Lemony Goodness July 11, 2008

photo credit: “M” Pearl/flickr.com

Fresh lemon juice is a must have in my kitchen.  I add it to salsa and guacamole, sauces, smoothies (especially with berries or apples – yummy), and virtually every salad I eat. It’s brings such a lovely bright flavor, making everything taste that much more fresh and lively.  It brings out the flavor of other foods so well.  

Here are some of the health benefits of fresh lemon:

• Lemons contain Phytonutrients with Antioxidant and Antibiotic Effects – Lemons contain unique flavonoid compounds that have antioxidant and anti-cancer properties.  These flavonoids have been shown to stop cell division in many cancer cell lines, and have been shown to have antibiotic effects, particularly in cases of cholera.
• Lemons and limes are an excellent source of Vitamin C, one of the most important antioxidants in nature. Vitamin C is the primary water-soluble antioxidant in the body. Vitamin C has been shown to be helpful for reducing some of the symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Research has shown that consumption of vegetables and fruits high in this nutrient is associated with a reduced risk of death from all causes including heart disease, stroke and cancer.
• Limonins Support Optimal Health - In animal studies and laboratory tests with human cells, compounds in citrus fruits, including lemons and limes, called limonoids have been shown to help fight cancers of the mouth, skin, lung, breast, stomach and colon. 
• For the most antioxidants, choose fully ripened lemons and limes.  Research conducted at the University of Innsbruck in Austria suggests that as fruits fully ripen, almost to the point of spoilage, their antioxidant levels actually increase.
• Read more about lemons and their benefits here.

A Few Quick Serving Ideas:

• Combine lemon juice with olive or flax oil, freshly crushed garlic and pepper to make a light and refreshing salad dressing.
• Serve lemon wedges with meals as their tartness makes a great salt substitute.
• Squeeze some lemon or lime juice onto diced avocado or mango and eat as is.

So, Why am I so inspired by lemons as to write this post about them?  Because, I heard this great tip recently while watching a video of chef Ani Phyo making one of her delicious recipes for salad dressing (with lemon, of course).  She says that after squeezing the juice from them, she saves the rind and uses it for cleaning.  It is great for degreasing.  She even uses hers to clean the bathtub.  Just put a dozen or so rinds into your tub, fill it with water, let it soak overnight and wipe clean in the morning…

I haven’t tried the bathtub idea because we don’t have one (we only have a shower), but I have been saving my lemon rinds and I have been so amazed at how well they work for degreasing the stove and countertops.  The rind serves as a great little natural scrubber, which means dirtying fewer rags.  It’s such a great substitute for conventional lemon cleaners with all their nasty chemicals and artificial additives – and the package is compostable  Try it!

Other Uses for Lemon:

1. Sanitize a chopping block. Run a slice of lemon over the surface to disinfect.
2. Eliminate the browning that occurs when food sits out too long. Sprinkle apple or pear slices with lemon juice before serving, or squeeze a bit into guacamole and give it a stir.
3. Remove tough food stains from plastic and light-colored wooden cutting boards. Slice a lemon in half, squeeze the juice onto the soiled surface, rub, and let sit for 20 minutes. Rinse with water.
4. Fade tea stains on cloth. Dilute lemon juice with an equal amount of water. Use an eyedropper or a Q-tip to make sure the juice targets the stain. Thoroughly flush with cool water.
5. Decorate on the cheap. Fill a glass bowl with lemons for a sunny centerpiece. Or display a row of them along a windowsill.
6. Relieve a sore throat. Cut a lemon in half. Skewer one half over a medium flame on a gas stove or an electric burner set on high and roast until the peel turns golden brown. Let cool slightly, then mix the juice with 1 teaspoon of honey. Swallow the mixture.
7. Whiten fingernails. Rub a wedge on the surface of your nails.
8. Shine the interior of copper cookware. Sprinkle a lemon wedge with salt, then scrub.
9. Brighten laundry whites. Add 1/2 cup lemon juice to the wash cycle of a normal-size load.
10. Remove soft cheese or other sticky foods from a grater. Rub both sides of the grater with the pulp side of a cut lemon.

Make Your Own March 26, 2008

I’ve stumbled across lots and lots of posts and websites with various recipes and directions for making your own versions of things you would normally just go out and buy.  It’s the perfect way to lessen your impact on the environment and your pocketbook. Most of these are also better for your health. While i haven’t tried a lot of these yet myself, if you feel so inspired, now you know where to look!

Food
- Tortilla Chips
- Refried Beans
- Salad Dressing
- Almond Milk
- Sprouted Granola
- Popcorn (in case you weren’t sure how to do it the old fashioned way)
- Crackers
- Granola Bars (vegan)
- Bread
- Butter
- Yogurt
- Tofu

Cleaning
A great post with several recipes here.
- Laundry Soap

Personal Products
- Toothpaste
- Lotion
- Shampoo
- Toilet “Paper” - for all you radicals out there
- Feminine Pads
- Hairspray and Mouthwash
- Castile Soap
- Liquid Hand Soap

Other
- Reusable Tote Bag (out of used plastic grocery sacks!)
- Baby Wipes

Another Plastic Evil February 21, 2008


I just watched this video and read this great post about how plastic is recycled.  I really found it shocking, but after a moment’s thought, I wasn’t really shocked at all.  Of course our recycling is getting shipped off to China and creating toxic fumes.  Ugh.  Of course it is.  Every convenience we have here in the western world is at someone’s expense it seems. (This video is about the UK, but i have read elsewhere that this certainly is happening in the US.) 

Cutting back the plastic completely seems nearly impossible for me, but here are some ideas:  

- Buy things in bulk or just simply the option with less packaging. (bring your own container to the bulk bin!)
- Choose salad dressing, sauces, spices, juice and anything else in glass.
- Choose concentrated detergents, powdered detergent or you could try making your own!
- Bring reusable bags to the store of course!
- Bring your own mug for coffee. disposable coffee cups have a plastic lining and usually a plastic lid.
- Let your fruit roll around in the cart rather than in a plastic bag.
- Bring used or reusable bags for produce and bulk items.
- Stop drinking bottled water and bottled soda (bottled water apparently isn’t any better for you than tap!)
- Bring your own plates and cutlery when you are going somewhere that will have disposables: potluck, picnic, etc. (most paper plates are lined with plastic)  

- Choose bar soap instead of liquid.
- Choose reusable whenever possible!

Check out these great blogs by people who are trying to reduce their plastic consumption:

• Fake Plastic Fish
• Life Less Plastic
• Living Plastic Free

Adventures in Reusing July 11, 2007

Recently, I have become obsessed with trying to research and think up items that i can reuse and how i could do it. Once you start thinking of one item in your life to replace with something reusable (like maybe shopping bags) you start to realize just how many things in our culture are disposable. So, for me, finding ways to reuse and recycle has become important for several reasons. Often, it can be a huge money saver. who really wants to spend money on something they’re only going to use once? nobody, right? but we do it all the time. It’s also, quite obviously, better for the environment and allows me to feel good about the fact that my everyday actions are more purposeful. often the reusable replacements are much more attractive. real plates are much better looking than paper, for instance. so, here are some things to consider when it comes to reusing instead of disposing:

Clothing

For all you crafty ladies out there, how about refashioning items of clothing:
Little Brown Dress Recycling Project
Wardrobe Refashion:Flickr
Wardrobe Refashion ‘07
or taking unwanted items to the consignment store ($$$) or donating.

Bags!

My favorite so far is the one i just bought at Trader Joe’s – $1.99 (it’s cute, not plain canvas and no hawaiian flowers)
or make a reusable bag out of disposable ones http://modcottage.com/?p=109 (this one seems like it could be fun, even if you’re not really the crafty type – no sewing involved)
i’ve also had my eye on these babies – so compact, sturdy and perfect, but i don’t have the cash.
oh and i just discovered today that save mart deducts 5 cents for every reusable bag you use. not a huge cash savings, but still!

Hankerchiefs/Cloth Napkins

i think hankerchiefs are lovely. i have one that belonged to my grandmother and i love it. though i don’t have any allergies and very rarely have cause to blow my nose, i have started carrying a little napkin/hankerchief for drying my hands in a public restroom, using in place of paper napkins, or any other little instances you would normally grab something disposable for – and i love it! quite convenient and much more attractive and elegant than kleenex and scratchy paper napkins.

Towels

I have gone off of paper towels completely and it’s been so great! cloth kitchen towels and rags are actually much easier to use. they never fall apart on me and they are much more aesthetically pleasing (ok, maybe the rags aren’t always) but i love using them. washing them is no big deal, it’s not like they take up a lot of space in your laundry basket or washing machine. and if you use natural cleaners, you don’t have to worry about throwing them in with the rest of the laundry. plus, if they are 100% cotton, you can always compost them if you’ve cleaned up something unmentionally disgusting. so, this one is easy, not to mention CHEAPER!

Water Bottles

Bottled water isn’t necessarily cleaner or better for you. i just purchased a water filter pitcher (though maybe i faucet mounted filter would have been a better choice) but still, i really like not spending money on water all the time, not filling up our kitchen with empty bottles, and never feeling like we’re “out of water”

Swiffer

I’ve never been a huge fan of the swiffer, though i do own one. i would just like to point out that there are wonderful alternatives that aren’t so expensive and wasteful. microfiber dusting mops work just the same, or you can go old school and just use a broom and dust pan or you can find a microfiber cover to convert your swiffer here.

Also…

i’ve started using glass containers for storing food (plastics can leach chemicals) and gotten rid of the disposable type plastic containers ( i.e. ziploc, gladware)

i’ve never purchased a toilet brush with a disposable head or other bathroom scrubbers and now i realize how silly and expensive that would be!

things like aluminum foil and ziploc bags can be washed and reused.
even water can be reused. try collecting the water in the shower while it warms up and using it for something else, like watering the plants, soaking some dishes or mopping the floor.

items i have yet to change:

coffee filters – perhaps i should use the metal one that came with the coffee maker, i’ve been told that your coffee will actually taste better anyway.
razors- i have one where i can replace just the head, but how about this one that’s made with recycled plastic and can be recycled?
my toothbrush – you can actually get one with a replaceable head, or at least this one that can be mailed back and recycled
toilet paper – this one seems rather radical and interesting, i suppose it would save some cash.

photo courtesy of verdammelt on flickr

Recycling July 11, 2007

YEAH – RECYCLING!! i know that there are plenty of you out there who don’t really know how the program works here in modesto. a few people have asked me recently. so, i’d like to tell you about that and then talk about some more creative ways to recycle more than just your bottles and cans in another post. But first…
Recycling in Modesto is EASY!
Here in Modesto, there is a blue bag program. What this means is that all of your recyclables can be put into the blue colored plastic shopping bags that you receive from local super markets (save mart, o’brien’s, richland) tied closed and thrown in your black can with your household garbage.

What Goes in the Blue Bag for Recycling, You Ask?

Tin, Steel & Aluminum Cans:
Labels are okay. Crushing cans saves space
Aluminum cans, aluminum foil trays and pie plates, foil products Empty and lightly rinse
Plastic Bottles & Jars:
Soda, water, milk jugs, soda bottles, and plastic bottles with a “neck”
Plastics numbered 1 through 7
Remove any bottle caps which are not recyclable
Labels are okay
Crush or flatten to save space
Empty and lightly rinse
Glass Bottles & Jars:
Leave the lid off and put it into the blue bag
Empty and lightly rinse
Do not break the bottles and jars
Newspapers, Brown Bags, Cardboard & Other Clean Paper:
Newspapers, brown paper bags, telephone books, magazines, mixed paper, junk mail, computer paper, and cardboard
Remove cardboard box liners
Flatten cardboard boxes

Also, I think a lot of people don’t know this, but food waste can be put in your green bin with your yard waste and will be composted by the city.
In The Green Cans
Place all grass, plant clippings, and leaves in the can and
Brush, tree limbs less than 4′ long and 6″ in diameter as well as,
Acceptable food waste items:
Table Scraps
Vegetable and Fruit Peelings
Meat, Bones, and Fish
Egg Shells
Solid Dairy Products
Coffee Grounds
Breads and Toast
Paper Waste (Napkins, towels, plates, coffee filters, tea bags, etc.)
(no Recyclables,no Kitty Litter,no Plastics,no Food Containers or Packaging,no Liquids)

for more tips on recycling, visit Alina over at Confessions of a Closet Environmentalist

so, get up and pay your kitchen garbage can a little visit and see what treasures you can find to recycle. or, if that’s too gross, just start paying attention to what you throw away from now on. you’ll be amazed at what a difference it makes. we used to have to take the garbage out several times a week. now, since we’ve been separating out our recyclables and our compostable waste (as well as cloth diapering and trying to purchase products with less packaging) we only take out one rather small bag per week! this makes brian happy as he is the one who makes the brave journey to the garbage can in the alley. so, GO FORTH AND RECYCLE, IT’S EASY!

P.S. if you are a cheap skate you can also take your various drink containers to drop off locations (sometimes i go to the one on oakdale by raley’s and wamu) to get your CRV refund ($$)

photo from .Delight on flickr