Veggie-Bean Dill Soup

On our quest for health and budgeting, my sister and I have decided to cook more (hence, the recent addition of a few favorite recipes). Last night, after our pre-dinner walk to boost the metabolism, my sister whips out this delicious soup, completely off the cuff. I was going to assist, but then I received a phone call from a friend and time got away from me. I was on the phone for 20 minutes, went into the kitchen to help and voila! the soup was done and getting cold.

It serves two people quite perfectly and the dill adds an incredible flavor. I take no credit for this soup whatsoever - all credit goes to my twinkie.

Veggie-Bean Dill Soup

a. Cut up veggies of your choice (personal preference: 2 big carrots, ½ of a large onion, 1 celery stalk, ¼ red bell pepper). Sautée veggies in olive oil in a pot over medium-high heat. When veggies are soft, add in ½ cup of peas and ½ cup of kidney beans (or other beans of your choice). Season vegetables and beans with dried dill and basil –to your preference.

b. Add in 1 can of chicken (or vegetable) broth –bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover pot for 10 minutes.

c. Serve with bread for dipping. (Serves 2)

d. If you are looking for some grains in your meal, cook pasta or rice according to package directions, and add to pot before serving.

Processed Food & The Case of HVP

The more I read about food growing/processing/eating, the more I see that pretty much everything we do to our food to make it more convenient for us has a price we pay with our health. Some are worse than others. Of course processing foods can help remove natural toxins or preserve them for later consumption. But the further a food is processed, the more of its original nutrients are lost. Plus nowadays it's usually chemicals that are added to preserve, sweeten, flavor, and add back nutrients that were stripped by the processing in the first place. And these can lead to health issues.

Now you may have recently heard of the flavor-enhancer HVP (hydrolyzed vegetable protein). It's been in the news due to salmonella contamination and the consequential large product recall. Before this, many of us had never heard of HVP and wouldn't know offhand what it's in. Luckily, according to The Wall Street Journal, HVP usually accounts for less than 1% of the ingredients in a food. There's a good chance that's why there have been no reports of illness from it yet.

HVP is used to give processed foods a meaty flavor. Foods being recalled include certain potato chips, soups, dips, tofus, veggie burritos, dressings, prepared salads, bouillon, stuffing, bar mixes, pretzels, seasoning blends, sauce mixes, gravy mixes, and frozen taquitos.

For me, it begs the question - why are we making so many things taste like meat that aren't actually meat? Because we can. And of course there's the convenience of not having to worry about actual meat spoiling.

Yet it seems weird to me that we want things to taste like something it isn't. If I'm going to eat something that tastes like meat, I want it to actually have the nutritional benefits of meat too. And I want it to be because there's actually meat in it. And if I'm eating a veggie item, I don't want it to taste like meat... because I've forgone meat by choosing the veggie item. So... no meat-flavored potato chips or pretzels for me please. (Those seem the most unnatural of all.)

It's also scary that this salmonella contamination flag was raised by not the seller of the HVP but a purchaser of it. That purchaser notified the FDA. The FDA found that the seller of the HVP knew about the contamination just over 3 weeks before the FDA inspection. And the seller kept going about business as usual. From the FDA findings via TheDailyGreen.com:

After receiving the first private laboratory analytical results (Certificate of Analysis dated 1/21/2010) indicating the presence of Salmonella in your facility, you continued to distribute paste and powder products until 2/15/2010. Furthermore, from 1/21/2010 to 2/20/2010, you continued to manufacture HVP paste and powder products under the same processing conditions that did not minimize microbial contamination.

Great.

Let's add to that the fact that the recall didn't even start until the end of February. And that was notifying the people who bought HVP - who then had to figure out if those shipments got into their food processing, which products it was in, and then notify the general consuming public.

So today we've learned that when we eat processed foods a) we may very well not even know what is in them, b) we sometimes make things taste like meat that aren't, and c) recalls aren't the quickest business ever and sometimes they only start when someone gets caught.

A seasonal piece of fruit sounds really good right now.

If you're curious about which specific products are part of the current HVP recall, visit the FDA website.

Seasonal Eating

Seasonal eating does not require you to eat only during certain seasons and hibernate in others. It means eating fruits, vegetables, and meats (if you're eating meat) when they are in season.
So many living with nature/organic living/vegetarian/vegan/health books suggest it. But those books often don't list out what those seasons for those foods might be.

So here's a list of some fruits and vegetables to get you started (should you live in North America) for Spring (March-May):

Apricots
Artichokes
Asparagus
Broccoli
Corn
Mango
Oranges
Lettuce
Limes
Pineapple
Snow Peas
Spinach
Strawberries (more so towards the end of Spring)
Vidalia Onions

Now you may still see a food in the grocery store even if it's not on a current in-season list. Foods are grown in hot houses and different climates and then shipped in to your local store. If you look closely you'll find these foods are more expensive than when they're in their seasonal prime and they aren't as good quality-wise. So... you're paying more for a less tasty product.

To find out for sure what's in season in your state, visit Epicurious' Peak-Season Map or Eat Well Guide's Seasonal Food Guide.
Also Eat the Seasons has a list updated week by week based on your location Canada/USA or UK/Ireland.

Vegetable Latkes II

I like to pull out this recipe for smaller family get-togethers. It is always a big hit and fairly easy to make for appetizers. Most importantly though, it is delicious! The book this recipe comes from (noted below) focuses on cooking for the seasons. The food is fresher that way and you’re able to support local markets. Seasonal cooking interests me, but I have yet to put it into practice. Italicized comments note my tweaks to the recipe.


Pea and Potato Cakes
Simply Organic – A cookbook for sustainable, seasonal and local ingredients: First of Spring, p. 29

3/4 lb. fresh peas, shelled (about ¾ cup) (4/5 cup)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic gloves, minced (3 garlic gloves...i love garlic but 3 isn't overpowering)
2 cups cooked mashed potatoes (vegan or regular - don't have to be very creamy or smooth)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (about 4 oz.) (omit for vegan or use 1/4 cup)
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt (just shy of 1 teaspoon - then it's not necessary to top the latke with salt at the end)
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups spring salad mix (omit - I never do this since I serve it as finger food)
1 large carrot, shaved into curls with peeler (omit - I never do this since I serve it as finger food)

In a small saucepan, bring 1 inch of water to a boil over high heat. Add the peas and blanch for 2 minutes. Drain, put in a medium bowl, and cool slightly.

Wipe the saucepan clean and heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 4 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Place in a large bowl and cool slightly.

Add the peas, potatoes, cheese, flour, salt and pepper to the bowl. Stir until well-blended. Shape into 8 round cakes (I do 14-16 - more to go around and easier to manage when frying).

Heat 1.5 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil in the same skillet over medium heat. Add 4 cakes and cook for 8 minutes, turning once, or until browned and heated through. Transfer the cakes to a plate and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining 4 cakes.

Divide the salad and carrot curls evenly amount 4 plates and top with the cakes (I omit).

(Variations: This recipe is quite flexible. Try using sweet potatoes instead of white, and fresh asparagus instead of the peas).

Makes 4 servings. (About 8 servings with the smaller patties).

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas

Black beans and sweet potatoes are not only two of my favorite vegetables, they also happen to be a powerhouse of nutrients in their own right. Sweet potatoes are rich in Vitamin A, C, and B6 as well as iron, calcium and complex carbohydrates. Black beans are obviously an excellent source of fiber and iron but they're more than that. They have an extraordinarily high antioxidant content. Combining the two together can do no wrong and this recipe brings out the best of both worlds. Italicized portions represent my personal tweaks to the recipe.


Vegan Planet: The Global Oven p. 361

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large garlic clove, minced (1.5 cloves)
1 small, fresh hot chile, seeded and minced (1 red pepper)
1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon chili powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups fresh tomato salsa or your favorite salsa
8 large flour tortillas (whole wheat tortillas)
¼ cup finely chopped red onion

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange the sweet potatoes in a single layer on a lightly oiled baking sheet and roast until tender, turning once, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and chile and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the beans, tomatoes, chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the sweet potatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Set aside.

Spread a thin layer of salsa over the bottom of a lightly oiled 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.

Place a tortilla on a flat work surface. Spoon a portion of the sweet potato mixture down the center of the tortilla and roll it up. Place the filled tortilla in the baking dish seam side down and repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling mixture. Spoon any remaining filling mixture on top of the enchiladas, top with the remaining salsa, and sprinkle with the onion. Cover and bake until hot and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Serves 8.

Exercise: Not Just for Good Looks

We’ve all heard it before: “I’m going to die anyways, might as well enjoy life while I can.” This phrase is usually followed by the culprit’s wild tales about eating whatever you want, not working out and watching TV and playing video games all day with a beer in one hand and a bucket of chicken in the other. Let's call the offender 'Mike'.

This outlook on life can certainly be addicting: 25 years old, carefree, devil-may-care, everything you need to ‘fully’ enjoy life.

Let’s fast forward 15 years: 40 years old, Mike is approaching middle-age. His body gets aches and pains, he’s tired all the time. But he carries on – he’s never worked out before, no use starting now. Besides, he does hike up the stairs each night - that counts, right?

Fast forward another 30 years. Mike had a fall; not uncommon for a man in his seventies. He broke his hip, as many do. But he had his surgery, and he’s been out of physical therapy for a couple of months now. He’s walking with a cane; in another 10 years, at best, he may be using a wheelchair.

Here’s the point, more likely than not, if you’re lucky, you WILL grow old. Growing old is not a death sentence, it is merely a fact. You have two options:

1. Grow old and healthy or
2. Grow old and decay

Each day that you don't exercise is another day that your body believes you are shutting down. Think about animals that hibernate; each year, their bodies shut down and rest. Before going into hibernation, animals load up on food to keep them going throughout the winter. During hibernation, their metabolism plummets - less energy is produced so the food can sustain their bodies until Spring. With that in mind, think of it this way... when you don't remain active and when you fill your stomach to the brim with food, you are telling your body that you are preparing for hibernation. Your metabolic rate decreases, you have less energy and you gain weight. Less energy = more sleep and less time being active. It's a vicious circle that will keep going until you get up and move.

A little extra effort each week is the difference between hibernating (an early trip to a nursing home) and being an independent member of society. It’s not the quantity of the years, but the quality of the years within them. Yes, it’s cliché... but actually think about the words. I’m not saying you can’t enjoy life, I’m merely suggesting that you enjoy it responsibly.

It doesn't matter how old you are; it is NEVER too late to start working out. Workout – not just cardio, strength training as well (dare I suggest two times each week). Strength training will prevent broken bones, not cardio. Cardio will keep your heart healthy but strength training will keep your bones and muscles strong. It's your bones and muscles that will catch you when you trip, not your heart.

But nobody puts Cardio in a corner and neither will I. Neither strength training or cardio is better than the other. In order to be healthy, you need both. Without a strong heart and good blood flow, strength training will do you no good. What good are strong muscles and wash-board abs if you have clogged arteries and are heart-attack bound?

Nobody is going to give you a new body and there is no warranty for mistreated or run-down parts. You are the only person who can make the change and make your life a healthy one. When your body is in bad shape, your ability to enjoy life at 20, 30, 60, 80, etc. is significantly impaired. Workout now and you won't regret it later.


Have a great workout! :)

My Potato Skins: The Recipe

6 Medium Golden Potatoes
Olive Oil
Salt
Dried Spinach

1. Scrub the potatoes and then poke them with a fork in several places.
2. First bake: Bake them in the microwave with your microwave's auto setting. (You could also use the stove set at 425 degrees for 1 hour but the microwave is faster.)
3. Cut the potatoes in half. Scoop out the potato down to about 1/4". (Bonus! You can set aside the scooped out part to make mashed potatoes for later.) Cut the scooped out halves in half.
4. Brush olive oil all over the potato wedges and place them on a baking sheet. Season them with salt and dried spinach (or another seasoning like rosemary or paprika).
5. Bake the potato quarters in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes.

Voila!