A TRUE FIND: Fast, Fresh & Green cookbook

THE GOODS: One browse through this book and you know that you can’t live without it. In fact, I’ve already bought one for my ex-husband’s birthday, and plan to buy a stack of them to give away for holiday gifts. It is the rare book that one feels this way about.

Every page has a recipe that I, at least, wanted to try, and I rarely cook with recipes. Eating a lot of vegetables suddenly becomes a must do because the recipes just demand to be made. Spinach with Shallots and Parmigiano and Roasted Eggplant, Bell Pepper, and Fresh Basil Salad. Ginger with many recipes. More than 100 ideas for appetizers, snacks, entrees, and side dishes, many of them vegan, make Fast, Fresh & Green an excellent resource for vegetarians and omnivores.

THE EXPERIENCE: Not only does the book offer recipes that are divine beyond, but Middleton has a website, sixburnersue.com, which is bound to become a favorite food blog.

A TIDBIT: Middleton lives on Martha’s Vineyard, and her blog weaves in her island life and makes one envious of her lifestyle in such a beautiful place.

THE AUTHOR: Author Susie Middleton is a chef, recipe developer, food writer, and longtime executive editor of Fine Cooking magazine.

By Annie B. Bond, best-selling author of five green living books, including True Food (National Geographic, 2009).
10/6/2010

Farmers’ Markets are overflowing with fresh and flavorful food and using such fare for this dish makes it even more vibrant.

My mother was brilliant at making salad dressings, and the dish uses her most tart and low-fat vinaigrette.

Ingredients
Cut up enough vegetables for leftovers, as this is a delicious dish for a cold lunch.

* Harvest vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, potatoes, zucchini, beets, eggplant, and onions, cut up in chunks

* Fresh mozzarella, cut into chunks (2-3 two by three inch chunks per person).

Tart, Low-Fat Vinaigrette
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup wine vinegar or lemon juice
A clove or two of garlic
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (optional)(br>
Lots of pepper

Note:Add less vinegar if you prefer a less tart dressing.

Preheat the oven to 300 F.

Cut the vegetables in chunks and place in a roasting pan. Lightly sprinkle the vegetables with the vinaigrette and toss to cover. Roast in a low oven for up to three hours or until golden brown.

Serve, adding the fresh mozzarella when the vegetables are hot from the oven. Stir together so that the mozzarella begins to melt.

By Annie B. Bond, best-selling author of five green living books including most recently True Food (National Geographic, 2009).

To help make dining out a positive experience, we have extensively researched restaurants and natural food stores that offer vegetarian, vegan, local, sustainable, and organic dining options. Here are six tips for when you hit the road:

1. Do your homework (How not to get stuck at the last minute)
If you know where you are headed, with a guide like Healthy Highways in hand (or your glove compartment), you can plan meal stops ahead where you are likely to find suitable choices. Another useful resource, especially for on-the-spot decisions, is the Yellow Pages under “health food stores,” “vegetarian,” or for ethnic restaurants. A third tactic is to ask locally (bookstores and gift shops are a good place to start your query) about where you can find a suitable locale.

2. The “waiting game” (How to avoid eating a meal’s worth of calories before the food arrives)
While you wait for your meal, rather than eating an entire bread basket or bowl of chips and salsa, order sparkling water with a wedge of lemon to keep you occupied. Other tips: order salad right away; put the bread out of easy reach to avoid reflexive munching; eat a small snack beforehand to keep from getting too hungry.

3. Have it your way (How to ask for what you want and get what you expect)
It is quite common to think you are ordering a healthy meal, only to be surprised by what actually arrives at the table. If a menu item is unfamiliar, ask how it is prepared to be sure it meets your needs. If it matters, find out if the soup is made with a meat broth. Ask for salad dressing or, where appropriate, sauces on the side so your vegetables aren’t drenched in fat. Don’t want French fries? Ask for a salad or baked potato instead. There is nothing wrong with making reasonable requests beforehand (but remember to do it politely, with a smile, and to show your appreciation).

4. Save by Sharing (How to cut costs and calories)
People have become increasingly comfortable about sharing an entrée and ordering an extra salad or appetizer. Another strategy is to order an appetizer or soup plus salad, instead of a full dinner.

5. Quit the “Clean-plate Club” (How to face down mega-size meals)
If you eat in places that serve large portions and lots of “free” extras, (and let’s face it, many restaurants serve a day’s ration of calories in just one meal), decide how much to eat when your order arrives. If you lack willpower, consider wrapping up part before you dig in. An easy way to do this without drawing attention is to bring your own take-out container and pack it right away. If you travel with a cooler, it is easy to preserve these leftovers (or “set asides”) for a second meal. Many motels and hotels have small refrigerators in the room, an option the Goldbecks always ask for when they’re on the road.

6. Practice visualization (How to cope with “portion distortion”)
Not so long ago, a standard bagel weighed 2 ounces (what the U.S. government and nutrition experts consider 2 servings of bread). Today, bagels have more than doubled in size, so just one can equal five or six servings at one shot. To get a sense of recommended (and sensible) portions sizes, the Goldbecks offer the following visual guidelines (and you can find more in Healthy Highways).
2 servings pasta == 1 cup = size of half grapefruit
1 serving fish = 3 ounces = size of checkbook
1 serving legumes = 1 cup cooked = size of baseball
1 serving cheese = 1½ ounces = size of 3 dominoes
1 serving potato = 1 medium = size of computer mouse

Nikki and David Goldbeck are well known for their pioneering books. They began in the 1970s with the best selling Supermarket Handbook, their seminal guide to finding healthy foods in the supermarket. They followed this with American Wholefoods Cuisine, touted by numerous reviewers as the “vegetarian Joy of Cooking”. Authors of eleven books on food, nutrition and environmental issues, in Healthy Highways the Goldbecks guide readers to 2,800 health-oriented places to dine-in or pick up food throughout the U.S. You can learn more about them at www.HealthyHighways.com.