Chocolate truffle cake, fraisier, mango tart, berries cheesecake, but make it vegan. Eid celebrations are in order and we had a little talk with foodie Marc Haddad the man behind Vicky’s plant-based kitchen, who shared some gourmet vegan tips for desserts and more.
Luscious cheesecake filled with cream cheese and a crumbling moist lotus crust, vanilla cake filled with strawberries topped with wild blue forest flowers, fluffy chocolate cream cake covered in dripping chocolate glaze and hazelnuts, and even melty cashew mozzarella knefeh with agave or maple syrup and orange blossom water; ‘all our products are made with natural and vegan ingredients only, we never use colorants, preservatives or additives’ Marc tells us. He started Vicky’s at home in 2016, revisiting his mother’s recipe of Apple Cinnamon Cake replacing milk with nut milk, eggs with flaxseeds and sugar with agave. He wanted to offer easily accessible plant-based ways to eat yummy desserts but also dairy favorites of the Middle Eastern table; pizza, cheese rolls, or lahmeh bi 3ajin with laban. Roaming the internet and mostly reading cookbooks, Marc learnt the tricks of cooking and making delicious good-looking desserts. ‘On Vicky’s menu, you can find tea cakes, tiramisu, cakes for events and birthdays, ‘cheez’ jars, dips and butters, rolls and pizza using our mozzarella, cakes with our in house whipped cream, cheesecakes using our cream cheese, tarts with different seasonal fruits and berries toppings, gluten and sugar free options as well.’ Marc’s favourite is the Framboisier which has 3 different types of sour berries ‘that for me, go very well with the sweetness of the sponge and cream.’
The gourmet entrepreneur also created a line of products which consists mainly of vegan basic cooking ingredients, mostly dairy alternatives like yogurts, cheeses, butters… ‘because in my opinion, for most people, the hardest food to stop in order to become vegans is dairy, and it is a base for a lot of known dishes.’ Cream cheese, labneh, mozzarella, chocolate spread, feta as well as nut butters, the vegan home cook will find key ingredients and dips for delicious everyday recipes and meals. Across Vicky’s Instagram page Marc spreads some key tips like adding a bit of water and salt to transform the vegan laban into Ayran. ‘We prepare our jars using traditional dairy techniques like fermenting and aging and mostly with cashews or almonds.’ For the cakes Marc uses mainly Vicky’s signature whipped cream that is 100% natural made from activated cashews and coconut cream. ‘It can also be sweetened with agave for sugar free options. We mostly veganise recipes by replacing creams/milk with nut milk/cream, eggs with flaxseeds for example, butter with coconut oil or nut butters.’ ‘And then’ Marc adds ‘we adjust the taste and texture as we like.’ He has just added a range of sorbets to the menu, made with a splash of homemade coconut cream, organic agave and fruits; peach, mango, strawberry, melon or mulberries. With a flow of fresh ideas Marc is spreading the word about the health benefits of Vicky’s vegan delicacies.
Marc’s Quick Vegan Recipes
Tzatziki with Vicky’s Laban:
- For every 250g jar, half a cucumber grated finely and squeezed in a bag to take all the water out
- 1 garlic clove baked for 15 minutes in aluminium foil
- 1 spoon of fresh dill and salt to taste
For Dessert or Breakfast Marc suggests a simple recipe: topping Vicky’s coconut yogurt with granola and berries.
