Let Food Be Thy Medicine...

We have a new member of our growing circle, Kerstin in Stockholm, Sweden. Welcome, Kerstin! She is adding a new country for us. Just imagine----when any of us reads this email, we are doing so along with 113 like-minded cooks in 9 countries: Germany, Japan, USA, Ireland, Canada, Argentina, Singapore, Australia, and now Sweden. What a remarkable 5-continent potluck we are having!

Lucy here in Portland sent us this recipe for Red Lentil Pate. I've been enjoying it for lunch on crackers:
Mediterranean Red Lentil Pate

I've also been spreading it, and everything else, on my latest bread discovery, Pumpkin Rosemary Bread. I have bonded with the book Gluten Free and Vegan Bread by Jennifer Katzinger. I have liked all the recipes I've tried, but this is the heartiest yet. It added a new word to my vocabulary---"biga"----which is an Italian word for a starter (like sourdough starter but easier). Here is your chance to make your very own biga :-)
Pumpkin-Rosemary Bread

Betsy in California sent an interesting article by T. Colin Campbell , "Why Ordinary Food Will be the Future of Medicine". He's the author of The China Study, the book that was a turning point for my family, convincing us to to from vegetarian to vegan. Here he points out that with a dietary shift we could have an actual health care system that promotes health instead of the expensive, unsustainable, disease-control system we now have.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/02/04/why-ordinary-food-will-be-the-fut...

Two days later, just as I was hoping Campbell's idea would come to fruition, Betsy followed up with an article about a hospital with its own organic greenhouse providing nutritious food for patients! What a hopeful article and what a positive trend!
http://althealthworks.com/103/interview-million-dollar-organic-greenhous...

Portland people, and anyone who may in range----it's almost time for our Winter Potluck. We gather once each season, enjoy a plant-based meal together and talk about whatever is on our minds about food. Come join us! Email me for details---- [email protected]

Happy cooking,
Eve