It was certainly a great conversation starter!
Adriana Bellemans is an inspirational lady. While many of us try to follow our principles (at least most of the time), Adriana really lives them. This animal lover set up Vegelicious with her partner Kate last Christmas after an opportunity arose at the Island Market. And despite only being open 6 months, they have already attracted a loyal following and a HOFM award as Hobart's Best Takeway!
Adriana has always enjoyed cooking, especially beautiful vegetarian and vegan food. She loves it when she is asked what is vegan at Vegelicious, only to tell them that everything is! 'Their eyes nearly pop out of their head!' she laughs.
Vegelicious offers vegan food for everyone. Adriana, with Kate's help, makes just about everything themselves. As a result, everything is fresh and high quality. The favourites? Vegan cakes, and brekkie bagels (vegan bacon and scrambled tofu). And of course, hot chips! It is amazing how many vegans order hot chips, happy knowing that they are not cooked in animal fat (like many takeaway shops). Even carnivores seek out the Vegelicious hot chips because they taste better...!
Her big tip for anyone interested in eating more vegetarian food or vegan food? 'If you treat tofu the right way, it can be very tasty. People make the mistake of tasting it straight from the pack... blurrrgh! Don't do that - it is very easy to cook with!'So does she miss anything? Yes, cheese! Fortunately Adriana came across a recipe for vegan cheese, kindly shared by a friend who operates a vegan B&B. You can find the recipe on the Vegelicious facebook page, and we've included it for you below. And, Adriana can also make you up a tub of vegan fetta to take home on request!
Vegan Fetta
courtesy of Nikki from Bed and Broccoli
250 g block of tofu (Nikki uses Blue Lotus, Adriana uses the Firm King Land brand )
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
3 tablespoons herbed vinegar (plain also works)
1 tablespoon of miso powder (or 1 small sachet)
½ teaspoon salt
2 cloves of garlic, whole & smashed (Or use crushed garlic)
Drain
tofu. Cut into cubes or crumble. Don’t crumble it too fine or it will become
mush! Mix all ingredients together and pour over tofu. Marinate in the
fridge for at least a day. A couple of days is best. But I have done this in
the morning and cooked with it that night when in a hurry. Store in the fridge
with olive oil."
Adriana also adds
chilli and fresh rosemary and has also used miso paste. Like Nikki - Adriana is yet to work out how long this will keep as it
hasn't lasted more than 3 days before it's gone!
