Wild red clover harvest

Yesterday I was talking with Sarah Richards - Portland's go-to herbalist who runs Homegrown Herb & Tea - and learned that we're in the midst of a worldwide shortage of dried red clover. Sarah says it will be months before she can get another shipment.

Good thing Maine is blessed with an abundance of this useful plant growing wild in fields and ditches.

I snapped these photos while I was up at Sunshine Farm for the Fourth of July weekend. After most of the guests left, I helped my mother gather a basket of red clover blossoms from where they grow wild on the front lawn. The pretty blooms can be used to top salads, but we were interested in drying them for storage.

Long grown as an agricultural crop, this nonnative legume has naturalized itself in North America. Farmers prize the crop for its ability to add nitrogen to the soil without using chemical fertilizers. It's harvested for both hay and silage.

My mother placed the freshly picked blooms on a cloth-lined basket to dry. She harvests and dries them throughout the summer and gathers enough to last her until the following spring.

Mixed as a tea, most often with other herbs, the dried blooms are used to treat a variety of problems, including respiratory issues, prostate problems, menopausal symptoms, PMS, high cholesterol, cancer and inflammation. Used topically, red clover soothes skin conditions including psoriasis and eczema. The blooms contain high levels of isoflavones (plant estrogens), and as a result are best avoided by women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Dried red clover also contains significant amounts of calcium, chromium, magnesium, niacin, phosphorus, potassium, thiamine and vitamin C and is often used as a dietary supplement and a tasty way to ward off osteoporosis.

Not bad for a plant often mowed down as a weed.

The joy of baking beans

This past Christmas I had the great good fortune to receive a set of antique bean pots from my husband's parents. Finally I'd have a chance to make my own Maine Baked Beans. Of course, to the south of us, this regional specialty is called Boston Baked Beans, but here in the Pine Tree State we like to call them Maine Baked Beans.

The first Saturday night after Christmas, I covered two cups of dried beans in a pot, submerged them in water and placed them against a warm wall. The next morning, I was up at 6 am to mix the sauce, add it to the beans and stash it in a low heat oven for eight hours of baking.

It's a ritual I've followed as many Sundays as possible since.

During the icy holiday season, I assumed I'd tire of baking beans once the warm weather rolled around. Turns out that's not the case. This past Sunday I once again fired up the oven and set my beans to baking.

As they bake, our apartment fills with the most tantalizing aroma. Even on the deepest winter day, the smell of baking beans is like a ray of sunshine in the house. But the sweet, comforting fragrance of caramelizing molasses is no less delightful when the real sun shines.

As the beans bake, I like to make bread dough and set it to rise. Then when the beans come out of the oven, I can crank the oven dial and bake the bread while the beans cool.

The credit for this baked bean recipe all goes to my mother-in-law, who included her traditional Maine recipe with the pots. The only tweak I added is an 1/8 tsp. of liquid smoke in place of the salt pork. Served with a dollop of stone-ground Raye's Mustard, these baked beans taste fabulous no matter the season.




Maine Baked Beans

2 cups dry, organic navy beans
3 Tbsp. Blackstrap molasses
3 Tbsp. organic whole cane sugar
1/2 tsp. dry mutard
1 tsp. Maine sea salt
4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/8 tsp. liquid smoke
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups boiling water

Pick over the dry beans. Discard any rocks or broken pieces. Place remainder in a colander and rinse the beans with cold water. Place beans in a good oven-top covered cooking pot and cover them with water. Place the lid on the pot and allow the beans to soak overnight.

In the morning, preheat the oven to 250, drain the beans into a colander and spoon them into an appropriate size bean pot. Mix all the seasonings together in a small bowl. Be careful not to add too much molasses, as it can cause beans to harden as they bake. Turn spices into the bean pot on top of soaked, drained beans.

Add enough boiling water to cover the beans. Mix together until seasonings are well dispersed. Bake for 8 hours. Check the beans occasionally to make sure they aren't drying out, but don't stir the beans. Begin to test if the beans are baked after 6 hours (baking time will vary depending on your stove). The cover can be removed during the last hour of baking.

Tempeh toast to summer

Memorial Day weekend marks the official start of the summer season in Maine. Now is the time of backyard BBQs, easy lakeside lunches and simple camp fare. Growing up, I remember eating salmon and peas on toast in the early summer, usually around the 4th of July.

In a nod to that traditional open faced sandwich, I created this quick lunch. The strawberries were leftover from yesterday's Opening Day picnic at my husband's family camp. Imported from California, the berries lacked intense flavor but made up for it in bold color. Any locally-grown fruit would make an excellent substitution. I also piled on my early farmers' market finds: pea shoots, onion, chives and baby kale, sauteed with garlic and tamari.

Early Summer Tempeh Toast

10 strips smoky tempeh, fried crisp
4 slices whole grain bread, toasted
2 Tbsp. sweet & spicy mustard
2 tsp. Maine maple syrup
2 cups pea shoots
2 Tbsp. chopped chives
1 small onion, sliced
2 organic strawberries, sliced

To assemble the sandwich: Spread two toast slices with mustard and two with maple syrup. Pile sauteed kale and sliced garlic on the maple syrup side. Top with a sliced strawberry. Top the other side with pea shoots, onion and chives. Eat with a fork and knife as is, or assemble, slice and serve as a sandwich. Serves 2.

>>Sauteed Kale
4 cups baby kale
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
4 small cloves garlic, sliced
2 Tbsp. organic tamari

Heat oil over medium high heat. Add garlic, saute for 1 minute. Add freshly washed kale. Move the kale through the hot oil using a pair of tongs for 1 minute. Pour on the tamari and turn the kale for less than a minute. Turn off the heat and serve immediately.

Eco-chef Bryant Terry brings his soul food to Portland

SPACE Gallery in downtown Portland was packed last night for the Food+Farm talk and cooking demo by eco-chef and food activist Bryant Terry. He hails from Oakland, CA, but grew up in Memphis, TN. When he was a child, Terry's grandparents cultivated huge gardens in their backyards and used the bounty to cook southern soul food, which Terry described to us as much more plant-based than popular culture makes it out to be.

Today he teaches low-income kids how to cook and eat nutrient dense plant-based meals. He's also the author of "Vegan Soul Kitchen" and "Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen" (with Anna Lappé). While he talked he showed us how to prepare Citrus Swiss Chard with Raisin Redux.

Many of us had tried the tasty dish prior to his talk. Hanifa Washington and Jonah Fertig of Local Sprouts Co-Operative Catering cooked up a delicious vegan dinner using Bryant Terry's recipes and food from nearby farms. It was a bargain at $10 a plate.

The Johnny Blaze Cakes with Rhubarb Hot Pepper Jam (made from rhubarb picked on Munjoy Hill) were a big hit, and everything had great flavor and color. Bryant Terry gave an entertaining talk, where he not only cooked but delivered part of KRS-One's rap "Beef." It was a fun and filling evening.

Fake ketchup and how to avoid it

I was craving the Good Egg's tasty tempeh hash the other morning, and I knew I'd want to enjoy it with a dollop of ketchup. But I also knew Heniz - standard issue ketchup for most restaurants in Portland - contains high fructose corn syrup.

More chemical than edible, high fructose corn syrup has been linked to diabetes and obesity and shown to contain mercury. I try my best to avoid it. Still I'm realistic about my love of restaurants, and how it means I don't always know if (or when) I'm eating fake foods.

But it's hard to ignore the high fructose corn syrup when it's staring at your from a label. So I now bring my own. I use this Stonewall Kitchen jam jar, fill it with organic ketchup and tuck it inside my purse. Once the food arrives, I savor the ketchup's tangy sweet touch and relish my avoidance of at least one fake food pitfall.

Whole grain goodness

One of the wonderful things about my job is how it offers me the chance to constantly speak with interesting and inspiring people. Recently, I wrote a story about the healing properties of macrobiotic eating and I was able to interview two experts, Connie Arnold and Meg Wolff (who writes the Becoming Whole blog). Both filled me in on what this food philosophy is all about and explained that while fish can be eaten on occasion (and no food is truly off-limits), macrobiotics is very similar to a whole foods vegan diet. And the cornerstone of a macrobiotic meal is the cooked whole grain.

I've long been a fan of whole grains, but after speaking with Meg and Connie I've made an extra effort to make sure these tasty morsels show up on our plates. I've officially switched from steel cut oats to whole oat groats for breakfast and having been cooking up more whole grains for dinner. In the photo above, you can see the three types of rice I like to keep on hand. They are long grained brown rice, wild rice and short grained brown rice. Long grain brown rice is ideal for stir frying (particularly when the cooked rice has been allowed to sit overnight in the refrigerator) and adding to soups. In contrast, short grained brown rice is perfect for making things such as veggie burgers and desserts, which benefit from this rice's sticky qualities. I like wild rice in salads, stuffings and pilafs, like this one below.

To simplify pilaf making, I cook 3/4 cup long grain brown rice and 1/4 cup wild rice in 2 cups of water. Before boiling, I add turmeric, garlic powder, onion flakes, salt and pepper. Once it's steamed, the rice has a nice golden hue and a built-in flavor profile.

Rice is by far the most common whole grain on American dinner plates, but there are a world of other grains to try. Here are four jars plucked from my pantry: quinoa, millet, rye and amaranth. All can offer a hearty, nutty component to soups, salads and stir fries. Quinoa and amaranth pack a protein punch, and the tiny grains add an interesting texture to both hot and cold dishes. I particularly like them in citrusy salads.


Millet is another great grain to have on hand. It has a very mild flavor and a pleasing texture. Here I paired it with a quick vegetable and tempeh stir fry for a simple, easy rice alternative. The taste was delicious, and I'm happy knowing these wholesome superfoods are quickly becoming the stars of my kitchen.

Vote for vegan foodie blog in Best of Portland poll

It is such an honor to have Commune Tested, City Approved nominated as Portland's Best Food Blog by the Portland Phoenix. As you can see, the competition is super stiff, so I need all the help I can get. Voting goes through April 3, which means there's still time to vote vegan!

Vegetarian reviewed in Portland, ME (and beyond)

The fermented black bean and tofu noodle bowl at the A1 Diner.

Two years ago when I agreed to join a pool of writers contributing restaurant reviews to The Maine Switch magazine, I knew I had a unique task. Like the other writers, I'd need to tease out story after story in the ordinary act of eating a meal and convey these tales to a mainstream audience. But unlike my fellow scribes dining in service of Switch, I'd be eating (and writing) from the vegetarian part of the plate.

A take-out Greek pizza without cheese from Bonobo.

Since then I've written about a number of local restaurants where a vegan can get a decent meal and an omnivore has plenty of options. I (almost) never forget to sample from the bar.

During these past two years, plant-based foods and meals have continued to blossom here in Portland. In 2007, The Green Elephant opened, giving the city it's first upscale, all-vegetarian dinner spot. That same year a pair of former restaurant owners began making the vegan Blue Mango Veggie burgers (which show up on many of the pub menus around town) and Sarah Conroy started the Maine Vegan Meet-Up group. Last year the owner of The Kitchen closed up shop in order to produce his popular Papou's Kitchen falafels for local stores and restaurants.

From soup shops to white tablecloth establishments, more and more vegan items are showing up on Portland menus. At Thai and Pan-Asian eateries, I've noticed many menus listing vegan white sauce as an alternative to garlic sauce. And this July 18 the city's 5th annual Vegetarian Food Festival takes place at the East End Community School.

It's definitely been an exciting time to contribute a vegetarian voice to the lively food discourse that takes place in Portland. Along the way I've hooked readers up with date night ideas, disturbed others with my fondness for cheese-free pizza (see above), learned how to properly appreciate martinis (in moderation) and developed a deep attachment to the Castelvetrano olives served at Novare Res Bier Bar.

Here are those gorgeous olives from Novare.

A garden salad and hummus plate at White Heart.

So in honor of Switch's two-year anniversary, I give you a round-up of my vegetarian restaurant reviews. I hope to write many more.

Novare Res Bier Cafe, Portland, February 4, 2009
¡Burrito!, Westbrook, December 22, 2008
Hot Suppa!, Portland, November 12, 2008
Portland Pie Company, Portland, September 30, 2008
Emilitsa, Portland, September 2, 2008
Flatbread Company, Portland, August 5, 2008
A1 Diner, Gardiner, June 17, 2008
Mesa Verde, Portland, April 23, 2008
David's, Portland, March 26, 2008
Katahdin, Portland, February 27, 2008
Pom's Thai Taste, Portland, January 30, 2008
Silly's, Portland, January 9, 2008
Bintliff's, Portland, December 20, 2007
Blue Spoon, Portland, October 2, 2007
Caiola's, Portland, September 11, 2007
Bonobo, Portland, August 14, 2007
Cockeyed Gull, Peaks Island, July 24, 2007
The Good Egg Cafe, Portland, July 3, 2007
The White Heart, Portland, June 12, 2007
Artemisia, Portland, May 22, 2007

Veggin' out on the slopes

When fluffy powder falls softly in the morning, Bethel, Maine bustles with activity. Everyone wants to hit the slopes. A quintessential New England village, Bethel nestles up against the eight peaks of the Sunday River ski resort. So skiers are everywhere at this time of year.

During a recent visit, Adam and I stayed at our favorite Sudbury Inn, which houses both a popular watering hole and a restaurant. Guests get breakfast included with their stay, and the restaurant is open to the public in the morning as well. I was psyched that the kitchen stocked some soy milk for me and I ordered a bowl of cereal each morning.

Whenever we're in Bethel, we practically live at DiCocoa's, pictured above. Located near the Sudbury Inn on Main Street, this all-vegetarian market and bakery is always hopping. We usually stop in for the fantastic sandwiches and amazing coffee (they brew Matt's Organic Wood Roasted). You can pick up a few grocery items here too.

Once on the mountain, Adam and I made multiple stops at the ski-in, ski-out Pejamajo Cafe. Located right next to Barker Lodge, it serves up sweet and savory crepes and the most amazing vegan chili. Eating the steaming bowl while sitting in the warm sun was a wonderful treat.

Off the mountain, the best place to stock up on beer, wine and groceries is the Good Food Store. You also can get delicious sandwiches, soups and salads here, plus catering should you be planning an apres ski gathering. We were lucky enough to score an invitation to a home-cooked vegan dinner at our friends' off-the-grid mountain house. The perfectly cooked vegetable & tofu curry included fresh stinging nettle from the Good Food Store and flavorful basmati rice. It was an absolutely divine way to cap off a delightful trip.

Holiday leftovers

This winter holiday offered up many blessings, and one of my favorites is a new recipe which complements the traditional flavors of the season. I've wanted to create a dish using Maine-grown pumpkin seeds since this summer and have been mulling over possible concoctions in my head for a number of weeks. With time off from work and a Winter Solstice desire to hunker down in my kitchen, I finally started playing with the pumpkin seeds. The result? Pumpkin Seed Croquettes.

I baked a batch for Christmas Eve dinner at my house and and another for Christmas day dinner at my in-laws. And today, I reheated a leftover croquette, piled it onto pan toasted Standard Baking Company bread, dressed it with mushroom gravy and slathered on homemade cranberry sauce. It was Christmas dinner on a sandwich. It was delicious.

By using a ton of fresh sage and liberal amounts of celery seed and garlic, the taste becomes reminiscent of stuffing and mashed potatoes. The batter and uncooked croquettes will be a funny shade of green, but, as you can see from these pics, a little basting and time in the oven turn the croquettes a nutty brown hue. Serve them with cranberry sauce and gravy, and you'll please any palate.

Pumpkin Seed Croquettes

3 cups cooked organic small grained brown rice
2 cups salted organic pumpkin seeds
3 Tbsp. organic extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves organic garlic
1 Tbsp. organic soy sauce
1 tsp. organic toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup water
3 cups organic carrots, grated
1 Tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
1 tsp. dried organic celery seed
1 tsp. dried organic basil

Baste
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup soy sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Add pumpkin seeds to food processor and pulse a few times. Then add olive oil, garlic, soy sauce and sesame oil. Mix until it has a creamy texture. Add pumpkin seed mixture to bowl with brown rice, carrots and seasonings. Mix until well blended. Saute onion until caramelized and add to pumpkin seed mixture.

Oil a baking pan. Take roughly a cup full of the mixture into your hands and form a ball. Then roll it into an oblong croquette. Press the croquettes onto the oiled baking pan. Once the pan is full, whisk the baste ingredients together and brush it over each croquette. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 45-60 minutes. Baste the croquettes after 20 minutes. Serve with mushroom gravy and cranberry sauce. Makes 20.


Mushroom Gravy

1 medium organic onion, diced
3 Tbsp. organic extra virgin olive oil
2 cups organic shiitake mushrooms, diced
1/4 cup organic soy sauce
1 cup organic hemp milk
1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp. fresh organic sage, chopped
1 tsp. organic garlic powder
1 tsp. organic onion powder
1 tsp. organic dried thyme
1 tsp. organic dried basil
1/4 cup organic rye flour

Saute onions until they begin to brown. Then add mushrooms and cook for 4-5 minutes. Add soy sauce, hemp milk and water. Stir. Add seasonings and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes. Slowly add flour until the gravy is thick and doesn't easily run off a spoon. Serve warm.

Tangy Cranberry Sauce

6 cups fresh, Maine organic cranberries
2 cups organic Maine maple syrup
1 tsp. Maine sea salt
4 tsp. balsamic vinegar

Combine cranberries, maple syrup and sea salt in a sauce pan and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir the mixture for a minute or so, then reduce the heat to low. Allow it to simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring on occasion. Continue cooking until the cranberries skins have all burst. Remove from heat and stir in vinegar. Serve hot or cold.

Drinking the taste of Christmas

I recently asked Switch readers for their favorite holiday recipes, and the best of the bunch were selected for a story featuring cocktail party recipes in the current edition of the magazine. As we were putting the story together, my editor asked me to submit one of my own recipes.

I knew I wanted to do a cocktail recipe, but which one? I love Bloody Marys at this time of year (as anyone who was at our Halloween party probably figured out), but that's not very original. For my dad's big 60th birthday bash last year, I had the bartender mix up Candy Canes (made from peppermint schnapps, creme de cacao and 7-Up) which were a huge hit. But I was never quite happy with them because of the high fructose corn syrup in the 7-Up, so I didn't want to go that route. I'm also a fan of Cape Cods during the holidays, but, again, that seemed pretty boring.

The solution: get out my cocktail shaker and start experimenting. At first I was pretty fixated on using brandy, because of its traditional association with Christmas and because I have a great bottle of Cognac in the bar. I also knew I wanted to do something with cranberries, since I have a stock of fresh Maine cranberries. But all my experiements with the brandy proved too sweet.

That's when I spotted the bottle of gin winking at me from the shelf. Now, normally I'm not a huge gin fan. This can all be blamed on the fact that as kids my cousins and I used to sample the juniper berries each fall, when the dusty blue fruits appeared on the low-lying shrubs in the horse pasture. These taste tests always ended with us spitting the berries out in disgust. Fast forward a few years, and I was completely floored the first time I tasted a gin and tonic and realized that gin tastes exactly like juniper berries (obviously not a shocker to anyone who knows that gin is flavored with juniper berries).

But as a standin for the piney scent of balsam that infuses most of my Christmas memories, I knew gin was what I needed. I mixed it with a combination of sweet, sour, tart and salty tastes and came up with a drink that captures the flavors of the season.

Cranberry Christmas

3 oz. unsweetened cranberry juice
1 oz. gin
1/2 oz. Grand Marnier
1/2 oz. creme de cacao
1/2 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice (about 1/2 a lime)
2 oz. water
pinch of sea salt
lime wedge
fresh cranberries, sliced

Add cranberry juice, gin, Grand Marnier, creme de cocao, lime juice, water and sea salt to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake. Strain into a margarita or other cocktail glass. Slice cranberries into disks. Float a handful on the surface of the drink. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Pumpkin pie birthday

My dad loves pie, so it was no surprise he requested one for his birthday party on Sunday night. He asked for pumpkin, one of his favorites, and I was happy to make it since I have a simple vegan recipe that has a taste traditionalists love. My mom placed a ring of candles in the center, and the pie served its purpose well.

After the singing, we sliced it up and paired it with a selection of frozen treats. I ate mine with a scoop of the Purely Decadent Coconut Milk ice cream that I'm absolutely in love with.


Pumpkin Tofu Pie

12 oz. silken extra firm tofu
2/3 cup Maine honey
1 tsp. Madagascar Bourbon vanilla extract
2 cups cooked or canned organic pumpkin
1 1/2 tsp. ground organic cinnamon
3/4 tsp. ground organic ginger
1/4 tsp. ground organic nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground organic cloves
1 unbaked pie crust or graham cracker crust

Preaheat oven to 400. Blend tofu, honey and vanilla in a food processor until smooth. Add pumpkin and spices and blend well. Pour into crust of choice and bake for roughly 1 hour. When it's done, a bit of pumpkin will still cling to an inserted toothpick. Allow to cool and then serve. Refrigerate if serving later.

Thanksgiving crowd pleaser

With the holidays here, we're all cooking up our favorite crowd pleasing recipes. I find that when I'm headed to an event with particularly picky eaters (like die-hard carnivores and kids on the "all white food diet"), I need to supply a veggie dish that's not too exotic. Thankfully, I came up with this recipe for white bean stuffed shells a few years ago and it hasn't let me down since. The beauty with this recipe is how it allows you to transform numerous dairy laden Italian treats into a plant-lover's dream.

I tripled the recipe Wednesday night, which allowed me to whip up some shells for Thanksgiving at our cousins in Kennebunk, stuff manicotti for a party at my parent's house yesterday and end up with enough filling to do a small casserole dish just so Adam and I would be assured some leftovers. Boy, were we thankful for that extra dish!




White Bean Stuffed Shells

2 cups cooked white beans
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup fresh shiitake mushrooms, chopped
1 clove garlic
1 medium onion, diced
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. salt
dash of Tabasco sauce
8 oz. jumbo pasta shells
40 oz. pasta sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Cook pasta shells until al dente, drain and rinse. Add olive oil and onion to skillet over medium heat and cook until they begin to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes.

In a food processor, add beans, garlic clove, toasted sesame oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, onion powder, celery seed, basil, salt, pepper and Tabasco sauce. Puree until smooth. Mix in grated carrots and sauteed mushrooms and onions.

Add a layer of pasta sauce to the bottom of a casserole dish. Spoon a heaping tablespoon full of bean mixture into each shell. Place in casserole dish. When the dish is full, spoon remaining pasta sauce over the top. Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered. Serves 4.

Red hot autumn

Apples and cranberries show up for the short days and cool nights of autumn. Their vivid red skins add instant color to the Portland Farmers' Market and make a lively addition to many meals. While the apple's sweet juice is worlds away from the bitter cranberry's bite, the two share the season's tart, sassy taste. And when combined, they're heavenly.

I use the fruits together in salads, salsas, pancakes and even vegetable roasts. But one of the easiest ways to combine their complementary flavors is in a simple cran-applesauce. I leave the apple skins on and add a touch of maple syrup to create this quick and easy dessert that boasts the season's best tastes.



Chunky cran-applesauce

4 Macintosh apples, chopped
1 cup fresh cranberries
2 cups water
3 Tbsp. Maine maple syrup

Combine ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 30-45 minutes, until most of the water is evaporated. Serve warm or cold.

Super star Pollan attracts massive Maine crowd

Around 6:45 pm this evening, Adam and I arrived for Michael Pollan's much-anticipated talk at the Bates College Chapel. More than half the chapel was already full, making us extremely grateful we got there when we did for the 7:30 lecture.

We grabbed seats and then watched as a steady stream of students, professors, farmers, foodies, activists, bibliophiles and ethical eaters poured into the space. As the pews filled, people were invited to sit on the stage and those with a seat were urged to squish closer together.

Soon the wide center aisle was jammed with a combination of standing and sitting spectators. By 7 pm there was no where to squeeze another person.

That's when Thomas Wenzel, chair of the school's environmental studies program, approached the microphone.

"We've never had to do this at an Otis lecture," Professor Wenzel told the crowd, before informing the hundreds of people in the aisle that they would need to leave. The building was wildly beyond its capacity, he said, and the talk couldn't begin until the aisles were clear. To compensate, the college would replay a videotape of the speech at numerous times and places. Clearly a poor substitute for the real deal.

As the crowd got up to exit the building, Professor Wenzel returned to make another announcement. Michael Pollan had graciously offered to give a reprise of his lecture tomorrow morning at 9 am. Those who show up then won't be disappointed.

His speech was just as full of big picture insights and intriguing details as his books. Pollan (who you can barely see on the distant stage in this photo) reiterated many themes from "In Defense of Food," including how our focus on nutrients rather than foods has led to the current epidemics of type 2 diabetes, obesity and heart disease. He mentioned the FDA's repeal in 1973 of the food Imitation Rule (which allowed fake foods to be marketed and sold to the public) and the 1977 firestorm created when the nation's first dietary guidelines advised: "eat less red meat." Under pressure from industrial agriculture and the cattlemen's lobby, it was reworded to read: "choose meats that will reduce your saturated fat intake."

He concluded by pointing out that there is no ideal human diet when it comes to good health. But there is one way not to eat: the Western processed food diet.

Asked whether or not either Presidential candidate had read his "Farmer in Chief" open letter in the New York Times, Pollan pointed us to this interview with Senator Barack Obama done by Time columnist Joe Klein, where Obama references the letter in response to a question about energy policy. And who knows? Maybe those of us jammed into the chapel tonight were listening to this country's future Secretary of Agriculture. I can't think of a more perfect candidate for the job.

Hot soup for cold days

When it gets cold in Maine, a warm soup is the ideal way to shake the chill from your bones and chase the damp out of the air. These lovely farmers' market carrots, parsnips and leeks make excellent additions to any vegetable soup.

I used them in a lentil rice soup for a party at my sister's house. These portions demand a crowd, so be sure to dial back the measurements if you have fewer mouths to feed. If you want an easy garnish, just reserve a handful of the parsley, celery tops and leek tops, chop coarsely and sprinkle in each bowl.


Market Root Soup


1 onion, diced
1 bunch celery, diced
5 carrots, diced

18 cups water
4 cups lentils
2 cups rice

1 head garlic, chopped
1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
4-6 tomatoes, diced
2 potatoes, diced
3 leeks, sliced in coins
2 jalapenos, sliced
1 parsnip, diced

1 cup vegetable stock
6 oz. tomato paste
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Add a quarter cup of oil to a large stock pan over medium high heat and add onions. Saute for 8-10 minutes, until the onions begin to caramelize. Then add diced celery and saute for 3-5 minutes, then add carrots and cook another 3-5 minutes.

Add water, followed by lentils and rice. Then add garlic, parsley, tomatoes, potatoes, leeks, jalapeno and parsnips. Add vegetable stock, tomato paste and rest of olive oil. Cook at least one hour before serving. Season with salt and pepper.

Inspired by cabbage

When I spotted a gorgeous head of Nappa cabbage at the farmers' market, the thought of stir fry quickly filled my mind. Suddenly I could taste the cabbage's earthiness balanced by a sweet and tangy sauce. I grabbed a few market staples, paired them with my pantry staples of canned black beans and brown rice and I had dinner on the table in less than a hour.



Cabbage & carrot stir fry

2 cups brown rice
4 cups water

2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
4 carrots, julienned
1 onion, sliced lengthwise
1 pepper, sliced lenghtwise
1/2 head Nappa cabbage, sliced thin
1 cup black beans, canned
4 cloves garlic, slice

Sauce:
1 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. Maine maple syrup
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. black beans, mashed
1 Tbsp. sesame seeds

Combine water and rice on stove. Bring to boil, then cover and reduce heat to low, cook 30-45 minutes until all water is absorbed. Mix sauce ingredients together and set aside. Heat wok or stir fry pan and add olive oil and garlic. Saute 1 minute then add sliced onions. Saute until they begin to soften, then add carrots, peppers and sauce. Stir for 5 minutes. Finally add black beans and cabbage. Cook until cabbage wilts. Spoon stir fry over cooked rice. Serves four.

Bye-Bye Berries

Here they are: The last of this season's farm fresh berries. I picked up the blueberries at Wednesday's farmers' market, and I'm trying to make them last as long as possible (which won't be long). When I was at the market yesterday, I learned that the blueberries are officially done for the season and that the raspberries I was buying marked the end of the line.

It will now be a good 8 months before I can buy fresh, Maine-grown berries. But I'm thankful that the frozen Moon Hill Farm berries are back in the freezer case at my local grocery store. They'll give my taste buds the needed sweetness and tang to make it through the coming winter.

Falling for Peaks Island

Summer may be officially over, but that didn't stop Adam and I from hopping the ferry out of Portland and heading to Peaks Island last weekend. After a gorgeous 15 minute ride from the bustling streets of Maine's largest city, we found ourselves in a completely different world, where time moves at a slower pace and bikes reign as the dominant means of transportation. Once on the island, our first stop was the always delicious Cockeyed Gull.

The first thing we did was order drinks. And since we were on an island and I was pining for the summer that came and went too quickly, I decided to order up a piña colada. It hit the spot perfectly.

I paired my tropical cocktail with the hummus plate with fresh veggies.

And the veggie stir fry with mung bean noodles.


In addition to the amazing food, the Cockeyed Gull is know for its stellar views of the harbor and the Portland skyline.


After lunch, we rented two bikes and began a leisurely cruise around the island. This laid back community has a loop road that makes an easy bike ride around the whole island. On the way, we stopped to admire the island architecture that ranges from cute cottage to modern mega-mansion.

We stopped in at the wonderfully preserved 5th Maine Regimental Museum, where we learned about the island's history as the "Coney Island of Maine" (about 100 years ago) and as the place where Portland's homeless population was housed (about 50 years ago).


When we got to the island's back shore, we left our bikes by the road and wandered down the narrow trail that leads to the the abandoned military installation known as Battery Steel. This is both a really cool and a really creepy fort to explore. I would have loved a flashlight as we walked through the pitch black tunnel, but all I had was my camera flash to guide us.


Back into the brilliant sunshine, we once again stowed our bikes so we could hang out on one of the back shore's rocky beaches. Because Maine is overflowing with creative people, you can't go anywhere without seeing art. Our rocky coastline is not exception. Behind me you can see the stacked rock sculptures that have become a hallmark of our rock bound beaches.


Anyone can add to the art, as Adam did with a handful of found objects, which included lobster shells, crab parts and an unopened and sun-faded Budweiser can.

Roasted summer tomatoes

Frost crept into Maine this past week, killing off many a tomato plant. Farms near the water and down here in the southern half of the state were mostly spared, so it doesn't spell the complete demise of this year's juicy globes of sunshine. But I can no longer deny the end of summer is near.


At the Portland Farmers' Market, uniformly red and perfectly flawless tomatoes are the exception.



Instead we feast on the sweet goodness of purple, green and yellow beauties that come with the battle scars I know well from my dad's organic garden. With the end of tomato season in sight, I couldn't help but stock up at Saturday's market.

Today with tons of tomatoes in hand, I fired up the oven and roasted a spicy summer sauce. Roasting is a quick way to bring out the sweet tomato flavor and keep the texture of the other vegetables. I add it to sandwiches, on top of baked potatoes and alongside mujaddara.

It will work wherever you enjoy tomato sauce. But, be warned, this recipe is sure to give your tongue a kick.


Hot roasted summer tomatoes

2-3 medium sized heirloom tomatoes
1 organic red onion, sliced
1 bunch organic baby shallots
1 head garlic, peeled and ends trimmed
1 organic jalapeno pepper, sliced
1 organic sweet red pepper, sliced
extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450. Cover bottom of roasting pan with a thin layer of olive oil. Slice each tomato into similarly sized pieces and place in pan. Add red onion. Remove tops from shallots and cut bottom sections into 1 inch chunks. Add to roasting pan. Add garlic cloves and pepper slices. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook for 30-40 minutes. Serves 2.