Giveaway: Vegucated Documentary!

I've told you before about my lovely August. Because of the Cosmopolitan Hour duo, I was able to attend Vida Vegan Con, which was wonderful. Tied to the conference was a pre-screening of a new vegan documentary film, Vegucated. And it too is wonderful. The multi-award-winning documentary follows three decidedly omnivorous New Yorkers as they give up their standard diet and do a six-week vegan challenge, learning more about benefits of veganism along the way. The documentary is nothing short of fantastic. It's funny, compelling, and accessible. It's not preachy or overstated or holier-than-thou. The director Marissa Miller Wolfson is in the movie throughout, coaching the three on shopping, teaching them about factory farming, visiting a farm animal sanctuary, and providing support. I loved it. Everyone else at the screening loved it. It keeps winning awards (most recently best documentary at the Toronto Independent Film Festival, so I think it's safe to say it's generally loved. If you haven't had the pleasure of watching it yet, and even if you have, you probably want it. Imagine the possibilities for outreach!

(Oh, and you definitely want the t-shirt, designed by Vaute Couture's Leanne Hilgart!)

One way to see it is to attend a screening; check the website or their Facebook page to check out whether the tour is coming to your neck of the woods. Another way to see it is to keep an eye on their online store, set to go live in December. Another way is to enter a giveaway for it right here! The lovely people behind Vegucated would like to provide one code for a free copy of Vegucated from their online store, available upon store launch next month! I'm excited. Are you excited? Of course you are.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post. Tell me who you would most like to vegucate, or tell me something you liked about the trailer above, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month are open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's 30-Day Vegan Challenge is Kim! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Giveaway: The 30 Day Vegan Challenge!

Today Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has graciously offered up a second copy of The Thirty Day Vegan Challenge! Says The Chicago Examiner, "[Patrick-Goudreau] excels in demystifying something that feels unobtainable to many people--vegan living--and...distills it into practical steps and information without dumbing it down. Colleen is like your best friend: supporting you but also encouraging you to live up to your potential....I recommend [this book] for anyone who has struggled with trying to go vegan in the past, or would like to try it for the first time. For those of us who are tried-and-true vegans, I also recommend the book for its...common sense approach to...compassionate living. Plus, recipes! Get this book as a gift for yourself, your friends, and family." I have seen this book, and I think it's beautiful, like all of her books. I wish I could be the winner!

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me a challenge you struggled with, or when you went vegan, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to everybody everywhere, whether you are in Seoul, San Diego, or Sydney! The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Five Paw Collection giveaway from Rescue Chocolates is tammywarber! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Giveaway! The Five Paw Collection from Rescue Chocolate!

I have for you today a sweet sweet giveaway. It's the Five Paw Collection from Rescue Chocolate! Do you know about this wonderful company? They give all net profits to animal rescue, and the chocolate is divine. Have a look here to see who they have donated to and who they partner with, and then come back here, because one lucky winner will get five chocolate bars, namely:

• 1 Peanut Butter Pit Bull
• 1 Mission Feral Fig
• 1 Foster-iffic Peppermint
• 1 Pick Me! Pepper
• 1 The Fix

Thank you so much to Rescue Chocolate for your generosity. f you don't win, I suggest you visit the online shop directly!

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post. Tell me which of the five chocolate bars is calling your name, or which animal aid organization is dearest to your heart, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month are open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's American Vegan Kitchen giveaway is Babette! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Afternoon with AndyDufresne, and a Giveaway: The Wonderful American Vegan Kitchen!

Today I had the pleasure of having lunch with a vegan blogger you might know of, the charming AndyDufresne from the PPK and the blog In My Vegan Life. We went to an all-vegan Chinese restaurant called Green Wok and had the lunch buffet. It was medium-fine, with a standout being eggplant in a tangy sauce. The hot and sour soup was tasty too. I took photos on my phone, but they are not coming through to my email address, so hmph. Anyway, Portland is vegan mecca--who else has the luxury of an all-vegan buffet at an all-vegan Chinese restaurant? After we finished, I practiced some homework on Andy, who was very patient, and a man came over to offer us homegrown kiwiberries and another fruit. I want to say they were olive berries. We both accepted happily before realizing that we were eating food from a stranger! Andy remarked that she tended to believe the best about other vegans, and I like that line of thinking.

After lunch we made our way to Barbur World Foods to get amazing zaatar pizza and falafel and baklava for later! You should check out Andy's blog to see her haul. While we were waiting for some falafel, a kitchen employee rolled her eyes and loudly muttered in response to a question about whether some cookies were vegan, and Andy and I gave each other a look. So I think we were both kind of floored when she walked back over and started asking questions about being vegan, vegan baking, vegan health, motivations, etc. Not just one or two questions. I think we spoke with her for a good ten or fifteen minutes, and she was listening. She chose to ask us, and she listened to us wax positive. She took it in. Maybe she will take it further. It was pretty wonderful to speak from the heart, and pretty wonderful to speak in tandem with another vegan who I know is passionate about veganism. I will remember this. Thank you, Eloquent Andy, for your spontaneous advocacy! Inspired and inspiring.

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After Chinese and Middle Easter fare today, I am ready for some American food. Today's giveaway is for American Vegan Kitchen by Tamasin Noyes, a book generously donated by Vegan Heritage Press! I was lucky enough to win a copy of this during last year's MoFo from The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur, and I really love it, especially the Incrediburgers and the Greek Town Gyros. You may be the lucky winner and maybe you'll even give one away on your blog next MoFo!

The PPK has posted five pages of their use of this book, plus another cookbook challenge thread, and here are their very favorites. This was super fun to do because people had made almost everything and nearly everybody was raving about how good that particular recipe was!

1. The favorites were Green Town Gyros and 50/50 Burger Buns,
2. . . . closely followed by Garlic Ribz and Deep-Fried Avocado Wedges,
3. . . . flanked by Tater Tot Pie, Tuna-Free Noodle Casserole, and Cinnacrunch Muffins,
4. . . . not to be outdone by Incrediburgers, Savory Wheat-Meat Loaf, Chicago Deep Dish Pizza, Cheezy Mayo, and Coffee Cake,
5. . . . followed by, seriously, everything else. Everyone loved what they made, to the tune of 85 separate ravings. Serious affection. And that was the one thread. There are more on the PPK, and there are the Amazon.com raves too, and that's just what I know about. If you are cooking vegan, this cookbook is simply a standard.

So why don't you have this book? You need this cookbook in your life! Also, psst: I do hear rumblings that Tamasin is writing a sandwich book with Celine Steen right about now. Keep your ear to the ground and your eyes peeled for this. The photos I've seen have been amazing and testers are loving the recipes.

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To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post. Tell me your about your favorite diner food, something in your kitchen, your favorite sandwich, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to everybody everywhere, no matter where you live! The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet giveaway is jacblades! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Giveaway! The Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet

Hi, you guys, I am too tired to be original, boo. But yay, I am getting right to the giveaway, and you are going to love it! It's for The Best Veggie Burgers on the Planet: 101 Globally Inspired Vegan Creations Packed with Fresh Flavors and Exciting New Tastes, by Joni Marie Newman. Joni has generously donated a copy for you! I don't have this cookbook but I want it. I have Hearty Vegan Meals for Monster Appetites, which she co-wrote with Celine Steen, and I love it. I can safely tell you that I wish I could be this giveaway winner. One of you is going to be lucky! Since I don't have a copy myself, I went looking for expert reviews.

The PPK has posted eight pages of wish-lists and I-mades from this book, and the verdict comes to a total of 78 raves about recipes, far, far outweighing anything less positive. This includes Isa's post that the four she tried were wonderful. One guy's only post on the entire board ever was to rave about four of the recipes and say he was eating one right at the moment. Want to hear more? The top five spaces are occupied by

1. Bacon cheeseburgers, the clear winner
2. Agave wheat buns and sweet potato chipotle burgers in a tie
3. Garlicky ranch potato burgers
4. Jalapeno cornbread burgers, super quinoa burgers, noochy burgers, and tofu egg salad sammy
5. Earth burgers, black bean BBQ burgers, PB & J burgers, bacon and egg burgers, and chicken salad sammy

Also receiving love: cheese-stuffed seitan burgers, ortega burgers, Jamaican jerk burgers, Trifecta burgers, avocado bacon burgers, zucchini mushroom burgers, potato samosa burgers, curried split pea burgers, meatloaf burgers, pinto rice burgers, enchilada burgers, baba ghanoush burgers, mushroom chicken burgers, dal burgers, really meaty burgers, sun-dried tomato pesto burger, sweet potato buns, bagel buns, cilantro lime rice, BBQ sauce, creamy BBQ coleslaw, Mediterranean pasta salad, bacon bits, and homemade tofu mayo.

On top of the exclamations of joy which make up the majority of the thread, here are a few quotes:

Bekki said: I'm impressed so far just looking at this one. Plus, there are 101 veggie burgers, PLUS condiments, some sides, breads, and desserts, which excited me....it's like 20 or 30 bonus recipes!

Janejellyroll said: I got this cookbook Tuesday afternoon -- I haven't made anything yet, but it is one of the most exciting and original cookbooks I've seen. I can't wait to make burgers this weekend!

Efcliz said: I've made 2 burgers in 2 days - the pinto rice burger yesterday and the super quinoa burgers tonight. Both excellent.

Lovechild said: The agave buns are the best buns in the world. I don't see any reason to use another recipe ever.

ieatgrains said: I just picked up this book. Any recipe which instructs me to slice off a piece of ham-flavored seitan to chew on while I prepare the rest of the recipe is alright with me. Amen.

The PPK is also doing a cook-along from this book this week, so you may want to go have a look in the cookbooks forum for it. By the way, Joni posted her recipe for Jamaican jerk burgers on her blog if you'd like to see it. If you poke around, you might find additional recipes.

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Ready? Ready. To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post. Tell me your favorite veggie, what burger recipe in the book you would make first, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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I left somebody off of my blog suggestions yesterday. If you don't know Vegan in Brighton, you are missing out! Jojo is awesome.

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The winner of yesterday's Food for Lovers queso recipe is Panda with Cookie! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. Eh, also, Rabbit Food, I am waiting for your contact details! (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Shout-outs to MoFo Bloggers, and a Food for Lovers Queso Giveaway!

This is a Rapunzel of Queso upon a tower of vegan cookbooks, see?

There's a Liebster Award thing going around? Three lovely people have bestowed it upon me, so thank you! I gather that it's to promote lesser known blogs. I think it's super nice that there's all of this vegan good will going around, yay! I don't want to chain-blog/make anyone feel obligated to repost, so instead of doing something formal, today I will just point you to the lovely people who have done a shout-out for me, plus two more who re-tweet my giveaways without being asked, plus more that I love just because.

So! If you are looking for some great vegan blogs, please visit (among many many others) Cupcake Kitteh, Hobby and More, In My Vegan Life, It's Raining Kale, Lazy Smurf, Mo Betta Vegan, Naked Vegan Lunch, Panda with Cookie, Phoenix Dreaming, Prairie Vegan, Three and a Half Vegans, Vegan Cookbook Afficianado, Vegan Eats & Treats, Vegan Explosion, and The Show Me Vegan (who veganized the Midwestern tenderloin sandwich! That is a piece of seitan bigger than your face on a bun the size of the palm of your hand.)



Then when you are done browsing, come back here. Bring with you something that likes queso, and no I do not mean your dog or cat or your girlfriend. I mean bring some chips, or a tostada, or a tortilla, or a baked potato or three. Because today's giveaway is for the best queso you will ever put in your mouth! I have it in my refrigerator at all times now that I have a local source for it. (I was so excited when I saw it that I squealed and took a photo. The photo above is not that photo. It is, however, my very own jar of queso.) A jar of it is going to every omni member of my family for the holidays. It's delicious, it's good for you, it's vegan, and it's made out of Austin, Texas, by the nicest couple you could ever want to meet.


Of course it is Food for Lovers vegan queso! The fine proprietors Chris and Crystal have a jar just for you! To enter, leave a comment on this page. Tell me why you deserve to win, or tell me what you would put your queso on, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Viva Vegan! giveaway is Rabbit Food! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Tester Peek, Viva Vegan Seitan and Chorizo, and a Giveaway for Viva Vegan!

Terry Hope Romero has been writing recipes for her next cookbook! I received word just yesterday that I could count myself amongst the lucky testers. Of course I couldn't wait to get started, so what you see above is a bowl of delicious Asian miso-y soup. If this recipe is any hint of what's to come, testing is going to be amazing . . . and so is the cookbook.

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So it's fitting that today's giveaway is for the wonderful cookbook Viva Vegan! This Latino food cookbook is by Terry Hope Romero, who I hope you know is also co-author of the just-released Vegan Pie in the Sky amongst others. If you don't have this amazing cookbook, you need it, because it's wonderful. (Just ask Kitteh, who regularly blogs about her Viva Vegan meals.) The giveaway is brought to you by the lovely people over at Da Capo Lifelong, who have furnished a number of titles for giveaways on this blog. (Thank you, Lindsey, and everybody else!) Please consider having a look at their website, and/or following them on Twitter and Facebook, because they are seriously generous. They also publish beautiful and useful vegan books, like Isa and Terry's dessert trio, and many more.


I especially love the seitan recipes in Viva Vegan. Here is a batch of steamed white seitan, a double batch of steamed red seitan, and a batch of chorizo sausages all ready for the freezer. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me about your favorite Latin food, something you'd like to veganize, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to residents of the US and Canada, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of the Dave's Killer Bread Good Seed Halos is Tahinitoo! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Flash Reuben, and a Dave's Killer Bread Halos Giveaway!

This is the Flash Reuben, which is all kinds of yum.

You make it like this:

1. Think about tonight's blog post. Inspiration in a thought bubble: reuben! Look at amount of daylight left. Panic.
2. Check pantry. Defrost Viva Vegan steamed red seitan and Dave's Killer Bread Rockin' Rye.
3. Dash to store to get sauerkraut (Bubbie's). Get accosted by kiwi-berry pusher in produce. Eat one kiwi-berry. Succumb to cajoling and agree to buy kiwi-berries. Dash home.
4. Slice seitan and preheat broiler.
5. Broil seitan slices three minutes per side.
6. While broiling, mix up thousand island dressing: 1-2 tablespoons each ketchup and Vegenaise, 1/2-1 teaspoons each capers and pickle relish, dash of black salt.
7. Toast rye bread.
8. Layer half the sauce on the bread. On go broiled seitan strips.
9. Remove about half a cup sauerkraut from jar. Squeeze moisture out over sink. Layer over seitan. Drizzle remaining sauce over, top with second piece of rye.
10. Look at daylight. Panic. Rush outside with camera, sandwich, and backdrop. Photograph from every angle, minimum 15 shots each.
11. Upload photos to computer. Choose least offensive, brighten, and crop.
12. Write post quickly so you don't forget what you did.
13. Schedule for publishing.
14. Hope that sandwich is not stone cold.

Variation: Skip steps 10-14. Eat hot.

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Of course I have another giveaway for you hungry vegans, and it's from Dave's Killer Bread!
Are you surprised? No, you are not. All of their bread is vegan, and it is the only bread I buy. Right now I have their Killer Cracked Wheat bread on my kitchen table, and Rockin' Rye (you know this already) and Blues Buns in my freezer. I dream about their Sin Dawgs--if you have access to them and are not buying them, I am concerned. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be a regular purchaser of their newest product too. That product would be DKB Halos, aka Good Seed evolved bagels! One lucky winner will win a package of these gorgeous things upon their launch on November 14. Don't they look so good? They give seedy a new meaning.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me about your favorite Dave's Killer Bread product, or what you like on your bagel, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Quick & Easy Vegan Bake Sale giveaway is Emmy! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Quick and Easy Vegan Bake Sale, and a Giveaway for the Same!

Have you seen this super-pretty cookbook? If you haven't, you should seek it out. For example,


Made and loved: gingered chocolate chip (here, chunk) cookies.


Made and loved: carrot and pineapple scones.

Made and loved sweet and you will have to imagine it: sticky toffee pudding cake (omg). This is very worth imagining. Also, zebra cake and everything cookies.


Made and loved: savory herbed crackers. Some made with animal cookie cutters. Aren't they cute?

Made and loved savory and you will have to imagine it: savory "cheesy" biscuits (omg), mini sausage rolls (omg), pesto (omg), pea-tarragon-cream cheese tart, sun-dried tomato-olive-sausage pie, savory pinwheels, tomato and herb biscotti.

Want to make: individual baklava, green tea lattice cookies, creamy dreamy lemon mousse pie, spanakopita loaf, asparagus and roasted garlic quiche. I mean, to start.

This cookbook is so user-friendly and lovely. I don't even want to give you a publisher's blurb--I want to tell you about it myself. On the title page is a poem written by Carla's eight year-old daughter. First up: a bake sale guideline, then history and cooking equipment, conversion chart, ingredients, photos, troubleshooting, a guide to how to bake for newer cooks, adapting/resizing recipes, substitutions, presentation, storage, and a guide to baking throughout the year. Comprehensive. And that is just the first 50 pages! From page 50 to 252 are more than 150 delicious recipes. Lists for avoiding specific sensitivities/allergens (soy, nut, wheat) and child-friendly recipes are noted.

Here are the ten recipes chosen by testers (I tested!) as favorites: orange and almond biscotti, reindeer squares, chai chocolate mini loaves, lemon and blueberry biscuits, coffee and caramel cupcakes, zebra cake (yes!), no-bake apricot cookies, chocolate pie, mini sausage rolls (see?), and pea-tarragon-cream cheese tart (yum!). And now I want the pesto again. It is my favorite recipe for pesto ever. If you don't have this book, don't you wonder why not?

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Carla has generously provided a copy for the MoFo giveaways here! I hope I have tantalized you enough, because this should be on your shelf, and stained from use. It will still be pretty, and you (and the people who you live with/bake for!) will be really happy.


To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me about a vegan bake sale you baked for, or a vegan baked good you bought at one, or a vegan baked good you can't live without, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to everybody everywhere, whether you are in Seoul, San Diego, or Sydney. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Taza Mexicano Sampler giveaway is radioactivevegan! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Taza Chocolate and a Mexicano Sampler Giveaway!

Do you know about Taza? They are based in Somerville (a place I lived and love) adjacent to Cambridge, Massachusetts and across The Charles from Boston. They make traditional Mesoamerican chocolate. They make it ethically and sustainably. It's all organic and fair trade, and it happens to be vegan. Rather than read my blog today, I am going to send you over to their website to read about how the chocolate is made, from field to factory, step by step. It's here and it's super interesting. Actually, I think their whole website is kind of awesome. So poke around. There is a recipe for vegan cupcakes!

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So today's giveaway is for a fantastic Taza Mexicano Sampler! The winner will receive the above deliciousness, eight 1.5 OZ Chocolate Mexicano discs, one each of Cacao Puro, Chipotle Chili, Cinnamon, Ginger, Guajillo Chili, Orange, Salt & Pepper, and Vanilla Bean. Thank you to Taza for your generosity! These discs all sound just delectable

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me what you like about Taza's website, or what you would like to make with this gorgeous chocolate, a dessert you think is delectable, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Quick & Easy Low-Cal Vegan Comfort Food giveaway is Art You Dream About! Congratulations! You'll receive this book upon its release in early January! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Quick and Easy Post, Tomatoes with Horns, and a Giveaway for Q&E Low-Cal Vegan Comfort Food!

I looked at the computer tonight and thought: oh my god, I have to write a post! I'm tired! I have two 12-hour days coming up! So I considered. Quickly. Today's giveaway is quick and easy, I'm having an Amy's tofu scramble for dinner, why not make the post itself quick and easy?
So I present to you something amazing, but something some of you (PPK) may have seen before: adjacent horned tomatoes. They were growing on a plant I was tomato-sitting in August and September. Here they are ripe.

Hoveringdog suggested saving the seeds and see if I could grow more tomatoes with horns next year. I had to give one of the tomatoes back with the plant, but I have the seeds from one of them. You might see another post like this next MoFo.

There, quick and easy, and the microwave has beeped.

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Now! Your giveaway today is Alicia Simpson's third cookbook, Quick and Easy Low-Cal Vegan Comfort Food! Or rather, the promise of a cookbook. The Experiment Publishing will send the giveaway winner a copy of this cookbook upon its release in early January. Many thanks to The Experiment! Doesn't that cover make you want to know more? Much more?

From Amazon: Here are recipes to satisfy and enjoy all day, from breakfast (Breakfast Biscuit Sandwich), snacks (BBQ Popcorn), salads and soups (Taco Salad, Corn Chowder), mains (Fettuccine Slim-Fredo) dessert (Moon-Dusted Donuts)--and even low-cal vegan beverage (Homebrewed Ginger Ale). Every recipe includes complete nutritional analysis (information frequently requested of Simpson by readers of her previous books). And Simpson has also crafted fifty different daily menus for eaters with daily calorie intakes of 1,400 to 2,000 calories, making it easier than ever to eat highly nutritious, varied, and calorie-conscious comfort food.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. Tell me your quick and easy cooking tip, or what you make when you don't feel like cooking anything, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others this month will be open to everybody everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Sunny Days zine giveaway is Carolyn, who is crazy about her husky Shelby! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Fresh Pistachios and a Tofu XPress Giveaway!

Look: these are fresh pistachios that I purchased at Barbur World Foods. The outer covering is soft and wrinkly (obviously wrinkly). You pull it off to reveal a pale shell. The shells separate pretty easily to reveal the gorgeous nut inside. So fresh pistachios taste pistachio-ey, but really intensely so, and they are kind of soft. I love them. I can imagine making an Indian pilau and scattering fresh pistachios over it. For me for now, though, they are lovely on their own.

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My post is pretty short today because I want to get to the awesome giveaway! I have for you, in my possession and ready to send out . . . a Tofu XPress! No longer will you require makeshift presses of cast iron pans and heavy canned goods. The Tofu XPress presses excess water out in less than an hour, is easy to clean, is dishwasher safe, and doubles as a marinating dish. It can also be used to press other foods such as tomatoes or eggplant.

To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment below, and Tofu XPress would also ask that you either like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, or sign up for their newsletter. Tell me what you'd make with your shiny Tofu XPress, im-press me with some vegan knowledge, or just tell me you'd like to win! This giveaway is open to residents of the US. Others throughout the month will be open to everyone everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted in one week's time below that day's giveaway. Yes, that's a full week to enter this giveaway! If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Thrive Foods giveaway is Lorelei! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

In Which I Visit Barbur World Foods, and a Thrive Foods Giveaway

Recently I went to one of my favorite food markets in the Portland area. This is Barbur World Foods. You wouldn't know it was wonderful from the outside, but it's full of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern staples that are hard to find elsewhere.


Such as fresh pistachios! I've also purchased fresh chick peas and grape leaves here, but they aren't carrying them at the moment.



You have to pass the desserts (including the baklava, which is vegan and very delicious) to get to the deli case/sandwich counter/pizza oven. All of the vegan items are clearly marked. They make a mean falafel sandwich, the spinach pies are yummy and lemony, and the zaatar pizza is vegan and wonderful.

As you travel back you pass a mountain of pita for the hummus you picked up at the deli counter. See?

They have this tarragon soda I am kind of obsessed with, and Cheerwine!

In this aisle, it's all olives on the left, and all different kinds of pickled vegetables on the right. There is another aisle which is all olive oil. Trying saying this three times fast: olive oil aisle.

Here we have stacks of six-pound cans of tomatoes:

Fuul, aka broad beans. Loads of them.

Dried fruit and nut aisle. And spices and spices.

Three brands of frozen molokiyya. I have eaten this horrid thing. In Cairo, where it is beloved. Prepared by a local. The closest I can get to describing it is: it's like eating spinach, but with the sliminess of okra, or maybe mucus. Keep it behind the door.

And finally, packed in amongst all of the other fun things, the kitchen supply area, which includes this small fancy coffeepot with a bird on top.


And so was my visit to Barbur World Foods. I hope you enjoyed it!

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On to the giveaway. The lovely people over at Da Capo Lifelong have been extra-lovely this month, and have furnished a number of titles for giveaways on this blog. Please consider having a look at their website, and/or following them on Twitter and Facebook, because they are seriously generous. Today will be the first of those, and it's Thrive Foods by Brendan Brazier.

The product desription on the Amazon page says: Building upon the stress-reducing, health-boosting nutritional philosophy introduced in his acclaimed vegan nutrition guide Thrive, professional Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier now turns his attention to your dinner plate (breakfast bowl and lunch tray too). Where does your food come from, and is it healthy? How can you be sure that you are receiving the nutrients you need? In Thrive Foods, Brazier clearly explains how nutrient-dense, plant-based foods are the best form of proactive health insurance and environmental sustainability rolled into one. And that's not all. Thrive Foods also features 200 nutritionally complete, easy-to-make recipes that utilize the power of super- foods such as maca, chia, hemp, and chlorella, and that avoid common allergens, such as wheat, yeast, gluten, soy, dairy, and corn.

To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment below. Tell me what makes you thrive, pass along a healthy tip, or just say you'd like to win! This giveaway is open to residents of the US and Canada. Others throughout the month will be open to everyone everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

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The winner of yesterday's Rishi Tea giveaway is Leslie R.! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

We Begin! Fava-cado Dip and a Giveaway from Rishi Tea

Welcome to the first day of Vegan MoFo, the Vegan Month of Food blogging event! Click the logo to the right of this post to visit shenanigans at the main site and find hundreds of other bloggers. I hope you will stop by this blog often this month, because I will be continuing last year's MoFo theme: giveaways! Last year, I contacted companies which produce vegan food-related items and publishing houses that publish vegan (mostly cook)books in the hopes of doing a few giveaways. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and I was able to host at least one giveaway every day of the month. This year, I had a similarly positive response, and I think the giveaway items are possibly even better.

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Before I begin, I'm offering up a recipe I jerry-rigged one summer evening after visiting the farmer's market. I don't have a photo because I was hungry, but I'm sure you can picture it. I made it up on the spot, but you'll find a similar guacamole in Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Appetite for Reduction. I was a tester for the cookbook so there may have been some subliminal crossover!

Fava-cado Dip

1 c. cooked fresh fava beans
1 large ripe avocado
Juice of one lime, about 2 ½ tablespoons
½ t salt
1/8 – ¼ c cilantro

Throw everything in the food processor and turn it on. Whirr until creamy. Add water a tablespoon at a time if ingredients aren't mixing nicely. Serve with baguette or other bread, or maybe with carrots. Cherry tomatoes are good with this also.

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To the giveaway! Once again this year, I have the pleasure of having the first giveaway of the month from Rishi Tea, multi-year award-winning manufacturers of my very favorite teas. I remain especially partial to their tangerine ginger blend, but last year cinnamon plum snuck into my heart as well. Rishi would like to provide one of you with a selection of loose leaf teas and a beautiful teapot. They haven't decided which one just yet, but last year it was the Tsuki, pictured below.

To enter, please leave a comment below. Tell me about your favorite tea, a favorite t-shirt, or anything at all! This giveaway is open to US residents only, but others throughout the month will be open to everyone everywhere. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway. If you win a giveaway on this blog at some point this month, please be kind and don't enter further giveaways--I'd love as many people to win something as possible!

Vegan MoFo Giveaway Winners, Take Note!

Almost everything has been sent, and my apologies for the delay. I have forgotten what pain there can be at the end of the semester in grad school.

• Kitteh: I need your address so I can send you your book!
• Sin Dawg winners, you'll be receiving your packages this week. The delay is my fault, not the fault of the fantastic people at DKB, so I do apologize!
• Amey, Islaborg, Haymarket8, and stealth package to Burnaby, your packages went out yesterday.
• Primal Strips winners and GoMaxGo winners, your packages finally went out earlier in the week.
• Overseas winners, it seems customs is taking their sweet time. I apologize for the delay. If anything is returned to me, I will be in touch with you individually, but I hope not to have this problem!
  

I'll be delving into new cookbooks soon, and will be posting. Many thanks to Vegan Cookies for hosting a giveaway that I won (for Tamasin Noyes's American Vegan Kitchen!). I've also got a new camera and a new slow cooker to play with. If anyone has recipe ideas for the slow cooker, I would love to hear!