Three Easy Steps to Eating Green

By Marie Oser

Eating Green is at the heart of the green revolution and can be the most important contribution you can make toward preserving the planet.

Research published in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that vegetarian diets protect the environment, reduce pollution and minimize global warming.¹ Eating a plant-based diet is a healthful triple play with numerous benefits for the planet and its people, our waterways and wildlife.

What could be greener than plants? The average American diet requires the production of an extra ton and a half of greenhouse gases when compared to a vegan diet.²  Both the burning of fossil fuels during food production and the non-carbon dioxide emissions associated with livestock and animal waste, contribute to the problem.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, (IPCC) Non-CO₂greenhouse gases are a significant contributor to climate change.³

Eating green can be as easy as one, two, three! Every plant-based meal you consume can be an adventure and exploring delicious new foods also helps reduce pollution.  While many find it most effective to drop all animal products at once, others find that a gradual approach is best for their family.

• “Meatless Monday.” Eating green one or two days a week is a great way to explore how easy and delicious it can be. Start with vegetarian meals that you may already enjoy. Dishes such as Pasta Primavera, Bean Burritos or vegetable stew with a side of salad and crusty bread are satisfying and very tasty. Try these quick and easy Asparagus Wraps

• Choose a few of your favorite recipes and adapt them. With a few simple adjustments, you can transform some of the meals that you make most often into a healthier and more eco-friendly version. You can replace poultry or beef with seitan, tofu or tempeh in just about any dish. Use soymilk in place of cow’s milk one-for-one in any recipe and it is delicious on cereal, too! Explore healthy foods like hummus and tofu. Some find a more gradual approach fits their lifestyle more easily. A lot of people choose to drop one class of food at a time with a one or two week interval. Most choose to begin by eliminating beef, then poultry, followed by fish and lastly, dairy and eggs. Here’s a delicious dish: Louisiana Stuffed Potatoes with Cajun Cream Sauce

• Give it a try for 30 days. This can be a great opportunity to experience the effect this healthful regimen has on your body.  Most are surprised at how easy it is and how soon they begin to feel really good. It is not uncommon to notice an increase in clarity, energy and endurance. You may realize that you’ve lost a few pounds and require less sleep. The surprise for most is that adopting a vegetarian lifestyle is easy, saves money and improves overall physical wellbeing.

Marie Oser is a best-selling author, writer/producer and host of VegTV, Follow Marie on Twitter: http://twitter.com/vegtv

Sources:

1. Leitzmann, C., Nutrition ecology: the contribution of vegetarian dietsAm. J. Clinical Nutrition, Sep 2003; 78: 657S - 659S

2. Eshel, G., and P.A. Martin, 2006: Diet, Energy, and Global Warming. Earth Interactions, 10, 1-17.

3. Climate Change; Assessment 2001. IPCC World Meteorological Organization (WMO) UN Environment Program (UNEP)

Source : Ecomii

14 Ways to Keep Cool in Your Home Without Air Conditioning

Here in the South, the weather has definitely taken a turn toward the sweltering. There have been some unseasonably warm days already, with highs in the 90s, and the temptation to flick the switch on that A/C unit to "on" is very strong. Before using the air conditioner, consider this: Home cooling accounts for 5 percent of the energy we consume in the U.S. each year. That's about 140 million tons of CO2 emissions annually!

Here are some ways to fight that urge by keeping your house cooler naturally.

1. Keep the shades drawn during the day. When sunlight streams through the windows, it creates a miniature greenhouse effect in your home.

2. Reflect the heat. If you do want to open the windows, consider investing in some reflective window film to help keep the heat outside where you want it to be.

3. Let the cool evening air in. If temperatures are on the chilly side after the sun goes down, crack a few windows open to let a breeze come through and cool the house. Just be sure to close them before the temperature starts to rise again!

4. Insulate! You want to keep cool air inside, so grab that caulk gun and seal off anywhere that air might be escaping. A handy draft dodger can help seal up those tricky leaks at the bottoms of doors and windows.

5. Get rid of incandescent lights. Not only do those suckers use more energy, they generate a lot more heat than CFL or LED light bulbs.

6. Make sure your ceiling fans are running counter clockwise. Most modern fans will have a little switch on the side to reverse their direction. You want the fan to go clockwise in winter to push warm air down and reverse it in the summer to circulate cool air.

7. Drink icy beverages. This one seems like a no-brainer, but it still bears mentioning. What better way to beat the heat than to cool your body from the inside out?

8. Dress appropriately. Loose-fitting, light clothing goes a long way toward keeping you cool. It's time to bust out those organic cotton shorts and tank tops!

9. Grab a towel. A towel soaked in cold water is a great way to cool down. Apply it to your neck, wrists, and forehead for some relief during the hottest part of the day.

10. Avoid the stove and oven. Both of these will add unnecessary heat to the house. Instead, fire up that outdoor grill or whip up a salad or sandwich. Your rice cooker, slow cooker, and pressure cooker are other alternatives to heating up the house with the stove or oven.

11. Try a buckwheat pillow. If the heat is preventing you from sleeping, switching to a buckwheat pillow can make a big difference, since buckwheat doesn't hold on to your body heat like conventional pillows do.

12. Learn from your pets. How does your cat cope with the hottest part of the day? She snoozes! If you can squeeze in an afternoon nap, go for it.

13. Chill out. Turn on your table fan and stick a frozen bottle of water in front of it to get some cold air circulating.

14. Plant a tree. If you can, plant trees on the side of your house that gets the most sun. The extra shade will protect your home from the sun's rays.

Do you have any favorite ways to keep your finger off of the thermostat? Share your tips in the comments!

How to Choose the Ripest Fruits

By Lori Bongiorno

There's nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day than biting into a juicy, sweet, ripe piece of fruit.  But how do you know if a peach or strawberryt is going to taste as good as it looks?

While it's true that choosing delicious fruits is more of an art than a science, there are some guidelines that can help you make smart choices.

It's helpful to know that there are different categories of ripe, according to Shirley Corriher, a food scientist and author of BakeWise.  Some fruits become ripe when carbohydrates break down into sugar and they become sweeter after they are picked, such as bananas, apples, pears, and mangoes.

Then there are the ones that are so deceptive, she says, because they ripen in color, texture, and juiciness after they're picked, but they don't get any sweeter because they get their sugar from the plant sap. Apricots, peaches, nectarines, blueberries, cantaloupe, and honeydew are all good examples.

Soft berries, cherries, citrus, watermelon, pineapple, and grapes will never ripen after they've been picked, says Corriher. So if they're not ripe in the grocery store, you probably don't want to bring them home. Avocados, on the other hand, don't actually start to ripen until after they've been picked.

Color, smell, texture, and other clues can also help determine which fruits you should buy. The rules differ depending on the fruit. Below, experts share their secrets for finding the best fruits.

One thing they all agree on is that you'll get the ripest most delicious fruits if you shop for local produce that's in season. It's also easier to sample fruits at farmers' markets, -- the only surefire way to know if fruit tastes good -- than at the grocery store. Going to a farm that lets you pick your own fruit right off the vine yields the best fruit, they say.

Melons
Experts agree that scent is important in choosing the best-tasting melons, particularly when it comes to cantaloupe and honeydew (less so with watermelon). They should smell very sweet, particularly at the blossom and stem ends, which should also be tender if you press on them.

The best way to check for ripeness of a cantaloupe or honeydew melon is to look at the skin, says Emily Wallendjack, pastry chef at Cookshop in New York City. "If the veins on the skin are green, they aren't ripe." Corriher likes to choose melons that are pale.

Wallendjack and other experts suggest tapping melons: "If you tap on it, and kind of flick it and hear a deep hollow sound, it's ripe."

A watermelon should feel heavy for its size and the underbelly should have a splotch of creamy yellow.

Stone fruits
Look for peaches and nectarines that are tender to the touch, but not too soft. Feeling is the best way, but smell can also be a good indicator of taste, says Gabriel Kass-Johnson of McEnroe Organic Farm in Millerton, New York. Stay away from peaches that have a greenish tint, which usually means they were picked too early.

Plums should be slightly tender to the touch and fully colored, says Rachel Saunders, owner of Blue Chair Fruit.

Cherries
Color is key when it comes to cherries. "Look for Bing cherries with a deep rich burgundy color," says Nick Trocano, a farmer at Sycamore Farms, in Middletown, NY. "A cherry should feel like it's plump and full of juice. It should feel like if you just squeeze it a little harder, it will burst."

Some additional tips from Saunders: The stems should be attached. Cherries should be firm -- if the flesh is too soft, then it indicates an overripe cherry.

Berries
"With berries, color is surefire," says Kass-Johnson. "Smell isn't as important." And remember that they will not ripen after you buy them. They'll just get softer and mushier.

Strawberries should be entirely red, according to Saunders. "If a berry has white shoulders (the part of the berry hidden by the leaves), it was picked too early." She says strawberries should be firm and have dark green leaves. If the leaves are dried out, then it's a sign that the berries are old.

"With raspberries you want the most intense, deep red that you can find," says Corriher. "Pick the biggest blueberries you can find, and they'll be sweeter." Saunders says she seeks out blueberries that are both firm and blue.

Apples
Apples should have a very tight, hard skin, and there should be no give when you press on them, says Wallendjack.

Color is also important. "You need to know what color an apple is when it's ripe," says Corriher. For example, look for really yellow golden delicious apples.

Oranges
Saunders suggests looking for bright, firm oranges. "A too-pale color can indicate that the fruit was picked a little early," she says. "A leather-looking peel indicates the orange is old."

Pears
"A ripe pear typically has a sweet aroma and is slightly tender to the touch," says Saunders. "If the fruit is hard, it's not ready." She also points out that pears ripen very well off the tree at room temperature.

Bananas
Bananas aren't grown in America so they're always picked when green and ripen on the way, says Kass-Johnson. He says it makes no difference if they are a little green when you buy them. It just depends on when you are going to eat them.

Mangoes
"You can take a mango that's not ripe and throw it in a brown paper bag on the counter and it will ripen on its own," says Wallendjack. "If it feels soft and if you press it in and it keeps the imprint of your finger, then it's ripe and ready to eat." She also says the skin should have a yellowish tint to it. Green on the outside means it's not ripe yet.

 

Make Your Greens Last Longer

To be lean, eat lots of greens and follow these tips for keeping them fresh and spending less of your “green” on them.

At the market:

• For loose greens: Put your hand down into the plastic bag and then grab the greens with it.  Pull the bag from the top down over the greens and release your hand. It’s a quicker, drier way to get wet or over-sized bunches of greens into the bag.

• For prepackaged greens or salad:  Choose greens packaged in a plastic clamshell container as they last much longer if purchased in these than in the bags.

When you get home:

• Take a second to remove the twist-tie from your bunches of greens when you bring them home to prevent damage and aging caused by the metal wire.

• It’s worthwhile to rinse the greens, shake them to remove some of the moisture, and then roll them in a clean cotton dishtowel or a clean cotton pillowcase.  The fabric will become damp, which is good.  Put this rolled setup into the vegetable crisper for quick and easy, access to prepped greens.  This will extend the freshness for many days.

• If you purchase a single or multi-pack of romaine lettuce, break off the core at the bottom of each head, wash the leaves, and put them into a white cotton pillowcase and into the crisper.   Again, damp is good.  This works for any lettuce, but you will be amazed by how the flavor of romaine improves when stored this way.

• To extend the life of salad greens in plastic clamshell containers, add a dry paper towel to the greens to absorb the moisture, which collects over time inside the container. I usually put the towel at the top because that’s where the condensation tends to form, but sometimes the greens begin to go soggy toward the bottom, and I’ll add a fresh one there.

• Recycle large plastic clamshell containers within your kitchen. They are perfect for storing prepackaged salad greens. The greens will last days longer in hard containers like this or in any glass or hard plastic container than they will in plastic bags.

For meals:

• Prepare crisp salads with simple dressings such as, lemon juice and olive oil, or use large leaves of chard to wrap up healthful fillings instead of tortillas.

Adios soggy, spoiled greens!

How clean are Bagged Salads?

Packaged salads are not nearly as clean as their "pre-washed" and "triple-washed" labels suggest.

Recent Consumer Reports' tests found bacteria that are "common indicators of poor sanitation and fecal contamination" in many of the packaged salad greens it tested.

The nonprofit group tested 208 containers of salad greens and found that 39 percent of the samples exceeded acceptable levels for coliforms and 23 percent had unsafe levels of enterococcus.

On a positive note, these tests didn't find disease-causing bacteria such as E.coli O157:H7, listeria, or salmonella in any of the samples.

"It's never a good idea to have fecal bacteria in your food or water because it means that untreated waste has gotten into them somehow," says food safety expert Marion Nestle. "But only toxic bacteria make you sick, and the good news in this otherwise queasy-making study is that they didn't find any."

No one is suggesting that you stop eating salad. Just take some of the precautions below to make sure you're eating the safest greens possible:

• Always wash salad greens, even if the bag says "prewashed" or "triple-washed." Rinsing won't remove all the bacteria, according to Consumer Reports, but it may remove residual soil. Washing with plain water works as well as anything else, says Nestle. There's no need to use detergent, vinegar, or special produce washes.

• Buy packaged greens as far from their expiration date as possible. In the tests, Consumer Reports found that many packages with higher bacteria levels were one to five days before their use-by date.
  Packages of salad that were six to eight days away from expiration date fared better, according to Consumer Reports. (It's also interesting to note that many of the packages with the highest amounts of bacteria contained spinach.)

• Choose fresh greens over packaged when you can. Bagging changes the environment in ways that might promote bacterial proliferation, says Nestle. A fresh, whole head of lettuce is usually less expensive than a bag of lettuce too.
  Buying local may offer extra protection since greens tend to be fresher so their bacteria haven't had as long an opportunity to multiply, Nestle notes, and this ought to reduce the risks of centralized contamination. However, in theConsumer Reports tests, it didn't make a difference if greens were organic or if the greens were packaged in plastic clamshells or bags.

Should you pre-rinse your dishes before loading the dishwasher?

Experts unanimously agree that you should NOT pre-rinse your dishes before loading the dishwasher.

Why not? Because your dishes will not get any cleaner if you rinse them before loading your dishwasher. Pre-rinsing is therefore a complete waste of time, water, energy, and money. And, in some cases, it can actually harm your glassware.

Still not convinced? Here are the details.

Dishes will not get any cleaner if you pre-rinse them.
Modern dishwashers and detergents have come a long way in the past couple of decades. "You will not improve your wash performance one bit by pre-rinsing," says John Dries, a mechanical engineer and owner of Dries Engineering, an appliance design consulting company. He points out that heavily soiled dishes are used in pre-market "wash tests," not pre-rinsed dishes.

In most cases, all you need to do is scrape your plates over a trashcan to get rid of bones or chunks of food. One caveat: It's a good idea to pre-soak pans or dishes that have something really burned on them. Pre-rinsing doesn't help in this situation.

Use the dishwasher's rinse cycle if you're not going to run your dishwasher immediately and are worried about the smell of sour food.

How about older dishwashers? "People with any age dishwasher can feel comfortable knowing they don't need to pre-wash dishes before washing them in the dishwasher," says Jill Notini, a spokesperson for the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers.

Pre-rinsing is a complete waste of time, water, energy, and money. 
With pre-rinsing you're essentially washing your dishes twice. Rinsing your dishes while letting the water run can waste gallons of water. Consider this: An energy-efficient dishwasher uses up to 5 gallons of water to wash an entire load of dishes. Washing dishes by hand while letting the water run can use up to 27 gallons.

The same is true for electricity if you pre-rinse with warm or hot water. "You use more electricity rinsing dishes off in the sink than the dishwasher uses to wash the whole load," says Mike Edwards, a senior design engineer at Bosch Home Appliances.

Instead of pre-rinsing the dishes, spend your time on something that will make a difference: Loading the dishwasher correctly.

Experts say a properly loaded dishwasher can significantly impact how clean your dishes turn out. "The biggest impediment in washing is due to poor loading," says Edwards. Get tips from Consumer Reports and a video from Bosch.

Rinsing dishes before loading the dishwasher can do more harm than good.
Today's advanced detergents are designed to attack food particles left on dishes. "If there isn't food soil, they tend to attack glasses," says Edwards. "Some glasses are more susceptible to this kind of attacking than others."

The detergent etches small pits in glasses that you can't see with the naked eye, but the glass appears cloudy, according to Edwards. The process is called "etching" and causes permanent damage.

This is different than temporary hard water stains, which can also result in the cloudy appearance of glassware.

"Your detergent amount needs to be based on the amount of food soil in the dishwasher," says Edwards who also points out that those who have soft water should use less detergent than those who have hard water.