Gourmet Vegetarian Dinners
Chef Gary Alinder
Every Monday, 6:30 PM
First Baptist Church, Palo Alto
305 North California Avenue at Bryant
1/4 mile East of Alma
Sit Down or Take-out, $12.
Call 650 599-3320 by Sunday 9:30 PM
Reservations Required.



Coming Events

Mon Feb 14: Valentine’s Day Dinner, $14.

Mon Feb 21: Michelle Plumb speaks on The Protein Myth.

Mon Mar 6: Patrick McCarty speaks on Creating Balance: Feng Shui For Your Body.



Use the talents you possess -
For the woods would be
a very silent place
if no birds sang except for the best.
Henry Van Dyke

If you wait for tomorrow,
tomorrow comes.
If you don’t wait for tomorrow,
tomorrow comes.
Senegalese proverb

Enjoy yourself.
It’s later than you think.
Chinese proverb

In the book of life,
the answers aren’t in the back.
Charlie Brown



Valentine’s Day
February 14, 2000
Braised Greens in Vegetarian Consommé
Whole Wheat French Bread with
Miso Paté
Roasted Winter Veggie and Seitan Stew
Fettucine Noodles with
Creamy Mushroom Sauce
Field Greens Salad with
Sweet and Tart Mustard Vinaigrette
Double Chocolate Brownies with
Rice Dream and Raspberry Sauce
Chicory Grain Coffee
$14

Our new PMC website has just gone live, containing the latest newsletter and menus: http://home.pacbell.net/robinsil/macro. The superb design is the work of Robin Silberling, longtime Monday Dinner patron and web professional who donated her services. If anyone is willing to host our site and donate about 5 MB of web space, contact robinsil@pacbell.net or GerardTL@aol.com.

The 40^th Pacific Macrobiotic Conference takes place in late March in Arizona, roundtable format. Call 510 559-8057 for information.

Congratulations to Patrick and Vashon McCarty, on the birth of their baby boy in January! (The editor apologizes for a misspelling in the Dec/Jan issue; "Vashon" is the correct spelling.)

Cooking Classes, Dinners

Patricia Becker offers Personal Nutritional Counseling and in-your-home cooking classes, for individuals or groups, with emphasis on delicious taste, new recipes, and good food combinations. Call 408 353-8854.
James Holloway, frequent Guest Chef at the Monday Dinners, does personal home cooking tailored to individual needs. He is experienced in macrobiotic and classical styles, call 650 941-7466.
Susanne Jensen offers vegetarian take- outs ($12) on Wednesdays in San Francisco, SF delivery available, reserve by 9 PM Tue, 415 661-4764.
Meredith McCarty teaches a cooking class "Gourmet Vegetarian...A Warm Taste of Winter" at Draeger's Menlo Park on Fri., Feb. 11, 6:30 PM, $45. Call 650 685-3704 and sign up for class #MP0211. She also teaches "Gourmet Vegetarian...Spring Elegance on Your Table" at Draeger's San Mateo, Fri., April 7 at 6:30 PM, $45, class #SM0407. To reach Meredith, call 415 435-4102.
The Vital Center produces Vegetarian Gourmet Dinners Monday through Friday. Response to the new venture has been enthusiastic, with the number of meals increasing steadily. Dinners are delivered by 4:00 PM to two pick up points: in San Mateo at The Vital Center, 34 E. Second St; and in Palo Alto at Printers Inc., 310 California Ave. Cost is $10 (soup, entrée, vegetable); extra soup is $1.50, dessert is $2. Delivery is available for $4, from Burlingame to Palo Alto. Call 650 685-5599 by noon the day before to order, or e-mail to vitalctr@aol.com.
Cheryl Beere, Executive Chef of the Vital Center, is classically trained with more than 12 years of experience, specializing in Gourmet Vegetarian and similar styles. Her background includes study at the Vega Study Center, in both cooking and counseling. She owned and ran a café in New Zealand for 3 years; her cookbook was a best-seller there and in Australia. She has cooked at the Kushi Institute Summer Conferences, the Health Classics on the West Coast, and the French Meadows Summer Camp, and teaches classes in various ethnic vegetarian cuisines.
Carl Cheney, Sous Chef , is also classically trained. He left Millennium Restaurant recently to join the Vital Center.
Weight loss and Wellness classes will be offered soon at the San Mateo location. Health Food and Aromatherapy products are available for sale there, open 10 AM – 6 PM

After-Dinner Events

Speakers receive a gratuity collected from the audience; please show your support and appreciation with a donation ($5 suggested).
On February 21, Macrobiotic and Health Guidance Counselor Michelle Plumb speaks on The Protein Myth. Are you confused by conflicting trends in diet and health? How much protein do we need to be healthy? Diets such as The Zone and the Dr. Atkins approach persuade us that we need lots of protein at every meal. And according to the high protein theory, carbohydrates are harmful. Is this true? Is there any reliable precedent for protein theories? Are there dangers in too much protein? Michelle will debunk current protein myths and describe what longstanding world civilizations have used for thousands of years as the nutrient balance for health and longevity.

Michelle has been involved with macrobiotics and health guidance for more than 13 years. She trained extensively with pioneers Shizuko Yamamoto, Denny Waxman, and Michio Kushi. She served as educational director at the Macrobiotic Center of New York, and as manager of the Kushi Institute Way to Health and Dynamics programs. She is a charter member of the Macrobiotic Educator’s Association, and was a faculty member and counselor at the Kushi Institute. Now based in El Cerrito, Michelle teaches and counsels in the Bay Area.

On March 6, Macrobiotic Counselor Patrick McCarty speaks on Creating Balance: Feng Shui For Your Body. Energy is fundamental in the Eastern view of health and living. Energy has a dual character—each aspect of the two is, at the same time, both antagonistic and complementary to the other. In Feng Shui, the Chinese art of placement, the practitioner uses an awareness of energy and its characteristics as a primary tool. By unblocking and balancing energy, the practitioner works to attract health, wealth, and harmony into a building and its occupants. Patrick will demonstrate how the same approach, applied to our body and mind, invigorates and enlivens us.
Patrick’s background includes study at the Kushi Institute in Boston and the Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine. He co-directed the East-West Center for Macrobiotics in Eureka for nearly 20 years. He has lectured and taught at locations around the world, and readily shares the knowledge and experience he’s gained from his very active counseling practice. He is known for his always-fresh and enthusiastic approach to health, living, and macrobiotics. Patrick now teaches and lectures at the Macrobiotic Foundation of Florida, where he and his family live.

Macrobiotic Island Vacation & Learning Retreat! Travel to the beautiful island of Hvar in the Adriatic with David and Cynthia Briscoe, Oct 7-14, 2000. Enjoy this island’s aqua clear waters and friendly, mellow residents. Attend lectures with David, cooking classes with Cynthia, morning exercise on the beach, and make friends with the Croatian macrobiotic community. Call toll-free, 877 622-2637, or visit www.MacroAmerica.com.

Meet macrobiotic people from around the world! Live chat takes place Sundays, 10 AM at www.cybermacro.com.

Orange Baked Sweet Potatoes

Here's a winter, vegetable recipe good for those craving rich, naturally sweet things, from the Vital Center Kitchen. Serves 4.

4 medium-sized sweet potatoes (Jewel Potatoes, Garnet Yams)
a little olive oil
juice and zest of 2 oranges
1 T mirin
2 T vegetable stock
1 T shoyu or tamari
1 T grated fresh gingerroot
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley, cilantro or marjoram

Heat oven to 350 deg F. Scrub the sweet potatoes with a stiff bristled vegetable brush and cut off the hard ends. Cut each in ½ lengthwise and then each in half again on a slight diagonal. Place all the pieces in a lightly oiled casserole or oven dish. Grate the oranges on the fine side of a grater then cut each in half and juice them. Combine the orange zest and juice in a bowl with the mirin, shoyu or tamari, gingerroot and garlic. Pour over the sweet potatoes and toss well. Cover the dish and bake for 30 - 40 minutes until the potatoes are soft when stabbed with a fork. Remove from the oven and garnish with parsley, cilantro or marjoram to serve.
by Cheryl Beere

Secrets Of The Master Chefs: Master Recipe For Creating Your Own Soups

Monday Diners have come to expect the artistic, expressive, and deeply satisfying soups that start off our weekly feast. It took pleading, cajoling, and flattery to extract the following deep secrets from our Master Chef. Produces six generous servings.

The liquid part: 8 c. water or stock
For thickening, fiber, protein, heartiness: 1-1/2 c. grains or pasta or beans, or a combination.
For flavor, texture, color, nutrition: 4-5 c. chopped vegetables (carrots, onions, leeks, celery, sea vegetables etc.)
For variety, mystery, artistic expression: herbs, spices, ginger, garlic, etc. (Pick a theme and stick with it)
For depth of flavor: soy sauce, natural soup stock cubes, miso, nutritional yeast, dried mushrooms, ume plum vinegar, olive oil, toasted sesame oil.
And don’t forget to garnish: chopped fresh herbs, green onions, croutons, sour cream, etc.

To make a simple vegetable stock: Combine
2 quarts water
4 carrots, washed and chopped
2 onions, peeled and diced
1 parsnip, washed and chopped
2 leeks, washed and chopped
6-8 shiitake mushrooms or dried mushrooms of choice
2 bay leaves, 3-4 springs of parsley
1 6" piece of kombu
pinch of salt; 1 T. soy sauce (optional)
1/4 c. nutritional yeast.
Bring just to a boil and then simmer one hour. Strain through a fine mesh strainer.
by Gary Alinder

From the Editor

Our community depends on you! To support and receive the newsletter, send $10/year (checks made to "Peninsula Macrobiotic Community") to Gerard Lum, 101 E. Middlefield Rd, Apt. 9, Mountain View, CA 94043, GerardTL@aol.com, 650 903-0447. Your mailing label shows the date and amount of your last contribution.