Archive for the ‘Foods’ Category
1. Trim consumption of animal fats
When you’re pregnant, it’s more important than ever to choose lean cuts of meat, trim away fat and opt for fat-free dairy products. Here’s why: Some toxins linked to prenatal nervous system and hormonal damage are stored in fatty tissue. These include polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which pose risks of reduced intelligence to the developing fetus; brominated fire retardants; dioxins and other pollutants that persist in our air and water.
2. Put a stop to insecticides in your home and office
Organophosphates are a family of insecticides that attack the nervous system. In two New York City studies conducted last year, babies of women who had been most exposed to two organophosphates, chlorpyrifos (Dursban and Lorsban) and diazinon (Spectracide), had significantly lower birth weights. Fortunately, these insecticides were phased out of residential and school use by the EPA in 2001-03. However, other organophosphates are still in circulation, as are similar compounds called pyrethroids. Pesticides also release inhalable volatile organic compounds (see below).
What to do instead? Researchers at the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health (CCCEH) recommend that pregnant women switch to sticky traps and other bait stations, “which are safer, last longer and are more effective,” while keeping surfaces clean of food residue, removing trash and treating cracks with boric acid, classified by the EPA as of low toxicity, then sealing with caulk. (Keep boric acid and baits out of the reach of children and pets.)
3. Select foods to minimize pesticide residues
Chlorpyrifos and diazinon (see above), along with many related toxic pesticides, are still used widely on food crops. Prioritize your grocery list to allow for the purchase of the following organic fruits and vegetables that, when conventionally grown, tend to harbor the most pesticide residue: apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, spinach, strawberries and peppers.
4. Pass on high-mercury fish
Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that can harm a developing fetus. Say “no” to high-mercury fish such as fresh tuna, canned albacore, wild bass, swordfish and tilefish. (One meal of moderate-mercury fish, such as canned light tuna, can be eaten once a month.) Eat up: low-mercury “yes” fish such as sardines, wild salmon and farmed striped bass.
5. Let Old Paint Lie
Since lead has been banned from gasoline (in 1996) and paint (in 1978), most exposures now come from old lead-based paint. This heavy metal, which can also contaminate water and soil, can interfere with nearly every aspect of fetal development, causing brain and kidney damage, according to the CCHE. If your old house has lead paint in good condition, cover it with fresh paint rather than removing it, which releases lead dust into the air. To test paint for lead, see www.epa.gov/lead or call the EPA’s lead hot line at 800-426-4791.
6. Make sure your water is safe to drink
Your local utility must by law provide you with an annual “Right to Know” report listing the EPA-recognized pollutants that exist in your water at potentially unsafe levels. Trihalomethanes, for instance, can increase the risk of miscarriage. See Green Guide #101 for contaminants to avoid and best filters. If you suspect there’s lead in your pipes, allow the tap to run for 30 seconds to clear them before using water. Find lead-testing services at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/labs/index.html.
7. Avoid the VOCs that offgas from paints, glues, air fresheners
Toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can evaporate from many conventional building, decorating and other household products, including air freshener sprays. Exposure to air fresheners during pregnancy and within the first six months of life was associated with diarrhea and earache in infants and headaches and depression in mothers, according to a study published in the October 2003 Archives of Environmental Health.
If exposed to fumes at work, speak up: Thirty-two children exposed in utero to organic solvents had lower scores on language and other developmental tests, according to a study published in the October 2004 Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. In the workplace, their mothers had come into contact with such solvents as toluene, xylene, mineral spirits, isopropyl alcohol and trichloroethylene.
8. Steer clear of vehicular and smokestack emissions
Research conducted by Columbia University links “combustion-related” chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with shorter gestation periods for pregnant women, resulting in smaller babies. PAHs are in car or bus exhaust and emissions from residential heating and power generation. Before exercising outdoors, check the EPA’s Air Quality Index at epa.gov/airnow. Keep windows closed during peak traffic hours.
9. Stay away from phthalates in vinyl, personal-care and cleaning products
Chemicals called phthalates, known hormone-system disruptors that have caused birth defects in lab animals, are widely used as plasticizers in nail polishes and vinyl and as solvents in synthetic fragrances. Avoid soft vinyl products and cosmetics containing “Fragrance.”
10. Get rid of those crumbling foam cushions, already!
The latest chemicals found to be approaching possibly unsafe levels in American women’s breast milk, as well as umbilical-cord blood, are fire retardants known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs. Furniture foam tends to release PBDEs into house dust when it breaks down.
How do you picture a wonderfully unique dining experience in the city of New York? A place to unwind at an organic juice bar, where you can casually read your papers and sip on a cool glass of freshly prepared fruit smoothie. Become infused with raw energy. Take pleasure in a conversation with friends or neighbors at the community table over delectable morsels of quick bites. Relax and take in the scents of exotic food and spices. Watch an open kitchen come to life as invigorating music and warmth surround you. Celebrate the joy of eating with a nutritious meal from the innovative vegetarian menu, complemented by a fine glass of organic wine. Hear the sounds of laughter and delight as you are being treated like family.
Intrigued? These sensuous adventures and more are waiting for you at GOBO where everyone is brought together in a cozy setting, reminiscent of a country kitchen that embodies big city life. It is a country kitchen with flair. From the eclectic West Village, the doors of GOBO restaurant open into a stylish, comfortable and vibrant space serving exciting vegetarian global cuisine that conveys the diversity of the neighborhood. An extension of New York in which your five senses enjoy constant stimulation, GOBO is an inviting scene for all people to share in the spiritual experience of healthy vegetarian dining. Take a journey to the GOBO country kitchen to discover “food for the five senses”. Leave with an awakening of both your body and mind!
Ingredients
2 to 3 cups organic butternut squash, roasted or boiled (use whatever winter squash is available)
1 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, sliced (about 1 ¼ cups)
1 tsp dried thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 cups organic apples, sliced
1 cup organic cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 cup bread crumbs
Method
1. Mash up squash. Spoon a good 2 to 3 cups of the squash into the bottom of an oven safe casserole dish.
2. Add olive oil to a skillet and sauté onions over medium heat. Add thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Stir onions and cook over medium heat for 7 minutes. The onions should be caramelized.
3. Add the onions on top of the squash.
4. Layer apples on top of the onions.
5. Add the grated cheddar cheese and bread crumbs to the top of the dish and add up to 1/4 cup of bread crumbs.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, until the cheese is melted and a little browned on top. Let it cool for a moment or two when you take it out because it will be very hot.
I highly recommend you double (or quadruple) this recipe because people will tear into it and it will be all gone in a flash.
Off The Hook: Why Local Seafood is Sustainable
Saturday, March 13th from 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm at 92 Y Tribeca
Do you want to know what fish are sustainable to eat? Are you confused by pocket seafood guides and competing certification labels? Do you wonder if any fish sold at farmer’s markets are overfished? Greenmarket will bring together fishermen, a regulatory agent, a marine advocate, and a chef to help untangle these questions and talk about what’s being done to promote sustainable fishing practices and why it’s important to support our local fishing families and communities.
Panelists include, Alex and Stephanie Villani from Blue Moon Fish in Mattituck, NY; Christopher M. Moore Chief of the Partnerships and Communications Division in the office of Sustainable Fisheries at NOAA Fisheries Service; Niaz Dorry, Director of the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance (NAMA); and Colin Alevras Chef of the former acclaimed restaurant Tasting Room and now Sommelier at DBGB Kitchen & Bar.
Light local seafood snacks and New York State wine will be served.
Tickets are $10 and available at 92 Y Tribeca or through the box office at 212-601-1000.
92Y Tribeca is located at 200 Hudson Street, at Canal.
OZU Restaurant Japanese Kosher Natural Food
566 Amsterdam Avenue
( Between 87th and 88th Streets )
New York, NY
This macrobiotic restaurant on the Upper West Side of Manhattan is a favorite for locals in the neighborhood who visit daily for the lunch special. The lunch specials start at are $13.00 and include a hearty bowl of soup, your choice of miso, carrot ginger or a daily bean soup medley and your choice of a main dish. Another crowd pleaser is the “Almost Perfect” which consists of a magnificent greens selection with tofu, seaweed and carrots. It comes in an adorable bento box and also includes your choice of soup and you can also choose two appetizers from the menu. The restaurant serves no dairy products, no meat, no refined sugar, no sushi, no shellfish, no soft drinks, and no hard booze. What they do, however, they do very, very well. Vegan entrées like Asian-oriented grains, noodles, and flavorful vegetables, such as shredded carrots inside a dumpling wrapper, are prefaced by spring rolls stuffed with basil, julienned cucumber, and soft tofu, with a peanut dipping sauce on the side. Cooked fish, like buttery sea bass or wild or farmed salmon, also makes the Ozu list. Kabocha, tender steamed Hokkaido pumpkin, fragrant with sesame seeds, is particularly simple and good. Another great find are coconut curries, Korean nabe pots—heated stone bowls filled with vegetables, rice, or soup—and, in a welcome twist, decidedly un-Asian pastas like kabocha gnocchi. All in all lunch at Ozu is always filling so go on an empty stomach and wear comfortable fitting pants: But to fill up here is not a guilty pleasure because all of the food is healthy, nutritious and most of all delicious!
Josie’s Restaurant has been a longtime favorite of mine for casual vegetarian dining, although their menu includes fish and poultry as well. They have two locations, one on the upper west side of Manhattan and one in midtown. I recommend the sushi appetizer, which is vegetarian, and absolutely scrumptious. They offer free range meats and all organic produce from local vendors. They also have a quite impressive juice bar selection and the freshness of their fruits is undeniable! Both locations offer ambient, aesthetically pleasing settings and the service is wonderful. Josie’s is the perfect place to take a first date or a group of friends. I have included a rave review from NY Magazine:
In these uncertain agricultural times, people question where their food comes from, and Louis Lanza, chef-owner of both Josie’s on the Upper West Side and its Murray Hill outpost, is full of reassuring answers, most of them printed right on the menu. The sleek design shatters every health-food-restaurant cliche. All appetizers and main dishes are dairy free but not necessarily meat free, so vegans can enjoy a veggie “meatloaf ” while meat eaters wolf down a natural, free-range meat dish. A mixed-eating-habit couple can put together a nice, inexpensive meal by ordering one entrée each and splitting an order of steamed dumplings in a creamy red pepper coulis or a side of mashed sweet potatoes with cranberries. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld
The New York Botanical Garden has an amazing Edible Garden exhibit where you’ll learn things like how to grow sustainable fruits and veggies and turn food scraps into nutrient-rich soil. The lovely heirloom tomatoes pictured above were organically grown this summer in the fertile grounds at The Botanical Gardens in the Bronx. Kids will enjoy the Pizza Garden for a hands-on look at planting basil, wheat, tomatoes, and oregano. If you get hungry hit the 250-acre edible garden, where you can buy fresh produce from local farmers on Wednesdays and Sundays. When you grow or buy organic produce, no toxic pesticides go into you, your family, or the environment. Plus, locally grown food is safe to eat and you know exactly where it came from and how it was grown; Help our planet and lower your carbon footprint buy local and grow your own food when possible, plus it doesn’t require major CO2-spewing shipping.
Edible Gardens at New York Botanical Garden Southern Blvd., Bronx (718-817-8700). Tickets, $20/adults; $8/kids.
For the last ten years I have tried to eat organically as often as possible. There were times when the financial expense of eating only organic foods was too much. Now the problem is that my local supermarket doesn’t carry much in the way of organic produce and because I work full time I find myself limited when it comes to where I shop for food. Organic.com is a great resource that I turn to for information on reasons to eat organically as well as a tool for finding local farmers markets. Here are their top 10 reasons to eat organically:
1. Reduce The Toxic Load: Keep Chemicals Out of the Air, Water, Soil and our Bodies
Buying organic food promotes a less toxic environment for all living things. With only 0.5 percent of crop and pasture land in organic, according to USDA that leaves 99.5 percent of farm acres in the U.S. at risk of exposure to noxious agricultural chemicals.
Our bodies are the environment so supporting organic agriculture doesn’t just benefit your family, it helps all families live less toxically.
2. Reduce if Not Eliminate Off Farm Pollution
Industrial agriculture doesn’t singularly pollute farmland and farm workers; it also wreaks havoc on the environment downstream. Pesticide drift affects non-farm communities with odorless and invisible poisons. Synthetic fertilizer drifting downstream is the main culprit for dead zones in delicate ocean environments, such as the Gulf of Mexico, where its dead zone is now larger than 22,000 square kilometers, an area larger than New Jersey, according to Science magazine, August, 2002.
3. Protect Future Generations
Before a mother first nurses her newborn, the toxic risk from pesticides has already begun. Studies show that infants are exposed to hundreds of harmful chemicals in utero. In fact, our nation is now reaping the results of four generations of exposure to agricultural and industrial chemicals, whose safety was deemed on adult tolerance levels, not on children’s. According to the National Academy of Science, “neurologic and behavioral effects may result from low-level exposure to pesticides.” Numerous studies show that pesticides can adversely affect the nervous system, increase the risk of cancer, and decrease fertility.
4. Build Healthy Soil
Mono-cropping and chemical fertilizer dependency has taken a toll with a loss of top soil estimated at a cost of $40 billion per year in the U.S., according to David Pimental of Cornell University. Add to this an equally disturbing loss of micro nutrients and minerals in fruits and vegetables. Feeding the soil with organic matter instead of ammonia and other synthetic fertilizers has proven to increase nutrients in produce, with higher levels of vitamins and minerals found in organic food, according to the 2005 study, “Elevating Antioxidant levels in food through organic farming and food processing,” Organic Center State of Science Review (1.05)
5. Taste Better and Truer Flavor
Scientists now know what we eaters have known all along: organic food often tastes better. It makes sense that strawberries taste yummier when raised in harmony with nature, but researchers at Washington State University just proved this as fact in lab taste trials where the organic berries were consistently judged as sweeter. Plus, new research verifies that some organic produce is often lower in nitrates and higher in antioxidants than conventional food. Let the organic feasting begin!
6. Assist Family Farmers of all Sizes
According to Organic Farming Research Foundation, as of 2006 there are approximately 10,000 certified organic producers in the U.S. compared to 2500 to 3,000 tracked in 1994. Measured against the two million farms estimated in the U.S. today, organic is still tiny. Family farms that are certified organic farms have a double economic benefit: they are profitable and they farm in harmony with their surrounding environment. Whether the farm is a 4-acre orchard or a 4,000-acre wheat farm, organic is a beneficial practice that is genuinely family-friendly.
7. Avoid Hasty and Poor Science in Your Food
Cloned food. GMOs and rBGH. Oh my! Interesting how swiftly these food technologies were rushed to market, when organic fought for 13 years to become federal law. Eleven years ago, genetically modified food was not part of our food supply; today an astounding 30 percent of our cropland is planted in GMOs. Organic is the only de facto seal of reassurance against these and other modern, lab-produced additions to our food supply, and the only food term with built in inspections and federal regulatory teeth.
8. Eating with a Sense of Place
Whether it is local fruit, imported coffee or artisan cheese, organic can demonstrate a reverence for the land and its people. No matter the zip code, organic has proven to use less energy (on average, about 30 percent less), is beneficial to soil, water and local habitat, and is safer for the people who harvest our food. Eat more seasonably by supporting your local farmers market while also supporting a global organic economy year round. It will make your taste buds happy.
9. Promote Biodiversity
Visit an organic farm and you’ll notice something: a buzz of animal, bird and insect activity. These organic oases are thriving, diverse habitats. Native plants, birds and hawks return usually after the first season of organic practices; beneficial insects allow for a greater balance, and indigenous animals find these farms a safe haven. As best said by Aldo Leopold, “A good farm must be one where the native flora and fauna have lost acreage without losing their existence.” An organic farm is the equivalent of reforestation. Industrial farms are the equivalent of clear cutting of native habitat with a focus on high farm yields.
10. Celebrate the Culture of Agriculture
Food is a ‘language’ spoken in every culture. Making this language organic allows for an important cultural revolution whereby diversity and biodiversity are embraced and chemical toxins and environmental harm are radically reduced, if not eliminated. The simple act of saving one heirloom seed from extinction, for example, is an act of biological and cultural conservation. Organic is not necessarily the most efficient farming system in the short run. It is slower, harder, more complex and more labor-intensive. But for the sake of culture everywhere, from permaculture to human culture, organic should be celebrated at every table.
The most common sense way of stating this principle is:
The shorter the distance that food travels from farm to table, the better.
Simply consider the distance between you and your food sources (and we’re not talking supermarkets here—they’re vendors, not sources), and choose the closest producers in order to live a greener lifestyle. Get your eggs from a farm in your town rather than from a farm in the far reaches of your state, and vegetables from farms in your state rather than from farms two states over. If you live on the East Coast, Florida citrus is better than California citrus. If you live in the state of Washington, California is closer than Florida, but Florida is closer than Brazil, and so forth.
Eating locally doesn’t mean doing without. You don’t have to give up coffee and tea, for example, which are popular the world over, though grown only in certain regions. But it does mean making choices when possible in favor of those foods produced nearest to where you live. Every time you purchase from the closest farmer, you strengthen the network of growers and businesses seeking to build and maintain a “foodshed” that is diverse, nutritious, sustainable, and secure.
HOW TO BUY LOCAL IN WINTER
Out-of-season produce is an extravagance because it is so energy-intensive to transport it to your kitchen. It’s not just your drive to bring it home from the grocery store—think of all the traveling that produce has done to get to the store from whatever field or orchard it was grown in. But you still want to eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, so in the winter, we should all try to eat frozen, dried, and bisphenol A (BPA)–free canned food, and food stored in local root cellars.
Eating frozen fruit and vegetables, especially from local producers and local root cellars, is your very best option during the winter months. Frozen foods retain much of their nutritional content, in addition to cutting energy costs in transportation. It takes much less energy to keep food frozen than it takes to ship food hundreds, even thousands, of miles and keep it fresh along the way. Dried and canned foods can also be nutritious options.
I’ll let the headline of this article do all the talking: 10 Killer DIY Garden Hacks found at Green Upgrader. Without further ado, here they are!
1. DIY Vertical Garden with Reclaimed Gutters
Vertical Gutter GardenWhen Suzanne Forsling moved to Juneau Alaska from Iowa, she found that it was a little bit harder to get her garden to grow. Frustrated by cold soil, scarce sunlight, hungry slugs, root maggots, porcupines, cats, bears and ravens she got resourceful. She got her crops off the cold ground and into the light by afixing gutters to the wood siding of her house on the sunny side and using them as planters.
2. Used Tired Raised Garden & Tree Ring
Reclaimed Tire GardenIf you have some old tires laying around that you don’t know what to do with, you could burn them… if you hate the environment, or you could put them to work as cool looking raised garden beds. Now this is pretty self-explanetory, but I highly recommend you read the tutorial first becsause if you don’t know what you are doing you can get yourself into trouble trying to cut up a steel belted tire.
3. DIY Earth Box
DIY Earth BoxAn Earth Box is more than just a box with soil. It’s a self-contained system that regulates irrigations, facilitates the delivery of nutrients and does all of this in the most efficient way. These are great for people who don’t have the room for an in ground garden. You can buy an Earth Box or there a ton of resources to help you go McGuyver Green.
Check out this post on Crafster.org that will show you how it’s done (via Crafting a Greener World).
4. Self-Watering Garden
Self-Watering GardenInstructable user AskJerry discovered that his central air conditioning system disposed of approximately 350 gallons of water down the drain each year. To put this water to better use he built this great Self-watering garden that reclaims the AC waste water and evenly distributes it to his vegtables in this quaint garden box. Now if you don’t have central air, you can still use this tutorial (with a few mods) with a rainbarrel, or greywater system. Check out the tutorial at Instructables.
5. Upside Down Herb Planters
Upside Down PlantersI wrote about these space saving DIY hanging planters from Urban Organic Gardener a few weeks ago. Limited to a tiny fire escape platform to do all his gardening, Mike Lieberman has been forced to be creative in order to satisfy his herbivore urges. He uses reclaimed 2 liter bottles to create hanging upside down planters to make the most of his limited space. Check out his how-to.
6. DIY Vertical Shoe Organizer Herb Garden
Vertical Herb GardenConfounded by vegetable digging cats and toiling in the vegetable patch, Instructables member pippa5 came up with this cool DIY vertical garden solution. In case you don’t recognize it, she used an old closet shoe organizer. Meant to keep your shoes off the floor and save you some space, this new use saves some space by getting your veggies or herbs off the ground. Check out the DIY at Instructables.
7. Self-Watering Insulated Tiny Greenhouse
DIY Tiny GreenhouseI’m not sure when you would need such a small and complex greenhouse system but this sure is an innovative way to reuse cups and bottles. I guess the benefit of this is that the seedling is portable, in case you need to move it freequently between your window sill, your deck… bring it to the office? Check out the tutorial at Instructables.
8. Grow 100 lbs. Of Potatoes In 4 Sq. Feet
Potatoe BoxHere’s a great space saver for you potatoe lovers! Instead of growing your pototoes in horizonal rows in your garden, grow them up in a 4×4 ft vertical potatoe garden box. Basically you start out like the picture to the right with one layer. Once the plates are about a foot above the soil you add more boards and add more soil, and keep movin on up (like the Jeffersons!). via The Seatle Times.
9. DIY Mini-Greenhouse
DIY Mini-GreenhouseIf you live in a cooler climate like me you need to get creative to extend your growing season. By using some scrap lumber and an old window you can build yourself a small seedling box that will protect your seedlings from the weather and help keep them warm in the cool early spring months. Check out the tutorial at Instructables.
10. Protect Your Garden with Beer!
via Flickr: christian.sengerThere are many, many uses for beer, as Wise Bread points out, but seeing as this post is about gardening we’ll focus on it’s slug fighting power. While worms are a gardener’s best friend, slugs are their nemesis. Don’t fret, these little pests are easily defeated by a little juice of the barely. Simply pour a little into some empty jars and place them in the soil, with the rims of the jars at ground level. The beer loving slugs will drop in for a drink, which will be their last because they can’t get back out.
