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This past Sunday morning while watching news of the effects of hurricane Ike I had no idea central Ohio would also be impacted by this storm. My heart goes out to those who lost friends and family in the storm and those who had to leave their homes for safety. 

The local weather forecast for Columbus, Ohio on Sunday, September 14 called for wind gusts of about 25 miles per hour. What we actually experienced were wind gusts up to 75 miles per hour. Things were getting pretty exciting here late in the afternoon and by 4:00 pm, after seeing a few trees topple over, I realized things were probably only going to get worse. By 5:00 pm we lost power and immediately gathered candles, flashlights and spare batteries.

Going through this process was a great reminder for me that we are so fortunate to rarely deal with this type of disruption in our lives. It also made me realize that if every grocery store and restaurant within a reasonable driving distance had lost power, we probably would have been in trouble when it came time to think of a solution for dinner. Given the fact that I have a portable butane cooktop and fresh groceries were easily available meal solutions were rather easy this time around. But there is always the big “what if?”

What if the grocery stores are all closed? What if I don’t have a generator to power my refrigerator? What if I can’t get a generator? What if I can’t get ice? (This did happen here in Columbus. Ice was sold out everywhere.)

Being adaptable amidst stressful circumstances can be difficult, but is certainly necessary if you want to maintain a reasonable amount of sanity. While we personally didn’t have much adapting to do this past week, the events surrounding us certainly made me think about ways to get through more difficult circumstances.

My thought in putting this list together is not to try to figure out how to survive for a week or more but rather for a couple of days under circumstances that allow me to stay in my own home. My list focuses only on the food aspect of getting along without electricity and is based on things I would be able to cook on a portable cooktop. Since some of the things on my list are items I don’t regularly use, I’ve put a recurring reminder on my calendar to check for freshness. At the same time I can be sure to reassess the current supply of my normal staple items.

My list (in no particular order) is as follows:

• flour
• cornmeal
• salt and pepper
• spices and dried herbs
• oil
• rolled oats
• shredded wheat
• dried fruit
• nuts
• jam, jelly or fruit butter
• onions
• potatoes
• ground flax seed
• baking powder
• baking soda
• single serving size packages of soy milk in aseptic containers
• canned diced tomatoes
• canned beans
• lentils
• dried carrots and celery
• jar peanut butter
• elbow macaroni
• packets of instant miso soup
• tofu in aseptic containers

Having these items on hand would allow us to eat cold cereal or hot oatmeal with milk, fruit and nuts for breakfasts. For lunches we can enjoy peanut butter and jam on flat bread. For dinners or lunches we can have lentil soup, vegan macaroni and cheese, miso soup with tofu or beans and rice with tortillas. While this list does not afford the luxury of fresh vegetables, I think it would be a pretty good variety in a pinch.

In the coming weeks, I will share some recipes with you that utilize items on this list so you can use them yourself or be inspired to come up with a few things on your own that would better suit your family’s preferences. One of the most important things for me in putting this list together is that while these meal ideas lack fresh produce they are still nourishing, filling and much more healthful than boxed convenience foods.

I would love to hear about the things you’d add to the list and what some of your meal ideas would be. What creative meals and methods of cooking did/have you come up with during periods without electricity?

In the last couple of weeks at Vegan Bits, Lane started a discussion about natto. Having multi-generational familiarity with natto, I thought I’d share some additional information to help uninitiated westeners navigate this unusual food.

Like so many other great foods out there, natto was invented quite by accident according to Hiroko Shimbo, in “The Japanese Kitchen”. This accidental invention involved a bacteria residing in rice straw. Before natto was packaged in styrofoam or plastic containers it was once sold in wrappers of rice straw. Shimbo also explains that until not that long ago there were some places in Japan where natto was not a popular food item!

Natto is made by inoculating cooked soybeans with the natto bacteria and allowing them to ferment. Fresh natto is best eaten within the first few days, but freezes very well. I buy my natto from the freezer section of the Japanese market. It usually comes packaged in sets of 3 small foam or plastic containers weighing about 1.75 oz. each.

Natto is a good source of calcium, iron and magnesium. It is a very easily digestible protein and the fermentation gives the added bonus of supplying vitamin B12 - an important nutrient for those adhering to a vegan diet.

Shimbo recommends trying natto with miso soup. I second that recommendation as it makes the acquired taste of natto completely disappear.

For using in miso soup, remove natto from one 1.75 oz. package and rinse in a colander. Roughly chop, add to the soup water and cook for a couple of minutes before continuing with the recipe. If desired you can use a bit of the mustard sauce included with the natto as a garnish for the soup.

One last note for vegans and vegetarians: When shopping for natto, you may notice on some packages the addition of bonito flakes or extract. Typically this is part of the soy sauce mixture contained in a tiny sealed plastic packet with the natto. If you have no qualms about buying this and simply throwing it away, it will make your search for a dietarily acceptable natto much easier.

Those of you looking to try new healthful foods or in search of a way to enjoy natto, I hope you try it in the soup. Let me know how it goes.

Over the last few weeks I have been thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to receive a large box of freshly picked fruit and other produce from Wayward Seed Farm at their stall outside North Market.

My husband and I had been trying to purchase a CSA share for the last couple of years and finally, this winter, Wayward Seed announced they were putting together their first CSA program. I was so excited I could hardly wait for the first Saturday in June when we were scheduled to make our first pick-up. Not ever having had the opportunity to participate in community supported agriculture, I was a bit nervous about whether or not we’d be able to consume everything we received. Another concern was whether or not we’d be eating the same thing all week long.

Little did I know, I had nothing to worry about. We’ve been receiving berries, asparagus, herbs, scallions, radishes and turnips, but what I’m really enjoying the most are the greens. Greens are so versatile and so nutritious at the same time. We’ve had greens and beans (a classic Italian dish); we enjoyed some fine arugula combined with our salad mix and had some of it wilted with shallots. We’ve also stir-fried baby bok choy, blanched and sauteed broccolini for an incredibly flavorful and light dinner with pasta, and rescued some salad greens that might not have been eaten by using them in place of escarole in Italian wedding soup.

Finally, this week we’ll be taking some time to enjoy a beautiful head of Chinese cabbage (maybe sauteed in duck fat!) as an accompaniment to miso soup and edamame.

If you find it challenging to figure out ways to use the abundance of greens available this year or have resisted participating in community supported agriculture for fear that you wouldn’t know what to do with your groceries, send me a note. I’d love to throw more ideas your way.

Miso Soup

• 2 cups dashi (or water or kelp stock)
• 3 1/2 tablespoons shiro (white) miso
• Optional garnish:
• cubed tofu
• sliced scallion
• instant wakame (sea vegetable)

If using wakame, soak in cold water for 2 minutes, drain and set aside.

Bring dashi to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat to medium and stir in miso until it dissolves. Do not allow the miso to boil.

If using, add tofu and allow to cook for 30-60 seconds until tofu is heated through. Add the wakame, ladle into bowls, top with scallions and serve.

Notes:

Click here for a printer friendly version of this recipe.

and easy ways to add it to your diet

You’ve heard quite a bit in recent years concerning the health benefits of soy. Of particular interest are the isoflavones in soy anticarcinogens which are similar in structure to estrogen. These isoflavones have made the consumption of soy foods a popular way to help fight disease. Soy remains to be the only significant dietary source of these amazing isoflavones in addition to being a complete source of protein high in fiber and low in cholesterol.

A few of the health benefits of soy include:  lowering LDL cholesterol, regulating glucose levels, retaining and absorbing calcium while slowing bone loss and inhibiting bone breakdown and providing antioxidants that can improve blood pressure and reduce plaque.

I grew up eating soy on a regular basis and have been impressed with the effort made by many to learn to like soy and find ways to incorporate it into their western diets. While I have heard success stories of those who have found a way to enjoy soy, I have heard many more comments from individuals who say they know they should be eating more, but they just haven’t learned to like it. I believe one of the secrets of enjoying the soy in your diet is to use it in traditional preparations.

One simple way to do this that takes no cooking skill whatsoever is to make yourself a bowl of miso* soup. If you can boil water and stir, you can make miso soup! Another wonderful and easy way to incorporate soy is to use miso as a flavoring in dressings and marinades or to use cubed firm tofu as an addition to your stir fry.

I grew up eating miso soup for breakfast on a regular basis. Maybe having soup for breakfast doesn’t appeal to you, but it can be easily enjoyed as a healthful lunch or a light dinner with some broiled fish and steamed vegetables. If you like to try new foods and are looking for a flavorful way to experience food that is good for your health try my recipe for Miso & Ginger Red Snapper.

*Miso is a paste made of fermented soy beans. It can be found at Japanese/Asian markets and natural food stores. It is also becoming more widely available at larger chain grocery stores.