Better Brownies

The Date: Tuesday, November 30

The Delivery: A vegan detox kit from Kaeng Raeng, and several boxes of Better Batter Gluten-Free Fudge Brownie Mix

Staff Pick: The brownie mix takes the gold!

The DL: When it comes to choosing between a detox kit and brownie mix at the VNHQ, the brownies will win every time. Plus, it's the holiday season, in which you get a free pass to eat as many sweets as you want. We'll save the detoxing for January, thank you very much!

Non-VegNews Magazines

The Date: Monday, November 29

The Delivery: Magazines including Details, GQ, ReadyMade, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, and Spin.

Staff Pick: Who could choose?

The DL: Well, we all work for a certain vegan publication you may have heard of, so yes, we love our magazines. We also (mostly) share an affinity for the TV show Glee, so the controversial GQ cover featuring both Finn and the girls (the girls being none other than the vegan Lea Michele and Bold Native's Dianna Agron) along with the Mr. Shue Details sparked at least a bit of conversation in the VNHQ today. What are some of your favorite non-VegNews (we can take it, we promise!) magazines?

More Gluten-Free Goods, a Book, and Supplements

The Date: Wednesday, November 24

The Delivery: Supplements from MegaFood and Raw-Nation, a book, and Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free baking mix.

Staff Pick: Lara Matthew's Lola Lollipop Animals Are Evil

The DL: Lara Matthew's states in her introduction to Lola Lollipop Animals Are Evil that after she went pescatarian and finally vegan, she was driven to compile her thoughts about vegetarianism and society's reaction to this dietary choice in a series of comic strips, paired with quotes about eating animals. We are intrigued to read what look like poignant and humorous comics about life as a vegetarian, a perfect read while digesting the mass amount of food we will inevitably be consuming over the next day or two. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Curry and Gluten-Free Cookie Mixes

The Date: Tuesday, November 23

The Delivery: Curry gift package and some gluten-free cookie mixes from Cherrybrook Kitchen

Staff Pick: Curry Love Banana Ginger curry sauce

The DL: We've had a very special day here at VNHQ, what with our incredible Thanksgiving luncheon featuring the unrivaled Native Foods Wellington, so with food on the brain, it seems only fitting that we receive this shipment of gluten-free cookie mixes and the most adorable curry gift pack from Curry Love. The box included a candle, a beer, a white basmati rice along with their scrumptious-sounding Banana Ginger curry sauce. Back to the luncheon, Associate Publisher Colleen Holland also whipped up her incredible Holiday salad and a Pumpkin Cake with Vanilla Buttercream, both of which are from recipes in the VegNews Holiday Cookbook, and both of which are unbelievably delicious. Check out the pics from our luncheon on our Facebook album.

Brittle, Book, Date Spread, and Supplements

The Date: Monday, November 22

The Delivery: A book, date spread, brittle, and a vitamin supplement.

Staff Pick: Bare Brittle vegan energy snacks

The DL: Today's delivery was really kind of random, but with these scrumptious-sounding vegan brittle snacks involved, we can't complain. With ingredients like date paste, spices, and seeds, they almost sound like a holiday dessert, which is exactly what we're thinking about this Thanksgiving week. We're so psyched for the holidays that we're going on a giveaway blitz, beginning with today's $100 giveaway to Alternative Outfitters. Yes, the Carb Queen t-shirt can be yours. Good luck!

Parma!

The Date: Friday, November 19

The Delivery: A humungous bag of Parma!

Staff Pick: The delicious contents of said bag.

The DL: We are shameless Parma! addicts. When it comes to Parma!, we show no reservation sprinkling it (or, more accurately, dumping it) on everything from savory oatmeal to deep-dish pizza that already has crazy amounts of melty Daiya. The latter was on the menu for lunch today, as we celebrated our wonderful Associate Editor Liz Miller's VegNews tenure. Does unreasonable amounts of vegan cheese help alleviate the pain we feel knowing how much we are going to miss Liz? No, but we'll take it anyway. Can't find Parma! in your area? We sell it in the VegNews store! While you're there, check out our amazing collection of Holiday must-haves, including the VegNews Holiday Cookbook, peppermint soy candles, and the adorable VegNews holiday card set. Happy weekend!

New Meat Alternatives

The Date: Thursday, November 18

The Delivery: Meat alternatives

Staff Pick: Meat alternatives from EcoVegan.

The DL: After tasting some of the EcoVegan meat alternatives at both the SF World VegFest and the SF Green Festival, we were more than excited to receive these samples today. EcoVegan has created ready-to-serve meat alternatives containing non-GMO wheat and non-GMO soy, and they sound delicious! Come on, who doesn't love ready-prepared vegan convenience foods on those lazy nights when you want a stir-fry and you want it fast? Well, we might be able to help you out with your no-effort Thanksgiving. Enter our Thanksgiving giveway to win a Native Foods Wellington roast and Apple-Pie fudge from Allison's Gourmet!

Books and Magazines

The Date: Wednesday, November 17

The Delivery: Books and Magazines

Staff Pick: Purely Delicious Raw Food and Lifestyle Magazine

The DL: While we are always excited about the arrival of new books—today A Life In Balance by Meg Wolff and Veganist by Kathy Freston—we were charmed by these back-issues from a fellow vegan magazine called Purely Delicious, which focuses on raw food and the raw, vegan lifestyle. This glossy publication is the brainchild of Rebecca Carlson, who has been the sole producer of the magazine since 2008. As VegNews staffers who know just how much it takes to produce an awesome vegan magazine, our hats are off to Rebecca.

Emily's Desserts

The Date: Tuesday, November 16

The Delivery: Decadent goodies from Emily's Desserts

Staff Pick: Emily's new cake truffles.

The DL: Take chocolate cake, douse it in a thick coating of dark chocolate, and sprinkle with pecans or peanuts, and you have perfection—or so we're assuming just by admiring these adorable teacup-shaped confections from the always-dependable Emily. Emily also sent along a preview of her upcoming vegan dessert cake cookbook, Sweet Vegan. Speaking of cookbooks, have you purchased the VegNews Holiday Cookbook yet? We're getting so excited about the Holidays that we are also holding an incredible giveaway—follow the link to win a Native Foods vegan Thanksgiving Wellington delivered straight to your doorstep! Oh, and we'll also throw in a pound of Allison's Gourmet Apple Pie Fudge. Good luck!

Crazy Sexy Diet, The Final Version!

The Date: Monday, November 15

The Delivery: The final version of Crazy Sexy Diet

Staff Pick: Kris Carr's finished Crazy Sexy Diet has come in and we couldn't be more excited!

The DL: We've been anticipating the next addition to the Crazy Sexy family, following Kris Carr's bestselling Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips and Crazy Sexy Cancer Survivor, and it's finally here: Crazy Sexy Diet: Eat Your Veggies, Ignite Your Spark, and Live Like You Mean It!. While we got the galley form back in October, now that we have the colorful, hard-covered, chock-full-of-information final version, we can't wait to soak it all in! Are you a Crazy Sexy Carr fan? Look for her in the upcoming January+February issue (spoiler alert!).

VegNews Holiday eCookbook!

The Date: Friday, November 12

The Delivery: A stellar collection of vegan holiday recipes

Staff Pick: The VegNews Holiday eCookbook, of course!

The DL: We are so excited about our newly released Holiday eCookbook, celebrating its one-week anniversary, that we can barely contain ourselves. Inside these virtual pages, you'll find 35 delicious recipes that are literally to-die-for, created by amazing chefs including Tal Ronnen, Robin Robertson, Allison Rivers Samson, and more! Recipes include a Festive Holiday Tart, Classic Cranberry Sauce, White Gingerbread Loaf, and Pumpkin Praline Cheesecake—can we say mouthwatering? Be sure to get your digital copy today!

Books and Raw Goodies

The Date: Thursday, November 11

The Delivery: Books and raw treats

Staff Pick: Blonde Macaroons, Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Cookies, Vanilla Crispies, and Buckwheat and Hemp Granola from One Lucky Duck

The DL: For a federal holiday, we certainly managed to receive a decent collection of goodies! Among the books (Comfortably Unaware, E3 For Life, and a gorgeous hardcover edition of the book we discussed in the VegNews Book Club last month, Animal Camp), but of course, our pick goes to the edibles. These raw goodies from One Lucky Duck in New York City are tantalizing in their adorable packaging and delicious-sounding varieties. The macaroons are especially tempting, much like the offerings in our brand-new VegNews Holiday Cookbook. Check it out!

Pie!

The Date: Wednesday, November 10

The Delivery: Pumpkin Pie courtesy of San Francisco's Bike Basket Pies and our beloved VegNews Editor-At-Large Laura Hooper Beck.

Staff Pick: The individual and simply adorable pumpkin pies with a flakey crust and a spiced, sweet, filling.

The DL: Laura made today the best Wednesday in recent history by gifting us here at VNHQ delicious individual pies made by the adorable bike-catered SF-based pie company Bike Basket Pies! We love Laura so much we don't even know where to begin. Laura is the founding editor of Vegansaurus, the web-mistress of VegNews' sister-site VegWeb, a VegNews columnist, and just an all-around amazing person. Oh, and the pie? UNBELIEVABLE. Huge props to Bike Basket Pies for their plentiful vegan options, and to Laura for being, well, Laura!

Books!

The Date: Tuesday, November 9

The Delivery: Building a Green Movement and Changing the World, The Wild Vegan Cookbook, and The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur.

Staff Pick: The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur by Kelly Peloza

The DL: Three great books came in today and presented a dilemma...which one to pick? The Wild Vegan Cookbook is a compendium of vegan recipes based around wild ingredients, Building a Green Movement and Changing the World is a primer for eco-minded youth, and The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur is an adorable book by a young author passionate about vegan cookies! No shame, we chose the cookies. Kelly Peloza presents her first cookbook, and with recipes such as Gooey Butterscotch Cookies and Mexican Wedding cookies, we're pretty sure this book will come in handy come holiday season. And it just so happens that we have official declared that the holidays are now upon us, with the release of VegNews' very first Holiday Cookbook, chock-full of vegan recipes for all of your holiday needs. Included in this festive collection are Pumpkin Seed Battered Cranberry Cabernet Sauce by Tal Ronnen, Roasted Vegetable Pastry by Allison Rivers Samson, Robin Robertson's Crispy Latkes, and much more!

A book, raw snacks, and more!

The Date: Monday, November 8

The Delivery: Quick and Easy Vegan Celebrations by Alicia C. Simpson, Citra Solv cleaner, Chai Tea from Tipu's, Lula's raw chocolate bars, Zenergy Super Food Power Snacks, and a tote bag and t-shirt from Ex-Boyfriend.

Staff Pick: The darling vegetarian dinosaur tote bag and owl t-shirt from Ex-Boyfriend.

The DL: Whew! With such an epic shipment today, it was nearly impossible to pick from the promising vegan cookbook, several treats from fellow SF Green Festival exhibitors, and the great goods from Ex-Boyfriend. At the end of a day, who can resist an adorable T and tote bag from the vegan-owned company Ex-Boyfriend that donate 5 percent of its revenue to animal rescues, while the owner volunteers at his local SPCA. We love this adorable dino-tote. Yes, we just declared that it will from now on be touted as the dinotote. We know you want one.

Vanilla Deliciousness

The Date: Thursday, November 4

The Delivery: Cookies and new Arbonne body and skin care products

Staff Pick: Alternative Baking Company's new Simply Vanilla Bean Cookie of the Season

The DL: Maybe we're a little bit excited about the upcoming holidays (it's almost December, people!), or maybe we just happened to revisit last year's VegNews Holiday Cookie Collection, but this seasonal Vanilla Bean cookie threw us into a fit of holiday anticipation. Also, it's a vegan cookie made by the 2010 Veggie Awards winners Alternative Baking Company, so it's going to be delicious. You wouldn't know it's nearing the holidays in this crazy San Franciscan heat (we know you're jealous, sorry!), but we'll devour classic vanilla vegan cookies anytime!