Denver’s Lala’s Wine Bar + Pizzeria is increasing their animal-free options by adding a vegan pizza to their menu.
The pizza is on their Chef’s Special menu, and it features their tomato sauce, grilled asparagus, artichokes, savory button mushrooms, Peppadew peppers, and Daiya dairy-free cheese.
When Vegan Outreach approached Lala’s, they told us that vegan cheese has been a common request from customers, and they’re excited to finally have this option available!
We’re thrilled to be partnering with Lala’s as we continue to make the world more vegan-friendly!
If this Pizza Pasta Bake doesn’t scream comfort food, then I don’t know what does. Don’t wait to give this meal a try if you’re looking to whip up a little TLC in your kitchen.
1 cup cashew cream (you can substitute unsweetened, non-dairy creamer)
¼ cup tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 16-oz bag frozen vegetables, cooked according to package instructions, or 5 cups steamed, chopped vegetables of choice (broccoli, carrots, green beans, peppers, zucchini, and cauliflower are all great)
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Bring a pot of water to boil and cook pasta according to package instructions, until it’s al dente.
While the pasta cooks, mix the marinara sauce, cashew cream, tomato paste, oregano, and thyme. When the pasta is ready, drain it and return it to the pot. Add the marinara mixture, the frozen vegetables, and the tofu feta (tip: don’t forget to include the tofu feta marinade, which is super flavorful!). Taste and add black pepper to taste, as well as salt (or some nutritional yeast, if you like).
Transfer everything to your casserole dish and top with the parmesan. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the pasta is bubbly and the top is just a little crispy. Serve.
Recipe Tips/Variations
In place of tofu feta, you can substitute 1 ½ cups of your favorite vegan cheese. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice and 1-2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (to taste) to the recipe.
By Roxanne Hill, Community Engagement and Events Manager
Photo: Joe Coleman—The Vegan Monk
I first heard about Joe Coleman, the Vegan Monk, through a Vegan Outreach colleague. She mentioned that he has a very positive Facebook presence and would be a great person to interview if he was interested. Well, Monk—as he likes to be called—was interested, and I’m so glad that I had the opportunity to do this interview and learn about who he is and what he stands for.
Roxanne Hill: How long have you been vegan?
Joe Coleman / Vegan Monk: I’ve been vegan for over two years, but meat-free for over four years.
Roxanne: What inspired you to become vegan?
Monk: My spiritual practice inspired me to stop eating meat. It probably was around my third year of meditating regularly when I made the connection to all life, or should I say, that was brought back to my awareness.
I used to think veganism was a religion, a cult. I didn’t know what it was, so I did research. Once I learned what happened to chickens, I became vegan.
Roxanne: Once you had made the decision, did you find the transition challenging?
Monk: Due to the way I became vegan, the transition was seamless and natural.
Roxanne: How did the name Vegan Monk come about?
Monk: One day my friend said to me, “You don’t drink, you don’t smoke, you don’t eat meat, and you’re not in the streets. You’re like a monk.” And that’s how I got the name Vegan Monk.
Roxanne: How is your life different now than prior to becoming vegan?
Monk: It’s night and day. I notice things that I never noticed before that support animal cruelty—it’s everywhere. I do my best to consciously not be a part of any of that. I have better mental clarity and my body feels amazing.
I also do my best to spread the message of veganism and other social injustices to help people understand they do still exist. Once I made the change, I was on social media and the vegan community took me in. I started going to different vegan Facebook pages and leaving my opinion. Eventually, I got picked up by a sponsor—Clean Machine.
Roxanne: Apart from the way you live your life, setting an example for others, and also using your Facebook page, are there other methods that you use to raise awareness and spread the message? For example, do you host events in your community or do you do speaking engagements?
Monk: I do vegan homeless feeds when I can. I’ve only done a couple public speaking engagements, but I plan on doing them on a regular basis.
I got my pro bodybuilding card last year, and through bodybuilding competitions I try to raise awareness. I get to talk to meat eaters. I hear there are a lot of bodybuilders switching over.
I also have a show in the works called “The Monk and the Guru.” I’ll be traveling around the country, with the Guru, spreading awareness by teaching people about vegan food.
Photo: Joe Coleman—The Vegan Monk
Roxanne: Do you ever encounter negative responses to your lifestyle and the message that you’re spreading? If so, how do you handle such responses?
Monk: Of course, I do. When it does happen, I do everything I can to be understanding. I know the best response is not to react, pause for a second, and figure out the best way to respond—I won’t argue. If you’re aggressive towards somebody, they’re going to push back and nothing gets accomplished. My way is to do it with compassion. We, as vegans, have to include human animals as well as non-human animals. We must look back at ourselves prior to being vegan. We can’t judge people.
Roxanne: What are your favorite vegan foods?
Monk: My favorite vegan foods would have to be pizza, lasagna, and tacos.
Roxanne: What advice do you have for people who want to go vegan today, but they don’t know how to start or what to eat?
Monk: My advice for anybody that wants to go vegan is to do some research. There are all kinds of good information out there. Something else I would tell them is there’s nothing bad about going vegan. In fact, just the opposite. It’s a win-win-win for the animals, your health, and the planet.
Roxanne: Thank you so much, Monk, for taking the time to interview with Vegan Outreach! We wish you the very best in your future competitions and outreach efforts.
These Spinach and Tofu Ricotta Puff Pastries will “wow” even the toughest non-vegan food critic. Make and take them to your next family gathering or potluck—they’ll certainly be a hit.
A huge thanks to Kim Sujovolsky at Brownble for this savory and delicious crowd pleaser.
Spinach and Tofu Ricotta Puff Pastries—Venezuelan “Pastelitos”
Yields 4-6 pastries.
Ingredients
4 cups spinach
1 package extra firm tofu, crumbled
1 shallot, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice and some of the zest
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons tahini (sesame seed paste)
2 sheets puff pastry (about 500 grams total)
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
Steam the spinach in a steamer basket for 5 minutes or until wilted.
Place it in a colander and once it’s cool enough to handle squeeze as much liquid out of it as you can. Set it aside.
In a bowl combine the crumbled tofu, shallot, garlic, onion powder, salt, lemon juice and zest, nutritional yeast, and the tahini. Toss until well combined.
Chop the squeezed spinach and add it to the tofu mixture. Toss again until everything is well combined.
Set your sheets of puff pastry on top of some parchment paper and roll them out with a rolling pin if they’re too thick until you reach the approximate thickness shown in the video. Trim the edges to form a square and cut it on the diagonal to form two triangles. You can cut it into smaller sections too if you want to make smaller puffs.
Add some of the spinach and tofu filling to one side of each triangle, fold the puff pastry to cover the filling, pressing the edges and folding them slightly to create a seal. Repeat until you’ve made all your puffs.
Cut some slits with a knife on the top of each puff to let steam escape and place them on a shallow parchment lined baking sheet.
Cover with foil and bake in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.
Remove the foil and bake for 5-10 minutes or until lightly golden—keep a very watchful eye during this process to make certain they don’t burn. Enjoy!
My kids love to snack all day long—and truth be told, so do I—so I enjoy making homemade snacks that are nutrient-dense, delicious, and easy to pack along on all kinds of adventures. These bars were inspired by the yummy and oh-so-easy to eat Lärabar brand.
The coolest thing about these bars is the endless flavor possibilities! My daughter, Lea, has some nut allergies, so I typically make these bars with coconut shreds, but you can mix it up and add in any kinds of nuts or seeds and any dried fruit you have on hand. Spice things up with a little orange or lemon zest, cinnamon, cocoa powder, berries, or beet juice for color—create your own original flavor!
Not only are these bars tasty and quick to make, they are a fun art project for the kids. Chop them into bite-sized bars, roll them into balls, create fun shapes with cookie cutters, or decorate with chocolate chips—let your imagination and taste buds run wild.
Lea Bars
Yields 12-20 bars.
Ingredients
1 ½ cups rolled oats
1 ½ cups coconut shreds
⅔ cup dates (lightly packed)
1 teaspoon vanilla
5-7 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
Directions
Place all the ingredients except water and chocolate chips in the food processor and process until finely ground.
Add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until mixture sticks together. Add as much water as needed.
On a cutting board, form the mixture into a rectangle, press in chocolate chips, and cut into bars, squares, or roll into balls.
Keep refrigerated and enjoy!
Recipe Tips/Variations
We also love making Chocolate Orange Lea Bars! Add in 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder, 1 tablespoon of orange zest, and 2 extra dates to the ingredients above, and proceed with step 1.
What do you get when you combine your favorite childhood lunch with a weekend breakfast favorite?
Peanut Butter and Jelly Stuffed French Toast!
Get your skillets ready and be prepared for the perfect balance of sweet and savory. Thanks to Kim Sujovolsky at Brownble, you’re going to have a new favorite breakfast meal!
PB & J Stuffed French Toast
Yields 4 servings.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds
3 tablespoons water
1 ½ cups non-dairy milk
A pinch of salt
1/3 cup flour
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
8 slices of your favorite sandwich bread
6 tablespoons peanut butter
6 tablespoons of your favorite jam or jelly
A bit of oil or non-dairy butter for the pan
For Serving
Fresh fruit (optional)
Maple syrup
Directions
Whisk together the ground flaxseeds and water in a small bowl. Set it aside and let it become thick, like a gel.
In a deep dish, whisk together the milk, salt, flour, and vanilla.
Add the flaxseed gel to the milk mixture and whisk until combined.
Make your peanut butter and jelly “sandwiches” by adding some peanut butter and jelly or jam to one piece of bread and then topping it with another piece of bread. Do it just like you were making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. You’ll have 4 sandwiches total.
Heat a very non-stick pan on medium-high heat and coat it with the oil or non-dairy butter.
Place a sandwich in the batter and let it soak in some of the liquid, turning it a couple of times. Then immediately transfer it to the hot pan.
Cook until golden and then flip. Remove from the pan when golden on both sides.
Repeat with the remaining sandwiches or do them all at once in an electric griddle or on multiple pans.
Cut them in half, arrange them on a plate, and top with fresh fruit, if desired, and some maple syrup. Enjoy!
Did you know Vegan Outreach’s cofounder and Executive Director, Jack Norris, is a Registered Dietitian (RD)? In this video he talks with Paul Kelly of Raw and Cooked Vegan about a wide range of vegan nutrition topics—and more!
Jack describes how a fishing trip led him toward a vegan lifestyle. He covers various vegan nutrition topics, including the importance of eating foods high in protein and calcium. He also discusses the welcoming approach to veganism that Vegan Outreach uses to make the lifestyle mainstream.
Wendy Gabbe Day is a proud mama of two vegan kids, the author of Scatter Vegan Sweets, a vegan cooking instructor, food blogger at Lively Days, co-producer of Vegan: Everyday Stories, and former coordinator of Portland, OR’s annual VegFest. Wendy has been vegetarian since birth and a vegan since the age of five. She played Division 1 college basketball at the University of California, Irvine and loves to be outdoors and active with her family in Northern California.
Raising Vegan Kids — Sneaking in Extra Beans!
I love sneaking extra beans into my kids’ meals and snacks when they least expect them. Did you know that beans are nutritional powerhouses? They’re packed with protein, fiber, B vitamins, iron, magnesium, potassium, and much more!
I often blend navy beans into pasta sauce and serve it over noodles and veggies. If you enjoy baking, the addition of garbanzo bean flour creates a nice texture—here’s my go-to banana bread. And I’ve even mashed navy beans into my kids’ oatmeal. Shhh, don’t tell!
My kids love it when I whip up a batch of this protein-rich, date-sweetened pudding for dessert—or breakfast! We dip apple slices into it or eat it by the spoonful. It’s an easy way to incorporate more beans into everyone’s diet! Thank you to Chocolate Covered Katie for inspiring this creation.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Pudding
Yields about 3 cups.
Ingredients
2 cups cooked navy beans (or other white beans)
⅔ cup dates (pitted)
½ cup water
⅓ cup peanut butter, or other nut butter (also see Recipe Tips/Variations below)
2 teaspoons vanilla
Dash of salt
¼ cup chocolate chips (or raisins)
Directions
Place all the ingredients except chocolate chips (or raisins) in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy—scraping down the sides as needed. Add more water if needed for a smoother texture.
Spoon the pudding into a bowl and stir in chocolate chips (or raisins).
Pudding will firm up in the refrigerator.
Recipe Tips/Variations
For a nut-free version, coconut butter works nicely.
I’ll be the first to admit that here at Vegan Outreach we love to brag about our Outreach Coordinators (OCs). Each semester, our OCs spend endless hours driving from state to state, college campus to college campus, to help raise awareness about the animal abuse in our agriculture system. They forego the comfort of their own homes, stay on other people’s couches, and leaflet in unforgiving and unpredictable weather patterns—I’m looking at you Midwestern and East Coast leafleters!
Equally brag worthy are the individuals who work “behind the scenes” of Vegan Outreach. These hardworking folks make sure our goal of helping as many animals as possible is being met at its fullest potential. The inner-workings of an organization like Vegan Outreach can easily keep a whole team of people working full time—and then some—and many of our staffers actually don’t get the opportunity to leaflet very frequently. That’s why we love to boast about them when they make time to go out and do outreach.
We’ve had a handful of non-OC staff members out there tearing it up this semester, and here’s what they had to say when I asked about their leafleting experiences—
Josie Moody • Office Manager • Sacramento State
“I always get a little nervous before I go, but within minutes my apprehension disappears and I start to enjoy myself! I smile and say thank you to people who take a leaflet, and even to people who decline. As the saying goes, that one life matters to the life that is saved.
It’s encouraging to think of all of the amazing activists I know who go out and do this day-in and day-out, planting the seeds of compassion.”
Roxanne Hill • Community Engagement and Events Manager • Cal State Dominguez Hills
“I was excited and a bit nervous as I anticipated my leafleting debut. To my great surprise, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was a lot of fun as I competed with myself, trying to hand out as many leaflets to as many students as possible. Even more surprising was how warm, friendly, and polite the vast majority of the students were—even when declining a leaflet!”
Breege Tomkinson • Director of Finance • Sacramento State
“I didn’t leaflet long (less than two hours), but it was a really good experience. Most students seemed open to taking a leaflet and many said they were already vegan or vegetarian. One student came over and thanked us for what we were doing. At one point, I handed a leaflet to a student whose hands were full because she was carrying a plate of chicken, but she took it. I liked that we were planting a seed about an issue many of these students most likely wouldn’t have thought about that day.”
Lisa Rimmert • Director of Development • East High School, Denver
“The thought of leafleting outside of a high school was a little intimidating—even for an extrovert like me! We ended up passing out 225 leaflets and it felt good walking away knowing that I had planted some vegan seeds.”
Taylor Radig • Campaigns Manager • East High School, Denver
“On our lunch break, Lisa Rimmert and I went out to a local high school and handed out a couple hundred leaflets to passing students. It only took about 30 minutes out of our day to get lifesaving information into the hands of future change makers.”
Jack Norris • Executive Director • Cal State Dominguez Hills, Pasadena City College, Sacramento State
“It always feels great to get back out there. Leafleting for just 90 minutes a month can reach a lot of people—you never know when you’ll change a life and maybe create the next great animal advocate!”
Steve Ann Chambers • President • Iowa State
“It was chilly, but we—Patti Rogers-Engelby and Outreach Coordinator John Deetjen—managed to distribute 2,500 Vegan Outreach booklets. We had so many great interactions with students. While we were warming up inside the library (between classes), one young woman came over to me and asked, ‘Are these your booklets? I’m vegetarian and I’m trying to go vegan, so this is great!’ I hooked her up with Vegan Outreach’s Vegan Mentor Program.
It’s incredibly fulfilling to connect with so many interested young people!”
Vic Sjodin • Director of Outreach • Cal State Dominguez Hills
“It brought me great joy to step out from behind the desk to leaflet with Jack and Roxanne at Cal State Dominguez Hills this semester. Eight years of leafleting and nearly 650 different schools, I’d never actually leafleted with the man who started it all. Students were very kind and responded well to the new Compassionate Choices booklet covers, and it’s always great to see so many students reading the booklets. It reinforced the simple, but profound beauty of leafleting to me—that with just a few short hours of your time, you can change several dozen lives forever.”
Kevin Gallagher • Operations Manager • University of Washington
“Given that the Seattle area has been plagued by record winter rains that have greatly impeded leafleting, I’d none too jokingly exclaimed that my primary aim is to avoid having to leaflet in a downpour as it greatly hurts the leaflet take rate—everyone is in too much of a hurry getting from one place outdoors to another indoors to have much patience for taking a leaflet, especially leaflets that are beginning to become sodden. But however much time I have to leaflet—in good weather or not—it’s heartening to have someone take a leaflet so that they can ponder making conscientious changes to their eating habits.”
I think this speaks to the dedication of each and every Vegan Outreach staff member. Let’s give a heartfelt thank you not only to our amazing Outreach Coordinators, but also to the wonderful Vegan Outreach employees who are not always publicly acknowledged for the hard work they’re doing for the animals.
“Can you cook?” It’s a question I never really know how to answer. If qualifying as a good cook simply requires possessing the ability to read and follow instructions, then yes, I can cook. Though some of my high school teachers would scoff reading that! If, on the other hand, it requires being able to create original recipes that taste good, then no, I can’t cook.
Usually, when I cook a meal without a recipe, I end up wishing I had at least glanced at other similar recipes to get an idea of what to do. This chili is a rare exception to that. And despite the fact that I, ahem, meant to make soup, this chili is now my pride and joy! I hope you like it as much as I do!
Southwestern Bean and Rice Chili
Yields 2-3 servings.
Ingredients
1 cup brown rice
2 tablespoons of oil
Handful of Beyond Meat chicken strips
1 can pinto beans
1 beefsteak tomato
1 small can tomato paste
2 teaspoons chilis in adobo sauce
1 cup vegetable broth
Handful of spinach
Salt and pepper (if needed)
Vegan sour cream, cheese shreds, and tortilla chips (optional)
Directions
Cook the rice according to directions on package.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil on non-stick skillet and add Beyond Meat strips over medium heat. Cook, flipping as needed until lightly browned and heated through.
Remove Beyond Meat strips from heat and set aside.
Drain the beans and wash and chop the tomato.
Add beans and tomato to skillet and cook until softened.
Add tomato paste and chilis in adobo sauce. Mix well.
Add broth and spinach and continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes, until spinach is a bit wilted. Remove from heat.
Carefully add rice and bean mixture to food processor and mix well. Add more broth if needed to thin out the chili. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed—make sure you taste first because the adobo sauce and the broth already have salt.
Garnish with vegan sour cream, cheese shreds, and tortilla chips if you like, and enjoy!
