Why I Eat the Way I Eat

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in Health & Beauty | 3 Comments

“. . . .how and what we eat determines to a great extent the use we make of the world–and what is to become of it. To eat with a fuller consciousness of all that is at stake might sound like a burden, but in practice few things in life afford quite as much satisfaction.”
― Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma)

It’s rather amusing to observe both online and offline how heated, personal and controversial such a simple topic like food is. What starts out as a conversation about whether you like your eggs scrambled, fried or poached can quickly escalate to the heated debate over the state of the industry and factory farming, grain-fed versus pasture-raised and the unequivocal right of the chicken to a free life. As I’m sure you’ve experienced, food has the ability to cause entire rifts throughout communities, friendship circles and other organised bodies of people. For something so seemingly innocent, food is possibly one of THE hottest topics you can exchange opinions about in conversation with someone, maybe only trailing behind politics, religion, Miley Cyrus’ tongue and what Miranda Kerr eats for breakfast.

Crispy Vanilla and Cinnamon Almonds (Raw, Sprouted and Dehydrated)

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in Recipes | Leave a comment

If you’re in California, you have to get your hands on some organic, raw almonds (you know, the real unpasteurized ones). It is the home state of almonds after all, or at least in the US? Crazy as it sounds, a lot of almonds sold in the grocery stores aren’t really ‘raw’ despite the misleading labeling. The FDA-led enforcement for this ruling was attributed to a couple linked outbreaks of salmonella back in 2001 and 2004. So a few isolated cases have now been used as an excuse for the government dictating the rules of engagement within the almond industry. Clearly the issue isn’t about the almonds though because Californian producers can still export unpasteurized overseas and you can still buy raw almonds direct from producers. I’m not about to delve into the real issue here, like the price control wars and unfair regulations disadvantaging the small players in the market. Let’s save those ones for when we talk over a glass of wine together.

The Eating Local while Travelling Challenge

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in EcoTravel | 1 Comment

When I raised my hand to participate in Ever Growing Farm’s Local Bite Challenge, I thought it’d be a walk in the park. Literally, a blissful Sunday afternoon stroll through the local recreational park. HA! Had I suddenly forgotten that I was travelling through North, Central and South America for the unforeseeable future?!

Why Paleo and Permaculture Go Hand in Hand

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in EcoLiving | 3 Comments

Paleo and Permaculture. Permaculture and Paleo. There’s a certain ring to it, no? We’ve all heard of the Paleo Diet. If you haven’t, well, good for you. You probably don’t use the internet that much anyway. Double thumbs up. For the rest of us clawing at our keyboards far too much, we know it as a way of eating that focuses on eating grass-fed meats, pasture-raised eggs, organic vegetables, fruits, a healthy dose of quality fats, seeds, nuts and some extend it to include raw and cultured dairy (aka, ‘Primal’, as coined by Mark Sisson over at Mark’s Daily Apple).

Slow Cooked Red Wine Beef and Mushrooms served on a warm cozy bed of Parsnip Puree

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment

If you want to romance me, serve me up some red wine and beautifully cooked beef (grass-fed of course) and you’ll have won my heart over. Somewhat depressingly, I romance myself over with a dish like this red wine beef and mushrooms. You know those meals you cook and you high five yourself and you kind of just wish you had someone there to share the experience with? Yeah well, that never happens to me. I’ll never admit to that. Thankfully I more often than not have family and friends to make up for that vacant space to wine and dine with.

Adventures in Building a BioFilter Duckpond

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in EcoLiving, Home & Garden | 2 Comments

I’m sure when my friends decided to undertake this biofilter duckpond project, they had no idea what was to come.

Many observed from the sidelines and would remark how they were totally, whole-heartedly and utterly, in over their heads.

Paleo Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore with a Sweet Potato Mash

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in Recipes | Leave a comment

When you don’t feel like cooking, you should turn to your humble slow cooker. Everything can just be chucked in and left to stew away. If you have a few staple recipes under your belt, like this one or even this one, you’ll always be able to impress not only yourself, but any guest. Really, slow cooking is the cheats way to a good, fool-proof meal.

To Garden or Not to Garden? The Secret to a Successful Garden That’ll Make You Say Yes

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Emily Uebergang Posted in EcoLiving | Leave a comment

To Garden or Not to Garden? The Secret to a Successful Garden That'll Make You Say Yes! - The Urban Ecolife

To garden or not to garden?

That is the question.

If you’re anything like me, once upon a time I fretted at the very thought. My poor cacti would shrivel up and die at the mere sight of my beady eyes. The touch of my fingers on the petal of a flower would cause the whole plant to keel over and decompose. My thumb was more ghastly black than eco-friendly green. It was like there was some underground secret to the gardening process that I was not privy to.