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Meet the chef who designed the first ever* all-vegan award ceremony menu
(*as far as we can tell… except vegan events of course!)
Find out what we are going to be serving up at the 2018 GGA… And meet the chef responsible for creating our bespoke vegan menu…
On Wednesday the 28th of February, an intrepid band of Global Good judges, friends and collaborators, ventured out into the snow and sub-zero temperatures with one mission: to taste-test the vegan and veggie menu and decide what would be served at the 2018 GGA, at BMA House.
It was a tough job, and the decision came down to one deciding vote, but after much deliberation, the votes are in… The 2018 GGA is going vegan! With vegan wines on offer, too.
We’re thrilled that our tasters (with some meat-eaters amongst them!) decided to go for the vegan options! It’s a great opportunity to showcase delicious vegan food, and it supports our aim to make the 2018 GGA as sustainable as possible. Whilst we appreciate it’s not as simple as “go vegan and you’re good”, with a considered approach a vegan diet can be better for the environment and good for your health!
Dominika Piasecka, spokeswoman for The Vegan Society, said:
“What we eat has a huge impact on our planet; studies show we can reduce our food-related carbon footprint by up to 50% by going vegan.”
“Quite simply, we do not have enough land to feed a growing population an animal-based diet. While 800 million people do not have enough food, we continue to waste valuable agricultural land by obtaining only a small fraction of its potential calorific value.”
“We are so pleased that the 2018 GGA have recognised this problem and are paving the way by providing a delicious all-vegan menu that’s not only sustainable, but also suitable for most dietary requirements and kinder to animals.”
Food that will delight meat-eater and vegan alike
We certainly enjoyed Chef Gordon’s amazing food, the bespoke vegan dishes on offer will not disappoint! But if you do need assurance, here’s what our tasters had to say…
“Tonight proved to me that you don’t have to ‘be’ vegan, to eat vegan. As a pretty dedicated meat eater myself.. I didn’t miss meat in the menu at all. And I didn’t expect to be saying that! BMA did an amazing job”
“I could be a savoury vegan. I tried vegan food a few years ago at a retreat and I’ve been a convert ever since. The curries are delicious!”
“I’d consider switching if all vegan food tasted like the jackfruit quesadilla! It’s like smoked chicken and it’s delicious.”
“I loved the vegan brownie. It’s got the right level of squidginess and chocolate. I’m lactose intolerant so I always punch the air when I see vegan desserts as it means I can get stuck in!”
Executive Chef Gordon McCartney
Our bespoke vegan menu has been put together by Executive Chef at BMA House, Gordon McCartney of Ampersand Catering. At the tasting evening, Gordon was on hand to talk us through the delights on offer, and the challenges he and his team faced when creating vegan versions of popular dishes. Gordon has delivered a stunning bespoke menu of exquisite vegan delights from India, Italy and Mexico, which will be served up in the BMA Courtyard, from ‘street-food’ style stalls.
According to Gordon, more and more events are thinking carefully about their vegan and vegetarian options, but BMA haven’t catered an entirely vegan menu before. For Gordon though, it’s a challenge that he relishes:
“I think cooking vegan food encourages you to be creative and to think more about the flavours and the techniques… For example, meringues can be made vegan using the water from chickpeas. They contain starch like egg whites.”
However, some cuisines are more difficult than others:
“Cooking vegan Indian food is easy as more Indian dishes tend to be vegetarian. However, Mexican and Italian are a bit harder!”
You can see the full menu, here >>
Making the 2018 Global Good Awards a sustainable ceremony
Having tasted what Chef Gordon and his team are cooking up, we know that no-one will be upset that the GGA is going vegan. The decision was made easy by the stunning menu, and support of the excellent event team at BMA house, headed up by Kat Winfield. Karen says:
“From the moment I discussed a sustainable menu with Kat Winfield, our event manager, BMA House have been 100% behind the idea; even encouraging us to go for the full-vegan option.”
“Kat has been amazing to work with – I think we’re learning from each other, and given BMA have GOLD for Green Tourism they are continually pushing the boundaries to be more and more sustainable. Kat even said that a lot of the staff have asked to work the shift for our event, which is a great compliment!”
The menu is just one of many features that all add up to make the 2018 GGA ceremony the most sustainable ever. Even the plates we will be eating off are made from sustainable bamboo, and are fully biodegradable. As Karen puts it:
“There is so much more to come too…just wait until they see my dress!”
Join us at the 2018 GGA Ceremony: To celebrate excellence in social impact and sustainability (and sample our vegan wines!)
You don’t have to be an entrant to come along to the GGA ceremony! If you’re involved in social impact or sustainability, the GGA is the place to be! From our ‘eco-tie’ dress code, to our completely vegan menu, we aim to set the standard for sustainable events, and we want to share our learnings with you. Find out more about the 2018 ceremony, here>>
To book, DOWNLOAD THE BOOKING FORM, and email it to karen@GlobalGoodAwards.co.uk. Refund requests will be accepted until 27th April.
