Set your DVRs. My man, Michael Pollan, will be on Oprah tomorrow (February 1st). Oprah will be announcing a challenge to go temporarily vegan, and while I don't think I'd consider vegan-ism, it'll be great to see a discussion about animal welfare, factory farms and CAFOs on such a popular program.
FYI: Michael Pollan's FAQs on Animal Welfare (because he's the scholarly writer, not me!)
I hope that it at least makes you think about where your meat comes from.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
kitchen hack
Like Alton Brown, I believe kitchen tools should be multi-purpose. Hence my cake keeper / mass-quantity-of-greens storage unit. And it even turns into a salad spinner - pop on the base/lid and give it a spin on the kitchen counter. Just don't get too crazy or it'll rocket right off onto the floor.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
halfway there
I love those subway/bus scrolls that are so popular in Etsy-land right now. They're just so darn expensive. So, I've been toying with the idea of making my own but unsure about how to go about it. Today I came across this tutorial, but geesh, is that ridiculously tedious! Instead, I'm going about it the brute-force method, with the oh-so-sophisticated computer programs - MS Word and MS Paint. Ha! Here's what I've done so far:
1. Download and install Roadway font.
2. Type the words you want on your final piece in MS Paint, and in a really large font size.
3. Copy and paste the words into MS Word so that they become an image that you can shrink or enlarge as need be.
4. ...And that's as far as I got. Still need to figure out how to sharpen the edges of the letters (Picasa?) and make sure it doesn't look too pixelated if it's blown up to print at Kinko's.
I made a sample in Word, hit "Print Screen", and transferred it back to Paint so I could invert the black and white.
Cute, no? I'll be back with a final product once I figure out how to finish it.
1. Download and install Roadway font.
2. Type the words you want on your final piece in MS Paint, and in a really large font size.
3. Copy and paste the words into MS Word so that they become an image that you can shrink or enlarge as need be.
4. ...And that's as far as I got. Still need to figure out how to sharpen the edges of the letters (Picasa?) and make sure it doesn't look too pixelated if it's blown up to print at Kinko's.
I made a sample in Word, hit "Print Screen", and transferred it back to Paint so I could invert the black and white.
Cute, no? I'll be back with a final product once I figure out how to finish it.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
csa week 1
While the 2-week holiday was a nice break from leafy-greens-apalooza, by New Year's Day, I was ready to get back to healthy eating and fresh produce arriving on my doorstep each Thursday. (P.S. Thanks, honey, for picking up our veggies!)
This first week of the year we got:
- spring mix
- kale
- spinach
- oranges
- butternut squash
- cilantro
- beets/beet greens
- radishes
- ruby streaks (a mustard green)
And here's my game plan for our goods from Crooked Sky Farms:
- sauteed spinach with garlic and a splash of half n half
- barley risotto with butternut squash and mushrooms
- dijon chicken stew with potatoes and kale (might try this with butternut squash in place of the potatoes)
- cilantro pesto
- guacamole (for taco night! Also, Alton Brown has a taco recipe that way better than the taco seasoning packets...if you cut back on the salt.)
- fresh-squeezed (and super pulpy) orange juice (with my new juicer!)
- creamed greens (with milk and cream cheese)
Just a little inspiration to introduce a few more veggies to your plate!
the painted sky
We've been getting some incredible sunsets here in Arizona lately. I don't have the best vantage point from my backyard, but this is still a pretty picture. I'll have to scout out better places to snap the sunsets...maybe the jungle gym at the park down the street.
P.S. This is straight out of the camera - on the "sunset" setting of course!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
breakfast for dinner
I love breakfast for dinner, but alas, I live with a man who thinks it's a terrible idea. I don't get it. We never have/make time for a hearty breakfast in the morning, so why not savor a little (or a lotta) waffle and bacon at 6pm?
Last night I prepared a quick and easy dinner that may or may not be considered breakfasty - open-faced smoked salmon and egg sandwiches. It also made me wonder why in heaven's name I've never had lox on a bagel. The cream cheese spread in this recipe is especially delicious. I'd eat it on crackers, with or without the salmon.
Smoked Salmon & Egg Sandwich
(adapted from Cooking Light, Jan/Feb 2011)
Servings: 4
4 cups water
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
4 large eggs
generous 1/4 cup (generous 2 oz.) low-fat cream cheese
2 Tbsp. minced onion
dash of lemon juice
1 Tbsp. chopped dill (or 1 tsp. dried dill)
4 slices whole-grain bread, toasted
1 cup arugula (or spinach)
4 oz. smoked wild salmon
salt and black pepper
1. In a small bowl, combine the minced onion and a dash of lemon juice to take the edge off the onion.
2. Bring water and vinegar to a simmer in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Crack an egg into a custard cup and gently pour the egg into the skillet. Repeat with the remaining eggs and simmer 3 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.
3. Combine cheese, onion, dill and 1/8 tsp. salt; spread 1 (generous) Tbsp. cheese mixture on each slice of toast. Top each serving with 1/4 cup arugula/spinach and 1 ounce salmon. Remove eggs from pan with a slotted spoon; top each sandwich with 1 egg. Sprinkle each sandwich with a little salt and pepper.
Sustainability Note: Look for salmon that's labeled "wild Alaskan salmon" and you can be sure you're getting sustainable seafood. (Kudos to Cooking Light for focusing on sustainable seafood. I hope they address humanely raised meat soon too.)
Last night I prepared a quick and easy dinner that may or may not be considered breakfasty - open-faced smoked salmon and egg sandwiches. It also made me wonder why in heaven's name I've never had lox on a bagel. The cream cheese spread in this recipe is especially delicious. I'd eat it on crackers, with or without the salmon.
Smoked Salmon & Egg Sandwich
(adapted from Cooking Light, Jan/Feb 2011)
Servings: 4
4 cups water
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
4 large eggs
generous 1/4 cup (generous 2 oz.) low-fat cream cheese
2 Tbsp. minced onion
dash of lemon juice
1 Tbsp. chopped dill (or 1 tsp. dried dill)
4 slices whole-grain bread, toasted
1 cup arugula (or spinach)
4 oz. smoked wild salmon
salt and black pepper
1. In a small bowl, combine the minced onion and a dash of lemon juice to take the edge off the onion.
2. Bring water and vinegar to a simmer in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Crack an egg into a custard cup and gently pour the egg into the skillet. Repeat with the remaining eggs and simmer 3 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.
3. Combine cheese, onion, dill and 1/8 tsp. salt; spread 1 (generous) Tbsp. cheese mixture on each slice of toast. Top each serving with 1/4 cup arugula/spinach and 1 ounce salmon. Remove eggs from pan with a slotted spoon; top each sandwich with 1 egg. Sprinkle each sandwich with a little salt and pepper.
Sustainability Note: Look for salmon that's labeled "wild Alaskan salmon" and you can be sure you're getting sustainable seafood. (Kudos to Cooking Light for focusing on sustainable seafood. I hope they address humanely raised meat soon too.)
new year, new camera
Got a new camera for Christmas! (A fancy schmancy DLSR!) Now all I have to do is learn how to use it. I've managed to get a few decent pics by trial and error instead of reading the manual. I guess I should flip through that thing eventually...
My best subjects are animals and inanimate objects. They don't gripe about their picture being taken.
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