Creamy Cannellini and Kale Soup

I discovered small sun dried tomato bits in the bulk spice section of a local market and thought they would be great to use in all sorts of culinary applications. The first thing I thought of was soup! I wrote out this recipe on a whim during the summer months, and finally the weather is cooling down to give me the opportunity to actually give it a go. Yum! The flavors go well together and are simple enough that they do not compete. Hope you enjoy it as well!

Creamy Cannellini and Kale Soup

1 Tb Olive Oil

1/4 cup Shallots, chopped

4 cloves Garlic, minced

2 – 15 oz. cans Cannellini Beans

4 cups Vegetable Broth

2 head Kale, chopped

½ cup Sun Dried Tomato pieces

Salt to taste

Sauté the olive oil, shallots and garlic until golden. Place the beans in a food processor along with the sautéed shallots and garlic and blend. Add broth until it's a smooth consistency. Add contents into a large sauce pan on medium heat. Add the remaining broth, kale and sun dried tomatoes. cook for about 20 minutes on medium-low heat. Add salt to taste before serving.

* If you are unable to find smaller sun dried tomato bits, you can use the regular size and just use scissors to cut them a little smaller. Using sun dried tomatoes that are not in the oil works best.

An inside perspective

I’ve been having trouble writing this, but I think it is important. I am not sure if I can express the frustration I feel about this issue, but I will try my hardest. I don't want people to think I am attacking, but I hope my inside perspective can be helpful. Not everyone will agree with me, but that is ok. I have worked at Bob’s Red Mill for over 8 years and I know Bob personally. I know he has a big heart, is compassionate and truly cares about his employees and people’s health. When it was announced the other week that Bob donated $25 million to form an institute of nutrition and wellness through OHSU, I thought it could be a really good thing. The idea that any money could go to animal research did not occur to me, until The Oregonian quoted OHSU referring to the Primate Research Center. I don’t think Bob himself considered that OHSU would use some of the money to fund animal research.

“The Informed Vegan” blog posted an article titled “Bob’s Red Mill Funds Animal Testing”. Suddenly all over the web, animal rights activists were responding by commenting on Bob’s Red Mill facebook page, sending emails, calling and writing letters. Everyone took the blog post face value, which was filled with misinformation. For one, Bob and Charlee Moore made the donation, not Bob's Red Mill. They may be the founders, but a couple years ago Bob announced he was giving the company to the employees. This transition is still ongoing, but employees due now hold stake in the company.

Knowing Bob, it broke my heart to see all the negative reactions from activists. As an activist, it broke my heart that people did not educate themselves more or try and approach their concerns in a manner that was more productive, rather than just react and vent. Bob isn’t directly involved in facebook, yet a post about a fundraiser dog wash for Dove Lewis Animal Hospital where employees were volunteering that weekend were taken over by comments concerning this issue. When a post suggested people send Bob a letter to be most effective, a response was that Bob’s Red Mill was trying to silence the public. People were assuming the worse, when in fact, writing a letter was the best way to get through to Bob. The company was encouraging feedback so Bob could hear from the public and make a decision about this issue in a responsible way. People were calling for a boycott of Bob’s Red Mill products before Bob could even respond to the question of animal testing.

Bob and Charlee did announce this week that no funds would go towards animal research. The main goal of the institute is outreach and education. I heard many activists vocalizing concern that the donation would free up money so OHSU could spend more on animal research anyway. This was not a blanket donation. The donation will create a new institute and will only fund it specifically. There was also concern OHSU would not honor the Moore's decision, but it is a legally binding. I completely understand how people hate OHSU. It is sad that the top-notch medical schools are so wrapped up in animal testing. These same schools have more access to the public, however, so education programs through them can reach more people and have a larger impact. I’ve personally had both my sisters saved by the medical doctors at OHSU when no other hospital could help them. They were not saved by animal testing, but they were saved by the hospital’s status and ability to hire good doctors.

It is really easy to hate. It is really easy to tell people what they should or shouldn’t have done. But the problem is when a response is so negative, then those targeted for the message may miss what you are saying. Bob may have heard that there are a lot of people against animal research, but he may have also seen animal rights activists as mean and unreasonable. I personally felt I was in the middle of trying to calm down activists to communicate concern effectively, while try trying to calm down coworkers getting frustrated with being attacked.

There are times when anger and yelling your message is needed for a campaign. And then there are times when a more diplomatic approach is needed. The best approach to an issue needs to be considered before action, both on an individual level, as well as an organized effort. Bob has supported the vegan community in the past and donates to a lot of animal sanctuaries and other community organizations. Communicating with respect and giving him a chance to respond would have been more effective for the desired outcome, and represented activists in a positive light. Although there are people who will never be happy about Bob’s donation, he’s giving up his life’s work to invest in the future wellbeing of others. Even if you don’t agree with where the money is going, hopefully you can acknowledge his generosity.

Goodby Friday Harbor Labs, Hello Vida Vegan Con!

I did not want to leave San Juan Island! No matter how much I complained about the cafeteria food, being around nature everyday, having close encounters with killer whales and learning a subject matter that I care so much about, felt incredibly right. I had envisioned myself being on the island doing work with the whales, and having just a taste, I know I will be back. I made many friends who I’d never guess I would connect so well with. I was shocked to find myself in a place of sadness when I got home. Of course it was great seeing my beloved kitties and rats. It was wonderful sleeping in my own bed. I am looking forward to cooking a real meal. But the experience was so profoundly amazing and exactly what I wanted to be doing, I mourned that it was over. There will be more of these experiences. The class at Friday Harbor Labs was just the beginning, but I am missing being there greatly.

Where I spend many hours looking for and watching Southern Resident Killer Whales

My transition to Portland started off with all those feelings, and I had the Vida Vegan Con blogger conference to attend the next day. I had been looking forward to the conference, but I never had a chance to really process my feelings of being back. I had a momentary breakdown when I first got there and started to talk with people. But I collected myself and went to a panel on positive blogging. Before the talk began, a woman saw my nametag and told me she had been looking for me. She had read my guest post on the conference website and complimented me on it. This random compliment from a stranger transformed me, and suddenly, being home wasn’t so bad after all. I enjoyed the positivity panel and looked forward to more talks. The next day, I gave a talk about activism and was again feeling great being back in Portland. Everyone was so incredibly nice and knowledgeable and welcoming. I talked with Jasmin Singer from Our Hen House and did an interview for a pod cast. I was impressed by her eloquent speaking ability and how nice she is. The whole experience was a wonderful reminder that there is community all over the place if you just open your heart to it. And my depressing transition back home suddenly became an empowering experience.

Thanks to all the organizers of the conference. Jess, Michelle and Janessa are all fabulous hard-working women who know how to create an amazing event. I was able to make up for the 5 weeks of bad food in the two days I was at the conference, eating a lot of flavorful meals and sweet desserts. It was also fantastic to see so many of my friends at once while being welcomed back home. And the swag bag from the conference is also something to talk about! Damn! I never received so many free things before. I am now the proud owner of a pepper grinder. I love pepper!

Once again it is all about whales and cafeteria food

It is hard to balance criticism and appreciation sometimes. I really appreciate how hard the cafeteria at Friday Harbor Labs works to provide for all the different dietary needs of the students and staff. I am however, tired of no thinking outside the box. No tofu scramble or even a potato veggie medley. Everything is so carb heavy and I have only seen whole grains for lunch or dinner maybe twice. They were not kidding that I would want to supplement my protein since there is vegan protein available in meals less than 25% of the time. And 90% of those times it is garbanzo beans. Variety please!

Sadly, I don’t always trust what they make for me. Majority of the cafeteria staff has been super nice. One woman, however, gives all cafeteria a bad name. She once grabbed a bowl of strawberries I had for dessert from my tray to give to a gluten free person, and told me I could have the angel food cake. I had to argue to convince her it was not vegan and so she then told me gluten free people never get dessert so I should still relinquish my strawberries. I only get dessert if they have sorbet and can tell me the ingredients. That has happened twice. Gluten free people can have ice cream and they even have special gluten free cookies for them. Just saying.

One gripe I have with the cafeteria actually has nothing to do with me. I believe that if someone has a deathly allergy to an ingredient (such a one student's peanut allergy) they should not cook with that ingredient while the person is needing the dining services. The student doesn't feel comfortable eating there for the entire day due to cross contact concerns alone, which is completely understandable.

I am sure you can tell that I am getting tired of over 3 weeks of just cafeteria food. I miss my cooking! And choice! I hope to borrow my TA’s kitchen this weekend to make a tofu scramble, and am looking forward to it.

In other news, San Juan Island is still awesome! I am doing a behavioral project of orcas and their breaching behavior, so that means driving out to the west side every day and look for them. The beginning of August they headed west and left town for almost a week, but suddenly they are back and I have had extreme luck in seeing them for a few days in a row now, while sitting out in the beautiful (but not too hot) sunshine. The other day a cool thing happened. A very small pod of orcas (about 4 of them) headed south and they seemed to have different behavior than I am use to seeing and a male orca has a super large curved dorsal fin. A classmate suggested these were transients, and she was right. After watching them for about 15 minutes, suddenly a large pod of resident orcas headed north into our view. The transients were kinda boring, but the resident orcas put on a show right away. There were breaches all over the place and then they started to forage for fish and did more breaches, and tail slaps and spy hops. It was great!!!

Week 1 at Friday Harbor Labs (with Orcas)

I have been on San Juan Island for a week now and it was been an adventure! I have done prey sampling in False Bay, surveys for marine birds and mammals from the ferry, identified all the different types of gulls and cormorants, and most excitably; watched a pod of orcas pass by the cliff we were on very close to shore!

I went from an 8–5 office job to field trips, going out on boats, experiencing nature on a daily basis, walking through the campus a lot and trying to stay awake during lecture. I love it! It is fun to push my boundaries and do new things. It is empowering to drive a motor boat for the first time. It is exciting to learn so much about the wildlife around me.

The campus is centered fairly close to Friday Harbor along the water. Deer roam freely and eat all day long. One morning I saw 10 deer before breakfast. I get to see kingfishers fly by and barn swallows all over the place. I heard a rumor that river otters frequent the campus as well, but I won’t believe it until I see it.

The dining staff has been incredibly accommodating for my vegan diet, along with other people’s various dietary needs. I have seen everything from vegan pizza to stuffed peppers to roasted sweet potato. The sad thing is, so much of the food is incredibly carb-heavy. It has already been a week and I am getting tired of it. Who knew I became so whole grain based! I am missing my quinoa! Although I am missing much more than quinoa, whole grains is what I am lacking the strongest it. I might even have to talk with the cafeteria to not only suggest using whole grains, but ask her to not make me special lunches, and just give me hummus for the salad bar.

Considering how great everything else is here, that issue pales in comparison. I look forward to the many more weeks ahead of me learning more about birds and mammals and exploring the island! And of course any opportunity to see orcas. That can be a matter of luck, and today I had a lot of it, spending 3 hours at Lime Kiln Park and seeing pods of the killer whales almost at all times. Check out more of my photos at my flickr account.

My wildlife adventure begins!

The next 5 weeks I will be living in a dorm on San Juan Island taking a class on ecology and conservation of marine birds and mammals. I am fulfilling a dream of mine to get back into wildlife biology and pursue a career in which I hope to help animals, especially marine mammals. This is the first step and in the fall I am going to school full time and quitting my day job.

I will not have access to a kitchen at all. Even though I have not been cooking as much lately due to a hectic schedule, I hate the idea of not having that option. I will instead be eating dorm food. They have a vegetarian option, but not vegan, although they know a vegan will be staying there. I have been assured there will be hummus every day and a salad bar, and oatmeal, so I can't do too bad. I am also bringing up some marinated tofu, tofurky, almond butter, trail mix and dandies to help supplement my food supply. I really hope I have a chance to roast those dandies!


So I will report back on the dorm food, but most importantly, my adventures on the island. I plan to see lots of orcas and spend many nights watching the breathtaking sunset at San Juan Island park. I hope to meet lots of great people and make connections for my future career. I want to take lots of pictures of the deer, porpoises, eagles and foxes that grace the island (or shores). I will allow this time to reinvigorate my passion of animal rights and trying to create a world a better place. And I am so excited to see if all transpire!

Oh PETA, how you annoy me!

PETA is sexist and fatphobic. They degrade anyone they can in order to further their message of animal rights. I could go on for days (or pages) about how PETA hurts the animal rights community (and message) with their use of women to “sell” animal rights, or how degrading fat people with their hate hurts their chances of people listening, and how as a fat vegan I am completely disgusted with their treatment of people.

I have heard the arguments about how so many people got involved in animal issues due to PETA, and how the fact they are so accessible allows animal rights to reach more people. There are organizations that can do all the good things PETA does, without all the bullshit. Whenever discrimination and hate is used in a campaign to support animals- it is not effective and harms the movement.

But this isn’t even what I want to discuss today. I read an article about how vegan food is being provided in San Francisco prisons- that is great! Regardless of where a person is on earth, they should be given the option of eating vegan. However, PETA was given credit for this change due to a large protest in the 90s that resulted in mass arrests. PETA had nothing to do with this action, which was a sit-in at Neiman Marcus because they sell fur.

I was arrested that day along with individuals from a large community of smaller animal rights organizations wanting to see the end of the fur trade and made their way to San Francisco for support. We did not have funding from a large organization and we were coming together as a collective to make a difference. PETA was not involved in any way, and them getting credit for this action corrupts what we were doing. PETA is not a community player. If you try to talk with them about the hateful message they perpetrate through campaigns, they will respond by ignoring you, sending form letters or attack.

I felt I had to say something because so often in the media (or assumptions by prison officials), those with the money get the credit. This happens in the corporate world all the time, and happens with PETA way too often. There are so many hard working individuals (and smaller groups) who really care about animal rights and want to make a difference for the world. To me, individuals make a larger impact than non-profits who spend half their revenue on fund-raising. You don’t need to put up a billboard with naked women and controversy to get a message across.

The presence of all the smaller organizations that day, coming together from all over the west coast to form such a strong community was amazing! I miss those days where a united effort drew people in from all over to take a stand and make a difference. There are still lots of organizations out there, so please find one that resonates with you and not let PETA represent what animal rights is all about.