iEat Green with Bhavani

iEat Green - 01.27.22 - Kate Mendenhall

Bio:
Kate Mendenhall, is the Director of the Organic Farmers
Association, a national non-profit organization, who's
mission is to provide a strong and unified voice for domestic
certified organic producers. Kate worked with Pesticide Action
Network and CUESA at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market in San
Francisco before traveling to the east to work for NOFA-NY for a
decade, the last five years as their Executive Director. Now Kate
lives in her hometown in Okoboji, Iowa.  She worked as the
Managing Director for the Iowa Organic Association for three
years while starting her own organic livestock farm. She continues
to farm while leading Organic Farmers Association.  Her
nationwide experience and dedication to organic farmers
throughout her career makes leading the Organic Farmers
Association her dream job, and she is a fierce advocate for what
organic farmers need and want from the ground up!

 

 

The Best Gluten-Free Vegan Carrot Cake

 

 

Preheat oven to 350*

 

3 cups gluten-free Flour

1 cup ground oat flour

1 cup ground coconut

4 tsp cinnamon

1 Tbs baking soda

1 Tbs baking powder

1 ½ t. salt

1 cup raisins

2 cups walnuts

½ cup potato starch

½ t. nutmeg

1 cup puffed millet or rice

4 cups shredded carrots

2 cups apple sauce

1 ½ cup maple syrup or Agave

4 Tbs flax seed dissolved in ¼ cup warm water

6 t. vanilla

1 ½ cup oil

1 Tbs apple cider vinegar

1 can organic crushed pineapple, drained

 

Mix the first twelve ingredients into a bowl. Mix the remaining ingredients, except for the carrots, into a separate bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry. Mix in the carrots.

Bake at 350 for 40 min. or until a knife comes out dry.

 

iEat Green - 01.20.22 - Randi Dresner

Bio:
Randi Shubin Dresner has been with Island Harvest Food Bank since 2001, serving
as President and Chief Executive Officer for most of her tenure. Under her direction,
Island Harvest has increased its income by more than 463 % and its distribution of
meals helping people in need has increased by more than 196 % in the past thirteen
years alone. During this time, the organization has expanded programming to
include advocacy, food-insecurity root cause analysis and action, the creation of a
Workforce Skills Development Institute, holistic programming and the acquisition of
an organic farm.
Randi Shubin Dresner was appointed by the New York State governor to serve on
the NYS Council on Hunger and Food Policy and the College Council at Farmingdale
State College. She serves on a many councils and boards including the Suffolk
County Food Policy Council, The Long Island Food Council, the Consultive Council of
Non-Profit Leaders for Charity Navigator and an Advisory Disaster Response
Council for Feeding America. Randi is a frequent guest speaker at the national and
local levels, contributing writer about issues related to human service needs,
people-first terminology, poverty and more. She is a member of the Energeia
Partnership at Molloy College (a regional ethical-leadership academy), and recently,
Randi has also been able to check off radio talk show and podcast host from her
bucket list, with “Conversations with Randi Shubin Dresner”.
Randi served as adjunct faculty at Long Island University at CW Post and Molloy
College spanning more than 25 years, served as the Co-Chair of the State University
of New York (SUNY) Task Force on Food Insecurity and was Chair of the Advocacy
Committee for Feeding New York State. Prior to joining Island Harvest Food Bank,
Randi was a partner in a successful development consulting firm and made her
mark at several national and local nonprofit organizations, including the Heckscher
Museum of Art, the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation, The Viscardi Center,
and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Randi was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws from St. Joseph’s College in 2013.
She is a lifelong and proud resident of Long Island, NY.

 

Pumpkin and Bean Chili

Ingredients
 2 lbs cooked beans (pinto, kidney, black or mixture) or 5-6 cans
 2 tablespoons olive oil
 2 onion, diced
 2 medium carrots, diced
 2 jalapeno peppers, diced (optional)
 2 Thai peppers (or other hot pepper, optional)
 2 TBS. minced garlic
 3 tablespoons chili powder
 2 teaspoons chipotle powder
 2 tablespoon cumin powder
 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
 1 14 oz can Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Chili (Trader Joe’s)
 2 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican oregano
 2 tablespoons tomato paste
 5 cups cubed pumpkin, steamed (I used LI Cheese Pumpkin)
 1-1/2 cup fire roasted corn, frozen
 ½ cup water
 Salt to taste
 ½ cup chopped cilantro
 1-2 limes
 1 cup cashews, soaked for 1 hour to make cashew crema (see recipe below)
Directions
1. In large pot, heat the oil and then add the onion, carrot and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the
vegetables are tender and beginning to color, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and let that
cook for another 5 minutes
2. Stir in the garlic, the chili powder, cumin, chipotle powder and oregano. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3
minutes, until the mixture begins to stick to the pan. Add both cans of tomatoes and salt to taste.
Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down and the mixture
is beginning to stick to the pan.
3. Add the steamed pumpkin and beans, and mix well. Add the water, mix again and let simmer,
stirring often, for 30 minutes. Be careful that the chili doesn’t stick to the bottom of pot.
4. Taste and adjust salt and spices.
5. Add the cilantro before serving, saving a bit for garnish on top.
6. Make the Cashew Crema
Drain the cashews and put into mini blender. Mix with ¾ cup water, the juice of 1-1/2 limes and a
pinch of salt. Taste. Add more lime juice or salt if desired.

iEat Green - 01.13.22 - Patti Woods

Bio:
Patricia (Patti) Wood is founder and executive director of Grassroots Environmental
Education, an award-winning not-for-profit organization dedicated to educating the
public about the relationship between environmental exposures and human health
risks using science-driven arguments for clean air, clean water and a safe food supply,
and for stricter regulation of wireless radiation and chemical toxins.  Grassroots serves
local and state governments, health care providers, school systems, community groups
and other environmental groups and individuals nationwide.
 
A Visiting Scholar at Adelphi University, Ms. Wood lectures on the environment and
related health issues in the College of Nursing and Public Health.  She is also a columnist
for Blank Slate Media’s “Earth Matters,” author of “The ChildSafe School” and “Helping
to Heal,” and co-producer of the film “Our Children at Risk.”  Ms. Wood and her
husband Doug are co-producers of the nationally syndicated radio show “Green Street.”

 

Plantain Chana Curry

Serves 6-8
Ingredients
¼ cup coconut oil
1 tablespoon scraped, finely chopped fresh ginger root
1 teaspoon, finely chopped garlic
1 onion, chopped or sliced
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon coriander
½ teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon turmeric
¼ t. cayenne
2 Tbs. tomato paste
½ cup coconut milk
½ Long Island Cheese Pumpkin or substitute other squash, cut in bite-size pieces
3 plantains, ends removed, peeled and cut lengthwise and then into 1” pieces
4 potatoes, cut into chunks
1 can diced fire-roasted tomatoes with chili (Trader Joe’s)
1 can Garbanzo beans
1 cup water
2 teaspoon Garam Masala (available in Indian markets and some supermarkets)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley or fresh cilantro for garnish
Directions
1. Steam the pumpkin, potatoes, and plantains just until soft, but not mushy.
2. In a large wok, heat the oil over medium-high heat and add the onions.
3. Stir in the ginger, and garlic, and cook for a few minutes. Lower the heat and stir
constantly, frying the onions, until they are soft and caramelized.
4. Add the plantains, salt, cumin, coriander, cardamom, turmeric, cayenne pepper,
and tomato paste, cook for another 5 minutes.
5. Add the Garbanzo beans, black mustard seeds, water, and canned tomatoes,
and let cook down for another 5 minutes.
6. Add the potatoes and pumpkin, coconut milk, and Garam Masala and mix well.
Cover the wok, and let it cook for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Adjust seasonings to taste,
8. Garnish with fresh cilantro or parsley
Serve with Saffron Rice. I also made a Saag Tofu Paneer to go along with it!

iEat Green - 01.06.22 - Ed Maltby

Bio:
Ed Maltby is a producer with over 45 years experience managing conventional and
organic dairy, beef, sheep and vegetable enterprises on a variety of farms in Europe and
the United States. An important focus of his work has been assisting regional farms to
cooperatively market their products into mainstream markets, ranging from direct
marketing lambs and organic produce; establishing a cooperative of dairy farmers who
direct market their own brand of milk in Western Massachusetts, and led the development
of a 12,000-member community-based consumer cooperative in Northampton, MA.
Since 2005, Ed has worked as Executive Director of the Northeast Organic Dairy
Producers Alliance, an organic family farm member organization dedicated to preserving
organic integrity and a sustainable pay price for farmers. He is a founding member of the
Organic Farmers Association (OFA) that provides a national voice for organic family
farms. Ed served on the USDA Dairy Industry Advisory Committee, advising Secretary
of Agriculture on dairy policy, and on the Executive Committee of the National Organic
Coalition. In 2006, when one of the last two remaining USDA slaughterhouses in MA
was destroyed by fire, Ed worked with the family-owned Adams Farm Slaughterhouse to
develop a creative and sustainable financing package for construction in order to rebuild
as a 16,000 sq. foot USDA-certified slaughterhouse that is Animal Welfare Certified,
Halal, Kosher, and organically certified. The plant opened in November 2008 and in
March 2009 he became the General Manager.

 

Vegetable Paella with Tofu

Ingredients:
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoons saffron threads
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into quarters, then
slivers
2 carrots, cut into chunks
4 mushrooms, sliced
½ cake of org. sprouted Tofu, cubed
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 bunch collard greens (or other)
1 broccoli head, cut into florets
1 Poblano peppers, diced
2 cups cooked org. Basmati or Jasmine rice
1 teaspoon Salt
2 Tbs. Tamari
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence
2 Tbs. chopped parsley

Directions:
1. Dissolve 1 teaspoon of saffron threads in 1 cup boiling water. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy, cast-iron or paella pan. Add the
onions. Cook, stirring, until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms, garlic
and ginger, and cook until the mushrooms start to brown.
3. Add the carrots and Tofu, and cook for about five minutes, until the tofu starts to
brown.
4. Cut the collard greens into thin ribbons and add to the pan. Stir in the saffron with
its soaking water.
5. Add the broccoli and Poblano pepper, and let them cook down with the broth.
6. Add the Tamari, salt and Herbs de Provence.
7. Add the cooked rice and let simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
9. Add fresh chopped parsley for garnish

iEat Green - 12.23.21 - Eva Greenthal

Bio:
Eva Greenthal is a Senior Science Policy Associate whose work at CSPI
focuses on food labeling, scientific integrity, biotechnology, and more. Prior
to joining CSPI, Eva led a pilot evaluation of the nation’s first hospital-based
food pantry and worked on research initiatives related to alcohol literacy and
healthy habits for young children. Before that, Eva served as a Program
Coordinator for Let’s Go! at Maine Medical Center and as an AmeriCorps
VISTA Member at HealthReach Community Health Centers in Waterville,
Maine. Eva holds a dual MS/MPH degree in Food Policy and Applied
Nutrition from Tufts University and a BA in Environmental Studies from
University of Michigan.

White Bean and Escarole Soup:

1 ½ cup dried cannellini beans, (soaked overnight and cooked,) or
3 cans cannellini beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 potato, cubed
2 celery
4 t. salt
2 t. pepper
6 cloves garlic
10 cups water
4 sprigs Rosemary
6 sprigs thyme
3 sprig oregano
1 bay leaf
2 heads escarole- chopped

Sauté onions and carrots in olive oil for 5 min. Add celery, garlic and potatoes, and
sauté for 5 more minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce
heat and simmer for 30 minutes until everything is soft soft. Adjust salt and pepper
to taste. Remove 2 cups of soup and puree in food processor, and back into pot, or
use immersion stick to partially puree some of the soup.
Serve with lemon wedge.

iEat Green - 12.16.21 - Katy Franklin

Bio:
Katy Franklin serves as Operations Director at ReFED, a national nonprofit working to
end food loss and waste by advancing data-driven solutions to help businesses, funders,
innovators, policymakers, and more address the problem. She supports ReFED's
organizational development and strategy and designs systems for effective program
implementation and management. Previously, Katy managed operations at Sustainable
America, where she gained a deep understanding of successful food waste reduction
programs with consumers, food service providers, private firms, and at major events.
Katy has authored industry and academic research on food waste and opportunities to
solve this global challenge. Katy also helped develop Further with Food, a public-private
partnership convened to address food loss and waste.

 

Cream of Cauliflower Potato Soup

Ingredients
1. 2 medium leeks, chopped (I always use some of the coarse green part as well as the
white; it deepens the flavor)
2. 2 shallots, diced
3. 4 scallions, chopped
4. Olive oil
5. 1 head of cauliflower, broken or cut into small florets
6. 4 potatoes, 1/2” cubed
7. 8 cups of stock ( I used Umami powder to make my stock)
8. 1 Package fresh Tarragon or 2 Tbs. dried Tarragon
9. 1 Tbs. chopped parsley, plus teaspoons for garnish
10. Salt/pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large pot. (I used my Insta Pot set to ‘sauté’on low)
2. Add the chopped leeks, scallions and shallots to the pot and simmer, covered,
stirring frequently, until the leeks, scallions and shallots are soft and fragrant.
3. Add the cauliflower and potatoes, stir to coat with oil, and cover again. Cook
slowly until potatoes are soft. Add 1 Tbs. of water at a time, if the potatoes are
sticking to the bottom of the pot.
4. Boil 8 cups of water or vegetable stock and add to pot. (If using water, dissolve a
packet of Umami broth or GF Bullion cube to water, before adding to pot.)
5. Add the tarragon, salt and pepper to taste, and parsley and cook soup for 10
minutes.
6. Using an immersion blender into the pot, blend the soup until smooth.
7. Adjust the seasoning. Add more chopped tarragon or fresh dill

iEat Green - 12.09.21 - Samantha Levy

Samantha Levy is American Farmland Trust’s Climate Policy Manager, coordinating the
organizations’ Federal and State policy agenda and strategy to help farmers reduce GHG
emissions, sequester more carbon in soils, host well-sited renewable energy facilities, and
permanently protect more farmland. Prior to this role, Samantha coordinated AFT’s
public policy agenda in New York to save the land that sustains us, leading the Alliance
for New York’s Farmland to advocate for farmland protection and access policies, and
convening and leading the New York Grown Food for New York Kids coalition, which
successfully secured passage of an incentive to help K-12 schools buy more food from
local farmers. Samantha also led AFT’s climate work in New York and was an appointed
member of the Climate Action Council’s Agriculture and Forestry Advisory Panel to help
New York achieve its GHG emission reduction goals for these sectors, as well as the
Governors’ Racial Equity and Diversity in Agriculture Workgroup. Before joining AFT
in 2017, Samantha interned for US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Slow Food USA, and
worked as a farmers’ market manager in the NY Metro region. Samantha was named one
of City and State’s 40 under 40 Rising Stars in Albany in 2020 and was listed on the New
York Agriculture Power 50 List in 2021. She holds a Bachelors in Fine Arts from NYU’s
Tisch School of the Arts, a Masters in Food Systems from NYU, and is a year one
graduate from Cornell University’s LEAD NY program.

 

Corn Bread, Vegan & GF,

Preheat oven to 375°
Ingredients
 ¾ cup Yellow Cornmeal
 ½ cup Masa Harina corn flour
 1 cup GF Flour
 2 tsp Baking Powder
 1 tsp Baking Soda
 ½ tsp Salt
 1 Tbs. egg replacer with 2 Tbs. water
 1 cup Almond Milk , oat milk or coconut milk
 1 Tbs. Ground Flaxseed mixed w/1 Tbs. Apple Cider Vinegar + 2 Tbs water
 ¼ cup sunflower oil (or other)
 ¼ cup coconut oil
 ½ cup maple syrup
 1 ½ cups organic frozen corn kernels
Instructions
. Preheat the oven to 375°F and spray a 9×9 inch square dish with oil
1. In a small bowl, combine the flax ground flaxseed with the apple cider vinegar
and water, and let sit for 5 minutes. Do the same with the egg replacer.
2. Add the dry ingredients to one bowl.
3. Add the coconut milk and almond milk in another bowl.
4. Melt the coconut oil. Mix with the other oil and add to the milk bowl.
5. Mix in the flax egg and egg replacer to the milk bowl.
6. Whisk together to remove any lumps.
7. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix together to incorporate all
of the dry ingredients, but do not over mix.
8. Run the corn under water to defrost. Drain well and add to the corn batter.
9. Pour the batter into your prepared baking dish.
10. Cook for 30-40 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

iEat Green - 11.18.21 - Beth Hoffman

Our guest today is  Beth Hoffman, author of Bet the Farm.

 

Vegan Stuffing

with Mushrooms, Apples and Pecans

1 package Vegan Arrowhead Mills Stuffing Mix (or other)
1 ½ cup vegetable broth
1/3 cup olive oil or coconut oil, plus 2 Tbs
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
8 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped
2 Gala apples (or Granny Smith), cored and diced
1 cup chopped pecans, dry toasted
1 Tbs. Poultry spice
1 t. chopped garlic
½ cup Fresh Herbs, (thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley)
Bring vegetable broth to a boil, along with oil. Add stuffing mix, stir and let sit
covered for 5 minutes. Meanwhile,
in 2 Tbs olive oil, sauté onions for 5 minutes. Add celery and garlic and cook for
another 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, apples and poultry spice, and cook
another 5 minutes. Add toasted pecans. Add the sautéed vegetables to stuffing
and mix well. Add the fresh herbs and season to taste.
Bake covered for 20 minutes before serving.

 

iEat Green - 11.11.21 - Michael Moss

Michael Moss is the author of “Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us,”
an expose of the processed food industry and a #1 New York Times Bestseller
published in 2013 by Random House, and “Hooked: Food, Free Will and How the
Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions,” a New York Times Bestseller published in
2021. He is a former investigative reporter with The Wall Street Journal and The
New York Times, and won the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting in 2010
for his work on contaminated meat. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and their
two sons.

 

Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake

 

Crust ingredients:

1 cups macadamia nuts                                                                                                       

1 cup raw almonds                                                                              

1 cup dates

½ cup dried, unsweetened coconut

1 pinch sea salt

¾ t. ground ginger

 

Filling:

3 cups cashews, soaked in water for 3 hours

¼ cup lemon juice

1 can organic pumpkin (or substitute 2 cups steamed pumpkin)

1 t. cinnamon

½ t. ginger powder

¼ t. ground cloves

1/8 t. allspice

1/8 t. nutmeg

¼ t. salt

3/4 cup maple syrup

3/4 cup coconut oil

1 tablespoon vanilla

½ cup of water

 

Topping

1 cup pecans- chopped fine

¼ cup maple syrup

 

Directions

1. Pulse the macadamia nuts and almonds in the food processor until finely chopped. Add dates and coconut and process until the mixture sticks together. Add salt and ginger powder
2. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of a fluted tart pan with removable bottom, and press up along the sides, creating a nice edge
3. Blend all of the filling ingredients in the food processor. Make sure to scrape down the sides and continue blending until smooth.
4. Pour filling mixture into tart pan crust and put into freezer for 1 hour before adding the pecan topping.
5. Pulse the pecans into small pieces, but do not over pulse into a flour. Add the maple syrup and pulse again until mixed. Sprinkle on top of the cheesecake. Replace the cheesecake into the freezer.

6. Remove the cheesecake from freezer 15 minutes before serving

 

iEat Green - 11.04.21 - Dr. Sally Edwards

Dr. Sally Edwards is a Senior Research Associate at the Lowell Center for Sustainable
Production at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. She has many years of experience
in engaging a wide range of stakeholders to promote the environmental health of
communities and develop safer and greener products. She conducts research to identify
environmentally sound solutions and works actively with the Green Chemistry &
Commerce Council to advance the use of green chemistry in product design and
development. Sally’s latest endeavor is the creation of a new podcast called Persistent
and Pervasive: Feminists take on Toxics that we will be hearing more about today.
Sally also provides consulting services to businesses, NGOs, and communities to support
their environmental sustainability efforts. Sally serves on the board of Women's Voices
for the Earth, an environmental organization based in Missoula, MT whose mission is to
"amplify women’s voices to eliminate the toxic chemicals that harm our health and
communities."
Sally holds a MS in Environmental Health Science from Harvard University and a BA in
Human Biology from Stanford University. She completed her doctorate at the University
of Massachusetts Lowell. Her book, Beyond Child’s Play: Sustainable Product Design
in the Global Doll‐Making Industry was published in 2009.

 

 

Vegan Saag Paneer

Serves 6 to 8
1 ½ blocks organic extra firm tofu, cut into
1-inch cubes
½ t. salt
3 Tbs. olive oil
1 t. turmeric
½ t. cayenne
2 Tbs. coconut oil
1 lb spinach
2 onions, finely diced
2 inch piece fresh ginger root, minced
2 t. garlic, minced
1 bunch broccoli rabe, finely chopped in
food processor
2 t. coriander
2 t. cumin
1 t. garam masala
1 Tbs. chili’s, pureed
¾ cup coconut milk
juice of ½ a lemon

1. Combine olive oil, turmeric, salt and cumin together in large bowl to make a
marinade.
2. Place cubes of tofu into marinade and let sit for at least half an hour.
3. Meanwhile, heat coconut oil in a wok and sauté the onions, chilies, ginger, and
garlic.
4. While that’s sautéing, pulse the spinach and broccoli rabe in a food processor
until finely chopped.
5. Add the rest of the spices to the wok. Let simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. If the
onion, garlic mixture sticks to the pan, you can add a little water to the mixture.
6. In a separate heavy skillet, sauté marinated tofu until golden brown on all sides.
Drain and set aside.

7. Add the spinach and broccoli rabe to the wok. Add ½ cup of water to help steam
the greens. Once the greens are soft, add the tofu and coconut milk to the
spinach mixture.
8. Allow the mixture to cook down for 1o minutes. Squeeze in half a lemon right
before serving.
9. Serve with saffron rice.