Looking through my kitchen, I noted I had some chard and yams that were beginning to look a little past their prime. Utilizing the power of Cookin’ With Google, I found a recipe for African Yam Stew, which I altered to suit my own tastes. Below is the modified recipe, which yielded fantastic results.

African Yam Stew

4 cups vegetable broth

1 tsp. chili oil

1/2 chopped onion

3 cups diced yams

1 can canned chick-peas

1 cup uncooked quinoa
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup “The Heat is On” Spiced Peanut Butter

2 cups chopped collard greens
1 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Saute’ onion in chili oil until soft. Add broth, yams, chickpeas, rice and salt; simmer for 30 minutes.

Blend peanut butter with 1/2 cup stock to make a smooth paste. Stir into the stew along with the greens and turn heat to low, allowing flavors to marry for 5 minutes.

Add salt, pepper, and additional chili oil or chili sauce to taste.

Serves 4-6

Here we are in the last stretch of winter. Motivation is at an all time low – I can feel it and so can my colleagues and clients. Spring is just around the corner, but right now it feels as though we are sitting in the darkest hour before the dawn (nevermind those extra 3 minutes of sunlight per day).

With patience thin and cold winds blowing, it’s hard to get out of bed and face the gym or lace your running shoes. Excuses are numerous, but taking control of your lifestyle and moving through this last patch of winter maintaining or increasing your activity levels will leave you with greater energy, a better body, and a feeling of accomplishment that outshines staying in bed or cuddling up to a bowl of ice cream!

Here are some tips for beating the Winter Workout Blahs:

• Don’t Go It Alone: Get a partner or a trainer to help you out! I’m currently boosting my workouts by running with a friend and doing exercise videos in my basement. Find a friend or colleague to go walking with during the day, after work, or on weekends. Or hire a personal trainer for a hard-core, body-changing workout several times a week. Having someone else to exercise with will hold you accountable when excuses mount and motivation wanes!
• Bring It Indoors: Yoga and gym classes may be more your cup of tea when the weather is cold and wet. If you want something that doesn’t feel like exercise, classes like belly dancing, hip hop, salsa, swing, rock climbing and martial arts are offered through community colleges and local businesses.
• Turn Your Home into Your Gym: For a small subset of the population, exercising at home is the only way to go. Purchase someone else’s unused treadmill, exercise bike, or weight set and do it yourself! Rent exercise videos to keep variety up for both mental and physical benefits. No athlete’s foot, no gym class flashbacks, and clean up is a snap!
• Break it Up into Pieces: If time is a factor, break it up into little pieces. Get off a bus stop earlier than usual, or utilize half your lunch break for walking outside with a coworker. Sneak in extra steps – wear a pedometer for inspiration and motivation to keep going!

This ginger jam recipe is POTENT! I plan on using it on cashew butter rice bread sandwiches in the morning, since my supply of ginger spread is no longer being offered at Trader Joe’s. While sampling it during cooking, I realized it will also do nicely whipped into cream cheese, swirled into cheesecake, or layered between spice cake.

Makes 1 12 oz. jar.

3/4 cup Finely chopped peeled ginger
1 Apple peeled - cored and finely chopped
(note - no need to chop ginger and apple if using a Vitamix)
3/4 cup Sucanat (dehydrated sugar cane juice) or date sugar
1 cup Water

Combine all ingredients in a Vitamix or food processor - process until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan, place over medium heat and cook until the mixture begins to bubble. Stir consistently until it reaches a jam-like thickness, about 30 minutes.

Last September, a new law requiring the “pastuerization” of all almonds quietly went into effect after a USDA’s proposal was announced (or rather, whispered) earlier in 2007. News of this proposal was kept quiet until just before the law went into effect.
The pasteurization process of almonds is primarily by radiation treatment. Radiation destroys vitamins, minerals, adn essential fatty acids in foods - this has been documented by the FDA, according to Food and Water Watch’s Executive Director, Wenonah Hauter. Because radiation of foods is highly unpopular with the public, you will find these items labeled as “pasteurized” if they are labeled at all.
Another acceptable treatment of almonds is through the use of propylene oxide, deemed a “potential human carcinogen” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. This substance is banned in Canada, Mexico, and the European Union. Propylene Oxide was once used as racing fuel, but was banned by the US National Hot Rod Association for safety reasons. This product is not GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) and has no business being sprayed on our nuts.
The industry will tell you that radiation is necessary to prevent food borne contamination like salmonella from inhabiting our food supply. Did anyone here know almonds were a potential threat? No, neither did I. And according to the Organic Consumers Association, there have been only two food contamination incidents with raw almonds since 2001 - both caused by improper management of large-scale farms. Could the quiet, uneventful approval of almond irradiation be the door that allows irradiation of more commonly contaminated foods to enter our food supply?

It is important to note that any almond you purchase labeled as “raw” is in fact, no longer raw. Pasteurization kills enzymes - just try sprouting any “raw” almond you find in the stores now.

In light of this news, it isn’t too late to possibly reverse the decision. Since this decision went into effect, the Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Johanns, has stepped down. He has been temporarily replaced by Chuck Conner. With another leader at the helm, a new opportunity for reversal exists.
If you are even the slightest bit outraged, disgusted, or concerned about irradiation spreading to other crops such as spinach and other greens (yes - this proposal has already been made) I highly encourage you to click on this link to the Organic Consumers Movement to send a quick email to Chuck Connor asking him to consider re-opening discussion on the almond issue. Our nuts (and other crops) are in his hands.