My Little Orange Kitchen

Pure Genius

Those of you who read regularly know that I usually have no problem giving myself applause...but, even for me...I have to say that I'm finding myself insufferable when it comes to the first (of many) paper magnets I made a few weeks ago.  Ignore the creases and assume that each one after this will be crafted a little more carefully and just bask in the brilliance. :)

I used an upholstery button and Japanese paper...and then a coat of  sealer.  It was hard getting it smooth and as you can see, it needs work, but I'm so pleased I can't even tell you! Oops...maybe I just did tell you!

Here is the salad I made from local food leftovers...another hybrid meal. I love using the term "hybrid" for meals that are part local, part not, but which show a good faith effort to the cause. 

 

And...the new extra large bingo wallet...which is bound to sell to someone's aunt!  I'm going to title it "Bingo Is The New Bowling" when I list it in the shop because in case anyone isn't aware...bingo replaced bowling as the twenty-something "hipster" thing to do on Wednesday nights.  Though, apparently roller rinks are back and it will just be a few minutes before roller skating becomes the new bingo. ?  When I was a twenty-something, believe me...it was more like Boonesfarm Strawberry HiIl over bowling or bingo 99.999 percent of the time. I missed so much. :)  Oh well, there's still time. Actually, I just realized that when I was twenty-something, my Strawberry Hill days were over too...I was married and meditating....besides...is hipster even a word anymore? Sienna Miler says she's like to kill the person who coined the term 'Boho Chic"...but, I'm embarrassed to admit that I kind of like it.

Oh you guys, I apologize for not getting over to your blogs in a bit...tomorrow night I scheduled in a few hours for blog reading.  As for tonight...Saturday night...it's a W.W.E (Working on Wallets Extravaganza).

Local Eating and Then Some...

There is yet another reason to love the folks over at The Urban Frog...Karen decided to organize Green Bay's own version of One Local Summer and the challenge is on!!!

I went in today to stock wallets and took the pledge!  I vowed (with my hand on the frog) to eat at least one meal per week made from ingredients grown or produced no farther than 100 miles from my home.

Change doesn't have to be all at once and that's so hard for me to learn...I tend to want to do everything 100 percent and right away...which invariably leads to letdown when I fail to meet my own expectations. However, pledges like this one are great stepping stones for me...I can do one meal a week. 

They have a goal of 500 pledges...and I challenge anyone reading this (local or not) to try. This means using your local farmer's markets and shopping around a bit, but it's worth it. Shopping and eating locally means not only do the farmers benefit, but the environment does too...less energy and fossil fuels are burned to get the food to you. It makes sense to put your food dollars into the local economy.  Plus, you get a free gift when you sign-up...(Karen, I put mine back since you had already given me one. I couldn't be that greedy!!)

I recently read about Heather Menucucci's latest project. It's based on the Japanese proverb/philosophy that for every new food we eat, we gain seven days of life. Where do I take the pledge! :) 

I mention this because eating local doesn't have to mean making your menu smaller. When was the last time you picked up fresh morel mushrooms and had them sauteed in local herbs and local dairy butter? How about purple heirloom tomatoes? What about locally grown hot pepper mint jam on locally raised lamb kabobs. What? Those things don't do it for you? What about homemade cherry ice cream sweetened with local honey?

I look at this not only as an opportunity to eat local, but to try local foods I haven't.

If you have kids, this can be a fun way to get the family involved...ask the kids to come up with ideas and be prepared when they catch on and begin vetoing yours! "Mom, even if the cookies are made locally, the flour and sugar aren't local, so we can't have them. Get with the program"  Oh. I'm still unclear on this.

Head on over to the Urban Frog and sign-up.  If you're not in town, then perhaps you can start something in your area.

Even doing one meal a week, I'm proud to say that many of our meals are hybrid anyway. Tonight we had Cattleana Ranch ground beef seasoned with non-local seasonings, local red and yellow tomatoes, local asparagus, local greens, non-local rice, local cheese and local tortillas (but, the tortillas will not be purchased again..they have tons of crap in them and even if made locally, they're owned by Hormel...always read the label).  So this meal was a blend...I made hot tortilla wraps with asparagus in the center...never before would I have tried putting asparagus in what is basically a taco!

 

The leftovers will make a giant salad when added to more greens tomorrow night.

By the way....Heather is making a documentary where she introduces people to new foods and then films them chatting about what they want to do with their seven days!  Brilliant!  I plan to try new foods every day and increase my lifespan...it sure beats exercise.  Agahahaaha! Just kidding!.     

Mango Blue

Hello All: I'm loving this blue bowl with yellow and orange produce. I've got a real passion for mangoes, but with trying to go "locally grown" they may just be for special treats.

I have some good information to pass on about GMO (genetically modified) foods. 

Basically GMO food is food that has been inserted with the DNA of another food to make it stronger and more resistant to disease or insects.

People argue that using science to make better food is the way to go, but I don't agree. We can feed the whole planet without it. We don't have any long term research to prove that this food is safe for us and in fact, Europe refuses to accept any GMO imports from the United States.

You would think it would be required to be labeled as such, but it isn't.  Approximately 60% of all the processed foods in the grocery store that contain grains or are made from grains are GMO. This means cereal, vegetable oils, pastas and baking mixes.  Good grief. Soy? Almost always GMO.

The rule of thumb is that most foods labeled organic in all variations from "100% organic" to "made with organic ingredients" are required to be GMO free.

Most of our produce is not GMO yet, but still, organic is always the best route to avoid GMO fruits and vegetables. The worst news of the day is that most non-organic seedless grapes are GMO. Here is a cool trick...well, not really a trick...but a way to tell what you're getting:

Almost all fruits and vegetables sold in grocery stores have those little PLU stickers. The numbers really do mean something other than just to help cashiers.

This applies to produce:

• Organically grown PLU numbers have five digits and start with a nine
• Conventionally grown PLU number have four digits and usually, but not always start with a four.
• GMO PLU numbers have five digits but, but they always begin with an eight.

In short: 

• If it starts with an 8 it doesn't hit the plate!
• If it starts with a 9, the food is fine!
• If it starts with a 4, less is more!

If these rhymes catch on, you heard them here first folks!

Of course, conventional isn't always bad and sometimes it's all that's available or we just can't pay $5.69 for three green peppers.  A lot of good locally grown food can't be labeled organic because the farm is near another farm that uses pesticides etc.  Ask your vendors at farmer's markets if they use pesticides.

Not to get all preachy...really. Food is a very personal choice and often driven solely by economics, but if you're trying to decide which foods are most important to buy organic, consider fruits and vegetables, but if the kids eat more cereal than anything else...then save the money for that. Though, organic is starting to come down in price and more readily available...even as other food prices are on the rise. Has anyone else noticed this?

My thirty-eight year old little brother is in town for his birthday...Happy Birthday Adam!


 

If You Only Buy One Book This Year

We're back and we had a great time on our whirlwind trip to Arizona (Sorry Michele M., but it was too whirlwind to plan even a lunch!). I have pictures to edit and then I'll do an Arizona post, but for today, the news is about Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.

When I read one of Barbara's earlier books, The Poisonwood Bible, I was in a state of deep depression for at least a week. Not because it was a sad book, but because it was such a complex and well written story with character development surpassing anything I'd ever read before. I felt like throwing in the towel on my own writing aspirations.

It seemed that nothing I'd ever write could be so compelling and I knew I wouldn't have the patience to do the kind of research necessary to write a novel with the parallels between history and story the way she did.  It made for some blue days over here folks! I eventually rose up from the pits of despair and settled into happily (and without envy)...admiring her writing.

When I saw she'd written a non-fiction book about her family's experience eating only locally grown foods for a year (and now a lifetime), I was interested, and used the vacation as an excuse to take a break from BBB 2008. 

It was worth my weakness. 

This book is a must for anyone intrigued with the concept of eating local or with the Slow Food movement in general.

I must confess that I only recently learned what the Slow Food movement actually is.

Because it started in Italy and has been embraced by Europeans, I assumed it literally meant eating your food more slowly, savoring every bite and spending more time relaxing over long slow meals (the way they tend to in Europe anyway)! AGHAHAAHAHA!  I was wrong (mostly) and you can laugh, but I know I can't be the only one! 

The Slow Food movement has certain objectives (here are a few):

• Forming and sustaining seed banks to preserve heirloom varieties in cooperation with local food    systems
• Developing an "ark of taste" for each eco-region, where local culinary traditions and foods are celebrated
• Preserving and promoting local and traditional food products, along with their lore and preparation
• Educating citizens about the drawbacks of commercial agribusiness and factory farms
• Educating citizens about the risks of mono-culture and reliance on too few genomes or varieties
• Developing various political programs to preserve family farms
• Lobbying against government funding of genetic engineering
• Lobbying against the use of pesticides
• Encouraging ethical buying in  local marketplaces

Basically ... Slow Food is not fast food by any stretch.

Barbara, her husband and their two daughters left Arizona and moved to rural Southwest Virginia to live full-time on the farm they usually just spent summer vacations at. They decided to only eat locally grown food (including their own) and the book is about how they handled the difficulties of finding and existing only on local fare. They made very few exceptions, but each family member got to pick a "must have" item that could come from somewhere else and unfortunately they couldn't get their wheat for bread baking locally, but they did a great job with everything else (including meat). They made their own cheese and the easy recipe is included...Michelle over at Vanilla Icing....I can so see you doing this!  Mary Ellen...you'd love the canning and harvest descriptions.

I was totally enchanted by the family. Oldest daughter Camille gives us short essays with recipes throughout the book and youngest daughter Lily blew me away with her chicken raising entrepreneurial spirit. No news for any moms out there, but Lily's own family ranked low on the priority customer list!

The Slow Food movement gets a hard knock now and again from people who claim that eating organic and locally grown foods is elitist and not financially feasible for the average family.  Barbara totally debunks this and shows that even in a big city the cost can be less, but the planning is obviously more complex than heading over to Burger King when you're tired on a Friday night after work. 

Not everyone (my condo-living self included) can go as far as this family did, but the book inspired me to make some hard and fast decisions.  Really. If I want strawberries in the middle of winter in Wisconsin, then I'd better stock up and freeze them when I see them at Farmer's Market this year (Hey, it should be easy since I'll be selling wallets at the Wednesday night market anyway!).  I can do this. I can make a small difference by growing a few things, buying from local growers and by making some of foods I'd incorrectly assumed would be too "involved" like mozzarella cheese. 

Barbara is as thorough with her non-fiction as she is with her fiction.  In addition to humor, recipes, great family exchanges (Lily dramatically realizing that she has to sell an awful lot of her eggs to get a horse), fun information about plants and canning you'll find some hefty statistical information and lots about the history of family farming. 

Let me emphasize the fact that this book is not preachy at all...not one iota....but, it does make you think. When one of eighteen year-old Camille's girlfriends visits and asks for bananas, it's gently explained that the resources used to get to them to Virginia make them an environmentally costly purchase. Good news...she was totally cool with the fresh blackberries they had on hand.

The book is about Barbara's family's total conversion, but it isn't about converting anyone who doesn't want to or who can't go 100%.  It shows you how exciting small steps can be.

For example, I went to the grocery store here (Copps East) and asked the produce manager to point me in the direction of all produce that's locally grown. 

Guess what?

Potatoes. 

That's all.

In a huge grocery store during asparagus, rhubarb and green onion season. 

I decided that from this point forward I'm going to ask every time and when the check-out person half heartedly asks me if I found everything I needed...I'm going to say, "Actually, I didn't. I was looking for locally grown produce and you don't have any." 

I know how this makes me sound, but so what? Normally, I usually just say yes...and not because I did find what I needed, but because it's a habit and answered in the same half paying attention attitude as it's usually asked.  Maybe I'm not ready to give up bananas or mandarin oranges just yet...but, step by step...we shall see!

WHEW! So...in a nutshell....I like this book. :)

In other news:

• Red Belt: A good movie with a few holes, but I love David Mamet.
• The Breadsmith has begun selling fresh baked gluten-free bread on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month. If you have them in your state...check to see if they are offering gluten-free too.
  
• My newest set of hearing aids are being "worked on" and I hope to have them next week.  Say hello to my little friends (mine are black to blend in with my dark brown hair).

• I'm horrified that I thought my one year-blog anniversary was at the end of the month...but was last week!!!!!!!  Give-aways and events coming soon!!!          

Arizona Post Preview:

Slow Food Info:

http://www.slowfood.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_Food

      

Back To Normal

I'm so happy to be able to post tonight. Why? Because I feel like it's one of my normal posts...extra wordy, over-italicized and all over the place. Lucky you.  Ha!

I haven't been thrifting in ages...and I mean ages. I took ten dollars and went to Goodwill. Goodwill is my least favorite place to shop because they seriously inflate prices, which sounds hilarious considering things are still fairly inexpensive. However, it seems they've developed a new strategy of pricing just below retail. It's always a shock to turn an item over and see a T.J. Maxx sticker with $12.00 on it and note that Goodwill priced the donated item at $9.00.  I know it's for a good cause, but there needs to be a better balance.

Fortunately, I found two items the Goodwill Price Auditors must have overlooked. First, was the purse you see above. When I was a pre-teen and visited my grandmother in the summers, she always had some complaint about what I was wearing. To be fair, I usually took the time spent away from my parents to wear all the forbidden stuff I'd secretly stockpiled at various garage sales. Things like the famous espadrilles with four and half inch heels with the criss-cross ribbon straps that wound up to my knees! Adam and I often rode Greyhound to see her and eight states after I boarded, I'd step off the bus in full "grown-up" regalia...which included make-up and blue satin short-shorts with white piping. 

To give my grandmother some credit, she was a fashion savvy woman in her day and liked that I was fearless about my "look", but she felt it was her duty to try to reel me in a little. Usually this meant being covered up with something from her closet and while now I'd die to fit into her things from the 30's, 40's and 50's, at eleven I thought my fashion sense was highly developed and none of her things could compete with my almost completely see-through purple disco halter top.  There were tears of protest on my part and lies that my mom really did know about my crocheted bikini, but in the end Grandma Gloria usually won and I'd sulk, but eventually get over it and enjoy the trip.

If you're wondering what the heck any of this has to with the price of rhubarb, the reason I bring it up is because the purse above is an example of something I like now, but would have been horrified by even just a few years ago. My taste changes frequently and I often find myself falling in love with things the eleven year old in me would have died and gone to hell before being seen in. I miss her though, she was so brave.

As I wandered Goodwill, I saw the purse hanging on a rack and was drawn to it immediately. I reached for it and and knew it was silk right away. Then I realized it had a familiar look and remembered I'd something like it in a museum magazine a few years ago. I looked inside and sure enough, it was a Pineda Covalin. I'm not a designer purse-hound, but I got a little kick that I was holding a three hundred dollar purse priced at only $7.00 and more importantly...I loved it.  It went in the cart. 

Then I found this vintage Steelmaster (late 40's early 50's) file for $2.99!

I don't write about my playwriting often, but it's still a major goal. I keep all my ideas on index cards and file them away for future reference. Now I have the perfect place to keep them! I may have to change the subject cards, but who knows? Maybe I'll get an idea for a play about Wall Street and the card will be ready!  By the way...visit this site if you want to weep with longing. 

OK. The Food Project.  It was a success and I didn't buy groceries, but we still ate out more than we should have towards the end of the month. I learned a few important things:

• We do not eat enough fruits and vegetables. I thought we were pretty good before I started this, but realized early on that we eat much less than I thought. The reason I end up throwing produce away is probably due to under-eating rather than over-buying.  It was a shock to realize how little fruit we consume in a week and I'd thought we were getting well over five servings a day...try hardly two.
• I use the grocery store for inspiration and creativity. I wander the aisles picking up things for spur of the moment meals and without these trips, I felt a little uninspired. I found myself staring at the cabinets and everything seemed boring. Though, I made a lot of good meals for us with what we had.
• We eat too much food at night. We snack and when the easy snacks ran out the first week or so, I ended up making us popcorn a lot. Then, we'd end up with grilled cheese or French Toast...as a snack. Pretty soon, I didn't feel like making much and Mark was not inclined, so we just fantasized about what we'd eat in the future....Sad, because you guys saw the ample food list. Mark was desperate for toast...we ran out of bread and I wasn't in baking mode.

In summary: It was an eye-opener, I used up a lot of what we had, we saved money and I felt more appreciative and vowed to be more mindful when we could shop again. I also appreciated the little things, like knowing I could grate organic chocolate into hot almond milk and be happy even without a cookie on the side or that my tea with honey seemed so much sweeter since there wasn't candy around (I did buy some candy the other day and got a pounding headache after eating it). I didn't lose any weight though. Do you think the popcorn and Gluten-free brownies at two a.m. had anything to do with it?      

The future plan: Well, this is the month to be extra mindful of how I handle a return to shopping.  I decided that even though we could probably go another month on the project with just the food we have, that instead, I'd look at what we have before shopping and only buy items that complement things in the cabinet.  And I also want to make sure to include more fruits and vegetables in our diet. I'm stunned at how little we eat and here I'd truly thought we were practically vegan for crying out loud!

In March we may do a restaurant ban, but first we're going to practice simply being more balanced in February. Mark really felt the pinch since he isn't the cook around here and relied on me to be creative when it came to snacks...but, he got to eat out more because of his job which annoyed me to no end. 

I'm doing well on the 2008 book buying ban too, but since it was my birthday, Mark gave me some books...Remember, Mark thinks book buying is a small pleasure and he will not give it up, so it's just me on that one. I have to say I was appreciative when I opened this one though:

I was never a short story fan until my friend Kelly gave me Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri.  It blew me to  pieces and I've been afraid to read anything else of hers for fear it won't live up. Mark thought it was time to get over it and picked up The Namesake as a birthday gift. I read the first two pages and I'm in like Flynn. Sigh. What a relief. Sorry I doubted you Jhumpa.

Last, but not least...I wanted you to see this. I want it soooo much. I can just see my goldfish bowl atop of it. It's a mere $975.00 over here. Oh well...someday.

   

Sweet dreams!    

Forgive Me Kitchenettes......

I sinned. We ordered pizza impulsively tonight...Actually we debated for about three hours.  It's not the same as grocery shopping, but we didn't need it. However, we're two less than feeling up people this evening. We're both tired. I've been working hard and made 100 wallets, the Packers are playing for a chance to go to the Superbowl (more a big deal for Mark than me) and we so needed an easy dinner and to relax tonight. Mark's going out of town and I have to get geared up for more wallet making.

Have I lost you forever?

On the wallet front: Here's one made from a recycled Pop magazine. The cover panel is a dress being modeled by Sienna Miller and the inside panel is part of an interview with Miucca Prada. The back panel is more art by Michael Rock. It's amazing what you can save from the recycling bin. TIDBIT: I'm embarrassed to confess that I didn't realize Miu Miu was part of Prada.   I'll bet my favorite real world fashionista knew.  I also have to say (so I don't get my pants sued off) that I didn't reproduce any of the magazine's photos and the wallet is most certainly a "TRANSFORMATIVE" use of the paper.   

            

Liquid Gold

We don't have kids over here, but I've been a supporter of many a pregnant friend and as some of you have read before, even helped delivered a baby in an emergency when my boyfriend at the time raced over to my apartment because his sister was delivering "Right now!" I got there just in time to "catch" the baby while her two-year old son stood peering at it shocked at what he'd just witnessed and yelled what I'm sure many people would have liked to, but wouldn't dare "Somebody better clean the messy baby up!!!!" The paramedics arrived a minute later and mother and baby were fine. The little girl was named Tiffany (not after me obviously hmpf!).

You might wonder what any of this has to with the picture of deodorant above and I am embarrassed to say that my mind drifted off in a Six Degrees of Separation tangent.  The Deodorant is called Liquid Rock and is as precious as gold which reminded me of when my cousin Carolyn who after having trouble nursing her first baby, began to refer her breast milk as liquid gold. Which, then brought me to one of my friends demanding that I cup her pregnancy breasts (in front of her rather alarmed but maybe intrigued husband) so I could be "a witness" as to how huge they were (So far, no one has called me to testify).  Anyway, this is how my mind words and now I can get to the business of explaining why Kiss My Face Liquid Rock Deodorant is a miracle product.

It's not a new discovery, I've been using it for years. Prior to discovering it, I'd purchased every natural deodorant/antiperspirant known to mankind.  Though I love both companies for other things, even Tom's of Maine and Lush failed. If you remember this post, you know why one thing I can't handle is deodorant failure.

It's natural and they found a way to suspend crystal deodorant stone properties in liquid. It works. There is nothing more to say except a few things you should know:

• The patchouli scent is strong. I like it, but most people would prefer lavender.
• It takes about 5 minutes to dry, but you don't have to keep your arms up--it just dries.
• It doesn't travel well because it leaks out of the roll-on ball.
• It isn't billed as an antiperspirant, but it does seem to serve that purpose too.
• I apply it liberally.
• It's OK to use after shaving, but do not use right after having your underarms waxed or sugared. I did and learned the hard way...wait a day.
• In a pinch, I'll use Secret, but I prefer an aluminum-free deodorant. The jury is still out on conclusive evidence that aluminum in deodorants and antiperspirants can cause cancer and Alzheimer's disease, but why take any chances when there are such nice natural products around. 

A big apology for the worst blog manners in history.  I tagged some of you and didn't message you to let you know! I appreciate those of you who found out through reading!!

Things are great on the non-grocery shopping front! I'm holding strong, though we're out of bread and I  haven't had time to bake any. Yesterday I made beef stew and served toasted tortilla halves with melted Parmesan instead of the usual peasant or corn bread and they were perfect!  We went out to eat for my mother in-law's birthday, are going out for Nancy's and Mark and I went out for pizza last Friday. I knew going into this we'd have a few meals out, but nothing impulsive.  The crazy thing is that we still have so much food left!  I'm not making any wallet making for the art show induced delirium statements yet, but it's possible that with only a few exceptions we can skip the groceries in February too.

The main problem is that there aren't enough easy snacks for Mark...he'd prefer to grab some chips and dip as opposed to making popcorn, though he did make himself some chicken wings the other night. In the last post I mentioned that he does the cleaning, but the cooking and kitchen are my domain completely, so I'm usually the snack-maker and to be honest...it kind of sucks to be out of easy snacks...Don't get me wrong...I could make plenty of treats, but I haven't wanted to, so popcorn has been the name of the game around here.   

Not Waffling Around

Hello Kitchenettes! It's day six of not grocery shopping and we're in great shape. The bad news is that I did have to pitch the clementines. One day they were beautiful and orange-ey and the next they were thin-skinned and shriveled.    

We did go out for my mother in-law's birthday as planned, but I've stayed loyal to the no groceries plan. Mark never signed  up for not eating out and he has to go to lunch meetings for work quite a bit, but as a couple, we're staying at home. Though, the other day I picked him up a breakfast sandwich as a favor and I was paranoid someone would see me and think it was for me!

I've made some really good meals over here though...Thai eggrolls with Asian salad, herb omelets, tuna salad, and baked chicken and pasta. However, the big hit was waffles made with the all-natural mix Janet gave us last summer!

I have my grandmother's old old old waffle iron. It's basic and nothing fancy, but she made her famous  (not kidding-they were in the newspaper) sour cream waffles on it for years. I didn't have any sour cream, but I did have the box of buttermilk and honey mix from Janet, so I made a great breakfast ... including my homemade strawberry compote. So good.

I''m trying to buckle down and make wallets for Arti-Gras...I already know that I won't have as many as I want...as is my way...I want a lot, but I'll be happy with whatever I bring. My goal is to have at least 150.  My poor Etsy shop will be understocked for awhile.

I have lots to post about including an award from Susan, a care package from Jenna, and a blog reader who happens to be local and happens to have a new Etsy shop. Meet Liz. All that will come later in the week. 

Take care all! Sweet Dreams.    

The Whole Truth...

OK folks, per my 12/27 post, here is our food inventory in all its glory.  This is everything in our house.  Nobody keel over or suggest we open a food bank. Really. I know there are people out there who think they don't have much, but all the little extras add up. All of this is kept in two cabinets, the fridge and the freezer. We do not have a pantry and our produce often sits on the counter. I can show you the cabinets and the freezer, but I just can't bear showing you the messy fridge! Call it Blogger's Prerogative!

Here are a few self imposed rules I followed:

• I didn't count condiments, spices or tea.
• I'm not counting Mark's Coke stash...I rarely (if ever) drink soda, but he does and I'm not going to push my feelings about soda consumption on him. He's an adult (except when he's being a child...Agahahaaha)
• If we had any alcohol I'd count it, but we don't...and we don't even own a coffeepot, so there's no decision to make about counting coffee.
• If I shop at all this month it will be for just for fresh produce and eggs.
• I'm not going to eliminate the possibility that there may be a few meals out...my mother and mother in-law have birthdays, I have a birthday and Nancy has a birthday. However, there won't be any impulsive meals out. I already decided that I want to make my own birthday dinner and a cake too (with what I have on hand).
• If I break down and buy something, I'll confess publicly. :)

I did pick up some items on 12/30 that are normally in the house already...yogurt and tuna.  I'm hoping to use what we have, but not with the attitude that I have to use up what we have.  I'm not going to bake a dozen cakes just because I have the ingredients. Also, this experience isn't about starving to prove a point or even trying to eat "better". 

To me it's about developing a certain reverence for food and just consuming (buying) less overall.  If it helps reduce my recent weight gain, then great. However, I do want to state that this isn't about dieting. It goes back to the only eating food that loves me back post. I may have eaten too much this season, but I didn't touch the two foods that can make me sick (Pringles) or wreak havoc with my skin (crappy processed cookies) So, even with the weight gain, I'm still better off in some ways than I was even a year ago. 

I want to appreciate food and show it some respect too. No more pitching half eaten bags of salad greens or stale bagels that were impulse purchases anyway into the garbage.

OK, HERE IT IS!

Stocks:
2 quarts free-range chicken
1 quart organic vegetable
2 cans low sodium chicken

Soups:
I can organic cream of mushroom
I can cream of celery
1 can Wolfgang Puck Chicken and Rice
1 quart organic black bean bisque
2 single serving packages Thai noodle soup

Canned Vegetables:
1 can mushrooms
1 can small round potatoes
1 can black beans
1 can organic tomato paste (I know it's a fruit)
3 cans organic tomato sauce
1 can refried beans
2 cans pumpkin

Frozen Vegetables:
1 lb organic peas
1/2 lb organic corn
1 lb organic green beans
1/2 lb organic chopped spinach

Fresh Vegetables:
11 organic onions
12 organic potatoes
3 lbs leeks
1 bunch green onions
3 lbs organic carrots (I'd wanted to make carrot soup on New Year's Day)
Soup herbs
1 head cauliflower
4 broccoli crowns
1 oz sunflower sprouts
1 bunch celery
1 tub organic salad greens (I will not be purchasing salad greens in those plastic tubs again for sure)

Canned Fruit:
1 can mandarin oranges
1 can pineapple
1 can apricots

Dried Fruit:
1 package mango

Fresh Fruit:
5 apples
6 Clementines
3 bananas

Frozen Fruit:
3 lbs organic strawberries
1 lb organic  blueberries
1 lb organic mixed berries

Canned Fish:
4 cans tuna
3 packages foil pack crab (3 oz each)
3 packages foil pack baby clams

Fresh/Frozen Fish:
10 oz wild salmon
1 lb shrimp
2 lbs pollack
1 lb haddock
1 lb tilapia

Poultry:
2 lbs chicken breasts
4 cans organic chicken breast (a real find around here)
2 lbs ground turkey
1 lb turkey Italian sausage

Fresh/Frozen Meat:
2 lbs beef stew meat
1 1/2 lbs pot roast
2 lbs ground sirloin
1 lb boneless pork chops
1/4 lb center cut bacon

Misc. Canned Goods:
1 can organic sweetened condensed milk
1 can evaporated skim milk
1 can Nestles cream (unsweetened canned cream)
Appx 4 oz peanut butter

Cereal:
2 lbs oats
1lb quick oats
2 cups granola
1 cup instant flax oatmeal high fiber cereal

Pasta:
3 lbs organic whole wheat spaghetti
1 lb quinoa vermicelli
1 lb rice bran gluten free fettuccine
1/2 lb pasta wheels
4 oz brown rice penne
1/4 box soba noodles

Grains:
1 lb cornmeal
2 lbs white flour
1 lb organic whole wheat flour
2 lbs almond flour
1/2 lb brown rice flour
2 lbs brown rice
1 lb wild rice
2 lbs organic cous-cous

Legumes:
1/4 lb lentils
2 lbs pinto beans
1/2 lb navy beans

Baking:(Keep in mind that I bought extra for holiday baking that never happened)
2 lbs organic brown sugar
2 lbs organic sugar
2 lbs misc powdered sugar
2 oz white sugar beads (Sweden)
6 oz coconut
5 oz powdered milk
2 oz powdered buttermilk
1 lb assorted baking chocolate cubes
1 lb Ghiradelli 60% cacao chocolate chips
2 oz organic 96% cacao baking bar
8 oz corn syrup
2 packages yeast
1 jar manuka honey
1 jar Tupelo honey (Van Morrison was right...it's angel food...believe me)
8 oz agave nectar
4 oz butterscotch chips that may be past their prime
2 boxes Mexican chocolate dics (Ibarra) -added 1/3 since I forgot....until I saw the in the picture!

Prepared Foods:
4 corn tortillas
6 flour tortillas
1 box Fantastic Foods falafel
1 box Casbah rice pilaf
1 box Casbah saffroned Jasmine rice
1 box Lundberg rice pilaf
1 pouch Near East Chicken and Rice
2 Kashi single serving frozen entrees
1 Linda McCartney entree
1 box pistachio pudding
1 box Vermont Natural Pancake and Waffle mix
Eggroll wrappers
6 packets Land o Lake Hot Chocolate

Crackers & Breads:
3  packages rice crackers
1 sleeve Saltines
1 box hazelnut thins
1 box almond thins
1 loaf Gluten free bread
Gluten-free pizza crusts
6 English muffins
1/4  loaf Vienna white
1 box organic rosemary sesame crackers
18 organic gluten free frozen waffles

Snack Foods:
1 bag low sodium chips
1 bag sunflower chips
1/4 bag blue corn tortilla chips
1 lb popcorn
2 lbs chicken wings (Mark's-I'm not a wing fan)
1  box Friday's popcorn chicken
1/2 lb each of organic almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts and pecans
1 individual serving frozen pizza

Misc:
1 quart almond milk
1 package licorice Altoids
1 package Orbit gum
Organic BB-Q sauce
Organic Jam

Dairy:
3 lbs organic low-fat yogurt
3 lbs mozzarella
1/4 lb Edam
8 oz Parmesan reggiano
8 oz sharp white cheddar
4 oz orange cheddar
8 oz feta
1.5 pounds cream cheese
2 lbs butter
1 doz eggs
White chocolate raspberry gelato
Raspberry sorbet
Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough (Mark's all time favorite and a staple for him)

Candy:
Rats! Not one piece! No cookies or anything like that either. Though, I could make some if I get desperate!   

My friend Sherry is someone who knows how to entertain and always treats food with a certain amount of respect and care. She invited me over for lunch today and served me a simple, but elegant lunch of crust-less quiche, crisp bread sticks, fruit and a small serving of ice cream with mocha sauce for dessert. She used her nice china, linens and family heirloom silver (A GORGEOUS PATTERN and I'm not even a silverware nut). We sat at her formal dining room table and she served me tea in a pretty china mug with a bright red poppy on it (my new symbolic flower for lots of reasons). I left there today knowing that I'd been given a perfect lesson on the second day of "consume less" month. Sherry doesn't over-make nor does she waste food.   

She doesn't push food and with all the meals I've eaten there, I leave satisfied, but never stuffed. I thought I'd wrap this up with a real great line of conclusion, but I have none! None! I'll try to share throughout the month how I'm doing with this. I just ran out of steam, which, as all of you know...is very unusual. Hmm...we shall see what we shall see.  Maybe it's because I just did a spell-check and realized that I have been mispronouncing and misspelling prerogative as perogative for 38 years. This is almost as bad as when I discovered last year that it's chipmunks...not chimpmunks.  Good Lord.      

OOPS---ADD---1 package gluten free brownie mix, gluten free baking mix, one cake mix and 1/2 container of port wine cheese spread, Eagle brand fudge mix, pickles and havarti cheese.         

Hungry Planet

A couple of months ago Susan sent me an email that had a big impact one me. In it were photos from the Hungry Planet project. I was stunned by the massive amount of food families in "developed" countries consume in one week. I was less interested in the dollar amounts (because that's all relative) as I was the quantities of processed foods versus fresh fruits and vegetables and the consumerism in general. I'm not standing on a soapbox over here.  You regular Kitchenettes know that I do a fair share of shopping and consuming myself.

A few weeks ago I thought about the coming New Year and of what my resolutions would be. Usually they have something to do with self-care, losing weight etc, but this year I wanted to try something different. Not only do I want to buy less, consume less, use less energy etcetera, I also want to take advantage of what I already have. Do you know that we have over 1000 books in this house and I have more craft/art supplies than I'll ever use? I don't need to buy any books or "get involved" in any craft projects that require purchasing new materials and that's for sure.

I took a look at my kitchen cupboards and realized this is another area that needs improvement. I don't waste meat because of the whole animal "gave up its life" bit, which I think deserves some respect, but in spite of many efforts to make change, we still throw away half eaten bags of chips, stale bread and less past its prime produce than we used to, but still way too much. I have enough canned goods and staples like beans, rice and lentils to get us through a Depression. Though in my defense, all the food in our house would fit on a dining room table as opposed to the food for one week like in some of those photos. 

As you all also know, weight is my main issue over here and in spite of being one pound away from my goal of under 200 pounds at the start of November, I didn't make it through the holidays unscathed and my weight shot up. If you're a thin woman and you gain holiday weight I daresay it feels less like failure than if you are already overweight to begin with. I'm disappointed in myself, but instead of the normal routine of clearing the house of all the culprits (I've actually thrown away perfectly good dessert food to avoid eating it) I think something different is in order. I'm less worried about my weight than you might think...I know myself well...it'll come off in time, but I am worried about what I see as a trend over here in the Little Orange Kitchen.

I appreciate good food and quality ingredients, but there isn't enough reverence for food over here.  I decided (in addition to the resolutions I've listed below), to try something new. Instead of my usual stock the house with healthy foods for the New Year tradition, I'm going to use what we have. I've decided that with the exception of eggs, fresh fruits and vegetables that I will not grocery shop in January.  I will use what we have.

This isn't about deprivation, but about cooking creatively. I'm sure that I can prepare healthy and satisfying meals for one month with what we have in our house right now. I can't get behind deprivation and enormous sacrifice (it seems pointless to plan to starve), but I can get behind using up the rice, beans, soups, sauces, baking supplies and even the pre-packaged "Health Foods" that line my cupboards.

On January 1st or 2nd I plan to post a list of all the food we have in the cabinets and fridge.  Janet will no doubt keel over at the volume, while many of you might think it sparse. I'll admit I'm already a bit defensive over it looking like there's a lot, but I'm posting it anyway.

I'd love to live in an area where we could shop daily for our food and wander market stalls choosing only the nicest produce and freshest of meats and breads. I've always loved the whole European market idea, but alas, it isn't so easy in our area and even if it were, I'd still want to use up what we have here now.

It's my January project, but I hope it'll help me throughout the year, plus we'll even save money and that's good news after the holidays. 

Aside from the food project, here are my 2008 resolutions:

• Get back to daily meditation
• Utilize the local library and stop buying new books!  (Mark is not in on this one...but that's OK...These are my resolutions)
• No magazine purchases this year (wait until you see the magazine post coming up soon--it's appalling)
• Get back to morning walks and exercising (Last year I was walking 5-8 miles every morning)
• Only buy art supplies needed for wallet making (business expenses etc)
• Begin holiday gift making earlier in the season
• Attend my playwright's group in Madison now that I'm no longer working Monday nights

All of this is doable and I decided to keep the usual lose weight off the list for once.

It's funny, my mother and I laughed about how this was the year that we, as a family, were going to cut way back on Christmas and while we did, it still looked like some sort of present extravaganza over here.  Though, the gifts were thoughtful, many were handmade and some were thrifted or re-gifted.

Here are some favorites, and if I get a chance...I'll post about Kelly's thoughtful handmade gift of the highest order soon.