Vegan Corn Chowder

Corn.  Colorful, sweet, delicious, fun to eat off a cob and wonderfully ubiquitous every Summer.  Nutritionally, it is a good source of fiber and vitamin C.  I love to cut it right off the cob and add it to salads or stews.  Sadly, I think corn gets a bad wrap due it's evil processed form, high fructose corn syrup. Yes, having HFCS in our foods is not healthy, but corn in it's natural form is just fine!

I have been wanting to make a vegan corn chowder for a while, so this Saturday I set out to the farmers market to get corn for this very purpose.  As I approached the corn bins at the Kimball Farms stand, I noticed a sign about there potentially being bugs on the corn due low spray.  As I was reading, one of the friendly farmers started to explain that the sign was there just to inform customers that there is a chance this may be an issue.  They are advised to spray plants at least once every 2 days.  They choose to spray once every 2 weeks..fantastic!  My response to this?  I'll take the bugs over more spray anyway.  What this usually means is having to cut about an inch off the top..better than the alternative of ingesting poison!  I bought 3.  

Point of this story? 1. Small, local farms use less spray, even if they are not certified organic. 2. When you shop at farmers markets you get to talk to the people that are growing your food.  3. Corn is awesome.

As it turned out, 2 of the ear had no issue and 1 needed about 1/2 inch chopped off!

Local corn, tomato and jalapeños

I did a search for vegan corn chowders online and was unimpressed by what I found, so I went with my own cooking instinct.  I like to have protein with my meals, so I added quinoa (a grain that is also a complete protein).  I also like to have vegetables with my meals.  Yes, corn is a vegetable, but your body processes it like a starch, which why I chose not to add the traditional potato to the dish.  I decided swiss chard and tomatoes would work perfectly, adding color and flavor.  For the creamy texture, I used Soy Delicious Coconut Milk. I have never  tried it before, but on a whim bought some a while back.  It is a bit higher in saturated fat than I usually use, but way better than whole cream!  

Vegan Corn Chowder
Servings: 3-4ish.  Depends how big your bowls are!

Ingredients:
3 ears local corn (Kimball Farm)
1 tbsp oil
1 large garlic clove (minced)
2 small white onions (chopped) (Mancini Farm, i.e. dad's back yard)
1 jalapeño (chopped) (Kimball Farm)
1/2 cup quinoa
1.5 cups Coconut Milk
2 cups of water (or vegetable stock)
1.5 cups chopped Swiss Chard (Mancini Farm)
1 pint cherry tomatoes (Parker Farm)
fresh parsley (I didn't measure..use as much or as little as you want)
fresh thyme (same as parsley)
1 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
1 tsp curry powder (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Grill corn for about 10-15 minutes, turning it to ensure each side is cooked.  I assume all grills are different, so basically cook it until it looks like this:

Place a medium pot over low-medium heat and add 1 tbsp of oil, garlic, jalapeño and onions.  Sauté until onions are translucent.

This sauce pot traveled from Italy to me, via my parent's suitcase!

   

Homemade red pepper flakes

Add grilled corn, quinoa, coconut milk and water and bring to a boil.   Reduce heat and allow to simmer until quinoa is almost cooked (~15 minutes).  Add chard, tomatoes, parsley and thyme and let simmer for ~5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper.  Since I used water instead of vegetable stock, I felt it needed some extra flavor, so I included some freshly crushed red pepper (homemade) and curry powder.  Add them or not, depends on your taste buds!  I decided to use my hand mixer to blend the soup and thicken it up.  I did this in the pot, carefully.  You can also remove 1-2 cups of soup, mix and add back in.

Post immersion

I really enjoyed the simplicity and flavor of the dish.  If you can grill the corn, do so as I believe it brought the dish to a higher level.  Of course, using all local ingredients increase the nutritional value and the flavor profile!  Filling and delicious...a pleasant Sunday dinner :)  Play around with the flavor if you so choose...cooking to your taste will only make it a better dish for you!

Stay Happy and Healthy!
~L

Running for a Cause

In my last blog I wrote about my unplanned path towards employment and sent a wish to the blog-o-sphere for a job.  Well, it turns out that blog wishing works!  I accepted a great position at a community hospital were I will be educating the masses about nutrition and healthy living.  One more hurdle of passing the registered dietitian exam and then I can finally wear my super hero cape and save the world with fruits and vegetables!

I am often asked the question, "why did you choose to go into nutrition?". Well there are many reasons, but the basic to-the-point answer is: I use to be fat.  Not big boned or chubby, but clinically obese.  It can't be too surprising given my love for food..just used to love the wrong foods.  There was a point when I just  got sick of saying I was going to lose weight to be healthy and finally just did it.  I loved learning about food and how our bodies work so much, that I started taking classes..first 1 then 2 and next thing I knew I had a 2nd bachelors, a masters degree in Nutrition and was in a dietetic internship at an amazing hospital.  OK, maybe all that took a really long time since I was working full-time as well, but you get the point.   The total weight loss to date is 80 lbs.  Purely done with healthy eating, exercise and some crazy determination!  I have been able to maintain the weight loss for about 8 years.  How?  By eating healthy and exercising!  Revolutionary, I know.  

My favorite form of exercise, by far, is running.  I love running outdoors year round with no music and no gadgets.  Just me and the freedom that running provides.  I am a morning runner, so I use it to meditate...focusing on breathing, clearing my head and planning my day.   I often say running saved my life because it was my go to exercise during my weight loss as well as my stress reliever when times were tough.  I always feel better after a run. 

Shortly after I started running, I began training for my first 5K, which was the AIDS run /walk that is held in Boston every year.  If I can feel better by running, why not help others by running as well?  Combining running with good causes is really the best thing since someone combined peanut butter and jelly.  I have since run numerous road races where money was donated to a good cause and also fundraised for the penultimate road race, the Boston Marathon, where I raised $3,000+ for the South Boston Neighborhood House.  I selfishly get to do my favorite activity while unselfishly giving to those in need...perfect!  

Which brings me to the long-winded point.  On October 6th I will be running for yet another great charity, The Somerville Homeless Coalition. This is a 5K in Somerville..I have the advantage as I run these streets daily!  Here is the Coalitions story, in their words:

In 1985 the Somerville Homeless Coalition (SHC) was created by the local community’s grassroots response to the social crisis of homelessness. Neighbors, community activists, university students, faith-based leaders, business supporters and city officials united to address the escalating problem of homelessness within Somerville. These collaborative efforts resulted in the opening of the city’s first emergency shelter and the establishment of SHC. Today, SHC transforms lives by providing services, support, resources and housing to well over 600 men, women, and children.  SHC’s emergency response programs include an Adult Shelter, Family Shelter, Food Program & one-on-one Case Management Services. SHC is also an innovator in the realm of “Housing First”. These housing programs involve Homeless Prevention and providing Affordable Housing with home-based Supportive Services to the most at-risk homeless individuals and families in our community.

I have already reached my modest goal of $100, but why stop there!?  My new goal is to double my old one!  So, instead of blog wishing for Mr. Right or a guaranteed passing grade on my board exam, I am wishing for kind souls to donate what they can ($5 is great!) to help me give to SHC, as they give to so many!  

You can donate here: http://www.active.com/donate/somervillehomeless12/lisamancini

Stay Happy and Healthy!

~L

Farmers Market and Life

Every week, as I head to the Farmers Market, I tell myself to buy what I need for the meals I intend to make.  Straightforward and planned out, all I need is a 1 of those and 2 of these and I am out.  However, much like life, it is never goes as planned.  As my internship comes to an end and I have the world of nutrition at my feet, I expected to have tons of interviews and potential employers filling my inbox with offers I cannot refuse.  But even though we live in the fattest country in the world and obesity leads to many preventable chronic diseases, we are also in an economy were hiring is not happening at the rate we would like.  So I send out my resume to every job that is available and wait as my well-crafted cover letter and resume with Brigham and Women's Hospital internship displayed prominently float into cyberspace with the hopes that it will land in the right hands.  I am  great at interviews and a fabulous coworker...get in touch please!

Back to the market.  I enter with a plan and it never pans out.  I want to try everything and I need to buy even more.  I start to form recipes as I picking up the eggplants and zucchinis, wondering what I could do with this kohlrabi, and what new way can I eat Fiori Di Nonno's burrata.  Next thing I know I have leaving the market with my both my bike bags filled with a colorful bounty of local goodness.

Here are some items that caught my eye and made it into tonight's dinner.  If this does not scream vegetable lentil curry, I do not know what does!
Since I had a jammed packed day, the crockpot was essential to making this happen.  I have mentioned in the past...preparing dinner at 7AM is one of my favorite things to do...and I LOVE coming home to the smell of a wonderful aroma of healthy meal.    Here's hoping that my career ends as wonderfully as my random vegetable meal does!  I am going to call this dish Farm's Bounty.  Seems fitting..

Ingredients:
1 small onion
3 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
1 tbs oil
2 ears of corn
2 tomatoes
2 eggplant (any variety)
2 zucchini (any variety)
2 carrots
1 jalapeño
tofu (optional)
1 cup of lentils
1 cup of barley
4 cups of water
1 tbs curry
1 tsp cinnamon
1tbs garam masala
1tbs tarragon
3-4 fresh basil
1-2 fresh sage
salt and pepper to taste

Sautee the onion, garlic and ginger in a pan with the oil until tender.   You know the crockpot drill, chop up everything and though it in the pot!  Add the onion mixture and all the spices EXCEPT the garam masala.  Add the water and cook on LOW for ~7 hr.  Mix in the garam masala at the very end.

While this cooks, head out and enjoy the day!  Come back to the amazing aroma and a warm bowl of this:

My unplanned purchases at the market lead to a delightful meal.  Let's hope my unplanned journey into an unknown future leads to a delightful job!

Stay Happy and Healthy!

~L

Sunday Funday: Helicopter Flying

About 1 month ago, I put aside my usual frugalness and decided to let online deals dictate some Summer adventures.  Adventure 1: Fly a helicopter.  Until Groupon told me I wanted to do this, I really never gave it much thought. However, once that deal was bought it became my daily obsession.  I could not wait to take flight and have my hand at flying a piece of machinery that I really have no business being anywhere near.

It was suppose to be last Sunday, but the weather became an issue..as my friend said: "you don't mess with mom nature".  So today was the day and it was perfect, albeit very hot, weather!   I hoped in the car and drove myself to Lincoln Ma, home of Hanscom Air force base and East Coast Aero Club to meet my instructor Dave Smith.  We started with a 45-minute ground school course in which Dave had to tell me how to handle all the possible situations that could go wrong...I remember very little of this, but luckily I did not need know it for my short trip.   Basically, he explained how to use all the controls shown below.  You are suppose to be able to maneuver 3 controls at once..I then showed him my wounded elbow and explained I fell simply running yesterday..I don't think I can do 3 things at once. He felt confident I could handle this task..mainly because he never let go of his instructor controls!

These controls do things to make the helicopter fly..

The helicopter was much smaller than I expected and because it was very hot, Dave took the doors off so we could get a nice breeze.  Yes, we flew with no doors!  Side note: I am too trusting of random people who have my life in their hands..

This is a 4 seater! 

After doing the pre-flight checks, we were ready to go!  The engine started and the propellers were propelling..then suddenly, you are just in the air.  Dave described it perfectly..it was like a magic carpet ride!  As we head up and out, Dave gave me time to take some pics before I have a turn at not killing us flying this thing:

Random water in Concord

Boston in the distance! 

I was then told to take control.  I had my turn to hold the helicopter steady, turn, and fly straight on.  I will not lie, I had absolutely no fear until he told me it was my turn to take the controls..I knew he was driving with me, still I was terrified.  To make me feel better, Dave turned the helicopter almost on it's side to show me it is totally OK...I did not feel better!   I just wanted to keep taking pictures, but I was here to fly and fly I would do!  Mind you I believe I was in the air for a totally of 7 minutes, but it felt longer!  I sort of got the hang of things the last 30 seconds, so that was good!  As we were heading back, Dave asked if I wanted to have the engine "die" and we land without it, as explained to me could happen in a worst case scenario, of which I responded: "Let's do it!" (see side note above about trust).   He descended quickly, controlling everything at once..mind boggling to me..and then we landed softly and safely!  Overall, a fantastic adventure!  

No doors!  What?.  

I don't see myself taking this on a regular hobby, but for sure was an amazing way to spend a Sunday afternoon!  I cannot say enough nice things about my instructor Dave or the whole crew over at East Coast Aero.  They are a great group who really enjoy what they do!  If there is another Groupon or if you are less frugal and will pay retail (really?),  I highly recommended heading a few minutes West of the city for very cool once in a life time opportunity!

Came back to Somerville for dinner at 5 Horses Tavern and some Slumbrew Happy Sol..well earned?  I think so!  

Stay Happy and Healthy!

~L

My First Brewery Tour..followed directly by my second!

Happy Sunday!

I am sure it will a surprise to no one that I enjoy drinking delicious, local craft beer.  What may be a surprise is that this is a very new development...like in the past 3 years new.  I was an affirmed beer hater from the start...er when I started drinking at the appropriate age of 21 years.   Back then, all I knew of was one type of beer, the awful tasting type.   It was unbeknownst to me that beer came in many different types of brews, much like wine, and all I had to do was find the kind I liked..and find them I did!  Wheats, stouts, porters, largers and many more..just keep those bitter IPAs out of my pint glass and we will get along fine..

So this brings me to my first brewery tour.  I went with my expert friend Dana and her awesome friend Monica. Dana has been to more breweries than I have been farmers markets and was a great person to share this experience.  Since we live in Somerville and like to do things as close to our homes as possible, the logical choice was to hit up Night Shift brewery, only skip over into the city Everett.  All you need to know about Everett is that is the home of Teddie's Peanut Butter, Night Shift brewery and, to our surprise, Idle Hands brewery as well!

I  twitted a warning that we were on our way and were expecting the fun-est tour ever..of which they replied  "always a fun time @Nightshiftbeer".  I like them already.   Replying to tweets keeps it personal and that is what small business is all about..being personal!
We arrived and found this sign..which was good because it is one creepy alley you need to head down to get there, but be sure it will be worth the trip!

As we entered we met Michael, our tour guide for the event.  He was friendly, greeting us with a great smile and wise, offering us a drink before the tour even started.  

First up the  flagship beer Trifecta, a Belgian-style pale ale with vanilla beans and my favorite.  It was crisp, smooth, subtle and the prefect way to head into the factory.   On the tour, we learned that the brewery has only been open for 5 months although the guys have been home brewing in Somerville for 5 years prior to the start of the company.

They brew 200 gallons per day which produces ~700 bottles, demonstrating the true meaning of small batch brewing!  Not shown are the pounds of hops and other favorings such as Taza chocolate nibs that are on display.   We then went it the area were the beer is stored after bottled..below is the Somer Weisse which is named after the city were it all started..

Speaking of Somer Weisse, that was our next taste.  Made with lemongrass and ginger, this is the most unique tasting beer I have ever had.  Tart on first sip, it surprises your palate, however as you go for another sip you find an amazingly complex brew that will have you wanting more. No doubt the perfect Summer beer.  Next up, Bee Tea, a Belgian-style wheat.  As you may have guessed this contains honey, but it also has green tea.   Possibly the best beer to have when you have a cold or when you just want a lovely, sweet light beer.  Side note: I learned from their website the the tea is sourced by Mem Tea imports based in..Somerville!  These guys do not forget their roots!   

Now on to the heavier beers.  The Quad Reserve is a Belgian-style quad ale fermented with brown sugar and Shiraz grape juice..yes grape juice and brown sugar.   If you look up the description online, you may think you are reading about a fancy french wine as opposed to a craft beer, but be sure it is beer..tasty, tasty beer.  I hope to be able to find this on the first chilly Fall night of the year, as I think it would be a perfect way to deal with the end of Summer.  Finally, what we were waiting for as huge Taza chocolate fans, the Taza stout.  It is brewed with chicory root and ginger then aged on cacao nibs from Taza Chocolate, Somerville (of course).  If The Quad Reserve is going to help us get over the loss of Summer, this Stout will be our  long Winter life-savor!  Rich and delectable, it was a lovely desserty party in my mouth.  

The guys that run the joint are super nice and welcoming and all the beers were winners in my book.  I highly recommend taking the trip to the no-mans land know as Everett and down the scary alley that leads to the happy land of Night Shift Brewery.  Oh and if you are a brewery tour newbie like me..you will be happy to know these are free!   How I did not know this is beyond me since I have a nose for free stuff, but now I know and so do you.  I did buy a t-shirt so I can show my support as I bike around the 'Ville on the weekends..

As I mentioned, we were surprised to see Idle Hands right beside Night Shift living in harmony with one another.  We like small businesses that support one another.  We did not get a full tour of Idle Hands as it was getting late and understandably this guy wanted to get home------>

However, he was nice enough to let us sample and chat while we enjoyed all his brews.  Another nano-brewery but this time it is run by a husband and wife team.  Clearly had a wonderfully busy day because there were only 3 beers left, Blanche de grace (named after his wife!); Patriarch and pandora.  We loved them all!  I for sure see going back to check out the facility and the beers that we missed!  Here I bought a glass that I can drink future Idle Hands purchases!

We were 3 happy ladies at the end of our visits. Highly recommend supporting both these fine businesses when you are patronizing your favorite bar or saloon.  If you can't find them there, make sure you make it known you want them tap!  

Remember to support your local businesses!

Stay happy and healthy!

~L

Sometimes I do things that don't involve food..

As it turns out, I do other things with my time that don't involve taking pictures of food that I am about to shovel into the mouth.  Granted a good 7 hours of my non-eating time is spent sleeping, however there is a hour or two within waking hours that I am actively doing something that is fun and local..and food free.  Whether it is an outdoor festival, art event, concert or writing a blog,  I am someone who needs to be doing thing and get bored at the notion of just sitting.  Doing something always trumps doing nothing.  Now, thanks to online deal websites such as Groupon, a plethora of even more enjoyable activities are waiting in my inbox daily screaming "You know you want to do XYZ! Buy me and oh the fun you will have!"  I resisted for a while, but now that my internship workload as significantly decreased, I am game for anything and everything that comes my way.   

Today was indeed a random online deal event that brought myself and bunch of friends together to just have old-fashion silly fun.  Google+ had half off entry to a race called Color Me Rad 5K.  I know what you are thinking..."running in a 5K is not silly, nor fun.  Stopping lying to us."   I promise you, this one is different!   This zany run had a course that zig-zaged for the entire 3.1 miles within the Braintree Mall parking lot.  That alone was amusing!  As you run through certain check-points, an ever-so-cheerful volunteer slams you with a colorful corn-starch based powder  that takes you from looking like this:

The first to arrive..

To this:

The whole team!

How can you not have fun while participating in the human form of tie-dying?   There was no clock tempting us to beat our best times..in fact you were told if you came in first to not come back next year. This was intended to be pure and absolute silliness in which all were welcome.  You could run, jog, walk or just hangout by the powder stations...no one cared!  We were being tie-dyed!  As you can see, we were a happy group at the end.  

As the website states: "You'll end up looking like a kindergarten art class gone wrong..."  No truer words have ever been stated.  When the race was complete we were given a bottle of water,  had a cool new colorful T-shirt and the satisfaction of having fun while giving back. Yes, proceeds even went to a charity.  The Simon Youth Foundation provides educational opportunities for students at risk of dropping out of high school.  The MA chapter is located in Peabody.   Besides eating, running and giving to charity are my favorite things!  I think we all took something away from this event..mostly it was that the blue dye will not come off as easily as the rest of the colors!

I know I said this would be a food free post, but I would not be true to myself if I didn't say something!  After the race, a few of use hit Veggie Galaxy in Central Sq. for breakfast.   Where else but Central Sq can a group of people walk down the street looking like they lost a fight with a paint bucket and not even be noticed?  As we entered the restaurant we were greeted by the friendliest staff that were more than excited to see hear about what we did and seat us right away.  I got the Cambridge St tofu omelet with vegan cheese, home fries and whole wheat toast.  Cooked perfectly and served hot, this was the perfect post-race meal. 

Overall an absolutely fabulous Sunday Funday!

Stay happy and healthy!

~L

Has it really been that long since my last post?

Wow!  April of 2011 was the last posting.  Maybe I thought that tofu curry recipe was too amazing to top!  Maybe I was busy traveling the world learning new and amazing recipes and had no time to write!  Sigh..only if.  What I have been doing is working by butt off in an intensive dietetic internship at a local Boston hospital.  The time commitment was overwhelming and the free food plan from the cafe was too hard to pass up given the lack of pay that accompanies the long hours.  Do not be mistaken, this is not me complaining!  I would not trade this experience for anything and have loved every minute..even those minutes I hated!
Now, with mere 9 weeks left, the light is finally shining from the end of this long tunnel.  I can only hope a real job will be standing in the light when I get there, but I will worry about that later.  More importantly, each week brings a little less take home work and more free time to create and explore local foods.  I think I am a bit rusty.  So far there have been more boring bland meals than yummy exciting ones, but things are starting to come together again.

Today's meal was inspired by what I bought at the farmers market yesterday, little time to go too crazy and the heat.  When you live on the 3rd floor without air conditioning, 90 degree weather quickly makes you a raw food lover.  The result?  An Asian cole slaw that had me reaching for seconds before I was done with firsts!

True to my cooking ways, very little was measured and I encourage you to add your on flare and flavor to this dish.

Inspiration ingredients:
Slaw:
1 head of cabbage
3-4 large carrots
12-ish Sugar snap peas
4 small golden beets
(all above from Parker Farm, Lunenburg MA)
4-5 small scallions (Drumlin Farm, Lincoln MA)
1/4 cup of cashews (Superior Nut Co., Somerville MA)
21st Century Foods Tofu (Jamaica Plain, MA)
Handful of dried cranberries
fresh ground pepper

Dressing:
Adapted from here
3 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 inche ginger, minced
3/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey (local is best!)
pinch of cayenne pepper
1/4 cup water

For the dressing: I put everything in processor and got it done.  I rather go less on the soy sauce and add more salt if needed, but up to you on that!  I used about half the dressing on this slaw and saved the rest.
Slaw: Used the handy mandolin to shred the cabbage and then simply sliced all the other vegetables, add dressing and mix.  I let it sit for a few hours to let the flavors blend.  It was delish and I bet tomorrow it will be even more so!

End result is a colorful and flavorful dish!  Add the is super healthy and involves no oven, totally made my Sunday!

Stay Healthy and Happy!

Lisa