I’m delving into an unfortunate part of my food history here: My brief love affair with store-bought poppy seed dressing. Maybe I just fell for the wrong one, but the romance came to an abrupt end when I came to my senses and read the label. Hydrogenated soybean oil?

We’re back in the kitchen, turning up the heat on raw foods with South of the Border Tomatillo Rawvioli! I wanted to do a dish that showcased the delightful flavor of tomatillos, the husky green cousin of the tomato. The resulting creation is a lively celebration of Mexican-inspired flavor, beauty ...

Last weekend, while we were at Get Tough or Die Farms (Tanja’s Mom’s house), we were introduced to a new summer dessert. In Sacramento, the mid-day temperature can get brutal by this time of year, and one day while we were all sitting outside sweltering, Melissa brought out a round ...

We spent the weekend at the Get Tough or Die Farm (a.k.a. Tanja’s mother’s house). When neighborhood cats and children aren’t disappearing in the “Tomato Triangle,” they’re dodging the assault of the trained attack rabbits, and let’s not even mention the sunflowers. It was a most relaxing weekend, filled with ...

Believe us when we say that no chickens were hurt in the making of this episode. Our friends Raven, Baxter and Adesina have made the leap from avid backyard gardeners, to avid backyard chicken enthusiasts! Though their motivation for getting into the chicken-caper was pretty solidly egg-based, the love ...

Feeling zesty? Wondering how we kept our diet fresh while on the road?

Not content to dine on burgers and ding-dongs, Tanja has created delicious cookies that are ready to travel and pack a nutritional punch! These cookies powered her and the team through their trip to Pixelodeon, when the cravings for road food hit. With healthy ingredients like oats, flax, organic citrus zest and the goodness of almonds, here is an energy-rich treat you can feel good about. Cranberry-Citrus Power Cookies!

Freshtopia has gone Hollywood! Well, for one weekend anyway. The Freshtopia crew went to L.A. for the festival of online media known as Pixelodeon. We connected with old friends, had one of our episodes screened, heard some great lectures and had a pixel-tastic time! Big thanks to the awesome ...

Entertaining this spring? Afternoon garden party perhaps? Today, Tanja puts together a light, refreshing cocktail that is sure to soothe both body and mind; Virgin Ginger Mojitos. They’re quick and easy to make, and contain a host of compounds that will do your body good. Make a pitcher the next ...

Welcome to our second installment of the Great Tomato Caper. This summer-long series will follow the saga of Tanja’s vision for the perfect, home-grown, heirloom variety, home-made, sun-dried tomatoes. In this episode, we’ll take a look at how our seven tomato starts are progressing, talk a bit about natural pest ...

Today, Tanja is waxing poetic on the joys of salad, smoothies, and other fresh delights. Several viewers have asked recently what we eat here at the Freshtopia studios on a daily basis, and what does an average trip to the grocery store yield. Here’s a quick and casual look into ...

BOT house, the morning after…

Barb, Oscar and Tanja are tired after a big weekend of partying. All the dip has been eaten, but there’s still flax crackers and nice raw veggies left! What’s a fresh chef to do? Make more of the most popular dip, of course! Even though she’s ...

Freshtopia.net has much to celebrate, so the BOT house is having a party! Tanja is making some appetizers, (and raw chocolate, and tarts, and a raw birthday cake… Whew)! Today’s recipe is a consummate crowd-pleaser: rich, savory pesto stuffed into tender marinated mushrooms. It’s a quick and easy crowd pleaser, ...

Our kitchen got a surprise mini-makeover featuring Ikea furnishings courtesy of the show Dream Home with the wonderful Lisa Quinn! It’s now supra-organized and has some nice new accoutrements we’re perhaps a little too stoked about….

We’ve had bees on the brain! Freshtopia.net dove into the sad tale of Colony Collapse Disorder, or “CCD,” and its grim implications, to emerge on the other side with some words of wisdom on how to show our busy little sisters some love, and a sweet recipe to cheer us ...

Despite dire warnings that they may be disappearing, bees just seem like they’re everywhere lately, from the news to our neighbor’s chimney. Freshtopia went on a field trip to learn more about the secret lives of these busy little critters.

Peter Sinton of the San Francisco Beekeepers’ Association was kind enough ...

Tired of chasing the Good Humor truck? Gotta get that ice cream monkey off your back? Here’s an ice cream with all the things we love: creaminess, beautiful flavors, and sweet surrender, without the things that don’t necessarily love us back, like dairy and white sugar!

We’re going green in a fresh way this episode! Tanja has a longstanding obsession with sun-dried heirloom tomatoes, and she’s finally taking action! Barb Finnin, Freshtopia.net’s resident Master Composter and garden guru shows us how to plant tomatoes, and dishes the dirt on soil health. Welcome to the first installment ...

Look out Blutos of the world — spinach is getting the Freshtopia treatment! After all the explosiveness of our last installment, Flaxploitation, we’re smoothing things out with a deliciously simple rendition of a party staple; spinach dip! With the bright flavor of lemon and the nutrition of dark leafy ...

Freshtopia.net is a fun and engaging place to come for news and information on food, sustainability and the environment.

A little different episode than perhaps you’ve become accustomed to from Freshtopia.net. We went to Oakland’s Lake Merritt to relax a bit, and reflect on the craziness of the last month-and-a-half.

We have many people to thank for all of the support, kindness, prayers, and patience we’ve received lately.

We hope ...

We’re back at long last with an all new show, and what a show it is!

You know carrots are great for your eyes (your mom wasn’t just saying that to make you eat ‘em), but did you know this familiar vegetable has a history even more colorful than its nutrient-packed ...

We enjoyed our conversation and worm-bin-making adventure with Freshtopia’s Barb Finnin so much that we’ve decided to give you another little taste! Barb and Ryanne discuss the radical-ness that is composting and how to avoid bringing non-compostables (darn plastic bags!) into your home.

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Barb Finnin is part of the amazing Freshtopia team. She’s a certified master composter- her specialty is Vermicomposting with worms. We were super excited to learn that we could compost in our city apartment with a homemade worm bin even though we don’t have a yard. Throwing food ...

Tanja Andrews and Oscar Grimm of Freshtopia (winners of three Vloggies) talk with PodTech’s John Furrier about how friendly the vlogging community has been to them, providing information and tips on technology, editing and filming. Tanja, who wore a head-to-toe sparkling dress, said the atmosphere was fun and funky. ...

We’re really happy to post the official list of The Vloggies winners announced on Saturday night. Many congratulations to Alive in Baghdad, which won six awards including Favorite Vlog, Favorite Group Blog, Favorite Political Vlog, and Favorite Interview Vlog. Alive in Baghdad also won the People’s Choice Award for ...