Win $500 from Marvin's Organic Gardens

Today is the day! The big day! The day we announce how you can WIN $500 towards a landscape job from Marvin's Organic Gardens!

We know that it is cold outside - and today, there is even snow on the ground. But think about April and May - when the sun is out and the ground is starting to get warm. New growth is showing up all around you. Your neighbors are in their yards preparing their beds and mowing their lawns. WAIT! You take a look around your yard and it is NOT looking like what you want it to look at. Actually - you have been looking at it this way for a few years but haven't done anything about it. You are just so busy that you haven't had time - and even if you did have the time, you would have no idea about how to even start.

Well, before you just start tearing things out of your yard and pouring gravel over all your grass so you don't have to worry about it anymore, Marvin's Organic Gardens wants to help you - by giving away $500 to one lucky Facebook Fan, to use towards their landscaping job this Spring. That's right - $500 to start the makeover in your yard.

All you have to do to be entered to win is become a Fan of Marvin's Organic Gardens on Facebook. Here's the deal though - we MUST have 650 Fans by January 15th, 2010 in order to give away the prize - and we need your help to do this. Tell your friends, your family, your co-workers to become Fans of Marvin's Organic Gardens on Facebook. The easiest way to do this is by going to the Marvin's Organic Gardens page on Facebook and clicking on the "Suggest To Friends" button on the top left of your screen (right under our logo). Then, you can select everyone you want to send a suggestion to.

Want another way to be entered to win? Leave a comment on our blog and we will enter your name in to the drawing again! If you leave 5 comments, we will enter your name 5 more times! You still have to be a Facebook fan, but this gives you additional chances to win that $500!

Here are the rules:
1. Promotion is running from December 21st through January 31st.
2. In order for us to give away this prize, we MUST have AT LEAST 650 fans by January 31st, 2010!
3. You MUST be a fan of Marvin's Organic Gardens on Facebook to be entered to win.
4. This prize is non-transferable and cannot be split between multiple people.
5. The prize is $500 to be used towards a landscape job with Marvin's Organic Gardens.
6. Prize will be announced and winner will be contacted by February 15th, 2010.

Got questions, email Audrey and she can answer all your questions.
Thank you for all your support and good luck!

Winter Potpourri

INGREDIENTS:

- 6 Cinnamon sticks

- Several Pinecones

- 2 cups Dried Sage

- Grated & dried Citrus Peel

- Allspice, whole or ground

- 1 cup Fresh Balsam or Evergreen needles

- 2 cups Juniper berries

- 20 drops of your favorite natural scented oil

(such as winterberry, peppermint or lavender)

DIRECTIONS:

Toss and place in a decorative bowl. Smell and enjoy!

Easy Corn Chowder

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 onion, chopped

- 3 cups milk

- S&P to taste

- 4 slices bacon, diced

- 1 (14.75 oz) can cream-style corn

- 1 1/2 cups cubed potatoes

- 1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream

of mushroom soup

DIRECTIONS:

In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute bacon and onions until onions are tender, about 7 minutes. Add the corn, potatoes, soup, milk, and salt & pepper. Raise heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer about 25-35 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Recipe of the Month- Easy Pumpkin Pie

INGREDIENTS:

- 3/4 cup sugar

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1 can (15 oz) pumpkin

- 1 1/4 cup evaporated milk

- 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

- 2 eggs, beaten

- 1 pie crust

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 425°. In large bowl, mix filling ingredients. Pour into pie crust. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°; bake 40-50 minutes longer or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool for 2 hours. Serve or refrigerate until serving time. Top with whipped cream or serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Store in refrigerator.

Recipe of the Month -Hot Mulled Cider

INGREDIENTS:

- 1/2 gallon of fresh, unfiltered apple cider

- 1 orange

- 15 cloves

- 4 3-inch sticks of cinnamon

- 15 allspice berries

- 1 teaspoon of nutmeg

- 7 pods of cardamon

- 1/4 cup brown sugar

DIRECTIONS:

Put cider into a 3qt saucepan, cover, turn the heat on medium-high. While

cider is heating up, take a vegetable peeler and peel away a couple thick strips of peel from the orange. Press about half of the cloves into the peeled part of the orange. Place orange, orange peel strips, the remaining cloves, and the rest of the ingredients into the sauce pan with the cider.

Keep covered and heat the mulled cider mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes on low heat. Strain the hot mulled cider away from the orange, cloves, and other spices. Serve hot. Add a cinnamon stick to each cup if desired.

* You can add a touch of bourbon, brandy, or rum!

Recipe Of The Month - Fresh Pico De Gallo

INGREDIENTS:

- 8-10 Roma tomatoes (seeded)

- 1/2 Red onion (to taste)

- 1 Jalapeno pepper (or more to taste)

- 2 Medium cloves garlic

- Juice of one lime

- 1 Tablespoon olive oil

- 4 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

- 1 Teaspoon coarse salt

- 1/2 Teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Seed and dice tomatoes. Chop onion, jalapeno and garlic to a fine consistency. To these ingredients, add the fresh cilantro, salt, pepper, olive oil and lime. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy!

Recipe Of The Month - Blueberry Jam

INGREDIENTS:

- 6 cups blueberries

- 7 cups sugar

- 2 (3 oz) packs of pectin

- 3/4 tsp unsalted butter

- 3 tbsp lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the blueberries, lemon juice and 3 and a half cups of sugar in a pan and let stand for 1 hour. After 1 hour, add the remaining sugar and place the pan over a medium-high heat; stir constantly until the sugar dissolves. Bring the mix to a boil for two minutes. Remove the pan from the flame and skim off any foam that accumulates. Place the pan over the heat again for 1 minute to boil. Again, remove and skim off the foam. Add the butter and bring the mixture to a boil again. Add the pectin and stir constantly. Boil for 1 minute. Skim off the foam. Allow the jam to cool for 7 minutes before adding it to canning jars. Close the jars and bath them in 250-degree water for 10 minutes to create a seal.

Recipe of the Month- Turkey Stuffed Peppers

 
 INGREDIENTS:
 - 1 lb. ground turkey
 - 1/2 c. instant rice
 - 1/2 c. grated carrot
 - 1/4 c. chopped onion
 - 3 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
 - 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
 - 1 (12 oz.) can tomato sauce, divided
 - 4 sm. green peppers
 
 DIRECTIONS:
Combine turkey, rice, carrot, onion, parsley, garlic and 1 cup tomato sauce in medium bowl. Salt and pepper to taste; mix well. Cut tops off peppers. Discard seeds and membranes. Spoon turkey mixture into peppers. Arrange in baking dish 8x8x2; cover with plastic wrap. Microwave at High (100% powder) 8-10 minutes, rotating after half the cooking time, until peppers and rice are tender. Spoon remaining tomato sauce over peppers. Microwave at High(100% power) 1 minute. Let stand covered 3 minutes.

Thank you!

What a huge success thinkGREEN 2009 was!

We want to give an especially big thank you to our title sponsor, Whole Foods! We are so happy that they were a part of the event! A huge thank you also goes out to CinWeekly for being our media sponsor. We couldn't have done it all without you both.

Check out the pictures from the event here.

Thank you to all our vendors & participants from our 2nd Annual thinkGREEN Earth Day Event! What an amazing day it was! Over 750 people showed up to meet with our vendors and learn more about how to live a greener life. We hope to see you all back next year.

Basilico Organic Restaurant
EcoDiscoveries
Endeavor Learning Center
Face Painting by Tuesday
Farm Fresh Delivery
Good Natured Baby
Granny’s Garden School
GreenBird
Green Irene
Healthy Indoor Services
Imago
Lucid Salon
Mantra Wellness Center
Millcreek Restoration
Natural Awakenings Magazine
Oxygenation Station
Pure Doggy Organic Bakery
Responsible Services
Rumpke
Sheri Garrett, Sibcy Cline Green Realtor
Sunrock Farm
The Pampered Chef
The Veg Head
Smart Car
Wild Ones

Recipe of the Month - Watermelon Sorbet

Ingredients:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup corn syrup
- 4 T. lemon juice
- 3 T. grenadine
- 3 fresh mint leaves
- 1 (3lb) seedless watermelon

Directions:
In a small saucepan, bring sugar, syrup, lemon juice, grenadine & mint leaves to a boil dissolving the sugar granules. Let cool slightly. Cut the rind off the watermelon and cut into chunks. Puree half of the chopped watermelon in a blender. Strain into a large glass bowl. Repeat with remaining watermelon. Add slightly cooled syrup mixture and mix well to incorporate. Place sorbet into a 2-qt plastic container and freeze for 3-4 hours.

Recipe of the Month - Eggplant Tahini

Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 T. coconut oil
- 1 large eggplant
- 4 C. water
- 5 T. lemon juice
- 1/4 C. tahini (sesame seed paste)
- 2 T. fresh garlic, peeled & finely chopped
- 4 T. olive oil
- 1/2 C. red bell peppers, sliced
- 1/2 C. yellow bell peppers, sliced
- 1 C. roma or plum tomatoes, diced
- Sea salt & black pepper
- 2 T. fresh dill, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375º. Grease a small to medium- sized baking dish with coconut oil. Use a fork to pierce the eggplant several times, then place it in the baking dish.Bake until tender, about 45-50 minutes. Allow cooked eggplant to cool enough for you to handle it; you can place it in a large bowl of cold water to cool quickly. Remove the peel once you are able to handle it. Drain in colander until eggplant cools completely. Squeeze pulp to eliminate bitter juices, then process until smooth in a food processor.

To the eggplant puree, add lemon juice, tahini, and garlic, and process again to bring all ingredients together. In a large bowl, combine pureed eggplant mixture, olive oil, red and yellow bell peppers, tomatoes, fresh dill, sea salt, and black pepper and toss. Serve on a bed of your favorite whole grain or with toasted pita chips!

I want HR 875 and S 425 withdrawn from the floors of Congress immediately.

Please tell everyone who wants organic foods.....

CALL THE CAPITOL SWITCH BOARD at 202 - 224 - 3121 and tell them:
"I want HR 875 and S 425 withdrawn from the floors of Congress immediately."

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Monsanto-s-dream-bill-HR-by-Linn-Cohen-Cole-090309-337.html

and

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-875


US House and Senate are about (in a week and a half) to vote on bill that will OUTLAW ORGANIC FARMING (bill HR 875). There is an enormous rush to get this into law within the next 2 weeks before people realize what is happening.

Main backer and lobbyist is Monsanto – chemical and genetic engineering giant corporation (and Cargill, ADM, and about 35 other related agri-giants). This bill will require organic farms to use specific fertilizers and poisonous insect sprays dictated by the newly formed agency to "make sure there is no danger to the public food supply". This will include backyard gardens that grow food only for a family and not for sales.

If this passes then NO more heirloom clean seeds but only Monsanto genetically altered seeds that are now showing up with unexpected diseases in humans.

There is a video on the subject.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epXNJNjYBvw&feature=related

And another one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeWVkTU1s1E

The name on this outrageous food plan is:
Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 (bill HR 875).

THIS IS REAL, FOLKS! PASS THIS ALONG TO ALL CONCERNED ON YOUR MAILING LISTS & CALL YOUR SENATE REPS TODAY!

Get on that phone and burn up the wires. Get anyone else you can to do the same thing. The House and Senate WILL pass this if they are not massively threatened with loss of their position...They only fear your voice and your vote.

The best thing to do is go to www.house.gov/writerep. All you have to do is put in your zip and it will give you your congressperson and how to get in touch with them. When you call their office someone will answer the phone, just tell them (politely) that you are calling to express your views on HR 875. Tell them your views, they'll take your name and address and pass your comments along to the congressperson.

The following link is a list of the U.S. senators and their contact info:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Jamaican Jerk Sauce

This recipe is for "Jamaican Jerk Sauce". Its time to start firing up the grills, and enjoy the coming spring! Jerk sauce is essentially a sweet and spicy glaze, almost a caribean BBQ. Jerk refers to the fact that the sauce is usually used on "jerked" chicken, meaning chicken that is slow grilled and pulled, but you can literally put it on anything and get great results.

In Jamaica, real jerk chicken is slow cooked over an open fire, utilizing the wood from the Pimento tree, not the pimento pepper plant, which allspice is harvested. Additionally, the main spice in the sauce is allspice, which is not a blend of spices, but a berry on a tree. Think of allspice as a more fragrant type of peppercorn. There is a lot of sweetener in Jerk, be it Molasses or brown sugar, so remember not to put the food over a fire, but to the side of it instead, to keep the sweetener from burning on your food.

While we're on the subject, I'll explain the difference between BBQ'ing and grilling. When you put food directly in the path of heat, it is called "Grilling". Grilling is done at a much hotter temperature, than BBQ-ing. Hotter temperatures mean a few things: If you are cooking a protein, i.e., meat or fish, the protein will contract faster at higher temperatures, which is why your burgers always end up meatballs instead of nice flat patties. The other bad thing about high heat, is that fat cooks out too fast to be absorbed into the protein, which is why less fatty proteins should be cooked slow and low, and fatty cuts can be cooked at high temps. For example, you grill steaks, but not briskets or ribs.

The trick to cooking Jerk food properly is to BBQ it, not grill it. In BBQ cooking, the food should NOT be in the path of the heat. When you build your fire in the grill, build it to one side, and put the food on the other, and SHUT THE LID! By doing this, you will basically slow cook the food like an oven, and simultaneously smoke it. It will take considerably longer, but it's always nice to enjoy some time to yourself and enjoy the great outdoors, especially in the spring. If you can get some nice real wood (or wood chips), cedar, alder apple or cherry, use it. You will be really impressed by the flavor difference.

WILDFLOWER JERK SAUCE
Makes 1 quart, which is a lot — but it lasts almost forever — and you will become addicted to it! Very easy to make, just put it all in a blender and puree!

- 2 Tbl Allspice
- 2 Tbl fresh Thyme or about a 3 or 4 sprigs 6" long or so (Marvins has a great Thyme called "Lemon Thyme" that is perfect for this)
- 1/2 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, or an orange Habenero (This is one of the signature ingredients, but it is very hot, wear gloves when you touch it. You can add more or less to taste when you are finished blending it.)
- 1 tsp Black pepper
-2 fresh Sage leaves
- 8 gloves of garlic
- 2 cups of Molasses (or brown sugar)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 3/4 cup wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup Organic Orange Juice
- Juice of 4 limes
- 2 whole green onions, more if you like green onions
- 1 cup of diced sweet onions
- a couple of scrapes of Nutmeg
- a big pinch of ground cinnamon
- Salt to taste, but you don't have to have it in this one!

Turn on the reggae, grab a cold beverage and enjoy!

Our Title Sponsor for thinkGREEN 2009!

Whole Foods (Deerfield Towne Center & Rookwood) have agreed to be this year's thinkGREEN title sponsor! We are so excited to have them be a part of this year's event again! Please mark your calendars for April 25th from noon til 6:30pm for the thinkGREEN Earth Day event! For more information go to the Marvin's Organic Gardens website.

If you are intersted in participating in the event as a vendor, please contact Audrey Keyes at 513-984-8278 or Drew Overbeck at 513-200-4872.

thinkGREEN 2009

Saturday, April 25th • Noon-6:30pm • Marvin’s Organic Gardens
Don't miss out on the second annual thinkGREEN event, presented by and held at Marvin's Organic Gardens. An educational day for the entire family including music, food, activities, door prizes, lectures, vendors and resources - all with one common goal - to educate our community on the environment and learning to live "green". This event is free and open to the public. Bring the whole family – we will have something for everyone!

Don’t miss out on the petting farm! It is baby animal time and your kids are going to love petting the babies brought to Marvin’s from Sunrock Farm. They will only be there from 1:00- 3:00pm, so don’t miss out!

*Interested in participating as a vendor/resource/sponsor at the thinkGreen event?
Contact us at info@marvinsorganicgardens.com or call Audrey Keyes at 513-984-8278.

February Recipe from Wildflower Cafe & Coffeehouse

Each month, Executive Chef & Owner of the Wildflower Café, TODD HUSDON, will be sharing an organic recipe with you! The Wildflower Café is an all-organic restaurant located at:
207 E. Main Street • Mason, OH 45040.

For more information, visit www.wildflowercafeandcoffeehouse.com or call 513-492-7514.

Rosemary Potato Soup


Ingredients:
- 1/4 lb unsalted butter
- 1.5 cups diced yellow onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 2 whole 6” springs of rosemary
- 1 T. freshly chopped garlic
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 quart milk (organic or local, or better yet, BOTH)
- nutmeg to taste
- 1 cup mashed potatoes
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2/3 cup - 1” diced cooked potatoes
- 3 T. organic chicken base -or- 1.5 cups strong, flavorful homemade chicken stock
- 1T. all purpose seasoning
- 1 T. dried basil
- fresh ground pepper to taste
- couple dashes of hot sauce

Directions:

Make a blond roux: On low heat, melt butter. Add onion and celery to melted butter. Add sprigs of fresh rosemary, and garlic. Stir and cook until onions are clear, but not browned. Slowly add flour, and stir on low heat, until flour and butter are combined and smooth, but not brown.

Make that blond roux into a Bechamel Sauce: Add milk. Slowly cook on low heat until milk thickens a bit. Run a few scrapes of nutmeg across a planer, or cheese grater. Simmer for about 15 minutes, remove rosemary sprigs and discard them — preferably into a compost pile!

Season and adjust: Stir in cooked mashed potatoes, sour cream, diced cooked potatoes, chicken base, all purpose seasoning, basil, Fresh ground pepper to taste, a few dashes of hot sauce (it really makes it better, without adding heat). If the soup is too thick for your liking just add more milk and re-season with salt and pepper. If its too thin, let it cook and reduce.

Serve: Garnish with chopped chives or green onion, crumbled real bacon if you like, and a good shredded cheese of your choice. You can also add whatever other veggies you have, we've had good luck with asparagus. People will want you to make this one all the time.

January Recipe from Wildflower Cafe & Coffeehouse

Each month, Executive Chef & Owner of the Wildflower Café, TODD HUSDON, will be sharing an organic recipe with you! The Wildflower Café is an all-organic restaurant located at:
207 E. Main Street • Mason, OH 45040.

For more information, visit www.wildflowercafeandcoffeehouse.com or call
513-492-7514.

Artichoke Dip


Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup clarified butter
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 can of organic artichokes (quartered)
- 12 oz Monterey Jack Cheese
- 12 oz Shredded Parmesan
- 12 oz organic sour cream
- 1/2 cup local and or organic whole milk

Directions:
Mix everything together, but only use half the Monterey Jack, because the rest of it needs to go on top when you bake it. Bake on 350˚ until the top is golden and bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips or oven toasted pita's! You can also add other ingredients that you favor — i.e. organic spinach, etc. Be prepared though, people will want you to make this one all the time.