Monday, September 30, 2013

Flohmarkt - flea market - marché aux puces - Floumaart

Hallo meine Lieben,

I hope your weekend was fantastic and you will have a wonderful week!
Yesterday I went to one of the biggest flea markets here in the area. Because of its location there are always people from Germany, France and Luxembourg. So you can hear lots of different languages, meet lots of funny people and can find an awesome selection of things you need - or just want. 

I mean, you don't really go to the flea market to buy things you need - it's more about finding fantastic things you would not buy otherwise. 

I usually look for books (of course), old jewelry, furniture, decoration....
I am still upset that I did not buy a beautiful globe bar that I discovered at a flea market a couple of years ago. It makes me sad thinking about it because it was perfect...and I have no idea why I ended up not buying it. 

Anyways, I did not plan on buying lots of stuff yesterday but I found a couple of things that I could not resist. 



This was the first piece I couldn't resist. The necklace is hand-painted. Well, at least that's what the French guy who sold it to me said. No matter what, it was a real bargain and it is pretty. There is a horse painted on the other side of it. 




Crime novels, of course. The books are in really great condition and I just started reading the book series by Ian Rankin and Jo Nesbo. It was meant to be. 




There are two reasons why I bought these. Not because I really needed some decoration but because a) I am a crazy cat and bunny lady and b) the woman who sold these to me runs a private animal sanctuary in Luxembourg and all the profits are for this good cause.  I already bought a purse, books and lots of other stuff from that woman years ago. 




I did not buy this elephant but isn't it cute? I am sure my non-existing children would love it. Well, I am still a child myself so obviously I fell in love. But sometimes even I can resist buying cute things. I do regret not buying it but that's another story.



There were lots of furry visitors at the flea market but most of them were dogs. This cat was also looking for some bargains. The flea market took place in the streets of a little town so I assume the cat lives in the neighborhood and was excited to see so many people in her little village. She definitely enjoyed all the attention. 


Do you like flea markets? What are the things you can't resist? Have you been to a flea market recently?

Have a lovely Monday!

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Grocery shopping & Fish Amnesty Day.

Hallo meine Lieben,

happy Fish Amnesty Day! "Fish Amnesty Day is a day to recognize fish as living animals with rights and in need of protection just the same as other vertebrates." Good idea I would say. You can find more information here.

I went grocery shopping this week and I thought I could share my vegan finds with you. I like to read posts like that on other blogs but please let me know if you think that this is totally boring.

So, here is what I got (and I am sorry for the quality but I only have my iPhone camera right now). 




1. Veggie Life - Vegan Mayonnaise.

The funny thing is that I never even liked mayonnaise before I went vegan. But when I saw this in the grocery store I had to give it a try. Maybe it is just too exciting to resist when you find the vegan version of a product that you have never seen before. I don't know. But wow, it tastes so good. I doubt that "real" mayonnaise tastes that good. I made some potatoes with veggies last night and ate it with the mayonnaise and to be honest - I had to stop myself from eating the whole pot. 

2. Veggie Aufschnitt.

I got this at Aldi. I am surprised about the big selection for vegans at Aldi, American Aldi does not have anything like that. They should really think about selling some vegan products. But yeah, this one is my favorite. I love to eat it with my Brötchen. I am German, I need my Brötchen in the morning. 

3. Carrefour Chocolate Soy pudding.

Oh, I love pudding. I can't even tell you how much. I could eat a huge bowl of pudding every day. Freshly cooked pudding is the best (do you love or hate the pudding skin? I know that's a huge debate. I LOVE the pudding skin so I always use huge bowls when I make pudding to get as much skin as possible). But yeah, I found this pudding in France and it is pretty good. 

4. Hummus.

In America I eat Hummus every single day and I have to say that you can find a bigger selection of hummus in American groceries stores but I was able to find this one in a German store. It is really good but I usually prefer the roasted pepper hummus. 

5. Soyananda -Vegan cream cheese.

This one is soooo good. They also have one with herbs and one with tomato I think. But I like to eat the plain one with vegan "Nutella". I know a lot of people who think that's gross but I just love it. It's the perfect combination. 

6. Quinoa

I have to say that I never used quinoa before but I found some recipes in a cook book and I want to give them a try. Do you have any good recipes with quinoa? Please let me know!

7. Soy Drink Vanilla.

I usually prefer almond milk but this one is pretty great too. I used it for smoothies, in my coffee and you can even eat it in mashed potatoes if you like it when they taste like vanilla. I do. 

8. "Erdbäriger" Tee - Strawberry Tea.

I drink several cups of tea every day. This package has a cute hedgehog and a cute bear on it so I had to buy it. I am like a little child sometimes but I just couldn't resist. It also tastes pretty great. Strawberries are always good. I also like the pun:
Erdbeere means strawberry.
Bär means bear.
--> Erdbäriger Tee. 
Pretty great. 

9. Bach flowers tea.

I got this as an extra in the natural foods store. I haven't tried it yet but tea is always good. 

10. Semolina pudding (for babies).

I just love that stuff...I mean, it is not just for babies. the package says you have to be 4 months or older. Which I am. So I am allowed to eat this. I usually mix it with some fruits and agave syrup. 

11. Wilmersburger - vegan cheese. 

This is my favorite German vegan cheese. I got three different types: Cheddar Style, Pilze (mushrooms), Würzig (Spicy). The spicy one is my favorite. I had the cheddar style cheese for breakfast this morning and I also like it a lot. And I haven't tried the mushroom one yet but I am sure it will be good too. I am always amazed by the great selection of vegan food...it was pretty hard to find vegan/vegetarian food when I stopped eating meat but now you can find vegan products in almost every store. 

Okay, I forgot to take a picture of this one. 



de Rit Organics - Chocoreale Duo

As you can see, I already ate some of this. It is just too good. It's basically a mix of vegan "Nutella" and some white cream. Perfect in the mix with the cream cheese. 


What did you buy on your last grocery shopping trip? What are your favorite products? Any recommendations?

Have a lovely Saturday!

Friday, September 27, 2013

Five Things. Black cats, pumpkins and haunted castles.

Hallo meine Lieben,

I hope you are having a wonderful time and your weekend will be fabulous.
Please check out my friend Celeste's Five Things as well.

It is almost October which means that Halloween is near so I thought I share some things related to this favorite holiday of mine. 


1. This bath bomb.


I love taking a bath and I love Lush products. This one is from the limited Halloween edition and it is so fantastic. It smells like ylang-ylang and orange and it makes your bath water look really funny. Love it.


2. This black cat.



No Halloween without black cats. And of course my black cat is the best black cat in the world (all black cats rock though!). 



3. This movie.


I wanted to watch this movie last Halloween but didn't. So it is definitely on my October watch-list. It looks like so much fun. 


4. These cookies. 



I want to give it and try and bake some fantastic cookies like these. I am not sure if I would want to eat them afterwards because they are just too pretty too eat them. Does not make any sense but I am sure you can impress people with cookies like these.


5. This haunted castle.


I would love to visit a haunted castle like this one on Halloween. Anything creepy fascinates me. So this would be the perfect thing to do. Do you know any interesting haunted houses/castles? If so, let me know, please. I would like to read about them!


What do you like about Halloween?

Have a fabulous weekend!


Thursday, September 26, 2013

My fave store to shop at is...

Hallo meine Lieben,

first of all: Tiffie is doing a lot better and I couldn't be happier! Thanks for all your kind words! It really means a lot to me.

So, it is that time of the week again: Random Thursday. You can sign up here.



And this is the topic.



In general...

Well, my favorite kind of store is definitely a book store. Used, new, small, big...whatever. I love them all and I can spend hours, days in there. And it is better not to interrupt me when I am searching for new books. I also love to discover books online, that is why I love to browse online stores, Goodreads, get recommendations from blogs... But nothing can beat the experience in a real book store...all the shelves, the smell....




I could never imagine not to buy any books. I guess I would rather buy a book than food for myself. I love the smell of books, books entertain me, books make me happy, they make me sad, they excite me...they are just perfect. A life without books and book stores would be pretty sad. 

I am also a huge fan of natural foods stores. There are definitely some great ones in America and in Germany as well. It is fun to find some new vegan products I haven't tried before. And it is also so much easier to find some food I like compared to normal grocery stores. 


In America. 

I have to say that I really love spending time at Target and I can't even tell you why. David does not understand it at all but I love browsing all the shelves, the huge selection...to look for shoes and tea and a running shirt and cosmetics at the same time in the same store. There isn't really anything like that in Germany so every visit in a Target store is pretty exciting for me.

I also love the huge craft stores! So many things to see and buy...again, I have never been to anything like that in Germany. I don't know if stores like that even exist in Germany, definitely not in my area. So I can never leave these stores empty-handed. I need to smell all the candles and then find some art supplies. Perfect way to spend an afternoon.



In Germany.

One of my favorite German stores is definitely "dm" which is probably the biggest drug store chain over there. I love to discover new beauty products and the best thing about this store is the huge vegan and cruelty free selection. You can find pretty much everything there...lipsticks, eye make up, hand creams, face creams, body lotion, shampoo, hair color, even vegan food. It is heavenly there and every time I go there I have to spend some time to discover all the new products.


So, now I would like to know what your favorite stores are? Where do you like to shop? Do you like to shop in real stores or do you prefer online shopping?

Have a lovely day!




Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Heile heile Gänschen....

Hallo meine Lieben,

"heile heile Gänschen" is a German song that my mom and grandma always sang for me when I was sick. Today I have to sing this song to my beloved little bunny Tiffie. 


He usually is a very active bunny, he loves to play around with his buddy Findus. This morning he just stayed in his little bed the whole time, he did not eat, not even the treats he loves so much. He was shaking a bit and what scared me the most was that he made grinding noises with his teeth. Which means that a bunny is in pain. 

So I grabbed him and went to the vet with him. He hates going to the vet (he was very sick when I adopted him 4 years ago and we had to go to the vet every single day for weeks. Plus he needs to get his teeth cut every 6-8 weeks which also scares him a lot) but we had no choice. I was so worried about my little bunny. 

The vet found out that he has a colic which is a pretty serious condition for a bunny. Tiffie got two injections from the mean doctor and he took it like a man. Very brave. He also had to eat some yummy brown paste which he obviously did not like very much. 

When we got back home I made sure that he has a quiet spot where he can relax and get better. I gave him some fluids and sat next to him. Then I massages his little tummy to make him feel better. Then I was just there for him. I started searching the internet for more information about bunnies and colics. After reading lots of horror stories about it I just stopped and realized that Tiffie has proven that he is a fighter and that he will make it. A couple of hours later he had to eat that stupid paste again...

And he is starting to feel better. I am so happy to see this because he looked so sad and miserable this morning. He is eating some hay and he is hopping around a bit. I hope his condition will improve and that he will be back at his old self tomorrow. 

Tiffie and I (and the other pets) would appreciate it  if you would send some happy thoughts our way! 

I hope you are all doing great!

Monday, September 23, 2013

I have a confession to make....

Hallo meine Lieben,

I totally messed up posting my Sunday confessions yesterday but I guess better late than never. There are some things I need to confess...

I confess...

.... that this is true.



.... that I bought a cocoa body butter just because I want to smell like hot chocolate. Not because I needed another body butter.

.... that I feel like a little kid at Christmas when I go and visit horses and cows on my daily walk. They are just so entertaining and sweet and so thankful for the treats I bring them. 

....that I don't want to think about the fact that there is only one episode of Breaking Bad left to watch.

.... that sometimes the world makes me so angry that I don't know how to handle it. 

.... that I could probably spend a whole month alone in a remote cabin if I would just have a stack of books and something to eat. I really like reading.



.... that I talk to my pets. All the time. I think they understand. 

.... that sometimes I want to hide under a blanket and just stay there. 


What do you have to confess?

Have a wonderful week!

Sunday, September 22, 2013

International Rabbit Day.

Hallo meine Lieben,


Findus, Tiffie and I want to wish you a happy International Rabbit Day!

You can find more information about this fantastic day here.  "It promotes the protection and care of rabbits both domestic and wild." Yay for that. 

And here some bunny cuteness....



Findus in his favorite sleeping spot. Originally, this is a cat bed. The cats did not care about it but Findus loves it. 


Tiffie could definitely be a bunny model. 


Both bunnies loves to eat. 


As you can see, Findus is a very relaxed bunny. His second favorite spot is his blanket. 


Curious Tiffie.


I hope you are having a wonderful International Rabbit Day! Tiffie and Findus did not care that much about their special day, I guess for them every day is International Rabbit Day. And that's what they deserve. 

Have a great week!


Saturday, September 21, 2013

Five Things.

Hallo meine Lieben,

happy weekend! I hope you are having a good time! It is finally not raining here and it is only partly cloudy so that's definitely a progress. 
Go and check out my friend Celeste's Five Things too. She is fantastic!

1. This wing chair. 


I think this would be the perfect chair for reading. I am in love. I would love to find a vintage chair like that. Then I just need a fireplace, a globe bar and to start smoking a pipe and Saturday afternoons would be perfect. 


2. This book.


The Lotus and the Artichoke - vegan recipes from world adventures by Justin P. Moore. It's basically a cook book and a travel book at the same time. It's already on my wishlist and I can't wait to read this gem. Sounds fantastic to me. 


3. This magazine.


I have heard about this German magazine a while ago and my Dad bought it for me (really nice I would say). There are lots of vegan and vegetarian recipes  in it but also very interesting articles and interviews (one with Moby for example). I like the variety of topics and the design of the magazine. Definitely a winner. 

4. This shirt.


I love vegetables, I eat them every day so I think this shirt is really cute. I might have to design my own shirt which says "Onions are evil" though.


5. This  lipstick.


I love Lime Crime lipsticks, they are my absolute favorites. And this color is so pretty. I don't wear lipstick that often but maybe I would if I'd own this shade. You never know. I am in love. 

Have a wonderful Saturday!



Thursday, September 19, 2013

One bad habit I just can't break...

Hallo meine Lieben,

I hope you are all doing great! It is still cold and windy and rainy over here in Germany but I am hoping for 20 degrees Celsius and some sunshine this weekend. 



I am happy to have my Random Thursday link-up back! This is this week's topic and you can join here.




Bad habits. Hmm. I don't bite my nails, I don't smoke....but I can't get rid of old magazines.




Especially the ones I paid a lot of money for. Science magazines, music magazines and so on. I have tried to get rid of them but I always think that I might want to read them again at some point. I have music magazines that I bought ten years ago. Maybe I can sell them to a collector at some point. You never know....
I finally recycled some old fashion magazines though. It's a start. 

What is the bad habit you can't break?
Have a lovely Thursday!


Wednesday, September 18, 2013

"This or that" beauty tag.

Hallo meine Lieben,

I hope you are all doing great and you are enjoying fall! Here in my part of Germany it is cold and windy and rainy. Not my kind of fall. 



My kind of fall.

I have seen this post on my friend Martha's blog and I thought it would be fun to join in. I like reading things like this on my friend's blogs so maybe you will enjoy this too. I will definitely enjoy filling it out.
I do love beauty products, as long as they are cruelty free. Just to make that clear, I am definitely not a beauty expert, nor will I ever be a beauty blogger but I do enjoy discovering new products. 

Face 

Blush or bronzer? Blush. I use it pretty much daily but I never use bronzer. I don't even know how to properly use bronzer. I am pale and I like it. 

Lip gloss or lip stick? Lipstick because most glosses are kind of sticky and I hate that. I do have some lip glosses but I rarely use them. Not that I use lipstick on a regular basis...

Eyeliner or mascara? I do like to use both of them. If I would have to choose then I would probably go with the mascara, don't ask me why. I usually use black mascara but my eyeliners are mostly brown by the way. 

Foundation or concealer? Probably foundation. Although my skin looks a lot better since I went vegan (true story). I still use foundation pretty much every day but a light one. I don't want it to look like a masque. Concealer can be pretty helpful though. I tend to not sleep enough.

Neutral or colored eye shadow? Definitely neutral. I mostly wear brown eye shadow. I do have an eye shadow palette with some bright colors but I have to admit that I mostly bought it because it looks so pretty. Not because I planned on wearing it all the time...Stupid I know. I have that thing for years and have used it twice. Just to see how it looks. Not because I wanted to leave the house like that. It does not make any sense but it makes me happy to look at the palette. I am rambling, sorry. 

Pressed or loose eye shadow? Pressed. I am way too clumsy to handle loose eye shadow. 

Brushes or sponges? I have such a pink sponge to apply my foundation and I like that thing a lot. But I also like my (vegan) foundation brush. 


Nails

OPI or China Glaze? I don't use any of them. OPI isn't cruelty free. I don't know about China Glaze but I don't own any of these. My favorite nail polish brands are Butter London and OCC but I also love the vegan nail polishes from the German drugstore brand P2.

Long or short? Short nails. I can't handle long nails plus I don't really like the way they look. 

Acrylic or natural? Natural. I don't want to have fake nails. 

Bright or dark? Dark or nude. I do like red nail polish though. 

Flowers (or other designs) or no? No design, please.  


Body

Perfume or body splash? Perfume. I do have some body splash which is nice in summer but I would not use that every day. 

Lotion or body butter? Both. My skin is so dry and I have a really great vegan body butter which I use on my legs in winter. I do mostly use body lotion though.

Body wash or soap? Depends. I do love my Lush soaps but I use body wash for my daily shower. I do have to say that I am a sucker for soaps. I think it is because of my Grandma's sister who always gave me some fancy soap when I visited her. 

Lush or another brand? Lush please. Love that brand. And I love spending hours in that store. I recently got a fabulous hand cream which smells like chocolate and orange...so good. And their body butters are heavenly!


Fashion

Jeans or sweat pants? Jeans. I love jeans. I wear them pretty much every day. I do love do wear my "ugly pants" (that's how David and I call them) in the evening though. It's so comfortable to hang out like that on the couch. 

Long or short sleeves? Haha. Long sleeves of course. I am always cold. I rarely wear short sleeves. 

Dress or skirt? Dress. As I said, I mostly wear jeans but I do have some cute dresses which I should probably wear more often. 

Stripes or plaids? Plaid. Always looks good. 

Scarves or hats? Scarves! I guess I have way too many scarves but I am always cold so I need all of them. You can't have too many scarves. I do love hats too but mostly on other people because I look like an idiot wearing them. 

Studs or dangling earrings? Studs. I can't handle dangling earrings, they drive me crazy. I don't know why. 

Necklace or bracelet? Both. I do love jewelry a lot. 

Heels or flats? I rarely wear heels. I do have a couple of high heels but I only wear them on special occasions when I am able to sit most of the time. I like to be comfortable. 

Cowboy boots or riding boots? Riding boots I guess. 

Forever 21, Charlotte Russe, or Marshalls? I have to admit that I have never heard of Charlotte Russe or Marshalls.


Hair

Curly or straight? Straight. My hair is not made for curls. 

Bun or ponytail? Ponytail. My hair is too short for anything else right now. I do love buns though. 

Bobby pins or butterfly clips? I guess bobby pins. I rarely use them though. But I never use butterfly clips. 

Hairspray or gel? Don't really use any of them. I guess hairspray because I never use gel. 

Long or short? Medium. I do love short hair a lot. I kind of miss my short hair cut. I should give it another try some day...

Dark or light? I am blonde but I am still thinking about a darker hair color...

Side swept or full bangs? I love full bangs I just need to get a haircut because my hair is too long right now. 

Up or down? Up. Never wear my hair down. It just doesn't look very good on me. 


Random

Rain or shine? I love rain showers. Just not for a week straight. So right now I am wishing for some sunshine. 

Summer or winter? Hmm, I am always cold but I still love winter because everything is so cozy and nice that time of the year.

Fall or spring? Fall. Best season. 


Chocolate or vanilla? Dark chocolate and vanilla pudding, please.


I hope you enjoyed this a bit. I would love to read your answers by the way. So feel free to join in!
Have a lovely rest of the week! 

PS: It's National Farm Animals Awareness Week!

Monday, September 16, 2013

The one with the medical emergency and the vegan meal.

Hallo meine Lieben,

as I have told you in my last post, I am in Germany right now. The flight over there wasn't as smooth as expected. Well, I guess it never is. 



When I checked in for the flight I was happy to see that the seat next to me still seemed to be empty. So I was hoping  for a nice flight where nobody goes on my nerves. I am never really lucky with my seat neighbors...one time I had a veeeery talkative guy sitting next to me who told me his whole life story. Plus his sister's life story. And his aunt's life story. It was a long flight. He also showed me on a map every place in America he has ever traveled to. All I wanted is to read my book or watch a movie. No chance. 
When I entered the plane I had to realize that it was packed and that I probably wasn't very lucky...and of course...I had a whole Austrian family around me. Fortunately they seemed very nice although I had my problems understanding their weird dialect. And after explaining the father how an iPad works the people around me remained pretty quiet for the rest of the flight. 

After a hour I heard somebody asking for oxygen and the flight attendants started to run around in the plane. A couple of minutes later the pilot asked if there is a doctor on board. Things got a little crazy but after half an hour it seemed like the situation is fine. 

An hour later the pilot told us that he had to turn around and fly back to America because of a medical emergency. I guess the person was still having problems with oxygen. So yeah, we were on our way to Boston which was the closest airport. Yay. All I wanted is to have something to eat because it was already 7 pm and I hadn't eaten much the whole day. So when we landed in Boston I wasn't sure if we were even able to continue flying again or if we had to spend the night in Boston - which I really wanted to avoid. 

After a while the pilot talked to us again and told us that the medical emergency had left the plane -hopefully in good shape- and that we would be able to take off as soon as the plane was refueled and all the security checks were finished. He told us that this would take 25 minutes which I never believed. So after 70 minutes we were able to continue our flight to Germany. Yay. 

I was really happy that I packed some snacks for the flight (which I recommend to every vegetarian or vegan because you never know what food you get on a plane). So I ate some nuts while I was waiting for my dinner. 

At 9:45 pm the flight attendants started serving the dinner and I was curious to see if I would really get a vegan meal. Sometimes the vegan meals are a little suspicious so you have to be careful.

This is what I got. Please excuse the crappy quality of the picture.



The main dish was a chick pea curry with rice and broccoli and carrots and the flight attendant assured me that it really was vegan. It was actually pretty good which surprised me because a lot of meals on planes are really tasteless. Sure it is not comparable to a home-cooked meal but you can't have everything.
It came with a mixed salad (tomatoes and green salad), balsamic vinegar ( I did not know if it was vegan, some types of vinegar aren't so I ate the salad with salt and pepper), a bread roll (Wasn't sure about that one either) and some melon. 
All in all, it was a satisfying meal and I wasn't starving anymore. 

After long hours of flying and everybody else in the plane except of me and the pilot being asleep, the flight attendants started serving breakfast.
Luckily I wasn't very hungry and still had a Clif Bar in my bag because my breakfast was not vegan at all. I got a strawberry yogurt, a butter croissant, marmalade and an orange juice. I guess the marmalade was vegan but I did not want to eat pure marmalade so I gave my breakfast to the hungry seat neighbor. 

An hour later we all landed safely in Düsseldorf, Germany. After I had to wait one hour for my bag - I thought it got lost again. Things like that happen to me - I was able to finally leave the airport. 

I hate flying. 

How about you? Do you enjoy long flights? Do you like the food?

Have a lovely Monday!

Sunday, September 15, 2013

My favorite vegan products. Part I - German food.

Hallo meine Lieben,

happy Sunday! I am in Germany and I am struggling a bit with my jetlag. The problem is that I just can't sleep on planes so I basically lose a whole night of sleep when I fly from America to Germany. The flight itself was a bit of a chaos but that's a topic for another post. I need to take care of some things here in Germany - which is also a topic for another post. The weather isn't that great over here. It's raining most of the time. I am hoping for some sunshine.

Today I want to talk to you a little bit about my favorite German vegan products.  I talked about the differences between American and German food before  and being in Germany I have to take the chance to eat my favorite vegan products.


1. Wilmersburger - vegan cheese. 


I stopped eating meat when I was eleven or twelve - and I have never missed it. I never craved a Schnitzel or any other meat product. I have never been a huge meat eater. But it is a bit different with cheese. I really liked to eat cheese. My hometown is 15 minutes away from the French border so I lived really close to the best cheeses in the world. So when I went vegan I had to adjust to not eating cheese anymore. Which wasn't too bad in most cases but sometimes you just crave a lasagna or a Käsebrötchen ( bread roll with cheese - we Germans love our bread). I started to try many vegan cheeses and I have to say that lots of them tasted like paper. But then came Wilmersburger and saved me. They offer different flavors (tomato-basil, paprika, olive...) and my favorite is "Würzig" (spicy). It even melts - which lots of vegan cheeses don't. So if you ever travel to Germany and look for a vegan cheese, I highly recommend buying this one. 


2. Carobella Duo


People in my  hometown would say that I am a "Süssschniss" which basically means that I love to eat anything sweet. And yes, as a kid I loved to eat the famous hazelnut spread from Italy. I like this one even better because it is not as terribly sweet as Nutella. Plus it is mixed with vanilla so you can't do wrong.


3. Vantastic Foods "Schnouggi"


As I said, I really have a sweet tooth. This one is a nougat bar and I love the fact that the only ingredients are sugar, hazelnuts, cocoa butter, low fat cocoa powder, salt. The only negative - the bar is way too small so one just isn't enough. 


4. Vantastic Foods - Veggie Fish Filets.


Yes, vegan fish. I was a bit skeptical at first but I gave it a try and I loved it. It definitely had a bit of a "fishy" taste - as far as I can remember. I guess that comes from the seaweed. The ingredients are wheat fibre, water, soybeans, olive oil, saccharose, salt, seaweed, spices. I love to eat it with potatoes, roasted in olive oil and garlic. 


5. Provamel - Rice Coconut drink and  Rice Almond Drink


I love to use the coconut drink to make smoothies and I prefer the almond one for hot chocolates or in coffee. I am so glad that we have so many options now. When I went vegetarian there were only a few vegetarian options - I will never forget the first soy Schnitzel my Mom prepared for me. I felt like eating an eraser and the smell wasn't very nice either. 


I don't eat things like meat or fish alternatives every day, it is more of a special thing to do. My daily meals consist of lots of veggies, potatoes, couscous, pasta  and things like that. But sometimes it is nice to put something on the grill or have a good old Schnitzel. A cruelty free one please. I have never regretted my decision although many people thought it is just a phase and won't last very long. But I guess I have proven them wrong. I can't imagine to ever change my diet back. The plant based diet definitely is the right one for me. 

Please stay tuned for part II.

What are your favorite vegan products? And if you are not a vegan: would you try products like vegan fish or vegan "meat"?

Have a happy Sunday!