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Today John and Liam are really excited to learn about the apparent vegan explosion in the U.S.  Over the past two years the number of adults in the U.S. who are vegan has doubled according to the Vegetarian Resource Group.   The number of vegans is reported to be 2.5% of the population and the number of vegetarians is 5%. This is great news, obviously.  Liam and John talk about how some studies can be skewed, however there is no skewing the fact that the number of vegetarian and vegan options in grocery stores has increased drastically over the past few years and this leads them to believe that the number of vegetarians and vegans is definitely growing.

TVA is excited to be a participant in the upcoming Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale.  TVA will be hosting its version of the Vegan Bake Sale on Saturday, April 21^st from 1:00 to 4:00 PM.  The Vegan Bake Sale will be taking place outside of the TVA office (17 Baldwin) on the patio of Vegetarian Haven. 

John also talks about his great experience at Marni Wasserman’s.  John had the opportunity to try a wide variety of food, learn some culinary techniques, and ask lots of questions regarding nutrition.  The experience caused John to finally give in and buy a Vitamix.  A night at Marni’s is a great gift for the vegetarian/vegan who has everything.

On a sad note, a great TVA volunteer has recently passed away.  Agnes had been involved with TVA for a long time in a number of capacities.  She helped TVA by volunteering at the Food Festival, at TVA outreach events, and she worked on doctor outreach packages.  This is incredibly sad news for anyone who has been touched by Agnes; Greg, our thoughts are with you.

This week’s episode is 37 minutes long and is dedicated to Agnes.

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Today's epidsode features podcast superstars past and present reunited to celebrate the 250th Toronto Vegetarian Podcast!! Current Saturday regulars John, Liam, and Colleen are joined by podcast originators Jason and Angela (and their silent, but entirely real) mini-podcaster Dax. Barbi, TVA's Donor and Volunteer Resources Coordinator is in the house as well.  We like hanging out here but we were all bribed to show up by John buying everyone pizza.

Our 250th episode is defined by 1) no show notes or plan; 2) a variety of clever triple entendres; 3) lots of laughter; and 4) discussion of various veg issues and events.

We discuss the honey issue (to eat, or not to eat), upcoming volunteer opportunities at the Green Living Show and Total Health Show, our upcoming participation in the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale (Saturday, April 21). (Details here on how to host your own). On the Vegetarian Directory front: Vegetarian Brunch Guide, and new additions to the Vegetarian Discount card program.

This milestone podcast is 37 minutes long and can't be found in the classifieds of NOW Magazine.

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Today John and Sue are lucky enough to have a whole slew of treats left for them. One of the benefits of volunteering in the Resource Centre is that there tends to be a lot of good food kicking around and today is no exception.  There are leftovers from a vegan bake sale and there are samples from Kupcakes Bakeshop.  Kupcakes Bakeshop is a new all vegan bakeshop that offers free shipping in the G.T.A. and have gluten-free options.  For the rest of the month of March you can also save the tax!

There's also some travel news on today's show.  John recently got back from Panama and Costa Rica and reports that good eating can be had even in countries/places where vegetarianism and veganism is a foreign concept.  John enjoyed eating at Loving Hut in Panama City and tortillas and beans became a staple, not out of desperation, but because in Costa Rica they are exceptionally tasty.  Also, with regards to travel, Lisa O. is presently in China and detailing her eating and non-eating experiences on her blog.  It sounds like she's having a great time.

Sue recently ate at a very vegan friendly restaurant, Cocoa Latte, and she reports that the vegan bean burrito deserves two thumbs up.  It seems that John isn't the only one who quite enjoys a hefty dose of beans.

Lastly, John is very excited to be going to a Marni Wasserman cooking class/dinner next Saturday.  A full report will be giving the next time he podcasts.  The invitation to this dinner is a present he received from a family member - a great gift for the vegetarian/vegan who has everything.

This episode is a sweet 'n sour 12 minutes.  

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From Tex Mex to Macrobiotic, this podcast has it all. Liam and Emily discuss cooking beans from scratch (Liam admits to this being a slight danger zone, gaseously-speaking), and the joys of wrapping said cooked beans in tortillas with other fixins and calling it dinner. In their epic dinner discussion, they also shed some light on what it means to eat macrobiotic , and how hard it is to chew your food 100 times.

They also discuss the difficulties of discussing veganism with non-vegans and how to negotiate the tricky terrain of relationships where one party is vegan/vegetarian and the other isn't. The organization FARM has come up with its own technique for bridging the gap: paying folks a dollar in exchange for 4 minutes of their time (spent watching a video outlining how animals make it from the farm to the plate). If you think this will work on people you know, by all means, give it a try.

Ending on a more positive (some might say, savoury) note, Liam outlines a recipe for jalapeno cheddar biscuits , and shares that Daiya has a new cheese in wedge form. You can think of it like a ramp of goodness. Apparently, you can also slice it, so dig deep into the closet where you tossed the cheese slicer you thought you'd never need again. Once you've found it, take some time to peruse the other delicious foods VegNews has on parade, including new Veganaise flavours and vegan cookie dough .

This podcast was an amazingly-podcastercized 36 minutes.

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Today Liam and Sarah begin the podcast with a discussion on the veganess of yellow snow. They agree that regardless of whether or not it is vegan, they have no plans to eat it.

Liam discusses his recent trip to Texas where he loved the fresh produce, especially the herbs. In Dallas, he fell in love with Spiral Diner which is a cute, hip, friendly vegan diner. His love of Veggie Heaven in Austin has waned over the years but after perusing the online menu , he is reconsidering.

The hosts also discussed Liam's favourite Toronto Vegetarian diner: Sadie's. Liam enjoyed the all you can eat chili fundraiser for the TVA and Sarah expressed her desire to visit soon.

A discussion of eating raw foods revealed that both hosts have eaten some questionable things in the past. Liam recently had raw purple yam and white yam but is now questioning that decision. If you have experience with eating raw yam or taro, please let us know.

The directory contains some exciting updates including a vegetarian place in the Beaches and a hyper-local farm. Check out the update page for the glorious details.

This week's podcast is a pure as the fresh driven snow 30 minutes

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Today John and Colleen express their undying love for salad.  The two co-hosts have come to the conclusion that on the days when they eat a big salad (i.e. the vast majority of days) they feel much better than those rare days when they don’t eat a big salad.  Colleen and John talk about some of their favourite ingredients on salad and this means that both are looking forward to the summertime when options increase with fresh fruit.

There is some travel news on today’s show too.  John is getting ready for a trip to Panama and Costa Rica.  Colleen reminisces about her time in Portugal.  Lisa O. is off to experience a handful of Asian countries and you can follow her on her travel blog where she promises to update with lots of useful information about being vegan in Asia.

For those of you who are interested in greening your thumb there is a class at George Brown College starting soon entitled “Edible Gardening in the City”.  This six week course syllabus suggests that it can help to teach you garden in a variety of settings.

This episode is a blueberry-topped 25 minutes.

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Today, Sarah and Liam bring you a sampling of results from the very aptly named Fabulous Vegan Bakeof. It was truly, truly fabulous and Liam is a little plumper because of it.

In other sweet news, the hosts talk up some of the myriad of veggie valentines day options in Toronto this year. If you're looking to meet a special someone to spend the day with, you might try meeting some other veggies in one of the Meetup Groups in the city through meetup.com .

If TVA is your valentine, show them some love by going to one of the February fundraisers. Vegan Rock is happening on February 23 at The Boat in Kensington and Sadie's is offering $10 all you can eat chili on Feb 28th.

Mary shattered Liam's ignorance with regards to accessible produce for the poor in Toronto with a couple of online articles.

This week's podcast is an Andre 3000 inspired 35 minutes.

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Today Sarah, Lisa, and John are pretty excited to talk about next week’s Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake Off.  It is taking place on February 4^th from 2 – 4:30 p.m. at 918 Bathurst Street which is just north of the Bathurst subway station.  This year promises to be extra special as there are more entrants than in any of the previous three years.

There are lots of cool upcoming events in Toronto.  Vegan Rock is a TVA fundraiser that will offer a vegan bake sale and concert at The Boat (158 Augusta Avenue) in Kensington Market.  It’s $10 to get in and all proceeds go to TVA.  On Tuesday, February 28^th there is an all-you-can-eat-chili event with all proceeds going to TVA at Sadie’s Diner.  There is also a sale on Forks Over Knives DVDs in the TVA Resource Centre on Wednesday, March 21st, from 6-9pm in honour of world meatout day (which is March 20th). Forks Over Knives will be only $15 and as usual there will be a vegan bake sale too.

There are a couple of interesting vegan dining options coming up at the Rusholme Park Supper Club; on January 29^th there’s “TV(egan) Dinner” and on February 14^th there’s “Sweet and Spicy: a Jamaican Valentine”.  Along the same line as these dinner clubs John received a great Christmas present in the form of a Marni Wasserman dinner party; he’ll report his findings after the shindig.  While there are lots of good options in Toronto for good eats Sarah reports about her recent dining experiences in her small hometown where there was literally nothing on the menu which she could eat; lucky for her he restaurant was able to accommodate her.

This week’s episode is a not-lacking-in-vegetarian-options 36 minutes.

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Today, podcast (ir)regulars Emily and Liam are joined by everyone's favourite Oakvillian, Angeline and fresh to the TVA Sarah.

They keep things short with two main topics. The 3rd Annual Fabulous Vegan Bakeoff is coming up on February 4th at 918 Bathurst. Registration is still open so put on your baking hats and get thee to the kitchen. Their second topic is a little more sensitive so you'll have to listen to find out what it is.

A number of visitors stopped by the resource centre today (yay!) including Chris who shared his feelings on the very effective TTC ads from chooseveg.ca.  

Today's podcast is a foxy 7 minutes.

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In this podcast, which may be the worst we've ever put out, Liam and Lisa O. discuss their low energy vibe, talk about their New Year's resolutions, and share the news about some exciting upcoming events. Seedy Saturdays and Sundays are coming up in March in locations around Toronto. Exchange and buy heirloom seeds! Also in March is Meatout, during which activists will distribute tasty vegan food to promote the benefits of a meat-free diet. Click on the link above to find out how you can get involved.

The Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-Off is coming up on February 4th, with registration open until January 27th. Check out the sponsors on veg.ca/bakeoff to get a sneak peek at the prizes the winners will receive. If you're not a baker, plan on taking part in the tasting and judging. 

Sadie's is having a chili fundraiser on February 28th, which will benefit TVA! It's just $10, and you'll receive a hearty helping of delicious chili and chips. 

Last podcast, it was suggested that there weren't a whole lot of vegan dining options in the Markham area, but it turns out there are quite a few! Check out this list of restaurants. If you happen to live outside the GTA but want to promote vegan-friendly restaurants in your area, please consider helping out with Veggielicious 2012, which will be coming up in May! Email veggielicious@veg.ca for more details. TVA is also looking for a volunteer to fill the exciting new position of community animator.

Hulu viewers in the US are now seeing ads by Compassion Over Killing, advocating a meat-free diet, and directing audiences to their website.

If you want to maintain a healthy meat-free diet yourself, you can follow Liam's lead and eat more legumes. He describes some delicious roasted chickpeas he's made recently and tells you how to make them yourself. Some cruciferous vegetables can interfere with thryoid function (and the metabolizing of certain medications). If you're curious and want to find out more, you can read up on the issue here.

This podcast has been a yawnstipating 27 minutes.

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Today Colleen and John get caught up after the holidays.  Colleen was in Portugal during December and reports that she had no trouble being vegetarian while there.  She also reports that Vega did a good job of tiding her over when she was beginning to feel hungry.  John was in Vancouver over the holidays and, and while one might think that John would have the easier time of it, this is not the case.  Troubles can arise for John when vegan meals are made, but not necessarily the healthiest vegan meals.  Sometimes both co-hosts would much rather have just a big, old, salad.  I'm sure many listeners can relate.

Calling all bakers, calling all bakers!  The Totally Fabulous Vegan Bakeoff is just around the corner.  Get all of the details and sign up for the great prices that are available.

Colleen is not really one for New Year's resolutions per se, but she wants to keep one going.  Namely, she wants to try new, vegan, whole foods.  What's on the list of new foods?  We don't want to give everything away, but to paraphrase Duran Duran "Her name is Yuca and she dances on the sand, just like that river twisting through a dusty land".

There is a great school which is open on Toronto Island which serves vegetarian meals for their students.  Waterfront Montessori Childrens' Centre places an emphasis on nature studies and green values.  Parents get the added comfort of knowing their child will be well fed with wholesome, vegetarian meals.

Lastly, the podcast co-hosts received an email with regards to the recent Be Veg subway ad campaign.  Conrad, the email writer, suggests that the campaign got the ball rolling for him towards altering his diet to be vegetarian.  We hope Conrad is representative of many more T.T.C. riders.

Today's episode is 34 minutes. Long enough to listen to while eating a big green salad with blueberries.

Notes Update: There are actually quite a few vegetarian restaurants in Markham :) See markhamveg.wordpress.com  and http://veg.ca/directory/list/north-of-toronto

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Today Liam and Lisa O discuss the good news for chimpanzees this week - the United States NIH decided to stop using them for government funded research. While the move isn't perfect, it's a step in the right direction. 

Liam suggests volunteering at the Toronto Humane Society as a dog-walker as a great way to spend time helping animals and being around dogs if you can't adopt a dog of your own.

There are lots of holiday deals going on through the end of the year! Check them out here.

Liam recommends an easy and delicious method of quesadilla-making, and Lisa recommends The Vegan Stoner for other quick and tasty recipes. She also highly recommends the peanut butter blondie from Rise Above Bakery, a new 100% vegan bakery/cafe in St. Catharines. 

Today's podcat was an animal-testing-free 33 minutes.  Listen Now!

The Raw/Vegan Festival is on right NOW! Head to 918 Bathurst to check it out (and our raw bookstore!). Our Resource Centre Holiday Book & Bake Sale is happening Saturday December 10th from 1-4pm with book prices lower than Amazon's (we checked)! Come out and eat some yummy treats while stocking up on books for loved ones like The Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen in Hardcover for $20! Glenn De Baeremaeker will be attending Animals Beyond Borders on Friday, December 9th from 6:30-9:30pm. The Vegan Bake-Off is back! Learn more about registration at veg.ca/bakeoff... coming in February!

Luke went to Greens Vegetarian Restaurant on Dundas last night west of Spadina. They have huge soup bowls to share for just $3.99 and $4.50, and cute decor.

VegNews made a video about Vegan Toronto! Check it out on YouTube. Jennifer Bain from the Toronto Star made vegan cookies that look amazing! Check on the recipe on thestar.com. AppAdvice.com has an article for all you iPhone and iPod touch users with lots of apps that Luke uses regularly. Check it out on their website. US Congress has lifted a ban on horse slaughter making it legal after the 5 year ban. Learn about it here. In happier news, iRun has three vegan recipes on their website that look delicious.

This weeks episode is a short but sweet 15 minutes.

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Today Liam and John have a podcast of Biblical proportions where they talk a lot about Nazareth.  That’s the restaurant, not the Israeli city.  Blogto did a list of their favourite Ethiopian restaurants in the city and Liam and John can claim to have sampled many of the restaurants on the list.  They couldn’t argue with the number one spot on the list.

Shawn tipped the podcast duo off about some Doug McNish related news.  Doug has  created a vegan brunch menu for the Windsor Arms.  Sean sampled it last weekend and raves about it; he likes The Works and the vegan benny and mentions that there are gluten-free options too.  It costs $15 which is pretty inexpensive for a fancy setting. Doug is also involved in a beer dinner series - just make sure to stay under the recommended 15 drinks per week.

- The new dessert cookbook Vegan Pie in the Sky is now available 

- John continues to love raw pasta sauces

- Liam talks about a TVA member appearing on the TV show Recipes to Riches

- Plus a big shout out to the fine folks over at Toronto Pig Save

This week’s episode is a Samuel L Jackson 36 minutes.

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