Worcester VegFest 2012

Guess what? As of today, I am officially a VegWorcester team member!

Matty, Raquel, and I ventured north to Worcester, MA for VegFest 2012, an event hosted by VegWorcester, a non-profit community organization that advocates for vegetarian living. Worcester VegFest was very similar to the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival I went to this past October, only slightly smaller in size. We had a great time volunteering, perusing the vendors, sampling delicious food, and listening to off-the-charts presentations. In short, it was veg heaven.

When we arrived, our friend Karen Krinsky was parked outside! Karen is the proud owner of Like No Udder, a Rhode Island-based vegan soft serve ice-cream truck. Her vanilla-chocolate swirl is ridiculously delicious. We wanted to get ourselves some of her delicacies but there was a steady line of 40-plus people outside her truck throughout the event. While we were absolutely thrilled for her, we passed on the ice-cream because we didn’t want to wait in a line that was an eighth of a mile long. Soon, Karen!

The three of us spent the first hour volunteering at the raffle ticket booth. There were so many people there! It is so nice to see the plant-based lifestyle becoming more and more attractive to people.

After an hour of volunteering, we perused the vendors. I indulged in samples of hummus and chips, falafel, a pumpkin spice cookie (!!!), and dark chocolate with almonds. Thank goodness they were small samples, or I would have eaten the whole place out!

These Mary’s Gone Crackers curry pretzel twigs are so good! I’d never tried them before but Matty and I are officially big fans.

I ordered a falafel waffle with homemade hummus and fresh tomatoes, cucumber, and parsley. It looked great but the overall flavor was kind of bland. The people were so kind, too! I really did want to like it. Don’t you hate when that happens?

Once the above dish was in my belly, we headed upstairs to see Dr. T. Colin Campbell, PhD, give a presentation on reversing disease with plant-based foods. This was the number one thing on my to-do list today. I couldn’t wait to see him speak! I’ve read his material and he is such an inspiring force in the medical field. Dr. Campbell co-authored The China Study, the most comprehensive nutrition study ever created. He had people literally gasping. I never get tired of seeing people’s strong reactions to science-based evidence promoting a plant-based lifestyle. 

Next up was Kathy Freston, author of Veganist and her new book The Lean, which is all about how to lose weight while transitioning to a vegan lifestyle. Kathy was interviewed by Jasmin Singer, one half of the power-duo from Our Hen House. Side note: If you haven’t checked out Our Hen House, you must! It is the ultimate place to go for a positive insight into animal activism. Okay, back to the interview. Jasmin is hysterical and Kathy is so down-to-earth, which made for a pleasant interview to watch. It was a nice compliment to Dr. Campbell’s more “heavy” and scientific presentation.

Kathy talked about simple switches the average American on the SAD (Standard American Diet) can make to better their health and their lives. She is a fan of “transition foods,” or mock meat products, and encourages them as a way to “lean into veganism.” This is something I appreciate, but, personally, have a lot of ethical issues with. If it’s between eating meat or mock meat products, I’m all for someone choosing mock meat products. However, consistently relying on them as dietary staples isn’t necessarily great for our health and can also challenge our ethical integrity. More on that in a later post, though! Anywho, Kathy was so articulate, positive, and beautiful! I loved the presentation.

After Kathy’s interview, we ventured back downstairs to visit more of the tables.

We also met two nice representatives for Shakeology, a new vegan meal replacement shake.

Speaking of shakes, we stumbled upon Vega Sport, my absolute favorite plant-based protein powder!

Then, pumpkin spice cookie domination occurred. They were sooo soft, dense, and chewy! Perfection.

Overall, we loved VegFest 2012! We left with happy bellies and full hearts.

It was a welcomed day of indulgence. It’s important to let loose once in awhile and enjoy foods you normally don’t have the opportunity to eat (i.e. off-the-charts pumpkin spice cookies!) That being said, I’m happy to be back on the clean eating train today. It’s my jam. :-) Love you, guys!

Stay lovely,
Heather

P.S. – The Fashion page was updated today!