January is here which means people are fully committed to following through with their New Year's resolutions - for now, anyway! One of those may be to cut down on meat consumption, and what better way to begin than by trying Veganuary. Rachel Riley revealed that this was what prompted the start of her vegan lifestyle, writing on Instagram: "Happy munching for anyone trying Veganuary this month! I tried it, loved it and felt loads better so never went back."
Vegan foods have become far more mainstream over the past few years with a number of new tasty alternatives to meat and dairy hitting supermarket shelves. However, there was one particular food that the Countdown star said she really struggled to replace, especially now she is breastfeeding her new daughter Maven. "Big thanks to my bestie, and the Fauxmagerie themselves who had the same idea and sent me this lovely breast feeding present to keep my energy up - vegan cheese and pickles," she wrote underneath a snap of her decadent assortment of cheeses from UK plant-based cheesemonger, La Fauxmagerie. As a new parent, she likely needs all the energy she can get! Speaking of her struggles with turning vegan, she said: "I found cheese the hardest thing to replace but these guys do an incredible job of it, it’s the best around."
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While some of her 448,000 followers were not a fan of the idea of vegan cheese, other fans and parents thanked her for the information. One commented: "I’m starting a plant-based diet and cheese is going to be my downfall! This looks lovely," another said: "Are they good? My wife is struggling with the cheese thing," and a third added: "Oh my god! I need that...I was made to feel so guilty for not eating animals when I was breastfeeding."
The TV presenter and her husband Pasha Kovalev welcomed their daughter on Sunday 15 December, but it was not a straight-forward birth. Sharing a sweet snap of the three of them, she wrote: "Two weeks after we were expecting her this little one finally made an appearance! Miss Maven (one who understands) Aria (lioness) Riley Kovaleva arrived on Sunday morning weighing in at 7lbs 4. After keeping us waiting she came so quickly we didn’t have a chance to get to the hospital and was born in our bathroom with our amazing doula and wonderful St Mary’s midwives rushing over to be with us in the nick of time! She’s absolutely perfect and Pasha and I are in newborn bliss. Couldn’t be more in love."
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