Sydney's Scones

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour

¼ cup white flour

¼ t salt

½ t baking powder

½ t baking soda

2 t chili pepper flakes

3 T butter or ghee or butter replacement

½ cup milk, any type, soured with 1 t fresh lemon juice

Combine the flour and the butter. Either by hand with a pastry cutter, or with a food processor, cut the butter into small pieces in the flour (if using a food processor use the pulse method). Quickly fold in or pulse the milk, and add extra flour if the mixture is too wet, and add extra liquid if it is too dry.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured clean surface and gently roll the dough until it is about ¾ of an inch thick. Using a cutter or a kitchen glass about 2 inches in diameter, stamp out the scones.

Place on a baking sheet and bake the scones at 375F for about 12 minutes. They will puff up to double the height.

Cool slightly on a rack before serving. Makes approximately 8 scones.

mothering Mother in Daily Life Green Living Bites ~Eating less or no meat while also eating leafy green vegetables, has been scientifically shown to be better for your bones. A USDA study reported that "vegetarian women had stronger bones than women who ate meat" (PETA) ~Increase the green in all areas of life by walking or running outdoors in place of the mechanized gym experience. Enjoy time in nature and feel the subtle benefits! ~We apologize for the error. In the last newsletterwe mistakenly stated that there are 30 million coffee cups thrown into the garbage every day in the US. That number is incorrect. The number is 300 million! Another zero changes the picture yet again! Quick Links About Us Recipes Join Our List The mothering Mother newsletter seeks to address how integral food and its connection with the Earth is to our everyday lives. Eating healthy foods is easy if you buy healthy and natural ingredients. Get familiar with your produce and bulk bags. You do so much for others, now do something for yourself. Buy fresh produce, fresh seeds and nuts, and follow the recipe below to good and natural eating. Can we eat our way out of the environmental challenges? One thoughtful meal at a time. See the continued "Eating Our Way Out" article at the bottom of this newsletter. Share your joy for the world by using cotton mothering Mother bags and sharing your home cooked foods with others. Namaste Sydney mothering Mother Blog For even more wholesome food for thought, presenting the mothering Mother blog! Check it out! My Veganism Angelica A. Food never seemed important to me until I had to cook for myself. It was amongst the many commonplace things that I took for granted, like the animals and people in my life. Then I started to cook. Hamburger helper, boxed and canned pasta, chicken and rice. The prepared meat I was accustomed to consuming suddenly came alive when I attempted to manipulate flesh with my fingers. My Frankenstein, I finally see you. I finally see me. How could I prepare food that came from taking the lives of innocent creatures? I was ashamed. My eating habits were no different than the violence that pervaded my life. I had beeneating death all this time! I could not continue down that path once I looked in the mirror and saw how I was contributing to the cycle of violence in this world. By eating meat - and yes, dairy, eggs, and honey - I agreed that death was delightful, even delectable. And by death, I call attention to the animals caged and slaughtered, the earth poisoned and stripped bare, and the people consumed by their desires. The act of eating is extraordinary. In eating we do not simply ingest nutrients to prevent our hearts from stopping. We build friendships, families, communities, cultures through eating. At our tables, we celebrate and show appreciation through eating. By eating, we nourish our bodies, our minds, our hearts with love. What better way to share this love than by eating Vegan? My Veganism is a promise: I will no longer contribute to the cycle of violence; I will love unconditionally; I will learn how my actions affect everyone and everything around me; I will no longer fail to see; I will learn from my mistakes and my discomfort; I will discipline my desires. Often people try to pigeon-hole my compassionate approach. Friends will tell me, "But animal bone is in cement," or, "Plants are alive, too!" Ultimately saying, your attempts at compassion are futile. As vicious and typical as these comments are, they highlight an important question: Why bother being compassionate when you alone can't prevent all violence? Revolution starts within oneself. From there, the effects are infinite. Veganism, like most food cultures, is a shared practice. And I share it every time someone asks me about my diet, every time I cook for friends, every time I go to a restaurant and ask for Vegan dishes, and every time I shop for groceries. The more Veganism is practiced and talked about, the more people will consider compassionate approaches to living. Since changing my diet, I have witnessed many of my friends make similar changes in their diets, local restaurants have added Vegan options to their menus, and local grocery stores are now providing more Vegan-friendly items. These are significant changes in my local economy and social eating dynamic! By practicing Veganism I am literally building a safer, kinder world with compassionate cuisine. A better world is possible! And it tastes delicious! Barley & Lentil Soup This month we are highlighting Barley. The barley in this recipe is made with pearled barley, which is more refined than hulled barley. More of the fibre has been removed in the pearled barley. Regardless both take quite awhile to cook. It is well worth it! During cooking the water becomes thicker, making the soup more stewy without any flours or thickeners. Hulled barley is also good in a salad. Straight from nature, good for you and good for Nature, buy some barley in the sealed bulk bags and start playing with this grain! _______________________________________________ 1/3 cup pearled barley 3 ½ cups water 1 cup lentils (green, brown, French, not red lentils) 3 ½ cups water 1 piece kombu 1 T ghee or olive oil Half of a yellow onion, chopped 1 t cumin seeds 1 dried chili pepper 2 cups chopped vegetables - green or red pepper, carrot, bok choy or celery, sweet potato, fennel, almost anything! 2 cups vegetable stock 1 chopped tomato or 1 T tomato sauce Salt, Pepper Herb(s) of your liking Chopped Cooked Kombu (from above cooking with lentils) Chopped Greens (from Bok Choy or other Leafy Greens) T = teaspoon T = tablespoon Rinse the barley in a sieve under running water. Dry roast in a saucepan (to make the grain more alkaline and flavorful), then add the water. Bring to the boil and reduce heat to low and let the barley gently simmer until cooked. This will take about 90 minutes. In a separate saucepan, add the rinsed lentils, water and kombu to the pot and bring to the boil. Reduce to simmer and let the lentils gently cook for about 45 minutes. The cooking time will depend on the variety of lentil that you are using. The green lentils are larger and therefore take longer to cook. Over a medium flame heat the ghee or oil in a frying pan. When it is hot add the cumin seeds and the chili pepper. Swirl them in the pan for 15-20 seconds, being careful not to burn. Add the onions and cook until the onions are soft. Add the chopped vegetables, stir for a minute. Combine the barley, lentils and vegetables. While the pan with the vegetables is still hot, add some vegetable stock to be sure to get all of the flavorings, and pour this into the pot. Add the remaining vegetable stock, tomato or tomato sauce, chopped kombu from the cooked lentils, and seasonings. Bring to the boil and let this simmer for 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the chopped vegetables. Turn off the soup. Just before eating stir in the chopped greens. Adjust the seasonings. This soup will develop a deeper flavor if it has time to sit before eating. Makes 4 full servings Accompany with Spicy Scones, if desired. Enjoy! Eating Our Way Out (Part 10) Sydney MacInnis Founder mothering Mother Holistic Nutritionist and Yoga Instructor There are so many things to consider each day, so many decisions to make and the ability to act upon a finite number of them. Some decisions can be shelved for a later date and some must be addressed immediately. We all have this experience on a daily basis. In my extended family, I am watching as different members deal with health/diet issues. One member has had digestive issues that grew in intensity to the level of investigative testing. Deciding not to go down the path of pharmaceuticals to alleviate the symptoms, she began to monitor the food that she ate and noted the post digestive effect. From here her journey continues to unfold, going forward in spurts when she has the energy to invest in looking into new foods, and coasting when busy by sticking to the foods that are easily managed by her system. A year and a half later her understanding of her own system and her willingness to explore alternative eating choices has blossomed. Another member has had allergies, that developed into asthma, eczema and sleep apnea. All of this before the age of 20. Recently the ENT doctors decided to take out her tonsils in the hopes of bringing down all of the immune responses that were going on in her body. At the same time the doctors asked her to eliminate dairy from the diet. Within weeks of eliminating the dairy from the diet the eczema disappeared. Following the surgery, and with a continued dairy free diet, the snoring disappeared. Three months of no dairy and 15 pounds lighter she wants to shift to vegetarianism. Everything that she has read about continued health points in that direction. Then just this week a teenager in the extended family has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. The family is learning how to walk through each day differently. There is no choice around this decision for action, no delay. When discussing diet and nutrition with an individual, more often than not I find that people already know what foods do not agree with their system. Too often, unless there is a critical situation, the decision for action is delayed. What compass are we using to guide us to the choices that are holistic for our body and our mind? With a love for the foods that are best for us, rather than a forced distaste for the foods that are not nourishing us, we are able to make meaningful shifts with lasting effects. The question that is begging to be asked is "What are you waiting for?" Just as Angelica listened and created a dietary lifestyle that had deep meaning for her and other beings around her, your reason will be unique to you, to your intuitive understanding of your unique body and its needs. Listen, trust and shift. Eat with compassion, eat with care, eat with consciousness. May your walk in life be to the benefit of the world around you! Namaste

Gravity

It can be heavy out there! Let's be aware of it and learn how to lighten it up!

Gravity is always acting on us. Our bodies are subject to the force, thankfully, that keeps us physicaly rooted here on Earth. Our weight is nothing but a number that is a combination of that force and our volume (volume being a combination of size and density). The force is strong enough to change our bodies as we age.

Begin to shift from just "seeing" your weight (scale, clothing) to "experiencing" your weight (mental and spiritual state). This is a shift from the "gross" to the "subtle". It is a move from "appearance to experience".

Go within. Feel the gravity. There is a natural tendency for "grave-ity". In The Golden Present Swami Satchidananda says, "There is a natural gravitation that makes it easy to push things down, and hard to lift them up. That pull is there; but we have been given the capacity to face it and rise above it."

In Wizardy 101 Mary Abbamonte says "For some strange, mysterious reason that no one knows-although there have been many theories -  it's much easier to tend toward the negative than the positive. The matrix here on earth drags you down into the negative. You must become aware of this force and not feed the negative, or its strength will grow."

Use discipline in both our physical and our mental practices to keep the gravity experience positive. Discipline your eating to restrict your physical force on the Earth. Eat foods directly from the Earth by focusing on a whole foods plant based diet. Discipline your words and thoughts to those that uplift your mental and spiritual state. Embark on a regular practice such as meditation to experience the "higher self".

Let your "Light-ness" shine in the world around you. Share it with others, give it away, assist in removing the darkness with Light.

Shanthi

Sydney speaks about motheringMother

motheringMother founder Sydney gives a speech to a local Rotary Club about the importance of a Plastic Free world:

Finding a "Real" Coffee Mug!

What a challenge I had the other week when I was in NYC and had some time on my hands before the next train home. I started to search for a coffee shop where I could have my tea in a mug, you know the kind that you probably have at your home, a real porcelain mug that is washed following use! Well, after a lengthy search, I landed myself at Starbucks, of all places!

Try the challenge yourself. Shops are geared to give us disposables even when we are staying in. Those 300 million coffee cups that go into the garbage each day, not only contribute to our expanding piles of waste, they also are lined with plastic. When the heat of the hot drink comes in contact with the plastic - whew - toxins are released into your beverage.

Tell us about your porcelain mug seeking adventure! Experience the delayed gratification of a hot drink for the sake of the Earth. Put someone or something ahead of our own desires. 

Shanthi

Travelling Waste Free – Lighter for the Earth, Lighter for You!

 I love the challenge of travelling without creating waste beyond the fossil fuels that are required to move this body from A to B! Okay, that is saying a lot right there, so why should I add to the environmental cost of my life by purchasing packaged goods.

Before leaving home I use a mini or medium mothering Mother bag, and put in it various dried fruits, and some nuts or seeds, or both. I take a reusable travel mug, tea bags, and a drinking bottle that I am reusing. In our home when a Snapple appears I use it for months on end, until accidentally forgetting it somewhere. These glass bottles can be washed well with a bottle brush, and they do not carry the toxins that a plastic bottles do. Also, you can put a warm liquid in a glass bottle without the worry that the heat of the beverage is releasing more toxins.

If flying, security will allow the bottles to go through if they are empty of liquids. Once you are on “the other side”, fill the bottle with water from a fountain, and use the travel mug for tea or coffee. Enjoy your own fruit, or purchase some at the kiosks at the airport where they usually sell oranges, apples and bananas. Note that dried fruit and nuts are for sale at airports, but you can enjoy your food that you brought from home, in your reusable bag, fruit which was purchased in bulk! Oh, the joy!

If you are travelling by car, then pack your own filtered water in larger bottles and keep refilling a smaller container for drinking. You have the travel mug for hot drinks at gas station breaks. Bring food from your home for the trip, all in reusable containers. Don’t forget to pack some cutlery, and roll it up carefully in a cloth napkin! Food tastes so much better when eaten with stainless steel versus plastic.

A nice container for salads or food from a restaurant gives you the choice of eating quality food while on the road, without needless packaging. Below is a concise list to help make your next trip lighter on the environment. And while you are doing all of this travelling, and eating fruit and nuts, and salads, you just might burn up a few extra calories that have been sitting “around”, waiting to be put to good use!

Did I mention the money that you will save? Add that to the list of benefits!

Reusable Water Bottle

Travel Mug (300 million coffee cups go in the garbage each day in the USA!)

Cotton Bag with nuts, seeds, dried fruit (almonds, raisins, mango, banana, dates, figs…)

Containers for Salads or Meals to Take Out

Cutlery

Napkins

Your Sense of Environmental Adventure!

Play with it, and safe travels to you!

Shanthi

Joanna Falcone

We at mothering Mother have established a list of ways to minimize the amount of packaging in your grocery cart and in your garbage bin. Grocery shopping with your own packaging can be like a game, a personal challenge each time you shop. How can I reduce the amount of garbage that is needlessly created? Even recycling uses energy, so keep in mind the 3 R's - reduce first, reuse next, then recycle.

Consult with the list below and check into your own creativity! Just wanting to reduce waste is enough to get the wheels of new habits in motion.

Depending on the season a stroll through the produce aisles can begin the menu planning for several meals. A mixture of root vegetables and fresh green vegetables give the promise of warm and hearty soups and stews, coupled with beans from the bulk section. Gazing at the selection in the bulk area can inspire me to create meals from a vast variety of natural grains, beans, seeds and nuts. The dessert options unfurl with the sight of flours, sugar, nut butters, honey, chipits, coconut and dried fruits.

Bring your own reusables for take out at lunchtime, at the office (keep a container in your desk and wash after use), or for restaurant leftovers. Although you may catch a glance or glare from others around you, know that everything in our world was new at one time, and coming equipped with containers will one day be as commonplace as bringing your own tote to the grocery store.

Who is going to take the brave first steps of change that are needed in our world?! We all know that there is tremendous waste around us. "No one can do everything, but everyone can do something! " (weaddup.com) Don't wait for the person next to you to lead the way. Be the change agent of today! That person is waiting for your crazy habits to become acceptable.

Print the list below and post it as a reminder. Go ahead, get inspired, get crazy and minimize!

* For more information on how to store bulk food items at home visit the mothering Mother blog! (See Wednesday, January 18th post)