Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Birthday Cake

Yup, its a day of celebration, Its my 32nd birthday. Thank goodness I don't feel a day over 25 :)

So tonight P and I will be dining at the wonderful Kit's institution and hipster haunt, The Naam

There is a massive slice of Raspberry Chocolate cake with my name on it :)

The Naam is a very busy vegetarian full-service restaurant located in the heart of Vancouver's Kitsilano district. It is the city’s oldest natural foods restaurant, with over 30 years of cooking tradition. The Naam is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We close only on Christmas day.

The Naam is "funky"--wooden tables, an old wooden floor, and casual decor. In the winter we burn through about six cords of wood in our fireplace. In the summer we have a beautiful enclosed (or open as weather permits) garden patio--an extremely popular place on warm balmy evenings. We have live music every night from 7-10 pm - mostly blues, folk and jazz.

We take reservations for parties over 6 people during the week with 48 hours advance notice. We DO NOT accept reservations on Friday evenings and weekends. A 15% pre-authorized gratuity is required, and tables are held only 15 minutes.

There is only one Naam. Years ago we had to decide whether to get bigger- or better. We decided to just get better. We look forward to seeing you.


Mmmmm. chocolate cake .....

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Vegetable YumYum

I stole this name from an old and dear friend. Back in the good old college days, we would get together for movie fests and hunker down with a few brewskies and some vegetable yumyum. What on earth was Vegetable YumYum you may ask. Well it was poor college food at its best; mashed potatoes covered in hot vegetable soup mixed with other assorted veg (corn, peas, carrots whathaveyou).

Simple and effective.

So last night while I was staring into the abyss of my fridge I can up with a new, more grown up version of Vegetable YumYum and man, did it ever turn out good.

I love when kitchen experiments turn out well!

  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • ½ tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 zucchinis, diced
  • 1 yam, peeled and diced
  • ¼ tsp turmeric
  • ¼ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp cumin
  • 2 cups water
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 can tomato paste
  1. Over medium heat melt coconut oil and lightly sauté onions until clear
  2. Add in turmeric, cinnamon, and cumin and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly to avoid burning spices
  3. Add in zucchini, yams, cayenne pepper, water and bring to a boil
  4. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes or until yams are cooked through
  5. Add in tomato paste and cook a few minutes longer until everything is warm
I served this over some lovely organic quiona, but it would ne great over rice, couscous, or any other grain or starch you like!

BBC News - Global fish consumption hits record high

And on the heels of my last post ...

BBC News - Global fish consumption hits record high

Findings published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stressed that the status of global fish stocks had not improved.

It said that about 32% were overexploited, depleted or recovering.

They said that most stocks of the top 10 commercial species, which accounted for almost a third of global catches, were fully exploited.

"Of the 23 tuna stocks, most are more or less fully exploited (possibly up to 60%), some are overexploited or depleted (possibly up to 35%) and only a few appear to be underexploited (mainly skipjack)," they wrote.

"In the long-term, because of the substantial demand for tuna and the significant overcapacity of tuna fishing fleets, the status of tuna stocks may deteriorate further if there is no improvement in their management.

Greenpeace on Tuna

Shock of all shocks ... NOT

Greenpeace has just released the results of study of the tuna industry and applied their sustainability index in hopes that the public will attempt to get the major brands to change their tuna.

I say just stop eating tune all together. Stop depleting our waters of their natural ecosystems, stop forcing a species to the edge of extinction and stop killing millions of other sea animals in the process of tuna fishing.

Do you know how many other animals are caught up in tuna nets?? In the past 30 years, 6,000,000 dolphins have been killed alone. Not to mention turtles, sharks and sea birds. This makes my heart hurt.

CBC News - Consumer Life - Greenpeace Canada ranks canned tuna brands

One Week Vegan - Can Oprah stick with it this time?

Oprah and Michael Pollan together again. Let's hope this time it sticks Op. last time she bailed out fast. Not a big shocker considering she talks a big game but usually fails to follow throught. Sure, she tosses big money and gifts to fans and make specticals of herself and others but more often than not her attempts fall flat.

Remember her school in South Africa? I rest my case.

Pollan, as usual was a tool. This man never ceases to amaze me.

The link below is to a blog that I just love and today there is a fantastic review of the much hyped Vegan for a Week challenge Oprah is taking on ... again.

Michael Pollan on Oprah « Say what, Michael Pollan?