I’ve been a dunce about the paper cup. While others have been carrying their reusable cups into coffee shops the past few years, I rarely have. The perceived paper cups’ biodegradability snookered some of us into thinking it was so much better than Styrofoam, and it’s paper and that’s organic, so what’s the problem?
Here are a few things we all should know:
Recycled material makes up only a small percentage of a paper cup, mostly it’s wood chips. Trees, many trees, are needed.
A lot of electricity and water, and then chemicals in the form of plastic are necessary to make a paper cup, many times more than what is required to make a Styrofoam cup. We caught on to those a long time ago and are aware that they take centuries to biodegrade. We now need to be just as savvy with the paper cup, which is a glutton at the production end.
We’re now ‘consuming’ several billion paper cups in the U.S. each year (Starbucks alone accounts for over 2.3 billion), landfills are overwhelmed with this bulk, and we now know that it isn’t simply paper that’s decomposing. It’s not such a clean process.
During the process of biodegrading methane is created, a substance far more environmentally damaging than carbon dioxide.
I urge you to check out this website, Sustainability is Sexywhich has the complete scoop, well organized and succinct information about the paper cup.
Our comfort with having our hot beverages delivered in a nice paper cup is analogous to the disposable chopsticks issue in China. NPR featured an interesting piece a few months ago calledBring Your Own Chopsticks.Read the rest of this entry »
Birthdays, Christmas, Easter, practically any celebration can be a challenge if you are trying to live sustainably, especially when kids are involved. It is hard enough not to fall prey to consumerism throughout the year but holidays can be even more difficult. Recently, Krista and Chris put on a birthday party for Lily. Here are some of the choices they made to create an event that was not only fun for everyone but also fit with their green ideals.
Buy flowers from the Farmers Market from vendors that don’t use pesticides. We are careful to buy organic foods whenever possible but sometimes forget that the floriculture industry is known for heavy use of pesticides that are poisoning workers as well as the environment.
A craft table is always a hit and a great way to re-use ribbons and all kinds of packaging materials. Let everyone make their own party hat, or in this case, crown.
A basket of dress-ups and one of musical instruments are fun for all ages. Thrift shops are a great source for dress-ups, as are our own closets. Musical instruments will often encourage some of the parents to get involved (dress-ups may too, especially hats).
Bubbles are very environmentally-friendly, especially if you make your own bubble-stuff. Read the rest of this entry »
Sunday night is fish night at our house, usually salmon from Loki Fish. We buy a piece at the Farmers Market, take it home and cook it right away.
This is a family owned and run business. Take a look at owner Pete Knutson’s profile on the PCC website; he’s an experienced fisherman/environmentalist and more. While father Pete and brother Jonah are out fishing, Dylan handles the retail side at local markets. As with Billy’s, Whistling Train, Stoney Plains, Sea Breeze, Alm Hill and other vendors, the weekly exchange with our fishermen and women brings us to connection with the uniqueness of our region and its indigenous whole food.
All of Loki’s fish comes from Puget Sound or Alaska, they deal with no processors, no middlemen whatsoever, but sell directly to consumers at Seattle Markets. This video, Jonah’s Boat, shows how twenty-six year old Jonah is experiencing the fishing season on his own boat, following in his father’s footsteps at least in this regard. The brief video provides a glimpse of the people connected with putting fresh fish on our tables, in this case by fishermen who are environmentally and sustainably conscientious. We see that a beautiful setting is some compensation, but fishing for a living has its ups and downs. Read the rest of this entry »
The succotash I grew up with — frozen lima beans and corn — hardly did justice to the ancient origins of this combination. Originally, it was a Native American dish using two of the oldest and most important foods in our culture, corn and beans. Succotash doesn’t seem to be well known in the Pacific Northwest but is chock-full of vegetables available now in our local markets and will make a great addition to your summer repertoire.
Sweet corn is best eaten on the day it’s picked. Alice Waters reminds us that seeing a worm at the tip is a good indication that no pesticides have been used and that, of course, is a good thing. Corn on the cob is one of the simplest ways to eat it, but I love corn cut off the cob. Wrap up a packet of cut corn dotted with butter in foil, and place on the grill with your meat or fish — couldn’t be easier.
There are several methods for cutting corn off the cob and lots of kitchen gadgets to make it easier. It seems the main issue is containing the kernels once they are cut. For years, I’ve been laying the corn on it’s side and cutting it that way. I could have sworn Charlie taught me that method.
When I asked him to help me me with these photos, I was informed he has a completely different method. At least he humored me by demonstrating the “old” method, which I still believe is a good one. The new and improved way is to first cut off the stem from the bottom (the stem might interfere with making a straight cut down the side) and then cut the ear in half.
This will give you a flat edge to set the ear on vertically. A shorter piece is easier to control too. Whichever method you prefer, to make this succotash, you need corn from two ears.
There are lots of ingredients but you can buy practically everything fresh from local vendors - the only essentials are corn & beans. Read the rest of this entry »
Locomotion in its various forms, walking, kayaking, biking, skiing, hiking, swimming, are activities I’ve always loved and feel eager about including in my life. Biking through city traffic? Not so much.
But I wanted to do something, even a small thing, in regard to fossil fuel consumption. My husband takes this seriously and commutes through the city to work nearly every day. That I can’t match, partly because my work hasn’t accommodated it, and, truthfully, because I’m not prepared to ride the steep hills through downtown traffic, at least not yet.
I can, however, ride my bike to and from errands in my own neck of the woods. I’ve been doing that and feel smug as can be whenever I do. For those who’ve been biking around the neighborhood for ages, you’re way ahead of me and you’ve been an inspiration. Friend Judy, for example. Sports and the outdoors have always been a part of my life, but inexplicably I’m just getting on track with the bike-commuting thing, experiencing the satisfaction of saving a little fuel, a few bucks and getting a mini-workout on the way.
Three favorite grocery stores within 3.5 miles of my house is a pretty easy gig. There’s a long, upward grade on the way. My bags are empty so that’s ideal. On the way back it’s one big downhill glide. The surprise is that the round trip takes maybe half an hour, about fifteen minutes longer than the same shopping trip by car. I figure if I can hop on my bike instead of behind the wheel just once a week let’s say, save the 7 miles of gas times 52 weeks, theoretically speaking I’ll have saved 364 miles in a year. No comparison with the 200 miles Bob rides each month, but it’s a start. Short bike commutes.
So I’m thinking about sustainable actions, one step, one pedal at a time that collectively speaking add up to significant change. Small individual actions times thousands of others doing the same, like a lot more of us turning on our own internal combustion engines for the globe, the pocketbook, the bod. (Obviously, this is a message for us slackers who’ve taken a little time to jump on the short bike commute bandwagon - plenty of people caught on a while ago.)
Coincidentally NPR did a piece today on the electric bike and what a godsend it is for commuters who want to ride, but live in cities with formidable hillscapes like Seattle and San Francisco. Read the rest of this entry »
I’d love to put in some winter starts but my problem is finding an empty spot in my garden. I came across this great video from Kitchen Gardeners International showing a group of school children in Africa making what is basically a raised bed. Looks like a great design with plenty of space.
Surely among the top ten slow foods, tomato sauce. The reward for preserving them in late summer will be the essence of luscious vine-ripened garden tomatoes mid-winter in a soup or marinara sauce, with an onion and sausage frittata or mushroom polenta. I’m a fool for tomatoes and should make myself a tomato cape, something to wear everywhere to signify my devotion. It can get ridiculous and I just pushed the bar a little far the other day. Home-cookin’ tomato-preservin’ smarty-pants.
Since our own backyard tomatoes are behind schedule I thought it would be a good idea to buy ’seconds’ from Billy and make a batch of sauce now and then again later this month when ours will finally, I hope, come on like gangbusters. (Actually, there’s a big ‘if’ in that hope.) Bob tracked down Billy at the Sunday Market and purchased a big box of seconds, 22# @ $2.25 per pound. Total $49.50. When I heard that I knew this handmade sauce would also cost an arm and a leg. A pot full of tomatoes may look like a huge amount, but if you’re making sauce they reduce in quantity. A lot.
We ended up with barely four quarts. Yeah, you’re way ahead of me I know, that’s about $12.50 per quart. That’s a highfalutin’ tomato sauce. It took all afternoon – the Slow Food thing, no problem. I’m a happy camper when something’s brewing in the kitchen.
Lesson learned. From now on I use my own from the backyard, or pull off a midnight tomato caper somewhere. I’m chagrined about the cost, but the good news is that the sauce is amazing. Rich and tomatoey, it will be delectable mid-winter. If you can somehow find tomatoes for a song, or don’t mind the pricey version, you might want to make and preserve sauce of your own.
Monday morning I set out early to photograph the Seattle Tilth garden and the Good Shepherd P-Patch . The weather was changing as I was meandering around. By the time I reached this whirligig, the wind was blowing pretty hard. It’s legs started flying every-which-way and it was spinning around wildly. The weird thing was, no matter where I stood, it ended up pointing directly at me. Seriously.
I know it was probably just the direction of the wind and call me crazy but I took this as a sign. The truth is I’ve been feeling a lot like a roadrunner — I definitely need to take a deep breath, slow down and enjoy the rest of the summer. It’s not like I’ve been over-exercising or anything but sometime during the summer, I jumped onto what feels like those moving walkways they have in airports, speeding me to my next location.
According to Five Elements Acupuncture this is the season known as Late Summer. Five Elements acupuncturists always advocate eating with the season and this is the easiest time of the year to achieve that. Enjoying fresh food takes very little effort now with the Farmers Markets overflowing with loads of recently harvested produce. If you have your own garden or p-patch, chances are you have plenty to choose from.
The other part of nourishing yourself is taking time to appreciate and having gratitude for all you have. Slowing down gives you (and your body) a chance to assimilate and enjoy this unique time of year.
I started walking a little more slowly, trying to look closely and take in all of the beauty the garden had to offer. Okay, I’ll admit that I can’t go past a poppy without close examination and taking a few photos, even when I’m in a hurry. But this time the feeling stayed with me.
Dark green veggies are in the wings awaiting winter performances. I feel like I should whisper it,winter. We don’t want to think about it mid-August, but it’s time to get hardy greens going, past time for some.
A soothsayer would come in handy, someone to proclaim the most auspicious day for getting the little starts into the ground. It gets tricky. Plant too soon and if it’s a warm fall plants mature and flower before winter even arrives; plant too late and unexpected early cold can harm immature plants. Late July through August is usually about right, but as with all gardening the intrusion of unfavorable weather is possible. For example, we lost a bunch of newly transplanted starts during the recent heat wave, but still have plenty for ourselves and a few friends. Thanks Bob.
He started our plants from seed in late July - broccoli, chard, kale, Brussels sprouts and winter lettuce - then replanted them in fresh soil and a larger container when they reached about 3” and were getting crowded. We’ll transplant these seedlings into our garden plot in early September along with a crop of over-wintering beets.
Once they’re off to a good start little attention is required. They grow, produce their hardy leaves and stand strong through most PNW winters. The brassicas - kale, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts - will last through the winter and improve in flavor when exposed to frost. We’ll eat chard and kale leaves all winter long, and in late winter/early spring we’ll harvest their florets which are as good as the primary vegetable itself. Read the rest of this entry »
Summer is winding down but there is still time to try some of those recipes you have been hoping to get to before cooler weather sets in. For me, making more ice cream has been near the top of the list.
I made a batch of creme fraiche to serve over Billy’s strawberries for dessert on Saturday night and had exactly enough leftover to try to make the creme fraiche ice cream I’d been dreaming about. Coincidentally, I saw a recipe for “Ice Cream in a Bag” in the NY Times a few weeks ago. I was in a low-tech mood so I thought I’d give it a try.
Basically, the idea is to put the ice cream mixture in a freezer bag, then sandwich the bag between two layers of salt and ice in a salad spinner or bowl with a lid for about 30 minutes. Halfway through, you knead the mixture and put it back under the ice to freeze. Problem is, mine never really froze. I know it was practically the hottest day of the year, but I gave it extra time and even had a fan on it.
Don’t get me wrong, it tasted divine beyond words. But, instead of consuming the whole thing as a decadent milkshake, I decide to call it quits with the bag and wait for my ice cream maker container to chill sufficiently to try again. I would need a thoroughly chilled mixture anyway and besides, it wasn’t a bad experiment for a steamy afternoon.
I couldn’t help but wonder if my expectations for firmness were too high so I did a little googling and found several recipes for ice cream made in a bag. You put the mixture in a small bag first, then in a larger one filled with ice and salt and tossing it around for 5 minutes or so. The main caveat being that somehow the salty water may get into the mixture. Not hard to imagine if a 10 year-old boy started tossing it around.
I opted to go back to the method using an electric ice cream maker, not low tech but tried and true. When it was done I sliced some luscious peaches from Rama Farm on top.
I urge you to check out this website, Sustainability is Sexy which has the complete scoop, well organized and succinct information about the paper cup.
Sweet corn is best eaten on the day it’s picked. 
When I asked him to help me me with these photos, I was informed he has a completely different method. At least he humored me by demonstrating the “old” method, which I still believe is a good one. The new and improved way is to first cut off the stem from the bottom (the stem might interfere with making a straight cut down the side) and then cut the ear in half.
This will give you a flat edge to set the ear on vertically. A shorter piece is easier to control too. Whichever method you prefer, to make this succotash, you need corn from two ears.
There are lots of ingredients but you can buy practically everything fresh from local vendors - the only essentials are corn & beans. 
But I wanted to do something, even a small thing, in regard to fossil fuel consumption. My husband takes this seriously and commutes through the city to work nearly every day. That I can’t match, partly because my work hasn’t accommodated it, and, truthfully, because I’m not prepared to ride the steep hills through downtown traffic, at least not yet.
I’m a fool for tomatoes and should make myself a tomato cape, something to wear everywhere to signify my devotion. It can get ridiculous and I just pushed the bar a little far the other day. Home-cookin’ tomato-preservin’ smarty-pants.
I know it was probably just the direction of the wind and call me crazy but I took this as a sign. The truth is I’ve been feeling a lot like a roadrunner — I definitely need to take a deep breath, slow down and enjoy the rest of the summer. It’s not like I’ve been over-exercising or anything but sometime during the summer, I jumped onto what feels like those moving walkways they have in airports, speeding me to my next location.
