Berry Breakfast Bowl

The first time I stayed with my friend Sara in Santa Monica, we went to breakfast at Novel Café and I had the best breakfast ever-- an Acai Bowl.  It's a so-thick-you-eat-it-with-a-spoon smoothie concoction topped with granola, bananas, strawberries and chocolate chips that makes me close my eyes and savor every bite.  It's nothing short of amazing and since my visit in 2010, it's one of the things that I look forward to (ok, I dream about the stuff) when I visit my friends in Santa Monica.

I have often thought about making an Acai Bowl at home, but always decide not to because acai comes prepuréed and frozen in individual plastic packs. (bummer) BUT... this morning I decided that I was just going to make a super thick smoothie with the berries I have in my freezer* and eat it like my beloved Acai Bowl...

Eyes closed, smile... Best. Breakfast. Ever.  No joke, it was so yummy that I could eat it every single day of my life.  (this is not an exaggeration)

Berry Breakfast Bowl

1 banana
2 TBSP- 1/4 c almonds
handful (about 1/4 c) frozen strawberries*
handful (about 1/4 c) frozen blueberries*
handful (about 1/4 c) frozen blackberries*
1/4 - 1/2 cup apple juice (use less and add as needed to blend)
Ice cubes (optional, add to thicken)

Put all ingredients into a high speed blender (such as Vitamix).  Blend until completely combined.  Pour (err.. scrape) into a wide bowl or deep plate.  I ate mine topped with granola, sliced banana, hemp seeds, chia seeds and chocolate chips.  One serving.

*Plastic-free frozen berries? Yes.  I picked the blackberries last summer, bought the blueberries from the farmers market last summer.  I froze both the blackberries and blueberries on sheet pans and store in glass jars in my freezer.  And Tidal Creek Coop now carries bulk frozen strawberries, raspberries and blueberries

Vegetarian Fried-Rice

For as long as I can remember, I've loved to cook.  There's something so amazingly rewarding about creating a masterpiece in the kitchen that keeps me hooked.  However, as much as I love to cook, there is always a point where I become completely bored/burned out with everything.

One afternoon while at the library, I was stressing about what to make for dinner.  I was mentally running through what I had at home in my pantry and what veggies I had from my CSA... when all of the sudden inspiration hit me-- Fried Rice!!!  I had never made fried rice before, but I knew that I could totally make a meal out of it AND it could be 100% plastic-free!!!!  With renewed confidence and purpose, I headed back to the "Cooking" section of my library and grabbed "Simple Chinese Cooking" by Kylie Kwong then headed to Tidal Creek Co-Op :)

Yeah, I was excited to cook dinner.  And once I was finished I was even more excited to eat dinner!! Homemade fried rice is AH-MAZING because a.) I know what's in it, b.) it was fast and easy and c.) plastic-free!!! Ahh... the quintessential Chinese take-out food made with love :)

Vegetarian Fried Rice

4 main dish servings

4 cups steamed rice (1 1/3 cups uncooked jasmine rice* bring to boil with 2 2/3 c water.  Let simmer for 10 minutes then turn off heat and let steam for an additional 10 minutes.)

1/3 c vegetable oil*
4 free-roaming eggs (mine come from my backyard hens), lightly beaten
1 small carrot*, diced
1 small onion*, diced
1 TBSP freshly minced ginger
3 1/2 oz fresh shiitake mushrooms*, sliced
1 tsp sea salt
2 TBSP finely chopped cilantro or parsley (optional, but nice)
1 TBSP tamari* (or soy sauce)
2/3 c spring onions

* = Bought in bulk using my own jars or bags.

Other veggies to add: Finely shredded Chinese cabbage, fresh bean sprouts, red pepper or whatever you have on hand that sounds good :)

On med-high, heat half of the oil in a large skillet or wok until shimmering.  Pour beaten eggs into pan and leave to cook for about 10 seconds then fold the mixture over onto itself with a spatula and lightly scramble until almost cooked through.  Remove eggs from pan and set aside.

Heat remaining oil and stir-fry veggies and 1tsp salt.  Add rice, tamari (or soy sauce), cilantro, and eggs and stir-fry for a few minutes.  Use a spatula to break up the egg into smaller pieces while cooking.  When finished, toss in spring onions until well combined.  Season to taste with salt.

Serve with extra tamari and some steamed green veggies (broccoli, green beans, snap peas, kale... whatever you have on hand.)

Lemony Pasta & Broccoli

As a mother of three young children, sometimes putting dinner on the table without someone going "ugh... this is what we're eating?" can be a difficult task.  Different kids = different opinions... and I'm cool with that ;)  There are some things that I know will always make my kids happy... one of those things is pasta. (surprise surprise)  Since I'm making a good majority of things from scratch, I always have a glass jar full bulk pasta (from Tidal Creek) on hand for nights when I just don't have the time or have no clue what to make for dinner. (Fyi... that happens once a week!)  

Awhile ago, I had practically nothing in my house.  I had no idea what I was going to make for dinner and I had about an hour before I had to get my kids to gymnastics and karate.  So... I did what I always do.  I took a quick inventory of the things that I had (pasta!) and I figured out a way to make it work.  That "I'm rushed and I don't know what the heck I'm going make for dinner night" turned into one awesome dinner.  My kids kept asking for more and now this is their most requested meal. :D  (Shout out to my friend Tracy who text me for this recipe tonight!)

Lemony Pasta With Broccoli

adapted from Barefoot Contessa Family Style

1 lb pasta*

2-4 heads of broccoli, cut into florets

1/4 cup organic unsalted butter

1/4 cup olive oil*

2 large cloves of garlic, minced 

Zest of 2 lemons

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper*

4 tsp kosher salt

Juice of 1 lemon 

1/2 - 1 cup Nutritional Yeast*

Cook pasta until almost finished, then add broccoli to the boiling water.  When the broccoli is bright green, drain the pasta and broccoli.  Don't drain too well.... leave some water on the pasta :)

While the pasta cooks, heat the butter and oil in a small sauté pan over medium-low heat.  Add garlic and lemon zest.  Cook until garlic is fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.  Off heat, add salt, pepper, and lemon juice.  Pour this over the (drained) pasta and broccoli.  Toss well.

Add nutritional yeast.  Stir well.  The pasta should get a bit creamy looking (almost like adding parmesan... in fact, you could use parmesan.).  Taste.  Add more nutritional yeast if you like.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  If you want more lemon (which my kids usually do... add the juice of the 2nd lemon) 

Oh right... so you may be looking at the photo... thinking... "ummm... where are the peas in the recipe??"  Here's the thing.  You know that mantra "make it work"... well, along with the broccoli I had peas in my CSA box.  I figured why not? :)  That's kind of how I view cooking... tweak the recipe for what you have.  Seriously.  Don't go buying shell noodles to match mine.  Have another green on hand, use it.  Add some chickpeas. Really love garlic, add more.  Do whatever sounds good to you.  That's what cooking is about... and it makes it so much more enjoyable being released from the constraints of a recipe. :)

* Bought in bulk with my own containers at Tidal Creek Co-op

Real Maple Syrup

Several years ago, I decided that I was going to switch from Log Cabin Syrup to real maple syrup.

And...

 Let's just say that I TRIED to make the switch.... Over the course of about a year, I would buy maple syrup and mix it in with the HFCS pancake syrup and tried to slowly wean out the "fake" stuff... but for whatever reason I just couldn't let go of the sugared sweetness of the corn-syrup based "pancake" syrup.  Most times the maple syrup would get used for glazes (think Wild Caught Alaskan Salmon.. YUM!) and as a sweetener in baking.

THEN, just this year... I took the time to learn all about HFCS and started eliminating it from our household.  And thanks to Food Inc., I put the puzzle pieces together about the complete relationship between corn-syrup and GMOs.  I had always avoided GMO's, but never took the time to fully understand how much they are in our foods.  (GMOs are another post... in the mean time, if you don't know about why you should avoid them...  for your health, for the farmers, and for the planet...get googling).

I immediately made the decision that I was no longer going to buy Log Cabin (or any other "fake" syrup)... and started buying maple syrup in bulk from our local cooperative market...

We take a glass juice bottle and get A LOT of maple syrup :)

 Honestly, it took me a bit to get used to the natural earthy flavor of maple syrup...  but now I could never go back to the "fake" maple syrup.  No GMO's, no plastic bottles... and it's real... REAL is always better-- than any man made food product-- for us and for the environment. :)

A Cup of Tea

This evening, I finished off my last box of Yogi Green Tea. (I have to admit that I'm a little sad... I'm gonna miss those little "fortunes" on the tea tag.)  A few weeks ago, I decided that I was done buying individually wrapped tea bags (even though I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Yogi teas SO much).  One thing I'm not going to miss is the  plastic lined paper.... 

I compost the tea bags and wrappers that they come in... and the above is what the "paper" wrapper looks like and then when it's finished composting... paper gone... plastic virtually unchanged.

The main reason I decided to stop buying the prepackaged teas came to me almost by mistake.  I had always thought that tea had to come in tea bags AND individually wrapped.  Then, one day while my kids were at the park (with their Dad), I went to my local co-op sans crazy monkeys... it was then that I had the opportunity to take my time and look around (without having my kiddos asking and reaching for everything on the shelves).  Enjoying the peacefulness of the shopping trip, a thought occurred to me to ask about some twig tea that I had gotten samples of the month prior.  They didn't have any... BUT... then I was told, "We do have it in bulk."  

BULK?!?  *Tea* in bulk!?!  Who knew??  He then went on to show me the different teas (told me how I could make my own combinations!) and reusable bags/infusers.  I bought my infuser that day, but waited to get some tea until I had a container that I could reuse...

Ok... so I'm going to slightly miss my favorite "Green Tea with Kombucha"... but I'm not going to miss the waste associated with buying a box filled with individually wrapped tea bags.  

 Besides... with the bulk tea selection... I'm sure to find a new favorite :)

My last Yogi tea tag fortune:

"Strength lies not in what you have, but in what you can give."

Movie Time

Christmas Eve, we took the kids out to dinner and to see Alvin & the Chipmunks. Going to the movies with kids is always an experience and is still just as fun as when I would go before we had kids. Over the summer, we would see one movie a week because our local movie theater had FREE summer movies. It was those weekly movie trips (and the overflowing trash cans) that made me start looking at my movie theater habits.

First and foremost, I'm a sucker for the movie experience including concessions. I buy the overpriced soda, small but pricey candy and the occasional popcorn. While I completely kind of understand the money making aspect of the price gauging... I can't understand the waste associated with the teeny tiny bag of (pick your favorite candy) packaged in a box that's 3 times the size it needs to be.

Secondly, I would always leave my trash for the theater workers to clean up. I figured that's what they're paid for, right? Hmmm...

Over the summer, I started packing my own snacks and drinks. Now, I don't carry a diaper bag into the theater... I just carry my messenger purse that I purchased while in Australia (11 years later-- I still LOVE it)... I happily refer to it as "My Movie Purse." Oh, I hope I don't get in trouble for this ;) You see... I don't do it to be cheap... The packing of drinks came from me not wanting to drink sodas and my commitment to not buying bottled water. Packing one reusable bottle of water is enough for my three kids and me. When it comes to movie snacking, I often buy in bulk and take a couple of little snack bowls for my kids. Years ago, I used to buy the little individual applesauces, peaches, etc. and not being able to recycle them at the time... I saved them. I split up the snacks between my kiddos and refill when necessary. No little plastic bags, no boxes, no lids, no straws... no trash.

Now I still sometimes do buy sodas, and popcorn-- like I said, I'm a sucker for the movie "experience". So in those times when I do produce trash at the movie theater, I don't leave it on the floor or in the cup holder. Here's why: If I leave my trash for someone else to clean up... then I'm teaching my kids that it's OK to throw trash on the ground because someone will be there to clean it up. I feel as a parent it's my responsibility to teach my children that the only person that should be picking up after them is themselves. Whether or not someone is paid or has a job to clean up after me... by leaving my trash... I'm littering. I am not a litterbug.

Litterbug: One who litters a public area.

SO... next time you head to the movies.... plan ahead... pick one waste that you can reduce. It could be as simple as buying one large soda instead of 3 small ones. AND, of course, pick-up after yourself... it's just the right thing to do :)