Vegan Practically

This week I snuck off (well not really “snuck”) to Newfoundland to get married. Of course it wouldn’t be a wedding without amazing vegan food. My partner, Diane, and I started with a weekend in Toronto where we had a very special brunch with my family at our favourite vegan restaurant, Planta Queen. Oh so good.

And then we went to St. John’s, where we decided to have the wedding because we wanted to keep it small and simple. We invited the two people I know (Christine and Martha from Fit Is a Feminist Issue) and from there it all fell into place, including catering second to none by Gillian of the fully plant-based Gingerly Bakery.

The most important part of any wedding feast is the cake, of course. We had originally thought we would have cake immediately after the cliff-top ceremony, with the sparkling grape and raspberry juice we used to toast. But it was a bit on the wet, cold, and foggy side, so we popped the cork on the bubbly first and returned to our Airbnb for the rest.

All four of us in attendance agreed we should start with the cake—a delectable four-layer lemon coconut cake with a lemon curd and crumble topping and a yummy buttercream frosting. It tasted like a dream. I will order such a cake every time I go back to St. John’s.

We took a short pause, using the chocolate walnut cake our friend and witness, Martha, baked as a palate cleanser, and then moved on to lunch. We had originally planned it as a picnic, so we chose foods that would be easy to deal with and that could be eaten cold: “chicken” salad vol au vents made with jackfruit; two kinds of hand pies (spinach mushroom cheese; Cornish pasty filled with turnip potato ground beeph); and a wonderful broccoli salad with grapes and nuts and a creamy dressing.

It was the most deliciously perfect wedding catering we could have imagined. We are grateful to Gillian for putting together such a great selection of food. And to Martha for finding her. Vegans and non-vegans in St. John’s take note: Gingerly Bakery.

I didn’t even talk about the assorted desserts, which we didn’t even get to before we decided to head out to explore a few beaches around St. John’s where Christine and Martha rightly predicted there would be no fog.

All in all, it was a beautiful wedding followed by amazing food that elevated the day just as you’d want on a special occasion.

Cheers!