News From Seed
April 21st, 2010 | 
Author: Hi Everyone! We have a few things to tell you about over at seed. First off, we have a new delicious seasonal mousse, Lemon Meringue! Sour is the taste of Spring, so this is a wonderful dessert to get your Spring started and rejuvenate your liver!
Second, we are updating our menu. The Seitan Sirloin Burger has been so popular that it’s being added to our permanent menu! That means a new Daily Special will be rolling out soon. Unfortunately, the place that made our Organic 7 Grain Sourdough Bun (Casa de Tree) has closed down and we will no longer be able to offer this option. Until we can find somewhere else that can make an affordable sugar/honey-free organic bun, you will have to fall in love with our regular buns.
Don’t forget we have weekend brunch on Saturday and Sundays until 1pm. This includes muffins, scones, Breakfast Burrito, Oatmeal, Tofu Scramble and more! Come join us this weekend.
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Join Us To Help The Earth!
We have a lot of exciting events coming up starting Sunday. We hope you can join us!
Sunday, April 18
Time: 10 am – 11 am (ish)
:: PRE-EARTH DAY EVENT: Seed Community Clean-up (SCC) ::
Earth Day is April 22! Why don’t you join us this month! It will be a good warm-up for Earth Day!
Sanae has started Seed Community Clean-up (SCC) which will be held once a month, to help beautify the neighborhood and get the Venice community involved in something special.
You will get 10% off your lunch or free organic tea or coffee at seed or a Remedy Drink Mini-Lecture/Tasting for free if you join us for SCC! Our goal is to clean up the beach as well when we have more people to join us. In the meantime, let’s cleanup the neighborhood before the trash gets to the ocean!
What to bring: Trash bag, gloves, broom, dustpan, sunscreen, hat, etc.
Note: if it is raining steadily at the start time, the cleanup will be cancelled.
Sunday, April 18
Time: 11 am – 12 pm
:: March Remedy Drink Demo & Tasting ::
Sanae will make a remedy drink and give you a mini-lecture about it.
Fee: $10 per person or free if you attend Seed Community Cleanup on Sunday, April 18 from 10 am.
Thursday, April 22
Time: TBA
It’s EARTH DAY!! Earth Day is a day designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment (Read more on “Wikipedia” or Google it!). Many people all over the world celebrate this day by doing something special for the Earth. At Seed, we’d like to join this celebration by sharing some tips and info for a sustainable way of living!
We have invited special guest speakers such as Jessica Porter, the author of “The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics” and the co-author of Alicia Silverstone’s “The Kind Diet” and Kathleen Jacecko from TeachingGreen to have mini-lectures at Seed.
All Events held at: SEED Kitchen
1604 Pacific Avenue, Venice, CA 90291
The Sweet Side of a Macrobiotic Diet
Eric and Sanae were featured in the March issue of Today’s Diet & Nutrition magazine. This online magazine is omnivorous, a fusion of Western Medicine & holistic nutrition, and sadly has meat on the front cover. The fact that they wanted to do a spread on macrobiotic desserts featuring no refined sugar is HUGE! We are so happy that they did this beautiful article on us. You can view the article here.
The one thing I love about this magazine is that it’s online, meaning it’s the most environmentally responsible way to have a magazine. I think this is the wave of the future. If the Kindle and iPad can go online and look at magazines than the paper versions will be eliminated in the near future I’m guessing. What is even more cool is the way you can view the magazine online and videos can be embedded. It’s awesome!
10 Things That Make Us Happy
I got this idea from our customer Sarah over at What Can I Eat? and asked all the people in the office, our friends, and all our customers and fans what makes them happy. See our answers below. What makes you happy?
Sanae's doggies
1. Having Dog & Cats Around by Christy
Recently, one of Sanae’s dogs gave birth to the most adorable puppies ever. It was really nice having them around while I worked in the office. Now we are down to just two and they are getting so big! Rumi is the little girl that they are keeping and she has been vegan since birth. Sanae makes their own dogfood from whole grains and veggies. Rumi adores steamed kabocha squash just like me! She’s the little one on the right in this photo.
Sanae says that having dogs and cats are the one thing that makes her the happiest. She could not have made it through all the health problems she’s faced without them. They are her family.
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2. Playing Sports by Eric Lechasseur (Chef and Co-owner of Seed)
Ever since I was a kid I played lots of sports. Growing up in Quebec I play ice hockey, and then got into other sports like scuba diving, windsurfing, skateboarding, skiing and snowboarding, golf, biking and riding my motorcycle. It makes me happy to play sports because it allows me to expand, be free, and be active, which helps me in my stressful life.
3. Eating A Nourishing Breakfast by Kris and Mary (friends of Eric and Sanae)
Kris & Mary
Our friends and macrobiotic chefs, Kris and Mary, met 2 years ago at La Ferme du Bois-le-Comte, where they cooked and gardened, and fell in love. They popped by on their way to a 5 month hike on the Pacific Crest Trail for some breakfast. This breakfast made by Sanae made them very happy.
4. Cooking Dinner With a Loved One by Cortney B. (Facebook Fan)
I love cooking with my fiance, especially if its a new recipe we’ve never made before. We each take a counter and a cutting board and we just chat and go at it together… its great and relaxing and I swear the dinner tastes better ♥
5. Going To the Beach by Terumi (Office Extraordinaire)
Photo by: Terumi
I’m always happy when I go to the beach. Just walking on the sand, or riding a bike, or rollerblading on the beach bike path, looking at the ocean and the sky, breathing the air with a hint of natural ocean fragrance make me happy, especially when I see dolphins! Sometimes, I can walk right next to them with their pace and synchronize with their happy energy and love. I’m very fortunate that I live close to the beach.
7. Good friends by Christy
My friends mean the world to me. They are my greatest teachers, my strength, my confidants, and my family. I’m so grateful for the community of friends I have surrounded myself with here in Los Angeles, and for the friends I have all over the world.
8. Going To an Island Far Far Away by Hideki (friend of Eric and Sanae)
Great Keppel Island Resort
This post is more a thing that would make us happy. When I asked Hideki what makes him happy he said money. He was doing his taxes at the moment I was asking the question, so I thought maybe his answer was a little off! I asked him to give me another answer and he said being on a small island laying in the sun, looking up at the blue sky, to get away from it all.
9. Meditation by Sanae Suzuki (Co-owner of Seed, Macrobiotic Counselor)
As busy as my life is, I take time to meditate, to center myself, get balanced, and connect to nature. This helps me manage all the things going on in my life and allows me to appreciate all the beautiful things surrounding me, like my family: dogs, cat, & husband, and my friends.
10. Good Coffee by Dan Cox (our PR guy)
Coffee at Intelligentsia
It’s so difficult to find good coffee that you can make at home. It’s like chasing down the Holy Grail. Also, I don’t have a many thousand dollar machine to make good coffee with in the comfort of my home. So, I’ve searched for the best cup of coffee outside my house and I always end up at Intelligentsia. Every time I go to Intelligentsia it makes me happy. When that black gold hits my lips I smile with pleasure. But, I only drink one cup a day, then it’s green tea.
Day 60: Love One Day At Time
Day 60 Love one day at a time
We tend to focus too much on the future and/or the past, but we can only take care of One day at a time…sometimes one moment at a time. Whatever happened in the past we can’t change and whatever will happen we don’t know. If you want to make a difference in your life you can start today. Make time for yourself to do something for your health. How about going grocery shopping, cooking for yourself a simple vegetable dish and brown rice, or taking time to sit and meditate for yourself and focus on breathing? Make each moment count, each day a step toward loving oneself.
This is our last day of the 60 days of comments for New Year New You. I thank everybody for checking them and even sending comments. I really hope these comments have helped or will you in some way like they helped me as I wrote them. With all my heart….Love, Sanae
Taste of Health Cruise
Last week I went to the Taste of Health Cruise. I was very sad that Eric and Sanae were not able to go this year and teach, but I had a pretty good time. Of course Love, Sanae sold out of the bookstore even though Sanae couldn’t make it. It was amazing how many new people were on the cruise, with over half the people being newcomers. This is exciting news because that means more of the general public is getting concerned about their health. 1,000 people joined me on the Costa Fortuna ship that sailed through the Caribbean. If you would like to read my Cruise Diary with photos please visit my blog The Blissful Chef. Here is a video with footage from the speakers. Some of the best teachers and speakers in the natural health field come to give lectures and cooking classes. If you would like to join me next year please email me through my website for the details and for a special discount.
Day 59 Rest your intestines with “Handanjiki” (a half fasting)
Day 59 Rest your intestines with “Handanjiki” (a half fasting)
Many people tend to eat too much, especially in America where the bigger the serving, the better! In many places the portions I am served are too large. How are we able to consume and properly digest so much food? I love to eat, so it is hard for me to resist the sumptuous quantity of food I receive. Therefore, I do a half fasting which is called “Handanjiki” in Japanese. For one day or a few days I limit what I eat to half of my usual intake; for example, I would have half a bowl of miso soup. This helps to rest our intestines. When I do this I feel light and have a clearer consciousness.
Day 58 Start your own organic container gardening
Day 58 Start your own organic container gardening
Have you ever thought about growing your own organic herbs and vegetables, but did not have the yard space? No problem! If you can find a sunny spot to put a 4-inch pot you can grow basil, oregano, sage or even red radishes and scallions. The important thing is to obtain good organic garden soil if you don’t make your own compost with left-over vegetables. Put the soil in the pot, plant seeds or seedlings of your choice and water very well, and set it facing south in a sunny location. You must water it everyday, and you will see how they show start to sprout and grow. The red radishes grow very fast so you will be able to eat them 3~4 weeks after planting the seeds.
Day 57: Understand Universal Foods
Day 57: Understand Universal Foods
After I studied macrobiotics more and more I realized our food is not just “Food” we eat from our mouth. Food is energy – air, light, sun, sky, rain, color, sound, breath, vibration, wind, moon, stars, communications, touch, words, and contact with people, other animals and nature. If you find yourself struggling to change your food choices from conventional to natural and organic , remember these foods also may help you on your personal healing journey.
Day 56: Just do your best
Day 56: Just do your best
No matter what all we can do is our best. It might not be good enough for others, but when you know that you did your best you feel good. Many people get ideas, but they are not able to transform them into reality. The reason can be “don’t want to make a mistake”, but can you imagine your life without mistake in real life? That’s not real. You know in your heart how you really want to live and take care of your health then start living that direction. Get organic vegetables and start to cook your own meals. Use only organic products and join our community class. Just do it!!!
