The Ultimate Gift Guide for New Vegans

The holidays are almost here and it's time to start thinking about gifts to show the people in our lives how much we care about them. If one of those people in your life has recently gone vegan, you may be at a loss for gift ideas. But I'm here to help! I was once a new vegan, too. Now with several years of experience, I'm recommending some things your new vegan might be dreaming of, and some others that they might not even realize they need! Without further ado, let's get to the list:

Cookbooks

One of the hardest things about going vegan is figuring out what to eat. If your vegan loved one enjoys cooking, vegan cookbooks can make a great gift. I have several of my own, but these are my favorites:

Chloe's Kitchen: The best overall vegan cookbook that I've tried with a wide variety of recipes. Chloe's baked goods and pasta dishes are especially good.

Oh She Glows: This cookbook is great for those who want to eat healthy food and also eat delicious food. Lots of recipes here contain whole food ingredients, but never lack in flavor.

Oh She Glows for Dinner: This is the newest release from the author of Oh She Glows. I haven't personally had the opportunity to get my hands on this cookbook, but I wouldn't hesitate to purchase it based on my experience with her original cookbook.

Isa Does It: This cookbook has a good variety of recipes as well, but it's notable for its soups and vegan proteins. Many of the recipes in this book use tofu, seitan, or tempeh.

Blenders

If your newly converted vegan loved one doesn't have a high-speed blender, this appliance will make their life so much easier.

Blenders aren't just for smoothies. Blending nuts is one of the main ways that vegans can make creamy sauces and vegan cheeses. Those nuts will normally have to be soaked for a few hours in advance. But with a high-speed blender, soaking is unnecessary. Blenders are also good for healthy non-dairy "ice cream."

Here are some of the best blenders on the market:

Vitamix A2300 Ascent Series Smart Blender: This blender is pricey, but it outpowers its competitors, making easy work of chopping ice, blending nut butters, and more.

Ninja BN801 Professional Plus Kitchen System Blender: This blender is a little more budget-friendly, and although it's not as durable as the Vitamix, it gets the job done. It also comes with single-serve cups and a food processor bowl.

Vegan Chocolate

Who doesn't love chocolate? There are several gourmet vegan chocolate gift boxes available that come in a variety of flavors.

Eat Like a Hero Vegan Chocolate Truffles: These organic vegan chocolate truffles come in an assortment of cherry, chocolate, and hazelnut flavors.

Hu Chocolate Bar Variety Pack: Hu Chocolate bars are the crème de la crème of vegan chocolate. This sampler pack has eight different varieties of vegan chocolate, including crunchy mint and hazelnut butter. Use the code AFFILIATE15 for 15% off your order through the hukitchen.com website.

Vegan, Cruelty-Free Makeup and Skincare

Switching to a vegan diet is often just the first step in a vegan lifestyle. Soon after, many vegans start switching vegan and cruelty-free makeup, shoes, purses, and haircare and skincare products. (Vegan means it doesn't contain animal products; cruelty-free means no animals are harmed when the product is made, such as for animal testing).

Here are some gift sets that make great starter kits:

BH Cosmetics Zodiac Love Signs Eyeshadow Palette: This palette is one of BH Cosmetics' most-loved for its variety of flattering colors.

Urban Decay Major Gems Gift Set: This set contains a jewel-toned eyeshadow palette, primer, and pencil eyeliner.

Pacifia Coconut Destressing Skincare Bundle: the perfect gift for rejuvenated, healthy-feeling skin.

Petit Vour Beauty Subscription Box: Not sure what to get? Subscription boxes are perfect for those who like to try new things. Every month, your vegan will receive a box of vegan and cruelty-free beauty products, customized to him or her. They'll receive the link to select their preferences on the day you choose to give the gift. Gift a 3-, 6-, or 12-month subscription.

Spiralizer

Spiralizers are not just loved by vegans. Many people are replacing their pasta with fresh veggies to cut carbs. This gift is especially great for vegans who also eat a raw diet.

Brieftons 7-Blade Spiralizer: This spiralizer is durable and has 7 blades for cutting different shapes. The blades stay sharp for easy cutting of even hard vegetables like sweet potatoes.

Instant Pot

Instant pots have become more and more popular lately. And eating out is often more expensive for vegans, so many of us end up cooking more regularly than before we were vegan. For those people who may not want to spend a whole lot of time cooking, Instant Pots might be a good option. Add ingredients, set it, and eat when ready!

Instant Pot Duo Nova Pressure Cooker: The Instant Pot for beginners with an automatic seal and easy-to-read display.

Instant Pot Duo Crisp with Air Fryer: This upgraded model has 11 cooking modes including air frying with an attachment lid.

Vegan Sneakers

Whether your vegan prefers to hit the gym or the streets, there are lots of options out there for vegan sneakers.

Women's Sneakers

Freewaters Women's Sky Trainer: These comfortable training shoes come in several neutral colors

Adidas Women's Cloudfoam Pure Running Shoe: One of the most popular running shoes, and it comes in a ton of color options.

NOBULL Women's Training Shoes: Supportive training shoes in a wide variety of colors, from neutral grays and blacks to bold pinks and blues.

Veja Women's Nova High-Top Sneakers: Shoes that are casual, stylish, and made without harming animals.

Men's Sneakers

NOBULL Men's Training Shoes: The men's version of the popular, supportive training shoes, in an array of colors.

Nike Men's Revolution 5 Running Shoe: A stylish, breathable, and comfortable shoe for running.

adidas Men's Daily 2.0 Sneaker: A casual canvas shoe for everyday wear.

Converse Men's Street Canvas High Top Sneaker: The classic canvas high top is vegan!

Vegan Wine

You may be surprised to find out that not all wine is vegan. It's true. Many wines are actually filtered using animal products. So if you plan to surprise your vegan with a bottle of wine, here are some safe options.

Note: If you purchase through wine.com, you can save $20 on your order of $150 or more with code THANKFUL. (Valid through November 30, 2020).

Red Wines

Zuccardi Finca Los Membrillos 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon

Layer Cake Pinot Noir

Frey Organic Pinot Noir

Layer Cake Bourbon Barrel-Aged Cabernet Sauvignon

Carmel Road Cabernet Sauvignon

Zuccardi Finca Los Membrillos 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon

Zuccardi Aluvional Altamira Malbec 2014

Zuccardi Amphora Malbec 2018

Santa Margherita Chianti Classico

Sparkling Wines

Domaine Carneros Cuvee de la Pompadour Brut Rose

Domaine Carneros Le Reve Blanc de Blancs Champagne

Domaine Carneros Cuvee de la Pompadour Brut Rose

Santa Margherita Prosecco Superiore

White Wines

Snoqualmie Winemaker's Select Riesling 2018

Carmel Road Chardonnay

Snoqualmie Winemaker's Select Riesling

Heinz Eifel Riesling Auslese 2018

Subscription Snack Box

The best way to find new foods you love is to try as many as possible. In that vein, you might want to purchase a subscription vegan snack box for your loved one, like the Vegancuts Snack Box. It's a gift that can be enjoyed all year, or you can purchase for 3 or 6 months.

Ice Cream Maker

If your vegan is missing ice cream, an ice cream maker might be just what they need to reunite with their lost love. While there are some good non-dairy ice creams available in stores, the best options can run upwards of $7-9 per pint. An ice cream maker will let you make your own, and adjust the ingredients to your exact taste.

Cuisinart ICE-30BCP1 2-qt Ice Cream Maker: A good-quality, basic ice cream maker at an affordable price. The tradeoff for the price is that it doesn't cool using a compressor, so you'll have to prepare by putting the bowl in the freezer before using it. You also need to be careful not to run the bowl through the dishwasher, or it may not freeze properly.

Cuisinart ICE-100 1.5-qt Compressor Ice Cream and Gelato Maker: This model is pricier than the ICE-30 because it has its own cooling system and timer. Since it doesn't depend on pre-freezing the bowl to chill the ice cream, your ice cream will be ready quickly with this model.

Vegan Handbags

If your vegan is planning to give up their leather bags, help replace them with a gorgeous new vegan bag.

Matt & Nat Reiti Satchel Bag: A casual everyday bag available in 6 colors.

Matt & Nat Gloria Small Satchel Bag: An everyday bag that can be dressed up too. It's available in koala (beige), matcha (olive), and whisper (pink).

LaBante London Kensington Cross-Body Bag: This stylish quilted bag will keep your vegan fashionably accessorized from day to night.

LaBante Monarch Cross-Body Bag: The perfect accessory for fancy dinners and parties, in a versatile gold color that matches almost anything.

Melie Bianco Demi Snake Embossed Vegan Leather Crossbody Bag: An evening bag with an edge, made of faux snakeskin and a faux tortoiseshell handle.

SOLE/SOCIETY Deona Satchel: A casual, summery handbag for the vegan who likes endless tropical vacations and long, flowy dresses.

SOLE/SOCIETY Jubah Satchel: An everyday bag with rope detail for a nautical vibe.

Indoor Herb & Vegetable Garden Kits

For those who like to cook, there's nothing better than having fresh herbs and vegetables available. Even if your new vegan lives in an apartment, there are lots of compact kits that will allow them to grow herbs or vegetables themselves.

Spade to Fork Indoor Organic Herb Garden Starter Kit: This kit is great for people who have good window light and don't need reminders to water plants. It comes with seeds for 5 herbs, and everything in the kit is organic!

AeroGarden Harvest Indoor Hydroponic Garden: A compact garden system with LED lights and automatic reminders for feeding and watering your plants (perfect for people who can't seem to get anything to grow). There's room for six plants to grow up to 12 inches tall in this system, and it comes with the seeds for six herbs and liquid plant food.

AeroGarden Bounty Indoor Hydroponic Garden: This model is the big brother of the AeroGarden Harvest. It has room for 9 plants to grow up to 24 inches tall, and you can purchase a kit with gourmet herb seeds or heirloom lettuce seeds. It has a stronger LED light so plants grow 5x faster than in soil.

Vegan Perfume

Just like makeup, not all perfume is vegan and cruelty-free. Try these scents to suit a new vegan lifestyle!

Aromi Handsome Solid Men's Cologne: Aromi solid cologne comes in a wide variety of scents, and it's solid, so you never have to worry about it spilling or leaking if you need to take it with you.

Amuze Fragrance Luminous Oud: Amuze crafts a wide variety of vegan scents for men, women, and unisex. If you can't pick a fragrance from the description alone, purchase a sample pack from their website to try a few different scents.

Aromi Modern Solid Women's Perfume: This is the woman's version of the solid perfume. Also available in many scents to suit any taste.

Clean Classic Rain Women's Eau de Parfum: As the name suggests, most of these scents are clean and classic. However, some are better than others. The rain scent has notes of melon, water lily, and musk.

Herban Cowboy Dusk Men's Cologne: This cologne is organic and has a warm, woodsy scent.

Aesop Tacit Unisex Eau de Parfum: This eau de parfum has a basil base, and is gender-neutral.

I hope you've found the perfect gift for your newly-converted vegan by this point! If there's something that should be on this list that I missed, please leave me a comment below.