Closed Loop Cooking Weekly Newsletter 1.8.21

January 8th, 2021Hi friends,Coup d’etat, but with deadlines. Writing to y’all after the insurrection, anxiously awaiting Inauguration Day. I’ve lost count of the poignant dystopian-esque quips in my doom scrolling over the past 24 hours, just glad to know prudent virality will not be defeated in the rebellion.We have a collective responsibility to keep the conversation going, to take action when no one is listening, when no one is looking. There will always be divisive topics in a 24 hour news cycle. It’s easy to inundate yourself with an overwhelming feed, finding some comfort in our shared grievances. What’s more challenging in these moments is finding compassion for each other and constructive action that adds up to real change.In Tr*mp’s final going out of business sale, the administration held an oil lease sale Tuesday for drilling rights in Alaska’s Arctic refuge. Well below the media radar this week, this systemic inequity should be top of mind in the transition. Biden has expressed his opposition to Arctic drilling, taking heed of the many Indigenous groups voicing well placed outrage and concern. While we may be far removed from the Northern Lights, I’m calling on our conscious efforts to hold the people in power accountable when the time comes.Stacey Abrams lost a governor's race in Georgia and instead spent the last 10 years paving the way for a monumental democratic senate flip. Talk about constructive action, she did the hard thing when it would have been easier to quit. She did the right thing when no one was looking and she manifested an equitable political landscape. We can all learn from her divine resilience.We must believe in our ability to bring about change. We must act on that belief through whatever means accessible to us. May we all draw from our own divine resilience and find the courage to take the next right step, especially when no one is looking.Stay hungry,Hawnuh Lee | Founder, Closed Loop Cooking(P.S. I’m trying out curated brevity this week, send me a reply if you’re picking up what I’m linking out, yeah?)

Fig of the Earth by Hawnuh Lee

To-do’sWe’re committing to less waste in our kitchen this year. Here’s 5 easy, low waste swaps to try out. Hot tip, you’ll save stacks without all that plastic wrap.Lobelia Commons is seeking submissions for their 2021 Earthbound Farmer’s Almanac. Let’s make food autonomy accessible, right now.

This week’s required readingFinding new scrub love in Katie Okamoto’s latest piece, An Ode to the Kamenoko Tawashi, the Turtle Brush. The magic of heirloom objects will never cease to amaze me.Tamale devotional. Tejal Rao’s latest piece sings praises of the intricate process behind tamale making and its rich tradition, sans the tamaladas this year.Reflecting on the concept of Sankofa, going back and fetching the stories to help us move forward, from our fall interview with Pandora Thomas.

Seasonal eatingGetting my pre-requisite green allotment in this roasted squash + broccoli bowl. A great use-it-up recipe because merciful tahini forgives all. Indulging in a cold weather favorite with a nocino + oat milk winter cocktail. (Plus 100 if you’ve got preserved cherries floating around.) Nocino is a young walnut liqueur infused with warming spices and pinot noir brandy. I’m swooning (and sipping.) Try pairing with whatever mylk you have on hand.

Here’s what’s for breakfastA truly seasonal favorite, this parsnip and meyer lemon loaf cake with toasted hazelnuts + dates is a plant-based ode to winter produce. Adapted from a PNW cookbook fav, Six Seasons, I find this slightly sweet loaf to be totally appropriate before 9 am. And anytime after. Hazelnuts are an Oregon cold weather speciality and I’m looking for any reason to toast some up.

We’re cooking withLeaning into my bread mother personna, fully. My starter has survived this long, there’s no going back. I’m giving my baked loaves the attention they deserve in this heathered, hand woven bread basket. You should too.Drinking my aforementioned nocino cocktail out of this dreamy, coral, faceted tumblr. I’m a sucker for sexy cups, but I will make room. Who needs plates anymore?

AttendSigning up for fermentation funk in a free virtual class with @picklewitch 1/22. Anyone can pickle and anything (almost) can be pickled. Almost.

RitualMantra of a new year from @madeleine_jubilee_saito - “Any health we have, we have in common. Any sickness we have, we have in common.”

Can’t stop staringI would like to be cocooned inside this beautifully textured display lettuce through the entirety of 2021.Hover zen garden. Lost several minutes in this wavy virtual allotment space. Sound on.

Make changeLet’s help @earthrebranded get styrofoam lunch trays banned in their school district. A signature goes a long ways y’all!Portland friends, Feed The Mass is looking for a new commercial kitchen space! They’re putting out 6,000+ meals a WEEK now to feed underserved and houseless folx. Let’s find them somewhere permanent to cook. Send me those leads!

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