Brilliant

For whatever reason, I've been craving more purple in my life lately.  Purple cabbage is so delicious sauteed with rapini, garlic and mushrooms, and in this case, some brown rice. I sprinkled a little ume plum vinegar on top to finish it.

In the same way that scents can blast us back to a bygone era, I find color combinations sometimes recall a special chapter for me.  This purple and green combo calls to mind one of my favorite college courses, oh so many moons ago!  As an Art History major, there was much to love, but taking place within a Decorative Arts Museum steps away from campus, this particular class stands out in a liminal space and time.  Decorative Arts include useful and decorative objects with which we live, and which provide us a rich knowledge of the culture of certain periods in history.  In this class, part of our curriculum dealt with the Neoclassical Period.  During this time, this green and purple combination was very popular in objects pertaining to royalty:  textiles, bone china, gowns, etc. 

Ah, college! I'd love to do it all over again.  It's funny how our daily lives can feel so mundane until we look back with greater perspective to see how truly grand they've been! There's obviously a lesson there for incorporating self-reflection going forward.  I'm so grateful for the memory elicited by my delicious royal meal.

Spaghetti Squash Puttanesca

This was seriously so delicious, and so easy!  When I served myself I put a handful of fresh arugula in the bottom of the bowl first.  It was noted at the table that I was eating vegetables upon vegetables, topped with vegetables.  True!

Don't be daunted by this large gourd.  I just poke a few holes in it with a fork, then bake it whole at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or more if it's a big'un.  The skin will be stiff, but you'll be able to feel that the inside is soft.  That's when you pull it out of the oven.  You can do this ahead of time and leave it out on the counter because it'll hold the heat for a long time.  Cooking it first makes it so much easier to slice.  I've never been a fan of trying to put a large blade into a raw, rock hard roly poly object.  Cooking it first is the way to go.  Then it stays put on your chopping block and slicing it is a breeze and you just scoop out the seeds and create noodles with a fork -- couldn't be easier.  The "noodles" are so flavorful, there's no need for butter unless you want it.

While the roasting happened, I made a quick puttanesca with an onion, several garlic cloves, a few sliced mushrooms and some sliced mixed olives sauteed in coconut oil.  I finished the sauce with a few tablespoons of prepared arrabiata sauce (spicy marinara in a jar).  Once off the heat, I added a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.  I no longer cook with olive oil since the heat converts the delicate tocopherols to a more damaging fat, which matters to those of us with autoimmune issues.  Drizzling it on top at the end works better for me and maintains the fruity, virgin flavor. 

This easy, restaurant-quality meal will be on regular rotation here.

A Lovely Curry

Dad brought this gorgeous pan for me when he last visited.  He said it was just too big for him to use for only himself since Mom died.  He's a wonderful chef and he would tend to get carried away, filling it to the brim as I've done here.  It saddens me to see his joy of cooking dim a bit, but I see his point.

I'm grateful for the gift and am honoring it by creating piles of gorgeous, healthy food like this vegetable curry.

My daughter and I have had a fantastic long weekend here at home with our dog while the other family members were away.  It's been spent mostly in pajamas!  My daughter, who is vegetarian, really likes a little curry restaurant around the corner where she goes with her friends, and wanted me to go with her at one point, but I was loathe to change out of my pj's so, from my full larder, I created this panful.  It was a big hit!  I'm sorry I didn't write down the recipe but it was that kind of weekend.  From memory, here's what I used, and you'll want to tweak the amounts and ingredients to your liking anyway.  I hope it serves as inspiration.

a large yellow onion and several cloves of garlic, caramelized slowly over low heat in coconut oil
a head of cauliflower, trimmed, but including leaves and clean stems
a bunch of broccoli, including trimmed and peeled stems, which are SOOOO delicious
a zucchini
a can of chickpeas
a can of coconut milk
vegetable broth
2 star anise
cumin
turmeric
dry ginger
garam masala
sea salt
nutritional yeast

From trial and error, I've learned to use the spices sparingly in curry.  You can always add more, but you can't take away.  When tasting, if it first seems bland, I try adding a little more sea salt first, which usually wakes the deeper flavors so I don't need so much of them.  I love a fresh curry, kissed with spicy warmth, but allowing the veggie flavors to star. After the flavors had melded, I threw some fresh raw spinach in there too, which wilted a little in the warm pan.

"This is Her Broccoli Face"

--That's what my daughter said as she shared this photo she took of Ellie, our veggie-loving dog.  This little old sophisticated lady instantly morphs into an eager pup when she hears the crisper opening.  Then, she's under foot, with that big smile, batting those lashes, until I toss a chunk her way and she leaps to catch it out of thin air.  Broccoli, kale, celery, romaine . . . as long as it's green, she's all in.

What I Did with a Rutabaga

Have you cooked one of these?  With its beaten-up, thickly waxed peel, it was a bit daunting.  The thing was the size of a small pumpkin.  As I was pronouncing it out loud in the supermarket, the produce department employee chimed in, "They are very popular!"  Hmmm -- wish I'd asked him to elaborate.

I decided to put it in a lovely stew.  Based loosely on a recipe I found in a Martha Stewart cookbook, I added my own spin based on what I had on hand.  Utilizing spices common in Morroccan cooking, I researched "harissa" and invented one of my own, using dried chipotle chiles instead of the sharper, hotter varieties.  I also mashed garlic, cumin, coriander, caraway and dried mint.  I didn't have the saffron the recipe called for, so I subbed a little smoked paprika.  Carrots, a parsnip, and lots of sauteed shallots rounded out the vegetables, and I decided to add a couple of bay leaves and also a couple of star anise pods because I knew they would complement the warm spices.  Finally, I decided to use a little cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  The recipe suggested serving the stew over the larger Israeli couscous, but I couldn't find it so orzo worked just fine.  Fresh cilantro on top was perfect.  Delicious!

Garden Inspiration

Our weather has been so mild this winter, but not warm enough to garden.  Still, finding this pretty photo of a 2011 harvest is inspiring.  I'm looking forward to planning.

From My Vegetarian Daughter!

I started my vegan journey, and this blog, in 2010, when my daughter was only 12!  My diet has changed a bit since then, and I've settled back to a mostly vegan diet again -- in my comfort zone!

In the meantime, my amazing daughter is on the Dean's List in her freshman year of college, and she's been vegetarian for almost two years now. She was home this weekend and was glad I already had everything she needed for this lovely curry, which happens to be vegan.  I love watching her learn how to cook, tasting as she goes, developing her preferences.  I also love tasting her creations!

Simply Veg

This baby bok choy side dish last night was so easy and delicious.  I cut two bbchoys in lengthwise quarters then threw 'em into a big bowl of water for a minute.  It's easier to clean tightly layered veggies such as cabbage, leeks, etc. after you open those layers.  While the bbchoy was soaking,  I sauteed half a chopped onion in coconut oil and a little olive oil then added the drained veggies at medium-high heat for two minutes, and finally one lightly chopped garlic clove before I took it off the heat, letting it all sit, covered, for another minute.  Garlic burns quickly, so I always add it last.

From crisper to plate, this dish took five minutes.  Think you don't have time to prepare fresh veggies?  Think again!

A Word About Nightshades

I've been looking over some of my old writing and found the following blogpost, originally published on "Functional Food 4 Thought" the blog of Atlanta Functional Medicine.  I realized it might be helpful information for those of us who lead with veggies, so am sharing it today.

A Word About Nightshades

Mmm -- a fresh garden harvest. Enjoy with caution, veggie-lovers!

I know, I was just telling you about how adding more fresh, organic vegetables to your diet will cure many ills, but as you clean up your act you may begin to notice subtle differences in how individual foods make you feel. A system laden with the sludge of dairy, sugars, white carbohydrates and processed foods will not be sensitive enough to notice these subtleties. A cleaner system is not addled and numb. The effects of foods are immediately apparent, not delayed as in the sluggish system of someone eating the processed diet. It behooves each of us to be observant diners -- to be present in the moment and understand the effects of our nourishment.

A few years ago I was a novice gardener, so I gravitated toward hardier plants -- the ones which seem to thrive on neglect and seldom get eaten by garden marauders. As I began to clean up my own diet, I noticed a certain uncomfortable feeling on my tongue when eating eggplants which were only lightly cooked. Then I began thinking about how the eggplants in the garden, unlike the green beans, weren't nibbled by critters -- not even a little bit. So I did some research.

Eggplants are part of the nightshade family, the members of which are poisonous in varying degrees! The nightshades contain alkaloids which taste bad to animals, thus ensuring the plants' survival. Obviously, these veggies do not contain enough "poison" to kill you, even if eaten in large quantities, but they do have enough to make you sick, if you have a sensitivity, or to exacerbate certain existing conditions. Cooking the vegetables thoroughly serves to break down many of the offending alkaloids. The effects of nightshade alkaloids vary from person to person. Generally they've been found to cause disturbances in nerve-muscle function, joint function and digestion. If you suffer from arthritis, try limiting your nightshade intake and see if you notice a difference. Besides eggplants, the nightshade family includes tomatoes, potatoes (not sweet potatoes, which aren't even related to potatoes), peppers, tobacco, morning glory and belladonna, among others. The amounts of alkaloids in the nightshades vary from species to species, the worst likely being belladonna which is deadly, and one of the least being the tomato. An interesting side note: Thomas Jefferson deemed the tomato, unknown at the time, the "poisonous love apple" since he noticed it was eschewed by native Americans.

Of course adding more vegetables to our diets is important for overall health. Today's post is about fine-tuning. Your doctors at Atlanta Functional Medicine are familiar with the effects of food allergies and sensitivities and can work with you personally to discover what's best for you, and then you can make an informed choice. Vegetables from the nightshade family may or may not be tolerable for your system. If you are able to tolerate them, they're still better than a slab of baby back ribs!

by Cheryl Salinas

Previously published at Functional Food 4 Thought

Bok Choy, Baby!

Look at those lovely little morsels all snug in their bowl! My current fave, Baby Bok Choy, is quickly steamed here with Umeboshi vinegar and a little olive oil. In this season of dietary trial and error, I'm still most comfortable eating veggies.

Another delicious dish, Crispy Garlic Broccoli -- a favorite of my daughter's best friend -- is featured below. Her mom taught me how to make it. She uses only a little olive oil to quickly fry it at a high heat. I start with coconut oil first because of what I've learned from Dr. Wahls' book about the unhealthful results of olive oil at high temperatures, especially for those of us trying to regenerate brain cells. Olive oil is not as bad as some other oils at high heat, but coconut oil is better. The performance is different, though. The olive oil is less tricky when flash-frying. The broccoli tends to brown very nicely without sticking and burning. With the coconut oil, it's easier to burn the broccoli. I just watch it very carefully and only add a tiny bit of olive oil just before it burns, to crisp it, then take it off the heat.

You can see that the broccoli is still tender-crisp throughout with only the outer edges and chunks of garlic browned and crispy. Eat it all up when it's at its best -- hot out of the pan. This is not one of those dishes that's better the next day.

Gluten-Free and Green

This was a big hit with the family. I liked the shape of this Tinkyada rice pasta -- it didn't fall apart. I think I've figured out how to work with this product. I cooked it two minutes fewer than the directions suggested, and rinsed it thoroughly with cold water while I finished cooking the veggies.

For the greens, here is what I did:  on medium-high heat I quickly pan-seared the broccoli in coconut oil, along with chopped ginger and garlic, leaving it for a little while to get crispy and brown -- just on the edge of burning -- before stirring. This only took about three minutes, stirring 3-4 times. Then I turned off the burner and added chopped scallions, shredded kale, a little salt and pepper and a dash of Tamari, stirring the veggies until they were wilted. Finally, I took the hot pan off the still-hot burner, added the cooked noodles and a drizzle of olive oil and stirred it all together. The whole process took about 15 minutes, including prep.

I'm working on removing all grains as I strive to recover my immune system, but with baby steps --I'm embracing gluten-free products from time to time. This one's a winner!

Zucchini "Noodles"

Just a quick pretty photo today of some luscious, fresh veg. This is a pile of raw zucchini noodles topped with a compote of fresh grape tomatoes, onions, garlic and oregano and basil from my garden. This was light and delicious. I counted it as dinner, my husband counted it as a side dish.

Being in a "weeding out" phase of life, I'm reluctant to add to my kitchen drawers, particularly if the item is pricey, but the "spiralizers" out there have long intrigued me. Still, I've resisted the urge to drop $20 for another veggie chopper -- until I found myself in the "As Seen On TV" aisle in our local Walmart. There it was, the Veggetti, right next to the nausea-inducing "Pedi-Egg"(for shaving dead skin off feet) and "Tag Away"(for skin tags), for the low, low price of $14.88. All items being hermetically sealed and unused, I swallowed my pride and a little bit of bile and popped that gadget in my cart.

I'm reasonably impressed with the initial results of this gimmick. The strands of squash are indeed "noodle-like" and, best of all, it hardly takes up any room and is dishwasher-safe. I'm sure it'll only work well with softer veggies, but that's okay with me. There is a small un-grated cone of zucchini that never makes it to the blades, but it's easily dispatched with a couple of slices.

I enjoyed the raw noodles with the warm compote, but liked the leftovers even more the next day, very slightly warmed. Next time I think I'll prepare the hot compote and then briefly stir the noodles into it before taking it off the heat. That should be just the right amount of cooking to maximize flavor without compromising texture. I definitely see more veggie noodles in my gluten-free future.

Roasted Veggies

I've had some luck recently with a couple of roasting experiments.

Basil Zucchini Wedges:  I tossed the wedges with gluten-free bread crumbs, chopped basil from the garden, salt, pepper and olive oil, then roasted them for 25 minutes at 425. The basil was so delicious roasted, and the wedge-shape of the squash allowed for more crisping surface. I've not put this into a recipe format yet because I believe I'd like these better at a higher heat for less time (more crispy, less mushy). I'll share future results.

This is Buffalo Roasted Cauliflower: I blanched the cauliflower first, then tossed it with Texas Pete hot sauce, gluten-free bread crumbs and olive oil, and roasted it at 425 for 30 minutes. This could have also benefited from a higher heat. My bottle of Texas Pete was the shaker kind, so I only liberally sprinkled the cauliflower with the sauce instead of coating it. I need to do some more testing to come up with the proper amount. This wasn't very spicy, but it was good anyway. I'll keep you posted on how this experiment evolves.

Homegrown

Here's a recent harvest from my garden, for which I am grateful, neglected as it's been this year. Look at those furry, knobby little carrots! There are also onions and yards of Chinese longbeans. Together these made a lovely veggie dish.

Ordinarily I'd have been all over these carrot greens, which dwarf the carrots themselves, but they were too strong in flavor, probably because it has been so hot here lately. I passed on the greens this time, but  they are making a nice contribution to the compost.

Here is the finished product. It was a little tricky as I started cooking before driving Wynne to band practice, came back while she was there, worked on it some more and then left it on the warm burner as I went to pick her up. I didn't throw the smallest, tenderest beans in until the end. The veggies were simply sauteed in olive oil and seasoned with a tiny pinch of salt and curry powder. Wynne LOVED these veggies. Score!

She said, "These are really good, what are the orange things?"
When I told her, she said, I've never tasted carrots like these before, this is really, really good!"  :)

I had a hankering for a pot-o-lentils, so I made some to go with the harvest. Here's the recipe:

French Lentils

1 C dry lentils

2 medium yellow onions, diced

2 Tbsp. Olive oil

2 C water

1 Tbsp Shoyu or Tamari

2 Tbsp Dry Sherry

1 Tsp. dry thyme or 5-6 stems of fresh thyme

salt and pepper to taste 

Saute the onions on medium heat until they become fragrant and almost transluscent. Stir periodically to  prevent burning. After rinsing lentils, add them to the pot along with the water and Shoyu or Tamari and thyme. If you have fresh thyme, you can put the whole woody stems in, then remove them later. The dry herbs are stronger in flavor than the fresh thyme. It would be fine to add more fresh thyme than I have here if you like the flavor, but be careful with the dry herbs. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer 25 minutes, covered. 3-4 minutes before the end of cooking, add the sherry, stir and simmer until lentils are tender but still hold their shape. Season to taste. Don't forget to remove the thyme stems before serving.


These lentils aren't really French. They were born in the USA. I just call them that since I was inspired by some wonderful flavors I tasted while driving across the French countryside in the winter, so very many moons ago. Good stuff!

30th High School Reunion!

Last weekend, my husband and I got away for a long weekend for Thomas Jefferson High School's 30th reunion. That's me, front and center. What a photobomb! The photographer added the spouses for this shot and, being on the tall side, I was trying to squat down a little to avoid eclipsing the actual class members. Instead, I look like I'm posing sassily. My daughter thinks this is hilarious.

What a wonderful group of people! I had known a handful of them previously, through my husband, but also through another Jefferson alumnus, my wonderful friend and roommate of many years, Cheryl Ross Lage, bestselling author of Twinspiration, Taylor Trade Publishing, 2006. I was happy to meet so many more from this amazing high school class last weekend. What an honor and a privilege it was to get to know all of you, Colonials and spouses!

My own 30th reunion will also be this year, but I will not be able to attend because of prior commitments. My husband and I grew up in different parts of Virginia, but after college Northern Virginia became my home as well. I lived in Alexandria, Arlington and Fairfax, and worked in Washington, D.C. As our taxi pulled up to the hotel, I looked up and realized our old apartment building was right next door!

There it is, shot from our 10th floor hotel room. You can see a little sliver of the Potomac just beyond the lower buildings on the left. We lived here in Old Town, Alexandria for only a few months when the kids were little. Here's an interior shot of our place there, featuring my little punkin and her rockin' hairdo:

Here's what she looks like now, except she has moved on from pink hair to blue:

But I digress . . . Back to 2013: We arrived Friday afternoon, and met up with a few people at the Fish Market that evening. It was great to be on old stomping grounds, and I really enjoyed getting to know some amazing people. The conversations were deep and rewarding, just the way I like 'em! I look forward to a continued acquaintance with these great folks.

I also enjoyed a plateful of fried oysters. I'll always choose fried oysters over iceberg lettuce, otherwise I'll choose veggies every time. I see myself as "vegan+" -- mostly veggies/grains, never dairy, or hooved or winged beasts, but very, very rarely, I'll have seafood. See http://midlifevegan.blogspot.com/2011/08/coming-clean-sometimes-i-eat-shellfish.html for the full backstory of my mid-vegan recalibration.

Saturday morning, we were lucky to have a visit from Andres' brother, Sol, and family, who drove down from Maryland to see us. We had brunch at Union Street Public House and walked around Old Town for a couple of hours afterward.

Featured in the photo are, from left to right, our nephew, Andres, who will start Harvard Law School this week(!), Sofi, the au pair from Costa Rica, Heather, Sol's wife, Morgan, our littlest niece, Sol, Andres, and moi. When Sol and family had to leave, it was such a beautiful day that Andres and I walked all the way back to the hotel, where I needed a siesta for the upcoming fiesta.

Back in business after a short rest, we cleaned up and proceeded downstairs for the reunion festivities. I always worry about buffets. Sometimes the only veggies available are doused in dairy. This actually makes them inedible for me, as my system really cannot handle it after so many years without. In this case, I needn't have worried. The food was AMAZING! My cell phone pic doesn't do it justice:

There was romaine and pasta, rice, roasted peppers and sauteed veggies of a ratatouille bent. I loved this delicious food so much that I had intended to go back for seconds, but the event was so socially stimulating and fun that I lost track of time and before I knew it, it was all over. I wonder what the catering crew did with those leftovers? It haunts me.

I received so many gifts from the experience of this reunion, but here is one of my favorites from the lovely Lisa Jones Pierce, keeper and cataloguer extraordinaire:

That's my husband, senior class president Andres Salinas, with his friend, and now mine, the wonderful Wray Eldridge. Will you look at those babies?

The Prodigal Gardener

My son has recently spent some time camping and hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina so we took a trip up to meet him, see some of the places he explored (albeit from the remote vantage point of the Parkway overlooks) and hear about his adventures. This photo is lovely, but doesn't adequately reflect the scope of the altitude, steepness and vastness of these mountains. Of course there are steeper mountains, but the Blue Ridge is way up there for this Georgia girl. My son told me geologists have determined that the Blue Ridge has been taller than the Alps three times in the known history of the earth. It is on a fault line and geologic events have thrust the mountains upward, only to be weathered and eroded to this relatively modest height over ages -- three separate times. Isn't that interesting? Standing atop this ridge, in the cool fresh air, closer to the sun and clouds, one would assume these rocks have always been here, from the beginning of time. Well, maybe they have been, but they are alive and changing like everything else, just in a slower time frame.

The next part of our North Carolina odyssey was to the Outer Banks to see my husband's parents. I was so busy visiting, I didn't even get a shot of the ocean this time, but as we were setting the table for dinner on the deck last Thursday this view of heaven got my attention. This is a cell phone photo. Less than 5 minutes later we were all scrambling to rush everything inside and turn the chairs and tables upside down so they wouldn't blow away. At that moment a front came in which brought powerful winds, driving rain and thunder and lightening. We actually saw a waterspout about 100 yards off the beach. This heavenly view quickly transformed into an eerie, deep pink-purple as the clouds roiled. Nature's fury is always so much more dramatic at the shore. It was quite a show. The deluge lasted all night, and my mother-in-law and I noticed the condo swayed with the winds.

Back home the weather that night was also violent, spawning a tornado, though there were no injuries that I know of. By the time we got back, ten days after we left, evidence of the storm we missed here was a downed tree in the woods, and the return of the water damage we just had fixed a couple of weeks prior. The wallboard under the fresh paint is bubbled anew, and the water stain on the ceiling is back. Ah, home ownership!

Yowza -- look at the garden! After ten days of neglect in this humid, moist, hot environment, the plot is a mess. Some type of opportunistic, ground-covering weed has had its way with the soil around all the plants I put in. I don't know what it is, but it kind of looks like a creeping thyme. At first I attempted to eradicate it, but quickly found that it would adapt any part of itself to form a new root and dig in -- in other words, if I left a piece I'd pulled, it would re-root itself instead of shrivelling. Also, the roots are deep and delicate, so when I thought I'd pulled the whole plant out, I'd left a tiny bit underground which would quickly make its way to the surface and be reborn. The weed doesn't really seem to bother the veggies, it just makes the whole garden confusing to me.

The onion arsenal is more unkempt than ever, long and tangled, but appears to be doing its job deterring pests. I've seen no nibbles, not even from this guy, who is just happy to live safely under the wooden frame, apparently in an allium-induced haze.

A recent harvest revealed the bush beans had matured before the Chinese long beans, and the radishes are all grown, very large and flavorful. I sliced this one thinly to savor with a nice glass of Pinot Gris as I prepared dinner. Then I ate it's spiny leaves, undressed so I could assess the flavor -- peppery! The beans were added whole to a veggie melange including yellow squash, zucchini, vidalia onion, mushrooms, tomatoes and several whole twigs of thyme. All the veggies were store bought except for the beans and thyme -- my nightshades aren't ready yet. Olive oil, salt and pepper and the whole bowlful was cooked in a grill pan by my husband. Delish!

I plan on surrendering to the garden's will at this point, and savoring it's un-nibbled bounty. Can't wait for the tomatoes!

Crave!

Here's today's elixir of health -- two cucumbers, two organic gala apples and five stalks of kale. I wish I could show you the lovely pile of plantfoods before they were processed, but while I was photographing a lovely pile of veggies and fruits, my camera was seeing something else. The resulting photos turned out to be, um, not fit for general audiences. I'll be more aware of my food styling in the future.

I digress . . . This combination is more pleasing to my palate than yesterday's which was too sweet for my taste with three apples instead of two. I believe the organic apples are much sweeter. I like to taste a bit of green. My husband asked for some of this elixir, and grimaced a tad, but then he asked for seconds! He asked if it would dye his teeth green -- isn't this funny? I think we are programmed from childhood that saturated color will leave a permanent mark. There is no green dye number 7 here, and, aside from the odd bit of pulp between the teeth, he has little to worry about.

I've received a comment about wasting the pulp from the juicing process, and I'll be addressing that in the future as I try a couple of options. There are definitely copious amounts of pulp that result from the juicing process. Until I decide how to best utilize the pulp, I will be saving it in the freezer. I'll keep you posted.

Nabe Vegetables

I've enjoyed learning a bit about macrobiotics recently. I'm reading A Hip Chick's Guide to Macrobiotics, by Jessica Porter and This Crazy Vegan Life by Christina Pirello. Christina dabbles in macrobiotics as well as vegan food, and makes her food choices for health reasons, so what she is putting out there resonates with me.

In Jessica's book, she explains the framework and philosophy behind a macrobiotic diet. The "energies" of foods, yin, or expanding, upward-growing and yang, or contracting, downward-growing. I like the way Jessica explains there is no judgement, no "right" or "wrong" only consequences for our choices. Perhaps most interesting to me was the notion that extreme yin and extreme yang do not cancel each other out, they just create extreme conditions for the body. The idea of macrobiotics is to engage yin and yang foods which are much less extreme on the spectrum, and thus easier for the body to assimilate.

Traditional Japanese methods of cooking are well-suited to a macrobiotic diet, as they are mindful of these energies. One such method is Nabe (pronounced "Nah - Bay"), a boiled preparation that sometimes contains seafood. Jessica presents a vegetable version in her book. There is no recipe per se, since the variations on this theme could be endless, but there are some guidelines which I followed, and I will share them with you here.

Nabe is essentially boiled vegetables, and  is not typically eaten with grains. Traditionally it is prepared on a portable burner in the center of the table, and is shared as it is being cooked similar to the way a fondue would be. Individual dishes of dipping sauce are provided to each diner, but this is not mandatory, since the sauce can be salty, resulting in too much yang. I liked the dipping sauce, and I watered it down with plenty of boiling liquid, so it was not too salty. The energy this dish imparts is very calming and healing. The vegetable bulk is quickly filling, but you may find yourself going back an hour or so later for seconds. When making nabe, a ratio of two upward-growing (yin) vegetables to one downward-growing (yang) should be followed, but the choice and amount of vegetables is entirely up to the chef.

For my nabe, I chose:
organic carrots (in macrobiotics, root veggies are not peeled, so organic is best)
celery
bok choy
onion
mushrooms
cauliflower
tofu

To begin, in a 4 quart pot, soak for at least ten minutes a 2" piece of kombu and two dried shitake mushrooms in spring water, filling the pot halfway. While soaking, wash and prepare the vegetables. Large chunks work best. When the seaweed and mushrooms are soft, slice them and return them to the pot, then bring the water to a boil. add a variety of the vegetables to the boiling liquid, removing them when they look softened with a slotted spoon and adding more raw vegetables. The veggies do not need to be cooked a certain length of time. It is all up to your personal taste. I found the bok choy to be the quickest-cooking and the carrots to need the most time.You may eat as you go, or collect the whole batch of vegetables first.

For each dipping sauce I used:
1 Tbsp. Shoyu
1 C. boiling liquid
1tsp. grated ginger
scallions for garnish

I did enjoy this dipping sauce. Jessica calls for squeezing the juice from the ginger, but I was too lazy, and I like a bit of root roughage anyway. I did go back for seconds, and at the end, rather than packing up the leftovers separately, I opted to not discard the flavorful boiling liquid and turned the whole thing into a light soup. I even tossed the unused dipping sauce into the soup. I ate the "nabe soup" this morning for breakfast. It was a great way to start my day.

I enjoy the mindfulness surrounding macrobiotics and will definitely be incorporating more macrobiotic principles into my vegan diet. Jessica cautions that foods begin to lose their vital energy with each passing day, so leftovers are not often a part of macrobiotics (!) Also she never microwaves, saying that our western culture is undergoing a "mass experiment" about the unknown dangers of living with all this radiation on a daily basis. These two notions fly in the face of the kind of lazy, waste-no-want-not chef that I am, so I will have to sit with them for a while and see if I can conceive of a way to alter my paradigm about food energies/radiation safety. The whole microwave thing is something that has been bothering me for some time already, actually, so that will likely leave my life before leftovers.

In February I will have been vegan for two years, and during that time my mind has opened in ways I never would have expected. The example of how I've handled my B12 deficiency is a good illustration.  Many folks, upon discovering the deficiency, would opt to chuck the whole vegan lifestyle. Instead, I'm grateful that I'd had enough time with the bountiful vegetable kingdom to understand its health benefits before needing to consider the deficiency. The vegan diet stopped my MS progression in its tracks, as evidenced by MRIs. Removing dairy has most dramatically changed my quality of life, providing so much more energy, a level, positive mood, a clearer head and no more seasonal allergies. Because of these benefits and more, I was not about to lose the veggie lifestyle due to a pesky lack of B12. Who would have imagined that these days I look forward to the day each week when I give myself my B12 injection. That day is an amazing gift, full of strength, energy and a quick mind, even more than what I otherwise experience. Problem solved, and no benefits lost!

This is just a long way of saying that an open mind during new discoveries has always benefitted me, so I won't be surprised if I find myself warming foods in the oven or on the stove instead of in the microwave, or even making smaller portions, more often, and loosening my dependence upon my old standby, the leftover.

Odds-n-Ends, Early Autumn

It's an odd season right now, with temperatures swinging drastically from 80 degrees to the 40's and back again.  This is still in my garden:

Yes, my wonderful gardenia bush that was on its last leg last year is back to robust health, thanks to my tender loving care (it needed an acidic food -- the pH was off). This wonderful plant began blooming in the spring and is still producing these amazing blossoms. The heady, intoxicating fragrance is like nothing else and it always effectively transports me back to Greece in my mind.

So, we have summertime in the yard even amidst drastic cold snaps when I need this:

Mmmm . . . homemade split pea soup! I made a huge vat of it in the slow cooker and put half of it in the freezer for future enjoyment. I used the recipe on the back of the pea bag, except instead of the pound of ham, I used a teaspoon of liquid smoke. It did the trick. I also added my favorite bonus: kale torn into little pieces. All major vegan food groups are represented here, kids. A bowlful is so nourishing and filling, and addictive in flavor. I usually want another bowlful a couple of hours after I have it, and there's no guilt! Yippee! This goes wonderfully with a pair of fuzzy slippers and a blankie.

So, now that you know about the dramatic temperature fluctuations in the deep south this time of the year, in my typically random fashion for "odds-n-ends", I'll share this:

This is just a pile of the peelings from the veggies I ate tonight. As I was cleaning up and chopping the vegetables, I was struck by how pretty vegan garbage is, so I had to take a picture of it.

And here's the finished product! These veggies got a vote of approval from the meat-eater! These really were especially delectable. As per usual, I didn't measure, but I don't really think it matters too much with food like this. It's just a large couple of handfuls of collard greens without their stems, a large handful of sliced cabbage, about half a cup of purple onion, slivered, and half a leek, carefully washed and cut into pieces. I cooked them all quickly on medium high heat in olive oil and a little bit of earth balance, onions and leeks on the bottom of the pan with the greens on top for a minute or so, then I stirred and tossed the veggies like crazy for another minute, then took the whole thing off the heat and set it aside, covered, while I prepped the other food. It was perfectly cooked -- tender but still bright and fresh.

The other food, in this case, was chicken for the man, and vegan mashed potatoes for all of us. I just boiled and drained four peeled potatoes, and mashed them with vegan butter, sour cream and cream cheese, about a tablespoon of each. Diet food, this ain't. I loved this dinner. I got my protein at lunch with the pea soup. Happy early autumn to you! 

Wynne's Favorite Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is so easy it's embarrassing, but it's what my little girl craves! Wynne has enjoyed lots of different pasta salads I've made throughout my vegan life, and strangely she thinks of all of them as the same, despite varying ingredients. I guess this is because I always find the rejected goodies: olives, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, spinach, arugula, etc. in the bottom of the bowl, so the parts she actually eats do happen to be the same. The common denominators in Wynne's salads are chick peas, sun dried tomatoes and a dressing made from Veganaise and balsamic vinegar.

So, when Wynne was under the weather yesterday I let her stay home, bundled her up and made her favorite meal. Here's the recipe:

Wynne's Favorite Pasta Salad
Ingredients:
1 1/2 boxes of multi grain pasta
1 packet of julienned sun dried tomatoes (dry)
1 can of chick peas, drained and rinsed
4 Tbsp. Veganaise
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper


Prepare the pasta according to package directions. Rinse with cool water and drain. Toss in the packetful of tomatoes and the chick peas, then whisk together the Veganaise and vinegar and incorporate into the pasta salad, mixing well. Finally, season to taste and mix again. 


I believe the trick to this dressing is to use very good balsamic vinegar. A cheaper vinegar might impart a sharp note which would clash with the tomatoes. An aged vinegar is rich, sweet and mild, without that tannic tang which would turn off a tender palate. I liked using the shell-shaped pasta this time. The chick peas tend to find their way inside the shells and the effect is kind of like a chick pea ravioli in texture. This pasta salad was an enormous quantity, but it was by design. Wynne's a bit like me -- if she enjoys a meal, she finds herself craving it again for the next few meals. Also, I always find my husband wanting to eat whatever I make for the kids, though not usually what I make for myself. My food is normally way-vegan and the kids' is just vegan in the guise of omni. Anyway, with the large amount, I knew I would be covered for the next several meals, no matter to whom it appealed. It worked. Wynne ate the salad for lunch yesterday, Wynne, her Dad and I ate it for dinner last night, and she finished it off at lunch today. It may seem this meal is a bit lacking in veggie content, but you'll have to remember it's a huge step up from store bought mac and cheese a couple of times a day, which is the way my kids used to eat.

An update on my shaggy messes conundrum -- I got a response from my wonderful friend, Sherri, who wisely stated that some of her best days were the result of no plan (paraphrasing here). Thanks Sherri! I took a deep breath at this and realized that there was no need to make decisions. I can just clean up my summer garden and let it lie fallow for a season while I plant a couple of things in some pots out of Buster's reach. Future planting decisions will be based on what happens during the fallow season. As for the mop on my head, I trust my hairdresser and think it will be fun to let her do whatever the heck she wants with it. Artists always love free rein. Besides, it's just hair. I did get a good night's sleep and everything makes much more sense today!