Just My Opinion by Steve

I am 57 years old and I have come to understand that young people usually can’t distinguish the difference between 40 year old and 70 year old.  We are all in the same category to them. So if you want a senior discount, just go to the window with the youngest clerk.

How wrong is it to ask for a senior discount when you don’t qualify?  I know it’s wrong.  My question is: On a scale of 0 - 10,  How wrong is it? (0 = It’s the right thing to do –10= You will burn in hell)

Did you know? This chart, showing which major companies own which organic food companies, is regularly updated by Philip H. Howard, assistant professor at Michigan State University.  (larger version here). When I show this chart in a lecture, people are often very surprised.  They were holding on to the notion that their favorite organic brand was just a mom and pop business located on a farm somewhere.  It is  surprising and yet logical that Cargill owns Lightlife tempeh.

There are pros and cons to the bigger guys eating up the smaller ones.  The up side is that these huge food manufacturers know how to move and place product.  More people have access to organic food as a result.  However, there is more than one uncomfortable aspect. Worries about the integrity of the organic standards come to mind.  Also, a lot of the products (not all) represented on this chart are canned, bottled and boxed.  An organic oreo seems only a hair more healthful than a conventional one. Do you agree?

I’m starting to sound like Steve.  Like a “Just my opinion” piece.  But really what I want to know is your thoughts.  Do you see this as a half full pacman or half empty one?

Spring is in full swing.  We see blossoms and shoots and are reminded that out of the dead of winter comes rejuvenation.  The garden manager, the lovely Jenny Perez, came to speak to my class at Bastyr University this week.  She carefully covered all the reasons that we want to purchase fresh, local organic food from a gardener’s perspective which is compelling.

Seasonal eating - something we often overlook - was also a theme.  Including food that is in season keeps us in tune with nature, gives the year rhythm and ritual.  It’s also economical. 

The first plants to appear in spring are stalks and young leaves such as asparagus, rhubarb, spinach, kale and lettuce.  As we shake off the sleepy heaviness of winter, the body is ready for cleansing foods, lighter meals.  In Eastern medicine, springtime is associated with the liver and detoxification.  A fasting day once a week can be revitalizing for some.  Implementing Meatless Mondays at this time of year may feel right.  Fruits and vegetables that offer chlorophyll or a citrus flavor can taste just right.

What do you do cook/eat to give your body a fresh start in spring?  What seeds are you planting - literally or figuratively?

From our random drawing (all numbers went in a bowl and we drew one out) is #33 Carol, from Anchorage, Alaska.  Her entry: Cocoa.  Awesome.

Thank you everyone for your enthusiastic response.  I sent Kenneth King, who owns the dairy farm in Kansas, to our site should he need any names for calves.  One of my favorites from a viewer’s three-year old was ‘Donkey”.

Hey.  Stay tuned.  We will have another great book give-away next month and the next month and so on.  Spread the word.

Just My Opinion by Steve

I think it’s OK to appeal to your own character flaws to serve the greater good. For example, Two weeks ago I quit caffeine (again). It was jittering me out, and I’m not a “just-one-cup-in-the-morning” kind a guy. If I tell my brain that it’s for “health” reasons, my brain won’t even register that. It wants a tangible pay-off. So I negotiate. I tell it that caffeine is the best drug ever when we use it as a drug, like when we (I say “we”) need to stay awake or really focus on something.

I reminded my brain about going to London last year for work. We (me and my brain) quit caffeine for a week before that trip so when we really needed it to stay awake , we drank two cups of coffee and it really, really worked.  It seems to be working. I believe that my brain thinks we’re going to Europe. I have no such plans.

At times I feel lost.  When before I always knew where to go between appointments, and why (to get a little lift), I now observe in wonder as the tentacles of caffeine reach for me from every passing block. I have discovered Kombucha. It’s alive and it feels like an event.

In honor of Earth Day we are giving away a pack of “Earth Dinner” cards produced by Organic Valley along with coupons for free Organic Valley dairy products (they produce a fantastic pastured butter). These creative cards were designed to spark stories and inspiration at your Earth Day dinner party. The cards also come with a beautiful little red booklet offering ideas about how to use the cards and a whole bunch of quotes from beloved food gurus.  Hooray.  Cookus Interruptus is proud to offer this free gift.

Our muse for this contest was a recent news story: “Cows with Names Give More Milk” Catherine Douglas and Peter Rowlinson of Newcastle University in the United Kingdom have won a veterinary medicine prize for showing that giving dairy cows names and calling them by their correct name increased milk production yield by an average of 258 liters a year. The researchers said cows are very responsive to friendly milkers with a positive attitude.
Kenneth King, who runs a Joel Salatin-like farm (Omnivore’s Dilemma and Food Inc.) in Hutchinson Kansas, reported this story in his weekly Farm Fresh Weekly newsletter.  I visited the farm in 2008 and bought some heavenly butter and eggs from their (as Kenneth put it)  “stress-free animals”.  Indeed, they were.

So the contest for the sweet Organic Valley Earth Day prize package (cards, coupons, booklet) is:
If you had a dairy cow, what would you name her?  I’d call her Buttercup. How about you?

Leave a comment to enter.  We’ll draw a winner 4/20.

Just My Opinion by Steve

The last entry about creamy peanut butter leads me to this.  People who listen to music while they jog are soft. If you don’t want to run, then don’t run.  Listen to your body. Age Quad Agis. Just my opinion.

This Saturday (April 10th)  I will be a judge at the annual Seattle Edible Book Festival  - a truly unique event.  12-3 pm at the Good Shepard Center 4649 Sunnyside Ave. North.  Read more about the doin’s here.   Emcee is our good friend Nancy Guppy.  Big fun.  Come on out if you live in the area.

-Cynthia

Recently I have been asked about bread.  How do you find a worthwhile loaf to spread you crunchy or creamy nut butter on?

Parents tell me that the ingredient list on bread packages is long and complicated.  Difficult to tell if it is really a whole grain product or not.  Others say that too many loaves contain high fructose corn syrup and cheap oils.  All true.  When it comes to bread, you will have to pay more to get less - meaning: if you want a really tasty whole grain bread with very few ingredients, it’ll cost.

In the Seattle area we have some excellent local bakeries like Essential Baking Company .  One of my favorite characters is a loaf  called Pain du George which lists; whole wheat flour, water and salt on it’s wrapper.  When you bite into the chewy moist bread you immediately taste the mild sourness telling you that George has some fermented starter growing in his refrigerator.

For digestibility, I tend to choose a sourdough (fermented) bread or a sprouted bread.  Fermenting dough can enhance mineral absorption and some studies show that wheat sensitive folks are able to tolerate bread made by using a lengthy sourdough process.  Other studies claim that sourdough wholegrain bread doesn’t spike blood sugar the way regular bread (whole grain or not) might.  If you want to make your own sourdough bread, you can purchase starter online or make your own using the recipe in Sandor’s book Wild Fermentation.

Sprouted grain bread involves soaking the grain and allowing it to sprout. The sprouted seedlings are then mashed together and baked. Sprouting allows the enzymes in the grain to convert some of the carbohydrates and fats to vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. These flourless whole grain breads are light and very digestible – a nice choice for young children.

What do you like to spread tapenade on?  Or making a Smoked Salmon Reuben with?  What store brands are worth spending your dough on?

The party’s over - we have a winner.  Wrote each comment number on a piece of paper.  Put them in a hat, shuffled and drew.  The winner:  #39 - Jessica!  Congrats.  And thank you to everyone for your fermentation enthusiasm.  Inspiring.