The Veggie Table: Favorite Vegan and Vegetarian Smartphone Apps

A round-up of the best smartphone apps for finding vegan and vegetarian recipes and restaurants.
By: Janel Ovrut Funk

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Smartphones

Photo by: UmbertoPantalone

UmbertoPantalone

If you have a smartphone, you know there’s an app for almost anything, including great vegan and vegetarian resources. As someone who frequently searches for vegan recipes on my phone while waiting in a long line or stuck in traffic (when I’m the passenger!), I rely on a handful of apps to provide me with recipe and restaurant inspiration. I’ve highlighted a few of my favorite free apps that provide recipes or restaurants in a pinch:

Vegan Yum Yum (free): If you like this amazingly creative vegan blog, you’ll love the Vegan Yum Yum app. Vegan blogger and cookbook author Lolo created the app to make some of her best recipes easily searchable on your phone, which comes in handy as you’re wondering what to cook while wandering through the grocery store aisles. This app has one of the most clean, easy-to-read displays I’ve seen in an app, and even allows you to check off ingredients as you buy them. (This is the perfect time of year to try Vegan Yum Yum’s Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Filling!)

Whole Foods (free): While not a specific vegan or vegetarian app, I love the ability to narrow down your recipe search in the Whole Foods app menu. Not only can I tailor my search for vegan or vegetarian recipes, but I can also specify low sodium, gluten free, and more. I frequently turn to the Whole Foods website for recipe ideas, and now I can look while I’m on-the-go.

Nommunity (free): This app allows you to plug in your location, and then choose the restaurant type you’re searching for including vegetarian, vegan, kosher and gluten free. Within seconds you’ll see a map pointing to local restaurants of interest that link to the address, phone number, restaurant’s website and menu if available.

Though not free, there is an app based on Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian cookbook for $4.99 that is as handy as his comprehensive book. Happy Cow also has a Veg Travel Guide app for $2.99 that will help you locate vegan and vegetarian restaurants near your home, while you’re traveling, and everywhere in between so you never have to wonder where to eat again.

TELL US: What apps do you use that help you stick to a vegan or vegetarian diet?

Janel Ovrut Funk, MS RD LDN, loves experimenting with vegetarian and vegan cooking. Read her food blog, Eat Well with Janel, and follow her on Twitter @DietitianJanel.  Catch up on her previous posts here.

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