Veganism

Vegan Mofo #28 Central Florida Veg Fest 2012

Happy Little Vegans All Around!

Today was the 7th Annual Central Florida Veg Fest that is like the Food &Wine event of the year for Vegans, Vegetarians, and all those who are curious about the lifestyle and foods.

 

This year, the event was held at Orlando Festival Park near Downtown Orlando on the east side of  town. The crowd seemed to grow larger than it was last year. I credit that to the new location for this year. Parking was ample. The only problem is there was starting to have a chill in the air as well as the wind decided that it wanted to make itself known.

There were a variety of food vendors all located in a very organized manner similar to that of a Food truck set up. It looked like a Vegan/Vegetarians food dream. The participants were: Dandelion Communitea Cafe, Drunken Monkey Coffee Bar, Ethos, Vegan Kitchen, Fantastic Hummus, Infusion Tea, Joe’s Oat Patties, Khasiyat, Lemon Bar, Loving Hut, Midtown EcoVillage. Purely Raw, Sah Nevaeh, and The Spork Cafe.

There were other placed throughout the event because you know vegans love to eat jsut like Koreans. Among those were: Artichoke Red Vegan Market, BabycakesNYC, Coconut Bliss, Glazed & Infused, Hoover’s Market, Living Light Organic, Orlando Food Not Bombs, Pure Sweet Life, Raphsodic Bakery, RAWR! Organic Raw Treats, Earth’s Beast Beverages, and Vegetarians of Central Florida.

 

Dandelion Communitea Cafe

Ethos Vegan Kitchen

Lemon Bar

Loving Hut

There were Speakers, Artist, Bands, Culinary Demonstrations, it was a very full busy day. I was one of those chosen to conduct a Culinary Demonstration. I made one of my previous recipes that is on this site – Korean Kimchi Scallion Lettuce Salad. First I demonstrated how to make a vegan kimchi.

Overall, though there was a chill in the air, the warmth brought by the crowd more than made for an exciting day.

Vegan Mofo #22 Central Florida Veg Fest

 

It’s that time again! The Central Florida Veg Fest started out beautifully October 22, 2011. Every year in October, Vegans and Vegetarians in Central Florida look forward to gathering together to eat great food, meet old and new friends, listen to amazing musicians, get delicious food ideas, and learn something new from brilliant speakers.

This year, we were graced with a visit from the amazing Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. Author, activist, passionate speaker, and all-round amazing person. Colleen addressed the audience with humor, honesty, and pure passion.

It was that passion that touched me more than I realized. I sat in awe watching her speak about veganism in a way that was not scary to anyone. There seemed to be quite a few people in the audience curious about living the vegan lifestyle. Of course, newbies think of veganism as a trend, fad, and a diet when really it is much more than that.

Ms. Goudreau is truly an inspiration to anyone that comes in contact with her. She has this infectious personality that radiates passion and compassion from the inside out. When she speaks, she makes veganism sound like the it thing to do. However it is the smart thing to do. I really enjoyed meeting her and experiencing what people all over the country has had the honor of being present.

Boy was I present!

 

Happy Vegan Mofo!

I am so happy to finally be able to begin this journey! I only recently found out about Vegan Mofo – Vegan Month of Food. From what I understand, Vegan Month of Food is about Vegan and Non-Vegan Bloggers coming together to write about all vegan food. I am looking forward to reading about new products and trying out new recipes from other vegan bloggers.

Honestly, I am pretty excited about my participation in Vegan Mofo this month. Seriously, vegans are a tough crowd to please because they have high expectations. Which we deserve to have such feelings. Everyday, vegans live in a world flooded with views from family, friends and strangers, products, and foods that are geared to the mainstream – Omnivores. Whereas, we are left with the internet to find other vegans, vegan food, and vegan recipes that are satisfying yet full of flavor.

It can be relatively easy for some, yet frustrating and difficult for others to navigate the vegan lifestyle in an omnivore world. Especially when a vegan wants to ‘hang out’ with their non-friends. When going out to eat, just trying to decide on the perfect restaurant for everybody to eat can be exhausting. The reason can be as simple as the restaurant in question may not have any options nor does it accommodate menu changes. As well as, your non-vegan friends may have the attitude of ‘just pick off the meat’ or the chef may not have a clue as to what to make for a vegan other than sautéed peppers, mushrooms, and onions on a baked potato or roast vegetables that are soggy and burnt rather than appetizing. Which leaves you at the mercy of clueless server who suggest cheesy vegetarian options as seriously good dishes which are very popular with all their vegetarian customers. People often think that vegans and vegetarians are one in the same. Unfortunately, we still have a lot of work to do.

So with all that being said, I am ready for Vegan Mofo so that I can meet new people, read all the food creations and try new recipes. This will be a great month!