We’ve got tips for vegan gifting and vegan recipe hacks to help you navigate your hectic holiday season!
Raise your hand if one of these applies to you: a) you’re vegan b) you’re starting a vegan diet for the holidays or c) you’re shopping or cooking for some beloved vegan friends and family this holiday season. Chances are that at least one of these applies to you, and as a vegan-friendly, cruelty-free certified brand, trust us: we get that there are plenty of shopping struggles that come with the vegan lifestyle!
Don’t fret just yet: we’ve picked through our favorite holiday gifts and have compiled a shopping list to make your life just a little bit easier this holiday season. While all of our products are totally vegetarian skin care, body care, hair care, or vegetarian cosmetics, quite a large percentage are also vegan! So don’t stress just yet if you’re looking for the perfect lip color to wear to a holiday party, or if you want to pass the vegan love onto a pal this holiday season -- we’re here to help!
In addition to struggling with vegan holiday shopping, chances are that enjoying the eating marathons at traditional holiday get-togethers can be a bit of a let-down if you’re avoiding eating any animal products. Instead of piling on the sides and standing in line for a slice of sweet and aromatic pumpkin pie, you’re probably stuck choosing between a) salad or b) salad to pile onto your plate.
Vegan Gift Ideas
If you’ve already perused our 2017 Holiday Gift Guide but are gifting for a vegan friend or family member, we’ll save you from clicking through to find the right set! Don’t see what you need here? Try our collection of natural vegan beauty for some tried and true vegan makeup favorites.
Check out our fave vegan gifts for under $20:
Butter Soaps
Choose from any of our natural vegan bar soaps for a perfect stocking stuffer or add-on to a larger gift. Our skin softening Butter Soap bars are divinely scented with fruit extracts and essential oils, and free of animal lard or tallow; instead we use supple plant sources of shea butter and coconut oil!
Lip Butters
These tinted natural vegan lip balms are perfect purse or desk accessories, and are made with avocado, shea, and cocoa butters, not beeswax, for vegan lips.
Bright Eyes Mask
A perfect daily spa treatment for tired eyes, our Bright Eyes Mask is made from plant cellulose, aloe juice, plant extracts, and caffeine for soothing and depuffing.
Check out our fave vegan gifts for under $50:
Sugar & Spice
This exclusive natural vegan lipstick duo is the perfect gift for a fruit pigmented® makeup loving pal! Featuring a warm, chocolatey nude brown Cocoa Butter Matte Lipstick and a cool, deep wine colored Pomegranate Lipstick.
Gift From Australia
A natural vegan body care gift set that includes a whipped body butter, shower gel, and hand cream laced with ultra soothing essential oils of eucalyptus and peppermint.
Vegan Holiday Dessert Hacks
We’re not saying you should trick your non-vegan friends and family with a traditional holiday recipe vegan hack... we’re just saying it’s easier than you think! Animal ingredients have a way of sneaking by unnoticed in common holiday foods, so if you’re trying to avoid animal ingredients you’ll have to adjust your holiday food shopping accordingly. We’ve targeted a few delicious vegan holiday dessert hacks for your using pleasure!
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
The dessert that started it all: PSL’s and endless spin offs of culinary pumpkin madness. Nutmeg, clove, and cinnamon lead the flavor profile in this festive pie, joined by the earthy fruit flavor of pure pumpkin. Did we mention that buttery, flakey crust?!
This holiday staple might be a fan favorite and the objective of endless fall trends, but isn’t often vegan-friendly. You’ll find that egg, milk, and even honey dominate the landscape in most pumpkin pie recipes; fear not, there are plenty of vegan pumpkin pie hacks! Want to avoid butter in your recipe, but still want a rich, flakey crust? Swap for coconut oil! No eggs to bind your filling? Use almond flour instead! No milk to fatten and sweeten your filling? Use pure coconut cream (thick coconut milk), and amp up the flavor with pure maple syrup. Maple will also be a fitting substitution for honey if you’re looking to go vegan, but still hope to enjoy rich sweetness in your pie.
Spiced Apple Chia Pudding
Recipe prep doesn’t get easier than chia pudding (no, seriously), and the bonus is that you’re packing in omega fatty and alpha linolenic acids that are great for skin and internal health (don’t believe us? Try our skin plumping Hydra Drench Cream made with chia seed gel). The 3 basic steps of making a delicious chia pudding? Whisk, pour, and chill. That’s it!
We’re packing in the skin and health benefits with this super easy recipe, while putting classic holiday flavors front and center. To start the base of your chia pudding, take rinsed and dried chia, then add vanilla coconut milk. Add pure maple syrup and cinnamon for sweetness and depth of flavor; whisk until smooth and refrigerate in an airtight container. After your chia pudding has set (normally overnight is best), add a splash of coconut oil to a pan and saute diced apples until tender, then add a pinch of cornstarch to thicken and classic chai spices like cardamom, cinnamon, and clove for flavor. After allowing apples to cool a bit, add to the top of your chia pudding and serve!
Cranberry Citrus Sauce
While cranberry sauce serves as a bright and tart compliment to any dessert (oh hello, vanilla coconut ice cream), we’re betting you’re aware of its impressive moonlighting gig as a side to savory dishes. Try this slathered over a vegan holiday roast to compliment salty and savory notes, and to bring out the aromatics from thyme, rosemary, and sage.
Want a cranberry sauce option that’s actually vegan? You’ll need to watch out for gelatin (boiled animal skin, bones, and connective tissue used to thicken the cranberry sauce or ‘jelly’) and honey (used as a sweetener). You can dodge those ingredients via extra careful shopping, or you can get into the holiday spirit and make your own!
PRO TIP: Bring the brightness by adding zested, finely chopped orange peel. If you want to get really fancy, try adding a few tablespoons of cinnamon-seasoned, unsweetened applesauce.
Start with fresh cranberries, water, and sugar; we like to use pure maple sugar to amp up the holiday flavor! In a saucepan, add citrus zest and spiced apple sauce to ingredients, then boil your cranberries until they begin to burst. Remove from heat and allow to chill, covered, in your fridge overnight; the sauce will continue to thicken and emulsify.
Want to learn more about vegan offerings from 100% PURE? Check out our newest line of natural vegan lip liners, our blog on how to choose the best vegan eye cream for you, and get a history lesson on our collection of vegan, fruit pigmented® cosmetics --- all from our 100% PURE Beauty Blog!
- Tags: Living, November-2017
We carefully hand-select products based on strict purity standards, and only recommend products we feel meet this criteria. 100% PURE™ may earn a small commission for products purchased through affiliate links.
The information in this article is for educational use, and not intended to substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should not be used as such.
