Green Options

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While any red-blooded foodie enjoys a veggie burger now and again, it can get tiresome to keep chowing down on the same prepackaged bulgar patty as meat-eaters feast on a vast array of grilled options from shrimp skewers to pulled pork, salmon sides and steaks. What is the vegetarian-minded BBQer to do amidst the seemingly endless parade of imitation-meat options? Sick of soy and tired of tempeh, I’ve turned to halloumi cheese as my protein source of delicious grill flavor.

Halloumi has a high melting point which allows it to keep its shape and firm consistency when cooked. It is a fresh cheese, prepared much like mozzarella from goat’s or sheep’s milk. While it comes from Cyprus and is common throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East, I first encountered it when I lived in Brazil where it is served as a beach snack. A good place to look for Halloumi is a Mediterranian or Middle Eastern grocery, but some supermarkets have started to carry the cheese. I’ve even found it at my farmer’s market, where one of the vendors is like-minded when it comes to grilling. Preparations after the jump.

There’s always a better whey.

A Wisconsin cheese producer, Joe Van Groll of Stratford, Wisconsin, has a way with whey.

For nearly a decade, Van Groll experimented using the waste product of cheese manufacturing, whey permeate, to manufacture ethanol. During the past four years, he’s been doing just that, and believes his process can produce ethanol for less than $1 a gallon.

If the combination of Middle Eastern hummus and Mexican tortillas seems strange, just give it a chance. The result is absolutely delicious, and is an incredibly fast meal or snack. And kids of all ages LOVE it!
Makes 8 quesadillas

Ingredients

Hummus (store-bought or made from scratch – see below)
8 corn or flour tortillas
½ cup chopped green onions
1/2-1 cup favorite salsa

The name pesto derives from tradition of making this sauce in a mortar with a pestle. The following recipe, which I encourage you to use a food processor for, unless you have a few spare hours, proves that you absolutely don’t need cheese to make a fantastic pesto. Purchase fresh basil (or grow it yourself!), and find a nice fruity olive oil.

Advance Preparation: Pesto freezes very well. Defrost pesto at room temperature, about

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The versatile little soy bean is used to make such delicious foods as tofu, tempeh, miso, and soy milk, and yet it’s misunderstood, especially here in the West. Tofu is derided, scoffed at, and even feared by some, and I’m here to set things right. Our little lesson may seem technical at first, but once you read it, I think you’ll come away with a much better understanding of our high-protein friend and

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It Can Be Greener!For me, a big part of living green is eating a plant-based diet. My wife decided to go vegan almost 4 years ago, and after I did my fair share of whining and nay-saying, I finally joined her a few months later. We've never looked back.

Well, okay, almost never. Giving up the meat was far easier than I ever expected. Eggs? Never liked those much [...]