Reader question: seitan and nutritional yeast?

Ingrid asked:

I was wondering if you knew where to find seitan here in NZ, and also nutritional yeast. The big health store here didn’t know what I was talking about when I asked them!

I wasn’t sure, so I asked Twitter. Thanks to @starlajo, @letsgetradical & @heymilly for suggestions.

Nutritional yeast: Huckleberry Farms, Wise Cicada & New World Victoria Park were all suggested, and I’m pretty sure I’ve seen it at other supermarkets and natural/organic food shops. Try looking for “savoury yeast flakes” rather than nutritional yeast. Wikipedia also claims that New Zealanders call it “Brufax”, but it’s never had that name in my family.

Seitan: Jo says she’s seen flavoured seitan at The Tofu Shop.

Good luck! Feel free to comment, email or Twitter message me if you have questions about sourcing vegan things in Auckland, and I’ll try to answer here.

Good news for short attention spans

I just started an Auckland Vegan account on Twitter – follow me if you want up-to-the-minute cupcake news, snippetty things that are too short to warrant a post here, or reminder notes when I update this blog.

Someone else is running a Wellington Vegan account that recommends good vegan stuff in Wellington.

Elsewhere on the internet

The news in brief:

• Kokako is on Twitter – follow them for news about coffee & their café & such. Also on Twitter, NZ Cupcake Queen tweets what flavour cupcakes she’s baked for Kraftbomb or just dropped off at the SAFE shop. Jeff at Revel told me he was thinking about starting an account, too, so he could let people know what kinds of vegan cupcakes and other treats were on offer. This would be an ideal use of futuristic internet technology – next time you visit tell him it’s a good idea.
• SAFE have the inside scoop on vegan cupcakes in Auckland.
• I’ve started an Auckland Vegan map on Google maps – I have a big list of places to add, but it’s a start. I hope this will make it easier for people to find vegan-friendly things in a particular neighbourhood.

Vegan Revellers

vegan revellers – originally uploaded by moirabot

I wrote a while ago about the beans on toast at Revel, my favourite vegan brunch in Auckland.

But one of the many reasons I love Revel is that it’s not a one vegan brunch option kind of establishment. When I’m very hungry (like it’s an afternoon kind of brunch or I’ve otherwise missed a meal), what I eat instead is the Vegan Revellers.

It’s falafel on thick toasted foccacia, with grilled tomatoes and mushrooms, wilted spinach, hummus and two kinds of pesto (sundried tomato and basil).

Hungry-sized and delicious.

Cupcake waiting for the bus

cupcake waiting for the bus – originally uploaded by moirabot

This one was eaten some time in late July. It had maple icing and the flavour involved cinnamon. I remember it being a bit dry and crumbly, not Revel’s best work.

Revel’s cupcakes are looking fancier lately – all sprinkles and shaped toppings and interesting colour combinations. Unfortunately my camera’s out of commission right now, so you’ll just need to visit and eat, rather than relying on my blog to document the latest flavours.