Santa Cruz is my boyfriend, Day 9

I am butt crazy in love with Santa Cruz right now! It is a vegan's paradise! Today's trip to the downtown farmers market was totally inspiring. After another rad session on the yoga mat this morning I invited my friend Mandy to join me at the market. Mandy is not vegan though my constant stream of breaking veggie news has her curious. We meandered through the fruit and veggie stands sampling apricots, cherries, bean spouts, dates, and nuts. The hickory smoked almonds were like heaven. BBQ has been my only real craving so far making the smokey flavored nuts a real treat. We made our way to the hot food area where people were crowded around the Gourmet Indian food stand. A nice girl was giving samples of their different curries and sauces while two men were making fresh naan bread to order. It smelled of comfort. I was thrilled when I read the menu and next to the word naan it said (vegan)!! When it was our turn to order the nice man made us a special naan bread wrap with a melody of vegan fillings. I noticed that my excitement was infectious. Mandy was becoming more vegan curious by the second! The next booth had a huge banner sign that read "MAYZAN". The menu listed items such as el pastor taco and BBQ sandwich. We were about to pass by until I overheard the word "vegan" . The twenty something guy inside the booth was handing out samples of totally vegan "chicken" salad, "el pastor", and BBQ "beef tips". Mayzan, a local Santa Cruz Co., makes vegan meat alternatives made of processed wheat protein (gluten), similar to seitan. He said that seitan is less hydrated than their product so it is more dense. He handed me a sample of the el pastor and the beef tips. Mandy tried the chicken salad. I used the accompanied toothpick to eat the beef tips and try Mandy's chicken salad. The el pastor was not a easy to eat. I asked how I should do it and he said "just shoot it, like a jello shot"! That I could do! And I did! It was so good that we ordered an el pastor taco to accompany our Indian naan wrap. We found a nice spot under a tree next to the massage booth and took in the sights as we enjoyed our vegan delights. Mandy suggested that next week we splurge for a 10 min. back rub after lunch. Sounds great to me!!

Love and Kindness
Lia