BiG TeA PaRtY Sustainable Living

WARM PEAR SALAD with GORGONZOLA and WALNUTS

BY ELIZABETH FIEND
Serves 4 as lunch or main course, 6 as a side salad
Time: 20 minutes

Category: Vegetarian Recipe

This salad is all about contrasts.
The pears are served warm, making this a great dish to serve on a chilly, rainy day. The sharp cheese, crunchy nuts and creamy honey-lime dressing each stimulate different taste buds providing satisfaction and a feeling of fullness. I’ve divided up one serving between the cheese and nuts so even thought you’ll be eating cheese AND nuts (both contain fat) you will be getting just the right amount of fat and protein.

There’s an optional fun part in this recipe for the kids too. Instill in them a love for vegetables by having them cut the cucumber slices into stars with cookie cutter.

Salad Ingredients:
½ pound spring salad mix
¼ head endive – tear off and discard ends; break into bite size pieces
1 cucumber (see below for treatment)
1/8 lb gorgonzola cheese – break into pieces
3 pears (any kind) - cut into slices
½ cup walnuts – break into pieces

Dressing Ingredients:
1 tablespoon honey
3 tablespoons lime juice
Blend above with a spoon or small whisk until honey is dissolved, than add:
½ cup buttermilk (or 3/8 cup soy milk plus 1/8 cup lemon juice)
2 stalks scallions diced
1/4 teaspoon salt
pepper to taste

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A SUPER QUICK and easy sandwich with a surprisingly sophisticated taste. Good quality bread and the right hot sauce make all the difference.

Preparation Time: 2 seconds

Category: Vegan / Vegetarian Recipe

Some guy made this sandwich for me while I was on tour with my band More Fiends in the Netherlands. I thought the idea was ridiculous until I tasted it — a peanut butter sandwich with hot sauce!?!? I say “some guy” because, frankly it’s all a blur. I think I was crashing in his apartment (hey don’t get funny, the whole band was there). But as for the “guy” himself, sorry dude, I can’t remember anything but the sandwich.

Later on I realized the idea for the sandwich is borrowed from the flavors of spicy peanut sauce and a Dutch guy would make this sandwich because of the Netherlands connection to Indonesia. [The later having been a colony of the former.]

For the bread, I like to use a hearty whole wheat with oats and seeds. My favorite brand of hot sauce, available from an Asian supermarket, is made by Huy Fong and called Sriracha. Its got a rooster on the bottle and a green lid. Sriracha is made from sun-ripened chilies which are ground into a smooth paste along with garlic. It is the absolutely best, most versatile hot sauce I’ve ever tasted.

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RED x THREE
Loaded with antioxidants!

Recipe BY ELIZABETH FIEND
Serves 4 – Time: 1/2 hour
Category: Vegan Recipe

Red foods generally contain more vitamins than their less showy cousins. Take advantage by combining 3 red vegetables and tofu in this spicy, Korean flavored vegan meal. You only use one pot, making this the perfect dish for those with roommates (cuz you know they never wash the dishes).

I don’t serve this with a starch (aka rice) as most people would. This keeps it way down on the glycemic index making it a most filling, but not fattening meal. For more on how you can use the glycemic index to lose weight click here.

SEASONING Ingredients
1 t sesame oil
3 or more cloves fresh garlic — minced
2 T fresh ginger — minced
HOT pepper flakes (to taste, I recommend a lot!)

RED STUFF
2 RED onions — sliced into ½ moons
2 RED peppers — cut into match sticks
1/2 head RED cabbage — shredded

PROTEIN
1 lb. firm tofu – cut into cubes and baked or lightly sauteed

SAUCE
1 T light soy sauce
1/4 c lime juice
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c chopped cilantro

TOPPING (more protein!)
1/2 c walnuts pieces

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Orange Creamsicle Cake

RECIPE BY ELIZABETH FIEND

A favorite childhood memory of mine was running outside when the ice cream truck came around my block. I would always get the Orange Creamsicle ice cream bar. Orange sherbet coating over a rich creamy vanilla ice cream bar, this treat always spelled carefree days to me! I’ve duplicates these flavors as a refreshing, fruit filled cake. Yes, there really are two pounds of fruit in this cake!!!

Quick and easy. Dress up a store bought cake or if you have a favorite recipe, make your own angel food cake. You’ll get raves, trust me!! Only takes 1/2 hour (with store bought cake).

THIS CAKE JUST SCREAMS FUN!! MAKE THIS CAKE FOR YOUR NEXT PARTY.

Category: Vegetarian, Dessert Recipe

OK, a cake’s a cake. It’s dessert and there’s no denying it. But I’ve tried made this cake more healthful by incorporating two pounds of fruit into the recipe. (I must be a genius!) Plus I’ve lightened up the custard filling by using yogurt and mascarpone cheese, a soft, sweet Italian cheese with half the calories of butter. And — angel food cake contains less fat than most other cakes.

Special tools: Angel-food-cake cutter. This looks kinda like an Afro comb. You first slide it down thru the cake poking little holes in to the cake which will enable you to then slice the cake with a regular knife. (If you don’t have one, it will be a little harder to slice, but not the end of the world.)

Ingredients:
Use your favorite recipe for angel food cake. Or to save time use a store-bought cake.
8 oz mascarpone cheese
12 oz orange-cream yogurt
Two 15 oz cans mandarin oranges (drained)
8oz prepared whipped topping (if frozen, defrost) or fresh whipped cream
½ cup sliced almonds

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What to do with A Sh*t-Load of Vegetables

or

How I Ended My Summer Vacation

Article by Elizabeth Fiend

Upon returning from my vacation I was greeted by my two charming 20-something house sitters. They did a great job holding down the fort and loving my big orange cat Hurricane. They bashfully asked me if it would be okay if they left the remainder of their CSA Farm Share in my fridge. Like many people, seems they’re trying hard to eat right but are at a loss as to how to actually pull it off.

Can you image asking ME if it would be okay to unload a bunch of organic fruit and vegetables?

I made them squirm bit and then hastily accepted. In my book, there’s only one thing better than a fridge full of organic produce, a fridge fill of free organic produce.

I quickly went through the bonanza. In the crisper tomatoes tightly wrapped in a plastic bag were immediately removed to a plate and set on the counter.

Fresh corn was out on the counter seemingly left there for days. What were they thinking, pop corn? That had to go to the composting heap. But everything else was salvageable.

The two pints of blackberries were on the verge of extinction. To save them I popped them in the microwave for three minutes. I added a touch of maple syrup to remove the tartness, which I’m assuming is why the house sitters didn’t eat them. I drained some of the dark purple, almost black actually, juice off and drank it right then. The blackberry compote would be perfect for weekend pancakes.

Giant bags of beets and carrots did seem a bit daunting as they were still covered in farm dirt. But not to worry, I have a vegetable scrubber.

There was also a bag of Swiss chard as big as a house, eggplants, tomatoes, tomatillos and the obligatory oodles of end-of-summer-zucchini.

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