Parting with plastic painlessly

I've always been impressed with people like Beth Terry or the BBC's Chris Jeavans, who were so moved by the damage done to this world by our actions that they virtually gave up plastic.

As for me, change is a difficult thing. Whie I strive to make a dent in my consumption, the recycling bin and trash can tell a different story.

But you can reduce your plastic impact, one step at a time. In fact, you can start off relatively painlessly. Those baby steps to environmental friendliness often mean less waste from packaging.

Consider these ideas as you're getting started:

• Choose environmentally friendly cleaners from your kitchen. Use baking soda and white vinegar for much of your cleaning. You'll have less hazardous chemicals in your cabinet - always a worry with little ones - and require less plastic waste. Can't live without lemon or orange scents? Just slice open a citrus fruit.
• Choose cloth. Disposable paper towels, diapers and napkins may be convenient, but they're also swaddled in a layer of plastic.
• Choose your pharmacy wisely. If you have a choice on where to fill your prescription, consider using one that packages your pills in recyclable containers. Locally, I choose Target, which uses #1 plastic containers, over Marsh or Walgreens, which use #5 plastic that I can't easily recycle. If you don't have options in pharmacies that have more easily recycled plastic containers, consider switching to a 90-day prescription instead of filling your bottles monthly.
• Bring your bags. I've found too often that what would fit in five plastic bags can fit in one disposable.
• Rework your snack habits. Drop the prepackaged snack packs and 20-ounce sodas. Instead, make your own "100-calorie" containers for lunches. Even better, turn to fresh fruits and vegetables, which we ought to be eating anyway! Swap your soda bottles for tea, coffee or lemonade. If you must drink soda, do so from alumninum cans or glass bottles.
• Reuse what can't be recycled. It's not fun, but I wash and reuse plastic bags from breads, my husband's trips to the store or even the freezer bags that have been used. By extending the life of one plastic bag, you've created less waste overall.

Written for the Green Moms Carnival for April. Visit Fake Plastic Fish on April 14 to see others' inspirations on reducing our plastic consumption.

Edited April 14 to include Walgreen's use of #5 plastics. Guess I'm switching my script back next month!

New farmers markets coming on board

Even though we're still about a month out from the farmers markets opening up in Indianapolis, I'm excited to learn there will be some new options in 2009.

The Star recently reported that the Indianapolis City Market is looking to open a year-round farmers market. The downtown market will open May 6 and will move indoors in October, when it usually closes. That would make the third winter's market in Indianapolis; the other two being the Indianapolis Winter Market and the Traders Point Winter Market, which is organic.

Other recent headlines state that markets are opening:

• In Morgan County: on the north side of the Morgan County Courthouse. The market is expected to open at 8 a.m. Saturdays beginning May 30 and will run through the first Saturday in October, according to the Reporter-Times.
• In Hendricks County: The Star also reports that Chateau Thomas Winery, just off of I-70, will open a market on May 7. It will run 4 to 8 p.m. Thursdays.

I'll have a rundown of area farmers market start dates soon.

Crock-potting your yogurt: An interesting idea

I live in a home of yogurt junkies. We can easily go through a package of kiddie yogurt in two days flat.

And that certainly adds up. At $3 or so for each 6-pack container, my wallet may be the only thing getting thinner in my home. Not to mention the amount of trash that's generated, as the closest place to recycle #5 plastic that I know of is about 30 minutes away.

This week at the store, I substituted a large container of plain vanilla yogurt, which unfortunately only comes in low-fat -- an issue when the doctor tells you your skinny baby needs to put on the pounds. So I've been at a crossroads. I can buy the baby variety, which costs closer to $4 or $5, depending on the store; or I can buy the sugar-laden kiddie yogurt, which is lower in the fat my little guy needs.

Today, while reading the many, many e-newsletters I subscribe to at work, I stumbled across a story on making your own yogurt - in a crock-pot no less. (Here's the direct link to the recipe.)

Writes Wall Street Journal blogger Jennifer Huget:

It couldn't have been easier, and the yogurt is fresh-tasting and plentiful (of
course, you can make as much as you like). The recipe made about 8 cups for less
than $5 (the cost of a half-gallon of milk and a cup of plain yogurt).

Even if I stretched my budget for the organic milk, I still think I'll be out ahead. It is certainly worth a try!

Creative way to color Easter eggs

Coloring Easter eggs isn't something I have done since childhood, but I vividly remember dropping in the little color pellets into the very strong-smelling bowls of white vinegar each spring.

But I also know this isn't the only way to decorate your eggs. In my high school geometry class, we actually were treated to creating our own hand-blown Ukranian egg.

So I wondered, what options do I really have if my daughter and I want to decorate eggs this year? I could buy a package of egg dye, complete with stickers and plastic labels for just about every big fad out there, or we could keep it simple.

And you can keep it simple - or at least natural. There are a number of recipes on the Internet for creating natural Easter egg dye. I will warn you that many state those eggs might take on the flavor of the dye materials, so if you choose to eat your hard-boiled eggs later, this might be an issue!

You can either color your eggs as you boil them (a convenience, except that all your burners might be spoken for!) or dye the eggs cold, as you would with a traditional kit.

In general the hot method involves:

1. Fill the pan with water so that it's about 1/2 inch over the eggs.
2. Add one to two teaspoons of vinegar.
3. Add the natural dye. (See below for color combinations.) Use more dye material for more eggs or for a more intense color.
4. Bring water to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Remove the eggs from the liquid.
7. If you want more intensely colored eggs, temporarily remove the eggs from the liquid.
8. Cool the dye, then cover the eggs with the dye and let them remain in the refrigerator overnight.
9. Rub eggs with paper towel or vegetable oil for a shiny look.

The cold method involves:

1. Boil your eggs separately.
2. Cover your ingredients with an inch of water.
3. Add one to two teaspoons of vinegar.
4. Add the natural dye. Use more dye material for more eggs or for a more intense color.
5. Bring to a boil.
6. Simmer 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Strain the ingredients out of the water and allow the water to cool to room temperature.
8. Submerge the eggs until the desired color is achieved.
9. You may keep the eggs in the solution overnight as long as it is refrigerated.

Colors to consider trying:

• Blue: canned blueberries, red cabbage leaves (boiled) or purple grape juice
• Brown: strong coffee, black walnut shells (boiled), or black tea
• Golden Brown: Dill Seeds
• Green: spinach leaves (boiled)
• Greenish Yellow: yellow delicious apple peels (boiled)
• Lavender: purple grape juice, violet blossoms plus 2 tsp. lemon juice, or red zinger tea Orange: yellow onion skins (boiled), cooked carrots, chili powder or paprika
• Pink: beetsor juice from pickled beets, cranberries or juice, raspberries, or red grape juice
• Red: lots of red onions skins (boiled), canned cherries with juice, pomegranate juice, raspberries, fresh beets, or crushed cranberries
• Violet Blue: violet blossoms, small quantity of red onions skins (boiled), hibiscus tea, red wine, or purple grape juice
• Yellow: orange or lemon peels (boiled), carrot tops (boiled), celery seed (boiled), ground cumin (boiled), ground turmeric (boiled), chamomile tea, green tea, ground cumin or marigolds

Most of what I've read suggested using those old canned goods or beyond-old spices you really hadn't touched anyway or leftovers. No one cares if your produce is wilted for this! And use a lot for an intense color.

We may end up trying this project this weekend. The results, I'm sure, will be interesting!

Sources to learn more:

• Chemistry.about.com
• Organic.org
• Crunchy Domestic Goddess
• Dltk-holidays.com

Homemade ice cream - No ice cream maker required

There are few things more decadent than homemade ice cream. In our family, it's the coveted treat for my mother-in-law to make.

But if you've ever made ice cream yourself, you're in for some work before the reward. There's worrying about the ice, and lots of hand-cranking if you're not fortunate enough to have an electric ice cream maker. (Yes, I know I'm writing a green blog, but let me tell you: Hand cranking until the ice cream is ready is not fun.)

Even if you do have an electric maker, there's lots of babysitting in store. Add in clean up and storage of the maker the rest of the year (not to mention the cost of the contraption itself), and it's quite a lot for that quart of goodness.

Which is why Merle makes it for us.

That's why I was surprised when I stumbled across a homemade ice cream recipe in an ABC book written by my kindergarten teacher the other night. Even better, it was three ingredients -- and it required no ice cream machine. You can hardly go wrong as far as ease of preparation.

So last night, my daughter and I opted to make up our first batch of homemade ice cream. Of course, we're already tweaking the recipe due to ingredient availability in our house! (I think the original called for chocolate instead.)

Strawberry Ice Cream
1 can condensed skim milk
1 cup milk
1 lb. strawberries, diced

Mix the condensed milk and regular milk together until well blended. Add in strawberries. Freeze.

I've yet to try this frozen, but gauging from the fact my little one couldn't stop licking the spoon, I'm guessing it won't last long.