Hungry Times Two

That's carrots and eggs for all you gringos who aren't into practicing your Spanish.  We harvested a handful of  Scarlet Nantes carrots from our garden recently, so here's the harvest.  Erin botched up the French pronunciation (she said "nan-tees", correct is "non-t" with super-soft French hint of "t"), so we had a good laugh at that.  And I, of course, am not a French speaker, and have been known to say "Salad Nick-o-zee" for Salad Nicoise - ain't nobody perfec t. Also, here's a side-by-side comparison of grocery store brown egg vs. a backyard heirloom egg.  We got the heirloom egg as $1-change on a table we bought from a guy in Matthews, NC, the southeast suburban edge of Charlotte.  Aren't country purchases the best?

The last great chestnut trees of the Southern Appalachians died off by the 1950s, but they're coming back with the help of Dolly Parton .  Yes, that's right.  Our Lady of Seviersville just put out a song on the American Chestnut Foundation (ACF) website. And what's this got to do with food?  Roasted chestnuts are a human treat and they're a valuable food source for wildlife as well .  That, plus the fact that chestnuts were often referred to as "Redwoods of the East" for their massive size and rot-resistant lumber.  Here's hoping the ACF will pull off the restoration of this valuable tree, some of which I hope to see on future hikes in the Appalachians.

I just had a moment. After retrieving my leftover brown rice and veggie stir fry from the microwave, and tossing out the empty shells of edamame I just snacked on, something occurred to me as I grabbed my reusable bamboo silverware . I am eating so freakin' crunchy right now.

Yesterday on my other blog, I posted my pondering on vegetables - even though it's cold as a witch's you-know-what, we can't forget our greens, can we? I had fun hearing from readers' favorite vegetables - and even the vegetables that are really fruits - the impostors ! My top five are: 1) Red bell peppers 2) Brussels sprouts 3) Big heirloom tomatoes when in season 4) Portobello mushrooms 5) Lettuces like arugula and mizuna /baby spinach What are yours? Do share!

Thanks to Grist.com for the "World's First Organic Dairy Rap Video" featuring cute fresh-faced, young Brits trying their best in hip-hop style to promote organic milk products. I'd buy them. And ignore the discussion in the Grist post where they get into the whole "real environmentalists" wouldn't eat dairy. Or the raw/pasteurized debate. I don't know about you, but nothing's going to come between me and my dairy. Word. TGIF!

Lately I'm obsessing over what to can/preserve next. I'm already thinking about Christmas gifts and I think Scott and I may do what we did last year, which was to hand make everything for friends and family. It was very rewarding, fun, saved us money, and way less stressful than hitting the mall or big box store for the one perfect thing for each person on our list. Like a squirrel hoarding for winter, I'm saving extra jars and food containers that will hold up well for nesting gift goodies and I want to hit up Craigslist and thrift stores to find Ball and Mason jars. Much cheaper than buying new ones, and less waste too. The jars and threads can be boiled to sterilize and reuse - it's the lids that have to be new and replaced. With tomato season about to hit its peak, what could a canner want more than to do some homemade salsa? Chutney? Gazpacho? Vegetable soup? Even Tomato Jam! Marinara? The possibilities are quite endless. I also would like to try out something...

After our sinful weekend splurge, I determined that this week I would drag out everything chillin ' in our crisper drawers and work on eating as fresh and healthy as possible. I also apparently decided to use a blender for virtually every meal, and with the aid of a new-to-me $2 cookbook I found at Diversity Thrift (fabulous gay-owned thrift store in Richmond), Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2003. Sunday eve I made Cocoa Fudge Cookies for Scott, so he won't have to go out and buy yucky dry boxed ones. These are somehow not that bad for you, so okay, I made them for me to occasionally enjoy as well. I subbed whole wheat flour for all purpose. Last night I made my usual Moosewood cottage cheese-blended-with-greens-and basil-and-garlic sauce on bow tie pasta, with steamed zucchini and cherry tomatoes. I chased it with a slice of seedless watermelon. Yums . I then got to work on blending some roasted red pepper gazpacho . The linked recipe is not the exact one I used, but similar....

Like, duh, it's a given - anywhere we go, Scott and I will seek out the food and drink opportunities to the hilt. Our recent adventure in Colorado did not disappoint in that regard. Whether you're coming off the hiking trail and need recharging, trying to escape the magnifying-glass sharp sunshine, or ready to quench your thirst, you won't run out of options in Boulder. What did we like best? Here's our top 5. 1) Celestial Seasonings - a different kind of brew. Yep, CO is known for its beer but as an Anglophile, Scott is a big tea drinker, and as for me, well, I like it to cool me down in the summer, to warm me up in the winter (or at my office, where the frigid A/C is always on full blast), and to calm me when my emotions need a little tea party break. Luckily, the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder beckoned and we didn't resist its charms in the slightest. With three family members, we signed up for the tour - receiving packets of Sleepytime blend as our ...

As a lover of all the fruits of the sea, I have really wondered about this awful cluster of an oil spill's effect on the seafood down in Louisiana and Florida, NC even. So sayeth an FDA staffer: "Our goal both collectively, FDA and NOAA , is to make sure that fish that have become contaminated or might become contaminated are kept off of the market so that they don't get to the consumers, so consumers don't have to ask themselves, 'Is the fish I'm about to buy safe?" I really love shrimp, scallops and oysters, and though I hate seeing the photos of oil-soaked birds (and this comes from a straight-up bird loather), my heart really goes out to the sea. I've always felt a strong attachment to the ocean and I hate the idea of coastlines being ravaged and the environs and organisms in them being devastated and depleted. According to the Monterey Bay Aquarium - a top authority in seafood sustainability - "the spill will affect many popular commerc...

I have to give a shout-out to this amazing and oh-so-easy recipe that has saved my ass so many times when I've had basil, some pasta, and not much time or effort to devote to meal making. After time got away from me and I realized it was 7:30 and both of the Hungry Times Two peeps had grumbly tummies, I whipped up this green goodness that features tons of spinach and wonderful fresh basil leaves, garlic, and a creamy base that isn't fatty at all - it's cottage cheese made smooth by a whirl in the blender. I used a teensy bit of pine nuts instead of walnuts and didn't have broccoli - I served it with a salad instead. You can use this as a pasta topper, dip, sandwich spread, or just all around amazing condiment. Good lord, it's so good it feels sinful, but it's not. I know, another ridiculous Moosewood recipe from Erin but damn if they don't know what they are doing up there in Ithaca, N.Y. I'd love to visit sometime, though a friend and former newspap...

The sun is coming out and spreading its delightful warmth all around. The days are getting longer. Sunglasses and sandals are making their debut. For those in D.C. who want to put the Snowpocalypse blizzards and the frigid winter waaaaaaay on back behind them, this is most excellent news. It's spring, and with the sunny days come a need for cold and sweet treats. Sweetgreen is the place in D.C. to get them. With several locations in the Metro area and some mobile trucks dishing out the goodies, this place is a haven for those of us who hold a special place in our hearts for frozen yogurt. Forget the ghetto Dairy Queen blizzard or the played-out Starbucks Frappuccino - my cool treat of choice is Sweetgreen's yogurt topped with granola, blueberries and coconut. Chopped mango fits in well, too. Their deal is that they offer one kind of yogurt only - a kind of tangy vanilla-esque white and creamy goodness. Then you pile on the tasty stuff - all kinds of fruit and healthy toppings....

A friend pointed out this NYT story on foodies who post what they're eating online . I find photographing plates of food very difficult. I can never get the angle just so and oftentimes it may not be very photogenic - I'm thinking of foods like refried beans, perhaps? Not too pretty. Or who wants to see a photo of my huge-ass salad and the peanut butter and honey flatbread I brought to work today? Sexy or So-so? I think the latter, for real. Also, I usually feel pretty good about snapping a pic if the dish is healthy and loaded with good-for-you fruits and veggies. It's the greasy and fat-laden foods that we eat that I'd never want to see the light of day in a Kodak moment. It's definitely a different approach to food blogging. I wish I had more shutterbug skills, like this guy . Happy eating and livin ' on this Earth Day! Here's a Green Link for you - our go-to place when we're sustainably searching for seafood.

Back in early January I declared that Scott and I would take on a vegetarian New Year’s resolution for 2010 . “Meat free and lovin ’ it!,” I exclaimed. Well, it didn ’t quite go the way I anticipated, so for the sake of full disclosure, I thought it’s time to set the record straight. Here’s the deal: for about three weeks in January, it worked. I did my research, planned veg-friendly meals, made sure I got my protein (but not too much – you can actually overload) and generally tried to eat more fruits and veggies. Scott apparently committed some random acts of hamburger eating on his own time, but for me it was great – I didn ’t feel I was missing out on anything and I really did think my energy level rose sans beef, chicken and pork (though I could have just been on a rising cloud of self-righteousness). Then the bottom dropped out – our living situation became a little nuts and we hit the road to apartment hunt during DC’s Snowpacalypse situation. Not the smartest move. Even thought...

What are these, you might ask? Just the best freakin ' cookies there could be. Chocolate Craisin Oatmeal goodness, these are. The recipe is a modified Southern Living one from the current February 2010 issue, with dried cranberries substituted for chopped pecans. The oatmeal and cranberries make them somewhat healthy and I used dark chocolate chunks, so antioxidants are all up in these cookies. I don't see how they can possibly be not absolutely awesome. The taste testers approved. As one person said, "When they came out of the oven and they were still warm, they were pretty much the best cookies I've ever had." Yay ! This completely makes up for the disastrous Chai Egg Nog Cookies I made for Christmas Cookie Exchange 2009. I don't have a particularly successful record with baked goods, so this gives me hope. And too many reasons to find an excuse to have a milk and cookie moment. What's that? I need and deserve another cookie? Well, if you insist....

This just sounds amazing right now. Especially since my daily dose of Dayquil just isn't cutting it. Oh, Ms. Rossetto Kasper, how I love you so. Seriously. You're the best. Not since this recipe , introduced to me by a good friend who also knows her way around a butternut squash, have I loved the idea of vegetables gussied up and drool-worthy. *If you know your Sondheim, you know from whence this post title cometh. Yep, showing my inner musical theatre dorkitude.

Scott and I decided while we were in New Mexico for New Years (of which photos and witty travel commentary are coming, I promise!) to... Go vegetarian in 2010! Or, at the very least, "pescetarian," as we do love our shrimp. Among the reasons: the obvious environmental impacts, health, wealth (or lack thereof), and a desire for a challenge in our cooking and eating this year. Any vegheads out there with tips and/or fair warnings, bring it! We're armed with no less than three Moosewood Restaurant cookbooks, a great curry cookbook with lots of veggie recipes given to us at Christmas, and a desire to do something good for ourselves and maybe even the environment while we're at it. Pass the eggplant and the felafel, will ya?

I posted these links for Facebook folks, but figured I'd share them here as well. http://www.slate.com/id/2186219/ http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/cans-or-glass-mmm-this-requires-a-think-over-a-drink/2007/04/02/1175366158790.html http://www.treehugger.com/files/2004/11/ecotip_glass_a.php Lately, I've been buying beer in cans, thinking it's more sustainable because aluminum's 100% recyclable, it's lightweight (meaning less fuel's consumed shipping the beer) and frankly, I'm lazy, so throwing a crumpled can in the recycling bin is preferable to driving a load of glass bottles to recycling center (Metro Nashville does not recycle glass via curbside - you've got to drop it off yourself if you want it recycled). Anyway, I came home from the grocery store stumped: what's most sustainable, cans or bottles? The short answer: local beer, in glass bottles. 2nd runner-up is long-distance beer (i.e. out-of-state or country) in aluminum cans. Still, I know...