new year. new start. new recipe.

so far i've been a very bad blogger in the year two.thousand.ten.
this is my first entry, and today is the last day of the month.

i guess i've been unmotivated. there are really no excuses to be made. because, we all know, you make time for the things that are important to you.

so i think i've decided that sharing lil' snippets of life in the form of thoughts, questions, quotes, photos, recipes, song lyrics, dance clips, and more is important to me.

sooo i'm resolving to be a better blogger. i'll try anyway. since it's important to me to share life with people all around the world, world, world, i figure this is one tool to do just that.

my housemates, which now include my parents and my two new sisters: fern & hanna (from bangkok and berlin, respectively), and i enjoyed this zucchini soup recipe, taken from my favorite cookbook: 'extending the table: recipes and stories from argentina to zambia in the spirit of more-with-less' this week.

it is wonderful. and easy. and comes from deutschland. which i'm missing quite a bit these days.

Zucchinisuppe

*This thick, mild soup can be served hot or cold. In winter, I'd go with the hot option... maybe as an appetizer or lunch soup?

Melt in saucepan:

• 1/4 c. margerine (50 ml)

Add and sauté:

• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  

Add:

• 2 & 1/4 c. zucchini, shredded (550 ml)
• 2 c. vegetable stock (500 ml)
  

Simmer 12 minutes. Add:

• 1/4 t. salt (1 ml) or to taste
• 1/4 t. basil (1 ml)
• dash of pepper
  

Add:

• 1/2 c. white wine (125 ml) (optional)

Place soup in blender and puree until creamy. Add:

• 1/2 c. plain yogurt (125 ml)

-- From: Maren Tyedmers: Minden, Germany

soup weather.

this soup was perfect for the cold and rain (and the little bit of snow we saw!) this week. and the leftovers tasted even better than the first meal... when spices and flavors have more time to soak in to the veggies, it is a beautiful thing.

Spinach-Zucchini Soup

apple-cinnamon bread pudding.

i've been buying a bag of apples each week (for only 2 francs!) from my neighbors, just around the corner, and am now finding new ways to bake with these fresh-from-the-trees green apples. they're delightfully crisp and perfectly sour. but baking with them is a treat too.

similar to the system with the pumpkin & squash stand, this apple & flower stand isn't manned (or womanned, for that matter) by anyone. instead, there's just a little jar to put your coins in and the honor system really works. ya' pay for what ya' pick out. it's a beautiful thing.

so, here's another in-season dessert recipe for you... happy green apple time.

Apple-Cinnamon Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

• 4 cups soft cinnamon bread, torn into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, very thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup raisins or chopped dried cranberries (optional)
• 2 cups milk (try vanilla soy milk with it!)
  
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:

Butter an 11x7-inch baking dish. Heat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, combine bread, cinnamon, and apple slices, and raisins or chopped dried cranberries, if using; toss to mix.

In a medium saucepan, combine milk, brown sugar, and butter; heat over medium heat until hot and butter is melted.

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs with vanilla. Quickly whisk in the hot milk mixture then pour the mixture over the bread. Stir to mix well.

Pour bread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Set a jelly roll pan or large shallow baking dish in the oven. Set the bread pudding pan inside the larger pan. Add very hot water to the outer pan to a depth of about 1/2-inch. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean.

squash it good.

the third recipe from the same butternut squash was also prepared last night. turned out great. autumn baking with grace in europa gets two thumbs up.

SQUASH SPICE BREAD
Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 medium buttnerut squash, halved and seeded (1 1/2 lb.)
  
• 1 Tbs. maple syrup
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. chopped walnuts, divided (optional)
  
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup plain (unsweetened) soymilk
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Place squash halves cut-side down on baking sheet. Bake 40 to 45 minutes, or until soft. Cool. Scoop flesh from skin, mash with maple syrup, and set aside.
2. Coat 8- x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Combine flour, sugar, walnuts, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in large bowl. Lightly beat eggs in separate bowl. Whisk in oil, soymilk, and vanilla until smooth. Fold squash into liquid ingredients with spatula. Stir squash liquid mixture into flour mixture.
3. Pour batter into prepared pan, and sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbs. walnuts. Bake 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 20 minutes on wire rack, then unmold and cool completely.

still squashin'.

tonight grace and i made our second meal, from the same butternut squash, mentioned in the previous vegetarian cuisine post.

CURRY SQUASH SOUP

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. canola or olive oil
  
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 2 small or one large butternut squash, peeled and chopped
• 5 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup soy milk
• 2 tsp. curry powder
  
• 1 tsp. paprika powder
• 1 cup rice (totally optional)
  

Preparation:

In a large soup pot, sautee the onion and garlic in the oil until onions turn soft, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the carrots and celery and cook for another 3 to 5 miutes.

Add the squash and stir just to coat, then add the vegetable broth, curry, and paprika. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a slow simmer. Allow to cook for at least 25 minutes, or until squash is soft.

Cook rice separately. Once it is ready, add to soup.

Stir in the soy milk and season to taste.

squash season.

grace is visiting (yay!) and we wanted to cook seasonally, so last night we sawed into the butternut squash that has been adorning my kitchen table for weeks now. i picked it out from the squash stand on the side of the road to get me in the fall mood last month. it's a hefty squash and it'll make many a dish, but we started with this one:

BUTTERNUT SQUASH RISOTTO WITH PESTO
Serves 6; 30 minutes or fewer to prepare

Ingredients:

• 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  
• 1/4 cup prepared pesto, divided
• 1 cup chopped fresh onion
• 1 1/2 cups rice for risotto
• 3 cups cubed butternut squash
  

Preparation:

1. Bring broth and 2 cups water to a boil in large saucepan; turn off heat.
2. Heat 1 Tbs. pesto in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, and sauté 5 minutes. Stir in rice, followed by 1/2 cup hot broth. When rice has absorbed broth, add another 1/2 cup. Continue adding broth in this manner 5 minutes.
3. Stir in squash. Resume adding broth, 1/2 cup at a time until rice has absorbed all liquid. (This should take about 15 minutes.) Remove from heat, and stir in 1 Tbs. pesto. Spoon risotto into 6 bowls and top each with 1 tsp. pesto.

Tip: Add fresh garlic to the onions. Top finished dish with grated parmesan cheese and halved cherry tomatoes.

why go veggie?, dos.

vegetariantimes.com has a wonderful and compelling list that responds to the question, 'why go veg?' all good reasons; you should read the full list. but here are my main motivations:

• You’ll help reduce famine. About 70 percent of all grain produced in the United States is fed to animals raised for slaughter. The 7 billion livestock animals in the United States consume five times as much grain as is consumed directly by the American population. “If all the grain currently fed to livestock were consumed directly by people, the number of people who could be fed would be nearly 800 million,” says David Pimentel, professor of ecology at Cornell University. If the grain were exported, it would boost the US trade balance by $80 billion a year.

• You’ll save money. Meat accounts for 10 percent of Americans’ food spending. Eating vegetables, grains and fruits in place of the 200 pounds of beef, chicken and fish each nonvegetarian eats annually would cut individual food bills by an average of $4,000 a year.

• You’ll help reduce pollution. Some people become vegetarians after realizing the devastation that the meat industry is having on the environment. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), chemical and animal waste runoff from factory farms is responsible for more than 173,000 miles of polluted rivers and streams. Runoff from farmlands is one of the greatest threats to water quality today. Agricultural activities that cause pollution include confined animal facilities, plowing, pesticide spraying, irrigation, fertilizing and harvesting.

really it's about solidarity. and it's about not contributing to these systems. one happy veg at a time. : )

crepes perfected.

if you want to enjoy some sweet or savory crepes, then follow this link below.

basic crepes, baby.

i've perfected this recipe in the last year, and the only substitution that i recommend is vanilla soy milk instead of dairy milk. it just gives it this subtle little yum! believe me.

i also like this recipe because you can adjust the measurements (u.s. or metric) based on which continent you're currently crepe-ing-it-up-on. in addition, you can adjust the servings amount, and it recalculates it all for you. easy-peasy.

for savory ingredients i typically go with: onions, garlic, mushrooms, & eggplant sautéd in olive oil (add some spice too!). then add to warm crepe, along with your favorite shredded cheese.

for sweet ingredients: nothing beats nutella and bananas. but jam, honey, peanut butter, or other fruit varieties are good too.

bon appétit!

meatless meals.

must give a shout-out to the september issue of real simple. they're featuring a story about the benefits of eating meat-free (such as: the health risks associated with meaty diets, how much money one family could save by replacing a meat-focused meal with beans, etc.) really yummy recipes are featured too. besides following the link below, be sure to check out the hard copy where they go into more detail about various protein sources for vegetarians. way.to.go real simple!

6 Meatless Meals for Meat Lovers
By Virginia Sole-Smith
Simple, hearty vegetarian dinners that will satisfy even steak-and-potato stalwarts.

the whites of their eyes.

there's this revolutionary war quote about 'not shooting until you can see the whites of their eyes.' know the one i'm talking about? well i recently heard a much better take on that idea. except i don't know the exact phrasing, and i've been waiting to write some sort of post on here about it, and i don't want to botch it up. but here it goes anyway.

while visiting san diego last week, my dear friend and one of my mentors from loma, syl, shared this quote with me. we had a heart-to-heart chat, an absolutely life-giving conversation, over con pane sandwiches. --> which i boldly stand by the claim that thier veggie cobb is my favorite sandwich (specifically in the category of cold eats) in the entire world [avocados, roasted roma tomatoes, gorgonzola cheese, bean sprouts, red onions, romaine lettuce, and yummy spread on either rosemary or whole wheat bread]. um, yum. it's to die for. i'm not exaggerating when i say it's my favorite cold sandwich in the whole wide world. if you're ever in san diego, pleeease try it.

but, back to the quote. syl told me something she had recently heard from one of her friends, and it has continued to resonate with me... i just don't remember how to phrase it properly and accurately. the gist of it is this:

we need people in our lives both who know us and who can see the whites of our eyes.

amen and amen. ...except that it was phrased much more eloquently than that. i will try to update this once i have the whole thought spelled out a little more richer. the principle of the idea is still there though.

as i travel through different states, visiting friends and family (and friends who really should just be called 'family'), i am reminded of how true this concept really is... i am very thankful for my life in the büs, but living so far from all of the people that i love can take its toll. skype is a wonderful invention, but i don't think we can really see the whites of one another's eyes through technology. we need people whom we are actively journeying with who will know when we are hurting because they can see it in our eyes. in person. that has largely been the gift of my six-week break in the states: being with people who know me, who get me, who can see where i am at, and how i am really doing, based on the whites of my eyes.

is this echoing with anyone else? because i think it largely defines true community and what the church is to be. to and with one another. sharing life.

so as i have been with family and friends in colorado, california, idaho, minneapolis, and soon on to wisconsin, all i have is gratitude. your hospitality, authenticity, and your willingness to both open your homes and your lives speaks of real sharing and real love. it is a gift, a true gift, to be able to really see the whites of your eyes. thank you for seeing mine as well.

-------------
an amendment to this post:

my aforementioned friend and mentor, sylvia cortez, had this fuller and richer statement to add when i asked her to remind me how this idea was spelled out...

"We all need people in our lives that we can go to when we are really struggling, when we need to process, or when we are not doing well. These people need to be friends whom we can trust, who won't be judgmental, or advice givers necessarily, but who will simply listen to us and who know us in deep ways. Given the transitory nature in most people these days, many of us have these kinds of friendships with people who live in different parts of the country or world even...not necessarily in our own community. However, it's essential that we have a person or two within our community -- we need to be in relationship with people whom we actually see on a regular basis -- people who can see the whites of our eyes and because they know us well, are able to know, before we even tell them, that something is going on, that we need to talk, or that we need their presence."

amen and amen. so be it. that is my desire for life... that wherever i may be, there too will be such friendships.

that is good stuff syl. thank you for your words, and thank you for your presence in my life. thank you that even though we live on different continents, when we are back together, it is so rich....

...there is a real sharing.
and seeing.
and being.

the subject of mushrooms

Last summer when I returned from Europa, Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life both challenged and inspired me to live more local with more sustainable eating practices no matter where I may call home. [Note to prospective readers: at points you have to push yourself to keep reading, since Kingsolver can and does spend pages just describing asparagus, but the journey with her family to deliberately grow/eat locally for one year is absolutely worth it.]

Now, after living in Europa for the past six months, I've returned multiple times to a Speaking of Faith interview where Krista Tippett talks with Barbara Kingsolver about this year of food life. Such good stuff. Here's the full podcast, if you want to listen in for yourself: The Ethics of Eating

Below, taken from the podcast, describes a bit of what I love about Europa -- just one of the things I hope to glean from my time spent here...

Barbara Kingsolver: It's so interesting to me when I'm in Europe and spend time with my Spanish friends or Italian friends, and they are working people too. They're women who are working in offices or, you know, they're editors or are laboratory scientists. And as soon as they're out of work, they head straight for the market. And they go down to see what fish has come in or what greens do they have now at this season. And even at high-powered business lunches with editors in France — this has happened to me so many times — these women in their fashionable shoes and business suits will stray from post-colonial literature over to the subject of mushrooms. And, you know, there's no shame in their enthusiasm for cooking. They feel that cooking for their families is a really important part of who they are. This, I think, is that, at the heart of the problem for a lot of us, anyway, I think I belong to the generation of women who grew up thinking that walking away from the kitchen was walking away from some kind of slavery, you know? It's how we think about it.

Krista Tippett: Yes, you're right. If we thought of cooking as this great pleasure that we could look forward to at the end of the working day, I suppose that would change it.

Barbara Kingsolver: If we look at it as family time, as entertainment, as a spiritually enlightening even, you know, if we look at it as a destination rather than a rock in the road, I think we would do more of it. And not every day, maybe not on Monday nights, OK, but definitely on Saturday.

why go veggie?

Taken from Eating for Peace by Thich Nhat Hanh
"Mindful eating can help maintain compassion within our heart..."

"...UNESCO tells us that every day, forty thousand children in the world die because of a lack of nutrition, of food. Every day, forty thousand children. And the amount of grain that we grow in the West is mostly used to feed our cattle. Eighty percent of the corn grown in this country is to feed the cattle to make meat. Ninety-five percent of the oats produced in this country is not for us to eat, but for the animals raised for food. According to this recent report that we received of all the agricultural land in the US, eighty-seven percent is used to raise animals for food. That is forty-five percent of the total land mass in the US.

More than half of all the water consumed in the US whole purpose is to raise animals for food. It takes 2500 gallons of water to produce a pound of meat, but only 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat. A totally vegetarian diet requires 300 gallons of water per day, while a meat-eating diet requires more than 4000 gallons of water per day.

Raising animals for food causes more water pollution than any other industry in the US because animals raised for food produce one hundred thirty times the excrement of the entire human population. It means 87,000 pounds per second. Much of the waste from factory farms and slaughter houses flows into streams and rivers, contaminating water sources.

Each vegetarian can save one acre of trees per year. More than 260 million acres of US forests have been cleared to grow crops to feed animals raised for meat. And another acre of trees disappears every eight seconds. The tropical rain forests are also being destroyed to create grazing land for cattle.

In the US, animals raised for food are fed more than eighty percent of the corn we grow and more than ninety-five percent of the oats. We are eating our country, we are eating our earth..."

...while many go hungry.

tomaten.

Ode To Tomatoes
by Pablo Neruda

The street
filled with tomatoes,
midday,
summer,
light is
halved
like
a
tomato,
its juice
runs
through the streets.
In December,
unabated,
the tomato
invades
the kitchen,
it enters at lunchtime,
takes
its ease
on countertops,
among glasses,
butter dishes,
blue saltcellars.
It sheds
its own light,
benign majesty.
Unfortunately, we must
murder it:
the knife
sinks
into living flesh,
red
viscera
a cool
sun,
profound,
inexhaustible,
populates the salads
of Chile,
happily, it is wed
to the clear onion,
and to celebrate the union
we
pour
oil,
essential
child of the olive,
onto its halved hemispheres,
pepper
adds
its fragrance,
salt, its magnetism;
it is the wedding
of the day,
parsley
hoists
its flag,
potatoes
bubble vigorously,
the aroma
of the roast
knocks
at the door,
it's time!
come on!
and, on
the table, at the midpoint
of summer,
the tomato,
star of earth, recurrent
and fertile
star,
displays
its convolutions,
its canals,
its remarkable amplitude
and abundance,
no pit,
no husk,
no leaves or thorns,
the tomato offers
its gift
of fiery color
and cool completeness.

grapefruit-ginger tea bread -- & a lil' m.i.a.

This recipe is from the January 2009 issue of Vegetarian Times and this one's a real keeper (you can't find the recipe on their web-site, so I thought it'd be worth sharing on here). Tami and I made this today, and let me just say it was quite the labor of love. "Supreming" grapefruit is no easy task --- but in the end, it was sooo worth it.

I'd recommend the 'Slumdog Millionaire' soundtrack for your background music; the Indian vibes are a quick remedy to help you recover from the inevitable grapefruit-juice-in-the-eye incident(s). Make this with a friend, and then let me know what you think.

The Bread:

• 1/4 cup pecans, chopped
• 2 cups whole-wheat flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• 6 oz. nonfat vanilla yogurt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 tbsp. canola oil
• 2 grapefruit, surpremed, segments coarsely chopped, all juice reserved with 2 tsp set aside separately. Do not be afraid of how much juice is left over... just add it in!
• 1 tbsp. grapefruit zest
• 1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

The Glaze:

• 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 tsp grapefruit juice

1. Preheat the oven @ 350 and spray a 9X5 loaf pan with cooking spray.

2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in large bowl. Set aside.

3. Whisk together yogurt, milk, eggs, and canola oil in a medium-small bowl. Stir in grapefruit segments, remaining grapefruit juice (except the amount for the glaze) and grapefruit zest. Make sure everything is mixed together well.

4. Fold the wet mixture into the flour mixture until just moistened and no lumps remain. Fold in crystallized ginger and chopped pecans. Transfer to prepared loaf pan, and bake 55 to 60 minutes, or until deep brown around the edges, and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

5. Cool for 1 hour on wire rack; remove from pan, and cool completely.

6. To make glaze: whisk together confectioners' sugar and 1 and 1/2 tsp. grapefruit juice in small bowl. Stir in additional 1/2 tsp. juice to achieve thick, but pourable, consistency. Place foil beneath wire rack to catch drips. Turn loaf upside down so flat side is up, and drizzle glaze over loaf. Allow glaze to set before slicing.

7. Enjoy with a warm cup of tea. After all, we're talkin' about tea bread here. Believe me, you'll be glad you did. mmm--mmm! Seriously folks, this is a good one. A unique recipe with an equally unique taste.

De-lish'.

eggplant: love the color, love the taste

During my three-week-long summer holiday in San Diego, we vegetarians of the house have been experimenting with a few delicious recipes, and this has been one of my favorites.  I discovered it in one of my summer reads: Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (which I will definitely be posting a more detailed blog about before the summer is over).  Try this recipe out, and then let me know how it goes for you.  I finished the leftovers for dinner tonight, and they were still so good - I knew it was worth sharing the love... that deep purple and spring green eggplant love with you.  What brilliant hues.  So brilliant, in fact, that my favorite clothing purchase of the summer has been an American Apparel scarf in the glorious shade so aptly titled "eggplant."  The color just makes me happy, and this recipe does too.

Eggplant Papoutzakia

• 2 pounds eggplant
  
• Olive oil
  

Slice eggplant lengthwise and sauté lightly in olive oil.

Remove from skillet and arrange in baking dish.

• 2 medium onions, garlic to taste
  
• 2 large tomatoes, diced
  
• 2 teaspoons nutmeg
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
  
• 6 ounce grated or sliced mozzarella
  

Chop onions and garlic and saute in olive oil.

Add diced tomatoes and spices and mix throughly.

Spread mixture over eggplant and sprinkle an even layer of cheese over top.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, until golden on top.