The End is Near...

of the school year that is.

With just 2 weeks and 2 days left in the school year, things have really been busy. That isn't to say that things on the homefront are being totally ignored, because the lean-to is looking rather spiffy these days, or at least on the way to looking spiffy. The garden is growing lettuces, turnips, rutabaga, carrots, beans and lots and lots of sunflowers. We also have some volunteer mystery squash and tomatoes from last year coming in nicely. The grapes and apricot are also doing well. Our guerrilla garden missed out on a good watering during fruiting, so we won't have cherries this season. The peach also got attacked by aphids and won't be producing much fruit. The plum didn't flower at all and the apple's one flower produced one sad fruit that has already been eaten by pests. I'm trying to look on the bright side-at least these trees will put their energy into becoming established.

In the kitchen I added to the gadget arsenal with a SoyaJoy soymilk/raw nut milk maker. We were consuming about a gallon of soymilk a week and that was starting to add up both financially and in terms of packaging waste. I picked up a 25 lb bag of organic soybeans from the co-op and now we're having homemade soymilk daily. I've also made raw almond milk which was really good. With almonds at at least $11 per pound and soybeans at $1.29/lb we'll primarily be sticking with soymilk.

At school my outdoor ed students have really enjoyed solar cooking. They've been working on a blog and I'll post the link soon. Last Friday we made 16 batches of brownies for our school's Spring Festival. They were a success and some families learned about the ease, joy and deliciousness of solar cooking.

In the yard we have some other additions--a chicken-proof fence has been added to the garden so Chipper is roaming free yet again. Lane has also built a porch so we can have some shade in the summer. It will be a storage spot for the commuter bikes, an outdoor dining area and a spot for some tool storage. I'm so excited to be able to sit outside to read or enjoy an iced tea when the mercury rises!

Next week we have an adventure awaiting us in Arizona. For our next Westfalia project we need to pick up an engine in Flagstaff. Since we have to be there anyway we''re going to do some mountain biking in the area, which will be really great. Hopefully I'll remember to snap some pics and I can post them.

Summer break is just around the corner!

Gadgets

I generally eschew small appliances in the kitchen, figuring I can do most things a food processor could do by just spending a little more time with the chef's knife, mortar and pestle, and some elbow grease. Now that we've added an immersion blender and an 11 cup food processor, I can't believe I ever lived without them. Here is just a sampling of what I've made with the food processor in the past week:

• Bread dough--sandwich and two rustic loaves*
• Tofu-Tempeh "meat"balls*
• Carrot-miso dipping sauce for above meatballs*
• A gluten free salty pecan crust for a vegan pumpkin pie (which was amazing!)
• Arugula-cilantro pesto
• Coconut milk from shredded, unsweetened coconut*
• Chopping and slicing of veggies

The immersion blender has also helped puree a couple of soups (a red lentil and a curried red kuri squash soup) and blend some walnut-miso dressings. I tried making mayonnaise with it, too, but was not successful. I may have added the olive oil too quickly.

All in all I am very satisfied with our two new appliances. They are broadening my recipe repertoire helping alleviate some of the ho-hum of stand by meals.

*Recipes from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman

Finding Calm in the Kitchen

After a rather tumultuous week in the classroom, I am so glad to be spending some time with Lane both in and out of doors. After a decadent morning of sleeping in and brunch at Annapurna's we went for a hike in the foothills of Sandia mountain. Although we didn't have the blue New Mexico sky above us, it was a very pleasant hike in the wilderness area. Part of the trail wound through a cholla cactus "forest" and we saw many pinon jays and an especially lovely red-tailed hawk perched on a granite boulder. We found a trail new to us that weaves its way along a canyon and perhaps we'll be able to try it soon.

On the way home we picked up a few kitchen appliances I've been coveting for some time: an immersion blender and a food processor. Thanks to the food processor I already have two loaves of bread rising and am planning for some large batches of soup to be made tomorrow to put the immersion blender to use. While most consumerism really depresses me, buying two products that will ease food prep just seems to make sense.  And although I have a mountain of grading and planning also on schedule for tomorrow, I envision a good part of the day in the kitchen filling the house with delicious smells and making nourishing food for our family. I feel fairly calm when I'm in the kitchen, especially when I know something fantastic is on the way. I hope that these new gadgets will add to, not detract from, that calm feeling and the enjoyment that cooking gives me.

Moving to a Plant-Based Diet

A few weeks ago we purchased a 93 Eurovan from a lovely couple in Santa Fe (pictures of the van should appear in future posts). He had recently had triple bypass surgery and now they have an extremely restrictive diet in the hopes of reversing his heart disease. This diet is vegan, except it excludes nuts, avocado, and any oils. She was sharing what a challenge it has been, yet how much better they both feel. After sharing some favorite vegan spots (Mint Tulip, Thai Vegan and Annapurna's) we said we would stay in touch about food in our lives.

This inspired Lane and I to change our diets. While not as extreme as that of our Santa Fe friends, we're moving toward healthier eating. Although we don't consume many animal products, we're trying to cut them out and live a plant-based life. I can't deny that last week I looked longingly at some cheese my colleague was having for lunch, but I do feel like things are changing for the better. It helps that I picked up Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian from the library. I love his writing style and his recipes have never steered me wrong. Many of the dishes are vegan, or can easily be made so (by not including cheese, for example). I'm also rediscovering my love for Japanese food. I've made a few soba noodle bowls with miso broth and vegetable maki. The last week has also seen  two batches of mole sauce from scratch. I used them to make roasted butternut squash enchiladas. They were downright delicious, if I may say so.

Other tricks I've been trying to be sure our lysine levels are ok (word has it vegans have trouble getting enough lysine) are to include some type of legume at each meal: miso in the salad dressing, or sauteed and crumbled tempeh on salads.

I haven't been on the totally straight and narrow, however. Yesterday I needed to whip up a dessert for a neighbor who was helping us with a project. What was the quickest thing I could come up with? Chocolate chip cookies. With butter. And eggs. I only made half a batch but that didn't stop me from scraping the dough out of the bowl, licking the spoon and stuffing two cookies into my mouth.

They were the best cookies I've ever eaten.

Yurt-ing

The first weekend of winter break we headed to the Enchanted Circle for some nordic skiing and yurt-ing excitement. Here are some pics from that adventure:

The yurt was cozy and offered all we needed to stay snug and well fed.

Wheeler Peak from the yurt

Fresh tracks after the storm. We saw two does and one buck mule deer.

Snow Day!

Today marks the first snow day of the year. Albuquerque public schools covers a large area, so even though our part of town barely received a dusting, other parts received several inches of snow. The two-hour delay at 5:30 gave way to a cancellation at 7. I, for one, am relieved because we spent yesterday skiing in 3 feet of powder at Wolf Creek in Colorado. Walking is presenting itself as a challenge and I can't imagine trying to wrangle middle schoolers in my somewhat feeble state.

So what is a teacher to do on a snow day?

• Get caught up on grading
• Plan, plan plan for curriculum needs
• And...cook!!

In the slow cooker there is this borscht for dinner. I haven't tried this recipe before, but it looked promising, what with the combination of beets, potatoes, carrots, cabbage and a healthy amount of cloves.  I'm also hoping to get a loaf of crusty bread started as well as some sort of savory and sweet baked good. With all of that time in the kitchen, I hope I can get to the mountain of grading that also needs to be done.

Mint Tulip-icious

Whether or not you are Vegan, you will love lunch at Mint Tulip, simple, vegan food done well. We just finished up the vegan burger and a grilled veggie sandwich. The veggie burger was a lovely shade of pink thanks to the sweet beets. With the regular burger fixin's and some vegannaise, it was very satisfying. The grilled sandwich had tomatoes, asparagus, artichokes and what I think was cashew cheese. The bread was perfectly toasted and the cheese added a nice flavor. Strangely, what really stood out for me were the sides. The potato salad was perfectly balanced with mustard and not-too-mushy potatoes. The pasta had a lovely earthiness from (roasted?) mushrooms that added a depth and intensity not usually found in a pasta salad.

The aesthetic reminds me of places we used to frequent in Portland and Seattle--good colors, quiet music and a lack of pretension. Their hours are 10-4 Monday-Saturday and dinner is served on Fridays. Tonight's menu includes polenta with grilled vegetables and a faux meatloaf.

I sincerely hope that their location near campus (2110 Central) and word of mouth will help them stay in business for a long time to come. While I am not usually out and about during lunch hours, I think we'll get here when we can. Vegan places are few and far between here in the land of carne adovada and posole and I welcome Mint Tulip with open arms!