Earth Dakota Boots

So I snagged a pair of Earth Dakota boots online. They are, I believe, from last year's (or was it this year's??) lineup and if you can still find these on sites, you'll see a very limited sizing selection.


I've never tried an Earth shoe before. Other than seeing them in certain Whole Foods stores, I'd never even given them more than a fleeting glance. Then, out of the blue, I thought I would look into them. I found these on eBay and oh boy... they are flat out awesome. They are super comfy and really keep my feet warm. Plus, they are waterproof and are lined with Thinsulate, the same material used in snow gear, i.e. jackets, pants, gloves, etc.

I don't really know what came over me, other than a sudden bout of shopaholic syndrome, because I started looking into whatever vegan boots Earth offered. The only other boots that their site (http://www.earthfootwear.com/) had that caught my eye were the Brighton model (which I ended up buying, too!), so I started looking into older models, which required some extra research. Certain Mirage and Lodge boots were also offered vegan, but those are also older models, so good luck finding them...

In closing, I absolutely love my Dakotas and am glad that I looked into Earth footwear. I got these on a whim... and ended up buying two more in the process.

~Find your Earth Dakotas on eBay here

Gravy Woes

Well, I had 4 packs of brown gravy but used them all up. Just when I needed gravy the most, I couldn't seem to find a single vegan version anywhere. I checked Safeway (which has vegan gravy mix in some of their stores), Raley's (which is where I *thought* I had found those 4 packs -- guess not!) and Whole Foods (ya think they, of all stores, would have it). I didn't even bother with Trader Joe's because I pretty much know their entire vegan inventory by heart :p

So, I resorted to the Au Jus version, which is more watered down. In fact, it could even be used as a broth. Although very flavorful, I needed to add about 4 tablespoons of cornstarch to thicken it up some. It did make it slightly thicker, but it was still pretty watery. It did the trick!

Next time I find those packs again, I think I'll stock up with a whole caseful.

Happy late Thanksgiving!