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A Vegan Lunch @ Pizza Hut, March 2019

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For Veganuary Pizza Hut offered a jackfruit pizza and said if they sold more than 10,000 it would become a permanent menu item. Well of course vegans took to the challenge and after a break for February the jackfruit pizza is back along with a new vegan starter, of jackfruit rolls and a dessert of cinnamon bites.

A great thing about Pizza Hut is the salad bar! (Although I don’t think it’s as good as Harvester’s one). So fill up on veg to give yourself a healthy glow and to counteract the cheesy, doughyness to come!

My Husband and I both had a jackfruit pizza which came with a decent amount of Violife cheese which wasn’t the case on my previous visit. The pizza comes with jackfruit, red onion, sweetcorn and peppers. We both thought the jackfruit got lost a bit in the mix and could have done with one else topping (Husband would lose the sweetcorn and I would lose the peppers).

We also tried the jackfruit rolls. As you can see from the photo these were a bit overdone. The jackfruit was in a sweet chilli sauce which tasted a bit odd to me and I don’t think I would get these again.

Although Pizza Hut are great for providing more vegan options there is still no dairy-free milk for your tea or coffee. I also don’t think it would be too hard to have a tub of Swedish Glace in the freezer so we could enjoy a float of a scoop with dessert.

Have you been to Pizza Hut recently? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

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A Vegan Lunch @ Pizza Hut, March 2019

A Vegan Lunch @ Pizza Express

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Pizza Express is a long-term fave of my monthly food partner Jo and since their vegan options have widened I also am a fan.

I have been having dough balls there with garlic oil for as long as I’ve been vegan (almost 7 years), they now have a vegan version which comes with a harissa pesto dip. The dip was nice but I still asked for some garlic oil on the side!

I tried a new dish for my main, the leggera peperonata pasta. It had a spicy pepper sauce but I did feel it was missing something, I know they were trying to keep it under 600 calories to be a “leggera” (light) option but I’m sure there could have added a bit more veg.

For dessert both Jo and I went for the carrot cake and a hot drink. The carrot cake was a decent size and Jo said she couldn’t tell it was vegan despite no dairy cream cheese in the frosting.

Have you been to Pizza Express recently? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A Vegan Lunch @ Pizza Express

Food I’ve enjoyed this week

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I’ve had some great food this week, but didn’t have enough to say to give them each their own post so thought I’d do a little round-up.

So Veganuary is over and 250,000 took the pledge to go vegan for January. This was more than all previous years put together! We’re definitely onto something! If you didn’t take part and you’re not already vegan you don’t have to wait until 2020, you can get support from the Veganuary website all year round.

So onto my food…

Monday was not only payday but the day Papa John’s in the UK launched vegan cheese. We ordered the garden party pizza and the cheese and marmite scrolls. Unfortunately our branch didn’t have the scrolls so I received a refund for this part. The pizza was really good, I just think there should be a bit more cheese on it.

On Tuesday my Husband met me before in London before we went to our evening class and we headed to Mooshies, a vegan burger bar on Brick Lane. We both chose the guest burger – The Magic Mushroom. This contained deep fried oyster mushrooms with a hash brown and siracha mayo. This was so tasty although a little spicy for me!

On Wednesday I met my Sister-in-law, Gemma to go to a talk so we ate in the nearby Leon beforehand. We both went for the Love burger which is quickly becoming my fave grab and go burger! (I also nabbed one on the way home on Friday!)

On Thursday I was working from home and had a lot of veg in the fridge that needed using up so I made a stir fry of cabbage, radish, spring onion, cauliflower and mushrooms. I chopped up an avocado on the side and stirred in some vegan halloumi.

Dr Michael Greger is a vegan doctor who wrote the book “How Not To Die”. He offers nutritional advice on his website https://nutritionfacts.org. He has a daily dozen of thing awe should have everyday. Beans, berries, other fruit, cruciferous vegetables, greens, other veg, whole grain foods, flaxseeds, nuts, tumeric, exercise, and vitamins B12 and D. I’ve been trying to include these in my daily routine (my morning smoothie helps a lot!) and you can download an app to help track them.

I went swimming with my Mum in the evening and her Husband made us a sweet and sour tofu noodle dish. Great after getting out of the pool!

On Friday it was snowing so I didn’t want to go far for lunch so I picked up a ready meal from Mark’s and Spencer. For some reason some of the ready meals are in foil containers so should be oven baked. I didn’t realise this until I got back to the office so I transferred my cashew mac to a bowl before microwaving it. This was really creamy but lacked a cheesy flavour, I would recommend adding a bit on nooch if you’re at home. The mushrooms are a fab addition to this dish.

The other thing I bought from M&S was their banana and oat drink. This used to be their banana, oat and honey drink so I’m glad they’ve now removed the honey to make this product vegan.

That’s it for the food. In other news I’ve been watching the Marie Kondo show on Netflix, mainly to help with my Japanese studies. I’m pretty minimalist anyway and didn’t have stuff to get rid of. We recently had a clear out when we moved but I did decide to organise my one drawer (my Husband takes up the others in our chest). When I sent the photo to my mum she said she’s been doing this for years and it wasn’t a new craze at all!

The other exciting development is that our new kitchen has been delivered and is currently sitting in our spare room ready to be installed next week. I’m looking forward to having an oven again after six weeks. Expect to see lots of baking!

What have you been eating recently? Any great new finds? Did you take part in Veganuary? Are you planning to stick with it? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

Food I’ve enjoyed this week

A Vegan Dinner at A Marston’s Pub

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I was pleased to see that Marston’s Pubs had recently launched a vegan menu so I was straight on their website to see where my nearest one was.

The Crumpled Horn in Upminster is close to my friend Louise’s house so we decided to meet there one evening for a catch up. Although very local to Louise she had never actually been inside so it was a great new discovery for both of us.

Their menu caters to all tastes with 3 starters, 5 mains and 3 dessert options.

I chose the pie which had lovely pastry and the filling was great too, the only thing I would have changed would be to have mash rather than chips with it.

For dessert it had to be the jam doughnut pudding (although the rhubarb and ginger pudding did look tempting too!) It was sticky and sweet and went well with the dairy free ice cream served along with it.

Our service was impeccable, especially as I wasn’t expecting table service from a pub like this. The waitress commented that they’ve received great feedback on the vegan menu from vegans and non-vegans alike and she was excited to try some of the new options out.

With pubs up and down the country I’d recommend you find your nearest Marston’s and head there soon! What would you choose from the menu? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A Vegan Dinner at A Marston’s Pub

New Vegan Options at Pizza Express

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A couple of weeks ago I went for my weekly swimming session with my Mum and she fancied trying the new vegan options at Pizza Express so we picked up her Husband on the way from the pool and headed to our local branch.

I had already looked at the options when they were announced and knew I wanted to try the Puttanesca pizza which came with jackfruit, capers and olives.

It was tasty but the jackfruit wasn’t as flavoursome as I would have liked. I think I would go back to the vegan giardinera next time.

My mum enjoyed the leggera version of the giardinera which has a hole in the middle filled with salad.

There are also a couple of desserts available including a mini carrot cake which comes with a hot drink, unfortunately I was too full from the pizza to try but it’s definitely on my hit list. (I’ll have to have the leggera next time!)

Have you tried any of the new options in Pizza Express? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

New Vegan Options at Pizza Express

A Week of Food August 2018

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I’ve done lots of cooking this week so I thought I would share with you the meals I made.

On Monday I picked up a couple of pizza bases from Sainsbury’s so I made this one with olives, mushrooms, spinach, capers and Tofurkey hickory slices. I served it with some garlic bread and salad.

I had some tofu that needed using up so on Tuesday I decided to make this tofish recipe from the vegan recipe club. I picked up the wine and beer required in the Co-op as I know they label their alcohol and I wasn’t let down.

I really enjoyed this recipe and I think it’s the best tofish I’ve had, my Husband really enjoyed it too and as he’s not a great lover of tofu so that’s a big win!

A new grocery store has opened up near me which is great because it’s all plastic free! I picked up a few bits and used a tin of chickpeas to make houmous to add to this Buddha bowl.

On Thursday I had some leftovers from earlier in the week so I made this flat bread thing with the other pizza base, the houmous and I roasted some yellow tomatoes.

On Friday I ate out for lunch with my friend Jo at All Bar One, they have quite a few vegan options and I went with this vegetable medley in a miso sauce and added some fries on the side. I had a Seedlip Garden 108 to drink. Seedlip are distilled non-alcoholic spirits and my go-to if I see them on the menu.

On Saturday I took part in Viva’s nationwide day of action (which I wrote about here) so I was very tired when I got home.

Mum with the table ready to go!

Luckily for me my Husband agreed to cook dinner. Unfortunately Sainsbury’s vegan options seem to keep selling out so we were unable to get the Vivera kebab or the Naturli burgers. We settled for the Naturli mince to make into burgers.


Today I made seedy bread rolls and a mini loaf from a marked down mix from Tesco for 42p! I had a couple of rolls with avocado and grapes and crisps for lunch.

What vegan meals have you been making this week? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A Week of Food August 2018

MOD Pizza July 2018

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A week or so ago a new MOD pizza branch opened up in my town and after sampling the delights of the Leicester Square branch in London I knew this was going to a regular dinner location for my Husband and me.

MOD charges one price (£7.87) for a standard 11″ pizza and you can have as many toppings as you like. The bases are vegan and they have dairy free cheese available.

We shared a garlic bread with dairy free cheese and had a pizza each along with a refillable soft drink.

They had accidentally made too many vegan garlic bread so we got another one on the house which was a nice treat.

They certainly don’t scrimp on the toppings and the dough is light and crisp. For an extra fee you can get a thicker base which I think I’ll go for next time.

The cinnamon strips are also vegan if you ask for them to be made with oil instead of butter.

I really enjoyed my visit to MOD Pizza and will definitely be returning. I think the only thing that would make it better would be if they offered some vegan meat options.

Have you been to MOD Pizza before? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

MOD Pizza July 2018

Purezza Camden May 2018

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On Sunday my Husband and I were heading to Camden to see J-POP superstar Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and needed somewhere to have dinner first.

We loved Purezza when we visited their Brighton restaurant a couple of years ago and hadn’t had the opportunity to visit their newer Camden restaurant until now.

We got to the restaurant at about 4pm so there were a few tables occupied but it wasn’t overly busy.

We decided to share a garlic bread to start. I love it when garlic bread comes with rosemary and this one didn’t disappoint!

For main my Husband chose the “Season 4 Pizza 1”

Marinated artichokes, black kalamata olives, oven roasted chestnut mushrooms & smoked beetroot carpaccio, finished with salad cress.

He enjoyed it although he isn’t a massive fan of beetroot and handed those over to me.


My pizza also had beetroot on it, I went for the Fumosa – Smoked tofu pieces, with oven roasted mushrooms and smoked beetroot carpaccio, finished with a drizzling of BBQ sauce.

Some of the beetroot was a little under-done and I definitely could have done with more mushrooms but overall I really enjoyed my pizza. The dough was so amazing, we could smell it as soon as we walked into the restaurant!

We had garlic mayo and barbeque dips with our pizzas although I couldn’t really taste any garlic in the mayo. The barbeque was quite fruity which I really liked.

I was starting to get full at this point but I could turn down a dessert! I went for the Oreo pizza and Oh My Word! was this delicious! Chocolate hazelnut spread on that amazing dough topped by Oreo cookies! I got pretty messy eating this and I had to leave a couple of the crusts but I regret nothing!

Purezza also offers a 10% student discount which is always handy to know.

I would definitely recommend stopping by if you’re in the area and fancy pizza!

Have you been to Purezza? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

Purezza Camden May 2018

Vegan Adventures in Cornwall

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My friend Charlie recently visited Cornwall so I asked her if she would let us know what the vegan options were like in that part of the country.

So over to Charlie…

“So the last time I went to visit my friend in Cornwall (about 3 years ago) she said there wasn’t many vegan places to go out and eat. Cornwall hadn’t quite caught up to the idea of veganism yet. Either that, or we just wasn’t aware of what was available. 

Well on this trip, we were determined to go out and explore some vegan friendly eateries. And we did just that!

The Cornish Vegan, Truro. 

This was the first place we wanted to visit on this trip. My friend, also a longterm vegan, had heard great things about this little cafe, but had never quite made it there.

We walked into this tiny little cafe, with painting on the wall of pigs and cows. We were immediately greeted by a lovely American lady, who directed us to a quiet table and gave us menus.

Straight away I had a tough time deciding what I was going to get. The ‘TLT’ sandwich or the BBQ jack fruit burger. I decided to go with the ‘Chikin’ burger with handcrafted chips, served with salad and homemade sauces. It was gorgeous.  Reasonably priced and filling. I them choose from their assortment of homemade cakes, a white chocolate and strawberry slice, which I took home for later.

The atmosphere was lovely, the staff really chatty and polite. I would definitely visit here again.

The Stable,  Falmouth. 

The little town near the fishing lake was a place I didn’t expect to see any vegan food. But after a bit of a shopping we passed this bar/resturant with a massive sign saying ‘vegan options available’.

This place offered 4 vegan pizzas, two salads and a side of garlic bread (with vegan cheese option).

Anyone who knows me knows I won’t ever turn down garlic bread, so cheese galic bread was a definately and I choose ‘The Bute Island Blazer’ and my friend ordering the ‘The Allo Aloha’. 

The cheesey garlic bread was FANTASTIC! Really stingy, melty cheese with the right amount of garlic. 

Wasn’t sure I’d be able to fit in a whole pizza after that, but actually when it arrived the smell hooked me in. Really delicious, just maybe a bit hot for me. Having scraped off a few chillies I was able to enjoy another round of bread. Would definitely recommend. 

Nice staff. Quick service. Very satisfying. 

Warrens Bakery

When in Cornwall, you must get a Cornish Pasty! It’s an unwritten rule.

And Warrens in Hayle do 3 vegan pasties! I had the curried mixed vegatables….and it definitely hit the spot. Great for lunch if you are on the move and filling.”

Thanks Charlie! I’ve visited The Stables branch in Bournemouth and I would agree their pizzas and garlic bread are pretty special. I haven’t been to Cornwall myself but now I wouldn’t be worried there would be a lack of vegan options.

If you’ve had some vegan adventures and want to share your finds please don’t hesitate to contact me for a guest post.

Have you been to Cornwall as a vegan what options did you find? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

Vegan Adventures in Cornwall

A Vegan Dinner @ Pizza Hut

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I was due to have a catch up with my friend Louise who happens to work as a vet in a practice on a retail park that contains a Pizza Hut and as they have just announced that following a successful pilot in a handful of branches they are rolling out vegan cheese nationwide I thought it was a great opportunity to try it out.

It has been many, many years since I have been to a pizza hut restaurant. I have had delivery minus the cheese but that has been a while now as I have an independent takeaway pizza place near me that I can trot down to with my own vegan cheese that they’ll put on for me. I really liked the look of the restaurant, its sort of like an American diner and even the toilets were kitted out with bulbs all round the mirror.

I went for the veggie pizza which comes with mushroom, sweetcorn, peppers and onions and I added olives. The cheese they are using is Violife which is coconut based. You also get unlimited salad bar with the pizza which was a nice starter and reminded me of Harvester.

My friend ordered the veggie with dairy cheese so I had a direct comparison. The vegan version definitely looked less cheesy and for some reason the cheese seemed to be on top of the toppings rather than underneath. 

The pizza was really tasty and I love the deep pan base which is sometimes what you need rather than the thin Italian style you get in Pizza Express or Zizzi’s. Next time I will definitely be asking for more cheese though!

I also enquired about dairy free milk for hot drinks. The waitress said they haven’t changed their machines so currently can’t do dairy free but she thought they would be looking to offer it in the future.

As my friend has a taste card we got our pizzas on a BOGOF deal so I’ll definitely be heading back as you can’t complain for £5.50 each! Some people have mentioned they don’t agree with the £1 premium for vegan cheese but I think if they get enough requests for it this might change. I also hope they decided to roll this out to their takeaway branches as well.

Have you tried the new vegan pizzas at Pizza Hut? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Plumes x

A Vegan Dinner @ Pizza Hut