Wednesday, January 05, 2011

MILK IT! Go Raw! Go Glass!

The Raw Milk Revolution: Behind America's Emerging Battle Over Food Rights

Finally!  My local grocery store in Seattle has milk in glass bottles. Thank you Twin Brook Creamery!  Never will I go back to plastic or cardboard.  I love pouring milk from thick, glass bottles.  Not only am I RE-USING my glass bottle--no plastic/cardboard pollution--I am eliminating one of the ways plastic can leach into my food. 

If you are wanting the natural experience to the core, GO RAW~!  It is legal in most states to obtain raw milk.  Here is a list of sources:  Check out the Real Milk Website.  FYI:  You can get raw milk from most Whole Food Supermarkets.

For those of you outside the Seattle area here is a list of milk companies that sell milk in glass: 
US Dairies --Glass  --Please note that not all dairies are listed here.  Be sure to visit your local farmer's market for up-to-date info on local dairy farmers in your area.

Don't know where to start?  Visit the Local Harvest website.  They list farmer's markets found across the USA! 
The Farmers' Market Book: Growing Food, Cultivating Community (Quarry Books)Farmers' Market

Monday, January 03, 2011

Save some Green--Make some Dough!

My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead MethodKneadlessly Simple: Fabulous, Fuss-Free, No-Knead BreadsArtisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking

Save some green--Make some dough!  You can not only save money, by baking fresh bread with real, organic ingredients you can cut down the use of pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides not to mention the fuel it takes to deliver commerially made bread to the store.  Think of how honey melts on warm, homemade bread and the fact that you won't have a ton of plastic bread bags (which can't be recycled in most areas)hanging around.

People tend to think that baking bread is time consuming, difficult. and messy.  Well if you can do more than one thing in 12-18 hours then this bread is the bread for you.  No Knead Bread is sooooo easy.  Mix it up at night before you go to bed and let it rise through to morning.  ( I like to bake bread on Saturdays).  While I'm having my cup of coffee and breakfast the bread rises for a couple more hours.....then I toss it in the dutch oven and WHALLA!  BREAD!  Here is a great recipe......or check out the books above (click to find them on Amazon).  Here's to eating healthy organic homemade food this year! 


No-Knead Bread
14-20 hours rising + 2 hour

3 cups all purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 Cup Water

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast, and salt. Add 1 and 1/2 cups water, and stir until blended.  Dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap.  Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18 hours, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees (F).

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles.  Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice.  Cover loosely (with flour sac fabric or plastic wrap).  Let rest for about 15 minutes.

3.  Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to the work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape the dough into a ball.  Coat a cotten towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran, or cornmeal.  Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours.  When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4.  At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees.  Put a 6-9 quart heavy covered pot  (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex, or ceramic) in oven as it heats.  When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven.  Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is ok.  Shake pan once or twice if dough is uneven.  It will straighten out as it bakes.  Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 minutes until loaf is brown on top.  Cool on rack.

Yield :  One 1 1/2 lb loaf 

Recipe by Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery

Friday, December 31, 2010

Compost= Counts as Carbon Offset Credit!

The Complete Compost Gardening Guide: Banner batches, grow heaps, comforter compost, and other amazing techniques for saving time and money, and producing ... most flavorful, nutritous vegetables ever.How to Make and Use Compost: The Ultimate GuideCompost Stew
Compost=Carbon Offset Credit!  The folks that brought the world the Carbon Offset Credit have added a new line to their regulations..............you can reduce your carbon footprint by COMPOSTING!  Check out the full story at the American City & Country website.

Or better yet, here is a direct link to the Current Organic Waste Composting Project Protocol

Is your state composting?
The US Environmental Protection Agency has a map of the USA on their website detailing composting programs BY STATE!!  WE are a COMPOSTIN' NATION!
Well not all of the states are listed YET, but many more than I expected.  We are starting to realize the importance of our 'waste'.  CHECK out the EPA:  Where YOU LIVE & COMPOST!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

RE-THINK-RE-USE: How I "composted" my leaking fish tank

ReMAKE ReSTYLE ReUSE: Easy Ways to Transform Everyday Basics into Inspired DesignRubbish!: Reuse Your Refuse1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse: Remake, Restyle, Recycle, Renew (1000 Series)
When my old fish tank started to leak I was at a bit of a crossroads. It isn't recycleable here in Seattle (suprizingly). There were a couple options (for the environmentalist that I am): give it away on craigslist OR do something else with it. Well..........I have a clear glass coffeetable and the 10 gallon aquarium fit just perfect under it. I decided to create a living table ..........I filled the tank with stones I had collected and a couple of terracotta pots filled with plants that I had rescued.   With glass on three sides, a piece of 'junk' became a lovely terrarium.


Wednesday, December 29, 2010

LET IT RAIN~!! Rain Gardens in Seattle

Design for Water: Rainwater Harvesting, Stormwater Catchment, and Alternate Water ReuseRain Gardens: Managing Water Sustainably in the Garden and Designed LandscapeThe Rain Garden Planner: Seven Steps to Conserving and Making Water in the GardenThe Blue Thumb Guide to Raingardens


Seattle -the RAIN city-has a pilot program that grants landowners rain gardens!  Designed by landscape architects and approved by the city what are being called "RAIN GARDENS" are not only improving the visual landscape of the Seattle, they are helping limit run off, flooding, and drainage problems. Check out the City of Seattle's Rainwise Program-Seattle Public Utilities .  This program is currently available in only one neighborhood --Ballard-- (Gotta love Ballard!).  Hopefully it will be branching out to other neighborhoods too!

In addition Steward Partners - a local (Northwest) non-profit is helping landowners create their own rain gardens! 

LET IT RAIN!
Wanna put in a rain garden?  Check out these websites:
Rain Garden How To Book

Click on the book images for more info!

 


Tuesday, December 28, 2010

How to save green by going green


I found this great booklet "Good Stuff" which discusses how to do what you do in life in a "green" way. Check it out! We can do simple things that will save the planet and help us save money!

Or check out the following website:






Check out some books on the subject from your local library:
Easy Green Living: The Ultimate Guide to Simple, Eco-Friendly Choices for You and Your HomeLiving Green: A Practical Guide to Simple SustainabilityGreen LivingIt's Easy Being Green: A Handbook for Earth-Friendly Living365 Ways to Live Green: Your Everyday Guide to Saving the Environment



photo found at Phoenix City Living Blog