I may be an experienced gardener, but I am very much a fledgling herbalist. An enthusiastic fledgling, but a fledgling nonetheless. For example, this is the first year that I’ve worked with elder. My first year making nutritive vinegars, and my first year growing a medicinal garden. I’ve been making Meadow Tea infusions for ages, but it was only two years ago that I infused my inaugural healing oil — that Oil Of Oregano that kicked off this whole herbalism love affair.

And now? This year? Well now I’m in deep with Dandelion, and I think I’ve met my herbal soul mate!

Dandelion is so unassuming — ubiquitous yet misunderstood. It’s everywhere, but it’s completely overlooked. Powerful, but easily passed over. Resilient to its core (and to many people’s chagrin), Dandelion is brimming with magic and mystery and wisdom and warmth. And yet, to most who know it, it’s written off as a weed — nothing more.

I must say, I very much relate to Dandelion. I think it is my spirit plant.

And for herbalists, Dandelion is used in every possible way, from root to tip, from food to tincture, and every possible piece or preparation in between. This oil, for example, uses the young flower heads. Dandelions flower in early spring, and dandelion oil is a great skin conditioner to help transition from dry winter into warmer, more humid summer months.

Dandelion Oil is sold commercially of course, in health food stores and herb shoppes (and also online), but it just seems silly to me to buy something that’s made from weeds that are literally growing everywhere. And it’s so simple to make at home!

So here’s how you can make your own — practically free and powerfully potent:

To make your own Dandelion Oil, first you’ll need to procure some Dandelion flowers. This shouldn’t be too hard, as Dandelion blooms from early spring through midsummer, depending on where you live. But no matter where you are, it’s certain that you’re not far away from Dandelion. They’re everywhere.

You’ll need to collect quite a bit. They shrink down as they dry, so you’ll need more than you think. I collected a full pint to fill a small (8 oz) mason jar.




Gently rinse the dandelion flowers to remove any excess dirt or bugs. You don’t want to bruise them or rough them up, so be gentle!

Then, spread the flowers out on a cloth or piece of cardboard. Dandelion retains a lot of water, so you want to give the flowers some time to dry out. Otherwise you’ll end up with too much moisture in your oil.

Allow the flowers to sit out for ~24 hours. They will shrink up quite a bit, which is fine.

Now, add your dry-ish flowers to a clean glass jar, and cover them with organic oil (I used extra virgin olive oil). Place the jar in a sunny window (the warm sun will help your infusion along) and let it sit for, eh, 4-6 weeks or so. I like to turn mine over every few days, or give it a good shake now and again. Really keep things moving and mixing and breaking down. Releasing all that medicine!




Finally, your infusion will be ready. All you need to do is strain it through cheesecloth to separate the oil from the flower bits. Easy peasy.




Look at that lovely golden color! It’s so gorgeous.

Strain it into a new jar, cap it, and keep it safe. That’s precious magic!

Dandelion Oil is an ancient traditional remedy used for achy joints and arthritis, sore muscles, and rough dry/chapped skin. I made this oil specifically for my housemate, who has chronic inflammation and joint pain, and for Jeremy, who is constantly sore in one way or another. I’ve got them both using it now, so I’ll report back to you and let you know how it works for them.

Do you have a spirit plant? Some herb that you adore and love to work with? What’s your favorite way to use it?

I’m pretty much obsessed with herbalism right now, and quickly building my own little home apothecary. And I know that so many of you out there share my passion, so I’d love to hear your wisdom, insight, and experience!

Cheers!

♥

Okay, so truth be told, I’ve already been playing out in the dirt for a few weeks now. I have a whole new yard to work with this year, so I could hardly contain my excitement. My hardier seedlings were sown outside in late March — my broccoli and mustard greens, cilantro and red lettuce, and of course my very most precious medicinal herbs: chamomile and calendula and echinacea. But I know that California is pretty much an anomaly, and I’m lucky to be able to begin so early. And now, the rest of the country is gearing up for garden season! Huzzah!

So I thought I’d share some of the gardening wisdom we’ve accumulated here on this site, over the years. Because man, I feel like we’ve done it all! From propagating strawberries into a proper patch, to saving our seeds (like sunflower and coriander and dill), and so many harvest projects in between.

Here’s a list of intro-gardening links that we’ve amassed, over 7 (!!!) years of micro-homesteading experimentation:

• How To Make Newspaper Seed Starter Pots
• How To Make TP Roll Seed Starter Pots

• How To Start Seeds Indoors
• Growing From Seed, Continued
• A Watering Can Hack For Seedlings
• Hardening Off
• Tips For Transplanting Seedlings
• A Tip For Transplanting Tomatoes
• Tips For Thinning Out Seedlings (don’t waste those babies!)

• How To Grow Potatoes In Tire Towers
• And The Tire Tower Follow-Up

• An Introduction To Container Gardening
• Small Space Gardening: Inverted Tomato Hanging Planters

• Veganic Gardening At Home
• Cheap And Easy Compost Bin System
• 65 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Compost

So are you guys as excited as I am??

In the past few weeks I’ve sown a fence border of sunflowers + snap peas + sweet corn. I’ve also started a few more seedlings outdoors, like basil and marigold and blue boys. And indoors I’ve managed to start a whole incredible collection of babies (despite two very curious kitties trying to thwart my plans), now ready to move outside: watermelon and loofah and tomatoes and bee balm and dill and peppers and pinto beans. Oh yeah! And purple cauliflower and fennel and onions and leeks. Whew!

So what are you growing, my friends? What are your big beautiful plans for our upcoming gardening season?

♥

We’ve been making Meadow Tea for 3 seasons now, ever since I found this nettle source here in Santa Barbara. I mean, I fell in love with nettle infusions ages ago back in Portland, but I didn’t start adding the other herbs and aromatics until a few years ago. And now, all spring and summer we get to drink this delicious, icy-cold and oh-so-refreshing, totally nutrient-rich beverage, and we just can’t get enough!

It’s easy as pie to make and I’m so excited to finally share the recipe with all of you.




Meadow tea is meant to be a “field blend”, which means you can add any of your favorite aromatic herbs to the mix. I use a variety of plants depending on what’s available, but the one herb I’m always consistent with is my beloved — the powerfully nutritive nettles! Mmmmmm nettles. They’re mineral-rich and medicinal as well, and perfect for children because they’re such a building herb. Bone-building calcium and phosphorous, blood-building iron (one of the very highest plant sources!), and tissue-building vitamin A and vitamin C. It really is a vegan kid’s powerhouse plant, and I feel awesome knowing that Waits is getting such a superhero infusion every time we make this tea.

Nettle grows across most of America, but I know that not everyone has access to this particular plant. If you can’t get your hands on nettle, some wonderful alternatives — which are all impressive nutritives in their own right — are oatstraw, red clover blossoms, and comfrey leaves (leaves only). Any of these will fill the role of nourishing nettles in this recipe.

So along with the nettle, I often add mint and chamomile, and fresh lavender when I can get it. Other options include bee balm, lemon balm, chocolate mint, hibiscus, fennel, calendula, elder flowers, and any other herb you enjoy! Each of these plants will impart their own herbal properties — for example chamomile is calming, bee balm is great for digestive issues, and peppermint is stimulating — but more importantly, they taste great too! Play around with combinations to find your own family’s favorite blend of flavors.




Making Meadow Tea (a bit of a misnomer — it’s actually an infusion) is super simple. First, get your biggest stock pot and fill it with water. Then, add clean herbs, like lots of them. Infusions are meant to be strong, so for example, in the picture above I used a full bundle of nettles, a full bundle of chamomile, a full bundle of mint, and about a half bundle of lavender.

Bring everything to a boil, stir the herbs into the boiling water, and then cover with a lid and remove the pot from heat. Now, allow the mixture to steep 4-10 hours (overnight works well, but 4 hours is fine).

When you’re done steeping, strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth, into a container of your choice. I store my Meadow Tea in a big 1-gallon jar in the fridge, but you can use a few quart canning jars (or whatever you happen to have).

Serve cold, with the sweetener of your choice. I like stevia drops (I make my own) or even better, add some fresh stevia leaves to the stock pot when you’re making the infusion!




Meadow Tea will keep in the fridge for up to a week. But honestly, it never lasts that long around here.

Cheers!

♥

Which means it’s apple season! And any second, the grocery store shelves will begin to swell under the weight of Honeycrisps and Jonagolds, tart Granny Smiths and crunchy Cripps Pinks. I’ve adored apple season ever since my Portland days, and although we never get quite the abundance and variety down here in the south, I still look forward to this time of year, and all the apple-y goodness it brings. Pumpkin? Meh. Apples? YEAH!

Anyway, enough with the waxing poetic about apples. The point of this post is much more pungent. Ascerbic, even. It’s vinegar. Vinegar of the apple cider variety. HOMEMADE vinegar of the apple cider variety, if we’re being precise.

Because as any DIYer/healthy living enthusiast/home herbalist/natural remedy loving/beauty product making maven worth their salt knows, apple cider vinegar (ACV) is like liquid hippie gold. We use it in our kitchens, in our cleaning, and in our medicine cabinets. We use that stuff by the gallon, and as I always like to say — “Why buy, when you can DIY?”




I’d wanted to do this project for years, and actually I did this project a whole year ago. But it’s a long process that takes a few months to complete, so by the time I was done it didn’t make much sense to post it for you guys — because apple season was already over! So instead I stashed the photos away for an entire year, just patiently biding my time as the seasons continued to cycle.

Until now.

And now, it’s apple season, which means it’s time to start prepping for this project. By which I mean, it’s time to start eating apples.

Go on – eat them!




There ya go!

Now, continue to eat them for a couple of months. Every time you eat an apple, keep the core. If you peel your apples (you heathen), then keep the skins. Throw them in a big plastic or glass container, which you’ll keep in your freezer, tightly sealed. Every time you have an apple core or some apple scraps, open that sucker up, toss in your latest additions, then close it back tight.

Do that for a few months. Do it until you have a few quarts of apple cores/apple scraps.




When you’re ready, withdraw all your apple savings from the freezer bank, and allow them to thaw. Then transfer the whole lot to an extra large (think gallon or so) glass jar, jug, or bowl. Glass only!

Cover the scraps with filtered water. I also added a splash of store bought raw, unpasteurized, unfiltered ACV, to act as a sort of culturing agent — but this is not necessary.

Anyway, you’ll want to cover the scraps with water and then keep them all submerged, similarly to when you make sauerkraut. In some cases you can use a smaller glass jar, or a plate, or a crock rock. But I like to use a simple plastic sandwich baggie filled with filtered water, and set on top. It takes the shape of whatever it sits in, so it’s sort of perfect for the job. (You can see a very illustrative picture of this, here.) However you do it, you want to make sure all the apple bits are fully submerged.

Cover the jar with a cheesecloth or coffee filter to keep the fruit flies away, then stash it in a cool place out of direct sunlight for oh, say, a month or so.




That’s basically it.

After 3-5 weeks, you’ll have homemade apple cider vinegar. You may get some white fluffies forming at the top, which is fine (I did). Just skim them off and keep going. Real mold, however, means your batch is contaminated and you’ll need to start over.

By the end of the prescribed time period, the water will have become cloudy. Vinegar! Siphon it into mason jars, poured through a wire mesh strainer to keep any apple scraps out. You may notice gelatinous globules floating in your ACV. Congratulations! That’s your mother of vinegar, very similar to a kombucha SCOBY, and it means your ACV is healthy and happy.

DIY Apple Cider Vinegar can be stored at room temperature, but it may continue to ferment away. So I like to keep one jar that I’m using in my pantry, and the rest of the jars in the back of the fridge. I made this gallon last year and I’m currently working through my last jar. So, for me and my household with moderate ACV use, this made enough to last us one year.

Not bad, I’d say, for a few leftover apple scraps and very minimal work.

So what do you think? Are you going to start freezing your cores? Will you be making some DIY home-fermented apple cider vinegar this year??

I sure hope so!

♥

But you don’t need me to tell you this, right? You know all this already, which is exactly why you’re here reading a “Green Lifestyle” blog. So good, I’m glad we’re on the same page.

Now let’s talk sweeteners.




Stevia is my store-bought sweetener of choice for day-to-day living, by which I mean: coffee, tea, iced tea, smoothies, etc. It’s not the best for baking but I don’t do much of that anyway, so stevia is my go-to. I prefer it because the extract has no actual sugar, which means it doesn’t affect my glucose levels or moods in the slightest. It’s also a great option for folks who are trying to lose weight, since it’s one of the only non-chemically-derived calorie-free sweeteners.

But whether you’re doing it for the blood sugar stability or the calorie conservation, liquid stevia is a great choice because it’s all-natural — a tincture made from pure plant extract.

The issue, however, is that it can be pretty expensive. Liquid stevia is prone to developing a bitter or funky aftertaste, which is definitely more prominent in the cheaper products. I really love the smooth finish of NuNaturals Stevia, but that stuff is a pretty penny at almost $12 per bottle.

So! Time to make my own.




I started off by growing my own stevia plant in my herb garden. I’ve actually been nurturing this plant for over a year – it survived outside last winter and it’s managed the sweltering drought heat of this summer, so I’d say it’s an especially hardy herb. If you’re looking for something fun to add to your garden, fresh stevia is a great choice!

I like to use the leaves blended into smoothies for extra sweetness (a little goes a loooong way!) and boiled along with other fresh herbs like mint and nettle, in my mineral-rich meadow tea infusions that I make for the kids at preschool. There are lots of ways to incorporate fresh stevia into your cooking, so it’s a super fun herb to keep around.

Anyway, for the purposes of this recipe, we’re going to use dried stevia, which I make by picking and washing a batch of the leaves from my garden.




A little trip to the dehydrator . . .




. . . And we’re ready to go.

Alternatively, you can pick and wash the herbs and then just hang them up to dry. I’ve got a few bundles hanging in my kitchen window right now, and although it takes a little more time, it works just as well.

Alternatively alternatively, you can just buy whole dried stevia leaves online. (Or buy some heirloom stevia seeds to get started growing your own!)

The stevia leaf can be stored in a sealed container, pretty indefinitely, until you’re ready to make your extract.




To make the extract, you’ll need:

2/3 cup dried stevia leaf
1 cup neutral grain spirit, vodka, or Everclear (I used moon shine!)
a jar with a lid
cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer




Place the dried stevia leaf and alcohol in the jar and cover it with the lid. Give it a little shake and then set it aside. Leave it for 2-3 days, but no more than 3 days max, or it will become too bitter. I like 2 days of steeping, and I try to give it a shake every few hours.




Strain the stevia leaf from the liquid using a cheesecloth or very fine mesh strainer. The remaining liquid will be dark. All-natural, baby!

You can store your stevia extract in a cool dry place for up to 6 months. I like to keep the majority of mine in a big glass jar, and keep a little bit on-hand in a vial with a dropper, for easy use in my coffee and tea.

It’s really that easy! Almost effortless, I’d say, and so totally worth it when you factor in financial savings and eco-friendliness.




So now I want to hear from you. It’s been a long time since I’ve posted this kind of DIY eco-friendly life hack, and I’m wanting to do more of them! So I have two questions:

1) What’s your favorite eco-hack/DIY homemade product that you’re already using? And,
2) What’s the biggest eco-hack/DIY homemade product that you’d like to see a tutorial for?

Let me know in the comments below!

♥

Oil of oregano is one of the most widely respected and commonly used herbal remedies. Just ask any crunchy mama about her go-to cure-all for colds, flus and everyday infections, and I’m willing to bet that 9 out of 10 will include this traditional medicine.

And luckily (and because I’m me, and I think it matters), science agrees! Oil of oregano has been laboratory tested again and again, and has proven itself as a powerful antibacterial and antifungal agent. Oil of oregano has successfully been shown to fight everything from candida yeast to protozoan parasites. So seriously, this isn’t just another “woo-woo” hippie fix. Oil of oregano is totally legit.

The only rub? This stuff’s expensive! Like, almost 15 bucks for an ounce that’s wild-crafted, and upwards of $30 for a bottle that’s certified organic!

Too rich for your blood? Yeah, me too. So how about you just make it yourself for roughly 25 cents per ounce. Here’s how . . .




You’ll need:

a large bunch of oregano – about 2 cups loose packed leaves
1 cup organic extra virgin olive oil

a muddler (or mortar + pestle, but a muddler is preferable)
a glass container with a lid, such as a canning jar




Carefully wash the oregano with water, and pat it dry. Pluck the leaves from the stems (save the stems for your homemade veggie stock!) until you have about 2 cups worth of leaves.




Transfer about a 1/2 cup of the oregano leaves to the glass container. Use the muddler to mush them around the bottom of the glass. You want to get them good and smooshed so the cell walls burst and they release their oils.

They’ll shrink down a lot, and quickly. Add the rest of the leaves about a 1/2 cup at a time, until all 2 cups have been muddled.




I love the light in these photos – it’s harsh, and it’s very yellow. That’s the light of autumn!

Now, pour the oil over the leaves and use the muddler to stir everything around a bit. It’s best if the oil is a little warm, which you can accomplish by using either a microwave or by letting the oil sit in a pot of hot water. Either way, it will help the infusion if the oil’s warm.

So add the organic olive oil and give it a stir.




Replace the lid. Now you wait.

The oil will need to infuse for at least a week, but ideally two. Keep it in a cool place away from direct sunlight, and give it a little shakey swirl every few days. It will darken to a rich brown color.

When it’s finished infusing, strain the oil using cheesecloth or a nut milk bag. Store the oil in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid, in the refrigerator, and administer as needed.




I’ll be using this all-natural antimicrobial powerhouse to keep our immune systems going strong all winter. Watch out, germy germs!

Edited to add:
Well dangit grad school brain! I suppose I should include some actual instructions for use, eh?

So for myself, I usually take it orally, 3-5 drops in water once a day. I do this if I’m feeling run down or feel a cold coming on. In this way, I use it prophylactically. Of course I’ll also do this if I already have the cold, to help speed my recovery. Oil of oregano is anti-inflammatory and is full of antioxidants, so it offers wonderful immune support.

Some people take it regularly whether they’re feeling down or not. I tend not to like doing this with herbal infusions/essential oils, because I believe they are strong medicine and should be reserved for actual medicinal use. But your mileage may vary. Many people take capsules regularly to help with intestinal distress and to ward off internal parasites.

Oil of oregano can also be used topically as an antimicrobial agent. Mix a few drops with a teaspoon of olive oil or coconut oil and apply to a cut, or to help heal a fungal infection. This can also be applied to the gums in cases of oral distress.

And finally, you can make a DIY hand sanitizer by mixing 10 drops of the oil with 2 tablespoon of coconut oil (or 20 drops in a 1/4 cup for a larger batch). Rub this on your hands throughout the day, to keep the germs away.

Hope that helps! And please let us know – how do YOU use oil of oregano?

♥ ♥ ♥

Even back in grade school when they would serve hot lunch on Fridays, and all the kids would line up to receive their plate, I would always get to the end and squeak, “Extra salad, please!” Back then it was some cheap mix of iceberg and romaine, a few sad carrot shreds, and some over-processed Costco vat of partially hydrogenated Italian dressing. But even so, I would go back for seconds, every time. I loved that salad.

So flashing forward many years, and my salads look a whole lot different than they did back then (thank goodness!) It’s taken me years to perfect the art of the salad, and to be able to construct a meal-sized serving every day that keeps me sated and going strong into the evening. Which is what I do, for lunch, almost every single week day.

While working with my Vegan Lifestyle Coaching clients, I quickly learned that many of you, out there on your own, have been trying to crack the salad code. You want to eat salad for lunch (or dinner), but every time you try, you find that you’re hungry just an hour or two later. So by the next meal, you’re ravenous and you overeat to overcompensate. Which sucks – I know ’cause I’ve been there.

The good news, my friends, is that constructing a salad is just simple science. Straightforward mathematics. And here, I’m going to share with you everything that I know about the subject.

So buckle up y’all. This here’s gonna be a long one (no but really, really long) (so if you’re in a hurry, skip on to the end for a super mini summary!)

Proper salad construction is a five-part equation, simple as that:

(greens) + (veggies/toppings) + (protein/legumes) + (fat) + (dressing) = a meal-sized salad

So let’s go through each of these one by one, and I’ll give you the “why” and the “how” as well as my best budget-friendly and time-sensitive tips. Sound good?


~ ♥ ~ Greens ~ ♥ ~

The base of any salad worth it’s salt (sea salt, of course!), greens are where we start. As far as nutrient density goes, you simply can’t beat greens. From spicy arugula to crunchy romaine, massaged and wilted kale to the modern salad darling, the mesclun mix, each variety of greens offers it’s own unique and fantastic nutrient profile. Stick with your very favorite, or mix and match each week for maximum nourishing potential! And don’t forget non-traditional salad greens such as thin-sliced red and white cabbage (I love these in my Mexican- or Asian-inspired salads), tender hardy greens like baby chard or baby kale (awesome in Mediterranean-style salads) or even shredded brussels sprouts or broccoli slaw (best when paired with a perky, flavorful dressing).

But before we continue here, a quick aside . . .

Greens will make up the bulk of your salad, and although greens are nutrient-rich, they are calorie poor. So you’ll want to include plenty of them! A real meal salad is sizable. You may need to adjust your expectations of what the volume of your lunch is supposed to look like. I know it can seem intimidating to dig into something so large, but I promise you – the number one reason people fail at the salad game, end up feeling haaaangry pains, and thus give up all together, is because they’re just too afraid to commit to a truly enormous salad. But you gotta do it! Trust me.

Every morning I pack up my 8-cup Glasslock container. I use this one and I LOVE IT. It is large and in charge, made of glass and easy to clean, and the perfect vessel for my daily dose of salad love.

Another option is to pack up the various salad parts in smaller (more standard-sized) containers and then construct it once you’re at work. Recently, Jeremy and I found a giant ceramic bowl for him to keep at his office for just such a purpose. He goes to the grocery store once a week, fills the fridge at work with all his salad fixins, and then dumps them all right in the bowl as needed.

I eat at school so I don’t have that option, which means it’s Glasslock for me. For you, you’ll have to figure out what works. Either way, giant container or giant bowl, the key point here is: GIANT!

Okay, so back to greens! There are a couple of different options as far as buying and preparing go. Here’s my best tips for . . .

Budget-Friendly Options

Skip the pre-washed, pre-cut, and individually bagged mixes. Aside from baby spinach or arugula, which is harder to find loose, these packages often cost quite a bit more as opposed buying the whole head and doing the washing and tearing yourself. My favorite lettuces of all are only sold as whole heads: red leaf and heirloom butter varieties. So I buy a lot of lettuce heads! Next time you’re at the store or even the Farmer’s Market, compare the price-to-weight ratio of the whole heads versus the packaged salad bags. You can save a lot of dough here!

Time-Sensitive Tips

Okay, so it’s a weekday morning and time is of the essence. The thought of washing and drying lettuce leaves is not so appealing! Which is why it pays to put in the prep time.

If you go with the whole-head as opposed to the bagged option, then the first thing you should do when you get home from the grocery store is give it a good wash. Invest in a large salad spinner (check local thrift shops, garage sales, or Craigslist to find a cheap used one) and clear out a space in the fridge. When you get your lettuce home, peel off each leaf, rinse them all, and cram ‘em in the spinner (tear in half if you need). Then spin dry, leave them sitting in the spinner, and put the whole thing in the fridge. Voila! Now each morning, you’ll be able to grab a handful of leaves from the spinner, tear them into your container, and you’ll be good to go. The leaves will last a week or so like this in the fridge – if you’re eating a salad every day for lunch, you’ll eat a spinner-full of lettuce faster than it could go bad.

Another true time-saving option is, of course, the pre-washed salad bags. No shame here! We are all busy people living big, busy lives. I always tell my clients – if the convenience of buying the bags is what makes it possible for you to eat salads every day, then my goodness – buy the bags! Lord knows I do. Do what works for you, in your life.

~ ♥ ~ Other Veggies and Toppings ~ ♥ ~

This is where you get to play, to really bring your salad to the next level using the endless abundance of amazing plant-based toppings. Any raw veggies. Any roasted veggies! Baked squash or sweet potato. Leftover side veggies from the night before. Jarred or canned toppings like green or kalamata olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, capers, hearts of palm, roasted red peppers, pepperoncini, etc. And don’t forget fresh fruit, dried fruit, nuts and seeds (no they do NOT count as protein!) (unless they’re peanuts) (and even then, only if it’s at least 1/3 cup), and flavor enhancers like nutritional yeast, Herbamere, or kelp/dulse flakes/powder.

I definitely have my favorites when it comes to salad toppers. For example, in the pictures in this post you’ll notice a few things are almost constant. Exhibit A: grated carrot.

Sliced or chopped carrots in a salad? I could care less. But grate that puppy up, and I am in LOVE! Something about grating really releases all the moisture, making carrots this perfectly crunchy, crispy, delicious addition to my salads. Grating a whole carrot (peel on, rinsed) takes about 30 seconds. It’s so quick and easy, and the grater is surprisingly easy to wash (I just run it under water, no soap required. I do this every day.)

And for 79ç for a bag of whole organic carrots at Trader Joe’s, they really have become an indispensable salad staple.

Exhibit B: Green onions. Also cheap, incredibly easy to dice up real quick each morning, and they just add that amazing allium-y goodness without being overpowering the way that other onions can be. I LOVE green onions.

And another quick aside . . .

One of the keys to a really satisfying salad, at least for me, is the addition of umami. An umami salad really does feel like a whole meal – it carries that weight, that grounding element.

And what is umami? Well, it’s the fifth flavor profile! Along with “sour”, “bitter”, “salty”, and “sweet”, “umami” is essentially the flavor of savoriness. It’s rich and earthy and totally complex.

Most veggies are not umami. And in fact, a lot of traditional vegan food lacks umami, which is, I think, why many people find classic “vegan food” sort of bland or underwhelming. That’s a little tangential and a discussion for another day, but if you’re interested, The Vegan RD wrote an awesome piece entitled Is Umami A Secret Ingredient Of Vegan Activism?. Definitely worth a read.

Anyway, almost every salad I eat tends toward umami, and I really do think it’s why they work so well for me. I know some people like sweet salads and salad dressings, but I urge you to enter the umami zone, if only to give it a little try. Some common umami ingredients include: mushrooms, vinegars (especially wine and balsamic), tamari, tomatoes, nutritional yeast, sea veggies, olives and other brined foods, sauerkraut and other fermented foods, etc.

Okay, umami plug over.

Obviously, when it comes to salad topping combinations, the list is literally infinite. If you’re looking to cut time and/or money, here are some suggestions . . .

Budget-Friendly Options

Know thy produce. Pay attention everywhere you go, and compare the prices. Those 79ç carrots at TJs are a steal! They’d be three times that price at my Farmer’s Market. But avocados? Way cheaper at the FarMar. Same goes for sprouts and greens. And nutritional yeast is actually cheapest (around here) at Whole Foods of all places, in the bulk bins. So scout around, know what to grab from where, and you’ll really be able to save.

Time-Sensitive Tips
Here is where prepping ahead can really help you. Like I said above, grating a carrot real quick in the morning is negligible. But all that chopping of all those veggies for an entire salad? Well that can be daunting.

You have two options. First, you can shave time by buying pre-cut when possible. Pre-sliced mushies, broccoli florets, cherry tomatoes, etc. Buying canned and jarred items also cuts down on prep time since they’re already small (in order to fit in the jar/can). Capers, peppers, pickles, etc are all great options that will add tons of flavor (umami!) to your salads, while also saving those precious morning minutes.

The other option is prep. When you buy your veggies, take them home, wash them, and then cut them. Investing the time up front in one big chunk is economical, especially if you can make the time do double duty by catching up on your favorite podcasts, audiobooks, or TV shows (yes, bring that cutting board to the couch and chop chop chop on your coffee table!) Keep each ingredient – minced onions, shredded beets, sliced cucumber, cubed bell peppers, etc, wrapped in a wet paper towel in a sealed container (they’ll keep like this for a week or so). Then, each morning you’ll just have to grab a handful from each one, and you’ll be good to go!

~ ♥ ~ Protein / Legumes ~ ♥ ~

Where do you get your protein?

Are you rolling your eyes? You shouldn’t be! EVERYbody, regardless of diet, should be including concentrated sources of protein in their meals. So when omnis make a salad, they usually choose eggs, or cheese, or meat to hit that spot. Why do we as vegans think that we can remove those foods, but not replace them?

You’re going to tell me that everything has protein, especially those greens we’re using as the foundation of our salad. Which is true, in a technical, un-useful sort of way. There’s a reason omnis add eggs or cheese or meat instead of just relying on that kale and a sprinkling of sunflower seeds (NOT enough protein, my bunny rabbit buddies). And that’s because, as we already talked about, greens (and all those other veggies) are calorie light! They’re full of fiber, and water, and if you wanted to eat enough greens to meet your entire protein requirement, your tummy would pop and your jaw would ache from the chewing.

Okay, so maybe that’s a bit of hyperbole, but seriously. You’re not going to get enough protein from your greens and veggies or even a few tablespoons of nuts or seeds. You need vegan sources of concentrated protein, just like omnis “need” omni sources of concentrated protein. That doesn’t make veganism inferior, okay?

Protein, most often in legume form, makes you feel full. It provides lasting energy. It gives you a sense of satiety, and adds “staying power” to your meal. Protein is important, and as far as I’m concerned, it’s an absolutely integral part of a salad.

And why legumes? Because legumes are high in lysine, which makes them “complete” in a way that some other sources of plant-based protein are not. Now before you jump on me, I know that food-combining-for-complete-proteins has been debunked, and I know that our bodies disassemble proteins into their building blocks, amino acids, and then reassemble them as needed. Trust me, I’m the girl who developed protein depletion on a vegan diet, so I assure you – I know. I’ve spent a LOT of time researching this topic (which is why I know that it’s so contentious, and man I’m just bracing myself for the outrage I’ll receive for even daring to suggest that vegans need to think about protein – I mean the horror!)

So without getting too tangential (too late!), if vegans don’t eat enough legumes we can fall short on lysine, which means that even though our bodies are disassembling, there won’t be enough of all the right building blocks when reassembly time comes. Make sense? You can read a more comprehensive discussion of this topic here, on The Vegan RD.

So. Legumes, and their protein-dense counterpart the “pseudograins” (which also contain nice high levels of all essential amino acids including lysine), will give your salad that gut-sticking gravity that you’re looking for. Legume options include lentils (probably my fave), all beans (like black, pinto, navy, kidney, etc) hummus (but a lot, not just a few tablespoons), falafel, tofu (mmmm leftover tofu scramble is SO GOOD on salad), and tempeh. Pseudograin superstars include quinoa, buckwheat, and amaranth.

Budget-Friendly Options

When it comes to saving scrilla, you can’t beat dried beans in the bulk bins. Yes, it takes a bit of planning and forethought. But if you can get it down, especially if you can develop a system, you can save big bucks. Buy your beans or pseudograins in bulk, then prepare a big batch over the weekend (or over night in the crock pot). Keep them in a container in the fridge, stealing a scoop for your salad each day. Freeze the extras in smaller portions so that over time you can build up a back stock of variety. Then, all you’ll have to do is pull out a different jar to thaw over night, and you’ll get a new bean or grain every few days.

Time-Sensitive Tips

Planning?? Forethought??? Surely you jest!

But seriously, that’s the sort of stuff I was able to do back in Portland and it was awesome. Anyone who has the time and the wherewithal, it’s well worth it. But these days, these grad school with a 4-year-old and on-my-own days, I can barely keep track of my own fleeting thoughts.

Canned beans to the rescue! Soooo many of my clients feel guilt, this weird internalized shame, over buying canned beans and pre-cooked lentils (the ones in the cold case at Trader Joe’s are my life’s blood, I swear. Those lentils are amaaaazing), like it makes them a bad hippie for not buying dried bulk goods. To which I say:

Man! We are being too hard on ourselves! We are all just doing our best.

I know you, and I see that you are really doing the very best you can do.

Canned beans are not a crime against humanity. Good lord, buy the beans and save yourself the stress!

~ ♥ ~ Fat ~ ♥ ~

Just like protein, fat can also be a controversial subject among vegans. So I will just speak for myself (and every one of my clients who I’ve ever worked on this with – anecdotal but worth noting I’d say, because yeah, every. single. one.) when I say that fat is the thing that makes a salad stick until dinner time. Protein is key, but fat is really the clincher. And sooo many people, especially women, try to leave off all the fat. No wonder we’re all walking around starving and fighting cravings!

I love fat in all its (unrefined) forms, and happily eat it up. But even if you’re in the low-fat or no-oil camp, you can add healthy, whole foods-based fat sources to pump up the satiety factor of your salads. Avocado is easy and delicious, and it’s super duper healthy. Nuts and seeds come into play here, adding richness and texture while contributing all sorts of important micronutrients (hello, zinc!)

I also love to add olives which are relatively high in fat for what they are, and I adore me some extra virgin olive oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. Yes please. Oh, and coconut bacon!

Budget-Friendly Options

Plant-based whole foods fat sources (now that’s a mouth full!), like avocados and nuts, do tend to be expensive. Avocados are so healthy and delicious, so when you catch them on sale, make sure you take advantage.

Nuts are usually more expensive than seeds, so, for example, choose sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and flax seeds over almonds, walnuts, or cashews.

Time-Sensitive Tips

Fat’s easy, no time-input required!




~ ♥ ~ Dressing ~ ♥ ~

Dressing is the pièce de résistance of any proper salad. The right dressing elevates those veggies, takes your salad from a disjointed collection of parts to a unified cohesive commune of YUM. Dressing is the bomb and you need to find a dressing you adore.

Dressing comes in all shapes and sizes. They can be oily or oil-free, nut butter-based or bean-based, light with vinegar or thick with cashew cream. They can be homemade or store-bought. Thick like a dip, or delightfully light like vinaigrette. It doesn’t matter really, as long as you find one that you love. Because finding the right dressing is what’s really going to make you craaaaave a salad!

Budget-Friendly Options

The most cost-effective dressings are homemade, of course. I suggest making one or two batches each weekend so you have them on hand, easy access, all week. Most of these last at least a week (maybe even 2) in the fridge. Some of my favorites:

The Tahini Dip That Done Stoled My Heart

Piquant Cilantro Peanut Sauce

Or, one of my secret weapons: hummus thinned with a little vinegar or lemon juice and water!

Or, if you prefer not to make dressings ahead of time, you can whip up a quick vinaigrette in the morning while you compose your salad. This is what I do roughly 95% of the time. And vinaigrettes are easy, soooo easy, no recipe required. Mine usually include red wine vinegar and either dijon mustard or nutritional yeast to thicken them, maybe a crushed clove of garlic (breath alert!), and I very rarely add oil. That’s just my preference.

What I do add is a bit of a dirty secret. I’m actually nervous to admit it because I think you’ll think I’m such a weirdo! But here goes: olive juice. True story! The brine from kalamata olives is an awesome addition to my vinaigrettes (and actually, sometimes from canned black olives, but that’s only for certain types of salads). Brine is salty and flavorful, brimming with umami. I’ve also used green olive juice, brine from marinated mushrooms, sauerkraut juice, etc. Are you giving me the side-eye?

But I’m a girl who loves a LOT of flavor. If you like things lighter, lemon juice is great. A little olive oil and lemon juice can go a long way. Rice wine vinegar is milder too, and a little sweet. Flavored vinegars are also fun!

Whatever you prefer, the point is that it’s super quick and easy to throw together a 2- or 3-ingredient vinaigrette each morning. I put mine in a small mason jar, shake to mix, and keep it separate until I’m ready to eat.

Time-Sensitive Tips

On the flip-side, if you’re all about saving time, then store bought is the way to go. There are a ton of amazing, whole foods-based salad dressings available out there. Check for local brands (co ops and FarMars are great for this) to find the healthiest and most delicious available, like the drool-inducing tomato balsamic I pick up at this awesome little hippie restaurant in the next town over.

If you don’t have access to anything like that, nationwide brands like Follow Your Heart are pretty widely available.

To Summarize

A proper, serve-as-a-meal, keep-you-full salad has five major components:

1. The greens. Bagged or head lettuce, spinach or romaine or arugula or baby spring mix, it doesn’t matter. Make greens the foundation of your salad, and make sure there are a lot of them. Your container should be GIANT.

2. Veggies and Other Toppings. Raw vegetables, cooked vegetables, canned and jarred goods, fermented foods, sea veggies, nutritional yeast, whatever you like. Mix it up and don’t forget umami!

3. Protein / Legumes. Beans like black, pinto, navy, kidney, plus other legumes like lentils and soy foods. And don’t forget those honorary legumes, the pseudograins! These include quinoa, buckwheat, and amaranth.

4. Fat. You need fat to keep you feeling full, for sure. Don’t be afraid of healthy fat! Avocados, nuts, seeds, olives, and extra virgin olive oil-packed preserves are all awesome choices.

5. Dressing. Whether it’s homemade or store bought, finding a dressing that you crave is the thing that will keep you coming back to salads. So find one you love, and keep it in stock.

Aaaaaaand, I’m spent. Whew!

Which is new for me! I had always wanted to brew my own red wine vinegar at home (you all know how I do so love my DIY ferments), but, well, wine was something that was always scarce and sacred ’round these parts! So when Jeremy came into my life, and I found myself swimming in more wine than I could possibly ever put to use, I knew the time had finally come. Vinegar time!




I am delighted to report that making red wine vinegar at home is just about as easy as it gets. And the results? Oh my goodness, this vinegar! I’ve been using it daily on my salads, and it’s the best red wine vinegar I’ve ever had – pungent and robust, yet silky smooth and surprisingly refined.

Red wine vinegar has always been my favorite salad vinegar, but it’s also excellent in marinades, sauces, pickled dishes, and even some desserts! And like I said, it’s just a snap to make at home.

It does require a bit of upfront investment, but the payoff is huge (and perpetual – you can continue brewing ad infinitum). To start, you’ll need to purchase a mother of vinegar, which is sort of like a kombucha SCOBY but obviously, you know, for vinegar.

You’ll also need a goodly portion of wine, somewhere between a half gallon and a gallon. The better quality wine you use, the better your vinegar will be. But you don’t have to use all of the same kind! Feel free to mix and match. We used exclusively Pinot Noir because, well because we could so why not? But most commercial red wine vinegars draw from a variety of grapes. My suggestion is to wait until you have a party or an event or something – something that will leave you with a few opened, partially-full bottles. Maybe a work function, or a dinner party. Or, worse comes to worst, you can save your own leftovers in the fridge for a couple of months, until you’ve accumulated enough. That would work too.




To make your vinegar, dump all of your wine (about 1/2 – 3/4 gallons) into a clean glass jar (I use 1-gallon jars that I bought for a song when my neighborhood bulk herb shop went under (so sad, long live Limbo!), but you can find the exact same thing here).

Add 1/4 – 3/4 cup filtered water. These measurements are imprecise, and that’s sort of the point. It’s not baking. It’s okay to be loosey goosey with the amounts, I promise! Just make sure that everything is clean, and you’ll be fine.

Add the mother of vinegar. Cover the opening with a rag or cheesecloth, held in place by a rubber band. Store out of direct sunlight, in a warm (not hot) dry place. I like to keep my ferments on top of my refrigerator, shaded behind the plants.




We began tasting our vinegar at around 5 weeks. The full conversion might take a few months, and yes, the more age on the vinegar, the better it will taste. But we couldn’t wait!

After 5 weeks, our homemade red wine vinegar was already delicious.




When the taste of the vinegar is to your liking, filter it through a sieve (to catch the mother threads) and into storage bottles. I keep one bottle in the pantry and the rest in the fridge (refrigeration is not required). Remember to leave a few inches in the bottom of the gallon jar!

Now, you can just continue to add all your leftover wines as you collect them. A few dregs here, a forgotten half bottle there. As you add to the culture, remember to include a splash of water every now and again. The mother will continue to convert the wine into vinegar, and you’ll be able to draw off of it forevermore. As long as you keep adding wine, you’ll keep getting vinegar.




So what do you think? Is homemade red wine vinegar in your future? Also, I’d love to hear from anyone who’s already done this!

Next up in my fermentation laboratory: apple cider vinegar! I’ll make sure to report back as soon as I get some results . . .

Cheers!
♥

Every time I post a photo or tweet or Instagram featuring the Cupow and/or the EcoJarz lids, I’m met with a flurry of excitement and interest. Everyone wants to know what they are and where to get them, which makes sense, because basically they are AWESOMESAUCE and I use mine pretty much every day.

Last week I was dropping Waits off at preschool, sitting together on the eating blanket (outdoor preschool, remember) with an EcoJarz-lidded green smoothie between us. And when his teacher saw the lid she did what everyone else does . . . well at least what every hippie does. Lots of excitement, and lots of questions.

But this time, there was a twist! Because she then proceeded to tell me that she had seen someone make a similar device using a 1/2 gallon orange juice carton – the kind with a pour spout and lid – and I was like OMG GENIUS and immediately went home and made one for myself.

Like this:




And it works! Totally water tight, at least through a few uses (long enough to drink another 1/2 gallon of almond milk, at least in this house). See?




Don’t get me wrong, I still love my Cupow and my EcoJarz lids, and I’ll continue to use them every day. But from now on, I’m sending Waits off to preschool and play dates with this awesome DIY option, and I won’t have to worry about being out $9 if something gets lost or broken.

Enjoy!

♥ ♥ ♥

Anyway, a few weeks back I posted a short series on some of my very favorite food preservation methods (Part I here and Part II here). So today I want to share some of the actual projects I’ve undertaken this summer and autumn, in order to capture and extend the incredible bounty that these seasons bring.




Early last spring, a little boy planted a sunflower seed. And every day the little boy pulled up the weeds, and sprinkled the ground with water. And then, one day, a sunflower came up!

Yes it’s true, Waits grew a sunflower. Two sunflowers, actually, at 8 ft tall apiece. His mama was very proud.

And after they’d dropped their petals and begun to droop, we cut the heads and let them dry completely. One went to preschool for the kids to play with as they pleased, and one stayed home with us, for saving. A long time ago I posted a comprehensive tutorial for properly harvesting sunflower seeds, and that’s basically exactly what we did. It was really fun! A great project for the kiddo, and we had tons of seeds when we were done. Some went into his sensory table, and some went into a jar to plant next year. And the rest . . . went into our tummies!




Home-roasted sunflower seeds. Super simple:

Make up a solution of salt water using a ratio of roughly 1:4 salt to water. Stir the solution until the salt is fully dissolved, then soak the sunflower seeds in the saltwater overnight. The next day, spread the seeds on a lined baking sheet and bake at low temperature (200-300º) until they just barely begin to turn golden (a few hours, depending on the temperature).

Allow to cool and then dig in! Or, these will keep in an airtight container for a long time, so save them for a tasty treat come midwinter.




BANANAS!




My godparents have a banana tree, and by the end of summer they were positively drowning in an overabundance of bananas. We couldn’t keep up! Even my little guy who totally hearts bananas, couldn’t eat them fast enough.

I thought about freezing them for smoothies, but that seems so boring, not to mention it takes up a lot of space. So this year I went a different route.




Fruit roll-ups!

Again, super simple, super easy. To make fruit roll-ups, I just put a bunch of bananas in the blender and added a couple pints of strawberries. You can really use whatever combination of fruit you want.




Blend. I didn’t need to add water because the VitaMix is crazy powerful, but since these are going to be dehydrated anyway, it’s okay to add a bit of water if you need to, just to get it to run completely smooth.

Once blended, spoon it onto the nonstick dehydrator mats, like so:




And then dehydrate at 115º, well, until done? I don’ know the exact time, it sort of depends on how big you make them. I did it overnight, probably around 10 hours.




Once they’re done you can roll them in wax paper, tape them shut, and store them in the fridge. I can’t wait to dig these out in the middle of winter when we haven’t had locally grown fruit in ages. It’ll be such a treat!




2013 was sort of a jalapeño year for me. I couldn’t tell you why (cosmic metaphor?), but they were everywhere! Waits and I grew a few plants all the way from seed, which was fun. But then they started showing up in my CSA box. Every week. More and more of them. And no way could I eat that many!

I used a super basic, generic fermented vegetable recipe. You can pretty much insert anything and it’ll end up tasting great. The base brine is made from 1 tablespoon sea salt (non-iodized) in 1 cup filtered water, scaled to as much brine as you need (so 2 tablespoon in 2 cups, 3 in 3, etc).




Cut your vegetables however you like. For this batch I cut the jalapeños into rings and added carrots cut on the bias, and whole garlic cloves. Stuff all the veggies down into a jar, then cover with the brine. Use a sandwich bag filled with water, or another jar, or something to weigh down the veggies and keep them submerged in the brine. You can cover with a rag or cheesecloth but I didn’t, since the sandwich baggie basically covered the whole top.




Allow the vegetables to culture in a cool, dry place, out of direct sunlight. After a few days you can taste them. When they’re as sour/fermenty as you like them, move them to the fridge and put a lid on them. They’ll keep in the fridge indefinitely.

These spicy pickles have become an absolute favorite of my not-boyfriend and mine. We’ve been using them on our beans/greens/grains bowls this fall, and they’re SO good. There’s no way they’ll make it to winter, haha.




And finally, it’s not exactly seasonal, but my not-boyfriend and I were recently tasked with making [vegan] Mexican rice for no less than 100 people, when my dear friends Ingrid and Terry got married. It was so fun! I’ve never made food for that many people before, and the dish was a huge hit (yay vegan!), buuuuut we sort of overestimated on the rice part. And we ended up with my giant salad serving bowl full of rice, and no way to eat it before it went bad.

So, into the freezer it went! I formed the rice into balls, spread them out on a baking sheet, and froze them. Once they were solid I transferred them to a big gallon jar. Now I’ll be able to pull out single serving portions whenever I need brown rice. I love my freezer and the way it saves me from wasting food!

And what about you? Any awesome preservation projects this year? Please do share, I know I’m not the only one who finds such inspiration in the comments section here.

Love you guys!

♥