Listen to the Salutation of the Dawn

Listen to the Salutation of the Dawn!
Look to the Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life.
  In its brief course lie all the Verities
           and Realities of our Existence:
           The Bliss of Growth.
           The Glory of Action.
           The Spendour of Beauty.
For Yesterday is but a Dream,
And To-morrow is only a Vision;
But To-day well-lived makes every
           Yesterday a Dream of Happiness.
And every To-morrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn.

From the Sanskrit

Pumpkin Pancakes

And the pumpkin blitz continues! Yes, if I am going to cook pumpkin in the oven and have the puree on hand, I am going to use it in a variety of ways. Here are some ways to compliment the Pumpkin Pancakes:

• make orange butter by blending together grated orange zest and soft unsalted butter
• make cranberry sauce (see "Cranberry Sauce" post), keeping it tart, and then add a little maple syrup when topping the pancake
• top with chopped walnuts or chopped pecans
• top with the standby, delicious, good quality pure maple syrup!

Pumpkin Pancakes
2 cups soft whole wheat flour
1 T sucanat *
1 T baking powder
1 t salt
2 t pumpkin spice **
2 cups milk (cow, rice), or 1 cup soy milk & 1 cup water
1/2 cup pumpkin puree***
1 egg or equivalent substitute****
2 T safflower oil or melted butter
t = teaspoon
T = tablespoon

Sift the flour, sucanat, baking powder, salt and spice together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine the milk, puree, egg and butter or oil. Pour the combined wet ingredients over the dry and mix gently with a hand whisk, being careful not to over mix.

Cook the pancakes on a medium heat. If they seem too thick, and are not cooking thoroughly, then add a little more milk to thin the batter down.

Keep warm in the oven until finished cooking all of the batter. Serve with the your favorite toppings (see list above) and enjoy a seasonal pancake experience!

*Sucanat is an unrefined sugar that is available at most health food stores. The name sucanat is a brand name for this whole cane sugar. It is dark in color and contains the natural molasses that is in the sugar cane

**Pumpkin Spice  

Combine the following spices:

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

***See "How to Bake Pumpkin" post for homemade puree
****See ""Eggless" Egg Proportions" post for egg-free pancakes

Shanthi

Cranberry Sauce

It is very easy to make cranberry cranberry sauce, and it has a very different taste and texture from the tinned sauce. Fresh cranberries are available in the produce section of most grocery stores, especially at this time of year!

Cranberry Sauce
2 cups cranberries, rinsed and picked over to remove soft berries
1/4 cup unrefined sugar
1 t grated orange rind
1/4 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed best!)
1/4 t cinnamon
t = teaspoon

Put the rinsed berries and the sugar in a saucepan over a medium low heat. Gently shake the pan every couple of minutes as the sugar begins to liquify and the berries begin to pop. After 8 minutes add the grated rind and juice. Turn the heat to low, add the cinnamon, and let the sauce gently simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon to squish the berries. Simmer for 5 minutes. Take a small taste of the sauce and adjust the sugar if necessary. The sauce is ideally a blend of the tart berries, lightly sweetened with the sugar to take off the tart edge and then the orange to give it an extra zing. Allow to cool in the pan.

Taste the sauce again when it is at room temperature. If it requires further sweetening, use a liquid sweetener such as maple syrup. If it is too thick then add more of the orange juice. Enjoy with acorn squash that has been baked and filled!

Shanthi

"Eggless" Egg Proportions

1 egg = 2 fluid ounces (approximately)

To replace 1 egg use one of the following combinations:

1 1/2 ounces apple puree (applesauce) or banana puree (mashed banana)
1/2 ounce fat (either safflower oil or melted butter)

This replacement results in food that has a texture and taste similar to foods that are cooked with eggs.

5 Stars to Starbucks!

I went into Starbucks while traveling, bringing in my reusable travel mug, to have filled with green tea. To my delight Starbucks is monetarily acknowledging their thanks to those customers who bring in a reusable cup and save them the cost of a throw away cup. As a result the green tea cost $.27! Wow! The saleswoman said that the charge would have been $2.21. So... this left me open to donate the difference to an MS donation cup that was sitting on the Starbucks counter. Instead of contributing to the 30 million coffee cups that are thrown away daily in the USA, I was able to give my money to help the world, not hinder it!

Thanks Starbucks! Tell me of your coffee or tea story. Let's inspire one another.

Shanthi

Sea Vegetable Kale Salad

1 bunch kale

1/2 cup arame or hijiki (sea vegetables), rehydrated in plenty of filtered water for 30 plus minutes, at room temperature

1/2 cup grated carrot

4 scallions, chopped

1 avocado, chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped (leaves only)

1/3 cup dried cranberries, rehydrated in warm filtered water for 30 minutes

1/4 cup sesame seeds, lightly roasted

Dressing

2 T sesame oil

2 T toasted sesame oil

1 lemon, squeezed

2 T tamari

2 T mirin or honey

Salt, ground pepper

Rehydrate the arame or hijiki and the cranberries in water. No simmering or boiling is necessary. The cranberries are best with warmed water and the sea vegetables are fine with room temperature water.

Wash the kale and remove the soft leaves from the hard stem that runs up the center. Lightly chop the kale and then stir fry it very lightly in a wok or frying pan. A little water in the pan from the kale is fine. At this stage be careful not to overcook the kale. It will continue to cook when removed from the pan so allow for this. Let the kale cool.

Into a salad bowl add the rinsed arame or hijiki, the carrot, scallion, avocado, cilantro and cranberries. Add the kale when cooled. Toss generously with the dressing, it is okay if the avocado softens during this movement. Sprinkle the sesame seeds on top just before serving.

This salad is fine to sit with the dressing for a couple of hours in advance of a meal. The dressing can help to continue the softening of the kale and the flavor of the dressing will penetrate into the sea vegetable (arame or hijiki) and the land vegetables!

Enjoy the flavor and nutrition that is offered in leafy greens and mineral dense sea vegetables!

Namaste,

Sydney

Plastic Bag Ban

On November 13th (which is this coming Sunday) the town of Southampton, NY will be putting the 'Plastic Bag Ban' into effect. After this date, people violating this new law will face a fine up to $2,000 and the possibility of spending two weeks in jail.

Here's an interesting fact about this new law… It only bans thin plastic bags that are used in grocery and drug stores. While it's exciting to focus on this accomplishment, it makes you wonder why plastic bags specifically made for produce are exempt from this law- isn't a plastic bag a plastic bag, be it within the store or at the check-out? At mothering Mother™ we sell reusable cotton produce bags in a variety of sizes, inspiring you to buy as many fruits and vegetables while avoiding the use of plastic.

Do you know how much is costs to dispose of plastic bags? Did you know that between 500 billion to one trillion plastic bags are used each year? Take a quick glance at this post, informing people about what is required to produce and deposit plastic bags.

Additionally, here is a list of countries and cities that have banned plastic bags- the list is missing a few cities, such as Los Angeles, San Jose, and San Francisco.

The push for the ban on plastic bags has been spreading, and for anyone that wants to get involved and is living in or near the Westchester, NY Area, there is a Public Hearing in Rye, NY on Wednesday, November 16th, at 8pm. The meeting will be held at City Hall, and I urge you to be a part of this important movement!

-Katie