Pizza, Pasta, and Salad

The Chefs: Elizabeth, Valencia Whole Foods, and Amy's Kitchen

The Menu: Amy's new vegan margherita pizza, plus a big spinach salad from the corner store topped with pasta salad, mixed veggies, and hummus.

The Goods: You know how there are days on which you really just can't decide what to eat for lunch? (Yes, this is definitely a #firstworldproblem.) Today, I answered the question of what to eat with: everything in sight. Who can resist a freshly baked pizza (thanks to Editorial Assistant Hilary Pollack!), or a big gorgeous salad, or tangy pasta salad, or the world's best hummus? Not this gal, and especially not today.

Veggie Pizza

The Chefs: Lyndsay

The Menu: A slice of pizza topped with red onion, olives, mushroom, green pepper, and Daiya, with a side salad made with romaine lettuce, slow-cooked beets, and Parma—actually, there's Parma on everything.

The Goods: After having some issues with a recipe last night, my partner and I had to make a decision, and that decision was pizza. An hour later, our local pizzeria delivered our cheeseless pie, which I quickly topped with my own supply of Daiya. Sometimes you do what you gotta do, I say. I also say that you should hurry and purchase your tickets to the VegNews Book Bash with Spork Foods before they sell out. Happy Friday!

Celebratory Pizza Party!

The Chef: Hilary and Patxi's, courtesy of Publisher Colleen Holland

The Menu: All of the melty, saucy goodness that Patxi's Chicago-style vegan deep dish pizza has to offer—oozing with Daiya and bursting with the flavor of tomato sauce, onion, and garlic—enjoyed with Champagne and Sjaak's peanut butter cups!  

The Goods: The VNHQ is a place to rejoice this afternoon, as we just got our first look at the final draft of our amazing November+December issue, which is almost-literally bursting at the seams with mouthwatering recipes, gorgeous photos, and other amazing content—including the results of the 2011 Veggie Awards. Naturally, a good old-fashioned pizza 'n' Champagne party on our sun-drenched, tanning bed-esque deck was in order. 

Furthermore, we've unveiled the details of the VegNews Book Bash with Spork Foods, guaranteed to be the party of the century, the millennium, the party that will reign supreme for ETERNITY. Endless Champagne, tasty appetizers, a photobooth, and a cinnamon bun bar, all in celebration of the unrelenting cuteness of the Spork girls? You would be crazy not to buy a ticket today. 

Pizza Party

The Chefs: Joni, Colleen, the VegNews staff, and Patxi’s Chicago Pizza 

The Menu: Fresh green salad with ripe avocado and cherry tomatoes, and sinfully delicious vegan pizza from Patxi’s made with spinach, crushed garlic, red onions, and Daiya cheese on a whole-wheat crust.

The Goods: Colleen decided to throw a pizza party at the VNHQ (thanks, Colleen!), since most of the staff is embarking to Portland this afternoon for the Vida Vegan Blogger Conference. They will spend the weekend getting to know the world’s best vegan bloggers and gorging on Portland’s outrageously delicious vegan food (Portobello Vegan Tarttoria, anyone?). On the other hand, I will be here in San Francisco, dreaming of sunny Portland and all it’s culinary delights, as I schlep box after box into my new apartment this weekend. Now to continue working through this pizza-induced food coma…

Salad and Pizza

The Chef: Anna, Rossini's Gourmet, and Valencia Whole Foods

The Menu: A vegan cheese pizza topped with roasted red peppers, marinated artichoke hearts, and vegan Italian sausage, plus a salad topped with cherry tomatoes, avocado, fava beans, green peas, corn, sunflower seeds, and carrots.

The Goods: Managing Editor Elizabeth, Associate Editor Jennifer, and I were left to our own devices for lunch today, and not to toot our own horns or anything, but I think we did just fine. It is well documented that we are salad, pizza, and Valencia Whole Foods lovers, and with this meal we were able to combine the three. Think this spread looks like too much for three people? Well, then you probably haven't met us. A pizza- and salad-filled weekend to all and to all a good slice. 

Vegan Pizza Taste Test

The Chef: Jennifer 

The Menu: Five vegan cheese pizzas and kale and green salads from Herbivore.

The Goods: It's not a bad day in the office when you get to feast on five different pizzas for our VN Taste Test, and also square off with your co-workers in Apples to Apples. Today, our office was filled with the smell of baking pizzas as we were anticipating this taste test like no other. Continuing our tradition of games at lunch, Managing Editor Elizabeth Castoria brought in her copy of Apples to Apples (which she suspiciously won!). Making the day even better, we had not one, but four pups in the office who joined us on our sunny deck as we played. This taste test will be featured in the issue we're working on right this very minute—September+October. But until then, check out an extra special sneak peek at our hot-off-the-presses July+August issue on This Just In.

Vegan Pizza Day @ VegNews

The Chef: Colleen

The Menu: A cornmeal-crusted pizza covered with Daiya's new Pepperjack Style Shreds, fresh spinach, black olives, and garlic—accompanied by a trio of salads from local vegan eatery Herbivore (marinated kale salad with faux chicken, organic green salad with avocado, and spinach salad with walnuts in a hemp dressing).

The Goods: When the shipment of Daiya's brand-new cheese arrived to the VNHQ last week, we immediately started planning how to best devour the cheese maker's latest flavor. Today, I brought in a couple of Vicolo's cornmeal crusts (also available in a gluten-free version), piled on the Pepperjack and toppings, and baked up these two pies. At 12:30pm, when the entire office smelled of toasted pizza dough, gooey cheese, and roasted garlic, staffers lined up to fill their plates with this taste test-turned-lunch. Of course, it's our job to try every new vegan product on the market, so it's our duty to devour homemade vegan pizza. The verdict? We're in love. This new flavor is both spicy and smooth, and would taste great on your favorite Mexican dish (we'll also be whipping up a batch of quesadillas later in the week). And to end any vegan meal, how about a bite of one of Sjaak's new candy bars? We're giving away a set of them here, so don't miss your chance to win!

The two pizza pies, just before baking.

Lunch Break

The Chef: Nobody!

The Menu: Everything from bagels to green beans to ready-made spaghetti.

The Goods: With almost half the VN staff enjoying the sights and sounds of the Windy City, we remaining staffers decided to strike out on our own today. From running errands to taking afternoon walks, we enjoyed the freedom that is the routine workday lunch break. If it wasn't a desire to change things up, our unusual lunch hour might be attributable to the fantastic lunch of homemade pizza that Abby prepared on Friday, which was pretty much the end-all, be-all of fantastic meals. Apparently we're not alone in our ardent love for pizza, as evidenced by the serious love our readers express for plant-based pies. Don't worry, we totally agree that vegan pizza is probably the best food in the universe, which leads us to our next question: Where is the pizza?

Pizza, Pizza!

The Chef: Abby

The Menu: Pizza! Abby prepared two tasty pizza pies with crispy, homemade crust, slathered in rustic marinara and topped with cheddar and mozzarella-style Daiya cheese, black beans, and veggies including mushroom, tomato, and onion. Abby paired our pizza slices with a lovely side salad of romaine, onion, black beans, tomato, and mushroom. Bellissimo!

The Goods: If you haven't noticed, we're pretty big fans of pizza. The many virtues of vegan pizza are daily romanticized in these here offices, so today's lunch was, lets just say, greatly enjoyed. Sadly, Colleen, Joseph, and Lyndsay missed out on our pizza bounty, as they are in the Midwest for a weekend of sun and vegetarian fun at VeggieFest Chicago in Naperville, Ill,. If you hail from the Chicagoland area, be sure to stop by the festival, meet VN staffers, and renew your subscription. Happy weekend, everybody!

Vegan Deep Dish

The Chef: Paxti's Chicago Pizza and Colleen

The Menu: Gooey, stretchy Chicago-style deep-dish vegan pizza from Paxti's Chicago Pizza. This intensely stacked pie boasts robust, spicy sauce, melty Daiya cheese, and a mountain of doughy, chewy crust. In addition to our sizable slices of pizza, we dined on a lovely side salad of kale, cabbage, greens, and cucumber courtesy of Ms. Colleen.

The Goods: Vegan deep-dish pizza! Truth be told, today's lunch was recycled leftovers from last evening. Following our fun evening at SF Vegan Drinks, the VN staff celebrated Brooke's first month on staff by chasing our martinis with delicious deep-dish pizza. We're not proud to admit that there were leftovers, but in our defense, we ordered a ridiculous amount of pizza. For the entire SF Vegan Drinks scoop, be sure to read Brooke's full write-up on Press Pass. Ready to weigh in on your favorite vegan eats and drinks? Be sure to vote in VN's 2010 Reader Poll, launching Sunday, August 1, at 12pm PST!

Pizza and Piccata

The Chef: Elizabeth

The Menu: A mish-mash of on-hand delicacies. Today's plate certainly doesn't have a theme (except maybe the letter "p"). We enjoyed, and then promptly mourned, our last Daiya pizza from Vegan Essentials, which was just as delicious as the others we've had recently. Elizabeth made a seitan piccata with mustard and capers, and finished off the plate with a big freaking salad.

The Goods: Pizza and piccata might not be the new surf 'n' turf, but with some serious time limitations it totally filled us up today. Speaking of things that might fill you up, did you know that there are Sticky Fingers goodies being given away on our Facebook page?

Soup! But Mostly Pizza

The Chef: Colleen

The Menu: A delicious, veggie-filled soup with lentils, sweet potato, broccoli, and eggplant that Colleen cooked in a light broth with Indian spices. She also made a light, crunchy salad with her signature garlicky balsamic vinaigrette. And then, there was pizza. As you might remember from Wednesday, Vegan Essentials recently mailed us some frozen vegan pizzas. Yes, that makes them our favorite. Colleen simply topped the frozen pie with some fresh rosemary, and it was fantastic.

The Goods: Honestly, things are pretty stinking good here today. It's Friday, the sun has finally decided to peek out from behind the nasty rain clouds we've had all week, and maybe we have a little surprise for you that will be revealed on This Just In today. Feel free to get ready.

Daiya Pizza!!

The Chefs: Vegan Essentials and Elizabeth

The Menu: Pizza!! One plain cheese, one with sautéed mushrooms, onions, and spinach, sliced olives and tomatoes, and capers. A side salad of romaine, spinach, cherry tomatoes, and garbanzo and kidney beans added a pop of color to the meal.

The Goods: Yes, we had pizza two days in a row, and yes, we are thrilled about it. As you might remember the awesome team over at Vegan Essentials sent us a couple of their Rossini's Gourmet Vegan Cheese Pizzas to try out, and today we finally had the chance. Hello, melty Daiya cheese! We are pretty much dead with glee, in case anyone was wondering.

Pesto Pizza

 The Chef: Sara

The Menu: A yummy pizza and tons of veggies! Sara topped a Clean Cravings Perfectly Pesto Pizza with some of our supply of Daiya, and we totally devoured it. She also roasted carrots, sweet potatoes, and broccoli, and whipped up a yummy tomato and avocado salad with pine nuts. 

The Goods: Um, things are pretty awesome. We've eaten pizza two days in a row, and we followed up today's meal with an impromptu cookie dough taste test. Our amazing guest chef from Monday will be returning tomorrow. Why the fancy food again tomorrow, you ask? Well, that would be because we're going to host one Jonathan Safran Foer for lunch. Yes, that Jonathan Safran Foer. Maybe we're excited. Maybe it would be nearly impossible for us to be more excited. We're just saying.

Stuffed-Crust Pizza

The Chef: Liz

The Menu: So, the title says "stuffed-crust" for a reason. It's because Liz stuffed the homemade crust for today's pizza with Daiya. Yeah, about that. Tomato sauce, bell peppers, mushrooms, and, of course, more Daiya, topped the incredible crust. Yes, that's a big pile of extra pizza toppings you see at six o'clock, and a fresh spinach salad with green olives, more Daiya, and black sesame seeds rounded out the meal.

The Goods: Well, if you're curious about the fastest, and tastiest, way to transport yourself back to a middle-school pizza party, the stuffed-crust route is definitely what we recommend. Liz's lunch was totally thrilling, and to make the day even sweeter, we are ecstatic to annouce that our first-ever cookbook—the super-sleek, totally digital, in-freaking-credible Holiday Cookie Collection—is on sale now at VegNews.com. We are so, so excited about the collection that we pretty much can't stand it, so you should probably go check it out.

Pizza!

The Chef: Daiya!

The Menu: Pizza! Like, the kind with melty, gooey, stretchy, delicious vegan cheese on it! And sauce and crust, but those pretty much come standard.

The Goods: As you might have read in an exclusive sneak peek on Ecorazzi recently, we named a few of our 20o9 Veggie Award winners—among them Daiya cheese for Product of the Year. This is kind of a big deal. In celebration, we ventured out to a local pizzeria, brought our own Daiya with us, and, presto! Amazing vegan pizza. We highly suggest doing the same, wherever you live. If you can't wait any longer to know the other winners, advanced copies of the November+December issue are now available, and ship immediately. We're just saying.

Rice Noodles, Peanut Sauce, and Pizza

The Chef: Joseph

The Menu: A delicious duo of savory dishes. We thoroughly enjoyed our "appetizer" of Trader Joe's Roasted Vegetable Pizza doused with Daiya cheese, which Joseph served alongside a heaping portion of rice noodles with peanut sauce, green beans, and bell peppers. The noodle dish was based on a recipe from Lorna Sass' Short-Cut Vegan. Were we complaining about our full plates and bellies? Heck no.

The Goods: Sadly not pictured are the yummy cookies Joseph brought in for dessert, which had just about everything cookies could possibly have. Oats? Check. Chocolate chips? Yes. Rice Krispies, walnuts, cinnamon, and shredded coconut? You bet your buns. Speaking of buns, it's possible that some of us had to move slowly and stuffedly away from the feast today.

Lickety-Split Pizza

The Chef: Kailey

The Menu: A perfectly simple lunch of pizza and salad. Kailey took advantage of two key items in our fridge: a couple of Kashi frozen pizzas and Daiya. Put them together, and you have hot, awesome, cheesy pizza in a snap. With a lettuce-less heirloom-tomato salad that featured garbanzo beans and red onion, today's lunch was yummy and fast, which are two qualities we like in a workday meal.

The Goods: Not only did we thoroughly plunder the contents of the fridge for lunch, but for dessert we turned to the product shelves, where we store all the goodies that come into the office. You may remember that yesterday we received a huge box of treats from Pattycake Bakery. Well, let's just say that there are fewer of these than there were this morning. Yes, we had to restrain ourselves from eating the whole box. No, we're not certain that we made the right choice.

The Best Pizza Ever

The Chef: Colleen

The Menu: Pizza that was so good we freaking died. Made on Indian-spiced naan, covered with melty Daiya cheese, red onions, kalamata olives, rosemary, greens, and sun-dried tomatoes, today's main course was insanely delicious. Once again, despite its own gorgeousness and garlicky dressing, our salad of greens, sliced bell peppers, tomato, and avocado played second fiddle to the incredible pizza.

The Goods: Of course, the food today was phenomenal, or, as the chef herself might have put it, "phenom." The goods didn't end there, however, since today we also had the pleasure of dining with Jennifer Fearing of The Humane Society of the United States—who brought with her some of the best homemade chocolate-chip cookies we've ever had—and Jayne Harless, aka Kailey's mom. The weather was gorgeous, the food was awesome, and the company couldn't have been better. Oh! And in case anyone didn't already know, today's Friday, which means the weekend is mere hours away. Yes, this makes us happy.

Pizza Perfecta

The Chef: Charlotte

The Menu: Two totally delicious pizzas! Charlotte busted out two perfect pizza pies with the help of a couple ready-made crusts (herbed and plain) from Trader Joe's. She topped these tasty starting points with kalamata olives, caramelized onions, and sliced mushrooms. A bright side salad of butter lettuce, avocado, and olives made the perfect complement to our perfect pizza.

The Goods: It's Friday! Voting for the Veggie Awards is in full swing! We had pizza! All these things are good. Happy 4th of July to everyone tomorrow!