Many of us would like to lose weight or at least maintain our weight, which can be particularly challenging during the holidays. Thanksgiving dinner is one thing, but then friends start bringing by the requisite homemade holiday fare – banana bread, gingerbread cookies, and peanut brittle to name a few. It’s not surprising that many of us start feeling weighted down, low in energy and spirits from all those buttery and sugary (mind you, delicious) snacks. (I’m partial to those little miniature

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I read about Soup Swaps here on EcoSalon and I fell in love with the idea. Then I realized, I’d already been involved in one: a D.I.Y. Food Swap. A friend of mine is a nutritionist and with the arrival of a new baby, she is particularly interested in eating healthy food. She suggested that we swap some items from our D.I.Y. pantries. I received homemade organic chicken stock that she had made from Prather Ranch chicken in exchange …

The autumn leaves are falling (or depending on where you are, have fallen), and it’s time for the ultimate comfort food meal – Thanksgiving dinner. Some prefer to make the same recipes every year, with a sense of tradition and a confidence gained through years of practice. On the other hand, it can be fun to experiment with new recipes to keep things interesting. Here are my favorite picks this year:

Growing your own food has gone beyond the hippie counter-culture of the ’60s. With the advent of books by the likes of Michael Pollan and Barbara Kingsolver, people are taking a hard look at what they’re eating. Sadly (and not always surprisingly), the more we learn, the less we want to eat commercial, processed, packaged food or even fruits, vegetables or meat from big corporate aggie farms. What better way to take control and eat locally by producing food in your very own backyard?

It seems more and more people are doing just that, and even in urban areas. Let’s take …

Growing your own food has gone beyond the hippie counter-culture of the ’60s. With the advent of books by the likes of Michael Pollan and Barbara Kingsolver, people are taking a hard look at what they’re eating. Sadly (and not always surprisingly), the more we learn, the less we want to eat commercial, processed, packaged food or even fruits, vegetables or meat from big corporate aggie farms. What better way to take control and eat locally by producing food in your very own backyard?

It seems more and …

While the growth of organic wine in the market place hasn’t been particularly explosive, it has been steadily increasing its market share since the 1990′s. With overall wine consumption growing in the U.S., buying organic wine makes sense for those of us concerned with supporting organic farming practices.

Some confusion exists over what constitutes organic wine. Technically speaking, few wines qualify for certification according to the high approval standards set by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), which mandate organic wine be free …

For those of you interested in food culture, EATLACMA, is not to be missed. This multi-faceted investigation of food, art, culture and politics presented by Fallen Fruit has been on view at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) all year with projects revolving around food as a common ground. These projects have manifested themselves as artists’ gardens planted and harvested on the museum campus, hands-on public events, and a concurrent exhibition, Fallen Fruit Presents The Fruit of …

Have I got a healthy, healing soup for you! Soba noodle soup it is and the cooking time is very brief. Most of the active time is spent preparing and sauteing the vegetables while bringing water to boil for the noodles and heating the stock. Overall time is about 30 minutes.

Serves two.

Ingredients:

2 – 3 oz. bundles soba (Japanese buckwheat) noodles

3 cups homemade chicken or vegetable stock

1 teaspoon peanut oil

1/2 onion, sliced

1 generous inch ginger, peeled and minced

1/2 – 1 serrano pepper, minced (seeds and all)

6-8 dried shittake …