RECOMMENDED REFERENCES

The following lists references that we’ve found to be helpful as we continue our learning journey towards living in a more simplified and self-sufficient manner. Note that we are not sponsored or paid by any of these sites or publications - we just found them helpful. Within each section, free online content is listed first, followed by paid content which is also available in digital format. We will continue to update this list as we find more helpful knowledge and instruction worth sharing.

UNDERSTANDING WHAT YOU EAT

• Site: USDA’s Food Data Central is very handy for looking up the nutrition information for a wide array of vegetables, fruits and prepared foods (note the different tabs the results can appear under).

• Book: Jo Robinson’s Eat Wild site features informative content on how to maximize the nutrients obtained from fruits and vegetables - from what foods have most nutrients and should be eaten fresh, to how to best store foods to maintain their nutritional value. Her book Eating on the Wild Side (Google Play, Amazon.com) deeper dives into these topics, and was an eye-opening reference for us.

• Michael Pollan has been at the forefront of questioning how our agricultural practices are negatively impacting our health and environment, and the benefits of going back to simple “whole foods”. You can find an array of informative videos by Michael Pollan on the web, as well as books. Here are some favorites:

  • Video: In Defense of Food (Talks at Google)

  • Video: Food Rules for Healthy People and Planet (RSA)

  • Video: A Brief History of the Modern Food System (Berkeley Edible Schoolyard Project)

  • Book: The Omnivore’s Dilemma (Google Play, Amazon.com)

  • Book: In Defense of Food Google Play and Amazon.com

GROWING FOOD

• Site: Charles Dowding offers an extensive educational video series on “No Dig” gardening, including various techniques for successful gardening and composting: https://charlesdowding.co.uk/

• Site: Epic Gardening offers a wide range of short, helpful videos, from growing microgreens to garden hacks: https://www.epicgardening.com/

• Eliot Coleman is the preeminent reference on the essentials of organic farming, including approaches for year-round harvesting. Here are our favorites:

  • Video: Eliot Coleman Winter Harvest (Maharishi University)

  • Video: How To Make Compost and Add Organic Amendments

  • Video: Direct Sowing Seeds & Spacing

  • Book: Four-Season Harvest (Google Play, Amazon.com)

  • Book: The New Organic Grower (Google Play, Amazon.com)

FORAGING

• Site: Edible Wild Food is a very helpful reference on many edible weeds, shrubs and trees: https://www.ediblewildfood.com/

• Sergei Boutenko offers a variety of helpful videos and references on foraging that are easy to follow and understand. He also has a series on smoothie recipes that got us to consume even more fresh greens with the help of a blender! You can search for Sergei on the web or go to his website for more information (including the smoothie videos): https://sergeiboutenko.com/. Some of our favorite references:

  • Video: Wild Edibles Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 offers a 4-part video series on common edible weeds.

  • Video: Backyard Foraging For Wild Edibles

  • Book: Wild Edibles: A Practical Guide to Foraging (Google Play, Amazon)

• Alan Bergo’s Forager Chef site features foraging and cooking videos and references, including recipes using foraged produce.

• Wild Man Steve Brill is a well-known foraging expert who has written a number of books on foraging and many recipes using edible weeds. We attended one of his foraging tours in NY and we learned about new edible wild plants and trees, which was a great confidence booster. Some recommended resources:

  • App: Wild Edibles Forage (Apple, 3 of The Best Free Android Apps for Wild edibles) offers an easy way to reference plant information and uses.

  • Books: We have Foraging New York and The Wild Vegan Cookbook which are available from his website

  • Website and to book foraging tour: https://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/

• Samuel Thayer’s foraging reference books provide helpful and easy to grasp information on common edible weeds, including how to identify, harvest and consume.

COOKING

• Site/Cookbook: Forks Over Knives offers a wide variety of recipes and references to help folks embark on a more plant-focused way of eating.

• Site/Cookbook: Bad Manners offers delicious and creative vegan recipes described in everyday-speak that make it feel like a cinch to "whip up” something good fast. Note of caution: the language is peppered with some profanity (hence the name of the site!).

• Book: Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables by Joshua McFadden provides delicious vegetable-based recipes across the seasons that celebrates flavors at their peak. It provides great ideas on what to do with the ingredients that are available at your local farm stands or from your CSA.

• Mark Bittman is a journalist and food writer, with a number of helpful videos as well as cookbooks which make it easy to cook simple, healthy dishes. Some of our favorite videos and cookbooks:

  • Videos: The Minimalist cooking video series

  • Books: How to Cook Everything series (Google Play, Amazon); How to Cook Everything and How to Cook Everything Vegetarian have been great resources especially if you shop at farmers markets or take part in a CSA when you may not know what you’re going to get!

AGRICULTURAL / ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY

• Mark Bittman, similar to Michael Pollan, has been at the forefront of questioning how our agricultural practices are negatively impacting our health and environment, and the benefits of going back to simple “whole foods”. Below are videos that we found insightful:

  • Video: Take a Walk on the Wild (Edibles) Side - Part of series of short videos called California Matters on food, health and agriculture with Mark Bittman

  • Video: What’s wrong with what we eat (TED Talk): In this fiery and funny talk, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman weighs in on what's wrong with the way we eat now (too much meat, too few plants; too much fast food, too little home cooking), and why it's putting the entire planet at risk.

  • Video: What’s next with the food movement (Berkeley Edible Schoolyard Project)

• Dan Barber is renowned for his Blue Hill restaurant in Manhattan and Blue Hill at Stone Barns, and for his book The Third Plate (Google Play, Amazon) which offers a radical new way of thinking about food that will heal the land and taste good, too.

• Perrine & Charles Hervé-Gruyer are seen as “permaculture ambassadors” how continue to learn and teach others on how thoughtful design that is based on nature can deliver more abundance vs. traditional agriculture with less work, at the same time healing the land:

  • Video: Introduction to permaculture

  • Book: Miraculous Abundance (Google Play, Amazon)

RECOMMENDED MERCHANTS & PRODUCTS

The following lists merchants and products that we have tried or are trying out, and that we are recommending because they are effective and produced using more sustainable materials and/or practices. Note that we are not sponsored or paid by any of these merchants; we are only sharing products that we like.

Most of the eco-friendly merchants listed offer a more targeted suite of products, which makes it less efficient if you are looking to do one-stop shopping as you can do at Amazon.com or at larger retailers. However, we also want to “vote with our wallet” and directly support growing companies that are focused on sustainable products and solutions, even if it means a little inconvenience. If we find a product that we like, we will stock up every time we place an order to minimize shipping.

HOMEWARE:

• Toilet Paper & Paper Towel: When it comes to paper products, our first choice is to purchase 100% recycled paper products, and our second choice is to go with bamboo paper products. Most other paper products are largely made from virgin wood, contributing to deforestation (click here for ranking of most to least sustainable brands).

  • Seventh Generation toilet paper and paper towel products (100% recycled paper)

  • Who Gives a Crap toilet paper (100% recycled paper) and paper towel (bamboo/sugar cane paper)

• Cleaning products: Most of our cleaning products are by Seventh Generation or Method as these companies use non-toxic ingredients and predominantly 100% PCR (post-consumer recycled materials.

• Zero Waste Store: https://zerowastestore.com/
  Offers various personal care and cleaning products, including various bar type products such as shampoo, deodorant, dish soap and stain removal. We also use the wood cleaning brush, toothbrush, and Swedish cloths that they carry.

• Public Goods: https://www.publicgoods.com/
  Offers various personal care and cleaning products, as well as food, which are made with organic or natural ingredients and packaged using more sustainable options. We have also recently observed their products sold at CVS, which makes it more convenient to access.

GARDENING:

• Hudson Valley Seed Company: https://hudsonvalleyseed.com/
  Since we are based in the NY Hudson Valley, we will usually shop local where we can. As we are focused on edible crops, we often purchase cover crop seeds and also use the same seeds for microgreens as it is more economical in bulk (our favorites are field pea, red clover and white clover).

• Urban Farmer: https://www.ufseeds.com/
  Great organic seed collection. We also purchase their Austrian Winter Pea cover crop seeds (not organic) for growing our microgreen pea shoots (usually the 5 lbs bag), which makes it more economical.

• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: https://www.rareseeds.com/

• Johnny’s Selected Seeds: https://www.johnnyseeds.com/
  In addition to seeds, Johnny’s Selected Seeds carries a variety of small scale farm gardening tools, a number of which designed in partnership with Eliot Coleman.

OFF-GRID LIVING:

• LifeSaver water purification: https://iconlifesaver.com/
  Portable water purifier system that can convert over 500 gallons of contaminated water into potable water (per filter); also comes in larger jerrycan option. Ideal for camping or off-grid situations. However if you are more permanently living off-grid, then the Berkey may be a more optimal solution (see below).

• Berkey water purification: https://www.berkeywater.com/
  One of the most popular brand for water purification, it can be used to make rain, lake, stream or stagnant pond water potable. Many folks also use it on a daily basis to make tap water taste better.

• Titan portable solar generator: https://poweredportablesolar.com/product/titan-solar-generator-no-panels/
  We are excitedly awaiting delivery of our Titan generator, expected in March 2021. Although on the heavier side, this solar powered generator can run your refrigerator and other critical appliance during a power outage, or can support the basic power needs of an off-grid cabin.

• Yirego Drumi Portable Washing Machine: https://www.yirego.com/
  This is a small-scale washing machine that is purely powered by foot pedal and quick to use (and also looks stylish - we nicknamed ours the “R2 unit” but guessing we may not be alone). The drawback is that you cannot wash bulky items, however it does the trick for everyday clothing and undergarments, as well as reusable kitchen towels or napkins. On the plus side, you also build up your leg muscles over time!