Miso Noodle Soup with Edamame

From Veg Times, yum!

Start with the smaller amount of the miso, and add more as needed, dissolving extra spoonfuls in hot soup liquid. If you have both dark and light misos on hand, use half of each for a more complex flavor. If fresh edamame are already cooked, add them to the soup at the last minute.

• 2 oz. bean thread noodles
• 3 oz. fresh shiitake or button mushrooms, chopped finely
• 2 tsp. canola oil
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced with white and green parts
• 1 small carrot, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced on diagonal
• 1 cup (6 oz.) frozen shelled edamame
• 5 oz. baby spinach
• 1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
• 4 to 6 Tbs. dark miso
• 1/4 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• Tamari soy sauce, optional 

-Put noodles in a bowl with water to cover, and set aside.
-Heat oil in a soup pot. Add scallion whites, mushrooms and carrot, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mushrooms begin to soften, for about 2 minutes.
-Add 5 cups water, and bring to a boil. Add edamame, and cook for 4 minutes. Drain noodles, and add to pot with spinach and ginger. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until edamame are tender but still firm, for about 1 minute more. Stir in scallion greens.
-Blend 4 tablespoons miso into 1 cup warm water, using a fork to mix. Reduce heat to low, and stir miso into soup, adding more miso for a more intense flavor, if desired. Add sesame oil and tamari to taste. Serve hot.
-I also add seaweed....

Honey Walnut Pumpkin Bran Bread

Recipe from Whole Foods

Ingredients

Canola oil cooking spray
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup oat bran or wheat germ
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cane sugar
1/3 cup canola or sunflower oil
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup soy milk
1 1/4 cups fresh or canned pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts

-Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch loaf pan with canola oil cooking spray and set aside.

-In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oat bran, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a second large bowl, combine sugar, oil, honey, milk, pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Add this mixture to flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in walnuts.

-Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake until cooked through and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack then remove from pan and set aside to let cool completely.

Edible Magazine - Celebrating Local Foods - Season by Season

I've been a big fan of Edible Magazines for quite some time now.  I want to make sure you all know about this wonderful publication and find one of these quarterly gems in your area.  I try to at least read the Hawaii & San Diego magazines as they come out.  You can frequently find them at health food stores, restaurants, farms, as well as farmers markets.  For more info visit their website.

Here's a quick blurb from the Fall 2010 Hawaii Letters of Aloha .  A good reminder for us all.

Edible Hawaiian Islands is all about food. But is also (and just as importantly) about supporting the building of a deep local economy using local food as the driver. Think about it:

• When you hand the Starbucks clerk a $5 bill, say good-bye. It’s on its way to Seattle. When you hand a locally owned coffee shop your money, a much higher portion of that re-circulates in the Hawaiian economy.
• When you choose the big brands, you are enriching corporations and their shareholders. When you select local products— especially at locally owned food stores—you are creating local jobs.
• When you purchase directly from the farmers market or farm stand, you are reducing our dependence on foreign oil and chemically addicted industrial agricultural corporations…and you are building community as you meet and establish ongoing relationships with those local vendors.
• When you dine at one of our many independent restaurants—especially those who source local food—you are supporting the entire local food and supply chain.
• When you dine at chain restaurants, you are likely sending your dollars to some remote location for food and supplies that have traveled back and forth across the globe.

TAKE THE EDIBLE CHALLENGE: For the next week, use cash for all your food and restaurant purchases. Don’t use a discount card. As you hand over your hard earned money, think about: WHO are you handing it to? WHERE is it going? HOW MUCH of it will stay in Hawai‘i, re-circulating and building a vibrant, deep local economy?