Katherine
Field Roast Frankfurters
This is hands down the best vegan hot dog you will ever have! The texture and flavor are spot on, and the flavor combos are limitless. My favorite thing to do is get poppy seed buns, wild relish, and hot peppers, and recreate a vegan version of a Chicago-style hot dog. You won’t regret getting these!
Hahna
eeBoo 1000-Piece Puzzles
These puzzles made the pandemic bearable for me! Working on a puzzle and listening to music or a podcast is one of my favorite ways to spend an evening. EeBoo picks the best art for their puzzles—usually lots of color and nature scenes. I love that they include a statement from the artist. The pieces are high quality and don’t bend or tear like a lot of cheap puzzles do. They also include a reference poster of the art, which is super helpful. I also feel good about supporting a woman-owned business that uses 90% recycled materials and vegetable-based inks.
Coolhaus Dairy-Free Horchata Ice Cream Sandwich
Coolhaus does dairy-free ice cream so well! It’s creamy and soft. Their pints are easy to scoop without having to let it sit out and thaw a little like you have to with most dairy-free ice cream. This ice cream sandwich is one of the best things they make! The cookie is soft and chewy and would be delicious all by itself. I love the combination of textures and flavors. Just as refreshing as a glass of iced horchata on a hot day!
Laura
evanhealy Whipped Shea Butter for Lips
This is the most moisturizing lip balm I’ve ever used. It’s packed full of all the most moisturizing oils (argan, coconut, avocado), plus shea and cocoa butters. Red raspberry oil contains antioxidants and fatty acids which promote lip health. Vitamin E oil helps reduce signs of aging.
Taste Republic Gluten-Free Tortellini
Are you now gluten-free and haven’t had tortellini for longer than you remember?! Don’t despair: Madison-based pasta company Taste Republic has your salvation! This tortellini is delicious and holds together well (gluten-free people will know what I’m talking about); maybe it’s because I’ve been gluten-free for a while, but I can’t even tell the difference between this and regular tortellini! My favorite meal lately has been to toss this with our house-made parsley pesto, some ripe heirloom tomatoes, avocado, and some shredded Sartori cheese — YUM!
Carr Valley Goat Cheddar Cheese Stix
First of all, you can’t go wrong with Carr Valley, and this semi-hard goat cheese makes the perfect snack—it’s so smooth and delicious! I like to buy a few at a time; they are the perfect snack to share with my dogs on a car ride or a hike.
Ski Queen Gjetost
This Norwegian whey cheese has a creamy, caramel taste that is perfect with crisp fall apples… the combination tastes like a caramel apple, but better! (In my opinion.)
Brown Cow Chocolate Yogurt
I love this yogurt as a mid-afternoon snack; it’s not too sweet and tastes a bit like chocolate mousse.
Shelley
Gitto Farm n Kitchen Organic Wheat Tortilla
I’m trying to eat more whole wheat bread and these tortillas are wonderful, local, and fresh.
Patrick
Little Secrets Milk Chocolate Crispy Wafers
Learn from my errors. Don’t buy these! They’re just too good. You won’t be able to stop, it’ll become a thing, these “little secrets” will become big problems. Seriously, everything about these is spot on! I’ve long since accepted that I have a candy problem—that being that my mouth wants those conventional candies I grew up with, but now I want cleaner ingredients and sourcing. And these, regrettably(?), fit the bill perfectly!
Melissa
Maya Kaimal Everyday Dal: Red Lentil Butternut Squash
I really like this dal. I usually like to keep one or two at my desk or in my pantry at home. It’s convenient to be 90 seconds away from enjoying a hearty, warming meal for lunch at the office, or or a quick dinner at home. One pouch is filling, so you can easily get two servings out of it. As a bonus, it’s Certified Organic!
Leah
Bountiful Bean Soyfoods Taboolie
You know that summertime quick food you always had in your house growing up? Pita filled with hummus and Bountiful Bean Taboolie was ours because it was easy enough for us kids make a quick little lunch or afternoon snack on our own. It still is one of my go-to food items. It is a bulgar wheat Mid-Eastern salad with tofu, peppermint, carrots, celery, scallions, parsley, tamari, and apple cider vinegar, and it is 100% tasty. It is versatile enough to throw in tortillas, on scrambled eggs, or sprinkled on a salad. It tastes like summer with the all the fresh herbs, and will perfectly compliment your sunshine activities with a cool, refreshing dish!
Joe
A2 Whole Milk
I generally avoid milk (other than butter/cream which don’t seem to bother me), but I’ve found that this doesn’t give me the digestive symptoms I experience with others. A lot of people that thought they were lactose-intolerant have discovered their problem isn’t the lactose but rather a specific protein not found in the heirloom breeds used for these products.
Benjamin
Heavenly Organics Mint Chocolate Honey Patties
Biting into the bitter dark chocolate shell and then tasting the sweet honey on inside makes for an amazing taste experience! I love how simple they are with only three quality organic ingredients which are: dark chocolate, honey, and peppermint oil. I sometimes eat these patties in combination with peanut butter and a banana for a super snack.
Angelica
Perfect Bar: Dark Chocolate Almond
These delicious protein bars sustain me the best of all our granola bars and protein snacks. I try to move on to other products, but I can’t help coming back and buying these by the case, because I need them in my life. The flavor is sweet and complex and the texture makes it feel like a dessert bar. In addition to being tasty, they are full of superfoods and nutrients! I make sure to pull them out of the fridge a while before eating, so that the chocolate gets a little gooey. Actually perfect!
Amy
Ancient Harvest Polenta
It’s already made! I suppose you can just eat it out of the chub*, but I recommend sautéing it or grilling with a little olive oil. A nice alternative to pasta or rice, it goes great with pasta sauce, Italian sausage, zucchini, or with eggs at breakfast!
*Chub: A hermetically sealed plastic tube used for packaging products such as ground meat or caulk. Or polenta.
Meggie
Equal Exchange Dark Hot Chocolate
A decadent treat for a cool autumn’s day—if the can lasts into winter, even better! I recommend stirring this into full-fat non-dairy milk, a spoonful of peanut butter, a teeny-tiny dash of cayenne, and a dollop of whipped cream with a dusting of cinnamon. Yummy!!!! Just don’t let the hot cocoa overflow in the microwave or stove-top, like I always do!
Andie
GoodLight Tea Light Candles
I absolutely love tea light candles. I have bought so many different kinds over the years, and the Good Light tea light candles are the best I’ve ever used. They burn for hours, burn evenly, and burn clean. They’re everything I want in a tea light candle!
James
Spry Xylitol Chewing Gum, all flavors
I really love this brand of gum for the fact that it uses xylitol as the sweetener. Mouth bacteria can’t use xylitol as a source of energy, so it may help prevent tooth decay and the buildup of plaque. It also has long lasting flavor—my favorite is spearmint, but I also like cinnamon. I always keep some in my car and at my desk.
Abigail
Tony’s Chocolonely Chocolate Bars
I almost always buy one of these yummy chocolate bars for my dad for any gift-giving occasion as they are his favorite. I have to say, he has awesome taste! This are big, chunky bars, which is great because they last a *little bit* longer than a typical size bar. With awesome flavors like Dark Milk Pretzel Toffee and Dark Pecan Coconut, these area guaranteed hit with your friends, family, and loved ones!
Sunbeam Candles Wise Owl
This candle is so cute and spooky! It’s made from 100% pure beeswax and the company that makes it, SunBeam Candles, is a company run on solar energy. This candle burns super cool and adds a great ambiance to any room. Highly recommended for anytime of the year!
Philip
Carandale Farms Concord Grapes
They have a delightful tangy flavor when eaten fresh. They make a wonderful pie, amazing tasting juice, and the best homemade jam as well as a full-bodied wine. These are grown locally from Carandale Farms
Brendon
Organic Pink Lady Apples
Although this isn’t my favorite apple variety (that title is held by the macoun, available for an all-too-brief time each fall), Pink Lady apples are available pretty much year-round. They’re crisp apples whose taste is a great combination of sweet and tart. Apple slices with some cheese, a baguette, and some sausage is my kind of lunch.
Carley
Vitruvian Pea Shoot Microgreens
I love a good pea shoot. They add a really great crunchy element to a salad and have a subtle sweetness that I really enjoy. They’re also packed with nutrients, which is a nice bonus. I have yet to have a product from Vitruvian that I didn’t enjoy.
Max
Wisconsin Meadows Landjaegers
These 100% grass-fed landjaegers make a great snack. Wisconsin Meadows is also a cooperative made up of 200 Wisconsin family farms. Local and delicious.
Amanda
Banzo Falafel Mix
It is local, it is already made and ready to be cooked. I have baked it and fried it; it’s great both ways. It is tasty in a pita or I like to fry it in smaller bites to add to a salad. MMMMMMM!
Shizen Spicy Avocado Inari
Our sushi vendor rolls fresh, tasty sushi daily at all three sites. All the sushi is wonderful, but for a really nice treat I like the avocado inari. It is sweet and savory (if you dip in the soy sauce). The little bit of spicy sauce brings it all together. Treat yourself!
Willow Creek Boneless Pork Chops
These local farms care about sustainability and they raise their pigs humanely. I am a fan of all of their pork, but especially love the boneless chop for breakfast. Who says you cannot grill for breakfast?!
Dustin
Abe’s Vegan Bakery
If it wasn’t on the label, I’d never guess that this product line is vegan! These products are school-safe, free of common allergens, and they’re delicious. My favorite is the cornbread, but every item I have tried has been really good.
Cedar Roads Old World Bacon
This is the best bacon I have ever had and it’s made right here in Wisconsin!
Abby
Willy Street Co-op Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie
I’m not even a vegan but I find these to be the tastiest chocolate chip cookies we offer! This buttery (but not actually butter) cookie melts in your mouth. Also, the chocolate-chip-to-cookie ratio is on point.
