Cascadian Farm Organic Goodness

Happy Friday everyone! As we go into the first weekend of April (yay, spring is finally here!) we want to share with you some of the great stuff that came through our organic feed the last couple weeks. Have a wonderful weekend!

Make a Custom Chalkboard from Tile - Looking for a fun project to do with your kids this weekend? Have them create and design their own custom chalkboard to put up in their bedroom. -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com

Backyard Beauties: Heirloom Vegetables and the Simple Art of Seed Saving - As planting season begins, our friends at Simple Good and Tasty, show us how simple it is to save the seeds of a trio of heirloom vegetables, all of which are easy to find and adaptable to a wide variety of climates. –simplegoodandtasty.com

The Inside of my Home Needs More Grass - You’ll have to see it to believe it, but grass is the new accessory… Jennie shares an article about an interior design company that specializes in bringing grass into your home. –twitter.com/sweetgreens

Ganache-Topped Mint Brownies with the Kids - It’s hard not to include one of Shaina’s delicious recipes in the top five ‘Feed links. This time it’s Ganache-Topped Mint Brownies that she made with her kids. –foodformyfamily.com

Humus - How it Can Improve the Health of Your Lawn - Sounds bizarre, but after reading this article from John Yazo, you’ll find out there’s more to Humus than just falafel. –twitter.com/jcy56

Can it be? Is spring on its way? We're already dreaming of lush organic gardens and sunshine, but until we get to experience all that spring has to offer, here are some of our favorite links from the Organic Feed to brighten your day.

1. Starting Seeds Indoors - Stephanie gives us some tips to start seeding for your garden. This makes spring seem that much closer! -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com
2. Would Your Cat Sleep in a Cave? - You heard it right... cat caves! A German artist hand crafts these cute cat beds out of felted wool. Functional and adorable.  -mysweetgreens.com
3. Vegan Raspberry Scone Recipe from Babycakes NYC Cookbook - There's nothing I love more than a delicious scone in the morning, and Fig+Sage found a vegan recipe for us! We know where you can find some delicious organic raspberries to fill them! -figandsage.blogspot.com
4. An Open Letter to Our Children: We're Sorry about School Lunch - Lee approaches students' concerns about the quality of their school lunches. A good read about a very important topic. -simplegoodandtasty.com
5. Still Searching for a CSA? Consider This... - A look into Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA)... a great way to start eating organically and locally! -simplegoodandtasty.com

What spring activities are you dreaming about? Any big gardening plans? Post a comment below, or leave us a note on our Facebook wall!

With the Olympics going on, there has been a lot to watch, and read over the last couple weeks. We've been trying to keep up with all the good stuff coming through our Organic Feed at the same time, and wanted to share with you today!

The Proper Care and Feeding Of Cheese - Yep, you read that right. Caring for and feeding your cheese! Did you know that keeping cheese wrapped is actually bad? Check out the full story, if for no other reason to find out more about Cheese than anyone else you know! -simplegoodandtasty.com

A Simple Cabin In The Woods - Oh this looks nice! Jennie shows off some cabins in our beloved Washington State's Methow Valley. See you there Jennie! -mysweetgreens.com

Make Your Own Kids Art Supplies - Speaking of Jennie, she shared some great ideas with us this week on our own blog about DIY Art Supplies! This was perfect timing Jennie - with winter storms all around we needed some indoors activities to do with our kids! -blog.cascadianfarm.com

Daffodil Cake -  Cake is an easy way to win over my heart, and this one looked especially interesting and tasty! -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com

How To Stock Your Pantry - This was a nice refresher, and Shaina is so right about one thing: "Having ingredients on hand means you're less likely to run to the nearest fast food chain." -foodformyfamily.com

Hope you all had a great week! Enjoy the closing ceremonies, and let us know if you try any of the recipes or projects that we posted on our blog! We'd love to see your pictures and hear how it went for you!

There were so many great articles from our Organic Feed that it was hard to just choose five. Here are some of our favorites and as always, feel free to let us know what articles you liked and any additional thoughts you have.

1. Blackberry Cordial with Cream & Chocolate- This drink recipe just sounds too good to pass up. Psst...want to know where you can find some organic blackberries? -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com
2. Michael Pollan's "Food Rules": Keep it Simple, Then Simplify - Like Food, Inc.? Lee gives us an overview of Michael Pollan's new book, Food Rules: An Eater's Manual. (A must-read for those starting their path toward responsible eating, and a great refresher for those well on their way.) -simplegoodandtasty.com
3. Earth Friendly Etsy :: Bodhicitta - Not only are these re-purposed bottle glasses adorable, but they really do represent one's trash becoming one's treasure. Very green, indeed! -mysweetgreens.com
4. My 5 Fave Natural Organic Perfumes are at Spirit Beauty Lounge - As you well know, organic doesn't stop at food. Fig+Sage shows us some natural alternatives to those traditional perfumes that are packed with synthetic chemicals. -figandsage.blogspot.com
5. A Wake Up Story - A beautiful, yet hair-raising video about making the world a healthier place for our children. Thanks, Jennie, for the share! -mysweetgreens.com

What did you think of these ideas? Post a comment below, or leave us a note on our Facebook wall!

We scoured our Organic Feed to bring you some great posts to prepare us for upcoming events, and to show us how to lead a little greener lifestyle everyday. Here are our Top Five posts from the 'feed:

1. Crowd Pleasin Chili - SuperBowl XLIV is just around the corner, making it a perfect opportunity for some homemade chili. Jennifer shares her recipe with us and claims that it is "chunky, meaty and makes enough to feed a small army." So invite the whole family and watch the game together, or just make it to warm up those cold winter nights! -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com

2. A Fresh Start: Detox Your Bathroom & Laundry! - A follow-up to her post on Detoxing Your Kitchen, Tracy gives some great tips for making your bathroom greener, including some home cleaning remedies that are light on toxins - and on the wallet. -simplegoodandtasty.com

3. Found :: Healthy Snacks at Starbucks! - Fig+Sage find healthy alternatives to the sugar-loaded pastries that are usually found at the well-known coffee house chain. And organic ones, at that! -figandsage.blogspot.com

4. Green Valentines for Kids - Jennie shares some cute ideas for Valentines Day gifts: recycled Valentines made from library cards, adorable love-themed forage bags and even a recipe for vegan cinnamon rolls! Yum!
Also, check out her other green Valentine ideas at the Cascadian Farm blog. -mysweetgreens.com

5. Homemade Peanut Butter Cups (Allergy-Friendly!)- Kellie shows us her gluten-free, casein-free recipe for peanut butter cups. (Who doesn't love peanut butter cups?) These would also make a sweet treat for your Valentine! -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com

Let us know what you think of these ideas. Leave a comment here, or post pictures to our Facebook wall!

Over the last couple of weeks there have been some great stories making their way through our Organic Feed (a collection of links from blogs and sites promoting organic foods, sustainability and green living). Here are 5 great links that we wanted to share with you:

1. A Guide to Buying Organic Food - A great post on buying organics at the grocery store, written by licensed dietitian Sharon Lehrman. Sharon covers everything from fruits & veggies, to baby food, to ketchup (ok - she calls it catsup, but we won't hold that against her). -simplegoodandtasty.com
2. Eat From The Pantry Challenge - Carrie is going to stretch out her grocery budget and to eat from the pantry all month. She just posted a follow-up this week. Good luck Carrie! We hope you're pantry has plenty of Oats & Honey Organic Granola for breakfast! -itsfrugalbeinggreen.com
3. Scrappy Scarf! - Kellie from Make It From Scratch is shares how she made a cashmere scarf out of fabric scraps (you can even use thrift-store sweaters!). Her post is well timed because it's REALLY cold across most of the country. Oranges are freezing in Florida...really?!? -makeitfromscratch.blogspot.com
4. Healthy Smoothie Recipe - As cold as it is, the picture of this berry smoothie had us craving some frozen berry goodness. Extra kudos to Fig+Sage for suggesting organic berries (we know a little company that sells those :) -figandsage.blogspot.com
5. Sprouted Kitchen - Fig+Sage get bonus points for sharing this amazing blog with us. We haven't tried these recipes (yet), but the photography on SproutedKitchen.com has us drooling! -sproutedkitchen.com

We love all of these great stories from our friends around the web. If you think your favorite blog or site should be a part of our Organic Feed please let us know about it! Leave a comment with a link, and we'll go check them out.

Happy Friday, have a great weekend!