Quinoa Pancakes

Quinoa Pancakes

1 1/2 cups Quinoa Flour (Ancient Harvest)
3/4 cup Potato Flour (Ener-G)
1.5 tablespoons Baking Powder (Hain Featherweight)
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 cup Coconut Milk (Thai Kitchen)
1 cup Water
1.5 tablespoons Coconut Oil
2 tablespoons raw honey (or Maple Syrup)

Mix all the dry ingredients together well and then mix in the wet ones. After ensuring there are no lumps, make sure to let the batter sits for at least five minutes. It'll ensure that the batter thickens due to the starch, making sure the pancakes sticks together properly.

To cook, heat a few tablespoons of oil in a pan; you'll need a decent amount of oil to make sure it won't stick to the pan. Cook it like a normal pancake otherwise, flipping when each side is brown and the bubbles are showing before the initial flip.

Enjoy!

Riga, Latvia

A Brief History
Riga, like it’s northern cousin Tallinn, is a fairly old city. It dates back to the 12th century and if I recollect correctly, was founded (in a significant way) by a group of merchants at the behest of the Archdiocese of the region. The actual city area has been a living area for centuries before that time, however. While Latvia was not conquered by the Danes at any point, the Teutonic Order and the Principality of Novgorod (Novgorod is actually Russia’s oldest city) both controlled and fought over it’s land. Alexander Nevsky’s defeat of the Order at the Battle of Lake Peipus in 1242 happened in Latvia and halted Teutonic expansion to the north for a full century; it also had a Russian militia defeat heavily armored and well trained Western knights, which is impressive to say the least. Later the Swedes and Polish(as part of the Polish-Lithuanian state) would both fight over the land until the Russians finally annexed it at the same time it took Estonia in the 18th century. Latvia, like Estonia and Lithuania, declared independence from Russia in 1918 during the revolution. In the same trend, they lost it again after WWII and the German then Soviet occupations. In 1991, they regained their independence from the USSR.
Riga is a fairly large city, with a population of over 700,000 people(which comprises near 30% the country’s total population). The Old Town itself is much larger than in Tallinn; it contains more businesses and residences then the latter does, however. In such, it follows the more Western European trend of having an old town that still functions as a fairly regular part of the city, though admittedly with more touristy things than normal.

The Architecture and City Feel
Interestingly enough, Riga is one of the best examples in the world of extensive German Art Nouveau architecture. Nearly the entirety of the old town and significant swathes of the city outside of what is considered “old town” are in the style as well. UNESCO considers it unparalleled anywhere else in the world. Riga seems to have suffered significantly less damage in WWII than Tallinn did, though the neglect to this style of building during the Soviet era(and their architectural style) are both quite present.
Overall, the city has a much more Western, especially German, slant to it then Tallinn did. Considering the history of the city and it’s interaction with the Teutonic Order(which is Germanic), this isn’t very surprising. The lack of significant Russian influence was more so, though.

Culture
Now not only was I only in Riga for two days but the weather during them was dreadful. Whilst it didn’t outright rain, it was overcast, windy, and chilly for the entire time barring the first night there. The first night I didn’t see much of the city, as I didn’t arrive until six in the evening from Tallinn. I did discover, however, that happy hour starts at one in the morning on a Friday night; this seems a bit ludicrous to me, but I’m not their demographic as well.
All I can truly say about the city is that it had a distinct Western and Catholic influence. It was beautifully blended with the Slavic influence from the East and their own unique Baltic culture. The Churches and more official buildings were often in a Germanic style, not Russian or Swedish. They are quite accepting of the Russians though, or at least most have accepted they must have at least some Basic Russian skills to be able to function easily in society (a large segment of the population is Russian) though the youth seems less keen on learning Russian, preferring only Lithuanian or English for foreigners.

Food & Cuisine
I didn’t go out to eat at all in Riga, surprisingly enough. The reason was partly trying to save a bit of money but more so because Riga hosts the largest open-air market in all of the Baltics. It’s absolutely massive(Eastern Market kind of massive, for you Detroiters) and features just about anything you’d want within their cuisine. There were massive open produce areas, plentiful cheese markets, butchers, and pickled items plentiful (freshly made sauerkraut is always delightful). So naturally, I vouched for getting fresh produce and making Dill Lentil soup amongst other things.
The Hare Krishnas have a restaurant in the city though; you can always go to them to eat ☺. The woman who ran the hostel seemed fairly aware of veganism as well, so I’m sure one can find some pretty good eating establishments in the city.

Tallinn, Estonia

A Brief History
Tallinn is a city that first gained a significant size in the 11th century; in the 13th century it was conquered by Danish forces and put under their domain. They sold it to the Teutonic Knights* along with other lands in the 1300’s. In 1561 it was conquered by the Swedish Crown and put under its administration, along with Finland, for centuries to come. The most recent and significant occupations were those by the Russians. Imperial Russia gained control of Estonia and Finland in the Northern War against Sweden(1710) during the Napoleonic Era. They gained their independence in 1918 during the Bolshevik uprising and maintained it until the German Occupation from 1941 to 1944 and the subsequent Soviet governance. Tallinn was heavily damaged by Soviet bombing March of 1944; some of the scars of this are still visible in the city. The Estonians regained independence in 1991 from the USSR.

While being the largest city in Estonia, Tallinn is of fairly small size when it comes to land area. The growth was heavily restricted by both Imperial Russia favoring it being a military stronghold and the Soviets heavily favoring industry over residential development. The suburbs are growing at a good rate; however, they aren’t what I got to see or have great interest in. Tallinn’s old town is primarily contained within the old fortress walls, with the majority of them still there and in quite good condition. The old town has even been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site and in my mind, rightly so.

The Architecture and City Feel
Tallinn really shows a mixture of Russian, Finnish, and Swedish influence in its buildings. While they are not nearly as pompous in their buildings as the Swedes or as utilitarian as the average Finnish structure, they often resemble them in the basic ideas of the buildings and windows. If I’m not mistaken, the person who designed the center of Helsinki also designed parts of Tallinn’s old town. The Russian influence is most evident in their governmental buildings and churches; onions and bulbous spires are frequent in the city. The often straight line and practical approach of the non-orthodox churches gives the strong impression of Finnish and Swedish designs. Overall, the city looks like a Russified version of Helsinki, though more compact and containing all of its older buildings in a relatively small area.

Culture
Now I can’t really speak much of Estonian culture, I was only there for around 36 hours. By the knick-knacks they sell, much of the traditional things are much like what an American would think the Russians are like, though more Pagan, for the lack of a better word. The Robes, the herbs, and archers practicing their skills within the castle wall all give the feeling of being less steeped in Christian tradition and having held onto the Pagan ones a bit stronger. Now I wouldn’t be horribly surprised if the Pagan traditions were still more prominent in the Baltics, as they are in some respects in the Scandinavian countries and the Christianization of the land came later than most of Europe.
As an anecdote though, I did meet quite an interesting man. He was a member of the Estonian military(military service is mandatory for all males for either 9 or 11 months, giving you the rank of private or corporal, respectively) who had served in Afghanistan with, I believe, the 2nd US Marine Battalion. He seemed to have been invigorated by his experience there and was going on another tour in 5 months; he was also hoping to join the US Marines and get a Green card and eventually move to NYC (unsurprising choice, but it really does have a bit of everything). I just found it to be another one of those chance encounters to meet and Estonian who had served with the US Marines in Afghanistan; I can’t imagine there are actually that many of them. With him was a Russian-Estonian** who was still in his studies; he said he was training to become a medic and would go on tour when his schooling was complete.

Food & Cuisine
Possibly the most pleasant surprise in Tallinn was the prevalence of world cuisine that was well done. There were, of course, Estonian restaurants but there were also Russian, German, Indian, Chinese, Thai, African, Polish, and Italian restaurants (their may have been others I did not notice or go by). Now I’m aware this is somewhat common in larger cities, especially in the United States but to find such a thing in Baltic States in city of only 600,000 was quite surprising. Belgrade and Sofia were significantly larger cities but I found no such restaurants and had a much harder time getting by. For my fellow vegans and vegetarians out there, I can whole-heartedly recommend these two restaurants:

Elevant – An eclectic Indian restaurant, with a variety of dishes. There were quite a few curries on the menu as well as Masalas. It was a bit on the pricier side but the serving was very large and the food was excellent. Price range €8-10 per meal, with only water(they charge you for it, apparently).

African Kitchen (Uus 32/34, Tallinn 10111 Estonia) – A restaurant that seems to draw its inspirations from a variety of African cuisines, though it did seem to lack in Ethiopian food (I can’t imagine Teff is easy to find in Estonia though, I couldn’t find it in Sweden either). I had Ebe, which was potatoes and black eyed peas in a tomato coconut sauce, quite tasty. There are 7 or 8 vegetarian meals, half of which are fully vegan(the others have whipped cream in the sauce). The waitress at this restaurant even asked me if I was a vegan when I asked about butter in the dish! I’ve never actually gotten that before, there must be fair number of vegans frequenting Tallinn apparently :). Meals are around €5-7, with drinks often being €2-3. First good Rosé wine I’ve had in Europe since Bulgaria as well.

* – The Teutonic influence and the forced Christianization of Europe still has a few relics there; occasionally I saw Teutonic figurines and their influence in the Catholic churches. It’s an absolutely fascinating history.
** – Russians are a very large minority in Estonia; around a quarter of the population is ethnically Russian and an even larger amount can still speak and understand it, especially those old enough to have been present for the Soviet years.

The Nations! (And Fika!)

Hmm, I am terrible at updating. As if that's a surprise. But that's not very interesting, what is interesting is:

Student Nations!
There are thirteen student nations at Uppsala University, each one representing a different district of Sweden(Stockholms nation, Uplands for the province of Uppsala, etc..). As a side note, there are more than 13 districts in Sweden; just not all the nations were created at the same time and some have merged together to form one larger nation. If you want a list of them, go here. They were originally created as a method of controlling the unruly student populace; as was the norm in the Renaissance, all the students at university were very wealthy(and therefore often petulant) people. Therefore, the city and university made nations and forced people to join the nation of their respective hometown as a way of ensuring that the information got back there whenever they did a misdeed. I think it's a pretty clever way of controlling the students, to be honest. People no longer are forced to join any nation now, however; they choose which one they want off what the different nations offer.

I joined Uplands nation, the local nation of Uppsala and the surrounding region. It has around 2600 members, making it a medium sized nation; the largest has over 5000 and the smallest around 800. The only person that I can think of that is of international renown that was part of the nation is Arrhenius, the chemist & physicist. But I digress; Uplands nation has various clubs within it such as movie club and a game club which are pretty awesome. They also jazz night and a kashmiri restaurant, both of which I've heard good things about. All the nations have their own pub, almost all have a nightclub, different hobby clubs(almost all have a band and some sort of theater group), offer housing to their members(housing is very difficult to come by in Uppsala because it is a highly regulated market), and often will give out scholarships as well. Overall, the nations are the backbone of socialization in Uppsala; their really isn't much to do in the city outside of the nations.

Fika
Most simply, Fika is coffee with a sweet pastry. It's a social event which all the swedes participate in with great regularity(which is something because in the winter they aren't even vaguely sociable). At Fika, one will have coffee, eat pastries, and socialize with friends usually by candlelight; it creates a very nice and relaxing atmosphere. Fika is also practiced in the summer, merely minus the candlelight(as it's no longer necessary due to the long days). It doesn't seem overly unique of an action to me, just the devotion to it is more of a Swedish thing than elsewhere.

An Introduction to Uppsala!

From now until June 6th, I will be student at Uppsala Universitet! It's one of the premier universities in Scandinavia, as well as the oldest, having been founded in 1477 by the Catholic Church, though it has long since broken from those roots. It's now associated with the Church Of Sweden, a Lutheran denomination. It's had quite the storied history, with scholars such as Celsius and Linnaeus(he created the dual name system used for naming plants that is still in use). I'm not going to really ramble on about the history, but you can read more here(it's quite interesting, to be honest).

Uppsala

I'm going to skip talking about traveling here, as it was a wholly unexciting experience. Instead, Uppsala is worthy of conversation! It's a city much like Ann Arbor, MI but much calmer because people always ride bikes instead of insisting on attempting to drive everywhere. It's a fairly lively city, though the college students are usually fairly contained by the Nations, which I will explain in more detail later. Since the university itself exists from 1477, one can correctly presume that the city itself dates much older than the university itself; it was once one of the main centers of paganism in Sweden, as can be seen in Burial mounds north of the city. A Catholic Bishop was installed here in 1164, and the Cathedral was built in the 1400's. The cathedral is magnificent:



Some say it's not as nice as other Cathedrals because it's built of local stone instead of imported quarry stone; I think such a concept is absurd. It's of amazing style and I think the brick makes it more unique looking, it's the only cathedral I've ever seen in that style and the brick colors give a textured look.

The other thing of note in the city is how colorful it is: large volumes of the buildings are colored in pink, yellow, or green. It's not the occasional building either, it's the majority. I'm not sure why, though I would guess it's because you get somewhat desperate for color in the middle of the winter, as it's more often cloudy here than not and at the current moment there is right around five hours of light. And that's a month after the winter solstice, mind you. So I can't really blame them in that respect.



The Swedes have different ways of dealing with the dark, which I'll explain in my next post with the Nations :)

Rice & Tomato Dish

Being a poor college student is catching up to me; I haven't been able to go grocery shopping in the two weeks since my parents came out due to a lack of funds. Unfortunate as this is, it does give me the opportunity to be more creative in my cooking skills(lest I be eating white rice plain). Furthermore, since my mother was kind enough to bring me some home-canned tomatoes when she came out to visit, I decided that a nice rice & tomato dish sounded nice, despite the fact that I had no idea how to cook such a thing. This leads to the natural conclusion: mix alot of stuff in a bowl and see if it turns out well. Thankfully, it did.

Rice & Tomato Bake

1 cup long grain rice, any variety(wild rice would actually be very nice)
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 large Onion, chopped
5-6 cloves Garlic, minced

1 tbsp Spanish Paprika
2 tsp Cilantro
3/4 tsp Thyme
3/4 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Sea Salt

1 pint jar of tomatoes(canned tomatoes are unsafe; if you don't can tomatoes yourself use about 2-3 large tomatoes instead, cutting them up and stewing them beforehand)
1 1/2 2 cups water

Mix everything in a large metal bowl, making sure the spices are stirred in very well. Start on the lesser side of the water, you can add in more later. Put it in a baking pan and bake at 350˚ for around 1 hour, 15 minutes, checking on it every 25 minutes or so to make sure it hasn't dried out. If the water level seems too low, just pour more water on and mix it all up well; after it bakes for another five minutes nobody will be able to tell that you ever did this anyway. It's finished when the rice is nice and soft.

As for the spices, the amounts of each can be increased or decreased as to preference; I didn't actually measure anything that was going into the dish besides the rice. Oregano and rosemary would both be fairly nice, and hot pepper could be added if an extra kick was desired.

Happy Cooking :)

Herbal Remedies Three

My herb collection just keeps growing, yes. A man does need a hobby after all. My tinctures are done as well, so I can testify towards the effectiveness of some of these herbs in that form. The others I've only used externally so I can give them a thumbs up in that respect(as can over a thousand years of herbal lore).

Pokeroot - This is probably the most dangerous herb I'll mention, so take note of that. You are to take a single drop of the tincture per day to help overcome colds, chest infections, etc.. as it works as cleanser of the lymphatic system among other things. Do not use for more than two weeks and dear lord, do not overdose(I've heard stories of people becoming lightheaded and ill from 2-3 drops a day). From my experience it's quite effective though.

Pleurisy Root - It is an herb for the affliction within it's very name, "Pleurisy"(known to me as "The Royal Clusterf*ck", but that's another discussion). Pleurisy is when the pleura, a membrane between your lungs and chest wall become inflamed to a viral or fungal infection(rarely the latter). It's insufferably painful, causes severe, unexplainable weight loss, and basically makes you meaner than a rabid wolverine on cocaine. So basically, anything that can help with it's pain is a godsend(the hospital just gives you tylenol or vicodin and tells you to duke it out). It's an expectorant, a diuretic, a cathartic, and an anti-spasmodic. As well as helping with the inflammation a bit. The only thing to worry about is the diuretic part, as it could cause a potassium or calcium deficiency if used in the long term.

Devil's Claw Root - This is probably one of the more popular up-and-coming herbs used today. It's an anti-inflammatory and a pain killer used for chronic issues such as arthritis and cancer(I've heard first hand about it being a supplement for cancer patients from doctors). It's also sometimes used as a digestive aid, though that is up in the air. This is easily found in Europe in Standardized extracts, especially in Germany(Germany has a regulated medicinal market of herbs, unlike the US). It needs to be used continuously to be most effective, but it has been shown to be effective.

Yarrow - This is a perennial herb of ancient renown. It was known as herbal militaris because the fresh or re-hydrated leaves can be applied to wounds to help staunch the blood flow and as an antiseptic. It is also used internally for the treatment of severe bruises and inflammation, both useful after battles. Yarrow is also said to help induce sweating, lower fever, help digestion, and aid in menstruation. It's a must have in the cabinet of just about anyone.

Myrrh - Yes, Myrrh. As in "Frankincense, Myrrh, and Gold" kind of Myrrh. This tree resin, likely originating in what is present day Somalia/Yemen Region, used to be worth it's weight in gold to the people of the biblical times. This is because it's a potent anti-septic, often used today to ensure oral sanitation and hygiene. Myrrh is also a component in some perfumes/incense and liqueurs. I use it to make a toothpaste along with a few other things.

Egg Substitute

Many vegan recipes call for eggs to be substituted with "Ener-G" egg substitute. However, this is filled with corn and does not bode well for us. I figured I'd post this substitute than can be used in leu of it, for future reference:

Ener-G Type Egg Replacer

1 cup potato starch
3/4 cup tapioca flour
2 tsps baking powder

Mix all well.
Store in airtight container.

To use:
1 & 1/2 tsp powder + 2 Tbs water = 1 egg.
1 & 1/2 tsp powder + 1 Tbs water = 1 egg yolk.

I got this off of a GardenWeb forum, which is a very useful site. If you want to see the other useful egg substitutes, check out www.theppk.com; Isa give a full explanation for each.

Herbal Remedies Two

I'm jumping into Herbal medicine more and more these days. Since pleurisy has become my White Whale of sorts and doctors don't really seem to be helpful in anyway, herbs are my last refuge. I recently ordered a stock of herbs for respiratory ailments, most notably "Pleurisy Root", to treat the affliction of that name. I've discovered some other herbs of use in the meantime though.

First, however, it is good to know how to make a tincture:

Get your hands on some decent quality, 80 or 100 proof potato vodka(I use Luksusowa). Warm apple cider can also be used, from what I've heard. Mix one part herb per five parts alcohol and let it sit for at least four weeks, preferably six. While it is brewing, I recommend putting them in a canning jar and tightly sealing the lid; store in a cool, dark place as well. At the end of the brewing time, strain the herb out, squeezing it strongly to get all the fluid you can. Store it in amber bottles to protect from sunlight damage and make sure it's away from children, as they are very potent and can cause harm if misused.

Another Warning: Do not ingest essential oils of herbs unless you have the

expressed consent of a medical professional. Most are highly toxic in even small amounts.

Thyme - This stuff is truly a lifesaver. It is a potent anti-septic(especially if you have the refined oil, though that is dangerous to use internally, a few teaspoons will kill you), a digestive aid, and an excellent cough remedy. To make thyme tea, seep 1-2 tsp in a cup of boiling water for ten minutes. The stronger the tea, the better really. Also, if you mix in around 2 tbsp of honey per cup of extremely strong thyme tea and cook it down, you can make your own cough syrup. To use as an anti-septic, make a tincture and apply a few drops to the cleaned wound.

Cayenne(Red Pepper) - It is more proper to say "Red Pepper", as Cayenne is not actually a very common pepper in terms of quantity of sale in the US and any truly hot pepper will do the job. It can be used as a digestive aid, chronic pain, shingles, and cluster headaches. It is most commonly taken as an infusion, where 1/4-1/2 tsp will be used per cup of water after a meal(it will probably upset your stomach if you haven't eaten). To help with chronic pain, mix 1/2 tsp of the powder per cup of warm vegetable oil and apply to the areas in pain. Before you think that's just going to burn and feel unpleasant, remember that capsaicin, one of the active constituents of Red Pepper, is commonly used in pain creams and lotions. And don't forget to just put some in your food for some spice!

Cloves - I unremittingly love cloves in pretty much any context. I love clove tea, cloves in my smoothies, cloves in my hot toddies, and cloves in my baked goods, naturally. Cloves, besides being delicious, can serve three very useful functions: a digestive aid, a disinfectant, and an oral anesthetic. The last is most commonly done with the essential oil: as your doctor about that stuff that they rub in your mouth before shots; it most likely contains clove oil. If you drink clove tea it is much less potent but it will still cause a slight numbing of the tongue and mouth. As a digestive aid, make the tea out of 1-2 tsp of ground cloves per cup of boiling water and let it steep for at 10 minutes. I warn you,

however, that if you're new to the tea you'll want to err on the side of less, not more, as the tea is very strong tasting. The tea can also be used as mouthwash.

Allspice - This is actually the berry of a large tree found in the Caribbean(native) and south of the Border in various places. It can do basically all the same functions as cloves can, though it is not an anti-bacterial. The tea of 1 tsp of the powder per cup of boiling water is a good digestive aid and a slight oral anesthetic. If you live somewhere that you can get the fresh berries, you can crush them and apply that to painful joints and muscles for some relief. For us northerners, it is just a delightful tea and spice.

Cilantro(Coriander) - As a digestive aid, it is not a very potent one compared to peppermint or chamomile. However, coriander seeds have an amazing citrus and sage flavor that is a delight in a tea. Seed 1 tsp of bruised seeds(or 1/2 tsp powder) per cup of water for five minutes. The fresh, bruised leaves can also be used as a temporary anti-septic.

Pysillum - I guarantee you that you have seen this plant more than pretty much any plant in your life. It grows literally anywhere; it pops through sidewalks, in fields, in your yard, even through the heat of blacktop. The brand named laxative aid Metamucil is basically ground pysillum seeds. What is this prevalent herb? The plant in flower:

If you still don't recognize it, get the hell out of your house and go look at your sidewalk. You will find that, and its' large broad leaves fairly shortly. The leaves are what I'm more interested in anyway. Take the leaves, crush them, and apply them to rashes, bites, burns, or anything that itches and it'll take away all that sensation within a few minutes. The small leaves can also be eaten as a salad green; the larger ones are more bitter and stringy, so avoid them.

As a general rule of thumb, limit the intake of tincture to 1-3 mL(.2-.6 teaspoons. A shallow 1/4 tsp to shallow 3/4 tsp) and infusions(tea) to three cups a day. Always check for verification, as some herbs you want a very small amount; I'll mention that in my next herbal post.

Raw Chocolate Pudding

Pudding is not something that a vegan should really crave or try to eat: they're basically egg yolks, starch, and sugar cooked together to make a creamy delight. I am, however, an overwhelming stubborn person. I wanted some damn pudding and I will get some pudding. However, this recipe didn't really come from that craving, it came from me messing attempting to make an avocado drink(don't ask). Enough of my ranting though, here it is:

Almost Raw Chocolate Pudding

2-3 Medium Hass Avocados

2 Tbsp Maple Syrup(to taste)

2-3 Tbsp Raw Cocao Powder(you can also use 1/4-1/3 cup of chocolate chips you melt in a pan)

Water until proper consistency.

This is as easy as it looks: Put the avocado flesh into a blender with the water and syrup. Mix well and add in the cocao/melted chips. Mix well and then add more chocolate or syrup to taste. It'll hold in the fridge for a day or two and is excellent with fresh fruit.

My First Mustard

Goddamn, it has been forever since I've posted. I attribute that to laziness, illness, and an actual dislike of writing(don't ask why I'm writing this, I don't have enough energy to answer). But to get to the point:
Making My Own Mustards!!!

Now, I hadn't eaten mustard in a year, as that was how long it'd been since I realized this whole corn thing. However, mustard is one of my favorite condiments and is very useful in cooking(especially Dijon). I decided to start my adventure with a very basic brown mustard, assuming that it would be hard to mess up. Luckfully, I was correct in the assumption. This mustard is spicy with a slight sweetness to it as well. It mellows out after the initial punch and leaves a delightful aftertaste. A few more comments after the recipe:

Basic Coarse Brown Mustard
1/3 cup Brown Mustard Seeds
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp Raw Apple Cider Vinegar(I use Eden Organic, you could use any safe apple cider vinegar though)
1 clove Garlic, halved3 tbsp water
3 tbsp Raw Honey(I trust Raw honey over processed; the flavor is also far superior)
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
1 pinch ground cinnamon
Mix the seeds, apple cider vinegar, and the garlic together in a cup and let it sit in the fridge for at least two days. This process is called "blooming" and can be done in as little as 36 hours, though the longer you let it sit(though not too long as it just goes bad), the more mellow and nice the flavors will become. If you don't let it bloom at all, it will be pure fire and taste terrible.
Remove the garlic from the mixture and add the rest of it to a food process(or a blender, though the processor is easier). Add the water in as well and blend until somewhat smooth; it will stay fairly coarse even if you process it for a while, so don't worry on that front. Put in the honey, sea salt, and cinnamon and mix well. I know that seems like a large amount of honey, but believe me, you'll need it.
Keep the honey in a tight sealed container and it should store for a while. If you let it sit for a few days you'll notice the flavor changing; that is normal and enjoy the variety.

The finished product:


*I got this recipe from a gardening forum, in case anyone was wondering.

Almond and Pepita Butters

I am in hardcore love with Almond Butter. I honestly eat the stuff every single day, a few tablespoons a day. Now I understand that most people would recoil from that, saying it "has too much fat", but my insistence is that fat is a very good thing. The only reason people really have to fear fat is because either they eat too much processed foods, which mess with your system in a plethora of ways, especially with respect to fat, or they eat too many fatty animal products. Since neither of these apply to me, I really don't care about what the USDA says about my "daily intake"(or pretty much anything else the USDA has to say either, really). Furthermore, nuts are filled with mono and unsaturated fats, which are proving to be good for heart health and proper weight control(Ahh, irony). I made my first pepita(raw pumpkin seed) butter today and I found it excellent spread on fruit. So eat up and enjoy, these butters are amazing:

Almond Butter

1 cup raw almonds(technically almonds from California are not strictly raw, they've been steamed and are ordered by law to be so in order to avoid salmonella outbreaks)

1/2 tsp sea salt(optional)

Put the almonds in a food processor. Chop the almonds for twelve to fifteen minutes until they become a smooth butter, and the following steps of the butter should be seen:

- First the butter should become a meal, and regular scrapping of the outside of the food processor is going to be necessary.

- The meal will begin to stick together and ball up and will stay like this for around half to one minute, it will them break back apart into a meal.

- The meal will quickly turn into a butter but it will need to be processed for a few more minutes to get that proper smoothness and shine that one expects from an almond butter.

This may take as little as 10 minutes, depending upon your food processor and the freshness of your almonds. As a rule, use as fresh as almond as possible because otherwise you'll have to add oil to get the proper smoothness. Do not soak the almonds before making the butter though because it will never get pas the initial meal stage; I learned that the hard way.

This butter is much faster than the almond butter:

Pepita Butter(Raw Pumpkin Seed)

1 cup pumpkin seeds

2-3 tbsp pumpkin oil(I have yet to find raw pumpkin seed oil, so I used refined sunflower oil because it doesn't have a flavor strong enough to effect the butter's flavor)

1/4-1/2 tsp sea salt

Put the pumpkin seeds in a food processor and run on high until they make a fine meal, this will only take a few minutes at most. Slowly add in the oil a tablespoon at a time until the butter becomes nice and smooth. The amount of oil will depend on the moisture content and quality of the seeds. Add the sea salt in once the desired consistency is reached and mix it one last time.

You can use either of these butters anywhere that you use peanut butter for allergy reasons or just to get a new twist to things. I'm currently searching for raw peanuts(fairly difficult to find) and will make a post about peanut butter when I finally find them.

Carrot Beet Curry Soup

My oh my, it is one delicious soup. I admit, it may sound odd at first glance but I assure you, it is one of the most amazing soups I've had in a while. The sweetness of the carrots and golden beets, along with the curry and coconut milk make an amazingly filling meld of goodness. I originally found a recipe online for a vegetable curry that they decided to make into a soup and I decided to accommodate the basic idea to what I have on hand. It's an easy soup to make and you will not regret it.

Golden Beet & Carrot Curry Soup

3 large golden beets, cut into around .5 x 1 inch segments(wing it)
1 bunch of carrots(around five or six, I believe), cut into ≈1 inch segments
1 large onion, cut into crescents
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2-3 tbsp Yellow Curry Powder(I opted toward the larger amount, as I love curry powder)
1/2-1 tsp salt
The zest of one lemon, cut into thin strips*

2-3 cups water
1 can of coconut milk
Lemon juice, to taste



*If you have lemongrass, cut the amount of ginger in half and omit the lemon zest. Use one six-inch piece of stalk, quartered and sliced thin instead.

There really was no methodology to making this soup to be honest; I had started cooking the beets in the water and decided I didn't want another repetitive beet & carrot soup so I winged making this instead. Basically, throw everything except the lemon juice in a large pot and simmer it until the beets and carrots are soft, then run it through a food processor. Add more salt or lemon juice to taste if you wish. It should probably take 30 minutes or so. Serve hot.

Harvest Co-Op

I was literally giddy with joy today. Why? Because I not only found Eden Organic tomatoes(the only canned tomatoes I've personally seen that are only tomatoes, no citric acid crap), I also found some Willow Run soybean margarine at the same place. What is this nice place you ask? Why, the Harvest Co-Op Market, right by Central Square in Cambridge, MA. I know, not very useful for anybody who's not in the Boston metro area, but very useful to us(it's the only place I know of that sells either of these goods). Also, the place being a co-op has fringe benefits:
- Community owned and proceeds go to them, not some unknown corporation
- Have local produce when in season
- Mostly fair-trade and organic
- Has a nice cafe that serves many different teas
- Bulk spice area(I don't buy spices in bulk usually due to contamination concerns. However, I always buy Bay Leaves and whole seeds in bulk, as they are always extremely overpriced, especially Bay leaves).
- They're nice people.

They also have white willow bark in bulk form, as to make a tea from. As far as I know, the tea is supposed to be fairly bitter but still have the anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. They also sell gelatin and vegetable capsules(which I do not trust) in bulk, so I guess one could make their own white willow bark pills, if you had a way of measuring the weight needed for each pill. I just don't know how safe it is to buy the herb in bulk.

It's a bit of a hike from Boston College, but it was well worth it. Check the nice people out.

Almond Cheese!

When I went to the Prana Cafe the other day, I had some nut cheese there. It was the first time I'd actually eaten it but I had heard about it before many times. Now if you're being really strict about it, it wouldn't truly constitute a cheese because it doesn't undergo the formal fermentation and separation process(though I have heard of a company in NYC that does make true nut cheeses, they are expensive as hell though). However, I did ferment this cheese for a day to make the flavor a bit more full bodied and complex tasting. The texture is much like a ricotta cheese and the taste, though not like cheese, is quite good and unique. I would recommend giving it a shot for anybody who (occasionally) misses the nice, rich cheese often used in things like ravioli. The basic gist of how to do it:

- Take 1 cup of raw almonds and soak them for at least twelve hours in water at room temperature. This should start them sprouting, which makes the proteins more easy to digest and nutritious. Take the almonds and pinch them to pop off their skin. If the skins won't come off easily and the almonds aren't fairly engorged, then allow them to soak for a longer time until it's easy to pop the skin off.
- Put all the skinned almonds in a blender, they should fill to around the two cup mark. Add water up to the 3.5-4 cup area, and blend the almonds for at least five minutes on high speed(use ice crush in the beginning to chop all the almonds up initially, your blender will thank you). Pour this mixture into a bowl and cover it with a towel or cheesecloth and let it ferment for twelve hours.
- Using either a sprouting sack or cheesecloth, separate the cheese curd from the whey. Let it continue to drain for another twelve hours. It is optional at this point to put the cheese in the fridge; try the curd and see if you like the flavor. If you want it to be a bit more flavorful and sour, let it sit out at room temperature at this point(if it's hot where you are, I would recommend putting it in the fridge regardless. It's be quite sad if it went bad).

That's all. Take the curd off the cheese cloth or out of the sack and eat is however you wish. I've been using it as a spread in wraps, though it is commonly used as a fake cheese in raw pizzas and would be excellent on crackers with fruit. Watch out for how much you eat at one time though, as it is very rich and it could make you feel ill if you eat more than around a quarter cup at a time. It should hold for around five days in the fridge.

As for the whey, it is commonly used in salad dressings or to add a flavor to raw soups. I unfortunately did not know what to do with it and let it it out considerably longer and threw it out due to fear that it went bad. I vow that I will find some tasty use for it though, it seems promising.

This can also be done with other nuts, especially cashews and macadamia nuts due to their high fat contents. I believe you follow the same procedure for cashews but you skip the soaking process for the macadamia nuts; I've heard soaking gives them an odd flavor. You'd want to double check that elsewhere though. Happy Experimenting!

Prana Raw Cafe

This cafe easily made my weekend. It's a Raw Food Cafe located in Newton Center, Massachusetts(around six or so miles outside of Boston) and due to various parts of the Raw Foodist philosophy, they are completely corn free. It has to do with the fact that most corn needs to actually be cooked before it's eaten and it's viewed as a micro-toxin, therefore being unappealing as well.

Anyway, while this cafe is a bit pricier than the average college student place to go, it's well worth it. The total meal cost me around twenty bucks but I got warm Pizza Du Jour with a carrot-beet-apple-ginger juice. My friend got some raw tortillas that were quite excellent as well. While I don't have any pictures(my camera officially died a while ago), there are a few comments:
-Raw Food's version of cheese(all raw food is completely vegan) is by far the best fake cheese I've ever had. It has a fairly high fat content due to it's making out of tree nuts, an excellent creaminess, and the consistency is proper. In other words, it maintains all the pleasant elements of actual cheese without the whole animal product-ness or the weird rubberyness that most vegan cheeses do.
- Their version of bread is still fairly unusual to me, but it's not bad. Raw Foodists don't eat any grains because they require cooking for proper digestion, so their breads are usually dehydrated vegetables of some kind. It gives more variety than one would initially thinks and works excellent for things such as tortillas.
-They have a nut ice cream and a plethora of desserts and while it was my initial intention to get some of these as a fairly belated Birthday treat to myself, I didn't feel like spending quite all the cash I had on me. However, it does give me an excuse to go back :).

The restaurant's website:
www.pranaraw.com

Yellow Split Pea Soup

Split peas are basically lentils bigger brother that really isn't spoken of much. If you really want to make a soup or the like that requires lentils, split peas will substitute in fine and have a large amount of protein and iron as well. However, the only place I really see or have heard of them being used is in Split Pea soup, which I always imagined as a kind of being made of green garden peas and therefore pretty gross sounding. Once again, my conception was terribly off base(I mainly subsided on Northern Eurpean/Irish food as a kid, so I didn't know about all these things) and the soup is actually delicious. The recipes I found were fairly sparse in flavorings though, so I mixed the ones I found with Vegan Dad's tarka dahl recipe, keeping the parts of each that I preferred. My composite:

Yellow Split Pea Soup

1 cup split peas, rinsed
2 cups water
1" ginger, minced
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large onion, cut into crescents
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp red chili flakes, or two large whole dried chilis
1/4-1/2 tsp salt, to taste mainly

1/4-1/2 tsp ground mustard, optional

Cook the onion, ginger, and garlic in a pot with the oil until the onions are translucent. Add in all of the other ingredients and cook until the split peas are very soft(they will basically disintegrate) and serve hot. Make sure not to undercook the split peas, I did that one time and it ends poorly.

Hummus, Tabouli, and Baba Ganoush

Never buy hummus. It's terribly overpriced and extremely easy to make yourself. That is, if you have a food processor. You can do it in a blender or by hand as well but it's a considerably larger pain to do so(but still much more cost effective). Tabouli is also quite easy to make, though it does take some more ingredients you may not have on hand and a bit more time. Still, it's a much better choice than buying it greatly overpriced. Baba Ganoush is much more work compared to the other two but still worth doing yourself(especially for us corn-allergics who dislike buying such things).

Hummus

Can of Garbanzo Beans(15 or 19 ounces)
Fresh Juice of 1 Large Lemon
3 Tablespoon of Tahini(sesame seed paste, often found with Indian or Southeast Asian foods in the store)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil(I always use more than this to get the proper consistency. The more you put in, the smoother it will get, to a point. Too much and you'll have some freakish oily soup.)
4-5 Cloves of Fresh Garlic, Minced
A Pinch of Sea Salt.

You can put just about anything you want in hummus to be honest, here are a few other recommendations: green olives, marinated artichokes, pine nuts, or parsley.

Put everything in the food processor together and blend until smooth. It should hold quite a long time in the fridge if you use fresh garlic, as it is an anti-fungal and anti-bacterial all in one.

Tabouli

1 cup Bulgar Wheat, presoaked
1.5 cups Parsley, finely minced
2 tablespoons Mint, finely chopped
1.5 Green onions, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon Ground Pepper
1/8 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt, extra fine
1 Medium tomato, seeded and diced(I recommend something fleshy, like a Roma)
1.5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 medium cucumber, or 1 small one, peeled and sliced
1/2 head Romaine lettuce
1.5 tablespoons olive oil

Soak the Bulgar in 2 cups of water for one hour. After one hour, drain(it won't soak all the water up, don't worry). Mix all the ingredients excluding the lemon juice, oil, cucumber, and romaine lettuce leaves. Add the lemon juice, toss, and chill for one hour. Mix in the olive oil by tossing and serve upon the lettuce leaves arranged in a spoke fashion. Sprinkle on the cucumber on the top. Serves 3-4. It will last a few days in the fridge.
Note: I swiped this from Bob's Red Mill, though their product is by no means necessary. I haven't made my own in quite a while so I cannot verify the safety of that brand's product either.

Baba Ganoush
Adapted from David Lebovitz

3 medium-sized eggplants
1/2 cup tahini (roasted sesame paste)
1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
3 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1/8 teaspoon chile powder
a pinch or two of cummin
1 tablespoon olive oil
a half bunch picked flat-leaf parsley or cilantro leaves

Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375F.
- Prick each eggplant a few times, then char the outside of the eggplants by placing them directly on the flame of a gas burner and as the skin chars, turn them until the eggplants are uniformly-charred on the outside. (If you don’t have a gas stove, you can char them under the broiler. If not, skip to the next step.)
- Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until they’re completely soft; you should be able to easily poke a paring knife into them and meet no resistance.
- Remove from oven and let cool.
- Split the eggplant and scrape out the pulp. Puree the pulp in a blender or food processor with the other ingredients until smooth.
- Taste, and season with additional salt and lemon juice, if necessary. Chill for a few hours before serving. Serve with crackers, veggies or toasted pita chips.

Storage: Baba Ganoush can be made and refrigerated for up to five days prior to serving.

Warming Chickpea Soup

I was looking at the variety of dried beans and grains sold at the Whole Foods the other day and one of them had a recipe for "Velvety Chickpea Soup", which looked nice. However, being the thrifty man I am, I decided to buy the chickpeas in bulk just from whole foods as it as about half the price. But since I'm also a somewhat absent-minded man, I did not write down the recipe. I had some dried chickpeas though and a yearning for some chickpea soup now though; so, I'd be damned if I wasn't getting some soup. So I winged it with a variety of spices and it turned out very well in my opinion. (Sorry for the lame name though, I'm not terribly creative at the moment.)

Warming Chickpea Soup

1.5 cups dried chickpeas
5 cups water

6-8 cups vegetable broth

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, cut into crescents
1 inch cube of ginger, minced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1.5 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoons ground cayenne
1/2 teaspoons spanish paprika
Juice of 1/2 large lemon

A bunch of sweet carrots, with their greens.

The night before, put the chickpeas in a pot with the water, cover, and let sit at least eight hours. They should just about double in size. Drain and put into a pot again with water with a teaspoon of baking soda added and let them sit for a half hour. That step is optional but helps clean them. Drain and rinse afterwards.

Put the onion in a large soup pot with the oil and fry until soft and getting translucent. Add in the coriander, garam masala, cumin, garlic, and ginger and fry until fragrant(around 30-60 seconds). Add in the vegetable broth and the chickpeas and let them cook for three hours, stirring occasionally. Once the chickpeas are soft, stir in the cayenne, paprika, and lemon juice. Put this mixture in the food processor and puree until it is smooth. Cook for another ten minutes and serve hot.

Shred the carrots and add a generous portion of them as a garnish along with some of their chopped greens.

Notes about the soup are:
1) This is very hearty and filling, so don't let it deceive you when it comes to the amount to dish out for a meal.
2) You can basically change any amounts of the spices in the recipe, since I winged just about everything.
3) I just had carrots sitting around but you could garnish it with whatever you want. I think the carrots add a nice crunch and sweetness to the dish.
4) I think if you added in some olive oil(a few tablespoons) into the soup when you add the cayenne it would help make the soup richer. It's not uncommon to do so with chickpea soup so it's probably a good idea.

Herbal Remedies

I recently messed up my food perpetrating Shenanigans that, in retrospect, were not so wise. But then again, so are most shenanigans. However, due to corn being in the vast majority of medicines I can't really take any of them(this is true for all of us corn-allergists). So I've been slowly moving into the land of herbs/spices to help cure or at least stymie my ailments enough to make them manageable. Here are a few that I've been using recently:

White Willow Bark- This is the natural equivalent to aspirin and in my personal opinion, quite the godsend. I took this constantly while I had pleurisy and it helped relieve the swelling and pain a bit. It's more expensive than aspirin but even people who aren't allergic to corn have told me that it's much more effective than aspirin is, so it's worth it. The only corn-free version I can find isn't vegan and it's basically the only place I'll make an exception to my veganism.

Turmeric- Turmeric is most commonly known as a flavoring in middle eastern/indian dishes or as a coloring. However, turmeric is also an antiseptic and an anti-inflammatory. If you want it as an antiseptic, merely make a paste out of it with water, apply to the cut area, and cover it with a band-aid or the like. As an anti-inflammatory, take around 1 tsp of the ground turmeric with around 2-3 tsp of raw honey orally. It will taste fairly unpleasant but it will help.

Bromelain- This is a "sulfur-containing proteolytic digestive enzyme that is extracted from the stem and the fruit of the pineapple plant" according the National Institute of Health. Now Foods makes a Quercetin with Bromelain pill they say is corn-free and I think it's trustworthy. Anyway, Bromelain can function as an anti-histamine and an anti-inflammatory. Considering how bloody hard it is to get an anti-histamine that is corn-free and doesn't make you really groggy, this is useful to have around.

Peppermint- Peppermint is at once calming and energizing. The methanol will help clear up your respiratory system, allowing ease of breathing and a slight comfort when ill. It is also said, along with wintergreen and other forms of mint, to help with increasing appetite. One's stomach and bowl can also be calmed by peppermint, making the tea excellent to have during a bout of indigestion. It's essential oil(once properly diluted, naturally), can also help with headaches when applied to the temples.

Honey - Once again, I'm one of those dirty vegans who will still eat honey. That being said, I very rarely use it in cooking because I prefer Maple Syrup(as it stays a liquid at room temperature, while raw honey does not). Honey, besides being delicious, has many useful properties though. It is an anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. Put some on the pad of a bandage and put it over a wound and it'll keep it nice and clean for quite a long time. It is also an excellent thing to pick-me-up in herbal teas(especially peppermint) and makes the aforementioned turmeric palatable(or at least able to put down). I've also been told that regularly eating raw honey can help with pollen allergies if you eat honey that was produced off of the same kind of things you're allergic to; it must be raw honey though.. As a side, but important, note, never give an infant under 1 1/2-2 years old honey; there is a possible risk of dormant bacteria being in the honey and their immature immune and digestive systems cannot handle it(they can get Botulism, which is a very serious and possibly fatal illness). Avoid processed honey as well, as it could be artificially sweetened or have some corn-derived processing.

Lavender- Lavender is actually another useful plant within the mint family. It is also excellent for its calming and soothing effect. Lavender is often used to fill small bed pillows to add a pleasant smell to the beds as well as help in making the restful mindset. It's essential oil, when diluted, can also be applied to the skin as an anti-inflammatory and does wonders for aroma-therapy. It's not an herb I use terribly often but I wouldn't want to be without it, either.

Garlic- Garlic is one of the loves of my life. The flavor that garlic gives to food, cooked or raw, is amazing and surpassed by very little in my mind. It also has a plethora of medicinal uses: it's an anti-fungal and anti-bacterial, lowers cholesterol, and will help keep away insects and ticks. My brothers regularly eat it raw when ill, though it may be a bit harsh for some people in that form. I've also read that if one eats a combination of the raw and cooked garlic on a frequent basis, it have anti-carcinogenic effects. It's also rumored to help control and lower blood sugar levels but that's somewhat up in the air. The only downside of garlic consumption is, if one eats enough of it, it causes halitosis, a fancy word meaning one exudes a somewhat unpleasant, garlic-y smell. Seeing its many benefits makes it worth in my opinion, though.

Ginger- Ginger, in the form tea usually, is known to help with indigestion and motion sickness(also vomiting due to pregnancy). It is also used for colds, coughing, and other like illnesses throughout southeast asia. Other uses haven't really been studied much and have a great variety of claims.