Saturday morning on the lodge porch.

Recycling was popular. But we need more bins.

Blowing your nose

Greenpeace teamed up with Mark Fiore, celebrated political cartoonist to make this animated short featuring Kleer*E who gobbles up forests and spits out boxes of Kleenex!

Sustainibility

...is about balancing our impact and more wisely managing our natural resources. The United Nations describes it as commitment to"the provision of a secure environmental, social, and economic future."
-- quote from Max Gladwell's Ten Ways that Social Media and Sustainability Align.

Golden Chanterelles

Edible Mushrooms
Picked at Sandy Island Week 7, August 2008

Chanterelles have 3 main characteristics:

1. The gills do not meet in a nice single line on the stem, but instead seem to fade out unevenly.

2. Gills are a membrane instead of a thick and separate part of the body. In regular mushrooms if you break the cap you will see that the the flesh of the body is separate from the thick flesh of the gills. In a chantrelle if you break the cap then the gills will separate and look like a thin flap of flesh.

3. They smell of a mixture of apricots and squash.

The Chanterelle Book by Olle Persson. A treasure trove of Chanterelle mushroom historical fact, lovely illustrations, and sumptuous recipes. This book shows how and why the chanterelle has become one of the most sought-after edible mushrooms. Illustrations of the various species of Chanterelles and their habitats. 120 pages, scores of color plates, index. $16.95 + S/H

Globe Editorial

A no-lead law for loons

(Derrick Z. Jackson/Globe Staff)

Email|Print|Single Page| Text size – + July 26, 2008

THE CALL of the loon was particularly haunting this month against a sad backdrop. Biologists in New Hampshire discovered four loons dead from lead poisoning. The deaths were disturbing for many reasons. One is that the summer is only half over and one more lead-killed loon will exceed the annual average for the state. Another is that the loons came from four different bodies of water - an indication that the lead problem is widespread. Still another was that two loons died from tackle the state banned eight years ago: lead sinkers or jigs one inch or smaller. Worst of all, the other two loons died from lead jigs larger than an inch, jigs exempted from the ban on the premise they were too big for loons to ingest.

It is another call to get the lead out of lakes and streams.

New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, and New York have all banned the sale or use of small lead tackle. Massachusetts currently bans lead on its primary loon nesting waters of the Quabbin and Wachusett reservoirs. This spring, the state Senate passed legislation sponsored by Senator Robert Antonioni of Leominster that would give wildlife officials the power to issue a statewide ban on small lead tackle. The bill awaits action in the House.

Lead restrictions have been met with some resistance from angler industry lobbyists, as the metal remains popular for its cheap cost, density, and malleability. But more and more nontoxic gear is becoming available. In fact, one of the "best-of-show" products at this month's international sports-fishing trade convention in Las Vegas was a stone sinker. That would be perfect for loons - if they have to ingest a lost sinker at all - since a primary way they take in lead sinkers is with the pebbles their beaks scoop up from lake bottoms to help digest fish.

Industry complaints about lead bans have to be weighed against the fact that the call of the loon cannot be taken for granted, with about 4,000 birds in Maine, 528 in New Hampshire, and only a few dozen in Massachusetts. Massachusetts should enact a statewide ban on lead, so the call of the loon is merely beautiful, not haunting.

SWAP YOUR PHONE

File this in the great ideas department:

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Save Energy -- Make Cold Brewed Coffee

Cold-Brewed Coffee Extract
Makes about 1 1/2 quarts

1 pound good quality coffee, ground for drip
2 1/2 quarts cool tap water

In a minimum 3-quart pitcher or jar, combine the coffee and water. Let stand for 12 hours. Strain the coffee through a regular kitchen strainer into a 2-quart jar or pitcher. After the bulk of the coffee Place the strainer over a bowl for a few hours to get every last drop.

I find that tastes vary about the strength of coffee. For instance, a guest the other night who was familiar with coffee extract requested her iced coffee be made with nothing but the extract, ice, milk and sugar. I needed a shot of water in mine. For morning coffee, however, I found that three parts water to one part extract, as the manufacturer of Suzanne’s gadget suggests, was too weak for me. I preferred two parts.

For Iced Coffee
Stir together equal parts of the coffee extract and cold tap water (or bottled water). Pour over ice. Add sugar and milk to taste.

For Hot Coffee
Use one part coffee extract to 2 to 3 parts just-boiled water.

Cold Brewed Coffee Using a French Press

Ingredients:

• French press (my Bodum one holds about 3 cups, I think)
• 1 cup coffee
  
• 2 cups water

Directions:

1. Pour the coffee in the press and then add the water. On my unit the water and coffee comes right up to where the plunger would start. Depending on how strong your coffee is you may want a little more or less water.
2. Stir the coffee with a wooden spoon of chopstick. You want to make sure all of the coffee grounds are wet. Wait, about two minutes and stir again. Some of the grounds should now settle to the bottom instead of all floating at the top.
3. Wait 12 hours. I have seen other recipes that say it should be good after 4 hours. I have also other recommendations that after 15 hours or so, you start to extract some of the bitter flavors from the coffee. I usually aim for over night.
4. Press down slowly on the plunger. Pour out the concentrate into an airtight container. You might want to avoid pouring the very last part, it might be a little murky.
5. To make coffee either add cold water, milk or hot water. The ratio used depends on how strong you want your cup to be. I usually do about 1/4 or 1/6 concentrate and the rest milk. Experiment and see what tastes best.
6. _________________
   

New Orleans Cold Drip Coffee
Scaled down from a Blue Bottle Coffee Company recipe, as appeared in the New York Times Magazine

Makes 1 1/2 cups coffee concentrate

1/5 pound dark roast coffee and chicory, medium ground (about 1 cup)
2 cups cold water
Ice
Milk

1. Put coffee in a nonreactive container, like a stainless-steel bowl. Add 1/4 cup water, stirring gently to wet the grounds, then add remaining water, agitating the grounds as little as possible. Cover and let steep at room temperature for 12 hours.

2. Strain coffee concentrate through a medium sieve, then again through a fine-mesh sieve.

3. To make iced coffee, fill a glass with ice, add ¼ cup coffee concentrate and 3/4 to 1 cup milk, then stir. To make café au lait, warm 3/4 to 1 cup milk in a saucepan or microwave, then pour into a mug and add ¼ cup coffee concentrate. (Concentrate will keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.)