It's been a week of spectacular kitchen "fails." Some that didn't turn out exactly like I wanted but the bones are there so it's in the redo category and some...woof. They are best never contemplated again in any combination or attempts. Those are just labeled "NOPE!" in my recipe ideas book with one large "X" across the page.
Certainly a week of reasons to feel discouraged, and one that quite literally had me thinking "Why am I even doing this?" Not just the blog (cause ladies & gents, it takes considerable time to do one of these things!). But more and beyond the blog / recipes that didn't go well - why am I even trying to educate anyone on sustainability and give tips and tricks for living more sustainably when I see garbage cans overflowing everywhere with plastics, litter blowing in the wind tattered and lodged against plants and trees on the side of the road, and an endless parade of commercials, ads, and notes for us to buy more "stuff" that can just end up in the landfills?
Enter the emotions that are always bubbling just under the surface; a sense that the degradation of our planet is an unstoppable force. Humans do not "care" that their actions will lead to the end of humanity and therefore renders all of our lives as futile in the efforts to prevent it from occurring. I lose my appetite for hope.
Sustainability Spotlight: How many of you have had similar thoughts on sustainability, climate change or the overall health of the environment? These thoughts and feelings are a very specific phenomenon and has been coined as "climate despair" or "environmental despair." Instead of a rallying cry to do better, fueling a hunger to be better, and encouraging the formulation of more solutions, climate despair asks us to simply give up.
Now, you don't know me, but I.simply.don't.give.up. It's a fatal flaw for better (not usually for worse). If one way doesn't work, I'll try something else. Reassess, reevaluate, and forge ahead. It's not recklessness, but it is a general sense of stubbornness and persistence that has carried me through all the times of hardship; a hunger to succeed. See, that's the key! You have to have the desire and the fortitude to keep moving. You have to go through it, and you have to just "live" it to get to the other side. Honor your feelings, but then decide not to starve your hope. Don't stall your efforts thinking that it is futile, that you cannot be a force of change. We are all together & individually that change.
This blog, these recipes, my choices and your choices are all saying "Hey, I see you; I see your efforts and they mean something!" Together, we will change the world little by little and it will get better. The planet has amazing powers to heal, but we need to recognize that our current way of life is a deterrent to that healing process. Humanity can be stewards of the Earth or we can be it's killer. I know what I want to be; how about you?
This salad's name was inspired by my drive; that hunger to continue to live sustainably. Since it's packed with good for you and good for the Earth vegetables, seeds, and grains, it not only satiates my hunger for food, but also my hunger to do better, be better, and charge forward in my efforts for sustainability; The Super Satiety Salad!
Ingredients:
3/4 cup cooked red lentils (rinsed, boiled & fluffed according to package directions)
1 can chickpeas (rinsed & drained)
1.5 cups lacinato kale (de-ribbed & finely chopped)
1.5 cups spinach (finely chopped)
1 extra large carrot (chopped)
2-3 green onions (chopped)
1 large handful parsley (chopped)
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes (oil-packed) and chopped
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 tbsp organic hemp seeds
Red Wine Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tsp stone ground mustard
2-3 garlic cloves (chopped)
1/4 cup avocado oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tsp maple syrup
1 lemon (zested and juiced)
1/2 tbsp dried oregano
Rinse red lentils, boil according to package directions (~1/3 cup uncooked). Set aside.
Add all salad ingredients (including cooked lentils) to a large salad bowl
Add all vinaigrette ingredients to a personal blender and blitz until emulsified (combined) and slightly frothy.
Pour vinaigrette over salad and toss to coat.
Serve immediately in bowls; a little goes a long way here to getting you full and keeping you full. Serve with some light fruit and enjoy!
With love & hope for a better future for all of us - Jamie