Food Network Monthly Cookalong

I really enjoy doing Food Network Friday with Tami and the gang hosted on Tami's blog at veganappetite.com so I was definitely distressed when I read that it and Vine and Dine would be going on sabbatical, possibly permanently. I totally understand that Tami has been the host for a long time and that it is something that she was ready to let go but I'm not so good with change or letting things go...I would still be watching Friends if they were still making it. After talking it over with Tami and the other participants, I decided that I would revamp and host a similar type of cook-along! I always loved the challenge of veganizing recipes from the meat and cheese heavy Food Network showing just how easy it is to take any dish and make it vegan. I also love the camaraderie of cooking along with other vegan bloggers and sharing our experiences of it.

As for the changes, I've decided instead of picking one specific recipe to veganize, I will be picking a theme each month. It might be a specific show or chef, holiday, cuisine, ingredient or type of dish. Then anyone who would like to participate can make as many dishes as they like and blog about them. This way you can cook as many or as few dishes as you like and show everyone what us vegans are made of. At the beginning of the next month, I will be posting a round up of what we all made so you can see it all in one place and then visit each blog to see how they did it, find recipes or inspiration and the theme for that month. To play along, all you have to do is send me an email near the end of the month with links to your blog posts and I will do the rest! And just like Food Network Friday, the only hard and fast rule is that it has to be vegan! I am really excited about the possibilities of this new version of an already awesome cook-along and hope you (yeah you!) will give it a shot!

All the above information will be found permanently on the tab above and so will the monthly theme.

Now for the theme for June, Eat Street!

Here on Food Network Canada we get a show called Eat Street but I'm pretty sure it's not on FN in the US (maybe the Cooking Channel). They do have a YouTube channel with lots of clips from the show so you can get acquainted though. The show goes around North America visiting food trucks showing off the signature treats of a few trucks per episode. Now there are lots of money shots of non-vegan food but I love to watch this show and dream of how I could  make all of it vegan. And that's exactly what I plan on doing this month! They do have recipes listed from some of the trucks featured on the show on their website so you could veganize one (or more!) of those. Or you can blog about a food truck you have been to that had the best food and you could even make your own take on what you had. Or you could dream about what kind of food truck you would own and create the treats you would serve up. There are so many possibilities! I hope you will be inspired to cook-along as well and if you do, just email me a link to each post and I will add you to the round up!