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Zero-Waste Chef

Vacaville I-80 Noah Berger AP Photo

Posted on September 6, 2020September 18, 2022by Anne-Marie Bonneau
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Highway I-80 in Vacaville in Northern California during a wildfire. Fire jumped the highway and started to burn on the other side. Traffic is backed up in the right-hand lanes.

The flames jumped I-80 in Vacaville

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"High food prices stir appetite for budget-minded "High food prices stir appetite for budget-minded recipes from food writers." Thank you for including me in the article, Geoff Nixon @CBC! One of the best ways to handle high food prices is to eat all the food we buy. There is zero downside to doing so. Link in profile for the full article on how rising costs will affect food writing.
Have your energy costs increased? Ours have. Here Have your energy costs increased? Ours have. Here are five simple ways to conserve energy in the kitchen: 1. Set a timer to avoid cooking longer than necessary. 2. Soak grains and beans before cooking. They’ll cook faster. 3. Use a pressure cooker if you have one. It cooks food very quickly. I bought this one second hand for $15 many years ago. 4. If food is freezing in your refrigerator, turn the temperature up. Consumer Reports recommends 37°F. Lower isn’t necessary. 5. Cook more food at once when you have the oven on. After turning it off when you’ve finished, leave the door ajar to warm up the room. Most of these conserve your time as well, another precious resource!
Nearly indestructible perfluoroalkyl substances (P Nearly indestructible perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), aka forever chemicals, render food packaging heatproof, greaseproof and waterproof, including some supposedly eco-friendly, compostable food packaging. They prevent food from sticking to pans. They render fabrics stain-resistant. They make dental floss glide. They make our lives more convenient but at an outrageous price. PFAS have been linked to kidney and testicular cancers, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, and pregnancy-induced hypertension. They may negatively impact fertility, the endocrine system and the immune system. And the may reduce the efficacy of vaccines. But they are also everywhere! In these slides are easy ways to avoid them. Avoid non-stick pots and pans; avoid take-out containers and wrappers; consider eating more food cooked at home from unpackaged vegetables (they have their own packaging!); don't eat freshwater fish; skip the microwave popcorn and pop popcorn on the stove; choose PFAS-free dental floss. I couldn't fit additional ways in the slides: ✨ Check the EWG website for the map of cities with contaminated water. (Link in my newsletter). Consider getting a reverse-osmosis water treatment system. ✨ Cosmetics, shampoo and other personal care items may contain PFAS. Search for products that do not through EWG’s Skin Deep database. ✨ Avoid stain- and water-resistant fabrics. Sofas, carpet, mattress protectors, outdoor clothing…many of them have been treated with forever chemicals. Do your homework before you buy. ✨ Sign petitions (I like to a few in my newsletter). We need regulations to stop the polluting corporations. See my most recent newsletter for all of the links and more info. Link in bio.
These are three buy-the-seeds-once plants: bok cho These are three buy-the-seeds-once plants: bok choy (first two images), arugula (next two) and sunflowers (this one came up early with all the rains). Let some of these plants bolt and go to seed, save the seeds, repeat and you’ll have free seeds for life. (Ideally… things can and will happen…) I actually didn’t buy my bok choy or arugula seeds. They came from a community garden share! Gardeners tend to be very generous. Share your seeds as well. When those things that can and will happen do happen, you’ll have a network to fall back on. Did you save any seeds last year?
As promised, a sock darning Reel. I used embroider As promised, a sock darning Reel. I used embroidery floss for this. I don’t add any knots in here. The floss is so intricately woven, it’s not coming out.
Here’s a little clip from my first sustainabilit Here’s a little clip from my first sustainability workshop on @omnianetwork “Tips & Tricks For A Sustainable Kitchen,” which is now live! Launched today, Omnia Network is a premium workshop platform on a mission to help people thrive in their pursuit of natural and holistic health and wellness. I’m excited to be part of the launch! In this workshop, I cover tips for a sustainable kitchen regarding: food waste; composting; plastic and paper waste; water conservation; and energy conservation. You can sign up for my workshop at www.omnianetwork.com. With your membership, you’ll have access to other workshops as well, with more coming!
You may have baked with a flax egg to replace eggs You may have baked with a flax egg to replace eggs but have you every tried a sourdough discard flax egg? I’ve been baking cookies with sourdough discard flax eggs and they taste delicious! Shown here are peanut butter cookies. Flax meal eggs are not new. To make one, combine a tablespoon of flaxseed meal and with 2 1/2 tablespoons of water. If you search online (or on IG), dozens of recipes for them and articles about them will pop up. No one I’ve fed cookies made with them knows the difference. I love them for peanut butter cookies, chocolate chip, oatmeal... But sourdough discard flax eggs? Because discard contains only flour and water, I wondered if I could make a sourdough discard flax egg with it, swap that for the egg in a cookie recipe and compensate for the flour present in the discard by reducing the flour called for in the original cookie recipe. Turns out, I can! Here is the recipe for replacing one egg with one sourdough discard flax egg: ✨ 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed ✨ 3 tablespoons sourdough starter discard (or fresh if you like), 100 percent hydration ✨ Combine the ingredients in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 to 15 minutes to thicken. ✨ Reduce the amount of flour in the recipe by 3 tablespoons. ✨ Add the sourdough flax egg at the step where you would ordinarily add the egg and continue with the recipe as usual. You wouldn’t want to use this for meringues or macaroons or recipes that call for loads of eggs. But it works so well as a binder for cookies and bar cookies. You don’t have to be vegan to enjoy these. You just have to like cookies; appreciate the ability to bake when you have no eggs or can’t find eggs; and value saving money. Want to make a starter of your own? I still have some space in my free Feb 10th sourdough starter workshop. It’s my starter Eleanor’s 9th birthday! They grow up so fast 🥲 Go to my profile to register.
Mending socks is so darn fun! The big toe on one o Mending socks is so darn fun! The big toe on one of my favorite socks developed a fairly big hole ☹️ But I fixed it! 😀 For this sock, I used embroidery floss. I mended some thicker socks this weekend with thin yarn. I don't have a darning mushroom but my daughter has a very small embroidery hoop so I used that. I plan on posting a video of sock darning later this week. I can't think of anything else that brings quite the same feeling of satisfaction as repairing my stuff. Repairing extends our stuff’s useful life, conserves resources and takes some pressure off of our bursting landfills. 🧦🧶🪡🧵
Turn a piece of newspaper into a free compost bin Turn a piece of newspaper into a free compost bin liner. If the ick factor prevents you from collecting food scraps for compost, this trick can help. And if you do compost, these liners will keep your food scraps collection bin cleaner while adding brown matter (the paper) to the compost heap. Save money on compostable bags—and skip all the research for said bags (watch out for greenwashing). Plus these are fun to make!
"We must rapidly begin the shift from a thing-orie "We must rapidly begin the shift from a thing-oriented society to a person-oriented society, when machines and computers, profit motives and property rights, are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, extreme materialism and militarism are incapable of being conquered." Martin Luther King, Jr., from his speech "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break the Silence," April 4, 1967 . . . . . #drmartinlutherking #drmartinlutherkingjr #drmartinlutherkingjrday #MLK #MLKday #MLKquotes #blackhistory #blacklivesmatter #blm #consumerism #materialism #equality
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