Tag Archives: the veg life

The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Where Do Vegans Get Their Potassium?

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You’ve probably heard of potassium as that health thing/nutrient in bananas that’s good for you, right? But do you know what potassium actually is?

Don’t feel bad if you don’t, I didn’t know what it was until I did this article! And since I’m the bringer of knowledge – both because that’s what this series is for and because I’m an Aquarius – let’s take a quick walk down What The Heck Is Potassium, Anyway? Avenue.

Potassium is a mineral that helps maintains your body’s nerves, muscles, kidneys and heart functions. It’s said that when people eat diets rich in potassium, they can lower their blood pressure, reduce their risk of kidney stones and potentially regulate their blood sugar levels.

Adults need 4,700mg of potassium daily and while that may sound like a lot, with how abundant it is in foods, you really don’t need to worry. (Like most other nutrients in this series)

Starting in the top left-hand corner, and moving clockwise:

  • Dried Apricots (1,510mg)
  • Prunes (1,270mg)
  • Raisins (1,200mg)
  • Durian (1,059mg)
  • Swiss Chard (961mg)
  • 1 Med Baked Potato (929mg)
  • Yams (912mg)
  • Spinach (830mg)
  • Lentils (731mg)
  •  Avocado (728mg)
  • Guava (688mg)
  • 1 Whole Pomegranate (666mg)
  • 2 Slices Watermelon (640mg)
  •  Kidney Beans (607mg)
  •  Coconut Water (600mg)
  • Butternut Squash (582mg)
  • 1 Med Sweet Potato (542mg)
  •  Beets (518mg)
  • 1 Banana (451mg)

I don’t know about you, but I was surprised to learn that not only so many other foods have more potassium than bananas, but that bananas have so little in comparison, that they’re at the bottom of the list!

Did this list shock you? Do you know of any potassium-rich foods I missed? (With equal values to the above) Let me know in the comments!

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Farm Boy Chocolate Truffle Hot Cocoa Mix Review

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Funny story about my discovery of this hot chocolate, I actually came onto the brand when I was looking for vegan cheese.

While the brand isn’t 100% vegan, they do have a line of vegan cheeses available – including some cheese cubes specifically for making poutine – and, as I was pleasantly surprised to find out, hot chocolate!

As far as I know, they only have the one kind of hot chocolate, but that’s really all you need!

This hot chocolate mix is pretty standard, in my opinion. It doesn’t have a specific flavour like the Castle Kitchen Caramel Hot Chocolate, or peppermint or anything crazy, it’s just… chocolate. And sugar.

And some Silk Chocolate Almond, but that’s me adding flavour, not what comes in the container. It also doesn’t have any of those dehydrated marshmallows that some other hit chocolate mixes have.

I would count that as a win though, because from what I remember, those marshmallows were always sort of rubbery or dusty tasting, and definitely didn’t replace plopping in your own fresh ones.

The container tells you to add 2 Tbsp of mix to a cup of hot water, but I’ve found that that’s way too much! I usually do 1 tsp or sometimes 1 1/2 tsp, but even sometimes that leaves bits of muddy, not-fully-dissolved mix in the bottom of my mug.

I don’t know if I happen to just have a smaller than average mug, or if someone misprinted those instructions, but I’d recommend starting out with a smaller amount, and upping the mix level each time, instead of starting with too much. Unless you actually like drinking that muddy leftover mix in the bottom of a cup.

The brand Farm Boy is also Canadian, and since they make ‘real’ food too, their products aren’t only found in specialty vegan stores! This means you have many more chances to get your hands on the product when doing your regular grocery shopping!

Another great thing about it, is that it’s a comparable price to ‘regular’ hot chocolate mixes. It’s listed as only $5.99 at Sobey’s, while the Compliments Hot Chocolate Mix is the same price, and the Tim Horton’s Hot Chocolate Smooth & Creamy is a dollar more.

This hot chocolate mix is enjoyable, and definitely gets the job done, and while I wouldn’t suggest you have to immediately run out and buy some, I would recommend checking it out this season.

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Yves Veggie Turkey Slices Review

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If you’ve been around for a little bit, you may remember the Yves Bologna review I did back in 2019. And if you remember that, you might also remember me saying their other two deli slice options were not my favourites, to put it mildly.

Well, I’m not going to sit here and pretend that never happened. But I will tell you, that over time, the other two faux deli slices Yves offers had grown on me and, now, I regularly eat all three!

These deli slices were originally the ones I thought I liked the least. It turns out, however, that that super smokey flavour I attributed to these guys was actually from the Yves Ham slices. I found that out a few months after the review came out, and I actually briefly thought about adding an edit to it. But I knew I hadn’t yet done the other two slice options, so I figured I’d just set the record straight in those, instead.

Which brings us to today.

These faux turkey slices are definitely a mild flavour when cold – they’re almost magical in their ability to blend into the background of whatever cold sandwich you put them in. In some sandwiches, I swear all they add is the texture. This actually makes them the most versatile of the three deli slices Yves has to offer. Sandwiches, wraps, charcuterie boards, these babies go great in a variety of foods!

When heated, they take on a slightly more pronounced flavour, but it’s still mild enough to not steal the show from the dishes star ingredient.

Obviously, I can’t speak to their accuracy of turkey taste – I’ve been vegan way too long to remember now (8 years at the time of writing 24.08.06), however out of what I remember, they definitely can’t be anything other than faux poultry. You could maybe say they’re faux chicken, but I don’t really think that matters, unless you’re going for nostalgia or Thanksgiving accuracy.

They definitely don’t taste like the ocean, so that rules out fish, and they don’t have that earthy/clove-y ‘deep’ flavour that beef has, but they also aren’t overtly sage and thyme-y like some other more potent faux poultry I’ve had.

Whatever you want to compare them to, they are definitely tasty, and I’d definitely recommend trying them for yourself!

Also, one thing these slices do better than the Bologna is how many slices come in a pack. The Bologna only comes with 10 slices, whereas these come with easily double that, if not more. (I’ve never actually counted them)

The only difference is that the Bologna slices are much thicker. I’d say maybe double the thickness of the Turkey (and Ham). I’m not sure why they didn’t just make them all the same thickness, but all the slices are also the same price, so if you’re looking to get the most product for an equal amount of money, I’d definitely recommend the Turkey.

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I post new product reviews on the 13th of every month!

The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Vegan Fast Food: Wendy’s Edition

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I’ll be honest, I was expecting more from Wendy’s in terms of vegan offerings. Their whole thing is ‘better ingredients’ for a fast food place, and I assumed that translated to the new wave of places adopting at least some sort of vegan product. (Seriously, even KFC has vegan chick’n now!)

Unfortunately, Wendy’s either missed the train or decided to not hop on board, so the vegan offerings aren’t that impressive.

  • Cobb Salad (remove: shredded cheese, egg yolks, grilled chicken, bacon and get ranch dressing on the side)
  • Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad (remove: grilled chicken, three cheese blend, croutons, bacon and get dressing on the side)
  • Table Syrup (comes with the Homestyle French Toast Sticks)
  • Seasoned Potatoes (website says they’re cooked in the same oil as products that contain milk, egg, etc.)
  • French Fries (website says they’re cooked in same oil as products that contain milk, egg, etc.)
  • Plain Baked Potato
  • Original Lemonade
  • Strawberry Lemonade
  • Coke
  • Coke Zero
  • Diet Coke
  • Sprite
  • Barq’s Root Beer
  • Fanta Orange
  • Nestea
  • Strawberry Passion Fruitopia
  • Dasani Bottled Water
  • Hot Coffee, Black (website says adding the sugar or zero calorie sweetener may result in contact with milk containing ingredients, but they also have individual packets available upon request)
  • Hot Tea (doesn’t say what kinds are offered)
  • Honest Kids Apple Juice
  • Honest Kids Fruit Punch Juice
  • Simply Orange Juice
  • Simply Apple Juice

I don’t actually know if they’ll let you customize the salads, but I thought it would be worth mentioning. Maybe you’ll get pleasantly surprised and they’ll be able to veganize them! But even if they won’t, at least you know you won’t go thirsty!

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Sol Cuisine Mushroom and Wild Rice Burger Review

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If you’ve been around for a while – or even if you just happened to catch my Beyond Burger review – you’ll know I’m not that big of a fan of vegan burgers that taste overtly meaty.

Maybe it’s because I wasn’t that big a fan of beef before going vegan, maybe it’s a psychological thing – I don’t know. All I do know, is that given the choice between a meaty burger or one that tastes like vegetables, I’m more likely to grab the veggie burger.

And these Sol Cuisine burgers are a great one to reach for!

There’s actually not much to be said about these burgers that you can’t figure out based on the name. Their taste is a great blend of mushrooms and rice and they have a great texture. They’re not too soft but aren’t too hard, either. You could pull them apart with your fingers if you so desired, but also definitely need to use your teeth to bite through them.

Four burgers come in one box and one thing I like that the company actually changed was before, the burgers used to come individually wrapped in plastic bags inside the box. The upside of this was obvious – you wouldn’t need to open all the burgers to just get one – but the downside was, of course, it meant they were using more plastic.

I’m not sure exactly when they changed, but I’m so glad they did! Less plastic is obviously always a win. That said, I do hope the company isn’t calling this a one and done deal – there’s still other steps they could take to reduce or even eliminate the plastic in their products! I’ve seen great things from other companies that use things like plant-based faux plastics, having products just be loose in cardboard, or even recycled plastic bags.

Another great thing about these burgers is that they aren’t one of those exclusive specialty vegan products, which means most ‘normal’ stores carry them! I’ve found these bad boys all over the place: Loblaws, Wal-Mart, Metro, Sobey’s – hell, one time I even found them at a No Frills!

Their price also makes them a great addition to your shopping list. At the time of writing (24.07.11) these burgers are listed at $6.99 and $7.29 at Wal-Mart and Metro, respectively.

These burgers are definitely a staple in my home, and I hope you take the time to try them out! I’ve never actually cooked them on a BBQ, but I bet they’d make a great addition to your summer meals!

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I post new product reviews on the 13th of EVERY month!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Sno Crunchy Salted Caramel Ice Cream Cone Review

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Sno is a relatively new ice cream company, at least to me. If you saw my other review, you’ll know I only tried them because I saw an Instagram add for their Pine Tree Mint ice creams.

I mentioned I was happy to learn they had a few other vegan offerings, but at the time, they were sold out.

I finally got my hands on one of their other flavours, which brings us to the reason for this review!

I first tried these cones just in March of this year, so this might be the newest product review I’ve written.

Only 3 cones come in a box, and while that sucks, they are relatively big – or at least, are comparable to other frozen ice cream cones I’ve seen. According to the box, the cones are supposed to be, Creamy caramel frozen dessert swirled with a salted caramel ribbon, a caramel center and topped with crunchy caramel bites.

The first cone out of my box had a lot of the crunchy caramel bites on the top. To the point if I had tipped the cone, they would’ve fallen off easily because there was so many they weren’t stuck in the ice cream. Honestly, I felt a little sick after eating them all, and that was before I even got to the rest of the cone!

Those small circle-things are the ‘crunchy bites’

The rest of the cone was pretty lack-luster, I won’t lie. The caramel on the top of the cone was weirdly warm (the ice cream was still cold so it wasn’t because it was out of the freezer), it was also very thick and goopy. It tasted good, but the texture was just very… off, in my opinion.

The ice cream itself just tasted like plain vanilla, and unfortunately, it was just on the top of the cone. The cone itself was empty/hallow, but did have chocolate coating the inside.

As far as first impressions went, this was a miss. Which sucked, because I really wanted to like this ice cream!

Luckily though, 3 cones come in 1 box, so the next time I went for a cone, I was pleasantly surprised! I swear to God, the difference between the first and second cone was night and day.

The second cone had a (thankfully) modest amount of crunchy bites on the top, the caramel was cold, not as weirdly thick, and though the rest of the ice cream I’m pretty sure was still just vanilla, it went all the way down into the tip of the cone!

The tie-breaking last cone was thankfully like the second, which leads me to think I somehow got a reject cone my first time around. I don’t know how it passed inspection, or maybe the equipment had a weird malfunction, but the other two cones in the box completely saved this product from getting written off.

While I think 3 cones for $5.97 (Wal-Mart) is a little steep, they’re less expensive than those Magnum bars or a pint of Ben & Jerry’s – and a potential of 2/3 being good – I still think this product is worth not only trying but also adding to your summer shopping list!

Have you tried these bars? What did you think of them? Did you happen to get any reject cones like I did? Let me know in the comments!

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The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Surprising Vegan: Summer Drinks

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Get ready for the summer weather with these surprising vegan summer drinks!

Starting in the top left-hand corner, moving clockwise:

  • La Croix Black Razzberry
  • La Croix Limoncello
  • La Croix Watermelon (Pasteque)
  • La Croix Hibiscus
  • La Croix Beach Plum
  • La Croix Guava Sao Paulo
  • La Croix Key Lime
  • La Croix Mango
  • La Croix Grapefruit (Pamplemousse)
  • La Croix Peach Pear
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee  Pink Grapefruit Lemonade*
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Tropical Passionfruit*
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Mug Root Beer
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Brisk Lemonade*
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Coca-Cola Slurpee*
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Crush Cream Soda Slurpee
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Crush Lime Slurpee (Tartrazine, Brilliant Blue FCF)
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Crush Orange Slurpee*
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Crush Grape Slurpee (Brilliant Blue FCF)
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Mountain Dew Original Slurpee (Tartrazine)
  • 7-ELEVEN Slurpee Mountain Dew Blew Shock Slurpee (Brilliant Blue FCF, Allura Red)
  • Crush Orange (Yellow 6, Red 40)
  • Crush Grape (Red 40, Blue 1)
  • Crush Strawberry (Red 40)
  • Crush Pineapple (Yellow 5, Yellow 6)
  • Crush Watermelon (Red 40)
  • Crush Peach (Red 40, Yellow 5)
  • Crush Grapefruit
  • Sparkling ICE Cherry Limeade (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Pink Grapefruit (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Black Raspberry (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE  Peach Nectarine (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Orange Mango (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Coconut Pineapple (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Classic Lemonade (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Kiwi Strawberry (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Lemon Lime (Colour)
  • Sparkling ICE Fruit Punch

*No ingredients listed on the website (didn’t hear back from company)

Now, obviously most of these drinks aren’t only available in the warmer weather months, but you can’t deny they just taste better when you can drink them outside in the sun, or perhaps sitting poolside.

Like this article? Check out the rest of the Surprising Vegan series!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Kraft Dinner Plant-Based Original Review

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Isn’t living in the future great? Kraft Dinner now makes a vegan option! I’ll admit I didn’t eat Kraft Dinner all that much before I went vegan, but as a Canadian, it still fills me with joy to see a vegan option now available.

For those who don’t know, Kraft Dinner is a boxed mac n cheese. The box comes with dried pasta noodles and a powdered flavour packet. It’s very simple to make: boil the pasta, add the flavour packet and/or some milk (or water) and butter then mix.

Similar to Mr. Noodles, it’s a cheap, fast meal to throw together.

I’m happy to report the vegan one follows the exact same steps and as far as I could tell, didn’t take any longer. (Though again, I haven’t made Kraft Dinner for at least 10+ years) The box was the same size and shape as the non-vegan counterpart, and it even had a comparable price!

You can see the box is only slightly skinnier than the non-vegan

At Wal-Mart, the Original (non-vegan) Kraft Dinner was $2.27 and the Plant-Based is listed at $2.67 – and that’s not a sales price!

$2.67! That is the cheapest price for a vegan alternative I’ve seen, ever. Usually when I buy Daiya Mac, it’s around $5.67.

Despite the cheaper price and the box being the same size, the vegan one didn’t quite make a full bowl of mac n cheese. I would say it was a little more than half. However, I tested it mostly by itself. Usually when I make Daiya mac, I’ll add peas and some sort of protein (sometimes notdogs, sometimes a Gardein nugget). This time, I just added a Gardein Original Breakfast Sausage patty, cut up. If you add a few extras, it’ll probably end up being a full bowl of mac n cheese.

I also noticed the flavour packet, the powder inside was white, instead of the classic yellow colour that Kraft Dinner is known for. They do make a White Cheddar vegan one, but my box said Original, so I was a little confused.

That is, until I poured the powdered onto the noodles and stirred. The pot quickly became that classic Kraft Dinner yellow before my eyes, almost like magic. I’m not sure why the powder is white, and it turns yellow, but it was a happy surprise.

As far as taste goes, it was a little almond-y, but that may have been my fault because my hand twitched when I added the milk. (It was Silk Unsweetened Almond, if you’re curious) Other than that, it tasted like cheddar mac n cheese. You could definitely tell it wasn’t Daiya’s – as I’ve said in the past, Daiya has a very specific flavour – but it definitely wasn’t bad at all.

I also noticed the noodles were a little… doughier than the Daiya noodles. Like if you get thick crust pizza, the amount of chewing required was surprising. Whenever I make the Daiya Mac, the noodles are always very soft. You can flatten them on your tongue and swallow them whole. At first, I thought maybe I overcooked them, but no matter how little or long I leave the noodles boiling, they’re the same consistency.

The Daiya Mac is also gluten-free, and the Kraft Dinner isn’t, so that may be why. Obviously I can’t say for sure, but that’s my current best (only) guess for why the noodles are such a different texture.

Again though, I wouldn’t say this was a negative, it just surprised me because I wasn’t expecting it.

I unfortunately wasn’t able to ask a non-vegan friend to taste test it to see how it compares with it’s non-vegan counterpart, but I would definitely recommend trying it if you haven’t yet.

Especially because it’s only $2.67!

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The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Where Do Vegans Get Their Vitamin E?

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Vitamin E is important because it helps protect your cells from oxidative stress. It also helps boost your immune system, reduces blood clot risk, lowers your risk of cancer, helps your eyes and brightens your skin.

If you don’t get enough Vitamin E, you may become prone to infections and/or develop muscle weakness or impaired eyesight.

Fortunately, Vitamin E is in a lot of foods, so most people don’t have to worry about getting enough of it. The only time you should worry about getting enough Vitamin E – and probably other nutrients – is if you have an absorption problem, or your nutrient absorption has become impaired.

It is also possible to OD on Vitamin E because unlike other vitamins, excess Vitamin E doesn’t come out when you pee. Vitamin E is what’s called a fat soluble vitamin, which means it’s stored in your tissues and livers, which includes the excess. And I don’t think I need to tell you how bad hyper consumption is when it comes to your body.

Unfortunately, in my research, the only ‘side effect’ to having excess Vitamin E that I found was bleeding in the brain. And while I don’t think I need to tell you why that’s bad, I was sort of hoping I’d be able to find a less panic-inducing symptom to include, just in case any of you readers are like me and tend to over-stress about certain things.

Luckily though, all you have to do to avoid getting too much Vitamin E is make sure you consume less than 1,000mg worth of supplements. Why just supplements? Because apparently it’s extremely rare (the articles literally used the phrase almost impossible) to OD on Vitamin E from just eating it in food. So, relax! Unless you’re downing supplements like Tic-Tacs, you’re most likely fine.

Most adults (including pregnant women! [This isn’t an exciting fact, just something I’ve noticed in my nutrient collage series]) only need 15mg per day. Which is way under 1,000mg, so again, try not to worry.

Starting in the top left-hand corner, moving clockwise:

  • Wheat Germ Oil 149mg
  • Hazelnut Oil 47mg
  • Sunflower Oil 41mg
  • Almond Oil 39mg
  • Cottonseed Oil 35mg
  • Sunflower Seeds 35mg
  • Safflower Oil 34mg
  • Grapeseed Oil 29mg
  • Almonds 26mg
  • Canola Oil 18mg
  • Palm Oil 16mg
  • Hazelnuts 15mg
  • Pine Nuts 9.3mg
  • Peanuts 8.3mg
  • Brazil Nuts 5.7mg
  • Olives 3.8mg
  • Turnip Greens 2.9mg
  • Pistachios 2.9mg
  • Collard Greens 2.3mg
  • Pumpkin Seeds 2.2mg
  • Avocado 2.1mg
  • Cranberries 2.1mg
  • Spinach 2mg
  • Swiss Chard 1.9mg
  • Mustard Greens 1.8mg
  • Red Bell Pepper 1.6mg
  • Kiwi 1.5mg
  • Broccoli 1.5mg
  • Asparagus 1.5mg

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Smart Sweets Cola Gummies Review

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I haven’t had cola gummies in a long time – last time I did, was probably way back around 2008/09. They were never really my favourite candies, I always enjoyed Twizzlers or chocolates better. That said, I do sometimes get in the mood for them, but unfortunately, like a lot of other candies, they use gelatin, which makes them not vegan-friendly. Or at least, the ones they sell at Bulk Barn aren’t.

That’s why I was excited to discover this brand Smart Sweets when I was on the hunt for vegan gummy candies for Valentine’s 2022. (I was planning on making a dessert charcuterie board, but that didn’t end up happening) I had already tried some Squish vegan gummies, but I was on the hunt for cola gummies, and at the time, Squish didn’t carry them. (Or if they did, they were sold out when I looked) Which is why I ended up choosing Smart Sweets.

Despite gummies not being my favourite candy, I was disappointed to learn that I didn’t like these cola gummies. For one, they didn’t actually taste like cola. They tasted like apples and some of them had a weird spicy (not hot) flavour. It was similar to cinnamon, but couldn’t have been that because I didn’t have an allergic reaction. (Yes, I’m unfortunately allergic to cinnamon)

Now, granted, I haven’t drank a Coke in… I don’t even know how long. Definitely not since the early 2000’s, maaaybe at the latest around the early 2010’s, so perhaps I’m not remembering the taste correctly, or maybe they’ve since changed the flavour, but apples and that weird spicy flavour did not equal ‘cola’ to my brain/taste buds.

Another thing I didn’t like about them was how empty 1 bag was. They were typical fruit-snack gummy sized pouches, but there was maybe five or six in the bag I got. I’m not expecting them to be filled to the top or anything, but it seemed a little too empty compared to other snack pouches.

Switching to things I did like about the gummies, they didn’t taste overtly sugary – which is great because they’re advertised as having only 3g of sugar per bag! Y’know that nauseous feeling you get if you indulge a little too much in things that are high in sugar? That doesn’t happen when you eat these, which is good, because it means you can eat more than one pack without worrying.

They also don’t use artificial flavours, and instead use ingredients you can actually pronounce! I’m assuming this is why they tasted like apples, and a quick check of the ingredients found that they do have apple extract in them. Though it says the apple extract is just supposed to be in there for colour purposes, you can definitely taste them.

Another good thing about the gummies, was that they were a decent price! They were only $3.47 when I got them back in 2022, so it won’t hurt your wallet all that much if you decide to try them.

I’m not sure if I just got a bad batch, cola gummies might not be my bag or what, but I wasn’t all that impressed with these gummies, unfortunately. The good news is, Smart Sweets makes a few other vegan flavoured gummies, so I’ll definitely try those before completely giving up on the company.

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