Author Archive | Jennie Lyon

Link Love from Cascadian Farm

Sweet Greens article ‘Green Valentines for Kids’ was featured in Cascadian Farm’s 5 great links from the feed. How lovely is that? There are many other great links featured too. You can learn how to homemade peanut butter cups or crowd pleasing chili. These would be perfect for Super Bowl Sunday, no?

Enjoy.
Xo

New Sponsor:: Beans Things

I would like to introduce you to another lovely sponsor, Beans Things. You will remember Beans Things from their fantastic Cabochon earrings giveaway. Beans Things owner Jeanna has been creating things her entire life and has always been conscious of her impact on the environment. Jeanna creates beautiful jewelry and fun items for your home that is made from upcycled items. You should definitely stop by Beans Things to see all of the lovely items that would make perfect gifts just in time for Valentine’s Day.
A lovely thank you for Beans Things for joining Sweet Greens.

Enjoy.
XO.

Eat in Season with Eco Guest Sara Morris @ Sprouted Kitchen

I love to meet other green minded individuals and to hear what they are doing to help our planet. Since there are so many lovely greenies out there, I want to start sharing some of them with, lovely readers. Sweet Greens has had the pleasure to work with Rikkianne from Chakra Pennywhistle, who taught us about the wonderful group, Team Eco Etsy. And today, I want to introduce you to Sara from Sprouted Kitchen. Sound familiar? I featured a fabulous Peach Creme with Gingersnap Crust from Sprouted Kitchen here. You may also remember that Sprouted Kitchen is a collaboration between Sara who cooks the most amazing recipes using only local and organic foods and her love, Hugh who does all of the fab photography. Now, Sara will tell us a little more about herself and Sprouted Kitchen.

Growing up, our family ate all types of produce all year long. I had no idea that tomatoes tasted better in the late summer months, or that the reason the greens were so much ‘greener’ in the early winter, was because that was their season. As I began to cook for myself, and took classes at my college that was agriculturally focused, I learned what a huge difference it makes to cook with foods that are in season. It is like eating happy vegetables, and who doesn’t like a happy vegetable? Winter does not exactly bring us a bounty of produce, but there are always options. Broccoli for example, can be made into a salad, baked in a creamy gratin, steamed and served with whole grain… it is quite versatile. The color is just gorgeous, and I love making enough leftovers so I have something healthy to snack on throughout the week. I highly suggest and love this Emerald Salad which is perfect for fresh winter produce. The goal with Sprouted Kitchen is to keep things seasonal and encourage readers to eat at home with fairly simple, and healthy recipes.

After working on a farm, I now shop at farmers markets because their produce is as fresh as you can get it. They sell what is in season, so you are reminded what will have optimum taste for your cooking. By no means can one exclusively do their shopping there, but those steps make a difference and support small farmers as opposed to big corporate grocers. We can’t be perfect (I like my big brand ice creams as much as the next guy), but small changes from all of us, are what contribute to a larger shift in how our food is produced. Bring your reusable bags, cook at home, stop buying water bottles and get a Brita filter…baby steps.

Fantastic, Sara. Thank you so much for sharing and for being this month’s Eco blogger. If you eat healthy, whole foods that are in season and have been looking for an array of fabulous recipes, Sprouted Kitchen is your place. You will also love Sprouted Kitchen if crisp, clean and fresh photography is your thing. Whose thing isn’t it? If you are vegetarian, then you will find several lovely recipes that you will want to try right now. Fabulous.

I definitely want to bake these lovely Multi-grain Mini Muffins because they look delicious, but also because we love, love, love muffins at Casa de Sweet Greens. They are the perfect size for Eben’s mid morning snack. Also, on our last trip to Costco, we bought the world’s largest bag of Organic Quinoa that Mr. Sweet Greens has been experimenting with. I think that he would love the Mediterranean Quinoa Bowl. How can you go wrong, it has feta cheese!

How about you lovely readers, have you visited Sprouted Kitchen?
What recipes are you drooling to try?
What do you think of the photography?

XO.

A Valentine’s Day Scavenger Hunt.

I love, love, love Valentine’s Day. Isn’t it fun to celebrate the ones you love with sweet little surprises? Each year, I make a Valentine’s Day scavenger hunt for Eben. This is a tradition that I started when he was a toddler and is something that he and I look forward to every year. It is delightful to see his face light up.

First, I cut several hearts out of recycled paper and write a rhyming clue on each heart. I hide these hearts all over our home and yard and leave the first heart {clue} in a place where he will find it quickly. {Read:: Either the front door if it is a school day or his bedroom door if he has the day off.} The first clue will lead him to the second and so forth. At the end of the scavenger hunt, he will either find a stack of wrapped gifts {books} or a handmade gift. If I have the extra time I will sew him a lovely little friend. I made Olivia the Woodland Valentine’s Owl last Valentine’s Day. {pictured above} She is made from pieces of worn out clothing that I found in our closets. What a lovely way to upcycle a holey pair of jeans, wouldn’t you agree?

How about you lovely readers, do you make handmade goodies for your little ones?
What family traditions does your family have for Valentine’s Day?

XO.

Earth Friendly Etsy: Sew Sleepy Recycled Baby Shoes Giveaway

This week’s Earth friendly Etsy shop is Sew Sleepy. And this is an Etsy shop that all of you mommies with little ones at home will adore. Sew Sleepy is owned by a mother named Clare Dattilo. Sew Sleepy is a collection of Weecycled (recycled) shoes which are soft soled leather shoes made for babies and toddlers. All of the shoes at Sew Sleepy are handmade with 100% repurposed leather. How fantastic is that?

When Clare Datillo’s son was born she decided to quit her day job as a park ranger and stay home him. She has a love of nature and reducing waste which was the reason that she decided to start Sew Sleepy. The leather that she uses to make the shoes come from old worn garments that she finds at thrift stores, mostly old skirts, jackets and pants, as well as some upolstery scraps, She upcycles these found materials into fantastic little kicks for children. She loves to share her creativity and love for the environment with her children and uses Sew Sleepy to teach her children how to help the environment. Lovely.

Wouldn’t Weecycled Shoes look adorable on your little one? Wouldn’t they make fabulous baby shower gifts?

Clare @ Sew Sleepy has been so lovely to offer ONE of my fantastic readers, your choose of Weecycled Shoes.
A big thank you to Clare at Sew Sleepy for hosting this lovely giveaway.

How to Enter

** Visit Sew Sleepy and leave me a comment telling me which pair of Weecycled shoes you love, love, love.

Additional Entries
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Giveaway ends February 10th at 12 am EST
* UPDATE: WINNER:: #62 Rebecca Simmons. Thank you so much to everyone who entered.