Aka Marvelicious

Egyptian or Walking Onions

Andrea Hornbein — Sun, 12 May 2013 13:43:53 +0000

This earliest of onions is a bit like a scallion though sweeter, more succulent and with hint of a floral flavor. We like to braise them and add them to mashed sweet or regular potatoes. They’re great in stir fry and can substitute in leek and potato soup.

Wikipedia says “commonly called top onions, topsetting onions, walking onions, or Egyptian onions. Tree onion bulblets will sprout and grow while still on the original stalk, which may bend down under the weight of the new growth and take root some distance from the parent plant, giving rise to the name walking onion. It has been postulated that the name Egyptian onion is derived from tree onions being brought to Europe from the Indian subcontinent by the “Gypsies“.”

UN Urges Vegan Diet

Andrea Hornbein — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 01:20:45 +0000

UN Urges Global Move to Meat and Dairy-free Diet

Felicity Carus – The Guardian

Lesser consumption of animal products is necessary to save the world from the worst impacts of climate change, UN report says.

A global shift towards a vegan diet is vital to save the world from hunger, fuel poverty and the worst impacts of climate change, a UN report said today.

As the global population surges towards a predicted 9.1 billion people by 2050, western tastes for diets rich in meat and dairy products are unsustainable, says the report from United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) international panel of sustainable resource management.

It says: “Impacts from agriculture are expected to increase substantially due to population growth increasing consumption of animal products. Unlike fossil fuels, it is difficult to look for alternatives: people have to eat. A substantial reduction of impacts would only be possible with a substantial worldwide diet change, away from animal products.”

Professor Edgar Hertwich, the lead author of the report, said: “Animal products cause more damage than [producing] construction minerals such as sand or cement, plastics or metals. Biomass and crops for animals are as damaging as [burning] fossil fuels.”

The recommendation follows advice last year that a vegetarian diet was better for the planet from Lord Nicholas Stern, former adviser to the Labour government on the economics of climate change. Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has also urged people to observe one meat-free day a week to curb carbon emissions.

The panel of experts ranked products, resources, economic activities and transport according to their environmental impacts. Agriculture was on a par with fossil fuel consumption because both rise rapidly with increased economic growth, they said.

Ernst von Weizsaecker, an environmental scientist who co-chaired the panel, said: “Rising affluence is triggering a shift in diets towards meat and dairy products – livestock now consumes much of the world’s crops and by inference a great deal of freshwater, fertilisers and pesticides.”

Both energy and agriculture need to be “decoupled” from economic growth because environmental impacts rise roughly 80% with a doubling of income, the report found.

Achim Steiner, the UN under-secretary general and executive director of the UNEP, said: “Decoupling growth from environmental degradation is the number one challenge facing governments in a world of rising numbers of people, rising incomes, rising consumption demands and the persistent challenge of poverty alleviation.”

The panel, which drew on numerous studies including the Millennium ecosystem assessment, cites the following pressures on the environment as priorities for governments around the world: climate change, habitat change, wasteful use of nitrogen and phosphorus in fertilisers, over-exploitation of fisheries, forests and other resources, invasive species, unsafe drinking water and sanitation, lead exposure, urban air pollution and occupational exposure to particulate matter.

Agriculture, particularly meat and dairy products, accounts for 70% of global freshwater consumption, 38% of the total land use and 19% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, says the report, which has been launched to coincide with UN World Environment day on Saturday.

Last year the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation said that food production would have to increase globally by 70% by 2050 to feed the world’s surging population. The panel says that efficiency gains in agriculture will be overwhelmed by the expected population growth.

Prof Hertwich, who is also the director of the industrial ecology programme at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, said that developing countries – where much of this population growth will take place – must not follow the western world’s pattern of increasing consumption: “Developing countries should not follow our model. But it’s up to us to develop the technologies in, say, renewable energy or irrigation methods.”

About Evaporated Cane Juice

Andrea Hornbein — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:42:03 +0000

Raw Sugarcane Juice Nature’s Perfect Wonder Food

Written by Dee McCaffrey, CDC

Monday, October 03, 2011

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of drinking freshly extracted raw fruit or vegetable juices, you know the health value of doing so. Freshly extracted juices contain live enzymes and nutrients that are easily absorbed by the body for quick nourishment. But did you know that raw sugarcane juice is just as healthful as any other freshly pressed juice, and is in fact something of a Super Hero among plant foods?Read more…

Boston local donation center for Hurricane Sandy

Andrea Hornbein — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 01:39:06 +0000

November 02, 2012

THE GREATER BOSTON FOOD BANK SENDS SUPPLIES TO AREAS HARD HIT BY HURRICANE SANDY

https://my.gbfb.org/donate

Thousands of Pounds of Shelf Stable Food, Water Headed for New York, New Jersey, Connecticut

Boston, MA – The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) has mobilized to meet the ongoing need in three of the East Coast states battered by Hurricane Sandy. GBFB staff and volunteers are busy loading tractor trailers with food and bottled water for distribution later this week in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. As many as five tractor trailers, each carrying approximately 22,000 pounds of supplies, will travel to the City Harvest Food Bank in New York, The Community Food Bank of New Jersey, and the Connecticut Food Bank to help feed area residents in need and provide sustenance for emergency workers. The first GBFB truck — which left Boston for Maine on Thursday to pick up 22 pallets of bottled drinking water donated by The Good Shepard Food Bank of Maine—arrived in Connecticut early this morning. Ten pallets of bleach and other essential cleaning supplies donated by BJ’s Wholesale Clubs and Perkins Paper will be included in the deliveries.

After determining that the 550 hunger relief agencies it serves throughout eastern Massachusetts had the provisions needed to aid community members impacted by the storm, GBFB Chief Operating Officer, Carol Tienken, reached out to her colleagues in communities hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy, which has left millions of people without power and shelter. “We immediately contacted our sister organizations and began mobilizing staff and volunteers. Food banks always come together in times of great need.” In 2005, GBFB volunteers were deployed in the Gulf after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the coastline. Six years later, GBFB traveled north to Vermont to deliver provisions in the aftermath Hurricane Irene.

Early Saturday morning, GBFB staff will deliver thousands of pounds of hearty shelf stable items including canned soups and stews, protein-packed foods such as tuna, peanut butter, beans and nuts, as well as cleaning products to City Harvest, The Community Food Bank of New Jersey, and the Connecticut Food Bank.

City Harvest provides food to 600 emergency food programs throughout New York City, helping feed more than one million people annually. By distributing more than 39 million pounds of food through 1,500 hunger relief agencies in 18 counties, The Community Food Bank of New Jersey helps feed 900,000 each year. The Connecticut Food Bank distributes food and other resources to approximately 600 local emergency food assistance programs in six of Connecticut’s eight counties.

According to Tienken, GBFB is also prepared to deliver additional supplies on Sunday. “Our counterparts in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut know we are always ready to help, because they would do the same for us if we needed it.”

About The Greater Boston Food Bank

The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) is the largest hunger-relief organization in New England and among the largest food banks in the country. GBFB distributes nearly 41 million pounds of food and grocery products annually to 550 member hunger-relief agencies and more than 30 direct service programs throughout eastern Massachusetts in a dedicated partnership to end hunger in our region. This provides meals for as many as 545,000 people a year. GBFB is a member of Feeding America, the nation’s food bank network. For more information, visit us at GBFB.org, become a fan on Facebook, follow us on Twitter (@gr8bosfoodbank), or call us at 617.427.5200.

Boston Vegetarian Food Festival 10/27 and 28

Andrea Hornbein — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 17:50:44 +0000

The Boston Vegetarian Society proudly presents
The 17th Annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival

Saturday, October 27, 2012, 11AM* – 6PM
and
Sunday, October 28, 2012, 10AM – 4PM

*Saturday 10 – 11 AM preview. A limited number of tickets ($5) are available to visit the Exhibitor Room before the doors open at 11 AM for Free Admission to all.

Reggie Lewis Athletic Center
1350 Tremont Street, Boston, Massachusetts
Subway stop across the street

This Festival brings together an amazing array of vegetarian natural food providers, top national speakers and chefs, and educational exhibitors in a fun and welcoming environment. It is a chance to talk directly to food producers, learn the newest items in the marketplace, taste free food samples, shop at show special discounts, or simply learn what vegetarian foods are available and where you can find them!

Whether you are a longtime vegetarian or vegan, or someone simply wanting to add more healthy and delicious foods to your meal repertoire, or if you are just curious what it’s all about, you are welcome here! We offer you free admission, free food sampling, free speaker presentations, free parking and a T stop across the street.

You also can learn of ways to benefit the environment, help animals, and enhance your health and well being. There are activities for kids, too! Learn more about the Festival.

What’s so great about Vegan and Organic?!

Andrea Hornbein — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:54:03 +0000

When I first started to think about getting into the vegan baking business it was simply because I could not find a really peanut buttery cookie, vegan or otherwise (I wasn’t vegan then, though like many, much of my diet was.) I figured there must be other folks looking for a really excellent, peanut buttery peanut butter cookie. The adventure was begun and I’m happy to say I still eat peanut butter cookies!

But why Vegan? Especially since I wasn’t? Maybe just to make my friends happy; to be able to share what I was eating and loving with them. Was it as simple as that? Being an avid organic veggie gardener and tree hugger probably also had something to do with it. Well whatever the reason, 4 years later (those licenses and permits necessary to run a food business sure *take the cake*) A.k.a. Marvelicious was born and yours truly is giving the ol’ vegan diet a try.

That simple peanut butter cookie has been joined by 4 other flavors, and it’s morphed to include PB and J. (We’ll get you a picture of that luscious cookie in our next installment.) The connection between animal welfare and human welfare has been made. And our next flavor will make so many of you happy, the Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie. No eggs, no dairy. Just pure good taste.

A.k.a. Marvelicious is out to Save the Planet with Vegan and Organic ….or at least help us eat our way to a better world.

Look here for info on carbon sequestration and organic agriculture, nutrient dense farming practices, how much you can reduce your carbon footprint by incorporating vegan meals into your weekly diet, recipes and more.

Join me and A.k.a. in saving the Planet… One Vegan with Organic Cookie at a time!