Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

100-Mile Challenge

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by Starre Vartan · 11/20/06

What cute Turkeys! I like to see them scuffling through the leaves in the woods, not on a plate!

Treehugger encouraged folks to get their whole Thanksgiving meal within 100 miles of their homes in the aptly named 100-mile Challenge, and though I’m not entering their contest, I am trying to get most of the tasties for my feast locally. I think this is a great idea, and especially for people who don’t cook much (that would be me!) and really do it up on Thanksgiving.

So here’s my menu, and my local (or not so local) choices. FYI, I live in Southwestern Connecticut:

-Homemade Tofurkey (my favoritie tofu is made in Middlefield, CT, 54 miles away, seasonings I already have, and are from all over the place)

-Bread stuffing for Tofurkey (bread is from bakery less than a mile from my home, though I don’t know from where their ingredients come from…)

-Cranberry sauce (cranberries are from Massachusetts bogs- over 100 miles away, regional)

-Pumpkin Bisque soup (pumpins are pick-your-own from farm about 60 miles away, organic cream is from New England dairies)

-Mushroom Quiche (eggs from New Hampshire, less than 200 miles away, mushrooms are from California, cheese and cream is from New England dairies)

-Tat Soi (like Bok Choi, but darker- from my garden!)

-Pumpkin muffins (uhh….from the box!)

-Mashed potatoes and gravy (Idaho organic potatoes and premade gravy from California)

-Green salad with dressing (greens from California)

-Chardonnay (from California)

-Cherry pie, apple pie (apples are local, I buy organic pre-made crust, cherries are from the can! but organic)

-Ben and Jerry’s Vanilla Ice cream (fair trade beans, but not really local…but at least regional- from Vermont, about 200 miles away)

Ok, so that’s my dinner. I am glad to see that the bulk of my food is actually from the Northeast, at least. Maybe I’ll nix the salad….I haven’t bought some of my ingredients yet, and I’m headed to the farmer’s market on Wednesday, so maybe I’ll see if I can get onions, potatoes and some mushrooms there instead of Wild Oats, which would make my meal much more regional and would support Connecticut farmers.

Happy Thanksgiving to All the Eco Chicks (and guys too)!

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The Good Life, Greenified

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by Starre Vartan · 08/09/06

Danny Seo is usually referred to as the ‘green’ Martha Stewart, but that’s not really true. For one thing, Ms. Stewart is no slouch in the ecologically-conscious department. She always promotes farmer’s markets on her shows and in her magazines, she frequently advocated for organics, is pro-open space, and uses mostly non-toxic cleansers. I’ve watched her show more than once when she’s mentioned an environmentally sensitive garden fertilizer, or she has covered the plight of an endangered animal. But I digress; she’s no Danny Seo, who is 100% about making home and garden, entertaining and dinners ecologically sound and attractive from start to finish. Seo also makes most of his projects pretty easy and accessible, unlike Stewart’s zilllion-step cakes and eleaborate brunches.

You can check them out in his new books: Simply Green Parties and Simply Green Giving. The parties book has been out for a few months now, and it is filled with really fun ideas if you’re into throwing fiestas (I am!) It’s divided up into chapters that focus on various types of parties, like a baby shower, a houswarming, a birthday, and summer and winter dinners. There are so many good ideas here! Bring a stylish but unwanted vase or bowl to a housewarming and swap, make candles out of soy wax and old jewelry, make an eco-pinata, make a quilt out of old scarves, make a basket out of an old shopping bag. Love it!

The Giving book will be out in September and it is broken into 4 sections: cards and tags, boxes and bows, gift wrap, and handmade gifts. The latter features really gorgeous ideas like filling a used chocolates box with vintage jewelry, putting together edible gifts like a cookies and milk crate or a mimosa set, and making a mini-spa kit for people on the go. The ideas are inexpensive and utilize recycled or reused items. The giftwrap chapter is equally amazing and filled with ‘why didn’t I think of that!’ ideas. My favorite is giving a bottle of wine wrapped up in an old scarf as wrapping, or making ribbon out of old vhs tapes. There’s also a section on ‘giving back’, and a portion of the books profits go to the Humane Society.

I’ve already given the parties book as a gift, and the giving one would make a great one too. Seo’s books make me realize how little creativity there is in modern life when everything is made for you. After leafing through these books I’m inspired to create something gorgeous. And it’ll be better for Mother Earth too.

Note: The books are printed on recycled paper and made without dust jackets.  

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Save the Produce!

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by Ann Benoit · 06/28/06

It’s summer and with all the produce you’ll be scoring at your local farmer’s market (hopefully you’ll be buying organic) it’s no doubt that your fridge will be fuller than usual. But on an average, Americans throw out at least 25% of the produce that they buy, due to spoilage. Although this statistic may be great for your composter, it’s bad for your wallet and really wasteful!

Fortunately there are many products out there that can help you reduce the amount of ethylene, the odorless colorless gas that’s released by produce that makes ripening happen faster. My personal favorites are the Evert-Fresh Green Bags and the BioFresh Resealable Zipper Produce Bags— I’ve been using them both for about a year, and they’re also a really great alternative to using plastic baggies from the market. If you bring your own produce bags, you won’t have to repack them when you get home and you’ll end up with less plastic waste.

I recently read an article in Vegetarian Times that reviewed and tested these bags and other ethylene-reducing products. Their winners, (they tested using lettuce) which I’m interested to check out are the E.G.G (ethylene gas guardian), the FridgeSmart container and the ExtraLife Disc.

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