Vegan Goodies!

Recently, I visited my favorite all-organic grocery store, MOM's, to pick out a few new vegan goodies to try. Located in Mosaic District, Merrifield, VA, this is a great store to explore and discover new food items that you wouldn't normally find in a typical grocery store.

My first find were all natural Thai Spring Rolls, from the Health is Wealth food brand. I'm not usually keen on preparing frozen foods so I was slightly unsure about how these would hold up while cooking. As it turns out, you should definitely keep these pretty cold or slightly frozen just before you are about to fry or bake them. Do not thaw out completely beforehand or else they might get soggy and break up. Overall, they were very tasty bite size rolls and I would definitely get them again!

Another goodie is dark chocolate covered frozen bananas from Diana's Bananas called Banana Babies! These are a fun and guilt-free treat using REAL (yes, real) bananas. I personally think that bananas are the most non-appetizing fruit to eat but I'll definitely enjoy anything dipped in dark chocolate.

Another new product I have been looking forward to trying is not so much a snack but something I can incorporate into some of my cooking. Nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast sold in the form of flakes or yellow powder, usually used as a seasoning. It is a source of extra vitamins and proteins. Because I am slightly lactose intolerant, I like to use it in many of my pasta or italian dishes as a cheese substitute due to it's nutty/cheesy flavor profile. I will soon post a meal I make, incorporating nutritional yeast, that way you can have an idea of how it can be used. 

The last item is not so new but I have been wanting to rave about Teeccino since I first tried it! Teeccino is an organic, non-decaf, herbal coffee and it's ah-mazing. Because constant caffeine intake is not so good for the body, I try to avoid it as often as I can. Plus I have a hard time expelling caffeine from my body so this is a great coffee substitute. BUT what I love most about it, is that you have an option to purchase it in tea bag packages, as instant coffee. I also love the hazelnut flavor because it's like drinking a cup of winter yumminess. 

So these are my new vegan picks for now and I will be posting new goodies I try as often as I can!