Filed under: Eating Well
- How pretty to peek inside my CSA box!
CSA. Usually stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Or, in my case , it might mean “Couldn’t Scribble Anything”. I’m coming back to this blog after a 3 1/2 month absence to declare that I finally made the plunge and signed on for a CSA box. CSA. Sounds official. And it sort of is. I signed up and pledged to spend my hard-earned money on weekly shares of whatever the farmers are growing this week. That means a couple of things. Firstly, I have to actually remember to pick the box up. Secondly, I have to figure out a trillion ways to cook squash. But, I’m making this sound complicated, and actually it’s well… fun.
This box comes from Grow Alabama and combines food from farmers all over the state. Last week it was peaches, squash (of course), cabbage, brocolli and…shoot, I’ve already forgotten. The fun is opening the box! It’s so pretty! The challenge is cooking this lovely harvest before it goes bad, getting creative with the recipes and resisting the urge to go out for tacos on a night when you’re too tired to open the refrigerator door. If you’ve never eaten only what is growing fresh and local, you may not realize that your diet can become a mite restricted. For instance, in Alabama, in summer, yellow squash is prolific! Easy to grow, easy to pick, easy to cook. So, you’d better be prepared to get creative!
No matter that I’m not a gourmet cook. My mama taught me about cornmeal, salt and pepper. Now I’ve added Olive Oil to my arsenal and I swear, I can cook about any damn thing. (And yes, its’ pretty tasty)! Plus, I don’t have to traverse around the grocery store wondering what on earth I’m going to buy. I just take what I get in Tuesday’s box and It Works. Just like Steve Jobs just told us about iCloud. “It just works”. There’s merit there, you know. Less decisions to make. A healthier, more frugal menu and those beautiful veggies are not being trucked in from all over creation. Less fuel, fresh taste. Hmmm. You think that could be someone’s new slogan? Well, maybe not.
All I know is tonight for dinner I had fresh organically grown brocolli, yellow squash (of course), locally made bread and (not so locally grown) shrimp. Pretty easy. Pretty tasty. Good for the farmers and your own personal economy. What ‘da ya think? Give it a try? If you do, please…. share the recipes for the yellow squash!
June 13, 2011
Monday seems to come around quicker these days. Planning for a Meatless Monday has turned out to be a little harder than I expected. For something that looks pretty quick and VERY tasty, check out this recipe for Cornmeal Cinnamon Pancakes from Domestic Divas. I love breakfast foods for dinner on occasion. However, you’ll need to watch your portions if you’re watching your weight. These sweet pancakes pack a calorie punch of 500 calories per serving!
December 28, 2009
Tonight is Monday night.
To be precise, it is the Monday night after the big Thanksgiving holiday. Many of us know this day simply as Cyber Monday. I am particularly sensitive to Cyber Monday because my own business becomes a place of frenzied chaos on this day. Mayhem, defined as “a state of rowdy disorder” is indeed taking place in my little business. Black Friday and Cyber Monday marks the beginning of the crazy holiday season; the time of year when I work late every night, trying to make my whole year’s salary in 60 days, and kids and dogs are left to fend for themselves.
Yes, tonight is exactly one of those nights. Frozen pepperoni pizza for dinner is the ultimate in satisfaction and convenience. As I sit here with my pants feeling too tight, already regretting this food decision, it hits me…
Today is Meatless Monday!
Augh! I feel like a failure. Just one week after committing to Meatless Monday, I completely forgot all about it. I won’t lie and say I never eat frozen pizza, but normally it’s a spinach and mushroom or a veggie. What made me veer off of my chosen path tonight and opt for the sausage-pepperoni-supreme? I can’t say. But, I can see what this means. I can see that I will have to plan well for these next few weeks leading up to Christmas if I want to uphold this commitment during the crazy “this is America on Christmas speed” time of year!
November 30, 2009
Thanksgiving has come and gone again. My goal was to make this year’s Thanksgiving just a little greener, but I was really struggling with how to do it. I’m not sure how you would rate our green Thanksgiving, on a scale of 1 to 10, but I must say there was improvement over previous years. Here’s what we did and didn’t do.
On the greener side:
1. Purchased an organic, free-range chicken rather than a conventional turkey. How did it go over? If anyone missed the turkey they didn’t express it, and I thought the chicken and dressing was really delicious. This is a “do-again” in my book! If you remember from my earlier post, this was my grandmother’s recipe.
2. Saved, and froze all of the chicken broth from boiling the chickens to use in a recipe some other day this winter.
3. Purchased fresh sweet potatoes for the casserole, rather than canned. Using fresh ingredients didn’t seem to make much difference in flavor. (With all the butter and sugar in the recipe, who would know the difference?) Most of the other ingredients in the recipe were also organic, including the butter and the brown cane sugar. Additionally, the sugar came from Florida, which is not too bad in miles travelled to get here.
Ours is a small little gathering. Here's the table before the carnage began.
4. Decorated the table with items we already had, plants pulled from the yard and drawn “hand turkeys” like the kids made when they were little. I’ve never really been much of a planner when it comes to entertaining, so I’m often caught performing last minute miracles. Miracle may be too strong of a word, it’s probably more like last minute surprises! I pulled a basket from the basement, a particular favorite made from earthy sticks and moss. I purchased two small mums (which I’ll now enjoy on into the season), set them in the basket and filled in with fresh cut Nandina berries, pine cones and pine fronds from my backyard. The place settings were Depression glass water glasses, and mismatched Fiesta-ware garnered from many trips to flea markets and antique malls over the years. The table was simple, but not too shabby.
5. The kids and I played the board games Cranium and Trivial Pursuit and laughed until we hurt! (I’m using the term “kids” loosely, these kids are pretty well grown). You may not consider this eco-friendly, but I believe a large part of becoming conscious of our world is accomplished by just slowing down, living a little simpler and enjoying each other. With full tummies, overstuffed like your favorite chair, this love and laughter was without a doubt the very best part of the day!
Maybe, not so green:
1. We kept the fire roaring. (Gas logs.) We really didn’t need it for warmth, but the ambiance was too nice to resist. The day here was crystal clear, but blustery and cold. We felt so snuggly and cozy that I put my guilt aside about using all of that unnecessary energy, and just went with it. When my gas bill arrives, I’m sure the consequences of that cozy day will be clear.
2. Paper napkins. Yep, I bought ‘em, I used ‘em and I loved ‘em. Burgundy-colored dinner napkins were so pretty on the table. I have to say, however, that the only reason I used paper was because I don’t own cloth napkins. Cloth napkins top my Christmas wish list.
Green or not, the Thanksgiving holiday worked out just fine this year. By next year, hopefully I’ll have added composting,among other things, to my green quotient. The important thing was our little family coming together and honoring this day of gratitude. I hope you and your family also shared and enjoyed a blessed Thanksgiving Day.
November 27, 2009
Mmmmm. Veggie Burger!
I did it. I signed the Meatless Monday pledge.
Being from the South, it’s not unusual for me to throw dried white beans in a pot with a little onion, garlic and onions, partner it with some cornbread, and call it dinner! Eating meatless is not something I’m a stranger to. But, like most southerners from my generation (remember, I’m a boomer), sometimes I just naturally start thinking “meat” when it’s time to figure out the dinner menu. Discovering “Meatless Monday” has made it easier for me to literally “forget” the meat. Now, if your household includes a bunch of burly guys, going meatless may be a little more challenging than it is for me and my daughters. But, consider this: a meatless dinner every now and then usually means less time bent over the stove on a weeknight, it’s good for the earth, good for your health and its almost always cheaper! Personally, I love anything that’s a little more budget-friendly right now.
Here’s the part where you get to turn up your nose: for dinner this Monday night we had a veggie burger and a fresh salad. I first became aquainted with veggie burgers several years back when I was trying to drop some pounds with Weight Watchers. The rest of the family would be chowing down on grilled burgers, and I would stoically munch my veggie burgers. Veggie burgers are not bad, folks! Paired with a fresh salad, or some roasted potatoes they go a long way toward satisfying my occasional thirst for fast food burgers.
Regardless of whether you decide to brave the world of veggie meat substitutes, Meatless Monday is still a practice worth cultivating. Going meatless just one day a week has all kinds of benefits to you and the earth. Consider this for starters:
• Going meatless just one day a week may keep your body healthier, lower your weight, and possibly lower your cholesterol to reduce your risk of heart disease
• Reduce your carbon footprint. According to World Watch magazine, “recent analysis by Goodland and Anhang finds that livestock and their byproducts actually account for at least 32.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year, or 51 percent of annual worldwide GHG emissions.” Hmm. That’s a mouthful.
Meatless Monday is a non-profit initiative in association with the John Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Health. Their goal is to reduce meat consumption by 15% for healthier population and a healthier earth. Check out the Meatless Monday website for more information on the impact that going meatless may have, meatless recipes and related articles.
P. S. – The veggie burger made for a really QUICK meal, something I’m often in need of on a week-night. Next week perhaps I’ll be more creative with Meatless Monday. Stay tuned. Also, I had this idea brewing…. maybe a Meatless Monday supper group once a month? What do you think?
November 23, 2009
Last Thursday night I stopped by Organic Harvest, a small, locally owned organic grocery in the south of town. I was late coming home from work and desperate to find an easy dinner that I could pick up and take home; preferably something already prepared. Preferably NOT a fast-food hamburger! I was pleased and surprised to find that this little family-owned grocery has added a small, all-organic cafe, apparently serviced by a part-time chef who has worked for Whole Foods, among others. A beautiful spinach and mushroom quiche sat in the glass case and called my name. My wish was granted. I bought the quiche, some organic pears and a slice of date bread, hopped in my car and headed home. Dinner was served. But, that is not what this story is about.
Also in the glass case was a bowl filled with roasted root vegetables. I looked at them wistfully. In an earlier post, I lamented over my lack of knowledge concerning Butternut Squash. Looking at that bowl full of beautiful veggies, in all their fall color, made me want to revisit the humble Butternut Squash. So I did. And more.
Butternut squash, it turns out, is not as vexing as it first appears. The kind folks over at Eating Alabama sent me a fab recipe for their own butternut squash soup. (thank you, guys, the soup turned out terrific!) The soup was not difficult and turned out to be delicious. But, still I yearned for a quick and easy prep method for this autumn staple.
Tonight, I roasted sweet potatoes and butternut squash together. It was really, really good. But, I had to pretend to myself that the squash was local, when in reality it came from Michigan. (Again.) But, as I gain confidence in cooking seasonally, I’ll make more of an effort to find locally grown varieties. I simply tossed cubed squash and sweet potatoes lightly in olive oil, seasoned with fresh rosemary, and added a light sprinkling of sea salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. 30 minutes at 400 degrees to nirvana. Lordy, it was good!
Being on a root vegetable binge, I also decided to experiment with turnips. This is hard to believe, since I am from the south, but I have never (as far as I can remember) eaten a turnip. So, I bought 2 turnips (which turned out to be plenty for me and the other 2 people at my table), tossed them in a saute pan with fresh garlic, minced onion, butter and olive oil. I had peeked inside a cookbook by Maya Angelou and came across a recipe for turnips that called for cloves and butter. I figured if it was good enough for Maya, it was good enough for me. I sauteed the turnips, garlic and onion until the turnips were fork tender, then poured in a bit of white wine and sprinkled with ground cloves and sugar. Oh yeah! I think I’m getting the hang of root vegetables!
November 19, 2009
Backyard salad isn’t completely accurate. My salad is actually in my front yard. I’m experimenting with a small lettuce patch to see if there is enough sun in this spot to make veggies grow. This little patch of dirt is right next to my driveway. I built up a small bed and filled it with good dirt, although I didn’t have any compost. Butter-crunch lettuce, Romaine and Red Leaf lettuce is planted there. It was a little late in the season when I stuck it in the ground, but decided to risk it anyway. With my huge $14.00 investment, I figured there was nothing to lose. I water it sort of regularly and feed it Miracle Grow in place of the compost. And, I hope for the best.
Parley is in a small concrete pot, and I planted one spinach plant in the lettuce bed, just to see what happens. So far, the spinach is pretty sad. The parsley, however, is sprightly, and the lettuce is bright green and healthy looking. Every day I go out and sweep the leaves away from the base of each plant. I am amazed at how delicate the leaves are. They are sweet and fragile. Those little plants make me smile each day as I am getting in the car to head out for work.
I am praying that the first frost doesn’t come for quite some time, at least not until I can harvest at least one dinner salad from my little plot. I was afraid the rabbits would come and nibble, enjoying my salad before I had a chance to taste it, but so far this hasn’t happened. I did spread Cayenne pepper around the bed to keep those little furry guys away, but I really think I’ve just been lucky. Today I went to the grocery and bought Romaine and Red Leaf lettuce. I hated doing that, knowing that oh, so soon, I could have my own fresh lettuce! If the cold weather holds off, we may be enjoying a very fresh and very local salad at Thanksgiving. I love this.
November 16, 2009
Can you “green-up Thanksgiving”, which in my opinion is one of our most over-indulgent holidays, and still have fun? That’s the topic of a post that I’ve been working on. I had several ideas on how to make Thanksgiving Day more green while preserving our tried and true traditions. I had some really good ideas.
But, as I thought about it, and researched heritage turkeys, organic turkeys and free-range turkeys, something occurred to me. The truth is this. I don’t want to cook a turkey at all. Oh, I want to eat a turkey. But, not being much of a cook, I really don’t want to go to all of the trouble of cooking a turkey. There are only 5 people in my little family, so while I really, really want that turkey, slaving away in the kitchen all day just isn’t what I want to do with one of my few days off work. You know? And, the fact that the more I thought about a sustainable Thanksgiving Day, the more overwhelming it seemed. It made me feel blue, that it seemed to be taking so much planning and researching and worrying, just to come up with a sustainable Thanksgiving meal.
Thinking about this blog, I brought myself back to the original premise of writing this, it’s about learning, and making conscious choices. And sometimes, we’re just not ready to take some of those steps. But, as long as we’re still taking steps forward to sustainability, it’ll be OK. Or, at least better. And better is good.
With those thoughts in mind, here’s how I plan to handle our Thanksgiving this year:
1. I’m buying a pre-prepared turkey like we always do. Whether its from Honey Baked or some other company, that’s just how its going to be. We buy one turkey per year. Maybe next year I’ll be more industrious.
2. We’ll serve our traditional foods, cooked in a better way. In order to keep peace with kids, we’ll be serving up our same old casseroles. (Probably pulled from “Holiday Ideas from Kraft” circa 1962). But, I’ll try to prepare them a little better. Organic cornmeal, free-range eggs and local sweet potatoes anyone?
3. Bring on the local fare. I’d like to introduce at least one (maybe two) new recipes that are completely local, and seasonal.
4. Drink Wine! We consume a lot of wine at Thanksgiving. It will be fun to find some new, organic brands.
5. Decorate Sustainably. Nice plates will be on the table, along with cloth napkins. No paper plates for us. Holidays have always been about nice china because my mother has been the hostess for at least 50 of the last 55 years, and she’s all about presentation. But, that is one tradition that is sustainable. Actually I’ve done away with paper plates altogether, and cloth napkins are on my Christmas wish list. (In case any one’s wondering, tee hee)
6. Of course, we’ll be recycling, that goes without saying.
Thanksgiving will be here soon, but our menu plans may definitely change or expand before the big day. I’ll be researching some local resources and recipes. If you have ideas or tips for a simple, green Thanksgiving celebration, I’d love to hear about them.
November 12, 2009
Butternut Squash, the pumpkin wannabe
In the South, squash is synonymous with yellow. As in, crook-neck. We eat it in the summer. We stew it with onions. If you’re an adventurous cook, it’s grilled or even roasted. Sometimes it even gets turned into a casserole. It is small and manageable, unlike it’s cousins, the Butternut and Acorn squashes.
I am attempting to eat locally or at least seasonally whenever I can (translated as when it’s convenient). Believing in this concept is easy, cooking it is a a bit more of a challenge, particularly for someone who is as cooking challenged as I am. Walking through the grocery Sunday I encountered all manner of appetizing produce, from Chile, Mexico, even Canada. Until I got to the Butternut squash, which by the way, were NOT with the other real squash, ie; crook-neck. They were smooth and hard-looking and way back in my mind I’m thinking they are in season. Ignoring the fact that the label says they’re from Michigan, (which in my book, may as well be Canada in terms of distance), I picked one out and like an orphaned puppy, I brought it home. Now what?
The label had instructions for microwaving it. Nuke it. Sounded fast, but less than appetizing. Like Dr. Frankenstein studying a cadaver, I found my sharpest knife and sliced the beast in half. It was beautiful. Smooth and very orange, but not sweet-potato orange, more yellow orange, almost like a pumpkin, but not quite. Then I spied the seeds. OMG, it’s a pumpkin wannabe. It even smelled pumpkin-ish, but buttery. Hence, the name I suppose. Dutifully, I followed the mico-wave method. 8 minutes until tender. Then, my creative side took over. Peeling it neatly, I cubed it up and sprinkled it with olive oil and a little Tony’s Cajun seasoning. I figure any veggie is good roasted! And, it’s fast. I ran it in the oven, but maybe I just didn’t leave it long enough. It never took on that almost crispy but just roasted look of most veggies. And, it tasted fair. But, I know there is a better way.
Do you know how to cook these autumn squashes? If you have the magic touch for something quick, easy and tasty, please share! I’ll be happy to prepare it and share the bounty! (Or at least the credit).
October 9, 2009
Keeping the lid on saves energy
Softly clattering, my pot lid clicks and knocks in its effort to restrain the heat inside. In a last ditch effort to escape, heat from the pan skirts through the crack between the lid and the skillet… a mist, a vapor; a hot, wet cloud.
Hearing these metallic, clinking, kitchen sounds conjures memories from my childhood. I still have visions of hot, sticky southern Sundays; grownups in the kitchen, matching each pot’s rant with their own clucking and easy-natured fussing. Pots danced on the stove, each one popping, and dancing like a steam induced folk dance.
Cooking with the lid on. Many of my grandparents ways are coming back into practice. They didn’t think of these ways as being eco-friendly, just efficient. However, I often find myself reverting to some of those same habits out of a desire to live more sustainably.
Cooking with the lid on your skillet seems like a such a small thing. A thing that would go un-noticed, something you would just naturally do. And, it has gone unnoticed in my house until just recently. I read that cooking with the lid on your skillet is an easy way to reduce energy consumption in the kitchen. It seemed like an easy endeavor. In fact, I would have sworn to you that this was a practice that I already embraced. I even remarked to a friend, “oh yeah, I always cook with the lid on.”
However, awareness of the more engery efficient “lids on” practice has led me to realize that I really DON’T like to cook with the lid on. Never having considered myself a cook, it surprised me to find that I cared either way about the pot lid.
Today, after a long day at work, I was cooking up a little zucchini sauté in the skillet when I remembered about the lid. Dutifully, I rummaged through the cabinet, found the correct lid and in place it went. The zucchini and cnions and garlic didn’t cry out in protest, but I could have sworn I heard them call my name. With wooden spoon in hand, I hovered about the stove. Had those veggies been long enough under the lid, that I could now peek inside and indulge my desire to smell, and stir, and covertly steal a small sliver of food from the depths of the skillet? It was difficult to leave the side of the stove, I was afraid I might miss another opportunity to inhale that fine aroma.
But in the end, I did cook with the lid on (except for a small peek and stir, or two.) Did it save much energy? Probably not. But the thought that I was conscious enough to give it some thought was good enough for me. Never mind that the veggies were a bit soggy, a tad overcooked from all of that trapped heat and steam, I had saved a small bit of energy… made a conscious decision… brought to light fine memories of people and places past… and enjoyed an intimate dinner shared with my daughter. Not bad results for so small an endeavor as cooking with the lid on.
October 1, 2009
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