Vegan Vegetarian Thanksgiving in Bethlehem

I know my last few posts have been about food. But hey, it plays a pretty important role in sustainability. What else connects the environment, our economy, and communities more than food? Nadda!

That’s why I’m proud to announce that ECO, Moravian’s Environmental Coalition will be having its annual Vegan & Vegetarian Thanksgiving again this year!

When: Nov. 20 at 5 p.m.

Where: The Marketplace in the HUB, Moravian College

Why: Because we’ve got a hankering for delicious food with minimal environmental impact.

Cost: just the price of getting into The Market Place (around $10) or “one swipe”. No additional moo-lah needed!

Last week Gina, the ECO president and I, sat down with HUB director Ann Clausento plan the event. None of us could recall how many years Vegan Vegetarian has under its belt. Quite a few.

For the most part, the event will be held the same way it has always been. The annex of the caf will be set aside for the event; a table will be set aside for ECO members and members of the Moravian community to bring their homemade vegan or vegetarian dishes. Like always, we hope to see a crowd of great people and a table full of delicious food.

Want to get involved? Here's how it works:

1. You pick a vegan or vegetarian recipe and tell ECO what ingredients you need.
2. Then, Sodexo, our food service, will go shopping with the grocery list we give them.
3. We'll give you the ingredients and cookware if you need it.
4. Then we all bring our dishes and enjoy!

This year, ECO hopes to bring together more of the Greater Lehigh Valley community. We’ll be inviting members of environmental clubs at other colleges as well as organizers and activists from around the Lehigh Valley.

Did my post about Vegan Treats have your mouth watering last time? Then come to Vegan Vegetarian Thanksgiving, we’l l have plenty of the eco-bakery’s goodies for you to sample.

Do you have to be vegan or vegetarian to come?

Certainly not! In fact, most of the organizers aren’t. And we hope meat lovers and veggie heads alike will join us. The point is to:

•      Raise awareness about how our food affects our environment and community
•      Reconsider what kind of food we want to purchase and consume, and
•      Challenge ourselves to remove meat from a traditional meal.

So now you’re wondering why ECO wants you to have a meal that's vegetarian, without meat, or vegan without any animal products. 

It turns out, animal products have a more negative impact on our environment and communities than plants.

• Animal Cruelty. I’m sure we’ve all seen something of PETA’s (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) videos. The truth is; those factory farms are out there. And
  often we’d rather not know how the animal was treated before it hit our plate

Do you care, but you aren’t ready to give up meat? Eating at a place like Brew Works, that provides Free Bird chicken and locally sourced beef, is a great alternative to going cold turkey.

• Health Reasons. According to the American Dietetic Association, a vegetarian diet is associated with lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease, lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and lower rates of hypertension and type 2 diabetes when compared with a non-vegetarian diet.

I’m not a vegetarian. I love my lean protein—especially after a long hike. But I try to take this into account by monitoring my intake of meat, especially red meat.That’s where eating meat becomes much more environmentally impactful than plants; you always have to grow and process something to feed to meat and dairy animals.

•      Environmental Damage. I think we easily forget where our goods come from. If we eat a burger, we are essentially consuming all of the energy and waste necessary to keep that cow alive.

Consider, too all of the waste created from factory farms.

Often habitat is destroyed to put them up in the first place.

Maybe you’re like me and not ready to go all the way vegetarian. Or maybe you’re a vegan! Either way, I hope you consider where your food comes from and the impact it had.

And I really hope to see you at Vegan Vegetarian Thanksgiving!

Will you be there?

5 ideas for an eco-friendly weekend in Bethlehem

We’re supposed to have a beautiful fall weekend in Bethlehem, so go enjoy it! And pay some homage to Mamma Nature buy having some eco-friendly fun.

Some of these ideas don’t scream sustainability, but here’s the thing:

    When you avoid:

• Getting in your car,
• Hitting the mall,
• And the same old chains and franchises,

    And make a point to:

• Walk it out,
• Support local businesses, 
• And get plugged into your community,

You’re screamin’ green. Enjoy!

1. Eat Eco-friendly.

You’d think I’d be tired of talking about eco-food. Thought wrong! Even for a sustainability sleuth like me, there are always places I haven’t heard of.

Like Wildflower Café. They’re located at 316 South New St, that’s right across the bridge in South Bethlehem!

According to their facebook page, they’re a vegetarian/vegan cafe AND all ages music venue WITH a bike rack. They also proclaim to use local, organic, and fair-trade producers whenever possible.

Myth? Legend? I haven’t had time to check it out, yet. (Don’t worry; it’s on my list!)

So now, you’ve got two challenges—this could be a south-side scavenger hunt! Check out Horns, the new eco-conscious restaurant, I mentioned in my eco-friendly food post. Then report back. Go!

2. Shop Eco-friendly.

Here's at hat I picked up on South Side last year. It's made from old t-shirts!

3. Get a green hairdo!

No not green colored do! Unless you’re adventurous, then go for it!

I’m talking about Lux, The Eco-Friendly Salon. And you guessed it; it’s just a walk away! 643 N. New St. in Bethlehem. The Moravian shuttles go right by on their way from north to south campus. So if you’re feeling lazy or broke your foot, you can beg the bus driver to drop you off right there!

Mid September, my suite-mate Jackie and I walked up from North campus to get our hair cut there for the first time. The salon is just as cool as the girls who run it, and the job those girls do is even better.

For $50 I got a wash and cut (with heavenly scalp massage) and blow dry and style. And they used all eco-friendly products that smelled and felt amazing in my hair. The price was absolutely worth it. My hair has never felt healthier and, umm, my style is super cute.

Now, come on, how can you beat that?

My eco-friendly haircut from Lux!

4. Tour Moravian’s South Campus.

Yeah, that’s where those shuttles go. And you should go too. Walk to keep the eco-guilt at minimum and thequad burning at a maximum.

South campus has some incredible old buildings—Brethren’s Hall was a revolutionary war hospital that once hosted George Washington. I’m not saying you should tour the buildings at night, seeking out the rumored spiritual residents, but I am saying that it’s pretty fun. ;)

South Campus also has the Root Cellar Café. So if you’re bored with the food up north, park yourself at one ofthe HILL’s outside tables and enjoy.

From the HILL, walk toward the Lehigh River. You’ll find Sand Island, a recreation area between the river and the canal. The historic towpath, once used for mules to drag barges alongside them in the canal, now makes a great spot for jogging or bike riding.

In the spring, look out for bike and boat trips with the Wildlands Conservancy, that start right at Sand Island. ECO, Moravian’s Environmental Coalition, has gone on a few trips now and had a blast each time.

5. Festivals, farm markets, and first Fridays!

What do all these things have in common? They’re all happening here in Bethlehem.

If you live in Bethlehem, especially on south campus like I did for two years, you know the festivals. Musikfest,Celtic Fest, Christkindlmarkt… (No I didn’t spell that wrong.) Chances are, on any given weekend, Bethlehem is having something cutesy. Here’s a calendar so you don’t miss any of it.

Farmers' markets are a ton of fun, too. Support your local farmers and your need for yummy seasonal goodies buy checking out one of the 30 markets within 35 miles of campus.

Every Tuesday, Moravian offers a free trip to the farmers' market at Steel Stacks. Sign up in the HUB! 

Want to get pumped up with a film about environmental issues? Monday night you can check out a screening of Sweet Crude at Lehigh.

By now I know you’re swimming in weekend ideas! Don’t worry I only have one more, and it’s for November.

Check out First Friday, a monthly celebration of the arts and culture on South Side Bethlehem. Can you say wine, cheese, and chumming it with artists?

Green Eggs and Ham? 5 Eco-friendly food spots in Bethlehem

Who’s hungry?

Who’s hungry for some gourmet food
that was produced and prepared with the environment in mind?

Now I’ve got you’re tummy rumbling. 


Sustainable food is popping up on menus all over the country. But I’m not sending you around the country. I’m sending you down Main Street. Run! Or walk!


In all the restaurants in Bethlehem, I’ve spotted five eco-friendly all-stars. 

1. Bethlehem Brew Works. The heavy hitter. 

They’ve got a whole tab on sustainability on their website: “At Fegley’s Brew Works we are grateful for the world’s gifts, and we strive to pass along the best of these by providing food that is as good as nature intended.”

And in case you didn’t remember why you should buy local, the Brew Works reminds you that most produce travels 1,500 miles over four to seven days to get to you*.

So the Brew Works tries to get as much as it can from as near-by as possible. Pocono Produce Company , 44 miles away, supplies much of the restaurant’s produce.

But their burgers can top that! Brew Works gets its beef from  Dale Koehler Farms right in Bethlehem!

If you’re in the mood for a chicken sandwhich—may I suggest the Brewschetta—you can still stay sustainable. Brew Works serves up chicken from Lancaster County, PA. It’s Freebird Chicken . This means, as the BW website proudly states, the chicken are “free of antibiotics and hormones, free to wander in barns without cages, and are always fed a natural corn and soybean diet free of animal byproducts.”

Feeling fishy? The seafood they serve up follows Monteray Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch.

Want to stick to veggies after all that sustainably sourced meat? Keep heading down the hill, toward the Bethlehem Star, and you’ll find our next eco-friendly all star.

2. The Confetti Café. 

I include this Main Street hit mainly because they serve up an awesome vegetarian dish. Even when meat is sustainably sourced, like the Brew Works, producing it still requires more energy (more eco-guilt) than veggies. So if you really want to lower your carbon footprint go vegetarian for the day.

And on that day, you’ll want to pick up one of these to vegetarian approved dishes:

• Main Street Masterpiece. $5.75. Whole wheat bread, swiss cheese, mushrooms, zucchini, aflafa sprouts, lettuce & tomato, finished off with mayo, dijon and a splash of poppyseed dressing, and served with a side salad.

• Veggie Weggie $5.25. Array of fresh vegetables topped with shredded cheese rolled in a fresh pita with your choice of dressing.

That last one is approved by Bridget Gross. She’s a Bethlehemer that I met while working in Glacier National Park. She grows vegetables. I mean, just look at that antler.

Bridget, my fellow ranger at Glacier National Park.

Met a new boy/or girl and you’re looking to score a fancy date spot? I got you.

3. Starfish Brasserie. 

If you don’t know how to pronounce part of the name, you know it’s fancy.

The Starfish is located at 51 W Broad St, near the old Boyd movie theatre. According to their website, they serve up “only the freshest Sustainable Fish and Seafood, as well as the Freshest Local Organically Farmed and Raised Ingredients.”

4. Vegan Treats. The lefty.

Rumored to be patroned by celebrities like Gweneth Paltrow, Vegan Treats serves exclusively animal free sweets. That’s right, no eggs, no butter, no milk! But your taste buds wouldn’t know it.

PETA has awarded founder Danielle Konya with their Proggy Award for Best Bakery. Google offered her a drool-worthy spot as Guest Chef. But her bio on the Vegan Treats website says that perhaps her biggest accomplishment was an award she won in PBS’ Feast of Sweets, “Here, she not only won Best Overall, but did so competing against over fifty non-vegan bakers. Take that, dairy!”

The bakery is famous for its peanut-butter bomb. You gotta try it. Life won’t be the same after.

Come to ECO’s Vegan Vegetarian Thanksgiving, November 20, where we’ll have Vegan Treats sweets!

5. Horns. The Rookie. 


This is one, I’m going to send you to try and report back. The vision of John Silvester, an Easton-er, Horns just opened in the South Side of Bethlehem by Lehigh Pizza. (Yes, Moravian kids, it’s over the bridge. But I hear it’s worth checking out.)

The restaurant offers locally grown and organic food, as well as eco-friendly take out packaging.

So go forth! Eat up! And tell me what you think!