Trader Joe’s has rocked my world, yet again. Let’s begin with jello. Jello is delicious but so very not vegan. To the rescue! Trader Joe’s just started carrying gelatin free jello!! I heard some employees there discussing it. My ears perked up and I jumped in… “Did you just say VEGAN JELLO??” Oh yes. Yes indeed. I bought the black cherry flavor. It’s superb, I must say.

In addition, I bought a new dried fruit. Dragon Fruit. It’s a great source of vitamin C and fiber, and is cultivated in Southeast Asian countries. It’s chewy and crunchy and sweet. But not too sweet. A very mellow sweetness. And flat like fruit leather. Jackpot! I’m a fan.

And finally, Soy Chorizo. This I have bought several times now. It’s a big hit with Emory and I. It looks like sausage links but it’s actually ground soy… with a little kick. And I’m a total wimp when it comes to spice, so it’s not an overpowering heat. Throw it in a pan and stir- it takes maybe 10 minutes.  It’s FANTASTIC in a burrito. Add some rice, salsa, vegan sour cream, and I’m beyond content. It’s also great with veggies. It’s just great great great.

I know you’re probably sick of me talking about how great Trader Joe’s is. But I can’t help it. They keep getting more awesome!  Super cheap, exciting vegan options, topped with a delightful, friendly staff. If you live near one and don’t shop there, I strongly encourage you to start. Apparently they may add another location in Uptown Minneapolis, where I live. Which, of course, I’m stoked about. Find out if there’s one in your neck of the woods: http://www.traderjoes.com/locations.asp

________________________________________________________________________

Joe always does some unique and better work. No one knows that Joe purchased a web hosting package with domain names happyvegetable on a dedicated server. We were surprised when we come to know that Joe is also expert in web site design and graphic designing.

Bowling alleys aren’t traditionally known for serving amazing vegan food, but Bryant Lake Bowl is no traditional bowling alley. And not just because it has a cabaret theater. It’s certainly not your typical greasy spoon dive, though it may appear that way at first. In fact, the special they were offering the evening my fiance and I arrived was an eggplant platter. Emory had a wonderful phad thai and tofu dish, I had a delicious Basmati rice and vegetable dish with mock duck. This bowling alley prides itself in buying locally, having its own compost for kitchen waste, using reusable napkins, and working hard to be an eco-friendly establishment.

Bryant Lake Bowl is run by Wisconsin native Kim Bartman, who runs a couple of other eco-friendly establishments: Barbette, and the Red Stag Supper Club, which is Minnesota’s first LEED-certified eatery (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).  All of these restaurants offer vegan and vegetarian options and I am very excited to go check them out. And I would recommend you do the same if you’re in Minneapolis. Not only will you be comforted in knowing you’ve got vegan options eagerly awaiting you, but you’ll be supporting eco-friendly businesses. Delicious.

Bryant Lake Bowl
810 West Lake Street – Minneapolis, MN 55408
612-825-3737

Barbette
1600 West Lake Street – Minneapolis, MN 55408
612-827-5710

Red Stag Supper Club
509 1st Avenue NE Minneapolis, MN
612-767-7766

photo by davilla

Our fresh water supplies are running out quickly, folks. In some areas, they are already gone. According to an article in VegNews “the WorldBank estimates that more than 1 billion people have no access to clean water and 3 million people die from waterborne diseases every year.”

How can we help? For starters, we can take quicker showers, be more careful about what we dump down the drain, and buy less bottled water. But there’s one issue that puts vegans light years ahead of the rest as far as water conservation: our refusal to support factory farms. Raising livestock is hugely detrimental to the earth’s fresh water supplies.

Much of the 500 million tons of waste generated by billions of chickens, pigs, cows, and other animals confined in US factory farms every year is stored in huge manure “lagoons.” These holding pools can leak or spill and pipelines can rupture, tainting surface and groundwater. Just last year, a lagoon pipe at a Maryland dairy burst, spewing 560,000 gallons of liquid manure–nearly enough to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool–into a nearby creek contaminating the town’s water supply with E.coli. -Mark Hawthorne, VegNews

Accidental spills are just one way in which factory farms are affecting water supplies. Don’t forget about the massive amounts of water needed to feed these animals, as well as the large amounts of water used in the slaughterhouses. “It can take five times more water to supply 10 grams of protein from beef than from rice, and nearly 20 times more water to supply 500 calories from beef than from rice.” -Sandra Postel, director of the Global Water Supply Project in South Hadley, Mass. The water we use to shower is small potatoes compared to the wasted water resulting from factory farming. Facts such as these make it blatantly clear why the vegan lifestyle is so wonderfully selfless, and environmentally friendly.

So, how quickly is it estimated our water supplies will run out? A lot sooner than you might think. According to the EPA, if current water use continues unchecked, 36 states will suffer water shortages within the next 5 years http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21494919/. Needless to say, this issue must be addressed immediately. And convincing others to eat less meat could be the best thing you’ve ever done for the planet.

I picked up a new tasty treat yesterday. I was craving chocolate, but wanted something healthy as well. Wandering through Whole Foods, my eyes fell upon a little bag of Organic Dark Chocolate Covered Cacao Nibs. Sounds redundant, I know. Isn’t cacao chocolate? That it is, my friend. The purest form of chocolate. Unprocessed and full of antioxidants and bioflavonoids. But if you’ve tried pure cacao nibs, you know they’re a bit on the bitter side. So adding a layer of sweet chocolate to the outside makes them more palatable. And by more palatable, I mean delicious!

Kopali Organics, the company that makes these decadent goodies, has a variety of similar sweets on the market: chocolate covered bananas, gogi berries, mulberries, and espresso beans. Not in the mood for chocolaty morsels? They also have dried fruits like mango, pineapple, goldenberry, and mulberry. All of these items are 100% vegan, 100% organic, sustainably harvested and fairly traded. No sugar, oil, sulfites, preservatives, or trans fats added. All natural, good for you, and good for the farm families and developing communities. Now that’s a sweet treat.

Ragazzi Vegan has some adorable shoes in their comfort casual section. Here’s one I think is just delightful. I love the earth tones combined with a punch of baby blue. And the fantastic white toe– a Converse-like detail I’m very much drawn to. Technically, they are men’s shoes, but that never stopped me, the female, before! Check out some more shoes in their comfort casual section! Ragazzi Vegan is 100% vegan and sweatshop-free. It just goes to show you don’t have to sacrifice style when going cruelty-free. Yippee!

Looking for more places to find vegan shoes? Check out veganchic.com (formerly Vegetarian Shoes and Bags), alternativeoutfitters.com, mooshoes.com, veganshoes.com, cosmosveganshoppe.com, vegshoes.com, planetshoes.com (partly vegan), payless.com (partly vegan), zappos.com (partly vegan), stevemadden.com (partly vegan), or just do a search for “vegan” or “vegetarian shoes” and you’ll find a wide assortment of sites that offer them.