ColumnNew to Foodie Underground? Here are 5 of our favorite articles to get you started.

If you’re new to EcoSalon, you might not be completely familiar with the weekly Foodie Underground column. Yes, it’s about food, but it’s about all those things that are helping to shape the underground food movement, and take it from unconventional to mainstream. It’s not about fancy restaurants – although we do have respect for those that are pushing the envelope, truly serving local and committed to sustainable practices or expensive delicacies. Foodie Underground is a place to explore “democratized foodie-ism.” What’s happening at hole-in-the-wall joints and food carts across the country and how we can take advantage of it. Most importantly, how these evolutions and trends are shaping our food policy in general.

Ultimately, we all need to eat, and food lovers exist in all circles. You don’t need a big budget to eat well, just an eye to seek out what’s good, both for you and the environment. Our hope with Foodie Underground is that you’re inspired to push your own food boundaries just a little more; forage for mushrooms instead of buying them, host a locally sourced supper club or plant a neighborhood garden that your entire community can enjoy.

You may not think you love food, but we promise that Foodie Underground will at least give you some food for thought.

Here are some of our favorite reads to get you started.

“Appreciating Simple Food” – It’s easy to get caught up in ingredients and recipes, as we try to ensure that we’re eating well. But sometimes, we forget the most important thing of all: keep it simple and appreciate food for food’s sake. “So forget complex recipes, forget the latest gluten-free baked goods, just take some time to eat good, simple food with friends, maybe even throw in a bottle of wine for good measure, and give honor to the sustenance that your body needs.”

“Foodie Feminism” – Women are pushing boundaries in the food world. Female restaurateurs, farmers and bartenders are proving that we play a significant role in the food movement. “We as women have a lot of power, and when it comes to food, we have the potential to think smartly and creatively rather than be boxed in by conventional expectations.”

“The Replacements” – Cupcakes are a subject of serious contention for EcoSalon staff, but no matter what your take on the baked good, we can all agree that the trend has some competition. Macaroons, pies delivered by bicycle and a handful of other sweet treats are giving cupcakes a run for their money.

“Cycled Coffee“ - Foodies have an affinity for caffeine, and not only are they conscious about where it comes from, but they also are concerned with how they get it. Enter the cycled coffee crowd: people making a business of combining coffee and bikes. Love this idea as much as we do? Check out our San Francisco Food by Bike Foodspotting Guide.

“It’s Not What We Eat, It’s How We Eat It” -  “Before we had food science, we had food culture,” Michael Pollan said at a lecture in Portland earlier this year. We’ve become so obsessed with individual properties – omega 3′s, antioxidants, etc., that we’ve lost track of the bigger picture. So how do we change it? Start thinking about how you eat just as often as you think about what you eat.

Happy reading!

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s weekly column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground, discovering what’s new and different in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to the culinary avant garde.

Image: Anna Brones

Perch a Velorbis Wood Carrier Crate on the front of your bicycle.

Embellish your bicycle with the pragmatic vintage appeal of a Wood Carrier Crate (€60), from Velorbis. Perch this Danish ash wood creation on your cycle and watch heads turn while you pedal unburdened.

And while we’re building wish lists, have you ever seen a ride as beautiful as this Studine Balloon Bicycle (€660)? I didn’t think so. I’ll take one with cream balloon tires please.

Look for Lustables daily at EcoSalon. 100% gorgeous green finds, and never sponsored. Submit your favorite to tips@ecosalon.com.

The idea of a green bicycle seems redundant, but engineers at Lexus have recently fixed their hybrid-tech eyes on two wheels instead of their usual four. The result is the prototype Lexus Hybrid Bicycle that boosts a rider’s manual power with a 240-watt electric motor powered by a 25.9-volt Lithium-ion battery. It even offers a choice of “Eco” or “Power” modes. Consider that for a moment: riding your bicycle on eco mode.

So picture yourself in, um, on a Lexus. This model offers an “energy regeneration” function that recharges its battery by capturing the kinetic energy generated by braking. In essence, stop means go. And get this: it’s an all-wheel drive (whatever that can mean on a bicycle).

Here’s the drill for you spec-heads: the bike is equipped with an “electric eight-speed Shimano internal gear system, which references the sophisticated eight-speed shift-by-wire automatic transmission of Lexus’s LS 600h limousine. The carbon fibre construction shares the same light-but-strong composite materials technology that was used on Valentino Rossi’s MotoGP-winning motorcycle.” So there.

For those of you more concerned with what’s not under the hood, the lines of the Hybrid Bicycle are all Lexus; with its softened angles and elegant sweeps of metal, you’re gonna wanna pet this baby as much as ride it. Oh, did I say “you?” Sorry, right now there are only two of these in existence, one of which debuted at the 2009 Tokyo motor show.

When a bike wheel builder friend of mine asked if I would like to attend an anniversary party for a local bike-related business, of course I said yes. In Portland, it’s never a good idea to turn down the opportunity to hang out with bike lovers and enjoy a few free drinks and hors d’oeuvres in the process.

But this was no regular bike throwdown; this was a full-on celebration of a commitment to better, more sustainable urban living. It was B-line’s one-year anniversary, and the people that came out to support this pedal powered delivery service were abuzz with positive energy.

B-line launched last year with the goal of partnering with businesses to take care of their urban delivery needs and, in turn, reduce the need for conventional trucks and vans. In the last 12 months, the company has certainly succeeded, pedaling over 6,000 miles to complete 3,000 deliveries. The results are pretty astonishing.

They’ve been able to reduce CO2 emissions by 11,000 pounds and they’ve helped delivered just about 191,000 pounds of organic produce; that’s on top of all the bread, coffee, tea and other things they pedal around town. As I listened to B-Line Founder and CEO Franklin Jones rattle off these statistics, I was impressed, not only because a pedal powered business is making it, but because they are making real change and influencing others to do the same.

It’s a common tendency to encourage people to “bike more, drive less,” but in cities without the necessary infrastructure to do so, making that choice is difficult. Granted, Portland is a city already known for its biking prowess, but with a company like B-line as a big local business player, the impetus for having better bike policies in grows even stronger. Case and point: Portland’s Mayor was invited to speak at this party.

Fewer trucks and vans on the road mean better streets for bikers and pedestrians, as well as less pollution. An increasing number of local businesses committed to using bike delivery shows their full-fledged support of cycling culture. That, in turn, equals less CO2 emissions and happier, healthier lifestyles, which benefits everyone in the urban community.

Did you know…

…that cycling is almost comically efficient? You’re getting around 3 times as fast as walking but burning the same amount of energy. You’re like a car that does 1,037 kilometres a litre. Part of it is the sensible weight ratio: you’re around 6 times heavier than your bike, compared to your car being 20 times heavier than you.

…the U.S. government now pays you to cycle to work?

…that cycling is free? No sh-t, Sherlock, I know – but just weigh that against the cost of your gym membership. Do you pay money to sit in a car, then pay money to go to the gym? Could you combine the two and pay nothing, all the while keeping your fashion mojo intact?

…bikes make amazing coffee tables? And bowls?

…that the percentage of U.S. students cycling to school or college is less than a third of what it was in 1969? Meanwhile, the child obesity crisis intensifies every year, despite an impassioned warning by the Surgeon General in 2003.

…that America is designed for cycling, actually? As a starting point, look at the 38,158 miles of the Adventure Cycling Route Network.

…there are even bikes you can wear?

…that cycling is becoming a lot more social than you’d think?

…that this musical duo did 4,700 miles on bikes while promoting one of their albums? Check out the evidence, and our interview with them in March.

…that bicycles are time machines?

Images: moriza, m-louis, kamshots

Like many other people, I’ve been thinking for a while now that it might be a good idea to ditch the car and get a bike. It has dual appeal. By biking to work, I can not only reduce my carbon footprint but also get fit without ever having to step foot in a gym. And of course, I’d be saving money on gas.

But the thought of having to go out and buy a bike has been holding me back. Until now, that is. I’ve just discovered the Montague SwissBike TX. It’s cute, it’s light weight and fits in a bag but has the performance capabilities of the Paratrooper (its military counterpart that was used by special forces operations during the invasion of Afghanistan). It’s yet another great portable biking option.

Storage is easy. At work, just fold it up and put it in a corner of the office. At home, it’s small enough to it in the closet. And for those days when you want to get out the city and explore the countryside, it easily fits into the back of the car. You can even take it on the train, the boat, and the plane, making it the perfect traveling companion.

What more could a girl (or guy) ask for?

If you see the above album gracing the shelves of your local music store – take a closer look.

Once it’s open, the contents will leap out at you. The album is filled with the eco-friendliest pop-up art imaginable: soy inks and recycled paper replacing the usual non-renewable inlays. You wouldn’t expect the big labels to go for something this creative, and the Ditty Bops – Amanda Barrett and Abby DeWald – felt the same way. They source all their manufacturers and suppliers themselves. They do their own design and artwork. In fact, it might be quicker to list the things they don’t do for their albums.

This won’t be a surprise to anyone who knows them. Barrett and DeWald were awarded a certificate of honor for helping San Francisco go urban-tumbleweed-free in 2007 (via their nonprofit You And I Save The World) and just to hammer the message home, they performed in costumes made of plastic bags. They toured for four months, between Los Angeles and New York City, using bicycles (yes, 4,700 miles on bikes). They’ve even turned their driveway into a food garden. Impassioned environmentalists? And then some.

For those who don’t yet know them, you’ll be hearing a lot about them on Sunday. Summer Rains is up for a Grammy. The reason is obvious – they’re completely brilliant (there goes my journalistic objectivity), playfully and uniquely employing a huge range of styles to give the kind of soothing, witty sound you’d associate with the best of A Prairie Home Companion. They’re even on the soundtrack for Grey’s Anatomy. They’re unstoppable.

Nice folk making brilliant Folk – and spreading a green message as they go. That’s got to be worth at least one Grammy.

Summer Rains is available to buy here.

Image: The Ditty Bops

Ever considered biking to work? Can’t say I have. Having biked miles to school and back when I was a kid, I thought my biking days were well and truly over. But lately, I’ve been considering the pros and cons of biking to work. What with the price of gas running at an all time higher earlier this year, increasing traffic congestion and pollution, and the possibility of getting more exercise, biking is starting to look like a very smart option. And I’m not the only one thinking that way. Seems the U.S. and the U.K. governments have been launching incentives to encourage people to bike to work.

Starting in January, bike commuters in the U.S. will actually able to get money for biking to work thanks to The Bicycle Commuter Act, one of the lesser known clauses in the recent $700 billion Wall Street bailout. Bikers will be able to get up to $240 a year from their employers for bicycle expenses.

And in the U.K., workers who join a company’s Cycle to Work Scheme (a “green travel plan” initiative) can buy bicycles are reduced prices.

Still not sure biking to work is for you? Then check out this free 50-page online guide on How to Bike It To Work. It’s a PDF sampler of The Bike to Work Book due for release by Amazon.com next month. Written by cycle experts Carlton Reid and Tim Grahl, it’s full of information about commuter cycling. Best of all, it lists and then exposes the truth behind the 24 most commonly used excuses for not cycling to work. Go on, get on yer bike!

Image: duchamp