Vegan Smoothies: Frappuccino

Seasonal fruit practically pours out of each grocery store and farmers' market. Temperatures teeter between pleasantly warm and hideously oppressive. It's summer and there's no better time to embrace smoothies as cooling, nourishing snacks or even as meals. Blend yourself up some vitamins, minerals, and much-needed glucose with these recipes. Feel free to add chlorella, spirulina, or vegan protein powder as desired.

Recipe #2: Date "Frappuccino"

People often say that fruit is nature's candy. Medjool dates are so caramel-y and chewy that you have to wonder how such a sinful taste grew directly from a tree. Blending soaked dates causes them to become creamy and frothy. You'll think you really are ordering from Starbucks! See if you can find a local grower of these sweet morsels, especially if you live in California.

Ingredients:

Vegan Smoothies: Tropical Twist

Seasonal fruit practically pours out of each grocery store and farmers' market. Temperatures teeter between pleasantly warm and hideously oppressive. It's summer and there's no better time to embrace smoothies as cooling, nourishing snacks or even as meals. Blend yourself up some vitamins, minerals, and much-needed glucose with these recipes. Feel free to add chlorella, spirulina, or vegan protein powder as desired.

Recipe #1: Tropical Twist

Buying juicy, tangy stone fruit is a great way to support your local farmers' market. Yellow, white and pink varieties of peaches, nectarines, and even pluots abound. We don't even know which kind to try first!

Ingredients:

• 4 peaches (or nectarines)
• 1 papaya
• 1 cup coconut water

Directions:

Recycled Bomb Shards Become Olympic Bangles

Want to celebrate the Olympics in style? Our friends at EcoSalon spotted these unique bangles.

The start of the 2012 London Olympics will be celebrated with a lavish opening ceremony on Friday. Whether or not you’ll be following along on the television, you can show your Olympic pride by wearing these limited-edition Peacebomb bangles from Article22.

Created in honor of the unity and spirit of Olympic competition, the bangles are inspired by the Olympic rings, which were designed in 1912 and debuted at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics and represent the five continents involved in the games. Like all pieces in Article22′s Peacebomb collection, each bracelet is made in Laos, entirely out of melted bomb shards. The bangles are hand cast by artisans who collect scrap metal from the 250-260 million bombs that were dropped over the Laos countryside during the Vietnam War and wrapped with nylon (colors) or leather cord (black).

For each Peacebomb product sold, Project Peacebomb donates funds equivalent to the cost of clearing 1 to 15 square meters of land in Laos from unexploded bombs. In true Olympic spirit, you are also helping people in war-torn areas of the world earn a living wage.

Be Cool: Plant Trees

It doesn't take a meteorologist to know that it's hot out there! This week, we'll share tips to help you beat those triple digit temperatures without warming up the planet any further.

Tip #4: Plant Trees

As a long-term solution to an over-heated house, plant trees to create shade. You are also creating a carbon sink at the same time. These trees can also serve as a windbreak in the winter. If you cannot plant trees where you live, escape the heat of your house by spending some time in your local park to take advantage of trees there. Take part in a local tree-planting event to offset some of the carbon emissions from cooling your house.

Can Urban Trees Fight Crime?

Redwood City (left side) has significantly less tree cover than its comparatively wealthier neighbor, Menlo Park (center right).

Is the oak tree outside your home the next Superman? New research suggests that it may be more protective than it appears. Geoffrey Donovan conducted a study in Portland, Oregon, which showed a negative correlation between tree size and crime rates. The larger the crown area of trees, the lower the crime rates.

Well-established trees may deter potential burglars by creating the impression that an area is well cared for, and subject to effective authority. Donovan's study controlled for a number of factors, including the ethnic makeup of the neighborhoods and the value of homes. However, Donovan also admits that areas with larger trees were probably historically well maintained, which resulted in lower crime rates. 

This makes sense, as there is also a strong correlation between tree cover and income level. According to a study on the demand for urban forests, for every 1 percent increase in per capita income, there was a 1.76 percent increase in demand for forest cover. When income dropped by the same amount, demand for forest cover dropped by 1.26 percent. You can see this inequality from space (or Google maps). 

Be Cool: Summerize Your Clothing!

It doesn't take a meteorologist to know that it's hot out there! This week, we'll share tips to help you beat those triple digit temperatures without warming up the planet any further.

Tip #3: Summerize Your Clothing

Light-colored, loose clothing has long been touted as the best way to stay comfortable during the summer. But before you rush out to buy new clothes to compliment the rising temperatures, check if there's anything already in your closet that you can modify. Baggy old T-shirts can be refashioned into loose tank tops and jeans can be turned into shorts. Instructables.com has great sewing-free tutorials for both. If you're not willing to cut up your clothes, simply cuff your pants for instant capris. You can also cuff newly cut shorts for a neater look. Thrift stores are another great source for summer clothing and basics to refashion.

Be Cool: How to Survive without A/C

It doesn't take a meteorologist to know that it's hot out there! This week, we'll share tips to help you beat those triple digit temperatures without warming up the planet any further.

Tip #2: Open Your Windows

Save some money by turning off the A/C and get a cross breeze going instead. Open up at least two windows (or even a door) on opposite sides of the house, which will increase the airflow.

To maximize the cooling power of your cross breeze, pull down your window shades on any windows that receive direct sunlight. Light-colored shades will reflect light, keeping your home cooler.

Be Cool: Make the World's Easiest Solar Oven

It doesn't take a meteorologist to know that it's hot out there! This week, we'll share tips to help you beat those triple digit temperatures without warming up the planet any further.

Tip #1: Turn off the Stove

The last thing you want to do when it's hot out is stand over a hot stove. Keep your home cooler and your energy bill lower by taking advantage of those extra sun rays with. . . your car? (You know, the one that just sits in your driveway because you cycle to work now.) Check out the video below to learn how to turn your fossil-fuel hungry car into a solar oven.

A healthier alternative to car-baked cookies would be fruit leather. Yes, that's right — you can turn your car into a dehydrator! You can use this technique with other foods, such as vegetarian lasagna or a whole saucepan of soup, as well. It takes a bit longer to heat food up using solar power than a regular oven or microwave. However, your patience will be rewarded with tasty, fossil fuel-free food! If you don't want your car to smell like soup, check out this version of a solar oven made with a pizza box.

Recipe: Cold Brew Coffee

Addicted to coffee? Our friends at EcoSalon have you covered. 

For coffee lovers, cold brew is summer’s nectar. You can of course buy cold brew systems, or end up with an expensive coffee shop addiction, but really all you need for delicious cold brew is a good coffee roast and a French press.

The key is letting the coffee steep over night, that way you don’t really have to think about it. Grind some beans when you get home from work, and by morning you’ll have fuel for a hot day.

Ingredients

• Coffee + water
• Ratios of coffee to water vary, and you can tweak according to how strong you want it. For a 32 ounce French press (4 cups) I use about 3/4 cup coffee beans, so a little less than a 1 to 4 ratio.

Directions

Pick Your Weeds and Find Love!

Wish you had time to date but are always too busy in the garden? Tired of people looking at you funny when you bring up organic farming methods over drinks? Can't seem to find anyone to share your undying passion for weeding? 

You're not alone. Now, thanks to a very creative farm in Idaho, farm-loving singles can meet up for some good old-fashioned speed — we mean, weed dating. The concept is like speed dating, only instead of playing musical chairs in a bar, romance-seeking singles are picking weeds side-by-side in hopes of hitting it off with their fellow farmhands. 

The matchmaking farm in Boise, called Earthly Delights Farm, hosts its "weed dating" event once a year in hopes of bringing at least a few garden-loving folks together — and as a bonus, they get a freshly weeded farm. On their Facebook page, the farm requested that participants BYOT (bring your own tool!) for weeding during this year's courtshipping event at the end of June. 

It's not a bad idea, really, meeting your potential future Mrs./Mr. while reaching for a weed in between two rows of almost-ripe zucchini. You both reach for the same dandelion, hands touch, flushed smiles. . . and a budding romance begins among freshly blossoming zucchini flowers. . . . Sure beats the awkward "we met on an online dating site" story. 

READ MORE: 

Green Date Ideas

Green Online Dating Sites 

Veggie Dating Site filled with Carnivores

--image by Istockphoto/vaeenma

--Allison Montroy is an editorial intern for Sierra and a journalism student at California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo.