i had a large garden pot so i made a little garden. i'm attempting to grow green onions and cilantro. with a ginger plant in the center of the pot. we'll see how it goes, it might be too hot here for cilantro, but i'm going to try to keep the pot in the shade.
i found this website with a lot of gardening instructions:
http://www.howtogrowstuff.com/how-to-grow-cilantro/
Showing posts with label link. Show all posts
Showing posts with label link. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Zucchini Bread Smoothie
I saw this recipe because i am a fan of Blendtec on facebook. and they posted a link to a blog with this recipe.
http://edibleperspective.com/2011/09/change-is-good-so-are-recipes/
(scroll down past the bunch of pics of this lady's haircut...)
i had most of the other ingredients so i got a zucchini to try. i didn't follow it exactly, but the general idea was there. i added a little dried coconut, used buckwheat instead of oats, and flax seed instead of chia. i think i through in some psyllium to so it was very thick even without any ice. i've made it twice now (i knew i'd better use up the rest of the zucchini right away or i may never do it) the second time i added a little thinly sliced fresh ginger and some cardamon, and a frozen banana because i wanted a little more volume. i really don't taste much zucchini, but that's alright.
i think it is possible to make this totally raw if you make your own nutmilk (or just use water or coconut water) and use a raw honey for the sweetner. so then it's just zucchini, nuts, seeds, and spices. pretty good.
i didn't use any vanilla or protein powder and i went with soymilk for the liquid and agave for the sweetner. It really did resemble the taste of zuchinni bread batter and was a good use of a vegetable in a smoothie. It's one of those drinks that is less fruity and more of a creamy, protein, cookie milkshake taste (yum!) and i'll probably make it again sometime
http://edibleperspective.com/2011/09/change-is-good-so-are-recipes/
(scroll down past the bunch of pics of this lady's haircut...)
i had most of the other ingredients so i got a zucchini to try. i didn't follow it exactly, but the general idea was there. i added a little dried coconut, used buckwheat instead of oats, and flax seed instead of chia. i think i through in some psyllium to so it was very thick even without any ice. i've made it twice now (i knew i'd better use up the rest of the zucchini right away or i may never do it) the second time i added a little thinly sliced fresh ginger and some cardamon, and a frozen banana because i wanted a little more volume. i really don't taste much zucchini, but that's alright.
i think it is possible to make this totally raw if you make your own nutmilk (or just use water or coconut water) and use a raw honey for the sweetner. so then it's just zucchini, nuts, seeds, and spices. pretty good.
i didn't use any vanilla or protein powder and i went with soymilk for the liquid and agave for the sweetner. It really did resemble the taste of zuchinni bread batter and was a good use of a vegetable in a smoothie. It's one of those drinks that is less fruity and more of a creamy, protein, cookie milkshake taste (yum!) and i'll probably make it again sometime
Friday, May 6, 2011
Freshly Baked Breadfruit
during my third third trip to the farmers market i decided that i should try something new each time i go there (or at least once in a while) so this time i went for Breadfruit, which sounds delicious.
Breadfruit originally came from the Philippines and grows in many tropical locales.
the Hawaiian name for it is Ulu. i think it is related to durian and jackfruit and it has that same spiky rugby ball look.
this is the Hawaiian legend about its origins (taken from wikipedia):
According to an etiological Hawaiian myth, the breadfruit originated from the sacrifice of the war god Kū. After deciding to live secretly among mortals as a farmer, Kū married and had children. He and his family lived happily until a famine seized their island. When he could no longer bear to watch his children suffer, Kū told his wife that he could deliver them from starvation, but to do so he would have to leave them. Reluctantly she agreed, and at her word, Kū descended into the ground right where he had stood until only the top of his head was visible. His family waited around the spot he had last been day and night, watering it with their tears until suddenly a small green shoot appeared where Kū had stood. Quickly, the shoot grew into a tall and leafy tree that was laden with heavy breadfruits that Kū's family and neighbors gratefully ate, joyfully saved from starvation
the breadfruit of Tahiti also played a role in the famous Mutiny on the Bounty.
I know of three or four places that breadfruit grows in my town, including on tree on the street where i live.
this is my breadfruit from the farmers market. i think it cost $2.50
the fuit exudes a white stick sap when it is raw.
exetreme close-up!
the whole thing is made of many parts, i believe they're termed bracts, that have fused together.
the inner wooden-like core must be removed.
I tried it raw and the texture was a bit like creamy avocado but with inner fibers. it tastes a little like banana with a grassy aftertaste, but it is very unique.
know i know this is a raw food blog, but breadfruit is usually cooked. in fact i'm not sure if it is safe to eat a lot of it raw. some things, like taro, should be eaten raw. in the case of taro, it has calcium oxalate crystals inside that are like fiberglass that are neutralized when cooked. with the strange sap of breadfruit, i didn't want to chance it and cooked it. it seemed to ripen the day after i got it, from hard to almost squishy. like plantains it is eaten both unripe and starchy and sweet/ripe. in fact is is cooked in similar ways. it can also be made into chips like potatoes.
I followed the easiest recipe that said to microwave it in a bowl with a little water for 3 minutes or so then add butter to melt on the top. it was very yummy! and it really does have a texture like breaddough. it was less sweet after being cooked and the salt from the butter was a nice addition.
i dropped the raw goo from the other half onto a hot frying pan to amke fritters of sorts. i fried it on both sides like i do to plantains. it tasted a lot like sweet potato fries. :)
to up the savoriness we melted a little cheese on top. shh! ;D
overall i'd recommend that people try this, especially if you are a sweet potato fan. it was very surprising!
learn some more!
check out this helpful page. i didn't know there was a Breadfruit Institute:
http://www.ntbg.org/breadfruit/uses/food1.php
a more technical page with breakdowns of the varieties and the specific nutrient contents:
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/breadfruit.html#Food%20Uses
Breadfruit originally came from the Philippines and grows in many tropical locales.
the Hawaiian name for it is Ulu. i think it is related to durian and jackfruit and it has that same spiky rugby ball look.
this is the Hawaiian legend about its origins (taken from wikipedia):
According to an etiological Hawaiian myth, the breadfruit originated from the sacrifice of the war god Kū. After deciding to live secretly among mortals as a farmer, Kū married and had children. He and his family lived happily until a famine seized their island. When he could no longer bear to watch his children suffer, Kū told his wife that he could deliver them from starvation, but to do so he would have to leave them. Reluctantly she agreed, and at her word, Kū descended into the ground right where he had stood until only the top of his head was visible. His family waited around the spot he had last been day and night, watering it with their tears until suddenly a small green shoot appeared where Kū had stood. Quickly, the shoot grew into a tall and leafy tree that was laden with heavy breadfruits that Kū's family and neighbors gratefully ate, joyfully saved from starvation
the breadfruit of Tahiti also played a role in the famous Mutiny on the Bounty.
I know of three or four places that breadfruit grows in my town, including on tree on the street where i live.
this is my breadfruit from the farmers market. i think it cost $2.50
the fuit exudes a white stick sap when it is raw.
exetreme close-up!
the whole thing is made of many parts, i believe they're termed bracts, that have fused together.
the inner wooden-like core must be removed.
I tried it raw and the texture was a bit like creamy avocado but with inner fibers. it tastes a little like banana with a grassy aftertaste, but it is very unique.
know i know this is a raw food blog, but breadfruit is usually cooked. in fact i'm not sure if it is safe to eat a lot of it raw. some things, like taro, should be eaten raw. in the case of taro, it has calcium oxalate crystals inside that are like fiberglass that are neutralized when cooked. with the strange sap of breadfruit, i didn't want to chance it and cooked it. it seemed to ripen the day after i got it, from hard to almost squishy. like plantains it is eaten both unripe and starchy and sweet/ripe. in fact is is cooked in similar ways. it can also be made into chips like potatoes.
I followed the easiest recipe that said to microwave it in a bowl with a little water for 3 minutes or so then add butter to melt on the top. it was very yummy! and it really does have a texture like breaddough. it was less sweet after being cooked and the salt from the butter was a nice addition.
i dropped the raw goo from the other half onto a hot frying pan to amke fritters of sorts. i fried it on both sides like i do to plantains. it tasted a lot like sweet potato fries. :)
to up the savoriness we melted a little cheese on top. shh! ;D
overall i'd recommend that people try this, especially if you are a sweet potato fan. it was very surprising!
learn some more!
check out this helpful page. i didn't know there was a Breadfruit Institute:
http://www.ntbg.org/breadfruit/uses/food1.php
a more technical page with breakdowns of the varieties and the specific nutrient contents:
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/breadfruit.html#Food%20Uses
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Hanas don't know it's not bacon!
I'd been hesitant about trying the eggplant bacon idea, but i finally got another free eggplant and acted quickly to make it before the eggplant was too old. i searched online for this recipe and there are a lot of different versions:
http://www.eons.com/groups/topic/1790919
http://goneraw.com/recipe/eggplant-bacon
http://www.rawsimple.com/2009/05/everydayraw/
http://www.foodbuzz.com/recipes/1033474-eggplant-bacon-raw-vegan-
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=5762
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfood/message/28760
http://thesunnyrawkitchen.blogspot.com/2007/03/ode-to-raw-sammies-and-wraps-too.html
but i could see that they all had similar flavor elements (and of course they all had the eggplant.)
so they had some:
something oily (olive oil, sunflower..)
something salty (seasalt, soy sauce, bragg's liquid aminos..)
something sweet (honey, agave, maple syrup)
something spicy (black pepper, paprika, chilipowder)
maybe something tart (apple cider vinegar)
so whatever you choose will have a slight effect on the finished taste, but i think it's sorta mix and match. So i built my own recipe based on what i had in the kitchen.
2 tablespoons soysauce
2 Tbs. Apple cider vinegar (i used my home-brew kombucha, it tastes the same)
1/2 tsp. black pepper (used up the last at the bottom of the jar.)
chilipowder ( a teaspoon or so)
taco seasoning (optional. i like that it has cumin, which gives a "meaty" flavor)
2 tbls. honey
i had to add some water to feel like i had enough marinade to cover all the eggplant.
3 tbls oil i used sunflower
here's my marinade in the mixing bowl.
to make all the bacon slices i just cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. then i put the cut side face-down on my mandolin slicer and sliced away! it went so fast. (thanks goes to my sister who gave me this handy kitchen dealy. the blade is so sharp i can make a whole carrot into thin rounds in a snap. cuts through it like butter. )
i put all the slices in a large ziploc bag and poured in the marinade. i added a little extra water until i felt like i had enough to get all the slices drenched in it. i had this bag in the fridge for 24 hours, but it probably didn't have too be that long. it seemed like some of the slices soaked up more than others, and became darker and translucent. i would guess the difference was due to being from different areas on the eggplant?
i laid out the slices on my trays in the evening, and rotated the order of the stack the next morning. i'm not sure how long it took them all to dry, but i think less than one day. they are very thin.
so the end result was a crispy, spicy chip! it reminded me a bit of BBQ flavor potato chips (except these were better.) with the oil on them, they didn't stick to the trays at all. i should have moved them to airtight packaging right away, but i just sorta stored them in the trays. the downside to this was that a few days later, they had reabsorbed some moisture from the air (probably from the hygroscopic nature of the honey) so they had lost the crispiness. that was easy to fix though, i just turned the dehydrator back on for a few hours and they dried out again!
here is some bacon acting as crispy croutons on some salad. ( the white stuff is the raw cheese i mentioned earlier, which makes a yummy dressing)
http://www.eons.com/groups/topic/1790919
http://goneraw.com/recipe/eggplant-bacon
http://www.rawsimple.com/2009/05/everydayraw/
http://www.foodbuzz.com/recipes/1033474-eggplant-bacon-raw-vegan-
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=5762
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfood/message/28760
http://thesunnyrawkitchen.blogspot.com/2007/03/ode-to-raw-sammies-and-wraps-too.html
but i could see that they all had similar flavor elements (and of course they all had the eggplant.)
so they had some:
something oily (olive oil, sunflower..)
something salty (seasalt, soy sauce, bragg's liquid aminos..)
something sweet (honey, agave, maple syrup)
something spicy (black pepper, paprika, chilipowder)
maybe something tart (apple cider vinegar)
so whatever you choose will have a slight effect on the finished taste, but i think it's sorta mix and match. So i built my own recipe based on what i had in the kitchen.
2 tablespoons soysauce
2 Tbs. Apple cider vinegar (i used my home-brew kombucha, it tastes the same)
1/2 tsp. black pepper (used up the last at the bottom of the jar.)
chilipowder ( a teaspoon or so)
taco seasoning (optional. i like that it has cumin, which gives a "meaty" flavor)
2 tbls. honey
i had to add some water to feel like i had enough marinade to cover all the eggplant.
3 tbls oil i used sunflower
here's my marinade in the mixing bowl.
to make all the bacon slices i just cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. then i put the cut side face-down on my mandolin slicer and sliced away! it went so fast. (thanks goes to my sister who gave me this handy kitchen dealy. the blade is so sharp i can make a whole carrot into thin rounds in a snap. cuts through it like butter. )
i put all the slices in a large ziploc bag and poured in the marinade. i added a little extra water until i felt like i had enough to get all the slices drenched in it. i had this bag in the fridge for 24 hours, but it probably didn't have too be that long. it seemed like some of the slices soaked up more than others, and became darker and translucent. i would guess the difference was due to being from different areas on the eggplant?
i laid out the slices on my trays in the evening, and rotated the order of the stack the next morning. i'm not sure how long it took them all to dry, but i think less than one day. they are very thin.
so the end result was a crispy, spicy chip! it reminded me a bit of BBQ flavor potato chips (except these were better.) with the oil on them, they didn't stick to the trays at all. i should have moved them to airtight packaging right away, but i just sorta stored them in the trays. the downside to this was that a few days later, they had reabsorbed some moisture from the air (probably from the hygroscopic nature of the honey) so they had lost the crispiness. that was easy to fix though, i just turned the dehydrator back on for a few hours and they dried out again!
here is some bacon acting as crispy croutons on some salad. ( the white stuff is the raw cheese i mentioned earlier, which makes a yummy dressing)
Friday, January 21, 2011
condiments and beverage
I visited my parents house and was surprised to see a few items that i am used to seeing at work. and there was even raw sunflower butter in the fridge. http://www.rejuvenative.com/catalog_sb.htm i hadn't tried it before so i had a taste. I think it was a little bitter. sunflower seeds can get that way, especially if they are over-sprouted. I'm finding out that sunflower seeds aren't my favorite thing, and i think I'll used them in moderation from now on, rather than making them the base of things like crackers. (just tonight I've been dreaming up an oatmeal cracker with flax and almond. like Scottish oatcakes)
anyway, i don't think I'll be buying a jar of the sunflower butter. My dad said he usually has it with jam or something to sweeten it up.
I'd definitely like to try their hazelnut or Brazil nut butter.
I also tried Inka (a coffee substitute made from roasted and ground barely and rye.) now this isn't raw, but it is very naturala nd simple and i thought i'd give it a try since we sell it at my work and it is good to be knowledgeable about the products on peddles. www.inkacoffee.com
you just take a spoonful of the brown grounds and top off the cup with boiling water. as i stirred it, i was reminded of crispy bacon! there was a definite roasty smell. the taste was similar, very roasted. it wasn't a "full bodied taste though. it wasn't quite like coffee, but if for some reason a person had to quit drinking coffee, they might wants to switch to this. adding milk turned it a grayish brown. :?
but it went fine with breakfast.
The last taste test was something i scored free from work. A raw milk horseradish cheese spread made by Brunkow of Wisconsin. http://www.pcmli.com/cw_bk.htm.
it is uncolored, so it's white and the look of it is alike a tub of the Laughing Cow cheese. But it is very spreadable, almost like very thick mayonnaise when the cheese gets warmed up a tad. the first taste is a little surprising because of the horseradish taste, but it is very tasty and creamy. i'm sure it'll be great as a dip for vegetables to add a punch of flavor. because it is a raw product, the cheese must be aged for at least three months. at least i am fairly sure that's the time frame. I suppose that is long enough to be sure that the "good bacteria" in the cheese has conquered any bad nasties that shouldn't be in there.
anyway, i don't think I'll be buying a jar of the sunflower butter. My dad said he usually has it with jam or something to sweeten it up.
I'd definitely like to try their hazelnut or Brazil nut butter.
I also tried Inka (a coffee substitute made from roasted and ground barely and rye.) now this isn't raw, but it is very naturala nd simple and i thought i'd give it a try since we sell it at my work and it is good to be knowledgeable about the products on peddles. www.inkacoffee.com
you just take a spoonful of the brown grounds and top off the cup with boiling water. as i stirred it, i was reminded of crispy bacon! there was a definite roasty smell. the taste was similar, very roasted. it wasn't a "full bodied taste though. it wasn't quite like coffee, but if for some reason a person had to quit drinking coffee, they might wants to switch to this. adding milk turned it a grayish brown. :?
but it went fine with breakfast.
The last taste test was something i scored free from work. A raw milk horseradish cheese spread made by Brunkow of Wisconsin. http://www.pcmli.com/cw_bk.htm.
it is uncolored, so it's white and the look of it is alike a tub of the Laughing Cow cheese. But it is very spreadable, almost like very thick mayonnaise when the cheese gets warmed up a tad. the first taste is a little surprising because of the horseradish taste, but it is very tasty and creamy. i'm sure it'll be great as a dip for vegetables to add a punch of flavor. because it is a raw product, the cheese must be aged for at least three months. at least i am fairly sure that's the time frame. I suppose that is long enough to be sure that the "good bacteria" in the cheese has conquered any bad nasties that shouldn't be in there.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
good no good?
we had a great day in seattle last saturday. and the evenings meal was at a nice seafood restaurant on the waterfront. i ate too much of the delicious crab dip, calamari, crabcakes, rolls.. it was all very rich ans delicious. but i did notice the next day i had a little headache and i was noticeably clumsy, like discombobulated.
oh food, you were yummy but you did me wrong.
i bought some apples so i can have fresh raw juice.
this is what it's like sometimes in a fancy heatlh food store : http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/index.php?date=121210
oh food, you were yummy but you did me wrong.
i bought some apples so i can have fresh raw juice.
this is what it's like sometimes in a fancy heatlh food store : http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/index.php?date=121210
Saturday, December 4, 2010
here a goat, there a goat...
last saturday, a coworker, boyfriend and I visited a local raw goat milk dairy, St.John's Creamery. http://stjohncreamery.com/index.html it took only ten minutes to get there. and it was at the end of a normal looking neighborhood street. Marcia St.JOhn, the owner was very nice and showed us all around and introduced us to her animals. the goats where very quietly and friendly. she calls them all by name and they come running.
i took a lot of pictures, which you can see at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2062124&id=27500177&l=88b955acc3
i shot a little video:
i missed the part where marcia was talking about a clinic in the 20s and 30s that took patients that had TB and such, and put them on an all raw milk diet, and they all improved, even after medicine hadn't done anything for these people. the doctor was then convinced that food is the key to health.
there has been a mutation in Holstein cows, in australia i think she said, in the casein protein has started to cause autism and diabetes in children, both rising helth issues. so when it was found, the changed the genetic stock of their cows. this was 3 years ago, and most of the USA has never heard of this.
info tidbits:
the currently USDA leader thinks that raw milk is a human pathogen. it's a shame that the government is so overprotective of the people's health that it usually ends up hurting them.
I didn't know that goat milk burns alkaline in the body, but cow milk,even raw, becomes an acid. goat milk also doesn't cause phlegm in the human body like cow milk does.
the udders on the goat are separate, closed systems. milk doesn't flow from one side to the other.
you can keep milking a goat doe for a long time after she has a kid, years even. of course the milk will slow down in the winter, but it can come back in the spring ,even without a new kidding.
i asked marcia why there is no raw butter and yogurt. selling them is illegal right now. the yogurt is probably because it's harder to control the bacterial growth when you don't start from a pasturized clean slate. butter on the other hand.. marcia said when you separate out the cream, you are taking out the milk sugars (which bacteria feed on) and you are using the milkfat. so it should be pretty safe since you've removed the part the bacteria feed on.
she gave us free samples of milk. i can taste the similiarities between goat butter that i had in the past. i know tht when people hear "goat milk" they think os something stinky, gooey, or maybe even chunky! but it's very much like cows milk, but with a slightly different taste.
i took a lot of pictures, which you can see at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2062124&id=27500177&l=88b955acc3
i shot a little video:
i missed the part where marcia was talking about a clinic in the 20s and 30s that took patients that had TB and such, and put them on an all raw milk diet, and they all improved, even after medicine hadn't done anything for these people. the doctor was then convinced that food is the key to health.
there has been a mutation in Holstein cows, in australia i think she said, in the casein protein has started to cause autism and diabetes in children, both rising helth issues. so when it was found, the changed the genetic stock of their cows. this was 3 years ago, and most of the USA has never heard of this.
info tidbits:
the currently USDA leader thinks that raw milk is a human pathogen. it's a shame that the government is so overprotective of the people's health that it usually ends up hurting them.
I didn't know that goat milk burns alkaline in the body, but cow milk,even raw, becomes an acid. goat milk also doesn't cause phlegm in the human body like cow milk does.
the udders on the goat are separate, closed systems. milk doesn't flow from one side to the other.
you can keep milking a goat doe for a long time after she has a kid, years even. of course the milk will slow down in the winter, but it can come back in the spring ,even without a new kidding.
i asked marcia why there is no raw butter and yogurt. selling them is illegal right now. the yogurt is probably because it's harder to control the bacterial growth when you don't start from a pasturized clean slate. butter on the other hand.. marcia said when you separate out the cream, you are taking out the milk sugars (which bacteria feed on) and you are using the milkfat. so it should be pretty safe since you've removed the part the bacteria feed on.
she gave us free samples of milk. i can taste the similiarities between goat butter that i had in the past. i know tht when people hear "goat milk" they think os something stinky, gooey, or maybe even chunky! but it's very much like cows milk, but with a slightly different taste.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)