End of the Week Round-up

We have two challenges rounding up this week:

• the weekly challenge: Start Using a Reusable Water Bottle/Thermos
• and the January Extreme Challenge: Stop Eating Out for a Month

How'd you do on this week's challenge?

I'm a Marathon Runner on this challenge. Except for remembering to take a thermos with me for Starbucks hot chocolate runs (which I didn't have to worry about this month because of the extreme challenge). But my solution is that I'm going to stick a couple clean thermoses in the car, so they'll always be there when I need them. Works for cloth bags, should work for hot chocolate.

a family of water bottles

Thoughts on the extreme challenge:

So if you remember, the point of the extreme challenges is to push yourself a little bit farther than you would normally go so you can find your sweet spot. If you struggled with your challenge throughout the month, you probably need to wind it back a little bit to get to your sweet spot. If you had no trouble at all, see if you can stick with it going forward.

My family had decided to...

1. Me and the kids - go the full extreme and try not to eat out all month.
2. My husband - keep up the habit of eating out with his co-workers, but they committed to only patronizing local restaurants for the month.

My big issue with eating out is the quick runs to Starbucks for hot apple cider and Krispy Kreme for hot chocolate (or to Cookout for shakes in the summer). And I admit it was tough sometimes. But I focused on making more hot chocolate at home, and for times that I really want a hot apple cider, I just need to take my own thermos in the future.

I think avoiding fast food restaurants helped us stay in the budget this month - even though we've always paid lip service to avoiding fast food restaurants, a fast food run always sneaks in somehow. I'm really going to try not to go to fast food restaurants in the future (with possible exceptions while on vacation).

I did miss eating out in general and am really looking forward to getting to go out to eat with my husband at some of our fave local restaurants. But we're going to work on bringing our own take-out containers to lessen the impact of eating out.

My husband says he had no trouble at all...except when he was traveling. That's definitely a nice thing about living downtown.

What about you?

And don't forget about this week's giveaway: ECOBAGS produce bags!

____________________

You have hereby been challenged to go green in a year without going broke! Check out the last challenge, or view the whole list of Challengicious Mondays.

Like what you see? Sign up for my RSS feed, follow me on Twitter, and join my "Go Green without Going Broke" group on Facebook! You can also find me over at The Green Phone Booth.

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January Extreme Challenge

Here's your extreme challenge for January:

Stop Eating Out for a Month

To complete this challenge, you can...

BABY STEPS

• Give up fast food for a month. Fast food restaurants are the biggest culprits in eating out - from the napkins, straws, and wrappers to the over-sized food choices, sodas, and factory-farmed meat. Try opting out of fast food just for one month.
  

JOGGING STRIDE

• Only eat at locally-owned restaurants for a month. Even if you're dining habits still result in lots of trash and food waste, at least you'll be supporting the businesses in your community and maintaining your city's individuality. You could also take this challenge a step further and support only restaurants that serve local, sustainable, and organic dishes by searching the Eat Well Guide.
  

MARATHON RUNNER

• Only eat home-cooked foods for a month. You can do it! Go a whole month without eating out.

As always, you can modify these suggestions to meet your family's needs. Just make sure you:

Make a plan.
Write it down.
Post it somewhere you'll see it.

My husband and I have completely different weaknesses when it comes to eating out. Of the two of us, I'm a billion times more likely to be in the car with three grumpy little people and suddenly realize, "Oh, crap, it's lunchtime." My husband, on the other hand, goes out to a sit-down restaurant once a week with his co-workers and orders something meaty. That ritual is one of the few times my non-vegetarian husband gets to eat meat, and it's important to him. I like to see my man happy.

So our plan is...

1. I'll be going the full extreme and trying not to eat out all month.
2. My husband will keep up the habit of eating out with his co-workers, but they've committed to only patronizing local restaurants for the month.
   

Will you accept the January Extreme Challenge to stop eating out for a month? Let me know in the comments what your family will be doing.

____________________

You have hereby been challenged to go green in a year without going broke! Check out the latest challenge, or view the whole list of Challengicious Mondays.

Like what you see? Sign up for my RSS feed, follow me on Twitter, and join my "Go Green without Going Broke" group on Facebook! You can also find me over at The Green Phone Booth.

• Photo by ebruli
• This post was included in the Festival of Frugality #212
  

Read more...

Seasonal Recipes for Late Fall

Here's what we've been doing with our CSA produce...

What's in season in December?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: apples, beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens, letttuce, peanuts, pecans, sweet potatoes, turnips.

In My CSA Box


Week 6:

• We used the tsunga in a stir fry. Tsunga seems to be an extremely bitter green, but in a stir fry, it didn't taste too bad.

• The red russian kale went into a soup. I'm really liking this kale - it's a mild enough green that I can sneak it into practically anything and the kids will eat it without complaint.

• Radishes are also surprisingly good in soup.
  

• I made the sweet potatoes into a casserole using a modified version of this stuffed sweet potatoes recipe.

• We saved the mesclun salad mix for the next week.

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Apparently forgot to take a picture of this week's box.

Week 7: Thanksgiving Week!

• We mixed the mesclun salad mix from this week with last week's salad mix to make a great big salad for Thanksgiving.

• I used the swiss rainbow chard in a stir fry. (We really do eat a lot of stir-fries.)

• I cooked up the collards Southern (but vegetarian) style and served them with golden chickpea patties.

• The watermelon radishes and scarlett turnips were roasted together with a little olive oil and sea salt following a recipe from the CSA. None of us liked it much, but the watermelon radishes are sure pretty!

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Week 8: (This week)

• I'm using the red romaine head lettuce in a salad served alongside pizza.
  

• I used the red russian kale in yet another stir fry.

• I'm going to try the red radishes and scarlett turnips in a soup. My husband really doesn't like turnips, but hopefully a soup with lots of other vegetables will cover it up enough for him.

• I'll be making garlic herb pasta this week and serving it with the beets in this recipe for beet salad with goat cheese.
  

• I'll be making the collards Southern-style again alongside vegetarian sloppy joes. (Basically this recipe for walnut oatmeal burgers but with tomato sauce and italian herbs rather than veggie broth, and then break up the burgers into pieces like ground beef.)
  

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Other great recipes for late fall:

:: I love this recipe for Savory Bread Pudding with Butternut Squash, Chard, and Cheddar from A Veggie Venture.

:: fresh365 has a great Harvest Hummus, and I've also got my eye on this Asiago Sweet Potatoes recipe.

:: I think this Gingerbread Apple Upside-Down Cake from the Smitten Kitchen looks divine and would be a great baking pick-me-up after my own apple pie disaster.


Related Posts:

• Seasonal Recipes for Fall
  
• Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle
• Eat Conscious and Local

Read more...

Seasonal Recipes for Fall

On a whim one day, I decided to join a winter CSA with Coon Rock Farm, a sustainable farm in my area. I had heard a lot of good things about this farm (one person called it the Polyface Farms of North Carolina), and since there are zero organics available at my farmer's market, I decided to give it a try over the winter.

So I thought that instead of my usual way of doing these seasonal recipes, I'd just show you what I got in my CSA box and tell you how we used it (or plan to use it).

What's in season in October/November?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: apples, beets, broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers, leafy greens, peanuts, pecans, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, turnips, and winter squash.

In My CSA Box

Week 1: (Sorry no picture of this week's offerings)

• We ate the turnip greens in an omelet. We eat omelets with toast almost every week.

• The arugula and d'avignon radishes went into a salad as a side dish for pizza. Pizza is another weekly menu item.

• I made pesto with the basil with a side dish of the aforementioned salad.

• We also got an acorn squash, which I plan to use in these acorn squash quesadillas from the Smitten Kitchen.
  
  

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Week 2:

• I used half of the baby red russian kale and purple mizuna in a stir fry.

• The tatsoi (a green similar to spinach) went into omelets.

• We haven't used the Japanese white turnips yet.

• We made a salad with the d'avignon radishes, radish greens, and the other half of the kale and mizuna, which we ate as a side dish with pizza and the following recipe for pumpkin pasta:

Pasta with Creamy Pumpkin Sauce

SERVES 4
COST: $1.05 per serving*

8 oz. penne pasta
4 oz. yogurt cheese (or cream cheese)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
ground nutmeg to taste

• Cook pasta according to package directions.
• Place yogurt cheese, parmesan cheese, butter, and milk in a saucepan. Heat until melted, stirring frequently.
• Add pumpkin. Cook until heated through.
• Add pasta, tossing lightly. Sprinkle with ground nutmeg.
  
  

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Week 3:

• Once again, the tatsoi went into an omelet.

• The arugula, radishes, radish greens, and some of the baby braising greens will go into a salad as a side dish for pizza and tortilla soup (made with some peppers and corn that I froze in the summer).

• I'll be sautéing the Japanese white turnips from this week and last week for a side dish with golden chickpea patties using the following simple recipe from the CSA farm:

Sauteed Baby White Turnips

SERVES 2

4 turnips with greens
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper

• Cut greens off turnips and save for later.
• Wash turnips and set aside to dry.
• Heat oil in a frying pan on medium high.
• When the oil is good and hot, throw in the whole turnips and stir well to coat with oil.
• Cover and continue cooking for 5 to 10 minutes. When turnips start to brown, and in greens and cool all together until greens are slightly wilted.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  
  

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Other great recipes for fall:

:: fresh 365 made Maple-Pumpkin Pasta with Blue Cheese and Sage and Black Bean and Sweet Potato Quesadillas.

:: It's Not Easy Being Green invented Crockpot Baked Stuffed Pumpkin with Apples.

:: Farmer's Daughter put together an Apple Tart.

:: A Veggie Venture baked custard inside of a whole pumpkin. She also has an interesting Supper Casserole with Pumpkin and Green Chile Cornbread Topping that I think could be altered to fit a vegetarian lifestyle.


*Note that all costs are estimates based on prices in my area. Your costs may vary.


Related Posts:

• Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes
• Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle
• Eat Conscious and Local

Read more...

Early Fall Seasonal Recipes

I doubt anyone but me cares, but I had said I would be posting seasonal recipes last Thursday, and I'm just getting around to it more than a week later. If anyone has anxiously been awaiting seasonal recipes - I'm so sorry!

What's in season in September/October?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: apples, cabbage, corn, grapes, green beans, leafy greens, peaches, peanuts, pumpkin, squash, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes.

Seasonal Recipes for Early Fall

This first recipe is a sneaky way to add more veggies to your kids diet. It's a type of macaroni and cheese, but the sauce also includes butternut squash. You can see in the picture that I actually didn't use macaroni - we didn't have any, but I'm not sure what kind of pasta I substituted.

Macaroni in Butternut Squash
(modified from Fresh Choices)

SERVES 6
COST: $1.10 per serving*

12 ounces elbow macaroni
3 cups of peeled, seeded, and chopped butternut squash
1/2 c. parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. tahini
2 tsp. mustard
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. seasoned dry bread crumbs

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  
• Cook the macaroni according to package directions.
• Meanwhile, microwave the squash in a casserole dish with a little bit of water for 10 minutes, or until the squash is very soft.
• Transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the parmesan cheese, tahini, mustard, salt, and black pepper. Process until smooth.
• Blend in enough milk to make a sauce the consistency of very thick soup.
• Put the pasta in a 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Add the sauce and mix thoroughly. Sprinkle evenly with the bread crumbs.
• Bake until the top is lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.

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This is basically a giant pancake. The original version of this recipe called for bananas, but we've tried peaches and apples, and both worked great.

Another great choice for brinner is this recipe for mango pancakes - you can substitute peaches or apples to make it local and seasonal.

Peach Cinnamon Dutch Baby
(modified from Fresh Choices)

SERVES 4
COST: $1.21 per serving*

3/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
4 eggs
2/3 c. milk
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 peaches, chopped
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, eggs, milk, and 1 Tbsp. butter
• Heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. butter over medium heat in a 10" oven proof skillet. Add the peaches and 1 Tbsp. brown sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, just until heated through and the sugar melts, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cinnamon.
• Rewhisk the batter and then pour into the pan, stirring briefly to scrape the fruit from the bottom. Transfer to the oven and bake until the pancake begins to puff around the edges, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 1 Tbsp. brown sugar and bake until very puffed and golden brown, about 5 minutes more.
• Serve immediately and cut into wedges.

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Other great recipes for late summer:

:: It's Frugal Being Green has a scrumptious-looking recipe for butternut bisque.

:: It's Not Easy Being Green has been working her way through a harvest of giant zucchinis.

:: Farmer's Daughter is making apple walnut bread.

:: Going Green Mama remembers making apple streudel with her grandmother.


*Note that all costs are estimates based on prices in my area. Your costs may vary.


Related Posts:

• Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes
• Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle
• Eat Conscious and Local

Read more...

Late Summer Seasonal Recipes

Time for some more seasonal recipes to help you eat locally and live frugally!

What's in season in August/September?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: apples, butter beans, cabbage, cantaloupe, field peas, grapes, green beans, leafy greens, okra, peaches, peanuts, pumpkin, squash, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, watermelon, zucchini.

Seasonal Recipes for Late Summer

Another stir fry to start off with. I like stir fries because you can generally swap out the vegetables for whatever's in season, despite what the recipe calls for. Stir fries are also great for summer because they are quick and easy and don't involve the oven.

Peanut Noodles
(from The Cook's Encyclopedia of Vegetarian Cooking)

SERVES 4
COST: $2 per serving*

7 ounces medium Chinese egg noodles
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
12 ounces zucchini, roughly chopped
generous 3/4 c. roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped

For the dressing:
1/4 c. olive oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 fresh red chile, seeded and finely chopped
3 Tbsp. snipped fresh chives
1-2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
snipped fresh chives, to garnish

• Cook the noodles according to the package instructions and drain well.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a very large frying pan or wok and cook the garlic and onion for 3 minutes, or until beginning to soften. Add the peppers and zucchini and cook for another 15 minutes over medium heat, until beginning to soften and brown. Add the peanuts and cook for 1 minute more.
• Whisk together the olive oil, grated lemon zest and 3 Tbsp. of the lemon juice, the chile, chives, and balsamic vinegar to taste. Season with salt and pepper.
• Toss the noodles into the vegetables and stir-fry to heat through. Add the dressing, stir to coat and serve immediately, garnished with fresh chives.

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This week, I attempted to use fresh butter beans since I can get them locally from the farmer's market and can't find an organic version in a can. But the butter beans from the farmer's market look and taste more to me like a lima bean than the butter beans I'm used to, so I'm not sure about them yet. Either way, they tasted great in this recipe, which is one of my favorites.

(For another great butter bean recipe, check out the Butter Bean Burgers.)

Garlic Herb Pasta

SERVES 4
COST:$ 1.50 per serving*

1/3 c. softened butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
mushrooms, sliced
2 cups cooked butter beans
1/2 box rotini
1 Tbsp. fresh chives

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Just before draining, reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water and set aside.
• Saute mushrooms in a little bit of oil until tender.
• Stir together butter, garlic, thyme, lemon juice, and pepper until smooth.
• Add mushrooms, garlic butter, butter beans, and parmesan cheese to pasta.
• Gradually add the reserved cooking liquid, tossing constantly over low heat as the butter and cheese melt to form a sauce.
• Add chives and toss again. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

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This is a new recipe that we just tried tonight. My husband and I both enjoyed it, but the kids wouldn't touch it (even though I got whimsical and called them "zucchini boats"). I think it was too spicy for them. If I make it again, I'll substitute tomatoes for the chiles and use fresh red pepper instead of the pimientos. Also, I used the recipe for stuffing mix from the More with Less cookbook.

Stuffed Zucchini

SERVES 8
COST: $1.40 per serving*

4 medium zucchini
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 c. butter
1 (4 oz.) can green chiles, drained
1 jar (2 oz.) diced pimientos, drained
1 1/2 c. herb-seasoned stuffing mix (dry)
3/4 c. mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese

• Heat 2 inches water to boiling. Add zucchini. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain. Cool slightly.
  
• Cut each zucchini in half lengthwise. Spoon out pulp. Chop pulp coarsely.
  
• Place zucchini cut side up in ungreased baking dish.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook and stir onion in butter in a frying pan until the onion is tender. Stir in the chopped pulp, chiles, pimiento, and stuffing mix.
• Divide stuffing mixture among zucchini halves. Sprinkle each with about 1 Tbsp. of cheese.
• Bake uncovered until hot, about 30 minutes.
  

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The following recipe was submitted by my friend Maren. I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds super delicious!

Salsa

Finely dice any of the following. We like to experiment, the basics being the same (tomatoes, peppers, etc):

Tomatoes (I choose low-acid because I have reflux, but grape tomatoes, beefsteak, any of those work)
Bell peppers (yellow, red, green, purple for color)
Sweet onion (vidalia or a different kind)
Green onion
Garlic, very finely minced
Beans (we like black, pinto, or great northern)
Corn
Avocado (decreases the life of the salsa, so only add to what you will eat within 6 days or so)
Fresh cilantro, chopped
Some kind of hot peppers (our faves include habaneros, jalapenos, cayenne, Hungarian wax, etc)
*don't forget the gloves when dealing w/hot peppers unless you want burning hands for a couple days*
Secret ingredients: half a bottle of Italian dressing & a half cup of sugar per large mixing bowl of salsa

• Mix everything together and then let it "age" in the fridge. This step is essential so the flavors can leech out and combine.
  
• Reminder again: wear gloves when handling hot peppers or your hands and everything your hands touched (eyes, cheeks, mouth, etc) will burn for a couple of days. To decrease the heat of a pepper, leave out the seeds and white ribs of the pepper.
  
• Sometimes we'll mix a batch up and then decide it needs something else. We'll add it and let it sit a day more if necessary.
  
• For extra fun, add an acidic fruit such as pineapple, mango, or peaches.

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Other great recipes for late summer:

Green Bean directed me to this recipe for All Day Apple Butter at Allrecipes.com

Prudent and Practical has a recipe for homemade applesauce.

Going Green Mama has been on a cooking roll with her grandmother's recipes. It all looks delicious.

Green for Nothing provides several seasonal recipes ranging from the grill to the pasta bowl.

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This will be an ongoing series of posts throughout the year. If you would like to participate, you can:

1. Post a recipe on your personal blog, and add the link to the comments of this post.
2. Email your recipe to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.
   
3. Post a recipe on your personal blog, email the link to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.

*Note that all costs are estimates based on prices in my area. Your costs may vary.


Related Posts:

• Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes
• Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle
• Eat Conscious and Local

Read more...

Seasonal Recipes for the Summer

More seasonal recipes to help you eat locally and live frugally!

What's in season in July/August?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: green beans, butter beans, blackberries, blueberries, cabbage, cantaloupe, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, grapes, leafy greens, okra, peaches, peppers, potatoes, raspberries, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes, and watermelon.

Summer Seasonal Recipes

I decided this time around to provide some of my favorite "universal" recipes - that is, generic recipes that I can alter easily to fit what's available. I've found that using universal recipes has been the best strategy for my family to eat seasonally - meal planning is simplified, yet it still feels like our meals our diverse and interesting.

First off, a muffin recipe. We're still in the midst of berry season, so this is a good recipe to have on hand to carry you through the summer. I experiment regularly with the ingredients in this recipe, so my notes are at the end.

Berry Muffins

(slightly modified from The Ultimate Muffin Book)

MAKES 12
COST: $0.56 per muffin*

1 3/4 cups plus 1 Tbsp flour, divided
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 pint berries
1 large egg, at room temperature
3/4 c. buttermilk
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp. vanilla extract

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease the muffin tins.
• Whisk 1 3/4 cups of the flour, the oat flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until uniform. In a small bowl, toss the berries with the remaining 1 Tbsp. flour. Set both bowls aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk the egg, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla until smooth. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the flour mixture just until moistened. Gently fold in the flour-coated berries, incorporating them without breaking them up.
• Fill the prepared muffin tins 3/4 full.
• Bake for 20 minutes, or until the muffins are browned with cracked but rather flat tops. A toothpick inserted into the center of one muffin should come out with one or two moist crumbs attached, provided the wet berries don't gum up the toothpick as it pierces the muffin.

Notes:

• I generally do half white flour and half whole wheat. The muffins turn out less fluffy, but more nutritious.
• I use quick oats instead of oat flour because I don't buy oat flour and am too lazy to make my own.
• I've experimented quite a bit with using honey in muffins rather than sugar since I can buy honey locally. Basically, you just need to add 1/2-3/4 as much honey as sugar, decrease the amount of liquid slightly, and lower the temperature 25 degrees since honey browns faster than sugar. The muffins end up with an obvious honey flavor but taste just as delicious.
• If using frozen berries, do not thaw them.
• The muffin pictured has an oat crunch topping made by mixing some butter, oats, flour, and sugar and then sprinkling it over the muffins. Normally, I don't make this.
  

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A stir-fry makes a great universal recipe. Mix and match your vegetables to create a new dish every time. Some options include carrots, peas, corn, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, greens, cabbage, squash, zucchini, and scallions. In the winter when vegetables are scarce, you can even sprout your own bean sprouts. Almost anything tastes good in a stir-fry.

This dish can be served with rice or over Chinese egg noodles.

Stir-Fried Vegetables with Cashew Nuts
(from The Cook's Encyclopedia of Vegetarian Cooking)

SERVES 4
COST: $1.325 per serving*

2 pounds mixed vegetables
2-4 Tbsp. sunflower or olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger root
1/2 c. cashew nuts or 4 Tbsp. sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or sesame seeds
soy sauce
salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Prepare the vegetables according to type.
• Heat a frying pan, then trickle the oil around the rim so it runs down to coat the surface. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and ginger and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring. Add the harder vegetables and toss over the heat for another 5 minutes, until they start to soften.
• Add the softer vegetables and stir-fry everything over high heat for 3-4 minutes.
• Stir in the cashew nuts or seeds. Season with soy sauce, salt and pepper. Serve at once.

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This recipe calls for cherries, but it works just as well with other berries. You might need to adjust the sugar slightly, depending on the tartness of your berries. If you're using cherries, beware! I completely destroyed this cookbook with cherry juice the first time I made this cobbler.

Cherry Almond Cobbler
(from Fresh Choices)

SERVES 6
COST: $0.84 per serving*

1/3 c. butter
1/4 c. whole grain pastry flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 c. sugar, divided
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 c. organic buttermilk
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 pint sour cherries, pitted and halved

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the butter in a 9" deep-dish pie plate or shallow 2-quart baking dish. Put the pan in the oven until the butter melts, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, 1/4 c. sugar, the baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk and almond extract, then whisk the mixture into the dry ingredients just until moistened, leaving a few lumps.
• Pour the batter over the melted butter in the pan. Scatter the cherries on top of the batter. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Bake until browned around the edges and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
  

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Other great recipes for summer:

Prudent and Practical offers up a Fresh Blueberry Pie.

Going Green Mama has several recipes for using your summer squash harvest:

• Summer Squash Sauteed with Pine Nuts
• Summer Squash with Toasted Garlic and Lime

Green Bean at the Green Phone Booth went crazy with cherries.

And Arduous is asking everyone to dish up some mouth-watering but healthy food porn.

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This will be an ongoing series of posts throughout the year. If you would like to participate, you can:

1. Post a recipe on your personal blog, and add the link to the comments of this post.
2. Email your recipe to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.
   
3. Post a recipe on your personal blog, email the link to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.

*Note that all costs are estimates based on prices in my area. Your costs may vary.


Related Posts:

• Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes
• Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle
• Eat Conscious and Local

Read more...

Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes

Thanks to everyone who answered my call for seasonal recipes this month!

This will be an ongoing series of posts throughout the year. If you would like to participate, you can:

1. Post a recipe on your personal blog, and add the link to the comments of this post.
2. Email your recipe to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.
   
3. Post a recipe on your personal blog, email the link to consciousshopperblog [at] gmail [dot] com, and I will include it in the next post.

What's in season in June/July?

To find out what's in season in your area, you can google "produce availability" and the name of your state, or choose your state on PickYourOwn.org. The latter has to be the worst designed and yet most valuable website I've seen. Anything you want to know about pick-your-own farms and preserving foods can be found there.

If you live in North Carolina, you will likely see the following fruits and vegetables at the farmer's market this month: green beans, blueberries, cabbage, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, leafy greens, lettuce, peaches, green peppers, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, strawberries, and watermelon.

I've also found that the farmers are able to push the limits of the seasons pretty well around here by using greenhouses and cold frames.


Late Spring/Early Summer Seasonal Recipes

I really wanted to try this first recipe, but we got to the farmer's market too late in the day to get any strawberries. Strawberry season is petering out around here.

Strawberry Pavlova
contributed by Maren

SERVES 4-8

4 egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 C granulated sugar
4 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c heavy cream, chilled
2 to 3 cups strawberries, sliced and sprinkled with sugar

• Preheat oven to 275F.
• Beat egg whites, salt and cream of tartar together in a bowl until the whites hold a stiff peak. Add the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, beating until mixture is stiff and glossy. Beat in the cornstarch, then the vinegar and the vanilla.
• Butter and lightly flour a loose-bottomed 8-inch cake pan (or just a pie pan will do), and fill gently with the meringue mixture, spreading it higher around the edges than in the center of the pan to form a depression.
• Bake cake for 1 to 1.25 hours or until meringue is firm and lightly browned. Pavlova will remain moist inside. Cool slightly, unmold, slide onto a serving plate (or leave in pie tin if preferred), and cool completely.
• Whip the cream, and add sugar to desired sweetness. Just before serving, spread the Pavlova with whipped cream and then with the strawberries. Serve immediately.

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Frank says this recipe will work with any type of berries. He didn't call it "rumtopf," but I did a little research, and that was the name I discovered. Is that what you call it, Frank?

Rumtopf
contributed by Frank

• Fill mason jar with 2 inches of sugar.
• Fill the rest of the way with berries.
• Fill the jar with as much 151 as will fit.
• Seal jar and turn over each month.
• Open and share with your adult friends starting with the Thanksgiving holidays and lasting through New Years.
• To share open the jar pass out the berries for eating, then pass arounf the jar or pour shots or make daiquiris.

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Lettuces and greens are my cooking nemesis. I'm always looking for new ways to serve them. When I fed this salad to my boys, First Son said, "You can't put strawberries in a salad!" Yes, you can...

Crunchy Romaine Strawberry Salad
(from Allrecipes.com)
contributed by Conscious Shopper

SERVES 12 (If you click on the recipe title, it will take you to Allrecipes, where you can adjust the serving size to a more reasonable amount)
COST: $0.57 per serving*

1 (3 ounce) package ramen noodles
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
8 cups torn romaine
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced

• Discard seasoning packet from ramen noodles or save for another use. Break noodles into small pieces.
  
• In a skillet, saute noodles and walnuts in butter for 8-10 minutes or until golden; cool.
• For dressing, in a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the oil, sugar, vinegar and soy sauce; shake well.
  
• Just before serving combine the romaine, onions, strawberries and noodle mixture in a large bowl. Drizzle with dressing and toss gently.

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A delicious way to get your kids to eat spinach. When I made this, I left out the sun-dried tomato pesto because I didn't have any (I might have increased the butter to compensate), and I used my homemade pizza crust.

Pizza without the Red Sauce
(from Allrecipes.com)
contributed by Conscious Shopper

SERVES 8
COST: $1.13 per serving*

2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato pesto
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 unbaked pizza crust
1 tomato, sliced
1 bunch fresh spinach, torn
1 sweet onion, sliced
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 (6 ounce) package feta cheese, crumbled

• Preheat oven according to pizza crust package directions.
• In a small bowl combine butter, olive oil, garlic, pesto, basil, oregano and Parmesan cheese. Spread mixture evenly on pizza crust.
• Arrange tomato, spinach, onion and jalapeno on pizza. Top with crumbled feta cheese.
• Bake according to pizza crust package directions.

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We tested out this recipe and really enjoyed it. We don't have a grill, so I roasted the vegetables instead, and I used zucchini instead of asparagus because I got confused when telling my husband what to get at the farmer's market. But it still worked out great!

Spring Asparagus and New Potato Salad
from Andrea Chesman's 1998 book, The Vegetarian Grill
contributed by Going Green Mama

6 T. olive oil
Juice of one lemon
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 lb. new potatoes, halved
1 lb. asparagus
12-16 c. salad greens
parmesan

• Combine olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss potatoes and asparagus to coat.
  
• Grill potatoes, turning every 10 minutes or so, about 30 min. Grill asparagus until limp, about 8 min. (Be sure to reserve marinade.)
• Arrange salad greens on plates. Top with grilled asparagus and potatoes. Drizzle remaining marinade on top. Sprinkle with parmesan.

Going Green Mama has many seasonal recipes on her blog, and I'll be trying out and including more throughout these posts.

If you try any of these recipes, let me know what you think!

*Note that all prices are estimates based on costs in my area. Your costs may vary.


Related Posts:

• Wanted: Seasonal Recipes
  
• Alternate Thanksgiving Recipes
• Recipes for Sweet Potato Lovers

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Spotlight on Raleigh: Finding Local Foods in the Triangle

I recently discovered in a round about way that my friend Aimee is a wealth of knowledge about finding local foods in the Triangle. We were discussing coupons (she's also an expert coupon clipper), and she mentioned that she wasn't buying meat from the grocery store because her family bought a share of a cow last year.

"That's awesome! Where did you find that?" I asked because even though I'm a vegetarian, I have a family who enjoys meat on occasion.

She directed me to the website eatwild.com, where you can search a directory for local pasture-raised beef, pork, poultry, and more. Then, a few days later, she emailed me a detailed list of pastured beef farmers in the area. A few days after that, I saw her at the farmer's market, and a few days after that, she emailed the women at my church about a local source for wheat.

By this time, I was intrigued, so I asked her if she would email me everything she knows. Here's her wonderfully detailed reply:

Erin, I am really new to local eating. I am usually all about convenience. Sometimes eating local is convenient, but sometimes it is not. I really started researching local options for adding to my food storage because it is so expensive to order from food storage places out west. I really didn't want to pay shipping costs on a year supply of food. What I have found in the process of trying to save on shipping, are some really high quality, natural products that taste better than anything else I have tried.

I am concerned about the junk in mass produced meat, as well as the poor quality and taste. That, and the desire to store three months worth of food, led me on the quest to find local, healthy beef. Having visited China and seen first hand the way food is handled, I became very concerned after reading articles about fish and shrimp being imported from China. I thought I was buying local fish for freshness, but I have made double sure by checking with my favorite fish market.

Even though I have seen some benefits to local eating, I have not changed my whole way of life to eat local. I slowly continue to find products that I like, that are not too expensive, and as local as possible. I will not pay more just to eat local, unless the product is outstanding. I also weigh convenience heavily. I cannot drive from Fuquay to the Farmers Market every week, but I do a few times a year. I can drive to Yanceyville once a year to buy beef and stock my freezer.

I found the wheat by accident because I had investigated where to buy local meat in bulk and happened to get an email from the farmer saying he was growing wheat.

This is the website where I found a list of NC grassfed beef farmers. http://www.eatwild.com/products/nocarolina.html

I have tried beef from Baucom's Best (very good but more expensive and a long waiting list), Baldwin's Beef (very good - this is the beef we purchased), Hogan's Beef (the Chapel Hill farmer with wheat) [www.hogansbeef.com], and one more that is just over the border in VA - can't remember the name because we didn't like the meat. :)

Besides beef and wheat, the only other thing that I consistently buy local is grits and some other products from a mill in Greensboro. Not sure if that is local enough for you. :) Here is the link to that mill. http://www.oldmillofguilford.com/ They have the BEST grits I have ever tried. I have converted grits haters to grits lovers with these grits. :) The mill processes the grains as you order them, so the products are fresh and so they don't have to be treated with pesticides to keep the critters out of stored grains. I also love their sweet potato muffin mix.

I think I mentioned seafood and did not include info. I buy fresh shrimp in bulk the day it is caught from some guys we found on Craig's list. They drive to the coast, fish all night, and drive back to Raleigh with their catch several times during the shrimp season. It is FRESH, and cheaper than any store. I buy 50 lbs or more at a time and freeze it. I buy other kinds of fish only from Earp's Seafood on 401 (South Saunders St.) in Raleigh. If their fish is not caught in NC, is at least caught on the east coast.

One other resource I have not used successfully yet, is a locavore website you can use to find products in your area. The link is http://www.carolinafarmstewards.org/

What I love about this email is Aimee's attitude about eating local. She recognizes many benefits of local foods, but she's also rational about fitting it into her lifestyle. And she chooses to eat local foods when they are delicious and affordable, rather than choosing certain foods just for the sake of eating local. I think her attitude is worth emulating and I'm very grateful for her help and information.

If you live in the Triangle area and know any great sources for local foods, add them to the comments. Aimee would appreciate some good local sources for poultry!

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Giving...When There's No Money to Give

This post is my submission for this month's APLS Blog Carnival. The subject is "charities." Check out all of the APLS bloggers on March 20 at Green Resolutions.

Several times when I've told my husband what the topics are for the two blog carnivals I participate in each month, he has responded, "Who comes up with those?!"

I personally enjoy having a topic to write about. It taps into a different type of creativity than just blogging about anything that comes into my head. But this month was different. This month I had trouble coming up with anything to say.

For the record, I'm not saying anything against Green Resolutions, who came up with this topic (and happens to be one of my favorite green bloggers...and I really do think it's a great and unusual-in-a-good-way topic).

But, you see, my problem is that I don't give money to any charities...

I'm not saying never. I've dropped many many handfuls of change (and even a few dollar bills here and there) in the buckets of the Salvation Army, and even in the cups of beggars on the side of the road, although I've been told you shouldn't do that. We used to give to our local fire department every year after they miraculously saved all of our belongings in an apartment fire the first year we were married (and hey, hubby, we ought to start giving them money again...). And when we feel financially secure, we've been known to support our favorite organizations (NPR, New American Dream, Green America, the Sierra Club), who do great good, even if they aren't technically charities.

But the thing is...we give 10% of our gross income to tithing. I know my church is using that money for good, and I think 10% is all any reasonable person should be expected to give. If I were wealthy, I would give much much more, but in the meantime, I'm giving as much as I can. But tithing is not exactly the same as giving to charity.

So as I pondered this topic some more, I began wondering if there are ways to give to people in need and to give back to the community without money. And then I remembered an email I received from Green America a month ago with the subject line: Break Up with Your Bank.

The email was a reminder to me and other Green America members about the ridiculous behavior of many banks in this time of economic crisis. (The bank I use, for example, Bank of America, is receiving a $45 billion dollar bail-out but threw a $10 million dollar Super Bowl Party.) The email then went on to encourage Green America members to switch to a community investing bank.

What is a Community Investing Bank?

To understand what community investing banks do, you have to remember that when you stick your money in a bank, it doesn't just sit there, like valuables in a lock box, waiting for you to come collect it. The bank puts your money to work. They loan it out to people and charge interest, and they invest it. That's how banks make money, and also how they can afford to pay you interest on your savings accounts.

It's a smart system that benefits both the banks and the people who use them, but there's a catch: you have no say in where your money is loaned. Bank of America, for instance, is one of the largest investors in the U.S. in coal mining and coal-powered plants. I'd prefer not to be supporting that, thank you very much.

With a community investing bank, you still have no say in who gets to use your money, but you will have a general idea where it's going. Community investing banks loan to local organizations and businesses, economically disadvantaged people, and often environmentally friendly or socially responsible businesses and organizations as well.

Why should I use a community investing bank?

Green America explains, "Community investing provides the means for low-income people to use their own skills and talents to lift themselves up economically—the money provides loans to start environmentally sustainable businesses, builds schools, or funds critical services like affordable child care. As the saying goes, it’s not a hand out, but a very effective hand up for people who have been disenfranchised by our economic system....Continue to be generous in giving to charity, and then also devote at least 1% of your portfolio to community investing."

Plus, according to the Better World Shopper, changing your bank is the #1 thing you can do to vote with your wallet. And when you think about it, it seems obvious...Banks control where the dollars go, and they manage huge amounts of money. So it does no good for someone to start buying organic cotton clothing if they are still supporting a bank that invests in pesticides. Picking a bank and a credit card that make sustainable and fair choices will greatly magnify your ability to vote with your wallet.

How do I find a community investing bank?

If you live in Raleigh, you're lucky because I've done all the work for you. There's a credit union in Durham called Self-Help where you can open a savings account, CD, IRA, or money market account. If you don't live in the Triangle and would prefer a bank closer to you, you can check the Community Investment Database.

I am also interested in an online bank called ShoreBank Pacific, which is "committed to environmentally sustainable community development." The disadvantage of an online bank, of course, is the inability to withdraw money from an ATM. (The most attractive feature of Bank of America, when we chose it, was it's nationwide system of ATMs). But there are ways to get around that, like keeping a small account open in a nationwide bank for withdrawals.

For more information about community investing, you can read Green America's guide to Investing in Communities.


What else can I do?

What other ideas do you all have for giving to the less fortunate and giving back to your communities if you have no money to give?

Photo by borman818

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I Need...Eggs

Closely related to my post about dairy products last week is the subject of eggs.

I have found that people are more likely to feel bad about the treatment of cows than chickens in factory farms - maybe because cows are big mammals with huge, sad-looking eyes and chickens are small birds with sharp beaks. Or maybe it's just that people consume so much chicken (50 pounds a year) that they don't want to think about it. All I know is that when I tell people about the terrible treatment of chickens, the answer I most commonly get is, "Well, it's just a chicken."

I think that's sad, but since I've been trying to justify my own egg eating for years now, I don't have much room to talk. In some ways, egg-laying hens have it worse than chickens raised for their meat:

• Factory Farm egg-laying hens are packed into tiny cages that are about 18 by 20 inches with five to ten chickens per cage. Picture that! Even with only five hens in a cage that size, they would have no room to move, no room to stretch their wings, and they spend their entire lives in a cage that small. It's not like they're being let out a few hours a day to get exercise.
• The cages are stacked on top of each other, which means that the poop from one cage can fall into the cage below it. Besides being gross (the birds spend a lot of time standing in their own feces), this lack of cleanliness leads to disease in both chickens and humans.
  
• At the end of the lives of egg-laying hens, they are sent to a slaughterhouse. Because they are not raised for meat and spend their lives in cramped conditions, many hens have emaciated bodies and suffer from broken bones by the time they are killed.
  
• Salmonella poisoning is most commonly associated with eggs and poultry. Safe handling and thorough cooking can reduce the risk of food poisoning, but it's worth noting that salmonella is more common with factory farm raised chickens than traditionally raised chickens.
  
• Like cows, chickens are given antibiotics to increase their growth and prevent illness (remember that they're raised under germ-friendly conditions). The average chicken is given four doses of antibiotics a day. Overuse of these antibiotics are making bacteria more and more resistant, and both the antibiotics and the resistant bacteria enter our water supplies.
• Most poultry farms in the United States are owned by just a couple of companies, the biggest being Tyson Foods. Workers at these farms suffer one of the highest rates of injury in the U.S. and are paid extremely low wages.

For more information, check out Go Veg: Chickens and The Green Guide: Poultry and Eggs.

BABY STEPS

• Eat fewer eggs. Eggs make a great binding agent in cooking, making them hard to give up completely. But if you're in the habit of eating a lot of eggs every week, could you reduce that amount even a little?
  

JOGGING STRIDE

• Check your label. If you've ever gone shopping for organic eggs, you know that there are so many choices, it can be confusing. Should you buy certified organic, cage-free, free range, certified humane, pasture-fed? Well, it depends...Rather than repeating information already out there, I suggest you read this guide from The Humane Society or check out The Green Guide's guide to poultry and eggs.
  
• Know your producer. The only way to verify for sure how your eggs are being produced is to know the person who's raising them. Talk to the farmer at your farmer's market about how they treat their chickens, mentioning free-range, antibiotics, pesticides, and food.
  
• Raise your own chickens. If you have a backyard, you can raise chickens. Be sure to check the laws in your area, though (including the rules in your homeowner's association). If you're interested, look to Urban Chickens for all your backyard chicken-raising needs, including basic information on chicken care and the type of coop to choose.

MARATHON RUNNER

• Go Vegan. When I was a vegan, I found eggs a lot easier to give up than dairy products. The important thing to remember is to tailor your egg replacer to whatever you're making. For example, pureed tofu makes a good egg replacement in soft foods like breakfast burritos and egg salads while bananas or applesauce can replace the eggs in baked goods. Check out this guide for more information.

Tips for the Budget Conscious
Many mainstream grocery stores now carry their own store brand of organic or free-range eggs. However, no aspect of the commercial egg industry, including organic eggs, is perfect. For example, organic egg-laying hens are required to have access to the outdoors, but that doesn't mean they actually go outside. Also, male chicks are useless to a commercial egg farmer, so they are killed soon after birth with methods ranging from suffocation to grinding. If you're really concerned about humanely raised chickens and eggs on a budget, your best bet would be to raise your own.


Where I'm At
I buy my eggs at the farmer's market rather than the grocery store even though they're a little more expensive because I feel more confident that the chickens are treated humanely. Plus, I get the bonus of supporting a small family farm. Someday, when we are no longer in an apartment, I plan to raise my own chickens.

Photo by angela7dreams

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I Need...Dairy

When I wrote my post about going vegetarian a few months ago, it was the first time I'd thoroughly researched reasons to be a vegetarian in several years. Researching the subject reconfirmed my decision not to eat meat, but it also left me feeling really guilty that I still eat dairy products and eggs.

I tried going vegan early on in my years as a vegetarian, but that lifestyle change was short-lived, lasting barely a year. Frankly, it was just too hard. There are hidden animal products in foods you would think have no reason to have animal products in them. Like cold cereal, for instance. Bread. Tortillas. Even some so-called vegetarian cheeses are still made with rennet, which comes from the stomach of a cow. It took me forever to go grocery shopping because I had to read the label of every product I picked up off the shelf.

Then there were the intense cravings for cheese and ice cream every time I ate around non-vegans - including my husband who still kept cheese in the house and indulged in the occasional ice cream treat. I honestly don't crave meat like some vegetarians, but giving up cheese and ice cream was painful. And SoyDream just does not do the job.

So I gave up my short-lived veganism, rationalizing that my dairy consumption was a necessary, though admittedly bad, habit.

The problem with being a Conscious Shopper is that once you're aware of the dark side of something you're doing, it's hard to rationalize it as necessary. Dairy consumption is inextricably linked to the meat industry, and also has a list of problems all it's own:

1. The bucolic image of a field of cows is a thing of the past. Most dairy cows today spend their lives in huge manure-filled feedlots or sheds where they are fed grain that has been treated with pesticides and fertilizer.
   
2. To be able to produce milk, the cows are repeatedly impregnated through artificial insemination.
3. After a cow gives birth, her calf is taken from her within a day. If the calf is a male, he is moved to a veal crate, where he will only live for a few months before being slaughtered. If the calf is a female, she'll grow up to be a dairy cow like her mother.
4. To get the cows to produce more milk, many factory farmers inject the cows with a hormone called recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH). The FDA approved rBGH for use in the early 1990s with no prior safety testing, relying on the results of one study conducted by Monsanto, the creators of the hormone. In recent years, use of rBGH has been correlated to tumors and cancer in humans, although the health risks associated with the hormone are still being disputed. It is indisputable, however, that cows treated with rBGH have an increased risk of infected or inflamed udders, ovarian cysts, and reduced pregnancy rates.
5. Dairy cows raised in factory farms have an average lifespan of 5 years, a quarter of the lifespan of a traditionally raised cow, and their lives generally end in the slaughterhouse.
6. Unlike human waste, treatment of animal waste from factory farms is not adequately regulated. Animal waste is pumped into huge open pits where it releases methane gas, and much of the waste ends up running into water supplies.

For more information, check out these resources:

Go Veg: Dairy Cows
The Green Guide on rBGH
Pollution Locator: Animal Waste
101 Reasons to Go Vegetarian

So what's a dairy-loving eco-conscious animal lover to do?

Baby Steps

• Avoid recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH). Many brands of dairy products are now labeled as rBGH-free.
• Eat less dairy. Try eating more Asian or Indian cuisine, both of which tend to use less dairy.

Jogging Stride

• Buy organic. Organic dairy cows are not given hormones or antibiotics, must be fed organic feed, and must spend a certain number of days in pasture.
• Support a local small farm. Small farmers have trouble competing with the big factory farms, especially those that use growth hormones. Give a guy a chance!
  
• Give organic soymilk or goat's milk a try. It takes fewer natural resources to grow soybeans or raise goats. You can even raise your own goats – I hear they make a great fossil-fuel free lawnmower!

Marathon Runner

• Go vegan. I tip my hat to all the vegans out there, and if you think you can do it, go for it!

Tips for the Budget Conscious
Many mainstream grocery stores are now selling their own store brand of organic dairy products. They're still expensive, but cost less than the name brands. You can also save money by trying out some DIY projects such as making your own yogurt, soymilk, and even cheeses.


Where I'm At
I've started buying organic cheese, but I'm also trying to decrease the amount of cheese my family eats overall. In the past, we've tended to think, "If it tastes good, it will taste even better with cheese!." Also, being a mostly vegetarian family, we are big fans of the beans and cheese combination. To get around this, I started buying a smaller package of cheese, and when we run out, that's our cheese quota for the week.

In the milk department, I've decided to splurge on the Maple View Farm milk. It's a dollar more expensive and not organic, but I discovered that I can buy it at the farmer's market and return my glass bottles there. Plus, it tastes really good. I also discovered this week that my kids are big fans of soymilk. First Son actually begged me to buy it for him at the grocery store today.

I'm still trying to work out the ice cream issue...

Photo by JelleS

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