Kale Wrap / Sour Sweets

Posted on June 20, 2017 by planetmanel

KALE WRAP
Finally.. they were one of the last coffeeshops, but Starbucks introduced a vegan meal. Or meal, something more than a hand full of nuts or a piece of dark chocolate. Starbucks is my favourite place to get tea. I drink my green tea with soy milk or, my latest discovery.. a Green tea Soy latte. If I wanted to eat something I could choose between some little snacks, because all the sandwiches, wraps and cakes have meat, dairy or egg in them. A lot of other coffeeshops already offered vegan options, especially if we talk about PRET, they are king! Though Starbucks didn’t. Such a shame. But as the world is changing, Starbucks had to. And of course I had to try it. I didn’t have breakfast the morning I did and so it was kind of like a breakfast burrito. First of all, I think it looks good. The lettuce inside and the wrap itself are fresh and the overall taste is nice. It’s just a shame there is a lot of crap (sugar!) in them. But if you’re in a rush and you need to have something in your stomach, I think Starbucks did a good job with offering something tasty! Let’s hope for more options in the future. Way to go!

SOUR SWEETS
I love love love sour sweeties. I know they’re not good for you, but very once in a while I have some. Sometimes until my tongue is literally open. I know.. it’s bad! It’s just so yummy. The sour the better. A while ago I discovered these Sour Snakes from Biona. BIona is one of my favourite brands. They just have a lot of good stuff. I took these to Rome and I was pleasantly surprised by the taste They’re sour (though it could of lasted a little longer) and the taste is nice. They’re obviously still not healthy, but I’m sure it’s at least better than the other ones. But just once in a while it should be fine. To take with you on a trip or like me.. when I’m on my period (serious cravings!).

Smooth Oats / Tofu

Posted on June 6, 2017 by planetmanel

SMOOTH OATS
This is originally thought of as a children’s breakfast I think, but I happened to love this. As a child I loved it too, but I think as an adult I love it even more. It’s so nice and smooth and it feels nice in your mouth. A lot of these kind of breakfasts have sugar or other unnecessary additives in them, but not the Ready Brek. That is why I love it a lot. Also for children, because I think a lot of children are eating a lot of crap for breakfast with all these sugary cereals on the market nowadays. Ready Brek keeps you full for long and has a lot of good stuff, like: calcium, iron and B vitamins, including B12! I personally like to eat it with fruit, cinnamon and a little agave nectar. Especially with bananas and blueberries it’s very yummy. Because it’s already smooth, it’s very easy to add to smoothies too. This way your smoothie will keep you full for longer. You can also sprinkle it over your yogurt if you like. There are so many options, whilst it’s ready fast. When I prepare it, I already add the Ready Brek to the milk (I like to use Oatly Barista for this!) in the pan. This way it’s warm very fast. It doesn’t take more than 2 minutes, I promise. I tend to make it a bit runny, as that is how I like it. I think you have to experiment a bit with it, to find out what you like best.

TOFU
This was the first tofu I discovered I really like. In the meantime I found more, but now and then I still really enjoy this one. Once I open a pack, I can’t resist it and keep eating it. Especially the side bits I like. It’s perfect for salads. You only need a bit though as it’s quite a strong flavour. That’s why if you’re mixing it through something, really make sure you don’t use too much, because then it might happen that your whole meal will taste like it. What is ok maybe, but I prefer to have some flavours separately. So I slice it up for my salads and then have it on the side. It makes any meal very filling. It comes, very handy, in 2 pieces. This way you can easily make 2 meals out of it. Or if you can resist, you can even use it for 4 meals. I most of the time already ate half of the portion I’m using though, haha! It’s also very tasty through a cold pasta salad, together with some tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, black olives or any other raw veggies. Perfect for a summers day picnic or potluck! Dragonlfy tofu is handmade in Devon and they do more tofu flavours, but I absolutely like this one best.

Palm Sugar / Chick’n Tandoori

Posted on May 30, 2017 by planetmanel

PALM SUGAR
When I use sugar, I use organic palm sugar from Biona. Palm sugar is an unrefined sugar. It comes from the sap, found in the flower buds of the coconut palm tree. It’s heated to take the moisture out and the syrup they get from that, is then further reduced until crystals are formed. This means there are no chemicals used in making this sugar. It even has vitamins and minerals, like: potassium, zinc, iron and it’s rich in B vitamins. It also has a low GI level, what means that it releases it’s energy slowly and prevents the spike of insulin. Most diabetics can even use palm sugar for this reason. Even though it’s a lot healthier than table sugar, it’s still a sweetener and it doesn’t mean you should use this unlimited. The taste is sweet and a it has a slight caramel flavour. I really like the taste. My boyfriend is using it in his coffee and I mostly use it for baking and as a topping for nice cream (super yummy).

CHICK’N TANDOORI
This is not something that I keep in my fridge all the time. It’s a real treat when I get it. Last year I was helping a family out with babysitting and it turned out that the mum was vegan too. This is what she had in her fridge and I had a little taste. I thought it was really nice and bought it for myself and to take it to Holland, to share with my family and (vegan) dad. They liked it too. It’s especially nice on a nice fresh bun or baguette with some fresh veggies, like lettuce, tomato and cucumber. You could also have some on the side of your salad. It has a very nice structure (as most of the Tofurky stuff) and the taste is really nice. I’m sure that even meat eaters will appreciate this and it’s a huge help for people who are transitioning.

Linseed / Chocolate

Posted on May 23, 2017 by planetmanel

LINSEED
Whenever I buy linseed, which is whenever I run out, I buy the brown linseed from Biona at the Whole Foods Market. I love this brand and it has good prices for good quality. I use linseed every day. I always put 1/2-1 tbsp in my green smoothie. I also use it as a topping for my smoothie bowls, yogurt or in my salad. Linseed are an excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids and fibre, but they are also high in antioxidants. Perfect to start your day with this. Starting your day with a tbs of linseed is especially helpful when you’re a constipated. That also means that you have to make sure you don’t use too much, as it can work lactating.

CHOCOLATE
It’s quite tricky to get Tony’s Chocolonely here in the UK. There are a few rare shops that sell it, but it’s definitely not like it is in Holland. There you can just get them everywhere, even in the normal supermarkets. I’m sure they will come to the UK. Tony’s Chocolonely is a great brand, as it’s 100% fair trade and slave free. There are manyyyyy flavours. They are known for their flavour combinations as they are not as any regular chocolate flavours. A lot of them are vegan, but unfortunately not all of them. My favourite is this one, the salted almond. It’s heavenly! I also really like the coconut-pecan, but lately I’m always buying only this one. It’s so good with a nice cup of tea. I always make sure I buy a few bars before flying back to London, in case I wasn’t given any. As a lot of people tend to get me this.. I really don’t mind! Haha!

Thins Crackers / Bacon Tempeh

Posted on May 16, 2017 by planetmanel

THINS CRACKERS
Ok.. these ones are one of my favourites at the moment! I randomly bought these Thins from Ryvita once, to dip in humous or guacamole whilst watching a movie. I wanted to share them with my boyfriend, but when I just had one.. to taste if they were nice, I accidentally ate the whole pack.. oops! I had them with a little slice of Vio life cheese on them and I also had them with guacamole. yuuuummy!! I’m sure they taste nice with all sort of dips.. so you can have a dipping party, haha! There is 0% crap in them, what is very nice. They are so crispy and the taste.. well, they don’t have a very strong taste, but it is a taste you want to eat more of. What makes them so addictive. The only thing is that they’re not that cheap. I almost payed £2 pounds for 1 pack and I thought they could have filled the pack a little more. They’re a nice treat though, or to enjoy for lunch with a salad. Try them!

BACON TEMPEH
Firs time I bought this, was when I was visiting the vegan supermarket GreenBay. I made a dish with Vivera bacon style pieces, but you can’t get these in the UK yet. So I tried to look for a substitute (a substitute for a substitute.. hehe..). I found this bacon flavoured tempeh from Tofurky. They come in easy pre cut strokes and it’s tasty too. The flavour isn’t very strong though. What I actually like, but in the dish I want to use it in, it needs a stronger taste. So instead, I made nori rolls with them and that was perfect. They will be very tasty in some fresh bread rolls too and I also once cut it up over my left over Stamp-pot. Was very nice too!

Coconut milk / Rice cakes

Posted on May 9, 2017 by planetmanel

COCONUT MILK
I love curries. It’s one of my favourite dishes to make, but especially to eat of course. It might be because it’s with coconut milk. I love everything with coconut, I’m quite addicted. A bar with coconut, a smoothie with coconut, a shower gel with coconut.. yes, yes and yes! Now to make curry and all these yummy recipes which include coconut milk (you might have spotted quite a few) I use the coconut milk from ‘Pride’. This is because it has more actual coconut in there than any other brand I know. A lot of times it’s around 50% water and 50% coconut or they added a lot of other very unnecessary ingredients (sometimes even sugar!). Pride coconut milk has 75% coconut inside. If you need the cream of the coconut milk, this is definitely your number one brand. Especially when you want to make whipped coconut cream. So much cream! It’s very tasty too. The only thing I don’t like is that it’s not organic, but you can’t have everything I guess. So the next time you make curry, a hot chocolate or a creamy soup, use this. You can get it in a lot of supermarkets, you get more worth for your money.. and it isn’t even expensive

RICE CAKES
A yummy snack or a healthy lunch, rice cakes are very great. Just a rice cake with nut butter is a perfect protein snack and when you put some cream cheese, humous, avocado and veggies on top, you will have a lovely lunch. You do need quite a lot of these ones if you want to have them for lunch though. Because they’re thin it doesn’t fill you up easily. So in general I think these ones are better as a snack. I love rice cakes a lot, also on its own. If I don’t watch out I will eat a whole pack. I actually especially like the thick ones, but I recently discovered a very thin one I like too. The multigrain thins form Sainsbury’s. They are healthy, have a nice bite, have a very different taste and you only need a little bit of something to put on there, perfect. I really like to have them with cream cheese, cucumber and some cracked black pepper. The only thing what is a little less nice is that they break quite fast. Some of them are even already broken in the pack. It is because they’re so thin.

Harissa / Butter

Posted on May 2, 2017 by planetmanel

HARISSA
Last year I discovered this yummy thing, called Harissa. I make a super easy to make aubergine dish with it. The recipe ‘Keen On Aubergine’ will be shared with all of you soon. I made it for a lot of people already and everybody loves it. Yes people, vegan food is delicious and we do not eat grass, haha! I also discovered Harissa is also very tasty on a sandwich. Just put some cream cheese, houmous or guacamole and with some raw veggies on a sandwich and spread a thin layer of Harissa over it too. I’m sure you will like it. Harissa is quite spicy, but it also has a unique flavour. Unfortunately several brands put sugar in it. This is super unnecessary and I don’t understand why they do this. But Sainsbury’s own brand is cheap, tasty and without any crap. Also, because it’s not very big it’s less likely to go bad. Unless I just got you addicted and you need a bigger jar.

BUTTER
Some people can be quite fussy about butter I noticed. I heard a lot of people struggling finding a nice butter in their vegan transitioning. I’m not fussy at all about this, as long as it’s vegan. Also I don’t use a lot of butter. Though, if I have to pick one, it’s definitely this one! It’s from one of my favourite brands again, Biona. It’s very spreadable (ok, if I have to fuss about butter, than it’s that I want it to spread and not break my sandwich!!) and has a slight coconut oil taste. I love everything with coconut and so this butter is just really my thing. What explains that this is the butter I keep in my fridge, even though I almost never use it. The one thing I use it for mostly, is if I’m snacking on a rice cakes with a slices of Vio life. This is definitely one of my guilty pleasures (of all time). So yummy!

Dusters / Veggie Mince

Posted on April 25, 2017 by planetmanel

DUSTERS
I always review a lot of food or beauty products, but this is the first time I review something to help you in the household. I hope you will find this helpful. My flat is very dusty. It has wooden floors and I have to dust a lot. I used to do this with a damp cloth, but the dust falls off and I was just replacing the dust instead of taking it away. So when I was in the Whole Foods Market I saw these and I thought I’d give it a go. They’re vegan, cruelty free and made out of recycled material. If a product has this all, I’m quite excited to buy it. I’m so happy that I did! It works really well. The dust sticks to it and you can use 1 duster several times. It makes my life so much easier.

VEGGIE MINCE
I was going to make a taco feast recipe at work and I got all the ingredients, but silly me, I forgot the veggie mince. Luckily I was going to a playgroup that day, close to the Portobello Wholefoods and I was hoping really hard they had some. They luckily did, from Fry’s. A brand I really like. I was so happy to have found it. I never had this one before, but I was very impressed. A lot of veggie mince I find a bit tasteless and dry. This one has a lot of taste and is not dry at all. The taco’s turned out really well, but I’m sure this will also be amazing in a lasagna or any pasta sauce. Such a good taste (what you expect form Fry’s), that this will be a very good product if you’re transitioning or when you have to cook for meat eaters. Definitely give this a try! It comes with gravy sauce, what I obviously didn’t need for taco’s, so I didn’t taste it, but I never saw this before and I thought it was very cool.

Black Beans + Chickpeas / Custard

Posted on April 18, 2017 by planetmanel

BLACK BEANS + CHICKPEAS
Where do you get your protein from?! Well, from this! Black beans and chickpeas form Biona. Not only this obviously, but I use black beans and chickpeas most often as my main protein source. Mostly I eat them in my salad. I wash them first and then I add 1/2 a can to my raw veggies and mix it up. I absolutely love this and do this almost daily. It’s so easy and super tasty. Another thing what I do is make dips and spreads. With the chickpeas I make houmous and in a very similar way I also make a spread with the black beans. Super delicious and healthy to put on a sandwich and crackers. I especially like it, because you know exactly what you put in it. Also, because you can make a lot, it’s perfect for parties! Just serve some raw veggies (cucumber, carrots) and crackers with it and people will start dipping and spreading, I’m sure.

CUSTARD
This is such a thing here in the UK. This custard of Alpro reminds me more of ‘vanilla vla’, than of custard, but it’s very nice. ‘Vanilla via’ is something similar we have in Holland and we eat it as a dessert. The old fashion way to eat is, I believe my grandparents must still do it, is with a bit of yogurt and a splash of syrup (red squash) in the middle. Like it isn’t sweet enough, haha! I remember my dad used to mix a whole pack of this, with a whole pack of yogurt and then added apples, bananas, raisins and cinnamon. He’d mix it up in a big bowl and then we divided it into smaller bowls for pudding. It was always my favourite. Good memories! A shame it was dairy though. Anyway, this vegan custard is super delicious with the Dutchie Pie I made, so make sure you’ll give it a try. Try heating it up a little bit and it’s even better.

Little Coconutters / Falafel burgers

Posted on April 11, 2017 by planetmanel

LITTLE COCONUTTERS
Not sure if you know the brand ‘The Coconut Collaborative‘, but it’s quite a fantastic brand, with lots of great vegan ice cream. Recently I see more and more stores and supermarkets selling this brand. What is really great! Last time I was at Sainsbury’s I saw these ‘Little Coconutters’, I’ve never seen before. They caught my eye because of the nice design on the packaging, with the blue leaves and cheeky monkeys. Coconut vanilla on a stick.. I couldn’t just walk passed this, could I? I’m totally nuts about coconut, so I got them. Good thing I did, because they’re totally delicious! The Coconut Collaborative did’t use refined sugar, but grape juice to make them sweet. What makes me like them even more. There are just too much products ruined by sugar nowadays. They’re not very big, but it’s also not gone within 2 bites, I would say they’re the perfect size. I didn’t try it yet, but I think if you’d blend them with a glass of plant-based milk and maybe even a piece of fruit (banana?) or a tablespoon of cacao powder, they make an amazing milkshake. I think they’re aiming for children, but they’re a super nice dessert or snack for adults too. With the days getting warmer and summer on its way, I only have one thing to say: Go and try these!

FALAFEL BURGERS
Do you remember the ‘pepper steak style pies‘ of ‘Fry’s Family‘ I reviewed before? This brand is amazing and the last time I was at Holland&Barret I saw these falafel burgers. They were not in a classic Fry’s package and I didn’t realise at first they were from Fry’s. They’re quite new! I really like this packaging much more, because I always thought the other packaging looks a bit cheap. This looks more appealing in my opinion. I obviously had to try them, as I love falafel and I like that there is no crap in these. Guilt free burgers! So I made my boyfriend and myself a nice falafel lunch in the weekend. I toasted some whole wheat pita breads and fried the burgers in a pan. To make them fit in the pita bread properly I cut the burger in half, in length (so I had 2 thin burgers). I put them in the bread, together with some iceberg lettuce, sliced tomatoes, gherkins and a good amount of houmous. It was very good and my boyfriend really liked it too! I was a little sceptical at first, because I thought they might be a little dry, because that is what you get a lot. But Fry’s did it again and created a yummy new burger. I like that there are corn pieces in there and some quinoa too. I bet they are very yummy on a proper burger bun too, with red onion rings and some chilli sauce. Perfect lunch!

Planet Manel

Happy Planet. Happy You.

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