Eco-Cupscious » Produce

The Most Delicious Oranges in San Juan

Cups — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:00:06 +0000

While we were out in San Juan one evening last week we found this orange stand. We had seen people walking around with peeled oranges and thought it was a bit odd until we came across this. It was so cool to watch this guy peeling the oranges with what looked very similar to the old apple peeler my dad uses to make pies. We didn’t get an orange, instead we bought a glass of the juice. It was a perfect treat following a big dinner. It was next to impossible to find vegan desserts so this was just what I needed for a sweet treat. To Eric’s delight, it was surprisingly pulp-free and so fresh tasting!

Squash Alfredo

Cups — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:00:58 +0000

LunchBox Bunch

I made a version of this the other night and didn’t take a photo so I’m borrowing the original.

I absolutely love squash – really any squash but my favorites are acorn and butternut so this recipe really caught my eye. The original recipe from LunchBox Bunch is here but as usual I made changes according to what I had on hand. Be sure to read the original recipe though as she was very detailed and even shows you how to roast your squash.

1 small butternut squash (roasted)
a few sprigs of sage
coconut milk until its creamy & thinned out to your liking
1/4 c Nutritional Yeast Flakes
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
a few shakes of garlic powder
1 Tbsp maple syrup
a few shakes of red pepper
salt and pepper

I cut my squash in half, roasted it, scooped out the flesh and put it in a bowl with the above ingredients and used my hand blender to make it all nice and creamy then mixed it with whole wheat penne, warmed it up and it was fabulous! Thanks Kathy at LunchBox Bunch for such an amazing dish! I only recently discovered her blog and I’m absolutely in love with it! She has so many great things that I want to try!

Pumpkin Pie – 100% From Scratch!

Cups — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 13:00:00 +0000

The finished product

I had a pumpkin from my Fresh Picks delivery and decided to make a pie – from scratch! I found this recipe and this crust recipe and made them my own.

Cut the pumpkin in half and remove the seeds. Bake face down at 400 degrees for 35 minutes or until soft enough to scoop out.

Roasted Pumpkin

I used my hand blender to puree the pumpkin once scooped into a bowl.

My pumpkin was small so it wasn’t enough for the full recipe and didn’t have ginger so this is what I did…

1/2 C sugar

2/3 t cinnamon

1/2 t ground cloves

1/4 t allspice

1/2 t vanilla

8 oz coconut milk

1 T powdered egg replacer

2 T arrowroot

3 T apple cider

I mixed that all again with the hand blender.

For the crust I changed that a bit too (whole wheat flower and extra sugar)…

2 C whole wheat pastry flower

2 T sugar

1/2 t salt

1/2 C plus 2 T Earth Balance or other vegan margarine, cut into small pieces

2 T vegetable oil

3 T cold water

I did the following in my food processor…

• In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt.

• Add the margarine, incorporating quickly until crumbly.

• Add oil and water

• Flatten the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes (I was impatient and only did it for 10 minutes – wasn’t ideal but it was fine)

Roll out the dough, pour in the pumpkin mixture…

bake at 425 for 15 minutes then lower the temp to 350 and bake for an hour. The recipe I was using said to bake until the knife came out clean. I baked longer and it still didn’t seem to be fully set so I just took it out and after it cooled it was set – as you can see here in the photo. I baked for an extra 15 minutes but now, speaking from experience you won’t need to do that. Just bake for 15 then 60 and that will be enough. I’m still on the fence as to if next time I’d add more spices. I guess I’m just so used to over spiced pies but I do have to say this is quite refreshing as is. Such a lovely fall treat!

Produce in the City – Chicago

Cups — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:40:22 +0000

Although I don’t like Monsanto (if you haven’t seen Food Inc. – watch it and you’ll understand), I do like this program they’re supporting to bring produce to the city and providing work and training for the future for prisoners….

Winston’s Homemade Dog Food

Cups — Fri, 14 May 2010 13:00:04 +0000

In an effort to help Winston to be healthier and more eco-friendly I’ve been making food from scratch for him. He’s not a big eater (at 15 pounds he obviously doesn’t need to much) but he does eat one bowl of homemade food and one bowl of Newman’s Own Organic dog food each day.

His food is super easy to make. I grill chicken breast and make white rice. After chopping the chicken breast I add that to the white rice and then add fresh or frozen veggies depending on what I have on hand. I typically use frozen peas and fresh chopped carrots. I mix it all together so that it is 1/3 chicken, 1/3 rice and 1/3 veggies – you can make the batch as large or small as you like. I prefer to make a large batch and then freeze it. I put it into jars that hold enough for a few days. That way I can pull a jar out of the freezer every few days and have fresh food for him. I add a multi vitamin to the bowl as well – just to be sure he’s getting all the nutrients he needs. I originally thought he’d like the taste of the vitamin but since he won’t eat it whole as a treat then I chop it up and put in on his food – next time I’ll just buy a vitamin power as that will be much easier to sprinkle on. He absolutely loves his specially made food and gets so much more excited about it than his hard food.

New Grill Makes Awesome Veggies

Cups — Sun, 02 May 2010 13:00:37 +0000

We recently got a FABULOUS new grill as an early wedding gift from some very dear friends/family. Grilled veggies are not only super delicious but HEALTHY – a meal entirely made up of grilled veggies – YUM! Eric and I could live on this everyday! One thing we hadn’t tried before was grilling sweet potatoes – what have we been doing all these years keeping them off the grill?! They were fantastic! I simply sliced them, then tossed them in olive oil, sea salt and cinnamon. For the skewers you see, we did half with olive oil and random herbs and the other with BBQ sauce. It was a wonderful dinner – I’m looking forward to a lot more grilling over the summer.

Pantry 911

Cups — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 13:00:42 +0000

I LOVE this video on how to veganize your pantry – or just make it healthier!

(Courtesy of VegNews)

French Market – Chicago

Cups — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:00:26 +0000

I’m really looking forward to checking out the new French Market here in Chicago – it sounds absolutley FABULOUS!

Opening December 3, 2009, Chicago will finally have its first and only year-round, indoor marketplace providing you with permanent, convenient and personal access to local artisans and purveyors.

Open Monday thru Saturday, enjoy Chicago French Market’s fresh selections for dining at our place, cooking at your place or on-the-go.

IN CHICAGO’S WEST LOOP
131 NORTH CLINTON
AT THE OGLIVIE TRANSPORTATION CENTER

The Organic Center & Stonyfield

Cups — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:00:15 +0000

Here’s an easy and fun way to help The Organic Center raise funds for our important research and communication work on the organic benefit!

The Organic Center is part of Stonyfield Farm’s October Bid With Your Lid campaign in which three organizations compete for funding. Stonyfield yogurt lids plus on-line voting give you several ways to participate in supporting your favorite cause.

We need your vote!! Please help us increase our percentage of support by following this link and vote for The Organic Center. Also, pass this on to your family, friends and colleagues and help us grow our donation from Stonyfield. Thank you!!!

The Organic Center’s mission is to generate credible, peer reviewed scientific information and communicate the verifiable benefits of organic farming and products to society. www.organic-center.org

Reusable Produce Bags

Cups — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:00:53 +0000

These reusable produce bags are great and are so much better for the environment than the plastic bags at the store. They can easily be washed and they’ll last for a very long time!

ACME Bags

I have the ones above but there are several types available on ReusableBags.com They are regularly $3.95 each but are currently 18% off.