Foodsday Tuesday: Vegan Treats—The Sequel

Vegan Treats fall selections, photo by author

If the martinis article earlier didn't give you enough of a taste of fall, allow us to tempt you with some desserts.

Despite Phillyist's previous love for Vegan Treats Bakery, I couldn't contain my skepticism. Seriously? That ain't right. How can you make baked goods vegan and NOT have them taste like the box in which they arrived? More to the point: milk, eggs, and butter are gifts from on high — why would you even attempt to replicate treats without those ingredients?

Trying Vegan Treats for myself shut my carnivorous piehole, I'll tell you that. Why do they do it? Simply, because they CAN.

Vegan Treats hooked us up with a sampling of their fall offerings: pumpkin pie, caramel pecan cake, pumpkin cheesecake, chocolate hazelnut pumpkin spice cake, caramel apple cheesecake, and pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing.

I'm not going to lie, the flavors are a little different. But their whipped cream is spot-on, the frosting on the caramel pecan cake is off the hook, and the cheesecakes are freakishly good. I've never met a pumpkin cheesecake I didn't want to marry, and this one is no different. If I didn't know it was vegan, I never would have guessed. It tastes like someone tweaked a standard recipe just a smidge, but not to its detriment in the least. Even better is the caramel apple cheesecake, which comes with gooey pecans on top. It's just sweet enough, and the texture and consistency are perfect.

The pumpkin pie is less sweet than what you'd normally find, and it's up to you if you think that's a good thing or not. (I do.) The crust is a little different, too, though I think it's something you could get used to.

The chocolate hazelnut pumpkin spice cake is not a flavor combination that had ever really occurred to me, and it wasn't really my favorite. But I think that was just the flavor combo. The chocolate flavor was dark and deep, but the cake itself was a tad dry. I much preferred the pumpkin spice cake, which was more moist and my favorite of the regular, non-"cheese," cakes.

You may ask what's in these things if there are no dairy products. But I do not ask. Ironically, much like when I consume a hot dog, it's all very "don't ask, don't tell."

Bottom line, and the best way I can put it — as a dessert junkie and a dairy/egg addict, I'd eat them again, and happily.

Quick Nosh:

• Can't wait for the Cinco de Mayo and all its Mexican food-fueled goodness? Neither can Chef Alison Barshak, who'll be marking halfway to the next one on November 2 – 7 with a special "Cinco de Noviembre" menu at Alison Two.
• Looks like potential Next Iron Chef Jose Garces has acquired the former Letto Deli on 13th Street and will be transforming the space to the next restaurant in his empire—with a "beer and brats" theme. Color us intrigued! (Via The Restaurant Club.)
• Rittenhouse mainstay Rouge (which, oddly, doesn't seem to have a website of its own) has announced a new winter tasting menu that will include Macaroni and Cheese with fontina cream, chervil bread crumbs and Lancaster county goat cheese; Seared Day Boat Sea Scallops with mushroom-potato risotto and spiced red wine-golden raisin reduction; King Salmon with braised root vegetables and three meat glaze; Yellow Fin Tuna with eggplant and porcini mushroom chutney, olive oil and oregano; and Braised Beef Brisket with butternut squash puree, haircots verts and roasted garlic jus. Yes, please!
• Dine for a cause this Saturday, as the Cambodian Children's Fund hosts its third annual fundraising dinner at Maxim Saigon Restaurant in South Philadelphia. Never had Cambodian food? We can't think of a better excuse to try it. $55 gets you in ($35 of which is tax deductible), but tickets aren't sold at the door, so be sure to book in advance.