Know Your Milk: Your Guide to Plant Milks


Over the years, people have become more aware of the negative environmental, health and animal welfare impacts of the dairy industry and dairy consumption. This has lead to more research into alternatives for dairy products such as beverages consumed for centuries that look or perform similarly to dairy for particular uses. These beverages include the coconut milk used in Asian curries, soy milk, which has been produced and used in China for the last 7 centuries and tiger nut milk and rice milk which have been used in the western and northern parts of Africa, and in Spain, to make kuunu aya, horchata de chufa and horchata de arroz before 1000AD. As a matter of fact, the white liquid formed from blending grains, tubers, seeds and some fruits with water has been referred to as “milk” for the last 8 centuries!

Whether you are allergic to dairy, lactose-intolerant, vegan or just looking to reduce your consumption of animal products/by-products, there is a plant milk for you. Some of these kinds of milk compare closely with the nutritional value of dairy, without the potential negative health effects, while others contain nutrients that can not be found in dairy making them healthier or more suitable for certain purposes.

In this article, we are going to introduce you to a few plant milks to give you a better idea of what they are and make it a bit easier for you to find the most suitable milk for you.

Continue reading “Know Your Milk: Your Guide to Plant Milks”

Vegan In Nigeria: Experience and Reviews


Author: Samantha

“Vegan” is a word that is seldom ever heard in Nigeria. As a matter of fact, it is often nightmarish to think of going to Nigeria as a vegan, but that’s not the case anymore.

The last time I was in Nigeria, a little over half a decade ago, I was a vegetarian and that was already hard on its own. I remember going to a restaurant, asking if there was a vegetarian option and the waitress asked me, and I quote, “what’s wrong with you?” Not eating meat was seen as a problem because the majority of the population loved eating meat. You could even say that meat-eating was part of the culture. Continue reading “Vegan In Nigeria: Experience and Reviews”

Review: Cafe Thrive


Review by Samantha

Yes, it’s vegan!

Walking into Cafe Thrive, in Southampton, was a great experience. Almost every table was full of people. As a matter of fact, there were only two free tables and each taken table had 2-4 people sat at it.

As I walked up to the counter lined with delicious looking treats, I was greeted by friendly staff. In accordance with my usual character when I enter a new eatery, I could not decide what to order. I had seen the menu online, but they had a full specials menu that just looked so delicious. After a few minutes of someone explaining the dishes to me and making me want to go broke by ordering a portion of everything, I finally ordered a Wholefood Burger and strawberry milkshake off the regular menu. Continue reading “Review: Cafe Thrive”

Review: Veg’n Out


Third time’s a charm, aye?
Well, that was the case with trying Veg’n Out’s food. I had stood in front of their food truck in the heart of Canterbury for quite a long time, thrice actually, before I ever took the plunge to purchase something

Their menu was full of imitation meals which included a cheeseburger, bacun burger, egg burger, vish ‘n’ chips, chickun sandwiches and beef sandwiches. To most, this might not be a problem, but to me, it was as I did not want to write a bad review or eat something very disappointing. I hate the taste of meats so if any of their items tasted very close to the real thing, that would have been a problem for me.

Third time’s the charm. I went back to Veg’n Out and spoke to one of the people working there (who had just stepped out of the truck). I told her that I would like to try their food, but I can’t decide what to get so I would like her to help me pick something off their menu. The lady was rather wonderful and friendly. She told me what their bestseller was and talked me through the items on the menu and how they’re made. We even gushed over a particular ingredient she used that I had recently purchased for the first time and was rather astonished by.

Although I hadn’t gotten on the queue, the lady took my order and went back into the truck. Within a few seconds, I could smell the caramelised onion salad for my cheeseburger cooking and within 5mins, I had my food in biodegradable packaging and all the people in the queue had been served.

I walked over to a little garden with a friend to try the burger and once I took a bite, my first reaction was, “this cheese tastes real!” Vegan cheese has never tasted as real as that. The closest thing I can describe that burger to is a McDonald’s burger as it brought up childhood memories. My friend (who is an omni) tried a bite and said she won’t compare it to McDonald’s, but she still thinks it tastes good.

The burger comprised of tomatoes, pickles, a texturised soy protein patty, caramelised onion salad, lettuce and a bit of ketchup in a really nice bun. It was rather simple, but it tastes better than expected and I think it would be a great replacement for the conventional cheeseburgers omnis purchase. I think everything on their menu will be a good replacement just by judging through their most simple meal item.

I don’t think I’ve ever had a food truck experience like the one I had at Veg’n Out. One where everyone feels like a valued customer and there is a wide range of foods and desserts to order. If you are ever in the Canterbury area, give Veg’n Out a try.

LickYourPlate worthy? Well, I didn’t even have a crumb left uneaten.

Vegan Groups


By: Samantha

The vegan community is one that you either love or hate whether you are vegan or not, as vegans have a bad rep of being overly-judgemental and lacking compassion for fellow humans. Militant veganism turns so many people away from veganism and makes others uncomfortable publicly identifying as ‘vegan.’ It’s sad.

This impression of vegans is one I know to be true. However, it’s not true for every vegan and I have come to realise that by not just seeing that I am not a disrespectful, judgemental, hateful and inconsiderate vegan, but a loving one and one willing to hold a peaceful discussion or debate instead of yelling or preaching someone down just like many other vegans out there. Continue reading “Vegan Groups”

Unboxed Vegan


Are you vegan, do you follow a predominantly vegan diet, are you curious about veganism or do you just want to try something new?

Going vegan can be a bit of a pain. We can say that. It makes shopping longer as ingredients need to be read over and over again and more often than most of us choose to admit, we accidentally pick up something non-vegan.

What if we told you that the transition to veganism and maintenance of a vegan lifestyle could be made easier? Continue reading “Unboxed Vegan”

Bye, Anaemia!


Are you anaemic, wanting to prevent anaemia, catering for an anaemic person or just curious?

Are you a new vegan/vegetarian who would like to prevent nutrient deficiencies while following a new lifestyle?

Samantha, the founder of this website, LickYourPlates.com, has just released her first vegan ebook titled, “Bye, Anaemia!” It gives information about anaemia, especially that caused by an iron deficiency, causes, inhibitors and enhancers of iron absorption, and equips you with some of the flavourful recipes she used to overcome anaemia and prevent a relapse.

You can purchase, “Bye, Anaemia!,” your guide to overcoming and preventing anaemia at our LickYourPlates Shop or by clicking the image below.

Bye, Anaemia! Cover Page 2

Subscribe to LickYourPlates.com, purchase “Bye, Anaemia!” and invite a friend to purchase a copy for themselves to receive a bonus recipe. Proof of both purchases (or friend’s email) required.

https://www.pizzaexpress.com/news/vegan-giardiniera

Review: Pizza Express Vegan Giardiniera Pizza


I walked past Dominos holding a box of Pizza Express’ pizza.

It has been all over the vegan/vegetarian/dairy-free cyberspace that Pizza Express has officially released a pizza containing a vegan mozzarella cheese. As I am away from home and have no access to a kitchen, this was the perfect opportunity to give their new pizza a try. It was also a healthier transition from the deep fried vegan Co-Op doughnuts I had been stuffing my face with all day.

Unfortunately, I could not find the Vegan Giardiniera pizza on the Pizza Express website, which almost made me lose hope. However, I decided to give them a call and was more than delighted to find out that indeed, they did sell the new pizza (they just did not realise it was not up on the website yet). I placed my order, which cost around £10 and went about my day till it was time to pick it up.

Continue reading “Review: Pizza Express Vegan Giardiniera Pizza”

Review: The Planet


The Planet – a hidden gem in little ol’ Taunton.

After about twenty minutes of walking back and forth, I finally found The Planet, a rather small and quaint vegan café in Taunton, Somerset. I walked into a rather echo-y room which consisted of two large pro-vegan pictures, chairs and tables arranged for easy manoeuvre and an area towards the back adorned with rather attractive cakes where you can read the chalkboard menu, place your order and pick up some vegan pamphlets and VeganLife magazines to occupy you as you wait for your food. Although there were a lot of pro-vegan things around the place, I felt that the vegan message being portrayed was no “militant” or overpowering.

After meeting the lovely staff, I took a few minutes to decide what to order – everything looked pretty delicious. They offered various veggie burgers, a pasta dish, soup dish and a wide range of drinks. A few minutes went by and I decided on the spicy chickpea burger and a bottle of water which, together, cost about £7.

About ten to fifteen minutes went by before my food came out. I expected to receive just a chickpea burger, but that was not the case, I got a burger with four different cold salads perfect for this summer heat in Taunton. The salads were a lentil and brown rice salad, carrot salad, green and purple leaf salad and potato and her salad.

Continue reading “Review: The Planet”