Event: Ban Live Export Rally, 6th October 2012

This is a national event to protest against this cruel 'trade'. The flyer below is for the Perth/Fremantle event but there will be rallies on this day, in other locations around Australia. Please see here for  further details.

New Lush store opens at Karrinyup Shopping Centre!

Lush has to be one of my all time favourite stores. Quality products, friendly staff, fun shopping experience, cool shopfront and most importantly - ethical and very vegan friendly, with product clearly marked if they are vegan.  I have blogged about them in the past but feel the need to blog again, as they have just opened their new store at Karrinup Shopping Centre which is AWESOME, as it is close to where I live. I remember the time when the only Lush store in Perth was all the way down in Booragoon. Then the store in the city opened which was great but this is even better!

Yesterday was their opening day so my partner and I showed up at opening time (9am). Unfortunately, we saw the doors closed:

A staff member came out and explained what the delay was about. They were ready for us except for one minor glitch which was due to shopping centre management rules. So went off and shopped for a while and then came back. Whilst waiting, we met a lovely young vegetarian, cat loving, lush shopping girl (Hi Caito!) and had a good chat until the doors opened. And then it was a mad rush to shop!

The store filled within minutes and there was a queue for the cash register. I was interested in the new makeup range, as I had read about it but had not seen it in person. With some assistance from a staff member, I picked out some make up items. I also added a packet of Toothy Tabs (lots of new varieties in stock now) and a few other things...

Whilst waiting in line, I took a few snaps of the shop:

When making my purchase, I received a gift of a mini scarf wrapped around a bottle of one of my fave shower gels. Yay! Oh, and I snapped a photo of the lovely staff there. :)

The shop is located at:

Shop 2G110C, Karrinyup Shopping Centre, 200 Karrinyup Road, Karrinyup

Make sure you pay them a visit!

VeganMofo is back for 2012!

It is back! October is Vegan Month of Food, whereby participants blog about vegan food for a month. There are a few rules - you need to blog about vegan food products, ingredients, recipes, eateries, etc, and you need to make a minimum of 20 posts during October. 

I participated last year and managed to rise to the challenge! If you are interested in participating as a writer or reader, check out the VeganMoFo website. VeganMoFo is also on Twitter and Facebook.

Happy blogging!

Event: International Vegetarian Food Fair, Perth 2012

Don't let the 'vegetarian' part put you off. The organizers have assured that there will also be vegan food available. Yay!

It is on THIS SUNDAY - 23rd Septmember at the rather nice venue that is the South Perth Community Centre.

Starts at 10am and goes until 3pm.

Some of the foods on sale:
Thai papya salad, sushi, Indonesian yellow rice, curry puffs, spring rolls, pad thai, fresh fruit juices, etc.

Be there and bring your appetite!

Recipe: Black-eyed bean and lemon hotpot

I found this recipe in the cookbook "Veggiestan" by Sally Butcher. It is not a vegan cookbook but there is plenty in there that is vegan, with a middle eastern flair. Coming from a Greek family, some of the ingredients and recipes looked familiar but for those who have not had much exposure to middle eastern cuisine, this is an excellent book. The author describes and explains what the less common ingredients are,and she does it in a chatty, friendly and sometimes quite humorous way. I have to say that this is the first cookbook I have come across that actually made me want to READ it, and not just skim and concentrate on the recipes that interested me.

The first recipe I decided to try out from this book is a lemony casserole that features black-eyed beans. Sourcing these little beauties will involve a trip to healthfood or organics shops, or you can try Kakulas.
The recipe calls for dill but I have left it out as it does not agree with me. Feel free to add 1 tablespoon if you wish.
I served this dish with steamed rice.

What you will need:
5 sticks celery
3 carrots, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, sliced (optional)
1 and a half tsps dried basil
1 tsp ground turmeric
juice of 1-2 lemons (I used 1 but use 2 if you like things really lemony)
1 cup black-eyed beans (soaked in water for at least 3 hours before hand)
600ml vegetable stock
2 med potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
handful fresh parsley, chopped

Method:
Cut the celery and carrots into slim strips around 6 cms long. Heat oil in a pot and add carrots, celery and onions. Fry until they begin to soften. Add turmeric, herbs, lemon juice, beans, and stock. Bring to boil and then simmer for 10 minutes. Add potatoes and cook for another 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender and beans are cooked. Season to taste with salt, if you wish, and sprinkle chopped parsley over the top.

Event: Cruelty Free Festival, 3rd November 2012

I am so excited that this festival will be back for 2012!

I volunteered last year and will be attending this year, for sure.  It felt good to be surrounded by like minded people, watching cooking demonstrations, finding out about vegan products and services, tasting cruelty free food, attending talks, and just soaking up the positive vibe from other attendees.

 Entry is FREE and animal companions are welcome.For more info on the event, check out the website.

See you there in November!!