I love being in my kitchen when it's stormy outside!

I especially love cooking with warming Indian spices when it's cold.

I just got through making this recipe. Please try it - you won't regret it.

The flavors were dancing in my mouth - this dish literally made me smile.

Spiced Black-eyed peas

1 Tablespoon grapeseed oil

½ tsp. whole cumin seeds

2 ½ cups black eyed peas, cooked ( See note at the bottom)

1 tsp. coriander powder

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. turmeric powder

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. lemon juice

¼ tsp. garam masala

½ cup red onion, diced

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

· Heat oil in a heavy skillet

· When oil is hot, add the cumin seeds and cook for 30 seconds, stirring occasionally

· Stir in black-eyed peas

· Add coriander, salt, turmeric and chili powder along with ½ cup of water

· Bring to a boil

· Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed

· Stir in lemon juice and garam masala

· Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with onion and cilantro

· Serve immediately

This dish is great as a side dish along with brown rice and baked winter squash. It also works well as an appetizer.

How to make black-eyed peas from scratch

You can use canned black-eyed peas but there's a noticeable difference between canned and freshly cooked beans. There was a time when I was shy about cooking my own beans but once I started doing it, there was no going back.

To make black-eyed peas from scratch, place 1 1/2 cup of beans in a large bowl and cover the beans with fresh water. Add enough water so that the beans are covered by several inches.

Soak for 8 hours. Soaking black-eyed peas isn't entirely necessary but they will cook faster and I find the final product to be more tender after they've been soaked.

After beans have soaked, rinse them a few times with fresh water.

Place beans in a large pot along with a two inch strip of Kombu (this sea vegetable makes beans easier to digest) and cover with 2 1/2 quarts of fresh, cold water and place burner or flame on high.

Bring water to a boil and bring heat down to medium.

Let beans cook for 40-50 minutes, stirring once or twice. Beans should be tender but not falling apart when they are done.

Eat happy, be happy

Molly

Transformation: vegetarian to vegan

I was born and raised a vegetarian. When one grows up in a a Teepee this is normal (true story and a whole other blog)

When I became older I had the same mentality about meat as I did with drugs. I figured, I went this long without - why start now? That's right, my 15 blog followers, in all of my 30 years I have never eaten meat.

My vegetarian diet was by default - I wish I could tell you that it came from an emotional place of wanting to be a better person but the truth is, I wasn't inspired by Bambi, health concerns or green house gases to eat a vegetarian diet. I didn't know any other way to eat or live.

It wasn't until I started working for Nature's Express did I become vegan. Again, I wasn't inspired by Bambi, health or green house gases. I felt like a hypocrite working for a vegan restaurant while I continued to indulge in eggs, butter and my all time favorite.....cheese. I made the decision and that was that. Apart from having physical cravings for cheese and missing the convenience of dairy, my transition was fairly easy.

I remember being skeptical that cutting out dairy would make any difference in my day to day life. I was very wrong.

The first two weeks of cutting out dairy I went through physical, emotional and mental transformations that I was surprised and delighted to be having. I felt lighter, I had more energy than I ever had, my skin was glowing, my pants fit better, I slept more sound, my eyes became brighter and I literally had moments of pure clarity. I know this sounds dramatic - believe me, I wouldn't have believed it had I had not experienced it first hand.

While all of these amazing things were happening I was kicking myself for not doing this sooner; while at the same time nervous that I had opened Pandora's box.

I started reading books, reading blogs and subscribing to all things vegan. At first, I was driven by my responsibility for learning everything vegan that I possibly could for the sake of my job. I was working on opening Nature's Express in Berkeley and I had to be in the know.

The more I was learning about the impacts that the meat and dairy industry have on our health, the environment and animal suffering, I quickly realized how blind I had been in the past not acknowledging what had been right in front of me.

I grew up not eating meat, my mom has been vegan for over 20 years, I was a personal chef who helped ill people get better through my vegan cooking. It's not like I lived in a vast far away country where the thought of factory farming was an alien concept.

I was disappointed with myself. How had I turned a blind eye my whole life to this entire world that I was just now looking at straight on? Although, I wished I had done it sooner, I had never felt better about being vegan. I have been vegan for two years now.

My personal outlook is simple. There are so many negative impacts that the meat and dairy industry account for. I very politely refuse to be part of the contribution. It is not my wish to push my views or beliefs down anyone else's throat, nor do I wish to make judgments on anyone who has a different view point from my own.

I am fortunate enough to work for a company that feels the same.

I could not be the person who I am today If it wasn't for my ah -ha moment - and that ah-ha moment had to come from me and no one else.

When I sat down to write this post, my intention was to write a quick post about the unbelievable positive effects that eating Miso and seaweed every morning have had on my menstrual cramps. Well, boys, you're out of luck 'till next time - unless I decide to write my next post about Anthony Bourdain and why I can't NOT like the guy.

Eat happy, be happy.

Molly Patrick

Full of gratitude

Scrumpdillyitious is how I describe my favorite vege-burger in the house, the classic with almond sunflower patty on rosemary bun!!

Yessiree, it is delish. But also if you are ready to power up on some major energy and don’t want to get weighed down with the gluten in the buns you have to try the Essential Lentil.

Plus I ALWAYS add avocado. What vegan would not appreciate the goodness of delicious avocado on anything? Am I right or am I right??

It is that fabulous time of year again when family comes around to celebrate the holidays with loved ones. I for one am looking forward to spending time with my kids and my brother will be serving up some tofu-turkey with savory stuffing and mushroom gravy! I am so stoked for the coming week!

I for one am thankful to be working at Nature’s Express where the food is awesome and the people are magnificent! I’d like to give a shout out to my work family for the team work and love they show one another each day as we prepare and serve delicious nourishing food to all of Berkeley.

Joel, Brenda, and Molly…You rock as managers, creative visionaries and consistency officers!! Danny your purity of spirit is remarkable and thanks for the smiles I get each time I read the “Hella Mayo” scrawled across the labels of the best mayo I ever tasted!. Sue, Matt and Regan…I gotta say I am loving the vibe we create on Sundays at NE, especially today. Sue, for your cheerful smile, spicy ideas, and unwavering kitchen support, Regan for your intellect, creativity, and mellowness, which helps us all breathe, and Matt for your speed and accuracy, not to mention the amazing rolls in collard greens!! Jacob, I love your vigor and enthusiasm. Your wit makes me laugh! Francisco, its so great how you know the best stuff about the local culture and the music scene. Thanks for your happy spirit and skills on grill! Luis, “The Machine” as Mike puts it. You are awesome to work with, never a complaint outta you! You embody the positive attitude thing! Ambrose, it is super wicked how you do food presentation! I love it, and your willingness to help. And lastly, Mike, the nicest smiling face anyone ever did see! Thanks for showing me the ropes and helping to keep us all on track!

Finally, to our customers, you are super rock star fabulous! Your feedback is great I love sharing the healthy abundance with you! Happy Thanksgiving community and family!

Hello Berkeley NE peeps!

Hello sheeple and peeps! Ok, I stole that from Stephen Colbert, but it seems appropriate seeing as I am about to fly off to DC for the Rally to Restore Sanity! Yipee! I am writing into the vast number of NE readers to say please come by the restaurant tonight and give me your best sign ideas! Please introduce yourself and jot down your best line for the sign. Then you can say you knew me when….that is pre-restored sanity days….and I am sure that Jacob will be happy to make you your favorite sandwich this evening and we can really keep the night hopping! Also, come and see what’s new with the remodeling of our store. If you can’t make it in this evening for food and great conversation, I will be in all week Tues-Thurs, working the day shift and staying dedicated to the vegan masses before I fly!! Looking forward to your company! Over and out, Mary Rose

Food Waste…70 times more than the BP oil spill for Americans in one year! Yikes!

Food Waste…70 times more than the BP oil spill for Americans in one year! Yikes!

I ran across this link via a friend of mine on Facebook. This is incredible. If you have 9 minutes to spare, click here and press the play on the audio strip.

I am so glad Nature’s Express already gets this….Really, very little goes to waste in our store and at the end of the day our employees take whatever fries and quinoa macaroni noodles are left over (which is minimal due to proper planning) to gobble up at home! I used to get the benefit of soup leftovers too, but Joel, our chef, figured out a way to finish off the day with NO soup leftovers!! Boo Hoo for me.

VegFest and Meeting Dr. Myers

As a relatively new employee of Nature’s Express, it was so exciting to have been invited to work at VegFest in San Francisco over the weekend. I was also looking forward to the day because I was finally going to meet our founder and owner Dr. Carl Myers. The day did not disappoint! The morning started off with Molly and I arriving and setting up the Nature’s Express booth among all the other incredible displays and vegan enthusiasts. Soon Dr. Myers arrived and greeted us warmly. He was scheduled to give and hour long talk on the benefits of the vegan lifestyle and diet. I was impressed by his and his wife’s open and loving demeanor. Molly attended Dr. Myers talk and then returned to watch the booth so I could attend a talk given by John Robbins.

John Robbin’s eloquence and style pulled his audience into a wonderful sort of warm cocoon. I was inspired and felt an immediate sense of community in the room. It made me realize that our true equity is, now more than ever, sharing that sense of community by exchanging ideas, supporting healthy choices for the body and the environment, and doing it with ease and tenderness for one another. As you may be able to tell, I left the auditorium beaming. I was smiling because I realized how lucky I was to be working with other vegan food enthusiasts and people who shared similar values and goals; that of sustainable living, making the healthiest dietary choices and generating positive, smiling vibrations.

Finally today, when I was back in the restaurant, Dr. Myers came in to visit and see how all of us were doing in Berkeley. Many of our customers had the chance to meet and talk with Dr. Myers since he made himself available throughout the entire lunch hour rush. I observed many happy conversations and new bonds being made here in our local health conscious community, where by the way….all are welcome vegan or not.

I for one, look forward to hearing from all of you and sharing the incredible experience that is Nature’s Express; Fresh, organic, tasty vegan food prepared by a new breed of business people empowered by shared humanistic goals and values!!

Pickling Day!

We like to make things at Nature's Express.

Being in the kitchen, creating new tastes and textures for a range of palates is what we do. Trial and error occurs on a daily basis.

Our drive is to nourish people with fresh, real,tasty food.

We make our own mayo, ketchup, soft serve, sauerkraut, pickled ginger, desserts, burgers......

It was time to take on pickles and we did!

We can now add house-made dill pickles to our repertoire - and believe me when I tell you - they are amazing! Come in and ask for a sample and taste for yourself!

Pickling day

Cucumbers and brine

Danny, our fermentation master

Soon to be yummy pickles!

"fermentation station"

Let the fermentation begin!