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PETA 'lettuce ladies' take eat vegan message to Cuba | Miami Herald Miami Herald The animal rights group's 'lettuce ladies' took off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport for a Havana trip to spread their animal rights and vegan ... PETA's Lettuce Ladies In Cuba Selling Vegan Virtues And Bizarre ...WLRN Havana Bound: 'Lettuce Ladies' Take Their First-Ever Trip to Cuba ...PETA (blog) (press release) all 4 news articles »

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PETA 'lettuce ladies' take eat vegan message to Cuba | Miami Herald - Miami Herald

Baker Becca Jones cleaning up the icing top to the traditional vegan Ho Ho's at the Make, Believe Bakery, a vegan bakery in downtown that also offers gluten free vegan foods. Denver. February 23, 2017 Denver, CO. (Joe Amon, The Denver Post)

Pastry is the embodiment of all that is right with the world.

Have I gone too far? Maybe. But for me, a great pastry has the ability to brighten my day, impress a group of friends or make someone feel loved.

But because dairy and eggs are often used to make wonderful pastry, many vegans are left standing outside on the sidewalk, staring longingly into a bakery as the rain washes away their tears. Dont you worry, my vegan friends. You, too, can have a rom-com moment with a pastry.

This is the part of the movie where you trip and fall into the loving arms of Make, Believe Bakery.

This vegan bakery which also touts lots of gluten-free options began in 2004 as Watercourse Bakery, said owner Dan Landes, who also owns City O City and formerly owned the restaurant WaterCourse Foods before selling it to Lauren Roberts in 2014. It became Make, Believe in the summer of 2016 and opened a storefront location in August next to City O City at 214 E. 13th Ave.

Heres a shocker: Not every pastry is appropriate for every situation. How to choose? Go to Make, Believe Bakerys co-managers Randa Duffy and Kelly McBride for advice. I hit them with four scenarios that require pastries, and asked for recommendations:

Its a Friday and you want to celebrate the weekend. Or its a Monday and you want to kick off the week with a bang. Or its literally any day of the week and you just want a morning pastry. What do you get?

McBride &Duffy:Both said theyd send customers next doorto City O City, where they stock the bakerys scones. Flavors rotate weekly. Weekenders can get a pack of four. Cost: $3 each.

(Other shop employees said the sweet potato cinnamon roll was the way to go. They swear that it melts in your mouth. Cost: $3.50.)

Its been a rough day. Work has been getting you down. Puddles of ice water seem to jump in front of your feet. An Instagram photo only got one like. You just need this one thing to go right. What pastry turns your day around?

McBride:The scout cookie, popular among both vegan and nonvegan folk. The cookies are the bakerys take on a classic Samoawith walnuts, sweet potatoes, coconut and chocolate. Cost: $3.50 per cookie or a dozen for $38. (Well worth it, trust me.)

Duffy: A brownie topped with raspberry cream cheese (she has a sweet tooth, after all). Cost: $6 each or a dozen for $65.

Everyone is bringing food to a party and youre trying to make an impression.This isnt the time to bring chips. What makes you stand out?

McBride: Hit them with a half dozen of each mini cupcake flavor. Theyre tiny roughly two bites so people can have a little bit of every flavor. Cost: $1.75 each, or $19 for a dozen.

Duffy:Roll up in style with key lime tarts. The tartlets are little, only about 3 inches. Cost: $7 for a single tart; a dozen costs $78.

Its your special persons birthday. You want your love to be expressed through this pastry. Which one screams I love you with each bite?

McBride:A very popular cake is the coconut cream. Its a coconut cake filled with coconut cream and vanilla frosting and finished with toasted coconut. For a fancier and more romantic dessert, she recommended the chocolate tart, which has a dense chocolate mousse center and seasonal fruit on the side.

Duffy:Go with the chocolate raspberry cake. Its chocolate cake with raspberry jam, covered in chocolate frosting and topped with dark chocolate ganache. Or, for a unique twist, try the mocha cake. Its chocolate cake with vanilla bean custard and espresso frosting.

Cost: Cakes are $32 for a 6-inch round cake; $48 for a 9-inch round cake. The tart is $36 for a 6-inch round; $54 for a 9-inch round.

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The perfect vegan pastry for 4 scenarios as picked by Make, Believe Bakery in Denver - The Denver Post

WHEN IS A VEGAN NOT A VEGAN? : Ecorazzi Ecorazzi Since the use of animal products in all manner of both common and obscure items is endemic, it is impossible to be a perfect vegan. In fact, even in a ... and more »

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WHEN IS A VEGAN NOT A VEGAN? : Ecorazzi - Ecorazzi

Jeanette Harris of Gluten Free Goat Bakery and Caf. All photos by Tom O'Connor.

People looking for fresh baked vegan and gluten-free options sometimes have to hunt a little harder to find what they want, but the Gluten Free Goat Bakery and Caf is making the search a bit easier.

The wholesale operation Jeanette Harris started two years ago is evolving with its first brick-and-mortar bakery and caf, now open on Penn Ave. in Garfield. The bakerys familiar doughnuts and brownies can be found along with a full counter service menu of brunch items, soups, salads and grab-and-go treats. Theres also Commonplace coffee and espresso, teas including a special blend from Tupelo Honey Teas available in the caf, and dining space.

Were calling it brunch all week, says Harris, referring to menu items that feature mostly breakfast and lunch options that will rotate weekly along with fresh items from the bakery. Both sweet and savory items are featured including Belgian Waffles made with real maple syrup and vegan butter, and the fun-sounding Falafel Waffles made with tabbouleh and tzatzikinot only delicious but alsovegan friendly.

Gluten Free Goat Bakery and Caf on Penn Ave. in Garfield.

Most items at Gluten Free Goat Bakery are vegan and some are vegetarian. A weekend-only menu features quiche, vegan benedict and veggie burgers. Salad options include fresh lentils with parsley and Mediterranean spices, and sesame noodles with green onions and toasted sesame seeds.

Apastry chef is on staff to handle special occasion cakes for weddings, birthdays and showers, all made right in the new commercial kitchen space.

Our wholesale customers have been our bread and butter, and Im so grateful they have helped me build my business to this point, says Harris. The bakery has more than 20 customers that will continue to be servicedtwice a week. The caf and new kitchen space provides anopportunity for the baker to grow and expand from what sheand her staff are already doing.

Harris has always loved to bake and cook, frequentlywatching PBS cooking shows with her sister when she was a kid. We were total food nerds she says.

After learning she was suffering from Celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder where wheat affects a persons ability to absorb nutrients properly, Harris had to learn how to bake all over again. I had to start from scratch because its a whole new science baking with gluten free flour she says noting, Its hard to get the texture and flavor right.

Fresh baked apple cider doughnuts.

According to Harris, most gluten-free supermarket products are simply loaded with sugar and tapioca starch to try to emulate the flavor of wheat. I try not to do that. I start with organic rice bran flour as a base and use evaporated cane juice instead of bleached sugars, and sometimes dates or agave for sweetness she explains.

Recently, Harris has been collaborating with Reed & Co. on some of her baking projects. The recently opened juice and health food shop in Lawrenceville provides her with leftover fruit pulp which she in turns uses as a sweetening agent. I recently made lemon-rosemary cookies using a pure carrot pulp and they were delicious, she says adding, Im going to experiment with some of his combo flavors to look for nice flavor profiles.

Harris is thrilled to be opening her first shop in Garfield. The neighborhood is great. The community is wonderfully diverse and engaged, says Harris adding, I dont want it to change too much; I like it the way it is and I hope to be an inclusive place that is affordable and welcoming.

The new bakery and caf is open Wednesday throughFriday from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and is closed on Monday and Tuesday. For more information on the bakery and caf, see their website.

bakingcafegluten free goat bakerygluten-free

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Gluten Free Goat Bakery and Caf brings new vegan options to Garfield - NEXTpittsburgh

Meditation band, Ahl-e Qulab performs their unique blend of relaxation music in the Grand Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Union. Ntchana Batoma, said meditative music is used as a way of being able to see the beauty and love in everything.

Victor Gomez

Victor Gomez

Meditation band, Ahl-e Qulab performs their unique blend of relaxation music in the Grand Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Union. Ntchana Batoma, said meditative music is used as a way of being able to see the beauty and love in everything.

Loren Dickson, Entertainment Reporter February 28, 2017 Filed under News, Showcase

In a calm and relaxing atmosphere, people gathered around Ahl-e Qulub, a Persian meditation music group, Tuesday night to listen, enjoy and self-meditate to the melodies ringing throughout the University Ballroom.

Ahl-e Qulub member and senior English major Alex Hill told the audience the purpose of the music is not to come to an epiphany, but simply to come away from the experience with a light heart.

The reason we use music is because, although you can practice meditation by itself, no matter where you go in the worldmusic is something that resonates with people, Hill said.

For a few minutes, or for longer, you are kind of taken away from all of the day-to-day things that distract you, stress you out and put a damper on your life, he said.

Meditation brings you to the present moment, he said. Generally when we listen to music though, the effect of the song doesnt always sit within us in a permanent way.

Hill said music helps brings you to this desired present moment and gives you a positive meditative experience.

Meditation has many benefits, Hill said, and can help with issues such as anxiety and depression. Meditation slowly helps you overcome those things and they will gradually fade away. You will wake with more of the positive qualities that we all have inside of ourselves, he said.

Ahl-e Qulub then led the audience into a five-minute, silent meditation.

Audience members were suggested to think of one thing that brings them peace and happiness, to focus on that while breathing in, holding the breath for 30 seconds, and then slowly releasing the breath.

Following the meditation, Ahl-e Qulub began their musical meditation performance.

Along with soft singing melodies, the group used percussion instruments, including congas, djembes and dafs, to enhance the meditation experience.

The group sang several songs, and audience members were encouraged to partake in silent, personal meditation practice while the group performed.

At the conclusion of the last song, Ahl-e Qulub brought the audience into another silent, five-minute meditation.

Eastern Meditation Club member and freshman Spanish education major Pamela Padilla said meditation has helped her let go of paradigms.

Ive let go of all of the things I thought the world had to be; Im now content and happy with things that I wasnt before, Padilla said.

She said meditation can be based around religion, but it doesnt have to be.

Meditation can be geared with or without religion, she said. Its a moment to relax and calm yourself so you can get back into the real world in a stress-free manner.

Sometimes when meditating, negative thoughts can still enter your mind, but Padilla said the key to overcoming these negative thoughts is to recognize the thought and then let it go.

Although Tuesdays meditation gathering was a group effort, she said there are great things about meditating individually as well.

Sometimes being in a group creates the energy you need, she said. But being alone allows you to be fulfilled as an individual, and you can meditate for as long as you want. Its all about what you need in that moment.

Ahl-e Qulub member and Eastern alumna Ntchana Batoma said things in her life have really slowed down, in a good way, since practicing meditation.

Im a lot more likely now to find beauty in the small things. Im more likely to see love where I didnt see it before, she said. I think when you start to meditate and cultivate the love within yourself, what really starts to happen is you see that love, light and beauty within other people too.

She said she vividly remembers a time when she found the beauty in something so simple.

I remember sitting and watching a dandelion just sway in the wind, and it was just one of the most beautiful things, she said. Before in my more fast-paced life, I wouldnt have stopped to notice that.

There are many forms of meditation techniques, but Batoma said it is suggested to stick to one form in order to build consistency and see results.

Alex Hill also reminded the audience that Easterns Meditation Club is always welcome to anyone interested in learning more about the practice of meditation.

Loren Dickson can be reached at 581-2812 or ladickson@eiu.edu

Originally posted here:

Traditions influence meditative melodies - The Daily Eastern News

Miche Braden Brings Bessie Smith to Life in The Devils Music: The Life and Blues of BessieSmith

As great performers of the past go, Bessie Smith would have to be among the most challenging to recreate. Her immensely powerful voice remains one of the most memorable instruments in early jazz, comparable in impact to the sound of Louis Armstrongs trumpet. And her personality? Again, like Pops, Bessie projected so many things, such a kaleidoscope of attitudes and emotions, from stone-cold cynicism of the lewdest sort to intense, ecstatic vulnerability, that she would seem impossible to capture through a contemporary performance. Although it is a great challenge, having seen Miche Braden in The Devils Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith at the Rubicon on Saturday, February 25, I know it can be done and done well. Bessie Smith lives again in this performance, in all her ragged, tipsy glory, and Braden sings the music with a perfect balance between purity andgrit.

Accompanied (and then some) by a three-piece jazz combo, Braden portrays Smith relaxing in a buffet flat, which was a private apartment where food, liquor, and other things were available after hours. Over frequent swigs from her collection of silver flasks, Smith reminisces about the hardships of life on the road, the excitement of making it big, her struggles with men, and her affairs with women. In lesser hands, the narrative might have become either condescending or obscure, but playwright Angelo Parra and director Joe Brancato know what they are doing, and the result is a clear and compelling story rife with enough specific detail to satisfy the most knowledgeable of historians. With its bawdy jokes and innuendo-laden horseplay, The Devils Music might not be for everyone, but like its subject, the great Bessie Smith, for many it will be just the thing to chase your troublesaway.

At the Rubicon Theatre, Sat., Feb. 25. Shows through Mar.12.

Be succinct, constructive, and relevant to the story. Leaving a comment means you agree to our Discussion Guidelines. We like civilized discourse. We don't like spam, lying, profanity, harassment or personal attacks.

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'The Devil's Music' Roars at Rubicon - Santa Barbara Independent

Eat better, drink less, exercise more, sleep enough: It's common advice for heart health - and it's frequently ignored. Just 3 percent of American adults meet the standards for healthy levels of physical activity, consumption of fruit and vegetables, body fat and smoking, according to recent study.

But a major lifestyle overhaul isn't the only way to help your heart, studies suggest. Even small changes can make substantial differences.

Eventually, little changes can add up, says David Goff, director of the cardiovascular sciences division at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in Bethesda.

"Any small change you make in a positive direction is good for you," he says. "It's not an all-or-nothing phenomenon."

Physical activity is a perfect example, Goff says. Official guidelines, which recommend 30 minutes of moderately intense activity on most days, are based partly on evidence of substantial health benefits from doing 150 to 300 minutes of exercise each week, according to a 2011 review study by researchers at the University of South Carolina at Columbia. Those benefits include reduced risks of coronary heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure.

But the guidelines also come out of an assessment of what is obtainable for most people, Goff adds. And while it would be ideal to get at least 150 minutes of exercise weekly, getting less than that also has benefits. When the researchers looked at deaths from all causes, they saw the sharpest drop in mortality when exercise jumped from half an hour to an hour and a half each week.

Just getting up for a minute or two to interrupt bouts of sitting may also improve health, the study noted. And moving for as little as eight minutes a few times a day provides the same cardiovascular benefits as 30 uninterrupted minutes.

"If you can't find 30 minutes a day, try to find five or 10 or 15," Goff says. "Anything is better than nothing."

The "some is better than none" philosophy applies to dietary improvements, too, Goff says. According to the National Institutes of Health, an ideal meal plan includes lots of fruit, vegetables and whole grains, with limited amounts of fatty meat and tropical oils.

But eating an imperfect diet with more of the good stuff is better than giving up entirely. That's a conclusion from a 2016 study that created food-quality scores from the self-reported diets of about 200,000 people. Over about 25 years, the study found, people whose diets scored lowest had a 13 percent higher risk of coronary artery disease than did people in the second-worst group.

Even just switching out soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages can help eliminate a couple hundred calories a day and control weight. That helps lower blood pressure, levels of harmful cholesterol and the potential for diabetes - all risk factors for heart disease, Goff says. Large long-term studies have shown that people who average one sugary drink a day have a 20 percent higher risk of heart attack than people who rarely drink any.

It's not just food and diet, adds Michael Miller, director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in and author of "Heal Your Heart: The Positive Emotions Prescription to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease." Heart strength can also come from battling stress by boosting emotional health in simple and unexpected ways, he says, such as enjoying a good laugh.

In a small 2005 study, Miller played movie clips for 20 people. When participants watched a scene that made them laugh, 19 of them experienced dilation of the blood vessels. In contrast, a stressful scene led to constriction in 14 of the 20 viewers. Since then, Miller says, other small studies have found similar results, including one showing that vessels stayed dilated for 24 hours. Dilation allows more blood to flow, decreasing blood pressure and heart rate.

"Cross-talk" between the brain and heart explains the potential long-term benefits of laughter, Miller says, particularly when laughter is intense enough to induce crying. Belly laughing releases endorphins, triggering receptors in blood vessels to produce nitric oxide, which in turn, dilates blood vessels, increases blood flow, reduces the risk of blood clots, and more.

People are far more likely to laugh when they're with friends, Miller adds, adding yet more evidence of the health benefits of being social.

Accumulating evidence suggests that another easy and enjoyable way to help your heart is to listen to music. During recovery from surgery, several studies have shown, listening to relaxing music leads to a reduction in anxiety and heart rate. And in a 2015 study, Greek researchers found reductions in how hard the hearts of 20 healthy young adults were working after 30 minutes of listening to rock or classical music.

"I tell my patients to dust off their old LPs now that LPs are coming back and listen to a piece of music they have not heard in a long time but in the past made them feel really good," Miller says.

Also on his list of recommendations: mindfulness meditation and hugging. Both, he says, look promising in studies of heart health and heart repair.

"Considering that stress probably accounts for a third of heart attacks," he says, "it can have a dramatic effect if you do all of these things in sync."

Small lifestyle change help at any age, suggests a 2014 study that started by assessing cardiovascular risks in more than 5,000 young adults in the mid-1980s. Twenty years later, people who had made even small but positive changes - such as losing a little weight, exercising a bit more or smoking a little less - showed less coronary artery calcification than people who didn't change or changed in a negative direction. Coronary artery calcification is a risk factor for heart disease.

For the best chance of success, Goff suggests taking on one little change at a time.

"The idea is to make a small change and then make another small change," he says. "It's about changing the way you live over years and years, not hours and days."

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To take care of your heart, even little changes can help - SCNow

YouTuber and musician Dodie Clark. (Rebecca Need-Menear, Wikimedia Commons)

Cute English accent. Adorable human being. Ukulele player. One year ago, I stumbled across Dodie Clark in my recommended YouTube feed most likely because her video featured a collaboration with Jon Cozart (widely known as Paint on YouTube), a favorite of mine. I clicked on my first Dodie video, An Awkward Duet, in which she sings a silly song with Jon, and together they fulfill the titles promise. Ive been hooked ever since.

Dodie has two channels, doddleoddle and doddlevloggle. Most of the videos on her first channel are covers and original songs while the videos on her second channel feature personal chats with her audience about her struggle with mental disorders, sexuality and her life. Dodie has an uncanny ability to connect with people, especially those with mental disorders. She seems genuine and vulnerable in most of her vlogs about mental health issues and about the YouTube community, which is probably why she has gained a huge following online.

Additionally, her songs have a simple but moving quality to them. Her lyrics prick you because of their ability to mix metaphors and descriptive words and to take a look into the human soul. The uncomplicated riff in Secret for the Mad and Human creates space in the song, which makes the listener listen more closely to the soft melodies and piercing lyrics. Her ukulele also makes it perfect to listen to on a relaxing day.

Like many other upcoming musicians on YouTube, late last year, Dodie released an EP called Intertwined. She includes six of her original songs that vary in length, style and theme. Every song seems like a little snippet into Dodies mind, including contradictions about what she wants in life. For example, theres a clear juxtaposition between When and Absolutely Smitten, where the former is a ballad about lying to yourself about finding love and enjoying dating, while the latter is a playful song about finding love in an instant and holding onto it. I think that speaks to the genius of Dodie. She is able to write from multiple lenses about complicated things, like love, to silly things, like not being able to see a dentist.

So how did Dodie become so successful? Aside from her talent, her success has comes from the loyalty of her fans. Because of Dodies honesty and vulnerability, she has gained a huge fanbase that supports her tours, EP and other social media outlets. She interacts with her fans as much as possible and makes videos about topics that concern her and her audience. She also often collaborates with other artists on YouTube, growing the audience she reaches. Through her music, she was able to gain a manager that helped organize her Intertwined EP and tour.

YouTubers often work with other YouTubers, who may be producers, directors or musicians, in order to learn the skills necessary to make high-qualityYouTube videos. YouTube is a great outlet for starting ones creative endeavors into the music and film industry. As Dodies career shows, it allows you to experiment and develop an audience all under your own control.

Contact Jourdann Fraser at jourdann at stanford.edu.

Link:

Dodie Clark and the power of YouTube to launch music careers - The Stanford Daily

Once upon a time, every farmer on earth practicedsomething called organic agriculture, although they never bothered to coin the phrase.

The cultivators of this amazing pre-industrial concept spent their days diligently tending and harvesting their cropswithout the aid of manufactured products. They protected their plants with things no longer in abundance: worms, snails, ladybugs, and a full arsenal of homeopathic concoctions passed down from hundreds of years of ancestral heritage. And it was, for sure, a tough row to hoe.

Todays natural agricultureis still organic by definition, but the mechanics to raising that chemical-free produce are a world away from what your parents might have tried in their backyard.

Most states have regulations and long lists that define organic agricultureand what can, by law, be used during large-scale organic farming. And while todays organic farms may skillfully manage to avoid the use of controversial chemical sprays with complicated names like permethrin and thiamethoxam (which have both been suspected of contributing to the decline in bee colonies), theytypically rely on concentrated non-chemical fungicides and pesticides for large-scale production.

An entrepreneur in Kearny, New Jersey, thinks hes found the next evolution for agriculture: post-organic. If that doesnt sound like a very inventive name for a process, the system itself makes up for it.

Irving Fains concept of farming does away with the swaths of green space we normally associate with wholesome agriculture. He traded acreagefor an urban warehouse, a carefully-managed environment and a proprietary technology that produces food 100 times faster than conventional farming. And all of that without pesticides, soil stimulants or other additives, Fain and his company claim.

Warehouse-based vertical farming isnt entirely new. Farmers have been dabbling in various versions of indoor farming for centuries, finding new ways to capitalize on its water-saving techniques and, in so doing, finding faster ways to ensure quality production.

But Fains company,Bowery Farming, uses its own self-automated technology to respond to and manipulate the environmental factors upon which plants rely.

And unlike most full-scale indoor farming operations, Bowerys system can sense when its time to pluck the crops something that is usually done by sight and schedule in conventional farms. That means less wasted product and more predictable harvesting seasons. It also means a more predictable bottom line.

The company shared this glimpse insideits vertical farm on Instagram:

So far the companys post-organic greens are available in two Manhattan restaurants, a pair of Whole Foods Market stores in New Jersey, and Foragers Market in New Yorks Chelsea neighborhood.

With increasing concerns about drought and climate change, vertical farms that can operate in limited space with less water and virtually no natural sun may become the next stage in agriculture.

Whether the post-organic concept will eventually be able to overtake the organic markets sizable revenues ($43 billion yearly), remains to be seen. But in theres something to be said for an industry that uses 95 percent less water than conventional farming and wont wither with climate change.

Image credit:Pixabay

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This Vertical Farm Wants to Pioneer 'Post-Organic' Food - Triple Pundit (registration) (blog)

For years, Whole Foods has been the place to go to find the crme de la crme of fresh, organic vegetables outside of a farmers market. And while many other grocery stores have tried to one up Whole Foods and dominate the industry, few have been able to. But recently, earnings reports surprisingly putCostco, the bulk discount supplier, ahead of Whole Foods with a reported $4 billion in organic food sales last year compared to $3.6 billion that was raked in by Whole Foods.

You May Also Like:Theres Now an Easy Way to Find Out If the Food Youre Eating Contains Toxic Chemicals

Rumors have always swirled around the freshness of Costcos produce department and whether or not their items were really organic or not. By the looks of it, the American consumer is picking Costco over the pricey Whole Foods. For starters, the price of organic food at Costco versus Whole Foods is dramatically less. And everyone wants good quality food at a lower price point.

But thats not all. Costco has plans to set up its own organic chicken farms over the next few years and supports independent farms, as well as promotes small, emerging, sustainable brands.

So, next time you write out your grocery list and decide to visit your regular grocery store (or local Whole Foods), think twice about what its going to really cost you.

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Costco Outsells Whole Foods in Organic Produce Sales - Health + ... - NewBeauty Magazine (blog)