Making Love in the Kitchen

How many of you would take your paycheque and throw 40% of it in the garbage?

Anyone? Bueller? Well, that’s what Canadians are doing with the food they buy and don’t eat – and it’s estimated that $27 billion dollars worth ends up in landfills each year. In Toronto alone, we blithely toss out a staggering 210 million kilograms of food annually, while people in our city and around the world are starving. Food waste is an enormous problem that costs us money, drives up food prices, depletes environmental resources like water and land, and is just downright unnecessary. But there is hope, my friends. There are tons of ways that you can reduce food waste in the kitchen that will save you time, money and your appetite.

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Yeppers. That is me. Me with crazy swollen eyelids while on my retreat in St. Lucia. I am not tired. Nor am I hungover. I just had really swollen eyes. Why? One week prior- we had done the photo shoot for my book. Now- normally, I am picky about the make-up I use. For my weekly use of makeup (usually just for special occasions) I opt for the natural brands given the green light by the Cosmetic Database. The challenge withy my photo shoot is that my make-up collection literally consists of one eye shadow, one mascara, one blush and some lip gloss. I knew that I was in great hands with our make-up artist and even though she used mainly mineral based make-up, one day was still too much. The next day I looked like I’d been up crying all night long. I had a two day break from the make-up and then had another made-up day. The damage was done. My eyelids flared up like that kid at summer camp who got bit by a spider while she slept and couldn’t open her eye in the morning (we all had that kid in our cabin right?)

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What are YOU doing tomorrow!? We are super duper excited to be a part of the Just Beautiful campaign, run by Environmental Defence. The campaign aims to raise awareness about the icky sticky toxins we slather all over our bodies and faces. Yup, you know it…beauty care. Here’s watch Environmental Defence has to say about our makeup and beauty prods in Canada: Before you even make it to the breakfast table, you’ve probably used almost 15 personal care products with over 100 host of toxic ingredients. Chemicals in your face cream, your diaper cream, your shampoo and lipstick have been linked to cancer, birth defects, infertility, and a long list of health concerns. Over 1,700 cancer-causing, hormone disrupting, and allergy-inducing substances have been banned or restricted in European personal care products. But, many of these same harmful substances can still be found in Canadian products. And Health Canada doesn’t even know everything that’s in the cosmetics we use every day.

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Written by Lisa Borden, a sweet, sweet member of Meghan Telpner’s Superhero Posse.
How much heavier are you when you leave a restaurant? Dining out is one of life’s absolute pleasures and privileges, especially now that more and more local, organic cuisine is peppering the culinary scene. Restaurants are a key part of our culture – think celebrations, business meetings and first dates and it’s crucial for us and our world to eat off of greener menus (and we are not simply referring to a leafy salad). I find my own palate has changed as I stick to my own set of eating-values. I now want slow food (but sometimes when I’m out with all 3 kids, not too slow) and organic menus supporting local food providers. In fact, I’ll drive across the city for it (because there are but a few gems). I try to counteract the un-eco-ness of the travel in as many ways possible and hope that as we all demand more, there won’t be a “green restaurant” category, and it’ll be the standard because it just makes sense for all of us.

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I feel like perhaps I am supposed to be embarrassed to tell you that I LOVE Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. I am not sure why. After a day of sunshine and rainbows in the kitchen, where 99.5% of the people who call, or write, or come play in the kitchen are delightful, there is something super fun about kicking back to a flood of F-bombs from old chef GR. What’s even more ridiculous about this affection I have for this show is that I don’t even have a TV. That means the man has to go hunting for an online version and we huddle together on the sofa to watch it on the micro computer screen. Yep. I’ve hit it big time for sure. Just wait ’till my episode of Cribs (yes, I used to watch that too). A wild Thursday night watching a crappy British TV show full of cloudy weather and F-bombs on a computer.

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Written by Odelia Benabou, CNE graduate, writer and lemon lover extraordinaire. Odelia here, reporting for duty on Meghan’s rad web kingdom to share some simple, back-to-basics tips about lemons! True, lemons aren’t terribly sexy or exotic. We squeeze their tart juice into a glass of water each morning for a revitalizing, alkalinizing and detoxifying effect. Yawn. But this new year, I thought it would be a nice change to chat up my folks for something decidedly less complicated than some of the strange extracts, peculiar foods and just plain bizarre beverages that we nutrition groupies often concoct for fun! So when life hands you lemons, do any of the following:

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Did you know that most lubricants can harm those precious little swimmers? Even if you’re using an organic lubricant, the ingredients probably interfere with sperm motility and the pH likely doesn’t support their survival. If you’re not in the market for making a baby, this may be a good thing (although lube isn’t officially a spermicide) but for those trying to conceive, it’s best to switch to a sperm-friendly lubricant like Pre~Seed or YES Baby.
These lubricants are designed to mimic the fertility-enhancing qualities of a woman’s own cervical mucus. Pre~Seed has been around for awhile, so it’s better known by doctors and is often referenced on fertility websites and other resources. However, it’s not the most eco-friendly. It contains parabens, which many of you are probably familiar with (an icky preservative that’s a hormone disrupter and has been linked to health concerns such as breast cancer). Fortunately there’s now an alternative available that’s certified organic and paraben-free. We’re big fans of the company YES. The co-founders Sarah Brooks and Susi Lennox spent three years researching and testing lubricants before they released their line of personal lubricants. Their new sperm-friendly lubricant, YES Baby, is similar to Pre~Seed but is a more body-friendly and eco-friendly option.

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How well do you know your ABCs? How about a different alphabet, the Alphabet of Avoidance? Lisa Borden – owner of Borden Communications and Super Hero Posse member extraordinaire – has written her first book called The Alphabet of Avoidance. The tagline of the book reads “If you aren’t outraged, then you just aren’t paying attention.” No truer words have been said. And trust us, once you read through this book you will be paying attention and fast. Borden points out what should be obvious about some of the most common used products – but obviously isn’t, considering they ARE the most common used products!

Borden began her company at the tender age of 22 and focuses on marketing products that no only better our lifestyle but better the earth. She is committed to responsible living which manifests itself in her career and personal life. And so came her first (but not last) book, The Alphabet of Avoidance.

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It was a 5 Star event in the mud, a gathering of Ontario’s best chefs, food and volunteers in the name of saving 2300 acres of prime farmland. It is estimated that over 20,000 people gathered in Melancthon Township at the aptly named Foodstock event to protest the proposed limestone mega quarry.

In a nutshell, an American-financed company, Highland Companies, has big plans for our prime potato farmland 85 km north of Toronto. Below the beautiful soil there is approximately 1 billion tonnes of limestone and Highland wants it all.

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What a week it has been. I have been doing my very, very best to abide the rules I wrote myself with my 21 Days To Health, program. My most favourite challenge of course is on day 3 when we must get ourselves to bed early. There are three things I love to bits that help me sleep like a baby.

Sleep mask to block out the light.
Lavender essential oil sprinkled on my pillow
3 capsules of Peaceful Spirit- my most fave bed time supplement in the whole wide world (more on that next week)
I have been loving these things even more as I spent just three nights last weekend on the other side of the country, 3 time zones away in Vancouver and then came back right in the swing of things. And you know what? No jet lag! Not even for one night. It was amazing.
I digress, as today I sit in the audience at TedX Toronto, invited to participate as a delegate, I wanted my brain powered up and ready to rock. And you know what does it? A green juice breakfast and a smoothie brunch.

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Habits are routines of behaviour that are repeated so regularly that we continue to do them almost automatically and involuntarily. Isn’t that exactly why you accept bags at checkout? The only way to change such impulses is to replace them with beneficial behaviour. Why do we so often fail? Because change is hard work and there is no short cut!

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Please, please, please tell me that you’re not still drinking bottled water?

Water is one of the those questions I get asked after almost every cooking class. Everyone always wants to know what kind of water they should be drinking. My first response is usually that you just need to be drinking it. The second is that you can’t be afraid of bottled water if you’re still drinking juices and sodas that also come in plastic. The plastic has to go, no matter what!

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How can you make a difference through your relationship with food? At The Cutting Veg Organic Farm, we try to inspire and support people to take action in their relationship with food to improve their quality of life, while making a difference. Remember, a healthy world starts with healthy lifestyles.

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Greening up isn’t a trend, like platform shoes and banged haircuts. You’re living green. You reuse, you recycle, you even reduce. You care. You exercise because it makes you feel good, or maybe it’s because it’s all part of your plan to stay healthy and feel good. You should pat yourself on the back. But, if you look closely, you’ll actually realize that there are many aspects of your routine that are insanely ironic and highly hypocritical (mine too, by the way).

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Written by Amy and Kim Sedgwick, two sweet, sweet members of Meghan Telpner’s Superhero Posse. They are our Superhero Eco Sexperts. Read their bios here.

There are lots of easy, inexpensive ways to make your love life more ecosexy. Here are our top five to get you started.

Use organic, all-natural, glycerine and paraben-free lube.
Lube makes sexy time more fun by reducing friction and increasing pleasure. Unfortunately, most pharmacy brand lubes contain ingredients that aren’t very vagina-friendly. Glycerine is a sugar, and there’s some evidence that the natural yeast in a woman’s body feeds off that sugar and multiplies, thus leading to an increase in yeast infections. Parabens have been known to mimic estrogen and wreak all kinds of havoc on the reproductive system. Thankfully there are lots of options that are better for your body, and the earth. Check out your local health food store or specialty sex shop for brands without parabens and glycerine. Our personal favourite is Hathor, made in Canada by a woman owned company. Some other great eco options are Sliquid Organics, or Blossom Organics.

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