Sprouts Farmers Market's 2017 Seasonal Pumpkin Items

Remember when I tried the new Daiya Pumpkin Spice Cheezecake way back in March at the Natural Foods Expo? Ever since then I have been dreaming about getting my claws on this yummy treat this pumpkin season. My dreams have finally turned into reality as Sprouts Farmers Market has this delectable vegan cheesecake, as well as many other pumpkin items to get excited about!

When I visited yesterday they had just started stocking their endcaps with pumpkin goodies, so I expect a lot more to pop up in the next couple of weeks. I found a lot of items that were vegan while I was scoping out their offerings, check them out below!

10 Vegan Candies for Trick or Treaters

It seems that every year we get new vegan treats and more and more companies are offering cruelty-free sweets for Halloween, hurrah!! This is great for those of us that have a sweet tooth and want to enjoy vegan goodies around Halloween! And even if you aren't vegan, it is a good idea to hand out vegan treats since so many trick or treaters have allergies and I'm sure they would be stoked to receive treats they can actually enjoy!

Food Review: Pure Genius Brownies and Blondies

Pure Genius Provisions kindly sent me some of their brownie and blondie bars to try, and I'm pretty much blown away by how delicious these are! They come in cute little individually wrapped squares and are made mostly with garbanzo beans, making them surprisingly healthy! Don't worry though, they don't taste like beans - just pure indulgent goodness!

These desserts are not only vegan, but they are also gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, and kosher. Pure Genius is also in process of becoming non-GMO certified, so you can soon add organic ingredients to their long list of positive attributes! Additionally, they are only made with natural, good-for-you ingredients like the previously mentioned garbanzo beans, maple syrup, flax, oats, cane syrup, chocolate, and so on - no weird, unpronounceable ingredients here!

Food Review: New Grounds Food's CoffeeBars

When I was offered a chance to try three different flavors of the energy snack CoffeeBar made by New Grounds Food, which boasts "a cup of coffee in every bar!" I was intrigued. As a coffee drinker, I had to know more about a healthy energy bar that also doubled as a caffeine pick-me-up! Plus, all their bars are made with fair-trade coffee, and are organic, non-GMO, vegan, and gluten-free. and come in three yummy flavors - Mocha Latte, Coconut Mocha, and Caramel Macchiato. Yes, please give me ALL your CoffeeBars!

Two college students, Johnny and Ali (who you can see in the first photo above), came up with the concept for CoffeeBar. Their mission is emblazoned on the back of every CoffeeBar and says:"Starting out in our college dorm room, we were two freshmen who wanted a simpler way to stay energized, without sacrificing nutrition. We promise this delicious, edible coffee will give you the natural, on-the-go energy you need to keep on exploring!"

Top 10 Vegan Products at Natural Products Expo West 2016

This past weekend I attended the Natural Products Expo West at the Anaheim Convention Center to scope out all the new vegan goodies coming out this year! I attended last year (check out my report!) and the year before (read all about it here), and every year has gotten bigger and bigger, with each show having more and more vegan options!

This year I was only able to attend for one day, but I tried to visit as many vegan and vegan-friendly booths as possible. It was fun seeing so many old favorites, seeing new vegan food items, and visiting with many of my favorite vegan people and companies! Though I had a whirlwind day, I feel like I covered a lot of ground in eight hours on the show floors and can bring you my top 10 favorite vegan food products from the Expo, plus some honorable mentions.

Food Review: Nature's Bakery Pumpkin Spice Fig Bars

These delightful limited-edition pumpkin spice snacks by Nature's Bakery are like a healthier version of Fig Newtons! They come individually wrapped in convenient twin packs that are perfect for grabbing on the go. Each pack contains two bars that are slightly bigger than Fig Newton size. These would also make great treats to hand out on Halloween night!

Food Review: Laughing Giraffe Organics' Pumpkin Spice Snakaroons

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I found Laughing Giraffe Organics' Pumpkin Spice Snakaroons in my local Sprouts' grocery store (check out my other pumpkin finds HERE!), along with the rest of their pumpkin products. This was a new item for me, and I was super excited to try it! The Snakaroons are macraoons, and they are delightful mounds of coconut and pumpkin spicy goodness! They are also vegan, raw, gluten-free, non-GMO, and certified organic.

The Snakaroons are made with simple, natural ingredients, with no preservatives added. Their nutrient-rich and power-packed ingredients include coconut, pumpkin puree and seeds, vanilla extract, coconut oil, lemon juice, and spices.

Food Review: NII Bars

Last month at the Natural Foods Expo West (check out my coverage here!), I was fortunate enough to stop by the NII Bars booth, where I got to sample their vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, and non-GMO verified nutrient-dense organic food bars!

While I sat there stuffing my face with all the flavors they had to offer, their founder Shanais Pelka told me all about her vision and her company. As a mom and nutritionist, Pelka was always looking for a quick and healthy to-go meal for herself and her kids. She didn't want to sacrifice nutrition for convenience, so she spent lots of time experimenting to create the perfect food bar. The end result is the NII Bar, which comes in five scrumptious flavors!

Food Review: Setton Farms' Pistachio Chewy Bites

There were so many products and companies at the Natural Products Expo I attended a few weekends ago (you can read about my coverage of the event here), it was just impossible to see them all! Which is why I am eternally grateful to companies that go out of their way to send me products to review if I missed them at Expo.

Setton Farms is one such booth I missed at Expo, so I was thrilled to receive their Pistachio Chewy Bites to try! With everything going on I didn't have a chance to write about these delectable little snacks until now, though they have been the perfect healthy, to-go snack for these insane last couple of weeks!

Food Review: Eat Nākd Bars

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I have been drooling over Natural Balance Foods' Eat Nākd bars ever since my UK friends started snacking on these yummy raw fruit and nut bars! So far they have been out of reach as they weren't previously available in the US, but that is about to change! Right now, US residents can order Eat Nākd bars online and in 2015 the delectable bars should start popping up in stores here in the USA! We will finally be able to get our hands on these all-natural, raw, vegan, gluten- and wheat-free bars!

Power to the Veg Vegan Swap

All the goodies I received in my first vegan swap box!

Recently through the astounding community of amazing vegans on Instagram (my user name is thespookyvegan if you want to look me up) I was introduced to a veggie group on Facebook called Power to the Veg that organizes and hosts a monthly vegan swap. I love mailing people goodies (and of course receiving goodies in the mail!) so I couldn't wait to join this fun swap!

It works like this: You join the group and each month you can sign up to participate in the swap. If you sign up, you are matched with a fellow vegan and are responsible for buying them $20 worth of vegan goodies (anything from non-perishable food items to beauty supplies to handmade items) and shipping them by the 15th of the month. In return, you receive a vegan box curated by someone else in the group. How cool is that? It sounded like so much fun I decided to participate in April.

Once I received the name of the person I would be buying for, I reached out to them to find out their preferences and allergies. Then I went shopping! I visited Viva La Vegan all-vegan grocery store in Rancho Cucamonga (read about my visit HERE) to pick up a few hard-to-find items and the rest of the goodies I picked up at my local Mother’s Market. I had so much fun shopping for my match! I bought vegan lip balm, vegan soap, a patch with a vegan bunny on it and tons of snacks for her. I shipped off my package via USPS Priority Flat Rate for under $10 and she received it a few days later.

I received my package from my match a few days later…it was like Christmas! Though my match lives in Southern California like me, she managed to find items I hadn't tried before. As you can see above, I was a very lucky girl to get such a kick ass swap box my first time! I got lots of simmer sauces, kale chips, pomegranate chips, popcorn, candy, bars, drink mixes, protein shake mix, a cute card and even an adorable little owl clip!

This vegan swap was so much fun, even though I already receive a monthly box from Vegan Cuts. There is just something so special and unique in getting a unique vegan package that is specially made for you…it’s like getting a care package from a friend or family member! Plus you get to try vegan products from other places and new items you may not have tried yet.

Have you tried a vegan swap before or done one with friends?

Would you like to? If so, you can find Power to the Veg on Facebook! If you join by the 5th of the month you will be eligible to join in the swapping fun for that month!

Food Review: Barre Bar - Ballerina Spirulina

In my vegan Conscious Box last month I received a rather intriguing-looking food bar called Barre, which is marketed as “a real food bar developed by two professional dancers (made with whole foods for real athletes)”. To be honest, I was sold on the cute name of the particular bar I received, which was “Ballerina Spirulina”!

I have always wanted to try spirulina, a superfood packed with awesome nutrients, so I figured this bar was a good start! I had it for breakfast during a hectic work morning in hopes that the natural and good for you ingredients would power me through ‘til lunch.

I was struck by the purity of the ingredients, which included dates, walnuts, agave, hemp seed, rolled oats, hemp protein, ground flax seed, coconut flakes, brown rice protein, spirulina, vanilla, sea salt and peanuts! No weird unpronounceable ingredients here and it contains all whole food ingredients, no refined sugars and is high in omega-3s.

The initial taste of the bar was pretty good, and it had a nutty, slightly coconut-like taste. However, the spirulina aftertaste was a little too strong for my liking, especially since I had never had spirulina before and wasn't quite sure what to expect! Although the aftertaste was a bit off-putting, I finished the whole bar and it actually filled me up and kept me full until lunch (about 3 – 3.5 hours). I usually have Luna or Larabars, and while I love them both, they usually don’t keep me full all morning. I gotta give props to the Barre bar for keeping me going through a busy morning!

The nutritional value of the bar is pretty impressive. One bar contains 210 calories, 11 grams of total fat (1 gram saturated fat and 0 grams trans fat) and 25 grams of carbohydrates, with 4 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein. I also liked how the bar incorporates hemp, flax, oats, brown rice protein and spirulina along with the nuts and coconut, making it nutritious and wholesome.

If spirulina isn't your bag (and I’m not sure it is mine), there are other flavors to try, like Black Swan Chocolate Berry and Pirouette Cinnamon Pecan (dying to try that one!). I would definitely buy the Barre Bar again (just maybe not in the Ballerina Spirulina flavor) and recommend it for its whole food ingredients and how long it keeps you full and satisfied.

Find more info at realfoodbarre.com!

Lollihop Snack Box Review

Last month I signed up for the coolest thing I had ever heard of...Lollihop, which is a monthly subscription of SNACKS!! That's right, every month you are sent a new box of tasty snacks! And these aren't your everyday run-of-the-mill snacks, either. The snacks included in each box are handpicked, organic and healthy! Plus, they also have an option for a vegan snack box! Woo hoo!!

My Lollihop haul!

 Of course I immediately signed up because that sounded like all kinds of heaven to me!

This past week, I received my very first Lollihop box! Unfortunately, I learned this will also be my last snack shipment for a while as the company is pausing memberships so they can make improvements to their service. Maybe it's just my snack exhilaration talking here, but I think these boxes are super-cool as-is!

 The cute Lollihop box :D

Here is what was included in my vegan subscription snack box:

• Two Degrees Bar - Cherry Almond flavor
• Larabar - Cherry flavor
• Pure Organic Bar - Wild Blueberry flavor
• Flamous Falafel Chips - Original flavor
• Beanfields Bean and Rice Chips - Sea Salt flavor
• Late July Organic Chips - Sea Salt by the Seashore flavor
• Go Raw Original Super Cookies
• Gourmet Inka Corn - Original Flavor

The first thing I tried was the Go Raw Original Super Cookies. Made out of organic coconut, sprouted sesame seeds and organic dates (yup, that's it!) these were subtly sweet and had a slight crunch. I only needed a few and they satisfied my sweet tooth! And they were a whole lot healthier than the junk food I usually eat!

I also had the Two Degrees Bar in Cherry Almond, which intrigued me because it is made out of quinoa, chia and millet. It had huge chunks of dried cherries that gave it a tart flavor plus the crisp rice, quinoa, chia and millet gave it a nice crunch! I really liked this bar and I could totally see myself buying more in the future.

Beanfields Bean and Rice Chips in Sea Salt called to me next. These were surprisingly light and crispy, though I didn't get much sea salt flavor in these. However, they were quite tasty and I especially like that they boast that a one-ounce serving has 4 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber—twice as much as most other tortilla chips, corn chips, or potato chips. I can't wait to try these with some salsa or dip!

The Inka Corn tasted just like the Corn Nuts from my childhood, but the puffs of corn were much bigger and they definitely didn't feel as greasy! Win-win! These were a great treat!

I already know I love Larabars (in any flavor), but I can't wait to try the rest of my snacks! And I certainly hope Lollihop opens up membership again and that they keep their vegan snack box option intact. This snack box subscription is genius and I can't wait to try more exciting new vegan snacks!

To learn more about Lollihop, sign up for their mailing list for updates!

Fiendish Find: Peanut Butter and Jelly LÄRABAR

OMG!

I JUST tried LÄRABAR's PB&J bar and I think I'm in love!

I hadn't really tried too many flavors of LÄRABAR, but when I was shopping at Mother's Market the other day I saw they had a bunch of different flavors, so I decided to expand my repertoire. Wow, am I ever glad I did!