Today John and Emily discuss going vegan with Ellen, or rather, Going Vegan with Ellen, Ellen's new resource website.  The site has recipes, tips, resources, and discussion spaces and is all about giving people the tools to develop a vegan approach that works for them. Emily also mentions that some people have expressed concern that Ellen still models for Cover Girl, a company that tests its products on animals, which sends John into a tangent discussion about leather belts, avoiding wastefulness, and how some people will always find something to criticize in someone else's behaviour. Someone whose behaviour you can't criticize is Gene Baur, keynote speaker at the 10 Thousand Tastes, 10 Billion Reasons evening portion. Emily may have almost swooned from Gene's potent combination of good looks and compassionate words, but she revived in time to collect her raffle prize, a fabulous package with totes and t-shirts from Karmavore, a gift certificate to Ying Ying soy foods, and a gift certificate for Ami Vegan Dog and Cat food. Emily and John discuss vegan cat food, and the difficulties of weighing ethics against biology. For now, Emily thinks her kitties will stay on their regular food, but if there is a dog in her future, those gift cards will come in handy.

From cat food to cake food, John discusses an amazing vegan dessert company offering vegan ice cream cakes, among others. Reasonably priced and delicious, keep this place in mind when you have a hankering for sweets. If you prefer to whip things up from scratch, consider the new Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegan Baking. Emily thinks the recipes looks pretty interesting, and is planning to test out the Yellow "Butter" Cake recipe tomorrow - she'll report back in a couple of weeks on how it all went.  To help guarantee a baking success, vote for Lisa P's Petit Four recipe by "liking" it on the YumUniverse Facebook page.

A few other things from today's podcast: a new "Go Veg" subway ad might be appearing in TTC subway trains. If you're stuck in an old subway car one day, with no air conditioning, hopefully this will lift your spirits. If you'd like to lift your feet, take part in the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon. You can run, walk, or theoretically, skip or cartwheel along to help raise money for the TVA, though, given how many people participate, maybe stick to running or walking to avoid litigation.  The Vegetarian Food Festival is also coming up, and there are still come volunteer positions available, so come on out and meet some great people while sampling some delicious food. Vegan chef Doug McNish will also be cooking up some delicious vegan meals at Didier Restaurant, and reports have it that the University of Northern Texas has switched to all vegan-friendly food in its cafeteria. Been thinking about getting that Astrology degree? Be sure to factor UNT into your decision!

This week's podcast was a Mint Monster 35 minutes.

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