Some Quality Vegan Eats!

I wanted to take a minute today to post some good vegan treats! It can be difficult to try new things sometimes for fear that they may not compare to your childhood comfort foods and  they they may taste "fake".  Quite frankly, vegan alternatives are often a hit or miss type thing.... either you love em' or you hate em' .  I have included a list of vegan comfort food and imitations that I seriously enjoy.  Let it be known, I am very difficult to please when it comes to vegan substitutions of comfort foods because I ate meat for so long and became highly acclimated to the taste of "meat" .  So here it goes, a list of highly recommended vegan comfort food products for the new and the cultured vegan.  These foods are perfect for cookouts, desserts, and comfort food meals!  They are products that vegans and non-vegans, alike, will enjoy.  These products are not put in any specific order. 

1. Smart Dogs: These "hot dogs" taste just like regular hot dogs!  I thought nothing would replace my love for Morning Star hot dogs when I became vegan and could no longer eat them, but I was terribly wrong and knew it very clearly the SECOND I tasted these delicious dogs! So anyway, I highly recommend  these amazing lil' links! 

2. Field Roast Sausages: I absolutely love these sausages when I am craving a brat with sauerkraut, versus a hot dog with ketchup and mustard.  They are full of flavor and are very similar to the taste and texture of sausages and brats.   

 3. Dominex Eggplant Cutlets: Sweet precious Mary these puppies are good!  I cook them in the oven for about 17 minutes and they are baked to crispy perfection!  They are simply amazing and great in a sandwich or eaten plain.  They have a wonderful flavor!  I ate them plain with marinara dipping sauce served with whole wheat noodles and veggies!  They are delicious!  

 4. Yves Deli Bologna: I never really liked regular bologna, but I have always been a HUGE sandwich fan.  Turkey sandwiches were my favorite lunchtime meal.  Lucky for me, it still can be! I pair Yves Deli bologna with whole wheat toast, nasoya mayonnaise, lettuce, onions, mustard, and tomato. Ahhh yes! This is delicious!  Praise the Lord, I am not stuck eating peanut butter and jelly all the time after all!  YAY!

5. Dr. Praeger's California Veggie Burgers: These things should be famous! They are so absolutely breathtakingly delicious!  The company motto is "Made with ingredients you know".  All of the ingredients in these delicious burgers can be found in your local grocery store.  They are amazing either broiled or grilled!  2 thumbs up for these lovely burgers!

6. Rice Dream Chocolate Nut Bar: Never crave another DQ buster bar again with these delicious little nutty ice cream bars!  They are fabulous!  Wonderful chocolate coating with nutty goodness filled with vanilla rice ice cream.  Yep. Wonderfulness! 

 7. Rice Dream Mink Pie: Craving mint chocolate chip ice cream? This is a nice treat to crave that little craving!  The best part is that its portable and covered in chocolate! Could you get any better than that?!?!

 8. Coconut Bliss: The use of the term "bliss" in the title of this product is absolutely accurate. Every bite of this delicious ice cream is better than the last.  This is BY FAR my favorite began ice cream to date.  I also enjoy the cookie dough coconut bliss.  I'm sure the other flavors are wonderful as well, I just haven't had the pleasure of trying them yet.  Yep, if you are looking for an ice cream that tastes remarkably similar to regular ice cream and has a ton of delicious flavor, look no further than the nearest coconut bliss.  They also have chocolate bars (frozen) that I've heard wonderful things about but haven't tried myself.  

 9. Daiya Cheese: Ah yes, Daiya Cheese... I could sing songs about this product.  I love the mozzarella shreds!  They make a wonderful pizza and an even BETTER mac and cheese.  (look up macaroni and cheese by the Vegan Zombie) fajkfgjksdkgjsk<--- words cannot describe the level of deliciousness of the use of Daiya in macaroni and cheese.  I need to try more recipes with Daiya cheese shreds, but I've been altogether pleased with it thus far.  If you try any recipes using Daiya that you would like to share or that worked out well, feel free to comment or post the recipe!  Another good product made by Daiya is the Daiya cheese wedges!  I LOVE the havarti style wedges on my Yves Deli Style Bologna sandwiches!  yum yum yum!

10. Nasoya Mayonnaise: This stuff is GREAT! wonderful absolutely wonderful! Amazing invention! Nasoya tastes similar to Miracle Whip. I've made a wonderful potato salad (which no one knew was vegan) and put this wonderfulness on my sandwiches.  Yep! 5 stars here! 

I am by no means suggesting that one sustain a vegan lifestyle by eating all sorts of "mock" meats, cheeses, desserts, and other comfort foods... It is essential that a healthful vegan diet consist of a majority of whole foods, but the occasional comfort food to subside cravings for childhood comfort foods is totally okay!  I think its extremely important to show that there are plenty of vegan "non-meat" and cruelty free alternatives out there that are delicious and even comparable to our family favorites.  These foods can help to bridge the gap that makes people believe that vegan food is tasteless, bland, and disgusting (because its not!).  There are plenty of vegan alternatives of our favorite foods without sacrificing the dignity of creation.  Hope you found this post helpful!