Veganuary Day 2

The day started with my usual weekday morning breakfast, bite sized shredded wheat with almond milk. I was up early for my first day back at work after the Christmas break and these usually set me up for the day.

For lunch I packed a 'Marks & Spencer' Carrot salad, a packet of 'Ten Acre' cheese and onion crisps (bought from 'Planet Organic') and a peach. Marks do some great vegan salads and this one has become one of my favourites.

I finished work at a reasonable time today so I spent a little more time preparing dinner... well experimenting with making sweet potato fries for the first time which is actually quite creative for me. I made the fries to accompany my cheese burger made with a 'Vegideli' quarter pounder by 'VBites and 'Violife' cheese slices both from 'Holland and Barrett'. 

I used a 'Morrisons' own brand ready sliced bun and put some egg free mayo on the side. the fries were sliced, covered in olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and ground black pepper and placed in the oven for 30 minutes (pre-heated oven 180 degrees celsius). I washed my meal down with a bottle of 'Fentimans' cherrytree cola. I don't like to drink too much coke so I have it as a treat on occasions.

Now I don't normally have a desert everyday but as I had just stocked up on ice cream, I couldn't resist, so I went the whole hog with sauces too. 'Swedish Glace' vanilla ice cream is just divine (from Waitrose) and its even scrummier with 'Lyles squeezy syrup', strawberry and butterscotch flavour.

Veganuary Day 1

Firstly I would like to wish my readers a happy and healthy new year... I hope you're not feeling worse for wear after the celebrations last night. Fortunately for me I gave up alcohol two years ago, mainly for health reasons so that's one less thing I have to worry about during 'Veganuary'. I started my day with two slices of peanut butter on toast made with 'Hovis' white medium bread, 'Pure' sunflower spread and 'Whole Earth' smooth peanut butter washed down with a cup of tea made with almond milk. 'Hovis' are pretty good at stating their bread is vegan but always check the packaging.

I totally skipped lunch as I had been snacking on 'Pringles' (Original flavour) and as you know once you pop you just can't stop. I had dinner a little earlier than usual but I was looking forward to trying a new product, the 'Cheatin' Celebration Roast by 'VBites' which I picked up from 'Holland and Barrett'.

Roast potatoes, carrots and parsnips accompanied the fake meat products drizzled with 'Bisto' gravy (the one in the red pot). I only used half of what was in the box as there was enough for two meals so I put the other half back in the freezer for another day. It wasn't amazing but it was ok and I liked it.

For desert I had some lovely strawberries topped with lashings of 'Alpro' soya, single cream. I would like to try and consume more fruits during 'Veganuary' as I very rarely eat them. I have apples mainly for lunch at work but that's about it so I'm looking forward to the change.

So that's how my first day of Veganuary went. I'm now off to make myself another cup of tea and settle down in front of the T.V before the shock of returning back to work tomorrow really hits me.

Gearing Up For Veganuary

I have spent the last couple of days stocking up on vegan items ready for the start of Veganuary tomorrow and I think I'm just about sorted. I don't get much time to prepare meals from scratch so I've opted for products that are quick and easy and that I can just bung in the oven when I get home from a busy day at work. Most of it is vegan junk food so if you you are looking for healthy this probably isn't the place for you. During the whole of January I will be blogging about the meals I eat and the products I use and hope that I don't slip up anywhere.

Until now I have maintained a mainly vegetarian diet with some vegan products thrown in. I already use almond milk on vegan cereal's and in tea and I use dairy free butter and spreads. Already being vegetarian has it's advantages as now all I have to do is cut out the dairy consumption and that's not something I tend to eat a lot of anyway although I must admit I had gone a little down hill during Christmas eating dairy chocolate.

While I'm here I'd like to say how excited I am to finally find 'Vegan Life' magazine in a branch of WH Smiths... I had been looking for it in the shops for ages after I had bought a one off copy at Vegfest. I think my quiet New Years Eve is going to be spent having a good old read.

Lastly I would like to share with you a great find, and if you are lucky you might still be able to get your hands on a copy in 'The Works.' It's the fabulous book by Ms. Cupcake called 'The Naughtiest Vegan Cakes in Town' (bargain price of £5.99) which I intend on actually using. I'm terrible with cook books of any kind... I buy them but then they sit gathering dust but I definitely must make the effort with this one after sampling one of Ms. Cupcakes delicious cupcakes in her Brixton shop this year (one of my highlights).

Enjoy your New Year celebrations and I'll see you on the other side.

Weekly Round-up #5

Firstly, apologies for my absence over the last few weeks, things had started to get a little hectic so I decided to take a little time out from all activities that required my thinking energy. Fortunately everything is starting to slow down now and I am just about ready for Christmas and a much needed break. I have missed three weekly round-ups so I'm hoping to get back on track.

Cosmetics transition complete
I can now proudly announce that my entire make-up collection is cruelty-free thanks to my new found obsession with Marks & Spencer's own brand range 'Autograph' replacing the last few items that I had remaining. I hadn't really taken much notice of their products before but now I've discovered them, I'm hooked.

Not only have they got a fabulous make-up range but they also stock other brands that are cruelty-free, you've only got to look for the leaping bunny. They have some gorgeous cruelty-free bubble baths, moisturisers and body spritzers but also what excited me the most were their selection of cruelty-free perfumes which I tried and tested in the store. I managed to restrain myself as the only thing stopping me from buying some was the fact that I still had a load of perfume at home that I need to use up before I even consider buying more. Anyway, I bought foundation, bronzer, pressed powder and a concealer stick.

I was rather interested in the eye shadows but I still have my 'Barry M' palettes that I have barely used so I had better start with them first.

Usher's Hat

While tuning in to watch 'The Graham Norton show' on Friday evening to see one of my favourite cruelty-free advocates Ricky Gervais, I was horrified to witness that their choice music act Usher was wearing a fur Davy Crockett type raccoon hat, as well as it making him look ridiculously stupid it made me feel physically sick to know that some poor creature died for him to flaunt that on his head. On researching his head wear, I discovered that PETA had already given him stick about it and he had been wearing it since last winter so he can't have learnt anything about it's origin and how much pain and suffering that the animal would have endured in the whole entire year that it's been in his possession.

Some people have no compassion whatsoever and I really hope that Ricky had pointed that out to him back-stage if he had the opportunity. 

Christmas Wishes

Lastly I would like to wish my readers a very Merry (and relaxing) Christmas and a happy, healthy and successful new year.

Weekly Round-up #4

Well my week off came and went pretty quickly and unfortunately I didn't manage to do half the things that I had planned but I did relax which was the main thing. I have just finished re-creating my C.V which I haven't had to do in 5 years so that's why I'm a little late with my weekly round-up. Another short one as I had already posted a couple of things (in more detail) that caught my interest during the week.

As Nature Intended

I had been meaning to visit this lovely little shop for a while now so I used my week off to my advantage. It was my first trip to Westfield Shopping Centre in Stratford and that was overdue too. As Nature Intended is a little ethical health food store that sell a range of toiletries and cosmetics as well as organic food. This store is not entirely vegan but they do sell a range of foods that are. You can also find brands such as 'Faith in Nature' and 'Pacifica.' I took a couple of sneaky photo's for you.

Unfortunately I didn't need anything from here this time but I did buy a few products from other stores which I shall be reviewing shortly. If you would like to know more about 'As Nature Intended' go to their website HERE where you can also shop online.

Cruelty Free YouTuber's

As you know from last weeks post I have been on the lookout for cruelty free UK YouTuber's that review cosmetics. This week I found Rachel from 'All Natural Aspirations' who has a blog HERE. She has lots of very helpful video's reviewing many different kinds of products that aren't tested on animals. Here's one of her video's for you to check out.

Vegan Product of the Week: Lazy Day Foods - Free From Ginger Tiffin

A soft Belgian dark chocolate tiffin with warming stem ginger and ginger biscuit pieces (£2 in Waitrose), ideal for the winter season. It is free from gluten, wheat, dairy, egg, hydrogenated fats and is labelled vegan. You can tell that a lot of care and consideration has gone into making and packaging this product. Allergens are highlighted in bold on the ingredients list and the palm oil used is RSPO certified (ethically sourced). 

'Lazy Day Foods' were founded by food scientists Dr. Sally Beattie and Emer Bustard, both have an interest in food intolerances. Sally herself has several food intolerances and her young son is allergic to dairy. They state on the box that they bake their goods in a dedicated gluten free bakery and they have no gluten, wheat, dairy or eggs on site and they don't use nuts on the premises either.

I love the melty gooeyness of this product but it's something that I would only buy as an occasional treat. I find myself eating these very slowly as they are quite rich but enjoyable none the less. I couldn't gorge myself on these as I would probably feel very sick afterwards. I would like to try out some of the other products in this range especially the cookies if I can find them.

Animal Welfare Concerns on 'I'm a Celeb'

Ant and Dec have sparked fury amongst wildlife enthusiasts and animal lovers by condoning the use of creatures and reptiles in the trials featured in 'I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here' (in not so many words). This out-cry has come after naturalist Chris Packham expressed his concern over the treatment of the animals involved by writing to Ant and Dec explaining why it is morally wrong. The initial response came from producers of the show which stated that Ant and Dec had no input into the way the show is run. Ant and Dec have remained quiet until recently when they were seen displaying childish behaviour towards Chris by mocking him on the show. You can read the related article HERE.

I personally find Ant and Dec's behaviour very patronising not only towards Chris but towards everyone who cares about the welfare of animals. It's disappointing because many people (as I did) have a lot of respect for the duo and are seen as role models for the younger generation and so their behaviour and opinions often rub off onto others. I would like to put their behaviour down to ignorance and a lack of educating and maybe one day they will understand what Chris was saying.

I for one know that the treatment of these animals on 'I'm a celeb' is not normal. As some of you may have read in my 'About Me' section, I studied Animal Management for two years. During this time I was taught how to care for a variety of species. I learnt the correct and incorrect ways of handling various reptiles and to treat them with care and respect in a calm but cautious manner. I don't think they realise how distressing it can be for reptiles (or any other animals) when they are placed in a tank with a crazy person flailing around screaming and shouting. Their first instinct is to try and escape but they can't.

It's not the first time that the show has come under scrutiny and it probably won't be the last. Back in 2009 there was outrage when the producers let Gino D'Acampo kill, cook and serve up a rat for dinner. With a lack of research this appalling act of animal cruelty got them into a lot of trouble in which I have no sympathy for. I hate to think what standards their wildlife experts live up to if they are unable to recognise animal cruelty or even unnatural situations that the animals are put into.

It's upsetting when someone is mocked for attempting to make a point about something they are extremely passionate about. I have read Chris's ORIGINAL LETTER and I think that it was professionally and informatively put together so I think it was unnecessary for Ant and Dec to make those comments, especially if they have no input into the running of the show. ITV and the producers should be ashamed of themselves. I will continue to boycott the show until they make some drastic changes.