The Cheeze Factory Restaurant–Wisconsin Dells, WI

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When I found the Cheeze Factory on happycow, I was surprised to find it in Wisconsin Dells, WI. The area is very touristy and dairy heavy. It was great to find a 100% vegan restaurant in the dells. Their vast menu alone is temptation enough to stay overnight in the area not to mention the bakery case. Oh, the bakery case!

Monty’s Blue Plate Diner–Madison, WI

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The last day of our vegan road trip, we stopped for breakfast at Monty’s Blue Plate Diner. Laura had found it a few days earlier when we were looking for a delicious vegan breakfast. It looked good, so we couldn’t pass it up.

Last Week in Tastiness

Strawberry Pancakes

Looking at the photos from this last week, there seem to be a few themes. I guess I didn’t have as much variety in my food as I would have guessed. I ate two things apparently nearly every day.

Nature’s Bakery Apple Cinnamon Fig Bar

Nature's Bakery Apple Cinnamon Fig Bar

I was craving for a snack, so I dug into my box of vegan goodies and pulled out an apple cinnamon fig bar. I bought this fig bar as part of my vegan snack box. It tasted a lot like a fig newton, but healthier. I credit that to the whole wheat listed as the first ingredient.

Nature's Bakery Apple Cinnamon Fig Bar

There are two little cookies inside, and they hit the spot well. They weren’t overly sweet; the apple cinnamon flavor wasn’t overly strong either. I liked it and would get them again. They also have a lemon flavor that sounds really nice. 

Get some on AmazonNature's Bakery Fig Bar, Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon, 12 Twin Packs, 24 Ounce

 

Nature’s Bakery: http://www.naturesbakery.com

Mary’s Market Café & Bakery - Rockford, IL

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

There are not a lot of veg* options in Rockford, so we were happy to find this one on happycow during our vegan roadtrip. the reviews on the other locations set my expectations very low.

Hola Arepa–Minneapolis, MN

Hola Arepa

I first had arepas a few years ago at a friend’s house. I was immediately hooked on their delicious masa goodness. They are crispy and soft at the same time. On our recent trip to Mexico we had them again. I lamented that we didn’t have a restaurant serving them in Minneapolis. Laura said we did: Hola Arepa.

Native Foods–River Forest, IL

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

Just to the west of Chicago is River Forest and home to one of their Native Food locations. I have been to several around the country including Chicago, Portland, and California. I have loved nearly everything I have eaten at a Native Foods, so I was happy to introduce Laura to the chain as part of our Vegan Road Trip.

Twin Cities Veg Living: Issue 1

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Last year, I was approached by Compassionate Action for Animals (CAA) to write for their new magazine: Twin Cities Veg Living. I am honored and excited to be a part of the inaugural issue published March, 2015. I look forward to working with them again in the future.

 

 

I wrote a one page article about veg friendly restaurants in the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area called: “Twin Cities Tastiness: Veg-Friendly Restaurants”. I also had the pleasure of making all the photos used in the article. Look at page 8 to see which restaurants were covered.

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The magazine also has a profile for two vegan businesses in the area, information about vegan nutrition, a free recipe, and details about some of CAAs activities. It’s a great first issue.

The magazine is available for free on the web or in print at local CAA events. You can download the first issue here. Check it out! 

Sol D’Licious–Kenosha, WI

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

We arrived at Sol D’licious in the afternoon after driving from Madison. It was our only reason for visiting Kenosha. We wanted to sample the food from a 100% vegan café to add to our Vegan Road Trip. I was looking forward to the vegan gyro.

Last Week in Tastiness

Chocolate Cake from Cheeze Factory

This last week in tastiness, I tried to eat a tad healthier than I did the previous week. I felt a bit piggy after the amazing amount of food we ate on our vegan road trip.  The photo above is the chocolate cake we had at Cheeze Factory (review pending). You can see a bit more at Vegan Road Trip Day 4. I like they made a heart out of cocoa powder for us.

Chocolaterian–Madison, WI

http://www.everydaytastiness.com
While walking to the Green Owl, we spotted the big brown and white sign of Chocolaterian. We were intrigued; we both love chocolate. We took a walk to investigate.

The Green Owl Cafe–Madison, WI

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

The Green Owl Café in Madison, WI is a 100% vegetarian restaurant with lots of great vegan selections. It was the third place on our vegan road trip. It was a beautiful day, so we opted to sit outside and enjoy the sunshine along with our delicious vegan food. Their slogan is “vegetarian cuisine for people who love food” awesome!

Mother Fool’s Coffee House – Madison, WI

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

Mother Fool’s Coffee House was an unexpected surprise. We had made other plans for the morning, and when they fell through we found ourselves searching for somewhere to go. I am really happy we found Mother Fool’s. Once I saw they had a 100% vegan bakery, I was hooked and wanted to go!

Pig Minds Brewing–Machesney Park, IL

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

The ultimate destination for our recent vegan road trip was Pig Minds Brewing. They are a 100% plant-based (vegan) brewery and taproom. All the food and all the beer is vegan. Awesome! We were really excited.

Vegan Road Trip: Final Day

x500-48We woke up earlier than we would have liked to start our last day of the vegan road trip. We have had a lot of fun along the way with still more planned for the trip home. All good journeys need to start with a good meal, and our breakfast didn’t disappoint.

Vegan Road Trip: Day 3

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

The genesis of this road trip was a vegan brewery and taproom we found on HappyCow while looking for a destination last week. We had high expectations for a 100% vegan brewery and taproom and we were not disappointed.

Vegan Road Trip: Day 2

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

Yesterday was full of tasty delicious food, beautiful views of water, and did I mention tasty food? The photo above is us near Lake Michigan in Kenosha. It was almost 65F and so sunny. The wind off the lake was a bit brisk!

Vegan Road Trip: The Raw Deal–Menomonie, WI

http://www.everydaytastiness.com

We narrowly escaped the twin cities during rush hour traffic to head East into Wisconsin. About an hour east is Menomonie, WI. About a mile south of I94 is Raw Deal. They have raw organic vegan food available. They offer smoothies, desserts, entrees, beer, wine, juices, and coffee.

Broccoli with Nutty Sauce

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I really love the sauce for this recipe! The complex flavor is fantastic. My friends really love this dish. It is almost as popular as my groundnut stew. I enjoy the combo of ginger and peanuts. It’s quick and easy to make.

Last Week In Tastiness

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After not cooking much last week, I was on a mission to make more food at home. Looking through this week’s images I would says that is a success. The food is overall much healthier than last week as well.