The concepts of political correctness and a cheeseboiga don’t seem compatible. Oxymoronish maybe. But then there’s Burgerville, a fast food joint with sustainability at its heart. Go figure. If you’re traveling the I-5 corridor between Centralia, Washington and Albany, Oregon (also east on I-84) you can treat yourself to fast food that’s appropriately decadent, delicious and prepared with the environment and your body’s health in mind.
On a recent trip to and from Oregon we ate our on the road meals at Burgerville: cheeseburgers, sweet potato fries and espresso-mocha shakes. Food was good and the setting fit the image of an efficient, tidy FF joint with competitive prices, fast service, and play areas for kids. The comparison with other fast food restaurants ends there.
Signs outside and inside proclaim Burgerville’s intention; straws, cups, utensils are biodegradable; meat and produce are purchased locally; fries are cooked in trans fat free canola oil; attendants whisk away trash and separate carefully for composting and recycling; tent cards on tables describe what’s on the menu that’s seasonal.
Shelling beans are available right now at farmers markets.You may have noticed them, beautifully mottled and colorful with long leathery pods. Last year I bought fresh beans already shelled. This year I bought three pounds of Stregonta, with a few other varieties mixed in, from Shelley at Whistling Train Farm and removed the beans from their pods myself. The plan was to make Fresh Beans Gratin.
There’s a sweet period of time between the crisp stage, not desirable for shelling (nor possible), and before the fully dried stage, when beans are still moist, delicate and creamy once cooked. Read the rest of this entry »
Can our bad economy have a silver lining? One way to look at it is that we may end up with a cleaner environment and a healthier population despite ourselves. The recent spike in the price of gas reportedly had an effect on our driving habits. Many people have considered and are using alternatives to the one-driver car. At the very least, we are consolidating our commutes and errands, trying to keep driving to a minimum. There is so much talk about alternative energy it seems very unlikely that we aren’t headed in that direction.
According to the Food Marketing Institute, ” More people are eating home-cooked meals. 83 percent do so at least three times a week “. Less fast food, growing more of your own food — these may be things that you have been doing all along, but now it appears to be going mainstream even if some people are not going there willingly. The rising price of prepared foods may be good news for Slow Food and those of us promoting local food. Read the rest of this entry »
I wish. While apples are baking in the oven read Michael Pollan’s article from Sunday’s New York Times. I’ll say right up front that it’s long, nine pages, but it’s a doozy, an open letter to the next president, the next Farmer in Chief.Maybe you’ll just read part of it, or skim quickly through, or read every word. If you’re interested in food, sustainability, the politics of food, the next administration, health care, minimizing dependence on fuel, feeding the world . . . take a few minutes to read or skim this article. You’ll be moved by the depth of information and possibility that Pollan puts forth regarding global food production and security. Farmer in Chief article, NY Times Magazine, Sunday Oct. 12th(There’s a short excerpt at the end of this post.)
He says that food is about to demand our attentionin a whole new way, so before you dive into the article get some apples into the oven. The wafting essence of baking apples is soothing, and when you’re done the apples will be waiting for you. You’ll have spicy baked apple to feed your body and soul, Pollen’s ideas about world food culture to feed your mind.
If it looks like my baked apples exploded, well they sort of did. I didn’t exactly follow the recipe’s recommendation for preferred apples, Gala & Golden Delicious. I know better, but decided to use what’s in my backyard and they were delicious in spite of looking a little askew on the plate. This is a new baked apple for me, inspired by a recipe at Gourmet.com. As with most baked apples, this is simple to make, with the added crunch of caramelized nuts on the side and a dollop of honeyed yogurt. Read the rest of this entry »
Speed dial epitomizes our penchant for zooming from one thing to the next. The possibility of increased sustainability makes the effort to chill worthwhile, to slow down and simultaneously save fuel and bucks.
We’re aware of the need to decrease fuel consumption, but it’s as tough to go on a fuel diet as it is to stop eating chocolate. Seeing gas mileage information on a well organized website recently had a renewed impact for me. These stats and suggestions are reminders of how and why to drive less if you can and improve gas mileage while doing so. Take a breath, slow down and savor the slow lane.Each of the following resources provide food for thought about alternatives to gas guzzling habits: Fuel Economy, which has lots of explicit information about conserving fuel; Goose Networks, a Seattle-based website who’s goal is to provide convenient alternatives to driving alone. Goose Networks is definitely worth bookmarking and remembering. (Thanks to Audrey at Eat Local Northwest for the heads up about this important local resource.) And finally a video documenting an annual supermileage competition with college students coming up with some amazing ideas about how to build a vehicle that will go a long, long way on just a dribble of fuel, say a thousand miles to the gallon!
Button mushrooms grow up to become baby bellas, (Criminis), and finally Portobellos.
Recently we camped and hiked in the Lake O’Hara region of the Canadian Rockies where we wanted to concoct appealing but practical meals at the end of a day’s hiking. The most memorable of those meals involved Portobellos, garlic, grated cheese, and dried pasta which were a snap to carry in a backpack and prepare on our single burner camp stove. We vowed to have it again on the supper table at home where we also appreciate quick and delicious. A great vegetarian supper with a little bread, a little wine. Domesticated? Yes. Tame? Not so much.
We appreciate the Portobello’s ‘meatiness’, but its versatility is worth applauding too. Mushrooms in the pantry and there are myriad possibilities for an interesting meal - with toasty bread, pasta, rice, risotto, pizza, salad, eggs, with a piece of meat, or stuffed and baked. Not a prized wild variety, Portobellos are widely cultivated and readily attainable year-round in the Pacific Northwest. They’re a delectable choice for a local meal if you like mushrooms. A few in my family don’t - this is for those of us who appreciate a good fungus now and then.
Thinking ahead to the holiday season has made me want to create a strategy to keep myself off the normal path of consumerism. Instead of feeling negative about the economy, I’d like to use this opportunity to step up my efforts and use my ingenuity to think of ways to recycle, reuse and recreate. I saw this article in the NY Times and realized I’ve been “thinking like a student” politically and and environmentally, so why not creatively and economically too? Using a “beginner’s mind”, I can begin to imagine all sorts of possibilities. This article is primarily about creative home design. If that isn’t your thing, you may still feel inspired. (If you are interested in design, take a minute to look at the slideshow too, just for fun).
Our property with its remnants of a gnarly old orchard provides apples, apples and, oh, more apples. With three trees of different varieties we’ve had apples since mid-July. Kind of like zucchini, what can I do next with this stuff? People see me coming with a large bag and they run - the first three bags were fine, but enough already.
Raw Apple cake featuring lots of raw apples is one way to go. Even if you don’t have apples in the backyard, they’re in season right now and you can make this with any tart apple. A large, moist and fruity cake, it lasts for days, (gets older and better) and is good for birthdays - if needed you can easily serve 18-20. The perfect wake-up call in the morning with coffee, or it goes fancy with cream cheese frosting and birthday candles. Today the candles are for Roz. Happy Birthday sweetie - we’re glad you were born.
At the center of the Seattle Youth Garden Works University Garden site sits a large round tiled table surrounded by plenty of chairs under a huge tent. It draws you in and gives you the feeling that a place at that table would make you a part of a welcoming community. Ten under-served or homeless young people are recruited to become part of that community as crew members and work together from 3:30 - 6:30 three afternoons a week. Saturdays they attend the University Farmers Market to sell the produce they grow.
I’ll admit it took me knowing Colin Anderson, farm manager for SYGW, to get me to stop by their stall on a regular basis while at the market. Colin, a Seattle native, has been teaching kids about gardening and cooking since he received his Masters in Teaching from SU. Two years prior to coming back to Seattle from Berkeley, he taught at Alice Waters’ renowned Edible Schoolyard. I know we all have our favorite vendors at the market and they have become one of mine. Since Colin started working at SYGW, their produce has gotten better and better, not to mention it is some of the most reasonably priced around. If you haven’t taken stopped by lately, take a closer look. They have much to offer and you will be supporting a very worthy cause.
The “little gem” miniature romaine lettuce and beets have been some of my recent favorites. Read the rest of this entry »
Seattleite David Montgomery has won a MacArthur Genius fellowship for his work in geomorphology, a study of geophysical forces and how soil and rivers, the landscape have been altered over time.
Joan Dye Gussow writes about loss of land in her book, This Organic Life: “Although the lands that feed us are disappearing everywhere, the paving of California takes on special significance because of its unique Mediterranean climate. You can’t grow oranges in Iowa.” She goes on to say that “some of California’s most productive land is no longer threatened because it has been entombed. The beautiful Santa Clara Valley was once producer of nearly 50 percent of the world’s prunes, apricots, and cherries. Aaron Sachs tells us it took only four decades to transform this Valley of Heart’s Delight, with its 132,000 acres of flowering trees, into Silicon Valley.”
Since reading Gussow’s book I’ve been more thoughtful about soil conservation, so David Montgomery’s MacArthur fellowship caught my eye. One of his books, Dirt, is on my list to read. Montgomery is among a growing group of scientist advocates who are telling us that we need to pay attention to the dirt on this planet. We need it to grow our food, literally to survive, and we’re covering it up at an alarming rate, thousands of acres every day.
And then I noticed that another recipient was an urban farmer from Milwaukee. Here’s a link to a NY Times article, An Urban Farmer is Rewarded for his Dream, which tells more about Will Allen and the important work he’s doing. Plenty going on in Seattle too with urban farming; and there’s the work Fritz Haeg is doing to promote edible landscapes. He’s an advocate for replacing all or at least some of our lawns with edibles. Haeg’s book, Edible Estates, is another good one for the perennial book list.
Worthwhile enterprises to think about and small actions to take: growing some food of our own, giving over more urban land to growing food, and acknowledging what loss of soil means on a global scale to farming and survival. We should have bumper stickers, Save the Dirt!
If you’re traveling the I-5 corridor between Centralia, Washington and Albany, Oregon (also east on I-84) you can treat yourself to fast food that’s appropriately decadent, delicious and prepared with the environment and your body’s health in mind.
So where are other sustainably-oriented restaurants? Read the rest of this entry »
Thinking ahead to the holiday season has made me want to create a strategy to keep myself off the normal path of consumerism. Instead of feeling negative about the economy, I’d like to use this opportunity to step up my efforts and use my ingenuity to think of ways to recycle, reuse and recreate. I saw this article in the NY Times and realized I’ve been “thinking like a student” politically and and environmentally, so why not creatively and economically too? Using a “beginner’s mind”, I can begin to imagine all sorts of possibilities. This article is primarily about creative home design. If that isn’t your thing, you may still feel inspired. (If you are interested in design, take a minute to look at the slideshow too, just for fun).
I’ll admit it took me knowing Colin Anderson, farm manager for SYGW, to get me to stop by their stall on a regular basis while at the market. Colin, a Seattle native, has been teaching kids about gardening and cooking since he received his Masters in Teaching from SU. Two years prior to coming back to Seattle from Berkeley, he taught at Alice Waters’ renowned Edible Schoolyard. I know we all have our favorite vendors at the market and they have become one of mine. Since Colin started working at SYGW, their produce has gotten better and better, not to mention it is some of the most reasonably priced around. If you haven’t taken stopped by lately, take a closer look. They have much to offer and you will be supporting a very worthy cause.
