Hi all!

I have been asked to add a vegan. health line to my "candy shoppe"

Any suggestions on what to do? Also any recipes to share?

Vegan and "healthy" are two very different things...vegan items contain no animal products, but just like non-vegan products they can vary widely in nutritional value. We've experimented with "healthy" treats (including some pretty good zone-friendly items), but we just couldn't put together a saleable item for the right price.

Who has asked you to do add these products to your shop? What specifically are they looking for? What do you currently sell, and which items are unusual to find in vegan form?

When making vegan products, the main things to cut out are eggs and dairy, but you also need to avoid gelatin and honey. Most refined cane sugar is processed using charred animal bones, so for vegan items you can substitute beet sugar or evaporated cane juice.

Thanks Jason! I know they are different, I just ment both, a little of each. I have had about 6 customers ask me for some vegan alternatives (mostly Marshmallows), and had a personal trainer ask for some healthy alternatives.

Right now I carry chocolate bars-

A coconut bar- wpuld need to replace whipping cream
peanutbutter cups- dark chocolate instead of milk right?
Butterfingers
3 Musketeers- made with homemade marshmallow fluff (no gelatine)

My marshmallows, I have found Agar agar, and will be trying out that as the gelatine replacement.

I did not know that about cane sugar! thanks! if I buy raw sugar, could I make my own powdered sugar?

Also, I wasn't sure about corn syrup.


So far this will just be a very small display to test the waters.

You can use soy milk instead of regular milk to make vegan whipped cream, and if you use butter that can be replaced with vegan margarine. It's hard to find chocolate that's not contaminated with dairy, but Whole Foods sells vegan chocolate chips, along with vegan marshmallows.

You can make your own powdered sugar (beet sugar is usually cheaper than raw sugar) or buy vegan powdered sugar. Corn syrup is vegan.

Whole Foods (or other organic markets) will probably be your best resource, as they carry many vegan products. Of course you will be spending more on ingredients so you will have to adjust your prices accordingly.

thanks jason