The Last Farm Box

I might be taking a hiatus from the farm boxes for the rest of winter. I still really like them; however, I'm also wasting a lot food. For example, after picking up my box tonight, I came home and had to toss a whole head of wilty lettuce, dandelion greens, parsley, two soft radishes, wilty sage, and chard to make room in the frig for the new stuff. That's A LOT of food going to waste because I was too lazy to cook and instead ate Trader Joe's wasabi peas and sesame sticks for dinner every night last week.

This week's box contained:

Beets (4)

Carrots (4)

1/2 lb Dragon Tongue Shelling Beans (oooh. preeeetty.)

Delicata (2)

Chard

Lettuce (LOTS of it)

Napa Cabbage

Spinach (LOTS of it)

Parsley

Braising Mix (LOTS...)

Sprouts

Rosemary, sage, thyme, mix bunch

Microgreens

Dandelion Greens

First of all, what the cuss should I do with Dandelion Greens!? They don't taste like anything but bitterness. Bleck. If you have a recipe for Dandelion Greens pleeeeeeease share because if I don't use this bunch it will be the 3rd batch that goes to waste. And, what am I going to do with all these other greens? Cabbage and lettuce and spinach and braising mix? (What the f is that?): I need new recipes and I don't want them to be salads- I'm so sick of salads I could punch them (if they had faces).

On the plus side, I am excited about trying the Dragon Tongue beans; they have purple and white marbles shells. I've never seen anything like them. I'll let you know what they're like and share some pics.

Please post some recipes or ideas for me here about my farm box contents so that I don't waste any more food.

Happy Holidays

These are a few of my favorite (food) things

The holidays are here and it only took one trip to my parent's house (where my mom puts out a amazing fresh baked goods every 5 hours) and I already have an extra 3 pounds to carry around on my runs...and no, it's not the type of 3 pounds that can be lost in a lengthy bathroom session. It's 3 real pounds and there are more to come if I'm not careful.

Trying to stick to a vegan, or even vegetarian, diet over Thanksgiving wasn't possible, but I'm not beating myself up over it (though my intestines are still in recovery mode). So, when I came home from the holiday break, and was explaining all this to a friend, he told me that I'm an OPPORTUNIVORE. (It's the love child of "opportunity" and "omnivore" in case you missed that.) Apparently this is a real thing--he didn't just make it up. What it means is that I'm realistic about life and its complications concerning food. Our diets are determined by so many factors: location, finance, travel, allergies, the list goes on and on. So, I'm realistic about the way I eat and make no apologies when I have to veer off my vegan course. When it's possible and I have the time, money and resources to do so, I will always choose vegan. However, if it's inconvenient to others or simply not possible because of travel, I will do what is most logical. So there. Opportunivore. Spread the word.

In the mean time, here a few holiday treats I've tweaked so that I don't feel like I'm missing out on the good old fashioned holiday goodies:

Favorite Thing: Milky Hot Chocolate

New Favorite Thing:

-Heat 1 C sweetened or unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk in a sauce pan

-Add dry, non-dairy, cocoa powder (to taste)

-1 tsp cinnamon

-1/4 tsp nutmeg, allspice, or pumpkin spice (or more to taste)

**Optional: add a 1/4 tsp of peppermint or vanilla extract**

Favorite Thing: Eggnog & Eggnog Lattes from Starbucks:

New Favorite Thing:

Rice Milk Eggnog: It's not as good as the real thing (obviously--what is better than real eggnog?!) But, I found that it's good if you do 1/2 rice milk eggnog with 1/2 sweetened almond milk. This makes it a tad thicker like the real thing. Or, add the "eggnog" to your coffee instead of regular creamer. That is goooood.

Favorite Thing: Apple Pie

New Favorite Thing:

-Peel, core and slice about 4-5 apples to fill an 8 x 8, lightly greased, pan

-Toss with lemon, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg (as much as you like)

-Then toss with 1C of oatmeal or your favorite granola

-Drizzle maple syrup or agave nectar over the top of everything (Put about handful of oats or granola on top if you want a little crunch).

-Bake at 350 until the juices boil a bit and apples are soft (I have no idea how long that takes, I don't pay attention. I just check on it every once in a while).

** This recipe is also really good with some dried cranberries and fresh slices of pears.**

That's all for now. As I come up with more tweaks to holiday favorites, I'll post 'em.

Please share any healthy versions of classic holiday recipes you might have up your sleeve-- I'd love more recipes to try!

Feeling Sluggish?

I am.

And, I said so to my husband just a minute ago. Says I, "I'm feeling unmotivated. I haven't blogged in a while. I don't want to grade papers. I don't want to do aaaaaanything."

Says he, "It's that time of year."

"Wha?" says me.

"Take some Vitamin D. The sun is going down earlier, you're not getting as much, you need to take Vitamin D3. [Insert name I don't remember] told me about it. It helps."

"Bluuuuugh. Whatehh"-- says me without the motivation to even finish the word.

You might be thinking, "Didn't you switch to a mostly vegan diet? Maybe that's why you're sluggish...(dumbass)."

Well if I'm such a sluggish vegan then how did I run 12 miles today-- and feel really good doing it, huh?

And then you think, "You ran 12 miles? That's why you're tired."

Well that could be.

But, it's more of an emotional tired I think....sooooooo.........

I finally mustered the energy a couple minutes ago, while I was writing this post, to look up Vitamin D3 rich foods--because I'd rather cook and eat something than swallow a pill. I googled "foods rich in Vitamin D3" and this is what I got:

"Fortified milk, eggs, chicken livers, salmon, sardines, herring, mackerel, swordfish and fish oils (halibut and cod liver oils) all contain small amounts."

These are very non-vegan items. Sigh. So I tried googling "plants rich in Vitamin D3" and this is what I got:

AlgaeCal.

It's some South American algae that's being marketed as good calcium and other vitamins (like Vitamin D3).

Maybe I'll get up the motivation to order some...or maybe I just need a nap in the sun.

Farm Box Funness

Behold! The Veronica Cauliflower:

Kinda scary looking isn't it? So prehistoric. Veronica cauliflower has a nutty flavor and is a bit more hearty than standard cauliflower. I like it, even though it sort of scares me when I look at or open the fridge late at night.

If you stumble upon a head of it (Suzie's Farm has some at their booth in the Farmer's Market) try it. It's good even when simply prepared: I steamed it for about 12 minutes, salted it and ate a whole bowl.

Next!

It's the season of squash. I love, love, love looking at squash and fantasizing about cooking one, but rarely do I make a successful dish with one (that doesn't include canned pumpkin--I'm talking the real deal). Well, I finally used one of the little kobacha squashes in last night's cous cous.

1 C cous cous (prepared in vegetable broth)

1 pinch saffron

1 small kabacha squash cooked, and lightly browned in a pan

1/2 C cranberries

1/4 C toasted pine nuts

1 tsp garlic salt

pepper to taste

Why go to all the trouble of cooking and eating squash? Because they're loaded with good shit like Vitamin A, C, K, and some of the B's, Potassium, Folate (whatever that's for), even Omega 3's and protein, bitches! (It's Monday and it's already been a long week...please excuse the real cussing in this post.)

If you're new to cooking squash, read on: First, go crazy on it with a fork (poking holes all around it). Then, place it in a baking dish with 1/4" water in the bottom. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 for at least 30 minutes if a small squash, 45 minutes for larger. It's done when you can easily slice through the rind. Allow to cool then halve and scoop out seeds (rinse and you can bake those too! Yuuuuum). Scoop out flesh and slice or cube.

Other uses:

Top salads and pastas with it, or puree with some creamer, pumpkin spice, cinnamon and agave nectar for a sweet soup treat.

Cute Garden Things

...more like Odd Garden Things. I was meandering around Point Loma Nazarene University's campus the other day and ran into this odd scene. I kinda like it, though I'd never use those materials.

It does, however, inspire the creative side of me. I haven't done much but look at my garden recently. I need to pull weeds and rip out these strange purple-flowered plants that strangle the life out of everything in their way: I call them snagglebushes. It's officially fall, so I should plant some stuff for winter, too. Maybe squash? My eggplants are almost ready to harvest and my tomatoes are still hanging in there...though everything looks a little bedraggled.

I have some little f'er of a bug that eats the crap out of all my herbs. It's really making me angry. He only strikes the day I decide I need something, so I end up walking out to the garden with my scissors and then swear like an asshole at the plants for being little pansies and allowing some cussing bug to eat massive holes in all their leaves. I'm thinking I need frogs.

Where do I get frogs in bulk for cheap?

Cuss!

Yesterday, since it was Halloween, I decided to be all cute and Martha Stewarty and make caramel apples using the apples off our tree. As I was picking I nearly grabbed the one thing capable of keeping me away from the garden forever, and it's only the size of a quarter...

This Guy:


I simultaneously gagged, hyperventilated and whined like a dog in distress as I took this picture...
1. Why doesn't it have a face? 2. Why does it have hair? 3. Or are those spikes? 4. Why is it in my tree? 5. uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh. 6. Cussing cuss cussity cusser.

One Month Vegan, One Day Meatan

I went into this whole vegan-thing with the plan that I would do my best to stick to an entirely vegan diet. It's been a little over a month now and I have to say that I really like the way vegan-eating makes me feel. I found that as a result of restricting my diet to mostly plant-based foods, it's caused me to look at the world in an entirely different way...and amazingly I don't feel that I am missing out on anything by not having meat or dairy products. I by NO means have followed veganism perfectly, but I do try to make more responsible choices every day about what I'm putting in my body--and this idea has extended into other areas of my life as well (which I can talk about in a different blog).

In the last month I have done the following:

1. Discovered an entire world of grains that I didn't know existed: millet, wheat berries, farro wheat
2. Stopped relying on caffeine in the mornings to get me going and happy
3. Maintained my level of fitness-- AKA: I haven't become one of those anorexic-looking malnourished emo veganites that I was a afraid of before.

On to other news: Last night I went to a dinner party where the host made spaghetti with homemade meatballs-- cooked in bacon fat. I ate them. They were delicious! Does this make me a vegan no more? For the night, maybe. But, one of my goals since the beginning in taking on this lifestyle was to never inconvenience anyone else or place judgment on others for their diets. Had I rejected the meatballs, I would have been implying that my ideas of a diet are better than theirs. Even though I would never think that, it's still the way it would come across. I then followed the meatballs with a slice of non-vegan applesauce cake. It too was delicious (though I bypassed the ice cream).

Was it worth it? Well, I paid for this sudden change in my diet at work today. I had a few extra trips to the bathroom (except during the two-hour lock down we experienced...that was pure torture!) and I woke up feeling sick to my stomach this morning. But, it was worth it.

It was worth it because I shared a great night of food with friends that was untainted by the particularities of my diet.

As for tonight's dinner, I found my farm box veggies nearly gone. So, I improvised and came up with a pretty good mishmash here. We'll call it...

Out-of-Fresh-Produce Mishmash (Serves 2)

1/4 C cooked millet
1/4 C cooked red quinoa
1-2 C veggie broth (add as needed to cook the grains)
1/2 C garbonzo beans
1/2 C frozen peas and carrots
1/2 C onion, finely diced
1/2 C savory tofu. diced
1/2 C tempeh, diced
2 T soyaki (from Trader Joe's)
salt & pepper to taste
fresh or dried herbs to taste (I used some fresh marjoram i had in the fridge)

In a medium sized pot cook the millet and quinoa in the broth with spices. When the liquid is nearly gone, add the peas and carrots, garbonzo beans.
While the millet and quinoa are cooking, saute the onions until almost browned, add the diced tempeh and tofu and brown. Add the soyaki and stir for 1 minute. Then, stir this into the millet and quinoa mixture for a couple minutes--allow the flavors to fuse.

Ginger Essence

If you haven't been to the Westgate Hotel's Plaza Bar yet on a Saturday night to listen to Gregory Page and the Make Believe Orchestra-- you need to do it soon. And I'm not just saying that because my husband plays drums for him, I'm saying that because the waiting staff has had a significant change for the better recently and I now feel comfortable recommending it as a pleasant date night (or girls night out...or just for good listening/drinking/dessert). They're drinks are expensive, but each one I've tried is delicious.

Observe last night's Ginger Essence Martini. Delish.

absolut citron vodka, home made ginger syrup, fresh lime, soda water $14

Westgate Hotel, Plaza Bar
1055 Second Avenue, downtown
619.238.1818

Chocolate Zucchini Cookies

Oh. my. gosh. I just discovered and sort of made up the BEST cookies ever. Ok. Not ever. Cookies with real butter and real sugar and lots and lots of chocolate chips are the frickin' best ever. But these cookies are awesome if you 1. Are trying to cut out dairy and 2. Like cookies, but are trying to watch your sugar intake.

Here's the recipe:

1/2 C vegan butter, softened (I use Earth Balance)
1C maple syrup (Ok...it's sugar. BUT, it's a much healthier sugar with more nutrients than white sugar.)
1 "egg" (This is about to blow your mind. Take 1 T flaxseeds + 3 T water and puree. That is equal 1 large egg and way more healthy for you!)
2 C whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 t ground cloves
1 C grated zucchini
1/2 C chocolate or carob chips (optional)

In a medium sized bowl: Cream together the syrup and butter until smooth. Beat in the "egg." Stir in zucchini.

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Stir into zucchini mix. Fold in chips.

Cover and chill for 1 or more hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Drop dough by teaspoon fulls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees.



Enjoy these guilt-free!

Dandy Drink

I got dandelion greens (among other fun things) in my farm box on Wednesday. All I know about cooking dandelion greens is that you can boil them. And the only reason I know that is because I read it in The Autobiography of Malcolm X (his mom used to make that and only that for dinner some nights because they were so poor). Well, two things: 1. I did not boil them for dinner and 2. I didn't store them in the crisper and now they are wilty and sad...(like the rest of my garden). Soooooo. Since I've been on a green smoothie kick lately, I decided to improvise and made a....

Dandelion Pumpkin Smoothie:

1 bunch (about a handful) dandelion greens
1/2 C cooked pumpkin (or canned will do)
1/2 C frozen berries
1 banana (because a smoothie just isn't a smoothie without one)
1 T chia seeds
1 scoop protein shake mix (soy or whey protein shake mix will do.)
1-2 C hemp, soy or almond milk
some ice if you want (I like it chilled just from the berries)
oh. and I added a scoop of almond butter just for fun.

It was good.
But I just realized that the protein shake mix I used has ingredients that are derived from milk. So much for a vegan shake. Cuss.

3 Green Farm Box Meals

Literally green. In color... not "earth-friendly green." Though I'm sure they're that too. So here they are... and oh, they're tasty. If they weren't, I wouldn't be posting them. Duh.

Summer Squash and Broccoli Soup


1 medium head of broccoli
1 medium summer squash, cubed
3/4 c green onion
6 fingerling potatoes
2 garlic cloves
cream or soy creamer (to taste)
1/2 c water or broth of choice
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a medium sized soup pot, saute the garlic, onion, squash and broccoli in a little extra virgin olive oil for about 8 minutes then add 1/2 cup water or broth and cover until everything is nice and mushy. Add salt and pepper and any other spices you might like. Add more water or broth if it begins to dry out. Will probably take about 15-20 minutes. Once everything can be smooshed down with a hand-held potato masher, it's ready to mill. Turn off the heat. Using a blender or hand-mill puree the hot veggies. Add the soy milk creamer or cream and puree more until it's the consistency you like.

Next up... Farm Box Surprise



1 small head of broccoli
1 baby bok choy
1 small eggplant
2 delicata zepplin squash
2 c collard greens (or more if you want...they cook waaaay down)
fresh basil (to taste)
fresh cilantro (to taste)
1-2 cloves chopped garlic
1-2 each of red ruffled pimentos, corno di toro and antohi sweet peppers, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 1 link of chopped spicy Tofurky or 1 c tempeh

Chop everything. Throw all in a big saute pan with some extra virgin olive oil and saute until everything is al dente. DO NOT OVERCOOK it will turn into a big, pile of ugly black veggies. I ate this over Trader Joe's Three Grains Blend: rice, barley and spelt with some black and kidney beans thrown in. It was delish!

And finally... Kale Berry Smoothie


3-5 fresh leaves of kale, roughly chopped
1-2 cups frozen fruit (I like mixed berries, but peaches are good too)
1 banana
1 tbs organic chia seeds (by Navitas Naturals at Henry's)
2 tsp maca powder (also by Navitas)
1-2 cups almond milk, sweetened or unsweetened
agave nectar to taste
ice

Throw it all in a blender and let 'er rip until it's nice and green and smooth... unless you like chunky.


This is the summer squash from the first recipe. I took the seeds out, salted and baked them at 300 degrees for about 15 minutes. They were really tasty and I felt good for not letting them go to wasty.

A New Life

So I finally read/finished reading The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone....yes...the Clueless girl. And the crazy thing is, she makes a really convincing argument for veganism. So. I'm giving it a shot--and I'm being easy on myself. AND, I'm certainly not imposing my new lifestyle on anyone: if you cook me meat for dinner, I will eat it--I promise. I'm not in it to guilt-trip or judge that's for sure.

So, I've been eating vegan for a week and a half now and this is what I've discovered:

1. I feel more balanced throughout the day. Meaning: I don't have hunger or energy spikes and plummets.
2. I don't crave carbs because I get to eat whatever whole grains I want--and they're really, really satisfying. Which means I don't crave sweets and desserts either!
3. I'm less moody. YES I'm less moody-- are you doubting me??!!
4. Not to sound all uppity or anything...but my shit don't stink.
5. I've lost 5 lbs, but you can't tell outwardly...if you catch my drift. I'm just simply carrin' less. It sort of feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders (if my shoulders were in my intestines).

It has been a relatively smooth transition into veganism. I was already a pescatarian (vegetarian that eats fish), so I'm not really doing anything drastically different. And, the farm boxes are playing a huge roll in all this. If it weren't for the crazy amounts of fresh, organic veggies I have around the house, I think this would be a lot more difficult.

Speaking of difficulties, what I've had to give up that I really, really, really, really, reallyreallyreally love is cheese. And, I'm sorry, but vegan cheese is the cussing most disgusting thing ever. These are the things I'm working on cutting out of my diet all together, and so far, have been successful:

1. cheese
2. milk
3. eggs (which makes me sad because I really wanted to get some chickens)
4. white flour
5. white sugar
6. caffeine (not as hard as I thought it would be. decaf is a good decoy.)

I'm not cutting these things out for the usual reason that people become vegan: animal rights and social justice issues. (Though I'm always for that stuff of course.) I actually think it is healthier to live without them and to replace those items with whole grains and fresh produce--which (as many people don't realize) have more protein and nutrients in them than the first three items combined. Did that just blow your mind? Because it should have.

What I'm adding into my diet, and loooooooove:

1. quinoa
2. millet
3. beans
4. almond milk (oh my gosh I love almonds and I love their milk. why did I not do this one sooner?)
5. kale and other dense, dark leafy greens full of iron

So that's about it. I'll be posting some of the things I've made with my CSA box contents soon. I've loved everything so far. This week, try to consume a little less dairy and a little more whole grain and leafy green food and see how you feel.

Peace.

I've Let Myself Go...

I know I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything. It's been crazy since school started up again. Non-stop. I have no time to smell the roses...or water them...or any of the other plants for that matter. I'm a terrible mother... thank goodness tomatoes only like to be watered every 4-5 days and my barrel of flowers are pretty drought resistant too. In fact, they seem to be the only happy ones around here...


See? Happy flowers. Pretty flowers.


Everything else in my "Urban Garden" looks like this...

(former happy strawberries)

And this...

(former happy fern)

Or this...

(former happy thyme)

Even Winston and Woodrow look pissed off at me...

(former happy fish)

I promise to be better. To water every day like I'm supposed to. To make more creative dishes with my farm box contents (I picked up my second CSA box last week and have only sauteed the shit out of all the veggies...nothing fun or creative). And to GO TO HAPPY THIS WEEK! I need a new drink.

Frankly My Dear...

I discovered a hidden treasure in Hillcrest on Sunday: Terra. No... not the plantation from Gone with the Wind, though the food served at Terra is all locally grown on plantationy farms. The following statement is at the top of their menus:

"A lot of TLC (Tasty Loving Care) goes into your meal. We buy all sustainable seafood and all natural, hormone and antibiotic free meat and chicken. We buy from the following local San Diego family farms: Stehly Organics, Blue Heron Farms, Suzie's Farm, Sage Mountain, Cunningham Organics, Crows Pass and Tierra Miguel. If you should have any food allergies or concerns, or just want to ask about our food, please ask your server."

My girlfriends and I run by this restaurant on a regular basis and have been curious for a while about the food, but suspicious that it never seemed to be busy. In fact, San Diego Home/Garden Magazine calls it, "San Diego's Best Kept Secret." That's rather unfortunate, if you ask me, so let's not keep it a secret anymore, how about that? But, upon entering the establishment, we realized there are probably a couple reasons Terra isn't slammed with business the way they should be. Those reasons are: Decor and Location.

1. We decided the interior design, while comfortable and well lit, reminded us of a cross between an early 90's hotel restaurant and an upscale Denny's. The window treatments and chair upholstery does not match the organic nature of the place. If you want my humble decorating opinion (and if you don't too bad), the place needs pictures of local farms, fresh cut foliage from said farms on the tables, earth-toned upholstery and more natural, organic-looking window treatments.

2. Hillcrest is the perfect place for a restaurant of this nature; however, it's located in the back of the Ralph's/Trader Joe's parking lot... if you're going to go out for a nice-ish dinner, who wants to drive through a grocery store parking lot to get there? It doesn't feel organic. It feels strip-mally.

But if you can get over the decor and the location, then you're in for a treat. This is a restaurant worth going out of your way for.

Observe my selection...

The Summer Vegetable Plate:

with mushroom risotto

The veggies (according to the waiter) change daily based on what is harvested that day or week. My plate happened to have colorful carrots, radishes, oyster mushrooms, spinach and various summer squashes. It was rich, creamy, and slightly sweet.

The other two dishes we ordered were...

Grilled Atlantic Salmon: with barbeque cream sauce, applewood smoked bacon, mushroom gnocchi and collard greens.

This was the best of the three meals. Light, but full of rich flavors. The gnocchi was perfectly cooked and the collard greens were vibrant and refreshing (...rather than wilty and bitter like I usually experience).

Meyeer Farm all-natural Hanger Steak: with mushroom-leek risotto, smoked onion marmalade and summer veggies.

This is a pretty sweet dish-- so I wouldn't recommend it if you like savory or salty meat entree. It was still delicious though.

I was impressed with the creativity of the dishes and inspired to try them with my own Suzie's Farm veggies. The Bonuses: I felt like I did something good by supporting a local restaurant that in turn supports local farmers. Furthermore, I ate fresh, flavorful food that was really good, and I enjoyed a nice dinner with a couple friends.

Now if we could only convince Terra to redecorate....

Terra Bar and Restaurant

1270 Cleveland Ave (between Richmond and Vermont St)

San Diego, CA 92103

619.293.7088

Farm Box, Here We Go

The beautiful mess above is what I picked up from the OB farmer's market on Wednesday:

That's right. What. the. cuss.
It's so much food!

I immediately panicked at the thought of how much food I might be potentially wasting. Then I stopped cussing my pants and turned on the oven. I decided to start with the kale.

It's a flat leaf variety and good for making kale chips out of...at least that's what my teacher friend Patti does. She makes it sound easy enough, So why not? thought I. I washed and dried the leaves, massaged them with olive oil, dusted them with Himalayan Pink Salt Crystals (from Trader Joe's of course), laid them on the baking sheet and popped them in the oven. This was the first batch going into the oven:

This was it coming out of the oven:
Cuss.
Turns out you need to watch them like a hawk or they'll burn to a bloody crisp. (And believe me, bloody crisp is not tasty.)

Second batch turned out a bit better and much more tasty, except I think I ate too many of the burned ones because I started to feel sick at this point. They were crispier than they look in this pic.

While the first batch of kale was burning in the oven, I was staring at the little, yellow watermelon, the massive tangle of basil, two stalks of fennel and a box of yellow tomatoes on the counter. I decided, why not? and combined them all into a "melon fennel salad." I added a little fresh ginger and white balsamic vinegar and... it was OK. The basil added some freshness, the melon was seriously delicious, and the ginger and white balsamic vinegar were a surprisingly good combo. However, I realized that I don't like fennel. It tastes like black licorice--if you've never had it--and it just made me want to take Yager shots. Plus, what do you do with all the stalky ferny stuff at the top of fennel? There has to be a use for it, right? (do you know?) Please share a good fennel recipe if you have one-- preferably one that involves cooking it somehow.

So, Day One Assessment of My Cooking Abilities and Farm Box Contents are hereby rated as "Pathetic but Promising"

The next day, I tackled the ridiculous amount of green and wax beans, bell peppers and eggplants. After cutting into, what I thought was just an elongated red bell pepper, and taking a nice big slice to chew on, I slowly and painfully began to realize that I was not chewing a bell pepper, but one of either the padron peppers or Hungarian hot wax peppers...I'm leaning toward the Hungarian variety. This stuff doesn't come with labels or stickers on it...so novices like me have to be careful. Granted, I'm a weakling when it comes to spicy, but I also took a big honkin' bite.
Carefulness: Noted.
Tomorrow: Buy more milk. (Chugged it all to stop the burning.)

After the tears, I chopped the real bell peppers and the garden beans and a small, white eggplant. I decided that I wanted to cook them, of course, but I also wanted to taste them in their most natural form. I'd been planning all day to use Soyaki (my fav!) to saute them, but I changed my mind at the last second, put my faith in the freshness of Suzie, and used just a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil, sea salt, pepper and sesame seeds. I sauteed until they were softish and some were browned on one side, then put this mishmash over some black and pinto beans I'd made in the crock pot a couple days ago.

Fresh veggies really are more delicious and flavorful than the genetically modified or shipped-from-across-the-world versions. (Except the eggplant. That tasted like cuss.) Go figure.

Day Two Assessment of Farm Box Contents and My Cooking Abilities: Rated as "Proficient but still Pathetic"

List of all contents in Farm Box #1:
Radish Bunch
Eggplant (apple green 4-3, Italian 1-2, Thai 2-4 or Rosa Bianca 3-4)
Head of Lettuce
Yellow Cherry Tomato Basket
Armenian Cucumbers
Fennel
Tejas, Nardello, Corno di Toros, Double Up, and Red Antohi Peppers (Sweet)
Kale
Hungarian Hot Wax Peppers
Melon
Basil Bunch
Green or Yellow Wax Beans
Summer Squash
Padron Peppers
Micro Arugula

The Mule

Vodka, Ginger Beer, Lime, Angostura Bitters

Drink this only if you...
A.) LOVE ginger. It's uber-gingery. Kinda burns.
B.) Like to drink drinks that don't taste like alcohol but get you cussed up if you have more than one.
C.) Are obsessed, like me, with the old west and wish you could always drink drinks out of tin cans.




The Mule is at:
Starlite
3175 India Street, 92103
619.358.9766

Incoming

Lots of incomings going on right now. School starts on Tuesday (I'm a high school teacher) so I'll get a whole new load of incoming freshman and soon to be outgoing seniors... (more than I've ever had before because of budget cuts. 200 students... but that's a post for a different blog.)

Second incoming is that of MONEY. Fiiiiiiiinally. After two months (technically considered one month even though it's 59 consecutive days) the first pay check at the end of summer break feels like a million bucks. This sudden influx of cash flow again means I can check off the number one thing on my To Do List. Which leads us to...

The final incoming: my Suzie's Farm Box! It's official. I signed up and paid for a two trial boxes--I pick up my first one at the Ocean Beach Farmer's Market on Wednesday. I know, I know... CSA programs and co-ops are nothing new, but they are for me and I'm so excited to be on this particular bandwagon.

Since I'm in such a good mood about this, here is my newest Cute Garden Thing to celebrate.



I was so sad when I chipped (beyond hope of repair) my favoritest mug as I was unloading the dishwasher. I set it on the kitchen counter and stared at it for a few days because I couldn't bring myself to toss it. Me and that mug go way back. Like a whole school year... lots of good memories drinking my morning brew at the podium while trying to ignore spastic teenagers.

As I was staring at my mug-friend I realized it'd make a cute little starter cup for herbs... so, I switched from coffee to chamomile. Just remember, that unless you are talented enough to drill a hole through the ceramic or porcelain bottom of a mug, lack of drainage will eventually kill the sproutings...so once they get about an inch high, transplant into the ground, garden box or proper pot.

Cooking Class

Sea Rocket Bistro (my new favorite place to get a unique farm to table meal) is hosting a cooking class in a couple weeks. Guest Chef Jenn Felmley will teach students how to use local ingredients (from Suzie's Farm [where I will be getting my farm boxes from starting next Wednesday!]) in unique and fun recipes. I'm thinking about doing it... this class is like the beautiful clashing of two beautiful worlds. It'll be a beautiful mess.
Check out the flyer on the Sea Rocket Bistro's website.

Garden Problem...

Someone's little asshole cat keeps barfing on my patio. How do I discourage this activity?

Cute Garden Things

Being in Portland over the weekend inspired me to do more cute things with my garden. I think it's a prerequisite that you keep a garden or at least have an intense love of foliage to live there.

Observe the apple tree in our front yard:



It has an awkward hole in the front side that has bothered me ever since we moved in. Today I decided the hole would bother me no more. I had a couple lanterns laying around (serving no purpose but to cause clutter) and found some old ribbon from a duvet and seat cushion packaging that I really liked, but could never find a purpose for...the forces combined and now I have lanterns in the dead space of my tree. I find it pretty charming. Now I want to hang stuff from all my trees. Maybe in the back yard I can find a use for the old pots and pans I need to replace...

Five Days of Food

I ran the AFC (America's Finest City) Half Marathon on Sunday--three days ago--and have been using that as an excuse to eat and drink whatever I want for the last 5 days... if you do the math, that's 2 days before the race and 2 days after the race (not including race day)...and I'm still going strong. I wonder how long I'll be able to use, "I'm treating myself to this because I earned it." Eventually it will turn into, "...I earned on Sunday four months ago." That's not really going to work (unless I run a 1/2 marathon every weekend--which I may consider).

In any case, I'v eaten some reeeeeeally good food the last five days starting with the Barona Indian Casino Buffet. I know what you're thinking. Buffet? Ew. I thought the same thing... buffets=diarrhea. You're just going to have to trust me that I won't steer you wrong here. We plan to go back soon and this time I won't be as distracted by the crepe, exotic cheese, and mongolian bbq stations as I was this time, so I'll have some pictures for you. Since I don't have any pictures, let's move on to Alexander's the next night (Saturday night, the day before AFC).

Observe our pre-pasta appetizer: Melty Brie with a whole clove of roasted garlic. (Also note I got so excited to squish the garlic out of the clove that I forgot to take a picture when it was still all pretty...oops.) A word of caution about this dish: should you eat it and have a significant other that you plan on being around for the next two days, you need to do the following every hour: brush teeth, use mouthwash, chew gum, and spray perfume/cologne on self consistently. You will stink for at least two days as you leak garlic from every pore. But it's so worth it.


Moving on to the next night (Monday) after the race. It was a friend's birthday, so he wanted to try a new restaurant that opened in Little Italy called Craft and Commerce. They're motto is, "Demandless." And while their menu is a single page with only 3 entrees, they don't seem to expect their patrons to demandless from the bar. (The drink menu is three pages.)

Quick background on the joint: There are two other trendy-hipstery-I'm-to-cool-for-my-own-self places downtown. One is called The Neighborhood and the other is El Dorado (I'll probably write about them at some point). Anyway, somehow these three places are connected through the owners and, as far as I can tell, Craft and Commerce is the hybrid-love-child of the first two. The food, for example, is like The Neighborhood, but instead of fancy PB & J or jalapeno mac & cheese, you get hot dogs that look like this:



And the drinks are like El Dorado with their "craftiness" and the New York-drink-mix-master-guru that was flown in to create avant garde cocktails for both these establishments. Observe the birthday boy finishing off what was Craft Drink #1: Mother's Ruin. (I picked it out for him...that's not in poor taste is it??)



Yes, that is a bowl of alcohol and yes I just about wet myself when I found out it is served in a tea cup. (I had an Alice in Wonderland party earlier this year and I served cocktails out of tea pots...so, I nearly bounced myself out of my chair and onto the floor when they brought out the bowl of booze and ladled it into tea cups for everyone.)

Mother's Ruin: gin, spiced black tea infused vermouth, lemon, grapefruit, champagne.

Craft Drink #2: The Eulogy. The name says everything.

The Eulogy: gin, bianco vermouth creme de viollete, absinthe.

I should also mention, that if you're a beer person, they serve craft beer from nearly all 30 of the local San Diego breweries. So the drinks are amazing and the food is too, but you might be wondering if I ordered and ate those hot dogs. Nope. Those weren't mine, I don't eat meat from restaurants (remember?). But I heard they were amazing, and supposedly Craft and Commerce buys from local farmers and butchers. I need to look a little more closely at this rumor...and I would have asked the owner last night... but, well, you saw those drinks...

I could go on and on about how we went to Extraordinary Desserts after and pigged out on french goodies, or how amazing the breakfast burrito I've been eating (in shifts) all day today has been, but I'll spare you. For now.

Until next time:

Alexander's is in North Park at 3391 30th Street. 619.281.2539
Craft and Commerce is in Little Italy at 675 W. Beech Street. 619.269.2202

Running is my Happy Hour...

...but I also really like happy hours with booze involved too. And, the happy hour week begins tomorrow.

My favorite one of the moment is C Level Lounge in Island Prime Restaurant on Harbor Island Drive. The patio is literally on the water (you can practically touch the huge yachts and sail boats that glide by) and the view includes the downtown skyline -- with all it's embarcaderoness, the Coronado bridge and military base -- directly across the water, and all the way over to the lighthouse on the tip of Point Loma. The view is good, but the happy hour menu is what keeps me coming back (...even though I'm on summer break and don't really have an excuse for happy hours).

All food and drinks on the happy hour menu are $5 each. These are my favorites:

Fried Calamari: They're almost too cute to eat sometimes... but they're too good not to.

Sangria*: Housemade sangria with blackberry brandy & grand marnier. omg.

The Scallywag*: Plymouth gin, lemongrass extract, fresh lime & soda. omg. omg. omg.

*Be careful with these. You'll drink them like soda and then end up napping for hours when you get home. No more than two per person if you want to function afterward.

C Level Lounge, Island Prime Restaurant

880 Harbor Island Drive

Fall Garden & Tortilla Soup

In about three days we'll be halfway through summer, which means it's time to start planning for fall by ordering seeds, planting them and then giving them motivational speeches in the mornings and evenings.

Our adorable, elderly Danish neighbor leaves us tomatoes from her garden about once a week. She sets them by our front gate instead of coming to the door and I can't help but wonder why she doesn't just come to the door. Maybe she overheard me talking to my lettuce once and misunderstood why I cried, "Come on you little bitch"... or she could have seen me hunting fruit flies through the patio window...in which case I'm surprised she even ventures to the gate. Either way, she brings us food from her garden--and it's fantastic. I made tortilla soup last week with the tomatoes she brought. (See recipe below.) But yesterday, instead of tomatoes she left a newspaper clipping about what to start planting for a fall harvest. Thought you might be interested, so here it is in a nutshell.

Planting Guide for August: Fall Vegetables
After the middle of the month you can plant seeds for the following vegetables:

Beets
Cabbage
Carrots
Collards
Kale
Lettuce
Peas
Radishes
Spinach
Swiss chard
Turnips

And, even though it's not on the list, I'm going to try (again) some bok choy. My last batch was trampled by a rogue puppy we fostered for a week... I chose my garden over the dog... let's just hope when I have kids they don't tear up any of my plants.

Tortilla Soup Recipe

Dump the following in a crockpot and cook on high for 4-6 hours. For best flavor, saute the onions, cabbage and garlic in olive oil until soft before putting into the crockpot.
(FYI: All the "1 cups" below are actually a little less than a cup. Or a little more if you want it to be. Just use whatever you have.)

1-2 ear of corn (cut off the kernels)
1-2 cloves chopped garlic
1 c diced red potatoes
1 c black beans
As much chopped cabbage as you want it-- cooks WAY down (I think I use about a half a head)
1 c diced tomatoes
1/2 c diced carrots
1/2 c onion
1-2 small cans of diced chiles
1 packet of taco seasoning
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
Cover with chicken or vegetable broth (4-5 cups?)

Once everything is soft and simmery... serve with fresh avocado, cheese, tortilla chips and sour cream on top. Or none of that and it will still be really good.

*One thing you'll probably learn about me, as I post more recipes, is that I'm not meticulous about portions and amounts and making sure I do it the same every time. Sorry if you like to know how many teaspoons of salt and pepper to add...you won't find out from me. I don't believe in tsp's of any kind.

Garden Questions

Question #1: Who the cuss is putting mushrooms in my newest veggie box while I'm asleep at night?

Question #2: Why are the tomato leaves curling? Is that bad or just the way they're wearing them these days? 

Question #3: I want to eat this lettuce, but I love seeing how much it grows day by day. How long can I indulge in this entertainment

before A.) the lettuce is no good to eat anymore and B.) I just get sick of staring at it all day. 

Do you know the answer to any of these questions?

Wasp vs. Caterpillar

Never thought I'd be standing in my yard cheering for a wasp, but that is what I was doing less than five minutes ago when this wrestling match of the century unfolded before my eyes atop an eggplant. It was beautiful.



Wasps: 1
Caterpillars: 0

The Marie Antoinette

Pearl Plum Vodka, Champagne, Lavender Syrup, Grapefruit.

I was intrigued by the name, then curious about plum vodka and last hypnotized by the idea of lavender syrup.
Then I drank it. It's like a unicorn peed magic fairy tales into a glass.

$10 at The Pearl Hotel, 1410 Rosecrans Street
Happy Hour 'till 7pm: $3 beers, $5 well drinks.

Cute Garden Things

Not sure what to do with that boring, lackluster, dead-air space above your yard? Put up a clothesline. This is an economical way to add color, diversity and an eclectic touch to your garden.





And, long garments such as towels, jeans and sheets can help camouflage any dead grass that may be on the other side (we are on water rations after all). As Martha Stewart would say, "It's a good thing."

Fruit Fly Slayer

Once a summer I turn into a (self-proclaimed) "slayer." Usually it's a personal vendetta I fulfill against the fruit flies that attempt a hostile takeover of my kitchen. What this actually plays out as is me stalking around the house with lotiony hands grabbing flies out of the air and crushing them (I find the lotion makes it harder for them to sneak out between my fingers). If an outside observer were to stumble upon me in such a state, they might fear for their life... I imagine the 911 call going something like,

Operator: "911, what's your emergency?"

Concerned Neighbor: "Yea...I heard some commotion at my neighbor's house so I came to see if everything's OK...and...and oh...my..."

Operator: "Sir what do you see?"

Concerned Neighbor: "I'm looking through the kitchen window. She is running around the house. She's...kind of hunched over and her hands... they look like claws and are covered in something white. She's smiling or...no...no...she's baring her teeth like a wild animal and frantically swiping at the air... so many swear words... good Lord I didn't know eyes could open that wide."

Operator: "Sir, you need to slowly back away from the window. No sudden movements. Someone will be there shortly."

Concerned Neighbor: "Something smells like cocoa butter..."

And while the fruit flies are well on their way to a bad end, I have bigger bug problems at the moment: Caterpillars. It's one thing to cuss with my basil, but it's a whole other issue when you start eating the petals off my cussing daisies. Just look at this mess. Poor innocent little flowers. They were so happy only two days ago...and now look at them. It looks like they were cast in a Tim Burton film.





How do I know it's a caterpillar? Two ways:

1.) I read The Very Hungry Caterpillar when I was child. I saw the f'ing holes it ate through those pages. Daisy petals don't stand a chance.

2.) I caught one of the bastards with her head buried in a newly ripened strawberry. And a couple days before that I found one going to town at the top of a basil sprig.

Now, growing up on a ranch I learned how to study and recognize tracks-- a skill I knew I'd put to noble use one day. Therefore, I know a caterpillar is the culprit in my daisy situation because I studied their bite patterns on the aforementioned basil and strawberries after I made the following public proclamation:

"Attention all hungry Caterpillars: From this day forward should you be caught within dining distance of any and all fruits, vegetables, seedlings and botanicals, an immediate and swift execution is the best you can hope for. Your cuteness affords you zero protection in this garden."

Then, I sprayed everything down with soapy water...that usually does the trick.




And if not?
The hunt. is. on.

Cucumber Basil Martini

The Westgate Hotel on 2nd Avenue, downtown, just made a new, fun drink menu. Go on a Saturday night to catch Gregory Page and the Make Believe Orchestra (9:00-midnight) in the Plaza Bar. Quite swanky.

Cucumber Basil Martini: Vox vodka, fresh basil, cucumber, ginger and nutmeg.

Also good:

Gin's Cup: Bombay gin, homemade ginger syrup, fresh lemon juice, orange, cucumber, cinnamon and soda. (Take the straw out and drink straight from the cup so you can smell the cinnamon as you sip.)

Horse's Neck: Knob Creek bourbon, house made bitters, house made gingerale.

Cute Garden Things

When my sister and I were little, we used to sit with my Grandma Isabel in her garden (she has the most amazing garden) and paint rocks into ladybugs. I made some yesterday and thought about how much I love her. (I'm hoping that putting them in my basil planter will make the little f'ers who are destroying it cry, "Holy shit! I'm out of here! Monster ladybugs!!!")


I also painted some row markers for my newest planter box.

Farm to Table

I became a vegetarian after watching the film Food Inc.--actually, I'm a pescatarian (I eat a lot of fish). If you have not seen this film yet, I beg you to rent it or put it in your Netflix queue. When I first suggested it to my dad in northern California, I think he was skeptical that it was some left-wing "leaf-licking" propaganda, so I had to ask my sister, who lives in the same town as my parents, to call him and tell him to watch it. So (with her approval), he and my mom watched it, and now they, too, have made some adjustments to the way they buy their produce and meat. 

It's not that you shouldn't eat meat, it's more about where and how you get the food you're eating. (I'm not going to go into the social, political, and environmental reasonings behind my choices--that's what the film will show you.) But, to put it plainly, I don't eat meat unless I know the animal. That sounded less sick and twisted in my head. Let me try again: My parents live on a ranch where they can hunt for their food--which they've always done. This means they are eating fresh, wild meat that was killed quickly and humanely without exploiting another human demographic. Also, I remember growing up we raised a steer once. We would grass feed it and then had it butchered. The meat lasted an entire year. (P.S. The steer we raised was named Dinner and my sister and I used to ride him. I cried a little when he was taken to the butcher, but it also instilled in me a sense of appreciation and respect for the food that I was eating and I was grateful to Dinner for the dinners he provided.) 

In any case, I don't live on a ranch anymore, I live on a postage stamp piece of property in San Diego. So, unless I'm willing to shoot, skin, cook and eat the skunk that is destroying my apple tree every night--and believe me, I'm tempted to shoot the smelly little asshole-- I won't be hunting or butchering my own meat any time soon. (Well now I feel bad for calling the skunk an asshole. I don't mean that.  I'm sure he's a really nice gal*.) Therefore, I've had to search out places around San Diego that are intentional about where they get their meat and produce. 

If you head east, northeast or southeast of San Diego, you might be surprised to find loads of farmland. More recently local restaurants and grocers are buying produce from these farmers (even though it's a little more expensive than buying bulk from China or Chile) because they see the importance of supporting local farmers and they know that fresh food just tastes better, looks better, and is healthier than food shipped from across the globe or poured out of a can.

Last night I ate at a little restaurant I'd never heard of before called Sea Rocket. It is what's called a "farm to table" establishment because...well because of what I just described in the

previous paragraph (I'm sure you're keeping up here).  It was a small place with twinkle lights and papermache sharks hanging from the ceiling and candid pictures of the local farmers, ranchers, fishermen and breweries that they purchase from. Everything was local: from the honey drizzled over the Gorgonzola cheese made by a local cheeseman to the beets in the beet tart or the seared scallop and kale goodness pictured here (courtesy of the Sea Rocket Bistro website). I almost licked the plates clean. I also had a Karl Strauss light beer, but sort of wish I'd gone with one from Ballast Point-- just to try a local brew I'd never had before...but I guess that gives me something to look forward to next time. They also serve red meat here, if you're looking for that, but I'm sort of out of the habit of eating it right now. (And if you don't eat red meat much...beware of what it does to you should you suddenly ingest large amounts in one sitting. I'll leave that to your imagination.)

I'm mad at myself for forgetting my camera last night because you should have seen the fuchsia color of the beet and goat cheese tart. It was blindingly pink. It was like a rainbow threw up on my plate (only it was throw up that you'd really want to eat because it tastes really really good). Aaaand, they serve tapas. My last tapas experience was when my husband and I went to Cafe Sevilla, downtown and for some reason it was an awkward night where lots of things went wrong and was just, well, miserable. I think we might have been sick...or the food made us sick...obviously I drank too much since I don't really remember much. But my point is, that ever since then--sort of like how Pavlov's dogs drooled at the sound of a bell-- I would get instantly annoyed and antsy for no reason when I heard the word tapas. So, last night, it was good to have a positive tapas experience. $2 for a lima bean spread on warm chewy bread or $3 for the aforementioned cheese-thing. Good. Gooooood. (We didn't venture into the world of fish pate--but if you do-- let me know how that one goes.) 

Sea Rocket Bistro is on 30th between Thorn and Upas. 

Also, on the 30th of every month, many restaurants on 30th have special offers: either discounts or a special off-the-menu option. Check out the 30th on 30th website for a list of restaurants that participate.

Another farm to table restaurant worth a visit is:

Tender Greens on Historic Decatur Rd in Liberty Station, Point Loma. Try their Tuna Nicoise Big Salad.

*See sidebar called "My Language Defined" for explanation.

Just Getting Started

I'm excited about this blog because I've found a new passion (that is only rivaled by my addiction to running and cheap wine): growing stuff in my yard. (That almost sounds like "stuff" is bad...but I promise I don't have "stuff" if that's what you're looking for.)

I recently discovered that my husband can make things out of wood! The first thing he built me was the desk, pictured below, (which I am currently typing at) out of an old gate that was left behind by the previous tenants of our house. It's cute, huh? I thought you should see a picture of it. (I also painted and re-upholstered the chair...in case you were wondering: Salvation Army find: 2 for $12! But I digress...)

This desk is in front of a window that looks out over the backyard and part of my garden. Once I realized my husband could make stuff, I immediately requested two large garden boxes (and more are on the way)...so that I could start growing my own organic vegetables...and I'm hoping this carpentry gig I've set him up with will give him abs like Jesus. (I heard that in a movie and have been dying to use that line...so glad I did.)

Observe Garden Box#1: This is an older picture, but today this box has 2 fruit bearing tomato plants, 4 eggplants, 6 jalapeno pepper plants, and 1 black bell pepper plant. (And a random sprinkling of lettuce I did as an afterthought.)

This is what I want my newest blog-baby to be about:

A. Growing my own food, then cooking and eating it. I'm a good baker. Not so much a good "cooker." But that's just because I wasn't inspired by my own reapings. I'm also hoping to get good ideas from you too. Also, as problems come up with the garden, (i.e. How will I get rid of the fly problem in the yard? or Am I over-watering my tomatoes?) I will try to find ways to fix them that may help you one day...and vice versa. And last, we'll see if my gardening techniques (i.e. yelling at my seedlings to "hurry up and grow you little bitches!" or talking dirty to them) will pay off.

B. Farm Boxes. If you haven't heard of this you will soon... when I have money again in the fall (teacher on summer break=low cash flow from July-August), I'm going to sign up for a farm box from either Suzie's Farm or Sage Mountain Farm so that I can supplement my garden produce with other produce that's fresh and in season. (i.e. You should NOT be eating asparagus right now. It's not in season, so it's shipped from who-fi'ng-knows-where.) One reason people are nervous about farm boxes is because you really do get whatever is being harvested that week...so sometimes you might find yourself staring at a box full of squash blossoms, beets, hibiscus flowers, and dandelion greens wondering, "What in the bloody hell am I going to with all this?" That's what I'm here for. I'll tell you.

C. While I might be "organic" in many ways, I'm also un-organic in others. Like, happy hour. I've come to enjoy finding new places or rediscovering hole-in-the-wall joints with happy hours for fun drinks, funky fried foods in a variety of locations with good views (be it the service staff or the San Diego skyline...either way). I've recently decided to pride myself on the fact that I "know" people in San Diego and need to exploit these connections much more than I do. So I'll be giving my recommendations for restaurants, meals, drinks, happy hours, etc. I don't really need a reason to eat and drink more, but "researching" for this new blog will hopefully lessen the guilt.

Which is just another reason why I run.

Bon appetit!