Cookie Monster

Just had the most amazing cookie on the planet! ! Sorry Mom, yours are delicious too.

Earlier this week I made a trip up to A Market in Manchester, NH with my Aunt, Uncle and Cousins visiting from VT - Love when they come down! I cant believe that I'd never been there before. They have been around since 1970!.....WHOA..... years before me. Anyway, they have a wide variety of vegan products, a lot of which you can't find at your local grocery store, well at least I can't. So, I felt quite literally like a kid in a candy store! I bought a few odds and ends, among them, some amazing organic peaches! TO DIE!





http://www.amarketnaturalfoods.com/






While we were checking out my Aunt spotted some vegan cookies wrapped up in the "candy" aisle. "They have Liz Lovelys " she said. I had no idea what that meant but I was definitely in for a good surprise. Liz Lovely is a vegan cookie company, and they also carry options for people who are allergic to wheat and gluten (sigh, like me) I wasn't expecting much, I mean please, they are vegan, AND they have no wheat flour? How can that possibly not taste like pure cardboard? I was proved soooo wrong after the first bite! YUMMO :) I had the ginger molasses, but I can't wait to try the others. Can you say Cookie Monster?





Enjoy <3

Beauty Products...Veganized

Lets face it ... get it FACE - it? (Okay...That was my one allowable lame pun of the day) Finding cruelty free and vegan health and beauty products isn't always the easiest task. Especially if your local stores and shoppes do not carry products that are as adoptive of your views.

With your skin being the largest organ of the body, I like to live by the notion that you shouldn't put anything on your skin that you wouldn't put in your mouth. That being said I like to stick to beauty products that have as natural and organic ingredients as possible.

One of my favorite stores to shop for beauty products is LUSH on Newberry Street in Boston. Almost everything is in the store is vegan and everything is completely cruelty free. Their soaps and lotions feel amazing on your skin and they all smell delicious. My favorite is Sultana of Soap, I can't get enough of it!! If you're in the Boston area check them out! If you're not so close by... check them out online, you WILL NOT be disappointed www.lush.com

Also the Peta website has a complete list of companies that DO and DO NOT test their products on animals and they have marked the ones that are completely vegan with a big ol V for Van-fucking -tastic! The list can be found here: http://search.caringconsumer.com/search_list_icons.aspx?Donottest=3&Product=0&Dotest=-1

Happy Hunting!

Weekends=Heaven

Womp Womp to Mondays, but on a lighter note I had a fantastic weekend! It was filled with the all the things I love best.

Saturday was possibly one of the most beautiful days yet this year. Bright sunny skies, 70 degrees... it doesn't get much better! Sunshine always puts me in a great mood. In light of the stellar weather, Jay and I, along with our two dogs Bailey and Grady, decided to make a trip to Brookdale Fruit Farm in Hollis, NH and pick up some fresh veggies to grill for lunch. We got an onion, a red and green pepper, and a zucchini for our lunch endeavor. (Also picked up a blood orange, to tie me over, that was out of this world). The man checking us out asked us if we had our own bags, and then proceeded to tell us that we looked like the type that would have their own bags. Not sure if that is a good thing or not, but I was complemented :)

Once we were back home, we cut up our veggies and turned them into kabobs. I also cubed some baked tofu I had leftover in the fridge and made a couple kabobs out of that as well. We put some chipotle BBQ sauce on the vegetable kabobs, and we were ready to grill. After a half an hour or so and a couple of serious hunger pains they were done! They came out, awesome as usual. It's definitely one of my favorite summertime vegan meals. All the veggies tasted SOOO unbelievably fresh. I love buying from local farms. Its nice to add different veggies to suit your tastes too, summer squash and mushrooms are also great on these! Serve the kabobs over your favorite rice, its sure to please any guest, vegan or not!

I also made a delicious cocktail to enjoy in the sun.

3 parts vodka

7 parts limeade

Splash of Cran (just enough to turn it pinkish)

Mix all together and serve in a tall glass with plenty of ice and enjoy! Repeat as desired :)

Yay for warm spring Saturdays......Boo to cold rainy Mondays

http://brookdalefarms.com .... If you're in the southern NH area, defiantly check out Brookdale, it's one of my favorite places to visit.

The LAND of the PORT

Made my first trip to good 'ole Portland, ME last night. What a fun Town!

I really had no idea what to expect, being from very southern NH I don't make it up past Ogunquit very often, but it was so worth the two hour drive. I headed up there to see my favorite band Third Eye Blind, (side note- amazing show and venue) and ended up making a little evening out of it with my boyfriend, Jay. I spent pretty much the entire day yesterday looking up different restaurants, and shops. I was inundated, there was so much to check out. We settled on Shay's, the BF's not a vegan, (sniffle) but he tries to eat as healthy as possible. I had an amazing eggplant salad, and the icing on the cake..... $3.00 wine :) I was a happy girl !!

I didn't have much time this trip, but, next time I head up, there are a couple of places id really like to check out...

Green Elephant Vegetarian Bistro http://greenelephantmaine.com/ They have so many amazing sounding dishes, and all the vegan options are marked, so it takes out the guess work !

Gro Cafe http://grofoods.com/ Completely vegan and even some macrobiotic items on their menu too. They're even a chocolatier! They use locally grown ingredients whenever possible and always fair -trade organic! Sounds like a great way to enjoy a nice bite and still stay healthy.

And it seemed like everywhere I turned there where health foods markets and vendors selling fair-traded goods. I love visiting Towns where there are a lot of socially and environmentally conscious people. Portland had a very laid-back atmosphere and I dig that!

Can't wait till my next visit when I can do more exploring!

Ahhh... The First Post

Hello All!

Welcome to my blog, The New England Vegan! I am very excited to get this blog up and running. In New England, especially NH, I sometimes feel that it's tough to be a vegan. Veg. friendly restaurants are limited, health food departments in most grocery stores are limited, and there aren't many places that you can go to buy shoes and accessories without worry. This blog is designed to unite vegans and vegetarians, share recipes, tips, health and beauty products, and find restaurants and farm fresh produce.

Also, if you're a vegan chances are we probably share my same love for animals. I hope to connect with local shelters and rescue groups to aid in the growing demand of animal rescue. Here in New England we are lucky that we don't have a rampant stray animal problem, but shelters in the southern states are not as fortunate. Please take the time to check out your local rescue groups, especially the ones that save animals from horrible fates in over populated shelters down south.

Thanks and Stay Tuned :)