As a child growing up in New York in the 60's, my mother Maydell was always trying out new things on us. She would grow wheatgrass on a paper towel and she would have my siblings and I chew on it. I remember her talking about Ann Wigmore (the woman who put wheatgrass on the map) and what the government was doing to genetically alter fruits and vegetables. I recall after consuming birthday cake my mother would have my siblings and I drink aloe tea to "clean out." We were not vegan but we ate lots of fruits and vegetables. My Mother's mantra was "Its all about balance. Too much or too little of anything is not good."

But, my VEGAN journey began when I moved in with my voice teacher after college. She was a mostly raw food vegan and informed me that meat, dairy, and wheat were not the best things for vocal health. So, I became a vegan. At first it was a challenge because back then vegan food was tasteless and vegan desserts were dry. But over the years vegan culinary arts have greatly improved and vegans no longer have to eat cardboard and pretend it's tasty.

I recently started a vegan baking business called MamaAunties Vegan Baked Goodies. My vegan desserts can be purchased at Tonnie's Minis, which is located at 4734 Broadway, New York, NY 10040 and I accept custom orders by email MamaAunties@gmail.com. I began baking about 3 years ago when I got tired of spending my whole paycheck on vegan sweets. I started out with chocolate chip cookies and my menu has expanded to include:

Almond Butter Cookies

Banana Cake

Banana Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting.

Banana Nut Bread (Chocolate)

Brownies with Walnuts

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Chocolate Cake with Buttercream Frosting or Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans or Walnuts

Coffee Cake

Lemons Bundt Cake

Persimmon Pumpkin Spice Cake

Vanilla Pound Cake