Bottled Water

The Delivery: Green Planet bottled water
Staff Pick: The water

The DL: It’s great to know that there is now bottled water made from bioplastic available, in case we’re ever stuck without our reusable water bottles—we know we’ll get our recommended eight glasses daily from somewhere! In addition to consuming plenty of water, there are plenty of other foods we should be increasing our consumption of, such as these five. So whip up some Taro Dumplings with a side of Cranberry Sauce and know you’re treating your body well.

Vega Sport Bars

The Delivery: Vega Sport energy bars

Staff Pick: The bars

The DL: These bars are the perfect food to energize whoever wins this week’s VegNews Holiday Giveaway—one lucky winner will receive a $100 shopping spree to Alternative Outfitters, just for leaving a comment on the giveaway page revealing his or her dream winter getaway spot (New York, anyone?). Even if you don’t win, check out our Holiday Store for some other great cruelty-free gift ideas—we have something for everyone!

Beauty Products

The Delivery: Lotion, bath salt, and nail polish from SpaRitual

Staff Pick: Organic moisturizing lotion made with Chinese jasmine

The DL: Cold weather tends to cause many people to suffer from dry skin, but using lotion like this will help you brave the outdoors and enjoy the serenity blanketing most of the country, especially the northeast, this time of year. In fact, now is the absolute perfect time to visit Upstate NY—the peaks of the Catskill Mountains are likely white with snow, rescued animals await visitors in their cozy sanctuary barns, and the delicious vegan food will surely warm you inside and out. Check out this handy guide for all of the perfect places to go in Saugerties and Woodstock. If you can’t get away for a weekend retreat, stay inside and work on your favorite cookie recipe for the VegNews Holiday Cookie Contest, instead—the top prize is a KitchenAid mixer! 

 

Pies, Fruit Bars, Personal Care Products, and a Book

The Delivery: Deadly Powers by Paul A. Trout, ProBar fruit bars, Jason body- and hair-care products, The Buddha Beauty Company foot cream and body butter, and raw pies from Sidesaddle Kitchen (see below)

Staff Pick: Delicious chocolate-chipotle, pumpkin-spice, and maple-pecan pies

The DL: Full disclosure—the reason why these pies did not make it in the group product shot above is because they arrived yesterday during our Thanksgiving feast and we ravenously made them disappear. Three pies, an entire Native Foods Wellington, more mashed potatoes than any normal group of people should ever eat, fluffy biscuits, salad, and more were no match for the voracious VegNews team. Now, we’re ready to nosh on amazing feasts during our upcoming five-day weekend—check out our plans and last-minute Thanksgiving tips for some inspiration. Happy Tofurky Day!

Chocolates and Dips

The Delivery: Desiderio Chocolates marshmallow truffle bar and salted chocolate caramels, and Blushing Apple’s vegan dips—roasted tomato salsa, tapenade, and roasted fig dip

Staff Pick: Vanilla marshmallow truffle bar

The DL: In just a matter of minutes, the entire VegNews staff will be chowing down on an amazing Thanksgiving luncheon. On the menu: Native Foods Wellington, homemade mashed potatoes, soy egg nog, roasted Brussels sprouts, and… you’ll have to check Café VegNews later today for more details! If you still haven’t figured out your Thanksgiving centerpiece plans, check out our taste test for some last minute ideas. Now back to that feast…

 

Vegan Food Box

The Delivery: Lollihop’s vegan food box with Food Should Taste Good brand chips, Pop Corners corn chips, Kind fruit and nut bar, Glutino gluten-free pretzels, Two Moms in the Raw blueberry nut bar, Larabar cashew cookie bar, Runa guayusa, Bumble Bar chunky cherry bar, and dried bing cherries from BellaViva Orchards

Staff Pick: Sweet potato chips

The DL: Snacks like these make vegan traveling so much easier, which is crucial at this time of year—just throw a granola bar and a bag of chips in your carry-on and you’ll be able to endure the inevitable delays and lines with a yummy snack in hand. Even if you do get stuck in an airport, you'll have time to dream up the perfect cookie recipe for the VegNews Holiday Cookie Contest! We’re looking for the most creative and scrumptious cookie recipes for a chance to win a KitchenAid mixer, Divvies vegan cupcake kit, or cookies from Allison’s Gourmet. We can’t wait to try your recipes!

 

Book, Coconut-Almond Milk, and a Giveaway!

The Delivery: Non-veg cookbook Bean by Bean by Crescent Dragonwagon and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Almond-Coconut Milk Blends

Staff Pick: Almond Coconut Milk

The DL: Coconut milk is definitely a favorite here at the VNHQ, and this new product combines it with almond milk for a new twist. If this product doesn’t excite you, let us know what does, and you could win a copy of The Tipsy Vegan. The book contains incredible recipes like Coconut HELL-O! Shots, Bad-Ass Beer Cake with Bourbon Raisins and Amaretto Frosting, and The Chugging Pumpkin Soup, all made with alcohol! We’ll be picking a random winner on Tuesday at noon, so you could be noshing on boozy foods soon after Thanksgiving. Happy Friday!

This Just In: Giveaways!

The Delivery: The Tipsy Vegan by John Schlimm, Nava Atlas’ Vegan Holiday Kitchen, and Main Street Vegan by Victoria Moran

Staff Pick: The Tipsy Vegan

The DL: This holiday season, VegNews is all about giving back to our readers. In addition to this week’s vegan feast giveaway (only three words need be said: Native Foods' Wellington), we’ve just announced our first ever holiday cookie contest! We’ve already received some tasty-sounding recipes, so submit yours soon for a chance to win a KitchenAid mixer! Pretty much every VegNews staffer has their eyes on this fabulous prize, but only readers are allowed to win. We’re also running a special giveaway exclusively for readers of This Just In—leave a comment below telling us which product we’ve featured on This Just In that you’re most excited for and you could win a copy of The Tipsy Vegan! We'll pick a random winner at noon on Tuesday, November 22, so enter today! Don’t you love the holidays?

Cookbooks and Tofu

The Delivery: Celebrate Vegan by Dynise Balcavage, Tofu Misozuke from Rau Om, a galley of Gluten-Free Vegan Comfort Food by Susan O’Brien, and a galley of Chloe Coscarelli’s Chloe’s Kitchen

Staff Pick: The miso-cured, two-month-aged tofu

The DL: Thanksgiving is right around the corner and we’re counting down the days to our annual holiday luncheon (just six left!). The main course will be a Native Foods Wellington and we couldn’t be more excited! One lucky reader will dine in VN-style with a Native Wellington, delivered to their door next week and that lucky reader could be you—just leave a comment on the giveaway page giving us the DL on your favorite Thanksgiving dessert. As a bonus, the giveaway also comes with a box of treats from Babycakes NYC. The VN staff is truly filled with the Thanksgiving spirit, and we can’t stop thinking about thankful turkeys, heartwarming events, and mouthwatering recipes. 

 

Books, books, books!

The Delivery: You Can Heal Yourself by Julie Silver, Gluten-Free and Vegan Holidays by Jennifer Katzinger, and Vegetarian Entrees That Won’t Leave You Hungry by Lukas Volger

Staff Pick: Gluten-Free and Vegan Holidays

The DL: With holiday get-togethers becoming more frequent this time of year, there’s no better opportunity to try some gluten-free recipes for guests. In fact, we have two great guides to get you started—Allergen-Free Game Day will help you prepare the perfect football spread that’s safe for most people to eat, and an amazing gluten-free Thanksgiving menu, featuring a gorgeous Cranberry Orange Ice Cream Pie for dessert. If you want any other last-minute holiday feast tips direct from vegan chefs, join in our Twitter chat tomorrow evening at 6:00 PST. Thanksgiving is next week! Are you prepared?

 

Kale Chips

The Delivery: Brad’s Raw Chips in varieties made from kale, sweet potato, and red bell pepper

Staff Pick: Vampire Killer kale chips

The DL: Hello, kale—our Veggie Award winner for The “It” Vegetable! Between kale salad after countless kale salad for lunch and Kale and Apple Soup and Ranch Kale Chips, this veggie is taking over America, one leaf at a time. On a broader note, want to know who’s changing the world? Earth Island Institute is hosting a special celebration of “Eco-Amazons: Women Environmental Leaders Who are Transforming the World” this Thursday in Berkeley, and VegNews has a pair of tickets to give away. Winning is easy—just retweet the post from VegNews’ twitter feed for your chance by 5:00 PT today! Good luck.

Protein Drinks and a Thanksgiving Coloring Book

The Delivery: CalNaturale Svelte protein drinks and Happy Thanks Living!—a coloring zine by Nathalie VanBalen

Staff Pick: Spiced Chai protein drink

The DL: On rainy days like this, nothing would warm us up quite like a nice cup of Indian-spiced chai. Fortunately, we have just about every type of tea imaginable in VNHQ’s humble kitchen. Also, it’s Friday and the weekend fun is about to begin, giving you plenty of time to think of the perfect submission for our new caption contest. This photo had us cracking up for nearly a half hour during a cover design meeting. Comment your entry by Monday for a chance to win a year-long subscription to VegNews!

 

Pizza, Tofu Press, and Nutrition DVD

The Delivery: Amy’s Kitchen Margherita pizza, a tofu press, and Dr. Michael Greger’s newest DVD installment of the Latest in Clinical Nutrition (Volume 6)

Staff Pick: Pizza!

The DL: Since we just finished up the cover design for the January+February issue, we can now throw a pizza party! Then again, when isn’t there a reason to throw a pizza party? Speaking of parties, our annual Thanksgiving luncheon was announced today. Check out the photo album from last year’s event, which featured a Wellington from Native Foods Café, chocolate-peppermint bark, homemade cranberry sauce, and more. This highly anticipated lunch is staff-only, but we’re giving away eight incredible prizes to include you in on the fun! This week’s giveaway is a box of treats from Sticky Fingers, so submit your entry before Monday! Did someone say cookie party?

 

Coconut Oil and Omega-3 Supplements

The Delivery: Dr. Bronner’s new coconut oil and omega-3 supplements from Life’sDHA

Staff Pick: The coconut oil

The DL: Other companies must have gotten wind of this year’s Veggie Awards Product of the Year, which is Earth Balance Coconut Spread—this is our second shipment of tropical coconut goodness since Monday! If you feel like this holiday season needs even more tropical flair, consider checking out the VegNews Holiday Store, where you can find Crazy Rumors Pink Grapefruit Juice Lip Balm, a recipe for Orange Chocolate Macaroons, and even coconut cream chocolates. Or, you could escape the cold and just join us on a trip to Mexico. We won't judge.

The Healthy Voyager book and Pom Wonderful

The Delivery: The Healthy Voyager’s Global Kitchen by Carolyn Scott-Hamilton and Pom Wonderful’s “Pom Poms” fresh arils

Staff Pick: The Healthy Voyager’s Global Kitchen

The DL: We were so excited to see the forthcoming book by jet-setter Carolyn Scott-Hamilton. This woman is constantly on the go, but somehow still manages to keep her kitchen stocked with the best vegan foods. Check out what’s in her fridge on the very last page of the November+December issue of VegNews. Speaking of the best vegan stuff, Sticky Fingers bakery in DC sent us an amazing array of treats last week. If you want to have a similar box of goodness delivered right to your door, enter our Sticky Fingers giveaway! All you have to do is tell us what your favorite vegan holiday cookie is. The winner will be chosen at random on Monday, November 14. Best of luck!

 

Coconut Oil and Water Kefir

The Delivery: Kelapo Coconut Oil and Caveman Foods Probiotic Water Kefir

Staff Pick: Saffron-flavored kefir

The DL: This is an exciting week here at the VNHQ—as we’re finishing up the design of the January+February issue, we’re also preparing Thanksgiving-themed articles for VegNews.com. Get ready for more editions of Turkey Tuesdays, recipes to help perfect your Thanksgiving menu, and awesome giveaway prizes. While things are hectic right now, some of our staff is fortunate enough to be heading down to Mexico to bliss out on the beach, relax with some yoga, and forget about the holiday craze at home. There are still tickets available, so snag your spot while you can!

 

Herbal Waters, Orange Beverage, and Sriracha Sauce

The Delivery: Organicville Sriracha Sauce and an orange beverage, as well as Ayala’s herbal waters

Staff Pick: Sriracha Sauce

The DL: This Sriracha sauce will really spice things up around the VNHQ! Speaking up spicing things up, you know what really adds excitement to VegNews.com? The fact that it’s Friday, which means Traffic Jam, our weekly web roundup, has been posted, featuring nearly 100 corgis in costumes! Also, you know how weekends just fly by? Monday is the deadline to enter our Tofurky raffle, so you better head over to our Holiday Giveaway page right now to enter! All you have to do is tell us what dish you’re most looking forward to this Thanksgiving. Easy peasy! 

Books and Chocolate

The Delivery: I’m Mad as Hell, And I’m Not Going to Eat it Anymore! by Christina Pirello, Jazzy Vegetarian cookbook by Laura Theodore, and chocolate truffles from Gratitude Gourmet

Staff Pick: I’m Mad as Hell And I’m Not Going to Eat it Anymore!

The DL: Astute readers may realize that our staff pick today is a book mentioned in our recently debuted November+December issue, which is now available on the newsstand. While we’ve posted the fabulous Veggie Award results on our website, certain stories, such as book reviews, food features (Wild Waffles, anyone?), and news stories remain exclusively in print, so step away from the computer and relive the experience of reading a physical magazine! Trust us, you won’t regret it. 

 

Sticky Fingers Sweet Treats

The Delivery: Multiple boxes of cookies, brownies, and whoopie pies from DC’s Sticky Fingers Bakery

Staff Pick: Pumpkin whoopie pies

The DL: Seriously, Sticky Fingers? Pumpkin whoopie pies? You know a way to these vegan magazine editors’ hearts. In fact, anything pumpkin-flavored will win us over. While Editorial Assistant Hilary Pollack kicked off squash season with “Pumpkin Five Ways,” we’re all thankful that there are infinite ways to incorporate pumpkin into every part of mealtime. Whether it’s Sunset magazine’s vegan pumpkin curry, pumpkin pizza from Los Angeles, or a batch of classic Pumpkin Spice Cookies, we can’t get enough of the ubiquitous big orange squash. 

The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Bread

The Delivery: The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Bread by Laurie Sadowski

Staff Pick: The book

The DL: It’s officially November and it’s time to get ready for one of the best holidays of the year! With recipes like Garlicky Pull-Apart Rolls and Sweet Corn and Basil Spoon Bread, this book has our minds in Thanksgiving dinners' bread bowls. Luckily, the holidays start early here at VegNews, and you can reap the benefits—We’re celebrating with eight incredible giveaways, and this week, you can win a Tofurky Feast! Just leave a comment with what dish you’re most looking forward to this Thanksgiving and we’ll announce the winner next Monday. Best of luck and happy World Vegan Day!