5 Best Plant-Based Products to Buy This Week, from the Editors of The Beet

When you think about what you invest the most time and money in, it may just be prepping and eating your food. Going to the supermarket and cooking up a recipe is all time-intensive, and expensive, and here at The Beet we take our job of giving you the best recommendations of what to buy and eat very seriously. It can be a joy to bite into a plant-based pizza with smooth vegan cheese and crunchy crust, but finding the best one is always a process. Here, we give you the best products to buy and try this week, the ones we recommend to friends and will buy again. So whether you are starting out on your vegan or plant-based journey or just dabbling in a few plant-based meals a week, you can try non-dairy ice cream and cheese, or immunity-boosting wellness shots or gluten-free gnocchi that will make the whole family happy. It's all part of our effort to help you live your healthiest life.

Here are the editors' favorites of the week: Our choices for the best, healthy vegan or plant-based pizza, ice cream cones, wellness shots, and gluten-free gnocchi, to enjoy this week.

For more great choices that we've written up in the past check out our favorite products each week. What's your current favorite plant-based product? Let us know on our Facebook page.

I have this thing for pizza. Seriously, it’s the one thing I thought most about when I decided to go plant-based back in Spring, 2019. How would I cope? I’ve made my peace with the fact that now when I eat a piece or several, it’s cheese-free and loaded with veggies – and for the most part that has satisfied me.

But now, along comes Blackbird foods, a longtime supplier of pizza crust to restaurants, which has created a pizza you can buy and store in your freezer and have the most satisfying plant-based dairy-free pizza experience to date. Working with Violife, Blackbird has created a very legitimate pie that you could taste test and compare against the pizza you would have ordered from your favorite pizza parlor in New York City.

Yet this pizza now comes boxed for home consumption, with an authentic crust that rises and crackles just like the kind you grew up with. (Something lacking in most other frozen pizzas, in my experience.)Blackbird’s pizza is laden with vegan cheese, and the Margherita has lovely garlic roasted into the yellow and red swirl, and for someone who thinks: the more garlic the better, I was in pizza heaven. (My husband, not a fan of garlic, ate around it and still loved the pizza.) There is no question that if you are considering a plant-based lifestyle, or just aiming to avoid dairy, Blackbird is your new best friend. Buy a case of six at Blackbird Foods.

If you're like me, a few mindless spoonfuls of ice cream can rapidly turn into an empty pint. And while I'm all for indulging, sometimes I want a treat that doesn't end with three and a half servings of vegan ice cream sitting in my stomach like a rock.

Enter Trader Joe's Hold the Dairy! Mini Coconut Cones: These tiny individually-wrapped dairy-free ice cream cones are the perfect size to quell any sweet tooth. Delicious, creamy, and requiring no dishes, these are my favorite frozen treat to keep on hand in my freezer whenever. Although the ice cream is made from coconut milk, these cones do not have an overwhelming coconut taste, and instead, the chocolate and fudge take center stage.

If you have kids, this product is great because the mini size of the pre-packaged cones takes away any guesswork or extra dishes.

Find this product in the frozen aisle of Trader Joe's nationwide.

These wellness shots brought me back to life when I feel under the weather. In fact, months ago when I lost my smell and taste due to COVID, I tried everything to get my senses back, and a few days into losing them, I took a shot of this drink and sniffed it for about a minute and my taste buds gradually came back and eventually, my smell did too. I'm not recommending this as a treatment, but these shots certainly helped me when I was sick. The ingredients include ginger, orange juice, lemon juice, and oregano extract.  The taste is incredibly strong and bitter so if you have a hard time digesting the smell of ginger, here's an inside tip: hold your nose!

Unfortunately, you cannot purchase the wellness shots individually, they come as a package deal with a smoothie and juice bundle – but it's totally worth it in my opinion.

Check out Splendid Spoon's Wellness Shots.

Cauliflower Gnocchi is the perfect ingredient to keep on hand for the days when you are short on time but still want a healthy and delicious dinner. Whole Foods Cauliflower Gnocchi is my go-to because it's not only vegan but also gluten-free and non-GMO. In one serving, there are 210 calories, 44 grams of carbs, 5 grams of fiber, and 5 grams of protein. It can be hard to find cauliflower gnocchi that has under ten ingredients and lists cauliflower as the first ingredient but this Whole Foods gnocchi has both.

Whenever I make this cauliflower gnocchi for dinner, it tastes just like I made it from scratch. It's light, airy, and melts in your mouth. Some of my favorite sauces to add to gnocchi are lentil bolognese and kale pesto. To elevate my dinner, I like to toss the gnocchi with garlic-infused truffle oil and top with dairy-free parmesan. This gnocchi is best prepared by heating a couple of tablespoons of oil on a pan and sauteing until golden brown. If you like softer gnocchi, boil them instead for 3-4 minutes.

You can buy Whole Foods Cauliflower Gnocchi in stores or online here.

With the holidays coming to a close and flu season in full swing, there is nothing better to do than take an immunity shot first thing in the morning. Vive Organic features an extensive selection of immunity shots but the top flavor for this time of year is the company's Wellness Rescue shot. The immune boost is filled with the oil of oregano, ginger, elderberry, and several other vitamin-filled ingredients.

The wellness shot will both wake you up and make sure that your immune system is in tip-top shape for the winter months. There is an extra kick of cayenne pepper in the shot to make sure that you really wake up first thing in the morning. No matter what, this is the perfect accompaniment to a morning routine. I would suggest having some around if you are traveling, seeing family, or bracing the cold months. It will keep you feeling wide awake and healthier.

To check out the Vive selection, visit the company's website.