Vegan Colorado Summer Fun (VegFest Colorado Giveaways!)

VegFest Colorado is this weekend and it has me feeling all warm and fuzzy about the amazing vegan things happening in my community. This will be my fourth VegFest Colorado as a vendor and cooking demo presenter. When I moved from New York (Westchester County) to Colorado Springs, I was a little nervous about the vegan scene. But I found the only – at the time – vegan Meetup and connected with some super fine folks right away to discover vegan Colorado.

In just three years, there are noticeable changes. These days in Colorado Springs you’ll find food trucks that are serving all vegan food, like Kale and Karrot, or those making sure to serve vegan food, like Potato Potato and Awaken Food Truck. By the way, Potato Potato is going vegan for lunch Thursday, Colorado Springs! Details here.

The Burrowing Owl, a vegan dive bar, is one-year-old and thriving. The new Willamette Market & Deli will have an 80% vegan menu. My monthly vegan dining review for the Colorado Springs Gazette has now been running for two years (and the annual dining guide has a section devoted to plant-based options this year!) and my weekly radio program Easy Vegan with JL Fields is nearing its one-year anniversary on community radio in Colorado Springs.

It’s so vegan around here I can barely contain myself! 

So back to VegFest Colorado. I adore veg fests. Mainly because, as a vegan, they are a great place to discover new animal rights organizations, plant-based foods, and pick up awesome vegan message wear. But the speakers are what really draw me in. Chefs, physicians, activists, and more, it’s a great way to learn about all aspects of veganism. The secondary reason I love veg fests is that when I set up my booth I know that I’ll be meeting non-vegans all weekend. I get to share with them just how easy – and joyful – it is to live and be vegan.

This year my cooking demonstration talk is Five Easy Ways to Eat Vegan in the Real World. I like to take the mystery out of vegan eating. I will share techniques to make cooking whole foods in bulk easy and fast (hello, pressure cooking!) and then talk about some of the great foods you can find in local stores to add to those whole foods for quick meals. I’m partnering with Hilary’s Eat Well this year to make this Spelt Berry Black Bean Salad (with Chili-Lime Vinaigrette dressing) for the demo and food samples.

Hilary’s Eat Well motto is “eating well made easy.” And, as you know, that’s my motto, too (I named my radio show Easy Vegan and my monthly newsletter is called Making Vegan Easy, after all). I’ll be talking about Buddha (or “hippie”) bowls during my presentation. You know, layering a bowl with beans, greens, and grains.

In this bowl: brown rice, bok choy, and Hilary’s Eat Well Veggie Bites (made of millet, quinoa, sweet potatoes, and leafy greens!).

How, exactly, does this bowl fit into what I consider “real world” vegan eating? It goes like this:

– I set the brown rice up in the electric pressure cooker for 22 minutes on high pressure. I then do a natural release for grains of 10 – 15 minutes.

– During those 10 minutes of natural release, I toss a couple of the veggie bites into the air fryer (400F for 10 minutes).

– When using the air fryer, you usually shake the basket at mid-point. So after five minutes, I shake the veggie bites and then started steaming bok choy in a pressure cooker. It’s such a fragile veggie, I simply set the pressure cooker for low pressure cooking for essentially zero minutes (all this means is that as soon as it comes up to pressure, immediately release it).

So, in less than 30 minutes, all three healthy vegan items are complete at the same time and I get to devour a wholesome bowl of vegan food. What’s easier than that?!

In Colorado,  you can find Hilary’s Eat Well products at Sprouts, Natural Grocers, Whole Foods (and at Mountain Mama Natural Foods in Colorado Springs!). Here’s a handy store locator: http://www.hilaryseatwell.com/where-to-buy/.

Join me for my cooking demo and talk at 2:15 on Saturday on the main stage and you’ll learn about more of these simple ways to get good food on the table fast. And you just might win some free Hilary’s Eat Well products, as I will hold a special giveaway at the conclusion of my demo!

If you’re coming to the second day of VegFest Colorado, be sure to stop by Hilary’s Eat Well booth at 11 a.m. Sunday. I’ll be sharing some of my “real world vegan meals” ideas and Hilary’s Eat Well will be giving away a copy of The Little Vegan Cookbook (over 500 recipes including about 40 of my Vegan Pressure Cooking recipes).

Of course, I will have a booth, too, and I’ll be selling copies of Vegan Pressure Cooking, Vegan for Her, and The Little Vegan Cookbook. I can’t wait to see you Saturday and Sunday in Golden, CO!

BUT WAIT! I’d hate to have my non-Colorado readers feel left out, so how about a little giveaway right here on the blog? I’m giving away a FREE Hilary’s Eat Well product coupon to FIVE lucky (U.S.) winners! Enter now!

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Tags: easy vegangiveawayhilary's eat wellvegan coloradovegan colorado springsvegfest colorado

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