The Garden Apartment

Know What You Eat Series {at the Arlington Public Library}

With spring in full swing, this is the perfect time of year to begin thinking about sustainable food choices, and locally grown foods.

Beginning this month, the Arlington Public Library is focusing their Arlington Reads program on food and sustainability. An impressive series of films and special events will be available to the public free of charge, including conversations with authors Wendell Berry and Novella Carpenter.

The events kick off this evening at 6:30 PM with a viewing of the film Food, Inc. at the Shirlington Branch Library.

Event Dates:

• Sunday, April 11th, 3 PM  Eat Local Panel Discussion {Shirlington Branch Library}
• Monday, April 19th, 7PM  Book Discussion: "The Memory of Old Jack," by Wendell Berry {Arlington Central Library}
• Thursday, April 29th, 7PM  Author Talk with Novella Carpenter, "Farm City" {Arlington Central Library}
• Tuesday, May 4th, 7M  A Conversation with Wendell Berry {Arlington Central Library}

Film Dates:

• Wednesday, April 7th, 6:30 PM  Food, Inc. {Shirlington Branch Library}
• Wednesday, April 14th, 6:30 PM  Fast Food Nation {Shirlington Branch Library}
• Saturday, April 17th, 2 PM  Community of Gardeners {Arlington Central Library}    
• Wednesday, April 28th, 6:30 PM  How to Cook Your Life {Shirlington Branch Library}

Library Locations:

Arlington Central Library; 1015 N. Quincy St.; Arlington, VA

Shirlington Branch Library; 4200 Campbell Ave; Arlington, VA

Friday for Haiti at Local 16

 

 

When you are inevitably planning a happy hour tomorrow afternoon, choose a location with a good cause. Tomorrow, DC's Local 16, in cooperation with the local organization Do Good, Feel Good, is hosting a happy hour benefitting Haitian earthquake relief. 

For a $25 cover charge, show up at the door (or sign up here) and enjoy free beer (until the kegs run out), free Jameson and Absolut cocktails until 8 PM, and an appetizer buffet. 100 % of the proceeds from the $25 cover charges and 10 % of the evenings bar tabs will go directly to Oxfam America's Haitian Earthquake Relief Fund. 

Friday for Haiti takes place tomorrow, Friday January 22nd, 2010 from 6:30-10:30 PM. Local 16 is located at 1602 U St NW in Washington, DC.

And of course, if you can't come and join in the fun, Haiti still needs your help. Consider donating at Oxfam America or your charity of choice.

A Resolution to Waste Less

I get the same sinking feeling every year. My family members unwrap their holiday presents and we stuff the paper and packaging into large garbage bags. The only wrapping items saved are the ribbons and bows-- which we don atop the dog's head, though this begrieves him as greatly as the trash does me. This year, I informed John that we will wrap everyone's presents in reusable shopping bags next year. I'm sure this will go over well with my mom, who still refuses to recycle, despite over twenty years of her daughter's pestering.

The enemy: wrapping paper lined up waiting for the 2010 holidays 

Entering 2010, I am feeling overwhelmed by waste. Certainly it is not just the wrapping paper and holiday excesses. There's the everyday items like the mail-- the catalogs and coupons and restaurant delivery menus which arrive daily. There's the food waste-- things we never got around to eating which expired. There's the clothes in the closet which look like they belong to a shockingly floral and ruffly teenage version of myself. 

With all these things in mind, it is our family's resolution to waste less.  

Here are some of the steps we are taking.

1. Eliminate direct mail

I often feel as if the mail is my worst enemy at the home front. My kitchen table piles up with catalogs from companies I have never ordered from, nor am interested in. Despite the fact that I never asked to receive this mail, I then feel guilty throwing it into the recycling bin. It's waste, pure and simple-- and though recycling may be better than trash, unnecessary waste is unnecessary waste. 

A year ago, I used a service which would contact the catalogs you no longer wished to receive. This did not work-- the vendors simply would not respond to the service's request. So this year, I am trying a new service which works a little differently. They put your name on different lists requesting no mailings: credit card offers, catalogs, and other mailings. In addition, you can track your mail and keep records of the mailings you receive. Then, you go into a directory which links you to each catalogs mail preferences online. I am finding that I have to contact each catalog directly with my customer number in order to get validation that I have been removed from the list. 

Here's how you can minimize your junk mail:

• DMAchoice: This Mail Preference Service offered by the Direct Marketing Association can help you to select which catalogs you would like to receive, or not receive. Or, you     can completely opt out of various types of mail, including credit card offers, catalogs, magazine offers, and other types of mail.

• When you receive an unwanted catalog in the mail, visit their website and look for "mailing preferences." Opt out, or email customer service with the subject line: please remove me from your direct mailing list. Provide them with your full name, mailing address, and customer number (usually on the back of the catalog).

2. Eliminate Food Waste: Make Cooking a Family Activity

I teeter-totter between extreme enthusiasm for all things food, and exhaustion from spending so much time living, breathing, and eating food. There are days when I come home from work-- which for me is a day spent cooking-- and I just want to sit down at a restaurant and have someone else feed me. 

This can be a dangerous combination because that enthusiasm for food often makes me buy overbuy perishable items at the store and farmers market. Then, when I decide I don't have the energy to cook, we end up spending $20-$30 on a restaurant meal while the food in our fridge expires. 

Recently, it occurred to me that I was only one of three adult household members. Instead of fretting each evening over my responsibility to cook dinner, I walked in the house and demanded that John and DJ each put on an apron and get to work helping me. This has been revolutionary. We are using up our food, and we are all taking responsibility for feeding ourselves. Of course, we're saving money too. And though the guys probably wouldn't admit it, they have fun wearing those aprons.

3. Eliminating Food Waste: Composting

 

Our compost pile, covered by winter-time snow

One thing we planned to do when we bought our new home was to compost. We were fortunate that the previous owners had already made a three-part compost system in our backyard. All we had to do was continue the process.

We don't have a very advanced technique. Basically, we have a big container in our kitchen where we throw all our fruit and vegetable scraps and coffee grinds. Sometimes I throw paper scraps in, too. Then, we transfer this outside to our three-way bin. The left-side bin is the materials which are just beginning to break down. We cover our kitchen scraps with grass clippings in the summer, leaves in the fall, or newspaper scraps if yard clippings are unavailable. This helps the vegetable matter break down better, and also deters animals and rodents from getting into the bin. Every week, we turn the compost. When it looks like it is breaking down, we move it to the center bin where it continues to get turned. Finally, when the center bin is ready, it gets moved to the far right bin. It's a good ongoing cyclical system. Our Executive Compost Turner (John) reports that he could feel the heat coming off of the pile even amidst this frigidly cold weather.

Given the amount of home cooking we do, we fill up our under-the-sink bin at least twice a week. Over the course of a year, that would amount to around 25 bags of trash. Instead, we are putting it to use in our yard-- and our future vegetable garden.

• For more detailed information on composting, check out this helpful website: Composting. You can also become a fan of composting on Facebook.

4. Plan a Home Garden

John and I cannot wait to break ground on our first garden this spring, though we've decided to start small so that we can learn from our mistakes and grow the garden intelligently. It's exciting to think we'll be able to feed ourselves, reduce the amount of miles our food travels, spend more time outside (though I may later curse the weeds), and save money on our grocery bills.

As we begin planning, we'll keep you updated. In the meantime, here is some good inspiration:

• The Gardener's Eden
• The National Gardening Association

5. Recycle Unwanted Items

Getting back to that closet full of clothes fit for a 16 year old, we're working on cleaning out the things we no longer need, but which somebody else may love. 

I'm always a bit conflicted on donations, because it can feel demeaning to donate things that are overly worn or have become unfit to wear. I always think back to my experience as a college student working at homeless center. I had to put together some donated items for a woman who had just checked in to the center. The items included personal things-- like underwear. The only ones available in her size had been used, and were stained. I felt terrible and apologetic as I handed them over to her. 

With that said, maybe I can come to terms with some things just needing to be trashed. 

For your thoughtfully donated items:

• Check out The Charity Guide's page on ways to donate used clothing.
• Consider donating unwanted food pantry items to your local food bank. For those of us in the DC Area, check out The Capital Area Food Bank.

For an all-encompassing take on eliminating waste, check out No Impact Man blog or take the challenge to live one week with no impact at the No Impact Man Project.

Have other ideas on how we can be less wasteful? Our household would love your input.

Turkey Burgers with garlic scape pesto mayonnaise

Garlic scapes-- the spiraling green sprouts of spring garlic-- have arrived at many farmers markets. In an effort of eating less red meat, we put our scapes to work with this delicious turkey burger stuffed with balsamic caramelized onions and dried apricots. Read on about our "health" efforts, or scroll down for the recipe.

It may surprise you to hear this, but John and I are working on this thing called "being healthy."

Yes, this blog actually has the word "garden" in it (which seemingly implies health), and we do eat a lot of farm fresh fruits and vegetables, but we certainly don't shy away from eating fattening foods.

The thing is, I rather enjoy fat. I'm not against eating red meat, pork, or any handful of desserts. In fact, I full heartedly relish all of the above.

But, there's a catch. The first part is that most Americans eat much more red meat and pork than they should. And we all (should) know that eating it more than once or twice a week is not good for your health.

The bigger issue for me, however, is one of sustainability and ethics. While I do firmly believe that humans are meant to eat some meat, I cannot bring myself to buy meat that has been factory farmed. That is, I can't bring myself to buy meat from any major supermarket or large provider. For starters, the treatment of animals on factory farms is inhumane and unethical. It's also bad for the environment, as their waste and disease runs off into our water supply and pollutes the air. And finally, meat that is raised in these conditions simply isn't good for you. It may be cheap to buy, but the lower price tag is not worth the damage done to the animals and our environment. 

So, where to buy sustainable, farm raised, and preferably grass fed meat? Many farmers markets carry it, and my local Whole Foods has also started carrying local Virginia beef and grass-fed beef from Georgia. Of course, farmers markets and Whole Foods are both more expensive than what is sold at mainstream grocery stores.

Our solution? Eat less meat.

It's a win-win solution. It's better for us. It's better for the environment. We spend less money.  And finally, we are financially supporting sustainable and local sources of meat. In other words, we're voting with our wallets.

It began as a plan to consume red meat or pork only once a week. Likewise, we planned to eat fish at least once a week (check out this list of sustainable fish). I added a vegetarian night once a week, which is somewhat less popular with my spouse. All other nights are another source of protein, such as chicken or turkey. 

Surprisingly, although I was the family member who came up with this idea, John has become an avid supporter. 

After a hamburger cookout with friends last weekend, we had a lot of leftover ground beef. When I suggested spaghetti and meatballs for dinner the following evening, I was rudely reminded that we would have to wait until the next week since our weekly red meat ration had been met. The ground beef went into the freezer.

But what to do with all those hamburger buns?

Turkey burgers to the rescue.

And in case you were waiting for some refreshing photos amidst this diatribe of meat eating philosophy. . . here was the inspiration for our turkey burger condiment:

That's right! Garlic scapes have arrived at market. If you haven't tried them, I recommend you snatch up any you find since they won't be around very long. The curvy and tender garlic stalks taste of mild garlic. They're wonderful used as a simple pesto-- simply process them with olive oil and parmesan. They also work well stir fried with fresh market vegetables or added into most anything you'd add garlic to.

The inspiration for the rest of the turkey burger came from some ingredients I had hanging out in my pantry, as well as a meatball recipe from Chocolate and Zucchini.

I used a combination of white and dark turkey meat, onions (slowly caramelized in olive oil and balsamic vinegar), toasted pine nuts, small bits of dried apricots, some roasted garlic, and freshly ground coriander seeds. To slather on the buns, I simply mixed some mayonnaise, a few teaspoons of pesto stored in my fridge, and some freshly minced garlic scapes.

Although John had his doubts on the merits of a turkey burger, he devoured this quickly enough to convince me it was good.

Turkey Burgers with garlic scape pesto mayonnaise (Makes 4 large burgers)

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For the burgers

• 1/2 lb white ground turkey meat
• 1/2 lb dark ground turkey meat 
• 1/4 cup dried apricots, diced
• 1/2 onion, sliced to 1/4 inch thickness
• 1 TB balsamic 
• 1 TB extra virgin olive oil 
• 1/2 tsp butter 
• 1/4 cup pine nuts (toasted, if desired)
• 2 cloves garlic, roasted
• 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp oregano

For the garlic scape mayonnaise

• 1/4 cup garlic scapes, finely diced
• 2 tsp basil pesto
• 1 tsp EVOO
• 1/4 Cup mayonnaise (+ more to taste)
• dash of freshly cracked black pepper

Making the burgers

I'll admit, there are several ingredients going into these turkey burgers. To make it easier, I set up an assembly line, and got everything going at once.

Begin with making the caramelized onions, since they will take the longest (but require little attention once cooking). Heat one tablespoon of oil in a medium saute pan. In the meantime, slice half of an onion (about 1/4 inch thickness). Add a little bit of butter to the saute pan (until it sizzles), and then add the onion. Add 1 tablespoon of balsamic, and stir. Allow these to cook away at medium-low heat while you work on the rest of the ingredients.

Place two garlic cloves (skins on) in a small pan on high heat. Allow them to roast in the pan until the skins have blackened.

While the garlic and onions are heating up, dice the dried apricots.

Mix together the dark and light turkey meat, then add the dried apricots, pine nuts, coriander, salt, pepper, and oregano.

Here you can see my assembly line from bottom to top: meat and spice mixture, diced apricots, caramelizing onions, and roasting garlic.

Add the caramelized onions and roasted garlic to the meat mixture, form into patties, and prepare.

Make the garlic scape mayonnaise

Combine all the ingredients for the garlic scape mayonnaise. If you don't have prepared pesto on hand (in other words, if you don't freeze large batches every summer like I do), you could simply mix the mayonnaise with garlic scapes, a little fresh basil, and some lemon juice to taste. Or, if you can't find garlic scapes, roast an extra couple cloves of garlic (from the meat mixture) and add that to the mayonnaise.

Putting it all together

Assemble the burgers onto buns slathered with garlic scape mayonnaise. If desired, add a little lettuce, or some oven roasted tomatoes. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

In the end, I'm not sure that adding caramelized onions to the turkey mixture and slathering the buns with garlic scape pesto mayonnaise really worked in favor of our health efforts.  But at least the idea of a turkey burger sounds somewhat healthy. 

Right?

For more information on meat production and sustainability, check out these links:

Sustainable Table: Animal Welfare

Sustainable Table: What is sustainable agriculture?

Sustainable Table: Sustainable vs. Industrial

And if you're lucky enough to be in a city playing the newly released documentary Food Inc., I highly recommend seeing it. For the DC area: check out the schedule at Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema and the E Street Cinema downtown. 

Direct Trade Coffee at Grape and Bean

The Grape and Bean, a wine and coffee shop located in Old Town Alexandria, offers high quality direct trade coffee in a quaint atmosphere. Soon, they will be offering wine by the glass and small plates of food.

Awhile back, I wrote a post on Fair Trade Coffee.  Being a caffeine addict, it concerns me that so much of the coffee imported to the United States is produced by companies who exploit their workers and the environment. Recently, I heard a statistic that coffee is the number 2 import in the United States (after oil, of course) which makes the need for coffee with a conscience even more relevant.

After writing about fair trade coffee, Susan told me about Grape and Bean in Old Town Alexandria. I visited their charming shop on South Royal Street a few times, each time having a very positive experience. Employees were willing to answer my questions, and even gave me reading recommendations (God in a Cup- which I discuss below).

Now, I am no coffee expert. That is, aside from understanding the difference between a light roast and a dark roast, I'm not likely to detect hints of chocolate or cherry when I sip my daily joe. However, I willtell you that the cups of coffee I drank there were memorable. My husband John, the constant skeptic (though willing supporter) of my enthusiasm for these sorts of things, was completely sold after drinking a cup of la Golondrina: a coffee that is direct trade certified by the company Counter Culture.

The direct trade coffee model takes fair trade a step further. With the idea that the search for sustainable coffee has become "confusing" as of late, Counter Culture's model of direct trade seeks to set high standards for the beans andthe coffee farmers. They also value transparency:a value that is all too easy to ignore when the people consuming the product are thousands of miles away. Take my cup of la Golondrina. Counter Culture describes it on their website:

We decided to name the project "La Golondrina," or "The Swallow," because, in Latin American culture, the swallow is a symbol of communication between people separated by distance and borders. The swallow crosses borders easily and carries messages of goodwill between friends, no matter how far away. Also, the swallow returns every year, just as we plan to return to Cauca every year to visit our partners there.

Following this description is a list of each farmer who participated in the la Golondrina project this year. Now that's transparency. You can read more about it here.

David Gwathmey, owner of the Grape and Bean, told me that they are looking to offer more direct trade certified coffees on their list of excellent brews. Also on the horizon: the Grape and Bean will be (soon!) offering wine by the glass and small plates of food. 

For those of you who are really interested in the pursuit of the perfect cup of coffee, the author of God in a Cup, Michaele Weissman will be signing her book and talking at a coffee tasting at the Grape and Bean tomorrow night, July 24th at 6:30 PM. If you can't make it, she will also be signing books at Politics and Prose on Monday, July 28th at 7PM.

Now, if only I had the Grape and Bean's single cup brewing Clover machine at my disposal and some la Golondrina beans so I could enjoy my morning cup of coffee as much as I did this one.

The Grape and Bean is located at 118 South Royal Street in Alexandria, VA. Their hours of operation can be found at their website: http://www.grapeandbean.com/.

Much thanks to my friend Kate of kate headley photography for the great photographs.

Homemade Creamy Green Garlic Dressing (Hold the HFCS and Xantham Gum)

After purchasing some green garlic from the Farmer's Market a week or two ago, I am in love. The lovely green shoots have a delicate garlic flavor which is perfect if you don't want too strong of a garlic flavor in your cooking. At first, I simply added them to omelets, salads, and stirfries.

Then, last weekend, I had another idea.  I've always been a really big fan of homemade salad dressings. Although store bought dressings can be good, a homemade dressing is almost always far superior in taste. There are other reasons to avoid store-bought dressings. I've taken a survey of all salad dressings in my fridge. Every one of them (including "healthier" options) contained at least one or both of the following ingredients:

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS): Just google it and a plethora of websites will emerge discussing its negative health qualities and existence in nearly every processed food.
2. Xantham Gum: a thickening agent developed in the 1960s created through fermentation and processing with corn syrup. 

Without going into a long tirade about these two ingredients, I will say that neither sounds particularly appealing, healthy, or natural to me.

So, let's go back to that Farmer's Market green garlic purchased from a local area farm. Last weekend I created a delicious Creamy Green Garlic dressing and dip.  Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 3/4 Cup Mayonnaise (Check out Feel Good Eat's Recipe for Homemade Mayonnaise)
• 1 TB Dijon mustard
• 3-4 green garlic shoots, finely chopped
• 2 TB fresh dill, minced
• 2 TB fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1 TB white wine
• salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all of the ingredients thoroughly.  Cover and chill for at least one hour before serving.

Serving Suggestions

Vegetable dip

Salad Dressing:

I added a little extra white wine and covered some cucumbers, scallions and radishes with the blend. After about an hour, I put this mixture on top of some lettuce.  Mmm. . . .

Coming soon: my favorite Greek salad recipe-- also with a homemade dressing. . . .

Fair Trade Coffee: Coffee with a Conscience

Let's face it: my husband and I are addicted to coffee.  It should come as no huge shock that coffee does not grow anywhere near northern Virginia.  Thank God I am not a purist when it comes to eating and drinking locally sourced foods. 

Despite my acceptance of the fact that I can't get everything I need from the greater Washington DC area, coffee poses a moral dilemma.  Most coffee comes from developing countries.  In these places, the land and the people working the land are easily exploited.   According to the Global Exchange coffee farmers are often paid less for their product than it costs to produce it. This places farmers and workers into an endless cycle of poverty. How can I get peace of mind that my daily cup of joe is socially conscious?

One solution to this problem is to buy fair trade certified coffee. Fair trade certification ensures that workers are paid a living wage.  It also prohibits forced child labor.  Often, fair trade products support sustainable agriculture.  To learn more about fair trade certification and other fair trade products, visit the Fair Trade Certified website.

I found my Fair Trade coffee at Trader Joe's.  In addition to the Fair Trade label, my coffee is also certified organic and shade grown.  Shade grown means exactly what it says: the coffee is grown under the shade of other trees.  Commercial coffee growers often plant the trees in hot sun.  They do this to increase efficiency, but it is often necessary for them to use pesticides and fertilizers to keep the coffee growing.  Furthermore, this practice depletes the soil and the environment.  Shade grown helps to restore habitats for migrating birds and is often organic.  Read more about shade grown coffee.

This 13 ounce container of whole beans cost around $8.00.  According to the label, the coffee is produced by "an all women organization in an effort to offer women of Peru a better life." In addition, "women participate in every step of the process" and "a portion of the purchase goes directly back to [them]" (in addition to their wages).  Now that's a cup of joe I can swallow guilt-free.