Vegan living and traveling can be combined very well nowadays and it is above all very enjoyable! Melanie has a travel and food blog and reports about her culinary vegan discoveries in Europe. To go with it, you'll find all sorts of delicious recipes on her blog, just waiting to be recreated.
Melanie takes you on her vegan travels and discovery in this interview and also reveals a tip or two.
Travel Blogger Interview: Vegan food while traveling
Tell a little about your blog and what you focus on!
I have been blogging about vegan travel and my favorite recipes on for almost five years now. I started to do this to record my travels for myself, but also to pass on my culinary discoveries.
When I travel, I always look for vegan treats, especially dishes typical of the country, and then I try to recreate them at home. If I like the result, the recipe then ends up on my blog. Of course, restaurant recommendations and many other travel tips also find a place on Mosaic Stones.
I especially like to explore big cities in Europe, there's always a lot to see and I usually find a lot of vegan restaurants there too.
What culinary experience made the biggest impression on you?
Actually not one experience alone, but the many moments when I was able to get to know a country through its cuisine. Whether it's having a fresh croissant for breakfast in Paris, cream tea in England, or tapas in Barcelona. This is simply part of traveling for me.
Which dish (or ingredient) can't you keep your hands off??
I love sweet stuff of all kinds and have to try everything from cakes, to ice cream or simple pastries that I can get my hands on vegan. Accordingly, the share of sweet recipes is also large with me on the blog. And in addition, there are different pastries or desserts at practically every travel destination.
What did you also bring back home from your culinary travels??
Recipes that I try out later are actually always there and when I find delicious vegan souvenirs, they also usually end up in my suitcase. Last year I was e.g. I was in Milan over Easter and brought back the classic Easter cake, a colomba. This is a yeast cake, similar to panettone, in the shape of a pigeon.
I have not baked this cake yet, but maybe next year I will. After my trip to Italy, I tried out recipes for biscotti and bruschetta, both very tasty and easy to prepare.
What is your absolute favorite dish and why?
If I have to commit to one dish, it's lasagna. Pasta is one of my favorite dishes in all variations, but lasagna is another one of my favorites. Funnily enough, I had the best one so far not in Italy, but in Iceland. A country I wouldn't otherwise associate with culinary highlights, although as a vegan I've found quite a bit in Iceland as well.
How often do you try new recipes?
When I started with the blog, I was still studying and tried every week several times new recipes. Since I work full time, this has unfortunately become less and so I usually only manage to cook or bake a new recipe on the weekend. Nevertheless, this is still one of my favorite hobbies and I like to capture the results with my camera for my blog.
Which food trends do you find particularly exciting??
The vegan trend of course. Whereby it is not a trend for me, but an ethical decision. I live now also already for 9 years vegan. However, I'm very glad that there is a larger and larger vegan offer in the supermarkets and also in many restaurants.
There has been a lot of change in the last few years and more and more people are trying out the vegan diet. Otherwise, I like to try a lot and cook sometimes low carb, or sometimes with superfoods, depending on what I feel like at the moment. To eat completely according to a food trend is out of the question for me. I just like trying new dishes and ingredients too much to do that.
Through Melanie and her blog Mosaiksteine:
Melanie, is 26 years old and writes about vegan travel and recipes from all over the world. What she likes most is exploring beautiful landscapes and exciting cities – so far mainly in Europe. With her recipes she would like to inspire and show what the vegan kitchen can do everything.