Back in the Kitchen

Ever since we returned from our travels, I feel like I've been a real slacker in the kitchen. I'm admitting it. Gulp. For a few weeks, I've been lazy and reverted back to buying some of the food necessities... (necessities in my kitchen that is), which I had finally gotten accustomed to making before we left. Almond milk. Cereal (granola). Chreese Dip. Hummus. Snack foods. Sigh. Sigh. Well, slowly, but surely, I'm getting my mojo back. 

The granola came first. I always make the Mom's Granola recipe from this book, and I currently have a big batch sitting on the counter. Next, came the hummus, even though store bought hummus always tastes so much yummier and creamier. Then, today, I finally re-conquered the "power balls", aka fruit/nut balls that are high in fat and protein which my son will actually eat and enjoy eating while hopefully packing on the pounds! My awesome friend Christina was actually the first one to attempt to make these snacks, in the form of bars, and of course once I started making them, Kai still preferred to gobble hers up over mine any day. 

So, today, Kai and I set out to get back in the kitchen, and make some yummy snack food. Granted I did most of the work, but Kai did help me transfer each ball from my hand to the plate! And he even popped a couple in his mouth as he worked. Here's the recipe:


Power Balls


1. dried fruit (I used approx. 5 dates, 5 apricots, and a handful of cranberries). Place in hot (almost boiling) water for a minute or so just to soften. Then mash up with blender or by hand with knife.
2. nuts (I used a mix of almond slivers, cashews, and walnuts). Chop into powder in the blender.
3. oats- approx. 1/4 c. Chop with nuts in blender.
4. dried coconut flakes- approx. 1/4 c.
5. peanut butter and almond butter- approx. 1 spoonful of each
6. molasses- 1 spoonful (good for iron)
7. brown rice syrup or maple syrup- a small pour
8. ground flax seeds- generous sprinkle
9. carob powder (or cocoa powder)- 1 spoonful
10. Just mix everything together in a bowl, (or use a food processor), and roll into toddler bite-sized balls!


So simple, so yummy, so healthy. It tastes like a healthy cookie dough, except one that you can happily eat raw! Here's to hoping Kai still enjoys them tomorrow....

Maybe next week we'll conquer the almond milk.....

Dance- A Haiku

A toddler dancing

Following his mama's lead

Smiling together

*This post was inspired by Mama Knows It All's Haiku Tuesdays. 

Eco-Tip: Compost Your Food Scraps!

'Tis the season for starting a compost pile. Or really just a bag of food scraps (you know, leftovers that sat in the fridge until they have started to grow mold, fruit peels, veggie scraps from chopping, etc.). And here's why:

As is commonly thought, food that has been thrown away doesn't just decompose naturally.  But food is a natural, organic matter, so how could that be? Well, landfills are devoid of the proper air and light that food waste needs to break down, so instead the food quickly rots and releases methane gas into the air, which goes into the atmosphere and helps to pollute our earth.  Methane gas is one of the most potent greenhouse gases and landfills contribute 20% of methane emissions (primarily because of this food waste)! The rotting food also produces another toxic chemical that seeps into ground water. According to the EPA, the US generates more than 34 million tons of food waste annually, and only a staggering 3 percent of that is recovered or composted! Today, food waste has become the number 1 component of municipal solid waste in landfills! This has huge impacts for our environment, our health, and our economy. Read about it in the link above.

So what can you do? Well, if you have a garden you can use your nutrient rich food scraps for fertilizing your plants organically, by turning it into compost. You can even get a tiny in-home compost bin such as this one. But if you are city dwellers like us and don't have the space for a garden of your own, you can still help gardeners and farmers turn your food waste into compost.  It's so simple, how could you not do it!  All we do is store a brown paper bag in the freezer and add the food scraps to it.  It usually takes us about a week to fill it up.  When it's good and full we simply take the bag to the farmer's market (where we are lucky to have access to a compost stand, but most likely any farmer will be willing to take free food to turn into compost!), or on non-farmer's market days, to Whole Foods (they also have a compost bin).  You also should even be able to find a neighbor or a local urban garden who would willingly take your food bag, just search online.

Our food scraps filled bag in the freezer.

But what about using a garbage disposal? Well, this may be better than throwing the food into the trash (and thus the landfill), but it uses a huge amount of energy and most likely water (if you are running the tap while you dispose). Composting is your best bet! 

Things That Made Me Smile :)

1. A late evening stroll accompanied by a sleepy-eyed, pajama-clad little boy falling asleep in his stroller while clutching tightly to his bear.


2. Two friends chatting while watching two little boys romping around on sofas and pillows, giggling and chatting in their "secret" language.


3. Graham coming home with a vegan, chocolate cupcake.


4. Watching Kai collect compost at an urban garden.


5. The most incredible baby hugs from little Grayson.


6. A batch of fresh, homemade granola.


7. Reading to Kai at the end of the night.


8. Tickets booked to California and Alaska!


9. Listening to Kai play the harmonica and seeing his excitement when he tells me that the sound he made was "like a violin".  It really did sound like a violin!


10. Thinking about taking the train home in a couple days to see my mom, grandmother, Jessie, and Rebecca in her dance performance.


*After a sequence of a few frustrating things happening at the end of my night, I needed to remind myself that I have had lots to smile about today... and these are the things that really matter.

Fun at the Farm... Sanctuary!

Kai loves farm animals.  He talks about goats, chickens, horsies, ducks, and all the rest on a daily basis.  Ask him what a duck says, or a chicken, or a cow, and he clucks, quacks, or moos away.  His favorite songs... Old MacDonald and Baa, Baa Black Sheep. We love taking him places where he can see real, live farm animals. I definitely think the best way to learn is to be out in the real world, seeing and doing, so for this we have discovered the joys of the farm sanctuary. These are wonderful places; safe havens, for farm animals that have been abused, misused, neglected, or abandoned.  Living on a farm sanctuary is their chance to retire and live out their days in peace. Usually these sanctuaries are open to the public as a way to raise the funds necessary to shelter and care for the animals.  Since living in Rhode Island, we have visited two farm sanctuaries, Winslow Farm Animal Sanctuary and Maple Farm Sanctuary.  They are both wonderful places. The animals are always friendly, happy, and well-cared for.  Today we visited the Maple Farm because they were hosting a FarmFest complete with free music, food, crafts, and of course, animal petting. Kai and his best buddy, Parker, had a blast, dancing, chasing chickens, and enjoying a special treat (for the second day in a row...whoops!) of vegan ice cream! So here is my plug for the farm sanctuary: Go find one in your area! A sanctuary is a wonderful place to visit with your family. Children (and adults, too, of course) will love to see and touch the animals.  I really prefer exposing Kai to animals at a sanctuary then say, at the zoo, because I know the animals have been rescued and live happily, rather than forced into captivity and made to live in habitats that are neither big enough nor natural for them. I have a love/hate relationship with zoos these days. Of course I loved visiting the zoo as a child, and I know there are zoos out there that are doing positive things like breeding endangered animals, but I still can't help feeling guilty and sad whenever I see an animal that is meant to roam and run free living cooped up behind a glass wall. So, the next time you are in the mood for some animal viewing, visit a farm sanctuary! This website shows where some (but by no mean all) farm sanctuaries are located around the country. 

A Favorite Snack: Chreese Dip

A few months ago, my mom found this awesome non-dairy dip for me on one of our trips down to MD.  Whenever I come to visit, she always tries to stock up on whatever vegan food she can find. Isn't she thoughtful? Well, she really scored with this one. The two flavors I've tried are delicious.  I assumed it would be heavily processed with loads of ingredients, but surprisingly the ingredient list on the back was very simple.  Just oatmeal, sesame, coconut oil, nutritional yeast, and some spices.  Wow! I can make this at home (and reduce my purchasing of products packaged in plastic).  When I returned home, I shared this new, yummy discovery with my friend, Christina, who immediately set out to making her own version (Even before I got around to it! That's how awesome and motivated she is.) So, she inspired me to get started on making my own, too, which I've been doing ever since... (except for the day when they were buy 2 get 1 free at Whole Foods. I couldn't resist... the texture of the store bought kind is inevitably better!).  Here's my recipe for a spicy version. Note: I'm not good with measurements.  I just kind of shake the spices in.

Ingredients:
1/3 cup oats (made into powder in blender)
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp coconut oil
about 1 tsp. chili powder
some hot sauce
sea salt
1 tbsp nutritional yeast (this gives it the "cheesy" flavor)

Steps:
1. Make oatmeal with the oats. Boil 2/3 cup water then add oats to cook.  Store for a few hours in the fridge. (This helps get a better consistency)
2. Blend everything together.  Add more oil as needed.  That's it!

Kai and I both love this dip.  We usually eat it on toast, crackers, or blue corn chips.  Enjoy!

Monday Moments... and an Eco-Tip

If it wasn't for Kai, I would hardly remember to take my vitamin or give Kai his.  Everyday, without fail, he leads me into the kitchen with his favorite sentence, "Mommy, let's go!", points up to the shelf where the vitamins reside and says, "Mommy, take vitamin, now!"  I'm sure his consistency and determination must come from a strong enjoyment of the strawberry flavor of his "candy" vitamin... but I like to think he just knows mama needs a little reminding sometimes.  


Plastic Bag Eco-Tip

I try my very best to avoid plastic bags at all costs.  I always bring my own grocery bags, produce bags, and bulk food bags to the store or farmer's market, but sometimes they can't always be avoided.  It's usually the bread bags that I end up with. So, when I do find myself with plastic bags, I try to reuse them by bringing them to the store for my produce or for storing veggies in the fridge.  But, I always used to find them so annoying to clean and dry.  No matter what I did, they always seemed to stay wet with little drops of water throughout; and where to put them to dry was always an issue too.  A couple of years ago a friend showed me a great trick.  Simply turn the bag inside out, place a magnet inside, near the bottom of the bag, turn upside down, and attach to side of fridge.  It'll dry in no time.  I guess it kind of seems like a no-brainer, but had someone not shown it to me, I probably wouldn't have thought of it!  Also, this is a good way to put to use those advertisement magnets that sometimes come in the mail.  My grandma gave me an idea to cut them up into smaller magnets.  I made four magnets from one unneeded Domino's magnet, and now I use those ones for my bag drying.