My Food Revolution

Miss Me? Confessions of a Lapsed and Lazy Blogger

2011-07-07T21:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't been around for a while ... been mulling over the pros and cons of blogging and trying to figure out the aim of my site. After all, the Food Revolution is a pretty big topic and a pretty big deal -- how to do it justice? In truth, I have spent a lot of time the last few months debating the merits of social media in general. One day I feel compelled to join Facebook so that I can be part of the mass ego-sharing, the next day I imagine online conspiracies aimed at secretly documenting my every move and comment. In any case, I have spent some serious thought time on the subject of blogging, mostly in lieu of actually writing about it.

Patio Farm at this moment both thrives and languishes. The tomatoes are busy and gangly and strangely heavy for their feathery appearance. The bean leaves bravely diminish into papery sheets, the cucumbers yellow at the edges and, the peppers betray that clearly someone has been taking precise half-moon bites from them on the sly. There have been seasons worth of concerns and thrills as the first year of Patio Farm evolved. Triumphs of the carrot harvest. Giggles at the two tiny turnips I grew, crooked and narrow and looking nothing like a turnip. Wonder watching the process of blooming my immigrant poppies, so delicate and ephemeral but vital in the far corner of my garden. Each event has seemed so normal each day, unremarkable and at the same time the most exciting thing in my sphere of experience. What seemed so mundane a few months ago now I remember as being the crux of a season or lifespan of some plant friend or another. And yet I have actively avoided writing about any of it for fear that it may not be worth recording. Or that I may not be worthy of recording it.

Part of my reluctance has been in view of the anniversary of My Food Revolution. About a year ago I made a drastic break from my normal life and decided to explore the possibilities of pursuing my heart-felt passion for food and letting some of my previous expectations about career and achievement fall to the wayside for a while. A year later I revisit my priorities and reevaluate both my mission and also my desire to write about it. Why revolt? Why write? Why share? Why not?

I don’t know. But I am still compelled to document my adventures in Patio Farming somehow, if only as a personal record of my seasonal activities and their failures and successes. To that end I am trying something new at http://www.patiofarmer.tumblr.com/, for any who care to chart the course of my experiment in urban farming. I plan to continue My Food Revolution as well, but not sure yet the form or direction that it will take. Of course this will continue to be the repository of my list of food books and food movies. After all, my research and learning still runs strong and I am daily amassing evidence about the power of vegetables.

My heart still lies firmly in the heart of the Food Revolution. Viva comida! Viva la revolucion!

Garden Stories

2011-03-31T21:40:00.000-07:00

Blake was confident that he would close this deal today. With a little charm and a briefcase full of earnest money, soon this useless farmland would be transformed into the biggest MegaFood franchise yet. And he stood to make a tidy profit on the deal…so it was clearly win-win all around.

Garden Stories

2011-03-30T10:06:00.000-07:00

Hugh was pleasantly surprised at how quickly he had adapted to the change from builder to farmer – but then, so many of the tools and skills were the same. The Great Recession had done him an unexpected favor and he was glad to be nurturing the soil now instead of paving over it.

Garden Stories Exhibit

2011-03-29T14:42:00.000-07:00

Worms!

2011-03-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

I spent some enjoyable time digging up worms in my garden and relocating them to pots with old roots & leaves. My strategy is to keep on distributing worms throughout Patio Farm and also to continue to dump coffee grounds and bury leaves and scraps. Already my soil is fluffier than when I started. These little guys are just awesome, so wiggly and so helpful.

Carrot Harvest

2011-03-13T21:58:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about growing food is harvesting ... especially the excitement and satisfaction of pulling something out of the ground. I planted carrots in a few pots in September, and have been lovingly watering them and waiting impatiently for the carrots to grow large.

With low light and cooler weather, it has taken a good 6 months for that to happen. Six months! I find it amazing that it can take 6 months to grow a carrot, but that you can buy them at the store for less than a dollar a pound. My appreciation for the energy and effort that it takes food to grow was enhanced by my waiting and watching over these guys all fall and winter.

So, finally the big day arrived and Ryan and I took turns pulling out carrots until we had the full haul -- one 12" terracotta pot full of carrots. Sweet, crispy and each with its own personality and adorable shape. Lucky me! The next step is to make tajine, one of my favorite carrot recipes...

Garden Stories

2011-02-27T16:22:00.000-08:00

Wendell had sworn up and down that he would always defend his rights to tend his land and to grow his own food as he saw fit as a small American farmer. But he never anticipated this would mean fending off the GMO-fueled caterpillars that showed up this Spring, ravenous after devouring the monoculture crops at the neighboring mega-farm.

Refrigerator

2011-02-25T15:13:00.000-08:00

The refrigerator can offer an illicit glimpse into the culinary recesses of one's psyche. Everyone has one, and it is often an area that feels more private than public, despite being centered in the home and accessible to all. One of the first things that I do when going to a friend's house is check their fridge. I am drawn to it out of curiosity, sometimes hunger, and a sense of intimacy. After all, only a close friend would be bold enough to casually survey the fridge, poking through drawers in search of a snack. A good friend of mine, one who has frequent access to my refrigerator, recently made a comment about my refrigerator organizational strategy that got me thinking about just how much this ubiquitous appliance says about each of us...

What is your relationship to food? To cooking? Are you organized? Do you tend to horde things for fear of wasting them? How high is your tolerance for clutter? Are you adventurous? A creature of habit? How much time do you spend at home? So many things that a refrigerator can reveal ... let's see what mine has to say!

To start with, the outside of the fridge says a lot. Mine is an old one that came with the house, still works but probably not the most energy efficient model. While I cannot afford to buy a new one (my motto regarding appliances is "it only gets replaced if it breaks"), I often dream of a slimline Energy-Star model with side-by-side doors and freezer below. Alas, this one has served me well and will continue to do so, I hope.

I have been collecting refrigerator magnets for more than 15 years now, and the best are proudly displayed in my kitchen, front and center. They are my antidote to compulsive souvenir buying on trips, and I have managed to accumulate about 30 states and 10 different countries --- some contributed by travelling friends and acquaintances. The newest one always goes in the center of the freezer door -- the place of honor. Along with my magnets, I also have the current schedule for YMCA exercise classes (working off the proverbial last 10 pounds -- forever!), drawings by our young friends, and the running grocery list. This last item is of particular importance ... we just started keeping the grocery list on the fridge recently and I have found that it is a brilliant strategy. Any time that I realize we will need something at the store I write it down right away. That way, all of our shopping gets done once a week, and we are hardly ever without a key ingredient. After all, preparedness is essential to improvisational cooking.

Next we take a look at the inside. This is the heart and soul, the center of the fridge. Have you ever visited a friend or relative and looked in their fridge to only find Diet Coke and a stick of butter and last week's take out and wondered how they survive? Well, my fridge is nothing like that. I spend an inordinate amount of time every day either thinking about, cooking, or eating food ... and the fridge bears witness to the fact that we are well stocked and frequent at-home eaters.

I have a very basic organizational system. Top shelf is ready-to-eat foods, things that are already cooked and packaged for lunch or snacking. Easy to find first thing in the morning when half asleep and rushing off to work. I take pride in the fact that Ryan and I both go to work with lunch bag in hand each day. The second shelf is raw ingredients: greens, veggies, tortillas --things that are fresh and should be used quickly. This is also the overflow shelf for when we have too many leftovers, which happens a lot. The bottom shelf is for staple items that we know are there, but don't need to see so much -- eggs, Limoncello, yogurt, celery, plastic wrap. There is the Cheese Drawer, the upper right-hand one, that also holds tofu and Soyrizo. Then the lower left-hand drawer is the salad drawer, home to radishes, red cabbage, beets, green onions, herbs, etc. And finally there is the fruit drawer on the lower right. What's nice about this system is that we always know where to put things when we get home from grocery shopping, and we always know where to find it when we are hungry. Every once in a while, around holidays especially, the fridge gets over filled and out of order and it is no longer apparent what there is to eat, or cook with and I get a little anxious. An orderly fridge is the sign of an orderly home and an orderly mind. For someone who loves everything in its place, the fridge is often a reflection of my mental state.

Now, on to the door. This is pretty straightforward, no special system here. But the contents are definitely a clue to our favorite flavors and tastes. In the Handi Bin, hiding behind the retro brown doors, is organic unsalted butter from grass-fed cows. A splurge maybe, but worthwhile for both the conscience and taste buds. The other door is hiding some film for Ryan's Holga camera. We have chili paste for making spicy dishes, and Dijon mustard for salad dressing. Several varieties of mom's homemade jam -- blueberry and peach at the moment -- these are saved for toast on weekends or special occasions, never to be used for peanut butter and jelly. A gel eyemask for especially bad headaches lives in the top bin, along with a bag of ground flaxseed for putting on hot cereal in the morning. There is the maple syrup, 100% real from trees, no substitutions are tolerated. Of course, Sauvignon Blanc for cooking (everything tastes better with a little wine) and some homemade Limoncello given to us by friends -- very good in margaritas. Finally, there is the Mr. Suisse, as whipped cream is known in our home, to be used on anything remotely dessert like, and also as a treat for a our little cat Casey. She stands on her hind legs and licks it off of Ryan's finger.

The last stop on this journey is the freezer, perhaps the least visited area of the fridge. Now, it does not look very elegant, but there is definitely good stuff in here. I have bags of frozen melon from The Farm this summer, all three colors of melon, and have discovered that it is possible to make fantastic margaritas (with Limoncello!) and also a very nice sorbet, both with little effort and some frozen melon. I also have bags of frozen stock ingredients -- fennel stems and fronds, corn cobs, leek tops, and Parmesan cheese rinds. These are all super easy to pull from the fridge when making stock or broth and they add some lovely flavor as well as using up the otherwise disposable left-overs from other cooking projects. We have edamame, for Monday night Salad Night. And also frozen berries for Ryan's morning yogurt. The bright blue cylinder is a diamond-shape ice cube mold for special occasions. There are still two bags in the way back of frozen pumpkin puree from this fall, destined to become pumpkin custard. And the cheese grater and butter are in the freezer because I wanted to try out a new method for making biscuits ... but forgot the butter entirely instead, because it was in the freezer.

So this is a candid portrait of my psyche in shades of food, organization and obsession. A glimpse into what it might be like to live in my shoes (or stomach!) for a day. I wonder what your fridge has to say....

Kitchen Tip: Burnt Pots

2011-02-23T19:53:00.000-08:00

It happens even to the best of us ... burnt dinner. My recent nemesis was marinara sauce. This is the second time that it's happened, there must be something about slow cooking tomatoes that causes my kitchen senses to be derailed and my pot bottom scorched. Now I use some very nice cookware -- Le Crueset, to be specific -- with heavy bottoms and industrial-strength non-stick enamel interiors .... however even such culinary luxuries cannot prevent the occasional charred pot bottom.

This time, it was bad enough that there was a thick layer of black stuff (burnt onions and fennel) on the bottom of the pot and I caught Ryan trying to vigorously scrub it off using only elbow grease and the dedication that true love and a full stomach brings to washing dishes. My solution -- one that came to me in one of those out-of-the-blue epiphany moments -- worked wonders and saved tons of time spent scrubbing and cursing. I filled the pot with an inch or two of water, added a generous amount of baking soda, and cooked it on the stove top. The baking soda magically lifted the charred bots off the pan and allowed some gentle scraping with a wooden spoon to do the rest. Ta da! My beautiful stock pot back in action and hours of scrubbing saved for something more worthwhile ...

Preserved Lemons: Part 1

2011-02-15T18:00:00.000-08:00

Preserved lemons have been on my To Do list for a while, ever since we had them at a Moroccan restaurant in Indianapolis last Spring. Ryan is a die-hard tajine fan and our savory and luscious lamb tajine was presented with a garnish of sliced preserved lemon, which had a tangy, tart and alluring flavor.

Since February is citrus season in Arizona, and since I was blessed with thee bags full of lemons and oranges and grapefruits from a friend, I decided that now was the time. A little internet research yielded some pretty simple instructions: wash the lemons, cut the tip ends off, cut an "x" in each from one end to about an inch from the other end, stuff generously and vigorously with coarse sea salt, and then pack tightly in sea salt in a jar and let sit for a month or so. So the initial steps have been completed and I now have a jar of salty lemons sitting in the fridge, dated and waiting for an early-March tajine binge. This will be very exciting.

Patio Farm Internship

2011-02-13T17:54:00.000-08:00

One of the responsibilities of the today's farmers is to educate others about the importance of growing food. With the number of farmers dwindling, and the links between farm and table becoming increasingly invisible to the average urban eater, it is vitally important that each of us spend the time and energy to share our love and knowledge of farming. Patio Farm was recently lucky enough to host our own farmer-for-a-day intern and to share the simple pleasures of planting and harvesting.

The first farm chore was starting seedlings for summer crops. Using an indoor greenhouse for pre-season planting we started lemon cucumbers, sweet cherry peppers, yellow pear tomatoes, Tiny Tim cherry tomatoes and some hollyhocks. Farming requires two personal characteristics that are often difficult to cultivate: advance planning and delayed gratification. Starting seedlings is a perfect example of this, and it was well worth the effort and mental discipline. This week the seedlings started to pop up their first sets of leaves.

Our next task was a full-scale crop harvest. One of the first things that I planted in September when I started Patio Farm was radishes. Radishes are the darlings of children and impatient farmers alike, as they only take 3 to 4 weeks from planting to grow and mature into a harvestable vegetable. Unfortunately, these seed packet statistics assume that there is adequate sunshine and so it has taken several months instead on my shady patio for the crop to mature. Nevertheless, we had an abundant harvest and made room for some new seeds to be planted.

Feed the soil, not the plant. This is great advice and reminds us that our relationship to food production is more than just planting and harvesting, it also includes stewardship of the earth. On Patio Farm we have a strategy for feeding the soil that includes digging holes and putting green scraps and coffee grounds in them to boost the levels of organic matter and nitrogen. So I had our intern dig a new hole for me ... a task that is incredibly satisfying. We were lucky enough to find several earthworms during our excavation and took the opportunity to export a few of them to one of the large planters to further share the wealth of the farm and continue to improve the soil. Earthworms are one of my greatest accomplishments on Patio Farm. My planter beds are pretty much a closed system, and yet the worms somehow appeared and have proceeded to multiply. I am so proud of my worms. (There is one on the picture below ... can you find it?)

The last farm chore was planting. We planted some white turnip, French breakfast radishes, and purple Russian kale. We are still on Spring crops here in the desert, and hoping for a few more months of salad vegetable production before the heat sets in and delicate greens are replaced with heartier summer crops. The kale has already sprouted, the radishes are up as well and I am now only waiting for the turnips to poke through and start growing. Each day is truly exciting as I survey the farm for signs of growth and change.

After a full day of farming, we were tired, dirty and a little hungry too. We washed our hands (and feet!), put our tools away and finished up the day with a final treat: carrot harvest! We pulled some choice carrots from the ground and enjoyed them with a few of the radishes and a little dash of salt. Food definitely tastes better when you have put your heart and mind into it.

Garden Stories

2011-01-24T20:45:00.000-08:00

Clayton had always believed that a good offense was the best defense. Especially now, with Big Government trying to force innocent citizens to buy insurance and eat vegetables and join a gym .... Armageddon was surely coming soon. But not before he would take matters into his own hands.

Beginning Spanish for Farmers

2011-01-21T17:22:00.000-08:00

Being a farmer here in Arizona (or probably most other places) means that at least a little bit of Spanish is required for day-to-day communication and pleasantries. Now, I spent my entire childhood education learning French, so Spanish has been something of an interesting challenge for me, but one that I am enjoying.

I am lucky enough to work with some very nice hombres and they have taken it upon themselves to teach me some functional Spanish for the farm. Mostly at this point I know vegetables, numbers, and some basic verbs -- enough to get me through a day of harvesting. I can say necesito diez bunches nabos blancos por favor (I need ten bunches of white turnips please) and gracias para su ayuda (thank you for your help) and donde es la jefa? (where is the boss lady?) and many other similar things. But I am always trying to add a few new words to my vocab, and I teach the guys some new words as well. It is a nice cultural exchange.

Today I had a customer come by in the afternoon and need a pound of dill. This is one of the Rainbow Valley ladies who make beautiful fresh cheese here in AZ and one of our old farmers' market buddies. So of course I told her "no problem, I can get that for you right away". I rushed right over to los hombres and let them know what I needed: "hola, nesecito comeré una libra de dill mas rapido, por favor". And then, to get my point across that I needed it right away, I waved my hands in the air and shouted "ándale!" and laughed. The guys looked at me, said something in Spanish that I didn't catch and pointed to the row of dill and asked "una libra?" I said "si, gracias" and walked off. A few minutes later, one of the guys came over with a pound of dill, which I gave to the cheese ladies and off they went.

Well, because I am trying hard to learn farm Spanish I checked with the foreman, Carlos, later on in the day about my new word comare. "Carlos, what does comeré mean in English?" I asked. "It means to eat" he replied and I burst out laughing. I had demanded that the guys eat a pound of dill, very quickly, and then waved my arms and said "get on with it!" Turns out that the word I was looking for was cortar .... to cut. It was indeed a good day on the farm.

Centurion

2011-01-08T17:41:00.000-08:00

Mmmmmmmmmmm. Mmmm mmmm mmmm.

That is exactly how I feel after eating the most delectable happy hour snacks at Centurion here in blossoming Downtown Phoenix. We were walking by earlier today to get some coffee beans from our local roaster, when we stopped to peruse the menu of this tiny yet compelling eatery, relatively new in the area. As I oohed and ahhed over the menu descriptions, I noticed that the chefs were looking out the window at us and waving. So, naturally I went inside to check it out. I was intrigued.

Hours later, after failing to entice a few girlfriends to join me for a happy hour snack, my gallant husband offered to take me there instead. The only customers in the tiny interior dining room, we were treated to the pleasure of watching our chefs prepare for the (fully booked!) evening meal and listening in on the typical back-of-house chatter that happens at any restaurant during the twilight hour between lunch and dinner.

Our selections from the HH menu included chef's choice cheese plate, hot cashews, manchego and chorizo risotto and spinach and shitake mushroom risotto. The second risotto order was placed at the end of our meal when we really just needed more wonderful flavors to enjoy. We were not ready for the experience to be over. The meal was accompanied by $3 chef's special wines ... tasty, luscious and perfect with the food.

It would be hard to say that one item was the highlight of the meal, only because they were all a spectacular experience individually. The hot cashews were sauteed with garlic, paprika and red onions and had a burst of meaty, nutty flavor that was addictive. It was hard not to eat one bite right after another. The cheese plate was a dainty selection of cheeses with foccacia, mustard, raspberry jam, fig preserves and blackberries. The selections meshed supremely well, with bold complimentary flavors. But maybe the risotto really stole the show. Our first choice of manchego and chorizo risotto was creamy, subtle, rich, and perfectly balanced. It was all that I could to to restrict myself to tiny bites to make the enjoyment last longer. Of course, a second risotto had to follow the first, and I was still exclaiming all of the way home at how good my mouth still tasted. I have now vowed to learn to make risotto that is somewhere in the ballpark of Centurion's.

The entire personalized experience was heightened by the warmth of the staff -- Chef Eric, Chef Matt and Maitre' D Michelle. I was given a micro tour of the kitchen and treated to an insider's view of the operations of a small European Fusion kitchen brigade. Next time I will be sitting at the bar and peering over to intently absorb every movement and nuance of the Chefs at work.

Needless to say, I am a happy girl at the moment. I have no interest whatsoever in being productive for the rest of the evening and I will probably be begging someone to accompany me back to Centurion at the soonest possible occasion.

Radish Poem

2011-01-08T14:55:00.000-08:00

I have the urge to plant new things at Patio Farm. The threat of frost is probably past here, and I have some newly cleared space in my garden. I was browsing through seed catalogues online and looking up photos of veggies on Google when I stumbled across a poem on radishes. I was touched. I love the humble, frivolous radish. I am glad that someone else is inspired, as I am.

Spoon River Vegetables
Radish
--GC aka BB

It is true.
I have squandered my life.

While the frugal celery
strove to tower,
and the conscientious pepper
struggled for dignity,
I was busy admiring the way
my healthy-rosebud-complexion
spread so evenly over
my satin polished skin,
taut over my
luscious rotundity.

I loved it there
in my darkness.
I relished the warmth
of the moist lover
enveloping my swelling belly.

How was I to know
I wore green flags on my head?

But I have never been angry.
I have no regrets.

When they pulled me
from the ground
the earth kissed me goodbye.

Poem found by chance at Bossy Betty blog.

Butternut Squash Soup With Jalapeno and Ginger

2011-01-04T18:28:00.000-08:00

Winter is soup time.

While I am actually a big fan of soup year-round, there comes a point in fall when I celebrate the start of soup season and begin dreaming about big steamy pots of soup simmering on my stove top. There is potentially no better way to scent the entire house. My husband invariably comes down the stairs, lured by the smell of onions and wine or herbs, and exclaims at how great it smells. The great thing about soup is how well it keeps and what an easy and delicious lunch it makes for the rest of the week. There is nothing easier than taking a container of soup to work with you and heating it up. And no better lunch on a chilly day.

Soup is mostly an improvisational undertaking for me. I spend up-front time imagining what might taste good, considering what is in season, or in the fridge, and what I might combine to satiate my particular soup craving. There is nearly always at least a day of daydreaming that precedes any cooking and it builds the anticipation and excitement. "Guess what kind of soup I am going to make!" I'll say to just about anyone, and then launch into a description of my imagined soup extravaganza. Because of the extemporaneous nature of my soups, it is not often that we eat the same one twice. But the butternut squash soup here is a family favorite and has been made countless times in just about this exact form, because it is hard to make it any better.

I have actually not really liked many of the butternut soup recipes that I have tried in the past -- most of them are either too plain (just pureed squash!) or too sweet. This one has a spiciness and a warmth to it that compliments the squash and deepens the complexity of the meal.

Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger and Jalapeno

Olive oil
2" fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 head of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 or 2 jalapeno or other spicy chilis, seeded and choppedsalt & black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne (more or less depending on heat preference and strength of cayenne)
4c vegetable stock
3 medium or 2 large butternut squash, peeled and seeded and cut into 1" cubes (about 8 cups)
1 tablespoon brown sugar or maple syrup
optional: milk, soy milk, cream or plain yogurt

Prep all of the ingredients first to make the cooking go quickly. In a large stock pot, heat the oil and add the ginger, garlic, jalapeno and a teaspoon or so of salt. Stir and then cover and cook on medium heat for a few minutes. Keeping the pot covered will prevent the moisture from evaporating and the garlic from browning. Once the mixture is soft and fragrant, add the cayenne and black pepper and cook for another minute or so. Add the stock, 2 cups water, sugar and squash and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until squash is soft, 30 or 40 minutes. Once the squash is soft, puree the soup and then season with salt and pepper to taste. Add more water at this point if you want the soup to be a thinner consistency. You can add the optional milk or cream, about 1/2 cup or so, and then cook for a few minutes longer. Or, you can serve the soup with a swirl of cream or plain yogurt as a garnish. Serve with homemade crostini for dipping. Makes enough for a meal for 4 with leftovers for lunch.

Ryan's Herb Crostini

Slice 1 fresh baguette thinly and lay on baking sheets. Brush with olive oil and a mix of herbs -- oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, etc. Bake in the oven at 350 until the crostini are crisp but not burnt. Can be stored in an air tight container for several days up to a week.

Christmas Eve Preparations

2010-12-24T21:11:00.000-08:00

It is Christmas Eve and I have been planning for tomorrow's feast since before Thanksgiving. It would not be exaggeration to say that a large percentage of my thoughts for the past month and a half have revolved around planning for and imagining my Christmas Dinner Extravaganza. This year is an at-home year and I volunteered to host our urban family for Christmas dinner. I have dreamed up an Italian theme and proceeded to methodically and painstakingly engineer all of the details. The past two weekends have been consumed with pre-making almost 200 ravioli with Jax, along with a lovely steamy marinara sauce. The past three days have revolved around meticulous shopping for the very best ingredients at the farmers market and various grocery and specialty stores. Today started and ended with cooking joyfully in my kitchen -- soup and tiramisu. And now, all that remains is some prep work and hosting the Best Christmas Party Ever. Yum.

The tradition in my family, as in most families I am sure, has long revolved around food on Christmas. We start at my Mom's house on Christmas eve. This happens to be the birthday of one of my "other mothers" who is also Jewish. As I grew up in the woods in a small town in Maine, this means that Marjie never had the opportunity to go out for a nice dinner on her birthday, as everything is closed. So my mom has been hosting the candle-lit birthday eve party every year since I can remember. Around 7 or so we light candles everywhere and turn out the lights and wait for our guests to arrive. Neighbors trudge up the snowy path to our door, stamping boots and shedding layers as they enter. We gather and mingle and snack and sip tea and wine. There is always a birthday cake baked specially by my mom, accompanied by sherry, which is a favorite of Marjie's. To me, this event is the epitome of Christmas spirit. A dark, snowy and cold evening warmed by flickering lights and close friends and laughter. As the years have passed the faces have changed and now there are tiny children among the celebratees, and the party wraps up a little earlier. But the heart of it remains the same -- friends and wine and chocolate and celebration.

Christmas morning is punctuated first by coffee and juice on my parents' bed while we open stockings. This favorite ritual is followed by a leisurely pajama breakfast of waffles made in an old cast iron waffle iron over the gas stove. Twenty or so years of practice have allowed Jack to hone his waffle skills and have made this scattered and delicious tradition one of may favorites. Grapefruit, maple syrup from Vermont or Canada, yogurt, fruit, tea and coffee. This meal lasts at least an hour or two and most of the time our gift thank-you lists are sticky with syrup by the time we are done.

Breakfast and gifts transition in to preparations for the next, and final, stage of Christmas: dinner at the Block's house. This dinner became a tradition before I can remember and has a unique place in my heart as a marker of a true Christmas celebration. In the early afternoon we gather ourselves and our contributions to dinner -- invariably including butternut squash soup and cheesecake -- and head out into the cold for the 45 minute drive. Dinner at the Block's is special in that it looks very much like a scene from a Rockwell Christmas card, or a Martha Stewart photo spread. An old parsonage restored to New England glory, ladies in long skirts bustling with aprons in the kitchen, men with glasses of Scotch eating cocktail shrimp around the Christmas tree. The tree is always twice as large, full, and festive as any other tree. Dinner becomes invariably delayed as everyone pitches in, cocktail in hand and visits and catches up from the year before. 12 or 15 guests in the norm and make for a vibrant evening and a cosmopolitan conversation in every room. Dinner is served in full ceremony with all of us side-by-side around the big dining table. Plates and glasses with gold-leaf edges, perfect place settings with each piece of silver in its correct orientation. A toast by the head of household, most often including a Jewish prayer as well as a Christmas blessing accompanied by one of those truly good bottles of wine that are both luxury and luscious. The first course is the curried squash soup served in dainty soup cups -- smooth and warm and creamy and sweet. This is followed by a truly impressive platter of holiday meat -- crown roast, trussed turkey, roast beef -- and every side dish appropriate. Dinner lasts forever, extended indefinitely by stories, verbal sparring, jokes, and reminiscences. At some point the plates are cleared and a palate cleanser of frozen fruit salad is served. Perfect in its molded form, icy and sweet and lush with chunks of strawberry and peach, this has long been my favorite dish of the meal. After the chilled course we retire to the kitchen to form a brigade of dedicated dishwashers painstakingly washing and drying and putting away each dish and glass and pot and pan. The camaraderie of dishwashers is such that it is more a place to congregate and share stories than a place of work. Late in the evening we wind up our festivities with coffee and pie and fond hugs goodbye. This may be the most elegant meal of the year for me.

So, this year, far away from my family traditions I am forging some new ones of my own. My dinner tomorrow will be in the leisurely luxury spirit of the Blocks and infused with the raucous joy and fun of my urban family. Christmas ravioli, fresh farmer salad, flavors and smells and celebratory cocktails will all fuse to make a new Christmas tradition, perhaps.

Patio Harvest: Greens with Radishes

2010-12-22T18:15:00.000-08:00

The Patio Farm has been flourishing -- if slowly, given the lack of direct sun in the "middle" of winter here in the Sonoran Desert. The cooler weather and some recent spatterings of rain have greened everything up and made my plants lush and very edible looking. Time for a harvest meal. After all, what is the point of growing your own food if you don't intend to eat it?

One of my recent favorite dinner dishes lately has been greens with radishes. It is a simple idea, and one that is appropriately seasonal in Arizona. I realize that this is NOT the time of year for radishes for all of the northeast-dwellers, but you can either use your imagination, or break down and buy a bunch of them from the grocery store to go with your in-season winter greens.

I have been blessed this year with a plenitude of radishes, first from the Farm, and now from my patio garden as well. Radishes are not a vegetable that comes to mind too often for most folks, but they have come to really resonate with me and are my mascot vegetable as well. There is something so charming about a dainty little French Breakfast radish, a bouquet of multi-colored Easter Egg radishes, or the intense peppery and crisp bite into the magenta heart of a Watermelon radish. With all of the radishes available to me this fall I had to find some hew ways to eat them, besides adding to salads ... and thus Greens with Radishes was invented in my kitchen one evening. Since then, this recipe and its many variations have become a staple of weeknight dinner.

Greens with Radishes

1 bunch greens (kale, chard, spinach, etc.)
4 or 5 cloves garlic, crushed
5 or 6 radishes, sliced
olive oil
lemon juice (or vinegar)
optional: a handful of cashews or walnuts
optional: dry white wine

Wash the greens, remove tough stems, and chop the leaves into thin ribbons, or small pieces (an inch by an inch). Heat the oil in a pan wide or deep enough to accommodate the raw greens (they will shrink a lot during cooking). Add the garlic and salt & pepper and a splash of water (or wine) and cover and simmer for a few minutes to soften and mellow the garlic. Add the radishes (and nuts, if using) and then the greens and cover again. Toss the greens occasionally and cook until tender and bright green (only a few minutes for most tender greens). Remove from heat and add a splash of lemon juice or vinegar. Serve immediately and eat them all ... it doesn't get any better than this!

Pot Luck

2010-12-20T20:11:00.000-08:00

I attended an event recently that brought tons of memories back to me from childhood: a potluck. Now that I reflect, it has been many, many years since I have been to a true Pot Luck. Of course, there have been dinner parties, office parties, events with friends, picnics that have included an element of contribution by all the attendees – but there is always some grand plan, some orchestration as to who shall bring what so as to fill out a complete and balanced menu. The dinner that I attended was different. This was a true potluck in the sense that it relied completely on faith and on LUCK.

Now, my worst fear of any potluck is that the buffet table ends up filled with Doritos, bags of cookies and store-bought potato salad. And this is why hosts so often tend to carefully plan and delegate their potlucks these days. Perhaps many of us are so far from being cooks any more, or too busy or lazy to come up with something creative to bring to dinner. Or many of us are afraid that our tastes may not match those of others, or the myriad food preferences or allergies or taboos has simply gotten too complex to deal with and so we either default to the easiest crowd pleaser (chips and dip!) or we overly plan to avoid offending someone’s palate.

A true potluck, however, is one which succeeds based on a blind trust in the community to provide exactly what is needed. In that sense, a pot luck is a mirror reflection of the community gathered together to break bread. It reflects the values and tastes and traditions and creativity of those involved. Do we trust that there will be main dishes, as well as drinks and desserts and finger foods? Do we rely upon luck that not everyone will bring lasagna, or chili or salad? Well, it depends on the diversity of those with whom we gather. A community is one held together by bonds of similarities, threads of commonalities, mutual respect and interest, and which values the unique contributions of each individual. A true, dynamic community then should produce a wonderfully varied and flavorful meal complete in its scope and reflective of the contributors. When we are a part of that kind of community – not just a group of people, but a COMMUNITY – collaboration in the form of shared food truly becomes a feast and a cultural exchange.

I am reminded of the weekly potlucks that I was a part of growing up. The community was diverse, passionate, creative, subversive and idealistic. Sunday nights the tribe would gather at one place or another and a table would miraculously fill with food and drink. From a child’s perspective, the table was often an array of mystery foods – many of which were brown, hard, chewy, and clearly healthy. There were crusty home-baked dark breads that took serious time and mastication to get through a slice. There were all-natural casseroles, grains, things grown in people’s gardens, or fermented in their cellars. Jugs of homemade cider, mason jars of preserves or pickles, perhaps a very dense chocolate cake made with honey and whole wheat flour. The mélange of food was always a meal, however, and never the same twice. Each family or person contributed their own spirit in a dish and the afternoon and evening were spent mixing foods side by side and people side by side into a community feast. All were provided for. All contributed. Each taste was unique and complimentary and took its rightful place. Each person had their own place in the group which formed a kaleidoscopic view of the moment in time in a small community in the woods in Maine. As far back as we go, humans have been gathering to nurture one another by exchanging food, by breaking and sharing bread.

It was a refreshing reminder that community can still exist that can support a true potluck. I tasted local-cured olive tapenade, heirloom lentils from Italy with local greens, pierogies, ravioli, green chile stew, chickpeas with chewy grains, raspberry trifle, peach pie, local cider and coffee with Kahlua – to recall only a fraction. But, more than the exchange of food, there was also an exchange of ideas and passions – gardening tips, travel stories, recipes, life experiences. For a brief evening, bundled in jackets and eating by candlelight, there seemed to be the spirit of a vital community still glowing brightly.

1 day in the life of a novice chef

2010-12-16T22:15:00.000-08:00

12 hours cooking
3 girlfriends together by chance on a weeknight
2 bars, 1 banoffee pie, and too many new faces to remember
2:30 haphazard bedtime
6:30 wake up on best friend’s couch
½ cup of coffee to start the day before sunrise
3 minute drive back to the kitchen
40 slices of mozzarella and tomato shingled in a spiral on a bed of kale
96 pounds of artichoke spinach dip made in 5 heavy batches
1:00 late lunch of salad, rice and chocolate-covered strawberry
30 pounds of assorted cheese cut in cubes for plating
4 dishwashers playing prep cook
83 pounds of Dijon potato salad in plastic bus tubs
35 pounds of crudite – peppers, tomatoes, carrots, celery, cucumber and squash
2 quarts of Cesar dressing that breaks at the last minute, oil drops glistening and popping
10 minutes to clean the station for tomorrow
1 bundle of kitchen towels stashed away for the morning
13:03 hours punched on the timeclock
25 minute drive home in the dark
1 candle lighting up the patio garden
1 husband and 2 cats to welcome home
too many blessings to count

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T04:48:00.000-08:00

"Happy Thanksgiving.

Now eat your vegetables!"

Garden Stories

2010-11-24T16:41:00.000-08:00

Gwynneth was surprised that the halucinogenic effects of Ambien had not been more urgently spelled out on the bottle.

Thanksgiving Favorite

2010-11-23T16:29:00.000-08:00

Everyone has their favorite dish to eat on Thanksgiving. For lots of people it is the turkey, many others love the stuffing or the green bean casserole or the pumpkin pie. For me, my annual favorite dish is the cranberry sauce. I have, over the years, honed and tweaked my special recipe and volunteered to make the cranberry sauce at every Thanksgiving dinner I have attended for at least 10 years running.

I get so excited when the grocery stores stack up the bags of fresh cranberries. It is the dish that I make well ahead of time so that I can sneak spoonfuls from the fridge in the days leading up to the Big Feast. It is the spot of brilliant color on a plate of beige and white and brown and green. It is the zest and freshness that compliments all other holiday food and lets your mouth know that this really IS a celebration of taste. I have, of course, already made my batch of cranberry sauce this year. And I just had another bite on the sly while rooting through the fridge for something else. I can only hope there will be enough left for everyone else on Thursday!

Holiday Cranberry Sauce

1 bag fresh cranberries
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup fresh squeezed orange or tangerine juice
grated and finely chopped zest from 2 oranges
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
2 or 3 oranges, sectioned

Combine the juice, sugar, cranberries and zest in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 or 6 minutes, until the cranberries have popped. Remove from the eat an stir in the frozen blueberries. Cool. Fold in the orange sections.

Note: I often double or triple this recipe if I am cooking for a large group.

High on Vegetables

2010-11-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

It all comes down to this for me: vegetables are fantastic.

I am mesmerized by the colors, shapes, textures -- the incredible variety of palpable aliveness. While meat is dead food, vegetables -- the really good ones -- are still living and vital well past the moment that you bite into them. No one could invent something as simple and as complex as a watermelon radish, a baby carrot with it's green tassels waving, a bowl full of tiny lettuce leaves.

You know how sometimes you see an apple, or a pear in a store display and wonder if it's real? And you pick it up to see and it turns out to be a wooden apple or a plastic pear, compelling at first glance but nowhere near the real thing upon closer inspection. Well, take that magnetic appearance and then add the fact that vegetables are edible. Beautiful and edible and exactly unique and magically nourishing. Vegetables are a simple opportunity to experience the vast brilliance of nature and our direct visceral connection to it.

Granted, a trip to the grocery store can be a buzz kill for the farmer's market devotee, with generic vegetables standardized for weight, color and minimal flavor. However, there is still a variety and array of color and taste that cannot be rivaled in the cracker aisle, at the meat counter, or in the bags of frozen food. The lovely and compelling and alluring thing about vegetables is that we didn't have to do a thing to invent them. They simply are, fantastic. Stop a moment and really contemplate a carrot, or the complexity of a broccoli crown: truly a wonder of existence. Now take it home and eat it, life energy from the earth directly into you.

One Year Ago

2010-10-27T17:39:00.000-07:00

One Year Ago Today

Dare I say, I think that today is worth comparing to a year ago.
Today I woke up early, put on my Lucy pants and clogs and drove to work watching a sunrise.
A year ago, I slept in late, woke up foggy and had no particular place to go.
I took the day off to escape from my every day and vowed not to think about work, or my problems.
Today I chopped vegetables, baked pita crisps, laughed, joked around and made ponzu sauce all well before noon.
A year ago, I drank champagne and ate pastries in Jax's back yard, all before noon. This was good stuff. How I felt at the time was not. Hard to appreciate so many blessings when my view was clouded with entitlement and big bad stories and disproportionate expectations.
Today I worked for peanuts, almost, but enjoyed it. I made dressing and fruit salad and an eight-pound bowl of berries. I made a few people laugh and one sad person happier. I rocked.
A year ago I shed tears over a gimlet and some bad hummus and waxed reflective and wished that I could play with vegetables for a living. Not sure that was even possible, or plausible.
Today, I got my fervent wish. I played with vegetables. Tomorrow, I will go and see them growing, as fresh as ever possible and feed some bad ones to the chickens.
A year ago I could hardly imagine fearlessly following my gut in such a literal way.
Gratefully, there was a food revolution.
Thankfully, it was MY food revolution.
Viva, Vegetable Revolution.

Fun with Vegetables

2010-10-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

Garden Stories

2010-10-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

Grant had always said that success was 90% confidence and 10% competence. That was all well and good in middle management, but today he really hoped that it was actually true.

Garden Stories

2010-10-11T21:15:00.000-07:00

Tyrese had become a vegan for many reasons -- cardiovascular health, reducing his environmental footprint, gaining more energy for his daily activities, even ethical and social considerations. But although he had grown to love his clean and green lifestyle, he would still occasionally wax nostalgic for the carnivorous pleasures of a tricera chop, or a steg sandwich.

Garden Stories

2010-10-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

The scent of death had led Alexis to this place, but she was unprepared for the extent of the terrible carnage that she saw. The rain of frozen meteors felled every tree in this part of the forest and had crushed the unlucky flock of chicks as well. She was saddened for a moment at the immensity of the decimation, but also knew that she had hungry mouths to feed and these small frozen chicken nuggets were surely better than another day of starvation.

Natural Disaster

2010-10-06T22:29:00.000-07:00

There are moments as a micro-farmer that provide me some small insight into the enormous challenges that real farmers face every day. Not that nurturing a backyard lettuce crop is evenly remotely comparable to stewarding 10 or 20 or 100 acres of commercial produce … but there is a similarity nonetheless in the connection between farmer and plant, between woman and nature.

After months of 100+ degree days, weeks upon weeks without rain, and innumerable hours spent building, planting and tending my Patio Farm, I experienced an event that humbled me as a farmer. Heavy clouds rolled across the desert yesterday. It was a beautiful cool day and such a welcome end to a long sweltering summer. In the late afternoon I returned home in time to experience the unpredictable fury of a desert hail storm. The clouds and thunder blew in quickly and hail began pelting my house, increasing intensity to the point where I wondered whether the windows would really hold up much longer, or collapse inward with a horizontal rush of ice pellets. I watched in awe as my patio farm was torn apart leaf by leaf by nature herself and reduced to a tangle of broken leaves and sticks and hail.

Now, part of me was reveling in the excitement of weather – real weather! -- as I am always lusting after rain in the Valley of the Sun. But the rest of me was heartbroken watching the tiny plants that I have worked so hard to cultivate get torn to shreds in only moments, and I was absolutely powerless to protect them in any way. Imagine then how a farmer feels when an entire crop is threatened or destroyed. You put all of your faith and energy and time into the unpredictable magic of growing food, trusting that the plants will thrive, the rain will come, the sun will shine.

Really, growing food is one of the biggest gambles there is. As a farmer, you are pretty much all-in on every hand with no choice about whether to draw or stand. And in one uncontrollable moment, everything can be destroyed in front of you. No wonder so many people have left farming for the safer and more predictable world of business or service or manufacturing. After all, a hail storm only keeps customers away from your store for a few hours. A flood only shuts down a factory for as long as it takes to mop up and repair. A freezing blizzard can keep people away from your office for a few days but it does not put you out of business. But with farming, everything that you work for can easily and instantly vanish. What will you eat this winter? What will you sell to pay the bills? How can you repair the damage done when the damage is complete destruction and the season is past for repair? Only a brave or foolish person would make that gamble year after year. Or one who has soil and sweat and seeds ingrained too deeply in their soul to turn away to more predictable ventures.

My personal natural disaster reminded me how tenuous our food system really is. We are so accustomed to walking into the grocery store, debit card and canvas bag in hand, and buying lemons, flour, artichokes, or chicken regardless of the season or weather or location. But, at some very basic level, our food depends on the luck and work of a farmer somewhere creating the raw materials out of earth and faith and knowledge. Why then do we expect food to be so cheap? And so abundant? If most of us no longer have the ability to grow our own food, let alone cook it well, then why do we undervalue the professional efforts of those who do? These are questions much bigger than my own back yard, but I think they are truly worth asking. Especially in the face of an abrupt reminder that nature not only feeds, us, but destroys our crops as well.

Garden Stories

2010-10-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

With six kids to raise as a single mom, sometimes Betsy was so worn out that she just felt like a fat old sow. But then she would catch a glimpse of Maggie's curly tail or Milo's eager upturned snout and she would remember that is was all worthwhile, if only to avoid sending them all to daycare at nearby Hillshire Farms.

Cat Grass

2010-10-04T15:28:00.000-07:00

Naturally, our cats are an important part of our household and deserve to benefit from my new garden. We planted some cat grass seeds in some smaller pots and let them grow to a few inches tall. One lazy afternoon I brought a pot of cat grass inside for Nina and Casey and let them go to town. They knew instantly what it was and ran over and started chewing. This is one of the rare occasions on which they have actually peaceably shared something edible. You can hear their contented gnawing on the video. Of course, Nina threw up shortly after eating her fill. Just a regular weekend afternoon at our house.

Garden Stories

2010-10-03T18:26:00.000-07:00

Akima and Haku had searched for many days and nights for the mythic Orachi, an elusive serpent with magical powers. Now, deep in Retasu Forest, they felt confident their prey was within reach, and danger must surely be far behind them now ...

Chicken Feed Update

2010-09-17T18:13:00.000-07:00

Apparently chickens like to eat flowers. Hyacinth bean flowers, to be exact. They also enjoy aravaipa and yali pears. I know what you must be thinking .... and yes, it IS my job to find these things out. Cool, huh?

Stop F*&^ing With Our Food!

2010-09-14T15:11:00.000-07:00

U.S. Meat Farmers Brace for Limits on Antibiotics

I was really pleased to see this article on the NY Times website today (link above). Sometimes I get really bummed out thinking that our food system is never going to change, and that the effort that so many people put forth is wasted. And sometimes I think that we are on the cusp on a new global understanding of interconnectedness and responsibility in our food system and environment. Today I am leaning a little bit towards the latter thought, thanks in part to this article. I really do hope that these type of reforms go through and are not thwarted by back-room lobby deals and political horse trading. Big Meat and Big Chemical are both in bed together, and with the policy makers and enforcers in our government. Not to sound too paranoid or anything ... it is just a fact of life and politics and capitalism in our country today. In any case, if the medical community doesn't find it wise to preemptively feed our children antibiotics to prevent childhood illness and improve their growth rate, then why would we do that to animals -- especially ones that we plan to eat? There is some simple logic here that I hope is undeniable and unignorable.

For anyone who has read John Robbins' Food Revolution, I am sure that you got a chuckle out of the National Pork Producers Council's blatant denial of the risks of antibiotic use in livestock: “There is no conclusive scientific evidence that antibiotics used in food animals have a significant impact on the effectiveness of antibiotics in people.” When the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, European Union, experts at Iowa state University and University of Minnesota, American Medical Association, Pew Charitable Trust, and Infectious Diseases Society of America (to name a few) all agree that there are serious current and potential risks to human health, it seems a little disingenuous for Big Meat to just pretend that there is nothing to worry about.

Keep your fingers crossed ... maybe things will actually change for the better, one step at a time. Until then ... know your farmer, know your food.

What do Chickens Like to Eat?

2010-09-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

One of my responsibilities on the farm is looking after the chickens. There are maybe 30 of them in a coop next to the produce shed and I hear the roosters announcing the sunrise every morning when I get to work (and then all day long!). There also seems to be a regular crowing competition between our chickens and the neighbors' and the call and response can get very entertaining.

I don't know why exactly, but chickens are pretty darn compelling to me. I have been fascinated with them for a while, and was envious when my buddy Jax got three of them in her back yard this past Spring. While they are not all that smart, and can be pretty brutal and filthy and even mean-spirited, they are somehow captivating to me. For one thing, chickens are incredibly funny when they run. They are urgent and lean forward as if to become more aerodynamic and always make me wonder reflexively "where are their arms?!" They like to roll around in the dirt and lay on their sides and stare at you suspiciously with one eye. They have an amazing array of possible colors and patterns and styles, all adding greatly to the expression of chicken personality and individuality. And, of course, chickens have a lot to say and are vocal about their opinions and commentary.

I have begun to form a bond with my flock, whom I collectively refer to as "Ladies." I change their water daily, and have the privilege of feeding them wilted or soft or otherwise unsaleable vegetables. They all come running to the door of the coop when I arrive, as they have learned to expect me to bring them treats. I check for eggs in the nest boxes and reach under them to see if they are holding out on me. For some reason, they like to group their eggs all in the same box, even though there are about 20 boxes that they could lay in. Chicken duty may be one of my favorite farm chores.

One of the things that I have been learning is that chickens have discerning palates, just like the rest of us. So, I have been on a mission to answer the burning question: what do chickens like to eat? I am looking forward to a changing seasonal review of chicken snack preferences.

Yum List: purslane, basil, small eggplants, tomatoes, melons if they are cut open, broccoli, anything in my friend Jax's garden.

Yuck list: okra, big eggplants, winter squash, whole melons.

Camera phone video of chickens eating basil.

Veggie Face

2010-09-09T16:02:00.000-07:00

Nature has a sense of humor. So do my co-workers on the farm.

Diet Fad Pet-Peeve Vindication

2010-09-07T22:11:00.000-07:00

The low-carb, high-protein diets like Atkins drive me crazy. Not only do their devotees go around proclaming the virtues of meat at every meal, but they also spend considerable time trash-talking really good things, like (homemade) bread and veggies and pasta and fruit. In the nutrition class that I have been taking, there is substantial data about the myriad issues with high-protein diets ... and yet they persist, as do their dedicated subscribers. Finally, there is some pretty definitive science showing that the low-carb, high-protein diet is not all that it is hyped up to be. Long story short ... a study of more than 100,000 people over 20+ years showed a higher all-cause and cancer mortality rate for those who followed a meat-based low carb diet. The study conclusion: "A low-carbohydrate diet based on animal sources was associated with higher all-cause mortality in both men and women, whereas a vegetable-based low-carbohydrate diet was associated with lower all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality rates."

Check out the article and study abstract below for more detailed information.

Article
Study

Hooray for vegetables!

Nutrition food for thought*:

recommended amount of protein in average American diet: 10 - 25% of total caloric intake
sedentary Americans eat up to 50% more protein than is recommended
potential health risks of high-protein diet: cardiovascular disease, low bone density, stress to kidney function
increased protein intake does not result in an increase in muscle mass or enhanced athletic performace

* as summarized from Nutrition: An Applied Approach, 2nd Edition 2008

Yes, Chef!

2010-09-02T16:52:00.000-07:00

This week I started work as a chef at a local catering company that I shall call The Kitchen. One of the fun things about this new job is that I had to acquire my tools, as well as my uniform. What girl doesn't like a little "required" shopping?

I had already purchased my white chef coat this summer, when I did my stage in a few kitchens. ("Stage" is the French term for "cooking for free.") However a real chef job necessitated both proper footwear and professional equipment. I got online and sifted through pages and pages of shoes on Zappos ... clogs, sneakers, maryjanes, Birks, Crocs, etc. (I was also shopping at the same time for my work boots for my farming job.) The Big Box of Shoes arrived a few days later and turned our living room into a shoe boutique. How fun prancing around trying on shoes without a pushy salesperson hovering over me! I took my sweet time, pantomiming cooking tasks, wearing different shoes on each foot, dashing back and forth to our dining room, but finally settled on the classic chef shoe: black danish clogs. They have served me well for my two days on clomping around The Kitchen.

The other absolute necessity was knives. Apparently the "house" knives in a commercial kitchen are notoriously dull, and no serious chef would be caught dead without their own knife kit slung over their shoulder when they arrive at work each day. This was a harder item to shop for than the shoes. After all, I am pretty much a professional shoe buyer -- been wearing them every day of my life -- but I am not a professional knife buyer. I looked online, on Craig's List, at the mall, and didn't quite know how to make a wise and also thrifty selection. Luckily, my Saturday morning ritual trip to the farmer's market provided the perfect solution for my dilemma: Sharpvan. These guys are super nice and had sharpened our kitchen knives for us before. As I was walking past the van I overheard that they sell knives as well! Even used ones! I spent a quality half-hour in the van and got all of my questions answered, received some good advice about the indispensable elements of my tool kit, held all of the knives, and walked away with a great bargain. I already have future dreams of purchasing a cleaver from them ... and maybe a Santoku knife ... there are still empty slots in my knife bag.

Well-equipped and smartly-outfitted, I worked my first two days in The Kitchen. I am very fortunate NOT to work in a Hell's Kitchen-type establishment and have not been yelled at yet, nor have I been called a donkey. My co-workers are actually incredibly helpful and very conscientious about explaining and mentoring and instructing. After all, I am a complete novice in a professional kitchen. My first two days can basically be summed up in two words: oil and mayonnaise. I worked almost exclusively on dressings and sauces and used at least 3 gallons of oil and 6 gallons of mayonnaise. I think that this job will give me a new perspective on sauces, dips, aiolis and dressings. I have already tasted more than enough mayonnaise-based recipes in two days to last me a lifetime, and I was instantly skeptical when offered "dipping sauce" for my fries at happy hour the other day. I also came away with two invaluable lessons from my fellow chefs: always rinse the capers before using them, and while it is spelled "Robot Coupe", it is pronounced "robo coo." That's plenty of lessons learned for my first week as Chef Molly.

Say NO to Frankenfish

2010-09-02T15:29:00.000-07:00

Take a stand on the FDA's potential approval of genetically engineered salmon, check out the website and petition below, courtesy of FRESH The Movie:

http://action.freshthemovie.com/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=4050

Some food for thought:

"Almost 1 million farmed salmon escape annually in Norway alone."

Fish which are genetically engineered to grow much larger than normal fish are more attractive to native (non GE) fish for breeding because of their size. Thus GE fish have a selective advantage for breeding, and create more offspring. However the offspring of genetically engineered fish have a far higher mortality rate.

"Scientists found that putting 60 genetically engineered fish into a population of 60,000 native fish could render the entire species extinct in as little as 40 years."

- information above taken from The Food Revolution by John Robbins. p350-351

Bean Sprouts

2010-08-29T15:01:00.000-07:00

Well, the seedlings are up! We have been watching the beans poke through the soil and unfold over the last 2 days. It is amazing how fast they grow. Little sprouts of marigold, dill, and cosmos are also coming up ... I can't wait! I can't wait!

bean sprout photos taken over a 30-hour time period

Food Fact

2010-08-28T12:20:00.000-07:00

Shared by my friend Jax:

"The top 3 commodities with the highest average miles per shipment:
1. Motor vehicles for transport - 1,504 miles
2. Spacecraft - 1,349 miles
3. Fresh fruit (excludes citrus) - 1,337 miles"

Wow. Thanks Jax, for putting the cost of our Chilean raspberries in February into perspective.

Eat in local food in season!

Urban Farmer

2010-08-27T17:20:00.000-07:00

This week has marked the dawn of a new era in my professional life. Quite literally, I have been up at dawn this week and headed off to my new job as a farmer. I am working at a local organic urban farm, a 7-acre oasis of green and bird songs and crowing roosters in the midst of the vast and dusty urban jungle. This is the part of my story where I go back to the roots (again literally!) of where our food comes from.

The highlight of my first week was getting rained on while I changed the chickens' water dishes. Part of my farm duties include checking for eggs (got six!) and keeping the chickens in fresh water. These ladies are quite entertaining, and tough too. They are
the sole survivors of a brutal coyote attack on the flock and have since been moved to a more secure pen (i.e. one with a roof on it). They are gracious enough to accept my trespassing with only a minor ruffling of feathers and seem grateful for fresh water.

As I learned today, chickens are homicidal cannibals when the opportunity arises. I found a dead chicken in the coop, being casually pecked at and devoured by passing hens. The Farmer diagnosed the cause of death as group homicide following oviduct prolapse. I won't go into too much detail, but the dead chicken was essentially skin and bones and feathers with pretty much nothing left inside. We had a moment of silence for the hen, and the corpse was taken out to the compost pile for burial. (Feathers and bones are both excellent as soil amendments when composted.) And then life went on. These things happen on the farm.

Another exciting moment occurred when I was stacking crates of butternut squash in the walk-in cooler .... and a mouse jumped out! A little gray one, very fast and very intent on hiding in another crate of squash. Between four of us we managed to haul all of the squash back out again, find the mouse, and unceremoniously remove it from the premises.

Among all of this excitement I also hauled crates of melons, loaded up the refrigerator truck, washed arugula, gently packaged squash blossoms, raked wood chips, got rained on several times, sampled some very spicy chilies, and learned that okra is very itchy to handle if you don't wear gloves. A pretty good start to my career as an urban farmer.

Patio Farmer

2010-08-23T10:38:00.000-07:00

I must admit that I have serious garden envy. Living in the desert, in the middle of a City, in a townhouse, with a north-facing concrete patio no less, my opportunities for growing my own food have been pretty limited. To this point, I have been successful in growing two things: aloe vera and elephant plants. These are the only two green living things that have managed to survive (and thrive!) at my house for any length of time. Of course, I have nurtured random wildflowers in the Spring, occasional sickly lettuce and one gangly looking basil plant, but I have not been able to grow anything truly edible.

Inspired by friends’ gardens, my visit to Maine to work in Mom’s garden heaven, and my dream future as a pioneering urban salad farmer I am embarking on an experimental adventure in patio farming. Aided by the tools and knowledge of my good friend Mike, and the patience and upper body strength of my handsome husband, a raised planter bed has finally been built on my patio.

We used concrete blocks to build the planter walls, and spent a sweaty beer-fueled evening painstakingly laying and mortaring the blocks together. I made several trips back and forth to the local material supply yard trucking river rock and top soil to my house and then carrying it by the bucket-full to fill the planter. The result is about 4” of river rock for drainage, covered by a landscape filter fabric and then about 10” of top soil mixed with compost from our local organic farmer. Since it turns out that “top soil” is really more like fine silty sand, I added a bag of store-bought compost, some organic fertilizer, and coffee grounds and tiny vegetable scraps from the kitchen.

After a week of mixing, watering, amending and raking I am now ready to grow stuff. Luckily for me, the low desert has a fall planting season beginning in late August / early September. So, bright and early this morning I headed to the patio in my night gown with my cup of tea and assumed my new identity as Urban Patio Farmer. Today I planted green beans, wax beans, dill, chives, marigolds and cosmos from seed. Nina and Casey both joined me to witness the ceremonial breaking of ground, and Nina blessed the garden with an extensive roll in the soil. Now I get to wait impatiently for the first seedlings to emerge … cosmos is due in 5 to 7 days with the beans lagging behind at 7 to 14 days. I am so excited!!!

Pool Garden

2010-08-19T12:25:00.000-07:00

An impressive local effort towards food independence ... passed along by my buddy Jax.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/08/garden-pool-family-of-four-grows-food-in-swimming-pool-arizona.php

Farewell to My Mother's Garden

2010-08-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

It was a bittersweet parting from my mother's garden. After 6 weeks of tending, weeding, harvesting, admiring, documenting, and even sleeping within 100 feet of the garden it was time to leave. Reluctantly.

I laid in the tent for far too long the last morning. It was raining and the wind was blowing and I didn't want to go. There is something so magical about being in a tent while it is raining. Especially seeing through the skylight and watching the trees sway back and forth and the rain drops fall in spatters. The tent was my refuge and my cocoon, immersed in the outdoors with only a whisp of nylon between me and the birds, the bugs, the rain, the coyotes, the grass, intermittent acorns falling on the woodshed roof. The tent is one place where I felt very present in the world and very alive with nature.

Everything was lush and dripping and misty as I made my farewell garden rounds. Pajama farming, I have discovered, is in my blood and making my morning devotion to the greenery is a meditation in wonder and peace and beauty. Moments spent in the bean teepee confessional are cleansing and replenishing to the soul. Sharing time on my knees, hands deep in the soil, beside my mother in her Church of the Garden has been a sacred ritual and a blessing.

Goodbye winter squash growing secretly on the vines under your big leaf umbrellas.

Goodbye teepee beans who I trained to climb in spirals and watched grow from the ground to the sky.

Goodbye fuzzy peaches now so ripe and sweet and pink.

Goodbye prolific bush beans.

Goodbye sweet peas, my mom's favorite flower.

Goodbye zucchini plant who provided so much raw data and amazement.

Goodbye green tomatoes ... and hello to the first ripe red one that was so delicious.

Goodbye kale rows waiting patiently until frost in the fall.

Goodbye rutabagas who I never got to taste, but grew so alluringly behind the beets.

Goodbye radishes, my tiny, spicy and adorably cute food that I grew from seed.

Goodbye worms and frogs and beetles and bees and slugs and spiders and ladybugs.

Goodbye squash patch where I weeded and mulched and that evolved and travelled before my eyes.

Goodbye sunflowers watching over the garden and nodding your heads in agreement.

Goodbye lush lettuce leaves curly and ruffly and crisp.

Goodbye herbs always ready for picking and adding fresh to dinner.

Goodbye zinnias and nasturtiums and cosmos and four o'clocks and ageratum and squash blossoms and bean flowers and twinkle phlox.

Goodbye my friends in the garden. Thank you for growing as I watched, for being unruly and adventuresome, for blossoming as I slept, for surprising me everyday with subtlety and beauty and magic.

The Soyrizo Switch

2010-08-11T18:25:00.000-07:00

We headed to Cape Cod with two Very Large Zucchini in our back seat. Mom had mentioned that people in our family didn't really like zucchini, and yet we had two of them and so I considered this a personal challenge. How can I get our family to eat these two zucchini? And LIKE it?!

One of my premises is that people like to eat meat. So if I were to somehow able make the zucchini appear meaty, then maybe people would be willing to try it. And once they tried it, of course they would like it. The other premise is that great big zucchinis are often best stuffed and baked.

To further the challenge to myself and push the limits of zucchini cuisine, I also decided to try something new. Something that I had never tasted or cooked before: Soyrizo. This is a spicy soy sausage that comes in a realistic-looking plastic sheath and is pretty spicy. Now, I am not normally a big fan of "fake meat", but I figured that the whole thing was a gamble anyway. I bought the Soyrizo on the sly, with one Auntie privy to my plan. Everyone who came through the kitchen as I was sautéing and chopping and mixing commented on how good it smelled. "What are you cooking?" they would say. "Sausage" was my response.

There were about 13 of us for dinner, and it was "salad night" ... which consisted of a multitude of contributions from the whole family: corn salad, pasta salad, beet salad, green salad, bean salad, etc. And then, as the signature Hot Dish, was Sausage Stuffed Zucchini. It did make quite a nice presentation. The results of my challenge? Everyone tried it ... and liked it! And no one questioned the authenticity of the "meat" at all. It was successful enough that people asked for seconds (and thirds!) and it was eaten all up.

The only downside to the whole experiment was that, upon hearing later that it was Soyrizo, one aunt commented that she wished she had known because she would have eaten more ... as she tries to avoid red meat and sausage. My cousin also commented that he had secretly thought I was a bit hypocritical cooking sausage right after talking about the perils and moral dilemmas of eating meat. So I guess that I really fooled them.

Soyrizo Stuffed Zucchini

2 large zucchini

1 package soyrizo, removed from casing and crumbled
3 slices wheat bread, crumbled and toasted in a dry pan
2 celery ribs, small dice
1 cup leftover rice
salt & pepper
1 egg
grated Parmesan Reggiano

Slice the zucchini lengthwise and scoop out the seeds to make a trough. Save some of the scoopings and chop finely to make about 3/4 cup. Salt the zucchinis and let drain for a few hours face-down on a baking rack. Cook the Soyrizo in some olive oil over medium-high heat until it is drier and somewhat crumbly. Add the Soyrizo to the bread crumbs. Sauté the celery and zucchini in the same pan to take advantage of the Soyrizo seasonings left over. Add the celery to the stuffing mixture along with the rice and some grated Parmesan and taste. Adjust seasonings to your preference. Add the beaten egg. Spoon the stuffing into the zucchini halves and sprinkle with additional Parmesan. Bake the zucchini in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes, or until the zucchini is soft when pierced with a fork and the stuffing is browned. You could add a little water or white wine the the baking dish in the last 15 minutes or so.

Note: garlic and onion would be great sautéed along with the celery. We have a family member who cannot eat them, so they are omitted from the basic recipe.

How Fast Does Zucchini Grow?

2010-08-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

My Mom always jokes that you have to be sure to lock your car in August, otherwise you may find zucchini in the back seat when you come out of the grocery store.

Zucchini is one of those vegetables that is aptly described by the word prolific. What seems like a good idea in the Spring when planting -- "let's plant a couple of zucchini plants!" -- later becomes a logistical challenge: "what are we going to do with all of these zucchini!?" For this reason, people in Maine have been known to get pretty creative with their zucchini harvest, whether it be sneaking them into friends' cars when they are not looking, bronzing them, or using the really big ones as softball bats at Holy Mackerel games.

One the of the great wonders of zucchini is the speed at which it grows. For this reason, I decided to collect some data on my Mom's zucchinis to see if I could answer the question "how fast does zucchini grow?"

I began a rigorous program of scientific inquiry. Each day I trekked out to the garden with my camera and ruler to chart the progress of my chosen squash. My first one died in two days of blossom end rot, at 3" in length. Undeterred, I began to chart the progress of a new specimen, this one was much hardier than the first. In all, I charted the progress of three zucchini, two from one plant and the third from another plant. I measured length and width with great precision and carefully charted the growth patterns of the squash in order to formulate a scientific theory of zucchini growth. My data is presented below and yielded the following conclusions:

the change in length follows a linear progression which accelerates increasingly in the later stages of growth
on a typical plant there is a tendency toward an Alpha Zucchini, which dominates the resources of the plant
an average increase in length of 2" per 24-hour period is common for the Alpha Zucchini
an Alpha Zucchini can cause a severe retardation of growth among the subservient members of its zucchini pack
as soon as an Alpha Zucchini is harvested, the remaining zucchinis experience a surge of growth and a re-shuffling of squash seniority
zucchinis tend to experience a more significant increase in width after it rains
it is very challenging to figure out what to do with an Alpha Zucchini after it has been allowed to grow out of control

My Alpha Zucchini was harvested at 14" in length and 3.25" in width. We served it sliced and broiled with garlic-mint olive oil.

What's Going on in the Garden?

2010-07-28T13:25:00.000-07:00

After a month of work, we had to tidy up and head out to Cape Cod for some family vacation time. Of course, leaving the garden in July means several things: watering, mulching, weeding, dead-heading flowers, capturing Japanese beetles, fixing the electric fence, and harvesting. We did all of our garden chores and then crossed our fingers that it will all still be there, bigger than before, when we get back.

We harvested nine beautiful beets for my Mom's Mom. She loves them.

I ran into a sizable spider near the lettuce patch.

I picked an entire basket full of green beans and dragon langerie beans to bring to our family.

The radishes were thinned to one inch apart and then watered and mulched to keep in the moisture. I ate the thinnings for my lunch, with quinoa and cucumbers (from the garden!) and parmesan cheese. Yum. Maybe when we get back there will be little tiny radishes to eat.

The tomatoes are not ready yet, but getting there....

Bean Teepee

2010-07-28T11:09:00.000-07:00

The bean teepee was one of my first garden tasks. I weeded and mulched it with hay when the bean plants were only about a foot high. I trained the shoots to climb up in spirals around the teepee poles and then patiently re-trained them when they went astray.The beans are scarlet runner beans and rattlesnake pole beans, when they are ready we will eat them like string beans: straight off the vine!

The movie spans from July 6 to July 27.

Blueberry Heaven

2010-07-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

Wow.

Needless to say, I ate a lot of them.

Tableland

2010-07-26T13:34:00.000-07:00

One of the hallmarks of a good movie is whether or not I fall asleep while watching it. Tableland had my whole family wide awake until 10:30 pm one night, cheering and laughing and genuinely excited until the end.

Tableland is a "culinary expedition" documentary about one man's trip across US and Canada in search of real local food communities, establishments, farms, and people. The film showcased the momentum that surrounds the move towards a more sustainable food system by giving the people who are active in this movement a chance to speak and tell their own stories. From an enthusiastic British Colombia oysterman, to passionate local food chefs, to organic wine makers, to farmers with their hands in the soil, everyone interviewed showed such positivity and thoughtfulness about their part in the Food Revolution.

The film was simple, well-organized, and beautifully illustrated with scenery from both the countryside and city. The central message was really one of hope for the future and passion for food. This film set itself apart be being educational, but also uplifting, and most of all very inspiring. I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves food, feels strongly about the food movement, and wants to walk away from a film feeling like there is hope for our culinary and agricultural future.

Summer Minestrone Soup

2010-07-23T17:09:00.000-07:00

Mom’s garden is starting to really produce, and so we had to come up with something that used a lot of the vegetables that are available: herbs, zucchini, green beans, carrots, kale, garlic, onions. Naturally, we thought of soup!

Minestrone is a traditional Italian soup that lends itself well to improvisation. The name means “big soup” and it is hearty, brothy and full of veggies. Whether you have a refrigerator full of odds and ends, a garden with too much going on, or have recently splurged at the farmers market, this is an ideal way to enjoy a little of a lot of things at once … and have enough left over for lunch or dinner throughout the week.

The ingredients for my recipe below are purely a function of what we had on-hand. I suggest that you take a look around your kitchen and see what you have that could work as well. Although we used leftover cooked rice, many times minestrone soup has pasta in it – a great way to use the last of some odd pasta shape in the cupboard. Add the pasta with the green vegetables (Group 3) and make sure not to over-cook it. Try adding diced potato or sweet potato in with Group 2. Substitute leeks for some of the onions, of add a little chopped fennel in with Group 1. Use chick peas or kidney beans instead of white beans. Any kind of greens work great (chard, collards), and fresh peas would be a good substitute for the green beans. Yellow squash or any other summer squash variety would work well in addition to, or instead of, the zucchini. The possibilities are endless, and the only thing that matters is that you have a big pot of soup at the end that tastes and looks as good as it is good for you.

Summer Minestrone Soup

GROUP 1
Olive oil
6 or 8 garlic cloves, sliced thin
2 medium onions, small dice
2 medium carrots, small dice
2 celery ribs, small dice
Large handful mixed fresh herbs, chopped together and divided in thirds, set two thirds aside (I used basil, parsley, summer savory, and oregano. You could also use thyme, cilantro, dill, marjoram, etc.)

GROUP 2
1 large can tomatoes with juice
8 cups water
1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
¾ c leftover cooked brown rice
½ c dry red wine, or more to taste
1 whole dried chili
½ tsp crushed red pepper
1 or 2 bay leaves

GROUP 3
1 small or medium zucchini, quartered length wise and sliced
Generous handful of fresh beans (I used green beans and dragon langerie beans), ends trimmed and cut into one inch pieces
½ bunch of kale, sliced into thin ribbons
1 ear corn, sliced from cob

GARNISH
Black pepper
Grated Parmesan Reggiano

Warm the olive oil in a large soup pot. Sauté Group 1 with one third of the herbs for several minutes, until tender. Add Group 2 and bring to simmer for at least 30 minutes, or more if you have time. Add Group 3 and one third of the herbs and simmer for another 15 minutes or so. Check seasonings and add more red wine, pepper, or salt to taste. Let the soup sit for a while, if you can, before re-heating and serving. Stir in the rest of the fresh herbs just prior to serving. Garnish with generous sprinkles of grated Parmesan Reggiano.

Good with salad and bread for a light and satisfying summer supper. Makes a lot … so be prepared for leftovers.

Don’t forget to vote with your dollar. Get your Real Food at the farmers market, it will taste better and you will feel better.

Green Bean Potato Salad

2010-07-23T15:43:00.000-07:00

Two things happen this time of year: cookouts and green beans. Cookouts often require you to bring a pot luck dish, and once green beans start being ready in the garden they do not stop, so it’s time to eat them any way you can.

Potato salad is one of the mainstay dishes at a cookout or barbecue, but many times it is made with mayonnaise, which can be sketchy if it is a hot day and food is sitting out at all. Also, I know many people who do not like mayonnaise-based dressings at all, myself included. So I improvised a simple potato salad that is dressed with a shallot and lemon dressing and includes fresh green beans for color and crunch. I’ve made this twice, and both times it has been pretty popular. The first time was for weekday lunch food and it kept well all week, and tasted good every day. The second time was a barbecue and we had it with grilled salmon, green salad, Israeli couscous salad and grilled vegetables – a perfect summer meal to share with friends.

As I am currently on an intensive nutritional reading binge, I also put some thought into this dish from that perspective. Potatoes have gotten something of a bad rap due to their high glycemic index and starchiness. For this salad I prefer to use small new red potatoes, which have a glycemic index in the low 60s instead of the 90s (large white potatoes). In addition, adding green beans and lemon juice reduces the overall impact of the glycemic index further, making this a reasonable dish to eat. Adding green beans also boosts the protein content of the dish, so it ends up having a better nutritional balance. And the fat used is olive oil, which is one of the healthiest fats, and very tasty. Finally, I used turmeric in the dressing, which I learned has potent anti-cancer properties that are activated when it is combined with either black pepper or ginger. And, turmeric adds a nice festive color to the dish.

Green Bean Potato Salad

10 or 12 small red new potatoes, chopped into quarters or sixths
Generous handful fresh green beans, ends trimmed
¼ red onion, thinly sliced
¼ c olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 lemon, zested and squeezed
¼ tsp turmeric
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp Dijon or honey mustard
Salt to taste

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the green beans for 2 or 3 minutes, until they are bright green and still crisp, and then put them into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Add the potatoes to the pot and boil for 8 to 10 minutes or so, until they are easily pierced by a fork. Drain the potatoes and set them aside. Warm the olive oil in a small pan, add the shallots and cook gently until they are soft. Stir in the lemon zest, turmeric and pepper and cook for another minute. Remove from the heat and whisk in lemon juice and mustard. Taste the dressing and adjust seasonings according to your preference. Break or cut the green beans into one-inch lengths and toss with the dressing and sliced red onion. Fold green bean mixture and potatoes together.

Don’t forget to do your shopping at the farmers market. Green beans, new potatoes, red onions and shallots should all be available there this time of year. Support your local farmer!

What's Going on in the Garden?

2010-07-20T19:04:00.000-07:00

I have been here in Maine for three weeks now. My garden tasks have mostly consisted of weeding, mulching, training beans to climb, snacking on alpine strawberries and watching plants grow. Oh – and killing Japanese beetles with my flip flops, or a spare rock if one is handy. Not necessarily a tough life at all.

I have seen a lot change since I arrived. When I first got here, I wondered to myself if Mom had forgotten to plant part of the garden, because it just looked like a lot of tall grass and weeds. Turned out that was the squash patch! I spent 2 days on hands and knees weeding it and then another mulching it, after a rain. Now, the only green things are actual squash plants. How rewarding! (I do have to admit that weeding is a very satisfying activity for a neatnik like me.)

Buttercup squashes are a hard-shell winter squash. They are just starting to grow, and have a very cute shape.

Scarlet runner bean flowers on the bean teepee. I taught them how to climb the pole!

The sunflowers are volunteers that re-seed themselves around the garden every year. Mom has graciously allowed them to hang around and they are thanking her with some lovely blooms.

We ate the first cucumber for dinner tonight! Sliced thin, with a little red wine vinegar and sea salt …. yum.

The zucchini onslaught is beginning. We’ve eaten the first one, but they are quickly multiplying before our eyes. Time to get creative …

We planted a new row of lettuces and radishes. We planted Easter Egg and French Breakfast radishes…both seasonal staples in my salads at home. Radishes will mature in 3 to 4 weeks, so I am hoping to be able to harvest some before I leave.

Alas, the wild garlic scapes are done now. They started flowering and will seed new volunteer garlic for next year. Who can argue with food that plants itself?

Farm Life

2010-07-19T14:54:00.000-07:00

As far as I am concerned, ducks are not food. However, they can be an active and entertaining part of a farm that produces food. I believe there is truly a lack of good poultry video on the internet ... and ducks and chickens are so amusing! They run, cluck, quack, roll in the dirt, all the while just being their own busy selves, unselfconscious and unconcerned. These ducks live at Hackamatack Farm in Penobscot.

Making Do

2010-07-19T14:24:00.000-07:00

These days, it seems that everything is more complicated than it needs to be. Where cooking is concerned there are hundreds of cookbooks, thousands of recipes, uncountable food blogs every one promoting its own spin on a recipe or technique, as if a teaspoon or five minutes of baking or a certain method of mixing is really exclusive or copyrightable. But really, isn’t cooking generally pretty democratic? Each of us has the ability to make our own kitchen decisions, to add or change a little here and there, to re-invent dinner based on a whim or circumstance. We each have the power to be our own boss in the kitchen.

For me, and for many other cooks that I know, it is not so much about following directions to the letter to get a picture-perfect recipe replica (although that can be satisfying!), it is more about the creative flow that happens when I step into the kitchen. Lately, I have been talking to some Maine cooks about their own inspirations and joys in the kitchen. My Other Mother is the one who recently proposed the idea of “making do” – of using what you have instead of letting one missing ingredient get in your way. Since that conversation, I have talked with many others who savor the adventure of making do.

Part of making do is allowing food to be very, very simple. A six-ingredient dish (or meal!) can be even more satisfying than one with twice as many ingredients because its flavors are stronger and truer and less complicated. Allowing lentils, or kale, or carrots, or chocolate to shine with minimal accompaniment is many times more interesting than muddying up the palate with a pinch of this and a dash of that and any number of other ingredients. My own tomato and avocado salad is a great example of this. For two such fantastic foods, there is really nothing much needed to make them better than they already are -- a drizzle of olive oil and a dusting of sea salt is plenty enough enhancement. The mystique of gourmet French cooking, with all of its steps and sauces and preparations, has given rise to the impression that fine dining must be something difficult, complex, even unattainable for the average cook. But I believe that we know better … cooking good, simple food is possible for everyone, it is not exclusive or elusive at all.

Making do is also about being flexible enough to see a creative opportunity where someone else might see an insurmountable roadblock. How many times have you been reading through a recipe – or in the middle of cooking! – and realized that you were missing some “critical” ingredient? The last-minute trip to the store for that missing ingredient often expands to a mini shopping trip and you come home $25 later with the one ingredient you “needed” …. and five other things that you didn’t. Instead, what if you use your imagination and creativity to substitute that missing ingredient instead of going out to buy it? Many times, substituting in a recipe can improve it … whether making it lower fat, changing a flavor, or just making it more interesting to your own palate. By adding your own creativity you make the food your own, and earn bragging rights when you share it with your friends: “taste what I invented!” you can say when you sit down to eat together.

In this culture of over-abundance (and perceived scarcity!), making do is also about being content to use what we have. Our pantries and refrigerators are usually brimming with jars and bottles and packages that we once thought we needed and are now just gathering dust. How about using something that you already have? All of us have enough food in our homes to feed ourselves for quite a while, and yet we are always grocery shopping for something else. Every week I catch myself thinking “what do I want to cook this week?” instead of “what do I have to cook?”, but why not reverse the questions? That conscious shift to making do with what I have instead of imagining what I want is something that I’ve been working on. It may not always be easy, but there is real satisfaction in using up a quarter jar of dried beans, the heels of bread, or re-purposing some leftover rice from a meal in the past. Somehow, my meal gains a little more character when I know that I have made do with something that might otherwise have been wasted.

Philosophy in life and cooking are so frequently similar. Making do is about cooking in the present, being satisfied with what is available to us, being open to making small changes in our plans. In the end, maybe the most important question that we can ask ourselves every day, whether in the kitchen or elsewhere in our lives, is not “what do I want?” but ”what do I have?”. And then be creative and make do.

Blue Hill Farmers Market

2010-07-19T13:55:00.000-07:00

I visited the Blue Hill Farmers Market this weekend, an obligatory stop on my tour of local food in Maine. It is held Saturdays at the fairgrounds and, like many farmers markets, is about 35% produce and 65% local craft and creation. The produce was beautiful and fresh, but what made this market unique was a weekly evolving food play that is put on by Small Change Theater called Food Rules.

Food Rules begins with a band of singing farmers in straw hats, aprons and rubber boots weaving their way through the market singing their theme song “Food Revolution”. The performance takes place in a field adjacent to the market with wooden crates and a small stage as the only props. It is an ensemble presentation and a mix of food story testimonials, contra dance, and current food issue topics. The theme of the play is the importance of food culture, the uniqueness of our own food stories, and the power that we have as individuals to stand up for our food rights. As an evolving and topical call to action, Food Rules was effective at sparking the interest of children and adults alike and focusing their attention for a brief moment on a critical and dynamic issue what we often take for granted: food.

What did I end up with in my market bag? In working to eat some of the abundant food that we’ve been cooking at my Mom’s house, I tried to keep my purchases to a minimum: golden beets to be boiled and sliced for salad, Easter egg radishes, local beefsteak tomatoes, fresh young broccoli, and a gorgeous purple cabbage. It always makes me proud to support the people who work so hard to grow our food for us.

Anticancer

2010-07-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

Broccoli, mushrooms, ginger, turmeric, garlic, onions, olive oil, tofu, maybe some red wine … sounds like dinner, right? How about dark chocolate, raspberries, peaches, and plums for dessert? These are just some of the delicious building-blocks of the anticancer diet.

I just finished reading Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD. The book was recommended to me by a friend after hearing about my interest in the role of food in health. Anticancer was enjoyable and interesting reading, well-written from a personal point of view, and with a tone that underscores how relevant the topic is to everyone. While the book provides a broader perspective of cancer biology and physiology, and the environmental and lifestyle factors that influence its growth and development, there was a large focus on food and nutrition that definitely classifies it as a Food Book on my list.

Dr. Servan-Schreiber links the rise in cancer in Western countries since 1940 to the dramatic changes in diet that have occurred during that time. According to his research, today 56% of the Western diet caloric intake is from three sources that were non-existent until very recently: refined sugar, bleached flour, and processed vegetable oils. In addition, he points out that today’s factory farming techniques have radically altered the nutritional profile of meats and animal products by eliminating grazing and changing animal diets to be grain-intensive – resulting in a large imbalance of omega-3 vs. omega-6 fatty acids in Western diets. These radical and recent dietary changes all have the effect of feeding into the cancer biology and intensifying the growth and spread of cancers that our own immune systems could have otherwise suppressed.

Through clear narrative description, straight-forward charts and graphs, and both scientific and anecdotal evidence Servan-Schreiber manages to address this difficult and often depressing topic in a way that gives hope and also empowers the individual to take charge of their own physical, spiritual and emotional health. From a Doctor, this book is remarkably humble and presents a broad spectrum of holistic ideas about disease and health. A valuable resource for anyone interested in real information about the effect of food on health and disease.

Food Gone Wild

2010-07-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

Asparagus is a classic Spring delicacy. Crisp, elegant, alive with early flavor, asparagus is one of the first in-season vegetables to show up ready to eat after a long winter.

There are many fascinating facts about asparagus -- that it takes 3 or more years after planting for the first harvest, that stalks can grow 10" in a single day, that it is 27% high-quality protein, or a good source of vitamins A, C and folate.

However asparagus season in the kitchen is past. One of the exciting things about this plant is what happens after the harvest. The stalks are allowed to grow into a small forest, producing the nutrients that it will need for a productive crop the next season. I visited Hackamatack Farm in Penobscot this week and got a good look at a thriving asparagus forest. Another food gone wild.

Spaghetti Agretti

2010-07-13T18:37:00.000-07:00

Being something of a vegetable aficionado, it is not very often that I “discover” an entirely new vegetable. However, it was just my luck that I ran into Agretti and had a chance to experiment on the edge of my food experience.

Chase’s Daily in Belfast, ME is an indoor farmer’s market and kitchen that offers locally grown produce, handmade food – and cooking advice! The vegetables and flowers are displayed in rustic wash tubs on a simple bench underneath the current art of the month. Labels are hand-lettered on wooden shingles. Everything was fresh and luscious and so appealing. What first caught my eye was the bin of garlic scapes labeled “free”. I had to take advantage of that. And then, right next to the scapes, was a bunch of springy, feathery green stuff that I had never seen before: Agretti. Agretti looks like a cross between mammoth dill, grass and asparagus ferns and tastes crunchy and mild and watery and very lively.

Research tells me that Agretti (Salsola soda) is an Italian green native to the Mediterranean basin and was commonly grown at the edge of salty marshes, or irrigated with salt water. Agretti was grown in the past as a raw material for soda ash, which was used in glassmaking and soap making. The very friendly chef at Chase’s Daily told me that he has had Agretti in Italy, but also in Mexico, and he was the one who suggested some cooking methods to me … inspiring our improvisational dinner:

Spaghetti Agretti

1 bunch Agretti, in 3 or 4” pieces
1 bunch garlic scapes, in 3 or 4” pieces
2 c fresh edible pod peas, trimmed and halved
1 lb whole wheat cavatappi pasta
Parmesan Reggiano, shaved
Olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes

Boil a large pot of salted water. Blanch garlic scapes and peas for 2 minutes and remove. Blanch Agretti for about 4 minutes and remove when tender but still crunchy. Boil pasta until al dente. Toss everything together and top with shaved Parmesan Reggiano.

Thinning Peaches

2010-07-13T17:23:00.000-07:00

I had to help Mother Nature out a little with the gardener’s least favorite chore: thinning.

According to resident experts, peaches must be thinned to 6” apart in order to allow enough room for them to grow and ripen, and avoid weighing down the branches too heavily. It was a tough job, as each green peach is so soft and furry, and they all look as if they deserve a chance to grow up big and juicy. I managed to complete my task, however, and with a bucket full of baby peaches to show for it. If only there was something to do with green peaches …

Tent Living

2010-07-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

Part of my Self-Directed Independent Study curriculum this summer involves going “back to the land,” as they used to say when my parents were my age. This being a new millennium, however, I am not forging my way alone in the woods but rather toughing it out in my parents’ back yard …. in a tent. The accommodations are pretty lux, with a piece of foam for a mattress, plenty of wool blankets, and an outhouse located behind a stand of fir trees for privacy. I awake every morning at 4 am to the sound of a million birds greeting the dawn, which comes early here. If I am lucky, the crows keep quiet long enough for me to cover my head and go back to sleep. There is something so luxurious about laying in a tent and listening to the sound of wind in the trees overhead.

With regard to self-sufficiency, I AM doing my fair share of foraging for food and luckily there is a garden only steps away and a field full of blueberries at my fingertips. Blueberry picking is part of my daily ritual and involves extended time in a crouched position, waving at horse flies, peeking under leaves, and competing with a stray ant here and there for my harvest. It is so well worth the effort.

Maine Coast Lunch

2010-07-10T14:31:00.000-07:00

There is a fine art to summering in Maine, and even those who live here year 'round occasionally get a chance to experience the coastal high life. Maine is, after all, Vacation Land.

My mother and I had the pleasure of lunching in Bayside last week at the cottage of our good friend Martha. Bayside is a small summer community close to Belfast that originally started out as a Methodist summer retreat. The cottages are lined up next to each other along the beach, each has its own unique New England style, and of course the obligatory sun porch facing the ocean. The porch is the ideal place to relax in the afternoon, enjoy the salt breeze, and indulge in a classic Maine coast light luncheon.

Martha is well known for her gifts in entertaining and prepared for us a truly fabulous meal: fresh crab salad served in an avocado half over spring greens, cabbage slaw, buttery croissants, and fresh edible pod peas. The crab salad was mild and cool and delicate with only a hint of mayonnaise and celery and complimented perfectly by the creamy avocado. The peas were addictively sweet and crunchy. Martha told us that this was the favorite lunch that she and her mother Kay used to share on Bayside summer days. My mother and I were thrilled to take part in such a classic Maine tradition.

Food Gone Wild

2010-07-08T11:29:00.000-07:00

Our neighbor Rosemary has a sense of style and color that is totally captivating. She wears blue dyed Doc Martens, has fairytale princess hair the color of rust and copper and fire mixed together, her home is filled with brilliant accents and splashes of color, and her garden could best be described as a cross between English cottage garden and lush Maine jungle. The garden is lush and wild, yet perfect for a stroll or quiet contemplation. Tall flowers, varied beds and planters, a grove of roses, swimming pool, several resident snakes, all surrounded by a weathered wooden fence with each picket capped with a terracotta pot.

While some gardeners strive for orchestrated rows of uniform plants, symmetrically composed layouts, and perfectly trimmed foliage, Rosemary’s garden reflects her pure delight in watching what plants do when left to their own devices. One of Rosemary’s pleasures lies in seeing what happens when a normally edible plant is left to thrive and flourish past the typical harvest cycle.

The carrot (left) and parsnip (right) here prove themselves to be quite compelling in their mature states and both have lovely flowers and add unexpected beauty to the garden.

I enjoy this type of observational gardening as well …. I grew a red leaf lettuce to six feet tall this Spring on my patio, just to see how far it would go if I let it. (lettuce is to the right of the poppies in the photo )

My Other Mother’s 6-Ingredient Brownies

2010-07-08T10:26:00.000-07:00

One of my great joys being back in Maine is the chance to reconnect with my extended family, the residents of Circle Farm, affectionately known at The Hill People. I refer to our neighbor Marjie as my “other mother” because she fed, disciplined and nurtured me since I was born. Many of my early food memories are at Marjie’s house … eating matzo on the swing set in the back yard, pork chops for dinner (although my mom was vegetarian and Marjie is Jewish), Passover Seders, making fresh pasta on the counter top, Marjie’s son Josh feeding his little sister Johanna coffee and milk in her bottle, and of course dessert. Marjie is always prepared with something sweet and tasty, and most often some version of her fudgy chocolate brownies.

I got an impromptu lesson in brownie philosophy and execution on the 4th of July, after a conversation the day before about simplicity in cooking and knitting. Marjie has perfected her 6-ingredient brownies over the years and shared the secrets with me. I could not even begin to elaborate the depth and subtlety of the knowledge imparted to me, but it is sufficient to say that I have a renewed interest in the pursuit of The Perfect Brownie. Among the most critical tips I learned were the importance of cooling the chocolate & butter mixture to a thick and silky texture, and how to undercook the brownies just enough so that they end up perfectly fudgy and rich. The hardest part of all of it is waiting for them to completely cool before eating, but well worth the exercise in patience. They came out fantastic.

Marjie’s 6-Ingredient Brownies

4 oz baking chocolate
1 stick butter
1 ¼ c sugar
1 tsp vanilla or rum
¾ c flour
3 eggs
OPTIONAL: press dark chocolate chips and /or walnuts into the top of the batter before baking

Preheat oven to 325 and grease an 8” square metal baking pan. Partially melt chocolate in the micro wave, add butter and microwave until just barely melted with maybe a few lumps still left. Remove from microwave and stir until completely melted. Let this mixture cool until it thickens and the color darkens. Whirl the sugar and vanilla in a food processor. Add the cooled chocolate and mix briefly. Add the flour and mix briefly. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix for 5 seconds between them. The batter should not be over-beaten. Spread into the prepared pan and bake for about 23 to 25 minutes. The brownies should be set and have a smooth glossy appearance but not yet be pulling away from the sides of the pan. Don’t try the toothpick test in the center, they will still be gooey. Remove the brownies from the oven, they will continue to cook and you can watch the edges pull away from the pan and the top begin to split and crackle as they rest. Cool completely.

Blueberries!

2010-07-07T18:33:00.000-07:00

The blueberries are early this year and plentiful enough to pick a bowl full ... although I am holding out hopes for a good rain or two to fatten them up.

They taste like childhood to me. There is NO comparison to grocery store berries.

Homegrown Herb and Tea

2010-07-07T18:22:00.000-07:00

First stop on my Maine food adventure! I was treated to tea time at Portland’s Homegrown Herb and Tea, by my friends Megan, John and Ellie Bea. This charming little shop is dedicated to “herbal teas handcrafted in the tradition of the old world apothecary and the ancient art of Ayurvedic healing.”

Homegrown is the kind of place where the very knowledgeable and enthusiastic owner will interview you from behind the tea bar and then diagnose the blend of tea that best suits your mental, physical and emotional state at the moment. After a few questions about my mental state, recent activities and specific taste preferences I was “prescribed” the Herban Cowboy … a grounding, tonic blend of sasparilla, astragalus, ashwaganda, orange peel and schisandra berries designed to stimulate testosterone and counteract my recent travelling. My tea was like a fragrant herb soup broth garnished with an orange slice and fresh raspberries -- it was yummy, and just what I wanted! We were also presented with a small plate of crumpets, lavender shortbreads, ginger cookies and scones for a perfect mid-day tea time.

The shop is located near the Old Port section of Portland and exudes inviting neighborhood coziness and quaint New England style. There are several seating areas for small gatherings including window seats, a tall wood bar, a cushion-filled alcove with a house guitar, fireplace chairs and a private tea room behind a beaded curtain. It is the kind of place where I could easily spend a few hours reading, sipping, and eavesdropping on diagnostic conversations with the customers. The owner indicated that she does mail order teas as well – but that her website is down and it's best to call for information (207.774.3484).

Off to Maine

2010-06-30T18:39:00.000-07:00

I am heading to Blue Hill, Maine tomorrow for a month of immersive gardening training. Also known as Visiting My Folks. I'll be working as my Mom's gardening apprentice to learn some of the finer points of gardening from someone who has been growing dinner since before I was born. I am super excited at this opportunity to participate in and partake of the bounty that is Maine in the summer time. Of course, my first stop when I arrive will be straight to the blueberry field to pick a handful and see how many I can fit in my mouth at once. This is tradition at my house and something that I look forward to with great anticipation. Yes, blueberry season is not quite here yet, but I've been given the tip off that there may be a few early berries and I intend to find them.

Sens: My Favorite Restaurant

2010-06-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

Sens is, without a doubt, my favorite restaurant. We were recently lucky enough to share this fabulous dining experience with two new friends, Brooke and Nathan, who I think appreciate Chef Johnnie's food as much as I do. Located next to the Phoenix Public Farmers' Market, and in the same building as Pasta Bar, and right down the street from Matt's Big Breakfast, Sens is at the epicenter of the downtown Phoenix Food Revolution. Thank goodness.

Sens has been my favorite place to treat myself since we first discovered it almost 2 years ago. The best part about it is the tapas-style small plates that allow a sampling of lots of flavors and textures and sauces. As a flexitarian, I save my meat indulgences for special occasions and Sens is one of the few places that meets my criteria. We feasted on many of my favorites the other evening: sesame tofu, sugar cane pork, la nho beef wrapped in grape leaves, tiny vegetarian eggrolls, red curry tofu, soup gyoza ... and of course my obligatory "side salad" (green papaya, peanuts, and spicy tangy sauce). Besides the super awesome food, the hipster Friday night atmosphere and my $6 ginger vodka ... the highlight of the evening was the extensive and enticing conversation with Chef Johnnie. As a self-taught food philosopher, restaurateur, and culinary trend-setter, Chef Johnnie is truly the soul of Sens.

Engrained at ASU

2010-06-30T17:48:00.000-07:00

ASU has a new restaurant at the Memorial Union, it's called Engrained. I went there for lunch last week with my friend Jacqueline to check out the food, and the very cool concept. Engrained is envisioned as a sustainable, local, and forward-thinking dining option for the campus community. They eschew paper menus in favor of daily specials displayed on TVs at the entry, purchase ingredients within a 150 mile radius of campus whenever possible, cook the food fresh and to-order, and utilize campus recycling programs and sustainable products.

The space is on the second floor of the Union and shows an eclectic renovated style with a multitude of materials juxtaposed into an airy and modern synthesis of cafeteria and culinary hot spot. The chairs are made of recycled seatbelt webbing, food is served on real plates with flatware and glasses, and the staff is paid a salary so that the service is good without requiring tipping. The vibe on a Thursday at lunch was busy and spacious and relaxing .... a good break from a busy day slogging across campus in 110-degree weather. It was refreshing to see such a cool concept well-patronized by the ASU community.

We split the foccacia pizza and lentil salad for lunch. The bill was $17 with drinks included. The pizza was nothing special, but the lentil salad was inspiring in its simplicity, flavor, and as a healthful option on a campus dominated by fast food chicken and french fries. I was inspired enough to go home that afternoon and improvised my own lentils (see below). Some of the incongruous parts of the venue were the sushi bar (in the desert?!) and the soda fountain (local Coke and Pepsi?!), but I have to give some leeway for a good concept trying to cater to a wider audience than health food junkies. Perhaps Engrained will evolve over time to more fully embody its mission and values .... I will definitely be returning to keep tabs on it. And I'll be trying the dessert next time.

Lentils Inspired by Engrained

1 c brown lentils

stock or water

2 dried bayleafs

dried chilis

1 onion, sliced thin

1 tsp butter

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

6 - 8 sun dried tomatoes

salt and pepper

Rinse lentils and cook with bayleaf and chili in about 2 c stock or water until tender. Add more liquid as necessary to prevent from burning but not so much that it gets soupy. Remove bay leaf and chili.

While the lentils are cooking, caramelize the onion in butter and olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add a pinch of salt after about 5 minutes. Total time to caramelize is about 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Fold caramelized onions and finely chopped sun dried tomatoes into lentils. Deglaze onion pan with balsamic and add to lentils. Season with more vinegar, salt, and pepper to-taste.

I've been eating this as a cold salad with lettuce, tomatoes, a little cheese and hard boiled egg. Also, is great warmed up with brown rice. Yum!

Tomatoes from the Farmer's Market

2010-06-26T17:57:00.000-07:00

It will come as no surprise to those who know me that I am obsessed with tomatoes. They are one of the items in my kitchen that I horde compulsively so that I am sure to always have some on hand. We made our weekly pilgrimage to the Downtown Phoenix Public Market this morning and picked up some beautiful specimens: golden cherry, green and yellow zebra stripes, and something that looks like a Black Krim or Cherokee Purple.

One of the most important things to know about tomatoes is how to store them. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, put tomatoes in the refrigerator! It is a travesty and equivalent to tomato murder to store your tomatoes in the fridge. They become mealy and wrinkled and watery and loose all of that yummy tomato flavor and texture. I like to store mine on the counter, out of direct sunlight. Cherry tomatoes go great in a bowl or basket. Larger ones should be stored flat so that they do not bruise each other due to the force of gravity. The upside to this strategy is that I always have an incredibly alluring tomato "bouquet" to look at .... and great inspiration for dinner.

My favorite easy tomato dish is one that we have at least twice a week at my house, if not more. Chopped ripe tomatoes (or halved cherry tomatoes), the tiniest drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Fold these gently together and let sit for 10 or 15 minutes. Right before dinner, dice up one fresh avocado and mix in very delicately. That's got to be one of the tastiest ways to enjoy tomatoes -- and avocados. They really don't need anything else.

An avocado is one of those fruits / veggies over which there is some controversy. Are they too high in fat? Good for you or bad for you? Here's the stats for a single avocado:

320 calories
4 g protein
13 g fiber
17 g carbohydrate
29 g fat
4 g saturated fat
20 g monunsaturated fat
more than 20% recommended daily value of: B2, B3, B6, C, E, folate, potassium

Avocados also contain oleic acid and may help to lower cholesterol and prevent some cancers, according to whfoods.org. And since monunsaturated fat is good for you .... might as well enjoy an avocado!

Brown Rice

2010-06-24T15:24:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Lynne Rossetto Kasper I now have a renewed enthusiasm for rice, brown rice in particular.

The secret lies in cooking the rice so that there is no measuring or guessing or scrubbing the burnt grains off of the bottom of the pan. For me, that makes it a lot more appealing to cook rice.

Lynne's big secret? Cook it like pasta. Use a big pan full of lightly-salted and rapidly-boiling water. Add rice and continue to boil rapidly until al dente. Drain the rice, return to the pan with the cover on and set aside for a few minutes. The result: fluffy, separated, well-cooked rice. Brown cooks in 30 minutes and white rice much faster.

I recently made a tasty rice dish with my brown rice that I even got our seven-year old friend Taylor to eat willingly and enthusiastically: sauteed onion and garlic, ground flax seed, Lynne's crossover spice, thawed green peas, cooked brown rice, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Food Victory: Spread the Word!

2010-06-24T14:47:00.000-07:00

"Don't let Monsanto spin the story! GE Alfalfa STILL illegal to grow or sell."

Latest update from FRESH the movie website.

Be sure to sign up on their email list for info about petitions, resources, and the Food Revolution.

Killer at Large

2010-06-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

Just finished watching Killer at Large: Why Obesity is America's Greatest Threat. That was a good food movie. I procrastinated about watching it for a while, because I didn't necessarily want to watch an entire movie about obesity. But it turned out to be one of the better Food Revolution movies that I've seen in a while.

The film was really effective in the breadth of scope with which the topic was covered. While many food movies have focused more narrowly on factory farming or agribusiness, this film managed to cover a lot of ground in a way that was succinct, empowering and very educational. From White House policy, to the food lobby, to school lunch programs, to liposuction on teenagers, to organic farmers, to the Surgeon General, the the USDA Food Guide Pyramid, and lots of direct conversations with food activists the film examined the issue of health in America thoroughly and candidly.

Of course, the obligatory interviews with Michael Pollan were there, and he is as convincing and eloquent as always. In addition, there was footage with Presidents Bush and Clinton, the former Surgeon General Richard Carmona, Ralph Nader, Governor Schwarzenegger and a lot of congressional testimony from our own representatives illuminating how deeply entrenched the Junk Food Lobby is in American government. There were also some new faces that I was glad to meet .... Ann Cooper, Militant Lunch Lady, passionately fighting for real food for kids; Greg Christian of Greg Christian Catering in Chicago talking about his 100% organic school lunch program; high school teachers talking about the institutional challenge of removing vending machines from school hallways; and American moms speaking out about how food advertising to kids undermines their parental authority and our childrens' health almost from birth.

Killer at Large further reinforced my conviction that the Food Revolution is one of the most important movements going on today around the planet. My dedication is renewed and my enthusiasm bolstered. Now time to go and make dinner!

Available streaming on NetFlix and other sites.
FIVE STARS

Shannon's Birthday Cake

2010-06-23T12:17:00.000-07:00

I had the great honor of baking the cake for my friend Shannon's birthday party last night. As it is zucchini season, I made a chocolate zucchini bundt cake. I used the recipe from Simply Recipes with just a few modifications: 3 c grated zucchini, no nuts and an orange glaze.

The orange glaze was 2 cups powdered sugar, grated rind from 2 medium oranges, fresh-squeezed orange juice, about 2 tsp melted butter, and a dash of salt and vanilla. Orange juice was added as-needed to get the right glaze consistency.

The cake came out great! Very moist, rich flavor and good zesty contrast with the orange glaze. I wish I had some left overs right now. We would have taken pictures, but got caught up in the Birthday Party whirlwind.

Cheers, also, to out hostess Jacqueline. She executed a flawlessly yummy all vegetarian patio dinner: grilled barbeque tofu kabobs, grilled veggie kabobs, beet salad with pecans and blue jack cheese, watermelon, and a lovely and zesty green bean salad. We fed vegetarians and meat-lovers alike and they all looked happy to me.

Happy Birthday Shannon!

New Business Cards!

2010-06-18T13:31:00.000-07:00

My new business cards arrived! I am super proud of my radish logo ... custom designed by my own personal graphic artist and architectural expert. (my husband.)

I have to say that I feel there is great future in the Food Revolution. My 4 core areas of focus are:

sustainable, local & organic food
vegetarian lifestyle
nutrition, holistic health
professional cooking & baking

What we eat MATTERS.

Vig Uptown

2010-06-18T12:54:00.000-07:00

While the new Vig Uptown is not my favorite choice for food worthy of The Food Revolution .... they DO have a cool place for customers to write their thoughts on the wall. And the day bartender, Julia, is definitely a like-minded Revolutionary.

HH drinks are pretty decent, and the new location is worth checking out at least once, if only to see the faux outdoor space and cool wood slat features. Note to self, however ... shots are not a good idea. Especially before 5 pm on a weekday.

Our Daily Bread

2010-06-15T08:58:00.000-07:00

Stunning, wordless documentary.

While the title suggested that there might be some bakery scenes, or other benign commercial food imagery, instead the film focused on the industrial machinery and processes by which food arrives ready-to-eat in our grocery stores.

Not for the faint of heart, and certainly not for those who don't care to burden themselves with the details of how meat is raised, slaughtered and processed. There were definitely a few "cover my eyes" moments. It made me wonder who it is, exactly, that designs the machinery used in slaughter houses and processing facilities.

The fact that the entire documentary is un-narrated or otherwise editorialized allows the watcher to make their own inferences and conclusions without feeling preached at. After all, this is simply the fact of how our food gets to the table. The serene and stark cinematography elevates this into the genre of an art film with imagery both shocking and beautiful.

2006. Available on NetFlix.

FOUR STARS