Smell that? It's the savory scent of our Fine Faux Foie Gras Challenge permeating the blogosphere. Check out our fabulous future L.A. neighbors' attempt to win top honors:

With the stakes insanely high—$10,000 to be exact—compassionate chefs everywhere are making their ingredient lists and checking them twice. (Hey, soon-to-be-fellow Angelinos: You still have time to tweak your recipe so that it contains no animal products!) The only force-feeding in this contest will be when our judges stuff their own faces with international chefs' sure-to-be-succulent recipes.

Written by Logan Scherer

Earlier this month, the Detroit Zoo—a progressive facility with a compassionate history—welcomed more than 1,100 of the nearly 27,000 animals who were seized from the hellish exotic-animal warehouse of U.S. Global Exotics (USGE) by Arlington, Texas, officials. But that wasn't all the zoo did! Its staff came to the animals' rescue within days of the seizure, flying from Detroit to Dallas and working around the clock at a temporary rescue facility. Several weeks later, many of the animals—including five wallabies, four sloths, three agoutis, two ring-tailed lemurs (who had spent years in a tiny cage at USGE), two coatimundis, and hundreds of reptiles, spiders, and amphibians—made the trip to Detroit, where they are under quarantine before being released into habitats that may not be their native homes, but are the next best thing.

The animals were seized on December 15 following PETA's undercover investigation inside USGE, where tens of thousands of sick and injured animals were being denied food, water, and care. Since the raid—which was more than two months ago—USGE has not bought or sold a single animal, and just last month, a second judge ruling on an appeal affirmed that none of the animals would be returned to USGE. The decision ensures liberation from the clutches of the greedy pet trade for those who would've ended up on the shelves of pet shops like PetSmart and PETCO.

Until the profit-hungry PETCOs and PetSmarts of the world stop selling animals—all of whom come from cruel suppliers like USGE—the misery will continue. By shunning all pet stores that sell live animals and telling all your friends and family members to do the same, you can help prevent more abuse of those who have no voice of their own.

Written by Logan Scherer

Thanks for all of your wonderful comments on this Win It Wednesday. The winner of the To-Fu Kubricks is g.murphy. Congratulations!

I've always proudly displayed my vast snow globe collection, never mind that my husband calls it "junk." But ever since I discovered To-Fu Kubricks by Devil Robots, my snow globe collection is starting to seem a bit ho-hum.

dpmhi / CC

Who can resist these adorable, movable To-Fu Kubricks figures? Certainly not this tofu lover.

We've got one set of five of the smiling collectibles from Series 7 to give to the person who submits the most appealing tofu recipe in the comments section below.

The contest ends on August 5, 2009, and we'll choose one comment as the winner on August 7, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting. Good luck!

Written by Karin Bennett

sugarslam / CC

The following is a guest blog from peta2's Marta.

If there's one thing I like, it's a guy who knows how to work a microwave. That might sound weird, but hear me out. For the past many months, my friend Starza and I have been working hard to bring you PETA's Vegan College Cookbook: 275 Easy, Cheap, and Delicious Recipes to Keep You Vegan at School. Here's the really exciting part: The most complicated cooking contraption you'll need for these recipes is a microwave!

What does this all have to do with Twilight heartthrob Robert Pattinson? Well, as it turns out, the lovely Mr. Pattinson loves microwaves too. According to an interview with Pattinson in the April issue of GQ, "He explains that the place he's staying at in L.A. has a microwave, and that he's never had a microwave before, and that he spends a lot of time looking for new things you can microwave." Including a carrot! Talk about a match made in heaven (meaning Pattinson and the cookbook, not him and me—although, now that I think about it …).

Anyway, I can't imagine a more perfect gift for him right now than PETA's Vegan College Cookbook, which is exactly why we sent one his way today. After all, the cookbook is perfect for any busy person—whether you're a college student or a movie star. Wouldn't it be awesome if he realized how easy it is to be vegetarian and gave up the flesh?

Now, the cookbook doesn't come out until May, but here's a sneak peek at a recipe you can sink your teeth into right now!

Campus Streaker Sausage Dip

Great for when you're on the run.

14-oz. vegan sausage

2 10-oz. containers vegan cream cheese, room temperature

1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, undrained

• Crumble the sausage as best you can and stir it into the cream cheese and tomatoes until evenly blended. Heat in the microwave for 3 minutes or until hot.
• Serve with tortilla chips.

Makes 8 servings

Written by Marta Holmberg

P.S. If you're as ridiculously obsessed with corny infomercials as I am, you'll love our cookbook infomercial!