Veganuary always comes with plenty of new product launches, but the news from Ole & Steen about their ‘first ever’ vegan pastry was one of the things I was most excited about this year. They’ve been working away behind the scenes on their raspberry and almond swirl for a while now, and I can safely say it was worth the wait. The generously-sized pastry is so inviting, with its pink raspberry filling peeking out and crisp slivers of almond on top. The pastry is wonderfully flaky, with the perfect balance of sweet and freshness from the fruity filling. It’s exactly what I hoped it would be, after years of watching colleagues enviously as they tucked into their sweet treats, picked up from the bakery in Westgate on their lunch break. Have you managed to find the raspberry and almond swirl yet? You’ll have to let me know what you think when you try it.
I clearly missed the memo about Ole & Steen’s plant-based options, as a quick look at their veganuary menu shows they are super vegan-friendly. It’s highlighted prominently across their website for the new year (we like to see it – hopefully it will grab the interest of more than just us vegans). Alongside their beautiful pastry, they’ve got a variety of delicious sounding breakfast options with porridges, loaded toast and granola. The lunch menu is also plentiful (for the size of the establishment), with a variety of hot and cold options, and there’s no charge for dairy-free milk in your cup of tea or coffee. The chermoula and avocado sandwich that I was sent to try was huge so it kept me full for ages, which I don’t often find with sandwiches, and it was packed with flavour.
My order arrived via Deliveroo so sadly the ‘cream’ cakes had taken a bit of a beating en-route, but rest assured they were some of the tastiest vegan sweet treats I’ve ever eaten. Both the passionfruit and the very berry slice feature a beautiful creamy mousse, zingy with the tartness of the fruits. I absolutely loved the chocolatey puffed rice base, which made a welcome change from the usual ground almonds and dates. It felt like a truly decadent dessert, with nothing lacking, and I am dreaming about the next time I’ll tuck into one.
Having demolished my home delivery, I’ve already booked a date in the diary to meet my friend for lunch at Ole and Steen this coming weekend. I have a feeling this is going to be a new favourite…
These products were sent to me as PR samples. This blog is an honest reflection of the food.
Vegan Eats Oxford 