Go animal-free this week-end!

More than 3 million Americans are living the vegan lifestyle. With so many animal-free options out there today, it makes it easy for anyone to give it a try. You would be surpised at how many vegan foods you are enjoying already. Did you know that just one less meat-based meal a week helps the planet, and your diet. It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce just one lb. of beef. Is that really necessary? For each hamburger you eat that started out from animals raised on rainforest land, about 55 square feet of forest was destroyed. Is that burger worth it?

Just try it this week end. Breakfast can be cereals, oatmeals yoghurt or a fruit smoothie, with soy milk of course. Then for lunch and dinner, vegetarian meats if you must, but fruits and vegetables are always a great choice. Have a potatoe, some pasta,brown rice, or even peanut butter and jelly. Just start slow. Snack on pretzels, popcorn, raisins, nuts and fresh fruit.

Are you setting a good example for your kids? Its their future. Think about that the next time you pick up dinner. Itsn't it time you made some changes that will impact them and their envirement?

Oh, and don't forget when you are shopping this week- end to buy cruelty-free products. Most of these items can be found in natural stores. Saving the anmimals saves the planet. Not so bad ! You will feel better, and you'll be saving the planet in your own very personal way. Give it a try!

C'mon , have a vegan week-end!

Isn't it time you went green and black?

Ok- so you know you should be drinking more tea, right? Well, start with the green stuff you know is good for you. The main ingredient in green tea is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Can you say that? It doesn't matter if you can, all that matters is that you are drinking it because it keeps your metabolic rate up. This helps burn more calories during the day and helps with keeping the abdominal fat off so you can still eat your cookies. Ok, we like that.

Green tea also has loads of antioxidants to help fight aging and ward of diseases. This is good stuff. Are you listening?

Now, green, oolong and black teas all come from the same plant . However, there are different processes that cause the black and oolong teas to lose their green color. Studies have shown that black tea can help in reducing Cortisol levels, which encourages fat storage around the mid section. Black tea also aids in lowering cholesterol and regulates blood sugar. Ok, so now that we have discussed the benefits of these teas, its time to put the hot water on and have a cup!

Did your cookies come out flat?

Ok, so your cookies came out too flat? What did you do wrong? Sometimes it happens. If the butter or vegan spread you used was too warm when you added to the mix, your cookies will come out as flat as pancakes. Sometimes its a good ideas to refrigerate the cookie dough for about 45 minutes before scooping and baking. Ok, there, now try that , and let me know how things went for you the second time around.

...end of the summer garden

Well, here we are on our farm at the end of another summer. With so much work done in the vegetable garden in the past few months, you would think there would have been more tomatoes and blueberries coming into the kitchen. There were lots of deer around this past season, along with some other lil fellows we were not able to identify. Thats ok, whatever was grown this summer was greatly appreciated. How wonderful it is to slice up the peppers and fresh thyme with some chopped tomatoes you grew in a purely organic garden that was given all your attention and love. Even over some of the warmest days of summer, we were able to grow some veggies that seemed to be happy and lovin every minute of the beaming sun. You really appreciate the flavor , taste, and time that was given to grow such wonderful things.
Hmm....what to plant now?

Find a peaceful "third place".

It happens, we all get stuck in the same path of going from work to home and then back. Not much in between, and getting into a rut of the same daily places. For many years now, sociologists have said we need to find a "third place" where we can go and get some perspective. Where you can stand outside yourself and get a different look at life in a whole new way. Some people find that place in a familiar restaurant, favorite shop, or a place they meet up with friends. Some would prefer to be around a large crowd of nobody they know. Others would just like to get lost for a little while and for a new change of place.There are many benefits to having a "third place". Do you have one yet? Think about how it would inspire you and shake up your day, your week, your life. If not, there no time like now to go find one.

8 Ways to Save Food

1. Make pesto with your extra parsley and basil. Then, you know what to do with the pesto. Why not add some extra olive oil for a marinade before grilling?

2.Use up tomatoes before they go bad by drying them in the oven. Then store them in extra virgin olive oil in the refrigerator.

3. Dry out herbs at the end of the growing season by hanging them by their stems in a dry location that is somewhat cool. Once dried, store in airtight containers.

4. What about those extra pasta pieces that are broken at the bottom of the box? Mix them into a rice and veggie dish , and add those dried herbs for a great side dish.

5. Got some bad apples? How 'bout some apple sauce? Not hard to whip up. Saute' chunks of peeled apple with a splash of lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg and water and cook in a saucepan for about 15 minutes. Done! Yum!

6. Leftover cereal from the bottom of the box is perfect to mix in with your granola. Go ahead, try this one.

7.Check food dates on labels, and be sure to know when a food item is "best before". Make the most of your meals by doing this, and avoiding "throwing out old stuff"

8. Lastly, but the best by far, always try to plan your meals. If you know what you are preparing, you'll know what to shop for. Therefore you won't buy too much of anything.

It really does pay to plan!

Oh, Sugar Sugar!

There are so many sugars out there. No, really, so many choices its hard to decide what is good, and good for you to use in your food. For example, there are so many natural cane sugars that are available to us on the market now. How do you choose? Its best to look for a natural can sugar that is moist and has an appearance very close to that of brown sugar.

You want the grain to be fine, as fine as you would see in a white sugar. You don't want your sugar to be dry or dusty in texture. This is absolutely going to make a difference in your final dish. Do I even need to remind you that the package should say, organically produced and if possible, fair trade certified. Once you stumble upon the brand of sugar that you prefer, stick with it. Soon it will dissapear into that next batch of what ever you're making and the quality will be all that and more.