Alicia Silverstone's Blog, page 46

Dog Poop Disposal!

I’ve been cringing for years at all the single-use plastic bag waste that’s used to pick up dog poop! There are roughly 63.4 million households in the U.S. that are home to our furry dog friends – which is soo lovely, but the eco-warrior in me can’t help but think about most dogs’ eliminating waste at least 2x a day and the majority of people using the ubiquitous option of plastic bags to pick it up. Yikes, it makes my head hurt thinking about all this plastic garbage that will be on the planet for decades!! I’m about to be the mama to two dogs that need a home, so this topic is especially significant to me right now!

In my brain, letting a dog poop out somewhere in nature and leaving it to biodegrade naturally seems like the most eco choice, but with so many dogs in the world and their poop being high in bacteria, it’s actually an environmental hazard. Just two to three days of waste from 100 dogs can contribute enough bacteria, nitrogen, and phosphorous to close 20 miles of bay-watershed to swimming and shellfishing, according to the U.S. EPA! Similarly, the Center for Disease Control says that dog waste can spread diseases including campylobacter, tapeworm, hookworm, roundworm, giardia, and E.coli, and more rarely salmonella. Arg.  So what’s an eco dog-lover to do??

Similar to the world of disposable ‘compostable’ bioplastic-based cups and containers that I see distributed all over LA and NY, it’s now quite common to see people using ‘biodegradable or compostable’ dog poop bags. However, this can be greenwash-y too because ultimately you can’t put your dog’s poop in your city’s green/compost bin, at least we’re not there yet. Even places like Marin County, that are quite ahead of the game in waste reduction, omit animal waste from their compost collections. So if you can’t put it in a green ‘compost’/green waste bin, and it’s not recyclable, will it biodegrade in a landfill? Sadly, most likely the answer is no.  Most landfills lack oxygen, so natural or biodegradable materials can’t properly decompose. Blah! Some bags claim to eventually biodegrade in landfills, more quickly than conventional plastic bags, but it still doesn’t seem ideal… I’d love to hear your thoughts on this below if you are a bioplastic dog poop bag research nerd like me

CRYSTAL Deodorant Giveaway

Conventional deodorants are filled with tons of toxic chemicals that are not only bad for our bodies (eg breast cancer, Alzheimer’s, etc) but harmful for our Earth. Plus, so many major brands are still testing on animals!!! That’s why I am beyond thrilled brands like CRYSTAL exist. CRYSTAL deodorant is free of all toxic ingredients and cruelty-free. They’re formulated without parabens, aluminum, silicones and all that nasty stuff you get with traditional deodorant. Last year they were tested by the Clean Label Project for over 150 contaminants and received the Purity Award for their entire line.

I have used CRYSTAL for over 20 years because as mentioned above – it’s safe, vegan and most importantly it works! Last fall, I hosted an event sponsored by CRYSTAL at The Gentle Barn, a non-profit animal sanctuary that’s mission is to teach people kindness and compassion to animals, each other, and the planet. I’ve been visiting The Gentle Barn for 20 years and had my 25th birthday there! It was wonderful celebrating The Gentle Barn’s 20th Anniversary with my friends from CRYSTAL. I wish everyone was cruelty-free and conscious like these two entities are!

Deodorant is something that’s used on a regular basis, and since what you put on your skin is just as important as what kind of foods you feed your body (it’s your largest organ), I want to hook you up with CRYSTAL! I will be giving away CRYSTAL deodorant with a copy of my book The Kind Diet to 15 lucky kind lifers!

To enter this giveaway, leave a love note in the comments below sharing why you want to upgrade your deodorant or want some CRYSTAL in your life.

I’ll announce the recipients on Thursday 1/16/2020.

With love,

Alicia

 

Top Photo: Jodie McBride 

• LIMIT ONE COMMENT PER ENTRY. MULTIPLE COMMENT ENTRIES WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. (NO INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING, SORRY).

• THIS GIVEAWAY ENDS AT MIDNIGHT PST, WEDNESDAY 1/15/2020. 

• AFTER WINNERS ARE ANNOUNCED, ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR CLAIMING YOUR PRIZE WILL BE EMAILED.

• NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS GIVEAWAY.

• VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

Immune-Boosting Miso Soup

This recipe calls for five cups of water, which makes a big batch for about five people. If you’re making the soup just for yourself, halve the recipe or store the rest in the fridge and it will last for a few days. Also – this soup is the perfect canvas for all kinds of seasonal veggies, but aim for four or five veg max per batch.

5 cups of water
1”-2” piece dried wakame
1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms, stems trimmed and tops sliced *when using dried shiitake, reconstitute them in warm water first. I like soaking mine overnight because they get softer and easier to slice. But if you’re in a hurry, as little as 15 minutes will do. Then slice them thin.
1/2 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons miso – I prefer a combinator of aged barley miso (South River) and white miso (Miso Masters Organic)
1/4 to 1/2 of one daikon radish, chopped in half moons
1/2 cup tofu chopped in cubes
1/4 cup corn
1 head baby bok choy, separate leaves
Ginger juice to taste (grate a 1” piece of ginger and squeeze out the juice with your fingers and discard the remains)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro for garnish
1/4 cup chopped chives for garnish at the end, do not cook it, this has healing properties as well

Our Magical Time in Bali & Singapore

Reflecting on 2019, Bear and I’s summer kicked off with the trip of a lifetime!  We spent most of it in Bali and a couple of days towards the end in Singapore en route back to Los Angeles. Hands down, Bear is the absolute best travel buddy! He’s so sweet, open, loving, and interested in everything. Really, his outlook is pure heart, all wonder, and confidence – no fear! We both felt so grateful for each other and felt inspired to tell each other multiple times every day! Being in Bali with Bear is an experience I will always cherish. It’s a place full of warmth, joy, and ease. It really is magical. I hope if it speaks to you you can make it there at some point! We ate so much great food, I knew I had to fill you guys in asap!  We also befriended so many awesome people. The new friendships made the trip extra special!

Open Circles fire ceremony

Our adventure began with me speaking at Open Circles in Canggu. I spoke to a group of passionate individuals about all things kind – from my book The Kind Diet to vitamin company mykind Organics. Bear sat in the front row during my talk (by choice) and smiled at me the whole time. He was so independent and patient. It was so special to see him be his full self and befriend adults!  Aside from various interesting talks, there were several fun activities happening during the Open Circles weekend! Bear and I participated in some yoga and meditation sessions and made new friends! The hotel we stayed at, Como Hotels, had a scrumptious breakfast. We met great people at Open Circles! Steve and Amelia lived on the road via motorcycle for a year and ended up staying with us for a few nights. We had fun times scootering around! Outside of the retreat, Bear and I went on walks to explore Canggu. We befriended cows hanging out in fields… Sadly they will be killed, but we seized the moment to give them snuggles, kisses, bananas, and coconut water. All Bear’s doing

Thoughts on Kind Giving

Hey Kind Lifers!

Ugh, I feel overwhelmed at the moment about how the holidays are here so quickly. I feel like it was just Halloween!! But anyways it is the season of giving, and as most of you know, I always aim for a useful gift! Something the person actually needs or will be sure to love! Not only will a well-loved gift bring more joy to your loved one, but gifting consciously is kinder to the planet. Between Thanksgiving and the New Year, Americans generate 25 percent more waste than usual… This is enough to fill an additional 140,000 garbage trucks every week of the holiday season! And it’s not just the extra packaging waste that’s a problem, but material gifts require the use of natural resources like trees and fossil fuels to create them.

For this reason, I love DIY simple but thoughtful gifts like a handpicked bouquet of wildflowers from my garden, a framed photo, or some freshly made chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies from The Kind Diet (p.187 )! I also enjoy experiential gifts such as taking a cooking class together, giving a gift card to a delicious vegan restaurant or a fantastic spa. It really depends on the person but there are so many lovely experiential gifts, a few more I admire include a membership to a local art museum, botanical garden, or tickets to the theater! And of course, The Kind Diet and The Kind Mama make great gifts

Sweet Calming Kuzu

 

Kuzu is a starch made from wild mountain kuzu root- which you can find in most natural and specialty food stores or online- and it’s incredibly strengthening and calming! This tea really does help you relax and brighten your vibe. I have this when I’m cranky pants. It’s great for so many reasons! Especially pms, nourishing you when you’re on your period, and to calm/soothe little people

Wicked Healthy Kids Cooking Classes

My pal Chef Chad Sarno has made a fun and yum looking, family-friendly online cooking class called Wicked Healthy Kids.  The video promo is sooo cute.  I have known Chad since meeting him at a raw food convention in Jamaica in 2000. He’s a stellar chef and I’m thrilled about his new cooking classes! In this online series, you’ll cook along with Chef Chad and some of his favorite little cooks as he coaches you through making simple, tasty, family-friendly plant-based meals.

These easy to follow videos will instruct you on more than 20 plant-based recipes and will highlight:

How to bring your kids in the kitchen and get them involved in creating plant-based snacks and meals
Comfort meals the whole family can dig into
On-the-go snacks and lunches like bento boxes and more
Easy to pull together weeknight desserts
Yummy brunches for happy kiddos
Dips to help push plants at snack time
Easy quick bites the kids can make themselves

This class series is completely self-paced, and won’t expire! Wicked Healthy’s mission is for you to learn to cook delicious food and have fun!

The class will be available starting today, Friday, November 15th. Learn more and sign up today!

Added bonus, all of the class profits will be donated to their favorite plant, animal, and earth-loving charities such as The Humane Society, The Good Food Institute, Ocean Wise and The Nature Conservancy! What great skills you can get from these classes all while contributing to amazing causes!

 

My Favorite Tahini Dressing

 

 

This will yield roughly 16 ounces of tahini dressing and will last in the fridge for up to 1 week:

9 oz tahini
6 oz lemon juice
3 oz water
1.5 oz shoyu or tamari (aka soy sauce – I love Mitoku Yuuki Kanazawa Shoyu)

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy fresh or store in the refrigerator for ~5 days.

Check out Bear & I making nori burritos, I highly suggest pairing this tahini dressing with them! It’s delicious.

Tell me if you make this dressing or the nori burrito/tahini combo in the comments below!

P.S. More on tahini! When I’m spreading it on bread with jam or eating it by the spoonful

Toasted Nori Burritos

My friend Renee taught me to make these nori rolls when we were driving to a concert called “Reggae on the River” in Northern California. In the car, she had brought along romaine lettuce, basil, cilantro, avocado, apple, and hummus; and we wrapped them all up in the nori and ate them as we traveled. It was a delicious, refreshing, crunchy snack that kept us going for 2 days! Below is a variation on that nori burrito, but know you can make one out of almost anything (like in this video I used radicchio, sauerkraut, sprouts, and tahini). You can find two super yum tahini dressing variations, one in my book The Kind Diet and the other in this video!

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 umeboshi plum
1 cup cooked brown rice (leftover is great!)
2 sheets toasted nori
2 romaine lettuce leaves
1 avocado, sliced
1 apple, sliced
4 fresh basil leaves
Leaves from 6 cilantro sprigs
Leftover cooked kale or salad greens

Teat the umeboshi plum into little pieces and discard the pit. Place half the rice on each sheet of nori and top with remaining ingredients. Roll the nori into a cone shape around the filling; if it’s rolled tightly, you can seal the edges by wetting your finger to dampen the edges of the nori.

Note: Serve a half sheet of nori at dinner to use as a wrapper for any leftovers or food that might need refreshing. Nori makes everything taste great!

 

Top Photo: Victoria Pearson

Video: Kristin Burns

Sponsored: Giovanni’s Eco Chic Goodness

I have been a dedicated fan of Giovanni shampoo and conditioner for about two decades. For reals, I’ve been recommending their products for as long as The Kind Life has existed!! I’ve tried and have been curious about other hair products but nothing compares to Giovanni! I’m thrilled to fill you guys in on why I’ve been a fan of their products..

First off, as you kind lifers probably know, the world of conventional personal care products are loaded with chemicals that are not healthy for your largest organ aka the skin to absorb. From common ingredients like parabens (endocrine disruptor), preservatives like scary formaldehyde (yikes hormonal damage), artificial colors and other synthetic funk. It’s frightening to think about washing with these types of ingredients on a regular basis, and also a bummer to think about them going down the drain and eventually into the ocean. Luckily there are increasingly more and more, actually an overwhelming amount of natural-based alternatives that have consumer and planet wellness, as well as performance in mind.

Since 1979, Giovanni has been committed to making products that are pure and natural, without sacrificing bodacious-looking hair. Their line is vegan-friendly and all products are Leaping Bunny certified. There are zero of those commonly found funky ingredients mentioned above (parabens, phthalates, DEA, propylene glycol, or artificial colors). The ingredient base is biodegradable and mostly USDA Certified Organic!

It’s a family-owned business formulated here in SoCal. I think that’s so awesome! Founder, Arthur Guidotti was a LA-based hairstylist with a salon opened in 1968 called “On Sunset”. With time, Arthur’s hands began to react to the products he was using. He tried product after product testing which would not cause a reaction on his skin. What he was seeking didn’t exist, so Arthur and his business partner Peter Stathis founded Giovanni and created it. Now, they’ve been in business for 40-years – real deal pioneers in the natural products world, seeking out clean and ecologically responsible ingredients way before it was more normalized or trendy. So grateful for this kind of leadership! 

My favorites from their line of #ecochic goodness are the shampoo/conditioners 50:50 Balanced Hydrating Clarifying and  Root 66 Max Volume. They smell delicious and work great! My hair routine is very low maintenance. I wash my hair with one of these Giovanni shampoos and conditioners, brush it out, then sleep on it wet. I wake up with a fresh head of hair, with some bonus waves. 

Some other products I dig from their line include the Frizz Be Gone Hair Serum. This serum is a yummy oil that I like to put on the ends of my hair. Leaves em’ feeling smooth and gives great shine. I also like the L.A. Hold Styling Gel. I’ve plugged this to a couple hair stylists on various sets, such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid and now Baby-Sitters Club. The stylists were receptive and found it worked well! 

Anyways, thanks shout out to Giovanni for being my go-to for years now. Check them out if you’re in need of some new hair products or want to switch up your routine! 

#giovannihaircare