Forward On...and on

There have been whispered conversations about it. Environmentalists, food purists, Eco-folk, farmers and more have all been discussing food policies!!!!! (Yikes) What rights we'll have, what rights will be taken away, who controls our food and on and on and on. My question is when and how do we begin the work (not conversation) about liberating our own personal growing power back into our own hands.

As a mother I'm constantly reinforcing to my children the responsibility of taking ownership and care for themselves. And it really is that elementary. When do we decide to plant the seed that will nourish ourselves and families?

There will always be someone vying for power and control. How and what we eat as well as food control is only in someone else's hands when we relinquish it from our own. Happy planting!!!! Love.


It's fall time. The leaves are changing, the winds are picking up and as the night time and early morning chills settle in, I am activated to return to simple, nourishing and healing foods. At the farm callaloo (aka amaranth) is plentiful as well as several varieties of squash. Check out our recipes for Golden Nugget Squash and Callaloo. Maitu-Ital style.

Golden Nugget Squash

• 3 young golden nugget squash chopped 
• 1/2 red onion diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth or h2O
• 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
• 1/2teaspoon of red pepper flakes
• Salt to taste 

Combine all ingredients in a round casserole dish. Give it a nice toss around to ensure the squash is covered. You may want to add a bit more broth (another 1/4 cup) at the bottom of casserole as basting liquid throughout the cooking process.

Cook in a preheated 350F oven covered for 15 minutes. Then uncover for an additional 15 minutes until squash is fork tender. Let cool a bit and Serve.

Callaloo

• 1 large bunch of callaloo sliced thin
• 2 cloves garlic chopped
• 1/4 large onion sliced
• 1 Hungarian wax pepper (or any pepper you like) sliced
• 1/2 ripe tomato sliced
• 1 black cardamom pod cracked open
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• Salt and cayenne pepper to taste 
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth or h2O

In a large sauce pan, heat the sesame oil on medium heat. Add the garlic, onion, pepper and 

cardamom pod. Sauté until onions begin to turn translucent. Add callaloo and continue to sauté. As the callaloo begins to soften add tomato slices and broth. Allow to cook down just a bit, keeping callaloo a bright green. Add salt and pepper to taste, serve on top of a nori sheet with squash. Injoy!

My kitchen sounds like "Alkebu Lan" by Christian Scott off of Christian Atunde Adjuah

Happy Summer!!!

It's been a long time, I shouldn't left you, without a dope recipe... Transformation seems to be the theme for 2012. And to not be left too far behind with the times MaituFoods has been undergoing some changes and transformations within itself. We're back, hoping to bring you more, more often. We have added more pages, more pictures and in time more posts and videos. So thump around see what you can find.

 This month we are highlighting our Farmers R Fresh series kickoff. Our take on the local food movement in Atlanta. Also check out our recipe this month brought to you by one of our Farmers in training Ifakemi Spriggs.  Happy Eating. Love.


My Kitchen Sounds Like: "Isn't She Lovely" -Stevie Wonder

Food Bazaar

This month has been one of excessive and unrestrained food indulgence. Me and my Foodie Bestie have taken decadence to a new level. When food called anywhere within the Metro Atlanta area and it was vegan/vegetarian friendly, we were there. Eyes wide, stomachs and appetites even wider. From the neighborhood Mexican spot, to Vegetarian Sushi in the Highlands (and that we hit up 3x). Italian in Midtown (4x), to West Indian in South-West. Shall we mention desserts? Desserts that had us hitting the pavement from Kirkwood to Fourth Ward, all the way to Stone Mountain. We put it in for the Foodie Home-team this month.

To bring in October, me and the family attended The Field of Greens Festival (check them here http://www.fieldofgreensfestival.com/). The festival is an annual event celebrating local foods. This year's highlights included "Meals From The Market" and "The Chef's Tent". Meals from the Market allowed patrons to meet local farmers and try some of their produce prepared in simple, easy to make recipes. Each Chef/Farmer had a information card that included stats of their farms and the recipes they served at the event. The Chef's Tent which Field of Greens is famous for, boasted 30 of Atlanta's and Athens' premier Farm-to-Table Chefs, all under one tent serving up samples of signature dishes from their respective restaurants.

The Festival was productive, my bias being that this year's Festival was to raise funds for SlowFood Atlanta, and our farm, Truly Living Well Natural Urban Farms. There was an interactive children's section where they could make their own healthy snacks and also a play area and animal petting area. For children it was a great social event, for a vegan, umm, there was much to be desired. With the exception of the Meals from the Market, most of the food (especially in the Chef's Tent) was not vegan nor vegetarian friendly. For it to be named Field of Greens I did expect there to be more Green. However, if you are a foodie with no special diet or food aversions this was Local Foodie heaven. There was a nice variety of vendors selling goods from food products to clothing and I was able to cop a really cool poncho made in Guatemala. Would I recommend this Festival? Sure, why not. If you don't mind the 40 minute drive and you're a meat eater.

To soothe my conscious our next stop was Bazaar Noir's Vegan-Vegetarian Taste of Atlanta 2011. I have to admit this event was a bit more my speed. Vegan Vendors from the Greater Atlanta area came together to celebrate good food, good fashion, good music and community. The highlight of this event for me, was the introduction of Young Chef, Iaame Duniani (youngchef.blogspot.com). 11 year old Chef, starting his cooking journey and doing it in a lovely way. He served up an Ethiopian Wat, with Green Salad and Injera. The other treat of the night was FTP's (ftpcatering.com) Vegan sweets table. I walked away with their signature Bean Pie (yes a whole pie).

The Taste of Atl, was a nice event. I would have liked to see more food vendors and food variety, but I was grateful for the chefs that were represented. Truthfully, even with the handful of chefs present (and I hear more arrived after I left) they covered Live Foods, Soul Food, Foods from the Diaspora and Vegan twists on classic dishes. Who can find fault in that? Not me. All Love

My Kitchen Sounds Like: Yesterday's Machine by Saturn Never Sleeps

New Maitu logo and design..

All Thanks and Love to Sister Renay for the new MaituFoods cards and Logos..forwarding on
For graphic work inquiries link Renay at renaylon@gmail.com

Home

I cried the first time I saw the ocean, reminiscing on her East African sister. Then sweet and sudden it hits you...that smell. That familiar aroma of fresh clams being roasted on a makeshift grill. The scent of the sea mixed with the smell of sweat from hardworking people. The fragrance of labor, of determination, the scent of hope in the midst and in spite of struggle. The coast. The water altar of working class people from working class places, who bleed for a dollar and struggle towards rest. Where we come for consolation and to lay our burdens as well as our bodies down at the shore. Eyes set on the majestic horizon, where dreams trod. Today the sun is kind and the winds they breeze through, mimicking the tides sway. And with them they carry the sound of children and the thump thump of Mexican Banda and Mariachi music from a muffled car sound system. The Grand Prix is in town, so the beach and streets are packed. We shuffle to our own individual rhythms to find our piece of concrete and continue on to our destinations. Street missionaries hold up signs citing "Repent for the End is here". As the wealthy sit on gated patios of seafood restaurants, unsmiling, Vans and skinny jean clad teenagers on skateboards, laugh and zig-zag through the sea of pedestrians. I'm home. Long Beach. I salute you. Its been a long time.
I can remember being a youth running in our courtyard. Every afternoon, once we children were spent from play, my downstairs neighbor would call all of us to her doorstep for a quick munch. I can still conjure up the toasted smell of flour tortillas quick fried in butter and stuffed with scrambled eggs. These days I choose to be a vegan, however i can still appreciate the tenderness and kindness associated with the gift of a meal. I never knew that woman's name, nor did we speak the same language, but the memory of her giving resounds in my mind, even now. As I sit and reflect on this memory, taking in the fullness of home, I realize there is no better way to honor this then through my own giving. Tonight's meal will be Enchiladas.
This meal holds a history for me. It's full of a richness of a people. A richness of cultures intermarried to create this beautiful decadent cuisine. It goes back all the way to the Valley of Mexico, peopled by the Mayan civilization and finds a richness in my family's hometown of Coastal Texas. The men and women of my family took this dish and made it their own, depending on the individual tastes. This is not fine restaurant cuisine. It's what you'll find at a dinner table, surrounded by family, carrying all their experiences and emotions, ready to be comforted by great food. More times than I can remember I watched my mother at the kitchen table, sweating from the heat of the over, grating, chopping and mixing for hours to prepare this dish. It conjures up memories and sounds of neighbors blasting the music of their culture. I would sit in the living room, my head feeling as if it were on the verge of exploding and the very walls seemed they would crumble each time a horn sounded. I recall a people, dancing, celebrating, ululating, singing, loving, at the moment indifferent to a work week that was a day away. And this is the food that comes from that.
In preparing the dish, I take my place in line with the men and women of my family and other families who've all prepared enchiladas with their own signature style. Now I offer mine, Vegan Enchiladas, signed, ME. Love

Vegan Enchiladas

• 2 cups of black beans (cleaned and cooked until tender, with onions, garlic, bay leaf, Mexican seasonings)
  
• Tortillas (corn or flour) for this recipe I used flour. (taco/fajita size)
• 2 cups of red chile enchilada sauce (pretty easy to make, but store-bought is not bad)
  
• Vegan cheese (rice, soy or coconut)
• 1 bunch of spinach chopped and lightly steamed
• 1/2 yellow onion diced
• 2 scallions chopped
• Handful of cilantro diced

Into each tortilla add black beans, spinach and cheese (desired amount). Roll each individual enchilada and place ends down into casserole dish. Repeat until the casserole dish is filled. Cover the entire casserole dish and each enchilada generously with the red chile sauce. Top with diced, onions, scallions, cilantro and leftover cheese. Bake in oven on 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese has melted. I usually serve this with fresh pico de gallo, guacamole and Spanish rice. For variations add olives on top or diced chiles. Also this same recipe can be used with corn tortillas. However, when I use the corn tortillas I dip each individual tortilla in the chile sauce before stuffing and then also sauce on top. Injoy!!






































































Ackee Tacos

* My interpretation of a breakfast taco using ackee in place of egg or tofu.

• 3 red or russet potatoes, chopped.
• 1 can of Ackee
• 11 soft corn tortilla shells
• fresh pico de gallo
• 2 avocados diced
• 1 clove of garlic diced
• 1/2 onion chopped
  

First smother potatoes in sunflower oil with onions until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Saute garlic in sunflower oil, add ackee and Mexican seasonings. Cook until warmed through. Also in sunflower oil (about a teaspoon) lightly toss and "fry" corn tortilla shells until slightly crispy. Once the shells are heated, stuff with potatoes, ackee, avocado and pico de gallo. Injoy!!!
















My Kitchen Sounds Like: "Working Ways" by Stephen Marley feat. Spragga Benz. Revelation Pt.1

Spring-Summer Feeling

I've decided to share this simple juice recipe that our family has been using for the last few years. It's a great energy booster, cleanser and aid for digestion. The aloe, collards and rosemary part of the recipe we received from a mother in Kenya, and the lemon and pineapple we received from Eugene's mother. We combined the recipes added a oranges (because we had an orange tree in the backyard) and now its a trusted part of our health regime.. Enjoy!

1 aloe leaf
1 ripe lemon
*1 orange
1 sprig of rosemary
20 ozs of pineapple juice
20 ozs of water
handful of collards or spinach

Remove skin from aloe, using only the inside flesh. Cut the lemon and orange into quarters. Wash rosemary and collards. Slice collards thinly. In a blender add all ingredients and blend well. The mixture will be a bit gritty and pulpy, so strain through wire mesh strainer to desired consistency. I usually strain twice.

Injoy!!


My Kitchen Sounds Like: "Undo" by Bjork, Vespertine Lp

Why Food and Music?

Information. Food and music are information. Both are primary sources of knowledge as it relates to our sojourn on this planet. Every seed, every plant, within its DNA there is the intelligence of Earth, from the ancient of days to the pre-sent. Music is the heartbeat, the pulse of life itself. It's the rhythm, the ebb and flow of this journey. Food represents light, and music is sourced through sound. Light and Sound, the manifestations of which all life and all sense of being comes into existence and is experienced in this realm. Through sound and light our perceptions are shaped, and those things tangible and intangible have medium. When mystics take on disciples and conduct of livelihood is taught the focus is on silence (or focusing our internal sound/meditation) and diet. Essential, for as the cliche has informed us we are what we eat and most certainly we are the things we take in.

Consider how many memories are tailored with a certain song and the emotions evoked. The feelings elicited by food. A smell that draws you back to childhood or a favorite space and time in life. Food and music both possess the power to heal, to comfort and to transform our realities. They create and sustain environments. Nourish and develop our nations. We fight and war in the name of them, we love to love them. We live by and through food and music. They are the source of definition for culture.

Every herb, every leaf carries the life and light code that has the power to illuminate our beings and nourish these vehicles we have been given to maintain. Agriculture is the center of any civilization. We must eat to live and therefore food is at the foundation of pushing forward any nation, any family or person towards continuation. Food holds the history of a people. It shapes the nature of how we exist, of where we exist. It has the power to unite cultures and through the breaking of bread, doors of communication have opened. Food is the fuel, it holds the blueprint to shape, mold and sustain us. Food is life, it is light.

In music, we have the combination of human thought and expression, word and sound. With these elements together, we see power manifest. There is the transmission of past, present and the possibilities of future. Music is the pipeline. It is the ancient women of the Nyabinghi order, drumming to sound the alarm. Sending messages through the night to give voice to a united front for freedom. Music is history, scripture, lifestyle, frivolous pursuits or love unrequited. Music is the channel through which we share one to another. Bob Marley sings, "Help to sing another song of freedom, all I ever have, redemption songs" In that line he calls forward to the future and addresses the present. Expressed is a moment in time where redemption was the order, the request. He seeks a time of freedom, sealing history and presenting potentials for times to come. Script says life and death are in the power of the tongue (both what you eat and say). All life vibrates on its own frequency, to express its existence. Music is life, life is sound.

Think of the appeal of music and food. How they call to the senses. With no respect of person, caste, creed, color, or station in life, they entice us equally, to nourish and inspire. The tangy sweetness of a peach. The bits of sunshine you taste with each bite. Its as if your taste buds have been illuminated. The highs of Roberta Flack as she sings "When You Smile", reminding you of that smile that you know to be kin to the sun's rays. The cool bitterness and wet firmness of aloe. The accents and sharp drives coupled with the roundness of Nina Simone as she sings "Aint No Use". Intense information and sensory overload in the same instance. And the feel of it all, indescribable, full-bodied "nice-ness". :)

Yes, Food and Music. What better way to serve life? What grander way to fuel existence? Love.

In the last 2 months my family has been traveling. Kenya, Dubai, Atlanta, Los Angeles. I've eaten everywhere it seems. There is this spot in Los Angeles called Urth Cafe (google it). They serve a really awesome Portabella Mushroom sandwich. Yum!! Here is my tip of the hat to Urth Cafe. Ingredients: A really good Ciabatta loaf. Slice it horizontally and toast it, arugula pesto (recipe below), grilled portabella mushroom sliced, roasted red peppers, romaine lettuce and grilled artichoke hearts.



Arugula Pesto

• 2 cups of arugula leaves (no steams)


• 1/2 cup of pine nuts


• 1/2 cup of olive oil


• 7 cloves of garlic peeled


• salt to taste

You have the option to toast your pine nuts lightly to get a roasted flavor. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and mix until you have a nice consistent paste, or if you wish you can place the ingredients in a mortar and pestle, adding the olive oil slowly as you grind. Voila!! This will be the spread for your sandwich.

Grill portabellas, peppers and arugla. leaving some crunch to the veggies and some firmness to the mushroom. Spread the ciabatta with the arugula pesto and layer your sandwich as you see fit. Yum..quick and easy lunch. If you prefer to leave out the bread, you can always stir fry the mushrooms and saute them in the pesto. Place over a bed of romaine lettuce and add your favorite salad veggies. Injoy!!

My Kitchen Sounds like: The cosmos and "You Make Me Smile" by Aloe Blacc