Weekly Roundup: A Crazy Sexy Diet, Cure for Erectile Dysfunction, Healthy Soda, & Magical Enzymes

Welcome to another health and sustainability weekly roundup!

Here's what I talk about in this video:

Review: Justin's Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups are Eco-Vegan!

I've had my eye on Justin's Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups for a while, but for some reason I never bought them. Perhaps it was the price: $1.99 for 2 small cup seemed a little steep. However, I decided to treat myself when I spotted them at Whole Foods today.

With Sir Richard's Condoms, Vegan Sex Has Never Been Better

If you get excited about having safe sex, prepare to be tantalized. There are new condoms on the market and they're pretty damn sexy. It's time to ditch the Trojan man and meet your knight in shinning armor. Let me introduce you to Sir Richard's, who claim they make the world's finest condoms; and I have to agree. I recommend you skip to the bottom to watch me talk about why I love sex these condoms instead of reading this relatively boring post - but it's your prerogative.  ; )

Kaeng Raeng: Start the New Year Off Right with a Natural Detox

As you may have noticed, I haven't been posting reviews as often as I used to. This is mainly due to lack of time and energy after working on so many other projects outside of this site. I promise I'll be back to my old, yet improved self as soon as possible. I mention this now because my review for Kaeng Raeng is long overdue - I tried their products this summer and this post has been patiently waiting to be completed. However, I feel like this is a perfect time to tell you about this company because a new year is about to begin.

Going against the grain at Whole Foods

Yesterday I went to Whole Foods (Venice) fully prepared to do some eco-vegan shopping: I brought a reusable shopping bag, reusable produce bags, and a glass jar that once contained apple sauce. When I walked in the door my first stop was the customer service desk to inquire if they would allow me to put their freshly ground organic peanut butter in my glass jar (instead of their plastic containers). At first, the manager was a little hesitant because the jar weighed a lot (.60 lbs), but when I explained that I was trying to avoid plastic she helped me out. She weighed my jar then multiplied that by the cost of a pound of bulk organic peanut butter ($3.99), and then asked me to return to her when I filled it. At checkout, the cashier was a little unsure, but when she called over the manager the process was very smooth. I walked out of the store without buying anything prepackaged and I saved some money too (the peanut butter was only $2.50 - organic peanut butter can be up to $5)

Kombucha - the new item on the bar menu?

by romanlily

I have loved kombucha (a fermented tea) since it was first introduced to me while working at a raw cafe in 2005. After learning about all of its healing properties, I developed a taste the bitter vinegar flavor and tried every brand on the market. Last year I even made my own at home, which was really fun. There were times I drank several cups of it a day. Everyone around me was trying it, enjoying it, and raving about how great it made them feel. Thus, I was shocked to hear yesterday that it's been pulled off of shelves at natural markets like Whole Foods (this happened weeks ago while I was on vacation). And low and behold, I saw this frightening sign when I went there last night:

Whole Foods, Venice: impressive vegan improvements

I went to my local Whole Foods, in Venice, and was pleasantly surprised by some new store features.

Their new theme is "Health Starts Here", and that appropriately features a lot of vegan items. This is great because they're connecting the idea of health to veganism, which will hopefully appeal to a mainstream audience.

• A deli display case of healthy food - most of which are vegetarian or vegan - including take-aways with info on health.

• An entirely vegan deli section, with the word "vegan" literally written all over it!

• A new book section, featuring a bunch of vegan books like Becoming Vegan and The China Study

• New signage displaying how many local items are in stock

• New signage encouraging customers to buy bulk items, which says, "think outside the box. Bag it yourself!" - love it!

Aside from the cool new store features, I was happy to see Lullwater Soap Nuts in a reusable sack - I think I might need to try these...

Whole Foods continues to impress me. I normally try to shop at smaller natural markets because Whole Foods is such a big business, but I have to admit they're really doing a lot of amazing things as a company, so they have my support.

Vegan Tuna Ceviche: Whole Foods, Venice

Last night, Julio at Whole Foods Venice convinced me to try their new Vegan Tuna Ceviche. I took it home and decided to give it a try for lunch today. I wasn't expecting much - especially since it's a day old and became kind of runny and soggy (the corn tortilla) - but I gave it a shot. I am so glad I did. It is DELICIOUS! I don't know if I ever had ceviche in my non-vegan years, but I definitely have never had a vegan version. Whole Foods did it right - it is packed with flavor and has a texture almost too similar to tuna. I can't imagine how good it would taste if it were completely fresh. This meal is quite a treat because it's a new flavor for me, it's filling, and I don't feel weighed down. I give it too thumbs up.

*Note: the meal is a little spicy, so watch out if you're sensitive to that.

Go Max Go candy bars

Vegan desserts from Whole Foods, Santa Monica

Fork in the Road cookies

Taste the Dream dark chocolate with almonds

Basu's Homestyle Indian Cuisine: post-dinner report

I had an amazing dinner at the home of Basu and he gave me a ton of left-overs to take home and enjoy. Among the many delicious entrées he served and hopes to have in Whole Foods:

- Indian Panini

- Spicy Pineapple Chutney

- Moosoor Dal

- Sabji

- Matal Dal

- Khichuri

Vegan discoveries at Whole Foods, Venice