Eat real food.

It’s been a long while since I wrote anything here. Local food, whole, real food made of actual living things was really easy to write about at first, but after a while it becomes something like the platonic image of mundane. I mean, is there anything less interesting to talk about than taking a walk and gathering plants, then bringing them home to eat them?

Not that the act is uninteresting. But it’s very visceral, very in-the-moment, and how much is there to say about it, really?

But mostly, I’ve been occupied by my ferocious—if floundering—pursuit of compassion. I am trying to figure out if I should talk here about things like

• how NVC looks as an internal process
• whether I can embrace non-judgment and yet retain discernment
• whether I want to…
• where ‘evaluation’ fits between judgement and discernment
• whether I can really embrace everyone in my path, or
• whether survival requires me to turn away from some folks’ pain
• … and so much more.

That’s what’s on my mind, and keeping me from blogging about food.
The reasonable thing would be to keep focused on food. Be consistent, follow the Rules for Successful Blogging (or not!). Google will like me better. Readers will gradually increase, until some day I reach the pinnacle of success and someone buys the t-shirt.

Want to weigh in? Do you want more…

Life

What it’s like to commute by bike, to live car-free, school-free, to raise compassionate, free teenage boys, surviving without paper towels?

Love

Well, I already covered that… compassion. I’m obsessed.

Food

Or maybe you just want to hear about real food? More recipes? More rants about high-fructose corn syrup? What to do with a 50lb bag of local wheat? How to learn to like beans?
What say you?

My husband and I were at our favorite local store, and I was buying some almonds because, well… yum! Anyway, I was thinking of raw almonds, but I saw him eyeing the roasted almonds, so we thought we’d get some. I tasted one of the roasted almonds, though, and… there was definitely something missing. It was easier to chew, yes, but the flavor was missing something very rich and meaty, like the smell of baking bread. I think it’s the taste people are calling umami.

Anyway, he wanted roasted, so we got both. In the picture at the top, the first bowl is the store-bought roasted almonds, and the second is the raw almonds. The third? Those are almonds I roasted—or maybe toasted—at home. They turned out so delicious and very much like the raw. I was so happy my toes curled.

How to Make Toasted Almonds

I used my really cool crank-handle popcorn popper with no oil or anything. Low heat, let it warm a little, then throw in a cup of nuts and stir for 2-3 minutes until they’re hot, and a little toasted. The more roasted you like them (or toasted) the longer you can do it. Try about 5 minutes, and watch for cracking skins. I like them as close to raw as possible, though.

How to Make Roasted Almonds

If you don’t have a popcorn popper, you can bake them in a 350° oven for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice during the cooking. I’d experiment though, and find the shortest time that makes them easy to chew. You don’t want them as “roasted” as the ones I got at the store!

I need some new ideas. If you have a favorite food made out of, you know, real food, leave a comment.

I don’t usually talk in extremes, but I think that growing food may be the most enriching thing I’ve ever done. Not because of food prices, although it does make a difference. But it’s more than that. Food prices might be a blessing, actually, because the high prices are for food that isn’t food. We don’t need boxes of cold cereal, or macaroni and cheese. We need food that grows in the dirt and basks in the sun, converting its energy into yumminess for us.

Our garden is a little late, but we love it. We got our first handful of beans the other day, along with the first tomato. Those beans, with a little homemade butter, were so incredibly delicious! If you haven’t started a garden yet, you really should try it. They tasted… amazing!

We were lucky to get our garden. First we had to find a place to put it — no easy task where we live. Once that was done, we had to turn a big patch of clay into fertile soil. Thank goodness for Charlotte, the energy behind the Eugene Victory Garden project. She was such a big help.

If you’re in the Eugene area, you can get help with your garden, too. For a big city version, check out San Francisco Victory Gardens. If you live somewhere else, maybe the spirit of the victory gardens will help you get a group of friends together to do the same thing.

Do you have a garden? Or are you thinking of creating one? I’d love to hear about your experience.