Stunning Time-Lapse Photography of Yosemite

An amazing time-lapse photography video of Yosemite National Park is bringing international attention for photographer Shawn Reeder of Bishop, California.

The two-year project, Yosemite Range of Light, uses nearly 7,000 high-resolution still photos to create an inspiring vision of light and granite, capturing rolling cloud formations and the rainbow-lit waterfalls of Yosemite.

Reeder first came to Yosemite after winning a local waiter contest where he grew up in Maryland. First prize was a trip to Napa Valley wine-country, but the 18-year-old convinced the prize committee to offer a change of venue. Choosing Yosemite as his destination instead, he brought along his best friend, who happened to have a camera. . . .

Recipe: The Perfect (Kitchen Sink) Salad

Looking for a way to use all the veggies in your CSA box? Our friends at EcoSalon shared this recipe for a hearty, versatile salad.

Some call this the kitchen sink salad; I call it the perfect salad. It is fail proof and fails to bore, even if you have it every day! Packed with nutrition and flavor and with enough substance to keep you full for hours, this recipe is a great way to get the most from produce rounding its last leg in the fridge.

You could virtually use anything on hand, as long as you satisfy each of the four elements — vegetable, green, grain/legume, and fat. I added grated beets, carrots, and zucchini as the vegetable, chopped kale as the green, cooked lentils as the legume, and avocado and an olive oil vinaigrette as the fat. Regardless of the nature of the components you choose, the result is the same: a colorful salad with a bite!

I tend to use lentils in my version of the kitchen sink salad for a reason. They’re not only made up of energy boosting carbs, but also are full of protein, which is especially important when salads are a daily diet mainstay.

Lentils are an excellent source of soluble and insoluble fiber and effective in helping to prevent digestive and cardiovascular disorders. They also contribute to lowering cholesterol and maintaining blood sugar levels. Low on the glycemic index, lentils release their sugars slowly, keeping you fuller and more balanced for longer.

Kitchen Sink Salad

Serves 1-2

Heirloom Boom

"It all started with two seeds handed down to me — Grandpa Ott's morning glory and the German pink tomato," remembers Diane Ott Whealy, who cofounded Seed Savers Exchange in 1975 as a way for a few passionate "mailbox friends" to swap seeds. 

Seed Savers has since blossomed into a 13,000-member nonprofit whose mission is to preserve and spread heirloom (nonhybrid, that is) vegetables, fruits, herbs, and flowers by exchanging and selling seeds.

Hybrids were all but commercially nonexistent until the 1930s, when companies started selling seeds that produced fruits and vegetables identical in color, form, and taste. The result was bland but good-looking produce. 

At Seed Savers' 890-acre Heritage Farm in Decorah, Iowa, experts tend to one of America's largest heirloom-seed collections, with more than 600 varieties for sale. The colorful selection includes the Chioggia beet, with its tie-dye-reminiscent red-and-white-ringed flesh, and the dragon carrot, imbued with a deep purple.

"These days, everyone talks about heirlooms because of their taste and variety," Ott Whealy says. "But the real story is about preserving our heritage for future generations." 

--Cynthia Elyce Rubin; photo: iStock/Redmal

Read more: 7 Quirky, Easy-to-Grow Fruit and Vegetables

Note: This article has been corrected. Seed Savers Exchange is located in Decorah, Iowa, not Pederson, Iowa.

Wild Green Recipes: Purslane Salad

Urban foraging was once the realm of hard-core locavores. Not anymore. Some farmers' markets now offer wild greens (a.k.a. edible weeds) and foraging groups abound. If you plan to forage for your wild greens, make sure you're picking what you think you're picking, as many edible weeds have toxic look-alikes.

This week, we'll show you how to prepare your wild greens.

Recipe #4: Purslane Salad

Here's yet another cousin of spinach, only more nutritious. Purslane is a succulent plant with a lemony flavor and more omega-3 fatty acids than any other plant. Add sardines for an extra dose of omega-3s!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 cups purslane

2 cups spinach

1/2 cup snow peas, sliced

1/2 cup cucumber, sliced into half-moons

2 scallions, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 cup Champagne vinaigrette 

Ask Mr. Green: What's the Deal with Campfires?

Hey Mr. Green,

I’ve been a long-time lover of the campfire tradition, but discovered that even the cleanest burning wood fire releases toxic material into the air. So the good ol’ summer campfire may be just as hazardous to the lungs as breathing secondhand cigarette smoke, and for those downwind who already have asthma, chemical sensitivities, COPD, or are cancer survivors, this is a recipe for misery. —Linda in Edmonton, Alberta

I too love a roaring campfire. Being creatures that play with fire and that take great comfort in crackling flames and smoky flavors, we could contend that we’re hard-wired for campfires and that they’re conducive to mental health and social harmony. But then we might be hard-wired for all sorts of mayhem, so this is a fairly lame defense of fires.

Travel Light

Jetting around the globe bloats your carbon footprint. Here are some items that help shrink that load.

To spot your bags on the carousel — and to make sure they find their way home if lost — tie MOTHERBOARD GIFTS' Circuit Board Luggage Tags onto your packs. They consist of cast-off computer parts and come in catch-your-eye colors. $20 for a set of three

The GREEN EARTH GUIDES lead you to public transportation, eco-minded businesses, and organic, vegan cuisine. Currently, the books cover France, Spain, Switzerland, Venice, and Vermont, with England and Ireland on the way. $3 to $16

Or you can eschew tips printed on dead trees by downloading all you’ll need onto your iPhone or Android: The TRIPSKETCH GREEN TRAVELER app, which donates 20% of its proceeds to environmental causes, recommends sustainable hotels, walking and paddling tours, “voluntourism” opportunities, outdoor parks, and farmers’ markets. Two other apps to know about are KAYAK’s, which filters car-rental options by gas mileage and whether they’re hybrid, and GETAROUND, a vehicle-sharing service.

Wild Green Recipes: Lambsquarter Crostini

Urban foraging was once the realm of hard-core locavores. Not anymore. Some farmers' markets now offer wild greens (a.k.a. edible weeds) and foraging groups abound. If you plan to forage for your wild greens, make sure you're picking what you think you're picking, as many edible weeds have toxic look-alikes.

This week, we'll show you how to prepare your wild greens.

Recipe #3: Lambsquarter Crostini

Lambsquarter is also called "wild spinach," though it has an earthier flavor to it and way more nutrients than its domesticated cousin. Try serving this appetizer with Basil-Mint Iced Tea.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 cups lambsquarter leaves

2-3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

Salt to taste

1 whole head of garlic

1 loaf French bread, sliced into ½ inch slices

1 oz block of Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Wild Green Recipes: Stinging Nettle Pizza

Urban foraging was once the realm of hard-core locavores. Not anymore. Some farmers' markets now offer wild greens (a.k.a. edible weeds) and foraging groups abound. If you plan to forage for your wild greens, make sure you're picking what you think you're picking, as many edible weeds have toxic look-alikes.

This week, we'll show you how to prepare your wild greens.

Recipe #2: Stinging Nettle Pizza

The leaves of this plant are the bane of every hiker. You'll definitely want to wear rubber gloves while picking and cleaning them. It's well worth it though; in addition to being packed with iron and vitamin C, there's some evidence that there may be medical uses for stinging nettle. Try pairing this pizza with an eco-friendly beer.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

A large bunch of stinging nettles

1 head garlic, roasted

½ cup wild mushrooms, cleaned and dried

1 cup grated mozzarella, fontina, or gouda (we suggest one of these sustainable cheeses)

½ lb refrigerated pizza dough.

Directions:

Natalie Coughlin, Gold-Medal . . . Farmer?

Swimmer Natalie Coughlin, 29, was the most decorated female athlete at both the 2004 Athens and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In Beijing, she became the first U.S. woman to medal six times during a single Games, giving her a lifetime total of 11. [Update: Coughlin's medal total is now 12.] She hopes to add to that number this summer at the 30th Olympiad in London.

Besides swimming, Coughlin's passions include food, gardening, and the five chickens she keeps in her backyard in Lafayette, California.

Avital Andrews from Sierra magazine interviewed Natalie to find out more about her gold-medal habits.

SIERRA: What do you mean when you call yourself an "urban farmer"?

Natalie: I grow a lot of my own food and have replaced a lot of our landscaping with edibles. We have 10 citrus trees, seven seasonal vegetable beds, and five chickens for eggs. We're considering honeybees next. For a while we were thinking about goats but realized that would have been ridiculous and too much to handle between our two dogs and five chickens and my travel schedule.

SIERRA: When will you decide about the bees?

Natalie: I’ll probably wait until after the Olympics and then dive into that project. Right now we have several mason bee houses, to give them a refuge and encourage them to come pollinate all our fruits and vegetables. I definitely notice a difference this summer, versus the previous summer — a lot more of our flowers are turning into fruit.

SIERRA: How did you pick up gardening as a hobby?  

Natalie: When I was a kid, I had a 90-year-old neighbor — she could stick anything in the ground and it would grow and flourish. We'd always play in her garden. I still have the colander that she used to make potpourri from her roses. A lot of people in my life have had backyard gardens so when I was looking to buy a home, that was one of the requirements. I think it was just a desire to learn more about the seasons and about where food comes from.

Wild Green Recipes: Dandelion Currant Pasta

Urban foraging was once the realm of hard-core locavores. Not anymore. Some farmers' markets now offer wild greens (a.k.a. edible weeds) and foraging groups abound. If you plan to forage for your wild greens, make sure you're picking what you think you're picking, as many edible weeds have toxic look-alikes.

This week, we'll show you how to prepare your wild greens.

Recipe #1: Dandelion Currant Pasta

Dandelions are everywhere, and they're notoriously difficult to eradicate. Instead of fighting them, harvest the the greens while they're young (they get bitter once they flower) and cook them up in this nutritious pasta dish! Up the green (and tasty) factor of your meal by pairing it with one of these eco-friendly wines.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

6 oz thick pasta (linguine and farfalle both work well)

4 tbsp olive oil

As much garlic as you can stand (at least 1 clove per person)

¼ cup currants

¼ cup pine nuts

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 cups cleaned young dandelions leaves

Directions: