Aromatherapy Gift Set Candles

Set the mood for your romantic evening with these super cute beeswax candles!The gift sets scents are Harmony (Lavender & Geranium), Rapture (Patchouli & Cassia) and Sensuality (Palmarosa & Geranium). Talk about great combo right! Beeswax is a renewable resource that cleans the air by emitting purifying negative ions. Who knew right? BuyGreen.com – Your Trusted Source for great Valentine’s Gifts

Gerbera Daisies

I’m not a fan of roses but Organic Bouquet offers a wide array of beautiful bouquets to choose from. You can never go wrong with flowers on this awesome holiday. Organic Bouquet is the place to go if you do go the flower route. They harvest their flowers sustainably and even ship them greenly. Eco-Elegant Valentines Day Flowers & Gifts Starting At $29.95- OrganicBouquet.com!

Valentine's Ganache

Is there any better way to tell someone you love them then by giving them chocolate? I am pretty sure not! These beautifully hand panted chocolates are filled with super delish cherry puree, made from organic ingredients. Organic Bouquet never goes wrong with great eco-gifts!Free Gourmet Chocolates with Purchase of One Dozen Sweet Romance Roses! OrganicBouquet.com!

Organic Truffles & Sangria Lovebird

Ok jewelry and chocolate that is probably the winningest combo for a V-day gift ever! From War to Peace has packed up their amazing Peace Jewelry and combined it with organic truffles! Omg to die I say to die!! Get yours fast before the day of love is over!

Buffalo Shrimp Salad

Hot and Spicy are two of my fave words! Hot and spicy shrimp salad just makes my mouth water thinking about it! If you are a vegetarian you can substitute the shrimp for tofu or even tempeh.
I found this recipe on a list of Super Bowl party foods which I feel is a different but probably healthier choice from other options one would usually have on game day. I will say that this recipe would be good for parties (heck even dinner) and can be used for a multitude of different events from spring through summer depending on the event and theme, I’m just not sure how it would go over on game day but I could be wrong. The buffalo shrimp salad is quick, delish and could be a different take on what Super Bowl food can look like.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup low-fat organic buttermilk
1/2 cup organic sour cream
2 teaspoons organic apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons fresh organic parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons organic chives, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons organic garlic, minced
Sea Salt and fresh ground pepper
2 heads organic romaine lettuce, torn into pieces (4 cups)
2 cups organic carrots, grated
2 cups organic celery, sliced
1/2 cup organic scallions, sliced
2 tablespoons organic vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Brummel & Brown or organic butter
2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1/4 cup bottled buffalo-wing sauce or hot sauce

DIRECTIONS:
1. Combine buttermilk, sour cream, apple cider vinegar, parsley, chives and garlic in a bowl
2. Stir well and season with salt and pepper.
3. Chill for 30 minutes.
4. Toss lettuce, carrots, celery and scallions with buttermilk dressing in a large bowl.
5. Place in serving bowl.
6. Warm a large skillet over medium-high heat.
7. Add oil and butter.
8. When butter sizzles, add shrimp and cook, stirring, until opaque, about 4 minutes.
9. Add buffalo-wing sauce, stir to coat shrimp and cook 1 minute longer.
10. Pour shrimp and sauce over salad.

Valentine’s Day is around the corner and if you don’t have the time or confidence to up-cycle a gift for your lovie the least you can do is make your purchase responsible. Show how much you love your hunnie and our environment, kill two birds with one stone if you will (No actual birds should be hurt please and thank you). Here are some awesome deals from some even awesomer eco-fab places.

chocolate that makes a difference

Kirstie Alley Lost 100 Pounds at 60 using Organic Liaison

Your 2012 Fiber-Fix – High Fiber Gnu Bars!

NOW! BOGO on Crown Majesty Roses-A Customer Favorite! OrganicBouquet.com!Good Thru 1/27! Click Here!

Natural body care, cosmetics, skin care and more! Shop Ecco Bella today.

Coupon Code FOOD10 10% Off Healthy Dog and Cat Food

Free Shipping on the Sustainable Office Supply Sample Pack

Free Shipping on Orders over $100

Save 15% On Our Full Line of Personal Solar Chargers

Save $5 off Solar Glass Votives

Save 15% On Soji Solar Lanterns

Take an Additional 15% off Fair Trade Coffee Gift Baskets

Eco-Elegant Valentines Day Flowers & Gifts Starting At $29.95- OrganicBouquet.com!

Natural and Organic Apparel & Accessories

10% off The Eco Friendly Dollhouses
Save 10% On Organic Linens + Free Shipping
Save Over 10% On All Green Toys & Puzzles
Purchase The New Care Body Line Package For $29.95 And Get Free Shipping Plus A Free Gift

Kee-Ka has Free Shipping for orders $75 or more. Continental U.S. only.

Check out what Ecoist.com has for you for this Valentine’s Day

Great Natural Brands – Save up to 50% Right Now…!

Save 15% On Yoga Accessories
Save 10% off everything on the Valentine’s Day Gifts category with code LUVYA12. 1/25-2/8. Excludes gift cards
Unique Gifts Under $30 at ChildTrek.com

FREE Afterglow Cosmetic Shipping! Order $90+ and receive free USPS Priority Shipping inside the US.

Petal Purity

 You must know I love body scrubs because I write about exfoliating all of the time! I generally like to make my own but sometimes you don’t have time for a fresh beauty treatment so you must go to the next best thing! If you have to purchase a cosmetic or beauty product make sure you are choosing a responsible one. Remember whatever ingredients are in the product are going in and on your body. I know the words are difficult to sometimes understand on the back of the bottle but that should be the first clue that maybe you should rethink using that product. Cocoon Apothecary has a wide variety of skin care products that are perfect for the green beauty inside all of us.  You can see for yourself in their ingredient listings.  Nothing crazy in there.  You can pronounce all of the ingredients and probably have seen most of them in nature. I am actually drawn to the site simply because I think it is pretty. It is simple and almost elegant much like their products. No flashy designs or adds to confuse the customer, their products speak for themselves which speaks volumes about the kind of business Cocoon Apothecary really is.

Product Description:

This gentle exfoliating cleanser combines the purifying powers of lavender and geranium with spherical jojoba beads to remove dead skin cells and keep pores clean and clear. This facial cleanser is for all skin types so don’t be afraid to give it a try.

BENEFITS:

•Promotes skin-cell turnover, a process that slows down with aging.
•Keeps skin pimple-free by keeping pores clear and unclogged.
•A gentle formula that can be used daily as a scrub and a cleanser.

KEY INGREDIENTS:

•Jojoba Beads Non-abrasive beads that gently exfoliate skin.
•Lavender Essential Oil Anti-bacterial, healing, combats acne.
•Geranium Essential Oil Astringent, balancing.

GOOD STUFF:

•Biodegradable with eco-friendly beads
•Cruelty-free and vegan
•Made with certified organics
•Rated 0 on the EWG Skin Deep Cosmetic Database
•Amber glass bottle, corn label, pre-cycled pump and cap

INGREDIENTS:

Distilled water, certified organic sweet almond oil, jojoba beads, certified organic virgin coconut oil, cetearyl alcohol, stearic acid, vegetable glycerin, certified organic geranium essential oil, certified organic lavender essential oil, sodium anisate, sodium levulinate, sodium cetearyl sulfate, rosemary leaf extract.

I have to say I haven’t tried too many gluten-free baked goods. I have tried some and haven’t been disappointed yet. I was looking for a cake to get for the bf because his birthday was coming up and I wanted to get something a little special. I found Gateau Chocolat when looking for Gluten Free Organic Cakes. I was excited because I knew he would love it if I got him a gluten-free organic dessert for his birthday. I must also add I think the website is cute. It is simple but the color combination and logo I like which is always a plus in my book when a business, especially a conscious one, has a well designed site/logo. I am put off otherwise because I feel if you can’t put an effort into your website or even logo what effort are you making for your product. Now granted there is only one item to choose in 2 different sizes I was completely fine with that.

I received the cake quickly and in a cute package (not a fan of styrofoam the cake came in and will admit I have no idea if it was made from recyclable materials or was some other kind of eco packaging, which is my fault). The bf was soo excited about the cake the packaging got forgotten about.
When we opened the cake everything was together and the packaging did help keep from any damage or shifting in transit which was good.
We cut up the cake which looked like a super rich brownie of sorts. I am not a fan of nuts so I personally wasn’t enthused about them being atop my cake. The photo shows almond slivers, the ones on my cake were more like coarsely chopped nuts that I think were almonds but I picked them off of my cake so I am not sure what they were.
I thought the cake was chocolaty and delish. The wafter-like bottom gave the cake some crunch too which was good. The bf however wasn’t really a fan. He said it was dry and didn’t really like it which 1. made me feel bad for getting him a cake he didn’t like but 2. made me ask myself if we at the same cake at all. I liked it, I didn’t think it was dry at all. I really liked it. I think it is a great gift for people who enjoy gluten-free and/or organic food.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

I am such a fan of squash and am always looking for new recipes for it! I eat some kind of squash at least once a week. I stumbled upon this recipe when looking for low calorie meals last night and it sounds super yum! Stuffed acorn squash sounds like it is going to be my new fave dish.

Ingredients

1 medium organic acorn squash, halved  and seeded
1/2 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon organic extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1/4 teaspoon sea-salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground organic pepper, divided
1/4 cup chopped organic onion
1 clove organic garlic, minced
1 tablespoon water
1 1/2 teaspoons organic tomato paste
4 cups chopped organic  chard leaves (about 1/2 large bunch chard)
3/4 cup canned organic white beans, rinsed
2 tablespoons chopped kalamata olives
3 tablespoons coarse dry organic whole-wheat breadcrumbs (see Note)
3 tablespoons grated organic Parmesan cheese

Preparation

1.Cut a small slice off the bottom of each squash half so it rests flat. Brush the insides with 1/2 teaspoon oil; sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Place in 8×8 inch dish.  Preheat oven at 450 degrees. 

2. Bake squash until fork tender about 20-30 minutes.

3. .Meanwhile, heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook, stirring, until starting to brown, 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add garlic; cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

5. Stir in water, tomato paste and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper.

6. Stir in chard, cover and cook until tender, 3 to 5 minutes.

7.Stir in white beans and olives; cook until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes more. Remove from the heat.

8.Once squash is done baking position rack in center of oven; preheat broiler.

9.Combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan and the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a bowl.

10.Fill each squash half with about 1 cup of the chard mixture. Place in a baking pan or on a baking sheet.

11. Sprinkle with the breadcrumb mixture.

12.Broil in the center of the oven until the breadcrumbs are browned, 1 to 2 minutes.

Eco-Chic Events

This article was written by our fave guest blogger and one of my closest friends Danielle Mosley! She wanted to share some excellent tips for hosting eco-chic parties in 2012.
Even though the holiday’s are over there is still a full year of events left to be scheduled!
Here are some simple tips on throwing zero-waste “eco-chic” parties:

1. First things first are invitations.
The easiest way to send an eco-friendly invite is an Evite. There are so many sites doing that these days so you can find the perfect one. Try Evite.com or Stationery by Amy Adele.You can also make your own invites out of things you have from around the house or find items such as recycled card stock at your local craft store. You can be original with the writing by using cut outs from a magazines or even images and make the invite a game to figure out, left over ribbon from the holidays, buttons, you name it!  Be Creative and have fun with it! Guests appreciate when the host goes out of their way and personalizes the party.

2. No matter the size of your party you are going to notice a pile up of trash from plates and cups to straws and cutlery. Skip the plastic and try reusable flatware. Plenty of places also sell biodegradable utensils and flatware, even napkins. Like these Bamboo Plates, Biodegradable Trash Bags or these Biodegradable Paper Straws.

3. Next is décor…you can deck out the whole party with biodegradable goodies like balloons and crepe paper steamers Make your own confetti with scraps of paper from your amazing homemade DIY invites. You can make a pretty amazing centerpiece with magazine flowers . You can even create a mini version of this for a party favor for your guests. Use clean vegetable cans, decorate the outside with a solid piece of recycled paper and decorate in a similar fashion to the invites. If your event calls for real flowers please make sure to buy them locally, make sure they are organic like OrganicBouquet.com.  If you keep bottles and jars like i do you can use them as vases or votives and make cute take aways for your guests as well. If you use candles safely you can save energy and since it is winter if you cook your food and plan arrival times can keep your venue warm without having to turn on your heat.  If you have to use party lights make sure to get energy saving bulbs, no need for your bills to sky rocket just because you want to have fun!

4. Next are food and drinks obviously. I know you know to go local and organic which is easy enough now many local groceries have their won organic or natural sections. In some areas it isn’t as easy to find organic wine or liquor. One of my fave organic wine retailers is OrganicWineCompany.com or you can try Crop Vodkas or Prairie Vodka. If beer is more  your style then try Eel River`s Certified Organic I.P.A .
If you are unsure what kinds of apps and fun food to serve you can always check out our receipe section where I have plenty of fun food for the greenie in you! Also keep in mind if you use all organic foods and biodegradable flatware, cups, utensils you can throw it all to be composted.

Organic Club Sofa in Hemp Fabric

Hello organic couch from Bean Products, Inc.!! I want it for many a reason but honestly the price is such a deterrent. I get it is organic hemp and a sofa bed, you have 17 fabric colors to choose from and you can even choose the colors for the feet and it’s hand crafted! The wood used is sustainably harvested and the cushion’s can even biodegrade. There are soo many amazing green qualities to this piece of furniture. You can tell that Bean Products, Inc. really goes out of its way to offer you a high quality and highly responsible piece of furniture however that being said I feel like even some of the most dedicated greenies who would love to purchase this comfy little tid bit couldn’t because of the price when you can find furniture for much less than that at many other chain stores. I don’t advocate shopping at the big chains when there are greener alternatives but especially in tough economic times we really have to find a way to make green products more affordable to everyone. I would buy this couch in an instant (as I am definitely in need of a new one) but I can’t invest $5200 in a couch when many places offer 7 piece furniture sets for around that price. I’m n0t sure if you are like me and want to support green businesses as much as possible but with things like this I can’t no matter how much I want it and how much I’d rather put my money towards this than come plastic couch from China I can’t invest that much money in anything that frivolous right now. I don’t know too many people who could and the people I do know who could wouldn’t shop at Bean Products, Inc. anyway but that is an entirely different story.

Napa Soap Company

I love finding places that are green!! Besides having super cute and yummy smelling products a really cool thing they do is take packaging material donations which I think is pretty cool. Everybody should do this. It just makes sense especially now a days when people do so much online shopping and are swimming in boxes, peanuts or those plastic pillows. Simple ideas like these make for a greener world that is better for all of us. Another awesome bonus to Napa Soap Company is they make their soaps in the USA! To read more about Napa Soap Company and what they do Click right here!

Organic Homemade Kitty Treats

Over the holidays I usually purchase my friends and families pets safe and organic treats for the holidays but it never really occurred to me to make them myself. I know it is a little more time consuming but with all of the other holiday backing going on why not right? I found this quick and simple cat treat recipe that any cat would love.

Supplies:
cookie sheet
½ cup organic whole wheat flour
½ cup non-fat, organic powdered milk
½ cup cooked and chopped organic chicken
1 tbs. organic vegetable oil
1 organic egg, beaten
¼ cup water
1 tbs. chopped, fresh organic catnip

1. Mix together the powdered milk, flour and catnip in a bowl.
2. Add the egg, organic chicken, vegetable oil and water and mix until dough becomes sticky.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
4. Grease the cookie sheet to make sure the treats don’t stick.
5. Form treats in to any shape or size you like. You can even use cookie cutters if you have ones small enough.
6. Place on cookie sheets to bake for 10 minutes.
7. Take out of oven and flip treats to cook for another 10 minutes so they cook evenly on both sides.
8. Remove treats from the oven and let cool before giving them to your kitty.