Vegan Beyond Famous Star Burger at Carl's Jr.

Whoa, vegan burger and fries at Carl's Jr.!

This past weekend I finally got around to trying the new Beyond Famous Star burger at Carl's Jr. This plant-based burger featuring a Beyond Meat vegan patty debuted at over 1,000 Carl's Jr. locations at the beginning of January and seems to be a big hit with vegans and carnivores alike! I recently tried the vegan Beyond Avocado Tacos at Del Taco that are being tested in certain markets in SoCal, and I was stoked to try this new option at Carl's Jr., especially since it would be the first time in a long time that I would be able to order a vegan burger at a traditional fast food joint (though the vegetarian fast food restaurant Amy's up in the Bay Area will always have my heart!).

Top 10 Vegan Finds at Natural Products Expo West 2017

This was my fourth year at the Natural Products Expo West (past years' coverage - 2014, 2015, 2016), a convention held every year at the Anaheim Convention Center where companies showcase their new natural foods and products to retailers, restaurants, industry folk, and press. Many companies launch new products at this convention, including many vegan and vegan-friendly products. Each year it is so exciting to see so many more vegan options at the Expo! This year was no different, and there were so many new vegan finds I can't wait to share with you!

I was only able to go one day this year, but I still managed to cover lots of ground and hit most of the booths I was interested in checking out. I'm ecstatic that veganism keeps getting bigger and bigger at Expo, and I even overheard a buyer from a HUGE grocery chain (that was checking out a vegan cheese line no less!) exclaim that veganism seems to be everywhere this year (she's right, and it's just gonna keep getting bigger and bigger)! There was so much vegan stuff to check out and I stuffed my face with so much vegan food, but there were ten vegan finds that really stood out. Check them out below:

The New Beyond Burger from Beyond Meat

I have been intrigued with the new Beyond Burger (the vegan burger that the media has dubbed "the burger that bleeds" due to its juiciness and use of beet juice as food coloring) ever since I first heard about it earlier this year. It is an all-vegan burger that is very close in appearance, texture and taste to the "real" thing. To be honest, the concept freaked me out a little and I wondered if I would be able to handle such a "meaty" vegan burger! This vegan burger REALLY blends into the meat section of the grocery store, and without its packaging in a side by side comparison I bet most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the Beyond Burger and a beef burger.

15 Vegan Holiday Finds at Trader Joe's

Trader Joe's holiday products are now available and I recently took a spin through my local store to see what items were vegan. Unlike their bounty of autumn vegan items (covered HERE), it seems like their winter vegan offerings are a little lacking. However, I was still able to find a bunch of delicious vegan options for the holidays. Some of these are new, others are old favorites, but all of them are only available for a limited time this holiday season, so grab them while you can!

Top 10 Vegan Products at Natural Products Expo West 2016

This past weekend I attended the Natural Products Expo West at the Anaheim Convention Center to scope out all the new vegan goodies coming out this year! I attended last year (check out my report!) and the year before (read all about it here), and every year has gotten bigger and bigger, with each show having more and more vegan options!

This year I was only able to attend for one day, but I tried to visit as many vegan and vegan-friendly booths as possible. It was fun seeing so many old favorites, seeing new vegan food items, and visiting with many of my favorite vegan people and companies! Though I had a whirlwind day, I feel like I covered a lot of ground in eight hours on the show floors and can bring you my top 10 favorite vegan food products from the Expo, plus some honorable mentions.

What I Ate: Holiday Edition

Vegan Shepard's Pie that Mister Spooky made. It was the perfect

comfort food, filled with veggies, Beyond Meat crumbles, 

mushrooms, and topped with toasted mashed potatoes!

Soooo, the last time I did a What I Ate post was way back in July, and I can assure you, I've eaten LOTS of vegan food since then. However, posting all of it would mean an enormous post, so I decided just to share a few photos from the past couple of months over the holiday season.

These are mostly random food photos, meaning I haven't featured any of these in previous posts, including any recent food reviews. If you follow me on Instagram, though, you are probably familiar with some of the photos below:

A Guide to Vegan Holiday Roasts

It is easier than ever to choose to have a compassionate holiday dinner, so why not try some delectable vegan roasts for your holiday celebrations this year? If you think about it, it really doesn't make sense to give thanks by causing the pain and suffering of sentient beings, nor does it make sense to gather friends and family around a corpse, right? So why not serve compassionate, cruelty-free centerpieces to your friends and family instead?! Ones that truly celebrate the peace, love and community that these holidays represent.

If this is your first vegan holiday season, you have many options to choose from, and you can find an amazing vegan roast to suit any taste! Finding a vegan roast is easy, the hard part is picking just one (my suggestion - try several!)! And if you've been enjoying vegan holiday dinners for years, you'll be pleased to know there are some new options this year that look mouth-watering!

Keep reading below, where you'll find my guide for vegan holiday roasts. I've broken them up by type so you can easily find what you are looking for! Of course, this list isn't all-inclusive, but rather comprised of vegan roasts I highly recommend or ones I am looking forward to trying!

Food Review: Gardein Sweet and Sour Porkless Bites

It is just so darn cool how easy being vegan has become! Pretty much any kind of food is available in a vegan version nowadays, and more and more people are choosing compassionate meals! Gardein is a huge contributor to making being vegan so easy with their plant-based, protein-packed vegan meats! Gardein has been a favorite ever since they hit the market a few short years ago, and they keep amazing me with their products. Their newest product, along with their Crabless Cakes [review] is their Sweet and Sour Porkless Bites.

I have tried these before at Expo West (where they made my top 10 list!), and have been impatiently waiting for them to hit stores. I finally found them at Ralph's grocery store (they also are carrying the new Crabless Cakes!) this past October and did a happy dance! I loved these at Expo, and couldn't wait to sink my teeth into these cruelty-free bites again!

Food Review: Upton's Naturals Chili Lime Carnitas Jackfruit

Upton's new Chili Lime Carnitas Jackfruit served up in tacos, perfectly 

paired with Califia Farms' Vanilla Coconut Horchata!

I have been waiting for Upton's Naturals to release their new jackfruit products since I had the opportunity to try them at Expo West (they were number 3 on my top 10 products from the expo!). I was so happy when I found the Chili Lime Carnitas Jackfruit at Whole Foods!

Jackfruit, in case you are wondering, is a versatile plant most often used in Indian and Asian cuisine as well in other parts of the world. Ripe jackfruit has a fruity, sweet flavor, but unripe jackfruit, like what Upton's uses, is often used as a vegetarian meat substitute, since it mimics the look and texture of meat as well as easily soaking up seasonings/flavorings.

Creepy Crawly Bug Bite Appetizers

Bug Bites plus Spiderweb Dipping Sauce

These plump little critters are perfect for your next Halloween get-together! They are so easy to make, require few ingredients, and even the kiddos (and kids-at-heart) find them fun to assemble!

I found the recipe in the Betty Crocker Halloween Cookbook, though it obviously wasn't vegan-friendly. Well, a few quick swaps of ingredients and it was easily veganized! You can find the cruelty-free, dairy-free, veganized recipe below:

Food Review: Neat Meat Replacement Mixes

Neat booth at Expo West 2015

While covering the Natural Products Expo West last month (read my recap here!), I was lucky enough to stop by the Neat booth, where I sampled their breakfast mix and was blown away at the how good it tasted! I knew that I needed to try ALL of their mix flavors and the kind folks at the family-owned Neat were kind enough to send me all their products for review.

Neat offers meat replacements that come in a dry mix, and you just need to add water and an egg replacer (like their Neat Egg, made from chia seeds and garbanzo beans) to make them! They offer a variety of flavors to suit any occasion! They have an Italian Mix, perfect for pastas and lasagna, a Mexican Mix, great for tacos and nachos, an Original Mix, awesome for burgers and chili, and a Breakfast Mix, ideal for sausages and quiches.

Top 10 Vegan Products at Natural Products Expo West 2015

This past weekend I attended the Natural Products Expo West at the Anaheim Convention Center to scope out all the new vegan goodies coming out this year! I attended last year (check out my report!), but this year was even bigger and better, and I was ecstatic to see so many vegan or vegan-friendly companies rolling out exciting new vegan products!

Over the few days at Expo West, I got to try oodles of vegan food, beauty/health products, drinks, and got to visit with some of my favorite vegan companies as well as discovering new ones! It was a blast, and I already can't wait until next year!

There were SO MANY awesome products launching, so it was really tough to narrow it down to my top 10 favorites. I finally did, sorta, and below you will find my top 10 favorite products from the Expo, plus some honorable mentions. Not all of these are available in stores or available in the US, yet, but most should either be coming soon or already in some stores.

Food Review: Gardein Pocket Meals

Gardein Pocket Meals in Italian Meatless Sausage

 with Roasted Red Peppers and Spinach

The Gardein Pocket Meals debuted recently, and I picked some up at Whole Foods in early February. They are shaped like little buns (or dinner rolls, as described on the package) and stuffed full of delicious vegan ingredients. The varieties I picked up were the Italian Meatless Sausage with Roasted Red Peppers and Spinach and the BBQ Pulled Porkless Shreds. These are convenience meals, so don't expect them to be too healthy, however they pack between 6 to 10 grams of protein, and do not contain genetically modified soy, wheat, or canola.

Food Review: Beast Burger by Beyond Meat

The Beast Burger and some oven-baked potatoes for a monster of

a dinner!

UPDATE: The New Beyond Burger from Beyond Meat has arrived! It's a real game-changer, and you can read my review and drool over pictures of it HERE!

Beyond Meat has unleashed its new creation, the Beast Burger, in stores nationwide! I've been excited about this burger since they announced it at the end of 2014, and I finally found the patties in the freezer section of my Whole Foods recently, so huzzah!

What's the big deal about the Beast Burger? Well, it aims to replicate the taste and texture of beef burgers to prove that there is a better, more sustainable, plant-based way to satisfy a burger craving! Beyond Meat shows us that there is no need to ruin the environment, our health, and kill animals for a juicy burger - all we need is a better vegan burger, and they think they have achieved this and even surpassed expectations by creating a more nutritious, more delicious plant-based burger!

Vegan Options at Berkeley Dog in Irvine

UPDATE: Unfortunately, this restaurant has closed. 

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

Attention UCI and Orange County vegans! Berkeley Dog, located on the UCI campus near Trader Joe's and Veggie Grill, has two vegan sausage options! I'm not sure how long these have been available, but after visiting the location with some non-vegans a few weeks ago, I was ecstatic to see "veggie dogs" on the menu.

Pre-order Phoney Baloney's Four NEW Coconut Bacon Flavors (Hurry, Limited Time Offer!)

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

A few months ago I attended the Natural Products Expo West, and one of the very first booths I visited was Phoney Baloney's! I was so stoked to try their four NEW coconut bacon flavors, which they unveiled at Expo and certainly didn't disappoint! They even made my list of top 10 products at the Expo!

The new Phoney Baloney's coconut bacon flavors include Apple Fennel, Chipotle BBQ, Candied, and a soy-free, reduced sodium product! I tried them all at Expo and can attest to their supreme tastiness!

Food Review: Tofurky Pockets

Tofurky Pockets

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I totally remember being a teen and enjoying Hot Pockets on occasion...I loved the convenience of popping them in the microwave and enjoying a hot, gooey snack (though definitely NOT a healthy one). So when Tofurky came out with their vegan version, I was ecstatic (as were many other vegans)!

I found the Tofurky Pockets on sale (score!) at my local Whole Foods and had to try each flavor, which include BBQ Chick'n, Turk'y Broccoli and Cheddar, and Pepperoni Pizza. Each box holds two Pockets and they come in microwavable pouches.

My Top 10 Vegan Products at Natural Products Expo West

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

This year was the first time I attended the Natural Products Expo West, held every year at the Anaheim Convention Center, which is only about 20 minutes from my house. I was super-excited to be able to attend the Expo, where companies show off their latest and greatest products. Lots of vegan companies were in attendance (represent!), so I was able to check out many, many new products as well as stuffing my face with samples of my favorite vegan foods. Yes, I ate LOTS and LOTS of samples, but it was all for you, dear readers! I just HAD to eat every vegan thing in sight so I could dutifully report my findings to you, right? Righhhhhtttt...

Vegan Hot Dogs at LinX Artisan Sausage in Old Town Orange, CA

[source]

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I am always so stoked when non-veg restaurants offer up a vegan option to their customers! So when I heard that LinX Artisan Sausage in Old Town Orange was serving up a vegan hot dog, I couldn't wait to go down there and check it out!

Food Review: Trader Joe's Chicken-less Salad

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I love Trader Joe's and always love how they have neat new vegan options! Last month, I noticed they had a new Chicken-less Salad and I just had to try it!

Trader Joe's Chicken-less Salad

The "chicken" salad is made from vegan chicken, carrots, celery, currants in a light, mayo-like (vegan) sauce (sorry I don't have a more comprehensive ingredient list - I didn't photograph the ingredients and I can't seem to find an ingredient list online). Upon opening the package, it looked pretty good. The only thing I wasn't too enthused about was that the sauce seemed to be a bit runny. Nevertheless, I felt like I was ready for a picnic with this Chicken-less Salad!