The Quest for a Green Kitchen Continues…

May 21, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Considering that I speak sustainability for a living and call myself Lean Green MP, I really don’t blog enough about going green in the environmental sense.

Tonight, I’m going to a compost class, and I’m pretty excited. I started composting when I started eating better, but I’m still quite the beginner. I’ll be sure to share any great tips I get.

Until then, enjoy this great article I came across over the weekend: 10 Food Rules to Live By. It sounds like it’s about the right foods to eat, and to some extent, it is; it’s also a list of ways to make your kitchen more sustainable, which I really need to do. (But, I do have a green kitchen. Literally, it’s painted green!)

  • One thing I already do is to “eat meatless on Mondays.” Well, not always on Mondays, but I do try to go meatless one day a week.
  • The thing that most surprised me? The energy-efficiency of a slow cooker. I have one, and I use it from time to time, but mostly for convenience. It never occurred to me that it’s also energy efficient.
  • The thing I could most work on, at least from this list? That’s easy — loving lentils. I’ve tried them a few times, but  haven’t really acquired a taste for them. (Got any good lentil recipes to share?)

How about you? Looking at this list, what do you already do? Anything surprise you? What could you most work on?

 

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Two Parts Science + One Part Worm Love = Rich, Healthy Soil

May 1, 2012 by Leave a Comment

As a longtime “green girl,” I always felt a little guilty that I didn’t compost, but that all changed when I adopted a largely plant-based diet.

Let’s face it, when most of your food comes from either a fast food bag or a paperboard box, there’s not too much to compost. But as I amassed fruit rinds and vegetable peels, it not only became an option, but a necessity. Those fruit flies that suddenly appear as soon as you peel a banana are insane. While not hard to begin with, composting was easy compared to battling those devils.

Today, I have two compost bins, and while I don’t yet have any soil, the number of fruit flies and the weight of my garbage roll cart have both decreased dramatically.

For those of you who don’t compost, but may be interested in trying, check out Five Simple Kitchen Composting Tips, which I spotted via Twitter today. For more of a primer, visit Composting 101.

Do you compost? If so, please share the secrets of your success. I’m still relatively new to this and am always on the lookout for new tips and tricks. If you don’t compost, why not?

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I’m Doing the "Rot Thing"

January 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I’ve started something today that I never thought I would: composting!

I have nothing against composting, and in fact, have always admired those who did it. But until the last few months, the things I ate made it difficult for me to compost. After all, you can’t compost meat, grease, bread or dairy. There wasn’t much left in my case.

Four months ago, I started eating better, but composting still never crossed my mind. It was another problem that got my attention: fruit flies! Yep, those peelings and scraps were causing fruit flies. And as I brainstormed how to get rid of them, Traci called to tell me that she was at Starbucks and saw that they gave used coffee grounds away to composters. AHA, I thought, I could compost! That was early December, and I put “compost bin” on my Christmas list.

Today I put together the compost bin. It wasn’t easy – I really needed a second set of hands, and Beth is sick in bed – but with the help of my feet and zip ties, I did it. Despite the cold, I’ve placed the bin in what I think is the best spot – by the garbage roll cart beside the garage – and added a thin layer of browns, pine straw and dead leaves. By the end of the day, I’ll have added my first batch of “greens,” i.e. food scraps.

On any given Sunday – my cooking day – I produce a pretty significant amount of food scraps, mostly peelings. Last week, I put the scraps in a plastic container and saved them in the freezer, which my ICLEI buddy, Cyrus, recommended.

For now, one pot of soup is on, and I’m taking a quick nap to warm up! I froze getting the compost bin set up outside!

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