Vegan Journal is published by The Vegetarian Resource Group. Enjoy in-depth original research, product and book reviews, scientific updates on veggie nutrition, delicious vegan recipes with gorgeous photos, plus so much more. Both long-term vegans and those new to a vegan life-style will enjoy this magazine.

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

wallet from Couch

Are you looking to buy a non-leather vegan wallet? The following companies in the USA, Canada, and Europe all offer a variety of wallets for men and women.

USA

Couch sells a variety of wallets for men and women.

Doshi offers wallets for men and women.

Fabric Horse sells wallets for men and women.

Green Banana Paper sells wallets made out of banana leaves.

K Carroll sells wallets for women.

Labante has offices in the USA and United Kingdom and offer wallets for women and men.

Matt and Nat sells wallets for men and women. Ships internationally.

Mechaly sells a variety of women’s wallets.

Moo Shoes sells a variety of wallets for men and women.

Vegan Chic sells women’s wallets.

The Vegetarian Site sells hemp wallets.

CANADA

Jeane & Jax is a Canadian company selling a wide variety of wallets for women.

Pixie Mood is a Canadian company that sells a variety of women’s wallets.

EUROPE

Avesu in Germany offers a wide range of wallets in various colors made from different materials.

Corkor in Portugal sells wallets for men and women made out of cork.

Labante has offices in the USA and United Kingdom and offer wallets for women and men.

Photo from Vegan Galaxy Miami

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: www.vrg.org/restaurant

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:

Hijo de Su Madre, 2180 Westwood Blvd., Unit 1G, Los Angeles, CA 90025

Located about a 10-minute drive from the UCLA campus in Westwood, California, Hijo de su Madre, which started off as a food truck before graduating to the current brick-and-mortar location, has made its mark in the competitive Los Angeles food scene. Inspired by the tastes and aromas of the owner’s family origins in the Yucatan (as indicated by its name), Hijo de su Madre is also very environmentally aware, using up-cycled furnishings in their space and recyclable wrappings, and even the aprons are made from 100% recycled materials. For those who dined at their food truck, some of those favorites have kept their place on the menu, including the Phat Hass Taco, made with a beer-battered and deep-fried Hass avocado, fresh pico, and a house spicy chipotle cream. The taco selection also includes No Stas Cochinita (tangy, sweet Yucatecan-style jackfruit, off-the-cob corn, and homemade black beans). Tacos are served on organic yellow corn tortillas, and if you’re especially hungry you can turn the tacos into a burrito or bowl—which have 3 times the taco portion. For those seeking traditional Yucatecan fare, there are options like the Kibis (lightly fried croquettes served with a side of black bean purée, guacamole, and pickled onions) and the Papadzules (rolled corn tortillas dipped in a sauce of pepitas and epazote, filled with a house made “hard-boiled egg” and topped with chiltomate sauce). The dessert menu is likewise an homage to family recipes, including the Pastelitos—empanadas filled with sweet potatoes and coconut, garnished with powdered sugar.

Moody Mike’s, 802 N. Limestone, Lexington, KY 40505

A vegan soul food truck with a variety of options including vegan chicken and fish sandwiches, lattes, and desserts.

Next Stop Vegan, 88 Livingston St., Brooklyn, NY 11201

Next Stop Vegan has burgers, burritos, salads, and several Latin dishes on their menu. Sandwiches and burgers include the sweet and spicy oyster mushroom sandwich with homemade chipotle sauce and sweet plantains as well as Cesar’s Philly Cheesesteak made with portobello mushrooms, peppers, onions, and vegan cheeses. The twisted burrito is loaded with seasoned and grilled portobello mushrooms, homemade mac n cheese, vegan beef, and fresh pico de gallo. Other Latin-inspired flavors include crispy mofonguitos (plantain-shredded baskets stuffed with quinoa meat, pico de gallo, and homemade cilantro and chimi sauce), plantakos (soft green plantain tacos), and loaded fries with vegan sausages, jalapeños, pico de gallo, and drizzled with homemade cilantro sauce, mayo, chimi sauce, and tangy BBQ sauce.

Odd Burger, 1050 Bank St., Ottawa, ON K1S 3X2 Canada

Odd Burger specializes in vegan fast food. This restaurant offers sides, “chickUN,” all day-breakfast, dessert, burgers, and more. All the ingredients used in specific dishes can be found on their website, where you can also place orders. Odd Burger also uses a variety of faux meats including house-made chickpea burgers, house-made sausage, gyro meat, and more! These are used in dishes like the “Vopper” burger and “Famous Style Fries”.

Ruby Baking Company, 811 E. Yellowjacket Ln. #122, Rockwall, TX 75087

A lighthearted, wholesome bakery with sweet treats for everyone. Desserts are all gluten-free, nut-free, and vegan. Some delicious options include cinnamon rolls, tiered cakes, and brownies.

Samata Vegan House, 1435 Highland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90028

For Starters, there’s Mixed Tempura with pumpkin, broccoli, carrots, and more, Dumplings (choose steamed or fried,) Deep fried veggie Crispy Spring Roll with sweet and sour sauce, soy based Fries, Nuggets and all sorts of Wings. Salads include Cucumber Salad with Japanese ponzu sauce and sesame seeds, green Papaya Salad or Seasonal Fruit Salad—the last two with tomato, carrot, peanut, and chili lime dressing. In some cases, you may select your spice level. Stir-fried entrées include crispy fried, Orange Soy Chicken with homemade fresh orange sauce and sesame seeds, Broccoli Mushroom with stir-fried carrot and garlic, Spicy Eggplant or Ginger Delight—both with bell pepper, garlic, and other veggies to name a few. All come with “meat” – your choice of tofu, chicken, mixed veggies (or shrimp costs more). The last three come with homemade brown sauce. You might explore their virtual rainbow of Curry dishes—Red, Yellow, Green, or Panang. Most feature combinations of peas, bell pepper, green beans, and bamboo shoots. Soup choices include Coconut or Tom Yum – both with carrot, broccoli, cabbage, mushroom, and tomato in spicy and sour broths, the former with coconut milk. With oodles of Noodle dishes, you’ll have to use yours to narrow the choices! There’s Pad Thai, Udon, yakisoba, glass noodles, and many more. One of several Rice dishes is jasmine Pineapple Fried Rice with peas, carrot, onion, raisins, cashews, and curry powder. For a fruity kick, dessert choices are Coconut Ice Cream with Banana Roll or Mango with Sweet Coconut Rice.

Vegan Galaxy Miami, 90 NE 22nd St., Miami, FL 33137

Vegan Galaxy Miami is known for its good vibes. Some of their featured foods include Spinach Feta Borek, Folded Kimbap, and Baklava.

Be sure to follow The Vegetarian Resource Group on Instagram: @vegetarianresourcegroup

by Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

The German Nutrition Society (DGE) is a non-profit organization that develops dietary guidelines for Germany (1). Their website says that they are committed to scientific facts and are not influenced by economic or political interests (2).

This group recently revised their position on vegan diets to state, “For the healthy adult general population, in addition to other diets, a vegan diet can also be an option, provided that a vitamin B12 preparation is taken, a balanced, well-planned food selection and an adequate intake of potentially critical nutrients (possibly also through other nutrient preparations) represent health-promoting nutrition.” The translation, courtesy of Google Translate, may be rough but generally, the position endorses vegan diets for healthy adults as long as a vitamin B12 supplement is used, food selection is well-planned, and intake of key nutrients is adequate. The reason given for revising the position is that they considered four factors – health, environment, social welfare, and animal welfare – for the first time, rather than simply focusing on health. They also considered the risk of diet-related diseases, such as heart disease, to a greater extent, rather than mainly considering nutrient needs.

The German Nutrition Society did not believe that there was enough data available to make a recommendation for or against a well-planned vegan diet for pregnancy, breastfeeding, infancy, childhood, adolescence, and seniors. This contrasts with their previous position which did not recommend a vegan diet for these groups.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are currently being revised and updated. We hope that those working on this revision will note the German Nutrition Society’s new position on vegan diets.

You can read the revised position here (in German)

References

1. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Food-based dietary guidelines – Germany. https://www.fao.org/nutrition/education/food-dietary-guidelines/regions/germany/en/
2. The German Nutrition Society (DGE). https://www.dge.de/english/

To read more about nutrition policies related to vegan and vegetarian diets see:

What Have the US Dietary Guidelines Said About Vegan and Vegetarian Diets?

Mexican 2023 Dietary Guidelines Recommend that 92% of our Plate Be Plant Foods!

Do International Dietary Guidelines Promote Vegan/Vegetarian Diets?

photo by Nadely Requena

By Nadely Requena, VRG Intern

Shortly before I began my second internship with The Vegetarian Resource Group, I was graciously able to travel to Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico as I was chosen for a travel and research grant by the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.

The purpose of my travel to the east coast of Mexico was to participate in the “Encuentro de Saberes y Sabores de la Huasteca” (Meeting of Knowledge and Flavors of the Huastec People).

As someone entering their final year of undergrad studying Journalism and Latin American Studies, it was quite amazing to be selected for this opportunity! Not only did I learn about the region, people, and culture, I also conducted my own research on the journalism practices relating to the covering of the Indigenous populations in Mexico, specifically the Huastec people. Being Mexican (Indigenous and Spanish)-American, I know my ancestors are always proud to see me returning to my roots.

More important than the knowledge, of course, were the variety of flavors (or sabores) acquired during this trip. For the past seven years, I have been vegetarian/vegan, first making the change when I was only 16 years old in high school.

When I’m in the comfort of my familiar home and restaurants, I remain vegan. Yet, this trip was different because for the first time, I wouldn’t be planning it. I wasn’t going to have to research all the restaurants in the area, go through endless menus to make sure there was at least one option for me, or even get the chance to refer to VRG’s restaurant guide and other sources to plan out my meals.

Yet, my anxious thoughts were soon calmed as I remembered how heavily my Mexican culture worships their plants, mainly corn (yes, we play favorites).

We were “plant-based” before those words even existed. It was only when Spanish and Portuguese colonizers came to the Americas in the 1700s when my ancestors were introduced to meat from domesticated animals and dairy products, like cheese.

Yet, even then and now, we continue to value our plants because it keeps us connected to the ground, the soil, our mother earth that we walk on. From corn, to beans, tomatoes, chilies, and guacamole, it’s in the food culture. So, trust there will be plenty of options for vegetarians and vegans when you visit our country! (Though you may need to ask questions, according to your belief system, as anywhere you would travel and eat out.)

During my travel to Xalapa, some dishes I tried are listed below, and hopefully they can make you feel right at home as they did to me! I will take this experience with me as I continue working with Latino communities in the US and in my career as a correspondent based in Latin America.

Breakfast: 

• Pinto refried beans and sautéed cactus and white onions (Vegans should ask to leave out scrambled eggs which may come with it.)
• Sopes (or “picaditas,” “picadas” made in Veracruz style)
  • These are corn masa cakes that look like mini tortillas with rounded and lifted edges like a mini pool
  • Topped with red or green salsa, fresh cheese, sautéed onion, and cream (Vegans ask to leave out the cheese and cream.)

Lunch, Dinner, & Sides: 

• Bocoles (or “gordita” as I know them, being from the northern part of Mexico; others know them as “arepas”)
  • Topped with refried pinto beans, fresh cheese, and cactus (Vegans ask to leave off cheese.)
• Sopa de nopales (“cactus soup”)
  • Contains cactus, red tomato (called “jitomate,” not “tomate” [green tomato]), onion, and garlic
  • Optional: sweet corn, black beans, and green peas
• Sopa de tortilla (“corn tortillas soup,” also called sopa azteca or “Azteca soup”)
  • Contains fried corn tortillas in a tomato soup with garlic, onion, and cilantro
  • (You need to ask if this has chicken broth, cheese, or cream.)
• Sopa de habas (“fava bean soup”)
  • Contains dried fava beans, onion, jalapeño, tomato, and cilantro
• French fries
  • Important to note that in this part of Mexico, they call them “papas a la francesa” as opposed to “papas fritas” (as I call them)
  • Vegans should ask what type of oil is used to fry these.
• Guacamole & Chips
  • In addition, came with refried black beans, veggie fajitas, and grilled tofu

Desserts:

• Chocolate filled croissant with powdered sugar
• Atole de piña
  • Atole: hot masa-based beverage
  • Contains water, cinnamon, pineapple, and masa-harina (which is dried corn dough referred to as corn flour)
• Chancaca (or panela, pinocillo)
  • It is unrefined whole cane sugar, known as Mexican brown sugar
  • Can be added to dishes or eaten as a candy to experience an intense sweet flavor

THE salsa of Veracruz (most common, you will see EVERYWHERE):

• Salsa de chile seco (dried chili salsa)
  • Very spicy (and that is coming from me, a person with a high spicy tolerance; I definitely recommend added it to your food for a little kick or for some, a trip to the bathroom)

If you are staying at home, some of these recipes and foods, may interest you.

https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2006issue1/2006_issue1_bodega.php

https://www.vrg.org/journal/CookingAndRecipes.htm#cr-ethnic-mexican

https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2021issue2/2021_issue2_latin_american_calcium.php

photo from Sky Cafe

By Chloe Khachadourian, VRG Intern

Looking for a delicious vegan restaurant in the Bay Area of California? Then, Sky Café is the perfect restaurant for you.

Sky Café offers a wide variety of great tasting vegan food in South San Francisco. They have everything you could want from bahn mi sandwiches to filet Mignon and the best part is, all of their food is vegan. The restaurant is very welcoming and relaxing to sit in, with nice tables and chairs. It is run by dedicated and thoughtful people who care about their customers and the planet.

Sky Café offers lunch and dinner almost every day of the week, except Monday and Tuesday. The best days to come are on the weekend since they offer breakfast and brunch on top of lunch and dinner. Their breakfast and brunch items range anywhere from pancakes and waffles to eggs Benedict and omelets. They are extremely delicious and are great meals to start your day.

Another great perk about Sky Café, is they have a very cute and relaxing outdoor patio in the back where they host monthly movie nights. These movie nights are a great place to meet new people and have a delicious vegan dinner. The movies that they screen focus on veganism, the environment, factory farming, and more, offering highly educational and insightful content.

All in all, Sky Café is a perfect vegan restaurant that you can go to for almost any occasion. If you have any friends or family who are skeptical about vegan or vegetarian food, this is the perfect restaurant to change their minds. Next time you are craving a delicious and yummy vegan meal, stop by Sky Café. You won’t be disappointed!

Sky Café Website: https://skyinternationalvegan.kwickmenu.com/index.php

VRG Guide to Veggie Restaurants in the USA and Canada: https://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

by Akua Oppong, VRG Intern

American Flatbread Vegan Harvest Pizza is the perfect pizza for any pizza craving! Ready in just 20 minutes, this thin flatbread pizza is delightfully cheesy, crispy, and light. The vegan cheese melts together smoothly, with the right amount of sauce and a nice touch of parsley and herb garnish on top. It is great for sharing with friends or for a solo pizza experience. Top with tomato basil garlic spice for elevated flavor. Their other vegan pizza options include Farmer’s Potato Pie and Vegan Pepperoni. Available in Whole Foods, Giant, Safeway, and more! Find locations near you at https://americanflatbreadproducts.com/pages/store-locater

Koshary Bowl

We recently stopped by Koshary, a vegan food stall in RHouse located in the Remington neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. This establishment serves vegan Egyptian street food and their dishes are outstanding! The food is fresh and portions are generous. We especially enjoyed dining on their Koshary Bowl which consists of your choice of grain (white rice, brown rice, or quinoa) and top it with lentils, gluten-free pasta, chickpeas, signature sauce, fried onions, and vinaigrette. We also loved their Egyptian Breakfast Feast consisting of fava beans, falafel, pita bread, baba ganoush (eggplant), roasted potatoes, garlic dressing, harissa, and pickles, as well as their Falafel Wrap which includes Falafel, salad, and red sauce in a pita bread plus a side of potatoes (roasted or fried).

Koshary is located in RHouse at 301 West 29th Street, Baltimore, MD 21211 and offer lunch and dinner daily. For more information see: https://kosharycorner.com/

Information on other veggie restaurants throughout the USA and Canada can be found here: https://www.vrg.org/restaurant/

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

For many people, mac and cheese is a comfort food. It’s salty and creamy and it can be a quick meal or snack. Vegan mac and cheese packages abound on supermarket shelves. VRG volunteer Mae Y. Seon and I evaluated 31 boxed vegan mac and cheese products from Annie’s, Banza, Daiya, Goodles, Grown as Foods, Jovial, O Organics, Pastabilities, Upton’s Naturals, and Wicked Kitchen.

We found lots of variations on vegan mac and cheese with flavors ranging from the traditional Cheddar cheese flavor to Jalapeño, barbecue, and truffle.

Preparation time for boxed vegan mac and cheese, according to package information, is generally short—boil water, cook pasta, make sauce, then mix pasta and sauce. Some varieties feature pre-made sauce; you just mix it in with the cooked pasta. Prep time varies from 6-12 minutes, depending on the product. Some vegan boxed mac and cheese packages come with everything that you need while others call for you to add unsweetened non-dairy milk and non-dairy butter to the sauce packet.

Most products report nutritional information both as purchased and as prepared. For products that did not included “as prepared” information, we calculated the nutrient content of a serving using unsweetened soy milk and Earth Balance margarine.

The labels on most products reported a serving size of 1 cup of prepared mac & cheese, although a couple of Banza products had a ¾ cup serving size. A serving of prepared vegan mac & cheese provided between 200 and 550 calories.

The products we looked at had 4 to 22 grams of protein per serving, making them a reasonable source of protein. Products highest in protein were Wicked Kitchen products that ranged from 18-19 grams of protein in a 1 cup serving and Pastabilities Protein Pasta Ruffles & Vegan Cheese with 22 grams of protein in a cup.

There was a lot of variability in fat in the products that we examined with a range from 1.5 to 18 grams of fat per serving. Saturated fat ranged from 0 to 6 grams per serving.

The products that were lowest in saturated fat were:

• Annie’s Vegan Mac GF Red Lentil Spirals & Sweet Potato Pumpkin and Annie’s Vegan Mac Shells & Sweet Potato Pumpkin—0 grams of saturated fat in a serving
• Banza Plant-Based Chickpea Mac & Vegan Cheddar and Banza Plant-Based Shells & Vegan White Cheddar—1 gram in a serving
• Jovial GF Vegan Mac—1 gram in a serving
• Annie’s Vegan Mac GF Rice Pasta & Cheddar—1 gram in a serving
• Upton’s Naturals Deluxe Ch’eesy Mac —1 gram in a serving
• Annie’s Vegan Mac Macaroni & Cheddar—5 grams in a serving

The sodium content of products ranged from 260 milligrams per serving to a whopping 850 milligrams per serving. Label reading is important if you are looking for a lower sodium product.

Here are the lowest sodium products that we found:

• Annie’s Vegan Mac GF Red Lentil Spirals & Sweet Potato Pumpkin and Annie’s Vegan Mac Shells & Sweet Potato Pumpkin—260 milligrams in a 1 cup serving]
• Upton’s Naturals Deluxe Ch’eesy Mac—300 milligrams in a 1 cup serving

Many products supplied calcium; in some cases, the calcium content depends on whether a calcium-fortified non-dairy milk is used to prepare the sauce. Calcium content ranged from 0 milligrams per serving to over 250 milligrams per serving.

Products supplying at least 100 milligrams of calcium included:

• Annie’s Vegan Mac Shells & Sweet Potato Pumpkin and Goodles Vegan is Believing Plant-based White Cheddar with Spirals and Jovial Gluten Free Vegan Mac—100 milligrams in a 1 cup serving
• Goodles Gluten Free Vegan Be Heroes and Wicked Kitchen BBQ King Mac & Cheeze and Wicked Kitchen This Is Nacho Mac & Cheeze—approximately 120 milligrams in a 1 cup serving
• Wicked Kitchen Smoky Picnic Mac & Cheeze—130 milligrams in a 1 cup serving
• Daiya Deluxe Mac & Cheeze, Cheddar Style and Daiya Deluxe Mac & Cheeze, White Cheddar Style and Daiya Deluxe Mac & Cheeze, Alfredo Style—approximately 200 milligrams in a 1 cup serving
• Daiya Deluxe Mac & Cheeze, Cheddar Jalapeño Style—240 milligrams in a 1 cup serving
• Daiya Deluxe Mac & Cheeze, Four Cheeze Style with Herbs—258 milligrams in a 1 cup serving

Products that were labeled as gluten-free included Annie’s Vegan Mac Gluten Free Rice Pasta & Cheddar, Annie’s Vegan Mac Gluten Free Red Lentil Spirals & Sweet Potato Pumpkin, all Banza Mac & Cheese products, all Daiya Mac & Cheese products, Goodles Gluten Free Vegan Be Heroes, Jovial Gluten Free Vegan Mac, and O Organics Gluten Free Vegan Mac Cheddar Style.

Thanks to Mae Y. Seon for her work on this project.

To see reviews of other vegan products, go to:

Vegan Shelf-stable Entrée Pouches

A Review of Vegan Frozen Grain-based Entrees

Vegan Butter: Which Should I Choose?

Vegan Cheese for Pizza

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