Plant Milk Comparison

My dad (77, a lifetime carnivore), my elder daughter (24, an opportune eater who tolerates my non-foods) and myself (41, vegan for several years) sat down last weekend with a whole lot of shot glasses to taste test 8 different plant milks.

Our taste test comprised (in alphabetical order):

• Almond, unsweetened (13kcal/100ml) Alpro
• Cashew (23kcal/100ml) Alpro
• Coconut, unsweetened (14kcal/100ml) Alpro
• Hazelnut (29kcal/100ml) Alpro
• Hemp (26kcal/100ml) Good Hemp
• Oat, unsweetened (40kcal/100ml) Alpro
• Pea (34kcal/100ml) Sproud
• Walnut (25kcal/100ml) Valsoia

OBVIOUSLY there are loads more - rice, soya, macadamia, tiger nut, blended, flavoured, sweetened, organic...

I use almond as my go-to all-purpose non-milk because it's the lowest calorie and has virtually no flavour. My mum drinks a glass of milk plain and prefers cashew as it's creamy but is okay with oat (which is good as cashew isn't so easily available).
I have been asked many times for my opinions on the 'best' plant milk but it comes mostly down to individual taste so I really recommend trying as many as you can. Also, I would recommend anyone new to plant milks to do the following:
A. If you use large quantities would it be a more economical idea to make your own? Especially if you want to reduce your waste or live in an area that doesn't offer carton recycling... Incidentally we use plastic shot glasses for my mum's meds so they will be reused many times. You can always use glass or paper cups.
B. Think how you use milk. Do you drink it plain, have a dash in coffee, pour it over cereal? The difference in flavours can make a huge difference and you will need to taste test the milks as you use them - especially for hot drinks as some separate and *TMI alert* I vomit with hot soya milk.
C. Where are you at in life? Look at the calorie counts, sugar or protein content depending on what matters to you.
D. Alpro milks are frequently on offer (3 for £3, usually) so stock up for a taste test economically.

Our rankings went as follows:
Dad
1. Hazelnut* / Walnut*
3. Pea - as the only one who could tolerate Pea milk he took it home!
4. Cashew*
5. Oat
6. Almond
7. Hemp / Coconut - which he dubbed "arsenic and cyanide"
Daughter
1. Cashew*
2. Hazelnut*
3. Walnut*
4. Oat
5. Almond
6. Pea
7. Coconut
8. Hemp
Me
1. Cashew* / Walnut*
3. Oat
4. Hazelnut*
5. Almond - despite being my go-to it is bland, nothingy and not nice on its own
6. Coconut - watery and white, didn't even realise how much I disliked it, shan't buy it in future!
7. Pea - with the comment "bloody weird NO" definitely not worth the 2nd highest calorie count
8. Hemp - with the comment "bleuuuu socks ICK"

*As the same three milks made all of our top 4 I will discuss those in a little detail.
Cashew (Dad's # 4, daughter's #1, my joint first)
As someone who hasn't had cow juice in over 7 years it's not the easiest to say but to me Cashew is the closest to dairy milk. Coconut is very white; hazelnut & walnut are rather brown. Coconut & almond are rather watery but Cashew has a hint of creamyness. Also, unlike hazelnut, walnut, coconut the flavour is pretty neutral meaning it's a great all-purpose choice. (For the record, almond milk doesn't taste of almonds. Before I first tried it I was terrified it'd be like liquid marzipan!)
Hazelnut (Dad's joint 1st, daughter's #2, my #4)
As above, hazelnut is a bit on the brown side and tastes, unsurprisingly, of hazelnuts. Hazelnutty coffee or hot chocolate would probably be just fine but in tea? Probably not. Fortunately I loathe tea. Actually, I don't like hazelnuts but I like this milk. Weird, huh?
Walnut (Dad's joint 1st, daughter's #3, my joint 1st)
Again, brown. Again, strong walnut flavour. I have since tried this as a latte and it was DELICIOUS. Like hazelnut I think it'd work better in particular contexts: with muesli? Great! To make a strawberry blancmange? I kind of think the pepperyness of the walnut would make that pretty gross but I could be wrong.

Not-So-Essentials

I may be a 'flaky vegan' but I'm not exactly an eco-freako flower child or whatever but there are a few supposed 'essentials' I have been happily doing without for years.

Laundry Detergent and Fabric Conditioner

Fabric Conditioner was an easy one. I ran out at some point 15+ years ago and simply didn't buy more. All that changed was my laundry lost its artificial smell (which I didn't like anyway); I didn't find my clothes rough or scratchy or anything so what was the point of wasting money?!

The Laundry Detergent was a tougher issue. My eldest daughter has mild eczema and is also allergic to biological washing powders so we were stuck on the non-bio stuff. She's an adult now and she uses non-bio for her laundry by the way.

My dad got me these eco washballs years ago and when they finally died I switched to soap nuts. I have been using them for about three years now and have had zero problems. Although I used to do laundry for my job though which was so nasty it got presoaked with nappy bleach tablets and washed with detergents that I didn't use for my own things.

[Edit: since becoming a full-time carer this has gone out of the window. We're back on non-bio as my daughter still lives at home and Dettol Laundry Cleanser has become my most favourite thing ever. I have to do more hot washes too which sucks. But unfortunately my mother's health & comfort is more important to me right now. I have no intention of continuing their use when she's gone and we don't have the need for *ahem* extra hygiene. I'm using washable wipes for her]

Tampons

No, I am not menopausal but I quit traditional sanitary supplies a couple of years back. I've only put tampons here because I do use pads occasionally as a back up if I'm out on a day trip or whatever - same as I used to when I was using tampons. I keep meaning to get a few washable pads for those occasions ***literally pops over to ebay to fix that*** right...where was I?

Oh yes...tampons. I had been using tampons since my 1st period age 12 and as I have a very heavy flow it cost me a small fortune. I saw a lot of hype about moon cups (or whatever brand it was) but , being me, instead of spending £20-£40 I went to ebay and ordered a 99p equivalent from China.

I have never looked back! Each cup lasts me about a year and my body is so much happier for it. I've had the odd placement mishap but overall I wish I'd switched sooner.
This is why I am not a fan of people who complain about the so-called 'tampon tax'. Modern sanitary products are just that: modern. Disposable sanitary pads date back to 1888 but my mum and her sister used washables in the 1950s and 60s; modern tampons date to the 1930s and carry a risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) which can be FATAL. Women menstruated for centuries without disposable products which have a negative impact on the environment. Menstruation is natural not medical and disposables are luxuries, not essentials...unless you have no access to washing facilities - which almost everyone does.

I'm sure there was a third one...
I don't drive or own a bike. I use VERY little make up (more of that in my next blog)...and what the hell even is a skin care routine??? There are probably LOADS of things the average almost 40 year old white British female* would consider essential which I just don't. Either because I'm not interested or have been doing quite well all these years I haven't been able to afford such things.
[*not that I consider these things especially important but ethnicity, culture and biological sex do have an impact on how we all live our lives]
I am far from being a minimalist, I own a LOT of junk; I do not approach every potential purchase with thoughts about whether I really NEED it. What I do think about however, is whether I WANT it or not. A lot of things we're marketed to think we need when we don't, brainwashed into thinking something is 'essential' or we're 'deprived' if we don't have it.
That's kind of how my mum feels about ironing...she thought I was a terrible parent because I didn't iron my kids' school shirts but modern fabrics don't crease like they used to. Washing machines and tumble dryers leave most clothing ready to be put on a hanger and worn so, to me, ironing is not an essential.
So the next time you're shopping you might just want to give a thought...did you add that item to the cart out of need or want, habit or marketing ploys? Live how YOU choose to do, not how you think you HAVE to.

Februdairy Roundup

For each day of February I have posted to Instagram (and linked to Twitter and Facebook) a picture of an alternative-to-dairy food. The one exception was day 4 where I shared a Metro article quoting farmer James Robinson "to show what actually happens on dairy farms and not give way to militant vegan propaganda"...nah mate, vegans and animal rights activists are showing what actually happens on dairy farms countering decades of carnist, speciesist propaganda.

As I accidentally posted my MeatyMarch blog earlier than intended I wanted to sum up here what my anti-#Februdairy posts included. I am putting brands in bold for their first mention only, products I hadn't tried before are in bold red.

I kicked off the month with four cartons of plant milks, representing the stash I keep in. Unsweetened Almond for everyday use, Cashew for milkshakes, Oat for lattes and Chocolate Oat for my dad.

There are lots of different plant milks on the market and many different brands and I wanted to show a range. These were Oatly and Alpro milks; on day 6 I shared Alpro chocolate and strawberry lunch box size cartons and on day 24 it was Rude Health's Tiger Nut milk.

But obviously the dairy industry is a whole lot more than JUST milk. For me the hardest part of going vegan was giving up cheese so it made quite a few appearances during the month.

On day 2 it was vegan pizza with Tesco's mozzarella-style. The mozzarella-style appeared again on day 13 with nachos...and also featuring an Asda soured cream topping. Another serving suggestion appeared on day 5 - Tesco's peppercorn style with kale as a toasted sandwich.

Yet another Tesco's cheese alternative featured on day 12; their chili jalapeno cheese has to be my favourite. Violife slices were day 23's offering.

Then there are other basics. Many margarines are actually dairy free but rather than scanning the ingredients I tend to go for Vitalite (day 19) because it is clearly marked vegan. Flora's new Avocado Lime spread was a product I tried for the first time this month (day 10).

Oatly and Alpro custards shared the spotlight on day 9 and Alpro long-life creamy desserts were featured on day 27.

Alpro blueberry yoghurt was my offering on day 17, Rebel Kitchen's coconut vanilla yoghurt appeared on day 22 and Tesco's Fromage Frais were featured on day 3.

There's a false idea that veganism has to be healthy but junk food vegans are definitely a thing and treats featured regularly throughout the month. 

Swedish Glace is a great everyday ice cream (day 18) whereas Ben and Jerry's is an all-out indulgence (day 7).

Sainsbury's chocolate soothed me on St Valentine's Day (day 14), Vego was a treat on a difficult day at work (day 25) and my final post of the month was my Choices Easter Egg (day 28).

Eve's Tree fudge (day 15) is a newer product to the dairy-free market but like I showed in a Throwback Thursday post you can always MAKE whatever you're missing - day 8 was homemade toffee apples made with coconut cream.

Making things without dairy isn't especially arduous and I also included ingredients for doing just that: Nature's Charm coconut condensed milk (day 21) and Oatly single cream (day 26).

Obviously making your own, especially using plant-milks for coffee, is the easiest option most of the time but obviously you're not always in a position to do so. Hence day 11's Costa coffee - coconut vanilla latte - and a convenience ice coffee from Califa Farms - Cold Brew Cocoa Noir - on day 16.

Favourite for the whole month though had to be day 20's Honey Mustard Dressing from Follow Your Heart. Yes, that's a VEGAN product emulating a honey flavour creamy dressing.

Seriously, answers on a postcard (or in the comments) on what people are 'missing out' from being on a vegan / dairy free diet. DO NOT GO THERE WITH THE CALCIUM ARGUMENT - look up kale and other leafy greens!

Admittedly, even in my 2.5 years veganism has become a whole lot easier. As veganism becomes more mainstream life as a vegan or lactose intolerant person is only going to get more straightforward. Get onboard now and help us all along! ;)

Veganism, Heggie-style

I don't have a specific date because these things tend to happen gradually but... I have been vegan for about a year now. I know next to no one will read this cos "OMG NOT ANOTHER PREACHY VEGAN?!?!!" but I wanted to write about some of my thoughts and experiences.

#1 Why????
In 2012 I got a hint that my YEARS of ill health could be due to lactose intolerance (not the IBS several GPs had asserted) so I immediately started cutting out dairy. Amazingly it worked and I started getting better but I soon realised my system couldn't tolerate any dairy at all and my will power is rubbish so I still wasn't properly well.
This got worse when I went back vegetarian in 2013 - not for ethical reasons, just totally fed up with and grossed out by meat. I quickly discovered that just about every vegetarian option whether at a sandwich counter or a restaurant - involved cheese. For a long while I just accepted this as unfortunate but eventually, wanting to get properly well and decided I had to cut it entirely. My mum similarly can't tolerate eggs so the sensible thing seemed to be to presume veganism was my future so I'd best just get on with it.
So yes, my choice is more about my health than animal welfare but you don't have to be overly fond of cows to see that there's a lot of animal cruelty in the world so doing my bit for that is a bonus.

#2 Why are vegans so damn preachy?
Because it's good and we'd like you to share? Now obviously you can eat many types of vegan diet - you can have all mock-meat burgers and fries or a fully raw health-freak diet or anywhere in between - but over all eating plant-based is likely to leave you feeling good

• Better for the environment
• Better for animals
• Good for your health

I wasn't 'ill' from being morbidly obese back in 2012 and losing weight hasn't made much impact on the state of my overall 'wellness' BUT giving up meat and animal products HAS made me feel better, and yes, there is a nice little self-righteous glow of knowing I'm doing my bit for animals and the planet. So that's why we like to share.

#3 Why do vegans get a bad reputation?
Cos we can be a tad too enthusiastic, as above.
We also get very pissed off by people putting animal products where they have no business being and about poor labeling and about Costa coffee shops where not one of the three members of staff on duty even knows what 'vegan' means!!! Seriously, it should NOT be so hard so yes, sometimes we get vocal about it cos others deliberately make our lives more difficult than need be.
We also get a LOT of flak from meat eaters (carnists) who love to belittle us, hate on us and be generally shitty because somehow us eating vegetables offends their 'right' to torture animals in order to eat their flesh. Yes, vegans like to point out to carnists the holes in their thinking, such as:

• "I am not an animal" - really, are you a mineral or vegetable???
• "Humans are designed to eat meat" - wrong
• "Humans have to eat meat" - wronger
• "You can't be healthy and vegan" - wrongest
• "Animals are put here for us to use" - people use to say the same about black people and women...yeah, you can shut up with that.

The important thing is MOST vegans only make such comments when carnists start on us for sharing our views or whatever. Like, I am not forcing my opinion on you by posting a photo of my lovely vegan dinner but if you want to make an issue of it I will argue my point.
Also there are some really vocal psycho vegans out there giving the whole lot of us a bad name. Thinking about going vegan? Don't look at YouTube cos 99.9% of those vegans are crazier than the nuts they eat.

The REALLY big thing with YouTube is going to be my final point:

#4 How to be vegan
Now it seems like everyone and their vegan-fed dog has an opinion on this one and some are especially vile about it. The vegan-on-vegan hate out there is astounding.
Being a dietary vegan is, on the face of it, pretty basic - don't eat animal products. But while passing on the cheeseburger and milkshake combo the issue is, as I hinted above, a whole lot more convoluted.
It means reading every damn label and knowing exactly what is an animal product. Some vitamins are derived from animal sources, some alcohol is made with fish or milk...it can be a real minefield if you want to do it 'properly' but, just for the record, I'm going to say that 99% vegan is just fine. So long as you're minimising animal suffering and doing whatever you can it's all good. That includes vegetarians, demi vegitarians, meat-free Monday enthusiasts...hating on people cos they forgot to check every last item in their shopping cart is not okay.
The same goes for the non-dietary aspects such as cosmetics, toiletries and medicines. Obviously some of these things are easier to avoid than others. Because I'm lactose intolerant I try my best to find painkillers and so forth where lactose is not the bulking agent which is, sadly, very common, I am less fussy about avoiding shellac coatings. So far stuff that I do not physically consume is lower on my list of priorities but I do make some effort at least. I am on a low income and I have issues of whether I can afford the super vegan eco friendly alternative at 15 times the cost. Similarly if your essential medications are animal based or only available in gelatine capsules I'm not going to tell you to eschew them - cos that's insane.

Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, 

as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, 

and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose

Possible and practicable. Very important distinction there.

That brings me to my cat. Some people try to feed cats an all vegan or mostly vegan diet. Cats are OBLIGATE CARNIVORES. Humans do not need meat, cats do. TBH dogs don't need meat but I'd feel decidedly iffy about feeding a dog an all vegan diet - maybe a mix of vegan and meat to salve my conscience but to me making a dog vegan is kind of mean. Like if I was a mum over again now I'd probably want my kids to be vegan too but if they ate pizza and ice cream at a friend's party that'd be their choice. Dogs don't get a choice so forcing them seems somewhat doubtful on a moral scale. So no, I don't have any problem buying meat for my cat.

Also, I personally have recently bought two pairs of leather Doc Marten boots and my mum has bought two leather chairs for my new house...all are second hand. That's not supporting the leather industry. That's not supporting animal cruelty. To me that's bog-standard recycling.

At the end of the day - if you want to be vegan, be the vegan it is right for you to be. don't accept hate cos you're doing it a little differently. Don't hate on others cos they're not living up to your standards. To be honest, if someone calls them self a vegan yet eats the occasional chicken burger it's not on you to criticise their hypocrisy either, although I can certainly see why you would...

The most important thing is to be a HEALTHY vegan. Good dietary advice is sadly lacking and healthcare professionals are all too often brainwashed carnists who believe meat and dairy are essential. They're not. Unfortunately too many people fall victim to faddy over-restrictive variants of veganism extolled by people who know nothing about nutrition or health...so do the reading and do it your way!!!

For Example, Being Mrs Rock-Star

This is something I've been thinking about a fair bit lately, and not because I've completely lost my marbles...I know I don't stand a hope in hell with the rock-star of my dreams but who HASN'T imagined themselves in a relationship with, or married to, a celebrity crush?!

Now, beyond my own musings and barely coherent ramblings with fellow fangirls a few things have inspired this post:-

• Watching The One Show's tribute to Sir Terry Wogan and the odd way in which his family, including his wife of 50 years, were mentioned almost as an afterthought - between being very private about his home life and being considered a national treasure the people who should've been considered first and foremost following his death seemed almost excluded.
• The following line from actress Pam Dawber's Wikipedia page, describing her marriage to fellow actor Mark Harman: "The couple is known to be private about their family life and rarely appear in public together with their children or speak about one another in interviews" 
• Reading an article about the two virtually unknown daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

What makes people keep aspects of their lives so intensely private?  It makes perfect sense to avoid unwarranted press intrusion, to protect young children and to not go airing all your dirty laundry in public like some people do - *cough* Katie Price *cough* - but personally I find it a little disconcerting when people are SO private it's like their 'other half' doesn't even exist.  Getting married particularly is a legal, and often religious, unification of two people's lives so continuing to live and present yourself as a single unit strikes me as decidedly odd; especially when BOTH partners are famous as in the instance above.  If one is a completely private individual it makes a little more sense but when you're both in the public eye...you don't have to say a lot about your partner - or children - but time and time again I come across it on someone's Wikipedia or IMDb page that they NEVER talk about their partner; sometimes the dates of their marriage, or even little details like the spouse's NAME, are unknown.

Perhaps it comes of having been single since... *tumbleweed* ...well, yes, let's not go into specifics.  Anyhoo, after many MANY years alone the thought of being with someone who'd barely acknowledge my existence in a public setting is actually quite upsetting.  Like, dude, are you ASHAMED of me?!  Just to make it quite clear, I have no interest in being with someone for any kind of reflected fame, glossy magazine photoshoots or having my flabby bits papped on the beach, but the thought of being...almost 'edited out' of my husband's life doesn't sit well either.  I can't imagine anyone wanting to proudly show me off on a red carpet (or jump on Oprah's sofa for that matter) but that doesn't mean I wouldn't like to be his +1 on occasion.

As a mother of two I can imagine trying to be discrete about what I said about my daughters in interviews, but I can't imagine never mentioning them at all.  As a parent your children are usually the centre of things; to me that level of 'privacy' sounds more like you're disowning them!  People ask after your family, it's considered polite and I can't imagine refusing to answer a basic question just because it refers to them.  My kids may be adult now but if they ever get a stepdad I hope he'd acknowledge them; my stepdad came into my life when I was 29 and he has fully embraced me and my children as his family.

EDIT 9th September 2024

I just saw a short by YouTuber Uyen Ninh where German Fiancé appears in a No-Face costume as they launch their new podcast and it reminded me of this blog... I have been following Uyen for a while (although due to notification issues I saw this late). Uyen is a Vietnamese YouTuber posting in English about her life in Germany.

I love the fact that whilst - for whatever reason(s) - German Boyfriend (now German Fiancé or German Husband-To-Be) doesn't use his name or show his face online he is clearly supporting of her channel and willing to be involved in content.

And that's what I was thinking with this blog post... Pretending your other half doesn't exist is a world of different (IMHO) than respecting their privacy.

I have ZERO interest in fame but I couldn't deal with being a non-entity or footnote in my partner's life.

I just love the way Uyen and German Boyfriend/Fiancé/Husband-to-be are managing his need for privacy while acknowledging their combined path in life. It really shouldn't have to be all or nothing; healthy middle ground can be found.