Vegan MoFo starts today!

I know I haven't updated in forever, and this will just be a quick one to remind everyone that VEGAN MOFO STARTS TODAY!! As you can see, I'm very excited.

Tomorrow (well, technically today, but after I sleep) will be a catch-up post for the Yellow Rose Recipes cookbook challenge. I didn't blog about any of those recipes at all, and I ended up making quite a few (over 2 weeks, since I didn't have the book for last week's challenge). The cookbook challenge will continue through October, and I have (or have access to) 3 more books (though not next week's), so that'll continue to be a feature.

I'm hoping to do a couple of projects this month. On top of trying to find uses for the 7 varieties of beans and 8 varieties of flour in my cupboard (that may or may not be an exaggeration), I also hope to try my hand at sushi, English muffins, cinnamon rolls, and bagels. I might also take another stab at sourdough bread! Also, I have a ton of cooking/baking equipment that, let's face it, rarely sees the light of day, so I'm gonna go through that stuff and find a use for it (at least once).

Plus, my favourite holiday is in October, which means...cooking for the Samhain ceilidh! It's a lot of work, but I really loved doing it last year. Hopefully I'll be more on the ball this year and be able to do more ahead of time.

Anyway, I'm ready for bed, so I'll conclude this post with my five favourite shops and why they are so.
1) Real Foods - Probably the only store that's meat-free, it's really easy to find loads of vegan treats. It's the only place in the city where you can buy tempeh, and they often have vegan chocolate cake!
2) Jordan Valley Whole Foods - A great little shop on Nicholson Street, they have quite a lot of the same staples as Real Foods (like nutritional yeast, aka nooch). They also have great pasties, most of which are vegan, and chocolate quinoa bars (kinda like a cross between a dry rice crispy treat and a chocolate flapjack).
3) Edinburgh Farmers' Market - The best place to get reasonably priced organic veg, Cairn O' Mohr wines, and Belhaven Fruit Farm sorbet.
4) The Engine Shed - To be honest, I don't shop here often, and I usually try to catch them at the Farmers' Market. But they sell Gypsy Creams, an awesome sammich cookie, as well as some delicious dips, varieties of tofu, and tofu cottage cheese. Nom.
5) Scotmid/Co-op - Vegan donuts. That is all. Actually, though they tend to be more expensive and have a pretty small selection of vegan foods compared to, say, Sainsbury's, they at least have the courtesy to label the own-brand items that are vegan, unlike, say, Tesco. But yeah, the donuts - not quite as good as an American donut, but good when you get the urge and don't feel like making them yourself. Because, seriously, have you ever made donuts? It takes forever, you end up with a shit ton of used (and pretty much useless) oil left over, and then you have to eat them before they go stale. And you want to, but it's probably a bad idea.