Vegan Options at Fuel Pizza and Red Velvet Cupcakes

Last week, I bought a Living Social Deal for Fuel Pizza.  Fuel started out with one store in Charlotte, NC, has since expanded to eight stores in that area.  Recently, they opened two locations in DC, one on K and one on F Street.

The DC locations offer daiya cheese (the NC locations' menus do not appear to have daiya as an option - let me know if you spot it there!) so the DC Fuel locations are an option for vegans.  You won't be able to get pizza by the slice, but you can easily order a custom pie and have leftovers.

On Friday, before seeing a movie, my friend and I visited the K Street location.  I opted for a 12" multigrain crust topped with daiya, spinach, mushrooms and red onions.  While Fuel isn't as generous with the daiya as Pete's, District of Pi, or Fresh Pizzeria are, the sauce was good, the toppings were fresh and I liked the multigrain crust.  Also, the staff were extremely friendly and made us feel very welcome.

My friend was able to order pizza by the slice and enjoyed two vegetarian slices - a spinach-ricotta and a mushroom.  She said that the spinach-ricotta was perfect and that she would get it again, and that the mushroom was good, but could have used more mushrooms.

For those of you who are gluten free, Fuel offers gluten free pizza, and even gluten free beer!  Note that the gluten free pizza is only available in the 12" pie, so no slices and no larger pizzas.  It would be great if more pizza places offered vegan and gluten-free pizza options by the slice.  I know you can get vegan pizza by the slice at Whole Foods and Washington Deli (where they use soy cheese rather than daiya).  Any other leads out there?  In the meantime, let's thank local pizzerias who have vegan options and let them know there is a demand out there for vegan slices.

We had some time to kill before the movie and were craving something sweet, so my friend and I hit Red Velvet, a small cupcake store in Chinatown which I knew would have at least one vegan option on the menu.  Turns out they have two vegan options on the DC menu - the black velvet, which is a chocolate cake with a vegan chocolate "buttercream," and the white velvet, which is vanilla cake with vegan vanilla "buttercream."  The vegan cupcakes are also gluten-free.

I opted for the black velvet and liked it.  The cake on its own doesn't have a strong flavor, but paired with the icing, it was very good.  I prefer my cupcakes not to be overly sweet, and these definitely fit that bill.  If you want to bring vegan cupcakes to your next staff meeting or social gathering, you can special order a dozen for $36.  You can also get vegan cupcakes at Red Velvet's Clarendon location and Reston location.

To make up for the subpar picture I took of the cupcake, I'm sharing a picture of the cute box it came in. 

Product Reviews: Bold Organics Cheese Pizza and Boom Chicka Pop Popcorn

After an excellent time at DC Veg Fest (full recap here), I set to tracking down a few of the new products I tried and enjoyed.  The first one I was able to track down was Bold Organics Pizza.

Bold Organics Pizza is gluten free, milk free and lactose free.  The crust is made of brown rice flour, corn meal, yeast and potato starch.  In addition to a vegan "cheese" pizza, there are a few other options, including a vegan "veggie lovers" with mushrooms, peppers and onions.  Both the vegan options use Follow Your Heart brand cheese substitutes, which are made with non-GMO soy. The "meat lovers" and "deluxe" have real meat on them, but are also gluten and dairy free.  Here's hoping we'll see a some vegan versions these pies soon!  In the meantime, Tofurky makes a few vegan meat pies you can try.

The The Bold Organics line is carried locally at Food Lion and MOM's Organic Market.  (Check their website to locate a store near you that carries them.) Last weekend, we happened to be driving by a Food Lion, so I popped in to grab a pizza.  After spending a few confused minutes in the frozen pizza section, I tracked down a store employee, who in turn tracked down her manager.  Turns out the Bold Organics products are located in the gluten free freezer case, which is located adjacent to the produce section.

According to the package, the pizzas are best prepared in your oven or toaster.  The microwave is not recommended, so if you're in a hurry, this is not the pizza for you.  You'll need time for your oven or toaster to reach 450, 20-22 minutes for cooking, an additional two minutes for broiling and then two minutes for cooling (or, in my case, photographing the pizza for the blog).  I would recommend definitely doing the broiling, as it helps get the cheese nice and bubbly.

When we took the pizza out of the oven, it looked and smelled delicious!  My husband and I both remarked that we couldn't believe it was vegan.  He tasted it and concurred that it might fool him compared to a dairy frozen pizza.  The "cheese" was melty and the sauce had a nice, spicy kick.  The crust is flakier than a traditional pizza, but not unpleasantly so.  It crisps up well.

I will note that I was hungry an hour after I had the pizza, so I would suggest serving it with a big salad or a heaping plate of veggies.  Also, I know I've had this rant before, but let me say it again.  The nutrition serving size on the nutrition panel?  1/2 a pizza. This thing is about the size of a small dinner plate - no one is eating just half of it.  Figure a whole pizza will have 660 calories, 26 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 1340 milligrams of sodium, 12 grams of fiber and 10 grams of protein.  You'll also get 30% of your Vitamin A, 40% of your Vitamin C, 12% of your calcium and 30% of your iron.  So, while it's not an everyday food, it's definitely a better option than a traditional cheese and meat pizza, which will also wallop you with saturated fat, cholesterol and even more sodium.

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Another subject I've written about multiple times before are the finds at our local market, Grosvenor Market.  This place is really a gem, especially when it comes to tracking down healthier snack alternatives.  This weekend, I picked up a bag of Boom Chicka Pop. This popcorn is super simple - popcorn, sunflower oil and sea salt.  Thus, it's great for vegans and our gluten free friends. 

I tend to prefer hot popcorn, but this was a great vegan alternative to microwave popcorn (and I didn't feel like I had to eat the entire bag at once).  It had just the right amount of salty goodness while only having 90 milligrams of sodium in a 3 2/3 cup serving (that, people, is a serving size!).

If you're interested in trying Boom Chicka Pop, you can use this map to find a retailer near you, or you can order it online.

 

Restaurant Roundup: Fresh Pizzeria, Au Bon Pain, Black Market Bistro and Chipotle

A busy week prepping for one of my office's major events meant a lot of eating out this week.  I feel like the times when people are pressed for time and on the go are the times when it's easy to fall off the vegan wagon.  Fortunately, there are a ton of options available to make eating out as a vegan easy.

After a late work night Thursday, my husband and I decided to try Fresh Pizzeria on Rockville Pike.  I was disappointed when Z Pizza closed, since it was a reliable source of vegan pizza.  When Fresh Pizzeria took over the space, fortunately, they decided to keep the vegan pizza options open, offering daiya cheese and vegan burger crumbles, and a variety of vegan pies to choose from.

I tried the Vegan Garden Pizza. without olives.  The crust was good and the veggie toppings were fresh.  Additional vegan menu options include the Vegan Fiesta, which has black beans and guacamole, and the Vegan Burger.  You can also make your own vegan pizza.  Also, if you're gluten free, any pizza can be made with a gluten free crust.

Friday, I had to grab a quick lunch before running back to my desk, so I hit up Au Bon Pain.  There are at least five Au Bon Pain locations in walking distance to my office, so it's incredibly convenient.  They seem to have moved away from the "make your own sandwich" slips to more of a set menu, but they will still happily make an off menu sandwich for you.  I chose multigrain bread, avocado, arugula, tomato, onion and cucumbers.  The woman making my sandwich couldn't believe that I didn't want mayo, but I assured her the avocado made an excellent condiment.

I also had a chance to peruse the soups, which are clearly labeled with their ingredients, including milk, so it's easy to choose a vegan soup.  I went with the Barley & Creamy Lentil ,which I found to be hearty and flavorful.

I wish Au Bon Pain had a vegan sandwich on its set menu, but since they offer a variety of veggies, it's easy to make your own sandwich.  Most of the breads are vegan, but note that some include dairy, including the Ciabatta and the Cornbread.  The soup menu includes a plethora of vegan options, including the 12 Veggie, Black Bean, Tomato Lentil, Gazpacho, Tuscan White Bean and Vegetarian Chili.  Not all soups are available every day, but there should be at least one vegan option.


Friday night, we took my parents to Black Market Bistro in Garrett Park.  Black Market Bistro is located in a historic post office, and tucked away in a residential neighborhood, over by the Garrett Park MARC  station.  One of my favorite things about Black Market Bistro are the quality of their salads.  Last night, I had the Black Market Salad, which was a variety of lettuces, orange wedges and almonds with a citrus vinaigrette.  The salad normally comes with goat cheese, but the kitchen was happy to leave it off.

For dinner, I opted for the Black Market Vegetable Plate.  When I asked the server if it was appropriate for a vegan, she shared that the chef normally finishes the dish with butter, but that they could easily omit it.

The veggie plate changes regularly, based on what fresh vegetables are available.  My plate included eggplant, yellow squash, broad beans, cauliflower, asparagus, carrots and wax beans.  It was beautifully seasoned with a variety of fresh herbs and sea salt. As you can see, the portion is enormous, but I easily got three meals out of the plate above, which helps soften the $22 price tag.

Today, my husband and I were running a bunch of errands, and we ended up grabbing a quick lunch at Chipotle.  Chipotle is a fantastic choice for vegans.  Choosing a black bean burrito or bowl with a peppers and onions, any of a variety of salsas and guacamole will make a hearty, satisfying meal.  As it's clearly stated on the Chipotle website and on signage, the pinto beans are cooked with pork, so stick with the black beans if you want to stay vegan. 

My preferred meal is a burrito bowl with brown rice, black beans, peppers and onions, fresh tomato salsa, chili corn salsa, guacamole and lettuce.

I know living in the DC area means I have a ton of food options, but, no matter where you live, vegan options can be plentiful.  What are some of your favorite vegan menu options?

Vegan Pizza at District of Pi

Tonight, my friend and I went to Chinatown to catch a movie.  We had plenty of time for dinner beforehand, so we decided to go to District of Pi.  I had eaten some of the veggie thin crust and deep dish pizzas there before, and knew they had vegan options available.

District of Pi is very vegan friendly.  The thin crust pizza dough is vegan, and you can substitute daiya cheese and Match meats for the toppings.  I have heard of Match, but I wasn't sure if it was GMO-free soy,so I didn't try it.  The Match website doesn't list ingredients, and the internet was no help, so I may have to look for it in a store so I can look closely at the packaging.

You can also get vegan deep dish pizza at District of Pi, but since the regular deep dish dough has butter, you need to give them advance notice if you'll be ordering it so they can ensure to have the vegan dough available for you.

My pizza tonight had red sauce, daiya, arugula, artichokes and red onions.  The crust was super crispy and the vegetables were all very fresh.  The thin crust pizzas come out quickly, but if you are ordering the deep dish, make sure you budget 25-30 minutes to wait for it to bake.  If you're hungry, you can snack on some vegan friendly appetizers while you wait.  The server told me that they can do a vegan garlic bread, and you can also choose from cucumbers with thai chili, roasted mushrooms with garlic and rosemary, olives and orange or the pi hummus plate with pita, red peppers and olives.  There are also salads that you can easily order without dairy or meat ingredients.  And, if you're into beer, they've got a great rotating selection, including Arrogant Bastard from Stone Brewing Co. (I went there on a work event earlier this year) and various beers from local brewery DC Brau. 

Stay tuned for when I try their vegan deep dish!

A Day of Eating in Reverse - Pete's A Pizza, More Whole Foods and Java Green

 Yes, I ate out for three meals today.  Not my normal routine, but with a early morning doctor's appointment and a date night before I fly out of town for a week, that's what I did to make the day work. 

Let's work backwards from dinner.  Since I'll be gone for eight days for back to back work trips and we had a hectic weekend last week, my husband and I had a date night tonight.  Husband knew I was dying to try the vegan options at Pete's-A-Pizza, so we went to the Friendship Heights location.  As an AU grad, I'd say it's more in Tenley than Friendship Heights, but it's equidistant from both metros, so I won't quibble too much over the description.

I had known about Pete's since their Columbia Heights location opened a few years ago, but never got around to trying it when I was still eating dairy products.  They're known for "New Haven Style" pizza.  I figured I had missed the boat on trying their pies, but then the Washington Post ran an article about the DC's essential vegetarian eats that mentioned Pete's Edge of the Woods Pizza.

After reading that article, I did some more research.  Pete's website is very vegan friendly.  There's a whole section of their website devoted to vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options.  The website also notes that the owners' son has been a vegetarian since he was five, and that their chef and co-owner has a history of working with special diets.  To be safe, before we went to the restaurant, I called to make sure they were indeed able to make the vegan version of the Edge of the Woods pizza, and the manager confirmed they had everything on hand to make it that evening.

I did have one funny moment when we actually ordered the pizza.  When I asked for the vegan version, the woman said to me "Do you still want the eggplant?"  I asked her if the eggplant wasn't vegan for some reason.  "Well, it's fried."  My immediate response?  "Was it fried in an animal?"  After a good laugh, I let her know that when I called earlier, the manager said all the ingredients were vegan friendly. 

The pizza was very good.  The pie was topped with daiya, as well as caramelized onions, spinach and the aforementioned fried eggplant.  The eggplant was so thinly sliced that it reminded me of a potato chip.  I forsee some fun with the mandoline and "eggplant chips" in my culinary future.

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I had a craving for Whole Food's Kamut Citrus Salad for lunch today, but, alas they didn't have it on the prepared foods bar.  So, I made do with the pictured mishmash of various items off the salad bar.

Starting with the upper left, we have a vegetarian samosa, creamy kale, mango, raddicchio, cucumbers, kamut, black beans and raw shredded beets.  It is a curious mix of foods to be sure, but I enjoyed all of it, particularly the creamy kale!

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I mentioned earlier in this post that I had a doctor's appointment.  It was my annual physical, which meant bloodwork, which in turn meant fasting, which in turn meant no breakfast.  I knew from my regular lunch stops that Java Green serves breakfast, so I decided to pick up something there after my appointment.  I went with the vegan grilled breakfast sandwich, which is essentially a grilled cheese sandwich made with daiya.  Although the menu didn't specify it, it the woman making my sandwich added some tomato.  I was pleased, but those who dislike fresh tomatoes beware. 

Two Days of Vegan Deliciousness

I've had two days of really delicious meals to share.

As I've mentioned before, our local market has a number of neat food options.   One of my favorite things about it are the variety of snack options that are friendly to my allergies.  When I popped in to pick up a few things last night, I noticed a new product, Beanitos Black Bean Chips. 

These chips are vegan, and they're also gluten-free, which makes them a great option for folks with celiac and other forms of gluten intolerance.  They also have 4g of protein and 5g of fiber per 10 chip serving.  If GMOs concern you, also note that this product is verified as Non-GMO.

The chips are light and sweeter tasting than your average tortilla chip.  My guess is that the sweetness comes from the brown rice.  They paired well with the avocado, tomato and sea salt you see on the right.

I know for sure that I've mentioned my love of Whole Foods many a time in this blog.  Today, for lunch, I visited the Foggy Bottom store and enjoyed a number of items off of their prepared foods bar.  I particularly like getting prepared foods at Whole Foods since they clearly label their allergens, as well as which items are vegan friendly.

In the picture to the right (left hand corner clockwise around), you'll find Quinoa Ranchero, raw dandelion, beets, kamut citrus salad and carrots with ginger.

 

This is my second time eating the kamut citrus salad, and it continues to be a favorite. The kamut has a chewy, nutty texture, and it's a good source of protein and fiber.  The carrots were even more delicious than I was expecting.  It was also my first time eating dandelion greens.  Like most greens, they are an excellent source of vitamin A & C.  They weren't as bitter as I expected, and I actually thought they were good mixed in with the kamut.

Changing gears.  Sometimes, in the middle of my yoga practice, I get strong food cravings.  Since part of yoga is listening to signals from my body, as long as the cravings are healthy, I listen to them. In my pre-vegetarian days, my cravings were for the fancy McDonald's burger with the red onions and a large fries (the fact that there is a McDonald's across the street from my yoga studio may have contributed to these cravings).  However, as I embraced a pescetarian diet, and then a lacto-ovo one and now my plant-based/animal product free/veganesque one, I noticed that my cravings gradually became for healthier and healthier foods.  For example, I might crave a large salad from Sweetgreen or falafel (or, better yet, the Sweetgreen salad with Falafel).

 

Today, my craving was for vegan pizza.  Yes, specifically, vegan pizza.  This was big for me.  It's been about 19 days since I had my last serving of cheese.  Yes, I fell back on the cheese wagon pretty hard last February.  Recently, I decided it was time to eliminate it again.  That is the subject of another post.

 

If that sounds like the terminology of an addict, it's a fair point.  Dr. Oz and Dr. Neal Barnard back me up on this subject, and these guys know their stuff. I know that dairy and I don't get along - it upsets my stomach, makes me break out, gives headaches, makes me congested, you name it.  Also, I tend to eat much larger portions of food when the dish has a dairy component.  Plus, there's the whole ethics of vegetarianism that makes me pause when I think about dairy products.  

 

That said, if you put cheese it in front of me, I can't stop eating it.  So, it's best that I just kick it out of my diet altogether, and get my protein, calcium and Vitamin D from other sources.

 

So yes, the fact that I wanted vegan pizza, in my mind, was a good thing.  I'm lucky that there are three good options for vegan pizza near our place:  Pete's-A-Pizza, Z Pizza and, you guessed it, Whole Foods.   Since Whole Foods is the closest to our apartment, we opted to go there.  Their vegan pizza is always excellent.  Rather than using daiya or another cheese substitute, their vegan pizza is cheese free and loaded with veggies like peppers, spinach and mushrooms.  It's a little heavy on black olives for my taste, but those are easily removed.  

The good news is that I didn't crave my husband's cheese pizza, so I am guessing that's another sign that I have kicked my desire for dairy.  I'm looking forward to checking out more vegan pizza options in the near future! 

Lavash with Mushrooms, Tomato and Arugula

While it is never a good idea to go to the grocery store when you are tired and hungry, sometimes good things can happen in such a situation.

After a long week at work and a weekend trip ahead, I was looking forward to a lazy Friday night at home with minimal cooking.  Our local market has a decent selection of to go stuff, as well as a number of vegan friendly frozen foods, so I figured it would be easy to find something quick.

Well, I don't know if the selection was off tonight or I was just feeling feisty after a long week of commuting and metro red line woe, but I wasn't feeling anything.  I found myself wandering around the aisles, checking ingredients and muttering to myself.  At one point, I stood in front of the decently large selection of frozen pizzas and said (hopefully to myself, though it might have been out loud) "Why are none of you vegan?"

At which point it dawned on me - make your own damn vegan pizza!  I realize that this isn't exactly a huge triumph of modern thought, but it was better than me staring dumbly at the freezer case wondering "But, where is the me food for the eatings?"

Ah, but where to begin?  We had already explored the premade pizza crusts on sale at the market, and they were off limits to me allergywise because they included soy ingredients.  Although I'm more than capable, I had no desire to make my own pizza dough.

The answer?  Lavash!  If you're not familiar with it, lavash is a soft, chewy flat bread.  It's more substantial than a pita, and thus makes a nice base for a flatbread or pizza.  The ones I bought tonight were whole wheat and made at a Beltsville company called Middle East Bakery, Inc.  The lavash was vegan and, more importantly for me, didn't contain soy.

To prepare the lavash, I used our pizza crisper, which helps the bottom cook as evenly as the top.  Then, I topped the lavash with red onion, mushrooms, garlic, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella daiya and arugula, but feel free to mix and match the toppings!  Broccoli, kale, peppers and/or eggplant might all be fun toppings to try.

Re-energized by this super easy and satisfying dinner, I actually wrote a recipe out for you:

 Lavash with Mushrooms, Tomato and Arugula
 Serves One (easily doubled or tripled)

One slice of whole wheat lavash
1/3 of a red onion, sliced into crescents (cut rings, then cut rings in half)
3 button mushrooms, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil (feel free to use more or less, but keep in mind that more adds some nice moistness to the crust) plus more for brushing & drizzling
3-4 large cherry tomatoes, sliced
1/4 cup Daiya mozzarella cheese (add more to make it "cheesier," - feel free to use soy cheese or regular cheese if you're a lacto-ovo vegetarian)
1 cup of arugula
Sea salt
Black pepper
Italian seasoning blend

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place lavash on a pizza crisper and set aside.

While oven is warming, saute onions and mushrooms in olive oil on high heat.  Season with salt and black pepper to taste.  Cook for five minutes, until mushrooms soften and onions become translucent.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant, one to two minutes.  Season to taste with Italian Seasoning. 

Spread the mushroom and onion mixture on the lavash, leaving a "crust" around the sides.  Layer on sliced tomatoes and sprinkle Daiya on top.

Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until cheese is melted.  Remove from oven and top with arugula.  Drizzle arugula with olive oil and return to oven for 3-4 minutes, until arugula is slightly wilted.

Serve and enjoy!