Sticky Toffee Pudding Recipe and some...

I'm sitting on the couch, contemplating a run attempt tonight. My left hamstring is back in rough shape - a fallout from my roofing experience. I might take another night off which will only leave me with 5 days to complete my challenge. Three of those days are also hockey nights. I'll do my best and if I don't achieve it before the 16th, I am going to reset the challenge and start from the beginning in December when we get back from Panama.

Just a note for anyone planning to fly Air Transat and who wants to book the Vegan meal. I previously posted about how to go about booking the meal. Tonight, I went through the process for real. When you call the number given, don't screw around with the touch-tone menu - press 0 right away and speak to an agent. The menu is just for information and does not actually lead you to an agent.

For now...

An old friend of mine from high school who is now living in the UK sent me this recipe. I thought I'd pass it on.


Sticky Toffee Pudding – its vegan believe it or not!!!

Serves six

250 ml soya milk
100 ml water
200g chopped dates (you could use raisins if you prefer)
1 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
115g soya spread /vegan margarine
115g soft brown sugar
200g white self raising flour
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon


Toffee sauce

100g of golden syrup
200g soft brown sugar
150g soya spread / vegan margarine
100ml soya cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 190 C/ gas mark 5
2. line a 20cm x 20cm cake tin with baking parchment
3. chop the dates in half, put them into a small saucepan with the soya milk and water and simmer until the dates are soft
4. Take off the heat and stir in the bicarbonate of soda – this will froth as you add it to the date mixture. Give it a stir and leave it to cool on a rack.
5. In a bowl beat together the margarine and the sugar until creamy then add the date mixture to the bowl and give it a good stir.
6. Sieve the flour with the spices. Fold it into the sponge mixture and when well mixed spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin.
7. Bake it for about 30 minutes.

To make the toffee sauce:
8. Melt the syrup, margarine and vanilla extract in a small saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes without stirring (be careful it may spit and it’s very hot!)
9. Leave it to cool slightly and then stir in the soya cream.

To serve:

10. Cut the cake into six pieces and place into your service dish. Prick the top all over with a fork and pour half of the toffee sauce which will be absorbed by the cake.
11. Serve the rest of the sauce with the pudding.

Vegan Travel

I've been doing a little research tonight into travelling as a vegan, in preparation for my trip to Panama next Monday. I came across a pretty cool video from a dude named Robert Cheeke.


How to Travel as a Vegan -- powered by eHow.com



I also came across a great set of vegan travel links at this website.

Back on Track / Jesse Davidson

With my roofing fiasco behind me, I was able to finally get a run in today. I only had to wear shorts, no toque and no gloves! Finally, we're having some decent weather in Southern Ontario. This wasn't the case all week, when we were pelted with snow, ice, rain, high winds... - all the things that make trying to walk around on a roof quite fun. After waking up Wednesday, pretty much my whole left side was useless from the waist down. I even missed hockey Wednesday night - this, I assure, is not a regular occurance.

Anywho, I was able to put in close to 10km today and add a bit of red to my map of Orangeville in my quest to complete my latest personal challenge. Normally, I run in the evening or hit the trails on weekends. Today, I was reminded just how bustling a little town Orangeville is. I was also reminded about how that drives me up the wall. Crossing streets becomes a nightmare on the weekends here. I did, however, get through my run without getting hit or hitting anyone else. Here's the latest updated picture:

I would also like to bring to light the unfortunate passing of Jesse Davidson at the age of 29. Jesse was from my hometown of London, Ontario and was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy at the age of 6. His father, John, a local newscaster in London, refused to do nothing about his son's rare disease. in 1995, the two embarked on a 3000+ km trek on foot across our province of Ontario, with John pushing Jesse in his wheelchair. The two brought awareness to this rare disease and raised much needed funding for research. From this, the Jesse's Journey Foundation was formed. The website can be found here .

John later walked across the country of Canada to raise even more awareness. Some countries qualify their heroes by the number of lives they've taken in combat. In Canada, I like to think that our heroes are measured by the number of lives they've saved or have made better. In the tradition of Terry Fox and Rick Hansen, among others, Jesse Davidson will always be remembered as a True Canadian Hero.

Product Alert: Patty King Jamaican Veg Patties(and other updates)

I was so disappointed a year ago when I went Vegan and went to buy some Vegetable Jamaican patties at my local grocer - the ones I'd always grimaced at before. 'No Frills', the only carrier of the product in my town, had pulled them off the shelves because of slow sales.

The product is made by Patty King International in Concord, Ontario, Canada and may only be available to the Canadian market.

To my delight, last week, the store started selling the product again. I bought a few boxes and even ate a few of the patties. Then I looked at the ingredients! The pastry is made with beef suet. Why would a company market a product that is meat free and obviously targeted at vegans and vegetarians and then use a meat product that is virtually unnoticeable to the consumer?

Unfortunately, the company does not have a website. I am trying to find an e-mail address to contact them and at least find out if this is something that can be altered. But, for now, all you vegans out there (in Canada, anyway) know that these Jamaican patties are not Vegan!

Roofers - A New Found Respect!

I might be quite physically fit, but after one day of helping do my roof, I am hurting from head to toe. The snow showers didn't help much, but it was a workout I didn't plan for. I have no idea how they do it in the middle of summer when the heat is sweltering!

One Year Anniversary!

It's been a whole year today since I turned Vegan. I'm just going to go about my business and do what I've been doing for the past 365 days. I'm not big on cryptic updates on Facebook, by I might put one up today and see if anyone knows what I'm talking about.

Global Warming Ad / Pet Rescue Fund-Raising / Challenge Update

First off, the following video is making the news from the UK. People are complaining that it is too scary. Yes, reality is scary. Unfortunately, they address the cause of global warming as using too much to heat our homes and driving our cars too much. When will the issue of animal farming being one of the major causes of global warming ever be accepted?

And next...

I have heard from a reliable source that this website is legit. Give them your clicks and they will provide food for animals in shelters. According to their website, response has been very positive.

And lastly...

A little more red on my Orangeville map:

Here are the previous updates to my running challenge:

October 31
October 29
October 27
Initial Challenge Post