Gift Cards from Local Los Angeles/Orange County Restaurants

Veggie Grill (Vegetarian) *My favorite restaurant*
Native Foods (Vegan)
Real Food Daily (Vegan)
Urth Cafe (Organic)

The Cranky One’s Top Stocking Stuffer Choices

Text Mug from Pier One here, pictured below ($7)

Coffee Stencils Plastic Designs 4 Piece Set ($3.99)
Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar: 100 Dairy-Free Recipes for Everyone’s Favorite Treats ($12.21)
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule ($10.85)
Hot Cinnamon Sunset, 20 Sachets in tin by Harney & Sons ($8.00)
Magnetic Kitchen Timer from Pier One ($8.00)
Mixed c.d. or iTunes Gift Card — Every person who exercises is re-fueled by new music!

The Cranky One’s Top Gifts Under $10

The 100 Best Vegan Baking Recipes: Amazing Cookies, Cakes, Muffins, Pies, Brownies and Breads ($9.32)
Candy Cane Dip Bowl from Pier One ($8)
Gingerbread House Candles from Pier One ($8)
“Eat” Wall Art Pier One ($9.98 clearance)
Hungry Girl Chew the Right Thing: Supreme Makeovers for 50 Foods You Crave ($9.97)
Stove Salt and Pepper Shaker from Pier One ($10.00)
Baker’s Secret Basics Nonstick 24-Cup Muffin Pan ($9.99)
“Love” Coasters from Pier One ($3.68 on clearance)
See all of Pier One’s “Under $10″ here

The Cranky One’s Top Gifts Under $20

“Don’t Blog Me” poster found here, and pictured below ($10.99 for a 12″ x 18″ print)

No Pudge! Original Fat Free Fudge Brownie Mix, 13.7 Ounce Boxes (Pack of 6) — ($17.08 for 6-pack, so divide amongst friends or use as stocking stuffers!)
Animal Kitchen Accessories from Target (Prices range)
Slice Solutions 9 x 9 Inch Brownie Pan Set ($18.58)
Italian Herb Garden Kit ($10.99)
Photo Coasters from Pier One ($16.95)

The Cranky One’s Top Gifts Under $50

Sanyo HPS-SG3 200-Square-Inch Electric Indoor Barbeque Grill, Black ($39.99)
Cuisinart GR-1 Griddler Panini and Sandwich Press ($49.99)
Fit Fruit & Vegetable Wash, Combo Pack, 7.5 Pound Box ($21.52)
Zoku Quick Pop Maker - Makes Fruit Popsicles ($49.95)
World Cuisine Tri-Blade Plastic Spiral Vegetable Slicer ($30.43)
Flower and Leaf Condiment Serving Set from Pier One ($29.95)

The Cranky One’s If You Have a Suga’ Daddy or Momma Option
Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor ($169.99)
De Buyer Pro V Mandoline with 5 blades and Stainless Steel Pusher ($209.95)
Wii Fit ($119.95)
Joyoung CTS1048 Automatic Hot Soy Milk Maker ($99.00)
Nesco American Harvest FD-61WHC Snackmaster Express Food Dehydrator All-In-One Kit with Jerky Gun ($80.87)

Cool Online Stores for Gifts/Gift Certificates

Vitalicious
Holey Donuts
MixMyGranola
Peanut Butter & Co.

Don’t forget my Stuff Health-Conscious People Like list here

What are you hoping for this holiday season? (Spare me the “world peace” answer – we’re talking tangibles here!   What are you giving?

<3, The Cranky One

All I want for Christmas is my sanity back.

<3, The Cranky One

Hey guys! It’s been a while, eh? I’ve been having major blog withdrawals, but have made the sage choice to take a little break while I finish up this semester. Basically, I’ve been barricaded in my room, which isn’t too bad considering my room is a haven of distractions :/ (actually, maybe that IS a bad thing!).  You know you’re a grad student when your idea of “dressing up” is putting on silly socks…

That’s pretty much what I’ve looked like the past few days — oversized t-shirt, work-out shorts, Beetlejuice socks and some sort of food making its way into my oversized mouth.  Can’t lie — while I’ve certainly been working out my jaw with all the chewing I’ve been doing, that’s pretty much the extent of exercise I’ve done.  Oh wait, I’ve exercised my little brain.  That should count!  Right? Can I get an “amen”?!

Annnnnnnnyway, I wanted to share a few neat things with you before I hibernate yet again.  The first is a cool stocking stuffer idea (or just get one for yourself – they’re neato!):

Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Nibs — These little tin cans pack tons of chocolate yumminess and 140 calories

You can compare them to Sweet Riot’s EXACT same 140 calorie tin (hey, imitation is flattery, right?). I first wrote about Sweet Riot here.

The main difference is that Sweet Riot has more flavors, however, isn’t as widely accessible as Trader Joe’s products. I couldn’t find Sweet Riot products sold near me and found I’d have to pay too much in shipping to get them, so this is great news that I can I go to TJ’s and get my fix!  These would be perfect stocking stuffers!

Thanks go to Hungry Girl’s newsletter for the product news!

Another cool thing?  Trader Joe’s Deep, Dark Gingerbread Cake & Baking Mix

Remember when I wrote here that the gingerbread men were following me?  Well now they can follow me right on over to my own oven, ‘cuz I’m in love with this mix.  All you do is add an egg, some vegetable oil and water and presto –  Thick, gooey cake/bread!  It has the perfect texture and taste to satisfy your gingerbread craving! It tastes much better than store-bought since it has quality ingredients and comes out of the oven warm and fresh!  You can have a ninth of the pan for 230 calories, which isn’t bad at all since a ninth of the pan is the size of my head (ok, not really because I have an abnormally large head, but it is a big slice, so you don’t feel like you’re being gipped like you would if you tried to satisfy your craving with a little 1 point Weight Watcher gingerbread cookie, just sayin’!).

Case in point:

Alright guys, wish me luck.  I’ve got 8 pages down on one paper and 7 more pages to go before I begin my next paper.  All this term paper stuff is really putting a damper on my holiday spirit! bah!  For all you cool kids who actually get to enjoy this time of year, what are you up to?  What are your plans for the season? Who wants to come visit me and remind me there is life outside my bubble?

<3, The Cranky One

p.s. If you’re sick like me, you’ll find Alternet’s list of Top 6 Weirdest, Scariest Processed Foods fascinating!