tippitappi in English

My neighbour's courgettes...

2008-07-21T08:00:00.000-07:00

My neighbour Maria is from Sicily and she often rings the bell with some delicious Sicilian Food to try.
These are grilled courgette (directly from her little veggie garden) with olive oil, white vinegar, garlic, salt and wild mint leaves.... the more you leave them marinating the better it is.

Happy summer to all of you, I'm leaving for the seaside right now, then I'm coming back in Septemper ready to give birth at home!!! :) The baby's due on sept. 3rd... wish me good luck ...

Brown Gnocchetti with Cherry Tomatoes and Tofu Cream

2008-05-29T02:19:00.000-07:00

This is another quick recipe and wants to look and taste like the italian ricotta and pomodorini pasta. Once it's on your plate you won't tell the difference.
Ingredients:
wholemeal small pasta, I used orecchiette or gnocchetti
cherry tomatoes
Olive oil
Basil
For the white ricotta sauce I used a herby spreadable tofu but you can make your own if you wish.
Process the tofu with herbs, water, oil and a few capers if you like them.
Add more salt or capers according to taste.
This is so much like a typical southern italian dish.... enjoy!

Spaghetti with Sunflower Seeds

2008-05-22T04:39:00.000-07:00

Super quick recipe to improve my calcium intake during pregnancy, and quite tasty too.
- Toast the seeds until slightly brown, set aside for a few minutes.
- Process the seeds with soy sauce, water and a little olive oil if you like. Taste it. It should look like a liquid creamy sauce, but not too liquid. It should not be thick otherwise it won't combine with the spaghetti. In that case add more water.
Always serve with bright coloured vegetables... enjoy :)
THIS IS MUCH NICER IF YOU ADD SOME FRESH CHOPPED ROSEMARY AND A TABLESPOON OF TOASTED SESAME SEEDS BEFORE GRINDING.

Raw cabbage with Gomasio and seaweed

2008-05-21T00:34:00.000-07:00

I must admit the name of this recipe is not very tempting but I can assure it is a crowd pleaser :)
It's fresh, crunchy and very tasty, not to mention the magic effects that cabbage and sesame and seaweed have in our bodies :)
Shred the cabbage as thin as possible (not as I did today) and dress with the following:
Soy Sauce
Olive Oil
Gomasio (toasted and roughly minced sesame seeds)
Toasted seaweed, crumbled with your hands
This dressing is also good in green crunchy salads and plain pasta... enjoy :)

Marinated Italian Tofu

2008-05-20T01:38:00.000-07:00

hi! I'm back again - finally. I called this Italian because it has the common combination of garlic, rosemary and olive oil. And it's simple as most of italian food is.
Method:
Slice the Tofu and place on a wide serving plate for one hour with all these ingredients:
Enough Soy Sauce to cover the slices evenly (not exactly italian but, nevermind)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Finely chopped fresh garlic.
Finely chopped fresh or dried rosemary.
Wait half an hour add more soy sauce if necessary, turn and reapeat on the other side.

Cook in a frying pan with a little more oil (if necessary) until golden brown and nice and crispy.
Simple but very tasty :) try it!

holidays

2008-03-19T15:11:00.000-07:00

hi again, sorry for neglecting my blog, I found out I am expecting another baby and haven't been too well at all.
We will be away for a few weeks and all Tippitappi's orders will be processed by my sister Jessica, I think she'll manage ok.
Sorry if I can't answer all emails, I will get back to you as soon as I get home.
ciao and much love to everyone who reads my blog :)

eco-friendly fashion

2008-01-14T00:49:00.000-08:00

A nice article on eco-friendly Tippitappi was published on "D di Repubblica" about a month ago.
I'm so flattered, and hopefully there's more to come! :)

The Story of Stuff

2007-12-14T04:59:00.000-08:00

Get the message about out-of-control consumerism with the Story of Stuff!
See the 20 min. video here:
www.storyofstuff.com
Each of us can promote sustainability and justice at multiple levels: as an individual, as a teacher or parent, a community member, a national citizen, and as a global citizen. As Annie says in the film, “the good thing about such an all pervasive problem is that there are so many points of intervention.” That means that there are lots and lots of places to plug in, to get involved, and to make a difference. There is no single simple thing to do, because the set of problems we’re addressing just isn’t simple. But everyone can make a difference, but the bigger your action the bigger the difference you’ll make. Here are some ideas:

10 Little and Big Things WE Can Do

Power down! A great deal of the resources we use and the waste we create is in the energy we consume. Look for opportunities in your life to significantly reduce energy use: drive less, fly less, turn off lights, buy local seasonal food (food takes energy to grow, package, store and transport), wear a sweater instead of turning up the heat, use a clothesline instead of a dryer, vacation closer to home, buy used or borrow things before buying new, recycle. All these things save energy and save you money. And, if you can switch to alternative energy by supporting a company that sells green energy to the grid or by installing solar panels on your home, bravo!
Waste less. Per capita waste production in the U.S. just keeps growing. There are hundreds of opportunities each day to nurture a Zero Waste culture in your home, school, workplace, church, community. This takes developing new habits which soon become second nature. Use both sides of the paper, carry your own mugs and shopping bags, get printer cartridges refilled instead of replaced, compost food scraps, avoid bottled water and other over packaged products, upgrade computers rather than buying new ones, repair and mend rather than replace….the list is endless! The more we visibly engage in re-use over wasting, the more we cultivate a new cultural norm, or actually, reclaim an old one!
Talk to everyone about these issues. At school, your neighbors, in line at the supermarket, on the bus…A student once asked Cesar Chavez how he organized. He said, “First, I talk to one person. Then I talk to another person.” “No,” said the student, “how do you organize?” Chavez answered, “First I talk to one person. Then I talk to another person.” You get the point. Talking about these issues raises awareness, builds community and can inspire others to action.
Make Your Voice Heard. Write letters to the editor and submit articles to local press. In the last two years, and especially with Al Gore winning the Nobel Peace Prize, the media has been forced to write about Climate Change. As individuals, we can influence the media to better represent other important issues as well. Letters to the editor are a great way to help newspaper readers make connections they might not make without your help. Also local papers are often willing to print book and film reviews, interviews and articles by community members. Let’s get the issues we care about in the news.
DeTox your body, DeTox your home, and DeTox the Economy. Many of today’s consumer products – from children’s pajamas to lipstick – contain toxic chemical additives that simply aren’t necessary. Research online (for example, http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/) before you buy to be sure you’re not inadvertently introducing toxics into your home and body. Then tell your friends about toxics in consumer products. Together, ask the businesses why they’re using toxic chemicals without any warning labels. And ask your elected officials why they are permitting this practice. The European Union has adopted strong policies that require toxics to be removed from many products. So, while our electronic gadgets and cosmetics have toxics in them, people in Europe can buy the same things toxics-free. Let’s demand the same thing here. Getting the toxics out of production at the source is the best way to ensure they don’t get into any home and body.
Unplug (the TV and internet) and Plug In (the community). The average person in the U.S. watches T.V. over 4 hours a day. Four hours per day filled with messages about stuff we should buy. That is four hours a day that could be spent with family, friends and in our community. On-line activism is a good start, but spending time in face-to-face civic or community activities strengthens the community and many studies show that a stronger community is a source of social and logistical support, greater security and happiness. A strong community is also critical to having a strong, active democracy.
Park your car and walk…and when necessary MARCH! Car-centric land use policies and life styles lead to more greenhouse gas emissions, fossil fuel extraction, conversion of agricultural and wildlands to roads and parking lots. Driving less and walking more is good for the climate, the planet, your health, and your wallet. But sometimes we don’t have an option to leave the car home because of inadequate bike lanes or public transportation options. Then, we may need to march, to join with others to demand sustainable transportation options. Throughout U.S. history, peaceful non-violent marches have played a powerful role in raising awareness about issues, mobilizing people, and sending messages to decision makers.
Change your lightbulbs…and then, change your paradigm. Changing lightbulbs is quick and easy. Energy efficient lightbulbs use 75% less energy and last 10 times longer than conventional ones. That’s a no-brainer. But changing lightbulbs is just tinkering at the margins of a fundamentally flawed system unless we also change our paradigm. A paradigm is a collection of assumptions, concepts, believes and values that together make up a community’s way of viewing reality. Our current paradigm dictates that more stuff is better, that infinite economic growth is desirable and possible, and that pollution is the price of progress. To really turn things around, we need to nurture a different paradigm based on the values of sustainability, justice, health, and community.
Recycle your trash…and, recycle your elected officials. Recycling saves energy and reduces both waste and the pressure to harvest and mine new stuff. Unfortunately, many cities still don’t have adequate recycling systems in place. In that case you can usually find some recycling options in the phone book to start recycling while you’re pressuring your local government to support recycling city-wide. Also, many products – for example, most electronics - are designed not to be recycled or contain toxics so recycling is hazardous. In these cases, we need to lobby government to prohibit toxics in consumer products and to enact Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws, as is happening in Europe. EPR is a policy which holds producers responsible for the entire lifecycle of their products, so that electronics company who use toxics in their products, have to take them back. That is a great incentive for them to get the toxics out!
Buy Green, Buy Fair, Buy Local, Buy Used, and most importantly, Buy Less. Shopping is not the solution to the environmental problems we currently face because the real changes we need just aren’t for sale in even the greenest shop. But, when we do shop, we should ensure our dollars support businesses that protect the environment and worker rights. Look beyond vague claims on packages like “all natural” to find hard facts. Is it organic? Is it free of super-toxic PVC plastic? When you can, buy local products from local stores, which keeps more of our hard earned money in the community. Buying used items keeps them out of the trash and avoids the upstream waste created during extraction and production. But, buying less may be the best option of all. Less pollution. Less Waste. Less time working to pay for the stuff. Sometimes, less really is more.

Pomegranates and Kiwi Cake

2007-12-07T05:36:00.000-08:00

I have posted the recipe of this nice cake before but I never made it with pomegranates before, it's a winter version of the fresh fruit cake and i thought it would have been nice to share it with you. I made it for my sister's birthday party and I believe it was a success! :)

I love the colour of pomegranates!

are humans omnivores or vegetarians?

2007-12-07T05:32:00.000-08:00

Fried Tofu with Pumpkin seeds

2007-11-21T02:11:00.000-08:00

I use one or two packages of firm tofu. Cut in two triangles and then slice each triangle in 4 thin slices. Then I marinate the tofu in soy sauce for an hour at least, otherwise it doesn't go brown inside. I make a light batter using white flour and half water mixed with half beer. A pinch of salt. I dip the thin triangles in the batter then coat evenly with breadcrumbs and pumpkin seeds. I fry in sesame oil until golden. Add more salt as they cool and dry on a clean cloth (I never use kitchen paper, it's trees!).... Enjoy! This Tofu is very crispy and you could use other seeds as well - sesame seeds, sunflower seeds...)

Another Sticker for vegan t-shirts!

2007-11-08T12:29:00.000-08:00

My shower and animal testing...

2007-11-02T03:00:00.000-07:00

Animal tests are not necessary to save the lives of humans, would I die if I chose Weleda shampoo instead of a Procter and Gamble Shampoo? Some companies still test on animals, some don't. So all we have to do is watch out for these, read the full list at www.caringconsumer.com
In the photo you can see Weleda, Lavera, Argital, and Aleppo soap.
Stay away from:
Colgate-Palmolive Co.
Johnson & Johnson
Unilever
L'Oreal
Procter & Gamble (hidden under the names: Max Factor, Noxell, Cover Girl, Pantene, Crest, Gillette, Iams...)
Reckitt Benckiser (hidden under the names: Easy Off, Lysol, Mop & Glo, Old English, Resolve, Veet, Woolite...)
Please note that Revlon and Avon Cosmetics no longer test on animals after the release of investigations.

[Cosmetic testing on animals is used to gain inaccurate results to legally market potentially dangerous products, as animals re-act completely differently from chemicals than we do, faulty results can be achieved - this is why some companies prefer to use them, despite the fact they are more expensive, but they're inaccurate so when they hurt someone because they sold a dangerous product that they didn't test accurately, they don't get their ass' sued off and they can blame their research. But cosmetic animal tests have been replaced by cheaper, safer and more accurate tests that won't gain faulty results.]
UPDATED:
Urban Vegan suggests:
http://www.vegan.org/campaigns/certification/company_list
http://www.peta.org/living

How do you recycle at home? Win a free Tshirt!

2007-10-29T02:41:00.000-07:00

Let's face it: my kitchen was not designed to store all my bins, so I managed this way:
PAPER, PLASTIC and GLASS: I have three different containers, big plastic totes are more handy because I can easily take them to the recycling banks.
I take my organic waste in my compost heap, in a hidden place in my garden. I will buy a proper composter one day. :)
I recycle everything: toilet paper inside roll, biscuit boxes, yogurt lids (alluminum), plastic wrappings, kitchen foil, shampoo bottles.... everything, that's why my containers must be at hand in the kitchen.
Do you have special containers like these? (www.homerecycling.co.uk)
Your kitchen was designed to make recycling easier?
Do you have special tips to share?
Send your photos to info(at)tippitappi(dot)com and you could win a free tshirt from tippitappi!
I can't wait to see how you are managing! deadline: 30 November 2007

Other useful websites:
www.recycle-more.co.uk
www.recyclenow.com

Italian Pumpkin Soup

2007-10-19T01:22:00.000-07:00

I love soups in the winter and I'm a pumpkin maniac. In Italy pumpkin is considered a vegetable so we don't eat it in cakes and sweet things, only with savoury stuff.
This is one those soups I make up when i have nothing planned and very few ingredients. Infact I had a little brown rice that my baby did't eat, and some cooked canellini which are small white beans, very tasty. Half of a nice pumpkin in the fridge. So i thought: soup! I put all ingredients together and added water, a very little salt (i like to add soy sauce at the end, because I never use stock), a quarter of a pumpkin cut into chunks and a lot of dried rosemary. I cooked it a few minutes in a pressure cooker and stirred it to melt the pumpkin, there is no need to use a blender. This soup is delicious, but I like to make new ones depending on what I got left!
I think I could be a friend of these people from New York called Freegans... LOL I found their website this morning and I must admit I'm fascinated! LOL
See their website and you'll know what I mean:
www.freegan.info

The Green Apple now sells Tippitappi!

2007-10-14T06:52:00.000-07:00

The Green Apple online Store now sells some of my design Tshirts! Take a look!
The Green Apple sells lovely organic and ethical stuff, from clothing to bathroom, kitchen, office, gifts, toys, games, lounge... almost everything!
PS: the owner is vegetarian! :)

Tomato Focaccia

2007-10-10T00:59:00.000-07:00

These are the last tomatoes from Sara's garden, my neighbour. Autumn is here and Tomatoes are all going yellow... I usually make a wish in the spring with every fruit I eat for the first time each year, perhaps I should make one also when I know It's the last? Anyway, these are my last fresh tomatoes for this year, I don't like buying off season stuff, coming from Spain or Argentina, I think it's ridiculous. So here's my wholemeal focaccia with slices os tomatoes, oregano, salt and some good olive oil, I think some olives would be nice here too, but then it will become more of a pizza, focaccia should be more like a bread, which is what it actually is, a flat bread.
I am getting lazy with this blog, but I also have been quite unlucky, I made a cake yesterday following an american recipe called blondie something and it was with chocolate and peanut butter, uuuhh I felt like it so much, but it came out like ... I don't know, I couldn't even slice it, it is too crumbly, but the taste is nice. Because I don't like to throw away anything, I had a cool idea I think! :) This mixture could be a fabulous topping for a soya icecream or vanilla icecream, so what I'm doing today is buy some icrecream and try the combination. Simone is away all week for work and of course he's got the camera with him, so I'll have to use the little one, hope it works! I'll have to enjoy it on my own. I hate to be on my own!
vegan

Fair of the ancient fruits at Paderna Castle

2007-10-08T13:31:00.000-07:00

This is where we went on saturday, it was a nice day and we enjoyed it so much.
I was astonished by the beauty of the castle, it's near Piacenza in the north of Italy, It's dated ninth century and it's an organic farm today, somehow...
Look at the pics, click to enlarge.

The flowers that I bought, amazing colours!

Spelt salad with capers and olives .... VEGAN! Incredibile.

Date and Macadamia nut Tart

2007-10-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

Even if these dates and nuts were bought from a Fair Trade Shop, it's not the perfect organic stuff I could have bought locally, but Simone loves brazil nuts so I thought it would have been nice to give him a treat. This cake is 100% vegan, of course!
Ingredients
flour 250 gr.
margarine 100 gr.
sugar 100 gr.
a small glass of milk (rice, soja...)
pinch of salt
grated zest of two lemons

three cups of dates (one package)
one or two cups of brazil nuts

Method:
Lets make the pastry. Put all ingredients except the milk in a large bowl and combine with both hands. Add enough milk to form a nice ball, keep it in the fridge or cool place while you prepare the rest. If you accidentally add too much milk, add a bit of flour to balance the dough.
Soak in a little hot water the deseeded and chopped dates. Wait until they go soft and blend into a cream using a blender. It will become like a date jam, but with no sugar added!
Place the pastry in the tin and spread the date mixture. Place the chopped nuts on top. Bake in a fairly hot oven for 40 minutes or until golden. When it's cold brush with honey or maple syrup to give it a nice shiny effect. Enjoy! :)

Stickers for my vegan tees...

2007-09-27T12:08:00.000-07:00

This was one of my designs that i made for my stickers... Unluckily it was dumped, but it's cute, isn't it?!
vegan

My Vegan Tshirts

2007-09-26T00:27:00.000-07:00

Hi again, my vegan online store Tippitappi.com has been open for two months now and is not going too bad. I sold mainly in Italy, Us and Australia. My tshirts will also be soon sold at thegreenapple.co.uk an online store based in the Uk that sells organic and it's so exciting!
I also donated several tshirts to animal rights associations like AgireOra (italian), VivereVegan (italian), and PETA.

My thirts cost 30 euros but I offer a free worldwide shipping. It is high quality 100% organic cotton and not thin; it sometimens happen when you buy online, that you end up with a very thin tshirt. It's not my case, my tshirts are made of thick natural cotton.
I never had a complaint so far, so that's good! :)))
Ok, enough now, back to the kitchen!
vegan

Pumpkin Seed Biscuits

2007-09-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

I must be obsessed with pumpkins...
I was craving for something sweet this afternoon and I had nothing to bite. So I decided to make some biscuits using the ingredients used for Crumbles... not bad and very very crunchy! :)

Ingredients:
1 cup of rolled oats or other cereal
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of flour (white or wholemeal)
1/2 cup of oil
4 tb. of water
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
a handful of pumpkin seeds

Mix all ingredients and make little balls with your hands. If you have fake teeth or simply don't want to brake your teeth, flatten the biscuits with your hands. Bake for 20/25 minutes at medium temp.
Enjoy! :)

A snack for my vegan baby

2007-09-18T13:12:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of vegan mums that read my italian blog, so I was asked to post a recipe for our little angels too! I posted this quick sweet cream because it's made of nuts and dry fruits. They are very important for vegan kids and I think that this type of food is sometimes neglected. I soak the dry fruits in water overnight and then I blend it into a cream with a food processor.

This time I have used dry apricots, almonds and sesame seeds.

It is up to you to mix the fruit and make different combinations. You could use only one type of fruit (apricots, plums, figs, dates) or add some hazelnuts, walnuts, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds...) Presoak and blend thoroughly. It's a rich source of vitamins, minerals, fat, protein, sugars. Vegan kids need it to grow!

Bubu is 14 month old and wants to eat on his own, but he's no good! :)

Meme!

2007-09-17T02:39:00.000-07:00

Amey from Vegan Eats and Treats tagged me for a meme, this is my first meme, I don't want to let you down with this, but I'm not too clever, sorry!

Too many words in tippitappi, although my real name is Jenni Shortt (I have an english name because my father is English, my mum is Italian :)
I'm not not good at this, I told you!
P is for... no I won't say it
P again???
I love vegan food and all vegan people! (Although I once met a vegan girl at VegFestival in Torino called Monica, she was absolutely horrible, unkind and rude to me, I hate her.)
T like Tippitappi.com, my new job!
A lot of imagination... I'm gifted, I know
Pumpkin
Potato
I love you all!

thank you Amey for my first meme! :)
Ps: on the photo you can see my sweet friend Gazelle, the nicest and calmest horse I've ever met. She lives with my boyfriend's cousin in the mountains, in France. In a beautiful place, he sleeps in a caravan with no electricity, no phone, no heating... ahh it's incredible! I want to go again, it's so wild! :)

Homemade Herbal Teas

2007-09-16T00:53:00.000-07:00

I found a nice recipe for homemade fruit and herbal teas, that is, natural with no artificial flavourings but with the real taste and goodness of real herbs and fruits. I actually copied the recipe from a nice italian brand of organic teas in bottles called Achillea (see here). The secret is to mix nice herbs like Rosa Canina, it's the red fruit of the wild rose or hybiscus flowers, or any herb you like with other herbs like Raspberry flowers or other healing herbs, make an infusion and use concentrated apple juice as a sweetener. Raspberry leaves are very good for children, they are very rich in minerals and vitamins and also they help to reduce fever. Rosa Canina is a bomb of vitamin C. In Italy we have Erboristeria, which is a shop that sells loose herbs and a trained person that will tell you what herbs are best for you. That's where I go. Adding the apple juice is a good way to make it taste nice, because some teas are sometimes too herby! :)
These teas are excellent cold in the summer.
Ps: A lot of herbs can be picked in the wild and dried at home, like mint, thyme, lemongrass, vervain... It's free and so exciting!