Mid Afternoon snack: Apples and Peanut butter vs Christine's chocolate.

1-11-11

Since there are soooo many 1's in today's date, I'm going to celebrate it as a New Year. A sort of do over if you will... My love of yummy treats and new found love of baking has led me astray, so starting today (again) I'm going to try and do better. Normally around this time of day I'd be eating a piece (or 3) of chocolate that my boss graciously keeps in her office. Today, I chose something better, something that won't contribute to my sugar crash 20 minutes later. I chose ( drum roll please...) Apple slices dipped in peanut butter.

Before you roll your eyes... hear me out. It's delicious, filling, healthy and will remedy any midday craving for sweets. Oh and dd I mention very inexpensive?

Health benefits:

Apples:

1. Help to regulate blood sugar
2. Good source of fiber
3. Full of anti-oxidants
4. Regular intake of apples decrease cholesterol
5. Benefits for several different cancer types esp colon and breast cancer.

Natural Peanut Butter

1. Eating peanuts can lower your risk for coronary heart disease
2. High in protein
3. Good source of fiber
4. Good for your skin
5. Peanuts have a nutrient called Resveratrol, which helps to ward off potential pathogens (bacteria, virii and fungi).

Give it a try!


http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=15&tname=foodspice

http://articles.cnn.com/2007-11-06/health/cl.healthful.foods_1_peanut-butter-rice-cakes-source-of-trans-fats?_s=PM:HEALTH

http://peanut-butter.org/peanut-butter/Health+Benefits+of+Peanut+Butter

Week 1 back to school.

First week back to work. I had all intentions of writing about how shitty my week has been, but I changed my mind. Without a doubt, it was stressful and a bit overwhelming, but it was also had it's beautiful moments. Without further a-do here they are....

1. On Thursday I asked Tracy to pick up something sweet, like a cookie, from the grocery store.... and she delivers, right to my desk, a huge ass chunk of chocolate cake. Isn't there something in the Bible about asking and your blessings being multiplied? -Perfect Example.

2. Receiving a surprise purple scarf in the mail from my homie Dionne.

3. The mid-week splash at Rhino with Jen, Court, Karah, Allie and Stacie... because none of us thought that we could make it to Friday. (Mind you, we planned this on Monday)

4. Turning around mid-splash and mid-story at Rhino and seeing my boo walk in.

5. Baking my zucchini muffins on Monday night and having my co-workers rave about them on Tuesday morning. It's good for the ego :-)

6. Walking down U street with my new friends Carmen and Sebastian of The Barefoot Collective. We ate salad, soup and hummus at Busboys; spoke of love, travel and revolution. After it all, they took out their drum and guitar and sang me a song on the corner of 14th and V. ~magical.

7. Lawrence's Blog was featured on Martha Stewart's "Living Today" radio show.


8. The fire alarm at school that went off at 7:50am because one of the students burned popcorn in the microwave. Breakfast of champions eh? Btw.... who eats microwave popcorn at 7am?

9. Listening to Kristin's student try to convince her to stay... and watch her try not to get too emotional.

10. Connecting with my fam in random different ways... Mom's cellphone video of the snow shower in Co-op, Danielle I and chatting about the beauty and dangers of loving learning how to cook, Mike's rapid fire conversations and my in-car, speakerphone chats with Dad, surprise convo with Shan.

Well people..... Make it a great weekend <3

Winter Stew

I've been off work for almost 2 weeks now, and dammit it feels good...

Earlier this week I made a bomb-ass stew that filled me up and left me feeling satisfied. What more could you want on a Monday night? Football you say... Yup that was on too. I got this recipe from "Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Funny thing is... I purchase this book about two years ago whilst on my quest to becoming a well rounded, single, independent woman, and I hadn't pick it up since. Hmmm I wonder what that says about me?

Anyway, on to the "Cholent" stew:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion chopped
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon tarragon ( I got mine at Yes! Organic $2 per OZ)
1 teaspoon Caraway seeds (Yes! Organic again 3.99)
1 teaspoon of salt
Several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup of red wine, water or veggie broth ( I used mushroom broth)
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup of french lentils ( I used regular lentils)
1 cup peeled sliced carrots ( about 1/2 inch thick)
4 medium sized potatoes peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
1 (15 ounce) can of tomato sauce
3 cups of water
1 cup TVP chunks ( I used the chick'n cutlet kind, but the stre really doesn't need it)
1 cup of frozen Lima or green peas ( I used the greed peas,I don't mess with the limas)
1 (15 ounce) Can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed


Preheat a large soup pot over medium heat. Saute the onions in the oil until translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic, Tarragon, caraway seeds, salt and pepper. Saute until the garlic is fragrant, about a minute more.

Deglaze the pot ( pour the liquid over the herbs and spices) with the red wine or whatever you chose. Add the bay leaves, lentil, carrots, potatoes, tomato sauce, water, and TVP chunks. Mix together. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, until the potatoes and carrots are tender.

Add the lima (or green peas) and kidney and cook until heated through.

Then ... Eat up. The soup is really good and even better the next day.

Muffin Love.

If you want to show someone
you care
Bake them a batch of muffins.

Because really,
Who needs words,
when you've got action...
and baking Soda...
and flour.

Let's not forget the butter,
a dash of salt to
keep it interesting
and some sugar to keep it sweet.

Who needs words
when you have cinnamon and
nutmeg?

And grated Zuchinni
to keep it moist
and added walnuts
for a little crunch?

Who needs words when you've
spent a little time
and added a lot of heat?

I mean
really....
At the end of the day
Who needs words?

Ask for an Avocado!!!!

When is an avocado not simply an avocado? An avocado is more than an avocado when there is a mission behind the avocado. When there is a desire to meet a need that exists within your own community. This may sound melodramatic, but this is the premise behind , “Ask for an Avocado”. “Ask for an Avocado” is the campaign launched by Lawrence Abbott to help bring fresh fruits and vegetables to neighborhoods that would not normally have these goods readily available to them.

Now, as you may know, I’m always willing to jump a soap box for some cause, but this is not just any cause. Having healthy food accessible is something that I take very seriously. Unfortunately, for many Americans across the country black, white, yellow, red, brown, poor and middle class, having fresh fruits and vegetables is more a privilege than a right. Yes, to be overly simplistic, these products tend to be more expensive, take more time to prepare, and perish a lot quicker than packaged food, so the consumer may choose not to purchase them. My issue, and Lawerence’s issue, is that in many neighborhoods, these foods are simply not there, and the people are not given the right to make the decision for themselves.

If there is no grocery store with a fresh foods section in the area (sometimes there isn’t), their only choice is what the local corner store decides it will carry. This choice is often the goods with the longest shelf life; chips, sodas, and canned produce often filled to the brim with sugar or salt. For the store-owners, this may be an economically sound decision, but this decision is made at a high cost to the people. Ironically, the patrons of the stores are the people who are already at high risk for diabetes, hypertension, and other cardiovascular diseases. A nail in the coffin? Not, if you help do something about it.

In following the “Ask for an Avocado” protocol, just go to your local corner store or bodega and ask for an avocado. If they have one: purchase it and then go to askforanavacado.com to check out some cool things to do with your green gold. If they don’t: Simply walk out. Don’t engage in conversation with the clerk; just leave (still visit askforanavocado.com). If enough people do this, the store clerks will take notice, and begin to supply the fruit. And from there… who knows – maybe fresh produce available in every neighborhood.

So this Thanksgiving, go to your local or not so local corner store and “Ask for an Avocado”. This will ensure that a cornucopia of food will be available for your neighbors and neighbors’ neighbors to enjoy in the future.


Happy Thanksgiving,


Stephanie


Remember, change happens one day at a time, one action at a time, one avocado at a time, so when you get a chance go by askforanavocado.com.

Yes, Black Farmers do exist.....

How does a population not only grow, but thrive? It has control over its food supply and the education of its children. Since this is a venue for the former rather than the latter (although equally important), I will focus there.

For years USDA has discriminated against Black farmers. This discrimination has crushed these farmers economically, so much so that most people don't even associate farming with Black folks. Anyway, it looks like the Senate has approved a 1.2 billion dollars settlement for African American farmers and 3.4 billion to Native American land owners. Not exactly 40 acres and a mule.... but a step in the right direction.

Read about it here:

http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/moving_america_news/23668

Peace~

Book Review... Food Rules by Michael Pollan

Let me begin this post by saying that the DC Public Library is one of the greatest resources that this city has to offer (any city really). This week while taking one of my many trips to the Palisades Library, I picked up Michael Pollan's Food Rules. It's 112 pages, half of which are pictures. It took me about 2 hours to read it at most, and is chock full of practical information on how to eat. What I really like about Michael Pollen, is that his approach to eating is very practical. You don't have to go out and buy any new gadgets or deny yourself food. His philosophy is this simple:


Eat food. Not too much. Mostly Plants.

The book is divided into 3 sections. The first helps you to distinguish between "real food" and "food-like substances". Section 2 goes into the types of food to eat, including meat. Lastly, Section 3 talks about how you should eat and gives you practical strategies to help prevent over eating.

All in all, I really enjoyed Food Rules. I've passed it on to my co-workers and they've liked it also. Food Rules is very simple, practical, and doesn't leave you feeling guilty. I closed the book feeling empowered, knowing that I have all of the tools that I needed to make better food choices, thus improving my health. So, I'll leave you by saying: Go to your local library/ bookstore, read it and then share it. The last two steps are the most important because sharing is caring and knowledge is power. Let's uplift our families and communities...


If you have time on this beautiful Saturday afternoon, and you'd like to read up on Michael Pollan's mantra for eating, check out this article he wrote a few years ago.

Michael Pollen 2007 New York Times article

Let me know what you think.