One word sums up how I felt when the beautiful box of Inspired Cookies arrived …

Seriously, I was thoroughly impressed by the delightful packaging, a tall rectangular canister that held over a dozen of these sizable, thick, and soft cookies … each one completely vegan (dairy-free and egg-free) and gluten-free. They also appeared to be free from refined sugars AND soy-free, though the ones with chocolate chunks may house some lecithin (ingredients are viewable on The Inspired Cookie Website).

Join Kids with Food Allergies (KFA) on Sunday, September 13th 2009, for a fun day! The event is being held at the Whole Foods Market in North Wales, PA, rain or shine, from noon to 3:00 p.m. (registration starts at 11:30).

Visitors will enjoy free admission, an outdoor concert by children's entertainer Kyle Dine, Master Magician Rob Marissa, 25 Allergy-Friendly businesses displaying their items and handing out samples, and a  $5.00 off a $25.00 purchase coupon from Whole Foods. In addition, there will be a children's Dance-a-thon to help raise funds for KFA. Enjoy the opportunity to connect with other families in the community who have children with food allergies. From more information, see the KFA annual expo page.

For years my husband has picked through stir fries leaving a pile of carrots neatly on the side of his plate, which I eventually end up nabbing with my chopsticks to avoid any waste (okay, I love carrots, so I really don't mind). But, when I made the outright statement that he doesn't like carrots, he eminently denied it. He claimed that most carrots just weren't good quality. The ones that we have had in some finer restaurants are much sweeter ... those, he likes.

Perplexed as to what the difference could be (after I had trialed organic, conventional, AND local carrots) I went online and discovered a little secret. Don't ask me where I found it, as I merely committed the idea to memory, but it seems many chefs will sweeten the pot a bit with just a wee bit of sugar to bring out the natural sweetness in carrots without going overboard and creating a glaze. So with this new-to-me concept and a 5-spice craving, I cranked on the oven, and threw together an easy yet flavorful side dish of Sweet Roasted Five-Spice Carrots. Though my husband wasn't elated at first to see a big pile of carrots on his plate, he gladly devoured every last morsel! View the recipe on my personal blog, One Frugal Foodie.

Always on the cutting edge in the hemp world, Manitoba Harvest has released the world’s first 100% water soluble hemp protein concentrate. So what does this mean? You know how hemp powders tend to lend a slightly gritty or sandy taste to smoothies, and how you can’t simply blend them with water for a quick protein boost or recovery drink? Well Hemp Pro 70 is here to solve those issues.

But, that isn’t to say there isn’t a place in this world for all of the hemp protein powders. In fact, I had the opportunity to taste-test and compare the entire Manitoba Harvest hemp protein powder line (ooh, with the exception of the dark chocolate and vanilla flavored ones … must find!), and I was quite surprised at the different tastes and virtues they each possessed. They are all pretty basic, made simply from hemp seeds, but as you can see by looking at the pictures, these are completely different products …

It is a vegan themed giveaway today on Go Dairy Free and One Frugal Foodie, though you need not be vegan to enjoy these dairy-free, egg-free, animal-free gems!

I reviewed Vegan Soul Kitchen personally, and I must say I have thoroughly enjoyed it. You can read my full review here, but really, I am still making my way through this highly creative book of easy recipes (yes I said creative and easy!). Bryant Terry put so much energy and thought into Vegan Soul Kitchen; it really is amazing. I have just cracked open Vegan Brunch , so I will defer you to my good friend Sarena’s review of the latest cookbook by the famed Isa Moskowitz. Sarena has seriously put Vegan Brunch to the test, so you can take her word for it that it is good!

As for the giveaway ... one lucky winnter will win a copy of both of these books! Even if you already have one, you probably know that they will make a great holiday gift, so feel free to enter. The winner will be selected on September 14th, so hurry over and comment to win on the One Frugal Foodie Giveaway Post.