Greener Shores: The New Garden

We recently moved to a home with a MUCH larger yard. Admittedly, most of our energy has been spent getting the inside livable, and also on day-to-day life. Thankfully, the yard has excellent bones and is carrying on despite our neglect. Here are some pics:

Loving my green power!

Late one recent night, I couldn't sleep and on a whim downloaded a Kobo e-book for my iPod Touch (I can't put into words how much I love this little device). I must say that e-books are frighteningly easy to buy. Just two or three taps and it's yours! Plus you save over the price of a regular (old-school) book - I saved between $2 and $5. I had about a moment's remorse for my impulse buy, but then dove into my new book. I read voraciously in the dark (love the night-reading feature) and after 3 chapters finally turned it off to get some sleep.

 

Green for Life - Kobo

What was this fascinating read? "Green for Life" by Victoria Boutenko. I've mentioned this book in another post as it was a major source of inspiration for my exploration of green smoothies. After my initial fascination with these verdant drinks, I fell off the wagon and didn't get back on. I found mixing them using my immersion blender too cumbersome and I didn't have the determination to press on. I recently bought a new blender, in the hopes of making the process a little easier* and decided it was time to read more on the subject.

What is so great about Green Smoothies? Through her research, in consultation with many experts in the fields of nutrition - both human and chimpanzee(!) - and her family's own evidence, Boutenko discovered:

• Greens, above all other food groups, meet all nutritional needs.
• A raw food diet featuring green smoothies can cure disease, prevent cancer, and even slow or reverse aging.
• Consuming 1-2 litres of green smoothies per day can have profound health benefits, including: weight loss, improved digestion, improved allergies, healed eczema, fewer headaches, reduced stiffness after exercise, even improved sex life and peaceful birthing.
• After one month of drinking a litre of green smoothies per day, study participants reported: less fatigue and more energy, increased motivation, "zingyness", fewer grey hairs (!) and cravings moving from processed or cooked foods to raw foods and greens.

Now that's green! My lettuce began to bolt,
so I rescued what I could and made some
green juice: 4 cups packed green & romaine
lettuce blended with 4 cups water

This book is packed with surprising and up-to-date information on nutrition and how it affects our health, as well as copious testimonials. My e-book is full of highlights for every time I exclaimed, "wow!" Needless to say, my enthusiasm for green smoothies has grown. If even a small portion of these claims are true, I should experience a big difference in my health. While I'm definitely the most dedicated smoothie drinker, my husband will drink them if I make them, and my 2.5yo will gladly consume them if they include mango. My discerning 5yo is still vary wary. I've started asking him to try a sip every day and most days he complies.

So what's in a Green Smoothie? It's actually surprisingly simple: water, greens, and fruit. That's it. The ratio depends on your tastebuds, which will adjust as you become familiar with the taste of greens. Novices (this includes children especially) should start easy so the smoothies are tasty and enjoyable. You can get a large number of recipes by registering for the Recipe App on the Raw Family site, or purchase the App for your mobile device. It also includes a FAQ and an excellent guide to green smoothies. There are combinations for all tastes and seasons.

How do green smoothies taste? Yummy! You can completely adjust your ingredients based on preference. If you like sweet, add (very slightly green) bananas or mangoes. If the green flavour is a little strong, add more fruit or lemon juice. I really enjoy drinking green smoothies and look forward to the every day. We recently went away for five days and I didn't get to drink my usual allotment - though I did manage a little - and noticed the difference. I started feeling a general yuckyness and my digestion slowed down.

I carried two of these buckets containing 3 heads of lettuce each
(in their soil) to Cornwall, ON to prevent losing them to flowering
or drought. I used half in smoothies and the other half returned home.

Want to get started now? Some tips from the guide mentioned above: wherever possible, ingredients should be fresh, local, ripe, and organic; and rotate your greens (change it up now and then to ensure nutritional diversity). A tip of my own: frozen fruits can be great for convenience - fresh is better, but frozen is a good compromise, adds a great texture, and is refreshing in summer, I usually combine fresh and frozen fruit.

Here's a basic recipe:
1.5-2 cups packed greens (start with green or romaine lettuce or spinach)
1-2 cups water
2-4 cups fruit (try mango, strawberry, apple, banana, peach, etc.)

Before - romaine lettuce, frozen mangoes,
frozen strawberries, and water

After!

* I learned first hand last week how awful a green smoothie can be if made in a blender with dull blades. The greens and fruit skins remain in big chunks and the result is chewy - yech! Boutenko heartily recommends the Vita-mix blender, but at over $400, it's a little out of my price range at the moment. It could be a future family Christmas present. Instead I settled for a 16-speed Oster and have learned a few tricks to preserve the motor and blades: blend the water and greens first, then add the fruit which should be chopped or in small chunks, frozen fruit should be added gradually. If you get big chunks when mixing, blame your appliance, not the smoothie!

Paralysed by choice or lack thereof

Some have commented on my blogging hiatus, to give a proper answer, I decided, I needed to post.

When last I wrote, we had begun a journey into flexitarianism. All was going well at first. I was all aglow in optimism. As our family life became busier with school, work, and other commitments, my excitement started to fade. Without copious amounts of time to experiment, I found I was at a loss about what to prepare. Meals became very boring and lots of pasta and pizza were served.

My advice, now that I'm looking back: don't jump headlong into a new eating plan without... a plan. I didn't have enough quick and easy meals under my belt and I didn't have a meal plan. Although my husband is happy to ride along with me on this journey, he's mostly following my lead. Left to his own devices, he resorted to what he knew how to make: meals centered around meat.

As I explained to a friend today, I love cooking and have a large repertoire of recipes that I both enjoy making and are delicious. By removing meat from our diet, I essentially cut many of those out. I think part of my problem is that I was mourning  this loss. The other is that I had yet to build a new repertoire and was left both with little choice and too much choice.

A little confession here (no surprise to those that know me well): I'm competitive. I find I strive for more when those around me have similar goals. If they can do it, so can I! Well, a few of my friends are now changing their family's eating habits and pursuing vegetarianism. Enter my renewed enthusiasm! I also have others to share with and that is enormously important to me.

So what does my blogging future hold? Some book reviews (currently reading "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bittman), updates on this year's garden, and some green products I can't live without.

Now I'm off to the kitchen to make Golden Quinoa Salad with Mango and Walnuts. (I've updated the recipe with a much easier way to cook the quinoa.) This will be in our fridge for the next few days as a wonderful lunchtime go-to. For dinner, I'll be attempting Bittman's Rosotto with Vegetables and Herbs. For dessert, likely a green smoothie. We'll also try a "raw ball" (see photo below) courtesy of "The Kind Diet" by Alicia Silverstone and suggested to me by an aforementioned friend. I'll keep you posted!

 Do you have a favourite easy, meatless recipe? Please share!

Vegetarian Lessons

It seems that lately all I think about is food. I admit I'm a little compulsive since declaring us a flexitarian family. At lunch yesterday, I realised I had an overwhelming choice of delicious options in my kitchen - leftover butternut squash lasagna*, vegetable samosas, split pea soup, masala hummus (thank you Julie for introducing me to this!), green smoothie, etc. I chose a samosa, some sweet potato fries (my 2yo's choice), followed by a green smoothie. Learning to eat vegetarian is an adventure! Bonus: in over a week, I've started to look at vegetables differently.

Strawberry banana green smoothie

For example, DH and I had ordered  vegetarian versions of our fave Thai meals (me: coconut curry, DH: pad thai). When looking at the leftovers the following day, he asked, "are you going to finish your curry, or is it all vegetables?" I laughed and said, "it's all vegetables and yes!" In the past, I would have eaten some of the veggies, but focused on the chicken. This time, everything (except for the huge chunks of onion) had an equal chance of being eaten and enjoyed. We loved our vegetarian dishes, perhaps even more than the chicken versions. I was very happily surprised by that.

Valentine's Day was Monday and I learned a few things...

1. I already can't consume as much sugar as I used to without feeling pretty sick. (I also am convinced that the eczema on my hands is linked to refined sugar, since it starts to burn after I eat something sweet.)
2. My craving for sweets is more psychological than physical. My body doesn't want the sweets now, my brain does. I'm working on changing that.
3. Missing my green smoothie - which I did that day because of all the food being consumed - causes me to feel not only guilty, but also incomplete.
4. My husband is wonderful. (Okay, to be fair, that one I knew already.) He came home with dinner - something he never does unannounced - vegetable samosas, Indian split pea soup, 6 california rolls, hemp hermit cookies, and some incredible Green & Black's Carmel chocolate. He wanted to show his support for how hard I've been working to get our family eating better. I was in tears.

And the quinoa obsession continues... We've made two cookie recipes from Quinoa 365: Healthy Cookies and Oatmeal Raisin cookies. Here are some of the ingredients for Healthy Cookies:

Dry ingredients: whole wheat flour, sunflower seeds, rolled oats, flax seeds, coconut

Cooked quinoa

Before baking

Yummy Healthy Cookies

Everyone who has tried these cookies, young and old, loves them. They're not too sweet (1 1/4 cups brown sugar for 56 cookies) and are full of good things.

When I made the Oatmeal Raisin cookies, I had only a 1/2 cup raisins and so I used chopped medjool dates to make up the other cup. These are also really tasty and I prefer the dates - which are a new experience for me - to the raisins. Dates are very sweet, however, and next time I'll reduce the sugar to compensate. These cookies are gluten free as they use quinoa flour.

I've been doing some homework to make sure I'm covering my nutritional bases and to get some suggestions for a veggie newbie. I'm currently picking my way through the Vegetarian Starter Kit from Vegetarian Times. While I don't agree with everything (I'm not convinced of the safety of consuming non-fermented soy products, i.e. soymilk), here are some things that stand out for me:

• eating a variety of plant protein sources over an entire as a way of getting a "complete protein" rather than focusing on having it in each meal (the older way of thinking)
  
• better to focus on dairy-free sources of calcium and limit animal protein, a high intake of which encourages calcium loss from bones
• there is a link between type 1 (juvenile) diabetes and milk protein allergy
  
• using sliken tofu instead of sour cream in dips - can't wait to try this

 One of the best things to happen this week: I think drinking green smoothies prevented K (2yo) and I from getting F's stomach flu. Hurray!

Are you eating meat less or even never? Please share any lessons, tips, resources, or recipes you find helpful.

* I modified the linked recipe by using a combo of butternut squash and pumpkin that I had frozen and then mixing in some cooked quinoa. If you choose to do this, I'd say cook up about 1/2 cup dried quinoa and reduce the squash to 3 cups, otherwise it won't all fit in the baking dish (as I found out). I also used spinach lasagna noodles to give the meal some colour.

Green Smoothies

About a year and a bit ago, I was "inspired" to try making green smoothies.  I'd read a post about The Wonder of Green Smoothies. However, my fear both of drinking one and of making my little breastfeeding guy gassy prevented me. Today, my no-longer-breastfeeding guy and I made one.

This is what went in:

6 -8 leave romaine lettuce
2 cups water
3 cups chopped mango (I used thawed frozen mango)
juice from 1/2 lemon

I gave away my blender about a year and a half ago, so I mixed it using my immersion blender. The result was this:

A pretty vibrant green. My 2-year-old son K was watching the whole process and when I would give a taste before adding more mango, he'd ask for a taste. When I poured my (litre) glass:

he asked for one too:

And he had seconds, saying "I luh-uh-uh-uv juice!" Fingers crossed that what the author of Green for Life, Victoria Boutenko, says is true. She claims that the reason many of us (K and I included) suffer from indigestion, bloating, heartburn, etc. from greens is because we don't chew them enough to sufficiently break them down for digestion. When the greens are macerated in a blender, we apparently won't have that problem. I sure hope so. When he was still breastfeeding, K used to wake in the night screaming in pain if I ate a salad during the day. I eventually gave up eating greens, because I couldn't stand the guilt (and the night-waking).

Boutenko claims that all sorts of good can come from drinking green smoothies. She has testimonials from people who have had their warts, eczema, and asthma clear up. Drinkers have more energy, have lost significant amounts of weight, and cravings for junk food and sweets disappear. Further, Boutenko describes a walk in the woods where she found herself craving the greens growing along the edge of the trail! K currently has a cold and was feeling pretty rotten before making the smoothie. After drinking his two helpings, he was in much better spirits, his runny nose slowed, and he stopped coughing. He started playing and laughing again. Whatever the reason, I saw a big improvement in him.

But what did my green smoothie taste like? Pretty good. I found drinking it was strangely compelling. Despite the fact that I was looking to consume almost a litre of lettuce juice (remember, I don't particularly like vegetables), I had no problem getting it down. I'll be fiddling a bit with the ingredients to keep it interesting. My goal is to drink one a day for a week and see how it goes. I'll keep you posted. I may be growing a lot of lettuce this summer!

My Quinoa Obsession

Red Quinoa (dry)

Recently I discovered a book at Costco, which made me break one of my New Year's Resolutions. I had sworn not to buy any more cookbooks, due to my overflowing cookbook shelves (yes, plural). I'd seen this particular book before Christmas and had considered adding it to my wishlist - I actually took a picture of it. In early January, I found myself standing in Costco, looking longingly at the pile once more. Then something inside my went "crack", and my resolution was broken. All for the greater good (of my family), I told myself. (Yes, I can be weird about things. It only cost $17.39.)

The glorious book in question? Quinoa 365: the Everyday Superfood:

What the heck is quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah")? From the publisher's website:

One of the world’s healthiest foods, quinoa contains a perfect balance of all eight essential amino acids, and is a great source of protein, making it an increasingly popular food choice for those looking to incorporate superfoods into their everyday diets. Gluten-free, wheat-free, and nutrient-packed, quinoa is ideal for those who are health-conscious, vegetarian, or physically active, as well as for those with gluten intolerance, wheat allergies, and other digestive disorders. But that’s not all; you can eat quinoa guiltlessly knowing it’s free of cholesterol and trans fats, contains natural antioxidants, and is a source of vitamin E, calcium, potassium, iron, and magnesium. In Quinoa 365 sisters Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming show you how to use this miraculous superfood in all your favorite dishes.

It is not a grain either, but the fruit of a broadleaf plant. All by itself, cooked quinoa is a great sidedish and alternative to rice. Since it's a complete protein (extremely rare for a vegetable or plant), it is an ideal meat substitute. But really, use it in all your favourite dishes? Yep. There are recipes in this book for salads, breads, cereals, stews, burgers, frittatas, cookies, and puddings to name a few. Flipping through the book, there are countless ways I see that we can incorporate quinoa into our new flexitarian way of eating.

White Quinoa (dry)

Until this book, my only other quinoa recipe was Golden Quinoa Salad with Mango and Walnuts. I got the recipe from the newspaper and was so smitten, that I made it for a family gathering at the end of the summer a few years ago. It was a hit and I (who hates cold salads) couldn't get enough of it.

Golden Quinoa Salad with Mango and Walnuts

There are many blogs with adoring posts about quinoa. I even found a blog by a mom admittedly "Keen on quinoa". It's a great source for quinoa recipes: How Do You Cook Quinoa?

My first dish from Quinoa 365 was the Minestrone Soup. I had all the ingredients on hand and felt like making something warm and cozy (because of what our weather has been like lately). The quinoa cooks with the soup, so there is no extra step. When I served this yummy minestrone, it looked like this:

Minestrone Soup

But after it had sat a little longer, the quinoa plumped up and became more visible:

Minestrone Soup - Day 2

I make a similar soup as part of my own repertoire, but I will now definitely add quinoa to it for a nutritional boost. In fact, I'll likely be adding quinoa to all my soups!

The other recipe I tried was Outrageously Quick and Easy Pizza Crust. In a word: fantastic. When we make our own pizza dough, I've used a recipe that came with our breadmaker. It's very good, but this is better. The quinoa is cooked and cooled first, then added to the dough. I found the dough a little difficult to work with, but I'm sure that will improve with practice - and I WILL be "practicing" this recipe.

Slightly Overcooked Pizza made with
Outrageously Quick and Easy Pizza Crust recipe

I was a little worried that the crust would be too doughy, since it puffed up when baking, but it wasn't at all. The quinoa (although practically undetectable) gives the crust an interesting and satisfying texture. It's hard to explain, but I'll say it was a HUGE hit with my family. I made the pizza vegetarian, save for the tiniest bit of crumbled bacon.

You can find a handful of recipes on the Quinoa 365 website, including Championship Chili (on my list of next-to-try), but I strongly suggest buying or borrowing the book, because once you get started with quinoa, it's pretty exciting stuff. Some other dishes on my list: healthy cookies, quinoa veggie bake, jalapeno chedder pepper scramble, pumpkin pancakes, black bean soup, tomato and basil crustless quiche, caramel date cake, chewy chocolate chip cookies, to name but a few. I did say I was obsessed!

Flexitarian Family

I've recently come to the decision that we, as a family (but especially DH and I), can and should be eating less meat (red, white, fish, etc.). I'm aiming for vegetarian-ish, which apparently is called flexitarian. This means that we will endeavour to eat vegetarian as much as we can. So far, so good.

Why not go "whole-hog" (if you'll pardon the pun)? Most importantly: DH and I love meat and I don't especially love vegetables. In fact, I'm a very reluctant vegetable eater and I've struggled hard to incorporate them into my meals. Give me boiled or steamed veggies (with a very few exceptions) in a pile on my plate and I'm unlikely to eat them. For this reason, despite the fact that I've long aspired to vegetarianism, I didn't think it was realistic and figured I'd probably starve.

So why on earth do I want to do this? Good question. Without getting into the many long and difficult arguments, I'll give you my main reasons:

• Ethical and Financial - The more I learn about how the majority of food animals are raised, fed, bred, and slaughtered I don't want to be a part of it. There are better alternatives, but doing things "right" costs much more money than assembly-line, corner-cutting factory farming. So either we find more money in the budget, or we treat meat as a treat. The big bonus to the alternative sources I've found is the taste - unlike anything I've ever tasted before and so delicious.
• Health - I want to eat delicious food. I don't want to feel that I'm missing out on meat. If that happens, this will end up as a short-lived experiment rather than a lifestyle change. So I've got to find great-tasting meals with lots of variety. It also means that eating out will become even more of a rarity. I'll be cooking more of our meals and by default, we'll be making better choices with our food.

What spurred this on? Mostly a lot of reading and a lot of thinking. About a year ago I read The Omnivore's Dilemma and In Defense of Food. Excellent books, great reads and really thought-provoking. I think they should be required reading. A month ago, I finally watched Food Inc. and my mom's group book club started reading Omnivore's Dilemma (at my request). I just finished the short and sweet Food Rules and have started our next book club selection: Eating Animals. But long before all of this, I took a first year university philosophy course on ethics, where we discussed the philosophical arguments for and against vegetarianism. The seed was planted then, so to speak.

So we've been at this for over a week, officially, and I'm thrilled both with how much we're enjoying our new way of eating and with how easy it has been. DH has been wonderfully supportive and on-board. He is a pretty adventurous eater and has loved sampling the new recipes like this 4-cheese Manicotti.

4-cheese Manicotti - unbelievably delicious

I followed the recipe, but for these exceptions: omitted the spinach - didn't have any, used our favourite Zarky's sauce (no extra anything in it, as close as you can get to making your own) instead of following the marinara recipe. I served it with a cheese garlic bubble bread. Words can't describe how tasty this meal was. I asked my husband at the end of the meal, "did you miss the meat?" His answer, "no way!" While the example may not have fulfilled the "healthy" motivation, it sure was encouraging and satisfying.

Which brings me to my next post... My Quinoa Obsession

Feeding the family during "Snowmageddon"

We'd expected anywhere from 30 to 45cm of snow in Hamilton yesterday, but didn't get it. What we did get was enough to shut down the city and we all got a snow day - yay! There was something about all the snow outside, the sound of snowblowers and shoveling, and being snug and warm inside that made me want to cook. I'd heard of people stockpiling groceries in the days leading up to the storm, but I was happy that we had more than enough to sustain us for several days (but probably more). We'd run out of raisin bread - the boys' favourite - and so I made a new recipe in the bread machine. It turned out great and so much better than storebought.

I still felt like baking - and honestly, bread machine bread can't really be called "baking" - so upon a suggestion from my sister-in-law to check my freezer for summer fruit, I settled on a berry buckle. It uses a handful of basic ingredients, plus frozen berries. The boys helped and it was fresh out of the oven when they and DH returned from shoveling the driveway.

For dinner, I'd already planned on making loaded baked potato chowder in my new Pampered Chef Covered Baker. (Aside: I recently had a party and stocked up on some stoneware and necessary cooking tools for next to nothing. I got $258 worth of stuff for about $19. I was thrilled.) The chowder is made in the microwave - I almost never "cook" in the microwave, just heat - and takes about 30min from start to finish, including prep. It tasted fabulous and was really easy - not to mention frugal!

So today, the bread is almost gone and I may just be making another loaf for tomorrow. The chowder probably has about 2 servings left and the berry buckle is about half gone. So what's for dinner tonight? Hmmmm... I'm on a quinoa kick after purchasing Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood (more in a post to follow) and am thinking of trying the "Outrageously Quick and Easy Pizza Crust". However, I only have bread machine yeast, not quick rise yeast and am trying to figure out how to successfully substitute. Fingers crossed, we'll have a yummy pizza for dinner.

Irresistible Zucchini Bread

Last night I dug out some frozen shredded zucchini. It was from our garden. In 2009! I thawed it, rinsed it, drained it, squeezed it (to remove some of the extra water), and it was just fine.

I used it to make a family favourite: Zucchini Bread. It's from my beloved Betty Crocker cookbook. I've had the book since about 1998 and it has so many good recipes.

Photo from BettyCrocker.com

You can see the recipe here. Modifications I make: reduce sugar by 1/3 cup to 1 1/3 cups; reduce cloves to 1/4 tsp (I'm not a huge fan of cloves); for flour, I use a blend (see below); skip the nuts (my boys don't like them).

My sons helped me make the bread (which they prefer to call "cake") and love to eat it. What an easy way to get some veggies into them.

I've made the pumpkin variation before and am considering trying it with butternut squash.

When I harvest the zucchini from the garden (you can also buy it in season from a farmer's market), I wash and shred it right away. If you've got really picky eaters who will balk at a little green in their bread, you can peel the green off before shredding. I prefer to leave it on to keep the vitamins. I put three cups into a bag, mark it and pop it in the freezer. This way I can make a zucchini bread whenever the mood strikes. Even over 1.5 years later!

Flour Blend (from "The Sneaky Chef" by Missy Chase Lapine): Mix together 1 cup unbleached white flour, 1 cup wheat germ, and 1 cup whole wheat or whole grain flour. Once blended evenly, use instead of white flour in recipes. I keep mine in a glass jar in the freezer (so the whole wheat flour doesn't go rancid) and then measure out what I need for a recipe.

Beer Bread

Yesterday I baked a Beer Bread to take to a gathering we were attending. I just realised that I've never posted it on this site! I'll get a picture the next time I make it.

A few notes:

• It's very easy (no kneading, no rising, minimal ingredients), and tastes phenomenal right out of the oven. 
• Use the 1/2 cup butter (vs 1/4) - if you get 10 slices from your loaf, it's really not that much butter. 
• I bake mine in a silicone bread pan and it just pops right out. No mess and the crust is deliciously crispy (from the butter).
• Sooo yummy and you don't have to like beer to love it.

Beer Bread recipe on Food.com (formerly Recipezaar.com).

Gift Idea: Put all the dry ingredients in a large jar, attach the recipe, and a bottle of beer. The recipient only needs to provide the butter.

Mothering Matters Meeting Recap

I had the privilege recently of speaking at a Mothering Matters meeting about being frugal and green. There was so much to cover and I'm no public speaker so I jumper all over the place based on questions and comments.

As promised, here is a list of products and resources that I mentioned in my talk.

Products I'm using:
hair care - Kiss My Face, Whenever shampoo and conditioner (purchased at Fortinos)
toothpaste - Desert Essence, ginger (purchased at Fortinos)
deoderant - Crystal, all natural body deodorant, roll-on (for some great info about deoderants and anti-perspirants, see here) (purchased at Goodness Me!)

Companies I'm interested in:
Norwex - cleaning without chemicals (just got my supplies today, will post on my experiences soon)
Melaleuca - "naturally based products that promote wellness and vitality" (currently trying a sampling of products and will post results)
Shaklee - "creating healthier lives"

Books for inspiration:
"Slow Death by Rubber Duck", by Rick Smith, Bruce Lourie (see my post about this book here)

The Story of Stuff Project:
 These online videos are enlightening and made in an easy-to-follow manner. Especially good for teaching.
- The Story of Stuff
- The Story of Cosmetics
- The Story of Electronics

Once again, a big thank you for inviting me to speak. If you want to know more, please consider following this blog. Now that my life has "simplified" somewhat, I will be posting more regularly. :)

My 4-year-old's portrait of me, with a heart for me to love him (his words).

Tic, tic, can you hear it?

...that's my face tic-ing as I gaze in the mirror.

Am I the only one who is starting to witness the ravages of time (and childbirth) on the body? I turn 34 in a few weeks and although I don't feel old on the inside, I am starting to look it on the outside. I didn't expect that at only (almost) 34!

There's the grey hair and the wrinkles - standard stuff, but more than I was ready for. Then there's the sagging skin from weight fluctuations due to...ahem...overeating, then 2 pregnancies, and all the associated (thank goodness) weight loss. When I bend in half and look down at my stomach, it grimaces from side to side! Oh, speaking of side, ever catch a look at your face in the mirror with your head tipped to the side? Mine kind of melts off like a Salvador Dali painting. Attractive.

And need I mention the boobs? Whether it's the weight fluctuations, the pregnancies, or the breastfeeding, they are a shadow of their former selves. A proper (and expensive) bra complete with professional fitting is definitely in order. (Anyone done that before?)

I hate to be one of those "pity me, I'm so old" kind of people, because of course I'm not that old. It's just dawning on me that I might actually be a grown-up. My (valuable and hard-won) experience is now spilling over not-so-gracefully to my outer self for all the world to see. I'm not ashamed at all, just...blindsided, you know?

CSA Weeks 10, 11, and 12 - The End!

Well, my CSA share has ended. I've many thoughts on the issue (the subject of a future post), but first I'll summarize the haul.


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #10
Bananas (4) 904 g
Lettuce (1) 178 g
Banana Peppers (8) 274 g
Carrots - large (5) 1.239 kg
Onions (2) 501 g
Broccoli 771 g
Potatoes (3) 542 g
Spring Mix (bag) 144 g
Mushrooms (bag) 112 g
Green Beans 573 g
Oranges - satsuma (4) 372 g
Lemons (1) 94 g
Apples - delicious (6) 646 g
Total - 6.350 kg


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #11
Bananas (4) 730 g
Broccoli 717 g
Red Onions (2) 629 g
Fingerling Potatoes (9) 511 g
Green Pepper (1) 190 g
Spring Mix (bag) 153 g
Unpasteurized Apple Cider (2 L) 2.102 kg
Cranberries (half small bag) 111 g
Apples (5) 501 g
Oranges - satsuma (4) 307 g
Pomegranate (1) 127 g
Boston Lettuce (1) 180 g
Total - 6.258 kg

We were away for our week #12 pickup, so I gave it to a friend and asked her to make a list of what it contained.

FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #12
potatoes (2)
oranges (4)
apples (4)
red onions (2)
peanut squash
carrots (bag)
boston lettuce (1)
lettuce mix (bag)
pint of grape tomatoes (1 pint)
broccoli (1)

GRAND TOTAL (11 weeks) - 63.7 kg (average 5.8 kg/week)

As for usage and wastage...I admit I've commpletely lost track at this point. The holiday season through a wrench in the works and a lot of food was wasted, because we weren't home to cook or were already overloaded with food from other sources. The cider (a delicious surprise) and almost of the fruit was consumed and we've still got many potatoes, sweet potatoes, and onions left. The greens, celery, and far-too-numerous carrots didn't fare so well.

This was our second week without a pickup and so far I don't miss it. I'm still clearing old produce out of the fridge, which is a little sad. I'd had such high hopes...but as I said, that is another post.

Life Balance...or Not

It seems that my biggest challenge right now is life balance. I recently began working from home and I am so enthusiastic about it that it is threatening to consume me. I'm a part-time student taking a university course by correspondance and I haven't cracked by textbook in weeks. I normally love cooking, but haven't had much drive to plan meals lately. I am a blogger that doesn't blog.

At least my children are vocal enough to make sure I continue to meet their needs! In fact, our family calendar is filling up fast since my husband and 3.5-year-old have started taking karate (F is Mon. & Wed. nights, DH is Tue. & Thu. nights, and they both go on Sat. mornings). Both boys go to preschool programs on Wed. mornings. I'm a member of a fantastic mom's group in Hamilton and I try to make it to several events a week. Things are getting busy around here.

I've wanted to make New Year resolutions, but I've procrastinated. That says a lot right there. So before my bloglessness gets out of control, I'm jumping back in. I aim to blog often, but not necessarily in bulk. If I try to write a long post, invariably I get interrupted, it gets put in the Draft bin, and rarely makes it out. So now that I have less free time, I'm lowering the blogging bar a little. We'll see how it goes.

CSA Weeks #7, 8, and 9

Has it been this long?! I'll admit I've been neglecting my blogging duties (more about that in my previous post), but I hadn't realised I'd missed so many CSA updates. And there's another one to come for tonight!

I won't get into the ins and outs of where all the food has gone, but instead just generalities. First of all, we've lost a lot of greens. Our fridge tends to freeze stuff when it gets too full and it has been too full. (Frozen greens are limp and gross!) I've dialed down the temp and hopefully that will help. Also my youngest (still breastfeeding) gets terrible gas pains whenever I indulge in a green salad. This has been a major deterrent, despite how much I love them.

Next, I can't seem to keep the beets. Why do they always go soft on me? I can't figure it out. The potatoes and sweet potatoes are kicking along, as are the onions, except that they're now sprouting on me. The garlic is piling up (another gas-maker) and so are the celery and carrots. Fruit is not a problem - it generally gets eaten long before the week is through. The challenges lately? Avocado, cauliflower, and cucumber (we were overloaded in the summer).

My biggest problem lately however, has been focus. I've been busy with my new business and have not been cooking as much. The push is now easing and I'm starting to cook again. We've all got colds now, though, so that might put a hamper on things for a few more days.

As for recipes, well I've made chili, lasagna, and shepherd's pie recently using some of the produce. All are easy, frugal stand-bys and are especially welcome with the cold weather we've had lately. (I'll post recipe links soon!)


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #7
Mushrooms (bag) 103 g
Yams (2) 501 g
Onions - medium (5) 585 g
Onions - small (4) 255 g
Beets (5) 390 g
Avocado (1) 193 g
Spring Mix (bag) 220 g
Baby Swiss Chard (bag) 238 g
Celery (bunch) 688 g
Green Pepper (1) 229 g
Garlic (2) 100 g
Tomato (1) 176 g
Apples (6) 571 g
Total - 5.041 kg


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #8
Yams (2) 430 g
Onions (3) 493 g
Spring Mix (bag) 147 g
Baby Spinach (bag) 154 g
Carrots (bag) 996 g
Garlic (2) 98 g
Apples (6) 707 g
Pears (2) 325 g
Oranges (4) 664 g
Cauliflower (1) 649 g
Bananas (5) 1020 g
Potatoes (4) 591 g
Total - 6.274 kg


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #9
Red Onions (3) 459 g
Spring Mix (bag) 156 g
Spinach (bunch) 222 g
Garlic (1) 51 g
Apples (4) 516 g
Grapefruit (1) 371 g
Lemon (1) 127 g
Bananas (5) 1034 g
Avocado (1) 180 g
Green Pepper (1) 318 g
Potatoes (4) 615 g
Green Beans 366 g
Summer Lettuce 233 g
Celery (bunch) 689 g
Slicing Cucumber (1) 335 g
Total - 7.672 kg

Oh and I have to mention that I have been enjoying immensely the Beretta Organics ground turkey I bought from Goodness Me! last week. I have never tasted anything like it! It tastes like 'meat'. I can't really describe it except to say that it is soooooo good. To paraphrase Michael Pollan, it tastes the way ground turkey should taste. It actually tastes even better than I ever thought it could taste. Am I exaggerating? I don't think so. I've had ground beef from Beretta in the past and raved about it. I've also got some of their bacon sitting in the freezer for a special occasion and I'm sure it will be the best bacon I've ever had. I've already looked into buying in bulk from Beretta, but since we don't live in their delivery area we'd have to drive to King City to pick it up ourselves. I'm seriously considering placing an order to do just that. Not only does the meat taste better, it feels better to know that the animals have been respected and raised in a humane and healthy fashion.

A Life Less Simple

Well, this is not simplifying at all: I've started a new business. I had no intention of working from home, but it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up. I am now a consultant for Usborne Books at Home, a company based in the UK that makes wonderful books for children and teens. As a consultant, I do home shows, exhibits, and promote literacy. Once I have a little experience under my belt, I aim to get certified to sell to schools and do literacy fairs.

I got hooked a few weeks ago when a friend of mine hosted a party and I was blown away by the quality of the books. I wanted them all. Better yet, they have a large French language catalogue. My husband is French and we are endeavouring to raise the boys bilingual. Trying to find French books for purchase (the library is pretty well stocked) in Hamilton is a losing battle. We're limited to a very small rack at one Indigo store. Usborne has almost 500 French titles in Canada. They sell very well in Quebec and I hope to find a wide audience in our area.
Recycling things to make and do
So why didn't I just buy instead of deciding to sell? My husband asked me the same question. I already have my hands full already with two little ones and a university course on the side. (Not to mention my poor, neglected blog.) Despite this, I was craving another challenge. I'm lucky to be surrounded in my life by small business owners and there's a part of me that has itched to try my hand at it. I attended my first Social Mamas mamapreneurs meeting this month and found a welcoming group of creative and talented businesswomen full of helpful ideas to get me started.
The Story of Rubbish
But how does my new job fit into my philosophy of simplicity, self-sufficiency, and frugality? That was my big stumbling block
- Simple? Not. My life and the life of my family will become more busy and complicated for sure. We will also have a lot more 'stuff' in our home, but books are something I make an exception for and we've already got a ton of them. A little more won't hurt and they are useful, reusable, beautiful, and educational.
- Self-sufficient? I will be providing access for my children to a wealth of high quality, engaging reading material for very little cost to us. I will also (I hope!) be bringing a little more money into our budget, thereby allowing us a little more financial freedom.
- Frugal? The initial investment was very very small and will be made back quickly. In return, I have LOTS and LOTS of great books. Assuming I would have been buying the books anyway in the future, this is a very frugal decision.
Le temps et les changements climatiques
Now, can I run a business in a way that supports and promotes my principles? This is where I'm looking for suggestions. Usborne itself has impressive ethical and safety policies, which pertain to the manufacturing of its products. But how do I advertise and communicate and package in an eco-conscious fashion? I'd rather not give customers their orders in plastic bags, so I'm trying to find a greener way to meet the need to keep the books safe from the elements. I'm not seeing many options yet. I've got a theory I'm about to test and if it works, I may have a solution. More on that another time. If anyone has any suggestions, please comment, I'm all ears. As for advertising and marketing, I'm relying on word-of-mouth and the internet. I've got a temporary website set up and will be making a more customized one myself (once I learn a little about web design). Facebook and Twitter are also becoming fixtures in my life as I learn how to use them as business tools rather than pure social networking arenas.

This is a strange new world for me and having done no research ahead of time, I'm scrambling to catch up. How do you balance your work life and home life and manage to adhere to your personal philosophy of life?

Update: find my new Usborne website here.

CSA Week #6

Realising this blog won't write itself, I figure it's time. I'll admit I'm hesitant since I'm feeling a little guilty about my progress with our veggies. My reason for blogging about our experience with a weekly Community Supported Agriculture share was to force me to be accountable and push me to use it wisely. Thank goodness for that, otherwise we might have long been buried in rotting produce.

I'll also admit that this week I've also been a little distracted. I've been crocheting my little heart out, both for my family and for charity. The kids have been challenging too this week and when they'd finally relax, so would I. We had our in-laws here for the weekend and for once, I didn't cook much. (Usually I relish the opportunity to try out some new recipes on them, as they're adventurous eaters.)


FrugalMaman's Fall CSA Box Week #6
Carrots (bag) 921 g
Onions (4) 639 g
Boston Lettuce (1) 234 g
Arugula (1 bunch) 103 g
Celery (1) 831 g
Yams (1) 470 g
Potatoes (5) 748 g
Cabbage (1) 524 g
Bosc Pears (5) 926 g
Apples (6) 888 g
Bananas (6) 1.006 kg
Oranges (3) 438 g
Total - 7.728 kg

We've currently got 3 full bags of carrots (!) in the fridge begging to be used. There's still zucchini, avocado (is it still usable?), lots of salad greens, celery, some apples, and pears. There's a pile of onions, potatoes, and yams waiting patiently for consumption. I still haven't made the Curried Carrot and Cashew Soup (today, maybe) or the Zucchini Carrot Muffins. I did make a butter chicken dish using some of the onion, potato, and carrot - delicious, but I used a commercial spice mix so won't be posting the recipe this time. I'm still a little intimidated by guacamole (is it tough to make? how quickly does it need to be eaten? are the avocados still edible?) so that hasn't been made yet.


I did make a Spelt Bread this weekend, which was well received. It's super easy and quick with only 5 ingredients and no rise time. I've been inspired to try making green smoothies with some of our greens, but am a little nervous that K., who is still breastfeeding, will get really gassy. I'm willing to try it at least once, since it seems like an excellent way to get in some important nutrients. I suppose I'd better get busy, after all, we get another haul tomorrow!

APLS Blog Carnival at Greening Families

I'm thrilled to be listed first in my first submission for November's APLS (Affluent Persons Living Sustainably) Blog Carnival. Hosted by Greening Families, this month's posts concern how people have been affected by their efforts to live a more sustainable life. Read all the posts here. For more about APLS read this.

Behind the Times and Loving It

One could argue that it's because I'm getting older (though I'm only 33), or because I have two young children, but I believe that it's mostly because of our decision to simplify our lives and live a more frugal and sustainable life that has caused it. I never would have guessed that I'd become so out of "the know" regarding popular culture. I couldn't tell you what television shows, movies, songs, or stars are popular. I haven't the slightest idea. What's more: I don't care. How far I have come.


Media unplugged: It began with not listening to the radio, when I became a stay at home mom, as I was no longer commuting to work. I also no longer watched the news in the morning as I prepared for the work day. With a young baby who was very sensitive and needy, we quit going to the movies, because he couldn't take being away from me for very long. When my son started paying attention to television and began to react to what he saw, we stopped watching many things when he was in the room. We then realised that there was little time or energy to watch these things when he wasn't in the room. Eventually we cancelled our television service. When my beloved newspapers started piling up after having our second child, I cancelled the newspaper too. I recently received some magazine subscriptions for my birthday (at my request), but I can't keep up and don't want them renewed.


Shop less: As finances got tighter, shopping lessened. I found one of the best ways to save money was to not go shopping! I started to fall out of fashion (not that I was ever terribly "in fashion"). The latest technical gadgets became far out of our reach. Flashy cars (not that we'd ever really coveted those either) were an impossibility without going into debt. The big house was too expensive to buy, decorate, and maintain. The "better neighbourhood" was too far away from my husband's new job and to live closer cost less so we moved. (BONUS: We love our current house, neighbourhood, and city much more than the last.) Without television urging us to "buy, buy, buy", we don't even know what we're missing.

Have you seen...? Have you heard...?: No and no. I keep somewhat up to date with current events via the internet, and I overhear friends discussing current entertainment. Aside from that, don't know, don't care. For my Christmas wishlist, I ask for DVD box sets of the next season of some of my favourite tv shows (many of which have long since ended) and throughout the year I slowly plod through them. I really enjoyed The Sopranos, but I still haven't finished the final season. I adore LOST, but please don't talk to me about it; I still haven't finished last season. Every now and then I borrow a season of Big Love or Weeds from the library, but I only get to watch a few episodes before it goes back and I'm on the waiting list again. (I should 'fess up here and admit that I am pretty aware of what is popular in the preschooler entertainment world. Somehow, we haven't escaped that!)

Don't you miss it?: I never thought I'd say this, as I used to be quite the pop culture junkie, but absolutely not. I am more aware now of advertising and marketing. When watching television at someone else's house, I feel assaulted by the commercials. "Leave me alone! I don't need that!" I feel.


What do you do with your time?: I've found that I have more time and energy (and money) for other pursuits. I cook more. I read much more. I spend more time with family. I play with my children. I vacation in the backyard. I socialize more. I blog. I grow my own food. I can and freeze and dehydrate homegrown or local produce. I research ways to save money, eliminate chemicals from our home, be more self-sufficient. With out the busy-ness of keeping up with popular culture, I live at a slightly (since I have two very young children) slower pace. The best part: now that I am not so distracted, I have and take the opportunity to savour simple pleasures and share these with my husband and children.

"...The positive psychologists confirmed scientifically, in other words, what simple-living advocates have been asserting for so long anecdotally: a life lived with less emphasis on acquisition might have the effect of leaving more time for richer, less resource-intensive life awards, making both the planet and the people happier." from "No Impact Man", by Colin Beavan.