Tomato Stewed Eggplant with White Beans & Kale

INGREDIENTS

3 cups kale, chopped
4 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, diced
1/2 tsp red chili flakes (optional)
1 eggplant, cubed
2 cups tomatoes, canned
2 Tbsp oregano, fresh or dried
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tbsp red or white wine vinegar
Sea salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

Steam the kale lightly until it is bright green and softened (about 5 minutes) and set aside.

In a heavy pot, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat. Add in onion and cook until soft.  Add in garlic and optional chili flakes.  Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.  Add another 2 tablespoons of olive oil, bring the heat up slightly and add eggplant. Stir well for 3 to 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes, kale, and oregano. Cook for 12 to 15 until eggplant is soft, but not mushy.  Add in beans and vinegar and stir together. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4 to 6.

Flour-Free Banana Bake

Contributed by Bonny D.  

INGREDIENTS

2 cups oats
1/2 tsp of cinnamon (or to taste)
Pinch of sea salt
3 bananas (mashed overripe bananas)
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 cup chopped dates
1/2 cup of mix-ins (such as chocolate chips, chopped nuts, raisins, etc.)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.

Mix all ingredients together and put in a small oven safe dish. Mix should be 3/4 inches deep.

Let sit for 10 minutes, then bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool, then cut into squares to serve.

Mashed Winter Squash with Maple Syrup

INGREDIENTS

1 squash (3 to 4 pounds), peeled and cubed
2 Tbsp butter
3 to 4 Tbsp of maple syrup
Sea Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Steam squash for 25 to 40 minutes. Drain squash. Add butter and 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and mash together. Gradually add in the rest of the maple syrup to taste. Add salt and pepper as desired.

Options: Consider adding raisins or dried cranberries to your mash.

Serves 6.

Taking the Welfare Challenge - Follow-Up

This is a follow-up to Taking the Welfare Challenge. These are excerpts from the journal Kirsten kept during the week that her family strove to live on the food budget of welfare recipients. For more information, check out the Welfare Food Challenge and Raise the Rates. 

By Kirsten M.

Journal entry #1: We did it! We came in at the grocery store at about 50 cents under the $78 dollars that the three of us would have left for food if we were on welfare. That's it, for the whole week. Walking through the store, Dan said "must suck to see all this food and not be able to buy it". Exactly.

I’m home right now making my daughters lunch (she’s our third participant) and feeling mother guilt about sending her to school with less. Makes me think about what parents on welfare must feel like when they can’t give their kids what they want to give them. I cheated a bit – since we chose not to buy juice or juice boxes I flavoured her water with some lemon and sweetener (that came out of the cupboards – that was breaking the rules).

Journal entry #2: I am hungry! Can smell the roast chicken cooking in the oven. Bought it because I was hoping to stretch into lunches and at least another dinner. Dan and I debated – he says chicken is too expensive a meat – but I think that's only the choice cuts like the boneless breast. I just couldn't face buying twice as much pork or beef loins for the same price (or whatever huge cheap cut it was that he hoisted in the meat section – I could barely look at it!). Other than that we’ve got baked potatoes (no butter or toppings) and sauteed broccoli. For breakfast all week there’s no juice and we’re eating puffed wheat and hoping the milk will last. I’ll keep you posted.

Journal entry #3: Eating is boring and I find myself using more salt than usual to compensate. So far I am missing many things such as fruit (we bought some select veggies only thinking they would do for lunches and dinners), juice, mustard, mayo, ketchup, pickles (missed those things with my chicken), butter/margarine, spices, sugar, cheddar cheese.

Journal entry #4: As a parent, I think the hardest thing about being on income assistance would be concerns for your kids. Not being able to give them what you want to. I can go without, but as much as Brigid protests that she is fine – "I might be a bit hungry, but that's ok" (she's trying to be tough) – I still am noticing how little she is eating, like a bird, and worry about her. Today I forced her to take more than a boiled egg and a couple other things (none of which included carbs for fuel for her day). Noticing the same tendencies in Dan – there was chicken for sandwiches in the fridge that I told him to take, but he continued to take peanut butter, saying he wanted to leave the chicken for Brigid and I!

Journal entry #5: I wonder if, as a working upper middle class professional, I have more opportunities for free food than many of the low income people I support in my job? Many tend to be quite isolated from any support system. Tuesday night I went to my book club and all the others brought wonderful appys. Today I facilitated a parent group, which the office funded the snacks for. Tomorrow I am volunteering at the Surrey International Writers Conference (in order to be near to Brigid if she needs me – she's a participant, among all adults and teens). We paid for her conference, but as a volunteer I get a lunch voucher. Friends and workmates have also stepped up with offers of donations... Suddenly I'm noticing all the food coming my way...

Journal entry #6: Contrary to my expectations, what I miss most is fresh fruit and real fruit juice. I thought it would be cheese! We had to make some hard choices when we did the shop, and if wasn't filling and wasn't going towards a meal, it had to go. Dan and I have concluded its possible to feed yourself on $26 (especially if you pool the money) and get through the week, but the food feels like sustenance, nothing more. Very little enjoyment, very little that's fresh and good. And even just getting through the week takes a certain level of knowledge and life skills.

Journal entry #7: So tonight, due to a social obligation, we have to take a break from the challenge. We're having a late Thanksgiving dinner with my in-laws and I volunteered to bring the brussel sprouts (I recently discovered a DELICIOUS recipe, with cream, pine nuts, etc). Had to shop for the ingredients. IT WAS TORTURE. I lingered by the fresh fruit, by the bulk bins of chocolate (the smell wafting out of the bins). I wandered around aimlessly with a fuzzy brain from no coffee (I’ve managed to scrounge some caffeine every other day this week). By the time I came out, my resistance was down. I wasn’t feeling well at all. So I cheated – I went next door for a Starbucks, just a $1.85 drip with cream and sugar in my own cup. Nothing fancy.

Journal entry #8 (LAST): Well, with a few donations, and a couple instances of bending the rules, we made it to the end of our week. Of our $78 (for 3 people) we had left: salt, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, half a jar of peanut butter, 1 cup rice, 3 or 4 slices of bread, a couple donated cans of soup, and 3/4 cup plain yogurt. On a normal week more food goes to waste than I'd care to admit... this week we wasted nothing. The lentil pilaf (with no cinnamon, cumin or allspice) fed us for two dinners and a lunch or two. Last night we had chicken soup (I cooked the heck out of the bones from earlier in the week). Yesterday I planned five dinners and we did our weekly shop (for four people, not three) and spent about $210. And more than likely there will be at least one or more quick trips (for missing ingredients), treats and coffees out, and maybe a frozen pizza or something fast if I am on the run. And of course we’ll be using stuff that is already in our kitchen, unlike last week!

Autumn Wild Rice and Cauliflower Soup

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter

1 medium onion, chopped

1 cup celery, thinly sliced

1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup flour

4 cups of vegetable or chicken broth

2 cups wild rice, cooked

2 cups cauliflower florets, cooked

1 cup cream

DIRECTIONS

Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add the sliced celery and mushrooms. Sauté until tender. Dust the celery and mushrooms with flour and stir to coat well. Gradually stir in the vegetable or chicken broth to avoid clumping. Stir constantly until thickened. Add in cooked wild rice, cooked cauliflower and cream. Blend well. Cook gently on low heat until soup is fully heated. Do Not Boil.

Serves 6 to 8.

Taking the Welfare Food Challenge

By Kirsten M. 

Choosing to take the Welfare Food Challenge issued by the organization Raise the Rates was a really tough decision. I knew it would not just impact me; I would not be successful in eating only what a person on welfare could afford for a whole week unless I could engage my family. I started by showing my husband and two teenage kids the video at 610dietplan.com. Husband and 13 yr old daughter eventually agreed, after discussing the logistics. Our daughter got excited when she asked if she could approach her teachers about a class presentation about the experience. Absolutely! Our 15 yr old son was completely against trying it out. He's ALWAYS hungry, as is typical with teen boys, and I think the thought of being even more hungry was too much for him. I was SO torn about this, because on the one hand I didn't believe I would be right into "guilting" him into participating, but on the other hand, I disagreed with his views (politically, he does not understand or agree with the act of us going without, if it's not going directly to feed poor people - he's a very concrete thinker). After another 36 hours of thinking it over, trying to decide (and my daughter going "for the last time, are we doing it or not!" over and over) I decided to go ahead. We solved the problem of one family member opting out by bringing him on the shop, and having him choose his own foods for the week (approved by me). He's taken them to the downstairs fridge and will be feeding himself this week! I have to admit, it was somewhat surreal to see him wandering around the store with a grocery cart of his own. Shades of things to come - my kids are growing up too quick.

So after waffling for days, at the 11th hour we decided to go ahead. I'm already realizing that we can only "simulate" the experience so much. For example, we are choosing not to buy coffee, but when I go to work this week, I'll have coffee available. Do I drink it because its free (and someone on income assistance would certainly accept free coffee)? Or do I skip it because people on income assistance don't have jobs where the coffee is free? They must have other sources? Hmm.. Or in another example, I didn't buy dishwasher soap this week - the rules say not to eat what's in the cupboards but I am continuing to use my dishwasher soap, which would normally be part of a grocery bill. All three of us already have many many little decisions like this, and we’ve barely started. I think that's ok, we'll figure it out as we go along, and the important part is we will be more "present" in what we consume.

Despite my anxiety on how we would get through the week, I chose to do this because, as a social worker, I frequently walk into the homes of people on income assistance. Almost twenty years after getting my Bachelor's of Social Work (BSW), I recently completed my MSW as part of the first cohort to graduate from this brand new program offered University of the Fraser Valley. I live in Abbotsford and when a local opportunity to arose to get my grad degree the time seemed right. As part of my grad studies I researched the impact of poverty on my clients. I was captured by the "Social Determinants of Health" model, especially as it is described by Dr. Dennis Raphael, which places poverty as the determinant underlying most of the others. In school I learned that the evidence shows that we spend so much time promoting healthy lifestyles such as "exercise", and "don't smoke" and so on - when in reality the number one thing you can do to be healthy is "don't be poor". Since completing my research I have tried to keep repeating this message to management at the agency I work at, and keep finding ways to connect what I learned in school about poverty with what I do at work, especially with those who create policy and apply for grants and funding (that's not me).

So it’s 4:30 on the first day of our challenge, I can smell dinner cooking in the oven, and it's been a long time since lunch. We did our shop last night and successfully came in just a few cents under the $78 that three able bodied people on welfare would have left for food. For more on the campaign, including more stories from others who are taking part, see welfarefoodchallenge.org/take-the-challenge. 

The Welfare Food Challenge runs from October 16th to October 23rd. Many of the participants are posting updates on the Welfare Food Challenge website and Kirsten M. will send us another article after the challenge to let us know how it went for her and her family.

Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers

INGREDIENTS

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 zucchini, diced
2 cups white button mushrooms, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 cup pasta sauce
Sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
6 bell peppers, any colour, cut in half from top to bottom and seeded
1 cup shredded mozzarella, or more to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius).

Cook quinoa according to package directions.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil. When hot but not smoking, add onions and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and slightly translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Add zucchini, mushrooms, and tomato and cook until slightly tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and cover and simmer until the vegetables have softened, about 10 more minutes.

Remove from heat and stir the cooked quinoa into vegetable mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Fill bell peppers with quinoa-vegetable mixture. Place peppers in a deep baking dish. Cover dish with aluminum foil. Bake until bell peppers are slightly tender, about 18 minutes.

Remove foil and sprinkle peppers with mozzarella. Bake until cheese is bubbling and melted, about 5 more minutes.

Did You Know: Referral Program

"Did You Know" is our series of blog posts about Green Earth Organics: how it works, how you can do more with your account, etc.

New members find Green Earth Organics in many different ways. We have booths at community events and food shows, we have ads and flyers, we have FaceBook and Twitter, we have our vans driving around the city, and many people find us by doing Internet searches that lead directly to our website. Some of our favourite sign-ups, though, are referrals. We are always thrilled when someone enjoys our bins and service so much that they tell friends and family members; it is such a great compliment.

Of course, we would like to make it as easy as possible for you to refer people to us and we would like to thank you for the referral. To participate in our referral program, just tell your friends and family to put your name in the "How did you hear about us?" field. When we see your name on their account, we will give them $10 off their first delivery and we will give you $10 off your next delivery. It is as easy as that!

Those credits are usually applied the day before the delivery day and they can be seen on the "Your Billing" page of your account. Credits are automatically deducted from your next balance owing, regardless of your payment method.There are no limits to how many people you can refer. Some of our members have popular blogs and they get so many referral discounts from talking about our service there that they actually get free bins once in a while!

In Vancouver, we've been running this same referral program for many years, and it has worked very well for us and for our members. Now, we're very excited to be able to expand the offer to more areas in British Columbia with our wonderful new locations! If you have friends in the Victoria area, in Squamish or Whistler, or in the Fraser Valley (as far out as Chilliwack), they can sign up to receive bins from their locally-owned franchise and you and they will still benefit from the same $10 discount! Again, just tell them to put your name in the "How did you hear about us?" field on their local site (they can find it easily by going to greenearthorganics.com), and we will find your account and take care of the rest.

Thank you again for being a member of Green Earth Organics! We're always happy to receive any feedback you have at info@greenearthorganics.com or 604-708-2345. Please let us know if there's anything we can do to make the service better for you!

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup plain bread crumbs
3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus 2 tablespoons for topping
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
Coarse sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
2 large eggs
2 large eggplants (2 1/2 pounds total), peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
2 jars (6 cups) of pasta sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly oil two cookie sheets and set them aside.

In a shallow bowl or deep saucer, combine the bread crumbs, 3/4 cup of Parmesan, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper.

In another shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons of water.

Dip the eggplant slices in the egg mixture and then coat them well with the breadcrumb mixture. Place on oiled cookie sheets. Bake until golden brown on bottom; about 20 to 25 minutes. Turn slices and continue baking until browned on other side; about another 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven, then raise oven heat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Spread 2 cups of the pasta sauce in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Arrange half the eggplant in the dish, cover with another 2 cups of the sauce, then cover with a 1/2 cup of the mozzarella. Repeat with remaining eggplant, sauce, and mozzarella. Top with remaining 2 tablespoons of Parmesan. Bake until sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted; about 15 to 20 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Pear Shortbread Pie

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
5 pears - peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4 inch slices
1/4 cup demerara sugar, packed
1 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Farenheit (200 degrees Celcius).

In a large bowl, cream butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy. Stir together flour and baking powder and then blend into butter mixture. Pat into a 9-inch pie plate.

In a large bowl, combine pears, brown sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spread evenly into the crust.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and continue baking for 20 minutes, or until crust is golden and filling is bubbling.