Flying the vegan flag at fundraising events

One of the great things about writing a blog is that it acts a bit like an online diary. Looking back through the archives, I noticed that I first came across Twilight the retirement home for dogs in the Dordogne in Spring 2015. Sadly, Basil the fabulous handicapable dog who I met during my first visit has long since taken his wings over the rainbow bridge. Over the subsequent four years my involvement with Twilight has increased, ranging from writing their biography to regular admin duties to my mammoth bi-annual baking sessions.

This weekend it was Open Doors at Twilight, the fourth set of open days enabling supporters new and old to visit Twilight to meet the ‘puddings’, the Twilight family and volunteers, and enjoy some cakes, too. I’ve been baking for Twilight events in the summer and at Christmas for four years, but this was the first year that I’ve made 100% vegan cakes and, guess what? No one noticed!

Just a note to fellow vegan friends, in previous years the only non-vegan ingredients I used were eggs. These were always free range, usually from a neighbour’s totally free-range flock, but one year we even had Twilight’s own eggs from its little flock of rescue hens – until Mr Fox decided to pay a visit. I’m not offering this as an excuse, as I was far from happy about using eggs when we never eat them ourselves, but I’d not really had a lot of success with vegan cakes. I had a few vegan things in my repertoire. When we put on a sit-down Christmas meal for eighty people, I turned out a vegan/vegetarian main course, plus vegan mince pies and Christmas pudding, but traditional Victoria Sponge cake still eluded me.

Earlier this year, I decided to set out and veganise all the cakes I usually made for Twilight. From January through to March I experimented with many recipes, mostly from the internet or adapted from my originals. Once I’d got the hang of the wide range of alternatives to egg: applesauce, soya buttermilk, flax or chia eggs and aquafaba I was able to make any of my usual cakes in a vegan-friendly format. We put on about two kilos, but before long I’d developed a bunch of fifteen reliable vegan cake recipes. I’ve even made them into a PDF to share with Facebook friends – leave a comment if you’d like a copy, too.

Cinnamon buns and carrot cake ready for icing

Most of my Twilight friends know that I’m vegan and there are a few veggies and vegans in the band of volunteers and supporters. I try not to push my veganism too much (yes, I know, we vegans just can’t help it) but it has often been a good talking point. This year was no exception, so although I didn’t advertise my cakes as being vegan, many people did ask whether they were vegan and were surprised to find the answer was ‘yes’. Apart from those in the know, I don’t think anyone else noticed that they were eating cruelty-free cakes. The Open Doors event was spread over two very hot days, and I was delighted when on the second day the entire food stall was vegetarian. None of the usual sausage rolls and the like, just some fabulous veggie quiches, samosas, potato pie and pizzas. Not one person asked for a meaty item, and many were pleased that all the options were vegetarian or vegan. It might seem that this does not go far enough, but believe me, it is progress.

I’ve noticed that adopting a vegan lifestyle is a process of growing awareness. Once you have become aware of the animal welfare issues, in particular, there is no way of ‘unlearning’ these unpleasant facts. This leads many vegans to become involved in activism, or ‘spreading the message’ as I prefer to think of it. Such activities can range from full-on demonstrations like Cubes, to sharing social media content, or interacting (aka arguing) on social media in support of the vegan philosophy. Personally, I’m just trying to promote veganism by example. By demonstrating that it is possible to eat delicious food, including all the usual varieties of traditional cakes, without harming one single animal. I love sharing food and recipes and researching and writing about vegan life in France. Everyone has to find their own path and do whatever works for them, and that they feel comfortable with. Whilst I know that some fellow vegans would question me for volunteering at events where meat is served, I hope that in the longer term I can show that there is another way that is better for all species.