Tag Archives: Vegan Food

The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Store Crawl #6: Wal-Mart

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Important: This is the 2nd last article of 2025! I’ll be taking the last half of December and first half of January off from posting. I’ll be back January 19th, 2026 with the first article of the new year! (The first short story will go up the Friday before)

Wal-Mart having a lot to offer is no surprise. It’s a giant department store and has basically anything you could need: electronics, furniture, plants, food…. but, how are it’s vegan offerings?

Surprisingly, they’ve gone more veg-strong in recent years! So it’s not as hard to find those special pre-made foods you crave!

Please keep in mind that their website only shows items that are currently in-stock in nearby stores – yes, even though I don’t have that box checked. It’s a little annoying, but if you see the brand listed and not just your favourite item, it’d be worth checking out your own local store (or website) on a different day. Chances are good if they sell the brand, they’ll have a few varieties of their foods.

And if not, you can always call and request it! Letting them know you’d like them to carry something might just get it on the shelves.

Faux Dairy

  • Silk Almond Dark Chocolate
  • Silk Oat Original
  • Silk Unsweetened Soy
  • Silk Soy Original
  • Silk Soy Vanilla
  • Silk Almond Coffee Creamer Vanilla
  • Silk Oat Coffee Creamer Peppermint
  • Silk Oat Coffee Creamer Vanilla
  • Silk Nextmilk Regular
  • Silk Unsweetened Cashew
  • Silk Protein Almond & Cashew
  • Silk Unsweetened Coconut
  • Silk Almond Shelf Stable
  • Silk Soy Original Shelf Stable
  • Silk Protein Soy Original Shelf Stable
  • Silk Oat Vanilla Shelf Stable
  • Silk Oat Original Shelf Stable
  • Silk Oat Barista Original Shelf Stable
  • Silk Unsweetened Almond Shelf Stable
  • Silk Nextmilk Whole
  • Silk Coconut Yogurt Strawberry-Raspberry
  • Silk Probiotic Coconut Yogurt Vanilla
  • Silk Greek Yogurt Vanilla
  • Silk Greek Yogurt Key Lime
  • Silk Coconut Yogurt Unsweetened Vanilla
  • Silk Coconut Yogurt Unsweetened Plain
  • Earth’s Own Oat Original Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Oat Original Zero Sugar Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Almond Unsweetened Original Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Almond Original Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Oat Vanilla Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Oat Barista Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Almond Barista Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Oat Vanilla Zero Sugar Beverage
  • Earth’s Own The Alt Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Organic Soy Original Beverage
  • Earth’s Own Oat Milk Oat Nog
  • Oatly Barista Blend Oat Milk
  • Delicious Kitchen Coconut Milk Can
  • Becel Vegan Margarine
  • Becel Dairy Free Plant Butter Garlic Tub
  • Becel Dairy Free Plant Butter Salted Tub
  • Becel Dairy Free Plant Butter Salted Brick
  • Becel Dairy Free Plant Butter Unsalted Brick
  • Daiya Gluten Free Supreme Pizza
  • Daiya Gluten Free Cheese Pizza
  • Violife Cheddar Style Shreds
  • Violife Tex Mex Style Shreds
  • Violife Mature Cheddar Style Slices
  • Violife Smoked Flavoured Provolone Style Slices

Faux Meat

  • Gardein Meatless Meatballs
  • Gardein Supreme Plant Based Bowls: Be’f & Broccoli
  • Gardein Supreme Plant Based Bowls: Meatball Marinara
  • Gardein Supreme Chick’n Nuggets
  • Gardein Supreme Saus’ge Links Bratwurst
  • Gardein Supreme Chick’n Filets
  • Gardein Supreme Plant-Based Based Burger
  • Gardein Supreme Chick’n Tenders
  • Beyond Meat Plant Based Seared Steak Tips
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Burger with Avocado Oil
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Ground Beef
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Breaded Chicken Tenders
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Hot Italian Sausage
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Breakfast Sausage
  •  Beyond Meat Plant-Based Mild Italian Sausage
  • Beyond Meat Plant-Based Burger
  •  Lightlife Smart Dogs
  • Lightlife Original Organic Tempeh
  •  Lightlife Organic Smoky Tempeh Bacon Strips
  • Field Roast Smoked Apple and Sage Sausages
  • Field Roast Italian Garlic and Fennel Sausages
  • Zoglo’s Incredible Burgers Meatless Royal Burger
  • Impossible Foods Chicken Nuggets
  • Impossible Foods Burger Patties

Faux Other

  • JustEgg Made From Plants Folded
  • Hellman’s Vegan Mayo
  • La Vida Vegan Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
  • Vega Protein and Greens Plant-Based Protein Powder Vanilla
  • Vega Protein and Greens Plant-Based Protein Powder Chocolate
  • Vegan Essentials Plant-Based Protein Powder Chocolate
  • Vega Essentials Plant-Based Protein Power Vanilla
  • Vega Protien and Greens Protein Powder Berry
  • Vegan Sport Protein Powder Vanilla
  •  Vega Sport Protein Powder Chocolate
  • Vega One All-in-One Plant Based Shake Unsweetened
  • PERFECT Sports Diesel Vegan 100% Plant-Based Protein Powder Vanilla Ice Dream

Shelf Stable/Pantry

  • Amy’s Kitchen Tortilla Soup
  • Amy’s Kitchen Lentil Soup
  • Amy’s Kitchen Quinoa, Kale and Red Lentil Soup
  •  Mr. Noodles Vegetable Flavour
  • Mr. Noodles Mushroom Flavour
  • Knorr Vegetable Bouillon Cube
  • Aurora Bouillon Mix Vegetable
  • Chef Woo Ramen Plant-Based Braised Beef Flavour
  • Kraft Dinner NotCo Original Plant-Based
  • Delicious Kitchen Udon Noodles
  • Bob’s Red Mill Nutritional Yeast
  • Bob’s Red Mill TVP

Snacks/’Fun’

  • Dandies All Natural Vegan Marshmallows Vanilla
  • Castle Kitchen Classic Caramel Dark Chocolate Hot Chocolate
  • Smartfood Movie Night Butter Popcorn
  • Boom Chicka Pop Sea Salt Vegan Popcorn
  • Quaker Crispy Minis Original
  • Quaker Crispy Minis All Dressed
  • Yupik Nacho Roasted Cashews with Vegan Cheese
  • Prana Algarve Almonds and Sea Salt Dark Chocolate Bark
  • Lindt Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Bar

This is (unfortunately), the first store crawl I’m writing since the Yves news broke, so I didn’t include their deli slices, but they were available previously. I’m not sure if your local store might still have some in stock or not, but it’s worth checking out if you’re unsure!

This crawl is also obviously not including all the fresh fruit, veggies, bread and regular/plain packaged noodles like pasta. I figure those things are easier to find than some obscure vegan brands, so including them would be basically pointless.

Like this article? Check out more crawls here!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Gardein Supreme Saus’ge Links Bratwurst Review

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After trying the Beyond Meat Sausages, I’ve been a little more hesitant to try some of the newer/improved faux meat products that have come out in recent years. They have begun making some of them taste more like meat, and it’s too close for me to find enjoyable.

So when I heard of these Gardein Supreme Saus’ge Links, I wasn’t exactly jumping out the door to try them.

But working means not always doing things you’re looking forward to, so I finally sacked up and bought some to try. And, to my happy surprise, they weren’t that bad!

I first tried these sausages back in January, but decided to wait until the summer to review them because I figure you might be on the hunt for some new BBQ favourites.

These sausages came in the same sized box as their Supreme Burgers (which I don’t think I’ve reviewed yet), and they only came with four saus’ges in the box. They were what I like to call ‘proper’ sausage size – not too slim like the faux notdogs, and not weirdly long like some of the breakfast links – they were perfectly fat and short.

They also came in just one conjoined plastic sheet, which I liked because it’s less plastic than individually wrapping or packaging the links would’ve been. There is also clear seams on the plastic, so if you don’t want to cook all four links at once, you can just cut out the ones you want to use without inadvertently opening and needing to wrap up the remaining ones.

Because I’d never made them before, I decided to just cook them alone in a frying pan, which according to the box would take 19 to 25 minutes. When I took the links out of the plastic, they didn’t immediately smell like anything, but once they started to cook, there was a very strong sweet smell, that reminded me of maple syrup. The links also browned pretty fast, and I didn’t write down the exact time it took them to cook, but I did note it wasn’t as long as the box said. If I’m remembering correctly, I think I did 8 minutes on one side, then flipped and did another 6 minutes. (On my stove’s Medium setting)

One thing I did not like about these saus’ges was that they absolutely wrecked my pan!

I have no idea why, but they spit all over the place! I didn’t even add very much oil, and it’s not like I was constantly moving them around. All I did was flip them once. I noticed this is something that happens when I cook the Beyond Meat burgers/sausages as well, so I don’t know for sure, but it seems to be a weird by-product of the more realistic faux meats.

Luckily, it only looked like they killed my pan. Some water soaking in the pan immediately after cooking (once it was cooled down) and just a regular wash with a sponge and dish soap later, the pan was perfectly fine.

Once they were no longer cooking, the maple syrup/sweet smell dissipated, which I thought was a little odd. I initially thought the sweet scent was somehow activated during cooking, and once they were done, the links would continue to smell like that, but that turned out not to be the case. I don’t think they smelled specifically very ‘meat-y’ either, they just kind of had that done cooking smell. Or maybe I was just nose-blinded by the maple syrup, I didn’t notice.

These links had a great texture, and a good taste! As I said above, they weren’t super close to meat like the Beyond Meat products are, but they also definitely did have a meat-y taste. They also had what I described as an ‘undercurrent’ of flavour that I couldn’t quite place. My notes said ‘my best guess is mint, but not the toothpaste or candy cane mint flavour – it’s closer to when mint is in shampoo and has that ‘cooling’ effect, but in your mouth?’

This was actually a flavour I noticed in the Beyond Meat sausages, as well. At that time, I thought it might’ve been the fennel because they had the whole seeds/pods/whatever they’re called in them. But I’ve since been told fennel doesn’t have that cooling/mint effect, so I don’t know what else it could be.

I did read the ingredients, and there definitely is not any mint in the saus’ge links, so it might be just be a weird taste-bud thing.

I definitely wouldn’t let that odd description stop you from trying these saus’ges. Overall, they’re good! And I’m betting they’d be even better tasting if you cut them up and added them to something like a pasta or rice dish.

That said, they are on the slightly expensive side ($10.99 when I got them at Loblaws), so maybe best to keep them for those special BBQ summer occasions with family/friends.

Like this review? Check out more here!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Tofurky Hickory Smoked Deli Slices Review

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I’m pretty sure the last time I tried these deli slices was back in my very first year of being vegan (2016) and I don’t know if my taste buds have changed, or if they changed the formula/recipe (or if I’m even thinking of a different brand), but trying these deli slices now, I thought they were way better than I remembered!

I’m going to be honest, I bought these slices specifically so I’d have something to review. Usually, I buy the Yves deli slices (I like all three flavours now!) because they’re more widely available and cheaper in my area. Also, I know those ones are good.

These ones, despite what I ‘remembered’ pleasantly surprised me! They taste great, have a good texture and a decent amount come in 1 box. The slices themselves are more brown than pink/nude in colour and also have a small rind on them. The rind isn’t too thick though, and I think it adds an extra (very subtle) crunch to them.

One thing I found off-putting about these slices though was that after I opened the package, it smelled like dog food. That sort of… oldish gravy mixed with decaying meat? I even asked my non-vegan friend to smell it – because maybe that’s what ‘real’ lunch meat smells like and I just forgot – but they agreed, it smelled like dog food.

Absolutely does not taste like dog food, so I have no idea where that smell even came from, but yeah. Not exactly what you want to smell when making yourself lunch.

Luckily though, as I said, these slices have a great taste. They’re slightly smoky with an otherwise pretty generic ‘lunch meat’ flavour. I could not tell you if they’re supposed to be beef, chicken, pork, etc. replacements. They’re just kind of… lunch meat.

Which is is no way a bad thing! I actually love that they aren’t overpowering and don’t have a super distinct taste. It makes them perfect for their intended purpose, which is to blend into sandwiches! They add the texture you want, and zero problems!

If you can get past/through the weird smell – and hey, maybe it was just the box I got and not all of them? – I would definitely recommend giving these deli slices a try!

Want to read more reviews? Check them out here!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Stella’s Cheddar Cheese Perogies Review

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Important: This is the last article of 2024! I’ll be taking the rest of December and the first half of January off from posting. I’ll be back January 20th, 2025 with the first article of the new year! (Technically I’ll be back Jan. 17th but that will be a short story)

I want to start this review out by saying I’ve only tried these perogies once, and it was somewhere around 2015-2016. I tried to find them again so I could re-try them for this review, but it seems they’ve fallen off the face of the Earth. (At least, in Canada)

I checked regular grocers (Loblaws, Shopper’s, Metro, etc.) and dedicated vegan grocers (Good Rebel and VeganSupply.ca) and could not find them. I don’t know if they’re just no longer available in Canada, have changed their company name, or are discontinued, but I unfortunately could not get my hands on them again.

This means that I will be basing this review on what I remember. And what I remember, I hate to say, isn’t that great.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love eating perogies, and used to eat the frozen No Name potato and onion ones all the time. (They changed the recipe a few years ago to now include milk) This was also just after I had decided to go vegan, so when I was in Good Rebel all those years ago and saw vegan cheddar perogies, I was pretty excited!

I bought a bag despite the higher price (they were around $10-something and the bag was not big enough to justify that) and brought them home.

These perogies… they weren’t ‘bad’ as in ‘gross’, they were just kind of underwhelming. They tasted exactly like the frozen perogies I was used to, with a very, very mild hint of cheddar.

I honestly felt a little cheated. The higher price, smaller bag, and being bought from a specific vegan grocer made me think these would be somehow special perogies.

Yes, I know that’s my own fault. But as I said, this was just after I went vegan, so I was still mind-blown over the whole new world of food that had opened before me, and had rose-coloured-glasses on for a lot of vegan foods I tried. Back then, if the food didn’t completely blow my mind, I would say it was ‘bad’.

But what I really meant was it was a let-down because of how hyped I was to be trying so many new foods. Some were just… basic, staple foods. Which are very important to having a good food foundation to build the rest of your diet on! Unfortunately back then, I didn’t realize that.

So, are these perogies mind-blowing? No. (Unless they’ve since changed the recipe)

Should you still go out and buy them? Sure, but I’d recommend waiting until they go on sale. The size of the bag is definitely not worth the double-digit price tag. I know perogies are filling, but still.

So, Stella’s Perogies, have you tried them? If yes, did you like them? Do they even still exist? Let me know in the comments below!

Also, since this is the last article of 2024, I want to say a big thank-you to everyone who continues to read these articles and support the site! It means a lot to know I’m not just talking into a void. Lol

If you’d like to support the site more directly, consider signing up for my Patreon. You’ll get access to all my short stories, insider book knowledge, and/or the satisfaction of knowing you’re helping keep the lights on around here. Tiers start at just $1, too, so no need to worry about breaking the bank!

Have a great holiday season (if you celebrate), and if not, I hope you still find time to relax over the next month, and I’ll see you all in 2025!

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The Veg Life, Vegan Tips

Ways to Spice Up Your Mr. Noodles

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Important: This is the 3rd last article of 2024. I’ll be taking the last half of December and first half of January off from posting. I’ll be back January 20th, 2025 with the first article of the new year!

It’s time to address the elephant in the room.

You lived on them in college, you’ve seen the studies about how high in sodium their seasoning packets are, and are in a better financial situation now. But you can’t help yourself. Mr. Noodles just hit the spot for some reason.

It’s okay, you’re not in trouble! I eat Mr. Noodles, too! I love them and am sick of all the Mr. Noodle hate I’ve been seeing. I put it in the same category of stupid as when people argue that cake isn’t healthy.

That’s the whole point!

If I wanted to eat something healthy, I’d eat an apple. Carrot and fruit cakes are an abomination and can be left out under a snowbank. (Sorry, Mom)

So, you like Mr. Noodles. Congrats on finally admitting it! But now you find yourself in a bit of a rut. You boil the noodles, add the seasoning and eat… what more could you possibly do?

Well, as it turns out, there’s actually a lot of different ways you can add a little pizzazz to your Mr. Noodles.

Some people add a soft-boiled egg and chives, to make it that classic anime ramen, you can add frozen veggies (my personal favourite is adding peas), cheese shreds and garlic to make a delectable food abomination that scratches a garlic bread itch, but with noodles, or make what I’ve cleverly named Mr. Noodle Stir Fry.

AterImber.com - The Veg Life - Product Reviews - Beyond Meat Hot Italian Sausages Review - Beyond Meat Sausages In Mr. Noodles - food reviews, product reviews, food reviewer, sausages, vegan, vegan food, vegan meat, meat alternativesMr. Noodle stir fry with peas and Beyond Meat Italian Sausage

Mr. Noodle Stir Fry is a mix of different veggies (usually peas, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms) and some sort of faux meat (if you’re into the super meaty taste, the Beyond Meat sausages work really well, or Gardein Mandarin Orange Crispy Chick’N [sans the sauce] if you want a more mild flavour) stirred together with the flavour packets and sometimes a splash of soy sauce. Broth or water would work, too.

Mr. Noodles are a great base for many dinners because unlike actual pasta noodles, they cook super fast and are way more versatile! They’re also usually something crazy like 60 cents (yes, that’s including inflation. They used to be 25 cents!) and come in a range of flavours and are shelf-stable and stackable, which make stocking up on them for winter a breeze!

Keep in mind that the only vegan options are the Vegetable and Mushroom flavours. Though if you just plan on using the noodles as a base for something and not the flavour packet, you can buy whatever flavours are available, regardless.

Next time you go to indulge, try adding something new to them. Even if it’s not as elaborate as Mr. Noodle Stir Fry, you can change the monotony of your Mr. Noodle routine with a dash of creative thinking.

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Prana No Mylk’n Hazelnuts & Crispy Rice Chocolate Bark Review

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Important: This is the 4th last article of 2024! I’ll be taking the last half of December and first half of January off from posting. I’ll be back January 20th, 2025 with the first article of the new year!

Chocolate bark is one of the best snacks you can reach for and this Prana chocolate bark is no exception!

This bark is incredible. It’s the perfect ratio of chocolate to hazelnuts and rice, isn’t too thick and comes in a convenient resealable pouch, just in case you have enough self control to leave some of this delicious snack for later.

As the name suggests, they use a faux milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate, which is great for not getting that drying-out-your-mouth feeling that dark chocolate tends to give.

This bark actually reminds me of those rice chocolate bunnies they used to sell for Easter. I don’t know how region specific that product is, but if you know what I’m talking about, and enjoyed those bunnies, you’ll definitely enjoy this bark!

I also found this chocolate bark at Shopper’s Drug Mart, so it’s definitely not even one of those specialty vegan-grocer-only snacks, either. Speaking of where to find it, it’s also got a competitive price ($5.79) and wasn’t even tucked into some dark back corner of the shop with other vegan-only products. I found it right there on the shelf next to the Reeces!

There is one bad thing about this product, and it’s a complaint you’ve heard from me before: there is not enough bark in the bag! I don’t know if I got a dud, but the bag I got was less than half full of bark. The rest was air, or that not-air stuff they seal in to help keep products fresh.

This is how much bark was in the bag as soon as I opened it

It was sad, because I love this product, and the bag isn’t even that big to begin with!

So while I recommend going out to try this product for yourself, be aware you’ll probably want to buy them in two’s.

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Product Review, The Veg Life

Gardein Pepperoni Pizza Pockets Review

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Does anyone else remember these things?

When I first went vegan back in 2016, these wonderful pockets of joy seemed to be everywhere!

Unfortunately now, they no longer exist.

Admittedly, when I was a kid, I didn’t eat a lot of the ‘regular’ pizza pockets (allergies), but from what I remembered, these were spot on!

Not only were they the right shape (looking at you, Tofurky Pizza Pockets [which are also sadly discontinued]) but they also tasted how I remembered! The marinara sauce, the pepperoni, the mozzarella… even not waiting long enough to bite into one and burning the shit out of your tongue.

Don’t get me wrong, they definitely aren’t five star cuisine or anything, but you don’t want that from a pizza pocket anyway, right? Or at least, I know I don’t. Food doesn’t have to be fancy to be good, y’know? They scratched the nostalgia itch, made a delightful small meal, or a hearty snack and used to be pretty easy to find.

They also used to come 4 pockets per box, so it was a winning product all around!

I’m definitely sad I can no longer buy them, but luckily you might be able to!

A few years after I stopped seeing them, I did some research and apparently, the company had discontinued all of their products in Canada, and then slowly began re-releasing them. I believe the reason at the time was something about operating costs since they had branched into the US market. (Which doesn’t make sense to me, considering Gardein is a Candian company) The thing that really got me annoyed though, is that on the US Gardein website, they have more product variety than the Canadian one!

I understand the US is a big market, but what I don’t understand, is why you would bare-bones the product line in the country you started in/are from? That just doesn’t make sense! If anything, they should’ve released a few products to the US to ease into the waters or whatever.

… Sorry about that mini-rant. I’m clearly not over this senseless betrayal. That’s how much I loved their pizza pockets! I haven’t eaten a non-homemade pizza pocket since 2016. That’s too long!

Anyway, if you’re in the US, you should have no problems finding this product to test, enjoy and hoard for yourself. I’m not sure if it’s available in other countries markets, but you can check using the Product Locator on their website.

Oh, and if anyone from Gardein is reading this: please, please, please bring your pizza pockets back to Canada!

So, have you tried Gardein’s pizza pockets? Have you found a different brand of vegan pizza pockets you love more? Or started eating to fill the pizza pocket shaped hole Gardein left when they disappeared? Let me know in the comments!

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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

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.

Like this review? Check out more here!

Product Review, The Veg Life

Lindt Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Bar Review

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I’m so glad that Lindt now has a few vegan chocolate options!

AterImber.com - The Veg Life - Product Reviews - Lindt Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Bar Review - Lindt Salted Caramel Chocolate Bar - vegan, vegan food, vegan chocolate, product reviews, product reviewer, food blogger, blogger, veganism

At the moment, I believe they only have this Salted Caramel bar and a Hazelnut bar, but it’s still a win for vegans. Lindt is one of the biggest mainstream chocolate companies and it’s amazing to see them adding vegan options to their product line!

Salted Caramel is one of my absolute favourite flavours of chocolate, so I was over-the-moon when I was gifted this bar for 2023’s Christmas. This bar is nothing short of delicious, with just the right amount of salted caramel pieces in every square. If you let a piece melt on your tongue until the chocolate’s gone, the salt is in big enough pieces to crunch. And if you do that too many times in a row, you’ll risk cutting up the roof of your mouth and/or tongue. (Yes, I’m speaking from experience)

The chocolate is oat based and doesn’t taste too dark. By that I mean it doesn’t have that dry-out-your-mouth thing that I’ve come across in other dark chocolate. You know the feeling that you immediately need a drink of water after eating a piece? You don’t get that feeling at all – even if you wait and eat the salt bits last.

Another great thing about this bar is that it’s full sized! Yes, unlike many other vegan offerings by non-vegan companies, Lindt is doing it right with the vegan bars being the same size and width as their other bars! (100g)

Even though I was gifted this bar, it didn’t stop me from comparing the price for this article for you guys. According to the Lindt website, this vegan salted caramel bar is $6.79, whereas their non-vegan similar sized bars range between $4.79 and $5.49. (I couldn’t find a non-vegan salted caramel bar, specifically) So while the vegan one is still more money, it’s actually a pretty comparable price!

I definitely recommend you try this bar out for yourself, if you’re able to find it. From what I’ve seen, some major grocery stores carry it – like Loblaws and Metro – but it’s also unfortunately often sold out. If you do manage to get your hands on it though, I doubt you’ll be disappointed!

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