After a successful debut, season two of Delicious TV’s “Vegan Mashup” is starting to air on PBS stations across the country. Once again the show delivers a full menu of plant-based eats.
Filmed in Maine, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, the six new episodes dish up tempting meatless dishes such as Japanese curry udon noodles, Mediterranean spinach “cheesy” filo triangles and smoky hazelnut-and-black-bean burgers.
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Popular vegan chefs Terry Hope Romero, Miyoko Schinner and Maine’s own Toni Fiore star in each episode. Guest chefs frequently join them in the kitchen.
The first season’s six episodes have aired 6,000 times around the country, according to Delicious TV’s Maine-based producer Betsy Carson. In addition to airing on individual PBS stations, the show also aired on the nationwide PBS digital channel Create TV. Carson is hopeful that channel will pick up season two.
“Create is great because the show airs at the same time every week across the country,” Carson said.
In contrast, “Vegan Mashup” airs at many different times on stations in cities such as Detroit, San Francisco and Washington.
Oddly enough, the Maine Public Broadcasting Network, the state’s PBS affiliate, has decided not to air the show.
Carson said the decision is puzzling because the station has been a longtime supporter of Delicious TV’s first cooking show, “Totally Vegetarian.” Reruns of that show still air at 2 p.m. Saturdays on MPBN.
“People ask, ‘Is that you? Your hair is darker?’ ” jokes Fiore, who lives in Cumberland and often fields questions from local fans who have seen the reruns on MPBN. “It was 12 years ago.”
In an email, MPBN spokesperson Cory Morrissey said the station is “aware of the show and may very well air it in the future. We frequently change our cooking show lineup to meet the expectations of our viewers.”
Meanwhile, Mainers can watch the new season of “Vegan Mashup” online at Vimeo.com or wait to see if Create TV picks it up.
Carson and Fiore started filming “Totally Vegetarian” in 2002 for Portland’s local cable access station. They later began distributing it to PBS stations, and its 52 episodes have now aired more than 53,000 times.
They started filming “Vegan Mashup” in 2012.
Having spent her teens and 20s in Italy, Fiore learned to cook in a world where fast food didn’t exist and grocery shopping took place in an open air market. The whole foods and fresh ingredients in her recipes reflect these roots.
Fiore said as the “Totally Vegetarian” show evolved, it became more and more plant-based. The switch to producing “Vegan Mashup” was a natural next step.
“We’ve really progressed and changed a lot,” Fiore said. “Food needs to change with the times. The audience changes and their needs change.”
She said she’s noticed a connection between people’s interest in vegan food and the number of recalls of contaminated meat, dairy, eggs and fish.
“A lot of these food safety and environmental things are starting to all pool together for people,” Fiore said.
The show puts a spotlight on the current generation of vegan chefs and cookbook authors, Carson said.
“Vegan cuisine has really taken off,” Carson said. “And there are so many people doing amazing things. They’ve really changed the face of vegan cooking.”
Just like season one, the new one includes a number of exciting guest chefs. Adam Sobel, owner of The Cinnamon Snail vegan food truck in New York, cooks Korean barbecue seitan tacos in the “Brown Bag Lunch” episode. Fran Costigan, author of “Vegan Chocolate,” makes dairy-free chocolate truffles in the “Party Spreads” episode.
In the “Quintessential Tempeh” episode, “Vegan Pizza” author Julie Hasson uses tempeh on a dessert pizza. And Portland’s own Elizabeth Fraser, the Girl Gone Raw chef, shows viewers how to make a creamy beet rawvioli in the “Healthy on a Budget” episode.
When asked if viewers can look forward to a third season, both Carson and Fiore said it depends on whether or not they can drum up the sponsorship dollars to cover the production costs.
“I’m always thinking about season three,” Fiore said. “I’m working on things, should the budget allow it to happen.”
Avery Yale Kamila is a freelance food writer who lives in Portland. She can be contacted at
avery.kamila@gmail.com
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