CSA crop share 2007 01

Oh. My. Goodness. Life is just so good!

I picked up our very first crop share from Blooming Glen Farm in Perkasie today, which included some of the most luscious pick-your-own strawberries EVER.

(Click on the photos to see larger photographs and notes at flick'r.)

I can't say enough about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Pick a soapbox -- fresh produce is healthier, local food supply is better, preserve land through agriculture, organic farming is needed, CSA shares are a great value for your grocery dollar, environmentalism through consumerism, support sustainability/durability of the planet, variety of produce is unbeatable -- then climb up on top of it and go buy a share at your local CSA this season. Check out Local Harvest for a place near you!

So are they a vegetable, fruit or grain?

In response to a letter I wrote regarding the use of gelatin in a Curel brand body lotion:

Mikaela,

Thank you for your inquiry. Our Curel Continuous Comfort Moisturizer does contain gelatin; however, it is derived from a fish and not an animal.

We are pleased to inform you that we do not use animals to test any aspect of our products. Additionally, current plans do not include the use of animals in the development of new products.

Thank you for the opportunity to be of service.

Cordially,
Kao Brands Consumer Relations Department
Ban Biore Curel Jergens John Frieda

I've had this email for a couple weeks, and have not replied yet because I keep thinking I'll come up with some eloquent and clever response. But then every time I think about it, I'm just like, "Dude, are you serious?"

So why are we doing... all of this?

She, is amazing. For a lot of reasons. A ton, really.

Today though, she's amazing because when I told her, in a fit of awareness, that NONE OF THIS SHIT EVEN MATTERS - NONE OF IT!, it was not only something that she too benefited from hearing out loud, but also something to which she thoughtfully and beautifully added:

"You know... sometimes remembering that none of this matters is kind of sad. But sometimes... it's also kind of a relief."

Fuckin' a.

I love that girl.

BBQ "Pomegranate" Tofu

A big yummy salad with spinach and spring greens, avocado and pomegranate served with Vegan with a Vengeance BBQ Pomegranate Tofu (pg. 149) and Coconut Rice with Toasted Coconut (pg. 109).

The picture above is from the first time I made this dish, and I've made it several times since. It's fast become my new favorite meal to share, as everyone (omnivore, veg*n, etc.) seems to have love for this BBQ sauce. My take has evolved into BBQ "Pomegranate" Tofu because after going to two Indian markets, an gigantic international market and Whole Foods, I've yet to find the pomegranate molasses the recipe calls for. Additionally, besides the first time I made the sauce, I've not been able to find pomegranates, as they're out of season.

Most recently, I brought in the BBQ Pomegranate Tofu, without any trace of pomegranate, for Fun Lunch Day(R) at my work. It was served with the coconut rice and a side of steamed veggies (orange, red, yellow and green peppers and cabbage) and a spring mix salad.

When at first I couldn't find the molasses, I used this recipezaar.com "Homade [no, that is not a typo] Pomegranate Molasses" recipe, http://www.recipezaar.com/86849. My method has slowly dissolved itself to any combination of pomegranate juice and/or regular molasses, or no substitution at all. I don't really notice the difference.

I'd still like to get my hands on some pomegranate molasses, if only out of the desire that seems to have built exponentially into an obsession since I can't find it near my home. I know I could find it online, but really, it's the thrill of the hunt, you know :)

And speaking of fun lunch, here's a gratuitous photo of momma Sam with a meal collected from several vegetarian side dishes in the prepared foods section at the DelVal Market. She was quite happy to show this off to her veg*n coworkers! Be sure to note Cinder's shameless chops-licking:

skarpifny in charleston

Combined, the five of us girls equal skarpifny. One was married on April 29, 2007 in Charleston, SC and we all made the journey to be there. Stefanie (with husband, Anthony); Nancy and me; Emily (with fiancée, Matt); and of course, Ellie (she married Patrick):



Although we all hung out a various times over the weekend, my travel buddy was Ms. Nancy Pants. She and I actually took on a side job, painting an apartment in the weeks leading up to the wedding, in order to earn money and avoid credit card debt for the trip. Aren't we resourceful? We indulged in dark chocolate at every opportunity (our current favorite is organic Dagoba with lavender and blueberries), were ashamed of our sudden junk food habit (that does *not* include the chocolate, of course), slept in a bunk bed at the NotSo Hostel and realized that we will make fabulous witty and whiny old ladies. We also saved $160 per plane ticket by flying home on a Monday instead of a Sunday, leaving us with an extra day to mob around Charleston. Here's Nancy at the Charleston Farmers Market:

Charleston was beautiful and so lush, full of trees and sweet-smelling jasmine. I don't know that I've ever seen a city with so much contrast so close together. A shop with $500 shoes only a few blocks from a home with a fallen-in roof; a Holocaust memorial near the "old slave mart;" historic, gigantic, expensive houses next to condemned homes (for sale, of course, and probably to be replaced with even more high-income housing); a neat little mom and pop sporting goods store across the street from Pottery Barn, American Apparel and Urban Outfitters. It seems to be a place in transition, and although I expect to see contrasts like that in a bigger city, I was surprised to see it in a smallish southern town. Like a lot of previously-undesirable downtown areas, it's as if rich folk are running out of room in the suburbs and have turned around and headed back to Main Street.

That all said, we did have a great time while we were there. Ellie's wedding was just like her: simple, elegant and stunning. The atmosphere at Legare-Waring House was classic and welcoming, and the food satisfied us all, vegan to meat-lover. The rest of the weekend was marked by a supremely kick-ass vegan breakfast at Rutledge Coffee and Cream, an entire day spent lounging on the porch swings at Waterfront Park, a number of "May I have a grande chai latte with soymilk, please?" stops at Kudu Coffee, lovely walks through the neighborhoods, a vegan- and celieac-friendly dinner at Little Thai Too, meeting a very sweet couple at their basket weaving booth at the above-mentioned farmers market, and NotSo Hostel's giant front porch and divine hammock.

Dude, I owned that hammock - and the porch swing. There was definite theme to my weekend:


Rock.