It is clear to see that the Vegan trend is growing by leaps and bounds. In Camps Bay, for example, three restaurants out of twenty in the suburb are almost completely Vegan in the fare they offer, particularly okja and Plant Food, while Firefly Café has a large percentage of Vegan dishes. Even regular restaurants have a number of Vegan dishes on their menus.
In honour of Vegan Month I was challenged by B-Well, together with a number of other ‘Influencers’, to bake a Vegan Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake in a Mug, the mayonnaise ingredient intriguing me in particular, and therefore I agreed to participate.
Veganism is a vegetarian diet which excludes meat, eggs, dairy products, and all other animal-derived products. Very strict Vegans may not eat refined sugar or drink certain wines. It extends to not using any products which have been tested on animals, or wearing animal-based clothing or accessories made from leather, fur, and wool. Vegans eat mainly grain-based products, beans, legumes, vegetables, fruit, and increasingly products which substitute dairy products, such as plant-based m*lk, which is becoming all the rage. Fermented products such as miso, kimchi, and Sauerkraut are eaten by Vegans.
Veganism has become such a powerful movement that November has been dedicated to Vegan Month. In Cape Town the first online The Festive Vegan & Plant Powered Show takes place on Saturday 28 November, teaching one ‘how to serve up a Plant-based feast this festive season’. Chef Luke Dale-Roberts of The Test Kitchen is one of the presenters at the Show, presenting ‘an all-green dish, based on Spring vegetables’. He explained to CapeTownetc why he is participating in the show:
’I always try to find different things to get involved in. Plant-based and vegan food is not something I am an expert in but I decided to participate in the show because it gives me an opportunity to unlock something new within me which I will use on the restaurant menus.
“During lockdown I came up with this idea that I would do a menu called Colours for the Pot Luck Club and started coming up with food courses based on one colour; green, yellow, purple etc. I soon realised that it was slightly prohibitive. I tried them all out and the one that came out great was the green one which is based on spring vegetables.
“I started with kohlrabi marinated in kimchi. Jason then suggested adding smoked jalapeno avocado puree and we began collaborating on the dish which includes a vibrant apple, celery, dill and spring onion sauce. It is now on the Pot Luck Club menu and has been brilliantly received.’
There is an increasing demand for Vegan and Vegetarian dishes at his restaurants.
I was contacted by B-Well Public Relations Officer Nadia Norodien, and she organised the delivery of 
two parcels of ingredients of many of B-well’s Vegan-friendly products, as well as the ingredients that I would need to take up the baking challenge. B-well sent a number of its cooking oils, including Cooking olive oil, Grapeseed oil, Canola and Olive Oil, Canola oil, Olive oil cooking spray, Canola cooking spray, as well as Canola mayonnaise (Thick & Creamy, and Reduced Oil), and Sandwich spread. For the cake baking I received Snowflake self-raising wheat flour and baking powder, Nestle cocoa, Selati sugar, Robertson’s vanilla essence, Alpro almond milk, and The Chocolate Yogi chocolate.
The recipe which I received for the Vegan Mayonnaise Chocolate Cake in a Cup (main photograph above) is as follows:
‘Vegan Cake with Mayo, in a mug
Life is unpredictable, we just don’t always know when a craving for something delicious, comforting and super convenient creeps up. We have a solution, like the ultimate hug, one that’s 5 mins away and can possibly be made from the goods in your pantry and fridge, made in a mug, vegan and oil-free, filled with love.
Serves: just you, the one who made it.
Time: 10 mins, max
Level: Easy-peasy
What you’ll need:
How to make:
Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: Chris von Ulmenstein Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein
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