Gabie the Genius!

I just found a piece of paper TODAY where I wrote down a quote from one of my first grade students from last year:

"Torque is when the shorter side of the (I can't remember what the object was) will fall down because the longer side is heavier."

What a genius!

Gezellig

I think that we all should have a some more of this in our lives. Here is what Gezellig is: http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gezellig
I first heard about it on a radio commercial that was advertising Cost Plus as the place to buy everything you need for a winter gezellig at home with friends. Huummm... Random, but totally cool too!

My (not anymore) secret apple pie recipe...

I'm selling the cookbook this came out of, so I need to write down the recipe. I'm not giving much detail here on what to do, so it's up to you (yeah right, like anyone besides me reads this blog) to figure out how to put it all together...

6 apples
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

cook 50-60 minutes at 375.

Love does that sometimes...

The wisdom of a beautiful stranger at Esalen:

Him: "That looks like a labor of love."

Me: "Yes, it is, but right now it is making me angry. I am stuck and can't figure out what to do, so I am angry at it."

Him: "Well, love does that sometimes."

Me: "Oh, I guess you're right. I guess it does."

...perhaps I'll just sit with this anger and uncertainty, and wishing that I could make things perfect...

Pumpkin Pie Soup

Pumpkin Soup with Spiced Croutons
* Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens, Feb. 2009*

2 medium carrots, sliced
2 Tbsp. butter/oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
30 oz of pumpkin puree
32 oz of veggie stock/broth
1/2 cup half and half or light cream
3 Tbsp. maple syrup (I used a dash more)
1 tsp. pumpkin spice (nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger)
1 recipe for spiced croutons, see below
Salt and pepper to taste

1) In large saucepan, cook carrots in hot butter over medium heat for 2 minutes; add onion, celery and garlic. Cook for 10 minutes or so until tender.

2) Stir pumpkin, broth, cream, syrup and spices in. Heat through. Season with salt and pepper.

3) To serve, top soup with croutons.


Serves 8.


Spiced croutons: In a bowl, toss 3 cups 1 inch bread cubes with 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice. In a large skillet, cook bread cubes in 2 Tbsp butter/oil for 8 minutes or until toasted, turning occasionally.

I'm in LOVE!!

On a whim I decided to make a detour on my way to Berkeley, and seek out Rainbow Grocery Store in San Francisco. I had been hearing about how wonderful this store is, and pining over its offerings for years now, and today, I finally got to experience this sustainable grocery Mecca. It was everything I could want in a store and more! Bulk isles as far as the eye can see; reusable glass, plastic, and cloth containers available to fill with as many bulk food items as my little pocketbook could afford; cool food items that I had never heard of and may never need; even bulk chips (oh yeah!). I love this place. So yeah, yeah, I know what you are thinking: all "hippie" food stores have a bulk isle -right? But Rainbow Grocery doesn't just have a bulk bin isle they have a whole store full of bulk bins, the bins at Rainbow are WAY more expansive and awesome than anything I could imagine, and they have SO many things that I have never seen before, and want to try!

So here it is, the top 10 list of reasons to LOVE (and shop at) Rainbow Grocery:

1. They have SO many bulk herbs and spices available. They even had Vietnamese cinnamon that is so spicy that it smelled like Big Red gum (A favorite of mine from childhood- I used to chew so many pieces at once that I would get huge, spicy headaches.)
2. Paper bag containers for the bulk spices (yeah plastic-free).
3. Reusable, durable containers (for purchase) for filling with bulk items, including the 1/2 gallon mason jar that I have been pining after since I was at Telion Holon and saw their wall of mason jars (I bought one just because they are cool - a horrible consumerist response I know, but I will actually use it- promise!).
4. Oil, honey, nut butters, chips, chocolate, and other junk food in bulk.
5. Cleaning/beauty products in bulk. Okay, this one is REALLY cool because I've never seen this selection before, and in my desire to reduce/eliminate(?) the plastics that I consume this isle of bodily and house cleaners in bulk will be key.
6. They sell 100% Pure products. A company that I love for their philosophy, and product line, but am annoyed at because they never responded to my letter. (More on that later, but bottom line they still rock! Check them out!)
7. They sell organic, raw Kimchi from this cool place in Berkeley which is closed on the weekends. Since Rainbow is open on the weekends, now I get to have my kimchi and eat it too.
8. Rainbow is a worker-owned coop. (This probably should have been higher up on the list. Silly me.)
9. Their website is awesome, and filled with recipes, info on the food they sell, and links to so many other cool enviro info.
10. They are closed on March 31 in honor of Cesar Chavez' birthday. How cool is that?!

So, I'm a smitten kitten as you can see. The only sad part (although lucky for my wallet) is that Rainbow is in the City, and I am not. I will have to plan special trips there, bring all of my reusable, empty containers to fill up with yummies, and burn up a ton of fossil fuels transporting myself there in future visits.

Long distance love. How do you make it work? Will it last?