"well she was an American girl"

I love the city. I love love love it. Over the last 8 years I have developed into a woman who knows not what “closed on Sundays” means. I go to free museums, central park is my backyard, and on a Friday night you could easily spot me in a French restaurant which has live jazz music on St Marks place (it’s a tiny spot, but I do love the vibe). In these dog days of summer though, one of the best parts about living in the city is the weekend routine of leaving it. The tall buildings here trap heat with no breeze. And when people become anxious about getting on a stale, hot air subway; traffic becomes insane with an uproar of cab hailing. The pressure of always being on the go, ordering your coffee quick enough to not piss off the person behind you, and being OK with the fact that you are going to have to touch someone on your morning commute because the train is overcrowded all starts to become too much when the temperature surpasses 90 degrees. So while Monday through Thursday we happy hour it at the Frying Pan, or get to free yoga classes after a long day…the weekend presents a different opportunity to explore a second life.

I totally get it now. When I first moved here, I couldn’t imagine leaving the city on weekends. I wanted to be here all the time. I had fallen in love. It seems as if over the years though I have learned that the city isn’t going anywhere. My whole life is here, and it will be here on Monday morning when the weekend is over as well. This summer, part of my mental health plan is getting the heck out of here! Some of my local favorite places to dart off to include the mountains in Pennsylvania, or the beaches of Rhode Island; but my most recent trip was to the Hamptons area of Long Island, specifically in the town of Amagansett. I am a coastal girl, always looking for an ocean to gaze at or some New England colonial atmosphere to soak up. My sister and I dance down the streets of Newport, Rhode Island over the simplest things like ice cream shops, and homes that were built in the 18th century. Amagansett has a charm about it that makes it another town on my list to dance down the streets of.



As I stand outside a farmers market here, I feel at peace. You would feel at peace too if you were eating the apple pie ice cream cone I was enjoying at the time. With an ice cream cone in my right hand, and my left hand scouring over the vegetables, I shop the produce that was grown just feet behind the cashier. Eastern long island is beautiful. The beaches are spotlessly clean, the farms still exist, and there are even vineyards to taste some local wine at. This trip I did all three. Only a few hours out of Manhattan, it is a country side safe haven, just perfect. Not to mention, the plum I snacked on tasted incredible. Is this what fruit tastes like when chemical sprays are not used and it didn’t travel on the back of a truck for 2 weeks? (Yes, eating local is not only healthier, it is better for the environment. And it tastes better. And provides jobs for your neighborhood….need I go on?)






In the early morning, there is the beach. Nothing beats the smell of salt water and the sound of waves crashing onto an empty beach. Since yoga has taught me how to breathe, I find myself sometimes breathing in patterns during times I am most relaxed, such as standing at the ocean. I contemplated going into a childs pose in the sand, but realized other women on the beach would assume there was some type of crazy beach yoga class about to start, and I didn’t want to go down that road.



It is amazing how a little time out of the concrete jungle in the hot summer months can completely restore you. How can I be two women in one? I don’t know, but I am. I am the country mouse and the city mouse, with many pairs of shoes. Whatever your happy place is, try and get there this summer at least once. For mental health, aim for 30 minutes of silence a day (wherever you are). Everyone has a “restore button”, and the more you hit it, the healthier you will be all the way to your core. And if any of you see me in a downward dog pose on the beach, you’ll know I caved and am having a real moment of peace for myself. That, or I am charging the women of the Hamptons to take a class of mine. Cash only. :)

*many thanks in this blog entry to my dear friend liz. Who, just like me appreciates a great view of the ocean and an ice cream cone.

My Farm Share

A few weeks ago I received a gift in my gmail inbox. It was from Adam. He had ordered a basket of organic vegetables from a local farm to be delivered in a box right to my apartment. I was out in midtown with my girlfriends for cocktails, when I checked my gmail via blackberry and saw my surprise. I read the email carefully and laughed. “How awesome is this?” I said out loud to my girlfriends while I held my cell phone towards them. I won’t carry on about this part though, because he doesn’t like getting too much attention and I don’t want to embarrass him. I will however, carry on about the box of vegetables that arrived outside my apartment door this week. When I woke up Wednesday morning, it was sitting there in the same spot at my door as my neighbors “New York Times” spot at their doors. In my pajamas, I stood there and looked down. I saw “keep refrigerated” looking back at me. As if living in New York City doesn’t spoil you enough with the ability to have Thai food delivered at 2am, now I am actually getting organic produce right from the ground, to the upper east side before even changing out of my PJs. Some may say that whoever thought of me when ordering this, is a genius.

Inside the box was eggplant, lettuce, green and yellow beans, squash, zucchini, cucumber, apricots (fruit pick), and purslane. So many vegetables, so little time to finish all by myself. I decided to start whipping up any recipes that could use the above, and then decided to have a charming “farm like” dinner with Adam to top off the rest. From the farm, to my table, for us. Below is what we cooked for our vegetarian(me)/gluten free(him)/organic local meal (we’re a blast at restaurants together).

Drinks: Ok, so the farm didn’t send me any wine, but that never stopped a girl. Red wine worked with everything that was made (but I think red wine goes with everything anyway, who says I need to eat beef to enjoy my pinot noir?)

For starters: Salad, using all the mesculin greens, cucumber and lettuce. I added goat cheese and candied pecans to the bowl, and drizzled a honey dijon vinaigrette dressing over.


Nature moment: “hey little buddy. I figured I would find someone like you while going through this box”. (My inch worm friend. He was not invited to dinner though).


Dinner: Veggie burgers made from quinoa and walnuts with a slice of monterary jack on top of lettuce (no buns), with blue corn chips and zucchini fries.



Zucchini Fries: Look at this, we can make (almost) any vegetable turn into a modified version of our greasy favorite. Cut the zucchini into strips, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. (When I first started to prepare these, I cut and worked on one of the cucumbers for at least 15 seconds before realizing I was actually cutting a cucumber, and not a zucchini. I think we started drinking wine a tad too early).


Dessert: Apricot cobbler. Every fall I make an apple cobbler, and I thought apricots would make my favorite dessert more “summer like”. So, being I know this recipe like the back of my hand, and I also know it is possible to make it gluten free (and it still tastes amazing); I made this dessert with apricots instead of apples. I baked this a few hours before dinner so it could cool and settle.


In the end, I could not have asked for more of a perfect meal. I highly recommend not only the farm share, but also trying these recipes, and cooking at home as much as possible. After I eat fresh, whole food I feel satisfied, but even more so, clean. When you eat out, you never really know what ingredients/cooking sprays/preservatives are going into our foods. At home though, we have complete control. It is fresh, it is healthy, it is economical, and I do believe when you need to put the time into preparing complete meals like this, it always will taste that much better. And if you have someone to drink the wine and slightly mess up the zucchini fries with, it’s even better.

www.myfarmshare.com for information on how you can get farm food to your table as well.


Love & Apricots,

Lets Fight Hunger

Today was my first day as part of the Food Bank of NYC’s pilot “Community Cookshop” Program. Taking place in their multiple food service locations, Community Cookshop offers education and healthy cooking lessons to entire families (kids and adults). It is the next phase in expanding the cookshop program, which was originally launched in public schools to grades k-2. In 2009 I was a cookshop instructor in the Bronx, and I could not be happier that I have the opportunity to return to this program in a new light. This morning, we taught the basics on creating a food budget, and then we made a three color salad with raisins. All of the families took home the recipe, and the ingredients to make the recipe again at home. The children were amazing. They drew on paper plates their favorite foods. One 5 year old girl drew for me a piece of chicken, broccoli, blueberries, and a good ol fashioned milkshake. “Broccoli is my favorite vegetable” she said. We hadn’t even started the lesson yet, she was already going for the A+ in class. I will be assisting with this program for the remainder of the summer, and I will admit the launch this morning has prompted me to write about food security in our city, and in our country.
One in five New Yorkers are relying on emergency food services to get a meal. Emergency food services include soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, or free food such as the free breakfast/lunch program that is offered in nyc public schools. Each day, the Food Bank of NYC serves over 400,000 meals in the 5 boroughs to people who, if not for an emergency service, would not be eating at all. Three years ago, this number was around 250,000 meals. We all know that three years ago our economy plummeted, and so began the unemployment rise, housing crisis, and jokes on Saturday Night Live about financial men and their bonuses. However, we often only know either what we see on TV, or what we personally experience ourselves. So, I write this evening to assure you that the crisis is much closer to your home than you think. I wasted a lot of food as a child. I picked the cheese off my pizza, scraped many a meatloaf dinners into the trash can because I refused to have that for dinner (only to pour myself a bowl of cereal after), and I was a picky eater. I used to think that a child could never grasp how important it is to not waste food, but I am very very wrong here. You see, there are thousands of children in New York City (about 75 who I have personally worked with) who understand entirely that there is no food available to waste. For such adorable little ones, they certainly are grown up.
The sources of the hunger problem include the fact that food is expensive, housing is expensive, jobs are few, and nutrition education is barely standing on its tippy toes to be seen. Access to food is another main concern. How can we expect someone to buy fresh produce, if their supermarket does not carry it, and the nearest supermarket that does carry it is more than 10 miles away? In a suburban area, if more than 500 people, or 33% of the population(whichever is less) lives more than 10 miles from the nearest supermarket, than the area is classified as a “food desert”. In urban areas, it is classified if the distance is more than one mile (Defined by the Dept. of Agriculture). Combined with low income, (some less than 10,000 dollars a year), food deserts have a real impact on how Americans are eating.

Hunger cannot be seen. Children look like children. I see them playing in the parks, jumping up and down on the subway, and coming out of schools in the afternoon. But 30,000 of these same kids in our city are being given free food at school every day. 30,000 in new york city.
I ask of you; if you are going to spend the few minutes it took to read this blog, then please remember the following:

1.We are not born knowing fruits and vegetables are great for us, and that fast food is not. We need to be taught. This is why we need nutrition education to be in every school, community center, street fair, wherever. If we are not teaching people about food, how can we expect anyone to change their eating habits? Lets push for nutrition education.

2.Food is expensive. It is a big money game. But there is a lot of food going uneaten every day as well. We need to take the extra food whenever we can, to a place or person who needs it. Trust me, there is food to spare. Do not throw away.

3.I have said this before, but I will say it again and again. If our children cannot gain access to nutritious food, it will affect their mental and physical growth, their grades in school, and their eating habits for the rest of their lives. They are not old enough yet to look at us and say “leave me alone, I choose to be fat and unhealthy”. Until they are old enough to make that choice, we are accountable.

4.It is easier, and cheaper to prevent disease, than to treat disease.

5.And finally… do not forget that hunger cannot be seen. Support your local food banks by donating, volunteering, or advocating. Because in this economy, any one of us could be on the other side of the table tomorrow. Whether you are serving food, or eating food, we are all the same.

www.feedingamerica.org/hunger
www.foodbanknyc.org
*for anyone who is interested, it always helps to spread the knowledge :)

You dont look a day over fast cars and freedom.

Today, I want to share with you a bag of quotes. Literally. I have this lulu lemon bag that my new yoga mat came in, and today for the first time I started reading all the quotes that are printed on it. I had read my favorite one weeks ago: "dance. sing. floss. travel". And I thought...how appropriate for me. But there are so many more I never bothered to glance at. Today, they clicked for me...I think this lulu chick is onto something. So, think about the below. I don't preach lifestyles to people (or at least I try not to) but I certainly know what I believe in, and I think lulu and I are on the same page.

"Drink fresh water and as much water as you can. Water flushes unwanted toxins from your body and keeps your brain sharp".

"Life is full of setbacks. Success is determined by how you handle setbacks"

"Creativity is maximized when youre living in the moment. Nature wants us to be mediocre because we have a greater chance to survive and reproduce. Mediocrity is as close to the bottom as it is to the top, and will give you a lousy life"

"Visualize your eventual demise. It can have an amazing effect on how you live"

"Live near the ocean and inhale the pure salt air that flows over the water"

(me breathing the salt water air, and living life in the moment)

"Sweat once a day to regenerate your skin"

"Children are the orgasm of life. Just like you did not know what an orgasm was until you had one, nature does not let you know how great children are until you have them"

"The conscious brain can only hold one thought at a time. Choose a positive thought"

"What we do to the earth, we do to ourselves"

"Your outlook on life is a direct reflection on how much you like yourself"

~Hope this can be of use to you today. Now breathe deeply, and feed yourself well.
xxx

Strawberries, Shortcakes, & Cream (oh my)

Another rainy summer day means “plan b” for how to spend free time. Some go to the movies, or do arts and crafts. I have spent some recent rainy days painting walls in my apartment, reading, and most commonly cooking and baking. Baking can be therapeutic, but unlike cooking needs to be done accurately (please, no “a little of this, a little of that”)… baking is chemistry. A beach or a park was the original plan for this day, but when the thunder and lightning woke me up, baking happened instead. It is a “semi” from scratch creation that fit in well for Fourth of July weekend. Individual strawberry shortcakes with a homemade whipped cream took less than 45 minutes to make and reminded me of a southern comfort dessert. There are three simple steps:
1. Make biscuits. A friend and I made the biscuits using Bisquick mix (there is the “semi” homemade explanation). I love Bisquick. I feel Bisquick, just like Kraft, are the kinds of food products that bring you back to childhood. This is the first time in three years I have used Bisquick for cooking, so I do not want to send the wrong message that these products are super healthy. (But boy are they delish).
2. Beat one cup of whipping cream until soft peaks form
3. Pour ¼ cup of sugar over sliced strawberries and set aside. The sugar will dissolve and the strawberries will start to appear “glaze-y” and “gooey”.
After the biscuits are cooled, slice them open and layer strawberries and cream as you wish. For the holiday, feel free to stick little American Flags in them also, because they can help hold the shape of the crumbly dessert while also looking adorable.

What I noticed about this dessert, was that while I made it in my apartment, I was planning on traveling with them to a BBQ that evening. This dessert is not easy to travel with. What I ended up doing was bagging all of the ingredients separately and assembling them together at the BBQ right before serving. Other than that, this recipe was easy as shortcake.


Happy Fourth of July. Hope yours was filled with red, white, and blue foods….and fireworks (whether literally, or metaphorically).
Love love love.

Heat Wave

Dear New York,
Now that we are in the month of June, you are starting to look appealing again. We become a complicated relationship between New Years Day and now, since during these months you bring nothing to the table except wind, sleet, slush, and smelly subway stations. Since many of us here do not own cars, we are forced to either be that person standing on the corner trying to hail a cab as trucks go by splashing puddles, and as the wind blows our umbrella backwards; or…we surrender to mass transit. While walking carefully down the subway stairs and folding our broken umbrellas in, we cram onto the subway, no one smiles or says good morning. The train is moving at a snails pace because of flooding, or any other issue the MTA can think of. To top it all off, the tourism people of Aruba, always (always) choose to advertise in the subways this time of year, forcing us riders (who avoid eye contact with each other) to just stare at pictures of Aruba for our entire morning commute. We all put up with it though; because we know it is just a phase. Soon enough, women across the 5 boroughs are taking back out the sundresses, and strappy open toe shoes, and men are cat calling from every corner, because they too…are excited for sundress season. So with this pleasant weather again, what am I most excited for? Walking. After months of bank statements that seemed just not right, I can finally fix the lines beyond lines of checking account deductions due to bad weather cab rides. I am again free, to walk and enjoy the scenery.
To clarify, the weather change does not make the subway better. It will still smell, just now it will smell like sweat instead of wet shoes. People will still avoid eye contact with each other, and no one will say good morning; but thankfully the Aruba signs are down (I mean really, just go away Aruba tourism people). Other perks to the new season? Ice coffees are back, and “park days” are once again added to the list of “justifiable reasons why I am going to avoid responsibility today”.
So now, the peak of our love is once again in season. Similar to relationships with people, it is not about seeing someone perfectly; it is about being aware of imperfections, and still thinking they’re the best thing since DVR. New York, your winters suck, your subway service has gotten worse with nothing but a price increase for my ticket to ride, and yes; I believe you are slightly high on something when you post the rents for your apartments. But I am still looking forward to sharing the upcoming, sunny months with you. I plan on being in a pleasant mood, constantly, from now until Labor Day.
Your loyal (and broke) tenant,
Jessica

love = baked goods

I found the idea for these chick and egg cupcakes on the food network. I made a few changes to the recipe, and ultimately ended up with organic lemon cupcakes, a made from scratch vegan frosting, and an adorable looking "easter basket" on top made from food dyed bakers coconut, mini cadbury eggs, and of course...peeps! A cupcake is still a cupcake, but I believe when you adapt a healthy lifestyle of allowing the sweet things in moderation, you can absolutely enjoy these treats guilt free. In my opinion, the best part about baking is giving out the goodies to friends and family. I have an odd obsession with watching people eat. I love to see people I love, smile and go "wow!" and then say "this is so delicious!". I feel that when you spend time in the kitchen preparing treats or meals...you have put more love into this kind of gift than any kind of material gift could relay. And so the title of this blog is born.

The frosting is so simple! Thanks to soy products these days such as Earth Balance soy butter, and soy milk, I was able to make a vegan frosting (great for those who are watching their cholesterol since this is dairy free). Ingredients include sugar, soy milk, soy butter, non hydrogenated shortening, and vanilla extract.


My "grass" was made by tossing bakers shredded coconut in a bowl with green and yellow food dye. 3 green to 1 yellow ratio worked best for me. After you reach your best color, place the grass on parchment paper and bake at 250 for 10-15 minutes or until dry.


Frosting the cupcakes, placing the grass on top, and then finishing with mini cadbury eggs as you like. Peeps are rather large, even when I bought the smallest size they sold. They look great for decorating, but they are not practical for eating. It is expected that your guests may remove half the toppings before eating, but the initial reaction makes it all worth it.

Some of my finished product. Happy Easter to all who celebrated. :)

lots of love (with extra frosting)
xxx