when i accepted this lovely gypsy job of mine, i was a bit concerned that all the traveling would pose a huge challenge to healthy eating.  turns out, i've had the best time discovering whole foods and vegetarian restaurants in the cities i've visited.  and my lunches have never been more nourishing.

happy thanksgiving friends.

i am so grateful for each of you.

i am grateful for this space to write it out and capture moments and cultivate a life of awareness.

also, so thankful for these things:

• my insatiable need for color
• the buddha on the thanksgiving table
• we've named him honey buddha
• as in "honey buddha don't care that there is no turkey"
• honey buddha also doesn't judge that there is lasagna and mashed potatoes
• thankful for meg worden and the work we did earlier this year
• and that i totally forgot to get the family-sized package of squishy rolls
• that's right, forgot, as in completely slipped my mind!
• because that job that made me want to stuff squishy rolls in my mouth is no longer mine to bear
• and other squishy roll needs are being met in more appropriate ways
• grateful that this list does not have to be serious
• because we do not have one single truly serious need
• so i will end it here
• and say a blessing for children living in fear and poverty and anger
• honey buddha cares about that
• and so do i

friends, i made my own fried green tomatoes.

with green tomatoes from my.  very.  own.  garden.

aren't they just gorgeousness tomatofied?



i've been in love with the fried green tomato since i first tasted them in 2003.  plus i really liked the movie, especially the part where kathy bates rams those bitches' car.  i find it amusing that i've pretty much been more comfortable with the thought of ramming some bitch's car than frying up some maters.  you see, i'm not the best fryer in the world (very unsouthern) and green tomatoes seemed hard to come by. 

turns out it's more messy than complicated:  the whole "breading station" thing...yeah.

station one:  i mixed sea salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper with organic unbleached flour.

station two:  two eggs, wisked.

station three:  i annihilated ritz crackers in the food processor instead of using bread crumbs.  the ritz crackers were the last of the derecho disaster food stash (good riddance to that).  i believe a good southern girl would have used cornmeal.

i tried to be healthy by using coconut oil (rookie california move); to counter the ritz crackers, which are pretty much the most unhealthy thing on the planet.

um, i didn't see the thing about "medium heat" until i was processing the photos.  see what i mean about not being the best fryer?

 

but i guess it was okay, the stove didn't burst into flames or anything.  next time i'll use canola.

here's the deets:

• heat about 1/4 inch oil in a pan on medium high
• wash and slice firm green unripe tomatoes (not ripe green heirlooms)
• one at a time, dredge tomato slices in flour and shake off excess
• then dip in beaten eggs
• then dip in the ritz crumbs (or bread crumbs if you don't have a derecho disaster food stash or cornmeal if you are southern)
• carefully place in the oil
• repeat with next slice
• i cooked four at a time
• watch them carefully, they cook fast, usually one to two minutes per side
• drain and cool on a wire rack with paper towels beneath

et voilà:


they were perfect!  the thin cracker coating was super crispy (i take it all back ritz) and the tart green tomato bite tasted just like summer.


unsouthern move number two hundred and four:  no sauce.  i like them naked.

(although i did have them in a cafe once with a cucumber dill sauce that i enjoyed.) 






after a few bites, i thought they would be awesome in a sandwich.  here is where i blew any chance of being southern...i put them between sourdough toasts with some arugula, goat cheese and avocado and a splash of balsamic.

the california fried green tomato sandwich.  dude.

yes friends, it is indeed more green food. 

i was inspired to make this hummus a few weeks ago when i combined leftover guacamole with leftover hummus while cleaning the fridge.  it was yummy, but i knew it could be even more green and fantastic.


herb and avocado hummus
two cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2/3 cup tahini
one whole head of garlic, roasted
one or two ripe avocados
zest and juice from one lemon
two handfuls herbs (i used parsley, tarragon, basil and dill)
olive oil
salt and pepper

remove outer paper from garlic, keeping head intact.  drizzle with olive oil and wrap in foil.  roast at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until soft.  when cool enough to handle, squeeze garlic from paper into food processer.  add the rest of the ingredients except the olive oil.  process until smooth, adding olive oil as needed.  taste, then season with s&p if needed.

seriously the only thing that could make this better is more avocado.


and goat cheese and arugula and perfectly ripe tomatoes the color of the sun.


super fresh and jam packed with vitamins, protein and the good fat that makes your skin glow and your heart beat happy.

first picnic of the season! 

a gorgeous afternoon spent with beautiful souls from our bikram yoga studio.  it was great to spend time with everyone and somewhat surreal to not be drenched with sweat and have (normal) clothes on. 


things you probably only eat at a yoga picnic:  flowers and leaves. 

i tried the clover, blackberry flowers, snakeberries, sorrel, dandelion and chickweed.  talk about advanced-level greens eating.  they were surprisingly delicious and i would eat most of them again.



this was my first picnic as a vegetarian.  i had a yummy boca burger and there were plenty of gorgeous salads to choose from. 


happy people.


hello friend.


yum.

• eating mostly local, seasonal and organic.
• becoming vegetarian.  on the road to vegan.
• the karma garden.
• buying more bulk foods and using my own reusable bags.
• walking or riding my bike instead of driving.
• delighting in the forest, the sea, sunsets, thunderstorms, butterflies.
• composting.
• carrying shopping bags in my purse and car.
• living my yoga.
• recycling.
• learning what more i can do.
• buying vintage.
• supporting rights for all humans and animals.
• shopping at small local businesses and mostly avoiding walmart and other megastores.

what is your favorite way to love our earth?

if someone said i had to only eat one dish every day for the rest of my life, pesto on sourdough toast would be on the shortlist (along with avocado, black bean and sweet potato tacos,  tomato and garlic pizza and pistachio gelato).




i love that it's equally brilliant on toast, pizza, pasta, panini, crackers.  i love that you can mix it up with different ingredients.  in summer, i practically live on arugula pesto because my friend has a rocket field that produces tons of the greens. 

true story:  i make it so much that the inside of my food processer is tinted green.




i'm somewhat reluctant to tell you that i also eat it by the spoonful.




for this batch, i used a mix of spinach, arugula, basil and pistachios.  i replaced some of the parmesan cheese with nutritional yeast for extra b12, which can be scarce in a vegetarian diet.  i always throw in red pepper flakes because i like mine super spicy.



super pesto
one head garlic, peeled and roughly chopped (that's about 10 cloves)
four handfuls greens (spinach or arugula or a mix)
one handful basil leaves
one cup nuts, raw and unsalted (walnuts are my favorite, but the batch shown is made with pistachios because that's what i had on hand)
one-half cup parmesan cheese
four tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional; use extra parm if omitting)
olive oil
red pepper flakes (optional)
sea salt (don't add until the end because the parm is usually pretty salty)

add garlic, nuts, basil and pepper flakes to food processer with a bit of olive oil.  pulse a few times to grind.  add the cheese and nutritional yeast, pulsing and adding olive oil to keep the mixture moving.  add the greens in two batches, keep mixing, adding enough olive oil to keep the pesto from balling up.  add sea salt to taste.

this makes a huge batch (about four times what you see in the photos).  feel free to scale down if you are not a pesto freak like me.

brush teeth after eating to avoid mad garlic breath and a green-speckled smile.  :)

(actually, it's dairy-free monday, but that doesn't read as well.)

on this little journey to plant-based eating (i've been vegetarian, nearly vegan for four weeks!), i've remained almost dairy-free.  i gave in to a couple cheese cravings until meg introduced me to a truly wonderful vegan cheese.  i've also missed the creamy feel of ice cream and kheer. 

the other day, a friend shared this post about chia seeds.  i've been sprinkling my salads with chia seeds for a few months and never thought about making a pudding with them.  i followed the basic instructions in the post and played around with some chai spices to try to get that indian rice pudding feel and taste. 

et voila:  chia chai indian pudding!



{1}  soak a chai tea bag in one cup of coconut milk for a few hours (i accidentally--or serendipitously--got the vanilla coconut milk and it worked perfectly).  remove the tea bag after a few hours.

{2}  crush three cardamom pods to release their goodness and put in the milk.  add three whole cloves.  stir in 1/8 teaspoon of rose water (this is optional, but it really gives it that true kheer taste). 


{3}  measure four tablespoons of chia seeds and stir in to the milk.

{4}  put in an airtight glass container and refrigerate overnight.



{5}  the next day, your chia seeds will have plumped up with all the milky chai-ness to resemble a rice pudding.

{6}  sweeten with honey or agave nectar.  chopped pistachios would be awesome too.


so here's the thing:  it's a bit gel-ish, not quite as tapioca-like as the article suggests.  but once i tasted it, i forgave it its weird texture and unfortunate grey color.  it's amazing!  i had a wee portion of the dish and i was full for hours.