vegansaurus!

I have a history of awesome vegan roommates (see: Vegan Myths Debunked creators Jonathan and Ivory). My new roommate here in Patagonia, Ariz. is the awesome Krisanga Cowen. Krisanga (far right) took a break from grinding sprouted raw nut butters and making coconuts delicious to tell Vegansaurus readers about how much he loves promoting a health-conscious, plant-based lifestyle through Vivapura, the vegan superfoods company he co-owns here in Patagonia. Here’s the skinny on this fit and loving veg guy and his approach to incorporating superfoods in a plant-source diet! Hope you enjoy!

Vegansaurus: How did you get into veganism?
Krisanga Cowen: My best friend since kindergarten Todd got me into the Smiths. At 16, we dyed our hair blonde to look like Morrissey and kind of idolized him. In 1985 Smiths came out with “Meat is Murder.” That song opened our eyes to what actually goes on in this country and factory farming and how animals are mutilated. We went vegan overnight. Later, I read John Robbins’ Diet For a New America, and I actually went to vegan restaurants, which I’d never done before. I studied with yogini Kali Ray for seven years on and off, taking classes [and] workshops, [being] among other teachers, and really admired her way of eating plant-source-only, mostly live, all-organic foods for health and yoga.

How did your previous business, Cocopura, which sold only coconut products, become Vivapura, which sells an extensive line of superfoods?
I had one product in four different sizes: coconut oil. My quest for developing more products was moving to Patagonia in 2007, renting a 6,000-square-foot warehouse. I met Chris Whitcoe, and he and I were both master’s students. I had connections for superfoods. I had just built a commercial kitchen for coconut products and I started selling gogi berries and Incan berries and nori sheets and Monukka raisins, basically out the back door. I mainly sold to guests and people working at the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center. That’s how Vivapura was born.

When did Vivapura officially take off?
We formed Vivapura in September 2008, and got into Whole Foods and other stores in 2010, in addition to our online and in-store sales. The idea behind Vivapura was to create raw vegan products that haven’t been seen or available on the marketplace—unique, hand-crafted products like coconut crème that’s stone-ground, our chaparrel coconut oil, our soaked and dehydrated nut butters…. Sourcing products that are heirloom varieties that are unique to different regions of the world. Styrian pumpkin seeds are only grown in Austria in that region, and heirloom variety of pumpkin seeds that are robust and GMO-free and high in zinc and protein and chlorophyll. Our products were designed to be eco-friendly, vegan, non-GMO, and delicious. We hope Vegansaurus readers will enjoy them!

Is most of the Vivapura team vegan or vegetarian?
We support local people and give them a voice inside our company…we open a space for people to transform. A lot of people become vegetarian or vegan after working with us; we accept the mainstreamers and teach them about gogi berries and how to eat vegan and feel great on superfoods. We expose people to ways not to need processed foods, in a healthy, supportive environment where your voice matters and is taken into account for decisions the company makes. That really impacts an individual. They shift, grow, expand and become more open and expressive. Naturally, that often leads to vegetarianism or veganism.

This is Vegansaurus raw correspondent Sarah E. Brown’s latest post! Read more by Sarah on Vegansaurus, and visit her personal blog, Queer Vegan Food.

An all-vegan campus cafeteria? Yep! Responding to the demand for more vegan food choices on campus, the University of North Texas has just set the bar higher. Taking students’ requests to heart, they have created a full-service vegan cafeteria, Mean Greens Dining Hall, believed to be the first in the nation! UNT’s dining services special projects director Ken Botts sees this as a trend that will eventually be catching on around the country. As Botts told Pegasus News:

“…[E]verybody at some point in their day eats vegetables and a lot of them. What we also know is that not everybody everyday only eats meat.”

Bambi-hunting, craw-daddy-loving Texas has the first vegan campus cafeteria! No meat, no dairy, no kidding! Mean Greens is serving up things like roasted veggies, vegan sushi, asparagus soup, bananas foster, pancakes, fresh baked focaccia, paninis, a ridiculously awesome salad bar, vegan pizza, ice cream and more. It seems like a super nice place to be. I’m ready to go back to school.  As Cher says, “If I could turn back time…”

Sharon runs BigCityVegan.com, a website dedicated to living a cruelty-free lifestyle where you’ll find vegan recipes and products, like vegan t-shirts and vegan shoes.

What up, my sexy vegan ladies (and dudes, y’all are welcome, too)? It’s getting to be fall here in the Midwest, which means I’m arbitrarily dumping pumpkin into everything I’m baking. This week, it’s dark chocolate pumpkin brownies. I’m giving you the recipe as a half-batch (because I have no self control and eat the entire pan, so, you know, I’m being healthy this way, right?), but the times for a full batch are included.  Let’s bake, bitches!

Ingredients
1/2 cup vegan butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin (I buy the canned stuff, but you can be fancy and cook your own, too)
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 to 1 cup flour
1/2 to 3/4 cup roughly chopped dark chocolate

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F.

Melt your butter, and mix the ingredients in order, making sure each is well combined before moving on.

Grease and flour an 8x8” baking pan, pour the batter in, and bake for 26 minutes. If you’re hungry (or you have to share), double everything, pour into a 9x13” pan, and bake for 32 minutes.

Cool, cut, devour. Goes best with coffee.

Lisa Holmes is a vegan art student living in Missouri. Her free time is spent baking, swing dancing, singing a capella music, and building things out of stained glass. Find her on Twitter at @labelledinosaur.

Amid all the fur and leather comes a breath of fresh air for the vegans during New York City Fashion Week! Perfectly placed at Greenhouse, the eco-friendly event venue located in Tribeca, Have Mercy! will feature some of the industry’s top vegan-friendly designers, including Fraley Le, Yane Mode, Sew Moe Designs and Pretty Birdie Stephanie Teague.

Enjoy hors d’oeurves catered by Verite, desserts by Bolaji Cuisine, and delectable vegan chocolate by Rescue Chocolate while you’re entertained by James Koroni’s Forced Arch Dance Troupe and Vegansaurus’ beloved vegan drag queen Honey LaBronx! The U.S. Veg Corps is hosting.

The best part? Funds will benefit Mercy For Animals. Tickets are $25 in advance and $40 at the door. The event will run from 7:30 to 10 p.m. at Greenhouse, located at 150 Varick St. For further information call (917) 767.7283 or visit the Facebook page.

Vegan bakesales are the best bakesales, right? Tasty, portable food, all of it cruelty-free, and all the proceeds go to charitable causes. The next one you should attend is on Wednesday, put on by the Berkeley Organization for Animal Advocacy in support of Berkeley Animal Care Services, part of the city of Berkeley. It’s a no-kill shelter that needs money to expand. Help them out by picking up some delicious baked goods!

The sale will be held tomorrow, Sept. 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sproul Plaza on the UC Berkeley campus. For details, check out the Facebook event page. See you there!

[photo by Wes Allison via Flickr]

Hey! You know how you want to be fancy all the time but you also need to hoard your groats!? Well, we’ve got a solution! Well, kind-of!

Millennium is offering their Millennium’s September Winemaker Dinner THIS WEDNESDAY for $60 instead of $75 if you mention you heard about it on Vegansaurus! It’s just that easy! So, you can’t be HELLA poor if you wanna go, but you can be cheap and wanting of an extra $15 in your pocket. You can use that money to buy me diamonds and rubies and a pony and seven sandwiches LAY OFF ME I’M STARVING.

Here’s the skinny from Millennium:

Our wine director Chris Tavelli is thrilled to partner with Terra Savia for our September winemaker dinner. Owner and Winemaker Jim Milone is a fourth generation Hopland Winegrower and has been making wine for over 30 years. He adheres to the highest standards of organic certification and, committed to land conservation and wildlife preservation, considers impact on our environment throughout the winemaking process. Jim produces one of the few organic California sparkling wines and uses the traditional Champagne method. Eric Tucker, Emmy Miller and their team are excited to have the opportunity to create a five course globally influenced, locally sourced menu around these delicious wines. Join us for an unforgettable evening with Chris and Jim Milone from Terra Savia who will be on hand to discuss the wines and to answer any questions you may have.

“put more effort in the vineyard and minimize treatment in the cellar; winemaking starts when you lay down the first compost in the Fall and prune in winter.”

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
6-9:30pm
Sparkling Wine Reception 6pm
Dinner Served Promptly at 6:30pm
5-course menu with wine pairings
*$75/person $60 for Vegansaurus readers!!
*(before tax/gratuity)
Space is limited, please call Alison to reserve your seat at the table today
415.345.3900 x 13

Below is a sneak peek (sexy!) at the menu!

AMUSE
2009 Chardonnay
En Croute
seared king trumpet mushroom, Chardonnay cream sauce, fried nori

ONE
2007 Blanc De Blanc
Bruscetta
almond crusted champagne grape, macadamia nut “cheese”, Bosc pear, frisee

TWO
2007 Meritage
Baked Yuba Roll
carrot-parsnip kinpira & tofu filling, tea smoked plum sauce, red wine-star anise caramelized cabbage with apples

THREE
2008 Cabernet Sauvignon
Empanada Verde
plantain crust, chile & citrus marinated Portobello mushroom asada, pineapple-cacao mole, grilled watermelon salsa

FOUR
2008 Petit Verdot
Brik Pastry Beggar’s Purse
shelling beans & chanterelle mushrooms, “gorgonzola” soft polenta, stewed tomatoes, pine nut toasted bread crumbs

FIVE
A SWEET SURPRISE… (ooooh…)

You can make this with a different-colored onion, and it’ll be totally normal ranch dressing. But pink is my favorite color, and I had too many red onions, so here it is.

Pink Power Ranch Dressing
makes around 3 cups

Ingredients
1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
6 oz. firm silken tofu (vacuum-packed rules!)
1/2 small red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 cup nondairy milk
juice of 1 lemon (or about 2 Tbsp. for you bottle-users)
2 tsp. mustard (I used whole-grain dijon, but I don’t give a damn if you use French’s; it’ll still probably be awesome)
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 tsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce (here is a good recipe if you can’t find it or don’t want to buy it)
1/2 tsp. celery seed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. dried dill (or 3 Tbsp. fresh, if you’re fancy, which I’m not)

Instructions
Throw everything but the dill in your food processor or blender. Process/blend forever and ever, or about a minute, until your stuff looks totally combined and there are no big chunks of onion left (nast).

Add the dill, and blend again for maybe 10 seconds this time, so you can still see little green flecks.

Transfer to a covered container of some sort, and store in the fridge for a couple-few hours before serving. This allows the flavors to blend, amateur.

Then dump it all over an otherwise healthy salad, celery sticks, buffalo “wings,” pizza crusts, and pound cake. I mean, what?!

This is Pete with his BFF. Pete’s story in a nutshell, from Pete himself:

I was attacked by dogs and mauled when I was about five days old. Some nice people took me to David and he nursed me back to health. Fish and Wildlife told the people who found me to let me die. They couldn’t bear to just leave me there. David has been my best friend for the last 14 months. A nice man named Doug has a 600-acre ranch that is fenced and he lets me stay here along with about 120 other deer and moose that have gotten through the “state designed and approved” fence. Now that we are here, the Department of Fish and Wildlife wants to destroy us.

Poor Pete! More:

The Vermont DFW wants to destroy Pete and the other animals there. Part of Pete’s diet comes from from animal feed. Because of this, Vermont state officials claim animals there could contract something called “Chronic Wasting Disease,” a brain ailment that affects deer-like animals, and which can be spread through feed. And so the DFW would like to “remove” the deer and moose that now inhabit this property. And by “remove,” they mean “kill.” They have known about us all along, but they didn’t care to try and help out a long time ago. 

 WE NEED YOUR HELP TO SAVE PETE! We DO NOT want Pete destroyed! We DO NOT want Pete in a zoo! And we want the Governor to put whatever promises he makes about what will happen to Pete to be put in writing!

I don’t know anything about Chronic Wasting Disease, but if this can be passed by feed, do venison farms not use feed anymore? I looked into this, and Maine.gov had a bunch of info on CWD: For one, people aren’t really sure how it’s contracted—it’s only their best guess that it’s from feed. Two, “Assuming all feed companies are complying with the FDA ban [on using rendering products in feed], commercial feeds commonly used to supplement the diets of captive/farmed or wild cervids would currently be free of CWD infectivity.” So instead of destroying the animals, can’t they just make sure they are buying approved feed? If the Vermont DFW wants to shut down Pete’s home, they should have to shut down all the venison farms too—let’s see if that happens! Another important thing to note: there’s no evidence at all that it can be spread to humans. FYI.

What you can do: Sign the petition, spread the word, buy some Pete the Moose merchandise to fund the cause and show your support! 

UPDATE!: Vegan Yack Attack just alerted me to this note on the petition page: “Success — Pete isn’t going anywhere! Your signatures helped lawmakers decide to keep Pete alive and with the people who care about him”

They could have put that on the home page before I got all worried! But I’m glad this story has a happy ending. And how cute is Pete?

I am not a raw-foodist, nor do I suffer from celiac disease. I did spend a solid year “eating less wheat,” but that year I was also involved in two terrible relationships and constantly going for a run and drinking low-calorie soymilk—we file that year under “personal crises” and try not to think about it very much.

People with legitimate gluten issues, however, can’t just hop back on the bread train (the most delicious train) when they get sick of avoiding wheat. That’s why there are companies like A Couple Smart Cookies, which makes three flavors of vegan gluten-free cookies for your wheatless enjoyment.

A Couple Smart Cookies sent me their three-flavor variety pack to sample. They make fudge squared, a chocolate cookie with chocolate chips; peanut butter loves chocolate chip, a peanut butter cookie with chocolate chips; and pumpkin dates cherry, a pumpkin cookie with dried cherry pieces. They’re small, like the size of a silver dollar and about half an inch thick, and soft.

After sampling them around my household, we decided we liked the pumpkin dates cherry the best: It’s lightly spiced, not too sweet, and is full-flavored without overwhelming. The fudge squared came second: It’s quite chocolatey, but something about the gluten-free flour, maybe, made it taste a little off, like, a little salty and a little, I don’t know, gritty? Almost perfect but not quite. The peanut butter was no one’s favorite: Way too chewy, it doesn’t really taste of peanut butter, and all the cookies in the tub stuck together so much that separating them was unpleasant.

Still! The pumpkin was good, like, without qualification, and I would definitely recommend them to the gluten-abstainers of the world. Maybe a few recipe tweaks and the peanut butter and fudge flavors will improve. They’re sweetened with dehydrated cane juice and dates, and the flour is rice (see the full ingredients lists here). I really don’t have much experience with gluten-free products, but these seem pretty all right. Again, I think they’ll be better once the peanut butter and fudge flavors catch up to the pumpkin, but the pumpkin is quite tasty.

You can buy any and all of A Couple Smart Cookies’ flavors online, or at health food stores/co-ops/places that know what’s up in California. Like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter to track their progress, or tell them you love them, or whatever you use those sites for. Fun? Fun!

My sincere apologies for not taking pictures, but presently at my house we have no fully functional digital cameras. Thanks very much to A Couple Smart Cookies for sending me their three flavors free of charge to try.

[Would you like Vegansaurus to sample your vegan products? Let us know!]

Per usual, I slipped up last week, so this spans a couple weeks. Leave me alone, I have a real job!

National Geographic has a nice infograph about the LEGAL wildlife trade in Asia. It’s ill. I would have posted it but it’s too big to post the whole thing so go check it out.

From One Green Planet, vegan wine pairings! I love my wine and you know this.

Grist wonders, is Idaho a safe haven for CAFOs (Confined Animal Feeding Operation)? Damn, Idaho, that’s whack.

Ke$ha is the Humane Society International’s new Global Ambassador. All right.

Wildlife officials in upstate New York “are squealing over ‘captive hunts’ upstate that have flooded three counties with out-of-control feral hogs.” Squealing.

This is kind of a big deal but I don’t have time to write a good post on it so maybe it can be our discussion topic: A new economics study confirms Namibian seal-watching is worth 300 percent more than seal hunting. I’ve heard of things like this before, where like safari-type tourist things could be worth more than elephant ivory and whale-watching could bring in more cash money than whale-killing. Have you guys? Seems pretty awesome. There should be an organization that JUST focuses on this. Money makes the world go round!

Our favorite guilt-ridden omni, Sami Grover from Treehugger, says all the meat eaters should eat less meat! It’s totes true.

Vegan Mainstream says our Laura is a vegan mover and shaker! That Laura, she’s so lovable. And foul-mouthed.

Gothamist taste-tested the Dun-Well faux-gras donut and the foie gras donut, and the dudes who made the actual dead-goose-liver pastry were all, The fake one is good, but we won’t be making a vegan version ourselves because vegans have “a FUBU mentality when it comes to vegan delights.” Which, buddy, do you know how much more business you would get if you offered novelty fancy vegan food? So much.

Refinery29, of which my favorite ex-boyfriend is a founding member, has a nice vegan shoe list: 12 Vegan Shoes That Aren’t Fugly. Some of the usual suspects, but several I hadn’t seen! And YOU KNOW I seen a lot of shoes. I like those first loafers, buy them for me.

When I first moved to the Bay Area, my therapist suggested I participate in an organized activity in order to “make friends,” whatever that means. I joined an aikido dojo and became intrigued by one of the most famous practitioners of this martial art: Steven Seagal. Dude was the first foreigner in Japan to operate an aikido dojo, and he’s a seventh dan, which means he’s basically indestructible. He provided further evidence of this in his acting career, movies such as Hard to Kill (obviously) and Under Siege. I decided during those heady aikido days that Seagal was a badass.

HOWEVER, Steven and I are now beefin’ due to his reality TV show Steven Seagal: Lawman, during the filming of which his team raided a farm on the grounds that the birds there were being raised for cockfighting. Cockfighting is terrible, but during the raid Seagal and his “team” allegedly killed more than 100 of the roosters living there, plus a puppy.

This behavior seems extra-odd in light of Seagal’s pro-animal-rights stance and the release of The Patriot (straight to DVD!). But Seagal and friends say the 11-month-old puppy, companion to the farm owner’s children, is lie invented to attract publicity and increase the damages in the impending lawsuit.

Let it be noted that toupee-wearing ham and terrifying racist teabagger Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Ariz. signed off on this. This is the guy famous for forcing prison inmates to eat spoiled food and live in tents during extreme Phoenix temperatures. He also thought “volunteer chain gangs” were a good idea. Naturally, he OKed sending armored vehicles, dozens of officers, and Steven Seagal ON A GODDAMNED TANK to raid an unarmed chicken farm, tear down a surrounding wall, and smash the windows of the owner’s home. Thanks for laying down the law, “America’s Toughest Sheriff”! Puppy blood is on your hands.

[photo via Newsoxy]

Vegansaurus pal Emily has tiny baby foster bunnies that, as of Friday, will be old enough for you to adopt! They are classic white rabbits of the Alice in Wonderland variety and so cute I can’t even handle it. My long, rabbit-less years are a trial unto me, you guys. Someday I will adopt a rabbit and we will be best friends and finally my life will be complete.

What’s up with these bunnies? Emily says that they’re an accidental litter from one of the meat-rabbits living on ONLY RICE in Oakland. After these 22 rabbits were rescued by Oakland Animal Services at the end of June, a few of them were found to be pregnant. Emily is fostering the remaining four kits; they were originally a litter of nine, who Emily fed by syring when they weren’t eating on their own, but still only four made it. If you want to adopt one of these little precious perfect angels, Emily’s working with SaveABunny, though as of publishing time they’re not on the site.

Emily says,

White, red-eyed rabbits—like black cats, tan chihuahuas, and pit bulls of all colors—are known for being hard to get adopted. And there’s no good reason! White bunnies are often passed by by adopters looking at cute, tiny, fluffy, or lop-eared bunnies bred for looks.

Rabbits bred for looks (like dwarves or lionheads) have varying temperaments and are prone to health problems, but big white buns are generally hearty (rabbits can live 10 to 15 years) and are almost always amazingly sweet. They make good rabbits for households with children, because they are less likely to be afraid of grabbing little hands than little bunnies are.

To that end, Oakland Animal Services is having a white rabbit adoptathon this weekend! On Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. at OAS HQ (1101 29th Ave., between E. 12th and E. 10 sts. in Oakland), all white rabbits are adoptable for just a $10 fee. That is so little money for a bunny! Check out their bunnies online and see how many are white! Quite a few! You can also bring in your bunnies for a free nail-trimming, and maybe to meet their future best rabbit pal. Contact OAS for further information on this weekend’s adoption event. Contact Emily directly to learn more about adopting the baby buns.

[photo courtesy Emily via Flickr. See more of the bunnies here]

This is Olivia with her friend Ruby! Olivia is almost five. Happy early bday, O! She’s from Nevada City, CA. and her mom has a cool vegan baking biz: Allison’s Gourmet. OMG that stuff looks GOOD! Olivia must be living the yummy vegan life. Jealous.

What is your favorite food?
Olivia: Pink Beans. [Ed. note: whaa? Is this a real thing? I love pink food!]

What is your favorite kind of birthday cake?
Olivia: Chocolate strawberry with cherries on top.

Why are you vegan?
Olivia: Because we don’t want to hurt other animals.

Do you like being vegan? Why?
Olivia: Yes, it’s fun ‘cause you can eat yummier stuff than turkey and junk like that. Mom: What’s yummier stuff?
Olivia: You know, kale, and stuff like that.

Is it ever hard to be vegan?
Olivia: No, it’s fun to be vegan. Especially for your tummy because it doesn’t have to process a bunch of junk.

What do your friends think about you being vegan?
Olivia: Um, I don’t really know how to answer that one. I haven’t asked them.

What is your favorite animal? Why?
Olivia: Ruby, the pig at Animal Place because I’ve known her since she was a baby. [Ed. note: AHHDORBS]

Do you like pink dinosaurs? Can you draw one for us? We would love it!
Olivia: Pink dinosaurs? I don’t know what pink dinosaurs are so I don’t really know if I like them. But yeah, I’ll draw one for you! 

Olivia offers this final note: “If you’re not vegan, I want you to be vegan. Because it’s fun.”

As usual, if you have a vegan or vegetarian kid who wants to do the interview, email me!