Heirlooms (Tomatoes and Otherwise)

Hand-made. Home-grown. Timeless. Lasting. Sentimental. Simple. Treasured.

I used to be the type of person who loved trinkets, doo-dads, and held on to random stuff with blatant disregard for space constraints (my dear husband might argue I'm still a little like that, but I've gotten much better). I'd make thoughtless purchases because items were cheap and they fit into my current craze. My life held a lot of meaningless clutter.

Oh, am I so glad I've grown up.

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These days, I seek out hand-crafted objects, and put thought into the things I buy and bring into our home. Is it something we need? Is it produced in a thoughtful way? Is it going to last?

Ryan has always encouraged more simple living. Our decor at home has become a pretty nice (we think, that is) combination of both our styles. He's a fan of modern lines and clean, simple silhouettes. I like a warm and inviting color palette and a more homey feel. They come together surprisingly well.

But we both honor an appreciation for those things that are built to last, now more than ever before.

This all started with a Pin on Pinterest. I wanted a table just like that, and I also wanted to learn some woodworking and fit in some quality time with my dad. Badda bing, badda boom, we started planning via text message.

My dad is a master with all things building-related. He has a great set of tools and has made beautiful pieces my whole life. I have a small step-stool with hearts carved as handles that he made when I was a tot. He built our kitchen table growing up, and soon after, a hutch. And as a graduation gift from college, he made me a butcher block for the kitchen, which you can see in my "slow home" tour at Re-Nest. He also brought over the 10 power tools we needed to cut a space for our dishwasher to be installed. All this to say, the man knows what he's doing and holds himself to very exacting standards. Must be where I get my perfectionist tendencies (which only show themselves in particular circumstances, how funny is that?!).

The new dining table, ready for her inaugural meal!

So we started planning. A few weekends ago, we set to work to build the table top out of reclaimed pine he'd had for close to ten years. The wood began, weathered and worn. As he taught me how to use the different tools in the shop, from the planer to the joiner and the biscuit cutter to the router, we worked to take this old pine and turn it into something new—something that I will treasure for many, many years.

As I started this project, I kept emphasizing to my dad, "I want it to look old and imperfect." But as we built, I realized that this craftsmanship—all the effort we were putting into it—deserved to look more perfect than I'd thought. Initially I wanted it to look just like the picture, and then suddenly I was so proud of its unique grain, its routed corners, its... general heft...

It wasn't until I saw the final piece, which we handled with latex gloves until I got it sealed, that I realized this wasn't going to be something that we use until we find a nice $400 dining table in some catalog. This table began to mean a lot more to me than that. Ryan and I began to imagine, years down the line, our kids doing their homework at the table. I envisioned Thanksgiving dinner being served to our families around this table. We came up with ideas to update the legs, so that the table top would always fit into our decor. It took me three weeks to decide on how to stain it. (That part of the project wound up being most expensive as I kept changing my mind—since my dad had the wood, I spent a total of $65 to build this, which includes the four different stains I bought and tested but didn't even use.)

This very simple tabletop, which took 12 hours of shop time and another weekend of finishing time, went from a project I took on with my dad to this big life metaphor that maybe, as this blog post illustrates, my brain wasn't ready to process just yet.

So yes. It's a simple table and we'll dine on it tonight. We'll welcome guests at our hand-crafted table, and serve them a home-cooked meal that we grew in our backyard.

That's what Sustainable Diet is all about, after all. 

You see, it's so much more than a table. It is an heirloom, a treasure, a mindful and timeless piece that I look forward to sharing meals at with family and friends. It's a table that we'll make memories at, and as each nick in the wood begins to show, we're excited to leave it be... so that this table will have its own stories to tell.

My dad has already heard from me that building this with him was so very meaningful and special for me. It's been a great learning process, and I look forward to more building in my future. In fact, we already have plans for a bench to go along one side of this table. It'll be a metaphor, too. :) Lucky blog readers.

Have you ever built a piece that made you feel this way? Or anything close to it, since I realize I've nearly written a novel about six pieces of wood glued together...

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The 3-Egg Quiche

Today marks the beginning of Lent, and for the second year in a row I've tried to become vegan for 40 days, focusing only on the most basic, healthful foods to feed my mind, body, and spirit.

And though my intentions are totally noble, it's only 12:15 on the first day and I've failed. Breakfast came close—a smoothie of garden spinach, frozen blueberries and mango, almond milk, and a banana. And then only one tablespoon of milk in my coffee. (Can I get a medal?)

But you see, last Sunday evening, I made myself two quiches and—wouldn't you know—I'm still enjoying those leftovers. So lunch on Day 1 of my vegan diet includes a non-vegan pie crust, eggs, milk, and cheese.

Whoops.

In my defense... it's delicious and healthy. And while some quiche recipes call for a dozen eggs (that's what I'll make when the neighbors get chickens!), I managed to concoct two nine-inch quiches with only 5 eggs and one cup of milk.

This quiche is jam-packed with tons of vegetables and while it's not as eggy as most quiches are, it's still delectable (did I mention it's healthy?).

I cheated a bit and used store-bought organic whole wheat pie crusts, which made my life so easy and kept the kitchen cleaner. I used the time I saved with store-bought crusts to organize the pantry. Win-win.

Quiches are so highly adaptable that you can take this recipe or leave it. But here's what I did to use up some garden goodies before they went bad.

The 3-Egg Quiche with Broccoli and Kale
(Recipe makes enough filling for one standard 9" pie)


1 store-bought whole wheat crust (or best me and make your own!)
1 small head broccoli, chopped into florets and small pieces (use the stems, too, by chopping them small)
1 medium bunch kale, sliced into ribbons
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 onion, diced (about half a cup)
1 4-ounce can of diced Hatch green chiles (optional)
3 eggs
1/2 cup 1% milk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/3 cup shredded cheese, any variety
salt and pepper to taste


Prepare the veggies and set aside. Preheat the oven to 425 and blind-bake the crust for about 10 minutes—don't let it brown! While the crust is baking, heat a large, deep skillet with the olive oil. Saute the onions for a few minutes until they begin to turn translucent. Add the green chiles and a little salt and pepper. Toss in the broccoli, and continue cooking for about 3 minutes. Add the kale ribbons to the mix and cook all the vegetables together until they're nice and tender but still al dente. Taste to be sure the seasoning suits you; add a little more salt and pepper to taste.


When you remove the crust from the oven, turn the temperature down to 350. Pour the vegetables into the crust; they should fill up the crust, but not rise above the rim. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the veggies. Crack the eggs in a mixing bowl and whisk together with the milk and mustard.


Pour the egg mixture slowly over the vegetables, giving it enough time to seep down into every nook and cranny in the pie. The egg mixture should come just to the brim of the crust.


Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes, or until the eggs have set and the quiche doesn't jiggle when you shift it back and forth in the oven. (I checked mine at 35 minutes and it was doing great. Left it in the full 40 to get a little bit of golden brown on the tops of the cheesey bits.) Let the quiche rest for a few minutes before cutting it.


Serve warm with a side salad. This quiche is delicious reheated for lunch the next day—I've found that it reheats better in a toaster oven to keep the crust slightly crunchy!

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Garden Tour

We have a lot growing in our backyard gardens right now. I'm telling you, winter gardening in Texas is remarkably rewarding. The bugs are at bay, the squirrels and birds have been entranced by our bird feeder, and the rain just keeps falling. 

Here's a little garden tour of our corner gardens. We just moved both the troughs here yesterday, and are quite happy with that decision. 

Garden Tour: click to zoom.

We have another raised bed on the other side of the yard which houses all of our greens (collards, chard, spinach, and kale). But you've seen it before... so here are some close-ups from this garden. 

Small turnips are very sweet and easy to peel.

Spaceship-like kohlrabi. You eat the bulbous stem of this vegetable.

Broccoli sprouting "secondary heads," which are small but delicious (and plentiful).

Broccoli with flowers; and yes, they're edible!

Are you growing a winter garden? How's it treating you?

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Freshworthy: Willie Nelson, Whole Foods, and European Organics, Oh My!

Image: Chipotle/YouTube (screenshot). View the ad here.

Chipotle Ad Promotes Sustainable Farming
NYTimes.com

Let me start by saying that Chipotle is one of the few fast-food restaurants I enjoy eating at, and do so in a care-free manner. We shun the others; I haven't been in a McDonald's or Taco Bell in nearly a decade. I respect Chipotle's food policies, even if it means that only 1 out of every 3 beans I ingest is actually organic. They have made a promise to customers to provide "more natural" products, as the NYT article puts it. The uplifting and cheery ad, which aired during the Grammy's last week (right after Coldplay performed, no less) was Chipotle's first national television spot. Willie Nelson, the president of Farm Aid, is advocating for family-owned farms and sustainable food practices, sings a cover of Coldplay song "The Scientist" in the ad, sealing my happy-good feelings about Chipotle.

How do you feel about Chipotle? And Willie Nelson? Do you think these types of things can change our food system?



Whole Foods Addresses GMO Accusations
Take Part

The rumor mill was running full-speed with talk of Monsanto (which all natural foodies shun and snarl at) being "in bed" with Whole Foods. To answer those accusations, Whole Foods is fielding plenty of heavy-hitting questions about GMOs (genetically modified organisms) being sold in their stores. It's a heated debate with lots of misinformation being thrown out.

Genetically modified foods have been shown to be potentially harmful for human consumption, and their creation is actually altering the environment and impacting ecosystems. Heard all this business about bees disappearing, more pesticides being used, and all that jazz? It's because these monocrops are diminishing varieties of plants. We're seeing the food "gene pool" get smaller. It's no good; I'm not a scientist, though, so read more about it at the Organic & Non-GMO Report.

The Center for Food Safety is urging the public to ask Congress to require GMO food to be labeled. Currently, the only certified Non-GMO label around is the USDA Organic Label. The Non-GMO Project also verifies GMO-free products and you can find their complete list here.

Coming Soon to Your Grocery Aisle: Organic Food From Europe
NPR

While I tend to encourage local organics whenever possible in our household (and you should, too!), this is good news. Organics are going to get more face time because of this new regulation that equates European and American organics. If it's organic here, it's organic there—and vice-versa.

Keep an eye on your food labels, though; try to purchase fruits, vegetables, and meat from as close to home as possible. When I taste organic Italian olives for the first time, I'm hoping it's in an olive orchard in the Tuscan hills...

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Working Lunch

During the work week, I bring my lunch four out of five days—a habit I'm really proud of, actually. Brushes off shoulders, buffs nails, leans back self-adoringly.... 

Since I commute by bus, I often am found in the kitchen at work artfully producing my lunch out of my adorable, highly compartmental, Laptop bento box. "What a tidy lunch you have!"It's light-weight, thin, BPA-free, made in the USA, dishwasher-safe, and (frankly) it just makes me happy.

Seriously, it's one of the best purchases I have ever made. I opted for the greatest configuration of mini boxes, which totaled about $45, so I can work with a good number of different portion sizes. Yes, that's a lot to spend on a lunch box, but I put it to great use and have saved about that much money every two weeks by bringing my own lunch to work. 

People have commented that it's a great way to keep portions in control too, which is totally true; but it's also fantastic for packing a variety of healthy options. I normally prefer a smattering of random things over a sandwich and chips. Meaning, my eating habits are not far from those of a toddler, except I actually love vegetables!

The salad above is one of my lunches from earlier this week that I enjoyed at my desk (don't worry, I clean my mouse and keyboard with alcohol wipes often enough that germs aren't too disgusting). It's a gorgeous winter salad, packed full of nutrients. Despite the horrific lighting, those are the actual colors. I picked the lettuce and broccoli from the garden that morning, and packed along only about a tablespoon of my favorite dressing (Cashew Tamari from Mother's) to top it off. It's a tasty (and accidentally vegan!) salad that you should try too!

I used to be of the mindset that I couldn't pack a salad for lunch and enjoy it. That was back in the day of boring, grocery-store salads and prior to my finding Cashew Tamari. Nowadays, I can't get enough of the sweet buttery garden lettuce and keep things interesting by packing a new ingredient each time.

The best advice I have for bringing a salad to lunch that you'll actually want to eat? Make it colorful and add at least one ingredient that's unexpected. The butternut squash was an afterthought, but one I'm glad to have made. Even eating it cold (I'd steamed it the night before), it brought a new level of sweetness to the salad and the texture was right on. 

Oh, and pack your "dry" ingredients separate from the wet ones, so that your lettuce doesn't wilt and nothing else gets soggy!

Easy-to-Pack Winter Lunch Salad

1 1/2 cups fresh lettuce 

1/2 cup fresh broccoli florets 

1/2 fresh grapefruit, sectioned, plus about 1 tablespoon of the juice

1/2 cup steamed butternut squash or 1/2 diced avocado

1/4 cup walnut pieces

1/8 cup dried cranberries

1-2 tablespoons of your favorite dressing, or about 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil

Pack the lettuce, broccoli, walnuts, and cranberries in one container together, and the grapefruit, butternut squash, and dressing separately (you don't want them wilting your salad before you're ready to eat it).

When it's lunch time, toss everything together (Toss, toss!*) and let your coworkers gaze in awe at the rainbow salad in front of you.

The best part? You've just accomplished a gourmet lunch salad at a fraction of restaurant cost!

* A Wicked reference, for my sister and mom! 

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Freshworthy: Drugs, Sugar, and Pink Slime

I didn't mean for this Freshworthy to be quite so icky, but it turns out there's plenty of that kind of food news out there this week.

First up, pink slime. Mmmm.

Image: Flickr member pointnshoot, licensed under Creative Commons.

McDonald's Burgers: Now Without Pink Slime?
The Week

I mentioned having watched and been inspired by Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, and here's another newsworthy story that comes straight from the pressure Jamie Oliver put on the food industry and the awareness he has raised. To tell you the truth, I can't remember the last time I ate at McDonald's. But back in the day, my little sister and brother and I begged for Happy Meals. Now I'm glad I began to shun the place once I got older; the "meat" is not anything worth ingesting. In any case, McDonald's is bowing to pressure and is reportedly removing pink slime—beef trimmings washed in ammonia—from their meat.

Let's be clear: I am NOT advocating eating at McDonald's. In fact, if you eat there, I would strongly encourage you to stop that immediately and instead turn to organic fast food chains, if you must eat fast food, or ditch the drive-through all together! But let's face it, for the millions of folks worldwide who do eat there, this is a small step toward improving their health, and to me, that's pretty fantastic.

New Call to Regulate Sugar
Chow, Rebecca Flint Marx

Should we regulate sugar? Taxing sodas, banning children from convenience stores, even removing sugar from the FDA's "Generally regarded as safe" list—these are all directives being pushed by Robert Lustig, a leading expert on childhood obesity.

So what's the answer here? Do we collectively need the government to regulate sugar—help us help ourselves? Or will awareness and education begin to take hold? We've seen the public make great strides in accepting (or at least listening to) warnings regarding heart health, trans fats, and more. Can we expect the public to begin making better decisions about sugar?

Drug-Resistant Bugs Found in Antibiotic-Free Meat
Wired


Ewwww. Here's the short version: after scientists tested nearly 400 samples of meat, including 95 samples of meat labeled "antibiotic-free," they found instances of antibiotic-resistant staph. Yes, even in the antibiotic-free meat.

Here's the way to avoid it: since the label "antibiotic-free" is not regulated, be sure to purchase "certified organic" meats only. Here is more information about meat labels and what's regulated by the FDA.

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Wordless Wednesday: Good Morning from the Garden

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