On October 3rd, a group of dedicated TVA volunteers hosted the 2nd Annual Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-Off.
By 4 o’clock a hungry mass had arrived at the Harbourfront Community Centre, ready to sample the fantastic vegan treats and deliver their judgment on the best-in-show. It seems that offering an array of fabulous homemade vegan treats is vastly appealing. We were pleasantly surprised to welcome over 300 tasters.
Everyone voraciously consumed the amazing treats and enthusiastically shared their feedback. After just a couple of hours, well over 2000 samples had disappeared and the celebrated titles were ready to be awarded.
The fabulous contestants did an amazing job of shattering the stereotypes commonly associated with vegan desserts. They each put countless hours of effort into carefully crafting their submissions, and each plate was painstakingly presented. Many entries employed props (we particularly loved the little stuffed squirrel) to add a creative flair and set their entry apart from the 39 others.
Doug Mcnish (Chef at Live Organic Food Bar), jae steele (author of Get It Ripe) and Eden Hertzog (owner of New Moon Kitchen) awarded titles and prizes in 13 categories (see the full list of winners below). They tirelessly chewed through all 40 entries. It was a tough and sweet job but they persevered. As each award was handed out the judges shared their thoughts on what made that particular entry a winner.
Doug, jae and Eden brought incredible enthusiasm to this challenging post. They tasted, debated and left incredibly satiated…it was a whole lot of sugar for any three people to consume, and we are so grateful for their wonderful energy and the encouragement they offered to everyone who participated.
After all of the votes were cast the volunteers counted and recounted…not because they were unsure of their math skills but because we had a tie. A tie! The Fan Favourite title was shared by the Lemon Poppyseed Cake and Spacegirls’ Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip, Banana, Hemp Cookies. We had a few volunteers willing to continue sampling until they could declare one of these delicious desserts victorious. Instead we opted to have these two delicious vegan delights share the “Fan Favourite†title.
We are incredibly grateful for all of the volunteers who participated in hosting the Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-Off. Some of them have been helping to devise the event since July. On the big day, they managed to negotiate the warm welcome of 300 tasters, serve over 2000 samples, sell a pile of vegan cookbooks, distribute 16 prize packs, and complete the clean up in minutes. The day would not have happened without them. Despite moments of chaos, they all kept smiling.
Oh, and the Prizes! We were happy to see the excitement on the winners’ faces when the title of their entry was announced. It was wonderful to be able to celebrate their culinary efforts with a beautiful prize pack. Each prize was generously donated by a wonderful group of sponsors. For our contestants, walking out with a handmade blue ribbon (by the fabulous Natalie) and a lovely package of gifts, made all of those hours in the kitchen worth it.
We would like to thank all of our fabulous sponsors for their generosity and their support in our work to spread the excitement about vegan treats.
Some people left full, some left with prizes, some with new friends. We hope learn more that next year the Bake-Off will continue to grow. This event is about creating energy within the vegetarian community to continue to reach out to others and demonstrate how delicious it can be to live a compassionate life. We hope that someone tried a decadent vegan cupcake for the first time on October 3rd and will never look back.
An eBook of recipes is in the works and will be posted soon. The amazing contestants have continued their generosity by sharing their impressive recipes.
If you would like to see more photos, check out the TVA flickr photostream . Monty ofKumari Photography took all of the breathtaking images. Sangeeta and Monty donate their talents to support vegan businesses and events. We sincerely appreciate each photo as we know the impact those mouthwatering cupcakes can have in eliminating the belief that veganism is about deprivation.
The Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-Off is hosted in celebration of World Vegetarian Day. I can’t think anything that should be celebrated more than the decision to live a life according to your values (OrthopedicSurgerySanDiego). I hope we can all aspire to make choices each day that contribute to a better life for ourselves, the planet and the animals we share it with.
Lisa Pitman, Totally Fabulous Vegan Bake-Off Organizer
Complete List of Winner and Prizes:
Best Cupcake/Cake
Lemon Poppyseed Cake – Maria Moreau
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Front Door Organics food box, New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Fantastic Cupcake/Cake
Chocolate Orange Cupcake – Sarah Rosenzweig
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Vegan Essentials gift certificate ($15), New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Best Cookie/Bar
Spacegirls’ oatmeal, chocolate chip, banana, hemp cookies – Melissa Marentette
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Front Door Organics food box, New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Fantastic Cookie/Bar
Nutville Cookies – Moreen Murray
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, 100 Best Vegan Recipes Book, New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Best Raw Dessert
Blue Green Chocolate Truffle Explosion – Stacey Burgess
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Front Door Organics food box, Art of Raw Living Food book, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Best Unique Creation
Perfect Potluck Pesto Bread – Allison Covey
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Front Door Organics food box, New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Most Creative Creation
I can’t Pea-lieve it – Lydia Bee
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Living Sweets Raw Cheesecake, New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Most Amazing Presentation
Nutville Cookies – Moreen Murray
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Vegan Essentials ($30), New Moon Cookies, Big Carrot cloth bag, Sick on Sin pins
Best Use of Local Ingredients
Nanaimo Bar – Lesia Kohut (LPK Culinary Groove)
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Garden of Vegan, Recycled Book Shop Gift Certificate ($30), New Moon Cookies
Most Memorable Treat
Canteen Cookie – Nina Lassam
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Boardwalk Chocolates basket, Lickin’ the Beaters book
Best Classic Interpretation of a Traditional Treat
“Step-off†Cinnabon – Brandy Hume and Sherri Manko
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Sinfully Vegan book, New Moon cookies, Sick on Sin pin pack, Big Carrot cloth bag
Judge’s Pick for Totally Fabulous Vegan Treat
Unnecessarily Rich Brownie Pie – James Crawford
Prizes: Wholesome sweetener prize pack of organic fair-trade sugars
Most Innovative Baking Tip
Hemp Flour – Melissa Marentette
Prizes: 1yr VegNews subscription, LAVA gift basket, Big Carrot Bag, Sick on Sin pins, New Moon Cookies
Fan Favourite
Spacegirls’ oatmeal, chocolate chip, banana, hemp cookies – Melissa Marentette
Prizes: Fit Foods basket-$150
Lemon Poppyseed Cake – Maria Moreau
Prizes: Lush cosmetics basket-$150
Best Professionally Crafted Vegan Dessert in Toronto
Nanaimo Bar – Lesia Kohut (LPK Culinary Groove)
Prizes: 1 yr VegNews subscription, Big Carrot bag, New Moon cookies, Sick on Sin pin
Door Prizes
5 VegNews subscription, Fitfoods basked ($50), Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, Vegan Monologues and Big Carrot Bag, New Moon Cookies (Bite Me), New Moon Cookies (Mocha)
Judges’ Thank-you
10 Class Pass @ Bang! Fitness
Note: All photos care of http://www.kumariphotoanddesign.com.
