The Plant-Based Momma

Vegan and plant-based recipes

Vegan at Great Wolf Lodge

Our family LOVES to visit Great Wolf Lodge in Southern California and we go at any chance we get. It’s the perfect family getaway that has everything under one roof, for all ages. From water fun to mini golf, bowling and a magi quest game throughout the resort, the fun is literally endless. There is no hassle of buckling the kids in the carseat to go anywhere because everything is an arms reach away, including meals. And the absolute best part about it is that they pride themselves on being incredibly vegan friendly.

Every single visit, we are spoiled by the amazing Executive Chef, Hany Ali. Chef Hany is very well versed in the importance of families with allergies and dietary restrictions. From our experience, many theme parks and chefs have limited knowledge on how to make special accommodations that actually taste good. Not only is it delicious and adventurous on a vegan scale (let’s face it, we are usually pretty limited, unfortunately) but he is genuinely more than happy to make vegan modifications. And as one server put it, Chef Hani truly adds the special magic to your dining experience at the Lodge. If he’s not there, he will ensure that someone else will take care of you! As vegans, we have always been welcomed with open arms, with Chef Hany and his team ready to serve. You can rest assured that your family will eat well during your stay!

Tips for your stay:
  • Restaurants:
    • The main restaurant is called Lodge Wood Fired Grill. They serve lunch and dinner here and it’s considered the nicer dining at the resort. Look for pictures below of our meals here!
    • Loose Moose Family Kitchen is a large buffet that we found great for breakfast–and you get to meet the characters while you dine! They have several vegan options (see photos below), plus three kinds of fresh made salsas that are my absolute favorite.
    • Hungry As a Wolf is a quick pizza joint, right next to the waterpark. They serve GF vegan pizza that you can add any veggies to (and possibly vegan sausage if they have it on hand). The vegan dough can be either GF or a regular vegan dough option, depending on which chef is working.
    • Dunkin Donuts serves quick breakfast potatoes, in a non-shared fryer. They also have oatmeal, bagels (sans any kind of vegan spread, unfortunately) and soy milk for your coffee.
    • Sweets and Eats downstairs serves a few vegan sorbet ice cream flavors, as well as the one flavor of vegan Dippin’ Dots. You can also find Dippin’ Dots inside the waterpark. They have atleast one vegan cone, so your vegan kid doesn’t have to feel left out! It would be great if they had a cream-based vegan ice cream option, but we will happily take what we can get. You can also order oatmeal here in the morning.
    • Grizzly Jacks Bar and Grill is located at the outside pool. We haven’t personally ordered from here, but there are a few things that appear to be easily modified.
    • Buckets – serves two snack options: hummus with pita bread and chips with fresh made salsa…which as you know from above is my favorite (and I am pretty picky when it comes to salsa!).
  • I definitely recommend calling or emailing the Lodge ahead of your stay, to notify them of your dietary preference/allergy/restriction.
  • There is a small refrigerator and microwave in every room, so it is possible to bring your own food and snacks! There is also a coffee maker.
  • You cannot bring outside food inside the waterpark, but there are vegan options nearby!
  • Door Dash Food Delivery – You can have food delivered from several local vegan eateries for just a few bucks. Our two favorites are Healthy Junk and Vegan Pizza, but there are a handful of others nearby. They will deliver right to the front lobby.
  • They have a new food plan that you can purchase for each family member. We tried it for the first time during our last stay a week ago and we were happy with it. It was definitely a good deal for what you received.

 

Here are our photos of vegan meals from Great Wolf over the past few years. The lighting isn’t the greatest for photos, but being cooped inside into an entirely absorbed experience is part of the charm! Away from everything, focusing on having fun with your family… forgetting the outside world even exists! 😉

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Our top five favorite vegan things of autumn!

Fall is such an exciting time. Cool crisp mornings, a slight breeze in the air. Apple picking and pumpkin patches. And aside from all of the pumpkin spice goodness, it also marks the beginning of birthday season around here, so it’s arrival is doubly exciting for our family.

Needless to say, we love everything autumn! We are so excited about new and old favorites and wanted to share our top five favorite vegan fall finds from this season!

1. Unintentionally vegan “Pumpkin Rolls” from Trader Joe’s. These delicious cinnamon rolls come with a packet of pumpkin spice icing, which makes for a perfectly festive fall breakfast. Or dessert. Or any meal for that matter. Trader Joe’s regular cinnamon rolls are also accidentally vegan. Another way to enjoy these are by sticking them in a waffle maker and eating them like waffles. Either way, you can’t go wrong with this fresh-out-of-the-oven goodness.

 

2. Toffee Nut Almond Milk Steamer from Starbucks. There are plenty of fall favorite coffee drinks out there, many of which can be veganized. But for a kid-friendly and caffeine free treat, we love these steamers. They are basically a steamed almond milk, with any added flavor of your choice. Toffee Nut gives you that perfect fall taste.  You can get these year round, but they are especially fun to order in the fall while walking around the pumpkin patch. For an extra autumn feel, add Starbucks “Autumn Sugar Topping” and it will put you in the mood for all things fall.

 

3. Trader Joes Candy Corn Popcorn. Dare I say that these actually taste BETTER than candy corn? If you have a sweet tooth, you will definitely love these.

 

4. Dave’s Killer Bread Pumpkin Spice Madness Bagels. If you love pumpkin, these are exactly what you need in your life. They are absolutely the perfect fall food and I love the idea behind the company. Pair them with Miyoko’s Butter for a delicious, mouthwatering combination.

 

5. Califia Farms Almondmilk Creamer. In delicious fall flavors like Pumpkin Spice and Toffee Tidings, your fall morning brew will put you in the perfect autumn mood.

 

So those are our family’s top five things we are loving this season! I would love to hear your favorites in the comments below. Here’s to a fun season filled with pumpkin patches, hayrides and lots of Starbucks Steamers. 🙂

Vegan at Legoland!

We recently bought Legoland San Diego passes, thanks to Costco for having an amazing one-day deal. Did you know that Legoland is very vegan friendly!? Well, we didn’t. After visiting a few times, we realized that Legoland is highly underrated, for both food and fun.

Our family is pretty loyal to Disneyland, but our boys are obsessed with legos and after finding that great deal on passes, we couldn’t resist. Although there aren’t a plethora of vegan options, what they do have to offer is incredibly substantial and did not disappoint. I was especially impressed with all of the vegan snack options they offered! They had specialties like our favorite vegan beef jerky at a cheaper price than I usually get through Amazon. There isn’t a lot of information on the Internet for vegans at Legoland, so I wanted to share everything that we tried and loved!

 

Apple fries from Granny’s Apple Fries – these were a total hit with our family. They are covered in cinnamon sugar and a delicious treat. Be sure to ask for them without whipped cream.

Tofu Stir Fry from Wok ‘N’ Bowl Ramen – these were hearty and packed with a delicious flavor. This dish totally deviates from the stigma of bland amusement park food. While the allergen menu does not list any noodles, they do have one vegan noodle option. The kids loved it and ate it all, so it’s a huge win in my book.

Tofu Bao Bun from Ninja Kitchen – This was delicious and fresh and the husband and I enjoyed it very much. The tofu is pre-marinated in spices, so if you have a child with aversions to anything spicy, you may want to skip this one. The bun was tasty and fluffy and it paired well with the crisp pickled veggies. It all made for a delicious combination, just don’t forget to forgo the mayo.

Castle Ice Cream – Raspberry Sorbet. While we only had one option of scooped ice cream (which we were grateful for!), we did have a few different popsicle flavors to choose from (From The Coffee Shop). With both options, the kids were happy.

 

The Coffee Shop – We were so excited to not only find soy and almond milk as options, but also a plethora of vegan snacks!

 

 

And look at all of these delectable vegan snacks throughout the park (beware, there’s a lot.. which is a good thing!):

These Plant Snacks Chips were so good!

And you can never go wrong having Justin’s Peanut Butter Cups available. I craved these daily while pregnant with Cam.

We’ve picked these sweet treats up at Starbucks before, but the price point at Legoland was way better. Look at the price Amazon is offering them for and you can see what a deal this is: Emmy’s Organics Lemon Ginger Coconut Cookies (Pack of 2)

Our favorite vegan beef jerky!

 

Whoever the buyer for snacks is at Legoland, they are doing something right. And at reasonable prices. It feels so refreshing and progressive to have so many snacks with simple, clean ingredients available.

We ate our way through the park as much as possible, but weren’t able to hit all of the vegan options. There is also a great salad bar and a pasta with marinara option. If you want to branch outside of the park, within a few minutes driving distance you can visit one of our favorite places – Plant Power Fast Food. Their burgers, milkshakes and selection of sauces will make you an instant fan. Another local option is Veggie Grill. With all of the delicious vegan food they offer, you can never go wrong with a meal there.

We visit Disneyland often and are always excited about their vegan offerings, so it was great to see what another theme park had to offer. Disney definitely needs to take a cue from Legoland, listing all of their allergy information and vegan offerings on a printed menu that guests can keep. It’s such a welcomed addition and I applaud the park for being so open to different dietary restrictions.

 

And here they are, one enjoying said snacks and the other crying because he can’t actually eat the snacks he found.

 

For a vegan or allergy child, going to a place like this and being able to have an experience with different options is priceless. When visiting kid-friendly places, we are usually lucky to have one option and we’re always grateful for that. But at Legoland, our kids had the option to choose from different fruits, cookies, popcorn, popsicles, chips and vegan candy. And that to us, was priceless. We would absolutely recommend Legoland as a great outing for vegan families and hope they continue to pave the way for plant-based food at amusement parks.

 

 

 

 

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Preston’s Vegan Kid’s Cooking Show


So Preston saw us gearing the kitchen up for filming and he was incredibly excited to film his own vegan cooking show. I tried to make him feel included, but he was adamant about having his own show. He decided on his own recipe and filmed one day after school. Enjoy this super proud vegan kiddo. We’re definitely proud of him and how vocal he is about spreading the kind word.
Take a look at this cutie. 100% his idea.