Tag Archives: community

D.C. Vegetarian Cooking Group to hold farmers market brunch

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brunch spread

The D.C. Vegetarian Cooking Group has announced that it will put local fare at the center of its June event. Jack Zahora, who heads the group that meets once a month for a pot luck meal or restaurant outing, is encouraging the members to shop at an area farmers market the weekend of June 5, whip up dishes based on the ingredients they purchase, and show them off at a brunch on June 6. The event will take place at the grill-equipped Columbia Heights home of one of the members.

This event comes at an opportune time, as the Columbia Heights Community Marketplace is slated to open that weekend, and the home-hosted brunch is becoming all the rage  in D.C.

Zahora, a D.C.-based journalist, has given a preview of the spread. He plans to make a vegetable frittata, baked mostachioli, mimosas, and grilled tomato sandwiches. Other items on the menu include vegan quinoa salad with vegetables, Belgian waffles, and sorbet.

D.C. Vegetarian Cooking Group Farmers Market Brunch

June 6, 1 p.m.

Columbia Heights

For more information, go to the group’s website, Facebook page, or Twitter feed. To join the group and find out the particulars of the brunch location, email Jack Zahora.

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Crossroads update: Going the extra mile (or 10)!

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Ellen and Rhea kick booty

The Crossroads spirit was with me on Sunday. At 6 a.m., I headed down to the starting line of Washington D.C.’s Marine Corps Marathon decked out in my Crossroads Farmers Market shirt and fortified by a well-wishing card from the market’s director. (For anyone interested, my tummy was fortified by some organic coffee and a PB & J on sprouted grain bread–what I’ve found to be an excellent pre-race snack).

I went into this knowing that the campaign to rejuvenate the Crossroads’ Fresh Checks program for low-income shoppers through writing articles about it and running 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) had not actually reached its goal. My attempt at a charitable and world-healing act–an act of tikkun olam–had raised awareness and monetarily netted just shy of $700 ($698 to be exact) in donations. My goal was $1,000, but I was pretty sure I had reached my limit. The market managers had sent the ask to their supporters and shoppers, too, so together we had tried the best we could. Continue reading →

Eggrolls, tummy bulge, and the food revolution

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Eggrolls and tummy bulge. Those were the concerns of Cornell University researches in a study released last year in the journal Obesity, but the research–and the discussion about it–may have fallen short.

The study tracked the habits of people with various body mass indexes (BMIs) at a Chinese buffet, and found several differences in the actions of people with high and low BMIs. All good and helpful, I say.

Then this week, David Zinczenko, co-author of the hit Eat This, Not That! book series, turned the findings into a guide to the habits of people who qualified as obese versus their daintier lo mein-slurping counterparts. The top two Zinczenko singles out:

  • They use larger plates. When offered two plate sizes, 98.6 percent of those with the highest BMIs took the larger of the two plates to the buffet. A bigger plate tricks your eye into thinking you’re not eating as much, and stuffing more food onto your plate — and into your mouth. Use a smaller plate, get a smaller belly.
  • They eat while looking at food. 41.7 percent of those with high BMIs took seats that overlooked the buffet, instead of sitting in a booth or facing in a different direction. The site of food tends to make our minds think we have more work to do, eating-wise. Keep your food stored in the fridge or the pantry, not out on the countertops. Continue reading →