Wise Environmental Choices....

I've been taking baby steps for some time to make smarter choices environmentally. There are plenty of things I've done with the primary focus being to reduce my electric bill (and while I'm sure it would be higher had I not done these things? It sure doesn't seem to be inching downward much - but so go the rate increases, eh?),

I've mentioned in previous posts that I'm trying to find interesting new places to visit (blogs and websites, mostly) with a focus on wise stewardship, environmental activism, and consumerism, too. So when I find something interesting and new, I like to let you all know...

The Conscious Shopper has been mentioned before. I like her style, I love her posts. She's totally committed to reducing her environmental footprint and helping all of us do the same...and right now? She's having an interesting contest.

Another place I visit often is Fake Plastic Fish. Don't you know, she's having a contest, too?

I can't imagine that I could ever get to the point of using no plastic, but because of her blog, I've rethought many things I do. I've finally started buying milk from our local creamery - in returnable glass bottles! I am using the Co-Op for that purchase, but even our local Kroger carries it. I don't use milk a lot, but it's nice to have this option...and the glass bottles are also a happy childhood memory!

On Fake Plastic Fish today, you'll also find links to this post over at Plastic Manners. An interesting addition to the typical Reduce, Reuse, Recycle mantra, she adds Rethink, Refuse to the three others. Then another addition I like that I've seen elsewhere - like my Ravelry Trash to Treasure group that does so - is Repurpose.

It's all about stopping, not doing the knee jerk reaction of just reaching and buying. Do you need that? If so, is it made from plastic? What will you do with it once it's empty? Can you recycle it? Reuse it? Repurpose it? If not, is there an alternative to the plastic?

With oil spewing into the Gulf, in a castrophic mess that will be with us for years, can we reconsider petroleum-based products completely? What LITTLE thing (or BIG thing?) can each one of us do? I'm planning to take the bus to the Farmer's Market every Saturday for local food, beginning this weekend...See? baby steps.

I know sometimes it feels like one person can't make that much of a difference.

But frankly, I'm coming around more and more to feeling empowered that I can do something at least...it's better than the overwhelming sense of futility that washes over me when I see photos of the coast covered in red slime...

What about you?

Macrobiotic Meatless Monday!

Tonight there simply was no time to cook, I hadn't thought about it at all, and I was hungry. I stopped at the Co-Op and picked up "fast food"

This is Shanhai Dumplings and Spinach Noodles by Macro Bento. I can't do the entire 1/2 a box for a single serving of either (they're spicy!), but that makes them last longer! Hot tea rounds out the macrobiotic meal.

And then I topped it off with a little crystalized ginger to help with digestion (and for a little more spicy-sweetness).

Who says you can't have meatless fast food?

Meatless Mondays Lunch This Time

It's that time again, and I've made lunch! It's a simple recipe, as I usually pack my lunches and I want things easy as pie (without the pie)

On the Weight Watchers point system this one weighs in at a heavy (NOT!) 4 points (but then I added strawberries for dessert, and a cup is 1/2 a point, so factor that into your counting)

A Hummus Veggie Wrap on Whole Wheat Tortilla:

(yes, this isn't the best photo, I'd already wrapped it up)

I buy my hummus tho' there are several good recipes out there to use if you want to make your own (if I ever get 20 minutes, I think I'd like to try one of them!). I spread 2 Tbls. of garlic flavored hummus on a warmed wheat tortilla, tossed on some baby spinach leaves, slivered some red pepper strips and drizzled a Ceasar Italian flavored dressing on it - I used a fat-free bottled kind, but you could make your own. IF you use olive oil, remember to add that into your point count, but don't worry, because you're using one of your Good Health Guidelines while you're at it!). I'm careful with the dressing, because I really just want a touch of flavor, not a soupy mess! Roll it up, steam a few spears of asparagus (with a touch of butter on it
for 1 point), salt, pepper, and the whole meal is ready in a flash. And I've got time to knit at my desk during lunch!

Happy Meatless Eating!

Meatless Monday Again!

For once I can claim credit for this recipe. I devised it after having something very similar at a fancy dinner some years ago:


Strawberry Spinach Salad
(I'm giving general quantities - I made this for just one serving)

1 cup fresh organic spinach, loosely packed
4-5 fresh strawberries, sliced (or more if you're like me and love them)
5 English walnuts chopped
2-3 Tbsp low-fat feta cheese (to taste)
Ken's fat-free Raspberry Walnut Vinagrette
(you may add slivered red or Vidalia onions to taste, my digestive system can't have them, but wish it could!)

Do I really need to give you directions to assemble? I think not.

(In the winter? Substitute canned mandarin oranges - or a clemantine, sectioned - it's every bit as good, and a fine salad to add to a soup or veggie chili meal.)
:)
Enjoy - Thankfully, 'tis the season for the freshest of ingredients...and wow is this good.

Meatless Monday!

Baingan Bharta (Eggplant Curry):

I can't take credit for the recipe, I found it here. I had no idea how it would come out, but it's good! I input all the ingredients to Weight Watchers e-Tools, and came back with 2 points per serving. Since it made 4 servings, and I was hungry, I doubled my portion for 4 points. Three points for the Na'an (which is storebought) and I thought I was in heaven for a dinner at 7 points!

I will tell you that I automatically chopped the onions, and then realized the recipe called for sliced (oops!). Then I did not have the garlic paste. There's an hysterical youTube video out there telling you how to make your own garlic paste, but I just mixed equal parts of minced garlic and finely grated fresh ginger into the mixture and didn't worry about it (yes, that's what garlic paste is. Equal parts of the two ingredients and perhaps a little water to make a paste...IF I could have found my mortar and pestle, I'd have made it up. Unfortunately, that's one thing that hasn't been unpacked since the move (three years ago).

Anyway! A great, warming meal (which I made last week when it was really quite chilly and appreciated no end!), not too difficult to make. Happy Meatless Monday!

Meatless Monday

I've almost missed posting, but this is Monday, and I've a yoga class to attend after work. Things tend to run very late!

And I didn't cook again tonight. No, this time, I picked up a (not so vegan!) meatless meal in a hurry - but very tasty indeed:

I adore cottage cheese (there's even a photo of me at my first birthday with it all over my face and in my blonde ringlet-ed hair, so you can tell it's a long-lived affair!), and tonight when I saw strawberries and pineapple all ready and waiting, I just couldn't resist. I added a bit of baguette with seasoned olive oil, and thoroughly enjoyed my very simple meal.

But oh, for next week? I've got something planned! I'll make it over the weekend so it will be ready and waiting after yoga class, and I promise I'll post earlier, too! *wink*

I did a little bit of veggie shopping this weekend...a fellow yoga student is a potter and she was having a sale of her wares. I picked up the eggplant salt and pepper shakes, and the little garlic head shaker was just sitting there all by itself. I thought, "why not for garlic powder?" and it came right along home with me! I love that her attention to detail even included the little rootlets at the base, tho' this photo doesn't show that well...

The three will reside on my stovetop and work in nicely with my vintage vegetable pottery collection - Shawnee King Cornware, and Made in Occupied Japan Tomato-ware, plus an odd assortment of peppers, squashes, celery, and beets (ALL ceramic salt and pepper shakes).

What can I say? I'm just a pushover for veggies and fruit in all forms. This purchase supported a local artist, too. :)

An Apology and - It's Earth Day!

I have to admit that I was away this weekend, doing a show, and as a result, did NOT post for Meatless Monday. I've been meatless both Tuesday and Wednesday, but repeated my Portabella Mushrooms from the grocery store, so don't have a recipe to share this week, I'll try to do better next week, I promise.

Today is Earth Day, and I'm wondering what you will do to celebrate and honor it?

Me? I'm working, as usual, and have an appointment after work, so cooking isn't going to happen. I think I might have a big salad tonight, meatless again, because I'm spending the evening in a 90 minute yoga class. It will be late when I get out and I'd like to toss something light together to end my day.

I'm going to use the least possible amount of energy (read "electricity") at home today, but that's in part because I won't be there.

I did, however, read an interesting article at Newsweek that if we think consuming green products is going to get us out of this mess we're in, then we're somewhat delusional.

Not that it won't at least be better for us to use these products. But it does boil down to not buying as much - reducing what we use, reducing the amount of waste we produce.

So I'll be looking for a couple of things I would like to have (glass yogurt cups, a personal CD player as mine broke and I have so many books on CD to read!), but I'll be looking for a used item, whenever possible. And over the next few weeks, I'll be working hard to pass along used items I no longer need.

As the Newsweek article says, there's a reason the first word in the slogan is reduce, reuse, recycle. And I'll add there's are reason many of us are adding the word repurpose to the refrain. It's about making less stuff and rethinking how we relax and unwind. Shopping can't be the way we enjoy ourselves any longer. If the economy and your credit card hasn't already told you this, then the Earth's predicament surely should.

More of us need to follow the old yankee proverb of "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without." I feel somewhat embarrassed by the fact that having lost 40 pounds in the past 7 months, I've been forced to buy an entirely new wardrobe (remaking things wasn't possible with this much change in my shape!). I did, however, shop consignment, thrift, and charity shops as much as possible. And will be passing along my former wardrobe thru the same vehicles, including a yard sale and occasional ebay auction.

What ONE thing can you choose to do today to address the crisis facing the earth? Join up with One Small Change and just do one thing each month? I did. I've been using cloth napkins at home rather than paper towels as napkins. It's going great. I've kept a small stack of them next to my spot at the table all month, and have just washed them with my regular sheets and towels wash. Before this? I'd use a cloth napkin with my lunch, packing it in my tote. But I never thought about it at home, I just tore off that paper towel in "auto-pilot" mode. That's all changed, there's not even a roll of paper towels in my kitchen now.

I haven't made the napkins I promised my Ravelry pals I'd make, but there's still time this month to do that. I picked up some super-cool fabrics (OOPS, see? We buy without thinking!) to make them out of...like I needed more fabric? In fairness, I'd not read that Newsweek article yet, and was in a new fabric shop where I saw the cutest "green" fabric prints.

Which, of course, is exactly the Newsweek article's point - we see "green" in the advertising, and just figure we're doing something good. Forget about the fact that I have hundreds of pounds of fabric in my sewing room...
(sigh)
I forgive myself. And I'm going to change.

What about you?

Meatless Monday

It's Meatless Monday! And today's dinner is my fast, easy vegan spaghetti.

It's easy because it's jarred sauce, doctored up. It's vegan because the "meat" is Morningstar Farms Recipe Crumbles. It's fast, because I make it on Sunday and eat it for a couple of weeknight dinners, and freeze the rest for later on! There is nothing better than your own food for "fast food."

So I being with cleaning out the cupboard and freezer:

There's a small can of mushroom stems and pieces, three cloves of minced garlic (still from my CSA last fall!), and a small can of sliced black olives. I drain the canned items, and rinse off the mushrooms to rid them of any additional salts. Then in a frying pan sprayed with olive oil spray, I toss in a tablespoon of good olive oil, and let the veggies saute.

IF you have other veggies you'd like to add, now is the time. I've been known to toss in summer squash or zuccini, multi-colored bell pepper strips and sliced onions, even shredded carrots! None of them have any calories, so from a Weight Watchers perspective, there are no points.

Eventually I add half a bag of the recipe crumbles and let them saute as well. This particular time, I added in dried onion flakes to taste (I didn't have an onion in the crisper), and then a bit of dried basil. But not too much, because the jarred sauce I used was "tomato basil" flavor (Barilla).

Here's everything simmering away.

And of course, in the meantime, I had the whole wheat pasta on to boil:

Served on a salad-sized plate, with just a touch of shredded parmesan, this is a total of 8 Weight Watchers points (for anyone who cares - I do since I'm following the program).


Last night I also made up a vegan salad for lunch this week from Kalyn's Kitchen. I'd never cut up a mango and this was my very first avocado, too. It's a good salad, tho' I have to admit, I'm not yet loving the avocado...(and it's pricey on points, too - at 7 per serving, I rarely eat that many at lunch)

Come back next week and I'll try to have an interesting recipe to share on Meatless Monday again.

Apparently Convenience Can Be Healthy!

I discovered a wonderful concoction in my regular grocery store's produce section yesterday: stuffed portabella mushroom caps! Two to a pack, they were completely ready for me to grill, broil, or bake when I got home. $2.00

Now on the nights when I have yoga class (my Thursday class gets me home at 9p.m. and I surely don't want a heavy meal right before bedtime, but I can't eat dinner when I get off work and head to a 7p.m. class - talk about yucky, yoga on a full stomach? No thanks) I do whatever I can to eat lightly, eat intentionally, and to not eat meat.

Somehow meat and yoga don't mix in my head, either.

The mushroom caps I picked up were stuffed with fresh spinach, mozzarella shredded part-skim cheese and seasonings - I know there was oregano in there, and probably a touch of garlic. I input everything to Weight Watcher's e-tools and got 2 points per cap! With some Morrocan Olive Artisan bread and seasoned olive oil, the entire meal was 7 points, and as vegetarian (but not vegan) as you can get!

(I ate one last night after class and one tonight when I thought I could manage to snag a photo for you, but you know what? I was too hungry and I never thought about pulling out the camera! I'm sorry...believe me tho' they're really good!)

Hmm...that makes it meatless Thursday, and meatless Friday, as well as mostly meatless Monday so far this week! But considering the fact that eating lower on the food chain is easier on the environment, as well as on my own physical being, I'm happy about that.

This is a work weekend, as I've got a show next weekend. So I stopped by the library to pick up my "reading material!" (ok, one of those is actually printed material...)

I'm "reading" Hot, Flat, and Crowded this evening...while I cut and sew handcrafted bags for my show next week...
(thank goodness for books on CD!)

Meatless Mondays...

Meatless Monday's won't be a hard thing for me to do, and in fact yesterday I managed to join the movement (click that link and join up, too!), but after I'd packed my deli turkey sandwich for lunch, so that I couldn't change without having waste. But dinner was a vegetarian chili-filled whole wheat burrito.

I think I'm going to plan for making something vegan on Sunday nights, and having the leftovers on Mondays - because I have yoga class and don't get home till late. Dinner on Mondays has to be easy-peasy!

One Small Change - April

I learned of a blog event over here at One Small Change and decided to participate.

What will my one small change be? I have apparently got some kind of blip in my brain power that makes it second nature to use a fabric napkin when I pack my lunch for work, but then I come home and use paper towels! I have no idea why. So this month is going to be devoted to actively choosing to use cloth, not paper.

(I make many small changes during any given month. I may even try to find the time to dig out my delicate vintage handkerchiefs and carry them with me instead of Kleenex!)

Wow. That's two changes. When combined with last month's choice to use my drying rack for personal clothing items? See how they can make a huge difference in just a short time?

So...What will YOU do?

This Isn't a Craft Blog, Per Se...

I've crafted from my earliest memory. My grandmother taught me to embroider at her knee when I was just about 6, and I collected scraps of fancy fabrics (whatever Mom found along the way) and tried to sew doll clothes by hand. I hadn't a clue how, of course, but I tried, draping bits of velvets, satins, and crepes and wrapping them on my fashion dolls.

Then Mom taught me to sew, on her old treadle sewing machine when I was in 5th grade. I should have done as I threatened, when a degree in ballet was refused by my father, and majored in Home Economics. Do you ever wonder "what might have been?" That's my query - what would life have been like as a public school teacher? But I was a feminist and such a life was not what I dreamed of...I didn't go to college out of spite (and you know what happens when we bite off our noses in those cases, right?)
:)
Anyway, as usual, I digress...this is about crafting. In fact, it's about Green Crafting.

Mom sewed, knitted, crocheted, and tatted. She taught me the first two, but not the last. I taught myself many other things: macrame, counted cross-stitch, quilting, and crochet, primarily. But I never learned to like crochet, in fact, it hurts my wrists.

This week, I spent some time, as I often do, researching Green Issues, and everything converged in one simple pattern I discovered in a message board on Ravelry.

I've knit dishcloths forever, but these crocheted scrubbies caught my fancy. The folks in my new "Trash to Treasures" group on Ravelry (I'm a new member, they've been around a bit!) make these from plarn (that's plastic shopping bag yarn - yes, the ultimate in upcycling, it's yarn created by taking plastic shopping bags and cutting them into same-sized loops, connecting them, then crocheting them into these critters:

Um...no, you're very correct, mine are made from cotton yarn. Dishcloth cotton to be exact. But that's because I have very, very few plastic bags - the ones I have I keep in reserve to stuff wet knitted wool bags while they dry into felted bags. I don't want to make plarn from them.

Notice anything about that photo? The scrubbies are 1) different sizes and 2) progressively neater (the one in the middle is the neatest).

Remember I told you I taught myself to crochet? Well, I picked it back up this week, but all I did was grab an instruction guide and remind myself of the components of the stitches. It wasn't till tonight, after making the green/ivory and the red tweed/ivory scrubbies and being very unhappy with them, that I sat down with the guidebook and really read it. (Yes, sometimes you really really do need to "read the destructions," as my friend Lynette says)

I was trying to hold the yarn in my right hand with the hook (I am an English-style knitter, so I throw with my right hand). The tension of the yarn in my hands made for very sloppy scrubbies. But that red/ivory one in the middle? It was done in a fraction of the time, and once I put that yarn in the correct (left, for me) hand, everything "connected" in my hands!

We have memory in our hands (tho' I can't cite scientific studies for my claim). But I believe it's what makes speedy typists (and data entry operators, which is the work I did to put myself through college after "biting off my nose!") and concert pianists. The memory basically bypasses the brain, the brain has to be a conduit I suppose, but the fingers hit the keys or the yarn comes into the fingers and memory takes over - not "brain" memory...finger memory. It's "touch-do." See? No brain-power involved!

(And by way of explanation: I'm using up stash cotton yarn, which is as good as upcycling plastic bags, in my book. These little critters take very little scrap yarn, and will make great pot scrubbers in Christmas kitchen gift sets this year.)

Oddly, so far, my hands aren't hurting, which is good. But, oh, my. I surely hope I don't end up with another obsessive/compulsive craft! This crochet stuff is fun!
*wink*

Turn OFF Your Lights Tonight!

For One Hour on March 27, 2010 at 8:30 p.m. EST
What will YOU do with that hour?

Fabulous!

Saturday morning, I happened into the living room in time to watch a cooking segment on the CBS Saturday The Early Show. This young hunk was cooking, and it sounded as if he might be cooking semi-healthy stuff, so I sat down to watch.

He was the author of this book. (Okay, I'm apparently very behind the times, but I really don't watch prime time television - he's a celebrity chef? he's been on Dancing With the Stars? (yes, I do know there's a show by that name, but I haven't watched it! shhhh)

I was so impressed with the fact that the entire premise of the book was recipes for comfort foods that had been redesigned to be less than 350 calories, that I RAN to the computer and searched online for it. I had a holiday gift card at Barnes and Noble, and the order was placed forthwith.

It arrived today. And I made the sweet potato fries on page 195. One serving is 1 WW point.
Because I was exhausted tonight, I also just tossed a black bean burger in the microwave and combined it with a sandwich thin for a bun (3 points), then heated up some frozen kale from last fall's CSA share (1 point with the olive oil and red wine vinegar).

This book is choc full of many recipes I want to make...1 point brownies and chocolate chip cookies, 4 point mac and cheese, a 7 point turkey Reuben!!

I may have just fallen in love with a man 1/2 my age.

(I suspect Rocco Dispirito's not interested in anything more than my spreading the word about his book, huh? But you seriously want to check this one out - it's worth it!)

Baby Steps...

If you didn't see this on
David Letterman the other night, you should go here and watch it now. And yes, it's a tad bit on the side of overwhelm, so you're forewarned.

However, I'm willing to take baby steps toward making a difference. Our municipality has curbside recycling. And yes, I took their survey recently and suggested that instead of continuing the pickups every week - with alternating weeks for paper products and glass/plastic/aluminum - we could reduce the frequency of pickups in an effort to save the City a bit on the cost of those collections. Like most local governments they're looking at every possible way to reduce costs, and I'd a lot rather see fewer pickups than a lost teacher! I also suggested to one city office my agency deals with that we could stop the snail mail hardcopy notifications on certain stuff we do and just use email (lordy the postage, trees, and time that saves!!).

I also discovered a business that will accept plastic 5 for recycling: Preserve Products

I'd already decided to collect my #5s and ship them (at my cost) to Preserve. Then tonight, after yoga class, I dropped by the Co-op to pick up a couple of things and found they carried their products...

This one came home with me. I think it's the perfect size for lunchtime salads. It's cute, too!

I am not the sort to become overwhelmed by the enormity of the problem. And I'm certainly not capable of eskewing all plastics (I'm afraid with Lupus and heart disease, I'm dependent on one too many prescriptions for example - but my Rx's come in #2s at least!).

But I'll do what I can do, as much as I can do. Starting with this of course:

A couple of handknit dishcloths...the yarn is organic cotton. I know now that's not necessarily a good thing...Ecological Intelligence is a very enlightening book (and another source of potential overwhelm, fair warning!)...

Reduce, reuse, recycle, repurpose...The more of us who try, the better off we are. If you can do one thing? Please...do it!

Backlog...

I'm up to my eyeballs in stuff I want to absorb...

these are on the "short list" of my stacks. Since I love to knit, and sew, and need to keep my house one step ahead of the dust bunnies (oh who am I kidding, that's a lost battle!), not to mention work a couple of jobs to keep the wolf from the door, and cook healthy food, and practice yoga? Well, I'm suddenly realizing that books to READ should really become books to LISTEN TO. I have two on request from the library now (in a similar vein as those above).

I finished Food Rules last night, thankfully a small book, but with a huge message. If you've not read it, try to check it out from the library (tho' at $11 USD, it's certainly worth the price!).

I like that Pollan admonishes that these are rules but not laws, policies to try to live by. There are 64, many of them are similar, and you can pick and choose those that will work for you, obviously.

The best general guideline is on page xv of the Introduction: Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants. The remainder of the book elaborates on that. It's the main premise.

And extraordinarily wise.

Tonight's menu? Frozen beets and greens from the CSA - via my freezer - and a wonderful White Bean Chicken Chili from Secret Garden Gourmet. A bag of their Cream of Wild Rice and Asparagus soup mix was in a gift basket when I arrived at the Mayo Clinic's Leadership Symposium for Women with Heart Disease in 2002, and I've been a fan of their soups and mixes ever since.

(I know, they're not local to Virginia, but sometimes, we just have to support good companies, even if they're a few hundred miles away)
*wink*

Challenges - Personal and Public

As you know, I'm doing everything I can think of to live more lightly, to save energy, and money, and my sanity, too! Well, last night, in knee-jerk "I've always done it this way" fashion, I was tossing a smallish load of laundry into the washer (I have small and medium load settings) and I suddenly thought: I don't have to put this in the dryer, I can use my drying rack. Ok. That seems silly right? Not when you realize I don't have a clothesline and have used a dryer for probably close to 15 years non-stop. Needless to say, the load was dried on the rack.

Now to be fair, I always dry my handknit socks that way. And I always put my tops on hangers and air dry them to keep them looking good longer. I just hadn't made the next leap that much of my personal laundry did not need the dryer! Everything was dry this morning, too, and that's with the thermostat set on 60!

Then a week or so ago, I joined a Facebook Challenge in association with The Red Tape Chronicles blog on MSNBC's website. The issue surrounding the challenge was high (and unfair) fees and charges such as those on credit cards and such.

As soon as I read about it, I joined up. I read an article on the Chronicles about cable company charges: you know they charge the same price for long-time customers with only one or two services as they charge new ones for new "promotional" bundled rate. Well, I don't have a landline phone but was paying the same price as the advertised phone/cable/internet promotion.

Today I phoned them, and very nicely asked if they couldn't do something about that. And they did! For the next 12 months I'll be paying approximately $15 less per month. And when the rate goes back up (as I expect it will) I'm going to contact them again. Of course, by then? I may decide finally to rid myself of the television, as I'm watching less and less of it (I'm not mentioning the Olympics - *wink*).

On the heels of that success, I happily headed home tonight and immediately pulled out boneless chicken thighs and one of the remaining CSA's butternut squashes. I froze about 1/2 of the butternut, but roasted the remainder of it with a touch of olive oil and maple syrup. The chicken was roasted with lots of CSA garlic, onion bits and dried rosemary. I did pick up asparagus at the grocery store, as when I saw it this week, I simply could not resist (it's like a breath of spring, and it's still awfully cold around here - we had snow last night, too!). Added to that plate down below is a small serving of Artisan olive bread and olive oil with herbs.

Weight Watchers points: 8 for the entire plate. LOVE IT!

Especially since 3 months after the CSA ended, I'm still happily eating the fruits of that membership. I have a lot left, in fact, in the freezer, and in the "root cellar" that is my unheated, closed "pantry."

Whoohoo!

Never Another Duplicate! And Other Money-Saving Grocery Ideas

I hope that's not wishful thinking up there in that title! Over on
Cheap Healthy Good this week, in her links of the week, I discovered Bon Appetit's 7 Habits of Highly Effective Grocery Shopping. There was this one little tip that made such total and complete sense to me that I had to come home this weekend and work it into my crazy schedule!

What is it? Know What You Have. Simple huh? How many times have you gone into the store and tried to remember what you have in the freezer, in the cabinets, in the fridge? Or better yet, when you plan meals for the week (you do, don't you?) have you said: Oh I have to put "x" on the list...and then after you buy it realized you already had it (I know whereof I speak, folks, I have THREE - count 'em three! - bottles of Lite Soy Sauce! (Two are open and in the fridge, one is on the cabinet shelf.

I think I'll be making more Asian cuisine for a bit to use those up...

So I got into the cabinets easily enough and listed everything...

And ended up here. Yes, that's actually my "organized" freezer. I more or less remember where I put everything. I had to wear gloves when I went into it, because my fingertips quickly go numb when I work in there (hence the reason I have had no idea what was in there in the past).

Tonight I have leftover (frozen) beef stew and corn muffins thawing. I'm going to clean out the freezer. Use it up, make it do. It's the frugal thing to do, doncha know?

(And I think I'll be having spaghetti-based dishes for a bit, because I also discovered I have 2 full boxes and a partial, opened box of the whole wheat variety in the cabinets. While I was over on Bon Appetit, I noodled - sorry! - around and found this recipe which I have all the ingredients for...so it's on the menu for later in the week, and I think I'll put it in the slow cooker, too.)

So now, I challenge you. Find out what you have and list it. Mine is in a notebook that is now dedicated to planning those meals from my storehouse, and I'll also tick off what I've used up as I do. I need to begin a new grocery store price-book, too, so I think it will fit in here as well. What's that? You use your price-book to track the prices of the foods you use most at the stores you shop in - those prices vary and if you're really trying to keep your grocery expenses down, shopping sales and such, this is well worth the effort to do. The fastest way to get started is to pull out your receipts - of course you save those, right? - and list what you've bought over the past month or so...keep it by food type and then have separate columns for each store. I could see doing this on a spreadsheet, but I like having the spiral notebook to cart along with me.

And for those of you wondering how I'm doing on sticking to my food budget this year? I went over in January by $20.44. In mid-month, I revised my "budget" downward by $25 every two weeks. So it might have been smarter not to do that. January is also a very long month, but frankly? I had no idea what was in my kitchen to eat, so that should all change from now on, right?

In February (and there's still one day left!), I'm maintaining that $25 per bi-weekly paycheck reduction - which turns out to be $50 less in the shorter month. So far? I'm $32.44 under budget!

(I did take goodies to our monthly KnitIn group last weekend, and I did not include the price of that in my grocery budget - it was entertainment - but that was $17, so if you want to include it, I'm no longer ahead...you decide?)

Trying to keep myself honest here. So will YOU itemize your pantry? If you do, let me know, okay?

Interesting Spots Online

* Fake Plastic Fish
I poked around and found this list of storage tips to keep produce fresh - I'm printing it out, slipping it into a *yuck* plastic sleeve and affixing it to my fridge for quick reference!

* Green Phone Booth

* The Conscious Shopper

* Mindful Momma

All very informative, with some valuable ideas - if you're interested in things like green living, eating and shopping locally, and reducing your environmental footprint.
;)

More CSA?

Back in the summer, I popped the excess of green peppers into the freezer with just such an evening in mind...cold, and needing comfort food:

So I mixed up some dry stuffing mix with water and some Smart Balance Light margarine, and gerry-rigged a couple of pans to fit - I should have started with a smaller one, but I didn't so had to help bolster the littler peppers by setting a dish into a dish! Then it was an easy maneuver to slip the stuffing into the peppers, add a touch of water to keep it all from drying out in the oven (the pans are sprayed with cooking spray, too) and a 400 oven for about 1 hour was all it took.

While that cooked, I opened a can of diced tomatoes and heated them, adding in some McCormicks Spicy seasoning - I like things with a bit of a bite. Once the tomatoes were bubbling, I added a tablespoon of flour to help thicken them into a nice sauce and allowed them to cook for a bit, breaking up any lumps that formed.

Everything comes together with the pepper and stuffing opened out onto a plate, and a spoonful or so of the tomatoes on top. A little fresh cracked black pepper and here's your comfort food!

My mom used to make these, so the recipe is vegetarian. I can remember that this, along with her macaroni and cheese were often the meals we ate at the end of the month when my Dad's paycheck just didn't make it all the way through...

Thanks Mom. I love these recipes so much and I know you always felt you weren't giving us the best you could, that these meals weren't what you wanted to provide us with.

But they were just exactly right!

*oh...btw? I put this into the Weight Watchers Recipe Builder to discover that even with the sauce, a medium pepper stuffed this way is a whopping 4 points! So while I had the oven going, I quickly made up my easy, yummy, Maple Baked Apple: One apple, cored; spray a small baking dish with cooking spray, set the apple inside (slice of a piece on the bottom to hold it upright if you need to). Take a Vermont Maple Sugar candy (or 1 Tablespoon of Annie's Vermont Lite Maple Syrup) and pour into the center of the apple, and dust with your favorite apple spices - I use cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. You can bake that about 30 minutes at the same temperature as the peppers.

Let's see...that's two veggies and a fruit. and it's another 2 points for the apple - so a 6 point meal.

I do feel so virtuous!
*wink*

In a Snowstorm? It's Time for Soup

Thursday night, in advance of the storm, I had a yen to make soup over the weekend. I was stunned when I got to the store and discovered that the shelves were mostly bare...but you know what? No one had seen this recipe yet, I guess, because I was able to pick up what I didn't have in the larder to make Mushroom Barley Soup with Cannelini Beans and Cabbage!

I had most everything but I needed mushrooms and cabbage:

I'm not the best food photographer, but this mixture of red onions (which is what I had), garlic, mushrooms, thyme, and red wine (I didn't have sherry) looked so yummy as it cooked away, I ran for the camera.

That was probably the toughest part of making this soup, chopping the various ingredients. Simplicity was tossing in cannelini beans and shredded cabbage - I bought red, which the Fat Free Vegan used in her version, because there wasn't any other in the store. The bag of pre-shredded was 2 ounces less than the recipe called for, but it was fine that way, after all...

Doesn't that just look yummy? Other things I did? Well, I didn't have the smoked paprika - so I used 1 Teaspoon of regular paprika. And then I pulled out the Cayenne Pepper as FFV suggests. "A pinch" became probably close to 1/3 teaspoon (I shook it in...I like spicy).

I think I'll invest in a bottle of sherry and the smoked paprika. I'd love to make this once and see if I like my version better or hers! I LOVED mine!

And I love that FFV calculates the nutrition content, including the point values for Weight Watchers - a serving of this was 2.6 points! I rounded out the meal with this:

Two teaspoons of olive oil with McCormicks Spicy Blend for seasoning, and a whole grain roll from the grocery's bakery. Total points? 6.

Oh, yes, that roll? Well when I got to the bakery aisle? There was practically no bread of any sort to be found. Apparently folks don't love whole grain rolls as there were just two bags of these? That suited me just fine...
*wink*

Stay warm if you're caught up in this monster storm...and batten down the hatches, as I hear there's another on schedule to hit the mid-Atlantic this Tuesday! Hmm...I'm going to start planning what I'll make for comfort food then!

Working on My Goals...

May I just say how glad I am this first month of the year is practically over? It's my roughest month (at work and client's) and I hope to do a better job posting here for the rest of the year.

I mentioned early on that I wanted to stick to menu planning and shopping lists, didn't I? I did just great the first 3 weeks of the month, and then stress hit the fan! This week? I went to the grocery store three times in three days, no list, and debit card in hand. I still haven't totaled the damage, but at least the last time I only barely strayed from the mini-list in my head. We were being warned of high snowfall (Yup, at least 10 inches so far today) and I knew I was in need of milk and yogurt. So that trip was the most sane of the bunch.

But yesterday, I discovered this post over on Cheap Healthy Good, and decided it was time to rededicate myself to my lofty ideals...!

It's the perfect day for staying in and doing putzy-ing type projects: So early on, after snow shoveling (the first time), I sat down and pulled out a leftover 3-ring binder from grad-school days, and proceeded to insert the various articles and recipes I've been accumulating.

(yes, there's a special section for Weight Watcher-friendly recipes)

Once that was done, I stumbled into the kitchen: oh my, can you ever tell that the past two weeks have been insane in this room! I need a couple of weeks of snow to get everything back in shape, I think! *wink*

Still, I scrounged in the cabinets. I found three boxes of couscous - one that says it needs to be used now! - and pulled out my lovely slow cooker. There's been a bag of frozen boneless chicken breasts in the freezer for too long, and I got that out, too, and defrosted them. I tossed them into the cooker with two bullion cubes (chicken), 1 cup of water, a splash of merlot (leftover for a bit, but it's fine for cooking), a tablespoon of dried rosemary, 5 cloves of garlic, minced, and a small onion, also minced. I have the pot set on high for 4 hours, but since I'm going to be here, I'll watch it. I might not need that much, or I might need more...either way, it's all good.

In the interim, I've piled stuff into the dishwasher (yes, there's just too much for me to stand at the sink today and wash, I will make sure it's fully loaded, I promise).

Tonight, I'm going to look at the stuff in the cabinets and freezer a bit closer. I'll be making up menus to match what I've got (and believe me, there's a lot here!). And then filling in my list with what I might not have (broccoli?) and starting out again. I'll probably also get brave and total up my grocery spending for the month. February will take a hit from any amounts I went over my budget in January, I promise.

And I can celebrate. My weight is down 23 pounds on Weight Watchers. I'm happy to be doing well, hoping that it continues. Hmm..maybe I should go shovel a bit more? It's 1 activity point for every 30 minutes!
Stay Warm!

I'm a Bad Blogger...

And I can't spend a lot of time here today (there's a CAT Show this weekend, so Nana Sadie Rose is busy!), but I did want to touch base and let you know I'm still alive and still planning on doing a decent job over here with regard to making sane and sensible choices for money management and the environment, as well as good stuff to eat to help lose weight (on my/your body and in my/your pocketbook!) while staying mostly local in your shopping choices...Wow! That's a tall order!

Well, I can say that so far I'm doing pretty well with the "cash in the envelope" for groceries, except that I'm not using cash. I'm using my debit card, and keeping the receipts and a running total with the envelope...because I can't seem to get by my bank often enough for cash. So far, I've cut my grocery spending - and the actual time in the store - but I haven't had time to do the math to see how much I've cut compared to last year.

So since this has to be a short post, and for your reading pleasure, and because I'm a big, big proponent of "small banking/credit unions" I wanted to be sure you saw this: The Red Tape Chronicles is one of my favorite stops in the blogasphere, and I am a faithful viewer of Keith Olbermann and also of Arianna Huffington. Lately, Huffington has been encouraging us to "vote with our feet" and Move Your Money.

A few years ago, I moved from a very large bank to a credit union. I did this because it was the only place my office had direct deposit, but I was also ticked and tired of being jerked around by the BIG BANK. (This was before the recent crisis in banking, btw). Then this fall, I changed Nana Sadie Rose's accounts to a regional bank that I'd worked with for my job because they offered me Merchant Services that were more competitive (and LOCAL!) than what I'd had for the first five years of my business. I've been nothing but content with the results. There's a lot to be said for calling up the person I've signed up with and knowing they know my name, and ask how my most recent show has gone...

Credit unions are paying somewhat higher interest on deposit accounts, local or regional banks are less likely to have taken TARP money, and generally have higher reserves (and more conservative requirements for lending money) making them a safer alternative to the BIG BANK...

Still I won't argue: it does take time to make the changes. But no one should "hang on" to a big bank (or any bank!) because it's time consuming to change. It makes a lot more sense to vote with your feet, if you're sick of the treatment you're getting, or you don't like the fees.

Often? Smaller is better. And I'm of the mindset, that ALWAYS, LOCAL IS BETTER!
See you soon!

Are You Ready?

It's 2010! A NEW Decade!!

I know I'm hoping it will be better and happier and healthier than the last one!

So what are your plans? I've got a few:

1. I will shop with a list, plan menus, use coupons, and assign the food budget to a cash envelope to try to get my expenses in that category under control. It's bothered me enormously that I rarely plan such things and am often at the store, debit card in hand. No more! I know it's one area that, once controlled will help me not just save money, but be smarter in my food choices, waste less food, and help my overall health, too.

2. Every year I try to reduce the debt a bit more and save a bit more and this year's no different. I've got pretty detailed plans that I won't share here, but it's important to me to really focus on this one this year, more than ever before. As a woman of a certain age, thinking about the retirement account is critical!

3. I do hope to continue working on eating more locally (tho' as I've said before, I won't do another year with the CSA because it's just not a smart choice for me). But we have a great Farmer's Market, several farm stands and shops, and local bakeries. I know where I'll be doing as much of my shopping as possible.

4. I've detailed my knitting plans over on Knitnana, but I'll state here that I'm thinking increasingly of spending some time with my scrap bags and turning out a quilt or two. The Pottery Barn catalog came today and, as usual, I'm perusing with an eye to what I can do that's similar, but far, far less costly! The whole darn catalog is filled with eye candy galore, but THIS photo really spoke to me:

Love the quilt, the colors, the light and bright of it all...I think I can pretty easily mimic this. It would be wonderful to do a simpler machine-made quilt similar to this one. And I can certainly do it without much of any expense!

In case you're wondering, yes, I'm still thinking in terms of my "make-do" philosophy, voluntary simplicity. Every year, I add a few new habits, and usually surprise myself from my original plans set out on the first day of the year.

Which is why you won't actually find resolutions on my blogs. Plans are more fluid, and I can allow them to morph and grow in the directions they seem to want to go in.

How about you?

Vegetable Stew - More From the CSA!

Ok, not really...the shares stopped the first of the month, but I'm still using up what I had in the freezer...tonight I felt like lots of veggies, and since I can't think of a better way to do that than soup, that's what I tried to do.

But probably you have figured out that what I start doing seldom finishes that way? :)

I ended up tossing in everything but the kitchen sink for a thick Italian-style stew with not a speck of meat. Unless you count the teensy bit of anchovies in Worchestershire Sauce? If you do? Leave it out.

The whole thing is a miniscule 3 points per serving on Weight Watchers (and that's only if it serves 8. I'm thinking that will be huge servings!

I used:
4 cups of vegetable stock (I bought prepared, but you can obviously make your own)
2 cans of stewed tomatoes with Italian flavoring
1 can of dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups of whole wheat rotini pasta (the corkscrews!)
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms
about 2 cups of frozen eggplant (CSA)
about 2 cups of frozen carrots (CSA)
about 1.5 cups of frozen green beans (CSA)
4 cloves of garlic (CSA)
3/4 of a package of frozen green, yellow, and red peppers and onions
about 1 cup of diced celery
2 Tbls of Worchestershire Sauce (to taste, I shake it in, without measuring, and you can, as stated, leave it out, but then you'll need to adjust your seasonings)
Salt and pepper (fresh ground) to taste
1 Tbls Oregano, dried
(feel free to add any seasonings you like - I even tossed in some garlic & herb Mrs. Dash!)

All of this can either be tossed in the slow cooker to cook all day, or, as I did, toss it in the stock pot and cook it on top of the stove for a couple of hours, or until you think it's done.

I will enjoy this tonight with whole grain bread and my allowed 2 tsp. of olive oil seasoned with Italian dipping herbs...(Have I mentioned how much I love Weight Watchers for requiring healthy oils every day?)

Here's a photo of the stew:

Intriguing Reading...

I recently read a thread on Ravelry's Simple Living group that mentioned a book I'd missed along the way (hard to imagine, that a simple living tract would get by me, but they do! *wink*)

I found it at the library and read it over a few evenings...savoring her thinking as I went. It's called Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping by Judith Levine.

The thought of not shopping at all for an entire year (other than food and necessities) strikes terror in my mind - I am a retailer, after all. But the concept of being very aware of my purchases, being certain that what I buy is useful, beautiful, and fills a specific need? That I can buy...and determine not to buy unnecessary, un-useful STUFF for the sake of buying? Yes.

So just for the record, since I'm determined to eradicate most of my debt and also to make "catch-up" funding of my retirement account a priority, getting clear about what's an important purchase and what's not is pretty critical. I've already decided that I'm notorious in the grocery aisle. So I'm instituting a plan to take cash out of my paycheck each payday and put it in an envelope and when the money is gone, I eat what I've got, or perhaps go hungry (but don't bet on that, there's food in the larder!) - and shopping with a list and doing some menu planning. The idea, of course, is to buy what's needed and not what isn't. To reduce waste (yes, I do waste food, and it makes me very unhappy)...

(oh, and just for the record, there will be no participation in the CSA this year, because it just was too much food - it's a good deal for large families, or even for those with a chest freezer, or canner, but it's not a good place for my money. It taught me much, and for that I'm grateful...not the least of which is that I LOVE Swiss Chard!! *wink*)

Hmm...you might see more about all this in upcoming posts.

Fortunately, I'm Not Weird About a Touch of Over-baked-ness!

I've been pretty darn good these couple of months on Weight Watchers, but I've had a craving for pizza and was determined to find a way to enjoy it. Ok...that's a bit dark across the top, but it was still really good.

The details? Easy. One of those wonderful Boboli Whole Wheat Pizza shells. Then I made my own tomato base with a can of paste, and added about 1/4 cup of water to thin it just a bit (actually? I used the water I'd used to rinse out my spaghetti sauce jar and had frozen to add to something - stew base, pizza sauce or another spaghetti sauce who cares? It's not wasting anything I'm interested in). I finished up the Morningstar Farms recipe crumbles from the bag I used to make my spaghetti sauce some weeks ago. Added in 2 cloves of garlic minced and a very small red onion, minced very fine (both from the CSA share). I had bits of Stoplight Peppers (red, yellow, and green) so that together, chopped finely, they totalled about 1 cup. I didn't have any fresh mushrooms, but instead added in a can of stems and pieces. The sauce got a goodly dash of dried oregano, too. On top, I used the reduced fat mozzarella cheese sticks - 3 of them - and I peeled them to cover the entire top. Next time, I'll spray that with olive oil cooking spray to see if it will melt a bit better, and perhaps not brown so quickly.

The Boboli says to bake at 450 for 8-10 minutes and time got away from me. Still it was really good, and I ate two pieces, which came in at 8 points according to Weight Watcher's Recipe Builder. I'm not one who can eat just one slice of pizza, so I have always loaded mine with tons of veggies over everything else, just to keep the healthiness in it...If I left off the recipe crumbles (which it would have been just as good without) the count would come in around 7 points per 2 slice serving.

I hope that photo doesn't turn you off. I was disappointed with myself, but I guess it shows that I really really am an amateur when it comes to this cooking stuff!
;)

It Snowed Today!

It wasn't a lot, but it came down steadily after pouring rain overnight and this morning in the early hours. Changed over about 8 a.m...and continued into the afternoon. My plans to go south were dashed, as it was worse there than here. And tonight? The temperatures are to drop into the low 20s! That's winter in these parts...

I knew I had to use up some of the winter veggies from the CSA share, and will be continuing to show you some of that as the days go by here at Nana Sadie's Place. I'm happy to report on another Weight Watchers Etools recipe here:

I had everything called for, so didn't have to shop. It's called Barley and Roasted Vegetable Pilaf and is a whopping 4 points for a full cup of turnips, butternut squash (yes, I have 3 more...and I put a full quart bag in the freezer with the balance of the one I cut up for this recipe!), red onion (which doesn't look all that red, does it?). Barley of course. And cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and cumin. I punched mine up more than the recipe calls for, as it was bland to my taste, but I love spicey, Moroccan (and Indian) food. I also halved the recipe. It says it'll keep for 3 days in the fridge, but making 6 servings, there's no way I can finish all that in 3 days - and the freezer is pretty much full!

But I can vouch for this one - it was a wonderful addition to the last of my turkey breast from last Sunday night.

Buy Nothing Day - November 27

Buy Nothing Day 2009
I know it's amazing to hear someone involved in retail saying that she's honoring this day. I have good reason, as I do believe that Black Friday sales and all the craziness of pushing and shoving and buying the latest thing (that will be forgotten with 2 weeks of receipt on Christmas morning) is not good for any of us.

I prefer to support handmade retail. I am all in favor of Handmade Holidays. I buy handmade (or make my own) gifts to give as much as humanly possible - and for those who say, "please do not make me a scarf or hat or anything handmade, I won't wear it and really don't want it," I try to find something very useful that is important to them and gift that.

But I think the most important thing is to set and follow a budget, to not go overboard on purchases. The first responsibility we have is to our own fiscal health. Loving the people you gift to, means that you love yourself first and don't put yourself in financial jeopardy.

That's my main reason for honoring Buy Nothing Day. The other? I can't stand crowds (well, except for craft and cat show crowds, that is...).
:)
Now. With all that said, what did I do today? Well...I'm still all about the Local Food stuff, even if the summer event is over:

I peeled, chopped and roasted one of the CSA butternut squashes and several small onions in reduced sodium chicken broth...

Then pureed it all. Do you see how full that Cuisinart bowl is? Well, there's a reason they say "in small batches" in most recipes - it's because a bowl filled that full, overflows...ask me how I know?
*wink*
I admit I am an amateur chef! So without further ado, here is the finished product:

it's Weight Watchers Curried Butternut Squash Soup (3 points per 3/4 cup serving, but when I input it to E-tools? I got 3.5 points for 1 cup...which is good, because I thought 3/4 cup was way too little). It's an excellent recipe, but because it comes from E-tools, I'll have to forego giving you the complete recipe.

(but there are some good Butternut Squash Soup recipes online...just Google!)

I finished off my meal with cooked spinach, and then a Fiber One Apple Cinnamon muffin and applesauce. More than enough food, and very few points - most everything is also a "Filling Food" on the WW plan.

Today was also all about finishing up orders for holiday gifts, and now I can concentrate on filling my Etsy store for those little "somethings" that might make the perfect Handmade Holidays gift for your special person...

Still Producing - I'm Thankful for CSA

Unbelieveably, at least to me, the CSA shares continue. This week was a variety, turnips which will find homes elsewhere, as I am NOT a fan, and garlic, sweet potatoes (yummy!), the last of the salad greens, and:
Kale! I was able to fill 2 1-lb freezer tubs with this...The house smells wonderful, but I suspect I might not think that in the morning... *wink*

And butternuts
which will no doubt become soup, tho' I may just cube and freeze it at this point...if I can squeeze much more into my apartment's refrigerator freezer that is!

And then there's this, which to me is incredibly obscene-looking and has the most earthy smell (because, after all, that's dirt hanging on it!)

Ok. What on earth do I do with a celeriac? (I found a soup recipe, but I can't quite imagine what it will taste like...am I going to regret making this?)

Advice is welcome.
And Happy Thanksgiving!

Veggie Spaghetti

Last night, I was rifling thru the fridge and cabinets to put something together for dinner after a long, long day in the sewing room.

I was totally starving - I tend to eat a very late breakfast on the weekends, and then just a snack around 3 - you know, the 2 Tbls. of hummus and pita toasts, kind of snack (it's small, but tasty, and healthy!

I realized I'd opened a jar of Barilla spaghetti sauce earlier in the week to take out a couple of spoonsful to top a veggie chicken patty, and remembered that I'd promised to make spaghetti before the end of the week. Um...here we are, the end of the week!

So out came the sauce, a package of MorningStar Farms Recipe Crumbles, some mixed peppers and onions (frozen), a small can of mushrooms (drained), three cloves of garlic, olive oil, and olive oil cooking spray. I only used 2/3 of the bag of crumbles, probably a cup of the peppers and onions. About 2 Tbls. of oil.

I tend to forget to toss in the chopped garlic till I'm almost ready to add in the sauce - everything else is sauteed together, and the garlic can burn, so I guess I'm just too leery of throwing it in the pan too soon. That usually means it's still pretty crunchy when I eat the first meal of this sauce. Fortunately, I like garlic anyway I can get it, so it's okay if it's not fully cooked (I am not a vampire, I guess, huh?). The recipe builder on the WW site says the recipe is 8 points for 1 cup of pasta and 1 cup of sauce. I also added about a Tbls of Parmesan cheese for 1 point.

Oh, I use whole wheat pasta, too. Years ago, after my heart attack, I switched completely to brown rice and whole wheat pasta products. It didn't take too long to adjust, and I no longer notice a difference. When I'm out? I rarely order the white stuff, as I don't particularly care for it. I'll even eat Chinese with no rice rather than eating the white!

I'm sure there are some of you who think "Ewwww! Soy "burger?"

Yup. I was a pesca-vegetarian for many years. While I now eat beef and chicken, I rarely eat hamburger anymore. Again, I do think the taste is acquired, and I'm glad it's one I have!

I forgot to take a photo of the completed meal last night, so had to wait to post this till I had dinner tonight! The leftovers are great, btw...

Hi! Remember Me?

Oddly enough, I'm still cooking and trying to eat properly on Weight Watchers, but I am not remembering to post much over here! I'm sorry to those few of you who stop by once in awhile...

Last week in the CSA I got several sweet potatoes (in varying sizes), so I peeled them all, coated the bottom of a glass casserole with olive oil spray, then drizzled a tablespoon of real olive oil, two tablespoons of Maple Grove reduced sugar maple syrup and a scant 1/8th cup of water and covered it with aluminum foil (which I also sprayed with oil). Then slid the whole thing into a 400 degree oven for an hour.

I'm usually one who thinks that sweet potatoes need nothing added to be their tasty best: normally I just encase them in foil and bake the dickens out of them. But I've been delighted to find this Maple Grove syrup - it's real Vermont Syrup!! - and have been doing little experiments to check it out. And this was good!

Not so local, but a nice addition to my meal was this bunch of asparagus, just steamed and lightly buttered:

Adding them to a Gorton's Grilled Salmon filet (100 calories, 2 points, and the easiest way to fix good salmon I know) made for a really fine dinner...

I'm toying with some new directions for this blog in the coming year, so stay with me, okay?
(((hugs)))

It's Been Awhile!

Since the One Local Summer event is past, I am finding myself less motivated to post here, and that's too bad. I enjoyed it this summer, so will try to do better in the future...

I got my CSA share this week (yes, it runs to the first of December!) and this was in it...

I just had to share. (That's a regular teaspoon for scale!)

I think I'll shred this and include it in some carrot bran muffins. Otherwise, I suspect it will just be too tough to enjoy otherwise.
(((hugs)))

A Little Lite Sunday Reading

Or perhaps joining Weight Watchers has created a renewed compulsion?

At any rate, I put together a good vegetable beef noodle soup today in my slow cooker. Some of the veggies were from my CSA share - cabbage, onions, garlic, hot peppers - ok, next time only ONE jalapeno! The beef was local, too. The carrots, celery, canned tomatoes, egg noodles, and seasonings obviously weren't local.

The slow cooker is a Cuisinart. I absolutely adore it - today was it's trial by fire. After having 3 of the new Rivals in various configurations, and being completely dismayed at the lack of quality or eveness of cooking, I finally said "enough!" and bought this one. No complaints. It's a workhorse.
:)
Now I'm off to knit a bit and peruse this lovely magazine.

Moving Into Fall

If you read my knitting blog, Knitnana, they you know I've started Weight Watcher's in an attempt to finally shed the ($%^&#%#$%) pounds I have carried around for 30 years, wearing down my spinal column.

I'm determined that this time, it will go away, because the thought of spinal surgery terrifies me (and I've already done heart surgery, so that's saying a lot).

I'm not much of a cook - perhaps I should rephrase that - I like to cook, I rarely have time, what I cook is usually pretty good (no complaints, but then, it's just me!). I go for ease in preparation, I tend to cook in bulk, and I also tend to stick pretty much within a safe range of easy stuff. My kitchen isn't the best for cooking. I miss my apartment complex kitchen which had a large window in it (this one has no exterior window, and the interior lighting is less than acceptable) and there's almost no counter space.

That said, sometimes I do whip something up. Tonight was one of those nights:

Spicy Sweet & Sour Chicken and Rice. Easy. I chopped up about 1/8 of a green pepper, a small red pepper (hot), a small onion, a clove of garlic, and then I grated fresh ginger (probably 2 Tbs.) and sauteed that in a small frying pan sprayed with PAM. Eventually, I added about 4 Tbs of Kikkoman Sweet & Sour cooking sauce and 1/4 cup water and then added chopped, cooked chicken. Heat it through and pour it over a cup of brown rice. That's it!

(I'll cook up brown rice on one evening and use it over several days - it's easier than coming home and cooking one serving)

Oh. On Weight Watchers? I added this to the recipe database and it came back with 6 points. Not bad for a dinner meal.
Enjoy!

Local (sorta) Food - Thrifty 1930s Cuisine

Last week, when I decided that potato leek soup would be on the menu (and it's still there, but hasn't gotten made yet), I picked up a 5 pound bag of Yukon Gold potatoes. They aren't local, but I haven't seen local potatoes anywhere I shop, which makes me sad.

I picked up my CSA share tonight, and in addition to having lots of greens again, there were a few tomatoes, and another small "mess" of green beans. As I stood at the kitchen counter, marveling at how pretty they were this week, my eyes landed on the bag of potatoes and an instant memory of my vegetarian mom and her sisters came to mind. They were Depression Era gals, the entire family was vegetarian because their father believed it was the only way to be. Not a one of them had meat until they were married (and then some of them still didn't), but in the Depression, that was probably one reason this family successfully survived.

I remembered a simple combination of foods that was always a part of our summer dinners when as a child in the 50's and 60's, my family visited those sisters at the Lake Champlain, Vermont, 1950s-style "camp" one of them owned: corn on the cob, tomatoes, and this:

green beans and potatoes, cooked together. I seem to remember that the sisters all cooked it with either whole milk or cream.

I don't.
But the memory is still strong. Boy this tasted good. And I thoroughly enjoyed my trip down memory lane...

Local Food, Local Color!

I dropped by the Roanoke City Market today, as I was a bit dissappointed in my CSA share - I was hoping for winter squash, and apparently they've had a less than stellar year with that.

While I was there, I stopped in first to my favorite bakery, On the Rise:

and was able to get my very favorite bread, Rosemary Sourdough! They were kind enough to slice it for me, too...

I stopped by a few of the local vendors (and you can visit that on my knitting blog if you'd like visit later tonight, it will be up, soon).

And I brought back all this:

(the bread is in the back in a plastic bag...)

I've already put the mustard greens in the freezer. The October beans are on the stove for tonight's dinner - and smell absolutely wonderful! I added parsley and basil from this weeks CSA share, plus a little onion and dried rosemary to season them. I'll have the beans with sliced tomatoes and some of the bread, and a bit of greens.

Then I went ahead and froze the kale and mixed mesclun weeds from the CSA share. There was a huge bag of the weeds, and no way I could eat them all raw...but I'm big on greens because of the heavy concentration of calcium in them. I don't do milk very often and I don't seem to be able to handle calcium pills very well. Some years ago I discovered Susun Weed's book on menopause (NAYY) and learned that weeds and greens can provide so much of the calcium that my body doesn't want to absorb these days, and they work better with my digestive tract! Besides, I think, for all that calcium pills aren't that expensive, the greens are much cheaper...and tasty to boot. Adding in a bit of garlic and red wine vinegar helps me absorb the calcium, too. I'm all about keeping things as simple as I can.

So there's your "lesson" for the day - a bit of Local Food, a bit of herbal folk wisdom, and a touch of simple living health advice!

;)