How often have you wanted to make a gift in honor of a loved one or friend but weren’t sure which charities are vegan-friendly, pro-environmental, or pro-animal rights? Please remember The Vegetarian Resource Group. You can make a gift in memory of a loved one or as a living tribute to honor someone you care about on a special occasion, such as a wedding or birth. We’ll send an acknowledgment to you and to the recipient(s) you choose. Your gift will support educational programs and help promote veganism.

Make checks payable to The Vegetarian Resource Group and mail to PO Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203, or donate at vrg.org/donate

Zucchini Fritters with Peppadew Aioli, Corn Salad, Calabrian Chili & Fresh Basil from PiANTA

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Here are some recent vegan restaurant additions. The entire guide can be found here: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support the updating of this online restaurant guide, please donate at: www.vrg.org/donate

Here are some new additions to VRG’s guide (Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic many are doing take-out and/or delivery now):

Anyone’s Café & Bakery, 133 Gregory St., Rochester, NY 14620

Anyone’s Café & Bakery is a worker-owned cooperative offering plant-based baked goods, breakfast, and lunch. The bakery offers muffins, cinnamon rolls, and cookies (including the popular sunbutter cookie). The bubba oyster mushroom sandwich and fried shiitake mushrooms nuggets are available on the lunch menu. Salads can be ordered as a side or as an entrée such as the dandelion salad. Signature drinks include the lilac latte (espresso, plant-based milk, and house-made lilac syrup) and the Sappho (espresso, French vanilla and lavender syrup, oat milk, and dried violets).

Little Saint, 25 North St., Healdsburg, CA 95448

Little Saint is a restaurant, café, and wine shop serving California-Mediterranean inspired cuisine. The menu is built around locally grown produce and includes dishes such as lavash with a selection of plant-based dips, rosemary spaetzle with maitake mushrooms, and spring asparagus with nori-walnut pesto. Some dishes are meant to be shared including cauliflower biriyani with rose petals. The café menu offers seasonally rotating baked goods, soups, salads, grain bowls, and bento boxes. Little Saint’s Provisions features a collection of items that can be purchased to complete a picnic or a quick lunch. Locally sourced items such as artisanal plant-based cheeses, yogurts, and fermented items are also available.

PiANTA, 408 Atwells Ave., Providence, RI 02909

Chef and founder Michelle Politano combined her passion for her family’s Italian roots and cuisine with her desire to offer healthier yet still-tasty food regardless of one’s dietary preferences and PiANTA (which means “plant” in Italian) was born. The vegan menu offers a wide range of Italian and American-inspired comfort foods, with soy-free, nut-free, and gluten-free options. Satisfy the craving for hearty Italian fare with the Italian “chicken” cutlet sandwich or the Penne Alla Vodka pasta, or else try to choose from among the 4 grilled cheese variations—made with coconut-based rather than nut cheeses. Make sure to leave room for one of the decadent desserts, such as the chocolate cake with whipped peanut butter frosting.

ShadoBeni, 1534 Brighton Rd., Pittsburgh, PA 15212

Located on the North Side, this cozy restaurant brings vibrant Trini food to Pittsburgh. Named after an herb which grows wild in Trinidad, and run by a professional artist, Ulrich Joseph, who delights in bright colors in his food as much as his décor (the restaurant features beautiful murals), and focuses on local, unprocessed ingredients. Trinidadian food uniquely blends elements from many cultures, and they serve the likes of curries, choka (roasted tomatoes), pineapple chow, and fried plantains, with rice or roti (a little like a burrito) alongside smoothies or drinks lie sorrel, trini hot cocoa and Trinidadian soft drinks.

Shea’s Sol Kitchen, 4600 W Kellogg Dr., Wichita, KS 67209

Looking for a warm and hearty comfort food go-to without the sacrifice? Look no further! Shea’s Sol Kitchen serves up everything from wraps, bowls, sandwiches, and more – all with a plant-based twist. Satisfy your guilty pleasures with a Sol Bowl, made with cheesy mac n’ “cheese,” topped with handmade “chicken” tenders or roasted cauliflower, house ranch, and green onion, or opt for a healthier dish, such as the Sol Salad, crafted with crispy romaine lettuce, crispy/grilled “chicken”, sweet cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, croutons, “cheese,” and your choice of a sauce. Whatever your needs are, Sol has something for you.

Vistro Burger, 1204 Broadway Ground Floor, New York, NY 10001

Vistro Burger is a plant-based establishment that serves burgers, all-American burgers, beanoa burgers, sexy seitan burgers, polenta sticks, and bean-based patties fries. All the burgers are made from scratch, and the buns are distinctive, holding up well without becoming soggy.

Zammy’s Vegan kitchen, 1155 Worthington Woods Blvd., Columbus, OH 43085

Need a quick fill-up on the way to work or a little something to treat yourself with after a long day? Check out Zammy’s Vegan kitchen! Priding itself in quick service and quality ingredients, Zammy’s kitchen is the perfect stop for those in a hurry, yet crave a delicious vegan meal. In the early hours of the day try the breakfast burrito – made with a house-made vegan egg, hash browns, bacon, black beans, sautéed peppers + onions, and cheese with your choice of sauce: creamy jalapeno or maple mustard. Feeling hungry mid-day? Try the Zack – a burger crafted with a house-made burger patty with pepper jack cheese, spinach, tomato, and smashed avocado, with creamy jalapeno sauce on a toasted brioche bun.

Create and submit a video relating what you want to tell others about veganism and/or vegetarianism.

Some possible topics: food, nutrition, your feelings about veganism and/or vegetarianism, water usage and vegetarianism, veganism and animal rights, or other veggie topics which appeal to you. Humor and feelings are appreciated. All videos should be positive, not be critical of anyone, and not include any footage of animal cruelty. You may submit a video you have already made.

Aspects of judging include accuracy and judges wanting to share the video with others. Entrants give permission to The Vegetarian Resource Group to post and share the video, to link to and from the video, and share the video with the media. Deadline to enter this year is July 15, 2022.

Details on the contest can be found here: VRG Video Contest

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Ripple Kids Milk is a vegan milk that was developed with an eye to the nutritional needs of children. Based on protein from yellow split peas, Ripple Kids Milk has more protein in a serving than most brands of plant milk including almond milk, oat milk, and rice milk. Its protein content is similar to that of soymilk with a cup of Ripple Kids Milk providing 8 grams of protein. A cup of this product has 140 calories and 8 grams of fat, only 1 gram of which is saturated fat. It is sweetened with cane sugar and has 5 grams of added sugar per cup.

Ripple Kids Milk is fortified with calcium, magnesium, riboflavin, vitamin B12, vitamin A, vitamin D, choline, and DHA. The product is free of gluten and nuts and is non-GMO Project verified. It provides an alternative to calcium/vitamin D/vitamin B12-fortified soymilk and is distinguished by supplying a couple of nutrients that tend to be low in vegan diets – DHA and choline. A cup of Ripple Kids Milk has 50 milligrams of DHA and 55 milligrams of choline. There is no RDA for DHA or choline; recommendations often suggest 200-300 milligrams of DHA and 250 milligrams of choline per day for children.

Ripple Kids should never be used to replace infant formulas and is not suitable for use as a primary beverage for children under a year of age.

To read more about Ripple Kids see: https://www.ripplefoods.com/kids/

To read more about pea protein see: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2018issue4/2018_issue4_nutrition_hotline.php

To read more about plant milks see:

https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/Guide_to_Soymilks_2019.pdf

https://www.vrg.org/nutrition/milk_alternatives/nut_and_seed_milk_table.pdf

https://www.vrg.org/nutrition/milk_alternatives/grain-and-pea-milks-2019-table.pdf

Many vegans dream of starting a food truck, or wonder why there isn’t a vegan food truck on every corner. This is an interesting article. While not about vegetarian food trucks, it is worth reading if food trucks interest you. See: https://getpocket.com/explore/item/the-rickety-economics-of-food-trucks?utm_source=pocket-newtab

Also of interest would be: Marketing Food From A Vegan Food Truck https://www.vrg.org/blog/2021/07/26/marketing-food-from-a-vegan-food-truck/

Enjoy sweet chili tofu, cheesy garlic bread, wings, Mexican street corn, house made clam chowder, garden salad, buffalo chicken sandwich, vegan chicken parm, falafel wrap, vegan fish fillet, black bean w/ fries, and other delicious options. You’ll find a nice outdoor patio area with a beautiful view of the ocean. They are located at: 895 Quincy Shore Dr., Quincy, MA 02170 and are open Tuesday through Sunday for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Closed Monday.

More information on this restaurant can be found here:

https://gardenpatchma.com/  

https://www.facebook.com/gardenpatchatajs/

The Vegetarian Resource Group has a graphic called Burrito on My Plate, which shows viewers the water footprint of a vegan versus a meat-based burrito. It takes 225 gallons of water to make a vegan burrito without tofu and 253 gallons of water to make a vegan burrito with tofu. In comparison, it takes 541 gallons of water to make a beef burrito.

The Burrito on My Plate Graphic can be seen here: https://www.vrg.org/environment/BurritoOnMyPlate.pdf

The article detailing how we came up with the numbers of gallons of water needed to produce each type of burrito can be found here: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2017issue2/2017_issue2_burrito_plate.php

Rainbow Kale and Grain Salad

Linda Tyler’s previous article published by VRG features Kale Salads. These recipes will inspire you to eat your greens! Find recipes for:

Thai-Inspired Coconut Kale Salad

Kale Tabbouleh

Pear Balsamic Salad with Candied Walnuts

Apple and Kale Salad with Curry Dressing

Kale Salad with Creamy Avocado Dressing

Rainbow Kale and Grain Salad

Read the entire article here: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2021issue2/2021_issue2_kale_salads.php

To subscribe to Vegan Journal in the USA, see: https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Due to various factors, including supply chain issues, there is a shortage of baby formula in stores. The American Academy of Pediatrics recently provided guidance about what can be done if parents or caregivers cannot find baby formula. They point out that “this advice is strictly during this current URGENT formula shortage. If you have any concerns about your baby’s nutrition, please talk with your pediatrician.”

They addressed many scenarios including the use of plant-based milk. This information could be important for vegan and other families who are using a commercial soy formula and who absolutely cannot find formula. The American Academy of Pediatrics says, “Plant-based milk alternatives generally are not recommended for babies under a year of age. Soy milk may be an option to give babies who are close to a year old during the shortage, but not for more than one week. If you can’t find formula and have to use soy milk, be sure to buy the kind that is fortified with calcium and vitamin D. Make sure to change back to formula as soon as some is available. Be especially careful to avoid almond milk or other plant milks as these are often low in protein and minerals. Talk with your pediatrician if you are considering using plant-based milk.”

The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal and Vegan Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

VRG volunteer Chen Zeng recently participated in a virtual in-service The Vegetarian Resource Group did for University of Maryland dietetic interns working towards their registered dietitian certification. These are some vegan eggplant and Chinese recipes references he shared:
https://omnivorescookbook.com/di-san-xian-recipe/
https://thewoksoflife.com/traditional-chinese-vegan-dishes/
https://thewoksoflife.com/vegan-mapo-tofu/