The Jerusalem artichoke is neither an artichoke nor has it any connection to Jerusalem. It is the tuber at the root of a flowering plant of the aster family and is native to North America. The flower is similar to the sunflower and the tuber, much like that of ginger, with a texture of a potato. In 1585, Sir Walter Raleigh came upon the plant cultivated by the area peoples of Virginia.
Eating fresh, organic, local produce is a great way to make sure you’re eating food that is at its nutritional peak. It’s also an excellent way to reduce your food’s carbon footprint. You can make your diet even more sustainable by doing things like choosing sustainable seafood options and
S.C.O.B.Y., the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast needed to produce kombucha, is a necessary by-product of the fizzy, good-for-you fermented tea that’s grown in popularity over the last few years. It’s not pretty: most scoby are disc-shaped (they grow to fit their containers, usually a large glass jar), rubbery feeling, and slimy looking, with the occasional grayish-brown strands that can result from yeast blooms.
Water permeates all facets (and faucets – pun intended) of our lives: from what we drink, to how we bathe, to where we gather to swim, kayak, ride boats, and even travel. We’ve all heard familiar phrases like “drink half your body weight in ounces per day,” and “eight cups of water per day is the minimum of what you need,” but few of us ever bother to take a look at our water.
Yes, it can be found in a well, reservoir, tap, or bottle, but few of us are familiar with the actual source: springs.
With the amazing summer climate, many of us find ourselves outdoors enjoying the beautiful weather. We are not alone in this enjoyment – insects will also be out and about more often. Occasionally, we humans and insects hang out in the same area, which sometimes leads to bites and stings.
What do you think of when you hear the words “Fourth of July”? Most people think of fireworks, picnics, family, and, of course, food. Dishes like potato and pasta salads, burgers and hotdogs, fried chicken and corn-on-the-cob, and even strawberry shortcake can be a fun way to celebrate a once-a-year occasion, but most traditional dishes are full of processed grains, high in sugar, and saturated with dangerous hydrogenated oils and trans fats.
The artichoke has origins in the Mediterranean basin. It is a member of the thistle family and evolved from the cardoon plant. It is the bud part of the plant before it flowers, which is edible. It is composed of triangular scales around the central choke known as the heart and only the lower half or fleshy part of each scale can be eaten, but the heart is the most delectable part of the artichoke. The immature bud can be eaten in its entirety.
Nothing beats a nice summer BBQ with fresh, seasonal foods and good company. Even when you're not at a BBQ or special occasion, you can still bring in the bounty of summer with these four recipes. All of them incorporate in-season produce. I highly recommend going to the local farmers market and picking up the ingredients for these recipes from there, as it will enhance your dishes greatly.
When I was a teenager, I took to carrying around a small, rectangular piece of paper that I had printed from the David Suzuki (a prominent Canadian environmentalist) website. The card identified species of seafood that were fine to eat, indicated by a green dot, species that could be in jeopardy, indicated by a yellow dot, and finally species that should not be eaten due to overfishing, amongst other factors, identified by a red dot.
