Cranberry Sauce...SOOOOO Simple

This is an incredibly easy and tasty cranberry sauce for those of you who despise the canned crap or like it, but can't stand to look at the gelatinous cylinder.

Of course, nothing is set in stone and it's incredibly forgiving:

2 bags of cranberries (fresh or frozen)
About 1 bottle of Ginger Beer or good Ginger Ale

4 cinnamon sticks

1 orange- rind and juiced; I throw the 2 halves in to cook

About 1/3 cup brown sugar

About 1/4 cup maple syrup

few grinds of nutmeg
dash of salt & pepper

Add everything to a pot in no particular order; turn on heat to med-hi. Once cranberries have exploded (you'll hear them) turn it down and simmer away until its the consitency you like. I make this a couple of days ahead and just put it out in ramekins every couple of seats so it's room temperature for dinner time.

Thanksgiving Eve

It's the day before T-Day! The only holiday with food truly at the center; it is a day celebrating a feast with a feast. Although my life is currently saturated with familial dysfunction, one day Thanksgiving WILL be MY holiday. I love this day- this morning I even woke up at 5: 20 to get started on my rutabaga by cooking off some bacon and onions.

Anyway, my menu:

Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Rutabaga mashed with bacon, onion, maple syrup, rosemary and thyme

Stuffing- 1/2 cornbread; 1/2 white bread

Turkey- organic, free range, from PA (as local as I could find of course)

Mashed potatoes (unfortunately, surrendered to my Grandpa who insisted)

Cranberry Sauce (recipe follows)

Amazzzzzzzzing. I love it all.

Food Inc.

I know, I know, it came out a while ago, but I just got to it this past weekend. I knew most of what it had to say, being that I am a huge follower of Michael Pollan and I have seen Fast Food Nation. Seeing it and hearing it all, however, never fails to dishearten and anger me.

The movie explores several different aspects of the broken food system in this country. From the way we raise our meat, to the consolidation of most of our food into 5 multi-nationals, to the fact that most of our food comes from corn.

What I think resonates the most is that this current food model that we follow, has only been around for 50 years or so. The "industrial food chain" we have created is incredibly new and I believe that our health as a nation and many of its downfalls can be directly attributed to the crap we eat.

I encourage everyone to see it, but unfortunately it does not matter if you will not change your ways. The only reason this system remains is because people are too eager to comply with the absurdity that is our national diet.

The great atrocities against the farmers in the documentary were also unfortunate. Their cry for an extinct way of life only reinforces a need to RESORT BACK to how food once was before kids were obese, spinach got contaminated with ecoli, and you could read every word on the ingredient list.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQzzprbRb74

WATCH it, but more importantly: DO something about it...

Child Nutrition Act

As an AmeriCorps volunteer in Paterson, NJ I see the effects of our nation's food policies everyday. The poor kids that do not have money for a backpack are overweight...junk food is cheap.

The Child Nutrition Act, which comes up for vote every 5 years is being watched like never before. The obesity epedemic int his country among children especially has shed much light upon the subject, but I do not expect it to change. Although I admit I'm a synic, I realize that food companies have much more money then poor children and will, therefore, have more say in policy.

Article courtesy of the American Agriculturalist:
http://americanagriculturist.com/story.aspx?s=32573&c=8

Priorities of Child Nutrition Reauthorization Will be Improved Access, Quality and Performance
Administration is committed to adding $10 billion to child nutrition over next 10 years.
Jason Vance
Published: Oct 23, 2009
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack addressed the media Friday morning about the Administration's priorities in reauthorizing the Child Nutrition Act, which is updated every five years. He told the members that it is a priority of USDA to provide children with healthier meals.

"Our children are clearly struggling, for we have fallen behind the curve as a society on this very important issue," Vilsack said. "The statistics are cause for serious concern and concerted action and attention. Nearly one-third of our young people are overweight or obese, or at risk of being overweight or obese."

Vilsack cited a report from the Institute of Medicine that showed young people are eating too few dark green and orange vegetables, too few low-fat dairy products and too many discretionary calories. This trend puts children at increased risk of several obesity related conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and high blood pressure.

"It's important for us to focus on the upcoming Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act," Vilsack said. "It is this opportunity where we have the chance to substantially improve the quality of meals we are serving to 31 million school children across the United States."

The Obama Administration has proposed an investment of an additional $1 billion annually over the next 10 years to improve child nutrition programs. In the recent Agriculture Appropriations bill, Congress began to make a down payment on this new approach with a commitment of $150 million toward improving programs.

"We've made a first positive step," Vilsack said. "This next year will an important year for us to continue to educate Americans about the importance of this, in terms of the future health needs of their children, the future capacities of these youngsters for them to be the very best students they possibly can be. So the focus will be on improved access, improved quality and improved performance."

Not the nectar of the gods too?

I picked this up at The Daily Beast and although I was all too familiar with the food industry bastardizing all things positive about food to make a profit, I guess I remained ignorant about my beloved wine.

The article describes how the American's romantic idea of small wineries we envision from the picture on the bottle is dead wrong. Indeed, many of the biggest producers do not even grow their own grapes, instead buying fermented grape juice and slapping a label on it.

My favorite part is a statement from an executive from Total Wine, a huge wine seller ont eh East Coast:

Steve Faith, Vice President of Wine Operations for Total Wine & More says, “I think people are looking for a good bottle of wine that they can take home every night, the quality will be there, and the taste profile they want, and they don’t care if it’s from a homey winery.”
HOW THE HELL IS HE GOING TO TELL ME WHAT I DON'T CARE ABOUT??!!!

Also, another useful piece from the article:

The trick is to read the fine print. In wines made in America, look for the term “produced and bottled by” on the label. It may not sound like much, but it’s all you need to know. Terms like “cellared and bottled by” or “vinted and bottled by” do not mean the same thing. In fact, they imply that the wine was not actually made at the winery at all.
In wines from other countries, look for similar terms. For instance, French wines will sport the term Mis en Bouteille au Domaine or Mis en Bouteille au Château. On Italian wine labels, look for Azienda Agricola or Imbottigliato all'origine.



The moral of the story- Don't drink out of ignorance either.

Trick or Treat on Grand Street!

For an AmeriCorps event in Paterson we hosted Trick or Treat on Grand Street, a Halloween festival for local children. it went well and of course I was in charge of food which rocked(except for the fact that our event ran from 12-4 and we ran out of food at 2-totally a budgeting problem because I spent all the money).

I made a punch from scratch which contained:

Hawaiin Punch
Ginger Ale/Sprite
Orange or Raspberry Sherbet

I mixed them in varying degrees in my cauldron and NO matter what it tasted awesome and looked like foamy blood. How can dyed sugary drink taste bad???

We also had tons of candy, 2 cakes, pretzels/chips, gummy eye balls, fingers, and reptiles, cookies, and cupcakes. And my personal favorite-APPLES!!

Swiss Chard

It's known as Swiss Chard and it's incredibly unknown. I grew it this season and it produced brilliantly despite the generally sour weather. A leafy green that I would place (for culinary purposes) somewhere between spinach and collard greens, swiss chard is an awesome addition to any meal.

I grew rainbow swiss chard and enjoyed the look of dismay on peoples' face when I cooked it. Very simple preparation- little olive oil/butter, minced garlic, and the leaves roughly chopped go in a big pan. Add a little water (to barely cover the bottom of the pan) and cover for just a few minutes. Once it is wilted, take the lid off to preserve color and braiste ( a combination of braise and saute) until it reaches the texture of your choice.

You can also add cream, let it reduce some, and vwa-la : creamed swiss chard.