Many Vegan Aldi Finds...But Some Others, Too!

Over the summer I noticed yet another gas station chain that started carrying more random vegan things!  YAY!  This Willy's brand of salsa had 2 or 3 of them that I tried.  I have to say it's unlike other salsas and I truly believe it's because of their punchy-use of bold cilantro.  I know cilantro is one of those things that some people love and others hate.  I've always liked it but I can see in some cases where the over the top use of it could give certain things that soapy taste.  For some reason the loads of cilantro worked here.  They also seem to love garlic.  Lucky for them...I love garlic, too!

Here's a pic of the new, local Falafel that is being made in-house at Total Evolution.  It's also vegan and pretty wonderful!  This was a HUGE sandwich!  You can pick your own toppings for it, too!

Prior to August, this was our set-up for camping season.  Our new-to-us-but-gently-used 5th Wheel is on the left and my parents Jayco is on the right.  I don't especially like the specific spot we had this year or last year but I didn't complain too much either.

Here's another meal I grabbed at Total Evolution this past summer.  You can build your own wrap.  Most places that tends to be the vegan option around here but you basically get lettuce, tomato, and onion.  I then see if places have salsa or a balsamic for the dressing...BUT...with Total Evolution they have some really neat things to include.  This one contained their in-house hummus, carrots, greens, sprouts, celery, tomato.  I've done variations of this from time to time and I will certainly start sharing more of them with you!

At our local Tops I have fell in love with a new product but that love comes with a hefty price tag so when I see them on sale I will grab one.  It's the line of products from The Coconut Collaborative.  In this pic, here, you will see the Chocolate Ganache.  When I opened the first one I thought...gee...I could eat all 4 in one sitting!  But, you know what?  They are so rich I could only eat one!

Many of the products in this post are new or new-to-me products from Aldi and that includes this one!  It's the Vegan Vegetable Potstickers!  They are tasty!

Another find at Aldi are these Eggplant with Yellow Pepper Raviolis!  I LOVED these and hope I can find them again soon!  There is another kind, I hear, but I haven't seen those locally yet.

I finally spotted their Vegan Sour Cream.  I grabbed some.  It was ok.  It was certainly good enough for the price!  A nice, cheaper alternative.  I would probably buy it again!

One of the one pot meals I did in the camper this year was squash with vegan margarine, vegan pepper jack cheese, and topped it with tortilla strips!  It know it doesn't look like much but it was VERY yummy!  I would categorize it as a vegan comfort food for sure!

I don't really have time to do a blog post YET re-capping fair week but I thought I would give you a little teaser for now.  These were our new work banners that were at our broadcast booth!

Moving on to a thing or two from Wegman's!  I did grab this to have the camper during fair week.  Let's just say...it lasted about a day!

I can't remember which place I spotted these at since there were about 2 to 3 weeks I seemed to travel all over the country-side grocery shopping at various places.  I'm not sure if I grabbed them at Wegman's or Mustard Seed.  I don't think I went to Whole Foods Market, Whole Foods Co-Op, or Trader Joes during that specific time so it might have been Wegman's or Tops.  I'm leaning more towards Wegman's as the possibility.  They were easy to do in the microwave and for a nuke-able meal it was tasty!  I recommend vegan mayo and ketchup on them!

One thing I know I found at Tops was THIS!  Mango Sorbet!  I thought I would try it but didn't really have a WOW pre-judgement, however, when I had my first taste...I was blown away!  This was one of the BEST naturally-tasting mango flavored treats I think I have ever had!  YUM!

Also at Tops - right around the same time - I found these gorgeous watermelon radishes!  I knew I had to buy them since we don't usually see them available for purchase in our area!  I really enjoyed them.  I share them with my mom, dad, and 2 ladies at work and all for of them thought they didn't have much taste.  They were a sweeter flavor and not a spicier flavor like regular radishes usually are and I think that threw everyone off.  I think most people go for your 'standard' fruit or veggie and then when you ask them to try something new they already have a pre-judgement that they aren't going to like it.

When I saw this at Aldi this summer I knew I had to buy it because my local Aldi isn't consistent with what they carry so when you see it you should buy it because you don't know if or when it will be back.  I still have yet to open this but it sits nicely in my freezer until then!

And finally, another find at Aldi!  The first go around with these - that everyone was talking about - I didn't have them at my local store - but - I was able to find them this summer and tried them.  They were pretty good!  Next time I would like to try and top them like they did on the box...with mushrooms and onions...and greens, oh my!

  

Wednesday Already?

Is it Wednesday already!?  WOW!  Time is flying by - that's for sure! 

This past weekend the fairgrounds housed the Wild Wind Festival which is a large folk art fall fest of sorts here in our region.  It's a Juried Show and has vendors from over 20-some states that attend.  It was said that about 7,000 people were there on Saturday.  Sunday's weather was awful.  But since I was on the grounds anyways...and EARLY...I was able to FINALLY eat the Artichokes from the one vendor that comes each year that I never was able to try up until now.

Fried Artichokes!  The photo above was the sample they had out so the sample showed it with mayo and hot sauce.  The vendor just gave me the hot sauce and I went back to my camper and mixed it with JUST MAYO Garlic Mayo and it was FAB!  They use Peanut Oil and the only thing on the artichokes was a cornmeal so it was vegan!  YAY!

I told you about me looking forward to seeing more goats and I did just that.  The guy who brings them had a few new additions.  These lil guys were only 3 weeks old and they didn't get too far away from their parents!  There was another one that was tan and brown that was about 8 weeks old and he was a bit more outgoing than these two.  Regardless, they were adorable!

He also brought a bunch of turtles he had rescued throughout the years.  Here was the biggest one of the bunch.

I was able to spend quite a bit of time with my parents over the weekend which was nice.  It has been wonderful having them at the fairgrounds this summer.  They have been working their butts off, too!

I recently ordered from VeganEssentials so I will be having LOTS of new-to-me things to share once I get them in and sampled so stay tuned for that!

As for my contribution for Vegan MoFo today - it's a bit of a stretch - but here goes...Spicy without the Chillies was the prompt.  Doubt I achieved it but thought this find was worth the mention.

It was pretty sweet but had some nice spices mixed in.  I added a teaspoon or so of Just Mayo Garlic Mayo to it for a little something different.  Yup!  You got it!  I ate this at 'camp'.  I still had some vegan convenience foods on hand that I wanted to finish up before cleaning out the camper for winter storage.  I also had some corn chips with this and it scooped up nicely.

I believe I found this new-to-me Sweet Earth product at the Wegmans in Lakewood.

Vegan Finds, Changes, & Updates!

I was going back thru a slew of photos I have been sitting on since my hiatus and realized just how many I still have yet to post - to blog about - and to share!  This post will be just as busy as yesterday's if not BUSIER!  First I wanted to share with you a salsa I made.  I was lazy the other day and opened a cheap storebought salsa.  It was pretty underwhelming.  Once I added sweet corn and black beans it made all the difference in the world!

Before fair week I went to Wegman's for one last shopping session before all the fair craziness!  My mother and I went and had their salad bar.  This is what I was able to find and it was tasty!  There were 2 kinds of greens for salad base, pickled sweet peppers, butternut squash zoodles, carrots, mushrooms, various seeds, cabbage, peas, artichokes, etc.  I believe I topped it with a Pomegranate Balsamic of sorts. 

One of the items I finally broke down and purchased was Miyoko's Vegan Butter.  I had not yet tried this because it's usually quite pricey.  I remember it being on sale by a buck or two so I figured WHY NOT.

I grabbed a package of these to have in the camper freezer.  I have had them before and with the right dipping sauce, they are pretty good.  

In my travels over the last couple of months I have been seeing more and more places carrying Lenny & Larry's!  I remember having them when they first hit the food shows last year and enjoyed the ones I tried up to that point.  I was just so excited that I saw these at our local Sheetz that I had to grab one!

I picked up these but I cannot remember where I got them.  I want to say they were over at the new Giant Eagle in Erie but I could be wrong.  They were pretty tasty.  I would probably purchase them again if I came across them.

These Vegan Potato and Onion Pierogies were something left from last last Ohio Trip.  They were YUMMY and I remember making a Cashew Based Alfredo Sauce which was even better than the Pierogies themselves!  I was just sooooo thrilled to find a storebought Vegan Pierogies that I couldn't pass them up!

About a month ago or more I made my first online BRANDLESS purchase.  There were a few things that didn't go as planned with my order but it all worked out in the end.  This was one of the things I bought and I am so happy I did!  It's delicious!  And I'm not going to lie...I recently had a couple of spoonsful stand alone and straight up.  I know that's weird but it was tasty and I bet would make a good soup!

One thing I made before Fair Week kicked in was this Lentil Curry.  I just used what I had on hand (which wasn't much) but I made do with what I did have.  Lentils from a Halal Market in Buffalo, Frozen Spinach, Canned Coconut Milk, Canned Stewed Tomatoes, and some spices.  It turned out fine and dandy!

Next up is this Vegan Camping Food Plate.  I have to apologize for the foam plate.  I don't usually buy them or use them.  It was someone elses and it was a thrown together potluck meal.  My mother made Baked Beans which were vegan and no one even knew.  I made the Sweet and Sugary Tomato Salad and there wasn't much of that left.  I used an organic and vegan natural sugar for it.  I also made the Vegan Macaroni Salad which is now being requested by many on the fairgrounds.  Of course that makes me smile.  I'm glad I'm not the only one eating the vegan stuff...eventho...the other people aren't vegan.

One of the new things over at the VIP Tent during fair week was the 'throw back' looking popcorn machine.  The accidently vegan kicker was the 'buttery' look...it was actually a non-dairy coconut oil base.  YAY!

Our fair was the first full week of August but this past weekend we went to a neighboring fair.  We were treated to a special 'ice cream' and because it wasn't vegan I wanted to participate somehow.  I noticed they had frozen bananas on a stick.  I asked if they could do one PLAIN and she said yes.  Oddly...I HATE BANANAS!!!!  But I thought I would step out of my lil box of comfort and try it.  When it was completely frozen it wasn't too bad.  When it started to thaw I couldn't handle the banana taste or aroma.  I ate what I could and shocked my husband in the process!

I did find another accidently vegan option this past weekend, too!  This was a Blooming Potato!  I asked the vendor about the oil and the fryers all they used in the fryer was potatoes and the oil base was vegetable.  There were tons of toppings you could opt for but I stuck with the basic potato and hit up the condiment bar.  I put onion, relish, and ketchup on them and they were VERY filling!  It was a WHOLE POTATO afterall!  I shared with about 6 other people, too!  It was a real winner!

Not sure if I mentioned on the blog but I mentioned on my IG that our town recently got a new Ollie's Bargain Outlet!  I used to visit the one in Erie when I was around and always had to hit up their book section for vegan cookbooks!  Now I don't have to go to Erie!  I have one right here!  So far I have bought at least 4 or 5 discount vegan books there and added them to my collection.  This was one of them.  It was only $2.99.

I absolutely LOVE this photo I was able to take of one of the stray cats in our neighborhood.  I felt bad for her that she was stray but she seems to be fine with being outside.  Prior to leaving for fair she was laying and sleeping on our front steps and stoops.  As soon as I approached her she would run away.  I haven't seen her in about a month.  I hope she's ok.  I always worry about our busy street and animals getting hit.

Another thing I haven't updated you all about in a while is my adorable niece who FINALLY started walking the past couple of weeks.  My mom and dad watch her 3 times a week and took her to a local park yesterday.  Here she is with my mother and their dog Lexi.

And speaking of furkids...here are my two pups!  They have been doing more and more of this since we lost Paco.  Riley is about 17 years old and our feral cat Charlie is 18 so I'm afraid what the future may bring with the two of them being older at the same time.  

Cricket is about 5 now, I think.  She is still the Queen of the Castle.

And another thing I forgot to tell you was that I finally cut my hair a couple of months ago and think I'm already due for another haircut!  With my last two haircuts they cut off about 14 inches of hair!  WOWZA!

Fair Food & Furry Friends!

Last week I wasn't online because I was at our county fair.  In 5 days I think we worked about 100 hours.  We do double live remote broadcasts Monday thru Friday from 6 to 9 AND 1 to 5.

Since I took so many photos I will have to break these posts down for you.  Today I thought I would blog about the Fair Food and my Furry Friends.

First up...this building.  It was new last year but this year I helped stain the deck.  I also stained a wooden wishing well near the fair office.

The small area I live in is very much agriculturally based and therefore very involved with the local fair.

My husband is on the fair board and heads up the entertainment committee.  This year was the 85th Anniversary of the fair and there were 4 live concerts which included The Swon Brothers, The Bellamy Brothers, Cassadee Pope, and Confederate Railroad.  I will have more on the concerts in future posts.  The weekend before the fair actually started we were on the grounds volunteering/working on many different projects.  Afterwards a few of us gathered in the pavilion where the concerts were going to be held and I noticed this little sweetie scared in the middle of the floor.  I carefully grabbed two cups and nudged him in and walked him outside into a nearby hole so he could re-coop and be safe from the elements.  It was the smallest mouse I had ever seen!

Monday or Tuesday I visited the Bunny Barn.  I still want a bunny - might I add.  I noticed a group of babies snuggling in some of the naturally-shed bunny fur.  They were adorable!

Of course this didn't help the fact that I have been wanting a bunny!

No...I didn't come home with one but I would be fibbing if I said I didn't think about it.

Oh!  And YES!  The new camper worked out wonderful throughout fair week!  I was very pleased and the bed that we were given by a local business owner worked out great, too!

I was so blessed to have several people 'look out for me' all week with food!  Of course I brought some good old standby's, too!  I had a stash of Triskets, hummus, and vegan mayo and Daiya slices to grab on the fly!

But take a look at this!  The wonderful lady who ran the 4-H Restaurant hooked me up with Cantaloupe 4 days in a row!  2 of those days she also had blueberries and one of the days even some grapefruit!  Bless her!  4 days I paired that with peanut butter toast and the last day I did English Muffin with Peanut Butter instead.  It worked out GREAT!  Monday we had a Media Lunch and the organizer of that made me a HUGE salad which I will talk more about that later!

One of the other food booths that I volunteered at brought me strawberries for brunch or lunch almost everyday, too!  They really DID spoil me!

Another food booth I volunteered for - I know has a designated fry frier.  Only fries go in it.

And they use Soy Oil.  I didn't want fries to be my fair food staple but I splurged on the last day and had some from there.  They also hooked me up with a pretzel and mustard on a few of the days, too!

I mentioned on the airwaves - no matter what diet or lifestyle or food choices you standby - just ask and most if not all of the booths will accommodate!

Vegan Fair Food

A few weeks ago Christine over at The Raw Project posted about some of the Vegan Fair Food items she recently found at her local fair.  Not too long ago I did the same thing.  During our county fair - not only is my husband there for about a week and a half because he's a fair board director - but we also have 10 LIVE broadcast remotes in 5 days - for the radio stations I work at.  PLUS I like to volunteer in between so it's a VERY busy week - and then some.

The cafe that is run by volunteers and benefits the fair made a custom salad for me made with every veggie they had on hand and I did salsa for the dressing!  This was a HUGE salad!  I was so thankful for them doing this
for me!

The first day everyone was there and settled in there was the annual Media Lunch.  The only thing I had was these green beans.  Thankfully they were 'naked'.  No butter or other ingredients so they gave me a HUGE plate-full.  They were super fresh, tasty, and surprisingly filling.

I wasn't the only one with a plate full of Green Beans - a friend of mine who was Gluten Free (but not veg) thought it was safer to just eat 'green' that day, too!

I was lucky because I knew the girl who did the meals for the entertainment - such as Tyler Farr, Lorrie Morgan, and Joe Diffie - and their crews. 

She saved some items for me or let me grab a quick munchie in between things we had going on.  This was one of them...CORN...it was pretty good...even on day 2.  Other items consisted of mostly FRUIT which was completely fine by me!  I was grateful for the strawberries and cantaloupe.  She even grabbed me some Broccoli, too!   And she was so nice to even bring me some cherry tomatoes from her garden!

There was a booth there who did 'from scratch' strawberry shortcakes.  Instead of the strawberry shortcakes - I just had the fresh strawberries - everyone was so willing and helpful to make exceptions - all I had to do was ask - most of the time!

PLUS...a friend of ours was camping there and she brought me 2 HUGE bowls of fresh cut watermelon that week!