Veggie Weekend
What a veggie weekend we are going to have… Friday (13th) is the Prom, Saturday (14th) is the super-fun Meetup picnic in Central Park, and the Farm Sanctuary 25th Anniversary Gala in the evening, and then on Sunday (the 15th) is the Veggie Pride Parade!

Walk with us in the Veggie Pride Parade
Veggie Conquest will be walking in the Veggie Pride Parade on Sunday! We would love to have you walk with us… Arrive early, around 11 am (parade starts at noon) and look for the Veggie Conquest banner! The starting point is the intersection of 9th Avenue & Gansevoort St. in the West Village. Bring your favorite cooking props like an apron, chef hat or even a mixing bowl and spoon! We will walk the whole parade together and end up at the awesome expo in Union Square.

Hope to see lots of you this weekend!

We were excited to have Catskill Animal Sanctuary join us. We got to hear from Michelle Alvarez, their Outreach Director, who told us about what was happening at the farm. She invited all of us to join her in a chartered bus ride up to the sanctuary on April 9 to help out and enjoy a wonderful vegan meal prepared by (VC5 judge) Chef Kevin Archer. Click here to learn more.

Our friend Barbara from Gone Pie Vegan Bakery was also in attendance! She brought the most amazing gluten-free, vegan brownies we have ever tasted… for real… so yummy!

We were also excited to have Lidia from Cowgirl’s Baking, a brand new vegan bakery in the East Village that also has a burrito bar and a huge selection of vegan sandwiches! She brought us some of her delicious mini cupcakes!

We were delighted to have Raw IceCream Company’s line of vegan raw ice cream to sample! It is now sold at Whole Foods Tribeca and many other places around town.

Also the lovely Sarah Gross sold Rescue Chocolate’s Easter eggs. She also told us about the New York City Vegetarian Food Festival happening on April 3rd.

Big thanks to all of the tasters, judges (below), volunteers, sponsors and especially the chefs!

VC6 judges!

From Left: Chef Matteo of 4 Course Vegan, Danny Carabaño of V-Spot, Chef Adam Sobel of Cinnamon Snail.

Also a big thanks to Michael Parrish Dudell, from Ecorazzi.com & The Domino Project, for being our wonderful emcee for the night.

And thanks to DJ Lil Ray for playing awesome tunes. We can’t wait to party with her at Veggie Prom (Friday, May 13 at Public Assembly in Williamsburg, Brooklyn).

Challenge #6 Sponsors

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

First Place and Taster’s Choice

by: Momo Kajiwara

1 cup cooked brown rice
½ cup cooked white beans (such as cannellini and great northern) washed and drained.
1 Tbsp grape seed oil
½ Tbsp garlic, finely minced
½ Tbsp ginger, finely minced
¾  cup small diced onion (about 1 small onion)
¾  cup small diced apple (about half of an apple)
splash of water
3 ½  cup diced kale (any kind)
½ Tbsp agave nectar
1 Tbsp mirin
1 Tbsp soy sauce (or tamari for gluten free option)
½ tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp arrowroot starch
Grapeseed oil for frying

Miso Scallion Cream

2 Tbsp miso (preferably red and aged at least for 12 months)
1 ½ Tbsp mirin
½ tsp maple syrup (or any sweetener of your choice)
1 small clove garlic, grated
4 Tbsp Vegan Mayonnaise (recipe to follow)

Garnish Optional: small pieces of apples and/or scallion

1. Combine the brown rice and the white beans in a bowl, mash them with a potato masher and set aside.

2. Saute garlic, ginger and onions with the grape seed oil for 7 minutes.

3. Add a splash of water to deglaze the pan, then add the apple. Keep sauteing for another 5 minutes.

4. Add the kale to the pan, saute for a minute, then add the agave, mirin, soy sauce and the sesame oil. Saute for another minute and turn off the heat.

5. Mix the sauteed vegetable mixture into the bowl of rice and beans.

6. With hands, form small patties.

7. Coat the cakes with arrowroot and set aside.

8. *Heat ½ inch of grape seed oil over a medium heat in a frying pan. Fry the cakes in hot oil for 3 minutes on each side, until golden.

9. Transfer cooked cakes to a plate covered with paper towels to absorb excess oil.

10. Combine all the ingredients for the miso scallion cream sauce in a small bowl.

11. Serve cakes with ½ tsp of the cream on top of each cake, and garnish with small slices of apple and scallion. Serve immediately.

Makes 12 appetizer sized cakes.

*If you want to bake the cakes instead of frying, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet, then place the cakes on it. Generously brush or spray cakes with cooking oil. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden.

Vegan Tofu Mayonnaise

14 ounces silken tofu
2 Tbsp grape seed or canola oil
½  tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp umeboshi vinegar (or lemon juice)
½ tsp crushed garlic
1 Tbsp agave nectar

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Store in refrigerator up to one week. Try the left over in potato salad or sandwiches.

Makes about 2 cups

All chefs will make an appetizer featuring kale!

Kale is a highly nutritious vegetable and very delicious… Good luck, chefs!

If you are attending the event, check your inbox for details.

See you on Sunday the 20th!!

Danny Carabaño is the owner of The V-Spot restaurant in Park Slope, Brooklyn. In the Spring of 2006, he decided to leave his career as a math teacher and follow his dream of opening an all vegan restaurant. V-Spot’s menu reflects the diversity he experienced being born and raised in Brooklyn as well as his Colombian heritage.

Welcome to the judges table Danny!

He is the consulting chef for Cooler Cleanse and has worked for many high-profile clients involved in entertainment and political affairs. Keep an eye out for his new product line, 4 Course Vegan Handmade for a fine selection of hand-crafted snacks and treats!

Welcome to the judges table Chef Matteo!

Chef Adam Sobel is the man behind The Cinnamon Snail, an organic vegan food truck that serves New Jersey (and sometimes New York).  The Cinnamon Snail was a finalist in the 2010 Vendy awards (the “Oscars of street food”)  and has been named one of the countries top ten food trucks!

Chef Adam gets downright silly and bonkers in the kitchen, rocking everything from raw foods, to vegan creme brûlée donuts.

Welcome to the judges table Chef Adam!

VIP Tickets

For the first time we are going to offer a limited number of VIP tickets. These tickets will entitle you to priority, reserved seating. These are the best seats in the house! You will also get a complimentary bottle of wine or sparkling fruit drink (one per pair of tickets) and you will be the first to get the second course…no waiting in line! These very special tickets will be available 24 hours before the general tickets go on sale.

Tickets on sale

VIP Tickets for VC6 go on sale at 10 a.m. this Friday, February 25. VIP tickets are $45 a piece. General tickets ($30) and chef tickets ($10) go on sale at 10 a.m. this Saturday, February 26. As most of you know, these tickets go quickly. VC5 sold out in record time (about 10 minutes) so please don’t wait to buy your tickets! You can buy your tickets here. We will send you another quick email when the general sale begins on Saturday (VIPs better set an alarm for Friday!).

VC6 will be held at DCTV in Chinatown (87 Lafayette St, Manhattan).

Judges

We are so happy to announce our all vegan, all male panel of judges!

We have the very talented Chef Matteo from the underground vegan gourmet dinner series, 4 Course Vegan. Next up is Adam Sobel, founder and chef of Cinnamon Snail, Hoboken’s amazing vegan food truck. Last, but not least, we have Danny Carabaño, owner of V-spot, the Park Slope based Latin inspired all vegan restaurant with the best empanadas ever!

Phew, what an awesome panel of judges!

Exciting things

We are once again so thrilled to have The Raw IceCream Company join us and give us samples!

Our emcee for the night will be the wonderfully talented Michael Parrish Dudell, Manager Editor of The Domino Project and a Senior Editor at Ecorazzi.com! You might remember him from emceeing VC4 or maybe from VC2… he was one of our judges!  And of course the totally cute DJ Lil Ray will be spinning tunes!

Find out more about VC6

You can subscribe to our blog and follow us on Twitter or Facebook to learn more news about VC6.

Can’t wait to chow down with all of you!

Jessica Mahady

Get Your Costumes Ready!

Get ready for the very first Veggie Conquest Halloween Party (costumes encouraged)! It’s at 8 p.m. on Friday, October 29 at DCTV (87 Lafayette St, Manhattan). The party will include our very own vegan DJ Lil Ray, and vegan drinks and food. AND it’s a benefit party for Mercy for Animals and Veggie Conquest! Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. on Monday, September 27. You can buy tickets here!

Compete in Two Contests!
There will be a homemade vegan candy contest and a costume contest! Click here for more information!

Party for Free! Volunteer!
Pitch in for 2.5 hours and get in for free! If that’s too much, help for an hour and get a free drink! Email info @ veggieconquest.com for more information.

MATCH vegan meats had a special giveaway for the tasters who had a ticket under their seat… Oprah style! They got to take home a 1 lb package of MATCH’s Italian Sausage. Right now you can purchase MATCH at all D’Agstino’s around the city. If you want your local restaurant or store to carry MATCH, just ask them to!

We were excited to have Kathy Stevens, founder and director of Catskill Animal Sanctuary, along with a whole table of CAS folks, join us. We got to hear from Kathy and learn about her new book that is coming out in September!

Foodswings prepared eats for our second course, and they served up what they do best: vegan fast food! They made “little big stacks” — their take on Big Macs — and the best freakin’ vegan mac and cheese you have ever tasted.

This was the first time in VC history that all three of our judges made something for the second course, and boy was it good.

(plate of second course food, photo by Lauren Krohn)

We were delighted to have Raw IceCream Company’s line of vegan raw ice cream to sample! It is now sold at Whole Foods Tribeca, and many other places around town.

Jessica’s parents were also kind enough to buy VC a birthday cake. Where did they get it from? Champs, of course, the new vegan bakery in Williamsburg!

We also had the lovely Sarah Gross selling Rescue Chocolate.

Big thanks to all of the tasters, judges (below), volunteers and especially the chefs!

VC5 judges!

From Left: Kevin Archer of Catskill Animal Sanctuary, Barbara Sitomer of Gone Pie, Wendy Roberts of Integral Yoga

And the winners were:

(photos by Lauren Krohn)

First Place and Taster’s Choice
Kathy Cho
Basil Mezze: Stuffed Basil Leaves and Basil-Infused Falafel, Tabouleh and Tahini

Click here for the recipe

Second Place
Jenn Lynskey
Basil Eggplant Balls

Click here for the recipe

Third Place
Mike Pisano
Basil Ricotta Rollatini with Spicy Coconut Cream Sauce

Honorable Mentions

May Yu
Basil Tofu & Vegetable-Stuffed Sweet Rice Wrapped in Bamboo Leaves

Marty Krutolow
Pepper Basil Seitan in a Basil Bechamel Sauce over a Basil Colored Pasta

Jason Wightman
Basil and Flax Crusted Taro on Beer Stewed Lentils with a Basil and Parsley Salad Mix

A very big thanks to all of our sponsors who make these events possible!

• Alexandra Jamieson
• Catskill Animal Sanctuary
• Cosmo’s Vegan Shoppe
• Foodswings
• Friends of Animals
• Integral Yoga Natural Foods
• DJ Lil Ray
• Lula’s Sweet Apothecary
• NYC Vegan EatUp
• MATCH
• Organicville Foods
• Raw IceCream Company