The 2013 Gift Guide For....[THE VEGAN]

Welcome to the SECOND edition of the Passing Daisies holiday gift guide! Last week, we talked about HIPSTERS.This week, we are focusing on the vegans in our life. Here are the other holiday gift guides you can look forward to!

[The MUSIC JUNKIE]

[The GEEK]

[The BOOK NERD]

[The VINTAGE]

[The TRAVELER]

[The DRINK SNOB]

[The DIY ENTHUSIAST]

[The BLOGGER]

I used to be vegan for a year, and now I will generally eat anything, but I eat dairy in moderation. I shop mostly vegan at the grocery store, and I eat normally when I'm out with friends. Everything is okay in small amounts! 

Still, I like to embrace my vegan roots, and I think I've got a pretty good grasp on what kind of gifts vegans would enjoy. I would love to get any of the gifts below. I hope these help you find the perfect gift for your vegan friend!

Better World Brownies

An all vegan and fair trade brownie mix, you can't possibly go wrong. This company also makes vegan hot chocolate mix, fruit & chocolate snack mixes, and other yummy treats. Everything is fair trade, too.

Crazy Sexy Kitchen

Kris Carr is a vegan celebrity - she beat cancer by switching to a mostly raw, plant-based diet, and has been a role model in the vegan world ever since. This is her new cook book!

Isa Does It

Another famous vegan chef, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, just released a brand new cookbook this month. Everything she makes is delicious, so I'm sure this cookbook won't disappoint.

Vegan White Chocolate Chips

Vegan white chocolate is crazy hard to find in stores, unless you make it yourself. These chips are delicious. Make sure you order a few bags! Wanna hear what I think? Click here!

Vegan Bowls [and other dishes]

This lady's vegan dishes and mugs are pretty famous. They are expensive, but homemade and high quality. They are also cute! If you don't want anything with the word "vegan" on them, she also makes some adorable cake stands, fruit bowls, and other dishware. There is also another etsy shop, Vegan Dish, that you can check out when the owner is back from vacation.

Vegan's Daily Companion

This book features 365 different articles to read, one for each year. It has recipes, health info, animal stories and pictures, and so much more! A great guide for any vegan.

Tofu Xpress

Any true vegan will press tofu at some point in their life. This is a great tool to have in your kitchen so you don't end up pressing your tofu with a stack of books, pots and pans, and cans of soup {in other words, anything heavy}. If you want to see my review of this product, click here.

Hail Merry Macaroons 

These are quite possibly the best macaroons I've ever had, and they are raw! You can find them at Whole Foods stores across the country. Apparently they just released a limited edition, seasonal flavor - Chocolate Chocolate Chip - so run to the stores and buy some now!

Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter

This is just like Nutella, but it's vegan. They also make a line of peanut butter cups that are AMAZE-BALLS. For a limited time, you can buy their white chocolate peanut butter cups exclusively  at Whole Foods. 

Tea Forte

I have yet to find a flavor of tea by this brand that I dislike. They are crazy delicious, and their triangular shape makes them unique. 

Blackberry Maple Waffle Tea

This is a delicious flavor of tea, and it has real waffle pieces in the mix!

Libre Tea Glass

While we are on the topic of tea, this loose leaf tea "to-go" glass is GREAT for when you want loose leaf tea but are about to walk out the door. The tea stays in a separate compartment, and you just flip upside down to brew. When you are ready to drink, just turn the glass right side up. Check out my review of these glasses here.

Forks Over Knives

This is a great documentary about the way meat and dairy effect our health. Although it does talk about animal rights and welfare, the emphasis of this film is health, and that's why I enjoy it. If you want a documentary that talks more about animals, then check out Food, Inc.

Vegan Makeup

There are multiple great places you can get quality vegan makeup, including Juice Beauty, Tarte, and Urban Decay.

Yes To...

The "Yes To" brand has a TON of quality vegan beauty products, including facial cleansers, lip balm, shampoo & conditioner, and sunscreen, to name just a few. 

Well, I hope those items sparked some ideas for your vegan friend! Let me know if you found other great products you would recommend! 

WIAW #33: Whole Foods Edition

Hey WIAW friends! Wow, it's been ages since I've done a WIAW. 
All I can say is that it's great to be back! 
To be totally honest, I kind of forgot about the blog, and I was busy doing a million other things: job searching, volunteering at church, reading, hanging out with friends...blogging slipped my mind for a while. On top of that, my dad had an unexpected quadruple bypass surgery a couple weeks ago. Although that was kinda nuts, I'm definitely inspired now more than ever to live and eat healthfully. But now I'm back and ready to dive back into the blogging world! 

This week, I'm gonna share some of my favorite finds from Whole Foods today. I found a lot of really great stuff, and I'm highly impressed with Daiya & Earth Balance for all the new products they put out this year. I was overwhelmed and wanted to try everything!

Let's start with these: Hail Merry Miracle Tarts! They have the chocolate almond butter and Persian lime flavors. I've been wanting to try these for years, but my Whole Foods never carried them before. How AWESOME that they finally carry them and I get to taste them! I'll let you know my verdict when I actually dig in to this scrumptious looking thing. I'll probably love it, because I love anything lime flavored.

Cashew butter! One of my favorites. And I love that it's in a squeezable pack.

I LOVE JUSTIN'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS. Their dark chocolate is my favorite, but this white chocolate variety is seasonal, so why not try it?! I can't wait.

So, I tried the So Delicious greek coconut milk yogurt a while ago and wasn't a huge fan, but now they have greek almond milk yogurt! I'm pumped to try it. Also, the strawberry banana yogurt was new to me!

I love Tofurkey. And it was WAY cheaper than regular chicken sausage, which is what I was originally looking to buy. It's healthier for you, too.

I think the new EB packaging is stellar! I love that they are all square containers now instead of circular tubs. I usually buy the whipped variety, but I thought I'd try to new Omega-3 variety this time around. 

Aren't these nifty? They are like fruit leather, but this is VEGETABLE leather! Never heard of it before, but I'm curious to see what they taste like.

I also bought some Earth Balance mayo and miscellaneous other groceries. I'm ready to get back to a largely vegan diet, minus some occasional dairy and meat. The healthier the better - I never want to go through the surgery that my dad went through! 

That's all for now, loves. Talk to you soon!