Say Cheese....

This is NOT the bright orange cheese powder experience we can all probably relate to from our childhood. This is the real thing! A fabulous Alton Brown recipe that can be as mild or complex as you like.

Who doesn't enjoy a heaping serving of steamy macaroni and cheese? This is a photo of my first crack at it; it was delicious. Try it; you'll like it!!

Treasure chest....

This NY Times article The 11 Best Foods You Aren't Eating was republished recently. It first appeared in the Times last summer.

I'm taking a poll. I'm curious to learn how many of you out there have two or more items on this list in your pantry or fridge today? Now, be honest.

I only have three, possibly five if you substitute the juice for the actual prune and the kraut for the cabbage. Yeah, I know...TMI.

I currently have sardines, cinnamon, and frozen blueberries in stock. I do eat beets and cabbage occasionally and love them both. I also enjoy pumpkin and pumpkin seeds so I'll be eating more of those and, of course, pomegranate juice is sooo delicious.

Anyway, the list is worth sharing if you haven't already seen it.

In the soup....again

It's been snowing here pretty steadily for the past two days...it is quite beautiful outside despite what most Ohioans would tell you. It seems like a great day for a nice, hot bowl of comfort and joy, something that will make my heart purr on a cold day like today.

Foraging through my cupboard and refrigerator, I've begun exploring what I might find that would satisfy my desire. Lurking in the back of my cupboard is a jar of red lentils; that's a find! Sitting right up front, as if to say, "pick me, pick me", is a bag of dried chick peas, oh, and there's some rice, too. In the refrigerator, I found some vegetable stock, fresh kale, and a chunk of parmesan cheese; I'm pretty sure I can concoct something from this array of choices.

It wasn't all that long ago that my idea of a bowl of soup was something out of a can. I will, on occassion, resort to that alternative depending on time of day, ingredients on hand, etc., but there is no substitute for a pot of home-made soup. Depending on the type, some soups taste even better after they've been made and refrigerated for a day or two because all the flavors have had a chance to marry and, well, you know...

I'll even go as far as to say there's no substitute for a pot of hearty, home-made soup partnered with some fresh bread or biscuits. So today, I'll pursue both while I continue to watch the snow falling outside from the warmth of my little slice of paradise. I can't think of a better way to spend a wintery Saturday!



Red Lentil Soup

What's cookin'?

OK so I can be somewhat intense about the topic of clean food, as some of my friends can attest to, and the fact that much of our current food system is broken. Friends have been victim to my pontificating on the topic and many have been the recipients of articles in my attempt to wake them up to what goes into some of the items they put on their family’s tables. As good friends would do, they thank me for sharing and caring, but I sometimes wonder what, if anything, they do with the information after they’ve (hopefully) read it.

Being true to form, here I go again.....on any given day, and not just once, but lately it seems like ten or more times per day, I happen to come across pieces whether published in the press or on the internet, or broadcast on radio and TV, about food and its relationship to the healthcare crisis, energy crisis, climate change, spirituality, and on and on. It seems like all of a sudden it’s coming at me from so many directions. I have to admit, I’m glad it is. It’s about time!

This morning I re-read one of the most recent pieces: Michael Pollan's article published in the October 12th Sunday NY Times Magazine entitled Farmer In Chief . I won’t even begin to comment on the article, but only say that if you haven’t already seen it, it is worth your time to read it, including the feedback comments from readers. It appears that Pollan is becoming a leader in the world of food activism and while I applaud his article, which is both a wake-up call of sorts and a proposal to the next Commander in Chief on ways to address many of the challenges related to the current food system in the US, I can’t help but ask myself how you can possibly convince so many people who are a product of the current US food culture to change the way they’ve been accustomed to eating for so many years.

Yes, I agree that much of what is sold for food today is not even worthy of being called junk food. But I wonder, if not for the fast food chains and processed convenience foods, how many people today would actually know how to cook whole foods? I wonder if they’d survive the challenge.

On two recent trips to the supermarket, I was asked by the check out person (two different people) what the green leafy thing they were trying to scan was because they couldn’t identify it. I can’t remember if the items were parsley or a lettuce of some sort. No kidding…I had to laugh. Unless it’s a carrot or banana, it appears that some of our most basic foods are completely unfamiliar in their natural state. Now try to imagine those same people cooking dinner every night. Sorry if that sounds harsh and judgmental, it’s not meant to be. I’m simply trying to illustrate how far removed we have become with the primary resource we rely on to keep ourselves alive and healthy.

Food is revered in so many other cultures around the world. Cooking and eating can be, and in some places is, equated with spiritual practice. So why do so many people in the US look at food preparation as a chore--something to be abbreviated or avoided if at all possible? How does a culture that has relied on having so much of what is considered a fundamental practice in life handed to them in the form of convenience foods become once again self-sufficient in this practice?

One of the best ways to continue to help shift the tide is by educating children now. This isn’t a novel concept, as there are many initiatives underway like the Edible Schoolyard pioneered by Alice Waters. Here’s another example: there’s a wonderful organization called The Chef’s Garden in Huron, Ohio. The Chef’s Garden is home to the Culinary Vegetable Institute and to Veggie U!, a non-profit established to bring food education into the 4th grade classroom. The kids get to meet the farmers, plant the seed packets provided to them by Veggie U volunteers, ultimately harvest, learn to cook under the instruction of some very well known chefs, and enjoy eating the food they’ve grown. It’s a wonderful concept and organization that teaches kids about food choices and the ritual of food preparation.

You know, growing up in the same house with my grandparents, Sunday meal preparation sometimes took all morning and time spent at the table eating, sharing, and participating could last up to three hours depending upon who was seated around the table. Of course as a kid, I did not appreciate or fully comprehend the specialness of this type of event and the lessons it was imparting to me. Today, as an adult, I do.

Lately I’ve noticed that I’m in the zone no more than when I’m cooking. I’m completely focused, creative, and relaxed. There is something very fulfilling about transforming some very basic ingredients into a loaf of bread, a pie, or a simple meal. On the occasions that I am able to share my food with others, I end up with an even greater feeling of satisfaction and contentment. Food provides so much more than nutrition for the body; it feeds the soul. It brings us all closer together beginning with the interdependence between the land and animals that go into making up our food sources to the people with whom we choose to share our bounty. The practice of food preparation is noble and one of life’s most simple pleasures….that’s what cooking is!

Cottura felice!

Food Declaration - Slow Food USA

In principle, I certainly support this Food Declaration and I’d like to thank those at Slow Food Nation USA who took the initiative to create it. I look forward to seeing the refined document once the draft is finalized.

In this context, however, I do not agree that it is the government’s responsibility to ensure or protect our resources, human, agricultural, or otherwise. In fact, government involvement through the form of subsidies is part of the reason our food system is in the shape it is today. These subsidies certainly have contributed to the evolution of monoculture farming and to the degradation of the quality of our food supply. It is up to us as individuals to seek out and demand the type of food that we expect to consume.

I strongly agree that as a society, we can do better in terms of how our food is raised. Of course, this starts by raising awareness. I am a proponent of identifying ALL of the ingredients on the food’s label, including the not so savory ingredients utilized to enhance and encourage growth -- particularly when it comes to our meat sources.

As we are also learning though, it is also not enough to say, “eat organic”, since to many people, organic implies locally grown or small family farm, which is not necessarily the case. An increasing percentage of organic growers are owned by the same corporations that have contributed to the creation of the very food system we are striving to change.

Simply put, each one of us has to take the initiative and responsibility for our well-being and not expect or imagine that our government, or any other organization, will do it for us, or that they are even adept enough to do it.

Life is more much satisfying when we are engaged in it and understand how our choices affect us.

Get out there and learn!