How To Build Community

Contrary to popular belief, I have not disappeared off the face of this earth. Rather, I've been quite busy with about a month of unexpected travel. You see, I've gotten a new job at Google which begins the first week of June. My last day at my former job was May 6 so I've had some time to visit Traverse City, explore Mackinaw Island, travel to upstate New York, and take in the scenery in Amish country of Ohio. 

Though plenty of lengthy updates about these exploits are to come (as well as some much needed garden work and blogging), I wanted to share this image of a poster spotted hanging in a small coffee shop in Burton, Ohio where I'm currently located. In case it's hard to read, I've included the text at the bottom.

Though some of these make me roll my eyes (e.g. listen to the birds, sing together), others give me some good ideas. In fact, I'm bringing back some Amish recipes and baking supplies which I think I'll share with the neighbors...

So, for now I'll conclude with a commitment to post more details and photos of my travels soon and the hope that the rain lets up tomorrow afternoon so I can plant some cabbages after I get back in town.

Transcription of the image text:

How to Build Community

• Turn off your TV
• Leave your house
• Know your neighbors
• Look up when you are walking
• Greet people
• Sit on your stoop
• Plant flowers
• Use your library
• Play together
• Buy from local merchants
• Share what you have
• Help a lost dog
• Take children to the park
• Garden together
• Support neighborhood schools
• Fix it even if you didn't break it
• Have pot lucks
• Honor elders
• Pick up litter
• Read stories aloud
• Dance in the street
• Talk to the mail carrier
• Listen to the birds
• Put up a swing
• Help carry something heavy
• Barter for your goods
• Start a tradition
• Ask questions
• Hire young people for odd jobs
• Organize a block party
• Bake extra and share
• Ask for help when you need it
• Open your shades
• Sing together
• Share your skills
• Take back the night
• Turn up the music
• Turn down the music
• Listen before you react to anger
• Mediate a conflict
• Seek to understand
• Learn from new and uncomfortable angels
• Know that no on is silent, though many are not heard - work to change this

Despite Our Best Intentions...

Earliest Spring Flowers

Sometimes, despite our best intentions, things just don't work out the way we intended. For instance, this past Saturday was an idyllic day before the official start of spring, and so Josh and I went for an epic walk around town. I'm not a camera carrier nor a photo documenter, but a good part of me wants to be for the sake of this blog so I even brought my camera and took a few photos of the flowers popping up in yards all over. The plan was to use these as the basis for a "Welcome to Spring!" post on Sunday (the first day of spring). Of course, as you've probably induced by now, that didn't happen, and here we are two days past the official start of the season, with me anticlimactically offering - oh, by the way - happy spring. Here's a photo. 

Obviously, this example is fairly harmless. Unfortunately, however, our failed attempts at good-doing are not always so benign. Take for example the United States' relatively new and increasing love for quinoa. Though people will debate how it's pronounced, it's hard to find anyone health savvy who won't support an overwhelmingly positive nutritional analysis of this near wonder food. In fact, NASA even posits that with its "exceptional balance of amino acids, quinoa... is virtually unrivaled in the plant or animal kingdom for its life-sustaining nutrients."

Quinoa

In addition to great nutrients, quinoa is also fairly versatile. Related to beets and spinach, quinoa isn't a grain, but it can be used like one, replacing other carbohydrate fillers like rice and potatoes. And what's not to like about this, right? We live in a country with a growing obesity problem that also loves meat and potatoes. This food can actually help us get more out of our food without sacrificing a texture that we love. Great!

Well, my friends, turns out that it's great for us and our European friends who have also embraced the food. It's not so great though for the Bolivians who can no longer afford this staple crop grown in their country and are now, ironically, turning to the processed foods that increase the risk of obesity and malnutrition at the same time.

So, a quinoa lover myself, I am now working my way through our remaining supply of quinoa (and savoring every bite of it) because I will buy the delectable specimen no more. 

Ultimately, this is just another argument for localization. The facts are:

• We don't need quinoa in our diet. Though it has great nutritional value, in Michigan we are at no loss for healthy and plentiful crops to eat.  

• We can't grow quinoa.  If we want it on our plate, we have to import it from Bolivia, increasing our carbon footprint through transportation. 

• By purchasing quinoa, we increase the demand for it and, consequently, its cost. As a result, Bolivians who do depend on quinoa for basic nutrition can't afford to purchase this product grown in their own country as a staple of their diet. Seems like a huge and preventable social injustice to me...

Living in such a relatively prosperous nation, many of us have choices when it comes to what we eat and it falls upon us to make choices that are good for us and good for our local, national, and even global community. So, in sum, whenever possible eat local so our global friends can simply eat.

(Information in this post taken from "Quinoa's Global Success Creates Quandary at Home,"  an article in the March 20, 2011 edition of The New York Times. Thanks Josh for being such a diligent newspaper reader.)

Recommended Reference

This morning I had the relative luxury of coming to work an hour later than usual (the result of staying late on Monday). In my extra time, I pulled out my favorite slow cooker reference book - Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson - and put together some "Hungarian Goulash" (p. 86) for tonight's dinner. Made with tempeh (a fermented block of soy beans) and served mixed into noodles, this very thick stew has sauerkraut, a tomato base, and provides a truly hearty meal that does not lack for flavor or texture. 

The cool thing about this book is that it has over 200 recipe ideas which, though I doubt they were written with preserver-cooks in mind, lend themselves incredibly well to substitution, replacing store-bought canned ingredients with homemade equivalents.  Below I've included an example below of an original recipe from the book. In orange are my changes which allowed me to use mostly home-preserved ingredients, making it necessary to buy only a couple of non-local items (e.g. bouillon for vegetable stock, tempeh, and salt).

Hungarian Goulash with Tempeh

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil Enough butter to coat the pan (about 1/2 tablespoon)
• 1 pound tempeh, cut into small cubes
• 1 small yellow onion, halved and sliced thinly into half moons (2-3 small onions, can find local ones almost year round)
• 2 cups sauerkraut, drained and rinsed (more like 3 cups and I don't drain or rinse... that's all the flavor!)
• 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (about 8-10 whole frozen paste tomatoes, skins removed if desired, thawed and diced)
• 1 tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika 
• 1/4 cup dry white wine (red also works, depending on what you have open, and you can use more for more intense flavor)
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste (3-4 tablespoons crushed dried tomatoes)
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup sour cream or tofu sour cream

Instructions

• Saute tempeh in olive oil for about 10 minutes. Put in slow cooker.
• Saute onions in olive oil until soft. Put in slow cooker.
• Put everything else in slow cooker. Cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours.
• Serve over wide noodles (mixed into whole wheat macaroni).

This type of substitution definitely takes some practice because, as far as I know, there's no one reference for converting canned tomato units to whole frozen ones. But rest assured: because most slow cookers dishes are stew-like, it's pretty difficult to make something inedible (just be sure that in anything including uncooked grains, you don't skimp on the liquid since the grains need to absorb this liquid in the cooking process). Plus, Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker is a great reference and a good inspiration so experiment away (and let me know if you find conversion rates from standard quantities to home-preserved quantities that you can rely on)!

Set It and Forget It!

When I was about 12 or so, my dad and I got caught in the hypnotic messaging of an infomercial and bought a rotisserie cooker from Ron Popeil, "the King of 'Set It and Forget It.'" I've included an example of the advertisement below, but I will not be held responsible for any poor purchasing judgment that results...

Anyway, when we received the contraption in the mail 3-5 weeks later, we eagerly stuffed it with a five pound chicken and, as the instructions prompted, we set it and forgot it.

Well, it turns out you can't effectively cook chicken with a light bulb which is essentially what this thing tried to do. Disappointed and with wounds that would keep me forever skeptical of television advertisements, we asked for our money back guarantee (minus shipping and handling) and sent the rotisserie back.

I should have known then that (for the most part) anything my father and I agreed upon so excitedly was probably a bad idea. I should have also realized that it was really my mother who had the "set it and forget it" technology we were seeking. About once a week, she in her infinite wisdom would pull out the crock pot she'd received years prior as a wedding present and make something delicious with very little effort. 

As an adult, I won't say that I've become wiser, but I have at least learned a few things about mimicking good ideas. So, like my mother, I am the proud owner of two slow cookers, one 4-quart (for everyday cooking) and one 12-quart (for large-batch freezing/canning).

I cannot recommend this cooking tool highly enough, especially for those looking to preserve their own food. You'll find a use for it throughout the process: In August, when it comes time to can tomato sauce, no method is easier for reducing the volume of the tomatoes than letting them simmer for 18-28 hours in a slow cooker (and it doesn't heat up the house as much as a stove). In February, when it comes to throwing frozen ingredients together to make an easy and  tasty chili (see recipe below), the choice is obvious.

As proof of my undying affection for the convenience of my slow cookers, I'll leave you with an impromptu recipe for vegetarian chili that provided a healthy and satisfying dinner last night (prepped it Sunday night around 8pm, turned off and stored the entire slow cooker in the cold garage before work around 7am on Monday, reheated and ate that evening).

Nicole's Chilly February Chili

Ingredients 

• 4 quart slow cooker 
• 10-15 frozen whole paste tomatoes (e.g. Roma, San Marzano, Amish Paste) thawed for 1-2 hours
• 3 small onions
• 2 or so cloves of garlic
• ~3/4 cup frozen, slices hot banana peppers
• ~1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
• 1 cup dried black beans 
• 2-3 generous pinches of dried basil
• 2-3 teaspoons of chili powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ~3 cups vegetable stock (Frugality tip: buy a jar of bouillon and make the stock yourself with hot water! Also saves on packaging and transportation cost due to bulkiness of prepared stock.)

- When outsides are relatively soft, puree tomatoes in food processor or blender. Add to slow cooker.

- Chop onions in food processor (or by hand). Do the same with the garlic. Add both to slow cooker.

- Add peppers, corn, black beans, basil, chili powder, salt, pepper, and stock to slow cooker.

- Set on low. Allow to cook for about 10 hours. Before turning off, check doneness of black beans. 

- Serve hot and topped with shredded cheddar, chopped onions, parsley, and sour cream. Also delicious with a slice of cornbread or thickly-sliced, toasted multigrain.