VEGAN RECIPE: PUMPKIN DANGO or HOW TO MAKE HANAMI DANGO WITHOUT RICE FLOUR

A few years ago I started watching a Japanese stop motion animation series on Netflix called Rilakkuma.

The characters in it are obsessed with food (relatable) and I have learned about several yummy treats indigenous to Japan from watching it including Dango. Dango are chewy and sweet little balls that are served on bamboo skewers and mostly made of rice flour. There are many types of Dango but I wanted to make the kind I saw on Rilakkuma, hanami dango. Unfortunately I did not have rice flour on hand or cherry blossom powder or Yomogi to capture the pink, white, and green color and flavors of this treat so I used ingredients I already had. Instead of rice flour I used tapioca starch and pumpkin puree (for sweetness) , and beet powder and Matcha powder replaced the cherry blossom powder and Yomogi. These ingredients yielded a darker color palette but the texture remained chewy and the flavor was unique and subtle. Hanami dango is usually more pastel (pink, white and green) because they are typically eaten during cherry blossom viewing season. Hanami means flower viewing and some say the pink, green and white colors represent the life cycle of the cherry blossom or the arrival of spring.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Cup Tapioca Flour

1/2 Cup of pumpkin puree, (I used canned)

1 Tablespoon of beet root powder.

1 Tablespoon of matcha powder

1/4 cup cold water

2 Cups Ice Water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine the tapioca flour and pumkin puree and knead until smooth.

Separate the dough into three equal sections. Add beet root powder to one of the sections and gently knead in to the first portion of the dough until it is all a uniform color then roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls.

Whisk the matcha powder into the 1/4 cup of cold water and add it to the second portion of dough gently kneading it in until color is uniform. Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls.

Roll the third portion of the dough into tablespoon sized balls as is, no need to add anything else.

Boil a pot of water then bring it down to medium heat and gently place the rolled dough balls in the pot and don’t take them out until they float to the top. Note: They will expand in the water.

Remove them from the pot using a slotted spoon or a small strainer and place them in the 2 cups of ice water.

Place them on a skewer in this order, red, orange then green.

Enjoy!

This recipe makes at least 7 servings. I only had 2 servings so I wrapped all of the leftover dango balls individually in plastic wrap and froze them for later use.

if you would like to watch a video demonstration of this recipe click here.

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TODAY IN MUSIC HISTORY…

COFOUNDER AND ORIGINAL PINK FLOYD FRONTMAN ROGER KEITH “SYD” BARRETT WAS BORN ON JANUARY 6, 1946

THAT SAME WEEK IN 1975, PINK FLOYD BEGAN STUDIO SESSIONS ON THEIR 9TH STUDIO ALBUM “WISH YOU WERE HERE”. ALTHOUGH BARRETT LEFT PINK FLOYD 3 YEARS PRIOR, HIS ABSENCE, THE CONCEPT OF ABSENCE IN GENERAL, WAS A MAJOR THEME OF THE ALBUM. 

MANY PEOPLE INTERPRET THE TITLE TRACK TO BE ABOUT BARRETT WHICH IS IN FACT PARTIALLY INSPIRED BY HIM.

BUT IT WAS THE NINE PART SUITE THAT OPENS AND CLOSES THE ALBUM, “SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND” THAT WAS DEVISED AND COMPOSED AS A TRIBUTE TO THEIR FORMER BAND MEMBER, FELLOW ARTIST, MUSE AND FRIEND. 

(Above: Pink Floyd without Barrett)

29 Ways To Make The World A Better Place

 

Femicide

Misogyny

Institutionalized Racism

Climate Change 

Animal Abuse

Economic Oppression  

Poverty Crime  

Government Corruption

Modern Slavery/Human Trafficking

These are some of the things that are making life intolerable for the majority of the inhabitants of our planet. It has been this way for hundreds of years. These issues combined with the failure of the Trump Administration to address the Covid-19 pandemic in a competent way has woken up many Americans but not nearly enough.

Please see the list below for different options on how to do your part.

FEMICIDE

1. If you see a woman or girl (cis or transgender) experiencing ANY TYPE of violence call 911 immediately.
2. Donate to a battered women’s shelter using this link. https://www.domesticshelters.org/fundraisers/wish-lists
3. If you are low on funds educate yourself on femicide and spread the knowledge on social media and/or verbally to your loved one and acquaintances. Start with these two articles about the alarming number of femicides in Turkey and Mexico.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/05/mexico-femicide-emergency-activists

https://www.kqed.org/arts/13883979/empowerment-selfies-are-burying-a-turkish-womens-rights-campaign

4. Sign the petitions linked below. They are asking that the US Army be held accountable for Vanessa Guillen’s murder, Sandra Bland‘s case to be reopened and that Breonna Taylor‘s killers be brought to justice.

Vanessa Guillen Petition

Sandra Bland Petition

Breonna Taylor Petition

Also if you are thinking about posting or have already posted a black and white “challenge accepted” or “empowerment selfie” on social media please take a look at the article about femicide in Turkey. People have been participating in this challenge without bringing attention to its origin and it has caused major damage to a critical Turkish women’s  rights campaign sparked by the climbing rates of femicides in Turkey and the murder of  a young lady named Pinar Gültekin at the hands of her ex-boyfriend. Please make sure you include the origins of the challenge so that the world is made aware of the inhumane situation Turkish women are in.

MISOGYNY

5.    For the men: Stop objectifying women and read this this article on how to stop being a misogynist.

Blog: 5 ways to avoid being a misogynist

6. For the ladies: Support unproblematic female owned businesses by purchasing their products and/or spreading the word about their existence. Also, check out this article on internalized misogyny. Do you have it? Is it contagious? Can it be cured? Only one way to find out.

How I Learnt To Unlearn My Internalised Misogyny

 

INSTITUTIONALIZED RACISM

 

7. Donate to a group that bails out Black Lives Matter protesters and provides them with resources for legal representation like the Portland Protest Bail Fund.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/pdx-protest-bail-fund

8. You can also donate to any of the organizations featured on the Act Blue website. They give you the opportunity to split your donation between 70 different community bail funds, mutual aid funds and racial justice organizers.

https://secure.actblue.com/donate/bail_funds_george_floyd?refcode=cwg

9. If you are unable to donate share the two links above and start educating yourself more on institutionalized racism. My good friend Corvette Moore who has been fighting for racial justice and economic equity for most of her life suggested these in an Anti-Racism Book Club and Discussion Group on Facebook.

Me and White Supremacy          by Layla Saad

The New Jim Crow                       by Michelle Alexander

Racism, Anti Racism and You    by Ibram X Kendi  and Jason Reynolds

10. Join a Black Lives Matter protest. If you have tested positive for Covid-19 or have come in contact with someone that has Covid-19 STAY HOME. Spread the word online about protests instead and/or call your local lawmakers and demand they DEFUND THE POLICE.

Find Black Lives Matter protests here–>  https://rallylist.com/?s=black+lives+matter&submit=Search

Find your local lawmakers here–>  https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative#:~:text=If%20you%20know%20who%20your,the%20U.S.%20House%20switchboard%20operator.

 

CLIMATE CHANGE

11. Read this article that offers 6 concrete ways on how you can take action on climate change. Start small so you are not overwhelmed and pick the one that is easiest for you and go from there.

https://www.activesustainability.com/climate-change/6-actions-to-fight-climate-change/

12. Many of us have heard of a carbon footprint but did you know that humans also leave a DIGITAL carbon footprint? Although it is very difficult at the moment to quantify our energy consumption from digital devices due to lack of data, our online lives are having a significant effect on climate change according to studies conducted by The Borderstep Institute. The biggest culprits of this are video streaming and using your cellphone as your primary source of the internet. Try to reduce your use of both as much as possible and if you are in Europe research Fairphone, a sustainable smart phone company that cares for people AND the environment.

https://www.fairphone.com/en/story/?ref=header

ANIMAL ABUSE

13. If you would like to buy a dog or a cat DO NOT purchase from a breeder. Go to a local shelter instead.

14. Foster or adopt a senior dog/cat! They are often dumped at kill shelters when owners don’t want to care for them as they age and develop aging related maladies that can be time consuming and expensive. Our pets love us unconditionally and show us unwavering loyalty they deserve the same from us.

15. Do not wear leather or fur unless it is second-hand.

16. Support vegan businesses. You do not have to be fully vegan to eat a vegan meal once a day or once a week. Being vegan is very hard for many people as it takes time to transition in a healthy way. Some people may have eating disorders that are triggered by any slight change in diet. If you find it to difficult or compromising to your physical/mental health to make such a dramatic change so quickly, supporting vegan businesses by purchasing food from them, promoting them and buying their merch is a great way to help the vegan movement grow.

17. Sign these petitions to end China’s dog meat festival.

https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&id=6885&page=UserAction

https://www.change.org/p/shut-down-the-yulin-dog-meat-festival-in-yulin-guangxi-china/psf/share?after_sign_exp=default&just_signed=true&share_abi=1

18. Donate  a “kuranda bed” to your local animal shelter.

http://www.laanimalservices.com/donate/donate-a-kuranda-bed/

19. Share “spay and neutering” resources online.

http://www.laanimalservices.com/general-information/spay-neuter/

ECONOMIC OPPRESSION/POVERTY CRIME/GOVERNMENT CORRUPTION

The three evils listed above are among the many reasons why any sane person would leave a country as breathtakingly beautiful as Honduras. According to official government figures 3,996 homicides were recorded in 2019. Transgender people are treated as if they aren’t human. Misogyny and femicide ARE THE NORM. Hard working people hand over significant portions of their meager wages/possessions to gang members or face brutally violent repercussions that often end in homicide.  The country’s various indigenous groups and other ethnic groups are often locked in land disputes with drug traffickers, the tourism industry and the like who subject them to violent kidnappings and murder. Those who are lucky to make it to the United States risk being locked up like animals in small overcrowded “detention centers” to live in conditions that deprive them of their most basic human rights. The human rights groups I mention below are all working hard to help Honduran immigrants in need as well as immigrants from around the world that face similar circumstances.

20. Donate to Border Angels. They are a non profit group founded in 1986. Every week they send volunteers in t  the dessert to drop off water for migrants crossing the US MExico border by foot. They also lead “caravans of love” to migrant shelters, run a day labor outreach program agreen card for kids program, a shelter program, a bond program to reunite families that have been separated by our broken immigration system and so much more.

https://www.borderangels.org/donate.html

21. Donate to Immigrant Defenders Law Center. They  are a non profit organization that provides legal counsel for immigrant communities against systemic injustices in the legal system.

22. Sign this petition that demands ICE detainees stop being sprayed with a very toxic and very dangerous germicidal detergent called HDQ Neutral 100.

https://www.change.org/p/change-org-stop-ice-from-poisoning-immigrants

23. Sign this petition that demands New York and New Jersey release all detainees from ICE detention centers and effectively shut them down.

https://secure.everyaction.com/yvi1j61_MEKl-fqO-0G9sQ2

24. Make a women’s comfort kit and mail it to this address.

Minority Humanitarian Foundation

1618 San Miguel Ave

Spring Valley, California

91977

It was provided by @guerojusticiero who works closely with the Minority Humanitarian Foundation to reunite immigrant families as well as provide immigrants with precious life saving resources. See image below to see what you can add to the kit.

MODERN SLAVERY/HUMAN TRAFFICKING

According to antislavery.org, human trafficking is described as “the process of trapping people through the use of violence, deception or coercion and exploiting them for financial or personal gain”.

25. Watch this documentary by The Guardian that details how human traffickers prey on incarcerated women in order to force them in to a life of addiction and prostitution once they are released.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2018/jun/29/the-trap-sex-trafficking-american-prisons

26. If you believe you may have witnessed human trafficking report it! This link explains how you can do that. It also gives options on how to report anonymously.

https://humantraffickinghotline.org/report-trafficking

27. Knowledge is POWER. Arm yourself with information. Sign up to receive google alerts on the most recent human trafficking news.

28. Be mindful about who you give your money to. Many goods we produce were produced by forced or child labor. Here is a list from the US Department of Labor of goods that have been produced by modern slaves. Avoid them at all costs.

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/reports/child-labor/list-of-goods

29. Zephi Trevino, a 16 year old Latina victim of human trafficking is being charged for the murder of a john by the hands of her trafficker. This young woman has suffered enough and for no good reason. She deserves to be free and have normal teenage experiences. Please sign the petition demanding justice and donate to her legal defense fund.

https://www.change.org/p/henry-wade-juvenile-justice-facility-justice-for-zephaniah-trevino?source_location=topic_page

Zephaniah Trevino’s Defense Fund

If you have made it this far thank you for reading! If you have anything to add to the list please share your two cents in the comments section. I want to keep adding to the list.

 

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