The Green Vegan Chick

Vegan Popsicles – Pop Secret

by Sharné November 6, 2018

written by Sharné

Popsecret is a new Cape Town business that just launched 2 vegan popsicles: Peppermint, and Watermelon.

Popsecret is run by two sisters who wanted to create a range of refined sugar-free ‘plant-based’ popsicles for kids and adults. I asked them last week if they had any vegan popsicles, as they currently use honey to sweeten their popsicles. They said not at the moment but could look into sweetening one or two of their popsicle flavours with dates or coconut sugar. You won’t know unless you ask, right?

Vegan Popsicle

On the weekend, they replied again, to say that they had made vegan popsicle versions of 2 of their flavours. #nohoney – isn’t that just amazing! I got in my car and drove straight to the OZ (Oranjezicht) market in Granger Bay. I was so impressed by their effort, that I had to try their new, specially created, vegan peppermint with cocoa nibs as well as the watermelon flavour.

Both flavours are great, and I was happy to hear that, if there is a market for them, they will be making more options. So if you are ever at the V&A Waterfront on a weekend, get to the OZ market and ask Popsecret for a vegan popsicle. And they also sell frozen packs of 10, if you want to take some home.

I love supporting new start-ups that are so keen to make vegan options, if there is a demand for it. Please stop by their stall, say hi, try their vegan popsicles, and let me know what you think.

Where to buy?

Popsecret has a stall at the OZ market in Granger Bay, which is located at Granger Bay Boulevard in the V&A Waterfront, and is open every Saturday from 9am to 2pm, as well as Sunday from 9am to 3pm. Popsecret also attend other events, so you can DM them to find out where they’ll be next.

Be sure to follow the OZfarm & Popsecret on facebook for more details.

Have you tried a vegan popsicle? What is your favourite flavour? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see more of the snacks & treats I have found, have a look here. If you’d like to see what else I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get social!

Follow me on facebook and instagram to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up trying one of these products, after reading about it for the first times here, please tag me and let me know what you think. Remember to hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

November 6, 2018 0 comment

win

World vegan day giveaway

by Sharné November 1, 2018

written by Sharné

GIVEAWAY CLOSED! To celebrate World Vegan Day, The Bespoke Artichoke is giving away a signed copy of The South African Vegan Cookbook by Leozette Roode!

Happy World Vegan Day

I recently bought a copy of Leozette’s amazing vegan cookbook, which is packed full of 100 vegan recipes and includes South African favourites, like milk tart. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves to cook, whether vegan or not.

Leo’s love for local cooking clearly shows in this vegan cookbook. She uses local products and, like me, loves to come up with recipes based on what is in the fridge at the moment. I had the pleasure of attending her cooking class recently, where Leozette demonstrated how to make 4 of the recipes from her book, and was blown away by the food, and her as a person.

She is an Afrikaans girl like me, who went vegan and started a blog, CTVeganista, to share her vegan recipes and vegan finds with others. Her blogging and love for farm animals led her to the Humane Society International, where she is part of the Green Monday SA team who encourage South Africans to ‘eat green’ on Mondays. Her vegan journey led her to feature in many publications, appear on national television and publish this cookbook. I can’t wait to see what she does next!

Stand a chance to win a signed copy of her vegan cookbook by following the entry details below.

How to enter

All you have to do is:

Follow The Bespoke Artichoke & The Green Vegan Chick on Instagram, if you are not already.
Like this competition giveaway post on Instagram.
Tag two friends in the comments of the giveaway post on Instagram for one entry.

Entries will close at 11:59 pm on the 6th of November 2018. The winner will be announced on the 7th of November 2018.

Good luck!

Rules

This competition is for Cape Town residents only.
Participants must be 18 years or older to enter.
The winner will be chosen at random.
The winner will be contacted by Lauren from The Bespoke Artichoke to arrange collection. Delivery not included.
This giveaway is in no way endorsed or sponsored by Instagram, or Leozette Roode.

What is your favourite vegan recipe? Have you been to The Bespoke Artichoke online store? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see green and vegan products I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly. Alternatively, If you are looking for some vegan recipe inspiration, have a look here.

If you end up trying one of these products or one of my recipes, after reading about it for the first times on my blog, please tag me and let me know what you think. Remember to hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

Let’s get social!

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date with my posts! And remember to follow me, The Green Vegan Chick as well as The Bespoke Artichoke on Instagram to enter this giveaway.

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

November 1, 2018 0 comment

fragrances

Vegan fragrance – pop by Stella McCartney

by Sharné October 25, 2018

written by Sharné

POP by fashion designer, Stella McCartney is a vegan fragrance which I am totally obsessed with.

vegan fragrance journey

When I first went Vegan in 2011, I stopped eating animal products. Yet, it was only later that I discovered the ugly truth about the beauty industry. Read more about my journey here. Up until that point, I had unknowingly been using fragrances and other beauty products, that were tested on animals, and contained animal ingredients. After learning the truth, I went on a search to find a vegan, cruelty and animal ingredient free fragrance.

I was so happy to find POP by fashion designer, Stella McCartney. POP is one of a small handful of vegan mainstream fragrances available in Cape Town. It has a lovely soft, floral scent which I absolutely love, so much so, that I have been using it for years now.

All our fragrances are vegan friendly, which means that no ingredient is tested on animals or comes from animal origins, including bees.
Stella McCartney

Where to buy?

POP, by Stella McCartney is available at Truworths, as well as Red Square stores. It is available in 100ml, 50ml, 30ml as well as a little 7,4ml roller ball tube you can carry in your handbag (which I have only seen as part of a gift set). Prices range from R800 to R1500. The entire collection’s packaging boxes are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which is a guarantee that they have originated from sustainably managed forests.

Have you tried any of the Stella McCartney fragrances? Which vegan fragrance do you use? Please let me know in the comments below. If you’d like to see more of the body & beauty products I have found, have a look here. If you’d like to see what home & garden products I have found browse my have a look here. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get Social!

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 25, 2018 0 comment

breakfast

vegan mixed berry smoothie bowl recipe

by Sharné October 25, 2018

written by Sharné

A delicious vegan mixed berry smoothie bowl, made with soma. almond milk, Cfruit frozen strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, a frozen banana and topped with fresh strawberries, dried cranberries, coconut flakes, and chia seeds.

What is a vegan smoothie bowl?

You might have seen them on Instagram, beautiful colourful bowls of thick liquid, artfully decorated with an arrangement of fruits and other pretty edibles. Compared to a traditional vegan smoothie that is sipped with a straw, a vegan smoothie bowl has a slightly thicker consistency, which has to be eaten with a spoon. It’s a thick blend of frozen fruits, nuts, seeds, and dairy-free milk. Serve the mixture in a bowl, and top it with fruit, nuts and other yummy toppings.

Vegan Lifestyle Festival

We recently bought 5 x 1kg bags of frozen berries from Cfruit (read post here) at the first Vegan Lifestyle Festival in Africa (read post here). They are so delicious that we have eaten them as is, used them in juice, smoothies and smoothie bowls. I tried the locally made soma. almond milk for the first time at the Vegan Lifestyle Festival and had to buy some. It is the perfect dairy-free milk to add to smoothies and smoothie bowls. This mixed berry smoothie bowl was super quick to make using my Nutribullet.

Vegan mixed berry smoothie bowl

[penci_recipe]

Making a vegan mixed berry smoothie bowl is as simple as that. Give it a try. Do you have a favourite vegan smoothie bowl combo? Let me know in the comments below.

To see more of my smoothie recipes visit my breakfast recipe page. New recipes posted regularly. Also, look at my other recipes here. Finally, look at my directory for a list of all the awesome vegan products I have found locally.

Let’s get social!

Follow me on facebook and instagram to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up making one of my recipes, tag me and hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 25, 2018 0 comment

on the go reusables

Reusable glass straw – stream straws

by Sharné October 25, 2018

written by Sharné

A movement to ban disposable plastic straws, and switch to reusable straws, is sweeping over the entire world. I went on a green journey, and found an amazing reusable glass straw made by Stream Straw.

Time to say goodbye to the plastic straw

You might be wondering how important it could be to switch to reusable straws, or other biodegradable options. Single-use plastic, including plastic straws, is a major worldwide issue that is continuously polluting our oceans and harming marine life. Read more regarding the truth about plastic, in my ‘Reusable Fruit and Veg Bags’ post here.

There is no such thing as ‘away‘. When we throw anything away it must go somewhere
Annie Leonard

switch to a reusable glass straw

I’ve been using my envirosax reusable shopping bags for years and recently switched to using Freshbag’s reusable fruit and veggie bags. It was only natural for my green vegan journey to evolve to include reusable straws.

Earlier this year, I started researching the available reusable straw product options, and found Stream Straws. They’re a local company who hand make durable, reusable, borosilicate glass straws which come with a lifetime guarantee against breakage by regular use.

Our mission is simple; to reduce the amount of plastic straws used daily across the globe and to replace them with a reusable, eco-friendly alternative.
streamstraws

Stream Straws are currently being served at The Wellness Warehouse Cafe’s, Plant cafe, and many more restaurants and cafe’s. If these straws can survive repeated use in a cafe, then in my opinion, they are worth it. I purchased my straw and sleeve combo, which includes a Smoothie Straight Straw, a Protective Hemp Sleeve, and a Cleaning Brush. The brush is an awesome addition, as they would otherwise be impossible to clean!

Where to buy

You can buy reusable glass straw’s from Stream Straws via their website, at Organic Living, Wellness Warehouse, and online at Faithful to Nature. Have a look at their stockists page for a more detailed list.

Do you have a reusable glass straw? Do you have any other ways that I can reduce my plastic waste? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see more of the green vegan lifestyle products I have found, have a look here. And to see what else I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get Social!

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 25, 2018 0 comment

main

Homemade vegan pizza recipe

by Sharné October 23, 2018

written by Sharné

I made a super yummy if I say so myself, vegan pizza using the NEW Basil & Chilli pesto from Pesto Princess, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms, topped with fresh rocket and a balsamic dressing.

Vegan pizza from scratch

I love the NEW Basil & Chilli Pesto from Pesto Princess, so much so that I blogged about it here, and it inspired me to create this very pizza. I made the pizza dough from scratch, which was super easy, and let it rise for 2 hours, after which I stored it in the fridge overnight, to use the next day.

The next day I rolled the dough out and coated it with the Pesto Princess Basil & Chilli pesto. I added sundried tomatoes, mushrooms, and mixed herbs before popping it in the oven. Once it was done, I added the fresh rocket and drizzled some balsamic dressing on top.

[penci_recipe]

And that is how easy it is to make a simple but yummy vegan pizza from scratch. What are your favourite pizza toppings? Have you tried the NEW Basil & Chilli pesto from Pesto Princess? Let me know in the comments below. On the other hand, if you’d like to see similar recipes, feel free to head on over to my main course recipe page. New recipes posted regularly. And also look at my other posts using Pesto Princess products – here, and here. Finally, look at my directory for a list of all the awesome vegan products I have found locally.

Let’s get social

Follow me on facebook and instagram to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up making one of my recipes, tag me and hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 23, 2018 2 comments

on the go reusables

Reusable stainless steel straws from foreva straws ^

by Sharné October 22, 2018

written by Sharné

The reusable stainless steel straws from ForEVA Straws are a must have, and perfect to carry with you while you are on the go!

We recently attended the launch of new and combined Shop Zero & Flourish Bistro. Shop Zero is a zero waste, plastic-free lifestyle store with vegan pantry essentials and speciality foods. Flourish Bistro is a vegan, plant-based, gluten and refined sugar-free bistro. For a green vegan chick like me, it is a combo made someplace totally wonderful.

Early in the evening of the launch, my boyfriend made a joke, saying that he would win a prize that night, and he did! He won 2 reusable bent stainless steel ForEVA Straws in a cute little drawstring bag!

Now we all know that single-use straws suck (To read more about why see post here) But there is something great about drinking with a straw. At Shop Zero there is a great variety of reusable straws, from glass to stainless steel. Straight, bent, rose gold, rainbow, they stock them all.

Why use stainless steel straws?

Before these gift straws, I had never used a stainless steel straw. Not only do they look great, but they are made of food grade stainless steel, which means they are safe to use again and again. They are also are super easy to clean, with a small straw cleaning brush, (even though they are dishwasher friendly). They are strong, durable and great to drink with. Lastly, they are a comfortable size, and they don’t leave a weird taste in your mouth, which I have noticed with the bamboo straws. So far, we have used them for smoothies and juices, both of which have been finely blended. Because our new stainless steel straws are quite slim, I don’t think they would work so well with chunkier smoothies.

Where to buy?

Shop Zero is located at 403 Albert Road, Woodstock, Cape Town. They are open Monday to Friday from 9 am to 5 pm & on Saturday from 9 am to 3:30 pm. You can also purchase the reusable stainless steel straws on their online shop.

For more stockists, check out the ForEVA Straws website and look under their ‘where to find us’ section.

Do you have a reusable glass straw? Have you tried the stainless steel versions? Have you been to the Shop Zero store? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. If you’d like to see more of the green vegan lifestyle products I have found, have a look here. And to see what else I have found browse my Directory. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get social!

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 22, 2018 0 comment

pesto

Basil & Chilli Pesto – Pesto Princess ^

by Sharné October 18, 2018

written by Sharné

A NEW, dairy-free, vegan Basil & Chilli Pesto has been launched by Pesto Princess. It’s really delicious! You have to try it.

For starters, as you probably already know, I love the Pesto Princess dairy-free vegan pesto’s. So much so, that I’ve used their pesto’s in many of my recipes – have a look here, and here, for example.

Basil & Chilli Pesto

I was very lucky to receive a Royal Delivery from Pesto Princess recently, containing some of their NEW basil & chilli pesto, along with some vegan crackers. I tested it on the crackers and loved it immediately. This scrumptious combination of basil and chilli is perfect as a dip, on a pizza, in a salad, on a sandwich, or in a pasta. I can’t wait to use it in one of my upcoming recipes. Watch this space!

The ingredients

The basil & chilli pesto is made with vegetable oil (canola or sunflower seed), fresh basil (30%), onions, cashew nuts, water, chillies (3%) salt, ascorbic acid, fresh garlic, fresh ginger and citric acid.

Other Pesto Princess products

Here is a list of the dairy-free vegan pesto options, that I know of:

Coriander & chilli pesto
Sundried tomato pesto
Basil and lemon pesto
Red pepper pesto
Olive pesto

They also have a dairy-free harissa paste, chermoula paste, and a chimichurri sauce. I used the Pesto Princess dairy-free Harissa Paste in a spicy vegan wrap recipe.

And if you love soup, they also have an amazing range of vegan soups which I posted about here.

Where to buy

The Pesto Princess pesto products are available at Checkers, Pick n Pay and Spar, to name a few. For a detailed list, have a look on their website. Remember to look out for the black dairy-free circle on the front of the jar.

Try out the NEW Pesto Princess basil & chilli pesto. Let me know if you like it? I really love feedback. Let me know in the comments below. Lastly, look at my directory for a list of all the awesome vegan products I have found locally.

Let’s get social

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up trying one of these products, after reading about it for the first time here, please tag me and let me know what you think. Remember to hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 18, 2018 0 comment

smoothies

vegan pomegranate smoothie recipe

by Sharné October 18, 2018

written by Sharné

This, pretty in pink, vegan pomegranate smoothie recipe, is made up of dairy free milk, pomegranate seeds, an orange and lastly, a frozen banana.

The weather is warming up, so it’s definitely time to use my Nutribullet to whip up some vegan smoothies. Most of the time my smoothies are an experiment as they consist of what I currently have in the kitchen. I had some pomegranates, oranges and banana in the fridge so I used them to make this vegan pomegranate smoothie.

Vegan pomegranate smoothie

All the vegan pomegranate smoothie ingredients (see recipe below) are added to my Nutribullet, which I let blend together, until I’m happy with the consistency. I sometimes wait up to a minute as I want to blend everything really well so that my smoothie is lump-free. Freezing the banana beforehand is important, as it makes the smoothie thicker and creamier.

If you like your smoothie to be a sort of slushy, you can add a handful of ice in at the end. Similarly, ice also helps if you did not add any frozen fruit. Alternatively, you could freeze leftover juice or dairy free milk in an ice tray for next time.

My smoothies are always served in a glass jar and I add one of my reusable straws. This one is a straight smoothie glass straw from Stream Straws (see post here)

[penci_recipe]

And that is how easy it is to make a vegan pomegranate smoothie. What is your favourite smoothie to make, or to buy? Do you have a reusable straw? Let me know in the comments below. If you’d like to see similar recipes feel free to head on over to my smoothie recipe page. And have a look at my vegan breakfast recipe page to see vegan smoothie bowl recipes. New recipes posted regularly. Finally, look at my directory for a list of all the awesome vegan products I have found locally.

Let’s get social

Follow me on facebook and instagram to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up making one of my recipes, tag me and also hashtag it #thegreenveganchick

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 18, 2018 0 comment

markets & festivals

the first vegan lifestyle festival

by Sharné October 17, 2018

written by Sharné

This past Saturday, the 13th of October, we attended the first Vegan Lifestyle Festival, held in Cape Town, and it was truly amazing!

Where?

The Vegan Lifestyle Festival was held at the Khanyisa Waldorf School, 4 Victoria Rd, Plumstead, Cape Town. It started at 8am and closed at 6pm. It’s held at the same location as the regular Vegan Goods Market, which is on every first Saturday of the month from 10am to 2pm.

We got there at about 3pm, which in hindsight might not have been the best idea, as a lot of goodies were already sold out. Entry was R20, where we got a multi-entry hand stamp, and a free plant-based recipe booklet from The Fry Family Food Co.

I’ve been to the Vegan Goods Market a few times before, and I can say that the Vegan Lifestyle Festival was easily 3 times bigger. It is an independent extension of the Vegan Goods Market, with stalls and traders that showcase all aspects of vegan living. The festival was arranged into 5 “villages”, namely; Animals, Health, Environment, Justice and Taste. They weren’t noticeably distinct from each other, but flowed on to the next stall. Generally, we just walked around from one stall to the next, browsing, sampling, meeting and getting to know the vendors, and thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere.

Something for everyone

In the Taste village, we bought kimchi from Sapials Kitchen, and tried a vegan Feesh and Chips for the first time at The Yummy Vegan stall. We went a bit nuts at C-Fruit, and bought 5kg of frozen fruit: strawberries, gooseberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries for a great price. We even got 2 tubs of fresh blackberries for free. They are so delicious that we made smoothies as soon as we got home.

By this time we were getting thirsty, to find that the juice stall had run out of cups due to the unexpected turnout, so we missed out on this. I really wished I had brought along my reusable cup. I had, after all, remembered to take my reusable bags and reusable straw. Note for next time. We also bought some Soma. almond milk; and tried a vegan cheese bread stick. I even entered the Vegan Protein competition, for a chance to win their Vegan basic starter kit. Fingers crossed.

In the Environment & Justice villages, I signed up for the vegan challenge at the ProVeg stall, and I bought an awesome QR coded key chain at the Beauty without Cruelty (BWC) stall, which takes me straight to their Humane Guide. In the Animal village, we browsed the 2nd hand books, and couldn’t resist buying a few. At R20 each, how can we resist, and the money goes towards helping animals. And lastly, at the Cosmic Bazaar stall in the Health village, I bought some Canna salve and oil, to try out for migraine management.

It really was an amazing festival, and I can’t wait for the next one. But next time, I will be sure to be there first thing.

When is the next vegan lifestyle festival?

The Vegan Lifestyle Festival have confirmed that, following the huge success of the first one, there will definitely be a second one! This one will take place on the 30th of March 2019. I literally can’t wait! Until then, I will be going to the Vegan Goods Market on the first Saturdays of the month. Maybe I’ll see you there!

Did you make it to the Vegan Lifestyle Festival? And what did you think? I’d love to hear from you in a comment below. More market & festival posts coming soon. Also, If you would like to see some of my vegan recipes, have a look here. Finally, look at my directory for a list of all the awesome vegan products I have found locally. New products posted regularly.

Let’s get social!

© the green vegan chick. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

October 17, 2018 0 comment

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