National Vegetarian Week (24 – 30 May 2010) August 19, 2009

National Vegetarian Week 2010 will take place from Monday 24 May to Sunday 30 May.

The Vegetarian Society’s flagship awareness week is a well established event in the British Culinary calendar, a celebration of delicious food and fresh ingredients. Everyone can get involved from market stall holders to caterers; fine diners to picnic goers; school children and even works canteens.

It’s not just about food though, National Vegetarian Week offers great business opportunities through launches, special offers, holding sampling sessions and getting into the media spotlight. Organisations such as schools and libraries can get involved too – with displays, discussions and debates.

National Vegetarian Week 2009 involved artists, a body-painted beauty, celebrity chefs, high street stores and individuals across the UK. To see what they got up to visit www.vegsoc.org/nvw

National Vegetarian Week (NVW) is the annual awareness-raising campaign promoting inspirational vegetarian food and the benefits of a meat-free lifestyle. Now in its eighteenth year, National Vegetarian Week is a great opportunity to look at food and its impact on the environment, animals and health.

Help celebrate National Vegetarian Week (18th-24th May) April 6, 2009

Now in its 17th year, National Vegetarian Week has become one of the best national campaigning week in the events calendar. With over 7% of the UK population now vegetarian/vegan and a further 12% eating less than 1 meat based meal a week there has never been a better time to increase your stores vegetarian and vegan offerings to take advantage of this booming £2.2billion market.

This year National Vegetarian Week is between 18th-24th May and helping to celebrate national Vegetarian Week is industry legends, Beyond the Bean. With all 93 products in the Sweetbird, Zuma and Byron Bay ranges approved by the Vegetarian Society (and 51 Sweetbird products approved by vegan group Viva!), they are the perfect ranges to help you tap into this ever expanding market.

“Many companies like to state that their products are suitable for vegetarians and vegans, but are they? Have they allowed an independent group to scrutinise ingredients and production methods? Have they checked the filling agents to make sure that the process does not use non vegetarian ingredients even if they don’t appear in the final product? Are they only using free range eggs and vegetarian whey? Are they free from GMO’s? These are a few of the questions that we have had to check to ensure that our products meet the exacting standards and quality controls of the Vegetarian Society and Viva!” commented Helen Ostle Brand Manager for Beyond the Bean.

Helen also added “We know that the vast majority of consumers understand and recognise the seedling symbol and actively seek out products that conform to the rigorous standards set out by the Vegetarian Society. We are extremely proud to have been the first coffee ancillary supply company to have our products approved by the Vegetarian Society and Viva!”

For more information about the full range of Vegetarian Society approved products from Beyond the Bean call 44 (0)1179 533522 or visit www.beyondthebean.com

The Seasoned Vegetarian March 10, 2009

The Seasoned Vegetarian
Simon Rimmer
Published: 2nd February 2009
Price £14.

“I think my food is best described as magpie cuisine – I’ll steal an idea from anywhere, combining an Asian curry with Jamaican rice and peas. I always try to let the availability of ingredients influence the menus: strawberry soups in summer, Italian bean and Parmesan-roasted parsnips in winter, crisp radish and watercress salads in May” – Simon Rimmer

The co-presenter of BBC Two’s well-loved Sunday morning staple, Something For the Weekend and BBC Two’s Recipes For Success, Simon Rimmer returns with another helping of innovative, mouth-watering and flavour packed vegetarian food which builds on the success of The Accidental Vegetarian
When meat-lover Simon Rimmer decided to buy a veggie café called Greens, he had two cookery books, a bank loan and no idea how to cook! Simon had decided along with his business partner to buy their own restaurant and be the ‘hosts’ whilst someone else slaved away in the kitchen.

It was only when they realised the huge costs of both the bank loan and having someone else cook that they decided to do the cooking themselves! This was an accident that would change Simon’s life forever – he had become a meat-eater running a vegetarian restaurant, he had become The Accidental Vegetarian.

Now Simon is back to tickle our taste buds with The Seasoned Vegetarian – A Second Serving which is based on the menu at his now award-winning vegetarian restaurant Greens.

Although Simon still considers himself a carnivore, he found out cooking non-meaty meals a real pleasure. He researched cultures that had great vegetarian dishes – Asian, Mediterranean, African – and incorporated French and Italian techniques alongside them.

Simon taught himself how to break out from the traditions using all sorts of ingredients in new and imaginative combinations – creating a brand new approach to vegetarian cooking which takes its inspiration from all over the world. Simon imaginatively combines ingredients to create a unique cooking style that he describes as ‘magpie cuisine’.

The simple, quick recipes in The Seasoned Vegetarian – A Second Serving are big on taste and creativity. You can indulge in a steaming bowl of hot and sour soup, enjoy a comforting peppered mushroom and stilton pie and spicy vegetable curry, and why not finish off with a honey, ricotta and pistachio cheesecake or banoffie pie – This gorgeously illustrated book offers over 100 simple, seasonal vegetarian recipes from one of Britain’s most popular chefs.

More than 100,000 people buy a veg box weekly or fortnightly in the UK – which shows that vegetables are a very important part of the nations diets, and this book shows you how to make the most out of your vegetables and experiment with cooking vegetables that you may never have eaten before.

Breaking the mould of vegetarian cookery, Simon Rimmer presents a selection of irresistible dishes that will satisfy all who eat them, vegetarians and carnivores alike.

Veg The Cookbook March 10, 2009

Veg The Cookbook
by Gregg Wallace
Published 5th January 2009
Price: £12.99

Masterchef co-presenter Gregg Wallace knows his onions – and his
aubergines, too – Daily Mail
 The Holy grail of vegetable books
 Tells you when to eat the best local produce
 The best veg need not be organic
 Gregg believes the main factor for tasty veg is the length of time i takes to get from the ground to your plate.

British greengrocer, Gregg Wallace is passionate about vegetables and has been working as a greengrocer for over 25 years. In his book Veg the Cookbook, Gregg takes an A-Z look at the vegetables we grow in the UK. The book is not a culinary world tour, and many of the vegetables listed above are not native, but they are certainly grown here, and this is what counts.
Be it buying organic, locally or fair trade, it’s confusing to know what is best for us.

Gregg simplifies it – stating the single most important thing is flavour, advocating that vegetables taste best when they are freshly picked and stresses the time it takes for vegetables to get from the ground to the plate is vital.

Sensational recipes feature throughout the book, incorporating both meat and fish alongside a very British chorus of vegetables. Boasting everything from mouthwatering Carrot Cake and Chilli Con Carne, Cock-a-Leekie and Red Tomato Chutney to Aubergine Fritters with Tzatziki and Samphire and Salmon with a Crème Fraiche Sauce – inspired by the top London restaurants (The Ivy and Smiths of Smithfield to name but two) that Wallace supplies, as well as all his own favourite meals. These dishes are down to earth and simple, like the man himself.

Gregg is a huge advocator of eating seasonally, believing if everybody ate this way, we would eat tastier and cheaper food. To push this message home, for every vegetable listed Gregg has provided a seasonal chart, showing in green the months during which the names vegetables is in season – so there is now no longer an excuse to eat asparagus in January!
Unique for its practicality, Veg is a cookbook that is sure to make its way into your daily life and leave you wondering how you ever cooked without it!

The Author
Gregg Wallace has been in the food business all his working life, and is probably best known as co-presenter of BBC’s MasterChef and BBC1’s Celebrity Masterchef.

Gregg started his career as a greengrocer at Covent Garden Market, and is now based at Secretts Farm in Surrey which oversees the growing and distribution of British home grown produce to a large percentage of London restaurants. He has supplied many of the best chefs in London with fresh fruit and vegetables, and over the years has spent a huge amount of time in their kitchens. Gregg has enjoyed a 25 year apprenticeship in the best of British food.

Gregg established his credentials as an authority on seasonality as co-presenter of Radio 4’s Veg Talk , and has also wooed audiences on BBC1’s Just the Two of Us. He writes regularly for The Mail .

Gregg has also written A Cook’s Year – How to Choose and Cook with Great Ingredients for Mitchell Beazley.

Veg The Cookbook by Greg Wallace