There are a million food blogs out there, and I was hoping you might have some recommendations for other vegan/vegetarian food blogs? The vegetarian life is just something I’m getting back in to after a 5 year hiatus, and it will be so much easier now with food blogs everywhere!

Hey Sayward!
First I really just LOVE your site.. So informative and creative! My thought for you this week is Christmas. I know its a little bit far away to be thinking about it- but since I’m planning on once again making all of my gifts I have to start soon! Usually I make homemade biscotti and for the kids in the family- last year I made sock monkeys- which was a lot of fun. I’m looking for new ideas for the kids who are 5 and under, and a creative way to wrap the biscotti- preferably something that I can recycle. Of course any gift ideas would be appreciated!

This is not really relevant to… well, anything, BUT!

I brought my basil indoors, because it’s been getting cold! But my basil is getting kind of old and woody, so I decided to try to take clippings and put ‘em in jars to see if they made roots! THEY DID! I planted them in some dirt yesterday, and they don’t look dead yet! WOO BASIL IN THE WINTER.

It’s too cold my my window though, and I don’t have a south facing window in my apartment, so I keep a florescent desk lamp on my indoor basil at night, which is what I did when I started things from seed in the spring. Someday maybe I’ll invest in a fancy plant lamp.

BASIL!

(to be honest, I’m not even the hugest basil fan, I just make pesto to make my husband happy. But growing stuff is always cool)

I’m a 4 year veg*n, considering transitioning to veganism. My biggest reservation is my enamoration for cheese. That’s right, I’m a hardcore cheese-aholic. Feta, brie, camembert, gouda, havarti, … !!!

My question for you:

How does a vegan satiate their cheese-tooth?

Hi,
I just found your blog and want to say how much I love it. So well rounded with the recipes, DIYs and follow-a-longs. I adore this blog.
I second the christmas present idea. Im planning on knitting all of my presents but I am looking for other easy ideas.
Also, just a thought, but those tires that you grow the potatoes in might not be good because tires have lead in them.
love annie

@ Erin – Yes! My favorites are:
Vegan Yum Yum
Vegan Dad
Fatfree Vegan Kitchen
Bittersweet

Welcome back, and good luck!

@ Crystal – Hmm, under 5 is a bit of a catch, that makes it harder!

Well, I love gifting these homemade tea bags. If you think the kids are tea-drinkers, then you could come up with a fun kid-friendly herbal blend (something sweet and fruity? definitely something with a fun name) and make some of those. Another think I’ve done is make pillows out of old clothes. I’ve used cotton jersey tea-shorts but also super-soft sweaters like cashmere (in my pre-vegan days). You could make the kids some DIY custom pillows, and then embroider their names or a cute picture or funny message on them. Or what about getting some old picture frames from a thrift store, and then painting and decorating them? Hmm, those are the first things I can think of offhand, but ‘ll brainstorm. I need to get started on the gift posts, don’t I??!

As far as green wrapping, I think mason jars can actually be quite cute (especially for biscotti!). They’re practical and re-usable, and have a sort of simple old fashioned romanticism. Add a little ribbon and some stickers or glitter, and voila! Another option for baked goods is parchment paper, ties up with pretty string. Again, it’s simple and old-fashioned and I think it’s just lovely. Another option is using fabric, which can then be reused. Or you could make a bunch of pretty fabric draw-string bags, that are either returned to you for re-use, or kept by the recipient to use however they please.

Good luck! Let me know if you come up with any ideas!

@ Meghan – Oh wow! I didn’t realize you could do that with basil, that’s SO awesome! I have a basil plant in my kitchen but he’s looking rather frail. Maybe I’ll try to get some new starts out of him. That’s such a great thing to know, thank you!

And I’m with your husband – mmmmm, pesto . . .

@ April – I ain’t gonna lie, its not easy. Cheese is the hardest thing to ‘replace’, so I think most vegans just learn to live without. It’s like any addictive substance (and it is truly addictive, due to the casomorphin), where you just have to power through the withdrawal. Once you get past that point, you don’t miss it as much, and eventually it ceases to be appealing.

There are other substances that fill in the hole – hummus seems to be a big one for many vegans. But with that said, I just tried a brand new product called Daiya, and it’s the most amazing, cheesiest, melt-in-your-mouthiest vegan cheese I’ve ever tried. I’d pretty much given up on vegan cheeses ever *really* getting that flavor and feeling right, but Daiya sort of blew my mind. So there is hope! Food science is pretty amazing! (but of course, like real cheese, not the healthiest thing in the world for you)

@ Annie – Aw, thank you! For gift ideas of love the href=”http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/2009/05/home-made-tea-bags-2/”>homemade tea bags, and I also love canning projects. Last year my husband and I made jams, syrups, and sauces as all of our holiday gifts. They were awesome! I’m also looking into homemade candles and a couple of other projects.

I’ll be posting some tutorials in the next few weeks, so keep a look out. The holidays are coming up fast!

Say, I have an awesome story. We went out for breakfast yesterday and the waitress brought us a little cup of yogurt and bananas to feed Kaya while we waited for our food. We thanked her but declined, telling her that we feed Kaya a vegan diet. After our meal, the waitress brought us a note, telling us that the man at the table beside us had paid our bill. The note said “You’re doing a great thing. The world needs more ethical parents like yourselves. Cheers!”. Awww…I’m tearing up thinking about it! Yay for generous, anonymous vegans!

I’d love to read and see more about the townhouse. Is HQ as swank and down-to-earth sophisticated as it’s inhabitants?

@ Julie – Wow, that’s unbelievable! Yay generous vegans!

@ Nathan – I’d love to post more about HQ! Any ideas of the kinds of things you’d like to read about?

That question is open to anyone . . .