants, suncare, natural supplements and essential oils. Full ingredients are listed, so that you can see what you're buying.

The Green Shop

Sells a wide range of sustainable products online, ranging from household, bodycare and cleaning products through to books, natural paints and energy saving devices. Many of these products are suitable for vegans. Worth a visit!

Silver-Gecko.Com

Sells a range of environmentally friendly and chemical-free products such as natural supplements, organic hair and body products, self-help and back care products, cards and gifts.

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Winter Book Reviews

A Vegan Taste of Thailand A Vegan Taste of Thailand by Linda Majzlik (Jon Carpenter Publishing, 2004). ISBN: 1 897766 92 0

This recently published and exciting collection of over 120 exotic and tasty recipes provides a excellent introduction to Thai cuisine. 

The concise introduction gives a brief history of Thai cooking and some background information on how food is eaten in Thailand. This is followed by a section entitled 'The Vegan Storecupboard', which provides useful information on the Thai ingredients used in the recipes. Most of this book is devoted to the recipes, which are divided into: Soups, Snack Foods, Rice and Noodle dishes, Curry Pastes & Curries, Vegetable Dishes, Salads, Accompaniments, Desserts and Fruit Cocktails.  Many of these recipes are very quick and easy to prepare and of course cooking times can be further reduced by cooking extra rice, which can then be used in stirfries etc. the following day.  Quite a few of the recipes contain tofu, which has been valued in the Far East for centuries and a few recipes have been veganised by using TVP as a meat replacement. All in all, quite an inspiring recipe book, which mainly uses stir fry and steaming techniques.


A Vegan Taste of Eastern EuropeA Vegan Taste of Eastern Europe by Linda Majzlik (Jon Carpenter Publishing, 2004).  ISBN: 1 897766 93 9

Following a similar pattern to the previous book, the introduction is followed by an eight-page account of the ingredients required in a vegan Eastern European storecupboard, most of which many of you will probably already have in stock anyway. Linda Majzlik clearly explains how to make your own sour cream from silken tofu and also offers a vegan version of Horseradish sauce. Unfortunately this book does not seem to contain a  recipe for Sauerkraut - the pickled, fermented cabbage, which is so popular in Eastern Europe. 

The nourishing recipes are divided into: Soups, Main Courses, Accompaniments, Sauces, Snacks, Grains, Breads, Salads, Desserts and Baking. Contains many down-to-earth recipes that are ideal for use at this time of year.  Why not bake your own rye bread, or try out some of the hearty and warming soups and the tasty and satisfying stews and casseroles this winter?  And yes, there is a recipe for Hungarian Goulash! 

Both books are available for £5.99 each (postage free) from Jon Carpenter, Alder House, Market Street, Charlbury, OX7 3PQ.  For credit card orders phone: 01689 870437.  The books can also be purchased from the Dr Hadwen Trust for  £5.99 per book, plus P&P. Phone: 01462 436819 to order, or send payment to The Dr Hadwen Trust, Freepost SG335, Hitchin, SG5 2BR.

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