Gochujang is the New Sriracha

I love chili sauces. It's gotten to the point where I don't feel like a dish looks right unless it's topped with a healthy zig-zag of sriracha or my new favorite jalapeno sauce, Yellowbird Sauce. Not only does the bright red sauce add an eye-popping touch of color, it also adds just the right amount of heat, sweeteness, and garlicky flavor.

But there's a new chili sauce in town. Okay, actually it's a very old sauce since it dates back late 18th century in Korea. But it's new to me! It's called gochujang, and I was sent a sample bottle from Chung Jung One to review.

Gochujang is a spicy, fermented Korean chili sauce made with rice, red chili, garlic, onion, and rice wine. It's thicker than sriracha. It's got a milder spice factor, and it's a tad sweeter. Also, because it's fermented, it has a pungency that packs a punch.

I've been putting it on everything! Since it's a Korean sauce, I'm sure it's traditionally served with Korean food. But I mixed it up by adding to my Tofu Pad Thai last week.

And as you may or may not know from reading this blog, I eat a LOT of ramen bowls. I typically eat ramen for breakfasts on weekends while I catch up on whatever show I'm watching. Right now, that's Lost. So on Saturday morning, I watched Lost in my PJs and had this bowl of Lotus Foods Buckwheat & Mushroom Ramen with Upton's Seitan, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, and red pepper. And of course, it's topped with a generous squirt of gochujang.

Chung Jung One's Gochujang is the only brand I've tried so far, so I can't say how it stacks up to other brands. But I think it's just amazing. I only wish I had a bigger bottle!

Miso Master

You're going to see a lot of reviews on the blog between now and New Year's Day. I've got a number of reviews in my cue, and they all need to wrap up before I start my annual January cleanse. But tonight's review is for something totally cleanse-friendly.

Miso Master sent me a few of their organic miso pastes to sample and review. I'd tried Miso Master before, and I can say that it's definitely my favorite miso paste. Some other brands, which shall remain nameless, tend to be a little chunky. But Miso Master makes some damn smooth miso. And they make all kinds! And it's certified gluten-free, which doesn't matter all that much to me, but it's crucial for some folks. They sent me Mellow White Miso, Traditional Red Miso, and Chickpea Miso.

Miso Master is made with handcrafted koji spores and well water from the Blue Ridge Mountains in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is one of my favorite Southern cities. It's so vegan-friendly!

I sampled each miso and came up with simple recipes using each. I was most intrigued by the Chickpea Miso, which is totally soy-free. Since miso is traditionally soy paste, making a soy-free miso sounds impossible. But Miso Master has done it (and done it well!). This light miso tastes so much like soy miso that I wouldn't know the difference if the package wasn't a giveaway. It's got a rich fermented flavor, and it's incredibly mellow.

I thought it'd be fun to use this in one of my favorite breakfasts — miso soup! I used to have miso for breakfast all the time, but it's been awhile. So I used this to whip up my Almond-Miso Soup, which combines salty miso with creamy almond butter, tofu, carrots, onions, and spinach. Breakfast of champions. You can find my recipe here on the VegNews website, where I first had it published in 2012.

Next up, I tried the Traditional Red Miso. I'm more accustomed to red miso because that's what I typically buy. Red miso has a much more pungent taste. It's like super-concentrated miso! I love things that are full of flavor, and this red miso didn't disappoint. It's softer in texture than the chickpea miso, but it packs a serious punch. 

I used this to make some Red Miso Butter. It's my own take on a recipe by Bryant Terry that I've long been obsessed with. Miso butter is great on toast, steamed veggies, and best of all, corn on the cob. Check out my uni-corn holder! Get it? Uni-CORN?

Red Miso Butter

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1/4 cup red miso

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 tsp. tahini

In a blender, combine all of the ingredients. Store in the fridge for up to 3 months.

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Last but not least is the Mellow White Miso, which turned out to be my fave of the bunch. It's very similar in color, taste, and texture to the Chickpea Miso. But it has that special soy miso twang. 

It's light flavor made it perfect for a creamy salad dressing. I whipped up this simple Miso Sesame Dressing in minutes.

Miso Sesame Dressing

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1/4 cup water

2 Tbsp. mellow white miso

2 Tbsp. sesame oil

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

New Vega Sport Performance Protein

I'm back to running again! As you may know if you've been following my occasional whiny posts over the past eight months, I've been suffering from a hellacious case of runner's knee. For months, it seemed like even the physical therapy exercises I was prescribed weren't working. And honestly, I still have knee pain when I squat or do lunges or walk up stairs. But it doesn't hurt when I run for now. And I've been taping my knees with KT tape.

For me, part of the joy of running comes in the form of my post-run smoothie. I experiment with different protein powders from time to time. But my fave has always been (and probably always will be) Vega. It's stevia-sweetened and made with high-quality vegan plant protein. I typically use Vega One, which is loaded with all kinds of vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber, greens, and omegas after my shorter runs.

But when I start to step up training for a half-marathon (and hopefully a full marathon later this year!), I will start following runs with Vega Sport, which contains a whopping 30 grams of protein per scoop. That's great for post-run muscle recovery. Vega recently released a new formula for Vega One, and now they've released a new Vega Sport formula.

The new formula has increased protein (made from non-gmo pea, pumpkin seed, sunflower seed, and alfalfa seed), glutamine, probiotics, BCAAs, and added performance boosters, like turmeric, tart cherry, black pepper, and bromelain.

Vega sent me some samples to review. Yay! So I used each flavor — Vanilla, Chocolate, Berry, and Mocha — to create a new recipe. I love each flavor, but vanilla is probably my fave just because it's so versatile for pairing. As always with Vega powders, they blend wonderfully. There's no gritty texture, and they work well to thicken smoothies. One thing to note: For the following recipes, I used a 1/2 scoop of Vega Sport (for 15 grams of protein) because I'm not at a level yet where I need 30 grams. I'll start using full scoops when I get up to 10 miles or so.  Right now, I'm just back at 5K level since I basically had to start over.

If you choose to make the following recipes with a full scoop, bump the plant milk up from 1 cup to 1 1/2 cups. 

Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie
2 tbsp. vegan cream cheese (I prefer Kite Hill)
1 cup cashew milk
1 cup frozen strawberries

1/2 scoop Vega Sport Performance ProteinVanilla
Ice
Graham cracker crumbs

Combine all ingredients (except for graham cracker crumbs) in a blender. Blend until smooth. Top with graham cracker crumbs.

Mixed Berry Banana Smoothie

1/2 scoop Vega Sport Performance Protein Berry
1 cup cashew milk
1 frozen banana
1 cup frozen mixed berries
1 cup spinach 

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth. 

Pumpkin Spice Latte Smoothie
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2  cup almond milk
1/2 strong cold coffee
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 scoop Vega Sport Performance Protein Mocha
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Ice
2 tbsp. vegan whipped topping (I used CocoWhip)

Combine all ingredients (except for whipped topping) in a blender. Blend until smooth. Top with whipped topping.

Chocolate Cranberry Citrus Smoothie
1 cup cashew milk
1/2 scoop Vega Sport Performance Protein Chocolate
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 cup frozen cranberry
1 clementine, peeled

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth. 

My December Goddess Box!

It's time to unpack the Goddess Provisions box again! As you might have read here before, I signed up for Goddess Provisions, a mystically themed subscription box curated by the folks who also run Vegan Cuts. It's part beauty box, part magic box. And it's basically the best thing ever. This is the third month it's been available, and I signed up at the very beginning because FOMO!

My December box arrived yesterday, and I think it's the best so far! Each box has five or six full-sized items — crystals, chocolates, teas, essential oils, vegan beauty products, etc. Here's what was in the December box.

There's Four Sigma Foods Mushroom Coffee, Skinchantment Radiance Nectar, Frisky Fish Fresh essential oil blend, a SacredXStones cinnamon-infused lava rock bracelet, and a beautiful piece of labradorite.

My very fave thing in this box is the labradorite. It's a gorgeous teardrop crystal, and it gleams in the sunlight. Labradorite is used to connect with your third eye and crown chakras, and it's believed to help awaken magic and psychic powers. Yes, please.

I had the Mushroom Coffee this morning. It's an instant coffee powder with chaga and cordyceps mushrooms, which are said to support the adrenal glands and the immune system. The flavor is just amazing. I want this to be my new morning joe.

The SacredXStones bracelet complements my cool bodhi bead bracelet that I got in a Vegan Cuts Yoga Box last year! The bracelet — it's the thinner one with the black rocks — is made with cinnamon-infused lava rocks, which help stabilize energy and balance the root chakra. When the cinnamon oil wears off, you can add a new oil and let it diffuse. Thinking I may try patchouli oil next.

I didn't take another picture of the Skinchantment Radiance Nectar, but it's a hydrating face mist that contains cucumber and rose. I love using face mists to set my makeup, so this was much needed. The scent is called Faerie Maiden, and I'm super into faeries, so it's perfect.

Finally, there's this best-smelling-ever Frisky Fish Fresh roll-on essential oil blend. It has lavender and lemon, which I've often used to balance my heart chakra. It smells like a good night's sleep and the morning sun got together. You know, like waking up on a Saturday without an alarm.  Yep, that's what this smells like.

Love that this box covered a bunch of chakras and included beauty stuff, coffee, jewelry, smell-good stuff, and my favorite crystal! If you want to sign up for Goddess Provisions, please use this link. I signed up to be an ambassador, so I make a few cents when folks sign up with my link.

Golden Masala Chai

I've long had a love-hate relationship with hot tea. Growing up in the South, we lived on iced sweet tea. And we drank plenty of coffee — pots and pots on long nights writing poetry with my goth friends in high school (ha!). But hot tea just wasn't a thing.

As an adult with slightly more worldly tastes, I've tried to get into hot tea for years. For some reason, though, it just tasted like hot, weakly flavored water to me. Until I discovered chai tea. I was probably in my early 20s, and I think I may have been in a coffee shop in New Orleans if my memory serves me correctly. I'd heard of chai, and when I saw it on the menu, I had to try it. One sip and my idea of tea totally changed. Chai was spicy. It was milky. It was sweet. It tasted nothing like weakly flavored water.

Back home, I experimented with various brands of chai tea bags, but most were disappointing. Some of the pricier loose-leaf chai tea blends were good but not cost-efficient. My friend Leslie's homemade chai — made with whole cardamom and cinnamon sticks and whole cloves and such — is hands-down the best. But it's labor-intensive, and I'm never gonna do that.

Enter Blue Lotus Chai — a powdered chai that needs no steeping. Just add it to hot water and plant milk, stir, and drink. I've reviewed a few of their chai blends here and here. Now, they've added a new one to the mix — Golden Masala Chai.

It's the basic Blue Lotus blend of black tea powder, ginger root powder, ground cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, nutmeg, and cloves but with added ground turmeric and maca powder. Turmeric is an excellent, all-natural anti-inflammatory, and maca is great for boosting energy, mood, memory, and athletic performance.

To brew, all you do is heat 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup plant milk (I used cashew milk) and then stir in a spoonful of Blue Lotus Chai powder. A small wooden scoop that's just the right size for one portion is included in every bag and tin of Blue Lotus. And then I like to add agave, Bee-Free Honee, or stevia for sweeteners. One thing I've learned in my tea experiments over the years is that I do not like hot tea unless it's sweetened. I can drink unsweetened iced tea but not hot.

There's no added sweeteners in Blue Lotus Chai, so adding it is necessary if you're like me. There's also no milk powder (so it's vegan), no artificial flavoring or coloring, no additives, no mess, and no steeping. The powder just dissolves into the hot liquid, and it's ready to drink instantly. No waiting.

As for the new flavor, I couldn't tell a huge difference in taste from the original Blue Lotus Chai, but I did notice a slight flavor of maca. It wasn't overpowering (maca can be very strong in large doses) though, and it blended in well with the chai flavors. The turmeric was also subtle in taste, but it added a nice yellow color to the tea. And with my chronic knee inflammation, I can use all the turmeric I can get.

Christmas at Me-Maw's!

On Saturday, my cousins, aunts, and uncles all gathered at my Me-Maw's house for a little holiday social. We didn't do presents, just food and conversation. It's been a couple years since my Me-Maw has been able to hold a family Christmas party because last year at this time, she was recovering from hip surgery.

Okay, she's actually recovering from another hip surgery — the other side — now, but she's bounced back from this one much faster. Here's me and Me-Maw — my mama's mom. And please note that I'm wearing a tee-shirt in the middle of December because it's in the 70s here right now!

My mama planned all the food. Here's a selfie of my mama and me! Or is that an ussie?

She wanted to do a build-your-own sandwich bar, so she picked up some meats and cheeses and made some dips for chips. She picked me up some Tofurky Hickory Smoked deli slices, and I brought some Field Roast Chao cheese from home. When she realized the croissants she was buying for everyone's sandwiches weren't vegan, she actually made me some homemade rosemary focaccia bread!

It was so good! All light and fluffy and herbed. Here's another shot of my sandwich with vegan deli slices, vegan cheese, tomato, lettuce, onion, pickle, and some sriracha-horseadish vegan mayo (that my mom also made).

Mama made cheese dip for everyone else, so she whipped me up some Vegan Rotel with little bits of vegan burger crumble and Daiya. Perfect for Fritos Scoops, of which I had many. Too many.

And if that wasn't enough homemade vegan awesomeness, mama also made me a Vegan Cheese Ball!!! She had made a dairy cheese ball for the rest of the family, and she didn't want me to feel left out. Yea, I totally have the best mama ever. This ball was made with vegan cream cheese and vegan cheddar, and it was just as good as any dairy cheese ball I've ever had. I've got to get her recipe!

She made a couple kinds of cookies, one of which was vegan. These Mexican Wedding Cookies are one of my all-time favorite cookies. They're crumbly in all the right ways and rolled in powdered sugar.

About a week before the get-together, my cousin Sarah requested that I bring some cupcakes to the party. So I threw together some simple Chocolate Candy Cane Cupcakes using the chocolate cake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World (that's a NEVER FAIL chocolate cake recipe, btw) and adding peppermint extract to the basic buttercream recipe from that book. I sprinkled some TruJoy organic candy canes over the top.

That's it! We had a good time. And my very non-vegan family members were impressed (and in some cases, totally fooled) by all the vegan things they tried. Some people were eating my vegan cheese ball instead of the non-vegan one without even realizing they were eating a vegan one! And my uncle Dale requested that I make a vegan lasagna for him to try sometime. Spreading the vegan message, one family member at a time.

Vegan Cannabidiol Brownies!

No, these are not pot brownies, so don't get too excited. But they're close! Cannabidiol, more often abbreviated as CBD, is one of the many compounds found in the cannabis plant. But unlike the more commonly known THC, which has psychoactive effects, CBD is hemp-derived and non-psychoactive.

Auntie Dolores is a maker of medical marijuana edibles in San Francisco, where medical pot is totally legal. But they also bake CBD products that are legal to sell all over, even in states that don't allow medical marijuana (like Tennessee, where I live). While it won't get you high, CBD does have some great medical benefits — combats inflammation, anxiety, nausea, tumor cells, seizures, and psychosis.

Aunt Delores mailed me one of their vegan CBD Chocolate Brownie Bites to review. So I put it to the test.

Pandora was totally intrigued.

Inside, there was a tiny bite-sized brownie. The package said this brownie contained five 10 mg doses of CBD. These sell for $14 each on Auntie Dolores' website.

I do suffer from chronic inflammation with my never-ending case of runners knee, so I ate half the brownie before going to a Memphis Grizzlies game last week because I knew I'd be going up and down stairs to my seat a lot. And my knee tends to hurt the most when going upstairs. 

So did it work? A little! I could still feel pain when directly pressing onto my inflamed knee. But there wasn't much pain going up or down the stairs. I also felt a sort of peaceful calm wash over me. I don't suffer from anxiety, but I could see how these would be very helpful to someone who does. As for the taste, this was delicious — chockful of mini chocolate chips — but it was a tad dry. I'm not sure how long it stays fresh after being baked, but I'm sure it was at least a couple days old because of shipping.

I think it's super-cool that a medical marijuana dispensary is offering alternative products for people in states that don't have medical pot access. And it's even cooler than they're making these products vegan. They even sell vegan CBD dog treats with pumpkin and peanut butter! I wish I could try those on my super-anxious Maynard, who is prescribed Prozac. Several of their THC products are vegan, too, if you're a registered medical cannabis patient in California. ;-)