Fresh Baked Goodness

I'm not sure why I felt compelled into an evening of baking on the hottest day of the year so far. Maybe it was the ripened bananas calling to me from the freezer every time I refreshed the ice in my glass. Maybe the 3 unopened bags of sugar that have been sitting around since my last SuperFresh sale binge. Or, maybe my lack of bikram this week had me craving some real heat. Whatever it was, I found myself flitting about in front of a hot oven as Philadelphia finished out its third day of 80+ degree weather.

First came Banana Raisin Oat Muffins. I adapted these from a Banana Oat recipe I found on AllRecipes.com to make them vegan, and because I like raisins and have a lot of them at the moment.

Next came one of my new all-time favorite, go-to recipes. It's the East Coast Coffee Cake from Isa Chandra Moskowitz. She's written a couple of incredible vegan cookbooks and runs the Post Punk Kitchen Web site. As for the recipe, I have always gone for the banana variation. I'm not very strict with my baking, so sometimes I add one, two or even three bananas (scandal!) and it always works out deliciously.

And we can't forget how those carrots kept staring at me yesterday until I gave them purpose in these Carrot Raisin Sunflower Seed Muffins. I don't remember where I got the recipe from, I found it jotted on one of those tiny memo pad sheets and stuffed in my recipe box. These are great with a little jam because they aren't too sweet.

I'm looking forward to a fresh baked breakfast tomorrow morning when the temperatures drop down to a frigid 55 degrees. Do you think I'll need mittens to survive the morning commute?

Check this out

Some train of thought earlier today led me to the conclusion that I must know the elevation and exact location of Philadelphia. Well, I did one better. Not only did I get the 411 on Philly, but I've got specific stats on little Fishtown as well.



Play around on THIS SITE. You can chose which layers of the maps to see, revealing data on forest coverage, congressional districts and arsenic in ground water!

Word on a Whim: Part I

I have a certain affinity for fun words. Among my current favorites are curmudgeon, pernicious, tenterhooks and pandiculate. Thanks to my fellow logophiles who've introduced me to those prime picks. Having a great new word to familiarize yourself with can make you notice what was once overlooked and is always a great conversation starter. I've subscribed to Dictionary.com's Word-of-the-Day emails and gotten juicy bobbles like gallimaufry and exegesis, and the GREs have graciously introduced me to obsequious and vituperative. So, here's to filling your mind's tool box.
Somewhat ironically, I came across today's Word on a Whim reading a book on Applied Positive Psychology.

Ineluctable: (adj.)unavoidable, not able to be escaped.

Take a look at the changing face of our state forests...

The lack of consideration given to our nation's dwindling natural resources astounds me. By natural resources I do not mean oil reserves or coal mines, but the very few acres of untouched, undomesticated land.

Yesterday's front page feature story in the Philadelphia Inquirer was about the Marcellus Shale (a natural gas field formation hanging out more than a mile underground most of PA, as well as parts of VA and NY). Once thought to be a relatively worthless venture, drilling the Shale for natural gas is now proving to be quite profitable and hundreds of contracts are cropping up to establish new rigs. What struck me was the tone of the article, focusing more on how the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) is going to deal with all the incoming bids rather than what impact the influx of drilling will do to state forests occupying the land over the Shale.

Only one conservationist was cited among all the sources, urging the DCNR to hold back on granting more contracts until further research is done to establish the long-term effects of hundreds of new rigs, each of which takes up at least three to four acres. According to the article, the stance taken by the DCNR is that they have to balance the "environmental integrity of the forest" with "the Commonwealth's financial interests". Side note: PA stands to gain about 12% in royalties. Most of the studies I could find online about the Marcellus Shale were conducted in the name of potential economic benefit of the drilling, not environmental impact.

I know it is not new news, but the lack of concern for forestland still shocks me. I give Kristin, pursuing her Master's in Geography, credit for studying the consequences of this apathy every day. I only hope the day when businessmen and industrialists listen to voice of reason there will still be enough trees left to shade my picnic blanket.