Green Options

One of my favorite parts of the week is picking up my Growing Communities veg bag from Hackney City Farm. As I’ve written before, a veg bag is the British equivalent of a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) box, filled with organic and mostly locally grown produce. Following a veggie burger as well as carrot potato pancakes, I’m doing more fun kitchen experiments figuring out how to use all the random vegetables that come my way.  It’s the veg bag game! Can’t beat anything that combines games and food: two of my favorite things on the planet besides panda babies.

Growing communities is nice enough to include a recipe in the bags each week, which I’ve found to be a great starting point for figuring out what to make. It’s amazing how many dishes can be made based on what can often be found in your average kitchen - today I debated a pasta primavera and a stir-fried eggplant with brown rice - but decided to riff off the Courgette and Cheese soup recipe from the bag.  The fun part of the game is playing with ingredients depending on what I’ve got lying around and seeing what deliciousness results. I didn’t have any cheese, but I did have cherry tomatoes and some verging-on-stale whole wheat bread so I tossed them both in for a texture similar to ribollita (a Tuscan soup made with stale bread).  The bread makes it hearty, but it’s got the lightness of a vegetarian as well as dairy-free soup. Depending on what you’ve got lying around, you can make any adjustments as well. Enjoy!

I’ve always loved the idea of foraging for food, but the idea of dying from a poisonous mushroom overdose has always put me off from plucking edibles from the ground for dinner. Luckily, you can often find a carefully selected array of wild and exotic mushrooms at grocery stores or farmers markets. Sometimes, when there’s potential for serious injury, I find it’s best to leave things up to the professionals.

I found this gorgeous array of exotic mushrooms at the Sporeboys stall at London’s beautiful Broadway Market. Mushrooms are easy to cook, good for you, and have a deliciously rich, almost meaty taste that’s a great vegetarian substitute. I made a simple sautéed mushroom mix with olive oil, herbs, and cheese that tasted great on toast as well as pasta. It could also top a number of other dishes that you’ve already got in your kitchen. It’s simple, versatile, and oh so tasty…and no fear of poison! What more could you ask for?

Here’s an easy way to cook your mushrooms and a number of ways to serve them too:

We’re all familiar with the numerous benefits that go along with eating more meatless meals:  You can reduce your impact on the environment, improve your health, and save some money along the way.  Plus, vegetarian and vegan meals just plain taste good!  The idea of Meatless Mondays are nothing new, but is it something that you and your family actually do on a regular basis, if at all?

Spring is the perfect time to up your intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes while lowering your meat consumption.  The warmer weather makes our bodies crave lighter fare, and fresh, delicious produce is beginning to fill the market.  Why not try some of these meal ideas for a Meatles Monday of your own?

Eating fewer animal products is a great way to improve your health, along with the health of the planet.

If you’re not yet ready to give up meat altogether, try having a couple of vegetarian days a week.  You’ll soon discover the joys of meatless dining, and learn to appreciate the flavors and variety of vegetarian meals.

This is a great recipe if you’re wanting something slightly “meaty” and covered with spicy BBQ sauce!

Chicago’s health commissioner recently urged Windy City denizens to give up meat for the entire month of January, in a bid to improve locals’ health. Getting residents of Chicago—a city famed for its sausages—to go vegetarian for a month, or even a week, may seem like a tall order. Heck, I’m a vegetarian-leaning omnivore and it seems a bit challenging even for me!

However, the guy’s got a point.