Nine years ago, Sandy Pukel decided to take veganism and macrobiotics on the high seas.  Since then, every spring, a huge cruise ship hauls just under a thousand of us pasty health food freaks out into the sunshine of the Caribbean.  If you've never been, I can't recommend it enough.

Next Spring, the ship is leaving Fort Lauderdale on March 3rd and cruising until the 10th.  An early booking discount is still available until October 20th.  Click here to get registration details:

Here are the five reasons you should go:

1.  The Food.  Commandeered by Mark Hanna  (total genius, cookbook author and my ex-next door neighbor) and his crew, every meal is a multi-course, plant-based mouthgasm.  AND if you're not feeling particularly virtuous, you can still order from the regular ship's menu, even from our groovy dining room.  But that rarely happens.  The food is REALLY good.

Because the food is so good, and so healthy, instead of gaining weight and feeling like a weeble  by Thursday, you actually begin to feel fantastic come mid-week.  Smiles become spontaneous, steps lighten and skin glows throughout our half of the ship.

2.  The Classes.  This cruise is not just about the food, or the Caribbean.  All day, every day, there are classes given by some of the greatest holistic and plant-based thinkers in the world.  Dr. Neal Barnard (Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine) Dr. Colin Campbell, (The China Study, Forks over Knives) and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn are the headliners with lots of heavy-hitting macro teachers and Yogi Amrit Desai to keep us all calm.  The cooking classes will be taught by the inimitable Christina Pirello, and yours truly.  All this amazing information, in the form of lectures, workshops and cooking classes, is a kind of mental and spiritual food that is deeply nourishing.  One walks around the ship thinking "I'm so glad I'm here!!"

3.  The People.  I try to sit with new people at every meal.  The stories that come out of them are mindblowing.  Recoveries from cancer.  Families just trying it out.  Longtime vegans with a passion for the planet.  Everyone has a story.  Everyone is interesting.  And everyone cares.

4.  The Ship.  MSC is a lovely Italian cruise line.  In the spirit of La Dolce Vita, they go OVER THE TOP in many ways.  The design of the ship itself is romantic and colorful.  There are lots of pools, bars, a spa and even a Japanese restaurant on board!  Check out the ship by clicking here.  

5.  The Caribbean.  Oh yeah.  I forgot.  Did I mention that you're floating around on the bluest sea, stopping at ports of call throughout the region?   I know it seems crazy to mention it last, but the other stuff really–amazingly–trumps even mother Nature.  The Caribbean just becomes a breathtaking backdrop to a fantastic experience.  You can get off the ship and explore the islands as much as you want.  Or stay on the ship and take a class.  No pressure.  YOU'RE ON VACATION!

If you know me personally, you know that I am a horrible salesperson.  I'm usually like "uh… I mean if you want to try this thing… I mean, you don't have to… it's not a big deal…. really, don't do it".  I'm usually sort of an anti-salesman, having been trained by Canadian culture to never step on any toe, real or imagined.  But the cruise is different.  It is 100% unadulterated, healthy, silly fun.  I recommend it to all my friends, veggie or otherwise.  You won't regret it.

And the prices?  Very reasonable, considering everything you get.  Check it out.  And tell them I sent ya!  I'll see you in March!

Jessica

You see, I went to Israel in December and had one of the best times of my life.  Between the landscape, the history, the people  and the classes I taught , it was an incredibly rich and layered experience. 

Hence, the blogstipation.  There is just too much to say. 

So, after ruminating on the topic for a while now, I have decided to distill the Israel experience down to its most meaningful element and the one that has lingered the longest; friendship.

I was invited to Israel by two friends, Sheldon and Ginat Rice .  They are both American Jews who moved back to the Holy Land and currently live in Jerusalem.  They are also both macrobiotic; Sheldon got into it over 20 years ago in order to dissolve a tumor discovered in his abdomen, and Ginat had stumbled upon macrobiotics in her early 20s… being a groovy, hip chick… and even ran a macro restaurant in Boston in the '80s. 15 years ago, Sheldon, being single after a long first marriage, and father to three daughters, held a macro potluck at his home in Jersalem.  Ginat showed up and the rest is history.  He proposed within a month !

Together Ginat and Sheldon have helped nurture a small but vital macrobiotic community in their area.  They work under the name of The Rice House and for years they have given lectures, classes and held potlucks.  Recently, they've decided to start importing teachers from the rest of the world… Michael Rossoff  had been over to give consulations and lectures… Christina Pirello  had a cooking class tour… and last spring, on the Taste of Health Cruise (coming up soon on Feb. 27th–JOIN US!), Ginat and Sheldon invited me to be the next to come to Israel.  I was overjoyed at the invitation and extremely excited about the trip.

For the next nine months, Sheldon and Ginat went into preparation mode.  They are both extremely detail-oriented people and Ginat even signed a recent email "The Ginorganizer" .  Together we figured out topics for the classes, recipes and did some press to get the word out, but behind the scenes, S and G handled everything else.  Not being much of a Jessorganizer, I will be forever grateful to them for that.

I arrived in early December and had a couple of days to just hang out, see some sites and get over the jetlag.  I camped out in their guest bedroom.  Now it's all very well to be a guest in someone's home for a weekend, or maybe 4 or 5 days maximum, but Ginat, Sheldon and I co-existed very happily and peacefully for SIXTEEN DAYS!  And not only did we share space, we managed to pack, shlep and set-up equipment and food for 12 different cooking classes (some of them at great distances), followed by the breaking down, schlepping back and putting away of said equipment after each class.  And, honest to God, we laughed throughout most of it.  

To what do I attribute this peace and general jolliness?  You guessed it: The Food.  Of course, Sheldon, Ginat and I are all basically good people; none of us is hysterical, histrionic, evil or insane.  Well, okay, maybe insane, but who isn't?  But even amongst good people, there are edges that get rubbed, buttons that get pushed and darkness tends to emerge.  But two important factors were in play here:  First, we had all eaten macrobiotically for a number of years.  This means that really old emotional sludge has been addressed or even eradicated.  In a very real way, the energy we were bringing to one another was quite clean.  Second, we ate well while we were together.  Sheldon was in charge of breakfast, Ginat Ginorganized lunch and I generally taught a cooking class which became dinner.  So as we moved through the stresses of co-habitation, work and play, our blood sugar remained level and we floated on a wave of wellbeing together .  When issues did arise, we each had a stable self to reflect upon and respond from.  There was no slinging mud .  Well, most days.   We were careful and kind. 

(By the way, Michio Kushi refers to all macrobiotic people as "friends".  When I first heard that, I considered it sort of kooky and hippy-ish, but it actually points at a very real truth; by eating natural foods, we begin to vibrate together in a peaceful, joyous way.) 

It was from this lovely, loving platform that we could–like three giggling children–enjoy our experiences.  The classes went really well (there is a recipe below).  Ginat and Sheldon made sure to show me lots of Israel, like the Negev desert , The Dead Sea , Old Jerusalem , The Sea of Gallilee , and Tel Aviv .  In those sixteen days, I also had the luck to meet all three of Sheldon's beautiful daughters… each a unique and powerful spirit.  While we traveled in the car, passing camels  and Bedouin neighborhoods , we discussed politics, religion, and history.  Neither Sheldon nor Ginat ever shyed away from some of my difficult questions, both of them attempting to answer them from a unified, macrobiotic perspective.  More on the politics next week…

There were so many layers of this trip, and I will continue to blog about it at least once more… but I wanted to begin with this simple, lovely layer of relationship.  I was amazed and delighted by the glue that arose between the three of us… the affection and caring that presented itself… I know that in those sixteen days, I secured friends for life. 

Recipe (adapted from Meg Wolff's new book A Life in Balance):

Sweet Potato and Arame Salad with Asian-Style Tartar Sauce

2 large sweet potatoes

2 parsnips

2 T olive oil

pinch of sea salt

black pepper

1 cup dry arame, reconstituted

1 T shoyu

1 T mirin

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

salad greens, such as arugula or watercress, to serve

toasted sesame seeds

Tartar sauce

½ cup vegan mayonnaise

1 T minced pickled ginger

½ teaspoon wasabi paste

1 small shallot, finely minced

1 tsp ume vinegar

2 T minced cilantro

big squeeze of lime juice

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

Peel the sweet potato and parsnips and cut into bite-sized chunks. Steam the chunks for about 5 minutes, until they just start to soften up (you can do this in a steamer basket set over boiling water of by simmering in a small amount of water).

In the meantime, pour the olive oil onto a baking tray and let it heat up in the oven.  Transfer the potato and parsnip chunks to the over-warmed tray and sprinkle with salt and black pepper.  Toss to coat the vegetables evenly with the oil.  Put on top shelf of oven and bake for about 20 minutes, until they’re tender when pricked with a fork.

While the veggies are baking, prepare the arame and tartar sauce.  Measure out the arame dry, then soak in a bowl with enough water to cover for 10 to 15 minutes.  Drain and simmer the arame in about ¼ cup of the soaking water—drizzle with the shoyu and mirin while cooking.  After about 10 minutes, turn the heat up a bit to cook off any excess liquid and drizzle with the toasted sesame oil.  Mix together all the tartar sauce ingredients.

To serve, arrange the salad greens on plates or a serving platter, and top with the arame and sweet potato mixture.  Add a big dollop of the tartar sauce and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on top.

Variations:  You can use other veggies such as sweet squash or pumpkin, in place of the sweet potato.  You could also add corn, zucchini, or other vegetables. 

If you don’t like the tartar sauce too spicy, omit the wasabi.  Instead, add other ingredients like minced capers, chives, parsley, or minced dill pickle.

Remember: it is easy. You're basically just stuffing a dome of tofu with delicious stuffing and baking it. No biggie. It's just that the recipe sounds a little complicated… AH RECIPES! I SHAKE MY FIST AT YOU!!!

But this recipe is so easy, a child could do it.  And I'm not kidding.  Last year, Gail Goldman left the task of Tofu Turkey to her daughter Marley, and she did a FINE job.

Scooping tofu out of the dome: 

Making the stuffing: 

Removing the cheesecloth: 

Basting: 

and VOILA!: . 

Put it all together with some other delicious Holiday dishes and you have this!

Speaking of delicious recipes, I'm writing a new book and am very open to including wonderful recipes from readers… if you have any blow-your-socks-off macro or vegan recipes and you'd like to share them, please send them to me at jessicathehipchick@gmail.com. If I include it in the book, you will get full credit and a free copy.
And for that, I am very grateful.
xo Jessica

Tofu Turkey with Mushroom Gravy

Equipment:
Handheld blender or food processor
A medium-sized colander
Cheesecloth
A baking sheet
A pastry brush
Aluminum Foil
A skillet
A large measuring cup
Knife, wooden spoons, and the other usual stuff

Turkey:
5 lbs extra firm tofu
Shoyu
Toasted sesame oil
Onions (lots)
Mushrooms (lots)
Celery (a few stalks)
Seitan (if you like it)
Unyeasted, whole wheat sourdough bread, in cubes
Poultry seasoning (as much as you want)

Gravy:
Onions
Mushrooms (optional)
Water
Shoyu
Mirin (optional)
Brown rice vinegar (optional)
Kuzu

For the “Turkey”: THE NIGHT BEFORE: Whiz the 5 lbs. of tofu in a really big bowl with a handheld blender. If you don’t have one, it’s a great time to go get one. They are cheap ($30?) and soooooooo useful. I also refer to the handheld blender as “food dildo”. If you don’t have one, and aren’t going to get one, you can puree the tofu in a food processor, in batches, until it’s all smooth and creamy. There may be a few lumps, but nothing big. As you are blending, add about 2 tablespoons of shoyu to the tofu to give it a little extra taste. The more daring may add some herbs…

You now have a 5 lb blob of tofu. Congratulations! Take a colander (medium-sized or smallish are best–the bigger the colander, the flatter the “turkey” will be) and line it with a double layer of cheese cloth, with about six inches extra on each side. Place the colander on a big plate or baking sheet. Spoon your tofu blob into the cheesecloth-lined colander until it molds completely to the colander. A little tofu “milk” will start coming through the colander. That’s good. That’s why you’re doing this, to press all excess liquid out of the tofu, making it a sturdier turkey. Fold the extra cheese cloth over the top of the tofu and place a plate and a weight on top of that. Let sit overnight in the fridge.

The next day: Take the turkey out of the fridge. Pour off any extra tofu liquid that seeped out overnight from the baking sheet or whatever you had the colander sitting on. Remove the weight, the plate and pull back the extra cheese cloth to reveal the bottom of the “dome” that will be your turkey. Now here’s the tricky part: You must now dig into the upside-down dome, with your hand, creating a space in the middle that you will put the stuffing into. Try to dig so that you leave about 1/2 to 1 inch of tofu between you and the colander–in other words, so the dome maintains a decent thickness all round. If you find that you dig too far, you can repair it with tofu, but do your best to dig a nice ditch in the tofu, leaving the walls of the dome thick enough to protect the stuffing. Does that make sense?

Now you have a pile of tofu and an upside-down dome of tofu. Your parents must be very proud! Preheat your oven to
350 F and start working on the stuffing!

In a skillet, heat the oil, and saute the onions and a pinch of salt for about five minutes. Add the mushrooms and another pinch of salt. Add celery, seitan, poultry seasoning and bread. Sprinkle with shoyu to taste. You know what you like in a stuffing. Do whatever you want to achieve that. Make way more than you need because extra stuffing is one of life’s great benefits. When the stuffing makes you all happy and say “ooooo”, then place it in the dome of tofu, packing it down well. Take the rest of your dug-out tofu (leaving aside about 1/2 cup) and place it on top of the stuffing (and on top of the dome edges), making a bottom for the dome. Pack it down well.

Tricky part number two: Now, take a baking sheet and place it over the colander. Make sure it covers it completely. Hold them together tightly. In a graceful and quick maneuver, flip the whole colander upside-down, so that your dome now sits on the baking sheet. Remove the colander. Remove the cheesecloth, and voila! That’s your un-cooked “turkey”. If there are any cracks in the turkey, do your best to repair them with your leftover tofu. If they are really bad, just chalk it up to experience–you’ll do much better next year (or try again at Christmas!) and this will still taste great.

Make a mixture of 2 parts sesame oil to 1 part shoyu and, using a pastry brush, baste the turkey with it. Be generous with the basting. Cover the turkey with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour. Uncover, baste again and cook for 15 more minutes, uncovered. Baste one more time and cook for 15 minutes more. Let sit for 1 hour before cutting, while you make your gravy!!

GRAVY:
Dice a bunch of onions and mushrooms. Saute onions first, with a pinch of salt, until translucent and yummy, then add mushrooms, another pinch of salt, and saute until softened and wilty.

Apparently, I just made up that word: Wilty. I know that because my computer has put a red line beneath it. Oh well.

Anyway, pour some water in a large measuring cup and add water to this saute, equalling the amount of gravy you want. You have the measuring cup so that you know how much liquid you’re using–you will need to know this for when you add the kuzu later. So make a mental note of it.

Then add shoyu, carefully, to taste (you might want to start with 1 teaspoon per cup of liquid, and add from there if desired). I haven’t given strict measurements here because a) I’m lazy and b) you are the arbiter of your gravy’s strength and saltiness. You can also add mirin (about 1/3 the amount of shoyu you put in) and a dash of brown rice vinegar, if you like. I find that the combo of the shoyu, mirin and just a touch of brown rice vinegar makes for a nice meaty flavor in the gravy.

Let it all come to a boil and then simmer for at least ten minutes.

Now, measure out the equivalent of 1 level tablespoon of kuzu per cup of gravy liquid. If it’s not perfect, don’t worry–if the gravy ends up being not thick enough, you can add more kuzu, and if it’s too thick, you can add more water and shoyu. I think gravy should be a pleasurable, sort of intuitive dish, so don’t get too hung up on it.

WHAT YOU DO NEED TO GET HUNG UP ON, though, is that kuzu needs to be diluted in cold water and be lump-free before being added to the gravy. If you add chunks of undiluted kuzu, they will become unbreakable lumps in the gravy. So when your kuzu is nice and diluted (you can break it up with your fingers in the cold water–I recommend that), add it slowly to the gravy as you stir it vigorously. The gravy will become glossy and thicken. Let it come to a boil, then reduce flame to a simmer. If the gravy is not thick enough for you, add more kuzu. If it’s too thick, add more liquid. Once you’ve gotten the thickness right, let it simmer for about ten minutes before serving on slices of tofu turkey.

Serves 8-12.

Roughly ten years ago, word got out about her skills and Mayumi went off to cook for a singer named… um… oh yeah, MADONNA. She spent seven years chopping and sauteeing for the Material Girl and her ever-expanding brood. That gig bounced her around from New York to London to LA and on tours  around the world. If you think Madonna looks pretty good for her age, Mayumi, and the macrobiotic diet, have had a lot to do with it.

Here's what Madge has to say about Mayumi:

"In the seven years you lived with us and cooked for us, your amazing food helped me to be a happier, healthier person, balanced in body and mind.  I feel better than I did twenty years ago.  I am very grateful to you for this."   Yaayyyyyyyyyy!!!!!! I love macrobiotics!!!!!!

Because my mother lived in London, I got into the habit of seeing Mayumi whenever I was over there. We would meet to have tea at some fancy department store… sticking with the green tea and fruity desserts, of course.

Then, when I moved to Los Angeles, we bumped into each other here, and gossiped over agave-sweetened chocolate cake at Real Food Daily  in Santa Monica.

A couple of years ago, Mayumi moved back to her homeland of Japan, where she hasn't lived in 20-odd years. I figured I would help her adjust by making her take me out for lunch in Tokyo. We bonded over the totally macrobiotic lunch (designed by LA's Nadine Barner) at the Peninsula Hotel… SWANK!! Mayumi designed the macro menu there last year, so she knew the ropes.

Finally, last week, I giggled over soba and yuba with Mayumi at Souen in New York City . She was there to visit her daughter, who lives in Brooklyn.

I say all this because Mayumi has also written an amazing cookbook , which finally came out in English and which I highly recommend.  It's call Mayumi's Kitchen: Macrobiotic Cooking for Body and Soul.

It contains a great ten-day detox plan and a ton of wonderful recipes, including this one, great for fall:

Brown Rice Mochi Crepes with Stewed Apricots

1 tsp rapeseed or sunflower oil

2 cups grated brown rice mochi

Stewed Apricots

10 dried apricots, quartered

1/3 cup spring water

pinch sea salt

1. Make the stewed apricots: Combine the apricots, spring water, and salt in a small pot and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.

2.  Heat the oil in a frying pan and sprinkle the grated mochi in an even layer so as to form a thin pancake.  Cover and cook over low heat until the mochi melts.  Do not turn over.  Make 3 more in the same way.

3.  Serve the mochi with the stewed apricots rolled up inside or spread on top, or both. 

Mmmm…  Enjoy!

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Japan is full, brimming over actually, with the weirdest stuff.  There are remote controls for the toilets  which will spray your butt, air dry your butt, and make a noise to cover up the noise your butt makes doing what your butt is designed to do.  There are ferris wheels on buildings, cat cafes , maid cafes, crazy arcades , Love Hotels, disposable underwear, individually-wrapped marshmallows  and plastic cases to keep your banana unbruised.  I could write five full pages about all the strange stuff before even mentioning the Ice Cream Museum, the English malapropisms on the T-shirts (I heart my coquetry) and the capsule hotel we stayed in that made me feel stuck in a Stanley Kubrick movie. 

Oh yeah, and the food is unbelievable.  Although it’s been a challenge (one I’m not winning) to find macro staples like brown rice, Japan is exploding with food; ramen, sushi, soba , tempura, yakitori, and take-away bento boxes are all available everywhere.  Every train station is full of places to eat, every department store also laden with good restaurants.  We haven’t even touched the high-end places because they’re not within our budgets, but there has not yet been one unforgettable meal.  Even convenience stores carry rice balls and side dishes like hijiki.  Yes, it’s white rice and the hijiki probably has sugar in it, but it’s all there.  And if you’re a dessert person, this is the country for you.  In the basement of many department stores are basically what we could call food courts but the similarity ends there–I’m talking ACRES devoted solely to sweets:  Jellies, dumplings, cookies, cakes, candies and other cavity-making delights, all presented like fine works of art .  There’s even green tea chocolate painted with gold.  Oh my. 

But none of that will give you a real sense of Japan.  I think it needs to be experienced, because it is Japan’s vibe which is truly lovely.  It is one of the most un-frenetic places I have ever been–massive throngs of people and high-pitched salespeople yelling “irashymasay” notwithstanding.  Every time Emily and I stood on a street corner staring cluelessly at our map, a stranger would arrive and ask if he or she could help us.  But more than that, the stranger would make sure we found our destination; there was a certain pride mixed with kindness in the gesture. 

At a traditional hotel in Kyoto, we were treated like princesses, served a fourteen-course dinner in our robes and footie socks by a lovely kimono-clad woman. I then went downstairs for a bath in a big cedar box, which spilled onto the cedar-slat floor exactly the amount of water my body displaced.  The sound of the warm water rushing over the side was both a sensory pleasure and a symbol of the abundance I was experiencing.  As if the bath itself was saying “your cup runneth over”.  It was a soul-expanding moment of luxury. 

Japan is full of those moments.  In fact, it’s all about them.  Every thing, every experience, every interaction, is designed to be beautiful.  Attention is paid to every detail.  Nothing is Japan is done without a refined consciousness that I imagine was cultivated originally in the exquisite temples of Kyoto… where the wind whistles over the tatami mats… surrounded by natural temples of bamboo… ahhh.

It is a country that still honors its craftspeople and their wares.  In a Kyoto department store, one whole floor was devoted to a recent celebration of local artisans; devoted laquer artists, leather workers, umbrella-makers, glass-blowers,  brush-makers, basket-weavers, print-makers, statuary sculptors… you name it, they were there, doing their thing.  And this not at some crafts fair, out in an abandoned parking lot.  It was taking place on the top floor of a high-end department store.  It seems the Japanese respect beauty and the work that goes into creating it.

Frankly, it makes the rest of us look like boors. 

But before I apply to emigrate, I must remember what George Ohsawa said: “Everything that has a front has a back”.  And of course, after only 14 days here, I am seeing Japan’s front; I am a visitor, who speaks no Japanese, so my impressions are relatively superficial. I don’t pretend to even think that I have touched upon anything but an initial layer; every culture has its complexities, its texture, and its contradictions. I am sure Japan has depths and quirks I will never get to know. But for right now I feel like a kid who has discovered a gem the size of my fist—no wait–my head,and I am truly dazzled by its sparkling facets.

Arigato

P.S. It's taking too long to upload all the pictures… I will fill them in when I get back to the States.  Damn Japanese wi-fi!  I guess nothing is perfect. 

I just don’t understand Strawberry People .  I just don’t.  I don’t GET wanting to eat a berry that makes me feel like I’m French kissing a cat .  Call me crazy.

This time of year is so hard.  My beloved raspberries  come out to play and I am once again reminded of just how deeply and purely I love them.  And then my ugly prejudice against Strawberries rears its head . 

I can’t help it.  Strawberries get soooo much attention.  We’re just expected to love them, without question. Strawberries dominate the berry world like an arrogant, strutting bully.  Dare I suggest we live in a veritable Strawarchy? The dominant ideology of our culture is inherently pro-Strawberry and yet this discourse is rarely challenged.  So here goes:

Strawberries are the anti-Raspberry!  Whereas seeds cover the outside of the Straw, they are neatly and modestly tucked away inside the sexy, juicy bulbs of the Raz.  Whereas the Straws are firm and dry, a lovely Raz is soft and fuzzy.  Where Straws have this woody, white interior, the elegant Raz is brilliantly empty like Nature’s cute little thimble .  Just the right size to fit the tip of one’s tongue .  HOW CAN YOU GET BETTER THAN THAT???

I know this isn’t cool. Or PC.  I know it’s not all balanced and macrobiotic, in which the thinking is to accept BOTH, as the yin and yang to one another.  BUT I JUST CAN’T.  Strawberries are… wrong.  There.  I said it.  And the people who eat prefer them to my precious raspberry should be put in Strawberry Jails.  Guarded by thousands of Strawberry Shortcake dolls  .  And a lifetime supply of strawberry-flavored lip balm .   And their cell mate?  That’s right. … Darryl Strawberry. 

Teehee.  When I pull my tongue out of my cheek, I will stick it in a… you guessed it… raspberry.

My advice to my fellow Raspberry People is to do the following.  Place half a cup of our ripe loved ones in a bowl.  Add a tiny pinch of salt.  Massage until about most of the berries become mushy (you need to get to the Raz juice to really enjoy the Raz).  Add 1 teaspoon of brown rice syrup and stir it in thoroughly.  Raise a spoonful to your nose… mmm… close your eyes… place this bright red nectar-of-the-Gods in your mouth and enjoy your inherently superior taste. 

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When I was a kid, being curious  was the gold standard in my father’s house.  "He’s a nice guy, but he’s just not… curious" my Dad would say, about my, or a sister’s, prospective boyfriend.   That was the kiss of death.  He could be ugly, unemployed, a fascist… but lacking curiosity??? A dealbreaker.  

I would always sit there, listening to this complaint about others and felt I should quietly stick up my index finger and interrupt: "Um… excuse me… I’m not exactly CURIOUS myself."  But of course, I didn’t do that.  I feared expulsion from The Curious Family.  But I KNEW that I was not willing to haul myself up from the TV  to the reference library just a block away from my house  to get answers to any questions bobbing like apples in my head.  I wasn’t going to seek out some obscure text book  to satisfy some mental itch.  I mean, this was the 70s .  You had to put a little elbow-grease into information-gathering back then.  I was perfectly satisfied to build my mental world given the information afforded me by ABC, CBS and NBC .  I just didn’t go around bragging about it.

But you see, these days, with the internet, I’ve come to realize the truth.  I AM CURIOUS!!  I AM A FULLY-FLEDGED MEMBER OF THE CURIOUS FAMILY!!  I BELONG!!!!  I mean, I will leap up in the middle of a dinner party (mine, not someone elses–that’s rude) and google a factoid we’re all slobbering after.  I routinely hide my iphone under the table during a meeting to find out how old Ben Affleck is .  I can’t go to sleep at night until I know where Micronesia is .  I CARE ABOUT THESE THINGS.   And these days, all my little mental itches get scratched!   HEY DAD, I AM FREAKIN’ CURIOUS!!!

So I guess I judged myself wrongly all these years.  I was brimming over with curiosity! 

I was just lazy . 

I say all this because I’m blogging today about my friend Neil’s dog-training classes on DailyOM.  They’re called "How to Speak so Your Dog will Listen".  I’ve written about Neil before and I really believe very deeply in what he does.  It’s like macrobiotic thinking applied to dogs!  And as I was giving this post a title, I thought "I wonder where the term ‘dog days of summer’ comes from?"

Why?  Because I’m… that’s right… CURIOUS. 

And not only did I learn that we are smack dab in the middle of said "Dog Days" right now, but that they are called that because the brightest star of the Constellation Canis Major (Big Dog) , which is called Sirius (not the radio) is up to something a little tricky… get this:

"In the summer, Sirius, the ‘dog star’, rises and sets with the sun.  During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather.  They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, ‘dog day’ after the dog star. (from http://wilstar.com/dogdays.htm).

As Paris Hilton , who often carries a dog in her purse, would say:  Hot. 

Check out Neil’s classes at DailyOM and enjoy these Dog Days. 

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I love that macrobiotics has a long, rich history, full of great characters.  Much, much more than a diet, macrobiotics has a whole community of people who have devoted their lives’ work to spreading the word of healthy, whole foods and the personal transformations contained therein.  Nice use of "therein" eh?

Aveline Kushi was a pioneer .  She left her hometown, and then native Japan to come to America.  It was after Japan’s whole identity had been decimated by the A-bomb.  She had gone to study with George Ohsawa and he had encouraged her to go to America and teach with Michio Kushi, with the dream of creating one peaceful world .  She came over here in the early 1950s and they created a life together–with Aveline at the helm in the kitchen –teaching the power of food. 

Michio and Aveline had their hands in the importation of tofu , futons , acupuncture  and the cultivation of organic foods .  Aveline’s cookbook is a macrobiotic bible .  Some of their early students include Dr. Dean Ornish , Gloria Swanson  and John & Yoko .  Their influence traces back to the beginnings of the health food movement.  LOOOONG before health food was cool. 

Aveline passed away 9 years ago this month.  Every year since her death, a number of people have received the Aveline Kushi Award here at the Summer Conference.  It goes to people who have shown the same spirit and commitment to this work.  This year it went to Masao Miyaji and his wife Evelyne, who started Masao’s kitchen in the Boston area .  It is a restaurant that has served macrobiotic-quality food for many, many years. 

Other recipients included Francisco (Chico) Varatojo  and his wife Eugenia, who started the Macrobiotic Center in Lisbon, Portugal. 

Patricio Garcia de Parades, who I remember as the hottest guy at the Kushi Institute 17 years ago (BUT I CAN’T FIND A PICTURE OF HIM ON THE INTERNET!!! ARGH!), also won the award for his lifetime of service which has culminated in his running of the Kushi Institute of Japan. 

And finally, Dr. Martha Cottrell, the coolest 81 year old I’ve ever met.  She should have gotten it just for cutting rug on the dance floor, but she’s also brought her medical training and experience to bear on the last three decades of her macrobiotic practice.  She was instrumental in bringing macrobiotic food and studying its amazing effects on a group of HIV/AIDS sufferers in the early ’80s.  When people just weren’t doing that stuff. 

I didn’t know Aveline that well.  I met her after she had gotten sick and I remember her humility around that.  She said "Yin and yang… lifetime study".  She was utterly gracious and grateful for all the care she received–macro and medical.  Although people were reverent towards her, she was utterly playful, even insisting on performing a kimono striptease  every year at the conference talent show.  That is sorely missed.  She had the teensy body of a hummingbird and the spirit of a proud, beautiful, lion . 

My last conversation with Aveline took place in Boston, over the phone.  I was calling to find out if I could stay at the Kushi House that night, having landed in the city sort of by accident.  I had been reading the novel Memoirs of a Geisha which described what I imagined was the Japan she had grown up in.  I told her about the book, the culture of the geishas… how amazing Japan seemed to be… how it made me think of her.  She listened politely.  She took it all in.  And with perfect comic timing, she said:  "Ahhh… so nice… you become geisha?" 

Aveline was a riot. 

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Every year, around this time, a bunch of macro freeeeeeeeks get together to talk shop.  15 years ago it was in Vermont , at Green Mountain College in a little town called Poultney.  There was a big ole tire swing that dunked hot macros in a cool swimming hole.  There was bulghur wheat and fruit spritzers  and talk talk talk about brown rice and beans and vegetables. 

The conference has moved around a bit in the last few years, but it’s finally settled in Palisades, New York at a lovely conference center  which actually has AIR CONDITIONING , which anyone on the East Coast will appreciate right about now.  I know it’s not the most environmentally friendly thing to flaunt, but there ain’t no swimming hole… although there are lovely views and walks, and the bulghur’s still good and the spritzers are cold and the beds are much comfier  and the talk talk talk has remained the same as always; mind-blowing, inspirational and life-changing.  I took my friend Hiram this year and he’s still buzzing from it.   

It’s a stellar macro line-up this year:  Tom Monte , Martha Cottrell, David Briscoe, Christina Pirello , Lino Stanchich, Ed Esko, Denny Waxman, and Michio Kushi himself .  The Big Kahuna.  And that’s just naming a few.  

I will be teaching Healing with Hypnosis and a Macro BBQ Cooking class.  It’s not too late to join: It starts July 22nd. Click here to register. 

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I had some friends over for dinner last night and served two of my favorite dishes–Mock Tuna and Quinoa Salad with Hazelnuts. They’re both from The Hip Chick’s Guide (although one I stole–with permission–from Christina!) so if you’ve made them ten thousands times, forgive me.  If you have not, now’s the time to throw a dinner party and serves these summer lovelies:

Mock Tuna 

 No, you’re not making fun of a fish. This recipe is for those of us who had a very intimate relationship with little cans in our cupboards and who miss the idea of opening them regularly. Tuna is very yang and contracting–considered too strong an energy to take in regularly, especially for a woman. Ditto salmon. Macrobiotic recipes generally stick to white-fleshed fish, which are lower in fat and more easily digestible. Therefore, to imitate the sensual pleasure of tuna fish, we use tempeh.

1 8-ounce package tempeh

1 tablespoon umeboshi vinegar

1/3 cup Tofu Mayonnaise (see p.123 or store-bought)

Black pepper to taste

Any spices you desire–cumin, curry, paprika, saffron etc. (optional)

1 celery stalk, diced

1/4 red onion, finely diced

Steam or boil tempeh for 20 minutes to make it more digestible. Break apart with a fork until you get smaller-than-bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle the umeboshi vinegar onto the tempeh, mashing it in with a fork until you get a tuna-fishy saltiness. Mix “mayonnaise”, pepper and any other spices you enjoy. Mash into tempeh. Add vegetables. Serve or refrigerate–it tastes even better the next day.

Makes 4 servings.

Quinoa Salad with Hazelnuts

1/2 medium red onion, sliced fine into half moons

4 radishes, cut fine into half moons

2 Tablespoons each of ume vinegar and brown rice vinegar

1 1/2 cups quinoa

3 cups spring water with 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2/3 cups hazelnuts

1/4 cup chopped parsley or chopped mint

1/2 cup raisins, washed and drained

Mix the onions and radishes with both vinegars.  Place a plate and weight on top and press for 1 hour to pickle. Wash quinoa thoroughly to remove the bitter saponin on the outside of the grain.  Roast in a dry, heavy-bottom fry pan until dry, stirring constantly until grain begins to turn golden and puff up a little.

Bring water and salt to the boil in a saucepan, stir in quinoa, cover and bring back to the boil.  Turn the flame down low and simmer until all the water is absorbed (about 20-25 minutes). Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, remove from heat and return into a mixing bowl to cool. Wash and roast hazelnuts at 325 degrees until nuts are golden and skins crack and loosen.  Rub the nuts in a dry dishcloth to remove any loose skins. Chop roughly. Mix hazelnuts, quinoa, pickles, herbs and raisins together, including pickling liquid.  Serve garnished with chopped nuts and sprigs of parsley or mint.

Makes 4 servings.

Variation:

Yummy if not yummier. Substitute pearled (polished) barley for quinoa (cooks 2-1 like quinoa in about 30 minutes). Replace hazelnuts with toasted pecans, use dried apricots that have been soaked and chopped instead of raisins, and add fresh chopped dill at the end to replace the parsley or mint. You still use the red onion and radish pressed with the vinegars.

P.S. In the photo, I’ve included an arame dish, a golden beet, and greens with cilantro/mustard/ginger/rice syrup dressing.