Vegetarian Middle Child does food cleanse

That’s right, folks. 5/7 days of the week I’m vegan, but today I start on my 21 day cleanse. Since re-reading Kathy Freston‘s Quantum Wellness I’ve just begun to realize that wellness is a 24/7 practice. And while I’m always doing great in one area, there’s always work to do somewhere else.

I’m two years, 3 months vegetarian and counting (with the odd wavering during special occasions). In 2010, I began to have some major digestive problems. Since going to the doctor and testing out various over the counter meds and food, I’ve been able to cut down on the bouts of stomach acidity but it hasn’t quite completely left me yet. So after much binging on seafood, ramen noodles and the best pork I’ve eaten in my life for 8 days in Tokyo, I’ve decided to get my body back in gear. For 21 days, these are the guidelines I’m going to adhere to as recommended by Freston in her book:

- No alcohol
- No caffeine (I know – what will I do without green tea?)
- No gluten
- No sugar (the hardest challenge)
- No casein – since I’m already mostly vegan, this is the additional challenge aside from meat products. Casein appears in some cereals and veggie-based meats.

Yesterday I walked my way to Famous Foods so I could get my regular groceries and some additional goods I knew I couldn’t find at the Pricemart I usually drive to.

Since I only had to get half the groceries for this week than usual, I was hoping I wouldn’t spend too much. Shopping at places like this can be expensive. I went $6 over my $35 budget but it wasn’t too bad since a lot of the items will last me at least two weeks.

List for this week:
- Organic bananas
- Broccoli
- Strawberries
- Soy yogurt
- Quinoa
- Nature’s Path organic flax multibran flakes cereal (not my usual maple pecan, but I know my colon’s gonna love that bran)
- Blueberries
- Onion
- Lime
- Organic lettuce
- Green onions
- Brown mushrooms
- Van’s gluten and sugar-free apple cinnamon waffles
- Peanuts
- Black beans (I know I shouldn’t buy canned, but the bulk is EXPENSIVE)
- Green pepper

For the next few days I plan to make a quinoa-based salad and then a veggie stir-fry with brown rice. The soy yogurt and berries will be a new change from the peanut butter sandwiches I eat for breakfast, along with oatmeal as well. Eating out will also be a challenge but I LOVE raw vegan so we’ll see how many places I can manage.

I’ll blog again on April 12th to let you know how I’m doing.

The ultimate cupcake battle: Man vs. Fairy

I missed the Cupcake Throwdown that happened last month, so in honour of my favourite dessert, I created my own cupcake tournament. The contenders:

In the red corner, we have ManCakes Bakery. Created by Geoff and Jeremy, ManCakes has no storefront, but as soon as I got wind of their creations on Twitter, I was immediately intrigued. Buffalo Wing! Rum and Coke! Breakfast cupcake! Pink Peppercorn Grapefruit! Tequila Pineapple! Whiskey Lime! Bacon Chili Chocolate! I mean, have you heard of such things? ManCakes is the fighter who has trained in all styles. They’ve got some flavours that’ll satisfy the sweet-toothed girlies out there, and are completely nut-free, but make no mistake, these cupcakes are built to take on men. Orders are baked fresh on the day of delivery. Areas include Vancouver, Burnaby, New West, Coquitlam, PoCo, Port Moody, and Richmond.
Their weakness: You can’t choose the flavours you want – you gotta choose the Day 6-pack or Night 6-pack ($28 each incl. tax & delivery charges). And you have to order by 8pm one-day in advance on M/W/F. No delivery to the North Shore, yet.

In the blue corner, we have the underdog: Fairy Cakes Cupcakes. Though they just celebrated the grand opening of their storefront last weekend, they’ve been placing orders for a good month ($20.95 for 1/2 dozen), and have been training hard and long for the big fight. Owner Cera has been getting the word out about her bakery since last Fall when I saw her at Taste of Health and got to sample her chocolate chip pumpkin cookies. Talking the talk for a long time coming, Fairy Cakes has that unorthodox baking style that’ll throw you off. Vegan elf-loaves and gluten-free cupcakes are available.
Their weakness: With other long-established cupcakeries in the city, it’ll be interesting to see how adventurous Fairy Cakes will be able to get with their designs as the months and years go by. Also, there’s a disclaimer on their website that says that their ingredient providers may contain trace amounts of milk, eggs, peanuts, and nuts. So, though their process might be vegan in nature, I guess the finished product may not be 100% pure.

The interesting thing about this matchup is that both businesses are still far from becoming cupcake hall-of-famers. So, in the words of that guy on Iron Chef: America who doesn’t really sound Japanese… THE BATTLE BEGINS!
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Monday vacay into a French Chocolaterie

Ok, this is the real deal. Out of the four places I’ve trekked to for the Hot Chocolate Festival thus far, Chocolaterie De La Nouvelle France is the one to beat. Nestled in a little shop on 21st Avenue off Main Street, I had high hopes for this place. The name alone screams French chocolate (and translated, I believe means “New France Chocolatier”)! I was treated to the hot chocolate of the day by the Chocolate Realtor herself, Nina Pousette – a French-trained pastry chef – so when she says it’s the real deal, believe moi, it is.

Surprise Flower - 66% Mexican dark chocolate, infused with Jasmine

I know that the shop is most known for their chocolates, but I was super impressed by their festival selection. The Surprise Flower comes with the flower of the day, and although I usually don’t like smelling flowers – much less tasting them – the smooth, rich, dark drinking chocolate more than made up for the taste of Jasmine. It was a nice change, and definitely the most intriguing festival flavour I’ve tried so far. It also came with a little chocolate tart with gold dust on it – which is edible! Gold is good for you right?

The shop also gives you a choice between a cup of hot chocolate or just a shot – so you can sip that 66% like a glass of scotch if you’d like. For a sweet tooth, I found the cup rich enough, so the shot must just take you a bit overboard. There are only a few seats indoors, but there are tables outdoors too – which would be nice on a sunny day like today. The one server on Monday afternoon even spoke French and has only been in Vancouver for a year. Can’t get more authentic than that.

Be sure to check out the Surprise Flower this upcoming week if you haven’t already.

Chocolaterie de la Nouvelle France
198 E. 21st Avenue & Main Street
Vancouver, BC V5V 1P8
604-566-1065
info@chocolaterienouvellefrance.ca
chocolaterienouvellefrance.ca
Visit their Facebook Page here
Twitter @MainStChocolate

Hours: 7 days a week, 12-6pm

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