Ina's Italian Wedding Soup

I did it!  I made it through the week without eating a cheeseburger!  Or a bagel every morning!  There was some cookie dough last night... but remember how we talked about balance?  Also, you guys, I have had this blog for a very long time.  That was a weird transition, but just hear me out.  Carson and I were watching the Food Network the other night - "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" if you must know (cause it's either that or HGTV in this house) - and he saw some soup and said, you should make that.  And I was all, I have made that, don't you remember?  And he's like, nope.  And I was like, ugh, what is WRONG with you (we're in the honeymoon phase).  Then I searched my blog and realized I made it SIX YEARS AGO.  Check it out here, along with my teeny, tiny photos.

So I made it again!  The dish is Italian Wedding Soup, and it's delicious.  A healthy blend of veggies, greens (I used escarole) and turkey meatballs (I skipped the sausage as well as the pasta in Ina's recipe).  We ate it along with grilled cheeses (balance) and it was a wonderful dinner!        

Baked Halibut and Spinach in Foil

I'm not big on cleanses or detoxes or dieting in general, however I do believe a balanced lifestyle is best, and after a particularly indulgent holiday we are trying to eat a little healthier around here.  When we make fish, Carson usually takes control and grills it, but last night I tried a new method (for us) and baked it in tin foil.  It was so easy and the fish was cooked perfectly.  Foil packet cooking is so versatile - you can really use any combination of fish and veggie.  Last night I placed halibut on a bed of arugula and spinach and topped it with sliced shallots, olive oil and salt and pepper (loosely following this recipe).  It was delicious, even if we did joke about ordering pizza after.

Happy Twenty Sixteen

Twentysixteen! We made it! Happy New Year, friends. I�ve been a little MIA since early December. Truth be told, I barely turned on my computer over the holidays. It was a busy few weeks for me, with lots of parties, activities, a little bit of travel, and of course a full day of binging on Making a Murderer. 


In new years� past, I�ve created annual themes and big goals for myself�around things like health, lifestyle, travel�and small goals, usually things to do in January to get back in a healthy groove after the holidays�like bringing my lunch to work every day, not drinking alcohol for the month�things like that. 

In 2015, my big theme was balance. After a turbulent, head spinning, heart shattering year in 2014, with my dad passing away followed by my wedding (all within a six week time span), I needed a year for things to even out. On a whole, I�d say 2015 was much better than 2014. It was indeed more balanced. But it wasn�t an easy year�just as my mom, sister, and I began the slow steps of learning to live without my dad, my aunt, my mom�s sister, was diagnosed with fast-progressing stage four cancer. It�s been a hard year, in many ways.

It was also a good year in many ways. 

In 2015, Evan and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary. Some say the first year of marriage is hard. Our first year of marriage was the strongest and happiest of our 12-ish years together. I didn�t think marriage would change anything, since we�ve been together and lived together for so long, but we feel more connected, more at ease� more balanced. It�s a small shift, hard to describe, but it�s there, and it�s good. 

In 2015, I turned 30! I hiked and camped a little bit, but not nearly enough. I traveled to Panama (photo above!), Sonoma, and Vancouver BC. I hosted a dinner for Dry Sparkling, watched Amy Schumer perform live on New Year�s Eve (hilarious), and helped throw a baby shower for one of my best friends. We celebrated a wedding in Santa Cruz among towering red woods, and we toasted a ton of engagements. We were lucky enough to be there when my future brother in law, Pete, proposed to my sister overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge (and I can�t wait for their wintery wedding next month in Banff!). 

So� what�s on tap for 2016? Well, for the first time in several years, I just don�t feel like setting goals. I�ve tried to think up themes and goals and resolutions, but I can�t land on anything. I actually feel a really healthy sense of balance right now. Of course, that�s not to say I don�t want to eat better/work out more/go on more adventures/read more books/be more mindful/spend more time in nature/etc, etc, etc. But those are all part of a lifestyle I�ve slowly started building in the last year, and I still have a ways to go, but I feel pretty good about where I�m at right now.

But let's be real. I also want to lose like, 10 lbs. 

How Much do You Know About Your Own Brain?

We tend to believe we're aware of what's happening in our own brains, and also in conscious control of our behavior. But a growing body of neuroscience and psychology research demonstrates that most of what happens inside the brain-- including the processes that cause us to select and execute behaviors-- is beyond our conscious awareness. This has important implications for our eating behavior, body weight, and health, as I explore in my upcoming book The Hungry Brain.

Let me give you a straightforward example that illustrates how little of our brain's activity we're aware of. It focuses on information processing by the visual system, which is one of the best-understood systems of the brain. I drew the basic facts of this example from a recent talk by the accomplished neuroscience researcher Marcus Raichle, who studies patterns of activity in the human brain.

Read more �

Black Eyed Peas

Happy New Year!  Can you believe we're here?  The decorations are packed away and the homework has emerged.  Oh and also, it took me 15 minutes to write those three sentences because my children are all "mama, mama, mama, mama" and I no longer have 8 house guests here to help answer them.  It's been difficult for me, getting back into the swing of things.  Anyone else feel like they're moving through mud?  Anyone else want to come over and cook a healthy dinner for my family tonight?

Great.  Thanks.

Well, this is a throwback now, but on New Year's Day my mom made the most delicious Black Eyed Peas.  This is not a tradition we usually partake in, but she wanted to try them out (and who am I to turn away possible luck and prosperity in 2016).  She referenced this article while making them, and they were delicious!  Like, I had 4 helpings delicious.  I think we will be making these all year round.  

Two More Upcoming Workshops!

Burnaby Food First is pleased to announce two more workshops for 2016!



Healthy Snacks for Kids



Tuesday, January 19, 2016

6:30 pm to 8:15 pm

Brentwood Community Resource Centre (2055 Rosser Ave / Burnaby - map)

Join Meghan Cooke and learn some delicious and nutritious suggestions for after school snacks. This is a co-event with the Brentwood YMCA. We will spend the first part of the evening talking about healthy snacks and then all are welcome to stay for a Family style dinner. Children of all ages are welcome to attend this event. 



** Registration is closed!** Workshop is full.



To be added to the waitlist, please contact Meghan at (604) 209-2404 or by email.

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Early Spring Container Food Gardening Workshop



Thursday, January 28, 2016

6:30 pm to 8:15 pm

Burnaby Neighbourhood House, 3rd Floor Community Room 

(4460 Beresford St. / Burnaby - map) 

Join Leanne Zmud, gardener and permaculturalist, to plant your own early spring food garden in a pot.  Great for people living in small spaces!



*Please be aware that  that they you will be taking your planter, a heavy 3-5 gallon pot full of soil, home with you! No children please, but older teenagers welcome.  



**Registration is closed.** Workshop is full!



Please contact Meghan at (604) 209-2404 or by email to be added to the waitlist.

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Enjoy Burnaby Food First workshops? Want to get involved as a volunteer?

Check out all the great ways you can get involved. All are welcome, and we'd love to have you on board! For more information, send us an email.

Happy New Year 2016!

Welcoming the New Year! It's 2016 and a great time to reflect on what we have accomplished and for us, I can say that 2015 was a year of changes and challenges.



Workshops



Due to the wonderful work of Burnaby Food First�s workshop coordinator, Leanne Zmud, 2015 saw 16 workshops which covered canning, cooking with greens, to gardening. Many of the workshops were filled as soon as they were posted on this blog! So, a HUGE THANK YOU to the 285 workshop participants, 15 volunteers, 11 facilitators, 6 venue hosts and the various people who helped make our workshops known throughout Burnaby. It definitely takes a lot of coordination and information sharing to ensure successful workshops!



Burnaby Food First nearly doubled the amount of workshops provided in 2015 (2014 had only 10 workshops) and hopefully we have increased the number of people who are cooking local healthy foods at home or growing food in their gardens (either at home or in a community garden).



In the Fall of 2015, we welcomed Meghan Cooke who took over from Leanne to manage our workshops. Thank you Leanne and welcome Meghan � we certainly look forward to many interesting workshops in 2016!



Events



Burnaby Food First was present at various festivals and cultural events such as Hats off Day to the Edmond Festival to promote food security!



Those events helped raised our profile within the community as well as providing us with the opportunity to sell aprons to support our free educational workshops, Sharing Backyards and School Gardening programs.



Oh, and by the way, we are now selling aprons online to support our cooking and gardening food security programs!



Check out the apron store and make a commitment in 2016 to ensure that everyone has access to nutritious and local foods (as well as preparing it).



Sharing Backyards



Again, managed by Project Coordinator, Leanne Zmud, we went from having 1 match in 2014 to over 15 matches in 2015! Talk about building connections and sharing gardening knowledge between neighbours!

Sharing Backyard in Burnaby Heights!

Goodlad Garden in Edmonds!

We also held a successful information event at Burnaby North Neighbourhood House which allowed people to get to know one another and to find new opportunities.



Since the project began it has engaged with approximately 80 participants. These participants spanned a wide age range and backgrounds, including newcomers to Canada.



School Gardening



If we are to get people access to local foods, then one Burnaby Food First program took a different approach - getting youth involved with gardening.



Project Coordinator, Leanne Zmud, recruited community members to volunteer as school garden mentors for Burnaby high school students who were interested in gardening at their schools.



Thanks to the involvement of 3 Burnaby Schools - Byrne Creek, Moscrop and Burnaby South Secondary - the students of the �Green Your City� initiative (led by Alice Huang) and the 7 school garden mentors ( Lisa, Jim, Noreen, Sonya, Teresa, Jammy, and Anja � thank you very much for your time) who shared their garden knowledge with the students and diligently watered the gardens during the summer months!

Moscrop School

Byrne Creek with students and mentors

Burnaby South

The School Gardens culminated in a September harvest pot luck celebration where everyone brought a dish to share and was made with ingredients from their gardens (or at least a portion of it!). The potluck was an opportunity to eat together and recognize everyone�s efforts that contributed to the success of the school gardens.



Hopefully there will be many more opportunities for students to �get their hands dirty� with future gardens on school grounds! Again, a big thanks to Leanne for managing this program!

Students gardening!

So, 2015 was a year of many changes as well as challenges! As we move forward towards 2016, there is a sense of anticipation as to what the future holds for Burnaby Food First as well as the community coming together to find solutions in providing access to local and nutritious food for everyone!



We certainly hope that we have the opportunity to connect with you either as volunteers or perhaps attending our workshops? Or even joining us as a member! How about purchasing an apron either at the Burnaby Farmer�s Market during the Spring and Summer season? Or simply read our blog and share what information we have out with your friends (or sign up for workshop events). We also accept online donations too! We love to see that people are visiting our website and finding out food security! For that, we thank you in helping to spread the word to your family, friends and neighbours.



Sponsors



Thank you to the various sponsors in 2015! We hope that we will continue with great partnerships and gain new partners for 2016! Thank you for your support of our programs and services.

• Burnaby Hospital Foundation


• Burnaby Meals on Wheels 


• Burnaby Public Library


• Edmonds Community School


• Edmonds People in Community (EPIC)


• United Steel Workers Union Local 1-1937


• Vancity

We would love to see that everyone has access to more local and nutritious foods for 2016 (and beyond).



We wish you and your family a safe and healthy new year! Thank you for your support!