If you signed up for Team ENERGY STAR, now is the time to share your energy-saving story! And, if you haven’t signed up yet, do it today and learn how your family can save energy, save money and protect the climate with ENERGY STAR. Stories are due May 24th, plus the first 200 families tosubmit a story to Team ENERGY STAR will receive 2 tickets each to the new movie, EPIC, courtesy of Fox.

Team ENERGY STAR is a great way for the whole family to get involved in saving energy and offers fun-filled, educational materials to teach your kids about saving energy and helping the planet. Brought to you by PTO Today and featuring the heroic characters from the new movie EPIC premiering May 24th, Team ENERGY STAR is sure to be a hit with your kids. Top energy-saving story submissions will win exciting electronics products from LG, such as smart phones, TVs, computer monitors, and more. The top 5 winners will be featured on LG’s electronic billboard in New York’s Times Square!

So sign up and share your story before May 24th and help make a difference by joining the heroic team from EPIC and ENERGY STAR in the fight to save their world and ours.

Team ENERGY STAR  is social, Tweet with them @EnergyStar, ’Like’ them on Facebook.com/EnergyStar.

How can you save water and raise money at the same time? With a rain barrel purchase through Coastkeeper, you can do just that and earn up to a $400 rebate from the City of San Diego at the same time. With a rain barrel, you can collect rainwater from your roof and re-use it in your garden and the savings can be huge— just one-inch of rainfall can fetch over 300 gallons of water. Purchase a rain barrel through Coastkeeper today. Each rain barrel is $100, eligible in the City of San Diego for a $1/gallon rebate and a $25 tax-deductible portion will go to our work to protect fishable, swimmable, drinkable waters. To learn more visit sdcoastkeeper.org.

San Diego Coastkeeper is social, Tweet with them @SD_CoastKeeper, ’Like’ them on Facebook.com/SanDiegoCoastKeeper or watch on YouTube.com/SanDiegoCoastKeeper.

In an interview with Democracy Now! about his new book, Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, Michael Pollan says taking back control of cooking may be the single most important step to help make our food system more sustainable.

“Slow food is about food that is good, clean and fair. They’re concerned with social justice. They’re concerned with how the food is grown and how humane and chemical-free it is.” He adds, “Slow food is about recovering that space around the family and keeping the influence of the food manufacturers outside of the house. … The family meal is very important. It’s the nursery of democracy.”

Source: Treehugger.com

To help you take control of your own food, check out recipes and tips from Vegenista, EatlocalGrown and Green Wine Guide.

If you already commute to work on your bike, that’s great, just keep doing what you do. But if you don’t, it’s a great time to give it a try and see why so many swear by it.  Bike to Work Day is a nationally recognized event celebrated annually on the third Friday in May. Bike to Work 2013 supports bicycling as a viable, environmentally friendly, cost-saving commute choice.

Participants in Bike to Work 2013 have a chance to get fit, save time and money, and receive great freebies from sponsors. Register for Bike to Work Day and log your bike trip in Trip tracker to be automatically entered to win one of many great prizes.

Pit Stops offer fun breaks for new and experienced cyclists on Bike to Work Day. Nearly 90 pit stops will be located throughout San Diego County. View the map and plan your route!

Twitter cofounder Biz Stone’s vegan take on classic bourguignon makes innovative use of seitan and mushroom crispy “bacon” strips.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 (1/2-pound) packages traditional-flavored seitan, broken into bite-size pieces
• 4 shallots, minced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced crosswise into 1-inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 (750 mL) bottle pinot noir
• 1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 15 pearl onions, fresh or frozen, peeled
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons margarine
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mushroom “Bacon” Topping

• 1 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
• Olive oil
• Coarse salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place mushrooms in a large bowl; drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.
3. Evenly spread mushrooms in a single layer in a shallow glass baking dish. Transfer to oven and bake, tossing with tongs every 5 to 10 minutes, until dry and crisp, taking care not to burn. Remove from baking dish; mushroom “bacon” may be used hot or at room temperature.

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add seitan and cook, stirring, until seitan is browned and caramelized on all sides. Reduce heat and add shallots, carrots, and garlic; cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
2. Transfer seitan mixture to a large saucepan; add wine and enough stock to just cover seitan mixture. Add parsley, bay leaves, thyme, and pearl onions; cover and bring to a simmer until vegetables are tender. Transfer seitan, carrots, and onions to a large serving bowl; set aside and keep warm.
3. In a small bowl, mix together flour and margarine. Add flour mixture to saucepan, stirring until well combined. Let sauce simmer, uncovered, until it reaches a gravy-like consistency. Remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper.
4. Pour sauce over seitan in serving bowl; garnish with mushroom “bacon” topping and parsley. Serve.

Meatless Monday, an international movement, encourages people everywhere to cut meat one day a week for personal and planetary health.

Image Credit & Recipe Courtesy: wholeliving.com

Yoga Six welcomes you to the grand opening of their newest studio in 4S Ranch! Come view the new space with complimentary snacks and refreshments while you get to know the staff and gain a better understanding of what they’re all about. Yoga enthusiasts of all levels are encouraged to participate—whether you’re a Vinyasa expert or you’re just looking for a fun way to stay active, Yoga Six instructors will walk you through the steps and ensure that you find the best-suited regimen for your personal fitness goals. They will also hold a raffle for six one-month yoga packages and all proceeds go to Jeans 4 Justice.

Yoga Six, San Diego’s hottest and fastest growing studio has opened four locations in less than a year, including Point Loma, Solana Beach, Carlsbad and 4S Ranch.

In addition to hot, classical and vinyasa yoga, Yoga Six offers specialty yoga like SUP Yoga (Stand Up Paddle Board Yoga) and Barre, Sculpt and Shred fitness classes.

Yoga Six Grand Opening – May 5, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m..

This event is free and open to the public Yoga Six 4S Ranch is located at 16625 Dove Canyon Road, San Diego, CA 92127

Connect with Yoga Six, Tweet with them @yoga_six, ‘Like’ them on Facebook.com/yogasix or follow on Pinterest/yogasix.

Getting your kids to eat their daily veggies is now easier than you might think, with the launch of a new children’s beverage Sneakz Organic. It looks like chocolate milk but with one full serving of vegetables in every box! The vegetables that are ‘sneaked in’ are nutrient-rich sweet potatoes, carrots and broccoli. Parents will be happy to learn the ingredient list is simple and clean, with nothing artificial – no GMOs, antibiotics or synthetic hormones. Sounds good right? On to the taste test!

I have to be truthful; I poured Sneakz into a glass to get my daughters honest opinion. She’s 10 and would notice the vegetable images on the drink box. She enjoyed Sneakz for several days before seeing the drink box in the fridge. When she looked closely at the packaging and noticed the vegetables she said it was alright because it tasted so good! She even took to school and had no problem drinking in front of her friends. She was proud to say her mom let’s her have chocolate milkshakes for lunch!

The second taste test was me! I wanted to see if it was good for adults too. I found it tasty, a little thicker than chocolate milk. No hint of veggies but I was happy to know they were in there.

We will definitely be buying again and adding to school lunch. In addition to the health benefits I feel good feeding my family Sneakz beverages because I have confidence in the ingredients and know this is a company that lives their values. I also appreciate the eco-friendly Tetra Pak packaging. I would like to see them develop a non-dairy version and add additional flavors next.

Sneakz Organics is social, Tweet with them @sneakzorganic, ’Like’ them on Facebook.com/sneakz or follow on Pinterest/sneakzorganic.

Locally Sneakz can be found at Jimbo’s Naturally & Keil’s. To find a store near you visit store locator.

If you buy Sneakz I’d love to hear what you & your kids think too. Leave your feedback in the comments!

Disclosure: I received complementary samples of Sneakz Organic beverages for review purposes. This is only my opinion yours may vary.

Come celebrate the 43rd anniversary of Earth Day! Sunday, April 21st from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Featuring more than 300 exhibitors, special theme areas, a Food Pavilion, a special Children’s Activity Area, entertainment venues, the Cleaner Car Concourse, and more…

A children’s parade will take place starting at 10:30am, starting at Spanish Village and ending at the Children’s area.

For more information about the fair, costumes for the children’s parade, a list of exhibitors, and parking alternatives, visit earthdayweb.org/EarthFair.

To join the conversation on Twitter #EarthFair

The Bulk is Green Council (BIG) is challenging to you to take the pledge to Love Bulk Foods! When you take the pledge, you automatically will be entered into the drawing to win a prize pack filled with everything you need to create a natural pantry stocked with bulk foods – including some nifty glass jars (approximate value $50)! Winners will be drawn once a week during the Earth Month. If you haven’t bought in bulk before, don’t worry – it’s not hard to get started.  Learn more and take the pledge.

Did you know buying natural and organic bulk foods from the bulk bins provide significant benefits to the environment – chief among them being a substantial amount of packaging waste diverted from landfills. What better time than Earth Month to transition to bulk foods for the environmental benefits? 

The reasons we buy in bulk include reduced packaging, lower cost and purchasing only what we need means less waste. This infographic gives some interesting statistics on the environmental benefits of buying in bulk. Visit www.lovebulkfoods.com to download.

What are your favorite foods or spices to buy in bulk? 

Visit www.lovebulkfoods.com to take the pledge to love bulk foods-through Earth Month and beyond!

 Disclosure: I received complementary bulk foods prize pack for review purposes {Thank you!}