Casa Robino

So you thought dumpster diving is sustainable? Think again.

People tend to never have enough and hunt for such enormous amounts that we can't eat it all. We sometimes have to throw out twice as much as what we can eat.

This must end. Not only because we hurt our backs so much when having to bring all that food up the stairs and down again into the bin. But more importantly: we are wasting so much energy!

Davide and I collaborated on a most delicious winter morning drink:
Chai Bomb; chai masala tea with a shot of espresso.

First, prepare an old-fashioned handmade espresso with the old steel machine.

Meanwhile, make your chai.
Boil water on the stovetop with a mixture of:
ginger, cinnamon, black tea leaves, nutmeg, cloves, 1 small dried peperoncino, sweet red pepper, and cardamom pods until dark.

Add (soya or rice, for vegans) milk to taste. Continue boiling.

Strain the chai mixture into a teapot.

I thought there was mold on my mushrooms (can mold even grow on a fungus?), so I asked google.

It said, "http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FactSheets/Molds_On_Food/"

Thoroughly impressed that the US Government had recommendations about which foods are OK to eat, even if they are moldy, I said "whoa! The Casa needs to know about this for dumpster-diving!" ^ So if you care about dumpsterdam, check it out ^

Then I realized that the slippery American feds still hadn't resolved my fungus dilema... So I asked the Canadians.

Cooking is language, cooking is identity, cooking is a primary need of all humankind. It is culinary skill, manual dexterity, and the ability to capture the right mix of flavor and spiciness. (...) a sign of humankind's serene relationship with nature and life. (ref). Those words I just read in the book Manifestos on the Future of Food & Seed, while waiting for everyone to sit around the table to eat the simple but great dinner Amylin had just prepared.

Dinner is a basic thing here in the house, it helps building community, it creates a nice atmosphere, and most important, space for everyone to interact with each other. Almost daily we therefore eat jointly with whoever is there. We always eat well here - the last couple of months also mostly freegan - with at times brilliant cooks.