Stewardship of the Earth

What is stewardship? It is caring for the property and assets of another. To be a steward is to be a watchman over the owner's valuables while the owner is absent. We are all stewards of the Earth and all its life--not owners--but temporary keepers of God's creation.

Our role as stewards of the Earth is conveyed in the Bible passage Genesis 1:26, 3:

God spoke, "Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature so they can be responsible for the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, the cattle, and, yes, Earth itself, and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.” God looked over everything he had made; it was so good, so very good!

Starting a Compost Bin

400 L compost bin I set up in Paris 16e

 

During my last juice fast I was amazed by how much vegetable and fruit pulp I threw away. I noticed that after several days, my trash can would start sweating and giving off heat. Why, I realized, I am composting in my kitchen! I may as well do it properly outside and generate good soil! So I did a little research and dug up some interesting sites about composting in Paris. There are quite a few composting projects going on around the city (click the link), and from what I could gather from calls to the municipal property office (the Paris Proprete), there is no special license needed or requirements for starting a compost box. 

Municipal issues solved, I focused on figuring out how to generate a healthy compost box. There are a zillion entertaining and useful sites to read on this topic including US EPA site on composting, 163 Things You Can Compost, and 75 Things You Can Compost, But Thought You Couldn't. Overall it seemed pretty basic, though not completely foolproof. So off I went to my local gardening store Truffaut to purchase a composting bin, where I was also talked into buying an activator to speed up the composting, and then I went home to set it up. I am fortunate to live in an apartment building with a plot of land that the building gardien (like a caretaker) takes beautiful care of with a variety of trees and flowers. He was willing for me to experiment with the compost box on his turf in exchange for the promise of rich soil come springtime. 

I set the box up in early November, which, according to my research, is not an ideal time to start a compost box due to the upcoming cold winter months. But we were having a mild winter, so I hoped for the best and positioned the box in a sunny spot. Unfortunately, over Christmas holiday when I was in the States, the gardien moved the box to a very shady corner of the land. Plus we have had a very wet winter thus far. Nearly three months into the composting, I am not sure how actively the garbage is breaking down, it does not feel very hot, and I do see mold. I am not sure if the mold is bad or normal--I think I may try turning it to see what is going on underneath and if that helps. And hopefully we won't get too much more snow... I will keep you informed on its progress.

Setting up a Recycling Program at Church

When I started composting, I converted my large trash can into the compost pile (to carry outdoors), and my Christmas gift to myself was a very cool connected 3 trash bins, so I can separate paper/plastic/metal, glass, and everything else. (These are the 3 categories that Paris recycles). Batteries are also taken separately in a little container nailed to the apartment building.

Separating trash shows me how much of each type of trash (plastic, food, paper, glass, metal, other) I dispose of in a given week. This has given me a better understanding of the type of products I buy and how many disposable products I use. And armed with this knowledge, I can start to change certain habits. For example, I use towels instead of paper towels, and have replaced paper napkins with cloth.

Stack of paper recycling boxes for the offices

Also around Christmastime I started working with Chira, who makes everything run smoothly at the American Church in Paris, to set up a recycling program for the Church. The building houses 2 schools and 6 apartments in addition to 3 Sunday services, multiple offices, and 7 days a week of activities happening in the Church. Setting up the recycling program was alot of fun to do, and it was very interesting to see people's reactions to a new way of disposing trash, and to note what they needed (information, training, signs) to be able to make the change. Most people easily accepted the recycling bins as they were already familiar with recycling at home. Of course, remembering to begin separating trash takes a little bit of time.

Chira at work amid the recycling bins and pamphlets

It was also interesting to gauge how much of one type of trash would be thrown away in the various rooms. For example, the kitchen has different trash needs than the theater or library. In total, we distributed 28 bins, complete with labels, signage and pamphlets, over a 2-week period. Chira and I plan to take an assessment after one month to see if the right number of bins are distributed, if additional training is required, etc. We will also use the first month results to assess if there are areas where trash could be reduced.

• Would you like to start a composting or recycling program for your home, office, church, club, or anywhere? If so, do you have any questions on how to get started? 

• If you are composting, I would love to hear any advice or feedback you may have on my fledgling box. Please share in comments.

Welcoming the Year of the Dragon - Raw Asian Style

 新年快乐! 

 恭喜发财, 万事如意!

Happy Chinese New Year! Wishing you fortune, happiness and that your dreams come true during this year of the dragon, which will be a powerful year for transformation and manifestation. I am definitely hoping to harness the fire energy of this year to help me through some exciting changes. What do you want to manifest this year?  Envision it, believe it, and make it happen this year!

'Fu' character welcoming fortune into my home

 

First 2012 Potluck Cru (Auberge Espagnol) of the Paris Raw Food Community

To start the Year of the Dragon, Parisian raw foodies gathered chez moi for a great evening of yummy dishes with an Asian twist, recipe swapping, conversation, a lot of laughter, and a little September Sessions as midnight approached.

 

Parisian raw foodies celebrating Chinese New Year
(Do you see the dragon in the tapestry on the back wall?)

Chinese food is one of my favorite cuisines due in part to having lived in China for close to 9 years. During my time in Asia I also developed a great appreciation for Japanese, Korean, Thai and Singaporean cuisines as well. Last summer I was in Portland browsing through Powell's City of Books and came across Ani Phyo's 2011 masterpiece (and masterpiece may be an understatement) recipe book of raw Asian dishes: Ani's Raw Food Asia. 

If you are not familiar with Ani's raw recipe books and personality, I highly recommend you follow her via the social media tools--she has been a great inspiration to me over my raw journey due to her eco-sustainable lifestyle, accessibility, and of course, her innovative recipes. Ani is Korean-American, and Ani's Raw Food Asia is a fantastic fusion of east-west recipes that are *easy* to make. This is the most unique raw recipe book that I own and it holds a special place in my heart due to my love of Asian food. Recipes cover dishes from Korea (bimbimbap! kimchis, namuls), Thailand (green papaya salad, soups, curries), China (dumplings!, hoisin sauce, "stir-fry"), Japan (sukiyaki, noodles, matcha green tea ice cream), Indonesia (samosas!), India (dal! pulaos) and Vietnam (pho!)...

Lotus Root Chips

 

For our potluck, I made Ani's lotus root chip recipe, but instead of serving them as chips with the mustard dip, I mixed the lotus with the mustard sauce and served it as a salad. The lotus chips were really well received as most people living in Paris had not tried lotus before. Lotus has a light taste and a great crunchy texture. If you live in Paris, you can buy them at Tang Frere's in the 13e arrondissement. Here is a picture of what the root will look like when you buy it.

Lotus root

 Ani Phyo's Lotus Root Chips recipe

- Peel and slice lotus root into 1/8 inch thick pieces

- Soak immediately in lemon water to avoid oxidation (purely for aesthetic purposes)

- Pat slices dry

- Place in mixing bowl with 1 1/2 tsp Nama Shoyu and 1/8 tsp cayenne

- Let marinate for at least 30 minutes so the lotus root will soften

Ani Phyo's Pine Nut Mustard Sauce

Ani recommends to serve this sauce on the side as a dip, but it was a bit watery for a dip, so I added it to the lotus chips marinade.

1 T Nama Shoyu

3 T apple cider vinegar

1 tsp mustard powder or 2 T prepared mustard

2 T agave or maple syrup

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup apple juice or filtered water (I will reduce this to 1/4 cup next time as the end result was too watery for a dip, but that could be because I omitted the pine nuts)

1 tsp ground flax meal

1/4 cup finely chopped pine nuts (I did not have these on hand, and they are not in season right now)

- Mix all ingredients together. 

Lotus Root Chips, photo courtesy of Opal Taylor

Green Papaya Salad

The second dish I made was a green papaya salad, using a recipe I had recently acquired at a vegan thai Foodies Cooking course. David offers a variety of types of cooking classes and dinner parties in Paris and in the Cote d'Azur--the classes are friendly, fun, you make a ton of different dishes, and you learn alot. 

I bought the green papaya at Tang Frere's in the 13e arrondissement. Choose a green papaya that is firm and has no yellow/orange spots.  I used a julienne peeler to quickly julienne the papaya for the salad.  Next time I make this recipe (there will definitely be a next time!) I will increase the lime + sweetener in the dressing, and I will add julienned carrots and Chinese cabbage to the salad mix.

David's Spicy Green Papaya Salad

1 firm green papaya

1/2 cup cashews roughly chopped

1-2 cups bean sprouts

8-10 cherry tomatoes, cut lengthwise in quarters

1 red chili, minced, seeds removed

3 spring onions, sliced into long matchstick-like pieces

1/2 cup Thai basil, roughly chopped if leaves are large

handful of fresh coriander

Dressing:

2 T oil

2 T soy sauce

3 T lime juice

1/2 to 1 T liquid honey

Green Papaya Salad, photo courtesy of Opal Taylor

Tomato Dal

Over the past few weeks I have been trying different recipes from Ani's Raw Food Asia, so I thought I would include them here as well.

This Tomato Dal, inspired by Indian daal, had a great creamy texture and a nice bite due to the sun-dried tomatoes. But I missed the chewiness that the lentils provide in daal. Perhaps next time I will keep some sunflower seeds whole and add them in at the end as lentil substitutes. I made a parsnip/ cashew "rice" to eat the dal with. Ani proposes a Samosas with Tomato Dal and Mock Tamarind Sauce recipe which sounds amazing.

Ani Phyo's Tomato Dal

1/4 cup almonds

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup diced tomato

1 cup diced cucumber

3/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp curry

2 T chopped sun dried tomatoes

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp sea salt

In a food processor, process almonds and sunflower seeds into small pieces. Add tomato, cucumber, cumin, curry, and sundried tomatoes. Process to mix well. Add oil and salt and process to mix.

Tomato Dal on Parsnip/ Cashew "Rice"

Cucumber Pickle

Also from Ani's Raw Food Asia, this is a super simple cucumber salad with a great mix of flavors. I wouldn't call it a pickle as my cucumber slices were not "pickled", but that could also be because of my choice of cucumber. There were no small cucumbers available, only the standard large ones; I would prefer to use smaller cucumbers next time. Here is a quick online tutorial for how to prepare lemongrass.

Ani Phyo's Cucumber Pickle

2 cups sliced cucumbers cut in semi-circles

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp minced lemongrass

1 tsp chopped red onion

1/8 to 1/4 tsp chopped red chile 

Ingredients ready for Cucumber Pickle

Everything in the Fridge Leftover Noodle Soup

Today we had our first snow in Paris and it is positively freezing out! Inspired by Ani's Asian noodle recipes, and working with the ingredients in my refrigerator, I threw this together for lunch. It was light and tasty. Next time I would like to add a creamy component to it - either a creamier sauce (perhaps made with coconut meat), or a creamy condiment added to the top of the dish like a raw hoisin sauce.

There are four components to putting together your noodle soup. Be creative and don't be afraid to experiment with each part. Below is what I threw together.

Prepare your broth

- Bring water to a hot temperature (yes, this soup is warm!)

- Dice ginger, garlic, onions and blend with water

- You can also add a little oil and soy sauce if you'd like

Prepare your noodles

- I used a seaweed noodle I purchased in Mallorca. You could use kelp noodles or make zucchini noodles with your spiralizer.

Prepare your veggies

- Thinly slice bok choy, Chinese cabbage, carrot, and/ or whatever you have in the fridge to throw in. Mushrooms, fennel, peppers, daikon, turnips would all be great too. Experiment!

Prepare your toppings

- I added cilantro, red chili, bean sprouts, green onions, and alfalfa sprouts

- You can experiment with herbs, sprouts, seeds, chopped nuts, and even dried fruit like raisins or chopped apricots.

- Squeeze of lime juice

To construct, first add the noodles, then your veggies, and then pour the broth over it all. Finally, add your toppings.

Raw Noodle Soup for a Cold Winter Day

 

Close-up of Toppings on the Noodle Soup

Happy Year of the Dragon! 

• If you are in Paris and would like to join our Raw Food Community, please contact me through the blog. 

• Do you have a raw asian recipe to share?

• What is your favorite cuisine that you would love to discover more raw recipes for?