Alpine Coconut Yoghurt

Well, here it is. A non-dairy, vegan yoghurt that you can buy in one of the biggest supermarket chains in Australia –namely Woolworths. And it is so smooth and creamy too. Granted, it is made from coconut and so has a coconut flavour to it but I find this product to be less coconut in taste than CoYo and much, much smoother – less of a ‘bite’. This product is cultured so does have a tang, but it is not overly sharp. And while it is still a bit pricey, it does cost less than CoYo.

Because of its richness, I tend to only eat, at most, 2 tablespoons at a time. There is suppose to be two varieties available – ‘Natural’ and ‘Passionfruit’ but I have only seen the former in Woolworths so far.

Maybe one day we will have a commercial non-coconut tasting vegan yoghurt available in Australia. Until then, I am happy to indulge in some of this product, from time to time.

Potato and Fennel Soup

This is a simple recipe that I found and adapted from the book “Party Vegan” by Robin Robertson.  If you are not overly keen on fennel or new to it, you will be pleased to know that the taste of it is not too overpowering in this soup.

What you will need:

1 large shallot, coarsely chopped (optional)

4 cups vegetable broth ( I use either Massel stock cubes or Marigold Bouillon powder. Both are vegan and the former is available in supermarkets, whilst the latter is a health food/organics shop item)

Approx.. 400g potatoes, cut into 2cm cubes

1 large fennel bulb, chopped

½ cup rice/soy milk (I use Bonsoy, as it does not have sweet flavour)

Dried or fresh tarragon

Method:

If using, cook shallot over medium heat, in half a cup of water until soft.

Add broth, potatoes and fennel and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until potatoes are soft – about 20 minutes.

Puree until smooth. Mix in the rice/soy milk and sprinkle tarragon over the top. 

Beanfields Bean and Rice Chips

I found these savoury snacks in the health foods section of Woolworths. They are clearly marked as ‘Vegan’ on the front of the pack and after peering at the ingredients list, I found that they were, indeed, vegan.

So far, I have seen three of the varieties in Woolworths – Salsa, Sea salt, and Nacho. The Nacho is my favourite. Very tasty, very cheesy in its flavour. The Salsa has a smoky sort of flavour to it.

There are also 2 other varieties that I have yet to see them in the shops here in Perth. One is Salt N’ Pepper and the other Unsalted.

And new to the range is Barbecue and Ranch. My partner managed to find small packets of these two in the Loving Hut café in Victoria Park.  The Ranch variety tastes a lot like sour cream and chives to me.

All of these products are gluten free, veganand non-GMO. Hopefully, the other varieties will eventually be available in Woolworths. I have noticed that the current ones sell very well at my local supermarket.