Hey! Wasn’t it July about five minutes ago? Did you blink in the middle of September only to find that the leaves had changed? Hold on to your hat because sooner than later you’ll be needing mittens and a scarf to go with it. That said, it should come as no surprise that the holidays are right around the corner. Just because time flies, however, doesn’t mean that you need to neglect important things like eating healthy.
Here are a few things about eating healthy that you might not be aware of. Healthy food doesn’t have to taste like cardboard and preparing it doesn’t have to take hours.
Owner Sue Cadwell says, “Currently, Health in a Hurry is organic vegetarian cuisine to go.” Cadwell uses the qualifier to indicate that in the not-too-distant future, patrons will be able to sit down and enjoy a meal. For the time being, however, Health in a Hurry is a healthy alternative to less-than-healthy golden arches and the like. “There’s a glut of over processed, high-calorie, high-fat food available quickly,” she explained, and added. “I also conceived it for my own selfish reasons. I used to be on the road with my previous job and I would have such a hard time finding healthy food.”
After preparing meals for private clients for a number of years, Cadwell decided to take things to the next level. “I wanted more of a formal education, so I went to the
Health in a Hurry is more than a thriving little business. There’s a sense of community, a sense of family that is striking. Everyone is greeted with a warm welcome when they walk through the door. More often than not, Cadwell steps out from the kitchen to greet first-timers herself and to walk them through the menu. Even when the shop is bustling, the atmosphere remains cheerful and welcoming.
Warm and friendly, however, doesn’t mean that Health in a Hurry isn’t a serious business. Cadwell is passionate when it comes to food. “I believe in decentralization of our food system. That’s really my premise of food. Right now food is being flown all over the planet. Vegetables come from South America and even right now so many of my vegetables come from
“What’s disturbing to me,” she continued, “is the largeness of everything. I feel like it’s a flaw in the system that everything has to keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger. [That flaw] shows up everywhere—in recalls on cars, in computers catching on fire…” Cadwell went on to any operation that grows to a certain capacity has to realize that is it grows so does the opportunity for human error. “When everything’s so big, how do you have any systems in place that really prevent all that?” she asked. “Even though that’s an aside, that’s really one of the motivating factors for us to be really proud of the fact that we grow our own food—and without pesticides and chemicals.”
That’s right, beginning this past growing season, Health in a Hurry began growing their own vegetables. “We have an affiliation with Sticks and Stones Farm in
“It was a big undertaking, needless to say,” Cadwell said, looking back, “But the idea is that we are responsible for growing, we are responsible for cooking and we have a connection to the farm and the crops we grow.” Some of that connection manifested itself in the community support that both launched and ended this past growing season. “We blessed the land at the Spring Equinox,” Cadwell explained, “The fact that people came out on a freezing cold day with their children to stand on our dirt and honor the first step in this process mean a lot to us.” Similarly, Healthy in Hurry and friends held another ceremony to mark the end of the season.
So what kind of healthy and delicious fare does one find at Health in a Hurry? Although the shop’s menu changes seasonally—three times a year—there are a few core items that have a permanent spot in the mix. “We do a stuffed mushroom with a tofu walnut pâté, five-grain croquettes and healthy burgers.” In summer, the menu features fresh healthy salads—this past summer, for instance, one delicious summer salad was made from green beans, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers that were all grown at Sticks and Stones. Now that the menu is completing its transition to the next season, there are more cooler weather delights to be enjoyed, like a salad with roasted beets, arugula and shallots as well as dishes with root vegetables and winter squashes. Just as ingredients change with the seasons, so do Cadwell’s cooking techniques. “I try not to do a lot of roasting when it’s 100 degrees outside, but now that it’s cooler we offer a roasted veggie wrap—onions, red peppers, yams, parsnips, carrots and fennel.”
Other offerings that are popular on the Health in a Hurry menu include the beet marmalade wrap—beet marmalade with a hint of cayenne and orange zest, maple syrup with arugula and goat cheese—and the hijiki vegetable wrap—hijiki (a sea vegetable), green and red cabbage, daikon and scallion with a sweet and sour dressing. Hot dishes for lunch will be added new this year to Health in Hurry’s seasonal menu.
If you’re mouth is watering and you’re thinking that you might like to serve some of this delicious, nutritious fare at home or at your next function, you’re in luck, because Health in a Hurry also has a terrific catering menu. “We’re catching on for catering,” Cadwell said. “I think, simply because we’re distinct. First of all for people who strictly want to serve vegetarian in their home, we’re one of the few options. But also, some people complement our food with more mainstream dishes, with meat…
“We also do a lot of brunches. The catering menu has nice, party-sized muffins, little mini quiches and we make a serious granola that has a big following.” In fact, Cadwell said, there are folks who visit the shop just for their homemade granola. In terms of catering, however, Health in a Hurry is versatile and can do everything from a yummy brunch to a wonderful wedding to an intimate dinner party. “We can do a lot of different things,” explained Cadwell, including arranging their offerings on your own platters and putting party hosts in touch with servers. Just give them a good week’s notice and Health in a Hurry can make your next function healthy and delectable.
Thanksgiving is right around the bend, so if you’re in the market for tasty holiday fare, Cadwell has designed a special Thanksgiving menu. “This is our third year doing that and it’s been a lot of fun.” Menu items include brandied yams, dairy-free butternut squash soup and homemade cranberry sauce sweetened with brown rice syrup. “I don’t use any processed sugars,” she said. “There are so many masked sugars out there. People think they’re doing themselves a favor, but can sugar is just another processed sugar, so it’s really not a high-quality product. So I sweeten with brown rice syrup, honey, maple syrup, molasses…and of course, apple juice and apple sauce.”
“Health supportive cuisine has been my focus for over a decade,” stated Cadwell. “Right now it’s a very groovy concept, but ten years ago I was kind of freak,” she said with a laugh. “But one thing I really want to get across to people is that you don’t have to be a vegetarian to eat vegetarian. People think it’s like a lifestyle or a religion and that if they eat something vegetarian that they can never go near a burger again.” For Cadwell, organic gourmet vegetarian cuisine is what she likes to cook. “Where else can you get a gold beet salad with daikon and green beans that are grown in
Health in a Hurry is located at