More plant-based magic from Magnum

Magnum ice cream has introduced miniaturised versions of your favourite vegan flavour ice creams in time for you to have a great Veganuary. 

A reminder moments of pleasure also come in small packages, Magnum Vegan Minis are now available in multi packs containing a selection of two winning flavours: x3 Magnum Vegan Classic and x3 Magnum Vegan Almond.

Magnum Vegan Classic Mini combines a luxuriously smooth, vegan ice cream made with high quality Madagascan vanilla, fully dipped in a layer of delicious signature Magnum vegan cracking chocolate. 

Uncover a fantastically gorgeous nutty experience with Magnum Vegan Almond Mini: a velvety plant-based ice cream dipped in smooth vegan chocolate with crunchy Californian almond pieces.

January can be a bit of a gloomy month. But little bits of pleasure can make a massive difference.

 Magnum wants to help you celebrate the mini moments of pleasure this Veganuary. And beyond, too. So, if you are 100% vegan or take a more flexible approach to your diet, Magnum Vegan Minis are a winning combination for pleasure seekers and provide the perfect sized treat.

Magnum also introduces a new, improved recipe to its much-loved Vegan core range, using naturally derived ingredients for plant-based deliciousness: Magnum Vegan Classic, Magnum Vegan Almond and Magnum Vegan Sea Salt Caramel. (EDITOR: Sea Salt Caramel? Wow! My favourite flavour!)

From the sustainably sourced West African cocoa used in the cracking chocolate certified by The Rainforest Alliance, to the highest-quality Madagascan vanilla and best quality Californian almonds, Magnum’s plant-based core range have all been awarded the PETA Vegan Food Award.

Pea protein is the key ingredient that helps bring the velvety, smooth Magnum ice cream to life, allowing Magnum to create a plant-based ice cream that does not compromise on taste or texture.

“We’re thrilled Magnum is launching Vegan Minis this January,” said Toni Vernelli, International Head of Communications at Veganuary. “Veganuary’s role is to help people choose plant-based foods, whether their motivation is health, planet, people or animals. And it's easier to persuade people to try vegan if there's plenty of great-tasting, high-quality foods like this readily available in the shops!’’

A spokesperson for Magnum said: "We believes a day without pleasure is a day lost, and this is why Magnum is encouraging you to find and indulge in those mini moments that make Veganuary that little bit more pleasurable. To celebrate the mini moments of pleasure in Veganuary, we invite Brits to use the hashtag #miniveganmoments on social channels.

The New Magnum Vegan Minis (Classic and Almond) are available in branches of Sainsbury, Tesco and Ocado

Vegan Minis Multipacks of 6 have a recommended retail price of: £4.29, though this is at retailer's discretion. 

Launched 33 years ago, Magnum was the first premium adult ice cream to go to market. Today, Magnum is one of the world’s leading ice cream brands, selling over 1 billion units annually worldwide.

So, if you are having a vegan food feast this Veganuary, why not finish it off with a round of Magnum Vegans?

Papa John's even better Vegan menu

Papa John's vegan menu will be even better because they have added new Cheesy Chilli Bites and Vegan Sausage & Pepperoni pizza to its vegan offering.

And even better, to help celebrate Veganuary Pizza lovers can enjoy 50% off the vegan menu until 31st January.

Papa John’s is welcoming Veganuary in style, with the delicious limited-edition Vegan Sausage and Pepperoni pizza, and the launch of its all-new Cheesy Chilli bites joining the menu on 31st January. 

Topped with juicy jackfruit “pepperoni” slices and chunks of vegan sausage, the delicious pizza is perfect for vegans and those taking on Veganuary for the very first time. 

The all-new Cheesy Chilli bites are served in portions of eight, filled with a delicious, oozing mozzarella-style cheese and chipotle chilli wrapped in a crispy batter. A hot new addition to its vegan side offering. (Sure to be loved by many non-vegans, too!)

Vegan pizza aficionados can chomp their way through a tasty range of tempting meat-free slices, including The Stinger, “Jackfruit Pepperoni”, Vegan Garden Party and award-winning pizza The Vegan Works, voted as ‘Best Vegan Pizza’ in PETA’s eighth annual Vegan Food Awards. 

For those wanting to indulge in a dairy-free ‘cheesy’ treat, Papa John’s has a selection of delectable sides from Vegan Cheese Potato Tots (also available with Jalapeño) and Vegan Cheese Marmite Scrolls. And if that’s not enough cheese for one sitting, pizza lovers can add the melt-in-the-mouth Vegan Cheese Stuffed Crust to any vegan pizza!

Pizza lovers can tuck into a meat-free feast this Veganuary and enjoy 50% off vegan pizzas, sides, and ice cream for the whole of January. And there are two Ben & Jerry’s Dairy-Free flavours to choose from, too! (Half prize Ben & Jerry's? Wow!)

Giles Codd, Senior Director of Marketing at Papa John’s said: “We are delighted to offer 50% off our vegan menu for Veganuary 2022. We are continuing to expand our award-winning vegan range to give plant-based pizza lovers an improved range of options. We're starting 2022 as we mean to go on, and our recipe innovation isn’t slowing down!" 

To view the full vegan menu online, please visit www.papajohns.co.uk or via the Papa John’s app.

McDonald goes McPlant for Veganuary and beyond

Rosie Ramsey celebrating the arrival of the McPlant 

After a highly successful trial, McDonald’s is rolling out its first ever plant-based burger to EVERY McDonald's eatery across all of the UK and Ireland from today, Wednesday January 5th.

The McPlant, which features a patty co-developed with Beyond Meat®, is McDonald’s first plant-based burger option, ever.

To celebrate its release, famous faces such as Rosie Ramsey, Simon Gregson and Lawrence Okolie gave McPlant their seal of approval with tastings all over the UK

McDonald’s is proud to announce the nationwide roll-out of its plant-based offering, the McPlant, to all restaurants across the UK and Ireland from. This is after a successful trial at over 250 restaurants last year.

The impressive McPlant, which took over three years to develop, features a patty co-developed with Beyond Meat® and has already proved hugely successful with McDonald’s customers who were fortunate enough to try the new burger.

From today, it will be available all over the UK, meaning the McPlant is now everywhere for burger aficionados to get their teeth into. McDonald's is confidant that everyone will love McPlant, be they a vegan or a more traditional meat lover.

To celebrate the fact #McPlantIsEverywhere, McDonald’s took celebrities to all corners of the country to sample the latest addition to the menu.

Michelle Graham-Clare, Chief Marketing Officer for McDonald’s UK and Ireland said: “We’re thrilled our McPlant is now officially ‘everywhere’ and available for more of our customers to taste and enjoy. 

"We received a remarkable response during the trial run in October and now McPlant is on the high-street, in retail parks and service stations all over the UK and Ireland, all our customers can try it. We’re proud to once again offer our customers more great-tasting options from McDonald’s. It’s our same iconic taste, but now plant-based.”

McDonald’s UK&I spent three years on research and development to bring a delicious plant-based offering to British and Irish customers, and every element of the McPlant was designed with taste and quality top-of-mind. From the plant-based patty co-developed with Beyond Meat, to innovative vegan cheese based on pea protein that tastes just like McDonald’s iconic cheese slices, and a new vegan sandwich sauce. 

What goes in to a McPlant? A Vegan Sesame Bun, Mustard, Ketchup, Vegan Sauce, Fresh Onion, Pickles, Lettuce, Tomato and Vegan Cheese. It is cooked separately from other McDonald’s burgers and sandwiches using dedicated utensils.

How much an you expect to pay? Typically £3.49 - McPlant, or £4.89 – Medium Extra Value Meal.

Customers in ROI can expect to pay 4.50/7.40 Euros.

Zag, the vegan alcohol free refreshing drink

Zag is the vegan, alcohol free drink that is described as "refreshingly different."

It's a pale brew that you need to serve nicely chilled. But do be careful when you open it as it does contain a nice bit of fizz!

It's produced with kombucha, apple juice, some barley malt extract, some lemon juice, some lime juice, some green tea and some iso hop extract. There's also some hemp and some mint.

It's got a minty aroma to it and the taste is a well-balanced blend of all the ingredients. You can taste the mint, but it's not an overpowering minty taste and there's also the citrussy zest from the combined citrus fruit tastes of the lemon and the lime juice, but although there's that characteristic citrus tang, it doesn't appear to be too much, if you understand what I mean.

However, that's not all there is to this unique and refreshing drink. There's interesting taste undercurrents which is a combination of the kombucha, the hop extract, the hemp and the green tea, which is enlivened by the caramel sugar syrup.

Incidentally those who are watching their sugar and calorific intake will be interested to note that there are only 54 kcal per bottle and only 3.2g of sugar, too. And no artificial sweeteners, either!

If you are hosting a party for Veganuary then you really need a crate of Zag for your guests. 

You can learn more about Zag by visiting their website at https://zagdrinks.com/.

It's available direct from their website in bottles or cans.

12 x 330ml cans costs £17.75, 12 x 330ml bottles costs £17.49.

There's also a lower sugar version 12 x 330ml cans costs £17.75, whilst 12 x 330ml bottles costs £17.49.

However, the low sugar version (only 43kcal!) is on pre-order only at the moment, but all orders placed before 10th January will be shipped week commencing 10th January.

Vegan recipe kits available from Grubby for Veganuary

Grubby had a great plan. provide nutritious plant-based recipe kits to office workers and the like with nutritious, tasty meals they could cook for themselves confidant that there would be no meat products within the recipe.

The trial worked very well and all was set fair for the launch when that rolling disaster movie of a virus, COVID-19, came along.

How could Grubby survive the loss of its core market? 

Although still reeling from the body blow of COVID they came up with an excellent idea. With a team of dedicated volunteers Grubby turned its attention to giving back to the hardworking NHS staff. 

Following a highly successful JustGiving fundraising campaign, Grubby was able to raise enough funds to deliver over 1,000 meals to NHS hospitals. This very thoughtful gesture provided hungry and exhausted frontline NHS staff with some welcome tasty nutritional freshly cooked vegan food and really put Grubby on the vegan culinary map.

Grubby is the UKs first plant-based recipe kit catering concern and it now offers vegan recipe kits to everyone. In fact it's already delivered in excess of 15,000 meals. 

You don't even need to worry about the recycling or composting as the packaging is guaranteed to be 100% recyclable or compostable in 98% of instances.

All packaging is 100% recyclable or compostable in 98% of cases. And Grubby has garnered an Innovate UK grant for it's sustainable and ethical plans.

Martin Holden-White, Grubby's founder explained: "Being able to do something for our amazing NHS has felt really positive, and I hope this crisis will mean they get taken better care of in the future. Seeing all the positive feedback we received gave us the confidence to trial our service direct to doorsteps."

Originally Grubby delivered all their orders locally in the London area. This was because they relied on a two bicycle delivery team!

However, the company is confidant enough in its products that it now offers a nationwide distribution service.

How to order your Vegan recipe kits? Just visit https://grubby.co.uk/ and if you place your first order by Jan 31st there's a special discount!

Meals available for you to cook at home include Mushroom stroganoff and roasted roots, Harissa spiced courgette, Moroccan giant couscous, and a garlic tahini dressing and Beetroot risotto, toasted walnuts, fresh apple.

How much will they cost? The two recipe box weekly price will be £26.00. Full price details will be available on the website.

Bodyhero

Looking for a protein drink that is plant based, vegan friendly and which tastes good? Then you'll need to get some bodyhero protein drinks.

Bodyhero plan protein drink is aimed at vegans, though they are also great for all people who need a protein-packed drink with a great, Rich Chocolate flavour. It was also smooth and had a slight fruity taste to it, I thought.

The protein comes from the mighty pea, there are also dates, cocoa powder (in a reduced fat format) chicory root fibre, a dash of sea salt and some stevia to help balance the flavour, which it does very nicely. 

It's also idea for people who have a problem with lactose or for people who have diseases like coeliac disease as it is free from gluten and wheat.

The products is guaranteed to be free of GMs and it is produced exclusively in Britain.

Each 330ml drink has 20g of protein, 5g of fibre 5g of sugar and 151 calories, all in a delicious rich chocolate flavour.

They are packed with all 9 essential amino acids and also BCAAs. Which are branched-chain amino acids.

They are designed to help you recover from exercise and exertion and to support muscle growth.

They are also Informed Sport & Vegan Society accredited.

But that's certainly not all. Bodyhero also produces a wide range of products including vegan protein powder and vegan protein bars.

You can buy them from their own online shop at https://bodyhero.com/.

What can you do with a Pot Noodle?

Well, what can you do with a Pot Noodle? Before I answer this question, please let me point out that this article isn't linked to the manufacturers of Pot Noodle.

What can you do with a Pot Noodle? Many things!

They are an ideal standby for lorry drivers, nurses, doctors, hospital porters, cleaners and other NHS workers who occupy shift-based roles.

They are also very helpful for students, for office workers, factory workers, security guards and any worker who doesn't have access to a canteen, or who is a long way from shops, cafes, etc, but who needs something tasty to tide them over. But who does have access to a kettle, even a 24v one.

And for the busy person who is at home, they can provide a nice and rather filling snack meal whilst they are busy doing the cleaning, the laundry, etc. Or even for those who are working from home.

There are a wide range of flavours: Bombay Bad Boy curry, Chow Mein, Chicken and Mushroom, Beef and Tomato, Original Curry, Sticky Rib, Korma and Sweet and Sour.

They all taste pretty darn good, too!

There are also original and King sizes, so you can go large if you want.

However, they have also branched out into Pasta Pots, which includes the following flavours: Carbonara, Bolognese, Tomatoey Mozzarella and Creamy Carbonara.

They also have Lost the Pot Noodles which is a packet of Pot Noodles that don't come in a pot.

However, as a long time lover of Pot Noodles there are other things that you can do with them. After you cook your Pot Noodle, transfer it into a bowl. Or eat it between bread as a Pot Noodle sandwich. Or add grated cheese and grill it?

You can also liven up your Pot Noodle by adding Worcestershire Sauce, Soy Sauce, Cranberry Sauce, Curry Sauce, Hot Pepper Sauce or whatever else takes your fancy.

To learn more about one of the best exports from South Wales, please visit https://www.potnoodle.com/

Other flavours may be available from time-to-time, so do keep an eye open for these.

Some varieties are suitable for vegetarians, some for vegans. But Pot Noodle do suggest you check beforehand.

Hellman's Mayonnaise helps you take part in Veganuary

Whether you are a vegetarian, a vegan or someone who is interested to learn more about the vegan lifestyle, Hellmann's Mayonnaise will be able to help you learn whilst you feast.

How? Hellman's are putting their 108 year's of experience into producing some very tasty and tangy vegan friendly mayonnaises.

All ideal for helping to celebrate Veganuary (and beyond) with some vegan feasting.

What's available? There is Vegan Mayo, Vegan Garlic mayo, Vegan Chipotle Mayo and Vegan Mayo Baconnaise.

These are all most suitable for sandwiches, for dips, or with meat free burger and chips, fish free fish and chips (for that traditional continental version of fish and chips!) as an accompaniment for pizzas, for pies, or with a nice salad.

Or even mixed into mashed potatoes for that super creamy Hellman's experience, instead of butter, as a Vegan-friendly alternative. 

Or is that just me who does that? Please try that mashed potatoes with a twist idea next time you prepare them and let me know in the comments what you thought of that idea?

These new Hellmann's Mayonnaise flavours will be widely available either through some local convenience shops, your favourite supermarkets, health shops that sell foods and via online retailers.

Jars should cost £2.15, although individual retailers do have some discretion as to the price they will charge.

The Official Peaky Blinders Cookbook

Back in the year 2019, the inaugural episode of Peaky Blinders series five had 6.2 million viewers.

Next year in 2022, Peaky Blinders will air its sixth and final series 

And to commemorate this achievement is the first first official series cookbook. Owners of this book will be able to cook and eat just like the Shelby family and the other Peaky Blinders.

There are 50 tasty recipes, inspired by the iconic locations so beloved on the notorious gang, such as the the Garrison's Bar,  the Eden Club and Arrow House.

There are hearty, filling family meals, sandwiches, snacks and more besides. But there are posher meals, too, such as canapes lunches and dinners.

There are also nourishing meals like vegetable & barley soup with Alfie Solomons' soda bread, Grilled Oysters with parmesan crumb, Roast Rabbit with bacon and mushrooms in a whiskey sauce, flavourful Glazed celeriac steaks with breadcrumbs & herbs, a delicious Steak and ale pie, with a tasty mash, Butter and sage roast chicken with mushrooms & tarragon cream sauce, and Sloe Gin jelly with blackberries and cream.

I especially like the idea of Marmalade bread-and-butter pudding with rum custard!

Combining stills from the series, with recipes and specially commissioned photography, this lavishly illustrated cookbook is a must have for both Peaky Blinders fans and keen cooks, and will take readers on a unique journey into the world of the Shelby's.

The book is published by Quarto and will be published on 08/03/2022 at £14.99 in hardback.

It will be available from Waterstone and other high street book retailers and from online retailers such as Amazon,  Books Etc and Bookshop.org.

Candy Kittens a sweet treat for Veganuary

You may already have tried Candy Kittens. If not, Veganuary will be the ideal time to try them as they have recently launched it’s Gourmies range.

You'll be pleased to know that Candy Kittens takes its responsibility to its consumers and the environment very seriously indeed. 

How does it do this? It sources good, honest ingredients and it steadfastly declines to use palm oil or animal gelatine in any of the products in its range.

Like all the candy products in the the entire range, the Gourmies recipe calls for the use of real fruit juices, contains no artificial colours or flavourings. It also has 100% recyclable packaging. 

The range irresistible gourmet gummies range - Gourmies (RRP £2 - 125g) - is available online at www.candykittens.co.uk and Ocado and in Waitrose, Sainsbury's and Tesco shops.