Campfire 30

Snowy Wednesday Night

2012-02-08T23:08:00.001-05:00

From 88 Chinese Kitchen in Norristown, steamed vegetables with rice and garlic sauce, $4.25.

Gardenburgers

2011-07-03T21:31:00.003-04:00

Tonight: Gardenburgers, mac & cheese (soy), dill pickles, and roasted kale.

Tomorrow: Gardenburgers, cole slaw, baked beans, mac & cheese, and dill pickles.

Remind me that I like Gardenburgers brand veggie burgers better than Amy's or Boca or Sunshine. Gardenburgers are sweet and mustardy.

(I didn't take that picture, it's from Google.)

Clark Park and cherries

2011-07-02T18:38:00.004-04:00

Clark Park Farmers' Market was in full summertime glory today. I got....

broccoli
red russian kale
sweet potatoes
summer squash
zucchini
cucumbers
white button mushrooms
cherries (sweet and good!)
cabbage (going to make slaw)

And at Mariposa Coop....

mixed salad greens
almond-milk yogurt
white flour (going to try biscuits again)
bagels
hummus

Clark Park is open again, for the past week or so, after being closed since last fall. Instead of having all benches, they have conversationally-arranged gatherings of orange chairs.

The grass is baby grass, with straw still on it....
And you're asked to not walk on it if you can keep from it....

mushroom scramble

2011-04-10T11:48:00.006-04:00

breakfast (8:30 a.m.) = oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar

brunch (11:30 a.m.) = bagel with scrambled mushrooms

Heat some olive oil and a diced red shallot, along with salt, pepper, and fennel seeds, over low heat. Add 5 small-medium button mushrooms (those small, round, white mushrooms that are easy to find), chopped. Heat, stirring/turning occasionally with a spatula, until the mushrooms are slightly browned on the edges, and you should hear water hissing out of them. Turn the heat off and let them continue to sizzle while your bagel toasts. I did mine in the oven at 400 degrees until it was slightly brown on the edges. Spread margarine on the bagel, then top it with the mushroom scramble. Don't be shy with the olive oil; mushrooms will drink it up. Fennel seed gives the topping a savory breakfast taste.

Saturday food haul

2011-04-09T18:54:00.006-04:00

At the farmers' market (about $25)

1 quart button mushrooms

a bunch of collard greens

a bunch of kale

a bunch of winter salad greens (watercress, etc. mix)

1 head of green leaf lettuce

several bulbs of red shallots

10 red carrots

3 bagels

2 brownies

1 quart apple butter

At Mariposa co-op (about $35)

1.5 lbs rolled oats

1 lb penne pasta

1 lb asparagus

1 quart rice/soy milk

a bunch of dulce (sea vegetable)

dijon mustard

Tofurkey deli slices

4 bananas

lapsang souchong tea (bulk)

raspberry leaf tea (bulk)

valerian root powder (bulk)

nutritional yeast (bulk)

1 can of red beans for the food drive at my school

1 can of spicy refried beans for the food drive at my school

6 starter strawberry plants

I forgot to get beans for us (bulk red beans), and I forgot garlic. The winter greens mix and collard greens were the best deal of the day: $2.40 for both at the Pennypack Farms table. I'm into mushrooms for sandwiches again. They're filling and high in protein and they soak up whatever flavors you put on them. With springtime, I'm into sandwiches again, which just always seem like an appropriate food for warm weather. We've been getting hoagie rolls from Fu-Wah, and I bring sandwiches on them for lunch. Mark has been making me a delicious pasta and bean salad for lunch that I just don't get tired of. It saves my life on those long Wednesdays when I have to go out to Glenside for class after school.

Lapsang Souchong tea is now one of my favorite things. It is smoky and sexy. It's campfire tea. Valerian root is for relaxation, including relaxing your muscles, so I wanted to try it to help ease the tension in my neck and shoulders that doesn't let go at the end of the day. Raspberry leaf tea is especially for ladies. I just discovered that the co-op has bulk teas, which is great. I got a lot of the campfire tea for $4, which, a box of 16 Russian Caravan tea bags (another smoky tea) is over $4, and this is a lot more tea than that. I don't know how to use the Valerian root, so I have to look that up.

We've been running out of money pretty much every week as we catch up from winter heating bills, unemployment, and the general January-April money curse, so we've gotten creative with food a lot. Mark's payday was yesterday and not a moment too soon. Yesterday, I actually brought four slices of cheap white bread and a container of apple butter to spread on it for lunch. Thursday, I brought a bag of raisins and got a bag of pretzels and a very sad banana at the 7-11 near the school. Pitiful. Back on top of things now. I tried to be conscious about what would last the longest, with the exception of the Tofurkey slices, which were a splurge. The quart of button mushrooms, with greens, vinegar, mustard, and onions, will be great for sandwiches for lunch. I'm sure I can sweet talk Mark into making me another pasta salad. I still have lots of raisins, and the rolled oats are $1.02/lb, and a lot of bang for the buck, with high protein, calcium and iron, and very filling for breakfast (or dinner). Adding raisins sweetens the oatmeal and ups the calcium. Cheap pasta sauce from Fu-Wah, along with the cheap white bread for garlic bread makes for a good, cheap, filling pasta dinner. We also have plenty of whole wheat flour and black pepper for gravy, and Mark perfected a rice-and-gravy dish this past week that is ridiculous-tasty. I don't know what the hell I would do without Mark's mad cooking skills. My life would be sadder and less fulfilling. And then there's the love. That makes things better, too.

Saturday

2011-04-02T13:08:00.003-04:00

Farmers' Market this morning:

Sweet potatoes

Crimini mushrooms

Red beans

Sweet onions

Red, orange and white carrots

Collard greens

Lettuce from York County, where it snowed last night

Breakfast this morning:

Sesame seed bagel with hummus, and coffee from Green Line Cafe across the street from the farmers' market, where I watched dogs walk by with their people and people shop at the market and street canvassers canvass.

Pictured above: Take-Out from Desi Village. I don't remember what the main dish there is called but it was basically mixed vegetables over rice. Also in the picture are vegetable pakora (veggies battered and fried) and vegetable samosas (peas and potatoes with cumin in a pastry shell). The green sauce is hot and the red sauce is sweet and smoky.

Co-op later for: bananas, raisins, English muffins, soy milk, nuts, and tea

$18 at mariposa co-op

2011-02-20T20:07:00.003-05:00

3 bananas
3/4 lb organic flame raisins
1/2 lb pecans
3/4 lb carob chips
32 oz soymilk
16 raspberry-leaf teabags
and
a 3.2 oz raspberries-in-dark-chocolate candy bar

something to make a pot of on sunday and eat all week

2011-02-13T15:18:00.004-05:00

I thought I had a picture of the Whole Grains and Beans Soup Mix from Bob's Red Mill, sitting on the shelf at the co-op, but it looks like I have a picture of the 13-bean one instead. Too bad. Anyway, the one we are having today is the beans & grains one. I once had a cookbook all about beans and grains. Back in Marlinton. It went the way of many of my possessions when I transferred myself from Marlinton to Charlottesville to Philadelphia.

The 13-bean soup was fine, but I prefer the Whole Grains and Beans mix because it has about a zillion different grains in it, and the texture is perfect for a stew, which you can flavor a la American cuisine with onions and garlic and herbs (which is how we're having it today), or I would think you could have it curried, with big chunks of potato, which is how I'll have it when I make it myself.

The Whole Grains and Beans Soup Mix contains:

small red beans, pinto beans, lentils, red lentils, whole oat groats, brown rice, triticale berries (wheat), rye berries, hard red wheat, pearled barley, kamut khorasan wheat, buckwheat groats and sesame seeds.

One serving has 19 grams of protein, 15 grams of dietary fiber, 2 grams of fat, and 30% of your recommended daily iron.

I like the words hard red wheat. They make me think of a field in winter that was the setting of a few scenes of a book I read as a kid, which I remember nothing else about. I like the words triticale berries. They remind me of Quest for the Faradawn by Richard Ford. Who doesn't like to say pearled barley? Buckwheat groats is growing on me.

Cranberries popping, Field Roast, Thanksgiving.

2010-11-25T16:48:00.007-05:00

I am Thanksgiving. I made cheer. I seized power. I created cranberry sauce, and it tastes and looks and feels exactly like cranberry sauce.

It was very easy to make. I had, let's see, probably about a half-pound of cranberries (fresh cranberries from the co-op). A little bit of orange juice. An apple (Golden Delicious, from the co-op). Sugar. Nutmeg. Cloves.

You heat the cranberries in a pan (cast-iron skillet in my case).

When they start to pop (literally, you will hear them pop and see them splitting - watch....),

add sugar (you will need a lot, so just add some and then as it's cooking, keep tasting and adding more if needed), nutmeg (a little), a few cloves, the apple - diced very small (I used 3/4 of the apple), and splash on some orange juice (I used a very small amount of orange juice; just remember what consistency you want to end up with, kind of gelatinous; you will also probably add more orange juice little by little as it cooks).

Once the cranberries have started to pop, you don't want to cook them any longer than 15 minutes, or the pectin will break down in a bad way and it won't set properly. So add these ingredients, stir it up, start tasting the juices and adding sugar as needed, add a little more orange juice now and then if it's dry and it hasn't cooked for about 15 minutes yet.

When it's sweet and the apples and cranberries are soft and it's getting a little gelatinous, turn off the heat, put foil over the pan and let it sit in the steam and the fruit will continue to soften and the gel will firm up a little. Then you can put it in a bowl and put it in the fridge if you want to serve it cold. Make sure you taste it as it is cooking, so you get it the right sweetness. After you set the cranberry sauce aside, heat up some leftover vegan Field Roast, potatoes, sweet potatoes and asparagus, and throw it on a plate with your homemade cranberry sauce and some apple sauce. Mashed potatoes and gravy would also be a great option. Sweet corn. Green bean casserole. Pumpkin pie. I had a brownie for dessert. :)

Does it look perfect?! And it tastes perfect, refreshing, sweet but not too sweet, gelatinous, the whole nine yards. Wish I had more sweet potatoes, is all. Mmm, can't get over this cranberry sauce.

Saturday Shopping List

2010-11-14T09:21:00.004-05:00

From the Clark Park Farmers' Market, which I had not been to in weeks.

1 bunch collard greens

2 heads green leaf lettuce

1 head broccoli

1 quart brussels sprouts

3 white sweet potatoes

3 orange sweet potatoes

2 portabella caps

6 sweet yellow onions

1 giant parsnip for a soup

4 green peppers

And from Milk & Honey Market, a loaf of cracked wheat bread.

The other night, we had an early Tofurkey feast and have been having sandwiches from leftovers.

On the menu this week: Soups. Probably time for a blended sweet potato soup. Maybe some chili but we have to get tomatoes from the co-op. Stuffed, roasted portabella. Baked potatoes. Roasted collard greens. Could do collard green wraps with rice and tomatoes and maybe a little bit of soy sausage. And I have to get some sauerkraut for Brussels Sprouts & Sauerkraut, aka, Sprouts & Kraut.

Here's what's been happening in food.

2010-11-05T23:54:00.005-04:00

Been living on snacks: figs, tomatoes, bean sprouts, carrots, sunflower seeds, dried red sea vegetable, nuts, grapes. What I can grab from my kitchen when I am not, by any reasonable definition, awake. I've actually taken for lunch what was left of a box of cherry tomatoes and what was left of a bag of mixed nuts from yesterday. I have a working lunch from 11:50 - 12:34.

And here's what else: Oversized baked sweets. Big, thick, pillowy chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies with fork-criss-crosses on top, brownies, cinnamon rolls with icing, brownies with peanut-butter-fudge and chocolate coating on top. I have to stop. You get these things at coffee shops. They add up. I have to stop. But I'm not gonna. Cause I have a working lunch from 11:50 - 12:34. And I like to have sweets during that time period.

Bagels from the coffee shop on weekends.

Tonight, we ordered Chinese food from China Inn at 44th & Locust. It wasn't that good. Ordered through Eat24Hours.com which is good because they also have service for Desi Village and Tandoor India, and I will order from those places in the future.

Farmers' Market tomorrow? We'll see. Sleep first.

Kids in a Candy Store

2010-10-09T20:28:00.006-04:00

We've joined Mariposa Food Co-op and have been dining on...

pasta with mushrooms, marinara, greens, and fake meatballs... three-bean chili... red dulce... seaweed ramen... veggie burgers... crunchy bean sprouts... beans & rice... raw green beans... sandwiches w/mushrooms, lettuce, onion, tomato... ravioli... nuts... pumpkin seeds... grapes... apples... sesame seed candy... carob chips... oatmeal... trail mix... cold cereal with oat milk... sunflower seeds... and various cookies, brownies, and cupcakes... washed down with coconut water.

Life is good.

Today at Clark Park Farmers' Market

one bunch kale
one bunch collard greens
one head green leaf lettuce
one head red leaf lettuce
one head broccoli
two portabella caps
red and white carrots

A loaf of Cracked Wheat bread from Metropolitan Bakery. Then shopping tonight at the co-op for many of the things mentioned above plus sage incense and a new toothbrush.

Ready for the week

2010-09-12T21:52:00.003-04:00

Made this chili with canned ingredients tonight, for lunch tomorrow. Roasting some greens (fresh from the farmers' market) right now to go with them. Will also bring grapes from the farmers' market that taste like wild grapes. Very excellent trip to the store tonight.

Fu-Wah Mini-Market

Whole wheat flour
mineral water (2)
diced tomatoes (in a can)
black beans (can)
kidney beans (can)
Beirut Tahini Sesame Paste
brown rice cakes
chili powder
1 quart Almond Dream almond milk
baking soda

Total: $23.80

At the farmers' market on Thursday, I bought...

collard greens
mustard greens
okra
green beans
grapes
blackberries
yellow onions
carrots
tomatoes

I think that's it. I have maple syrup to mix with the tahini paste to put on the rice cakes. I can now make whole wheat pancakes. (I'm getting really good at pancakes.)

Tomorrow:

Breakfast - raw grain and walnut cereal with almond milk and blackberries
Noon Lunch - roasted greens, tahini w/maple syrup on rice cakes, and grapes
3 pm Lunch - 2-bean chili
When I get home from Arcadia - Whole wheat pancakes w/maple syrup

More hits from the road, and shopping back at the ranch

2010-08-28T16:44:00.015-04:00

Returned home to Philly on Wednesday. On Tuesday, enjoyed Lewisburg, WV. Visited the Wild Bean and the Bookstore and Edith's Store. The Wild Bean has a very nice menu.

I had the Healthy Wrap, which has greens, avocado, red onion, seeds, not sure what all else. Also had some of the chili you're seeing to the left. This was delicious. Sweet and hot and tomatoey. I was impressed that on the menu, in the description of the "Fakin' BLT," they note that their mayo is vegan. I didn't try the BLT, so I guess I have to go back someday. Oh, darn.

the "Healthy Wrap"

At Edith's Store, I bought a 2-oz. package of the sea vegetable Dulse, which I had never had before. It is red, and much softer and less chewy than the green varieties of seaweed I have tried. It tastes like bacon and sharp cheddar cheese. It has a sharp bite to it, and on the package they actually recommend crisping it in a pan in oil and using it to replace bacon on a BLT. It was so good as a raw snack that I ate most of it on the train the next day. The brand I bought is the same brand they carry at Weavers' Way Co-Op, but I don't remember if they had this variety or not. The brand is Maine Coast. Also bought some Celtic Sea Salt, some tea, and a mesh tea ball.

From a vegan-food-blogging perspective, my trip to W.Va. was a smashing success. It's so fun to go someplace I'm not usually and see what there is to eat. I can't believe I ever thought being vegan would be hard. Food is everywhere once you know what you're looking for. The Wild Bean and Edith's Store are not everywhere, but you remember my vegan Wal-Mart grocery list from the other day, right? The idea behind that was not to encourage vegans to shop at Wal-Mart (I don't recommend that to anyone); the idea was to show people who already shop at Wal-Mart that you can buy vegan foods in almost every aisle. Yeah, it's easier than you think. And remember, I also ate at a Mexican restaurant in Summersville in the same strip mall as Wal-Mart. Easy. Like fallin' off a log.

Got home Wednesday night and went to the farmers' market on Thursday to stock up. (I have no idea what Mark ate while I was gone. I'm not going to ask.) Went to the market this morning for a few more things.

Thursday Shopping List

1 bunch kale
1 bunch mustard greens
1 quart green beans
6 plum tomatoes
4 (bigger) red tomatoes
6 (big) yellow potatoes
1 pint blackberries
1 pint raspberries
(and at Milk & Honey Market)
1 avocado
1 loaf multigrain bread

Saturday Shopping List

1 quart okra
1 head red leaf lettuce
4 red shallots
1 golden zucchini
10 ears white sweet corn
2 portobello mushroom caps
1 oz. peppermint
1 oz. chamomile flowers
1/2 oz. lemon verbena
1 oz. sage
(and at Milk & Honey Market)
1 lb. unbleached wheat and barley flour
vanilla extract
1 lb. organic cane sugar

The chamomile flowers, peppermint, and lemon verbena are for tea, now that we have that mesh tea ball. Can't wait. Need to get cinnamon.

Oh, remember the vegan burger from the Amtrak train? On the way back, I got another one. It's actually not bad at all. You wouldn't want to eat it every day, but it's pretty tasty with ketchup and mustard. The bun is a Kaiser roll, and they microwave the whole thing in the package, but it doesn't get soggy somehow. A little chewy or stretchy, maybe, but tolerable.

After returning home from mom and dad's I am now inspired to make biscuits, hence the flour. And pancakes, hence the vanilla extract. Things we had to eat at mom and dad's included fried potatoes with peppers and onions, homemade biscuits with molasses, kale crisps (which I made and they loved), tomato-rice-bean soup, hummus & avocado sandwiches (both grilled and not grilled), fire-roasted corn on the cob, fire-baked potatoes, baked apples with walnuts and cinnamon crumbles, sweet potato fries, oatmeal, berry smoothies, and pancakes.

It was good to be home while I was there and good to be home now that I'm back. Wherever I go, some things don't change. More scenes from the Wild Bean....

Summersville Wal-Mart, WV State Fair, Bob Evans, Vegan Living

2010-08-22T22:38:00.014-04:00

I'm visiting my family in W.Va. I count Summersville as my home town, although we lived all around it. They live in a different little town now. We spent the day at Summersville Lake today. I visited the site of the original Campfire 30. Campsite #30 at Battle Run Campground.

Wednesday night when my train got in, my parents and niece picked me up at the station and we ate at Bob Evans. I wasn't very hungry. The microwaved Amtrak vegan burger and Cliff Bars had ruined my appetite. I had a plate of sweet potato fries and a salad. Then we went grocery shopping at Wal-Mart in Lewisburg.

Vegan Burger on the menu in the Amtrak cafe car

At the State Fair of WV the next day, I ate corn on the cob roasted in the husk in a fire pit by the Shady Spring Future Farmers of America (a favorite snack from childhood state fairs), sweet potato fries with cinnamon and sugar, mashed potatoes, broccoli-cauliflower salad, garden salad, baked apples, and a baked potato. The "butter" the future farmers offered with their corn on the cob was vegan. It was Parkay Squeezable Margarine. (And yes, if you have that in your fridge right now, it does mean you are vegan and probably a Socialist and possibly gay.)

That night we had to drive to Beckley to reunite my niece with her mama, so the next morning, we had breakfast at Tamarack. I had a bagel with jelly, an English muffin with baked apples, and fried potatoes with onions and pepper, along with a really great cup of coffee.

Yesterday, we stayed home all day, made a fire, cooked on it/in it. Both sisters and one of their significant others and the other ones' kids came down. We roasted potatoes and corn. I made what I'm calling a campfire panini. It has a thin layer of Vegenaise (from Edith's Store in Lewisburg; you could also use margarine) on the outsides of the bread, then stuffed with hummus, tomato, onion, and dill seeds. Would have been great with avocado, but I forgot. It's grilled in this neat thing that we used to have a set of when we were living in the campground. Here, I'll post pictures.

This morning, we went out for brunch to Los Pescadores Mexican Restaurant in Summersville, on our way to the lake. This is in the same strip mall with Wal-Mart and the Dollar Tree. I had vegetable fajitas. Looking at the menu, I ordered it without sour cream (still had guacamole), and then after it came, I scraped the cheese off the beans. (They don't mention the cheese on the menu. Everyone would of course obviously want cheese on their beans.) The food was really good. The service was good. I had sopapillas for dessert.

After spending the day at the lake today, we picked up a few more groceries at the Wal-Mart in Summersville.

Vegan Grocery list from Wal-Mart

2 bunches kale

1 head green leaf lettuce

1 bunch asparagus

Big tub of hummus

Small tub of Earth Balance margarine

1/2 gallon of almond milk

2 things of Fig Newmans cookies

Arnold's Sandwich Thins (round sandwich bread)
Some kind of square bread from the deli

some other kinds of bread (cause my mom and dad like lots of different breads)
frozen berries
bananas

onions

potatoes

sweet potatoes

2 avocados

We didn't get any beans, pasta, rice, hot cereal, etc., but they have those things. You can certainly get your four vegan food groups at Wal-Mart. I know the vegetables might have been grown halfway around the world and have been sprayed with chemicals, but they're at least as good as anything else you're getting at Wal-Mart. Their selection of almond milks almost made me jealous.

At the house, I've been eating a lot of sandwiches, with hummus, avocado, etc., the things I usually eat at home. And toast with molasses, which I usually don't have. Mom usually makes fried potatoes in the mornings, and berry smoothies. Just bought the kale tonight; I'm going to roast a pan of it for mom and dad tomorrow. Dad made biscuits and brown gravy to go with the campfire foods last night. I brought some Bob's Red Mill muesli (cereal with uncooked rolled grains, nuts, raisins, dates, seeds) with me. Brought some Cliff Bars but haven't been eating them. They will be good for the train ride home. Can't believe it's already Sunday night.

Thursday, Friday pizza, Saturday, and Bob's Red Mill

2010-08-07T17:06:00.005-04:00

Saturday Shopping List

canteloupe!
1 lb. baby lima beans
5 tomatoes
3 yellow peaches
3 white peaches
1 pint blueberries
6 onions
10 carrots
3 ears of corn
1 pint shiitake mushrooms
12-oz jar of strawberry jam
and a 16-oz iced coffee

total: $28

Thursday Shopping List

1 bunch curly kale
1 bunch mustard greens
1 bunch Swiss chard
1 quart green beans
1 pint raspberries
1 pint blackberries
4 heirloom tomatoes
1 spaghetti squash
6 ears of corn
1 loaf country white bread

total: $36

Mark has made a soup with rice, red beans, corn, onion, carrots, and cayenne pepper. Overall, it has a sweet taste, from the corn, carrots, and cayenne, and of course a hot taste.

Ordered Papa John's last night, with onions, mushrooms and black olives. I tried putting Diaya's mozzerella cheese on it, but the cheese had been in the fridge and was too cold, so it didn't really work with the pizza, which wasn't quite hot enough. I only tried that on one slice. We got that cheese for a pasta last week, and it was amazing. They have it at Fu-Wah. Daiya cheese is not a soy product. The ingredients are: Filtered water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and /or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, vegan natural flavours, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, citric acid (for flavor).

I forgot to stop at the Slow Rise Bakery table today for more granola. I usually only stop there if I want sweets, so today I skipped it, completely forgetting that last week I bought a lb. of delicious maple granola there and meant to get more. May have to visit the store for some granola or cereal. On the topic of cereal, I have to recommend Bob's Red Mill products (grain products). Not only because they are good, but because the owner earlier this year transferred ownership of the company to the employees. I will vote for that company with my dollars every chance I get. The people who do the work should reap the rewards.

Saturday, Swiss chard, and bean salads

2010-08-02T13:13:00.008-04:00

Saturday was the day we had to be out of our old apartment, so I haven't blogged the groceries yet. I got so much stuff at Thursday's farmers' market, that Saturday felt more like a Thursday. Only spent $28 Saturday morning... er, afternoon. I actually forgot to go to the market until half past one, because of all the excitement.

Saturday Shopping List

The four lovely heirloom tomatoes you see above
5 red shallots
3 bunches of small orange carrots with the greens on
6 ears sweet corn
4 cucumbers
1 pint blackberries
1 lb. maple granola
1/2 loaf banana sourdough bread
1 loaf multi-grain bread
and a 16-oz iced coffee

Total: $28

On Thursday, I had spent $36.50, and got kale, mustard greens, Swiss chard, lettuce, potatoes, onions, mushrooms, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, tomatoes, green beans, and garlic. I may be forgetting something.

The Swiss chard is GREAT for roasting. I usually roast kale and mustard greens for about 30-35 minutes. I had forgotten a pan in the oven recently and burned it to a crisp after 45 minutes. Well. I got the Swiss chard, put it on the bottom, put kale and mustard greens on top, and put it in the oven intending to leave it about 30 minutes. Did the same thing again! Forgot about it and after 45 minutes I went in there steaming mad, figuring I just ruined another pan of perfectly good greens. No. The chard was still a little moist and had protected the other greens and everything else was golden brown and crispy. The chard was golden brown and flaky like a pie crust! It was ridiculous. The flavor was strong. It was very savory and rich. Now I have a reason to buy Swiss chard. So good.

Mark made this delicious summer bean salad. It has: red beans, corn, cucumber, tomato, carrots, and purple lettuce, with an oil & vinegar dressing and cayenne pepper. Shut up. It's amazing. He made another, similar one, but with green beans and potato, and with an avocado dressing that he made himself. I think it was just avocado and olive oil with pepper. That one was also delicious. The avocado dressing made it very filling and added some good fat.

Fruity Thursday

2010-07-23T19:02:00.005-04:00

There is so much fruit in my house right now.

Thursday Shopping List

1 pint blueberries

1 pint blackberries

1 pint raspberries

6 peaches

6 green apples

1 lb. baby spinach

1 bunch curly kale

1 bunch mustard greens

1 quart green beans

3 ears bi-color sweet corn

6 tomatoes

Total: about $30 (berries are pricey but worth it)

The apples are perfect. I don't remember seeing these last year. They're smallish and green. They are very crisp, both in texture and taste. They have a tartness but are not at all sour and with a sweetness to balance it out. They seem like they would be great for pies. Now I just need to try actually baking a pie. I got them from Fahnestock Fruit Farm, the same people I get the peaches and tomatoes from.

I got the mustard greens specifically to try roasting them, as I usually do with kale. I made a bunch of roasted kale and mustard greens when I got home, and there wasn't much difference between the two, except the mustard greens had more of a bite to them. I think this makes them slightly superior for roasting. Again, here's how you roast greens: coat them with olive oil, sprinkle liberally with sea salt, place in a cast iron pan and into an oven preheated to 350, for 30-35 minutes. Greens should be browned (actually, I like to blacken them a little bit) and super-crisp and dry, like very thin, green, misshapen potato chips.

Incidentally they're great for a hangover.

Stocking the new kitchen!

2010-07-17T14:01:00.009-04:00

First farmers' market from the new apartment. It was a nice little walk (about the same distance, but a different direction). I cleaned the new (to us) refrigerator to within an inch of its life before heading out this afternoon (yes, it was afternoon before I was done). That took about an hour and a half. I took out all the trays from the door and all the shelves and washed them in the sink with baking soda and hot water. Scrubbed out the inside of the fridge with baking soda as well. Dried and reassembled everything. It is sparkling. Then went nuts at the market.

Saturday Shopping List

1 lb. small red beans
1 lb. green beans
1 pint shiitake mushrooms
2 heads red leaf lettuce
6 ears bi-color sweet corn
10 red potatoes
10 sweet onions
a dozen carrots (smallish, with the greens still on)
3 summer squash
2 golden zucchini
2 green zucchini
4 small cucumbers
2 purple peppers
1 green pepper
6 heirloom tomatoes
2 giant red tomatoes
6 peaches
1 pint blueberries
12-oz jar of strawberry jam
1 lb. granola
1 loaf country white bread
1 oz. fennel seeds
2 oz. black pepper

Total: about $50

Came home and had raw green beans and carrots dipped in hummus for brunch. Haven't had coffee yet, so I'm venturing out in the heat for an iced coffee. Later, it's off to the old apartment to gather up dishes and cooking utensils.

We've been living large these past couple days, picnicking on gourmet food from the local restaurants. Gourmet veggie burgers and salads last night from Dock Street Brewery. Night before last, chickpea-tabouli salad, guacamole and hummus with pita and black olives, with orange-chocolate-chip cake for dessert, from the Gold Standard Cafe. Tofu scramble from Gold Standard for breakfast yesterday. But at some point, we have to actually settle down and start cooking again. Clean fridge, check. Groceries, check. Clean stove, clean cupboards, clean dishes next.

Thursday boost

2010-07-02T10:36:00.006-04:00

Summertime. I can go shopping at the park on a Thursday afternoon. Nothing better to do. Nice.

Thursday Shopping List

6 peaches
1 quart blueberries
1 quart peas-in-the-pod
bunch of green onions
giant head of purple leaf lettuce
I feel like there was something else, but I don't remember what.

total: maybe around $12

And then at Milk & Honey, we found sweet corn ($2/lb.) and bought 6 ears of that. Haven't seen that at the market at all yet and have been waiting eagerly. Today was the first time there were peaches.

I have eaten a lot of fruit and raw vegetables this past week. I love this time of year because a.) the fruit is here and b.) all the veggies that are good to eat raw are out. Raw green beans were the prize from Saturday. Those peas in the pod are amazing raw. They're big. Every pod has about 9 or 10 peas in it and they are plump and sweet and juicy. They're not the ones I was getting in the quart boxes, that are already shelled. Those are good too but always go bad by Monday when I get them on Saturday. I don't know if it's my fridge or if they just don't keep. The ones in the shell are much less finicky.

Snacks: apricots, cherries, blueberries, green peas

Apricot, cherries (chopped) and blueberries, ready to go onto granola

Apricot, cherries and blueberries on granola with rice milk

Saturday: downed trees and paper bags of fruit

2010-06-26T20:03:00.013-04:00

Saturday Shopping List

1 pint sweet cherries
1 pint blueberries
1 pint apricots
2 quarts green peas
2 quarts green beans (and yellow green beans)
1 pint shiitake mushrooms
1 portobello cap
2 giant orange carrots
1 bunch small multi-colored carrots with greens
1 bunch kale
2 heads buttercrunch lettuce
2 bunches broccoli
5 tomatoes
2 big white potatoes
3 red potatoes
and one 16-oz. iced coffee

Total: $38.85

Roasted some squash, green beans, and shiitakes with salt, pepper, and fennel seeds. It was very strong and savory. Kind of chewy.

I have a raw vegetable and fruit snack buffet on my refrigerator door right now. Been snacking all day on cherries, blueberries, apricots, green peas, green beans.

I found the park severely wind damaged this morning.

Saturday Market in cell phone pictures

2010-06-19T14:57:00.004-04:00

Saturday Shopping List

1 lb chickpeas (dried)
2 quarts green peas (fresh)
4 summer squash
2 green zucchini
1 golden zucchini
5 tomatoes
6 sweet onions
2 fat carrots
1 bunch broccoli
1 huge bunch kale (green/purple leaf)
2 heads buttercrunch (green) lettuce
5 stalks rhubarb
4 sweet potatoes
5 white potatoes
1 pint shitaake mushrooms
1 quart strawberries
1 quart cherries
and a 16 oz cup of iced coffee

Total: about $47

The coffee shop across the street set up a stand selling iced coffee. Smart them.

Still no sweet corn, and asparagus appears to be finished. Plenty of berries out now.

I saw a three-year-old girl eat her first blueberry. Her mother was looking for fruit for her, asked if she could try a blueberry because she had never had one. The baby ate the blueberry, paused for a moment, grinned and reached up to the table for another blueberry. "We have a winner," her mom said, and bought a quart.

Last week, the fridge was on the fritz and a bunch of our food wilted. :( That happened shortly after last week's market. I've eaten way too much noodle soup this week.

I'm looking forward to roasting shitaake mushrooms with sweet potatoes, squash and fennel seeds. And juicing some of this kale with those giant orange carrots. Got a loaf of bread last night, so mushroom/vinegar, tomato, onion, lettuce sandwiches are on the menu. The chickpeas might get roasted. The green peas will no doubt be eaten raw, along with cherries and strawberries. And strawberries will be dropped on top of oat bran.

Saturday Market: Fruit and Green Peas!

2010-06-12T21:09:00.009-04:00

It would be a shame to cook these peas. I have been eating them raw, by the handful, all day. Peas, by the way, are another great answer to every vegan's favorite question, "Where do you get your protein?". Peas are a legume and, as such, a great source of protein.

Saturday Shopping List

1 quart green peas
1 quart cherries
1 quart strawberries
1 very large head of romaine lettuce
1 head of buttercrunch lettuce
4 sweet potatoes
1 bunch of asparagus
1 quart crimini mushrooms
6 large carrots
6 tomatoes
4 summer squash
2 zucchini
1 loaf multi-grain bread
2 bagels

Total: $39 and change

The cherries are delicious. This was the first week there were cherries. I got a quart of strawberries at one table and put them in a small paper bag, then a quart of cherries at the next table and put them into the same bag. So I have a paper bag full of refreshing, sweet, tart, fruity goodness in the refrigerator. I can't keep my hands out of it. Today has been busy with homework, and I've lived on snacks of raw green peas, strawberries, and cherries.

This is also the first week there was Patty Pan Squash, but I didn't get any, because I had already gotten summer squash and zucchini, and we still had some squash at home, and I didn't want to let it go to waste. It's good to know the Patty Pan is back, though. I'm having flashbacks to last summer, as we head into our second full summer of living off the farmers' market. We're moving at the end of the month, and it's good to know we'll only be a few blocks away and actually a little bit closer to the market. The walk will change slightly, but will be about the same length.

Here comes the summer (squash).

2010-06-06T10:59:00.006-04:00

You should have seen how happy I got when I saw the summer squash at the market yesterday. Actually, I saw golden zucchini first and got excited because I thought it was summer squash, and even after noticing it wasn't, I still bought a bunch of it, cause who doesn't love golden zucchini? Then, on down the line a few tables, there was the real summer squash. Got some of that as well. At this point in the summer, I can fry this stuff in thin slices and eat it like candy. I don't get sick of it until at least late July. I found green zucchini at Milk and Honey last week, got a couple of those and threw some slices in with my vegetable roasts, along with shiitake mushrooms. Delicious. Last night, Mark made us a stir-fry, to be detailed below.

Saturday Shopping List

5 summer squash
5 golden zucchini
4 large sweet potatoes
1 lb. chickpeas
5 tomatoes
1 quart strawberries
23-oz jar of home-made apple sauce
1 pint shiitake mushrooms
1 large portobello cap
1 head buttercrisp lettuce
1 head green leaf lettuce
1 bunch curly kale
2 bulbs garlic
1/2 loaf sourdough banana bread
1 loaf multi-grain bread

Total: $36 and change

I'm happy about all the fruit I got. Strawberries are expensive; most people have them for $4 a pint or $7.50 a quart. One of my favorite vendors yesterday had them for $5.50 a quart, so I bought a quart from her. It's an indulgence I just decided I would indulge in. You can only get fresh local strawberries for so long (which doesn't make sense, because it seems like you could grow them in a green house pretty easily - am I wrong? Does anyone know?). Over the winter, I crave fresh berries, think about them, dream about them. When it's summer, I intend to eat as many fresh, Pennsylvania strawberries as I possibly can. Just wait until the blackberries and raspberries come in. And cherries. And blueberries. I'll buy them all.

Now, about this stir-fry that Mark made. It was asparagus, zucchini, squash, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, onion, garlic and red beans. I never think of putting beans in a stir-fry, but it's great. It's a great way to eat beans if you're tired of beans, and it's a great way to make a stir-fry more substantial. It's like you can feel the iron fortifying your body as you eat the red beans. Plus, it's delicious. We had it with multi-grain toast with jelly on the side.

Saturday Market

2010-05-29T18:55:00.005-04:00

The theme today was green. Our kitchen is well-stocked with green. New today was baby bok choy, which I have never prepared before, though I think I have had it at an Asian restaurant. Also new is that I got shiitake mushrooms instead of portobello. And also, I have no idea how much money I spent today. I have the most horrible cold/flu/plague I believe I have ever had in my life. It's been raging since Wednesday. I have missed three (THREE!) days of school. It's really freaking me out and messing with my sense of efficacy and self-worth. How am I going to go back to work on Tuesday and function? I could have missed so many things while I was away. I am trying not to think about it this weekend and instead to rest and focus on good food. So anyway, because of the creeping death, I did not bother to keep a running list of items and prices as I usually do. Furthermore, I am not even going to estimate. Why? Because my brain is about 5 degrees warmer than it normally is and it doesn't like that very much. I am capable of constructing a rudimentary account of what I bought, however.

Saturday Shopping List

1 lb. cranberry beans
a bunch of asparagus
1/2 lb of baby bok choy
3 heads of baby lettuce
one head of butter-crisp lettuce
a bunch of dark flat-leafed kale for juicing
6 large carrots with splits or nicks on them, for $2
1 quart basket of Kennebec potatoes (I know b/c the sign said so)
5 large tomatoes
a pint of shiitake mushrooms
a pint of strawberries
a pint of sugar snap peas
1 oz. fennel seeds
a loaf of multi-grain bread

Total: Yeah, no earthly clue. I imagine around $30 or so, just because it's usually about that and it wasn't all that different today.

There it is. I made juice this morning when I returned from the market: carrot and kale. I'm about to fix a sandwich of mushrooms, onion, tomato, lettuce, and possibly some fried tofu. For breakfast, I went to Satellite Cafe and had the vegan bike shop bagel which is vegan cream cheese, pesto, spinach, and roasted red pepper on a bagel. I thought the pesto was a little strong and also not how I remember pesto tasting. It was very vinegary. It was alright, but I would have preferred vegan cream cheese, tomato and spinach. I don't know if they make that.

baby bok choy and kale

carrot juice

A great use for rhubarb

2010-05-26T12:53:00.005-04:00

Rhubarb Roasted Vegetables

1 small sweet potato
1 small white potato (or red, or yellow)
4 stalks of asparagus
2 carrots
a whole shallot
about an inch and a half of a rhubarb stalk, chopped
olive oil, salt, and pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Cut and combine potatoes, carrots, shallot, and asparagus in a cast iron pan. Coat with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Scatter finely chopped rhubarb over top of the vegetables. Roast for about 30 - 35 minutes or until everything is soft and the carrots and asparagus tops are a teensy bit blackened. The rhubarb is mild but gives the vegetables a sweet, fresh, tangy flavor. It goes well with the pepper.

"Godspeed all the bakers at dawn...."

2010-05-22T14:43:00.003-04:00

I made a playlist on my iPod this morning with nothing but "New Slang" by the Shins nineteen times. That was my farmers' market playlist. I turn it off while I'm shopping because you want to interact with the vendors, but I have a nice, 4 1/2 block walk each way to listen to music. It's a rainy day in Cedar Park and I didn't get out of bed until nearly 11 o'clock. Didn't leave the house until it started raining just before one. I was afraid the vendors would pack up early, but they didn't.

Bought the last bunch of mustard greens from the high school gardening program. Their turn-out is very impressive. There are always at least five kids there staffing the table; this morning, there were more like seven. That's better attendance than some of my classes. These kids were from U. City and Sayre, but sometimes there are West kids. They tried to sell me the entire rest of their salad greens for $26... well, they "tried." It was a joke. But you don't know unless you try. Go, kids.

I didn't bring any paper and pen to make a list, but I put $40 in my pocket and spent most of it, in two places.

Saturday Shopping List

-a big bag of hydroponic lettuce from the lady who sells beans and spices - this is her first hydro lettuce harvest and she was giving samples - it's very sharp and flavorful - will go well with mustard on a sandwich - $2
-two heads of baby lettuce - one purple and one green and curly - 75 cents ea.
-a bunch of mustard greens - $2
-half-dozen carrots
-two rhubarb stalks (ruined every recipe last time, going to try again)
-a pint of strawberries - from a different vendor this time - smaller, sweeter berries, i couldn't stop eating them on the way home
-a pint of crimini (brown) mushrooms
-a portobello cap
-a loaf of sourdough banana bread (ate half of it for breakfast with my strawberries)
-a bunch of asparagus
-a large parsnip to go in a soup (gives blended soups a creamy texture and fresh flavor)
-a quart of sweet onions
-a 23-oz. jar of apple sauce
-eight large tomatoes (some red and some green, to last all week)

I think that's it.

total: around $30

And at Milk and Honey: a loaf of cracked wheat bread, a few shallots, and a cup of coffee - around $8

Saturday market, mid-May... waiting for squash

2010-05-15T16:03:00.008-04:00

I can't wait for summer squash. I don't remember when it comes in, so every Saturday I go to the market hoping it will be there. I want to roast some with sweet potatoes. But today was not the day.

Saturday Shopping List

about a dozen large carrots
8 of the tomatoes you see above
6 white potatoes
4 red potatoes
5 yellow sweet onions
2 of the bunches of asparagus you see above
a large head of buttercrisp lettuce
a jar of apple syrup
a pint of strawberries
a pint of crimini mushrooms
1 large portobello cap
2 bunches of dark green curly kale

Total: about $27

We want to start juicing again, so I got a bunch of carrots and the two bunches of dark green kale. We haven't had kale in a while. No sense in that. It is a great source of protein, calcium, and iron. The carrots are really big and I got plenty, so there should be enough to both juice and roast.

My favorite dish lately has been to roast potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, asparagus and onions in the the cast iron skillet in the oven at 425 for about 35 minutes. So good. I put on sea salt, black pepper, and fennel seeds. I cut up a whole, small sweet onion, in big chunks, and put in there, and it makes the whole house smell savory and foodie. Garlic is also good to add.

Saw an apartment on Craigslist that advertises if you live there you might have to help with the vegetable gardening and composting in the back yard. Hmm. That would be awesome. We e-mailed about it. Will keep you posted.

rhubarb rhubarb

2010-05-08T14:08:00.008-04:00

All I really know about rhubarb is that if a lot of people say it all at once, it can sound like the general muttering of a crowd of extras on a movie set.

But I've already found a recipe for cold rhubarb soup with mint (scroll to the 2nd recipe), and I'm going to get baking soda and concoct something with flour and sugar that you can bake in a cast iron skillet. Any suggestions?

Saturday Shopping List

3 stalks of rhubarb
a pint of strawberries
1 purple baby lettuce, 1 green curly-leaf lettuce
1 buttercrisp lettuce
8 tomatoes
10 potatoes (red and white)
4 sweet potatoes
2 bunches of asparagus
4 yellow sweet onions
6 orange carrots
1 giant parsnip
1 leek
2 portobellos

total at Clark Park Farmers' Market: $32, even

and @ Milk & Honey Market:

1 loaf of multi-grain bread
2 bagels
2 pears

total: $9.18

Grand Total: $41.18

On the menu or percolating in my brain right now:

-oatmeal with rhubarb & strawberries
-rhubarb scones or muffins
-potato-leek-parsnip soup
-cold rhubarb soup
-rhubarb crumble (dessert)
-pancakes with strawberries
-portobello sandwiches
-could I make a rhubarb salad dressing?
-roasted: potatoes, asparagus, onions, carrots
-roasted sweet potatoes
-roasted chickpeas

May Day Market

2010-05-01T13:38:00.007-04:00

Tomatoes are back!
Saturday Shopping List

6 big tomatoes
1 lb. asparagus
8 white potatoes
6 red potatoes
8 giant orange carrots
1 purple baby lettuce
1 green curly-leaf lettuce
1 giant buttercrisp lettuce
8 yellow onions
1 bunch scallions (about 1 lb.)
1 pint white mushrooms
1 portobello cap
1 oz. fennel seeds.

Total: $30.65

Current Menu at Heather's House

-avocado, lettuce, onion, tomato sandwich
-mushroom, lettuce, onion, tomato sandwich
-roasted chickpeas
-edamame
-steamed asparagus and carrots
-orzo salad with carrots and scallions
-miso soup with seaweed
-cream of asparagus soup
-baked potatoes
-mashed potatoes with pepper gravy
-hash browns/home fries
-mushroom scramble on a bagel or toast
-flaxseed pancakes
-oatmeal
-hot multi-grain cereal
-banana bread
-grapefruit
-Philadelphia Water Ice - lemon
-iced coffee
-iced tea
-ice water

An avocado gives you 4 grams of protein with a perfect amino acid score

2010-04-28T20:50:00.005-04:00

Had to go downtown today, so I stopped at Trader Joe's.

out-of-the-ordinary shopping list

3 avocados
1 lb. of oatmeal
2 lbs. 4 oz. of pancake mix
8 oz. maple syrup
17.5 oz. strawberry preserves
1/2 dozen English muffins
80 Irish breakfast teabags
and
dish soap

total: $27 and change

Avocados are expensive, but they are $1.29 at Trader Joe's and $1.99 at Milk & Honey.

An avocado gives you 4 grams of protein with a perfect amino acid score.

So I grabbed three, figuring I will eat one and Mark will eat one and I will use the other for sandwiches.

Things I can have now that I couldn't have before these groceries:

pancakes (with syrup or jelly)
English muffins (with syrup or jelly)
mushroom scramble on English muffin
an avocado, lettuce, & onion sandwich with mustard
an avocado
a bowl of oatmeal (with or without maple syrup)
iced tea
hot tea

We're out of bread and the stores are closed but I had a mushroom, lettuce, & onion sandwich earlier, will get bread tomorrow, and will have the avocado sandwich for lunch Friday.

Shortly: pancakes

For breakfast tomorrow: English muffin with strawberry jelly, oatmeal

For lunch tomorrow: not sure

Dinner tomorrow: baked potato, steamed asparagus & carrots, miso soup

Breakfast Friday: grapefruit, oatmeal

Lunch Friday: avocado, lettuce, & onion sandwich with mustard

Dinner Friday: pancakes

How's that?

Saturday Market

2010-04-24T16:53:00.010-04:00

2 lbs. asparagus
12 fat orange carrots
1 baby green leaf (curly) lettuce
1 baby purple leaf lettuce
1 large green leaf lettuce
8 red potatoes
1 big white potato
5 small yellow sweet onions
1 pint white mushrooms
1 portobello mushroom cap
2 bulbs garlic
23 oz. jar of homemade apple sauce
1 oz. black pepper
1 loaf multi-grain bread
one plain bagel

Total: $36.72

Sauteed 5 of the white mushrooms with fennel seeds, onions, and pepper, piled onto a bagel with the green curly and purple lettuces and vegenaise.

Then steamed some asparagus and carrots with olive oil, Old Bay seasoning, salt and pepper. They are perfect, steamed for 6 minutes. (pictured above)

I've been baking sweet and white potatoes in the oven in the cast iron skillet, at 400 degrees, for about 35 minutes. Cut the potatoes and coat with olive oil, then toss with salt, pepper, and Old Bay seasoning, and include some crushed cloves of garlic. Makes a great side for a sandwich.

Asparagus is plentiful at the market all of a sudden, and so far we're not tired of just steaming it. But there is also this great, quick, lazy meal. Steam the asparagus for six minutes, and during the last three minutes, cook some Thai Kitchen Garlic & Vegetable rice noodles. Sprinkle some garlic powder either on the asparagus, the noodles, or both, throw the two components together in a bowl and be amazed. It's really unusually good.

Birthday Saturday Market

2010-04-17T15:40:00.004-04:00

2 lbs of asparagus
a dozen small yellow potatoes
2 sweet potatoes
1 head green leaf lettuce
2 heads baby purple lettuce
~1 lb. of small little fat orange and purple carrots
23-oz. jar of apple sauce
1 pint white mushrooms
1 portobello cap

$27 at Clark Park

1 loaf rye bread
4 tomatoes
1 whole wheat bagel
1 lb. rice-buckwheat hot cereal

~$12 at Milk & Honey Market

Total: ~$39

I didn't post last weekend, but we got chives and fresh herbs and pretty much everything we got this weekend. The groceries pictured above are actually last week's. I'm trying the rice-buckwheat hot cereal for the first time. It sounds ridiculously good with berries. I don't have any berries, though. Might be good with apple sauce. I've been running out of oatmeal every few days and decided to try this for a change. Finally getting enough grains in my diet because I discovered how amazing a few grains of sea salt will make oatmeal taste. I can't wait to have the brown rice and buckwheat cereal with a little salt and a little sugar. I can't wait to have it with blackberries.

I'm thirty-one today. There's a flea market on at the park. The neighborhood is beautiful but full of pollen.

Saturday Market & North Port Fishington Cookie Factory

2010-03-27T12:32:00.012-04:00

There are 30 vegan cookies in my kitchen, and I can't eat them until Monday.

We'll come back to that. It's a cold, sunny day at Clark Park, maple-syrup weather, and chilly yellow daffodils are in bloom. White sunshine glances off the mud or is absorbed by bare branches. Food is plentiful, sweet and variable. Even the bean-and-spice lady is here, and I think she may be back for the season. She has chickpeas today.

Saturday Shopping List

1 lb of chickpeas
1 bunch of kale
baby spinach
2 heads of green leaf lettuce
a carton of micro-greens
a paper bag of small white potatoes
2 parsnips
1 quart of white mushrooms
1 portobello cap
a 23-oz jar of homemade apple sauce
1 oz. of "chicken seasoning"
a really big butternut squash
a loaf of multi-grain bread

total: about $35

Hadn't gotten a butternut squash in a long time. I'm going to bake it, of course. Going to try to make hummus - that's what the chickpeas are for. I also have a recipe for falafel I want to try. Still did not use the leek from last week, so I think I'll start off the week with a potato-leek soup for lunch.

I also purchased today 30 vegan cookies from a local bakery for my students. Milk & Honey Market special-ordered them for me and they came in today. I would tell you the name of the bakery but I'm afraid to open and look at the cookies. I have to keep them until Monday. Since two days were lopped off of spring break due to snow days, I wanted to bring my kids something for having to come to school those days. And I want my kids to know I like them, and what better way to show someone you like them than by giving them cookies. And I wanted cookies.

UPDATE: I braved a look at the cookies. They look so good! There are ten chocolate chip, ten snickerdoodle, and ten oatmeal-cranberry. They were baked at Philly Kitchen Share on South Street by North Port Fishington Cookie Factory (the name is an amalgam of several northeast philly neighborhoods: Northern Liberties, Port Richmond, Fishtown and Kensington). The baker apparently also makes donuts! And the donuts look good!

Monday

2010-03-22T23:28:00.002-04:00

Breakfast (6 a.m.): Oatmeal with raw sugar

Lunch (12-ish): Black bean soup (with corn, potatoes, and stewed tomatoes); Macaroni salad (with carrot, celery, and Vegenaise)

Early Dinner/Snack (6 pm): Tofu Hoagie from Fu-Wah

Snack (9 pm): Multi-grain toast with vegan cream cheese

Late Dinner/Snack (10 pm): More Oatmeal, half a grapefruit with agave nectar

Balance

Breakfast: Grains

Lunch: Legumes, Grains, Vegetables

Early Dinner/Snack: Legumes, Vegetables (and grains, if you count corner-store hoagie rolls, which I wouldn't)

Snack: Grains, Legumes (vegan cream cheese is just soybeans, basically)

Late Dinner: Grains, Fruit

If I could do it over:

I would add fruit to breakfast and a fruit snack around 3 pm.

Spring Market

2010-03-21T12:06:00.005-04:00

In a few weeks, the Clark Park Farmers' Market will be a buffet of vegetables I had forgotten about. Over the summer, the variety will change weekly. Carrots in every color of the rainbow, roots that look like they came either from outer space or the core of the earth. Greens tinged with purple, red, blue. Patty-pan squash in three colors. Yellow summer squash, zucchini, cucumbers. Potatoes whose skins are a mix of colors shimmering like an oil slick only to hide a completely different pigment underneath in their flesh. Heirloom tomatoes like your granny grew. People will set out buckets of tall flowers that drip water from their stems when you lift them out. And okra! Okra! My favorite meal will again be okra with tomatoes, and crunchy, salted, sauteed green beans on the side like fries.

Yesterday was the first official market of spring, and already the offerings were more diverse. A lady had potted plants ready to set out in your flower beds. She also sold micro-greens, which you see above. These are new to me. They are packed with flavor. I had two sandwiches with these yesterday. They're pretty, too!

Saturday Shopping List

6 red potatoes
12 small sweet onions
1 leek
1 head green butter lettuce
1 head purple butter lettuce
1 head crispy green leaf lettuce
1 bunch kale
1 lb. white beans
a carton of micro-greens (pictured)
10 orange carrots
6 small red carrots
1 pint white mushrooms
1 portobello cap
1 loaf multi-grain bread

Total: about $30

This morning, we went out walking in the sunshine and came back with 2 grapefruits, 2 cinnamon-raisin bagels, a thing of vegan cream cheese, some rolled oats, and a cup of coffee. Good weekend.

Sixty-Five-Cent Meal

2010-03-21T12:02:00.002-04:00

I was almost out of everything. Had the perfect potato, a little bit of falafel mix, and some lettuce. Added some oil and salt to the lettuce and used it as a bed for the falafel, which is spicy and good. The falafel was crispy and the lettuce was crunchy. The potato was perfectly al dente. It really came together beautifully. It was a surprise gourmet meal, because when I first went into the kitchen, I just didn't think I had anything. As far as nutrition goes, this had legumes (protein, the garbanzos from the falafel), green vegetable and root vegetable.

Money: The box of falafel mix was $2.39, so this portion was maybe 40 cents. The individual potato was maybe 20 cents. A head of that lettuce is 75 cents, so that portion was maybe a nickel. So about 65 cents for this meal.

Tuesday

2010-03-16T06:52:00.003-04:00

Breakfast: Half a grapefruit. Bowl of oat bran with coconut. Black coffee. The coconut is dried coconut from the lady who sells the beans and spices at the farmers' market. It adds fat to the oat bran. This is also good if you want to add a little cocoa powder and raw sugar but I'm not doing that this morning.

Lunch: Sandwich - portobello mushroom marinated in balsamic vinegar, onions, and lettuce, on multi-grain bread. Avocado.

Dinner: Open to suggestions.

Soggy Saturday Market

2010-03-14T09:05:00.011-04:00

I've missed a Saturday shopping list or two. Yesterday, we had a Nor'easter. Just like one of the weekend storms we've been accustomed to, but it's warm now, so instead of snow we had 3.11" of rainfall in Philadelphia. We got to the market late, and everyone was packing up early, but we got all of the things we needed.

Saturday Shopping List

At Clark Park:

2 heads of green leaf lettuce

1 head of soft "buttery" purple lettuce

6 red potatoes

4 sweet onions

1 quart of white mushrooms

1 portobello cap

Total: $10 and change

At Milk & Honey:

1 loaf multi-grain bread

2 bagels

Total: $6 and change

This week, I will be making lentil-sweet potato soup to bring for lunch. Also have been living on balsamic-mushroom sandwiches. I will try to convince Mark to make another black-bean soup. I would love to get out to Weaver's Way again and get that Maine seaweed I didn't get last time. Been thinking about it ever since. I had a bunch of junk food yesterday. A slice of tomato pie from the pizza place across the street from the market. Then later in the day, a veggie burger and fries from Lee's. I'm never having that again, by the way. I know I've said that before. It makes me feel so greasy. But there's something about Saturday that demands it. Especially with homework. Greasy food goes great with homework.

Power Plate: Great idea and recipes.

2010-03-04T23:27:00.004-05:00

Another very user-friendly site from the Physicians' Committee For Responsible Medicine:

Power Plate dot org

Simple, diverse, non-overwhelming sampling of recipes, with ingredients you are likely to have.

It's this easy.

Papa John's

2010-02-14T17:23:00.010-05:00

Everyone wants junk food once in a while. I recently had a depressing experience in which the facilitators of a group I was part of ordered pizza for everyone as kind of a surprise treat, as we were all exhausted and had been working long hours. Of course, it was all cheese, even though it's fairly easy to get vegan pizza in Philly (or anyplace there's a Papa John's). I know my group did not intend to exclude me, or the other two vegans in the group, or our lactose-intolerant colleague. It's just that people don't typically think of pizza as a vegan food. But pizza is actually one of my favorite foods.

Shortly after the above-mentioned incident, our group had pizza again, but this time it wasn't a surprise, and I was able to put in a request for no-cheese pizza, which was no problem. The local place we ordered from didn't really know how to do it, and there wasn't much flavor, as they apparently relied on the cheese and meat for flavor and didn't bother with the sauce or crust, but at least we all had something to eat. Papa John's, on the other hand, makes a delicious and flavorful cruelty-free pizza. Counterintuitively, even their "butter" garlic sauce that comes with the pizza... is vegan.

So, for your informational delight, here is a suggestion for a cruelty-free pizza you might order. This is a screen-shot of my actual online shopping cart on the Papa John's website.

It's as easy as that. No animal cruelty anywhere in there. Papa John's online menu allows you to select "No Cheese" from a drop-down menu. We've ordered this several times (except we don't usually get pineapple, because I'm the only one in the house who likes pineapple on pizza), and it has never once turned up with cheese on it. Interestingly, the one time we ordered from Papa John's face-to-face, they did screw it up and put cheese on it. But every time we've ordered online, it's gone well. And during football season, you can often find specials where you get extra toppings depending on how many touchdowns your home team scores. Fun, huh? And not a bad deal.

Clark Park in the snow

2010-02-13T13:51:00.007-05:00

They chipped out a space at the corner of the park and conducted the Clark Park Farmers' Market, though it was abbreviated, as some vendors did not make the trek out in the remnants of the blizzards.

When we first arrived, we didn't think they were there. Most of the space usually occupied by the market was covered in about three feet of icy snow. The tables that were there were arranged differently, smushed together in the corner, behind a snow drift. The selection was limited. No greens, no broccoli. The guy who is usually there with all the greens and roots was not there. The bean-and-spice lady was not there. The apple people were there, as always, and the ones we think of as the mushroom people.

Saturday Shopping List

a quart of white mushrooms
6 red potatoes
2 giant white sweet potatoes
a jar of apple syrup
a loaf of multi-grain bread
a bowl of hot, black-bean soup
4 brownies

total: maybe $16, I didn't actually count

The bread and bean soup came from Milk & Honey market, on the way there. And then from Fu-Wah, we got a jar of Vegenaise and some Smart Deli "ham" slices.

We still have broccoli, sandwich greens, brussels sprouts, peppers, and green beans from Weaver's Way. We're planning to make another trip out there on Monday. Now that I have sweet potatoes, I'm going to make another yellow split-pea soup. I still have just enough split peas for one more soup, and this time I have an orange pepper to add to it.

Two Sandwiches

2010-02-11T13:42:00.007-05:00

A couple of sandwich meals I've been having.

Here's a favorite:

White mushrooms soaked in balsamic vinegar, mixed greens, alfalfa sprouts, onions, and Vegenaise. (If you don't have Vegenaise, use olive oil mixed with your favorite spices - that's what I often do.) In this picture, it's on country white bread, because they were out of multi-grain, but multi-grain is my personal favorite for this sandwich. This sandwich keeps well, if you want to make it in the morning and wrap it up for lunch. Because the mushrooms soak up the vinegar, you can have a lot of flavor without the ingredients being too wet.

On the side: green beans lightly sauteed in olive oil with salt and pepper. Don't cook them long - leave them crunchy, and then coat them with crunchy sea salt. These are also a great movie snack. And of course, if you have a sour pickle to add on the side, all the better.

I don't think this next one photographed as well, but it's a good hoagie.

That's Tofurkey kielbasa cut into strips and heated in a skillet on the stovetop. Top that with raw onions, alfalfa sprouts, and a little bit of the sauerkraut you're going to have for your side dish. The roll is a standard hoagie roll from any Philadelphia corner store. (Or your favorite steak roll from wherever you live.)

Side dish: seared brussels sprouts and sauerkraut. Use a small amount of olive oil, salt and pepper for the brussels sprouts. Cook them over high heat. You want to leave them crunchy but blacken parts of them. Some of the outer leaves will fall off and those will get nice and crispy. Don't use too much oil because when you add the kraut, there will be a lot of moisture. Keep the heat high and add the kraut - this will blacken a little, too, and get smoky. Sprinkle the whole mess with pepper.

Good times.

Cheating on Clark Park with Weaver's Way Co-Op

2010-02-08T17:40:00.019-05:00

I was off work today, because my new job gets canceled if the buses can't run, so we decided to take the train out to Mt. Airy and check out Weaver's Way Co-Op. The thought of a week without green food was pretty sad, and it would take almost as long and be more annoying to go into Center City to Trader Joe's or something. Anyway, we had been wanting to check out Weaver's Way for a while now.

Worth it. Worth it. Oh, damn. Worth it. Better selection than the park, and we got more stuff than usual for the same price as usual.

Weaver's Way Shopping List

4 leeks
a lb. of salad greens
about a quart and a half of brussels sprouts!
about a quart of green beans!
3 bunches of broccoli
a 6 oz. thing of bean, lentil, and pea sprouts (aka pure energy)
a 4 oz. thing of dill and alfalfa sprouts
a yellow bell pepper
an orange bell pepper
about 2 quarts of white mushrooms
5 tomatoes

almost forgot, a 6-pack of frozen spring rolls

Total: $35

It looks like a short list, but those brussels sprouts will last forever, especially considering that we have other green things at the same time. In the summer, we had okra and green beans, then they went away and we had brussels sprouts, then they went away, and the broccoli is iffy, and we're left with basically kale for green food. To see this diversity of green foods made my heart pound. We were so excited we forgot to get asparagus. Which they also had.

So, the green beans will last a while, the brussels sprouts will, the broccoli will, the leeks will make four soups, the mushrooms will last well into next week, even the salad greens should last us a while. These bean sprouts aren't going to last long if I don't go make something to eat and stop munching on them. Oh, they're good, though.

And I can put alfalfa sprouts on my sandwiches! I am so excited. I'm hungry, but I don't even know what to make, because we have so much food. I also happen to have sauerkraut, so I can have my favorite - brussels sprouts and sauerkraut if I want. I want a sandwich right now, though. With greens and sprouts and mushrooms. And I'm going to saute some green beans with oil and salt to have on the side. Oh. Yes.

While we were there, we had soup for lunch. Two of the three soups available were vegan. I had tomato rice, and Mark had vegetable soup. With two feet of snow on the ground, we had lunch outside. The weather was just that gorgeous.

No Food Today

2010-02-06T09:59:00.018-05:00

OK, that title is a little dramatic. There is food.

But there is no Clark Park Farmers' Market today. For real, this time. It has been canceled, officially. And you can see why from the picture above. See, during the last blizzard, we assumed there was no market and didn't go down, and then it turned out there was a market, after all. So we were determined not to be fooled again, and we were looking forward to going to the market in a blizzard. But alas, it's really canceled. Maybe there wasn't enough turn-out last time to make it worthwhile.

I'm not complaining, I wouldn't be out there selling carrots in this weather, either. I hope all our wonderful vendors are snuggled up with hot chocolate somewhere.

The good news, is I never posted last Saturday's shopping list, because I've been so busy, so I can provide you with a post today.

Last Saturday's shopping list, if memory serves me

3 bunches of leaf lettuce - two purple and one green
5 or so yellow onions
a quart or so of white mushrooms and a Portobello cap
some sweet potatoes?
um.... (see, we ate everything already, so I'm having trouble here)
I remember we got some Spanish Saffron, because it was pretty
We already had the split peas
We already had lentils and beans
Maybe one or two kohlrabe roots
a loaf of cracked-wheat bread
another jar of apple syrup
a jar of raspberry jam
We already had a ton of carrots for juicing and soups
Hmm... Maybe some garlic, and that's all I remember
Oh, and a thing of homemade granola to put on hot oat bran

I remember that in all, including the bread from Milk & Honey (grocery store), and the bagels from there, and a few things from Fu-Wah, we spent about $35 last Saturday. We didn't get much at the farmers' market because we were pretty well stocked. The leaf lettuce is the main thing I remember because it's something you want to get each week. This will be a sad week without it.

OK, next topic. Packable Foods. Also called Bringable Foods. Foods you can pack and bring with you, if you're going to be out of the house all day.

For the past month, I've been leaving the house around 7 a.m. and returning home between 7:30 and 8 p.m. That schedule is over now, thank goodness, and my new place of work is an eight-minute walk from my home. However, because I will be extremely busy, I still have to think about packable, bringable foods.

Here's something that has been a habit for the past month. I would make a sandwich or two (or three) in the morning, wrap them up and bring them along. I would eat one mid-morning for breakfast, and one mid-afternoon for lunch. The sandwich has mushrooms soaked in balsamic vinegar, onions, and that rich purple and green leaf lettuce. Oh, and Vegenaise. I thought it might get soggy, but it doesn't. I think that's because the mushrooms absorb the vinegar like sponges so there's nothing really to make the bread soggy. Vegenaise actually does very well in this context. I don't put the sandwiches in a refrigerator, they do OK in my lunchbox in the classroom closet.

Then for my late-afternoon or early evening meal (while in class), I would bring a Thermos full of soup, which actually stayed warm until about 5 p.m. when I ate it. Even if it were cold, it would still be good. Another benefit of blended soups. This one is a yellow split-pea soup.

1/2 lb of yellow split peas (dried)
2 very large orange carrots
4-5 white mushrooms (I'm not sure what kind of mushrooms these are, actually - they're white and smallish - pictured above)
2 medium-sized white sweet potatoes
1 medium yellow onion
3 cloves of fresh garlic
fennel seeds (a pinch?)
salt and pepper to taste
garnish each serving with saffron

Bring water and split peas to a boil, reduce heat, simmer. Add sweet potatoes, carrots, onion, garlic, mushrooms, fennel. Cover and simmer until everything is soft. Blend.

I'm convinced this soup cures colds and boosts mental functioning. It just makes you feel good all the way through. It was a very comforting, filling meal while I was sitting in class trying to get my brain to keep working after a long day.

Other things I brought along for lunch and snacks: pecans, sunflower seeds, dried seaweed, apples, the occasional Cliff Bar, and lots and lots of raw carrots.

Of course, upon returning home, there's nothing like Breakfast For Dinner to unwind. Buckwheat pancakes with apple syrup have been a favorite dinner lately, and I don't see that changing anytime soon.

Speaking of syrup, here's a treat I just found on Foodista.com that looks ridiculously delicious, and comes with a built-in excuse to eat candy: It's candy, but it's also split peas. Sounds like the perfect thing for me. If I try this, I'll let you know how it goes.

Maple Yellow Split Pea Cake

BYO Lunch

2010-01-18T23:15:00.003-05:00

And by lunch I mean things I'll be snacking on all day. I am bringing:

2 carrots
1 apple
a bag of pecans
a snack thing of dried, salted seaweed
a sandwich kit consisting of:

A small plastic bowl with a lid, containing sandwich greens, onion slices and chopped mushrooms soaked in balsamic vinegar and coated lightly in olive oil and pepper, along with two slices of cracked wheat bread in a sandwich bag. The sandwich components will be assembled at school.

and a Thermos full of soup containing beans, quinoa, and kale, among other things

I am going to be so full.

All of these things are prepared and waiting either in my bag already or in the door of the fridge. There's a note on the front door telling me not to leave without all my snacks.

Now, it's all about the sleep.

Perfect sandwich greens from Landisdale Farm

2010-01-16T20:28:00.005-05:00

I take back what I said about these being overpriced. I would pay a zillion dollars for these sandwich greens.

You eat them with thinly-sliced Portobello mushrooms drenched in balsamic vinegar, coated with olive oil, onions. Mustard would be perfect, but I don't have any. Had a very thin coating of Vegenaise on each slice of bread, because the cracked-wheat bread is very heavy and requires dressings. I would prefer mustard. You want to layer the greens with the mushrooms. Pile them pretty high. Remember, your bread is heavy, so lots of wet ingredients are good, and your mushrooms and greens are coated in oil and vinegar.

My camera's batteries died before I could photograph the finished sandwich.

Saturday: The Bean and Spice Lady was back.

2010-01-16T15:24:00.013-05:00

Saturday Shopping List

1 lb of red beans
1 lb of yellow split peas
a lot of orange carrots for $1.25/lb
an overpriced pre-mixed bag of salad greens (only greens they had left)
1/2 dozen Empire apples
1 Portobello cap (last one they had)
5 yellow onions
maybe 8 smallish blue potatoes
5 white sweet potatoes
3 Beauregard (red) sweet potatoes
12 oz jar of apple syrup
2 oz. of fennel seeds
1 oz. of celery seed (soup seasoning)
1 oz. of sweet Hungarian paprika
1 giant loaf of cracked-wheat bread
2 sesame-seed bagels

Total: $42.92

So happy the bean-and-spice lady was back! At least for today. It's almost 50 degrees out, so maybe that's why she was there. Split peas. I'mma make a good soup with split peas, sweet potatoes, onion, fennel, and paprika. Would that work? I think I'll try it. Mark's going to make a bean soup, so that's what I got the celery seed for. And the fennel allows me to have my mushroom scramble breakfasts. I got a lot of mushrooms last week, so I still had a Portobello left and some white mushrooms. If I run out, I can get Baby Bellas at Fu-Wah. I was almost out of fennel and getting antsy. I don't know where else to get it.

I've made a habit of having buckwheat pancakes with apple syrup for dinner when I get home from class. After "working" (observing, lesson-planning, teaching) from 8-3 and then having a meeting usually and then class from 4:30-7, I'm starving and pancakes are so quick, easy, and filling. Buckwheat pancakes, anyway, are filling. Especially because I use flaxseed, which gives them extra fat and protein.

Since I'm on the go so much, I've been eating what I call horse food. I bring raw carrots and apples as snacks, along with my travel-cereal-bowl for oat bran. I use water from the water fountain and heat the oat bran in the conference-room microwave. I also add flaxseed to that. I've made a bad habit of going to Subway before class in the evening for a veggie-max sub. I can't afford to be doing that every day, but I haven't been doing it every day, so it's OK, but I need to cut down. I tried bringing the Thai Kitchen instant noodles, but if you can't start with boiling water, or at least hot water, they're kind of high-maintenance. Starting with water from the water fountain, you have to heat them for like 8 minutes in the microwave, before they get soft enough to eat, and then they're too hot to eat, so you have to wait for them to cool, or blow on each bite until you're dizzy, or burn your tongue. All three options make me way too cranky to lesson-plan.

Good soup ingredients this week, though, so I can take my Thermos full of very filling soup (remember, we also have quinoa), and that should take care of my Subway problem. I might start treating myself to wasabi peas. That's something I can bring that will seem like a treat and will be filling. I need to get some nuts, too. They're kind of prohibitively expensive, but worth it if they keep me out of Subway. At least I wouldn't be nickel-and-diming myself.

It's a gorgeous Saturday, which is supposed to be followed by a warm, rainy Sunday, and then a gorgeous Martin Luther King Day. I'm going to spend some more time outside. I might even bring out the bike. I have some lesson plans to work on, a mock-up and rubric for a project I'm assigning my students, and somehow I have to procure 90 pieces of posterboard. I'm a canvasser. This can't be too hard. Lemme get to thinking now.

Pancakes with Apple Syrup

2010-01-10T14:55:00.008-05:00

buckwheat pancake mix
2 Tablespoons of ground flaxseed
soymilk (or rice milke, etc.)
a small amount of water
cooking oil
apple syrup

I don't know if this is a bona fide recipe, as one of the ingredients is pancake mix. But here's what I had for a delicious Sunday afternoon breakfast.

Put your skillet over medium to high heat, add a little olive oil, spread it around, and let the skillet get hot. My new cast iron skillet is perfect for this.

I started with Arrowhead Mills Buckwheat Pancake Mix. Maybe a cup of that (I didn't measure, just eyeballed it).

Added enough soy milk to mix it up but kept it thick and goopy because I still had another wet ingredient to add.

In a separate, small dish, put about 2 Tablespoons of ground flaxseed (a good source of fat and protein) and add cold water. Let this sit for a couple of minutes. The flaxseed will absorb the water and take on a slightly gooey consistency, similar to a raw egg. That's going to serve the function that people sometimes use chicken eggs for in recipes.

Add this mixture to the mix, and you're ready to fry your pancakes.

I always butcher the first one, even if I've let my skillet get hot. Be sure the cooking surface is hot and ready to sizzle before you pour the batter. When the pancakes start to bubble on top, slide your spatula under to make sure it's not sticking. Be gentle. When you're confident it's not stuck to the skillet, flip it over.

My first two were messy but the second two were beautiful.

Enjoy with your favorite syrup. I used my apple syrup, made right here in PA and bought at the Clark Park Farmers' Market.

Saturday: purple kale, mushrooms, and winter apples

2010-01-09T14:30:00.012-05:00

Got to the market late today, not until after one o'clock. My sleeping has been a little off, due to training institute getting underway this week, and the wave of excitement and anxiety that came with it. I got my practice teaching assignment and started to practice the daily routines that will become familiar to me over the next four weeks. Early morning, trolley, subway, walking a few blocks in my old neighborhood, checking in at the principal's office, taking a tiny elevator up to the fourth floor. Then, after a day in the classroom, taking the subway north to gather in a hot, second-floor high school classroom for framework sessions with other new teachers like me. I did not really meet, but sort of briefly glimpsed, some of the students who will be kind of my students over the next four weeks. They're not mine for keeps. I'll meet those students in February and they'll be mine until June. I don't know where they'll be, what age, or what they'll need. All of these questions require good nutrition to gather and answer. Which brings us to this sunny, cold Saturday.

Saturday Shopping List

Several bunches of purple and green curly kale
A paper sack full of carrots - orange, purple, and white
4 big yellow onions and 2 small shallot-sized yellow onions
About a quart of white mushrooms
1 Portobello cap
3 sweet-tart apples
a 12-oz. jar of apple syrup
a 23-oz. jar of apple sauce

total: $25.40

No one had any leeks, but I still have one from last week, for a soup. We are all stocked up on potatoes. We still have about half a head of cauliflower and a little broccoli. No one brings beans anymore. I guess the bean people have quit for the winter. The spice lady seems to have packed it in until spring as well. I need to find a place to get fennel seeds. That's how I flavor my breakfast mushroom scramble. That's the key ingredient that makes that breakfast taste like breakfast. We have beans, though. We were fairly well stocked on those. We have kidney beans, black beans, and red lentils. We do need to make a trip to Trader Joe's for flaxseed and tea, along with a few household basics like dishsoap.

One thing you'll find in abundance at the farmers' market in winter is apples, in various forms. One table has nothing but apples, apple cider, apple sauce, apple butter, and today for the first time, apple syrup. The lady says it's good on pancakes, just like any other syrup. We have buckwheat pancake mix. This may necessitate getting some rice milk or almond milk and making pancakes this week.

The kale in winter seems frail, less juicy. Maybe it's been frozen, I'm not sure. We buy it from a different person now. It's still curly kale, but it's more in a bunch or bouquet, rather than a "head" formation. And he has the dark purple kale you saw in the picture above.

When I got home, Mark was in the middle of juicing some carrots and kale (leftover from last week). I threw some purple kale into the mix, and when he ran it through the juicer, it gave off a sweet smell, almost like fruit. The resulting juice was the best-tasting juice we've made so far. It seemed to have mostly the flavor of carrots, rather than greens. The carrots were dark purple, and the dark purple kale I'm sure added some sweetness as well. That purple is good for you. The purple comes from flavonoids.

Here is how our juicer works, working on the kale:

So, what do we have to eat this week? The menu will probably shape up to look something like this:

potato-leek soup
lentil soup
bean and vegetable stew
mushroom hoagies
baked potatoes
fried potatoes with mushrooms and gravy
noodles with mushrooms
raw carrot snacks
carrot and kale juice
pasta with marinara and mushrooms
onion-pepper quinoa
buckwheat pancakes with apple syrup
oat bran
apple tarts

That's it for this week's groceries. Write me with any questions. Comment, bookmark, or otherwise follow the blog. And, as always, remember the animals. Have a great weekend!

Quitting Tofu

2010-01-05T20:22:00.003-05:00

Finally watched Food Inc. It's not as if I didn't know this, but I really, really... really have to stop eating tofu.

For real.

I know that over 90% of American soybeans are Monsanto soybeans. Why do I act as if I don't know it? Do I feel better if I buy something that says "non-GMO" on the package? Then I'm just as dumb as the sanctimonious liberal who buys the cow that says "grass fed." Do I really think I'm smart enough to find that less than 10% of soybeans that are real beans? Really?

Watching a farmer who didn't choose to grow Monsanto beans talk about watching his legal costs grow because his neighbors' soybeans contaminate his crop and once that happens, Monsanto owns the patent to his crops. Monsanto sending goons - thugs in big black cars - out to his farm at 4:30 in the morning to spook him. Watching him say, "How can they do this?" And then he gives advice to a young farmer: "Just try to get out of this thing with your skin intact. Roll over. You can't fight it." How can they do this? Just like that. If everyone stood up, they couldn't do it. That's why organizing - on any level but theirs - is their enemy.

Damn it.

And a lot of organic soybeans come from China. Great. There's something I feel safe about. Eating crap from China.

Fortunately, I have my protein-rich and versatile quinoa and of course, my good old-fashioned pinto beans and kidney beans. And, as I learned recently, I can buy local kale in a blizzard if I don't mind the cold! In most of the recipes I did use tofu in, I've already replaced it with mushrooms, which act very similar and taste better.

So, what the hell. Let's quit tofu.

I was wrong!

2010-01-04T16:13:00.006-05:00

Remember how, when 23" of snow fell on Philly two weeks ago, I simply assumed there would not be a farmers' market and did not brave the blizzard to trudge down to 43rd Street and verify?

I should have gone.

You can view the full slideshow here.

These people rock.

Return to Saturday

2010-01-02T16:19:00.010-05:00

Finally! After a long, lonely three weeks, the Clark Park Farmers' Market is back.

Can I just say that I love January? I love January. It's like having a new thing. I know that nothing actually happened at midnight on December 31st, but it makes a difference to me. I like writing the "1." I like writing "2010." I like saying the word January. Everything seems shiny and exciting.

It is freezing cold today in Philadelphia. The RealFeel forecast said 9 degrees. High winds made walking home almost painful. It's the kind of cold you can feel in your eyes and teeth. My new boots kept my feet cozy and I was dressed warmly, but that cold could not be ignored. I didn't mind at all. It was refreshing, invigorating, and just thoroughly January.

Let's have a round of applause for the people who worked the farmers' market today. I could barely take the 20 minutes or so we were outside, they were out there all day. It was sparse, maybe five tables (and one of those all eggs and cheese, and another seemed to be only apple products), but it was enough for us.

Saturday Shopping List

at the farmers' market:

2 leeks
1 head of cauliflower
5 florets of broccoli
2 kohlrabi bulbs
1 pint white mushrooms
1 portobello mushroom cap
approximately a metric ton of curly kale
lots of purple carrots
about 2 pints of yukon gold potoatoes
5 yellow onions
a 23-oz. jar of applesauce
a jar of pickles
4 bulbs of garlic

at Milk & Honey:

a very large loaf of cracked-wheat bread
2 sesame seed bagels

at Fu-Wah Mini-Market:

a thing of vegan cream cheese

total: about $60

Kohlrabi bulbs (nutrition data for kohlrabi)

This will be my first experience with Kohlrabi, also known as German Turnips, and according to Wikipedia, popular in Kashmir. According to NutritionData.com, the protein content of these beauties looks pretty good. They are said to be sweet and crisp, able to be eaten raw or used for cooking.

I can't wait to make potato-leek soup, which will include carrots, cauliflower, onions, kale, broccoli, mushrooms and - why not - kohlrabi. I like to make my vegetable soups as hearty and nutritious as possible, so they fill me up. I'm a lazy eater, so I pack in the kale, broccoli, and cauliflower to load up on protein and calcium, and the mushrooms to help fill me up. Subtle variations in the types of vegetables and quantities of each one will give you a different soup each time and help keep things interesting.

Boxing Day Comfort Food

2009-12-27T09:35:00.021-05:00

After a decadent two-day winter feast, today is a noodle soup, fried potato, onion sandwich kind of day.

I need groceries.

No farmers' market Saturday for the holiday weekend. No farmers' market last Saturday because of the blizzard. Six days, and then I can buy brussels sprouts and celery root and kale and apples and potatoes and mushrooms and leeks and lentils and other good things.

But the winter hibernation has been good.
We went out for a Christmas Day feast at Su Xing House, and yesterday, feasted on leftovers.

We got two big platters to share. The first features a sweet, smoky sauce that you have to try to believe.

Crispy Soybean Steak with Chef's Special Sauce

See that sexy green vegetable there? I'm not sure what that is. I kind of think it's baby bok choy, but it doesn't say that on the menu. (Update: No. I Googled it and looked more closely - that's not baby bok choy, but I don't know what it is.) The menu calls it "sanhai green." I Googled that. No such mention. Is it a typo? Did they mean Shanghai? Is that bok choy? If you know, let me know. Whatever it was, it was full of flavor.

Chef's Specialty #10, "As You Wish" (bean curd wraps stuffed with braised mushrooms, with asparagus on the side)

The flavor of these wraps was delicious, but I wasn't wild about the chewy texture. Too much mushroom in one bite? That's hard for me to imagine, as one of my favorite dishes at Su Xing is the Mushroom Delight, but maybe the mushrooms combined with that bean curd wrap was too much for me. If you're not that influenced by texture, or if you don't mind foods with a springy, spongy, chewy texture, then I would recommend this. In fact, I can imagine myself having this again someday; that's just how good the flavor is. My other complaint, though, is that I need a sauce with it. No problem in this case, because we combined all the foods together and ate it with the unbelievably sweet, smoky, delicious sauce from the soybean steaks. The Soybean Steak Platter was a clear favorite at our table.

All of this was served with miso soup (shown above), plenty of brown rice, a plate of honeydew melon and pineapple, and of course hot tea.

Our bill came to $37.15 ($45 with tip), and we had enough leftovers for a whole meal the next day. Nothing like Chinese leftovers on Boxing Day.

Ready to go into the oven

Ready to eat

Happy hibernation, happy solstice, happy holidays. At a time of year when people tend to think of giving, sharing, refocusing, and changing, all more pointedly than usual, I encourage you to ask yourself if you can do something for the animals (including humans) and enjoy your future feasts with harm to none.

Cookware, 23" of snow, and Potato Parsnip Soup

2009-12-20T14:43:00.020-05:00

Well. Where should I begin?

We couldn't go to the farmers' market this weekend, on account of we had a blizzard. This is only an assumption, but I'm betting there was no Clark Park farmers' market this weekend. It was the second biggest snowstorm in Philadelphia's history. 23.2" of snow fell on the city starting around 1 a.m. Saturday and continuing through about 6 o'clock this morning.

Like all good citizens, we scurried out on Friday to gather in things we imagined we might need during the storm. Things like bread, potatoes, chocolate cookies, tofu, and wasabi peas.

We had a hunch there would be no farmers' market, but that was OK. We got potatoes, onions, and bread at a little store called Milk and Honey (ironic place for vegans to shop, but they do have good bread and limited fresh produce). At Fu-Wah, we got mushrooms and instant noodle soup. We still have good kale from last week. We still had some cauliflower and parsnips, and plenty of garlic.

One thing we forgot: Beer. So, we had to go out for that yesterday.

See what I mean? Probably no farmers' market.

Now, this is interesting. You know how, when I make blended soups (i.e. Indian Red Lentil or Potato-Leek), I always have to blend it in batches in my small blender (i.e. my smoothie maker)? And you know how I was saying I wanted to get an immersion blender?

So, on Friday, I went out onto the porch and there was a box addressed to me. It was a shipping box, like from Amazon, so no return address. I took it upstairs and opened it. It was a Cuisinart Immersion Blender. There was no name anywhere on it, on the packing slip or anything. I suspected my parents. Called my mom, she had no idea what I was talking about. Hmm. Must have been one of the sisters. So I was going to check, but I mentioned the gift on my other blog, and the sender claimed responsibility. Turns out to have been from a lovely friend named Jen, who knows the virtues of the immersion blender, because she also likes to make Indian Red Lentil Soup, and in fact, gave me a recipe for it a while back. (Remember?)

This blender is sweet. It comes with a chopper/mincer, and a whisk. This is it:

This is not the only recent addition to our kitchen.

*drumroll*

The old frying pan and saucepan are retired. After a long journey to Target on the 64 Bus on Wednesday, we are the very pleased owners of a cast iron skillet and a stainless steel saucepan with a glass lid (pictured above). I am thrilled with all of these new tools. Thrilled. Food tastes so much better cooked in cookware that doesn't interfere with it. This cast iron skillet is already the love of my life, and I expect us to get closer over the years.

OK, on to the soup. Using all of my new toys, I made the most delicious and filling soup this morning. It's a potato soup. I started with 12 small Yukon gold potatoes (very small, like golf balls). Cut them up and -- oh, also at Target we got two new, sharp knives, woohoo! -- put them in water in the stainless steel pan, to boil.

In the cast iron skillet, I poured a little olive oil and started heating the other ingredients for the soup: a yellow onion, two cloves of garlic, curly kale, cauliflower (about half of a smallish head), baby Portabella mushrooms (4-5), and the unexpected superstar of the soup... three parsnips. Parsnips taste like carrots, only stronger, with more bite. I had forgotten we had them, but I came across them and decided to add them, and I'm glad I did.

(kale, chopped, ready to add)

(everything together in the skillet - except the potatoes)

The potatoes had long since come to a boil and been turned down to simmer. When they were soft, I added the other ingredients, put the lid on it and let everything simmer together for a bit. For seasoning, I added salt, pepper, rosemary and parsley.

When I decided it was done... (I really don't know how long these things take... it's done when things seem soft enough and it tastes good... or however long it took me to feed the cats and make tea... if you need help timing it, you could call me and ask me to feed my cats and make tea, and I'll call you back when I'm done and you'll know it's time to take the soup off)... It was time to use my new toy. I didn't think to record this from the beginning, but here's how it works.

You want to be careful not to lift the blending part of the blender (the tip) above the surface (or even to the surface) of the soup. Submerge the tip of the blender and then turn it on, obviously. It's tricky because the blender pulls you more than you think it will. It seemed to keep suctioning to the bottom and I wasn't even supposed to really have it touching the bottom. Once, in trying to pull it up, I accidentally broke the surface, and the soup kind of exploded a little bit (no real damage done), and all the cats got interested and thought I was cooking something demonic on the stove. That's right, cats. That'll teach you.

I got the hang of immersion-blending after just a few moments, and it was super easy. After using the blender, you can remove the blending attachment (the other part is just the motor and you can attach the whisk or the chopper to it), and rinse it.

This soup was surprising and delicious. What made it surprising is that the strongest flavor was the parsnip. That's why I'm calling it potato parsnip soup. It gave the soup a crisp, fresh taste that perfectly offset the heavier, foodier, more wintry taste of potatoes.

We had it with slices of bread with Vegenaise, which we also stocked up on at Fu-Wah, in preparation for the blizzard.

The texture was airy and creamy and perfect. Much more inviting than a soup blended in a smoothie-maker. Because the soup contains kale and mushrooms, it's going to be a good source of protein and will fill you up. The kale and cauliflower and parsnips give you vitamin C, other vitamins, calcium, and other minerals.

Happy holidays, everyone!

If you have snow, enjoy it, and I hope something fun and useful turns up on your doorstep, too.

Roots and sunshine

2009-12-12T12:38:00.011-05:00

So, I bought this root today at the farmers' market called Sunchoke, also known as Jerusalem Artichoke, although it is neither from Jerusalem nor an artichoke. In the year 1621, the English gardner John Goodyer had this to say about the Sunchoke:

" which way soever they be dressed and eaten, they stir and cause a filthy loathsome stinking wind within the body, thereby causing the belly to be pained and tormented, and are a meat more fit for swine than men."

Nonetheless, I bought them out of curiosity, and I plan to cook them up and give them a try. Maybe in the years since 1621, their cultivation has been refined, and if not, at least they're a good source of iron.

I'm more excited about another root that I bought for the first time today: Celery Root (or Celeraic), which you see pictured above. It is said to have a celery flavor and can be used in soups or stews, eaten raw in salads, steamed, sauteed, or even mashed like potatoes. No mention anywhere of it ever tormenting the belly. That's good.

Saturday Shopping List

1 celery root

3 Sunchoke roots

1 stalk of Brussels sprouts

1 Roman cauliflower

1 head of green leaf lettuce

1 pint of white mushrooms

4 medium-sized parsnips

4 yellow onions

4 shallots

a bunch of green onions

3 bulbs of garlic

1 loaf of French table bread

Total: $29.85

It's cold and brilliant outside today. It was officially only around 20 degrees when we went out this morning, but it's not a bone-chilling cold, it's just a finger-and-toe-freezing cold. The air is biting but you can feel the heat of the sun. No precipitation in the forecast for today. It feels just like it looks in this picture.

We still have lots of chestnuts, potatoes including sweet ones, beans and lentils, and part of that giant cauliflower from last week. I can't wait to try some of these new roots. I'm really falling for winter vegetables, "which way soever they be dressed and eaten." As for the paining and the tormenting, I'll let you know how it goes.

Chinese food and winter vegetables

2009-12-11T10:21:00.009-05:00

Mark and I went out for lunch yesterday at Su Xing House, one of our favorite restaurants.

My fortune said: Good news will come to you in the mail.

Mark's fortune said: The night life is for you.

Once, at Kingdom of Vegetarians, a less upscale but still yummy place in Chinatown, where we had our first date, Mark got a fortune that said: A nice cake is waiting for you. Actually, I believe that happened on our first date. Come to think of it, I'll take that as a compliment.

Not long before that, I was at a coffee shop on South Street that gives fortune cookies with your check, and I got the fortune: It tastes sweet. I still have this in my wallet.

Yesterday at Su Xing House, we ordered two lunch specials and split the main courses: Sesame Seitan and Mushroom Delight. We always have the Sesame Seitan; this was our first time ordering the Mushroom Delight. Three different kinds of mushrooms, snow peas, and a delicious brown sauce that has a "comfort-food" taste. On the side were brown rice, miso soup, and spring rolls. This place is amazing. It's fairly cheap, delicious, and it doesn't look cheap. The decor makes you feel like you probably shouldn't be there, but the food assures you that you should.

And from Huffington Post, here is a good, quick guide to winter vegetables available year-round at farmers' markets. Complete with beautiful photos and links to recipes.

I love winter vegetables: roots and cabbage and cauliflower, red beets, yellow and orange and dark green squash, many colors of potato, and of course deep dark sweet soft mushrooms for rich, protein-heavy, comforting goodness. Add to that chestnuts, beans, and lentils, and I am learning that there's no need to change my shopping habits in wintertime. Nature provides.

First Farmers' Market in December

2009-12-05T13:36:00.023-05:00

Here it is, December 5th. First snow in the forecast. And we've just come back from shopping at the farmers' market.The Clark Park market was back, after its unnerving hiatus last week. It was 66 degrees on Thursday. Today it's in the 30s. Kind of exciting and cozy. We bundled up and walked down to the park. It was raining a drizzly rain, but the air is so cold it bites your face a little bit, and my boots did not sink into the mud the way they do in summer and fall. It feels like winter out there, for sure. It smells like winter. Yesterday, we rearranged and cleaned the living room. Now that we're back from shopping, the plan is not to leave the house again.

So what do you get at a farmers' market in December?

Saturday Shopping List

about 3 pints of chestnuts

1 quart or so of yukon potatoes

1 bunch of curly kale

1 head of green leaf lettuce

1 stalk of brussels sprouts

1 giant head of cauliflower

1 quart of white mushrooms

a lot of purple carrots

7 smallish red tomatoes

4 yellow onions

2 green peppers

a jar of strawberry jam

1 loaf of white bread

1 loaf of red onion sourdough bread

3 chocolate-banana muffins

total: $52.45

On the way home, we stopped by a small grocery for bagels. That's what I had for breakfast, with sauteed tofu and onions. Still have red lentils and plenty of beans, along with sweet potatoes, sauerkraut, broccoli and some dark kale. The dark kale actually makes a good salad green if you shred it up. I had a dark kale salad last night, with onion, garlic, mushrooms, and topped with tiny bits of crispy fried potatoes, with poppy seed dressing. Have also been eating a lot of rice noodles (Thai Kitchen instant noodles), topped with sauteed peppers, mushrooms, onions, broccoli, whatever we have. A staple lately has been brussels sprouts with sauerkraut. The only seasoning it needs is garlic and a little bit of salt.

Thursday night, we had a pizza from Papa John's. The first time they delivered it, it was mistakenly covered with cheese. By the time they delivered the correct pizza (tomato sauce, mushrooms, onion, black olives, green peppers, and banana peppers), we were starving and the pizza was delicious.

I'm watching HGTV for the rest of the day.

Sunday shopping in Center City

2009-11-29T15:08:00.010-05:00

Apparently, the Clark Park Farmers' Market closed for the holiday weekend. We hope that's what happened. We hope it will be back next week.

I went walking down there with my shopping bags yesterday while Mark walked down to Woodland Building Supply to grab some heavy cardboard cylinders to make tunnels for the cats.

When I got to the park, I found it empty. That was jarring. I thought we would never have food again.

This called for desperate measures: shopping more than three blocks from our home.

Today, we took the trolley into Center City and visited the Fair Food Farmstand inside Reading Terminal Market. It was more expensive than the Clark Park market. We still only spent around $30, but we didn't get as much food.

~~Saturday~~ Sunday Shopping List

1 pint of Brussels sprouts

a bunch of dark kale

a bunch of broccoli

about a quart of fingerling sweet potatoes

3 or 4 red potatoes

3 or 4 Gold Yukon potatoes

a few shallots, because they didn't seem to have onions

5 Empire apples

1 giant loaf of multi-grain bread (I mean, giant)

Total: $29 and change

The bread was from a place we hadn't heard of, called Four Worlds Bakery, which happens to be closer to our neighborhood than it is to Reading Terminal. That's neat. That makes the trip even more worthwhile, because now we know that bakery is there. The bread is good, too. I had a couple slices of it with my Brussels sprouts and sauerkraut hash and rice noodles when I got home.

It was kind of nice to go downtown shopping. We took the opportunity to stop in at a couple other places we had wanted to go for clothes. I went to Buffalo Exchange for pants that can pass as dress pants and a couple of nice shirts, as I'm about to start a new job, and we stopped at an Army surplus store for long underwear. My favorite part is that at both places, we checked our bags. [beat] Our bags of produce, you understand. Hope nobody snacked on them.

Thanksgiving Part III

2009-11-26T18:08:00.007-05:00

I'm thankful for animals.

Thanksgiving Part II - "We were very tired, we were very merry"

2009-11-26T14:41:00.008-05:00

We made our second Tofurkey of the season last night. This afternoon, we feasted on leftovers.

What you see here is the Tofurkey ready to go into the oven. Around it, you see red potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, onion (and there are whole cloves of garlic in there, too, you just don't see them.) It's basted with a mixture of olive oil, orange juice, soy sauce, and seasonings. With it, we had stuffing and homemade gravy. Mark made the gravy. The stuffing was from a mix. The gravy has mushrooms and I don't know what all.

Here's a plate of food from last night.

Notice that it's quite different from last week's early Thanksgiving meal.

Two different, similar meals, two different kinds of day. Last week, it was an earlier, lighter meal. This week, we ate late at night after spending a long time preparing the meal, after taking a long trip in the rain to get the roast because everyplace convenient was out of everything or closed. We were hungry and then we got very, very full. And it was good.

Here's the preparation of last night's feast. Please excuse the messy kitchen.

Saturday!

2009-11-21T14:31:00.008-05:00

Saturday Shopping List

1 stalk of Brussels Sprouts

another pint of Brussels Sprouts

1 lb of Lima beans

1 pint of red potatoes

1 pint of sweet potatoes

5 yellow onions

1 pint of white mushrooms

1 bulb of garlic

1 pint of cranberries

1 loaf of rustic white bread

a jar of strawberry jelly

1/2 loaf of banana sourdough bread

4 chocolate-banana muffins

Total spent: $31.39

We still had tons of carrots and a few sweet potatoes. We had plenty of beans already. A couple peppers and more red lentils for when I want to make the lentil soup again. Today we're eating leftover Tofurkey. I'm hoping these sweet potatoes I got today are the white ones. You can't tell from the outside, or at least I don't know how to tell. There's a scratch on one and it looks kinda white.

It's a gorgeous day out there. Chilly, low 50s, perfect weather for hats and scarves and sweaters. We're going to walk to Second Mile and see if they have any pretty things we want for the house.

Thanksgiving Part I

2009-11-20T21:32:00.009-05:00

We're doing this again next week. But Friday is a great night to treat ourselves to something ridiculous to eat, because grocery day is tomorrow and we're running out of things. If we're going to have pizza or Ethiopian food or soy sausage and tofu scrambles, it's going to happen on a Friday evening.

Today I went to the actual grocery store (where they have foods to buy indoors, inside a building with aisles and cash registers - gasp), and bought... drumroll... a Tofurkey roast! What comes with it is the roast stuffed with stuffing and wild rice, and a gravy mix. I also bought some cranberry sauce, and we roasted the Tofurkey with potatoes and carrots.

I can't believe I get to wake up tomorrow and sip coffee and chill out until 10:00 and then go to the farmers' market. I was there week before last because of missing my math class, but I was trying to figure out how to get to math class and it wasn't the same relaxing experience it usually is. I haven't had my old, normal Saturday morning routine since the Saturday before Halloween.

I still can't really believe summer is over. This was a great summer for us.

Looking forward to repeating tonight's meal next Thursday. Who knows, by then, we might even have a dining room table.

Autumn soup part II, and NaNoWriMo

2009-11-18T23:07:00.016-05:00

I missed the farmers' market on Saturday because of the Praxis exams. Mark went and only spent about $30 again. (I know, right? How? It's shady, I'm telling you.) I don't have an exact list, but it was basically:

Saturday Shopping List

about 8 sweet potatoes

2 big red peppers

1 lb of red lentils

1 head of green leaf lettuce

a wonderful loaf of white bread

a purple cauliflower

a Roman cauliflower

a portabella cap

a bunch of maroon carrots

1 oz of Season All

...some other things. It's Wednesday now, and I wasn't there, anyway, so this is obviously not comprehensive. Plus, it's November, so all I know is I went to Fu-Wah and bought 8 packs of 3-minute noodle soup. It's Thai Kitchen. Only two varieties of that are vegan - Garlic Vegetable and Spring Onion - the rest have either shrimp essence or for some reason milk fat. Garlic Vegetable is my favorite and I saute garlic and onion to add to them. Quick dinner. I did take time to make a soup, because that saves tons of time later in the week. It's the Indian Lentil soup presented in the last post. I already blogged it, so I shouldn't blog it again, but anything to keep from writing, and also, I have brilliant new pictures and a legitimate piece of information: The soup was better the second time. Much better. And redder.

I added purple cauliflower to the mix. Used more sweet potato. Red onion instead of yellow. More red pepper. Now when you heat it up, you really smell the red pepper. And more lentils. Basically, I made a little bit bigger batch of soup and made it more dense.

Oh, and I found a white sweet potato. From the outside, it looked exactly like all the other sweet potatoes. I cut it open and it was snow white inside. I baked it and it tasted like cake. I swear to god, this sweet potato tasted like cake. It was unreal. I need more of them. I put this one in the soup (the half of it that I didn't eat straight out of the oven), but I need more of them just to eat. Look at this beautiful soup and its beautiful components.

In other food news, while I was at work yesterday, my baby rearranged the kitchen. In a good way. I leave you with this.

Indian Lentil Soup

2009-11-15T10:12:00.013-05:00

I'm calling this Jen's Indian Lentil Soup, on account of I got the recipe in the first place from my friend Jen.

I'll be making this soup again today. It was delicious and warming, but somehow it made the weather cold. Warm weather was in the forecast, then I made this soup, which is perfect for cold weather, and then the weather turned cold. So I shouldn't make it again today, because the weather is beautiful and heading up to 70 degrees, but I'm not superstitious and I want my Indian Lentil Soup.

The original recipe I got from

Jen was for a big batch of soup, with one lb of lentils, two sweet potatoes, 8 cups of water, etc. I tried to cut the recipe in half, and I don't have measuring cups, so the recipe depicted here is for sort of half the original recipe and it's not exactly in proportion.

First, cut up sweet potatoes. I used two, one giant and one normal-sized. What you see here isn't all the sweet potatoes I used, the rest were already in the roasting pan. This is just to show you the size chunks I cut them into. Put them in a pan and pop them into the oven at 350 degrees. You're going to let them roast until you get everything else ready, which should be when they're done. I think I ended up leaving them in the oven for about 30-40 minutes. You want them to get very soft, like the filling for a sweet potato pie. It doesn't take long if they're cut like you see above.

The next thing you want to do is put on the water (I used about 6 cup-like-measures, which is not really half of 8 cups, but it seemed like the right amount.) Add red lentils. I used half a pound. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer.

Cut up 2 or 3 carrots (I used, again, one giant one and one medium one - I used maroon carrots). Cut up a medium sweet onion. And a red bell pepper. I used 3 small red peppers. Whatever you use, just be sure the peppers are red, so the soup's color will turn out nice (Thanks for that tip, Jen!). Sautee all these ingredients in olive oil on the stove, adding 1-3 cloves of crushed garlic (I used three, of course). Don't forget salt.

When the lentils are soft and the vegetables in the skillet are soft (but not too soft), add the skillet contents to the lentils. Take the sweet potatoes out of the oven, if they're done, which they should be. Add the sweet potatoes to the soup. Add curry powder and ginger. I have the ginger in powder form, too, but if you have fresh, I imagine that would be great. I don't know how to give you guidance on how much to use. I recommend adding them slowly and letting your taste guide you.

Remove from heat and allow to cool, if you're going to use a regular blender to blend it. If you're awesome and you have an immersion or "stick" blender, just use that. I let mine cool, blended in the blender, a few ladles full at a time, and then transferred it back to the pot to warm it back up before serving.

On a whim, I added a little cinnamon to mine while blending. It seemed to work. Don't tell anyone you put cinnamon in it (oops). They would think that made it a sweet dish. I assure you it doesn't. But they'll ask, "What's in this?" and you can tell them cinnamon if you want, and they'll be amazed. Or you can keep that as your secret.

When you dish up the soup, add a spritz of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar. I didn't have either of these, and that first serving was lacking. I couldn't place what was wrong with it, it just wasn't perfect. Then I got the apple cider vinegar and added a capful to my next bowl. That made it perfect. So don't skimp on this last step.

This is great with toast or bread. I can't wait to have it with the rustic white bread we just started getting at the Thursday farmers' markets. It's also great to bring in a thermos for lunch.

Enjoy!

Where do Brussels sprouts come from?

2009-11-07T20:08:00.020-05:00

I thought they came in little green pint cartons, but no. They come on stalks.

I never even wondered how they actually grow before. This is the best idea Brussels sprouts have ever had.

I can't believe how much stuff we got today.

I got the ingredients for an Indian Lentil Soup my friend Jen gave me the recipe for, and I'm making that tomorrow. It has red lentils, red peppers, sweet potatoes and curry. Would have been great for this very cold week. The coming week should be warmer, so we'll consider this a trial run.

I should have missed the farmers' market today, because I should have been on North Broad Street learning about Discrete Math and Matrix Algebra in my final day-long Math Immersion class. The Praxis exams are next Saturday, and we have our final review session Tuesday night.

But SEPTA drivers are still on strike (pesky union wants the ability to check and see whether the workers' pensions actually exist - imagine that), and even though AccuWeather said it was 40 degrees, as AccuWeather says every morning at 8 o'clock, my face hurt from the cold by the time I got back from the ATM this morning, and that's only a block and a half away. It was in the low-ish 30s, I would say, and windy. There was no way I was riding my bike in that. (I think someone from AccuWeather comes by my living room and paints a "40 degrees" and a sunshine on my computer screen every morning just before 8 o'clock, regardless of the weather.)

So I went to the farmers' market, and I learned that Brussels sprouts grow on stalks. Several tables actually had Brussels sprouts, which is great news, because they've become a staple for me recently. I love to saute them with sauerkraut, as a side for lettuce, tomato, and onion sandwiches. But only one table had them on stalks. So we went for that.

Saturday shopping list

1 stalk of Brussels sprouts
1 lb of red beans
1 lb of red lentils
5 or 6 sweet potatoes
4 red peppers
maroon carrots
1 head of green leaf lettuce
1 head of purple cauliflower
1 head of Romanesque broccoli (Romanesco broccoli, Roman cauliflower)
1 head of Nappa cabbage
a bunch of fresh fennel
6 tomatoes
several small yellow onions
1 Portabella cap
a jar of strawberry jelly
2 apples
1 ounce coriander
1 ounce southern spice mix
1 loaf multi-grain bread
1 loaf sourdough bread
3 chocolate-banana muffins

total: $56.76

No repeat of the bizarrely low bill from last week. I really have to let Mark go to the market alone more often, apparently.

In line at one of the tables today, I was writing down prices and items, and one of the vendors asked about the notebook. I mentioned I write a blog about food, and both the vendor and some other customers asked for the name of the blog. If you're reading, hello, and welcome.

We're going to use the Nappa cabbage in soup. A vendor tells us the fennel is good in stir-fry. The Romanesque broccoli is great in stir-fry with Brussels sprouts.

I think the theme this week is red. Red lentils, red peppers, sweet potatoes, purple cauliflower, maroon carrots, red beans, and I'm making a red soup.

And green, because I learned about the Brussels sprouts. Red and green. Merry Christmas.

Oh, that reminds me, I did go to my class, for the last two hours, when I worked up the nerve to ride my bike all the way from West Philly to North Broad in the wind, which was still cold even though the temperature allegedly warmed up into the upper 50s. My instincts said don't go, but I went because I wanted the textbook that was supposed to be delivered in class today, which I would love to read before my exams next Saturday. Found out in class that it was just a cruel joke - the textbooks will be delivered at our final session Tuesday night.

So. Happy effing Holidays.

Fuel

2009-11-04T07:31:00.004-05:00

SEPTA is on strike, so I'm riding my bike to work. It's 40 degrees... real-feel: 38... real-feel on a moving bicycle: god damn cold. So I had a bowl of hot oat bran with molasses and flaxseed, for fuel.

I'll have a cold ride home in the dark to look forward to, so for lunch, I'm bringing a Thermos full of potato-leek soup (extra rosemary makes it seem warmer to me), with a side of red beans with lemon-pepper (the pepper is super-hot). And a couple slices of multi-grain bread for toast right about tea-time.

Here we go!

Sandwich Fail

2009-11-01T23:20:00.006-05:00

It wasn't a complete fail. It did its job.

See, today is the first day of NaNoWriMo, and besides that, I have two major exams coming up in 13 days. So, those two situations conspired to cause me to put off eating until I was very very hungry.

As a result, when I went into the kitchen to fix a sandwich, I was compelled to put absolutely everything onto it.

Started with toasted multi-grain bread. Cut a small, maroon carrot into very thin slices and sauteed those with garlic, rosemary, curry, and salt. That's going to be the dressing.

So put that on first, and then on top of that, raw onions, raw portabella slivers. Then I was going to have some Brussels Sprout on the side. I only made one, because I figured the sandwich would be pretty filling, I just wanted a little Brussels snack. But it was so crispy after it was sauteed, I decided it would be good on the sandwich. Topped everything with green leaf lettuce. Rub the leaves in the container where you had your carrots and sauce, to get it all.

It wasn't so good. With the curry and the Brussels Sprout, it was all a bit much for a sandwich. The first half was good, because I was so hungry, but there was very little compelling me to finish the second half, other than the desire to not be hungry later. With an evening of writing and calculus coming up, that was enough motivation, and this mess did fill me up for a good while.

I'm at 2,492 words on NaNo. I wish I could quantify for you my progress on learning instructional design, or functions, for that matter. I'm just trying to hang in there at this point. Between the antioxidants in the carrots, the iron in the sprouts, the heat in the curry, and sheer will, I might live to see December. It's going to be a long month.

Look at my perfect math vegetable.

2009-11-01T00:15:00.014-04:00

I spent all day in math class today, a crash course in functions and calculus.

Then I come home, and Mark has brought this perfect fractal home from the farmers' market.

It's a Romanesco broccoli, also called a Roman cauliflower, or coral broccoli.

I don't want to cut it.

Sometimes, when someone decides to be an asshole, they say something to me like, "Well, what about plants? Don't you think plants have feelings?" (Unfathomably, used as a reason why I should eat animals, because there's an outside chance plants might have feelings.) Obviously, such a statement doesn't get a serious response.

But in this case?

It's not that I think it has feelings. It's just that it spooks me, because I think it might have reason. How did it do the math, to come up with those perfect spirals and cones? It's a plant. It grew its nutrition into spines and cones like a coral. Shouldn't it live free under the water somewhere off a coast? Shouldn't something with tentacles develop a partnership with it that allows them both to hunt?

Look at it from different angles:

Any non-profit types reading this know how to open a museum?

On top of being stunning, this thing is a good source of vitamin C, potassium, and carotenoids, among other things, I'm sure, but they don't list it on NutritionData.com.

OK. It's late at night. I took a lot of time to unwind after my seven-hour math class today. I couldn't go to the farmers' market this morning; class started at 9 a.m. But I hear we did very well at the market.

Saturday shopping list

That perfect Roman cauliflower
10 Brussels sprouts (a pint)
1 head of green leaf lettuce
1 bunch of kale
4 small white onions
2 red onions
maroon carrots
1 pint tomatillos
2 leeks
blue potatoes
white potatoes
2 portabella caps
1 very large garlic bulb
1 oz ground rosemary
1 loaf multi-grain bread
3 chocolate-banana muffins

total: reportedly about $33

I don't see how that's possible, but that matches up with the amount of money we still have, so OK. Pretty miraculous. I think he flirted with all the Amish girls and got crazy discounts. Heheh. That's my baby.

I was going to broil some potatoes tonight, which would have been my first experience with broiling anything.

When the kitchen filled with smoke, I changed my mind, and after it cleared out, I roasted some blue potatoes.

They are dressed with olive oil, rosemary, oregano, garlic (2 cloves, crushed), and salt. Roasted in the oven for about half an hour at about 375 degrees. But... 375 degrees after pre-heating the oven to broil and then turning it off and letting the kitchen air out, so, however many degrees that is.

I needed some good food. Last night, I fed myself fried potatoes, sauerkraut with semi-nasty fake hot dogs, and raw tomatillos. I was kind of down and only got lower after that dinner. The potatoes were undercooked. Today I had Subway for lunch (6" Veggie Max on wheat with spinach, lettuce, tomato, onion, green peppers, and mustard, and a bag of barbecue chips). After class, I had a tofu hoagie from Fu-Wah, which is great, but, you know, it's another tofu hoagie from Fu-Wah.

So tonight, with the perfectly-roasted and seasoned potatoes, I had a couple of Brussels Sprouts I had seared in a pan with just oil and salt. Brussels Sprouts are great for protein and iron. I love how the outer layers of the sprouts get crispy in the oil, and I love the burned taste of the browned, cut edges.

Here are things I want to do in the coming days: Make a potato-leek soup and garnish each bowl with crispy Brussels Sprout layers. Make mashed potatoes and do the same thing. Do something with that perfect vegetable at the start of this post.

Fats: flaxseed and oat bran

2009-10-29T21:51:00.007-04:00

You can't see the flaxseed in this picture, but it's there, and it's full of fat.

Here's the important thing about flaxseed:

Its calories come mostly from fats. Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, which you can also get from nuts, coconuts, and vegetable oils, among other things.

Flaxseed is always in my refrigerator. I add it to stew, oat bran, cereal, sprinkle it on squash, salads, sandwiches, toast. You can put it on anything. If it has a taste, it's a slightly nutty taste, but it doesn't really have a taste.

What you see above is a bowl of hot oat bran, with two tablespoons (or thereabout) of flaxseed mixed in, and granola sprinkled on top. This is an incredibly filling breakfast. The oat bran (1 cup of it) has 33% of your "recommended" daily protein, along with 28% of your iron, 58% of your fiber, and 10% of your fat.

The granola is just fucking delicious and has maple syrup and vanilla, so there you have that. The granola contains: rolled oats, walnuts (again, look at the fats and protein), sunflower seeds, maple syrup, raisins, cranberries (look at the color!), coconut, canola oil, and vanilla extract.

This breakfast (or -- if you're studying for a test or you have a deadline and/or you're sleepy and lazy -- dinner) is a powerhouse of fats, protein, and iron. Also, you can have it with toast and blueberry preserves, and then it's just game over. Look at this. Shut up.

The best dollar-fifty I ever spent: A pint of tomatillos

2009-10-24T22:53:00.013-04:00

Imagine the taste of a raw green pepper mixed with a strawberry. That's how a raw tomatillo tastes.

I removed the skins of these three (save the skins for your soup stock), cut them in quarters and threw them into the skillet for the last two minutes to heat with my curried blue and white potatoes. Start by cooking the potatoes thoroughly with olive oil, onion, and salt. At the end, add the curry powder (don't be shy about it), and I added a little rosemary as well.

Then add the tomatillos. They taste so good raw, it nearly breaks your heart to cook them, so only add them at the end, give them a little heat and toss them around to coat them with the other flavors, but they've got plenty of flavor inside, so don't lose that.

We're going to have these with a breakfast sandwich. Most of the time, we don't have things like soy sausage (or any fake "meats") or tofu in the house. We do eat tofu hoagies from Fu-Wah probably at least once a week, but as a general rule, the kitchen is stocked with vegetables, grains, beans, and fruit, not manufactured nonsense. However. I've been craving these soy sausage on English muffin sandwiches like crazy lately.

We bought fennel seeds at the market today, so I embedded some of those into the Gimme Lean soy sausage patty. I also cooked some thin, thin slivers of portabella mushroom. This is all cooked in the olive oil with the leftover tastes from the curry potatoes and tomatillos.

We're going to slice a tomato to top this with and put it on a toasted white-wheat English muffin. As these are cooking, you've got the potatoes setting aside. When you take the soy sausage and mushrooms off the heat, throw the potatoes back on for a minute or two to reheat while you put the sandwich together.

I have to be someplace tomorrow at 9 am and I have to be there all day. So I'm going to bring some raw tomatillos for snacks (remember, they're high in Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, so they're nice and filling), along with some raw carrots, maroon, orange, and white.

Right now, I've got a butternut squash and three apples baking in the oven with olive oil, cinnamon, and brown sugar. They're not for tonight. I'm going to make fried apples pies in the morning to take with me, and wrap the squash (stuffed with apple) in foil and bring that as well. I'm moving up in the world, I now have big, re-usable aluminum pans to bake in, rather than folded aluminum foil. One day, I'll own a casserole dish. I will.

Saturday market: tomatillos, spices, red beans, and mud

2009-10-24T17:49:00.012-04:00

It's like summer outside. Another rainy day at the farmer's market, but instead of last weekend's Nor'easter, today we have 70 degree weather, low clouds, and balmy air.

Last night, I decided to buy something today that I've never bought before, but I didn't know what. At the market, I decided to buy tomatillos. I used to order something at a Mexican restaurant that had tomatillo sauce. Where was that? I remember, it was the place at 40th and Sansom, where I used to eat when I worked at the salon. I would get the black bean burrito with tomatillo sauce. It seemed hot and cool at the same time. Like if you had a spicy cucumber. I hadn't even gone vegan yet then, but I always ordered vegan things from there. I was such a closet case. It's always so obvious in hindsight.

Saturday shopping list

1 lb small red beans (dry)
3 leeks
1 pint tomatillos
2 portabella caps
1/2 dozen tomatoes
2 butternut squash
2 large yellow onions
1 bunch curly kale
big bag of multi-color carrots
1 oz curry powder
1 oz fennel seeds
1 oz southern seasoning mix
1 oz lemon pepper
1 loaf multi-grain bread
1 loaf sourdough bread
1/2 dozen brownies

total at farmer's market: $52.21

We did great on money at the market today, especially considering that we bought all those spices and a half-dozen brownies, and it still was under $55. However, to the total grocery bill, we have to add about another $10. We had to go downtown for cat food and a vacuum cleaner anyway (apparently, they don't sell vacuum cleaners for under $80 anywhere in West Philly), so we used the opportunity to go to Trader Joe's.

@ TJ's

two 14-oz packages of Gimme Lean soy sausage
1 lb of firm tofu
1 dozen English muffins

total: I didn't save the receipt, but $10 and change

So, about $60, and we are stocked with what I feel is deluxe food. I feel completely spoiled right now. Mark is frying up a couple of soy sausage patties while I blog this up. Nothing like breakfast for dinner. When he's done, I'm going to make a side of curried potatoes before I fix a soy sausage sandwich for myself.

Featured on today's shopping list: Tomatillos. Tomatillos are a good source of Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids. Those are good for anybody, but they're really great things for vegans, and especially vegans with a high metabolism, because fatty acids burn slow on your metabolism fire. (Remember, carbs are like paper on the fire, and fats are like logs on the fire.)

Friday noodles

2009-10-23T20:21:00.025-04:00

We're out of nearly everything. It's time for noodles. Picked these up at Fu-Wah this morning. You could use any type of light noodles. I cooked these with the stock packet that is provided with them, but it is very mild. The toppings are going to be the good part, anyway.

At first I underestimated the size of the portion and didn't saute enough portabella mushrooms, onion, and garlic to put on these. When I came to my senses, I increased the amount you see here by about three times. When it was done (about 3 minutes), I added the toppings, sprinkled on some oregano, and enjoyed with toast spread with a mixture of olive oil and crushed garlic.

The finished dish was surprisingly good. Nonetheless, tomorrow is Saturday, and I'll dream of grocery lists tonight. I want something different tomorrow. I'm going to do something we don't usually do. I don't know what yet. I want to buy something that's a different color or a weird shape or a stronger taste than anything we normally cook. I will, of course, report back.

Featured in this recipe: Portabella mushrooms. An excellent source of several good things, including protein, vitamin B6, potassium, and fiber.

(Source)

Juicing carrots, kale, and broccoli

2009-10-21T19:42:00.006-04:00

Juicing is so simple, I can't even imagine why we don't do it more frequently. It takes ten minutes. You split the carrots in half lengthwise so they'll go into the shoot easily, you rinse everything, and you drop everything into the juicer. Every time I do it, I insist that I'm going to remember how quick and easy it is, but somehow I always forget.

This evening, I juiced some of the maroon carrots we bought last Saturday. Maroon carrot juice is not as pretty as orange-skinned carrot juice, but the pulp is beautiful. It's orange with red flecks. To that, I added some broccoli stalks and a lot of kale.

Jonathan Safran Foer!

2009-10-21T08:49:00.006-04:00

Has a book coming out November 2nd called Eating Animals. And he wrote an article in the New York Times Magazine recently entitled Against Meat. In which he tells about having a babysitter who one night declined to eat chicken with him and his brother, and they asked her why she wasn't eating chicken. She said because she didn't want to hurt anything. They didn't understand. Hurt anything? So she explained about animals and how they become food. From there:

My brother and I looked at each other, our mouths full of hurt chickens, and had simultaneous how-in-the-world-could-I-have-never-thought-of-that-before-and-why-on-earth-didn’t-someone-tell-me? moments. I put down my fork. Frank finished the meal and is probably eating a chicken as I type these words.

What our baby sitter said made sense to me, not only because it seemed so self-evidently true, but also because it was the extension to food of everything my parents had taught me. We don’t hurt family members. We don’t hurt friends or strangers. We don’t even hurt upholstered furniture. My not having thought to include farmed animals in that list didn’t make them the exceptions to it. It just made me a child, ignorant of the world’s workings. Until I wasn’t. At which point I had to change my life.

You know Jonathan Safran Foer, right? Of Everything Is Illuminated fame?

One of the reasons I love that passage so much is that that is exactly the reason my sweetheart gave me when I asked him why he was vegan. He didn't want cruelty to be part of his life. (I was instantly smitten... and nearly instantly vegan.)

Foer tells how he oscillated between not eating meat and eating meat during most of his growing-up years from that time on. He goes through many familiar stories, including going veg in high school to meet activist girls, eating meat in college to resist the vegetarian culture on campus, going veg again upon taking a philosophy course and doing some self-described "pretentious" thinking about reason, eating meat again upon graduating and telling himself it was because he was only human, going veg again upon getting married out of a grand idea of improving himself and his new life with his bride... and then, well, oscillating again:

Of course our wedding wasn’t vegetarian, because we persuaded ourselves that it was only fair to offer animal protein to our guests, some of whom traveled from great distances to share our joy. (Find that logic hard to follow?) And we ate fish on our honeymoon, but we were in Japan, and when in Japan. . . . And back in our new home, we did occasionally eat burgers and chicken soup and smoked salmon and tuna steaks. But only whenever we felt like it.

And then going veg again when his first son was born:

Feeding my children is not like feeding myself: it matters more. It matters because food matters (their physical health matters, the pleasure they take in eating matters), and because the stories that are served with food matter.

Foer is not vegan. I guess the desire not to hurt anything doesn't always extend to chickens, and it doesn't extend to baby cows and their mothers. Wait, that's not right. The desire not to hurt anything, I'm sure, extends to everything. The reason doesn't follow through for him, though. The practice doesn't follow. His actions are not in line with his thoughts, knowledge, and ideals.

Maybe someday he'll get there. And retreat, and get there again, and retreat, and hopefully get there again.

Even while contributing to factory farming, Foer can help raise awareness of it in people who might not otherwise pay attention but who like Foer as a writer. He points out in the article the fallacy many meat-eaters use as a defense. Which is: I know factory farming is bad, but that doesn't mean I have to cut out all meat. In their minds, there are little farms that probably maybe just might have produced the meat they ordered last night at a restaurant. It's just not so, though:

According to an analysis of U.S.D.A. data by the advocacy group Farm Forward, factory farms now produce more than 99 percent of the animals eaten in this country. And despite labels that suggest otherwise, genuine alternatives — which do exist, and make many of the ethical questions about meat moot — are very difficult for even an educated eater to find. I don’t have the ability to do so with regularity and confidence. (“Free range,” “cage free,” “natural” and “organic” are nearly meaningless when it comes to animal welfare.)
According to reports by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the U.N. and others, factory farming has made animal agriculture the No. 1 contributor to global warming (it is significantly more destructive than transportation alone), and one of the Top 2 or 3 causes of all of the most serious environmental problems, both global and local: air and water pollution, deforestation, loss of biodiversity. . . . Eating factory-farmed animals — which is to say virtually every piece of meat sold in supermarkets and prepared in restaurants — is almost certainly the single worst thing that humans do to the environment.

Safran still needs to do the research on animal testing:

This isn’t animal experimentation, where you can imagine some proportionate good at the other end of the suffering.

What? Wow.

But what he lacks in consistency (by his own admission), he makes up for with skill in drawing comparisons that make sense and illustrating them in a way that matters:

This is what we feel like eating. Yet taste, the crudest of our senses, has been exempted from the ethical rules that govern our other senses. Why? Why doesn’t a horny person have as strong a claim to raping an animal as a hungry one does to confining, killing and eating it? It’s easy to dismiss that question but hard to respond to it. Try to imagine any end other than taste for which it would be justifiable to do what we do to farmed animals.

Foer doesn't mention dairy, the lives of cows, eggs, or the lives of chickens in this excerpt from his book, but he does describe himself and his family as vegetarians, and I assume that doesn't mean vegan.

I am looking forward immensely to the new book, Eating Animals, and I plan to stop resisting all the people who have told me to read Everything Is Illuminated. I shall read it. Hopefully, one day, for Foer, everything finally will be.

I'm making a soup out of this and some potatoes, three cloves of garlic, and a whole onion.

2009-10-18T22:32:00.008-04:00

I want to show you this leek, seriously. Remember, I told you this leek would make a whole pot of soup? To appreciate its size, look at it next to some common objects, like other vegetables, animals, and minerals:

The leek took up most of the pot (just that giant leek, not the little one), on top of an entire sweet yellow "candy" onion and three cloves of garlic. There was barely any room for potatoes, but I added four Russets and two Yukons. Still the soup is less potato-heavy than before and is more about leeks and garlic. There's a huge pot of it in the fridge, and I already had a bowl, with sourdough toast.

Nor'easter weekend baked butternut with apple.

2009-10-17T23:04:00.012-04:00

It looks a little like certain varieties of dulcimer. I could call it an Apple Dulcimer. At the end, I mush it up, though.

This is a butternut squash from the market this morning, stuffed with apple (I don't know if the apple is an Autumn Crisp or an Empire, I didn't keep them separated).

I cut it (carefully) in half, with my tiny knife. I need to buy a larger knife for baked squash season. Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds and pulp.

This pretty butternut squash is a good source of calcium and various vitamins. It doesn't even seem to know that, the dear little thing. It smells like a pumpkin.

After you scoop out the seeds and pulp, you're going to fill the empty bowls with apple, drizzle with olive oil & molasses and sprinkle with cinnamon & brown sugar.

You've been pre-heating the oven to 375 degrees. You're going to cover the two squash halves with aluminum foil or something and bake them for about an hour. Do something else while they bake, they'll remind you they're baking by filling your home with a wonderful, pumpkin-pie smell.

That's the squash before it goes into the oven. When a fork slides into it like it's butter, the squash is finished baking.

I added a little more molasses and brown sugar to mine, mashed up the squash and mixed the apple in with it. You could also eat it as shown at the top of this post, as a baked squash with a side of baked apple. Mine tasted like pumpkin pie with hints of apple pie.

Squash, potatoes, apples, leeks, and a long walk to the park.

2009-10-17T14:03:00.009-04:00

Another rainy market day, but this time cold as well. And our trip to the farmers market (four blocks from our home) took two and a half hours.

~~That's the fault of Philadelphia Federal Credit Union.~~ That is due to the check-cashing policies of Philadelphia Federal Credit Union, especially those policies involving payroll checks, which do not seem like good policies to me. They can't cash payroll checks. I opened a checking account with them back in May, and I have yet to begin successfully using them as my primary banking institution. I'm trying to leave Wachovia and stay with something locally owned and more secure that doesn't keep getting sold. Unfortunately, PFCU, in my five months with them, has done things like: giving the wrong digits to the company that printed my checks, causing a loan payment to bounce and throwing off my finances for the better part of a month; failing to issue a debit card for my new account until after two phone calls, a branch visit, and an email; and now they tell me they can't cash my payroll check and would have to hold it for two business days before I could access the funds, even though I have an account there and it is a payroll check. So after standing in line at PFCU for a long time, we were given the above news, which caused us to walk to 36th & Chestnut (about 15 blocks), me in uncomfortable rubber boots, hungry, to stand in line at Wachovia and cash the check, then walk back to the farmers market and shop, before dragging ourselves home.

We were met at the door by hungry cats. We should have been to Center City and back with their food by now. It's after 2 p.m. Usually, we're home from the market before 11 a.m. Today, we left after 11, because of the downpour this morning, but we should have been home well before noon and then back out to run our errands after a quick meal. This whole day is off.

Anyway, here's the grocery list:

2 butternut squash
1 acorn squash
12 apples - Autumn Crisp and Empire
1 head of cauliflower
about 3 lbs of blue and red small potatoes
a big basket of yellow potatoes for soup
4 sweet potatoes
3 huge "candy" onions
2 huge leeks (huge... one leek will make a whole pot of soup)
4 ears of sweet corn
4 big tomatoes
1 portabella cap
1 loaf sourdough bread
1 loaf multi-grain bread

Total: $44.36

Less than $50! Less than $45, even! We were still good on greens and carrots (we didn't juice, all week, I just snacked on the carrots, and the cooler bag in the fridge keeps them crisp and perfect). The people with the fresh Lima beans weren't there. The lady with the spices wasn't there, which is too bad, because we need some spices. (Maybe these folks were there this morning... who can say? We weren't there. We were in line.) We still have plenty of dry beans, which we stocked up on some time ago.

I got those dozen apples so that I can make lots of the delicious fried apple pies I 've been making. I bake the apples in the oven with oil, molasses, cinnamon, and brown sugar, and then fill pastry wraps with them and fry them. I can make up a bunch of apples and keep them in the fridge, then fry up the pies for a perfect, quick breakfast on work mornings. The next step will be actually to bake a pie. A real, whole pie. I think it will happen sometime before this winter is over.

Have you ever seen one of those annoying commercials where the voice-over tells you what you'll be able to do "with all the money you'll save" by buying their product or using their service? I always hated those, because the point of something being cheap is that you don't have any more money than that. You don't have stores of extra money that you'll now be able to use for a cruise to Costa Rica if you just order from the dollar menu or rent a cheaper carpet cleaner.

You know what, though? That line of faulty reasoning makes a great excuse.

With the money we saved by only spending $44 on groceries for the week, we called in an order to Lee's Deli, the greasy spoon/corner store at 47th & Baltimore. We both had greasy veggie burgers and fries for breakfast. Ew. Mmm. I think we earned it.

Falafel in the rain, with light activism

2009-10-16T10:30:00.020-04:00

I found this 1923 Russian galoshes ad on Wikipedia's entry for galoshes. It says, Rainy rain, you cannot hurt me. I would not go out without galoshes. A good mantra.

Here in Philadelphia, we're having a bit of a Nor'easter... or two. Yesterday, the weather turned cold and rainy. Today it turned colder, continued raining, and turned windy.

In response, did I bring a nice hot bowl of soup for lunch, so that I can stay warm in my office building and eat my soup and look out the windows at rainy Philadelphia? Nope. That's what I did the first three days of this week, when it was nice out.

Yesterday, out of soup, out of fresh butter beans, and momentarily tired of okra, I decided to buy lunch. There is an Au Bon Pain in my building, so I could have gone there. But I wanted something hot, something filling, something delicious... and that was on 20th Street.

I went out in the rain to Mama's. Got a small falafel and eggplant and brought it back here under my hoodie. Ate the delicious, still-hot falafel in the breakroom while chatting with folks on Daily Kos about PETA and the merits of adopting cats and dogs.

A well-meaning diarist had posted a diary about the damaging effects of purchasing exotic pets, such as snakes, and then letting them go when you're tired of them. I recommended the diary and tipped the writer. But the diary also included that all-too-familiar disclaimer: I'm Not A Member Of PETA Or Anything.

Being "a member of PETA or anything" is the new gay, circa 1995, apparently. You can sympathize with animal-rights activists from time to time, but you need to acknowledge publicly that you are not affiliated.

I advised the diarist that it would actually be OK if he or she were a member of PETA. Someone else advised me that, no, it would not be OK for anyone ever to be a member of PETA.

Someone suggested that PETA thinks we should use human breast milk in Ben & Jerry's ice cream. I explained that, no, PETA was just using high-impact language to point out that there is breast milk in Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Then someone wanted me to provide a source for that information.

Did you get that? They wanted a source showing that ice cream has milk in it. (This is where you end up when you bring up PETA.) That's a little out-of-touch, is it not? To not realize immediately that ice cream has breast milk in it?

That's OK. Someday, it will become normal to say: I'm Not A Member Of PETA Or Anything... "Not that there's anything wrong with that." And we'll work from there, just like we have with gay rights and other civil liberties, until eventually members of PETA will be allowed to intermarry. Er... Did I confuse the issues? Ah, yes, I meant to say we'll become familiar enough with our food that we'll know right up front that there is breast milk in ice cream.

Anyhoo. I was talking, not eating, so I ran out of time and had to get back to work. I stashed the eggplant at my desk and ate it cold at 3:00. It was perfect.

Today, I'm going back. In the rain. In my rainboots. For falafel and eggplant.

A co-worker of mine is going to join me today. She's not vegan, but I can reassure her that if a non-vegan eats something vegan and enjoys it, it doesn't mean they're vegan, too.

[beat]

Not that there's anything wrong with that.