Growing Your Own & Vegan: Zucchini Bread Recipe

So,  it turns out I make a mean zucchini bread.  Everyone who has tried to make it is probably aware that there are about a million recipes for zucchini bread out there.  I've been through several.  There was one I liked the taste of but all my chocolate chips sank to the bottom so it was like having a bottom crust of chocolate on the loaf of bread.  Interesting, but not what we were looking for for breakfast.

More Muffins Please

Why do I say mine rocks? Well first of all, my family not only eats it, but begs me to make it and I have a seriously picky eater in my 5 year-old son.  As much as I try to get healthy food into him,  and as willing as he is to eat healthy food,  he dislikes just about everything.   I have also found that my 13 month-old son loves these as well.  Granted, it means that he now eats chocolate (and smears it all over his hands and face) but that comes to my next point.

It's healthy. It contains whole wheat flour, cinnamon, zucchini and applesauce.  Next time I'll do my best to remember to add wheat germ too. 

Super-huge zucchini from our garden

It also uses locally grown products.  In particular, we had a bumper crop of zucchini earlier this summer.  In past years I would give away the extra zucchini at work,  but this year I'm in a new position and I'm not quite comfortable yet bringing in veggies to give away.  Also, I've been watching my friends can, freeze and otherwise store summer home-growns for winter eating, and I wanted to take a stab at that as well this year.

Sidebar: To store zucchini for winter cooking and baking shred it all up (think Cuisinart or other shredding tool) and measure it into the amounts you'll use.  Put it into freezer bag, spread out flat for easier thawing & storage, and freeze.  I store it 4 cups to a bag and my bumper crop produced 7 or 8 bags for my freezer.


I also make a point of buying unsweetened local applesauce.  We're in New England, so applesauce is one thing you can count on being able to find a local version of year-round.  Read the label though, because I've seen high fructose corn syrup as an added ingredient on some jars!
People with dietary issues may also like this recipe because there is no dairy and I've eliminated the eggs as well.  Therefore it's dairy & egg free, so it's a great recipe for vegans.

You need a large mixing bowl to make this, it will overflow an average bowl.  When I make this recipe I often double the batch by putting two large mixing bowls side by side and making two batches at once.  Today two batches made 1 loaf of bread, 30 regular muffins and about 60 mini-muffins.  I would expect it to make 4 loaves of bread if you only do loaves.

3 cups all-purpose flour (I usually do about 1 cup all-purpose flour and 2 cups whole wheat flour.)
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
4 cups finely shredded unpeeled zucchini
2 egg (substitute 1/2 c. applesauce for eggs)
1/2 cup cooking oil (I use canola oil.)
1/2 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel (I use lemon juice)
1 cup chocolate chips

In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and baking powder; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat together sugar, shredded zucchini, and egg. Add oil and lemon peel; mix well. Stir flour mixture into zucchini mixture. Gently fold in chocolate chips. Pour into 2 greased 8x4x2-inch loaf pans. Bake in a 350°oven for 55 to 60 minutes or until a tothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool thoroughly on a rack. Wrap and store loaf overnight before slicing. Makes 2 loaves.   Muffins need about 18 minutes and mini-muffins about 10.
(Cooling overnight helps the bread to not collapse when you cut it.)

Happy Eating!
Alicia

Quoted on CNET Green Tech about our TED5000

A few weeks back back I talked with Martin LaMonica, editor of CNET News Green Tech, about our TED5000 home energy monitor.  He was doing research for an article about the "smart grid" and wanted to talk to me about what we thought of our home energy monitor now that we had been living with it for several months.  The article came out yesterday, Return of the Internet kitchen appliance! and I'm very excited to be described as an "ardent environmentalist."  He also spoke with Luke Clemente the general manager of meters and sensing at GE, Warwick Stirling, global director of energy and sustainability at Whirlpool and Kim Lancaster owner of the first certified green home in Rhode Island.  I am honored to be quoted in the same article.

We initially met Martin while competing in the Energy Smackdown a couple years ago.  He was on Arlington's A-Team and ended up besting us in the individual household electricity reduction category with those solar panels he mentions in his article.  Hopefully, once we get our solar panels installed, we'll be able to hold our own against Martin and his family in terms of reduced electricity consumption.

 So go read Return of the Internet kitchen appliance! at CNET and let us know what you think.

Happy Greening!
Jon

New Reality Show about Recycling - Garbage Moguls

From National Geographic Channel

Usually I can't stand reality shows and stay as far away as possible. However, this Saturday a new reality show called Garbage Moguls will be airing on the National Geographic Channel by our friends at TerraCycle.

• Garbage Moguls Pilot - 7PM EST
• Garbage Moguls Premiere: Pet Project - 8pm EST
• Garbage Moguls: Fishy Business - 9PM EST
• Garbage Moguls: All-Nighter - 10PM EST

Recycling gets a makeover with a quirky group of young "eco-capitalists" at TerraCycle, Inc. Using only materials found in the trash, the team will transform cereal boxes into notebooks, newspaper into pencils and cookie wrappers into kites.

From the National Geographic Channel

Sneak peak:


TerraCycle will be giving away prizes during the premiere through their Garbage Moguls Facebook Fan page including some of their prototypes made during the show.  Tom and everyone on the show will be tweeting live during the show so if you have questions or jokes, tweet them with the #GarbageMoguls hash tag starting at 8pm EST.

So be sure to set your DVR to record this exciting new reality show or even better what live and join the TerraCycle Online Premiere Party on Facebook and Twitter at 8pm this Saturday.

Happy Greening!
Jon

p.s. on Comcast in our area NGC is 210

Greening Back-to-School from the EPA

Ready for School

If you have school age children, then chances are you're getting ready to send your children back to school (unless you live in an area that has started already!)  For most people, this means shopping for school supplies, clothes, and possibly even electronics. According to the National Retail Association, on average families spend hundreds of dollars for back-to-school needs.  Our children are just entering first grade, so we're still getting a feel for what those expenses can be, however, the EPA released a good list of things you can do to help the environment and save money.

A little advanced planning can help both the environment and your pocketbook. Here are a few tips from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that can point you in the right direction.

• Buying a new computer, printer, cell phone, or other electronic device? If you are buying a new printer, purchase one that prints double-sided to reduce the use of paper. E-cycle your old electronics! Many retailers are partnering with EPA to recycle electronics. You may also be able to donate your old computer to a local school, library or charity for a tax deduction.
• If you have to discard electronics, do it right! Check with your local municipality, county, state environmental agency or the EPA for the proper way to dispose of electronics safely. E-cycling conserves precious natural resources and reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills.
• Before you shop, see what you already have at home. Many supplies can be reused or recycled. Backpacks, notebooks, folders, and binders can all be reused. 
• When you do need to buy new, choose products made from recycled materials such as pencils made from old blue jeans, binders made from old shipping boxes, and of course recycled paper products.
• Buy school supplies wrapped with minimal packaging; or buy products that come in bulk sizes. Packaging accounts for more than 30 percent of all the waste generated each year.
• Are there clothes that your child has outgrown that are still in good shape? Donate them to a local charity or shelter so someone else can put them to use, and earn yourself a possible tax deduction at the same time.
• Share your used books with friends, relatives, or younger schoolchildren. Many schools reuse textbooks to save money and reduce waste.
• For college textbooks there is a large secondary market for used books. Search the internet for resale sites. Also check with the campus and nearby bookstores.
• If you bring your lunch to school, package it in reusable containers instead of disposable ones. Bring drinks in an insulated bottle instead of disposable bottles or cartons. This saves money and reduces waste.
• Encourage your school to organize a recycling program if they don’t already have one.
• If you drive to school, try carpooling, public transportation, walking or biking instead. By changing your transportation routine, you can save money on fuel costs, lower air pollution levels, and decrease traffic in your community.
  
  See EPA - Advanced Planning for Back-to-School Can Save Money and Help the Environment for the full press release.

Here are a couple of our posts from last school year that address some of these areas:

• Taking the Brown Bag out of Brown Bag Lunches
• Recycling Juice Boxes
• TerraCycle Juice Pouch Brigade

What are your favorite tips for Greening Back-to-School?

Happy Greening!
Jon

Living Healthier Through Sunscreen

We have been working recently on being more careful about what we put ON our bodies, as well as what we put IN our bodies. This summer we are being a lot more careful about putting on sunscreen, both on ourselves and the children. Jon and our older son have always had sensitive skin that not only needs sunscreen, but needs oil-free sunscreen so they don't break out. Our daughter and I have skin like my mother, it barely tans, let alone burns. I've never been particularly careful about putting on sunscreen, but last year my mother had a small skin cancer removed and I have a number of brown spots on my face that I'm going to have a dermatologist look at soon. Suddenly we are much more interested in putting on protection and what that protection contains.

Girl's Sun Shirt

The sun protection that is best for your body is actually to wear clothing that has UV protection built into it. The boys have had sun shirts for a while, but for this beach trip Jon and our daughter also got sun shirts and my mom bought all three kids funny protective sun hats. Luckily, they don't think the hats are funny at all and are relatively happy to wear them.

1 year old wearing sun hat
and sun shirt for protection

Since I have been reading the Environmental Working Group website I have learned that some of the ingredients in sunscreen are very harmful.  From the EWG sunscreen tips:

Avoid the sunscreen chemical oxybenzone, a synthetic estrogen that penetrates the skin and contaminates the body. Look for active ingredients zinc, titanium, avobenzone or Mexoryl SX. These substances protect skin from harmful UVA radiation and remain on the skin, with little if any penetrating into the body. Also, skip sunscreens with insect repellent – if you need bug spray, buy it separately and apply it first.

Also, Vitamin-A has recently been shown to be photo sensitive and can accelerate tumor growth.

Another thing to note is the concerns around the ingredient item "fragrance" that may be found in just about any product you use on your skin. We wrote an entire blog post on that recently: Toxins in Your Life - Fragrance.

We have found that the zinc oxide, otherwise known as "mineral based", sunscreens are often more expensive than what we are used to paying for Coppertone and Hawaiian Tropic sunscreens, but we feel that it is worth it. These sunscreens are becoming more mainstream and easier to find in regular stores. I was at the Mets game in CitiField recently and one of the huge billboards in the stadium during the game was advertising one of the brands we used at the beach: Alba Botanicals.

Based on the idea that oxybenzone and vitamin A are not good for your skin, it is not good enough to simply buy sunscreens that say "organic" or "all natural". You need to check the active ingredients to be sure what they are, and it is best to check the whole ingredient list and avoid the ones that include "fragrance" as an ingredient. During my shopping for example I found that some of the Alba Botanicals sunscreens had "fragrance" as an ingredient, so I skipped those.

All Natural Sunscreens we use on our family. 
We prefer the Alba Botanical SPF 30 for Kids

I can tell you that we used Alba & Badger brand sunscreens during our trip and we were very happy with how they performed. They were thick to put on at first, but the rubbed in fairly well and by the time we walked out of the door all of the white had absorbed. We made a point of applying them in the morning and again after lunch - it is a best practice with ANY sunscreen to reapply it during the day if you are outside all day, or after going in the water.

One thing to remember when traveling with sunscreen is to be sure to bring enough of your favorite brands. We ran out while at the beach and could not locate the natural brands and had to revert to the Coppertone Oil Free, which fortunately is OK according to the EWG and does not contain oxybenzone.

I have found it fairly difficult to remember which sunscreens are the best ones to buy, but the EWG has put their EWG Sunscreen Database out as an iPhone app called "sunscreens" to help you remember. The key facts are to avoid "oxybenzone", "Vitamin A" and "fragrance" as ingredients. Once you've got that down, which brand you actually buy is less important.

Happy Greening!
Alicia

Would you buy Clean Energy Victory Bonds?

Green America is trying to push Congress to act and support Clean Energy investment in the US.  One idea that they are floating is making Clean Energy Victory Bonds (CEVBs) to help finance the rapid development of renewable energy projects and energy efficiency upgrades.  What do you think of the idea?

I signed up to show my support because I think the idea is great for the following reasons:

• Most people cannot afford to invest in renewable energy directly, but could buy a $100 savings bond or several.  A typical solar PV residential installation will cost about $20,000.
• Combining the investments across the nation would make a lot of capital available for renewable energy and efficiency upgrade projects.  Green America estimates the CEVBs could be leveraged to create up to $200 billion in public and private financing.  That's a lot of solar panels and insulated buildings.
• The projects would create something like 1.7 million new jobs according to Green America.
• Would hopefully not be something Congress could dip into to fund other budget line items like they did recently with DOE funding.

Visit Green America's Clean Energy Victory Bonds (CEVBs) page for more information about the CEVBs and to show Congress how much you support Clean Energy.

Happy Greening!
Jon

Toxins in Your Life - Fragrance

As part of "greening" our lifestyle we have have also been starting to look at what is in our products, both in terms of ingredients that are good or bad for the environment and ingredients that are good or bad for people. In recent months I have been surprised to learn that ingredients that are used topically - on our skins - are not as regulated or closely examined as those that we ingest in foods.

One big item that is becoming fairly prominent now is the fact that "fragrance" is not regulated and companies that add "fragrance" do not need to disclose what is in fragrance because that is considered a trade secret. You can read a lot more about this issue on the web page for the Environmental Working Group. The EWG is a non-profit that looks at toxins in our environment and is dedicated to raising awareness about these issues.

According to tests performed by the EWG and Consumers Reports, "fragrance" can hide the presence of lead and other substances found to be toxic to humans.

There are two things you can do about this issue. Read your labels. Even if the label says "unscented" read the ingredient list to see if "fragrance" is an ingredient. Don't buy anything with "fragrance" as an ingredient or that doesn't list the ingredients.

The other thing you can do is contact your legislators and tell them that you want them to regulate the ingredients in "fragrance". A great place to get started is the EWG's Action Center where they have a number of ways for you to be heard.

The EWG has a database of cosmetics, personal products like shampoos and sunscreens indicating which are of more or less concern based on their ingredients. They are a great resource to help you determine what to buy to be more careful about toxins around you and your family.

Happy Greening,
Alicia

Green Week in Review, July 19th - 25th, 2010

We're playing a bit of catch up on our weekly reviews.  Nothing like a good vacation to get behind.  Here's some green news and reviews from the week of July 19th.

CNET Green Tech: N.J. solar panels on utility poles to use AT&T

Petra Solar

In honor of our trip to New Jersey, this is a timely piece.  I am very interested in how these microinverter and wireless connected panel do in NJ.  If a single panel connected to the grid can work, I think this opens up the possibility for people to install small PV systems at home such as 1-3 panel (less than 1kW) PV systems for under $1,000 rather than spending tens of thousands of dollars or more likely not spending anything to go solar.

TreeHugger: Setting a Price on Carbon Will Help US End Oil Addiction - Not Just Combat Climate Change

Anything that brings what we pay for energy closer to the true cost the more people will understand the consequences of their action or inaction.  I think a price on carbon is more straight forward and easier to understand than a cap and trade system, but given our political system and all the lobbyists for the fossil fuel industry, I don't think it will happen.

TreeHugger: Don't Forget Home Star: The Green Bill Everyone Can Agree On

The Cash for Caulkers (actually named Home Star) Bill needs to get passed and soon.  I hope it does not suffer the same fate as the Climate legislation at the hands of the very united Republican Party in the Senate.

TreeHugger: 9 Countries Have Recorded Hottest-Ever Temps This Year

Climate Progress/NOAA

Record temps in the US is not necessarily a sign of global warming, but record hottest-ever temps around the world sure feels like one.


 

EPA: 2009-2010 Emerging Technologies Awarded Projects 

Glad to Seattle on the list of awarded clean air projects.  My parents grew up in Seattle and I have a fondness for the region not to mention a lot of family in and around Puget Sound.

CNET: Energy retrofits could save $41 billion a year

$22.5 billion in costs per year to save $41 billion per year seems like a no brainer to us.  I hope the private sector recognizes the opportunity to invest in energy efficient retrofits for their buildings and factories to save on energy.

Runners up:

• TreeHugger: Ask Pablo: Why Should I Switch My House Over To All-Electric? 
• CNET GreenTech: A technology race to curb peak energy demand
• TreeHugger: Ditching Ethanol Subsidy Will Save US $6 Billion - Won't Hurt Domestic Production Either

Stay tuned for more Green Weeks in Review coming soon.

Happy Greening!
Jon

Garden-Sitters a Must For Traveling

Super-huge zucchini from our garden

On return from our recent trip I was strongly reminded that in addition to getting pet-sitters, it's really a good idea to arrange for garden sitters as well. If you know someone who'd really like to try their hand at gardening and is willing to weed and water as well as pick vegetables, you're really lucky and you've got a keeper! If the best you can do is find someone who's willing to pick your ripe produce, take them up on it.  Maybe the fresh vegetables can be a reward for pet-sitters.

We recently returned home from a 10 day trip and found super-huge zucchini and shriveled banana peppers in our garden. The peas were fairly sun-burnt, but their season had pretty much ended anyhow.

In order to get a good production from your garden it is important to pick the vegetables fairly often and before they get overgrown. Somehow the plants know if they are not getting picked and don't produce as many fruits as when you pick the fruits and vegetables often.

So the take-away from this one? Find someone who is willing to go in your garden and pick the over-producing produce while you're away, even if they don't want it. Your plants will thank you when you return. If you can find someone to water and even weed while you're gone, so much the better.

Happy Gardening!
Alicia