INGREDIENTS
1 avocado
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp dried parsley flakes or fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup apple cider or apple juice
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1/2 cup veggies, finely chopped: green onions, bell pepper, celery, red onion, dill pickle, and/or tomato
1 tsp fresh herbs, finely chopped: chives, parsley, and/or dill
8 slices multigrain bread
8 leaves of lettuce
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, mash the avocado with a fork. Add the lemon juice, mustard, parsley, salt, and apple cider or juice and then mix until well blended.
Mash up the eggs with a fork. Add the avocado mixture and your choice of the veggies and herbs, and mix until combined.
Lightly toast the bread and top with a lettuce leaf and the egg salad.
Makes 4 sandwiches.
Green Earth Organics Inc. is a home and office certified organic grocery and natural product delivery service. We have a wide selection of 100% Certified Organic fruit, vegetables, and other grocery products. We also carry a growing list of environmentally friendly products that make it easier for our customers to tread lighter on our planet. This blog offers exiting information on organic food and healthy eating habits.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Shakshuka
INGREDIENTS
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2, 3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 bell peppers, any colour, chopped
8 tomatoes, chopped
796 mL can diced tomatoes, strained
1 1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp sugar
Sea salt & ground pepper to taste
4 - 6 eggs
DIRECTIONS
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil. When hot, add the onion and saute, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about five minutes.
Add the garlic and bell peppers and saute two to three minutes, then add the fresh and the canned tomatoes. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for five minutes. Add the sugar, turmeric, salt, and pepper, and stir for 1 minute. Adjust seasoning to taste.
Gently crack the eggs into the pan, taking care not to break the yolks. Simmer until the egg whites solidify but the yolks are still slightly runny, about 8 minutes.
Serve hot with warmed pita bread or flatbread. For a quick brunch, make the tomato sauce the day before, refrigerate overnight, then heat it to simmering and finish it with the eggs in the morning.
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2, 3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 bell peppers, any colour, chopped
8 tomatoes, chopped
796 mL can diced tomatoes, strained
1 1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp sugar
Sea salt & ground pepper to taste
4 - 6 eggs
DIRECTIONS
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil. When hot, add the onion and saute, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about five minutes.
Add the garlic and bell peppers and saute two to three minutes, then add the fresh and the canned tomatoes. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for five minutes. Add the sugar, turmeric, salt, and pepper, and stir for 1 minute. Adjust seasoning to taste.
Gently crack the eggs into the pan, taking care not to break the yolks. Simmer until the egg whites solidify but the yolks are still slightly runny, about 8 minutes.
Serve hot with warmed pita bread or flatbread. For a quick brunch, make the tomato sauce the day before, refrigerate overnight, then heat it to simmering and finish it with the eggs in the morning.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Don't Throw Out Your Apple Scraps!
We've been lucky to have so many beautiful local apples lately and we know people have been getting pounds and pounds of them. If you're baking with apples, canning them, saucing them, or turning them into butter, you've probably already ended up with a giant pile of apple scraps for the compost. Don't throw that pile out! Those scraps can serve your kitchen for a little longer -- try turning them into vinegar.
Seriously, all you need is this:
Apple scraps (cores, peels and all -- just don't use any moldy pieces)
1/4 cup sugar per 1 cup water
A glass or ceramic crock, bowl or pot to ferment the vinegar in
Mix up enough sugar-water to cover the apple scraps. Store in a glass or ceramic crock with cheesecloth over the top. Let sit for 1-2 weeks. Strain out all the apple scraps and let sit for another few weeks, until it smells and tastes like the vinegar you want. Bottle and enjoy!
Seriously, all you need is this:
Apple scraps (cores, peels and all -- just don't use any moldy pieces)
1/4 cup sugar per 1 cup water
A glass or ceramic crock, bowl or pot to ferment the vinegar in
Mix up enough sugar-water to cover the apple scraps. Store in a glass or ceramic crock with cheesecloth over the top. Let sit for 1-2 weeks. Strain out all the apple scraps and let sit for another few weeks, until it smells and tastes like the vinegar you want. Bottle and enjoy!
About Miso
Ah, February in Vancouver: grey and wet with chances of grey and cold. Whether the cold comes with snow or rain, or some awful blend of both, it is a good season for soup.
Miso is thought to have been introduced to Japan from China around 1,300 years ago. Miso was originally a prized food available only to the nobility, who used it more often as a side dish for rice or as a medicine than as a soup base. Today miso is an essential part of the Japanese diet, but that came about only after miso became popular in soup, and after the warrior class during the Kamakura period (1185–1333) established the custom of having simple meals consisting of rice, one kind of soup and one other dish of fish or vegetables.
Partial fermentation sets miso apart from other fermented soy foods like soy sauce. Partial fermentation produces peptides, compounds produced as proteins are gradually broken down into amino acids during fermentation. Absent from boiled beans and present only in limited amounts in soy sauce, peptides are found in abundance in miso, and they are thought to be good for reducing high blood pressure and lowering cholesterol.
Miso's main ingredient, soybeans, are filled with high quality protein. Fermentation of soybeans generates a great deal of vitamins and amino acids. Miso also contains nutrients such as kalium, magnesium, and fiber.
Miso is a naturally preserved food and will keep up to a year in the fridge, making it ideal to have on hand for a quick hot meal.
To make a quick (but not entirely traditional) miso soup, just dilute vegetable broth or chicken broth with water (about one part broth to two parts water). Bring to a boil, then turn the heat off under the broth. In a separate bowl, whisk together miso paste (about 1/2 a cup for every four cups of broth/water) with an equal amount of the hot broth/water. Add the diluted miso to your soup pot and stir to combine. Serve hot.
You don't ever want to boil miso, as it will become gritty if it is overcooked. If you want to add vegetables or udon or soba noodles to your soup, simmer them in the broth-water prior to adding the miso. You can also toss in diced tofu and thin slices of green onion with the miso.
Green Earth Organics carries Hikari Organic Miso in two varieties: White Miso, which has a mellow flavour, and Red Miso, which is richer in colour and taste. Both are $6.79 for 750 grams.
Miso is thought to have been introduced to Japan from China around 1,300 years ago. Miso was originally a prized food available only to the nobility, who used it more often as a side dish for rice or as a medicine than as a soup base. Today miso is an essential part of the Japanese diet, but that came about only after miso became popular in soup, and after the warrior class during the Kamakura period (1185–1333) established the custom of having simple meals consisting of rice, one kind of soup and one other dish of fish or vegetables.
Partial fermentation sets miso apart from other fermented soy foods like soy sauce. Partial fermentation produces peptides, compounds produced as proteins are gradually broken down into amino acids during fermentation. Absent from boiled beans and present only in limited amounts in soy sauce, peptides are found in abundance in miso, and they are thought to be good for reducing high blood pressure and lowering cholesterol.
Miso's main ingredient, soybeans, are filled with high quality protein. Fermentation of soybeans generates a great deal of vitamins and amino acids. Miso also contains nutrients such as kalium, magnesium, and fiber.
Miso is a naturally preserved food and will keep up to a year in the fridge, making it ideal to have on hand for a quick hot meal.
To make a quick (but not entirely traditional) miso soup, just dilute vegetable broth or chicken broth with water (about one part broth to two parts water). Bring to a boil, then turn the heat off under the broth. In a separate bowl, whisk together miso paste (about 1/2 a cup for every four cups of broth/water) with an equal amount of the hot broth/water. Add the diluted miso to your soup pot and stir to combine. Serve hot.
You don't ever want to boil miso, as it will become gritty if it is overcooked. If you want to add vegetables or udon or soba noodles to your soup, simmer them in the broth-water prior to adding the miso. You can also toss in diced tofu and thin slices of green onion with the miso.
Green Earth Organics carries Hikari Organic Miso in two varieties: White Miso, which has a mellow flavour, and Red Miso, which is richer in colour and taste. Both are $6.79 for 750 grams.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Improvements to "Search Products" Option
If you've tried to use our "Search Products" option on our website in the past, you probably realized pretty quickly that it was difficult to use. Searching "Artisan Bake Shoppe", for example, would bring up every single product that had "artisan", "bake", or "shoppe" anywhere in the name or description. You were looking for all the options from one brand but had to wade through Anita's Unbleached White Flour ("Anita's Organic Unbleached White Flour is preferred by many artisan bakeries..."), Amy's Vegetarian Baked Beans, and Bob's Red Mill Coconut Flour ("It lends baked goods an incomparably rich texture...") to find them all. We are relieved to announce that this has now been improved.
As before, the "Search Products" box is on the right-hand side of your screen while you are looking through any of our product categories. Type any combination of words in any order and the results will be only active items that contain all the words somewhere in the name or description. Items that are out of stock will automatically be excluded from the results.
You may still get some unexpected results - searching just "granola", for example, will bring up a lot of yogurts because their description includes a variation on "delicious with granola" - but it will be easier to find exactly what you are looking for by adding more descriptors (for example, adding "strawberries" to "granola" will get you down from 38 results to just 4: two cereals, a granola bar, and a strawberry yogurt).
We are always working on ways to make our website better and we hope that the improved search engine will make everyone's shopping easier. If you have any questions or feedback, please call us at 604-708-2345 or email info@greenearthorganics.com.
As before, the "Search Products" box is on the right-hand side of your screen while you are looking through any of our product categories. Type any combination of words in any order and the results will be only active items that contain all the words somewhere in the name or description. Items that are out of stock will automatically be excluded from the results.
You may still get some unexpected results - searching just "granola", for example, will bring up a lot of yogurts because their description includes a variation on "delicious with granola" - but it will be easier to find exactly what you are looking for by adding more descriptors (for example, adding "strawberries" to "granola" will get you down from 38 results to just 4: two cereals, a granola bar, and a strawberry yogurt).
We are always working on ways to make our website better and we hope that the improved search engine will make everyone's shopping easier. If you have any questions or feedback, please call us at 604-708-2345 or email info@greenearthorganics.com.
Nature's Path's Love Crunch and Bite4Bite
A year or so ago, I found a new Nature's Path granola in our supplier catalogues: a limited edition Love Crunch, featuring dark chocolate chunks, strawberries, and raspberries. Being a chocolate and berry fan, and being a fan of Nature's Path in general, I immediately put it on our website and bought myself a package. It was decadent and delicious, and I was already saddened that it was a limited edition and wouldn't be around forever.
Well, I guess I wasn't the only one who was going to miss it, as Nature's Path has now brought it out as a permanent part of their premium granola line, and introduced three more Love Crunch flavours as well! Green Earth Organics now carries all four options: the original Dark Chocolate & Red Berries; Aloha Blend, featuring coconut, pineapple, and white chocolate; Apple Crumble, with apple pieces and pecans; and Carrot Cake, containing carrot, pineapple, pecans, and raisins.
On each package of Love Crunch, Nature's Path advertises their Bite4Bite program. The original, limited edition Love Crunch also featured a promise to donate to food banks for every package sold (I can't remember the details from my long-discarded package), and now all four flavours contain the same promise: For every bag sold, Nature's Path will donate the equivalent in cash and food to the food bank up to $1 millon a year.
This isn't the only charitable-giving program Nature's Path has either. Their long-running EnviroKidz Initiative donates 1% of all EnviroKidz sales to species and habitat conservation or education programs for kids. Every time you buy one of our boxes with a cute endangered species on it, a portion of the price you pay goes to help. For more information about the EnviroKidz Initiative and its partnering organizations, see Nature's Path's website.
All in all, what delicious ways to do good while eating well!
Well, I guess I wasn't the only one who was going to miss it, as Nature's Path has now brought it out as a permanent part of their premium granola line, and introduced three more Love Crunch flavours as well! Green Earth Organics now carries all four options: the original Dark Chocolate & Red Berries; Aloha Blend, featuring coconut, pineapple, and white chocolate; Apple Crumble, with apple pieces and pecans; and Carrot Cake, containing carrot, pineapple, pecans, and raisins.
On each package of Love Crunch, Nature's Path advertises their Bite4Bite program. The original, limited edition Love Crunch also featured a promise to donate to food banks for every package sold (I can't remember the details from my long-discarded package), and now all four flavours contain the same promise: For every bag sold, Nature's Path will donate the equivalent in cash and food to the food bank up to $1 millon a year.
This isn't the only charitable-giving program Nature's Path has either. Their long-running EnviroKidz Initiative donates 1% of all EnviroKidz sales to species and habitat conservation or education programs for kids. Every time you buy one of our boxes with a cute endangered species on it, a portion of the price you pay goes to help. For more information about the EnviroKidz Initiative and its partnering organizations, see Nature's Path's website.
All in all, what delicious ways to do good while eating well!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Quinoa Croquettes
INGREDIENTS
3/4 cups quinoa
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup finely chopped green onions (green parts only) or chives
1 onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
About 1 cup bread crumbs
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Cook the quinoa according to the package directions. Fluff and allow to cool to room temperature.
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, then add the quinoa, salt, green onions, onion, Parmesan, and garlic. Combine well. Stir in 1 cup of the bread crumbs and then let stand for a few minutes.
If the mixture is too wet, add more breadcrumbs; add water if it is too dry. Form the mixture into twelve balls and flatten each to about 1-inch thick.
Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium-low. Add the oil and allow it to get hot. Add as many croquettes as will fit, cover the skillet, and cook until the bottoms are deeply browned, about 7 to 10 minutes. If they aren't brown after 10 minutes, increase heat to medium and continue to cook until browned. Flip croquettes with a spatula and cook the second sides until golden, about 7 minutes. Remove from skillet and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining croquettes. Serve hot.
3/4 cups quinoa
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup finely chopped green onions (green parts only) or chives
1 onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
About 1 cup bread crumbs
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Cook the quinoa according to the package directions. Fluff and allow to cool to room temperature.
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, then add the quinoa, salt, green onions, onion, Parmesan, and garlic. Combine well. Stir in 1 cup of the bread crumbs and then let stand for a few minutes.
If the mixture is too wet, add more breadcrumbs; add water if it is too dry. Form the mixture into twelve balls and flatten each to about 1-inch thick.
Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium-low. Add the oil and allow it to get hot. Add as many croquettes as will fit, cover the skillet, and cook until the bottoms are deeply browned, about 7 to 10 minutes. If they aren't brown after 10 minutes, increase heat to medium and continue to cook until browned. Flip croquettes with a spatula and cook the second sides until golden, about 7 minutes. Remove from skillet and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining croquettes. Serve hot.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
BPA?
Back in April 2010, Amy's Kitchen released a statement about Bisphenol A (BPA) in the lining of their cans. The full statement is available online, but here's a brief excerpt:
"There have been 100's or thousands of scientific articles and studies on the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA), as used in epoxy can linings throughout the world. The studies are often contradictory, as often happens with scientific studies.
When world food safety authorities decide on regulatory action, they take into account all the studies to draw conclusions. As a result, some countries have taken steps requiring baby bottles and sippy cups be converted to other packaging. ... But, no countries (EU, Japan, Australia/New Zealand, US) have concluded that they need to regulate the current can coatings in products such as soups."
That said, Amy's has realized that no matter what the governments have been saying, their customers want BPA-free products. According to the company's Facebook page, all their tomato-based soups have been in non-BPA can linings for several months now, and "all of Amy's canned products will be using the new non BPA linings by this coming February."
We will be watching the company's website and once we feel sure that our stock on hand is from these BPA-free cans, we will label them as such in the product descriptions.
In the meantime, Eden Organics has been a leader in BPA-free food packaging. All of their beans are in non-BPA containers. Tomato products have proven tougher – it is apparently hard to find a liner that doesn't react to the extreme acidity of tomato sauces – but many of their tomatoes are now available in glass jars, which never contain BPA.
We also carry some Native Forest products, such as canned pineapple and mango, and their cans are also BPA-free.
To get a list of all the BPA-free canned products we carry, enter BPA-free in the "Search Products" field. As we bring in new canned products or learn more about the products we already have in stock, we will add that to their product description so you can always have an up-to-date list available.
If you have any questions about the products we sell, please call us at 604-708-2345 or email us at info@greenearthorganics.com.
"There have been 100's or thousands of scientific articles and studies on the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA), as used in epoxy can linings throughout the world. The studies are often contradictory, as often happens with scientific studies.
When world food safety authorities decide on regulatory action, they take into account all the studies to draw conclusions. As a result, some countries have taken steps requiring baby bottles and sippy cups be converted to other packaging. ... But, no countries (EU, Japan, Australia/New Zealand, US) have concluded that they need to regulate the current can coatings in products such as soups."
That said, Amy's has realized that no matter what the governments have been saying, their customers want BPA-free products. According to the company's Facebook page, all their tomato-based soups have been in non-BPA can linings for several months now, and "all of Amy's canned products will be using the new non BPA linings by this coming February."
We will be watching the company's website and once we feel sure that our stock on hand is from these BPA-free cans, we will label them as such in the product descriptions.
In the meantime, Eden Organics has been a leader in BPA-free food packaging. All of their beans are in non-BPA containers. Tomato products have proven tougher – it is apparently hard to find a liner that doesn't react to the extreme acidity of tomato sauces – but many of their tomatoes are now available in glass jars, which never contain BPA.
We also carry some Native Forest products, such as canned pineapple and mango, and their cans are also BPA-free.
To get a list of all the BPA-free canned products we carry, enter BPA-free in the "Search Products" field. As we bring in new canned products or learn more about the products we already have in stock, we will add that to their product description so you can always have an up-to-date list available.
If you have any questions about the products we sell, please call us at 604-708-2345 or email us at info@greenearthorganics.com.
Mango and Avocado Sandwich
INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup mayonnaise or Vegenaise
1/4 cup fresh cilantro or fresh basil, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
8 slices bread (multigrain is particularly nice)
8 leaves of lettuce or 1/4 lb spring salad mix
1 mango, peeled, pitted, and thinly sliced
1 avocado, pitted and thinly sliced
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, blend together the mayonnaise, cilantro or basil, lime juice, sea salt, and pepper. Toast the slices of bread.
Spread half the toast with the herb-lime mayonnaise. Top with lettuce leaves or salad mix and slices of mango and avocado. Cover with remaining toast and serve immediately.
1/3 cup mayonnaise or Vegenaise
1/4 cup fresh cilantro or fresh basil, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
8 slices bread (multigrain is particularly nice)
8 leaves of lettuce or 1/4 lb spring salad mix
1 mango, peeled, pitted, and thinly sliced
1 avocado, pitted and thinly sliced
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, blend together the mayonnaise, cilantro or basil, lime juice, sea salt, and pepper. Toast the slices of bread.
Spread half the toast with the herb-lime mayonnaise. Top with lettuce leaves or salad mix and slices of mango and avocado. Cover with remaining toast and serve immediately.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Baked Brown Rice Croquettes
INGREDIENTS
Rice balls:
1 1/3 cups brown rice
2 2/3 cups water
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
3 eggs
1 cup finely cubed mozzarella
3 Tbsp grated Parmesan
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped, lightly packed
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Coating:
2 eggs
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
Fresh ground black pepper (to taste)
DIRECTIONS
Soak the brown rice overnight in the water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, mix together the other ingredients for the rice balls. Stir in the cooled rice until all the ingredients are well combined.
Preheat an oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Coat the bottom of a glass baking dish with a generous layer of extra virgin olive oil.
To make the coating for the rice balls, whisk together the eggs and olive oil together in a small bowl. In a separate small bowl, stir together the bread crumbs with the black pepper.
Wet your hands to keep everything from sticking to you. Shape some of the rice mixture into a 2-inch ball, then dip it into the egg and oil mixture and then roll it around in the bread crumbs to cover it evenly. Place it in the prepared baking dish.
When all the rice mixture has been shaped and coated, bake until the bottoms of the balls are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Turn them over and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Drain on paper towel and serve hot with a side of salsa or pasta sauce for dipping.
Makes about 18 2-inch croquettes.
Rice balls:
1 1/3 cups brown rice
2 2/3 cups water
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
3 eggs
1 cup finely cubed mozzarella
3 Tbsp grated Parmesan
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped, lightly packed
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Coating:
2 eggs
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
Fresh ground black pepper (to taste)
DIRECTIONS
Soak the brown rice overnight in the water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, mix together the other ingredients for the rice balls. Stir in the cooled rice until all the ingredients are well combined.
Preheat an oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Coat the bottom of a glass baking dish with a generous layer of extra virgin olive oil.
To make the coating for the rice balls, whisk together the eggs and olive oil together in a small bowl. In a separate small bowl, stir together the bread crumbs with the black pepper.
Wet your hands to keep everything from sticking to you. Shape some of the rice mixture into a 2-inch ball, then dip it into the egg and oil mixture and then roll it around in the bread crumbs to cover it evenly. Place it in the prepared baking dish.
When all the rice mixture has been shaped and coated, bake until the bottoms of the balls are golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Turn them over and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Drain on paper towel and serve hot with a side of salsa or pasta sauce for dipping.
Makes about 18 2-inch croquettes.
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