BANANA VANILLA SOFT SERVE with DARK CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE

Sooooo going vegan is pretty much the best decision ever, because it means you can eat ice cream and chocolate all day long and get healthier and happier than ever before. How is this possible? You can make the best ice cream in the WORLD with one ingredient: bananas. You can make the healthiest dark chocolate sauce ever with super nutritious foods like cacao and carob. I eat ice cream for breakfast regularly, and I am smiling and jumping around the rest of the day, every day. Why spoon a bowl of antibiotic- and sugar-loaded bovine secretions when you can gorge on ripe fruit!? No offence to the cows. They are awesome, but we don't need their milk. Another terrific bit of information about vegan ice cream: it's inexpensive! Organic bananas are often $1.00/lb here in Vancouver, Canada (conventional ones are 70 cents/lb or so) and I KNOW they are often cheaper in the States.

THE VEGAN CHRISTMAS PLATE: baked yams, steamed corn and pepper garlic brussels sprouts with mushroom nut loaf, tahini ginger miso gravy and orange cranberry sauce

Short notice, I know. I've been over-occupied lately with non-blog things, and I apologize for that. But here it is! A definitive Christmas plate for you and yours to enjoy this holiday season. I could eat this ALL DAY and when I made the recipe, I actually did. Now for some inspirational words before we all chow down for xmas: 

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

Ey, babes! This is the first holiday gift guide I have ever done, mostly because in past years I have been lazy. But the past has passed! This year I have put together a nice little collection of my favourite objects, sounds, tastes and tools. [Almost] all of these gift ideas are from awesome companies that are doing a great job promoting veganism, environmentalism, wellbeing and yumminess; they are worthy of your dollar. I also tried to balance the collection out: I have clothing, food, books, kitchenware and even a calendar! I think as long as you have at least one cool person in your life, you will find something useful in my guide. Hehe. Okay let's get onto what is IN IT! From the bottom right hand corner, going left up the rows...

Edgar's Mission 2015 Calendar: Edgar's Mission is an animal sanctuary in Australia that does some amazing work, and you can support their important mission to save innocent creatures from ending up on a dinner plate by getting their calendar. It's full of the CUTEST pictures ever. You kinda have to get it just to see the baby pig learning to walk again with training wheels. It's printed on recycled paper using veg-based ink in a solar-powered plant. Grab it here for $20.00!

Dr. Martens Vegan Leather 3-eye Gibson Shoes: I love these, and it's hard to tell they are vegan leather. I have run into some folks who don't believe it! They are great for basically any outfit, fancy or casual. They will last you a lifetime, so think of them as an investment. I wish the company was 100% vegan, but I feel like buying their vegan shoes is still a positive move, since it nudges them in the right direction. "Psst.. Doc Martens! Go vegan!" I got mine at Nice Shoes.

Gray and Pink Dress from Maya Epler: Maya is an inspiring woman. She designs and makes all the pieces from her clothing line herself, and she is now Peta-approved as a totally vegan company! I love the dress she sent to me, it's unique, comfortable and sexy. Check out all her fab items here.

Harmonic Arts (Ginger Root Powder): Harmonic Arts Botanical Dispensary is right by me! They are located on Vancouver Island and source many of their ingredients from the wild, or at least organic farms. I love all their products and recently featured their coconut in this recipe. They have an extensive selection of healing, medicinal tea blends. Take a look at all their products here.

Park Woodshop (Spoon and Cutting Board): I LOVE everything Park and his partner, Leslie, do. They take gorgeous photos, consume lots of tea and super foods, and create stunning, functional wooden tools from sustainably harvested trees. Who doesn't want a hand-carved spoon for Christmas!? See more from them here.

The Veggie Republic Bracelet: vegan jewelry for everyone! This bracelet is wooden and each bead is embedded with a picture of a different vegetable. The company is run by a mum and daughter, and for every bracelet you buy, they donate 5 lbs of fresh produce to a local family in need! Gifts that give to more than one person are the best kind. Get a better look at the $14.99 bracelets here.

The Soap Dispensary (Jars): The Soap Dispensary is a lovely little shop on Main Street run by Lihn and her husband. They sell EVERYTHING that is home, bath and body related with an eco-friendly, organic, local vibe. They have a great selection of jars and everything else. See more from them here. The jar + lid I bought was $1.75.

Organic Burst Superfoods (Baobab and Wheatgrass): Organic Burst is terrific company selling high quality organic super food powders and supplements. Their products are vibrant, delicious, and fun to add to raw desserts, oatmeal, smoothies and juices. If you know someone who needs an extra nutrition boost, consider buying some goodies from Organic Burst.

Rawsome Vegan Baking: my first and bestselling cookbook! It's full of over 100 raw, vegan, gluten-free dessert recipes along with a full page colour photo on every second page. Pretty much perfect for everyone. *shameless self-promotion cough cough* Buy it here or here!

The Songs of Leonard Cohen: he makes me weep with his words. Buy the masterful album here if you have a record player, or download it on the web if you don't. It needs to be in your life.

Hippie Chips (Raw Vegan Veggie Chips): I could eat about 7 bags of these if I had them on hand. They are SO flavourful and all the ingredients are organic and super wholesome. They currently have 3 different flavours and I suggest you try them all. Hippie Foods is the company that makes them, and they rawk. Check out their products and locations here.

100 Best Juices, Smoothies and Healthy Snacks: more shameless self-promo. Don't judge me. This is my second cookbook, and it is BRAND-NEW. Seriously, it was officially published just a few days ago, worldwide. The title kinda gives away the contents, so I don't have to explain much about what's in it; but if you or anyone ya know is interested in getting healthier, this is the book for you. Buy it here or here.

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AVOCADO ZUCCHINI SUSHI with BROWN RICE

So technically this isn't sushi, it's maki. Even then it's my humble take on it, not traditional. And that's ok!

BERRY MANGO SORBET with BANANA and PINEAPPLE

Apparently it's National Hot Chocolate Day... I am doing it wrong.

WIN A BOX OF RAW VEGAN CHOCOLATES!

Raw. Vegan. Chocolate. Bliss. This is what Heather Pace - the creator of Sweetly Raw - does all day. She has made it her mission to healthify the world one superfood chocolate truffle at a time, and I dig it. I hope you all know the blog Sweetly Raw already, it was one of the first sources of inspiration for me when I started my own blog in 2011. Lo and behold, she recently moved to my city! We met up at my November Vegan Potluck and she gave me a few boxes of chocolates to try out. Needless to say I squealed with excitement. It should also be needless to say that the chocolates are INCREDIBLE! So rich and decadent, and also 100% raw and vegan. There ain't anything bad here, folks. The best news is that YOU can also enjoy a box of raw chocolates! I am having a giveaway for Heather's divine treats; you can win a box of 6 truffles plus an OMG macaroon (I threw in the OMG because I know they will really make you say "OMG"). Just enter the giveaway below and cross your pretty fingers. They make the BEST Christmas present ever and even if ya don't win, it is never a bad time to receive a box of good-for-you chocolate in the mail. P.S. I know I have been posting a lot of chocolate stuff lately, if you're tired of it - lemme know. 

UPDATE: congrats to Zack in the US who the won the box of chocolates! 

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ALOHA, SUPERFOOD CHOCOLATES!

This recipe was inspired by Aloha's superfood chocolate bar. Their chocolate is some of the best I have ever put in my mouth, so I HAD to recreate it in my kitchen. I think the superior taste must come from the magical ingredients - spirulina, mushrooms, berries, coconut, cashews, vanilla - that develop this ridiculously satisfying flavour. It just tastes... real. It's like a vitamin pill in the form of decadent, sweet, dark chocolate. Share these with the ones you love, because it'll give 'em long life and good vibes.

RAW VEGAN HOT CROSS BUNS

Just in time for the holidays, here's some wholesome buns for ya. I have way too much studying and essay-writing to get done today so I am gonna keep this post short and sweet (no pun intended... well okay, it was intended). As usual this delicious, easy, healthy treat is made from mostly nuts and fruit. Magical, ain't it? I know I say it like every day but I will never cease to be amazed and endlessly thankful that whole foods taste so damn good. Of course, it's not a coincidence. We have evolved to be attracted to foods that sustain us. That's why mangoes are perfect all by themselves. Try making these buns for the xmas season (or whenever you please) and see if ya like 'em. They were all devoured at my house within a couple days (thank you, Jack). 

CHOCOLATE COCONUT ALMOND BUTTER CUPS - OH BABY

Caution: these are almost as addictive as my chocolate cream caramel bars. This is the THIRD TIME I have made them because they are so damn delicious. Please, make them. Share them. Rejoice in the miracle that is raw vegan chocolate + almond butter + coconut. Essentially what you have here is a super wide peanut butter cup with raw chocolate, but I use almond butter instead of peanut butter, and I mixed in coconut shreds to thicken it up. By the way, I found the best shredded coconut! It's from a really neat little company right beside me (on Vancouver Island) called Harmonic Arts. They have the most amazing tea blends too, and many of their products are wild-harvested. Everything is organic.

WIN SOME RAW VEGAN HAIR CARE PRODUCTS!

Yo yo! Great news for you, my sexy people: one of my fave body care companies, Morrocco Method, is doing a giveaway for This Rawsome Vegan Life! You can win a box of their awesome shampoo! It's 100% cruelty-free and made with organic and wildcrafted ingredients. I love how rich it makes my hair feel, and it's super gentle and natural so it's a good option for those with sensitive hair. In fact, they were one of the first companies who ever contacted me for a product review. Check out that review here, but please ignore my ugly amateur photos and super grammatically incorrect prose... I was a newb, okay!? I still am, in so many ways. Anyways: this company is the bomb dot com, and their products are rad! Check 'em out and enter the giveaway below for your chance to win some top quality hair care products. x

UPDATE: congrats to Craig in the US who the won the shampoo gift set!

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HOT CACAO with CINNAMON, COCONUT + DATES

Fall is upon us and nothing feels more appropriate when I finally get home after these busy, rainy days than a big ole mug of hot chocolate. Make that raw, vegan and super easy to make and you got me head over heels in love with it. I wonder if Freud would have something to say about how frequently I compare my food to romantic lovers. Just a moment ago I was telling my dinner (homemade green curry with baked eggplant, greens and Israeli couscous) that I was seriously considering leaving Jack in order to go steady with the curry. I regularly kiss and hug my fruits and veggies before eating them, and at any hour of the day if you entered my brain you would notice countless love signals being transmitted to the nearest edible plant. I thought I wanted to marry my record player, but when it comes down to it, my ideal spouse might be an avocado. Or mango. Dammit. Is fruit polygamy legal? 

I JUST LOVE MY FOOD SO MUCH. 

MACAROONS with BEET, CHOCOLATE and COCONUT CREAMS

 #ZOMG. What CAN'T the plant kingdom give us!? Some people think a plant-based diet is restrictive and depriving but seriously... as a self-proclaimed herbivore I eat twice as much as everyone around me, my food is always more colourful and - in my humble opinion - loads tastier. Now, if you aren't a plant lover, I ain't judgin'. I love you long time no matter what you choose to put in your mouth. But at the same time, if you wanna discover the most nourishing, eco-friendly, ethical, DELICIOUS diet around? Just eat more fruits and veggies. No need for labels like vegan or vegetarian - it doesn't matter. What DOES matter is your happiness.