Your Daily Propaganda Video

Thanks Jenny for sending this to me. I'm horrified... rehorrified I guess, for I knew this sort of thing happened. It's one of the reasons I've stopped eating meat.

But to know this meat is shipped to schools?? Extra horrifying.

Here's an interesting article detailing more about the video and the circumstances:
http://www.ethicurean.com/2008/01/30/downer-cow-video/

I'm cross posting this at Slacker Mom.

The cow I fell in love with

I do have a great vegetarian chili recipe, sweet cornbread, and some truffles to post soon and I'll get those posts together just as soon as I find my head, promise.

But right now I don't want to write about that. I want to write about Bessie. I don't know if her name really is Bessie... but I had to call her something.

Sunday we went to the South Florida Fair and at one point we ventured into a tent that had many cows. Some were beef cattle, some were dairy cows. We walked by one incredibly large (1342 pounds to be exact) mama cow and her calf and as we passed she began to cry out. It was a consistent mooing and she pulled against her restraint. Her eyes were wide and she looked scared and frustrated. Though she was tied close to her baby, she wasn't close enough to turn her head and lick her calf or really even see him. Everyone just walked on by, ignoring her... but I couldn't just walk by. I wanted to calm her, I wanted to loosen her restraints so she could see her baby or whatever it was that she needed.

My sister said "Don't touch her, Beth!" I just had to. I rubbed her neck and she pressed up against my hand and stopped crying out for a moment... it felt good and calmed her a tiny bit. But she was frustrated and continued to pull against the halter that had her tied up. Such a giant, beautiful glossy black cow... fighting against a small piece of nylon rope tied about her face.

I stayed with her for a while but I couldn't help her. I couldn't remove her halter and let her free, I couldn't lengthen her rope, I couldn't do much other than rub her neck and try to calm her a little.

I'm not sure if she was a beef cow or a milk cow and honestly, I don't think my heart could bear knowing for sure so I didn't attempt to find out. Even if she was a milk cow her little male calf obviously wouldn't be.

So there I was, watching the suffering of this animal and wondering how it is that I still support the industry that ties her to a fence, just inches away from her calf and unable to turn her head to look at him. I don't know if I'm ready to jump the vegan fence. I'm still having a hard time with the vegetarian fence. I guess it's a journey and every day I'm learning more.

A Call to Vegetarians

No recipes today... check back Monday for next weeks appetizer. :)

I'm going to throw this post out there even though I know no one is reading it (yet) in the hopes that I will someday get some comments on it because it's something I'm truly curious about.

How vegetarian are you?

I guess it depends on your reasons for becoming a vegetarian. My reasons are that I don't want to cause pain and suffering. Therefore, I don't want to cause death to animals. I realize that our society has advanced enough that I can eat quite comfortably and healthily without eating meat.

So I don't. But how far should I take it? I was reading today that Burger King's veggie burgers are often cooked in the same oil that the meat is cooked in. Should that make me turn my back on the Burger King veggie burger? I can't see why, honestly. Just because it's cooked in the same oil doesn't mean a cow had to suffer for my veggie burger.

Enlighten me, veggie heads. Let me know how vegetarian you are. I want to know where you draw the line and why.

Let the oodles of comments pour in. :)

Black Bean Burgers & Oven Roasted Potatoes

First the Oven Roasted Potatoes as they need about 1/2 hour to cook. This recipe is straight off the back of the Lipton Onion Soup mix box and is super easy. My family loves it.

4 potatoes, any variety you like (I used red)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix



1. Preheat oven to 425
2. Chop potatoes into cubes and put in 9 x 13 inch baking dish
3. Pour on Olive Oil
4. Add Soup Mix, stir.
5. Bake for 1/2 hour, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking



To start I made the Chipotle Mayonnaise. You'll need:

1/2 cup mayo
1/4 cup Ranch Dressing
2 to 3 Chipotle Peppers from a can

1. Mix the mayo and the ranch dressing



2. Finely chop peppers and add to taste

Now on to the burgers:
1 16 ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 bell pepper
1/2 red onion
1 can of corn kernels (I used fiesta corn)
3 cloves garlic
1 egg
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup salsa
1/2 cup bread crumbs

In food processor chop pepper and onion. Add beans and process more. Mix in corn.



In another bowl stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, salt, and salsa.



Mix egg mixture and bean mixture together, mix in bread crumbs until it's sticky.



Make patties and pan fry with olive oil. These can also be grilled or baked on an oiled cookie sheet.



Serve on whole wheat buns.





How did we like them? Sean liked the mayo but thought it tasted too mayonnaisey. Hmmmm.... He LOVES these potatoes and always asks for more.

Two out of three kids liked the burgers but thought they were messy (in the future I may add a little more bread crumbs) and I loved them.

All kids liked the potatoes but I always think they're a little too oily.

These burgers also freeze well. Just wrap them in wax paper and them place in a freezer bag.

Please comment and let me know what you think, if you've tried the burgers, what you changed, and how you liked them!

Greek Salad with Homemade Croutons

Greek Salad with Homemade Croûtons

First you'll want to make the croûtons. You'll need:

A small loaf of French bread (about 4 to 6 slices)
5 or 6 tablespoons butter
1 to 2 cloves of garlic (I used the minced garlic in a jar)

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Cut slices of French bread into cubes



3. Melt butter in microwave or on stove top
4. Add garlic to butter and continue to cook about a minute
5. Coat bread cubes in butter mixture and bake on baking sheet for 15 minutes.



For this salad I made a simple dressing but you could use any Greek Dressing. For mine I used:

1 cup Olive Oil
3 teaspoons garlic powder
3 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup red wine vinegar

Mix everything except vinegar, then pour in vinegar and mix vigorously. Store tightly covered at room temperature.



Now on to the salad!

2 hearts romaine lettuce
Sliced Black Olives
Grape Tomatoes
1/2 Red Onion
Feta Cheese

1. Cut lettuce with a non metal knife. I love this ceramic knife my brother in law gave me for Christmas (thanks Eric!). Metal knives will brown the lettuce and this one keeps it nice and fresh. Not only that, but the proceeds from this knife benefit the Susan G Komen Foundation. Only use the nice green parts, discard the parts where it starts to turn white.



2. Slice the onion how you like it and throw everything in the bowl. Top with feta cheese, croûtons, and dressing. Toss and enjoy!




I loved this salad. Two out of three children loved this salad. All children loved the croûtons. Sean hates vinegar and did not like the salad at all, though he couldn't get past the dressing to let me know if he liked the croûtons. :P

As usual, if you tried the salad, dressing, or croûtons, please comment and let me know if you liked them, what you changed, etc. Let me know what you think!

Check in tomorrow for Black Bean Burgers with Chipotle Mayonnaise and Oven Roasted Potatoes!

Blue Cheese Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms

This week's appetizer is Blue Cheese Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms. Keep reading after I've posted the recipe the way I've made them because Sean had a couple suggestions on how they could be even better, and I think I agree. When I make them again I'll post and let y'all know but for now I'll just post the recipe as I made them. ;)

Blue Cheese Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms

About 12 to 15 Large Mushrooms
1 cup Ricotta
2 teaspoons garlic powder
4 tablespoons pesto
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese
Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Wash mushrooms, remove stems, and hollow out caps. I used a Grapefruit spoon to do this with and it worked beautifully. If you have one, use it, if not a regular spoon should do as well.








3. In mixing bowl, combine ricotta, garlic powder, and pesto. Mix in blue cheese.
4. Stuff each cap generously and arrange on a cookie sheet



5. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake 25 to 30 minutes until cheese is bubbling.





How did we like them?

I thought they were great! Sean liked them but suggested I add some bread crumbs to the mixture. I agree, I think the texture would be improved. He also sprinkled lemon juice on top (just a little) and it really added to the taste. Two out of three kids loved these mushrooms, too. The third is only four years old and doesn't like anything resembling a vegetable. :)

Please comment and let me know what you think, if you've tried the recipe, what you changed, and how you liked it.

Check in tomorrow for Greek Salad with Homemade Croutons!

Strawberry Torte

This week I'm posting the dessert recipe first as it should be made first if you were planning on making all of this week's recipes together. It should chill in the refrigerator for at least four hours before serving.

Let's get on with it.

Strawberry Torte

This recipe was adapted from a recipe found here.

Shopping for this torte is something I'll call "An Adventure in Lady Finger Education"... Lady Fingers, as it turns out, are quite tricky. I assumed they were cookies and looked for them first in the cookie aisle of our local Super Target. I found no Lady Fingers. Then I looked in the cookie aisle of Publix and found no lady fingers but I did find a delicious cookie that sort of looked like a Lady Finger. It was an Italian coffee cookie and I think it was called Marguerite. I'd tell you but they're gone. The kids and Sean liked them, too. ;) It was while I was strolling through the bakery department of Publix that I spotted these:



It was as though the angels were singing to me! I grabbed three packages (and kept those delicious Italian cookies in my cart) and proceeded to the checkout.

When the time came to actually make the torte I noticed the original recipe stated that I need "two twelve ounce package of Lady Fingers"... I had three THREE ounce packages. Did I really need to have eight packages of these Lady Fingers? Oy!

So I packaged up two of the munchkins and we headed out to the Winn Dixie that is right up the street from our house. Would they even carry Lady Fingers? I went directly to the bakery. NO LADYFINGERS. Nearby the bakery was an aisle where one can find many Latin style dessert type things and I happened to spot these there:



These were totally different! More like a crunchy cookie than a soft and squishy cake! What to do?

I grabbed four bags of these and headed home.

In the end both cookies are incorporated in the recipe but you manage what you can find. And let me know about your own Adventures with Lady Fingers!

For this recipe I used:

11 ounce cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1 7 ounce package Lady Finger Cookies (the hard ones)
2 3 ounce packages Lady Finger Cakes (the soft squishy ones)
1/2 bag of Semi Sweet Morsels
1 16 ounce tub of frozen sliced strawberries in syrup, slightly thawed
1 tablespoon cornstarch
About a pint of large fresh strawberries
Mint springs for garnish

1. Remove frozen strawberries from juice and set aside.



2. In a small saucepan bring the cornstarch and the strawberry juice to a gentle boil. Remove from heat and let cool.



3. (If you have a metal mixing bowl, put it in the freezer now so it gets cold to hold your whipped cream in. If you don't have one I'm sure you'll still be fine.) Beat whipping cream in mixer until stiff peaks form. I used speed 8 on my KitchenAid... it has to be FAST. Remove from mixer bowl and put in chilled bowl.



4. In mixer bowl (don't bother cleaning it out from the whipped cream) whip cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and almond extract. Fold in whipped cream.

5. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate chips

6. Dip Lady Finger cookies in dark chocolate and arrange them on a sheet of wax paper to cool slightly. Once they're all dipped (I needed about 35) arrange them dipped side down around the sides of a Springform Pan.






7. Use Lady Finger cakes to fill in the bottom of the pan, then top with half the cream cheese mixture. Top with another Lady Finger cake layer, then layer the strained strawberries. Pour strawberry cornstarch mixture on top and then spread on the rest of the cream cheese mixture.




8. Arrange fresh strawberries and mint sprigs along the top however you desire and put in the refrigerator to chill for several hours.

9. Remove pan and serve



How did we like it? Delicious. The torte is not only darned pretty, but it's darned tasty, too. I thought it was a wonderful mix of cheesecake and strawberry shortcake. It goes great with coffee, too. Sean gave it the elusive thumbs up from him. Yum.

Please comment and let me know what you think, if you've tried this recipe, what you changed, and how you liked it.

Tomorrow check in for Blue Cheese Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms!

And in the beginning, there was food...

Hello? Is there anybody out there? It's me, Beth... and I'm starting a blog.

Why, you might ask, did I decide to start yet another blog to swim with the millions of blogs floating out there in the sea we call the Internet? It all began with a realization. A realization that has quite changed my life, in fact. It all began with the realization that I don't want to be a meat eater.

Perhaps this stems from my Buddhist teachings on causing suffering, perhaps it's just because I think cows have the most beautiful eyes, maybe it's because whenever I think about what animals have to go through to get to our table it makes me cry inside. I've always been the kind of person who didn't want to see what was inside the little baggie inside of the turkey, the kind of person who didn't want to think about where my meat actually came from. I've always been happy it was called "Beef" instead of "Cow" and "Pork" instead of "Pig"... I mean, truly, doesn't that just scream that we as humans don't really want to think about the fact that we're actually eating a creature that lived and breathed and had feelings?

When I was young my father would pick on me because I would get squeamish when someone would talk about the cow or the pig or the chicken or whatever. He'd laugh and say "You want to eat the burger but you don't want to think that it's actually a cow that you're eating." And get this, I'd feel stupid for feeling that way.

I'd actually feel STUPID that I had empathy for the cow.

I've blissfully eaten hamburgers and hot dogs and chickens and more for 30 years. I can't say it's easy to stop. I miss hot dogs. I miss kielbasa. I miss pepperoni pizza. But in the end I've had to decide whether I'm willing to sell out so I can taste a sausage. It's just not something I'm willing to do.

Anyhow... if you're reading this chances are I'm preaching to the choir. If you aren't a vegetarian and you're still reading then THANK YOU for continuing to read. I realize that many non-vegetarians feel that vegetarians are all standing up on their high horses looking down upon those that eat a steak now and then and I would like you to know that I truly am not that way.

Sometimes I sort of envy you. Yes, you there, eating that cheeseburger... it looks yummy.

In fact, my husband Sean, eats plenty of meat and enjoys it. I still feed my children meat. Not all of the time, but if I'm making some for Sean the kids often get it, too. I'm not a veggie Nazi. I think people should truly decide for themselves whether it is right for them.

With all that said and me having blathered on for this long, if you've found this blog please look to it as a resource for anyone needing a vegetarian dish for any reason.

My plan for the blog is to post a four course meal every week. We'll have an appetizer, a soup or salad, a main course, and a dessert. The fun part is that I'll be trying most of these recipes for the first time. They're all recipes I've found and am tweaking to suit a vegetarian's needs or just plain tweaking to suit my own needs. I'll post my opinion of the finished product, as well as Sean's meat eating opinion, and finally the kids opinions.

The menu for Week One will be
Blue Cheese Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms
Greek Salad
Black Bean Burgers and Oven Roasted Potatoes
Strawberry Torte

I'll be posting the Strawberry Torte recipe first as it needs to be made first if you're making them all for the same dinner, so check my next post for that!