You can keep all of your other spicy condiments; thanks to The Cinnamon Snail, I am a girl in love with gochujang. Chung Jung One was kind enough to send me a bottle of their own version of the spicy, Korean chili sauce to review and I was delighted. It doesn’t contain any yucky corn syrup and is clearly marked as vegan and gluten-free—what more can you ask for?

The first thing I did was to make the Sriracha & Smoke Pecans from Salad Samurai. Since I subbed the superior gochujang for the sriracha, they became Gochujang & Smoke Pecans: sweet, hot, sticky, and amazing!

Next up I made an aioli by mixing 1 tbsp of gochujang with 1/2 cup of vegenaise (yep, I just made that up: culinary genius that I am) to go with my onion rings.  

After that, even I had to admit that it was time to make something that was more than just a snack. I checked Chung Jung One’s website for recipes, but I advise against that, lest you get your vegan panties in a bunch from all the non-vegan fare. Instead, I was lucky enough that the company had sent along a vegan marinade recipe, courtesy of Anne Alderete, which I put to what I thought was very good use for 8oz of seitan with sauteed onions and peppers.

7 parts soy sauce or tamari
2 parts Chung Jung One Gochujang Korean Chili Sauce
1 part coconut sugar
1 part mirin
1 part cooking sake
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

It was sweet, salty, and umami: with just the right amount of flavorful heat.

You can use gochujang inventively, or as a substitute for your favorite spicy condiment. As far as I’m concerned, the only drawback to the Chung Jung One gochujang is that the bottle is way too small; I’ll need much larger quantities in my life.

Unjust Plush wants us to “spread awareness to ugly injustice through cute plush toys.” Take a look at them; they’re creepy, but simultaneously adorable. Creepable? In any event, they make me uncomfortable and I kind of don’t know what to think of them. [Ed. note: I think they are def adorable and I want to hug them all immediately…can anyone explain why?? -Megan Rascal]

Years ago I gifted my non-vegan friends’ non-vegan children cute stuffed animals from PETA: a cow and a pig. I hadn’t realized when I’d purchased them that they “spoke.” Indeed, when you would squeeze them they’d say (in a rather unsettlingly gruff voice), “friends not food,” so I wound up presenting them rather sheepishly with the disclaimer that they could remove the batteries if they so chose. Surprisingly, they didn’t; but over time the kids got used to the chorus and I was sometimes treated to a giddy recitation as they ate burgers or bacon: not exactly the outcome I was striving for.

These Unjust Plush offer more of an in-your-face message and I’m still trying to decide if I think that makes them an unnecessarily morbid gift for a child. “This cute seal has a head wound because cruel people like to bash their skulls in with clubs,” doesn’t sound like a conversation I want to have as an Aunty.

In contrast to the morbidity, does the cartoonish element make them trite? For instance, the elephant carries a bottle of glue- presumably to repair his tusk—as if it’s that easy. The rhino’s tagline reads, “Don’t ask him about his nose job; he’s sensitive about it;” a clumbsy connection at best.

So I guess the bottom line is, “Is all attention good attention?” Are the Unjust Plush successfully imparting a serious message by enlightening an otherwise blissfully ignorant audience (the under-5 set), or are they simply making light of a grievous subject?

Abby Bean, one of our own (that’s ME!*), was one of the recipe testers for the upcoming cookbook, Teff Love: Adventures in Vegan Ethiopian Cooking by Kittee Berns. As such, she is fully qualified to vouch for the book (incredible!) and to tell you that you unequivocally need it in your life.

Assuming that you somehow forgot to pre-order your copy, now is your chance to win one! If you’re feeling lucky, go directly to Kittee’s Cake Maker to the Stars blog and enter to win. If you have a keen understanding of the law of averages, go ahead and buy one. Not into pre-orders? They’ll be in bookstores on January 15—that’s less than a week away. Either way, there are merely days standing between a sad, hungry you and a you surrounded by massive plates full of Ethiopian feasts!

As always, watch this space for all things vegan and important more exciting news about the release: including participation in an upcoming Teff Love blog tour!!

Contest ends January 18th, midnight, PST.

*Please note that Abby Bean does not always speak in the third person.

I’ve been going to the Winter Village at Bryant Park for years; there’s just something about the vendors in those little glass houses that surround the skating rink for the season that make it feel like the holidays are upon us.

In the past, I’ve made a point to bookend my visits with meals at establishments elsewhere in the city because I don’t recall there ever being much vegan and enticing on offer. And, let’s face it: like most things, I like to shop and people-watch on a full stomach. However, this year all that has changed. Maybe my vegan brain automatically dismisses non-vegan options as non-existent, but I do believe that there were even more vegan offerings than non-vegan this year. That’s a step in the right direction!

Old habits die hard, so I’d stuffed my face with Terri before visiting the Winter Village (sorry, not sorry). I share this only as a disclaimer as to why I wasn’t able to eat at full capacity. Don’t worry, I’ll be back.

The first vegan shop we came across was Raaka virgin chocolate.

Organic, vegan, made-in-Brooklyn, and brimming samples of luscious flavors: I could have spent the day here.

Check out all of their offerings (and go taste them in person if you can); I particularly want to introduce their coconut milk 60{ae720e0b436026f867bfa0c31185c2252a138f27e85f5f152ec5acc1c10a8cc9} cacao bar, as well as the maple & nibs 75{ae720e0b436026f867bfa0c31185c2252a138f27e85f5f152ec5acc1c10a8cc9} as new favorites.

I obviously filled up on chocolate, so I had no room for any of the savory vegan options at Soup for the Soul, which appeared all vegan and, judging by the menu, warming in both flavor and spice.

The pretzels at Chimney Cake – The Rolling Pretzel were vegan, but some of the toppings were not; just remember to double check. They also had soy and almond milk for your coffee and tea!

Two Tablespoons have been making the rounds (Madison Square Eats, Broadway Bites) and their bean and potato-centric menu looked positively drool-worthy.

Because it was so crowded, it was hard to get near Vegushi. It was easy to notice the striking similarities to another vegan sushi purveyor upon first scan of their menu, but I for one am glad to see more vegan sushi infiltrating the cruel and saturated fish sushi market.

Even Blossom Du Jour was in on the action: offering what seemed like their entire BDJ menu of food and dessert.

And, finally, we found This Pie is Nuts, which was the vegan option that had started a few friends and I on this trek in the first place.

Everything is organic, vegan, gluten-free, and locally sourced.

There were four flavors to choose from: purely pumpkin, chocolate mousse, coconut cream, and key lime: each presented as individual pie squares. These were our picks.

We agreed that the pies were pleasant, although subtly flavored. I’ll be sure to try the chocolate mousse next time; I don’t know what I was thinking (yes I do, I’d already eaten my weight in chocolate).

Whatever your tastebuds are craving, you’re sure to find something you’ll like amongst the vegan options at the Winter Village at Bryant Park. Please show them some love and hopefully other markets will follow suit on the regular!

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the vegan fashion industry has been growing in leaps and bounds (from coast to coast). How to keep up with what’s available for the fashionable and cruelty-free set? The new, FREE Vegan Fashion Guide from Vegan Cuts.

From Vegan Cuts: ”This one-of-a-kind resource combines a lookbook showcasing modern vegan style with information about exploitation in the fashion industry, tips for how to veganize your wardrobe and more.”

“And more” indeed: Aside from plenty of new and new-to-you apparel and accessory designers, there’s an abundance of information on the impact of fashion and making the distinction between animals and fabric, as well as the importance of voting with your dollars to ensure that cruelty-free companies succeed and options multiply.

Also included: a pocket guide to understanding content labels and a directory of stores, both virtual and brick-and-mortar, to make it easy to shop your ethics. 

All this is not to say that your favorite Meat is Murder T-shirt isn’t sufficient, but perhaps there are occasions in your life where you’d like to impart your message a bit more subtly.

So, whether you’re a diehard fashionista and animal-lover, a passionate vegan who doesn’t give a whit about what’s on trend, or someone who falls somewhere in the middle, you’ll find that the Vegan Cuts’ Vegan Fashion Guide will offer you a great many options to ensure that your style is in line with your ethics.

No word, however, on why the dog models are all nude.