Vegan snacks that will get you through your period

Having recently transitioned to a vegan diet I feel like I am learning new things every day and I have still got quite a lot to learn about having a vegan lifestyle. One of the first challenges I faced being vegan was getting through my time of the month. Everyone that has a period is different but I have been having periods for 10 years now, I know what I crave and what tends to calm me down and make me feel better when I am having some serious stomach cramps...unfortunately that tends to be dairy. Yes up until now I will have either opted for the classic milk chocolate (most likely malteasers) or anything that had cheese on it or was cheese flavoured.

Now before I begin to discuss some of my vegan finds that have comforted me through my last period I just want to declare that I don't feel sad or frustrated that I will no longer be having my 'usual' period snacks, my disgust with the dairy industry completely over rides my previous cravings for these things... in fact I am getting to the point where I no longer think of them as food. So here they are, some of my top vegan friendly comfort eats.

On the whole I tend to opt for a more savoury snack and there is nothing I could binge on more than crisps. Like I said, cheese used to be my go to flavour but most cheese flavoured crisps contain some form of milk, so this month I got to read the backs of a number of packets of crisps and look at flavours I would never normally pick up - I don't know if that sentence really gives the task the light it deserves....I had too much fun looking at crisps. I managed to find several brands that did a number of interesting flavours (some shown in the images above) but honestly my favourites have to be the Jacob's Cracker Crisps...are they crisps? are they crackers? who cares they are deliciously moreish and really hit that savoury snacking spot. 

Next up - chocolate. My chocolate consumption (although it wasn't a lot before) has completely changed, I just can't eat dark chocolate in the same way that I could milk chocolate. To be honest that is probably for the better, there tends to be a lot less sugar in dark chocolate and yet it still manages to hit that chocolate craving. I did my best to shop around and look for some interesting flavours of dark chocolate, and at some vegan festivals I have been to you can really find some delicious treats that are not available in high street shops. Out of the ones above (although I have always loved Green & Blacks) I was surprised just at how tasty the Aldi orange and almond chocolate bars are. Super cheap and comes with 5 mini bars that are the perfect sweet chocolate hit, the orange and the almond really compliment the dark chocolate and take away that somewhat bitter taste dark chocolate can often leave in the mouth.

Sometimes chocolate or crisps don't fill the void of 'I want something but I don't know what', in fact one of my favourites from this month has been popcorn, that includes the already bagged stuff like Metcalfes sweet 'n salt or cinema style, but also making my own. Playing around with flavours I have tested an 'almond hazelnut caramel' popcorn and a 'cinnamon and chilli' mix - both delicious. Oreos have been a huge help, but I don't usually buy biscuits and so I forget that I have them in the cupboard - I even bought a biscuit tin to remind me but I guess its a good thing, I feel like I can't eat a packet of oreos whereas a bag of crisps I could demolish pretty easily. Skittles and Sour Patch Kids (OMG I had these watermelon ones in America that were just *dribble*) are some more yummy chewy sweet things, again I can only eat a few of these at a time, but I definitely know people that could finish the entire bag in one sitting.

 I guess I kind of saved the best till last, even though it was the first picture you saw. Lotus biscuit spread, particularly the crunchy variety, 100% got me through my period. It is sweet and creamy and crunchy and yummy. I have tried it in ice cream but truthfully I have just been eating this with a spoon - I have no idea what else to do with it but it is so good I don't want to put it down. This isn't the cheapest thing to buy, mind you it is around £2.50 - £3.50 a jar, but I did find a little jar of the regular spread in poundland which I got really excited about. If you haven't  heard of Lotus biscuits they are sugary cinnamon biscuits and as one guy once explained to me (before I went vegan) they are like vegan crack...I have never tried crack but the biscuits are deliciously addictive, I guess that is what he meant.

I would always suggest reading up on the ingredients of products as they can differ from country to country, I am sure there is a lot more vegan junk food that what I have listed here but its a good starting point for when you just feel crappy and need some sugary, salty goodness.