You may have noticed I don’t post as often as I used to here on the ‘ol blog. The fact is, I’m a little swamped with my day job, and honestly, people don’t read anymore! Seriously, I get way more action on social media these days than I do here – so if you feel like you’re missing out on Bake and Destroy nonsense, try following me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook because that’s where I do most of my talking these days.

But I thought I’d take a few minutes to actually link to some of the best things I’ve shoved into the bottomless pit that is my mouth lately.

vegan tamales1. Vegan Tamales from Tucson Tamale Company – I received the vegan sampler to review, and spent a few weeks eating my way across the globe with flavors like Berkeley (black beans, fresh corn, red pepper, spices in red pepper masa) and Tahiti Dessert (grilled pineapple, mango and coconut masa). My favorite, though, was New Delhi (organic vegetable medley of carrots, green beans, corn, potato, onion, with coconut milk and mild yellow curry) as I am a fan of making all food taste like Indian food. Order vegan tamales online, or visit Tucson Tamale Company the next time you’re in Arizona.

vegan food Champ's Diner2. Fish-on-a-Bun from Champ’s Diner – In September I traveled to NYC to film a few segments for News 12 Brooklyn/Bronx and I had a check list of places to eat.  Champ’s was at the top of my list, obvs. Most people probably go to Champ’s and freak out over the Country-Fried Seitan, but since I live a bike ride away from Chicago Diner, I got weird and ordered the Fish-on-a-Bun – vegan fish patties, cheddar, remoulade, tomatoes, lettuce served with crabby fries (fries dusted with Old Bay Seasoning). I also had my eye on their many Vegan Treats desserts, but Dun-Well Doughnuts was right across the street, so now I have a reason to hurry back to Brooklyn ASAP.

kombucha soda3. If the words Live Kombucha Soda make you shudder, welcome to the club. Lord knows I’ve tried to love kombucha, but I just can’t get past the vinegar taste… until some genius made it taste like soda (or, as we call it in the Midwest, “pop”). I tried the root beer and blueberry flavors recently in Dallas at the Gluten Free & Allergy Friendly Expo and was shocked to find I didn’t just tolerate them – I liked them. With 14g of sugar, it’s still definitely a soda, but considering most sodas have more than twice the amount of sugar than that it’s a probiotic bubbly drink you can enjoy without many worries.

vegan nachos Spiral Diner4. Also in Dallas, my girl Joy from Lucky Cupcake Hairclips and I made our way to Spiral Diner. I was given strict orders from Kristen of Capital City Bakery to get the nachos, so I did. I was pleasantly surprised to find them topped with a spicy quinoa instead of soy. (I also indulged in their mac n’ cheese, an orange cream milkshake and a slice of strawberry cake…) If you can’t make it out to Dallas, though, you can try this recipe for quinoa tacos.

5. Finally, the whole Internet is exploding about Follow Your Heart‘s not-yet-available vegan egg product. And honestly, their vegan cheeses are so good I totally get why. Meanwhile, though, The Vegg has been around for years.  It does take some practice to master Vegg products, but if you’re willing to try you’ll be rewarded with an eerily eggy experience. I am particularly fond of the the French Toast Mix, which gives you that custardy texture inside your bread with a nice, eggy crust on the outside.

Writing this I realized I ate a LOT more than 5 delicious things lately, so maybe I have another one of these posts in me soon. Follow me on Instagram to see more of what’s good! What’s the best vegan food you’ve eaten lately?