Live Peace with CONTRA-TIEMPO

CONTRA-TIEMPO, an activist Urban Latin Dance Theatre, is deeply rooted in its surrounding L.A. community providing quality performances, free community dance classes, a summer arts academy program, and summer dance intensive for teens and adults. CONTRA-TIEMPO is dedicated to transforming the world through dance as implied by its name, which means against time or against the times in Spanish. It’s many programs are committed to underserved populations and communities of color by working with local youth and schools to inspire communication through dance. In addition to its community involvement, the non-profit invokes powerful narratives that portray social and political issues through its various pieces. It has a wide ranging repertory that explores Salsa, Afro-Cuban, Contemporary urban and abstract dance theater.

To see the company in action, check out their upcoming summer performances, Big! World! Fun! Family! Series and Son of the Drum presented by Collective Events, on July 14 and July 27 at the Ford Amphitheatre. Children are admitted free and adults are $5 for the July 14th show. July 27th tickets are $12 for children and students and $20 for adults.

For more information or to contribute to the group’s efforts, visit CONTRA-TIEMPO’s website.

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out!

Guns Repurposed for Laguna Art Museum Exhibit

The Laguna Art Museum’s February/April exhibit, Victor Hugo Zayas: Mi Obra, featured sculptures built from two tons of destroyed guns. The artist partnered with the Los Angeles Police Department’s Gun Buyback Program, which strives to reduce gun violence by exchanging weapons for pre-paid Mastercard or Ralphs gift cards up to $200 depending on the weapon. Weapons are exchanged at six neutral locations. The program began in 2009 and continues to be a success collecting about 2,000 firearms this year. Zayas’s abstract and striking sculptures represent a transformation from violence to peace.

Photo taken by K.A. Gilligan.

Victor Hugo Zayas has worked to better the L.A. community in the past as founder of the Maestro’s Fine Arts program for underserved youth in 2006. The program works in partnership with Art Center College of Design to give life drawing and figure drawing lessons on scholarship. Zayas vision is that “If you can teach somebody to take an ashtray and see something beautiful, then that person’s life will change.”

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out!

Meatless Mondays: Raspberry-Chocolate Cookies

Happy Monday!

For this week, we decided to satisfy your sweet tooth and provide a healthy, vegan dessert. Although most desserts do not contain meat anyway, this dessert is different from other treats in that it is healthier and better for the environment.

Raspberry-Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup whole almonds
2. 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour
3. 1/2 cup oat flour
4. 2 teaspoons baking powder
5. 1/4 teaspoon salt
6. 1/3 cup light oil, such as safflower or canola
7. 1/3 cup maple syrup
8. 1/4 cup apple juice
9. 1 teaspoon almond extract
10. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
11. 1/3 cup chocolate chips, preferably bittersweet
12. 2 tablespoons raspberry preserves

Directions:

1. Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

2. Process almonds in a blender in 2 batches until finely ground. Transfer to a large bowl and add whole-wheat flour, oat flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk oil, maple syrup, apple juice, almond and vanilla extracts in a medium bowl.

3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; stir to combine. Use your hands to knead the dough together; add 1 to 2 tablespoons additional apple juice if the mixture is too crumbly.

4. Form level tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and place on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Gently flatten each ball into a disk, then make an indentation in the center using your thumb or a small spoon. Place a few chocolate chips in each indentation, then cover with 1/4 teaspoon preserves.

5. Bake the cookies, one batch at a time, until golden around the edges, 15 to 17 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 24 cookies.

Recipe originally posted on Care2.

Good Happens.

Peace Grl Out!