Massachusetts winters are cold. It’s the time of year when I crave comfort foods of all sorts. Most of the comfort foods I crave take a long time to prepare, but not soup.

I love a good hearty soup. Paired with a crusty bread, it’s the perfect meal to take the chill out of your bones. The following recipe has to be one of the quickest and easiest to prepare. Of course, it’s delicious too!

Ingredients
Package of soup vegetables from your produce aisle
If your grocery store does not have such a package use the following:
2 chopped lengths of celery
1 chopped carrot
1 chopped onion
1 chopped leek
1 chopped potato
1 chopped turnip
1 chopped parsnip
1/2 cup of chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped dill

3-4 cups stock of choice
1 tbsp olive oil

Optional
1 cup of cooked rice, pasta, beans or chopped chicken

Instructions
Heat olive oil in a stockpot
Chop all vegetables and add to olive oil
Heat and stir until vegetables start to brown
Add stock and cook 20-30 minutes, until vegetables are tender
Add chopped parsley and dill and any optional ingredients
Season with salt and or pepper (you can even try dried red pepper)
Thoroughly heat and serve with the best bread you can find

Serves 2-4 depending upon vegetable and appetite size

Weekly Recipe: Quick and Easy Vegetable Soup is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

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Holistic therapies, or natural therapies, have been used throughout history,
and their popularity is on the rise. Many people who rely on natural
therapies for their own health care are seeking the same treatment choices
for their dogs. Because of this increase in demand by their clients, more
vets are now offering these treatment options. Natural therapies can be a
part of the treatment of many illnesses in your dog. However, some natural
therapies can have side effects, so they need to be treated with respect.

How do you define a natural therapy? A natural therapy often uses a whole
body approach to healing and tries to avoid the use of surgery or drugs.
When given the right conditions, the body is able to heal itself, and this
ability is a very important part of the effectiveness of natural therapies.
Conventional treatments are usually used with in conjunction with natural
treatments in dog care, although some people do prefer to use only natural
remedies for their pets.

According to a 1997 study by The American Animal Hospital Association, 42%
of pet owners had tried alternative therapies on their pets. The main reason
people sought this type of therapy was to provide a safer, less invasive
natural treatment than everyday conventional drug therapy. Also, some people
may have had great success themselves with natural therapy in relation to
their own health care, and wanted to give their dogs the same benefits.

Some natural therapies that are available to dogs are chiropractic,
acupuncture, herbal medicine, and homeopathy. However, the boundaries
between natural therapies and conventional treatments can be blurred. One
example of this is nutritional therapy. When dogs have good quality
nutrition, they have all the nutrients and energy they need to remain
healthy. Good nutrition can also help them recover from illness. Is this
common sense or is it therapy? The drug aspirin is another example. The
active ingredient in aspirin is derived from willow bark, although it has
always been thought of as being a conventional treatment. Does that mean
that it is also a herbal remedy?

Treatments that are natural aren’t necessarily safe. Tea tree oil has been
used by people as an insecticide to get rid of fleas. However, many dogs
have died as a result of using this toxic oil. The plant Foxglove contains a
chemical that affects the heart. This chemical has been extracted, and used
to create a conventional medicine to treat heart disease in both people and
animals. It doesn’t matter if a chemical has been produced in a laboratory
or grown in a garden, it still has the same effect on the body, and should
be used with care.

If you’re going to rely on natural therapies to treat your beloved dog, it’s
vitally important that you make sure your veterinarian is well qualified in
these treatment methods.

This may not be as easy as it sounds. A 2006 survey of veterinarians found
that over 70% of veterinarians don’t offer alternative therapies.

Your first port of call is your regular veterinarian. They know you, and
they know your dog. If you explain to them that it is important to you that
you investigate the option of natural treatments for your dog, they may be
able to suggest a colleague who can help.

If not, then check out the websites for the various regulatory bodies, such
as the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association.
These sites often have a “search for a vet” function.

One last piece of advice. Over 60% of pet owners don’t tell their regular
veterinarian if they’re using natural therapies. This can be dangerous, as
there may be interactions between the natural therapy and any drugs your vet
may prescribe. Always make sure he knows everything you’re treating your dog
with. In this way, you can take advantage of all options to treat your dog,
and get the best possible outcome.

This guest post is brought to you by Dog Fence DIY’s staff veterinarian
Dr. Susan Wright. Dr. Wright enjoys spending time with her dogs on the couch
and taking them to the dog park to run and play.

Dog Fence DIY has many different types of pet containment systems to choose from.
Be sure to check out the Petsafe Stubborn Dog Collar system at the best available price.
Dog Fence DIY has all your pet containment needs in one place.

Your Pet and Holistic Therapies is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

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It’s cold and dreary in Massachusetts and the high gloss seed catalogs are rolling in. It is that time of year. The time of year when I hunker down under blankets by the wood stove and sketch and plan my garden.

Home Town Seeds, a premium online seed retailer for the home gardener, recently sent me a wonderful sampler pack. This increased my gardening urge even more. I’ve been known to start seeds way too far in advance for our zone 5 climate. It takes extreme restraint to resist just planting a few seeds in case we have a warm spring. We rarely have a warm spring. So I hunch over catalogs looking for new and unique items to add to my gardens.

Perennials and annuals are often bought in spring at the local garden center, town plant sales and sometimes online. I throw them where ever I think they’ll look best and often move them several times throughout the season and years to come. I have no patience (or space) for starting flowers by seed. Maybe in time. (Dear husband, if  you are reading, I hope to have a mini greenhouse/shed in the near future.)

Vegetables are different.There is something wild about planting a tiny seed that grows into a plant and bears fruit. I love it, my kids love it, my husband even joins in (often complaining that I need to weed) and Finley our Wheaten Terrier enjoys the fresh air.

I have a 16 by 16 potager style garden that was started 2 years ago and finished off last year. (A potager is a country style kitchen garden, absent of obvious rows, where vegetables, herbs and flowers are mixed together.) There is no room on our hill for a large spread, so I’m forced to garden compactly and I wouldn’t do it any other way. It forces me to choose what I really want and to be creative. As it is, I often start hundreds of tomato seeds and have difficulty disposing of any seedlings. (A trait I picked up from my mother.)

Our little veggie plot has 2 gates and is framed by a stained cedar picket fence. The fence posts are topped by finials, and baskets that contain vibrant annuals that spill over and trail down the fence. There are 2 rectangular plots of raised earth in the center of our potager surrounded by a path. Beyond the path, running along the fence, is another area of raised earth. All along the outside of the fence is an additional area of raised earth for items the greedy woodchucks and deer won’t touch.

Outside of the fence I rotate my garlic/onions and herbs. Inside are a mix of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, beans, peas, more herbs and anything else I can squeeze in. Sometimes a volunteer plant from the compost pile makes it  in there too.

In addition to the potager, I also put many of my tomatoes in large containers. I use plastic buckets that you can find at your local home improvement store. They have a handle and I drill drainage holes into the bottom. You can also visit restaurants and ask if they have any of these to give away. Most food items are stored in these large plastic containers. They aren’t the most beautiful looking, but they extend my garden and are portable.

I also have a separate asparagus patch I planted two years ago and a raised blueberry bed I planted last year. This year I hope to add a raspberry bush or two and maybe a few new vegetable plants that I’ve never tried before.

It’s only January. I’m still hunched over the seed catalogs, but when I figure it all out I’ll let you know.

What do you plant in your garden?

Picking out Seeds for Spring is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Technorati Tags: gardening, organic gardening, seed starting

Going green used to be considered expensive and a luxury for those who could afford the trend. Now it appears that we are learning that not only is adopting more environmentally conscious attitudes good for our economic situation, but also our….health? Yes, if we dig a bit deeper we can see that dirty industries and backwards policy is actually harming the health of the earth for our children and the health of her inhabitants today.

There are two levels of health consequences associated with dirty industry, both direct and indirect. The direct consequences are examples like increased asthma rates in areas with high smog indices. Chlorofluorocarbon release into the atmosphere has shown to decrease the filter of direct sunlight on the planet, resulting in more concentrated ultraviolet light reaching the surface of the earth. Perhaps it is no surprise then that in countries with depleted atmospheric gas, skin cancer rates are among the highest in the world.

Most mesothelioma doctors would say the indirect health consequences are harder to see immediately, but closer examination reveals that these are, in fact, perhaps the most hazardous. Bi-products of dirty and backwards industries, such as coal and oil processing, include cancer causing substances like asbestos and benzene. A U.K. study conducted in 2002 indicated that coal and oil industry workers are at a much higher risk of developing mesothelioma and leukemia.

Can we really afford to continue on the path we were on before? Investment in clean industry means not a healthier planet for our children and grandchildren, but also a healthier place for us to live today.

–January 5, 2010 Written by James O’ Shea with the maacenter

Green Living: Avoiding Asbestos is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Technorati Tags: green living, mesothelioma

Here are a few of my Green Living and Gardening favorites as well as some new and interesting sites I’ve come across that are worth a peek.

TreeHugger.com
From the website: “TreeHugger is the leading media outlet dedicated to driving sustainability mainstream. Partial to a modern aesthetic, we strive to be a one-stop shop for green news, solutions, and product information.”

OrganicGardening.com
A website and a magazine on all things related to organic gardening. One of my favorite gardening magazines.

LocalHarvest.org
Looking for a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in your area? Stop by Local Harvest and enter your zip code to find a farm near you.

PickYourOwn.org
Lists plenty of farms where you can pick your own fruit from apples to blueberries, strawberries and raspberries. Also lists which farms use IPM (Integrated Pest Management) and organic practices.

NAMANET.org
NAMANET stands for Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance. The above link will take you to a page where you can search for a CSF (Community Supported Fishery).

FedcoSeeds.com
One of my favorite no nonsense places to buy seeds and gardening supplies.

Nofa.org
Nofa stands for The Northeast Organic Farming Association. The website lists chapters by location and upcoming conferences and classes.

Russ Cohen
Russ Cohen is a professional environmentalist and wild foods enthusiast. He has written the book “Wild Plants I have Known and Eaten” and gives foraging walks throughout New England in the spring. Each year I plan to join one and always miss out. Hopefully this will be the year!

North American Mycological Society
I LOVE mushrooms! (No, not those kind of mushrooms.) In addition to one of Cohen’s foraging walks, I would love to go mushroom foraging. However, mushroom hunting can be extremely dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing. This site lists the amateur mushroom clubs in North America.

BestGreenBlogs.com
A huge  Internet directory of green blogs and websites.

The Organic Home
The Organic Home is a site I’ve recently come across that also has an interesting directory that goes beyond green blogs. Look under Organic Directory to find a listing of all categories.

There are so many other great sites out there. These are just a few of them. What are yours?

Some Favorite Green Living and Gardening Sites is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

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When I was a child my uncle would make this divine flour-less chocolate cake topped with beautiful chocolate molded shells. It was sweet and rich and I would devour it. I didn’t see him very often so it was a rare treat that I always looked forward to.

This was long before anyone really talked about food allergies, celiac disease or gluten free living. Ironically this cake is gluten free because–well–it doesn’t contain any flour.

I’ve tinkered around to recreate this recipe to make it as delicious as ever and easy for the average home baker. Beware–this cake is for those who really love chocolate.

Ingredients
1 pound bag of semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 pound (2 sticks) of butter
1/4 cup sugar
6 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon extract of your choice for flavoring IE: vanilla, mint, raspberry, orange (optional)
1/4 cup liquid of your choice ie: coffee, Kahlua, etc. (optional)
Note: Alcohol, extracts and flavoring may contain gluten

Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9 inch cake pan
Melt butter in a pot on the stove (or in the microwave)
Add chocolate chips 1/4 of a bag at a time to the melted butter
Reheat the mixture until the chocolate chips are melted, being careful not to burn the chocolate
Remove from heat and set aside
Beat the 6 eggs with the sugar until frothy and light yellow in color
Slowly whisk a small spoonful of chocolate into the egg mixture
Repeat the last step several times
(Do NOT dump all of the chocolate into the egg mixture or it will cook the egg)
Once you’ve whisked in several spoons of the chocolate mixture,
it is safe to pour the remaining chocolate into the egg mixture
Mix in the salt and any liquid or flavorings of your choice
(Choose either a liquid OR flavoring–if using both make sure the flavors complement each other)
If batter seems too thick at this point you can add a small amount of water
Pour batter into your prepared pan and place that pan into a larger pan with an inch or so of hot water (called a water bath)
(I like to use a tall sided, oven safe skillet. Make sure that the water does rise to the top of or into your cake pan.)
Bake for 45 minutes until the center seems set
Cool on the counter for 10-15 minutes and then place cake in the refrigerator

This cake does not need a frosting but can be finished off with a sprinkling of confectioners sugar or topped with decorative molded chocolate or even berries before serving.

I personally like to take a paper doily and place it on the top of the cake, sprinkle with confectioners sugar and then lift. You will then be left with a lace like design.

This cake serves 8-12

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Rich and Delicious Flour-less Chocolate Cake Recipe is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Technorati Tags: chocolate cake recipe, flourless chocolate cake, gluten free cake

When the weather gets cool, I start thinking about soup. It’s a simple feel good meal that warms me up and is easy to make.

Here is a corn chowder recipe that is creamy without the dairy. It’s gluten free too!

Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 medium onion chopped
5 medium potatoes peeled, rinsed and roughly chopped
2 cans of corn or 3 cups of frozen corn
Approx 32 ounces gluten free chicken or vegetable stock
Cracked black pepper and salt to taste

Optional add ins (Choose 1 or 2 for flavor boosting)
3 ounces chopped Canadian bacon
1-2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1-2 cups of heavy cream or milk or dairy alternative
1-2 teaspoons chopped green onions (in individual bowls of soup)
dollop of sour cream (in individual bowls of soup)

Instructions
Heat a stock pot on medium heat and add olive oil, garlic and onions
When onions have softened, add potatoes to slightly brown
Add chicken or vegetable stock and simmer until potatoes are nearly soft
Add in corn and cook until all vegetables are soft
Remove from heat and blend half of soup in a blender
Return blended soup to stock pot and mix well
Add any optional additional mix ins except for sour cream and scallions
Return soup to heat until warm
Season with salt and pepper to taste
Ladle into individual bowls and add sour cream or scallions if using.

This is a great soup served with a crusty roll or piece of french bread and a salad.

Serves 4-6 generously.

Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Vegan Corn Chowder Recipe is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Apple sauce has been around for years and one wouldn’t think it would be possible to reinvent it, but Materne has with GoGo Squeez Apple Sauce.

We saw these fun apple sauce pouches at the recent Natural Products Expo East and were thrilled to receive a variety pack in the mail. While we are usually not big fans of individually packaged foods–these do have their place. What makes them so great?

GoGo Squeez comes in individual, portable pouches with resealable caps. They are perfect for snacks, lunch boxes, day trips and camping. You can throw one in your purse, in the glove box of your car and best of all–no spoon is needed. In short–they are perfect for kids.

They come in multiple flavors, are made with 100% fruit (no sugar added) and are allergy friendly.

I received an email from the company with the following Allergen Statement attached. I was also told that none of the top 8 allergens are in the manufacturing facility.

How do they taste? You’ll have to track down my kids to ask because they finished them before I could set one aside to try.

GoGo Squeez can be found on Amazon.com and in some grocery stores. Visit the Materne website to find a location near you.

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All Natural Apple Sauce is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Having a child with a severe egg allergy has forced me to come up with egg free substitutes. Having an extreme sweet tooth has forced me to make sure they taste great. Following is a vegan brownie recipe that is egg, dairy, peanut, tree nut and soy free.

You can bake these brownies in a traditional square pan or in a pie plate and cut wedges rather than squares. This makes for a nicer dessert presentation. Keep in mind that a pie plate will make for a thicker torte like brownie and may need to be refrigerated to help fully set the center.

Ingredients
1 1/8 cups cocoa
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tbs baking powder
1/2 cup softened butter or margarine
use a dairy alternative for dairy allergy like a soy or vegan butter, for both dairy and soy allergy try Spectrum palm oil shortening or try small increasing amounts of vegetable or canola oil
2 cups light brown sugar
10 ounces pureed prunes (baby food) or apple sauce
prunes make for a richer brownie
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2-1 cup chocolate or carob chips (optional)
Enjoy Life makes a dairy and soy free chip

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F
Prepare a pie plate or 9 by 9 baking dish with buttered foil
Mix the first three dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside
Mix the remaining ingredients (except chips) in a separate bowl until thoroughly combined
Add the dry mixture to the wet and stir until you have a thick batter
Stir in 1/2 of the chocolate chips
Pour batter into your prepared pan
Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips
Bake approximately 30 minutes more or less depending upon your stove and altitude
The brownie should look dry on the top, set in the center and the edges should pull away from the sides of the pan
Cool in pan/pie plate on a wire rack then in the refrigerator if necessary
Cut into 1 inch squares or wedges and serve as you wish
You can warm brownie slightly in the microwave and serve with ice cream or dust with confectioner’s sugar

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Vegan Brownie Recipe is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

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Made from all natural vegetable oils, South of France soaps are EDTA Free, Phthalate Free, Paraben Free, Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate Free and most of all Cruelty Free. They contain no animal by-products and are NOT tested on animals.

So what do they contain? The French Milled Green Tea bar soap we have lists the ingredients as follows:

100% Vegetable Oils: Palm Oil and/or coconut oil and/or Olive Oil, Vegetable Glycerin, Organic Shea Butter, Camellia Sinesis (Green Tea) Leaf, Mineral Pigments or Colorants, Blends of Fragrance, Natural Oils and Essential Oils

The bar weighs in at a hefty 8.8 ounces which we think will last quite  a while.

We love not only the mild clean scent but also that the bar soap comes wrapped in biodegradable and recyclable packaging.

In addition to the French Milled Bar Soap–South of France also makes a Glycerin Bar Soap, Liquid Hand Soap, Body Wash and Body Lotion. Each of these products are also chemical free and never tested on animals.

The scents range from unscented to floral to herbal ensuring there is a fragrance for everyone. We’re partial to herbal scents and can’t wait to try the Lemon Verbena, Lime Basil, and Rosemary Mint products.

Having traveled to the Provence region several years ago, South of France products bring us back there if only for a short while.

South of France products can be bought at the company website:
http://www.goodhealthnaturalproducts.com/South%20of%20France/products.html

South of France: Body Products You Can Feel Good About is a post from: Tips for Green Living: Green Peony

Technorati Tags: cruelty free soap, eco-friendly soap, South of France, vegetable soap