vegansaurus!

It’s hot as all get out, let’s look at vegan ice cream.  »

It’s shoot-me-in-the-face hot in NYC today and I’m not in the mood because I had to work all Memorial Day weekend and my coworkers are being total bros. To cheer me up, let’s stare at vegan ice cream, shall we? Above is chocolate brownie ice cream from the Minimalist Baker. Damn. I could get down with that. 

Now we got some brownie ice cream sandwiches from Keepin’ it Kind:

I’m totally ready to tear these up. Instead I have a meeting in 8 minutes. 

Finally, let’s look at some coconut white Russian ice cream from Quiche a Week:

Ok, let’s all promise to eat vegan ice cream today, alright? We owe it to ourselves!

Dog saves kitten from ravine! Nurses her as her own!  »

Animal Control in Greenville, S.C., got a call about a dog stuck in a ravine. An officer went to check it out and climbed down, following the dog’s howls. What does she find when she gets there? The little dog was nursing a kitten! OMG DON’T DIE! OK YOU CAN DIE!

The officer believed the dog could have climbed back up from the revine but couldn’t bring the kitten and didn’t want to leave her. Watch this video, the best moment is in the first few seconds—the dog totally grabs the kitten by the scruff! 

Can’t see the video? Watch it on Vegansaurus.com!

Anderson County PAWS recently updated their fb to say the dog and kitten are off to foster care together. Though like the video says, this dog looks like she came from a good home, so I hope the family comes to claim her—and wants a kitten!

Get ready for whey in everything again  »

Thanks, Greek yogurt craze.

[Cornell dairy scientist Dave] Barbano, who specializes in filtration methods for separation and recovery of protein, has his sights set on the tiny amount of protein in acid whey. He believes it might be usable as an infant formula ingredient. But first Barbano has to figure out how to extract the protein in a cost-effective way, and his research is just getting underway.

The concept is roughly modeled on the success that cheese-makers have had selling products derived from their own byproduct — sweet whey. Sweet whey is more valuable and easier to handle than acid whey, as it has a lot more protein, and is easier to dry because it isn’t as acidic as Greek yogurt whey. Cheese-makers have developed a lucrative business selling whey protein for use in body-building supplements and as a food ingredient. And Greek yogurt makers are eager to follow suit.

Last year the industry produced more than 150 million gallons of acid whey as a byproduct of making Greek yogurt, and they have no idea how to get rid of it all. Yet. Just wait till they figure out how to make a cheap additive out of it, it’ll be a whey-in-everything party all over again. Like useless dairy byproducts aren’t snuck into enough processed foods already. Like we didn’t have enough reasons to hate the dairy industry.

Read the entire article at Modern Farmer to find out the extent of the decadence and wastefulness of Greek-style yogurt production, facts that you can tell all your yogurt-eating friends as they stand in the dairy aisle, trying to decide between Chobani and Fage. Or, more realistically, you can yell about over a drink with your vegan friends, hoping if you’re loud enough some yogurt-eaters will overhear and mend their ways. Passive-aggressive activism!

[Photo by Jared and Corin via Flickr]

It’s Paul Shapiro’s Animal News You Can Use!  »

It’s Paul Shapiro’s Animal News You Can Use! Yay, Paul! Yay, Animals!

Still happy about the Tennessee governor’s veto of his state’s ag-gag bill? So is the state’s largest paper, which editorialized this week that “On every level, ‘ag gag’ was a failure” and that “the legislation was built upon a lie.”

The new ag-gag battle is in North Carolina, where a bill is pending in the state legislature. You can read the HSUS state director’s op-ed on the issue.

You knew that foie gras production was terrible for the birds. Do you know how the farm workers are treated? Here’s the Financial Times’ coverage of the issue.

Ever wonder about the guy behind most of the attacks on HSUS? The Boston Globe had a major front-page exposé on meat industry frontman Rick Berman (of the so-called “Center for Consumer Freedom”) and his campaign against HSUS. Appropriately, the piece is entitled, “Washington’s robust market for attacks, half-truths.”

And on the polar opposite end of the spectrum, Peter Singer has a great new TED talk on effective altruism that’s worth your time.

P.S. Video of the week:

The most inefficient—and cutest—way a cat has ever drunk water.

Krže Studio makes fancy vegan shoes!  »

And they’re so exclusive we can’t even buy them yet! They look like they’re gonna be tough and pretty and totally expensive, but you know what? Quality vegan shoes aren’t cheap. Not to knock cheap vegan shoes! But generally shoes at a higher price point come with things like padded footbeds, a little arch support, and consideration that they have to be worn on actual human feet.

I’m super into the Keely booties above in black; I love that buckle underneath! The 100 percent lack of functionality, without even a pretense of usefulness! It’s so insouciant, right?

I also really like the Hazel slip-ons in this crinkly metallic orange.

If you’re going to wear a shoe with such a basic shape, you ought to get creative with the color and materials. You can wear boring shoes when you’re dead!

Krže Studio was created by Leila Tamar Kerze, who studied fashion design at college and worked for BCBG and Donald J. Pliner before striking out on her vegan own.

When can you buy these shoes? Where can you buy them? I have no answers for you. What I do know is that these shoes have a lot of attitude and I am glad people see a market for luxury vegan footwear. Leather is so passé.

Super important update!!!: Megan loves this pair! -MR

[images via Krzhe Studio]

Happy day! Van Leeuwen has vegan ice cream!   »

Check it out! I haven’t tried it yet but there’s a Van Leeuwen in my neighborhood in BK. I’m so excited! Everybody loves this stuff! According to their fb, the vegan flavors will be available at all locations. HUZZAH!