Thanks to volunteers in our office and around the world, The Vegetarian Resource Group has a lot of vegan information available in Spanish. You’ll find numerous recipes geared towards the international Hispanic community, vegan nutrition information, plus much more.

See: http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/information_in_Spanish.htm

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Below are some recent 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:
Donate to VRG

Aviv
1125 SE Division St.
Portland, OR 97202
There’s a creative, plant-based approach that Aviv uses in sharing a piece of Tel Aviv with Portland’s inner South East. This family friendly restaurant has fresh dishes like challah French toast, shakshouka (classic tomato stew) and harissa – spiced Moroccan carrots. The eight (8) versions of hummus makes up about 25% of its menu, which is also shared with dishes built from labneh, carrots and eggplant. Salads, fresh bread and local cider are also available.

Betty Bot
7100 South Shore Dr.
Chicago, IL 60649
Betty Bot Bakery is your one stop shop for Vegan, Gluten Free, and Organic baked goods in Chicago. These treats are not only delicious, they are artistic too! The frosting on the cupcakes look just like real roses. In addition to sweets, Betty Bot offers savory options as well. To find stores that carry Betty Bot baked goods, visit their website.

Boltcutter
57 Gallivan Ave.
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
Boltcutter’s mission is to bring veganism to the mainstream by serving up delicious gourmet street tacos and other Central American classics, all without the use of any animal products. Along with their food, this establishment also has a full bar that boasts a large selection of tequilas, mezcals, beer, and craft cocktails. Next door to Boltcutter is its sister establishment, Monkey Wrench, which serves up handcrafted vegan ice creams, espressos, and baked goods. With its delicious offerings, Boltcutter is sure to satisfy any appetite!

Jackfruit Café
2959 Crenshaw Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90016
Jackfruit Cafe demonstrates the versatility of jackfruit by providing vegan dishes from all over the globe using this tasty fruit. From the Buffalo Cauliflower Chicken to the Asian Jackfruit Tostada to the Jackfruit Soul Platter, there is a flavorful option for every imaginable taste preference.

Kati Vegan Thai
1190 Thomas St.
Seattle, WA 98109
Kati Vegan Thai’s tofu is fresh, local, and non-GMO. They strive to use organic and local produce whenever possible. Kati’s bags, boxes, and utensils are all biodegradable. Their menu often changes, so check their website for the latest updates.

Oracle Coffee Company
3875 SW Bond Ave.
Portland, OR 97239
Oracle Coffee Company serves gourmet coffee and coffee drinks as well as tasty vegan faire. The baked goods are prepared in the Pennsylvania Dutch-style and are provided by a local bakery called Shoofly “Vegan Bakery.”

Over The Moon
238 W. 19
Houston, TX 77008
Something wonderfully unique about Over the Moon is their cookie bowl. Who needs an actual bowl when you could eat your ice cream out of a cookie?

Pulse Café
270 Russell St.
Hadley, MA 01035
Located on the site of a former bison farm, this 100% vegan café serves up dishes made from organic ingredients sourced from local farms. Pulse Café’s offerings include comfort foods such as mac n’ cheese, lasagna, pizza, and burgers, as well as salads, fresh juices, and “mylks” (plant-based milks). Not only is the food delicious, but the atmosphere is cozy and relaxing, welcoming for both adults and kids.

Real Food, Real People
249 Main St.
Huntington, NY 11768
Real Food, Real People is an Organic Eatery that turns food into art. Their plating and food presentation is spectacular. They specialize in wraps and bowls, and offer treats such as ice pops. The Mango-cado wrap and the Thai Peanut Zoodle bowl are particularly tasty according to Yelp reviewers.

Veg on the Edge
725 Front St. Ste. 112
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Veg on the Edge serves up West African inspired cuisine. The menu includes burgers, rice bowls, soups, fries, and desserts, and delicious ingredients such as plantains, mushrooms, sweet potato, coconut, and tempeh are featured.

Yummi Joy
409 W. 2nd St.
Austin, TX 78701
Get your vegan candy and ice cream fix at Yummi Joy! They have something to satisfy every sweet tooth including sodas, coffees, fudge, ice cream, and candies.

Zucchini Kill
701 E. 53rd St., Ste. C
Austin, TX 78751
Everything is vegan, gluten free, and soy free at Zucchini Kill! They serve both sweet and savory delectables. Many patrons favor the cupcakes.

By Jeanne Yacoubou, MS

Announced in July 2017, Starbucks adds a Vegan Lentils & Vegetables Protein Bowl with Brown Rice to its year-round menu in select San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, New York City, and Washington, D.C. locations. See:
https://news.starbucks.com/facts/whats-new-at-starbucks-this-summer

The bowl features black lentils and brown rice along with butternut squash, kale, broccoli, cabbage, beets, peas and green onion along with roasted tomatoes, red bell pepper and sunflower seeds. It is served with lemon-tahini dressing.

Starbucks new menu item replaces the Hearty Veggie & Brown Rice Salad Bowl.
Nutrition and ingredient information about this entrée appear on Starbucks’ website: https://www.starbucks.com/menu/food/bistro-boxes/lentils-vegetable-protein-bowl-with-brown-rice

Ingredients:
cooked brown rice (water, brown rice, olive oil [refined olive oil, extra-virgin olive oil]), black lentils (water, black lentils), lemon tahini dressing (water, sesame seeds, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice concentrate, reduced sodium tamari soy sauce [water, soybeans, salt], parsley, agave syrup, toasted sesame oil, cilantro, salt, garlic, paprika, natural flavor), kale, broccoli, butternut squash (squash, olive oil [refined olive oil, extra-virgin olive oil]), beets, cabbage, peas, roasted tomato (tomatoes, canola oil, garlic, vinegar, salt, spices), roasted sunflower seeds (roasted sunflower seeds, [sunflower, canola or cottonseed oil], salt), roasted red bell pepper, green onion.

A Starbucks spokesperson replied by email to a few additional questions The Vegetarian Resource Group had.

The VRG: Is there any added sugar?
Starbucks: The dressing has one gram of added sugar in the form of agave syrup.

The VRG: Can you confirm that the natural flavors in the lemon-tahini dressing are not sourced from animal-derived ingredients?
Starbucks: We can confirm the flavor is not from animal-derived ingredients.

The VRG: Are this bowl and all of its ingredients prepared away from all meats?
Starbucks: Our salads and sandwiches are prepared in a manner that prevents cross contact with other menu items.

The contents of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian 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.

For information about vegetarian and vegan restaurants, visit
http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

For more information about chain restaurants, visit
http://www.vrg.org/fastfoodinfo.php

VRG’s Nutrition Advisor Reed Mangels, PhD, RD, was interviewed on the topic of Healthy Vegan Pregnancy Tips. See:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3bwQH5PsEU

Acsah Melgares stated, “Hello, my name is Acsah and I’ve been a vegetarian almost 2 years now. My switch to vegetarianism came as a surprise for everyone around me because I grew up in a culture where meat is served at every party. Although that may throw people off, I think that vegetarianism does not exclude any group. Anyone can be a vegetarian, so long as they want to. I decided to switch over to a vegetarian diet because of my love for animals. As a child, I would always point out animal cruelty-in the circus, food, etc. Along with not wanting to support animal cruelty, I decided to become a vegetarian because of my health. Many diseases, like high blood pressure, run in my family, so I want to prevent it while saving the animals. I don’t see a difference between torturing a dog and torturing a chicken–they are both god’s wonderful creation. Therefore, I want to look out for animals that “belong” to the meat industry in hopes that one day, I can make a difference. I hope that my video has shown a brief explanation to why I am a vegetarian. I enjoyed making it and I hope you enjoyed watching! Thank you for your time.”

See: http://www.vrg.org/veg_videos.php#Melgares

The deadline for the next video contest is July 15, 2018
See http://www.vrg.org/videoscholarship.php

For information about VRG’s College Scholarship Contest, see:
http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group scholarships and internships, donate at: Donate to VRG

Thank you to Heather Francis, Emily Klesitz, Rebecca Lordon, and Tina Urban, who volunteered at The Vegetarian Resource Group booth at New Jersey VegFest. Heather reported: A lot of the people who stopped by were individuals who were transitioning and needed advice. Other individuals were teachers who wanted resources/were looking for resources. The Vegetarian Resource Group My Vegan Plate handout was the most popular and many people seemed to enjoy it. A lot of people loved that we had materials available. One guy in particular liked us because we weren’t a business trying to make a profit, rather handing out free resources to those who wanted information. There were questions about the Vegan Pregnancy book by our Nutrition Advisor Reed Mangels, RD.

If you would like to volunteer at VRG booths, email [email protected].

To support VRG outreach, join at http://www.vrg.org/member/cabdacae.php

Are you looking for some new ideas to prepare dishes featuring apples and/or pears? If so, we are sharing recipes from previous articles in Vegetarian Journal.

Perfect Pears
Debra Daniels-Zeller offers these pear recipes:

Reisling-Braised Kale and Pears With Basmati Rice
Sweet And Spicy Yams And Pears With Toasted Pecans
Maple-Sautéed Pears
Creamy Rosemary, Acorn Squash, and Pear Soup
Coconut-Cranberry-Pear Sauce
Hazelnut-Orange Asian Pear and Beet Salad
Pear Crisp With Cranberries
Pear-Walnut Bread
Berry-Poached Pears

Fabulous Apple Desserts
Jacqueline Dunnington provides these apple-based recipes:

Poached Apples
Raw Fruit Slices with Spiced Apple Syrup
Baked Apples in Maple Syrup
Swiss-Style Apple Dessert
Apple Fantasy
Apple and Apricot “Soup”

To subscribe to Vegetarian Journal, visit:
Subscribe to Vegetarian Journal

The Vegetarian Resource Group received this message:

Dear Friends,

We wanted to let you know that we are voluntarily recalling three batches of our product (Kale & Pinto Bean with “Best By” date of 062018 and 062718 and UPC number 8-54430-00247-5, and Black Bean & Sweet Corn with the “Best By” date of 061918 and UPC number 8-54430-00237-6). Please see carton examples below.

This voluntary recall is due to the possibility that some cartons within these batches of Vegan pupusas may have been mispackaged and could contain another pupusa flavor that contains cheese. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to dairy should not consume these products. Although we understand the problem is not extensive within these batches, we are recalling the full batches to ensure the safety of our consumers who have dairy concerns.

We are offering full replacements or refunds for these products. Please contact us at [email protected] or call (720) 613-TRES 9-5pm Monday -Friday MST with replacement & refund requests or with any additional questions.

We will continue to partner with our co-manufacturer to uphold our standards for safe and quality products.

You can find out more here:
http://treslatinfoods.com/voluntary-recall/?utm_source=recall&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=october

Thanks,
The Tres Latin Foods Team

Whether you’re a vegan living alone or the only vegan in your family, Vegan for One by Ellen Jaffe Jones with Beverly Lynn Bennett is meant for you. Helpful tips are provided along with delicious vegan recipes. For breakfast try Buttermilk Pancakes, Breakfast Potato-and-Veggie Skillet, or Maple, Apple, and Pecan Waffles. Next, move on to snacks such as Sweet Cinnamon Baked Tortilla Chips and Sauces and Gravies including Spicy Peanut Sauce and Cashew Cheese Sauce.

Delicious salad options are offered including Creamy Ranch-Dressed Potato Salad, Taco Salad, and Sesame Slaw. And you can serve one of these salads with a soup such as Miso Noodle Soup or Roasted Butternut Bisque.

For lunch try Seitan Street Tacos, Classic BLT, or Tofu and Slaw Spring Rolls. For dinner, start with a delicious side dish such as Roasted Cauliflower, Sesame Noodles, Indian-Style Millet, or Candied-Ginger Baby Carrots. Main dish options include Curried Lentils with Spinach, Mac-n-Cheese, Barbecue Tofu or Tempeh, and Deconstructed Veggie Lasagna. Finally, end your meal with one of these outstanding desserts: Rich and Chewy Brownies, Silken Berry Pudding, or Caramel-Almond Blondies. Dining solo never has to be boring again!

You can order this book today from The Vegetarian Resource Group here:
Vegan for One

The Vegetarian Resource Group offers a wide range of vegan books in their book catalog including: Vegan Brunch, Vegan Soul Kitchen, Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, The Indian Vegan Kitchen, Teff Love, Food Allergy Survival Guide, Artisan Vegan Cheese, plus many other titles.

Visit VRG’s entire book catalog here:
VRG Book Catalog

This Congress takes place every five years. It is the premiere scientific conference on plant based diets.

Theme this time: Plantfoods for the health of people, populations and the planet.

Place: Loma Linda University Campus in Southern California.

Website: vegetariannutrition.org