TO MY TENDER GARDENER

I have a bit of a blogging history – one I’d like to forget. The first attempt was silly, embarrassing. The second: too intimate. The third, and birth of kat.tales worked for a while, but I was unsure of my focus. I bring this up because the new kat.tales mostly speaks to quick and homemade vegetarian cuisine. However, I want more for it. I’m putting this out there so you won’t be surprised by future posts that go beyond food.

I’m thinking/hoping this will expand to a forum for stories chronicling delicious food, the arts, nature, and my efforts to create a space for myself in the homegrown movement. Our long-term goal (5-10 year plan) is to set ourselves up on an off-the-grid, self-sustaining plot of land. I have dreams of spinning my own wool, making clothes and cheese, selling produce – but I want to maintain my position as a college English teacher. Suggestions for achieving this balance? By the way, it would be great if I found this balance on a farm in the Italian hills.

Speaking of hills, Gideon and I are off to the Catskills this weekend for a wedding.

IRON LADY



Above: I thought it was mint. It tasted like oregano. When you're primarily

eating plants, everything in the yard starts to look edible.

 Meat-eaters often grill me on vegetarian nutrition. So, here's the 411 on IRON, which your body needs to support proper blood health. How's your iron intake?

Age	Males (mg/day)	Females (mg/day)	Pregnancy (mg/day)	Lactation (mg/day)
7 to 12 months	11	11	N/A	N/A
1 to 3 years	7	7	N/A	N/A
4 to 8 years	10	10	N/A	N/A
9 to 13 years	8	8	N/A	N/A
14 to 18 years	11	15	27	10
19 to 50 years	8	18	27	9
51+ years	8	8	N/A	N/A

via National Institutes of Health

While flesh and organ meat are tremendous sources for iron, there are more than ample plant-based options. The National Institutes of Health recommend:

Food	Milligrams per serving	% DV*
Ready-to-eat cereal, 100% iron fortified, ¾ cup	18.0	100
Oatmeal, instant, fortified, prepared with water, 1 cup	10.0	60
Soybeans, mature, boiled, 1 cup	8.8	50
Lentils, boiled, 1 cup	6.6	35
Beans, kidney, mature, boiled, 1 cup	5.2	25
Beans, lima, large, mature, boiled, 1 cup	4.5	25
Beans, navy, mature, boiled, 1 cup	4.5	25
Ready-to-eat cereal, 25% iron fortified, ¾ cup	4.5	25
Beans, black, mature, boiled, 1 cup	3.6	20
Beans, pinto, mature, boiled, 1 cup	3.6	20
Molasses, blackstrap, 1 tablespoon	3.5	20
Tofu, raw, firm, ½ cup	3.4	20
Spinach, boiled, drained, ½ cup	3.2	20
Spinach, canned, drained solids ½ cup	2.5	10
Black-eyed peas (cowpeas), boiled, 1 cup	1.8	10
Spinach, frozen, chopped, boiled ½ cup	1.9	10
Grits, white, enriched, quick, prepared with water, 1 cup	1.5	8
Raisins, seedless, packed, ½ cup	1.5	8
Whole wheat bread, 1 slice	0.9	6
White bread, enriched, 1 slice	0.9	6

But don't forget about: spirulina (1 tsp): 5 mg, pumpkin seeds (1 ounce): 4.2 mg, quinoa (4 ounces): 4 mg, tomato paste (4 ounces): 3.9 mg, white beans (1/2 cup) 3.9 mg, dried peaches (6 halves): 3.1 mg, prune juice (8 ounces): 3 mg. Look at the plethora of options. Easy, diverse, and cruelty-free.

Here are some tips to get the most iron out of your food:

• Eat iron-rich foods along with foods that contain vitamin C, which helps the body absorb the iron.
• Tea and coffee contains compounds called polyphenols, which can bind with iron making it harder for our bodies to absorb it.
• Calcium also hinders the absorption of iron; avoid high-calcium foods for a half hour before or after eating iron-rich foods.
• Cook in iron pots. The acid in foods seems to pull some of the iron out of the cast-iron pots. Simmering acidic foods, such as tomato sauce, in an iron pot can increase the iron content of the brew more than ten-fold. Cooking foods containing other acids, such as vinegar, red wine, lemon or lime juice, in an iron pot can also increase the iron content of the final mixture.

SO VERY QUICK VEGETABLE "FRIED" RICE

I cook with a "no-waste" philosophy. When I don't do recipe-specific shopping trips, I'll use up whatever I have in the fridge. Speaking of which, I still have yogurt, cheese, and eggs I don't want to waste even though I want to maintain my vegan diet. I'll use these items up but will not buy more. So, with a slew of fresh vegetables, basmati rice, eggs, and spices, I whipped up an extremely easy and delicious version of vegetarian fried rice.

Ingredients:

1/4 red bell pepper

1/4 green bell pepper

1/4 yellow bell pepper

1/2 zucchini

1 bunch scallion

2 carrots

1 sm. head broccoli

3 tbsp. butternut squash oil

white basmati rice

3 eggs

tamari

garlic powder

onion powder

s+p

cayenne pepper

handful of cashews

Gideon makes the rice in this house because I am always impressed with the perfection of each individual grain. My rice is too often mushy. I think his secret is the immense amount of time he spends rinsing it. Once you get the rice going, whether you use the stove top or rice cooker, work on the veggies.

Heat the oil in a large saute pan or wok. Chop your vegetables however you'd like and add them to your pan. Add cayenne pepper, s+p, garlic powder, and onion powder to taste. I go light on the cayenne and s+p and heavier on the others. Continue to toss your vegetables. (I do not cook my vegetables for very long. I prefer them hot and crunchy.)  Add tamari. I do this by sight. I want all the vegetables covered without too much excess in the pan. You can always add more upon service. Next, I add a few cups of the cooked rice to my pan and proceed to crack the eggs over top. Mix the rice, veggies, and eggs together until the latter is cooked. Serve and top with chopped cashews.

I love that this dish will always be a little different everytime I make it. Sesame oil is always a good alternative, and fresh ginger, cilantro, and lemon make great additions. You can scrap the eggs or use a vegan egg substitute to make this a vegan dish.