Monday, August 16, 2010
Summer Lovin'
On days like today, when it's 90 degrees and nothing is air conditioned (one of the downsides to living in Seattle is that if the weather goes below 40 or above 78, no one knows how to handle it), it's hard to remember why I love summer. I took a bite of a ripe, organic, locally farmed nectarine, and I then remembered. My first bite was like a religious experience. I said to my roommated, "Oh my god, nectarines are my favorite food in the world." He laughed because I've said that about every fruit when I tasted it for the first time this season - at least when they were local. I had a few nectarines from California earlier this summer, and while they were tasty, they had nothing on the intense, complex flavor of this one. Once again, local wins.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Organic Body Care Recipes - Review
When you look at the label of an average bath product, you'll see loads of chemicals which you probably can't pronounce, and the very innocent sounding ingredient, "Fragrance." I'm trying to avoid eating foods with ingredients that don't instantly evoke images of food in my head (like dextrin, polysorbate, and red 40, among many others) because it isn't good for my body. As Stephanie Tourles, the author of Organic Body Care Recipes points out in her introduction, we absorb both chemicals and nutrients through our skin as well as through our digestive system. By using products that are full of beneficial plant-based ingredients, we absorb the good and avoid the bad. There is a brief section in the book that talks about common chemicals in personal care products that are harmful. Through some research of my own, I have also learned that companies are not required to disclose information about what they put in fragrances. The article I linked to says,
"Fragrance secrecy is legal due to a giant loophole in the Federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1973, which requires companies to list cosmetics ingredients on the product labels but explicitly exempts fragrance. By taking advantage of this loophole, the cosmetics industry has kept the public in the dark about the ingredients in fragrance, even those that present potential health risks or build up in people’s bodies."
I don't know about you, but I prefer to know exactly what I'm putting into my body, whether it's through my skin or my mouth. Organic Body Care Recipes is a wonderful place to start. It's a comprehensive recipe book for personal care products, ranging from skin and hair care to aphrodisiacs. Tourles gives plenty of information about the health benefits of ingredients, what to look for when buying them, and what tools you need to create your own products. She also helps you to understand what kind of skin and hair you have and which recipes work for which types.
I have tried quite a few of the recipes in the book and have been thrilled with every one of them. Some of them are so simple and effective, you'll wonder why you ever paid for over-priced store-bought products at all. For example, her "Nighttime Eye Moisturizer" recipe is 1/4 teaspoon of oil (she lists several acceptable varieties - I use jojoba, but you could also use extra virgin olive oil). That's it! Just dab the oil around your eye area, and you're good to go. Of course, some of the recipes require more work, and some take a long time to prepare, but it's satisfying and fun to make your own products, especially when you know exactly what's in it and where everything came from.
"Fragrance secrecy is legal due to a giant loophole in the Federal Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1973, which requires companies to list cosmetics ingredients on the product labels but explicitly exempts fragrance. By taking advantage of this loophole, the cosmetics industry has kept the public in the dark about the ingredients in fragrance, even those that present potential health risks or build up in people’s bodies."
I don't know about you, but I prefer to know exactly what I'm putting into my body, whether it's through my skin or my mouth. Organic Body Care Recipes is a wonderful place to start. It's a comprehensive recipe book for personal care products, ranging from skin and hair care to aphrodisiacs. Tourles gives plenty of information about the health benefits of ingredients, what to look for when buying them, and what tools you need to create your own products. She also helps you to understand what kind of skin and hair you have and which recipes work for which types.
I have tried quite a few of the recipes in the book and have been thrilled with every one of them. Some of them are so simple and effective, you'll wonder why you ever paid for over-priced store-bought products at all. For example, her "Nighttime Eye Moisturizer" recipe is 1/4 teaspoon of oil (she lists several acceptable varieties - I use jojoba, but you could also use extra virgin olive oil). That's it! Just dab the oil around your eye area, and you're good to go. Of course, some of the recipes require more work, and some take a long time to prepare, but it's satisfying and fun to make your own products, especially when you know exactly what's in it and where everything came from.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Skagit River Ranch
One of my plans for the summer was to go out and visit as many local farms as I could. Unfortunately, my car's breaks went on the fritz while I was waiting on my financial aid check, so I decided that driving out to the country was a bad idea. Fortunately, my breaks are now fixed, and I was able to go out to Skagit River Ranch this afternoon. Skagit River Ranch is just outside of Sedro-Woolley, WA - about 80 miles north of Seattle. I have only ever heard good things about the farm, and they have a store that's open on Saturdays where you can buy their products - they have chicken, lamb, pork, and beef (and probably the occasional goat), eggs, and honey.
It was quite a pleasure to arrive on the farm and to find chickens everywhere. They were truly free range and went all over the place - including the parking lot. The sweet lady at the store told me that last winter, it snowed, and there were chickens jumping from car to car in order to avoid touching the freshly fallen snow (but don't worry, they could have gone to their warm chicken coop if they had so desired). I took pictures of the happy chickens, but they didn't turn out so well (my iPhone just doesn't take good photos), so instead, you get to see pictures of the chicks, and let's face it, chicks are way cuter than chickens.
I asked the lady if we could take a look around the farm, and she answered with an enthusiastic yes and suggested that we take a 1/2 mile walk to the river, which took us through parts of the farm, including the sheep and goat pens. There were lots of kids (baby goats - not human children), which were small enough to climb under the fence, and happily played all over the place.
We also got to see several horses, all of which were friendly and wanted either attention or treats. Since we didn't have treats, we petted their faces, and they followed us to the edge of their enclosure. We didn't get a chance to check out the entire farm, but it was clear that it would have been fine for us to go anywhere. We saw some farmers who were very friendly, though hot (it was 90 degrees). It was lovely to see that the animals were living in really good conditions and looked pretty happy. I'm really looking forward to eating the eggs and ground beef I bought. Fortunately, they have stands at the University, Ballard, and West Seattle farmers' markets, so I don't have to take the 2 hour drive up to the farm to get their food, which I just know is going to be delicious.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Magic Ginger
I'm spending my summer learning all about Chinese herbs. A lot of them truly require that someone who knows what they're doing tell you what you should take and at what dosage. A few of them, however, are remarkably effective and easy to get a hold of.
So far, I'm most impressed with ginger. Most people know that ginger is good for an upset stomach. I recently learned that the most effective way of taking ginger is to make fresh ginger tea - slice up some ginger and pour boiling water over it. It's incredibly simple, and it's way less expensive than ginger ale or ginger snaps. Plus, it doesn't have anything else in it that could aggrivate your stomach, and it's pretty tasty. It's good for any type of nausea, including food poisoning and morning sickness.
What I didn't know about ginger is that if you feel like you're about to get a cold - tired, achy, congested, etc - you can drink a cup of ginger tea, and there's a good chance the cold will be stopped in its tracks. Unfortunately, it only works at the very beginning stages of the sickness, so once you feel truly sick, it's too late for ginger to be effective. I've already had a chance to try this remedy out, and it worked like a dream.
My professor told us that she has at least a pound of ginger in her kitchen at all times. I just keep a small amount in my freezer - frozen ginger is much easier to grate for cooking than room temperature ginger. If I recall correctly, the piece I currently have cost less than fifty cents.
So far, I'm most impressed with ginger. Most people know that ginger is good for an upset stomach. I recently learned that the most effective way of taking ginger is to make fresh ginger tea - slice up some ginger and pour boiling water over it. It's incredibly simple, and it's way less expensive than ginger ale or ginger snaps. Plus, it doesn't have anything else in it that could aggrivate your stomach, and it's pretty tasty. It's good for any type of nausea, including food poisoning and morning sickness.
What I didn't know about ginger is that if you feel like you're about to get a cold - tired, achy, congested, etc - you can drink a cup of ginger tea, and there's a good chance the cold will be stopped in its tracks. Unfortunately, it only works at the very beginning stages of the sickness, so once you feel truly sick, it's too late for ginger to be effective. I've already had a chance to try this remedy out, and it worked like a dream.
My professor told us that she has at least a pound of ginger in her kitchen at all times. I just keep a small amount in my freezer - frozen ginger is much easier to grate for cooking than room temperature ginger. If I recall correctly, the piece I currently have cost less than fifty cents.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Quinoa Salad
My blog seems to have become an impromptu recipe book. The simple fact is that I have been cooking more lately, and I get most of my recipes off the web. I have a lot of cookbooks, but it's so much faster to type "-insert name of dish I want to cook here- recipe" into google, and then go through the available options. I can go through 20 recipes in a few minutes, scanning to see which ones have ingredients that are in my kitchen, and which ones I can adapt to fit what I have. You see, I'm currently very very broke. I'm waiting for a financial aid check to come and rescue me from my lack of funds, but until then, I'm having to be creative with the food I already have.
Although I hate not having money, being forced to cook is kind of enjoyable. I have all sorts of dried goods in my pantry that have been waiting for me to take advantage of them. Yesterday, I made a delicious quinoa salad that took advantage of the meager fresh vegetables I still have. Because quinoa is a complete protien, I didn't have to worry about the fact that I can't afford animal products right now.
Looking online, I discovered that the trick to good quinoa is to soak it for 5 minutes and rinse it before cooking. This removes bitter tasting saponins (which can apparently be used as soap, which may come in handy if you're ever stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere with no soap but lots of quinoa). My box of quinoa said that I should use 2 cups of water for 1 cup of dry quinoa, but recipes online indicated that after you soak, you should use 1 1/2 cups of water. They were right. I used 1 1/2 cups, and it was perfect.
So here's the recipe I used. Obviously, you can use all sorts of different veggies, nuts, and dried fruits. This isn't the sort of recipe that you go out and buy ingredients for - it's the sort of recipe you throw whatever you have into.
Susie's Odds and Ends Quinoa Salad
Cook up 1 cup of quinoa after soaking and rinsing.
Once it's cooked, let chill in the refrigerator, or if you don't feel like waiting, you can eat it warm.
Sautee onions - I used three small spring Walla Walla sweet onions
chop up some scallions (I used 2)
thinly slice carrots - I used 1 1/2 small carrots, and I shredded the remaining half
You can, of course, prepare any other veggies you have. You can use them raw or sauteed or steamed, depending on what you have and what you feel like. I think bell peppers, cucumber, zucchini, kale, and even broccoli would be delicious additions.
Mix the veggies into the quinoa
Add a handful of dried fruit. I used cranberries, but you could use raisins, dates, cherries, apricots, or whatever you want.
Add a handful of nuts (you could toast them for extra yumminess). I used cashews, but really, anything would be good.
Add some toasted sesame seeds if you happen to have a jar of toasted sesame seeds sitting in your pantry.
If you have any sitting around, throw in some leftover chicken, pork, fish or tofu or other fake meat product (I suppose you could also add beef if you were so inclined)
Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
the juice from half a small lemon
salt and pepper to taste (I used a small amount of salt because I prepared the quinoa with salt, and the cashews were salted, and I used a TON of pepper)
Add any other herbs or spices you feel like using, or just keep it simple.
Mix the dressing into the quinoa, and voila! You have delicious, simple, healthy quinoa salad.
Although I hate not having money, being forced to cook is kind of enjoyable. I have all sorts of dried goods in my pantry that have been waiting for me to take advantage of them. Yesterday, I made a delicious quinoa salad that took advantage of the meager fresh vegetables I still have. Because quinoa is a complete protien, I didn't have to worry about the fact that I can't afford animal products right now.
Looking online, I discovered that the trick to good quinoa is to soak it for 5 minutes and rinse it before cooking. This removes bitter tasting saponins (which can apparently be used as soap, which may come in handy if you're ever stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere with no soap but lots of quinoa). My box of quinoa said that I should use 2 cups of water for 1 cup of dry quinoa, but recipes online indicated that after you soak, you should use 1 1/2 cups of water. They were right. I used 1 1/2 cups, and it was perfect.
So here's the recipe I used. Obviously, you can use all sorts of different veggies, nuts, and dried fruits. This isn't the sort of recipe that you go out and buy ingredients for - it's the sort of recipe you throw whatever you have into.
Susie's Odds and Ends Quinoa Salad
Cook up 1 cup of quinoa after soaking and rinsing.
Once it's cooked, let chill in the refrigerator, or if you don't feel like waiting, you can eat it warm.
Sautee onions - I used three small spring Walla Walla sweet onions
chop up some scallions (I used 2)
thinly slice carrots - I used 1 1/2 small carrots, and I shredded the remaining half
You can, of course, prepare any other veggies you have. You can use them raw or sauteed or steamed, depending on what you have and what you feel like. I think bell peppers, cucumber, zucchini, kale, and even broccoli would be delicious additions.
Mix the veggies into the quinoa
Add a handful of dried fruit. I used cranberries, but you could use raisins, dates, cherries, apricots, or whatever you want.
Add a handful of nuts (you could toast them for extra yumminess). I used cashews, but really, anything would be good.
Add some toasted sesame seeds if you happen to have a jar of toasted sesame seeds sitting in your pantry.
If you have any sitting around, throw in some leftover chicken, pork, fish or tofu or other fake meat product (I suppose you could also add beef if you were so inclined)
Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
the juice from half a small lemon
salt and pepper to taste (I used a small amount of salt because I prepared the quinoa with salt, and the cashews were salted, and I used a TON of pepper)
Add any other herbs or spices you feel like using, or just keep it simple.
Mix the dressing into the quinoa, and voila! You have delicious, simple, healthy quinoa salad.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Vegan Soda Bread & Lammas
I'm on a baking kick right now. I'm finding that there isn't a day when baking doesn't sound like fun.
Today is Lammas, the Pagan festival celebrating the grain harvest. Traditionally, you're supposed to make a loaf of bread shaped like a man and eat it. It's representative of a human sacrifice to the gods asking for blessings and a boutiful harvest. I have never made a bread man, largely due to the fact that bread has always been extremely intimidating. This year I decided to make Irish soda bread.
Although I am not vegan, I am quite particular about the animal products I buy, and vegan recipes are often cheaper for me to make than ones with eggs and dairy. True soda bread is made with buttermilk, but it turns out that you can substitute any non-dairy milk with lemon juice or apple cider vinegar with a teaspoon of the acid for every cup of milk-substitute.
I found this recipe, and made it (it fails to mention in the recipe that it should be cooked at 425). I decided that it would be better with more sugar (based on absolutely nothing at all), so I used 3 tablespoons instead of 2. It's a little on the sweet side, so it's more like a dessert than I intended. I also discovered that they really weren't kidding when they said to add the liquid slowly. I added it a little bit at a time, and it rapidly went from dry and floury to too wet. Shaping the bread became very difficult at that point, so rather than a bread man, I made a bread blob. It ended up being a little too moist in the center - still tasty, but not perfect. My roommate's verdict was that it was like soggy biscotti, which didn't stop him from eating 2 pieces. I think the recipe has a lot of potential; I just need to not mess it up next time.
Today is Lammas, the Pagan festival celebrating the grain harvest. Traditionally, you're supposed to make a loaf of bread shaped like a man and eat it. It's representative of a human sacrifice to the gods asking for blessings and a boutiful harvest. I have never made a bread man, largely due to the fact that bread has always been extremely intimidating. This year I decided to make Irish soda bread.
Although I am not vegan, I am quite particular about the animal products I buy, and vegan recipes are often cheaper for me to make than ones with eggs and dairy. True soda bread is made with buttermilk, but it turns out that you can substitute any non-dairy milk with lemon juice or apple cider vinegar with a teaspoon of the acid for every cup of milk-substitute.
I found this recipe, and made it (it fails to mention in the recipe that it should be cooked at 425). I decided that it would be better with more sugar (based on absolutely nothing at all), so I used 3 tablespoons instead of 2. It's a little on the sweet side, so it's more like a dessert than I intended. I also discovered that they really weren't kidding when they said to add the liquid slowly. I added it a little bit at a time, and it rapidly went from dry and floury to too wet. Shaping the bread became very difficult at that point, so rather than a bread man, I made a bread blob. It ended up being a little too moist in the center - still tasty, but not perfect. My roommate's verdict was that it was like soggy biscotti, which didn't stop him from eating 2 pieces. I think the recipe has a lot of potential; I just need to not mess it up next time.
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