The Green Traveller: The Crosby St. Hotel, NYC

Wow...I feel like I hit the jackpot of sustainable, designer hotels.  This place is amazing.  The Crosby St. Hotel, situated in the heart of SoHo on a quiet cobbled street, is simply stunning.  The website doesn't give much detail about what aspects of it are green, but the hotel is in the process of acheived LEED Certification, so I have an idea of what the minimum requirements are.  NYC is high on my list of must sees, but I've always said I'm going to wait until I can afford to eat at all the best restaurants, visit the high fashion eco-boutiques, see the shows, and now, stay at the Crosby (ya, I know, you can do NY on a budget, but it just screams splurge to me!).  Enjoy the beautiful images, and if you ever pay a visit, make sure you write me with a review!

The Organic Kitchen: Maple Syrup

For this week's installment of The Organic Kitchen, I wanted to share with you the results of Jonathan and I's maple syrup making.  Jonathan did this every year as a child, and I, well, lets just say one somewhat disastrous attempt by my father (who still can't live it down) put a stop to it.  But, honestly, its a quintessential Canadian experience, and in Jonathan and I's quest to cut out processed food, we felt inspired to give it a try.  So, we collected buckets, tapped some trees, boiled it down (the old school way, with a fire), and here we are!  The results are fantastic!  Even with our off kilter spring, we were able to gather about 200 gallons of sap, which created about 2.5 liters of syrup, which we divided up amongst our family.  We use maple syrup quite a lot, as its a natural sugar with many health benefits.

Here are some of my favourite uses:

1. Over cut, fresh strawberries for dessert.  Pour a tablespoon over berries and let sit for an hour.  The syrup brings out the sugar in the berries.

2. A splash in coffee...mmmm...simply delectable!

3. Pour a splash over plain yogourt, with some homemade granola (recipe coming soon!)

4. Over oatmeal (use rolled oats), and add fresh fruit.  Our favourite combos are apples, cinnamon and raisins, bananas and coconut, strawberries and mango.  So good!

What are your favourite uses for maple syrup?

{eco} design: Samantha Pynn

Hello friends!  I felt like giving you a little extra something today, something to juxtapose the modern feel of Hufft. I came across this lovely room that I thought I would share - it's very spring like, with a robin's egg blue, pale celery green and white.  The design comes from Samantha Pynn*.  She has a show on HGTV Canada that featured green design in its first season, but the designs have become a little less green, I'm afraid.  However, I'm still happy to feature this room, as it features two of my favourite Toronto destinations: the table, from Urban Tree Salvage, and the light fixture, from LampCage.  UTS salvages wood cut by the city, and Lampcage uses recycled metal in their designs.  Be sure to check them out! 

{note the mismatch china collection - create an instant collection by painting interestingly shaped plates a common shade, and arrange them somewhat haphazardly}

*Last time I posted about Samatha, everyone thought I was her because our design names are similar, even though I very specifically identified Samantha as the designer; I had to remove the post!  Any similarities in our names are by coincidence ONLY, and have nothing do to with the other.

{eco} Design: Hufft Architect

This week, under {eco} design, I was thrilled to discover Hufft Architect, a firm dedicated to unique individuality, modern simplicity and practical sustainability.  I love their philosophy..."We understand that as the creator of objects and environments, we are also creating a peice of each of our client's identity."  With regards to sustainability, Hufft covers all its bases: energy conserving designs, low VOC paints and finishes, minimal waste, and quality. 

{the modern and striking exteriors of their projects is perhaps what I like best}

{simple, open loft interior...love the angled island, made with reclaimed wood}

{this picture is a 'before' shot, so you can get the proper perspective on this next project...}

{can you believe it?  similar to Andrew Maynard's style, this reno makes zero effort to hid the addition, and the result is unique and stunning.  the owners of this home were willing to make a statement, and it certainly works.}

{from the back}

{some interior shots...nice sideboard}

{these built-in's are definitely on my wishlist!}

Be sure to check out their website for more.  I'll keep you posted with updates.

Coming this afternoon: a room with a pretty pastel palette for spring!

Vintages: Jeanne Connolly

Boy do I relish my new issues of ReadyMade!!!  I find myself full to the brim with project ideas after reading a new issue...it just leaves me pining for more free time.  A favourite find from this issue was Jeanne Connolly, the creater behind Vintage Renewal - she takes old ugly furniture and gives it a new lease on life with a coat of paint of some great fabric (although I don't think the fabric is organic...but maybe she'll do something custom).  After admiring great refurbishers like Jeanne and Barb from Knack (a girl after my own heart), I'm wishing I lived nearer to flea and antique markets than I do.  I'm left with a local Sal-Y An, which is limited on choice and pretty expensive, garage sales and a re-store.  Oh well, I quite enjoy my weekly forages anyway, and where's the thrill without the hunt.  At any rate, if I find any treasures of my own I'll keep you posted.  Until then, enjoy Jeanne's lovely work, and pay her a visit too!  There are many more goodies where these came from!

The Organic Kitchen: French Toast

Jonathan and I have prepared a yummy treat this week, as a delectable Easter brunch, perhaps?  The crunchy whole grain bread gives the french toast an unexpected texture, also toning down the sweetness just enough.  Try it, you'll be glad you did. 

Ingredients:

Ground Cinnamon

Real Vanilla Extract

Maple Syrup

Butter

Free Range Eggs

Pumpernickel or 12 Grain Bread

Serve with piping hot coffee and some fruit...we really like mangos, but if you can, get something seasonal.

Method:

1. In a medium bowl crack 4 large eggs (if your bread is huge add more eggs)

2. Sprinkle the cinnamon until you have covered the top of the eggs (about 1/8 tsp)

*normally I am a fan of grating your own fresh cinnamon but if the chunks are too big it will be overpowering

3. Add ¼ of a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a couple glugs (about 3 tbsp) of Pure Canadian Maple Syrup.

4. Whisk it all together until the “pockets” of cinnamon are broken down and the mix looks nice and creamy.

5. Cut your bread thick - about an inch

6. Heat your cast Iron skillet to medium high and add your grapeseed oil. Once oil is hot cut in a slab of butter and make sure the pan is coated.

*If you are using your fancy new Greenpan instead (check them out here), cut the oil in half but stick to medium high heat.

7. Dip your bread in the egg mix and make sure both sides are well coated. Put it in the pan.

8. Once you have added your bread to the pan brown it evenly, flip and repeat. If it doesn’t all fit in the pan at the same time have a tray in the oven with the heat on a low setting so you can keep them warm and crisp.

9. When they are all done, drizzle with syrup and fruit and voila! Breakfast of French Champions!!

{i know there are a few extra toasty bits here, but it tasted great!}

Frying Tip: Most of the terrible burns I have seen are from hot oil splashing on your hands. Always ensure when you are adding something to hot oil you put it down on the edge closest to you first and drop the far edge down last so that the oil splashes towards the back of the stove.

Health Tip: Try frying with coconut oil. It comes in a hard wax-like form. You chip it out and it melts like butter. Although at first glance it looks like it is super-high in fat, in truth, coconut oil is one of the ‘good fats’, like avocados! Basically, there are two types of cholesterol: HDL, the good, and LDL, the bad. LDL’s are more commonly found in some of our favourite junk foods and cheap oils – they line your blood vessels forming a substance called ‘plaque’, eventually leading to blockages that can cause heart disease or stroke. HDL’s are found in the form of monounsaturated fats – they ‘scour’ your blood vessels and encapsulate the LDL’s, transporting them to your liver for processing. HDL’s can help lower blood pressure, cleanse your blood vessels and keep you at a healthy weight and health.

Health Tip 2: Mangoes are amazing for digestion and super high in fibre. Blueberries are incredible antioxidants. Maple syrup is high in minerals and is about the least refined sugar you can eat. Cinnamon is an excellent blood cleanser. Eggs are full of the good cholesterol and a good source of protein. They are also touted to have amazing benefits for joint problems.

Prep Tip: There is an easy way to prepare a mango!! I went to University with a Guatemalan girl who could skin, cube and serve a mango in about the same time I could peel and chop a banana! Here’s the trick. The pit or stone is very thin – about ½ inch. If you look closely at the mango it is wider one way than the other. Slice your mango starting at the stem and slide the blade of your knife along the pit on both sides. From here there are two ways to go. For cubes you score the flesh in a grid pattern, then simply turn it inside out and pluck out the fruit. For long fingers of mango slice like you would a cantaloupe and run your knife along the skin at the bottom. If you have done this right there should be very little to rip away from the pit and you won’t have reduced the majority of the mango to mush. It takes a little practice but if you love mangoes – you’ll thank me for it.

Enjoy your french toast!  Until next time, Happy Easter!

Vintage Classics: The Wishbone Chair

When I first began my adventures with Pure Green, vintages were a big part of what I did...and love.  Somehow, however, I sorta stopped writing about it.  I have no idea why...perhaps I let myself be influence by what others are doing.  At any rate, I've noticed that a good deal of the hits I get relate to those vintage posts, and they seem to be most popular.  So I've taken a cue from you, my lovely readers, and am officially declaring a resurgence of Vintages here on Pure Green.  Last week I featured Modern 50, a fabulous curator of all things old and ecclectic - with amazing styling no less, and this week I'm bringing back my Vintage Classics column.  Sustainability is as much about utilizing what we have as anything, and I personally think the hunt for a coveted design classic is fun and worth the challenge and patience required.  I also think its neat to show how the same peice can be interpreted in so many ways, reflecting the personality of its user.  You can check out my earlier posts on the matter, featuring items like the Tolix stool, Bertoia Wire Chair and the Saarinen Tulip Table.  Today I've chosen Carl Hansen's Wishbone Chair, a surefire Scandi classic, both modern and rustic.  The chair was first produced in 1949 - the chair has certainly not lost momentum as it has been in production ever since.  The company's sustainability policy is as such that I would support buying new, but a new chair is pricey (approx. $750) and buying new is not the purpose of this column.  Scour garage sales, flea markets, antique dealers and fairs, you never know what you'll find.  Or, if you're the impatient type, a click of a mouse may just find you one.  Enjoy this lovely day!

{white, for a pared down, crisp look}

{or natural for organic & earthy, my favourite}

{if you only find one, it look fantastic flying alone in a hall or entranceway}

{you can go modern...}

{...rustic...}

{...or eclectic.}

One of a Kind, Spring 2010

{repeat organic fabric}

I'm heading off to the One of a Kind show in Toronto tomorrow...a small collection of those I'm excited to see.  Keep posted.

{billy would}

{Marie-Claude Girard}

{Benoit Royer}

{Alexandra Ratte}

{eco} style: Jack & Marjorie

Such a treat today!  I came across these lovely bags for the first time at the Christmas One of a Kind show in Toronto this year, and have been dying to post about them ever since.  The bags are made by Jack & Marjorie, and are constructed using recycled army surplus items: "Our bags are constructed primarily out of recycled military surplus materials. Among the items we currently use or have used in the past are: military tents and cotton tent fabric, wool blankets, duffle bags, parachutes, rifle sling straps, webbing, ammunition pouches, suspenders, zippers, buttons, and parachute cord."  Any additional materials used are constructed with vegetable tanned leather and hemp/organic cotton.  You'll love the irregular but brilliant designs, along with all the thoughtfull embelishments...stash your stuff in a little piece of history.

Earth Hour

{what will you be doing during Earth Hour? image from The Moore's flikr stream}

Earth Hour 2010 is here, and, as stated by yesterday's Globe & Mail, it has become the largest social movement in history.  That's pretty great, especially as participation climbs globally every year, as more people unite in a stand against climate change.  Here's the thing though...lets not limit our stand to just one night.  While I would say our progress in the last few years has been substantial, like the omnipresence of they recycled logo, or the reusable shopping bag, that ever-evolving fashion accessory must-have, I'm left with how far we still have to go, and how quickly we have to do it.  So, turn your lights off tonight at 8:30 (local time) for one hour and let it inspire you to keep it rolling.  Oh, and if you're going to light a candle, make it beeswax, which is healthier for you and the planet.  What will you be doing during Earth Hour?  Make it a family tradition...take the time to spend time together...oh, and I'm still trying to figure out how to make smores carbon free, cause you can't beat family get-together's that involve smore making.