Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with RawFood

Oh, right... peak oil. What should we eat?

pseudostrabismus — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 13:45:03 -0800

Seeking ideas for healthy, balanced, kid-friendly meals that use local (ideally Ontarioan) ingredients, don't require the expenditure of electricity, and could be made by an 8-year old with minimal supervision? I'm doing some work for a youth organization, and we're trying to help kids understand the amount of energy that goes into getting food to their door. As a challenge, I want to suggest a few meals (breakfast, lunch, snacks, or dinner) that are healthy, kid-friendly, and extremely planet-friendly. The guidelines:

1. Local- Should use foods that are locally grown (Southern Canada). The foods don't have to be organic- I'm hoping to keep costs down so the recipies are accessible to all income brackets.

2. Accessible- The ingredients should be easy to find- say, even at a rural grocery store- and easy to prepare, not daunting and unfamiliar (no sprouted-spelt-germ type recipes), so that the meal is easily recreatable.

3. Human-powered- To show kids how reliant we are on electricity, I was hoping to find meals that required no electricity to prepare- so no oven, and bonus points if no food processor. But also no campfire- these must be indoor recipes.

4. Healthy- The meal must be balanced, with a good protein source.

5. Peanut-free- Because of the prevalance of peanut allergies, avoiding peanuts is probably best. Other kinds of nuts are probably ok.

6. Kid friendly- Ideally a second-grader (7-8 yrs) could make this meal, almost unsupervised. Using a knife is fine.

7. Tasty- Kids and parents should enjoy eating whatever-it-is.

It's okay if these meals turn out to be big, varied salads, or little tapas plate collections- I've been thinking about this for a few days and that's what I've mostly come up with.

If you feel there's some aspect of "planet-friendly" I could re-examine, I'll welcome your advice on those topics as well- I've done some research, but I don't pretend to be an expert.

Thanks in advance, and I look forward to your suggestions!

Things to do with Shitake and Oyster mushrooms?

You Should See the Other Guy — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 17:36:10 -0800

Fave things to make with mushrooms (specifically, Shitake and Oyster, but open to more). Also, how do these compare with Cremini? So I have a recipe that asks for Cremini mushrooms. I was at the market and no one had any. So I bought some Oyster and some Shitake. Can I use these instead? What will the difference be? In addition, can these suckers be eaten raw? Do I eat the whole thing? Just the head? Just the stem? (Yes, I'm a complete mushroom newbie.)

Also, since we're on the Fungi... what are your fave recipes for mushrooms?

Advice -- seeking new food processor.

dobbs — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 12:52:41 -0800

Food Processors... what can you tell me? So I took a cooking class and loved it. Then I tried to make some of the recipes at home and my 15 year old food processor couldn't cut it. I'm therefore in the market for a new one. What features should I look for? What brands should I avoid/look at? Good places to buy online?

Not sure if it makes a difference re: your advice, but just in case: I'm vegetarian and am also interested in trying a few raw dishes.

Any links / advice appreciated.

Essene Bread - tips on making it?

duck — Sat, 05 Feb 2005 17:06:29 -0800

Essene/Sprout/Living Bread : I'm making Essene Bread. It's my understanding that this is something that's easy to mess up and the source of the mess up isn't always obvious. So if anyone has done this, I would appreciate your tips. [MI]. I'm using this recipe, except I'm planning to add raisins and coat the outside with sesame seeds, instead of using cornmeal.

I'm sprouting soft wheat kernels that I bought at Bulk Barn. It's soaking in water in a pyrex bowl covered with a dish cloth now. How important is it that I remove them from the water after exactly 12 hours (that would be 5 am...on a Sunday..would it be really bad to wait til say 11?)?

Also, I would like to bake at a lower temperature to avoid killing the enzymes (not that I really do raw foods, but I'm curious to try it that way). What temperature and for how long should I bake it at for that?

Some other recipes suggest a flat thin shaping of the loaf. I would like more of a loaf shape if possible, but will having a loaf shape really be bad for the texture as some sources suggest?

Miscellaneous tips also welcome.