Food Fight: A History of War

Check out this history of modern warfare from WWII to the present. All countries are represented by various food items. This is incredible.



(Via The Feedbag)

Green Grape: Free Champange

Wondering what kind of bubbly to get for New Year's Eve? Tonight and tomorrow night come to the Green Grape in Fort Greene:

"Please join us in our Brooklyn wine store on Monday, December 29 from 5-7pm for a fun pre-New Year's Eve tradition where we open all of our champagnes for you to sip and compare. This year we've added a bonus event, on Tuesday, December 30 from 5-7pm, we'll open five sparkling wines under $30. Taste these off-the-beaten-path sparkling alternatives to champagne and try before you buy for New Year's.

Both tastings will feature cheeses chosen by Glenn and Jada that go well with champagne. Among their recommendations: Brillat Savarin, Kunik and Dancing Cow's Brunet."

If you are looking for some good suggestions but can't make it to the Green Grape, check out this Tasting Report from Eric Asimov. Everything is under $20 and sure to impress.

Obama Foodorama

I'm kind of a big fan of this blog: Obama Foodorama. They do an excellent job covering food/Obama related issues: everything from what Obama eats at a White Sox game to a recent post about the currently open position of Under Secretary of Food Safety. This article is able to slightly assuage my fears of Vilsack as Agriculature Secretary . Check out what they have to say about the role of Food Safety Under Secretary and why Bill Marler might be a good pick.

Soda Tax

As part of Governor Patterson's proposed budget to shore up New York's blinding deficit, Patterson and his team have gotten creative: an %18 sales tax on all soft drinks and other nondiet sugary beverages. Nicholas Kristoff is again coming correct with his Op-Ed in the Times today and makes some great points as to how the cigarette tax was the biggest healthcare breakthrough in the last 40 years. Maybe this soda tax could do similar things for obesity what the cigarette tax did for lung cancer.

Soda, even if it tastes good, is empty calories and really does nothing good for you. However, I also believe that the stuff in diet soda isn't much better for you. There have been studies that point to diet soda actually being more harmful to you than regular soda. It's hard to tell what's really going on here with conflicting studies floating about, but I think the bottom line for me is soda isn't good. Period. (Although it's hard to imagine never having a Dr. Brown's again.)

But here are some facts from Mr. Kristoff: "One new study estimates that 24 million Americans now have diabetes, more than four times the number in 1980. The total direct and indirect cost to Americans is $218 billion each year — an average of $1,900 per American household. Each year, diabetes contributes to the deaths of more than 200,000 Americans."

These are real numbers and I think that a tax on soda is a step in the right direction. When it boils down to it, soda is part of a bigger problem: the fact that the U.S. government subsidizes corn that then ends up as the corn syrup inside Coke. And, like I said yesterday, it sucks that our new Agricultural Secretary has such close ties to the interests of keeping the corn syrup flowing.

Fader: Cooking with Amazing Baby

Wesleyan-spawned band Amazing Baby goes into the Fader's 'test kitchen' and kind of cooks. They drink Colt 45's and Simon makes a peanut butter ball. Watch the video for more.

Dark Days?

What does Obama's choice for Agriculture Secretary mean for U.S. food policy? While the NY Times and others essentially endorse the choice of former Iowa governor, Tom Vilsack, as Ag #1, I have my doubts. He was certainly not on the shortlist that Michael Pollan and other reform advocates drew up a few weeks back. Last Wednesday, Nicholas Kristoff eloquently wrote on the issue and the need to steer away from a secretary who is closely tied to big business agriculture. Yet choosing an Iowan governor is a pretty clear sign that King Corn won't be in danger anytime some.

As Ezra Klein points out over at the American Prospect, "appointing him to head the agency is like appointing the governor of a petrostate to head the Department of Energy."

Apparently, Vilsack is a strong advocate of combating global warming and developing alternative energy sources. That's great, but according to the Times, "One of the first major decisions Mr. Obama and Mr. Vilsack may have to make is whether to grant the ethanol industry’s requests for billions in federal aid in the stimulus bill." Let's face it, Corn rules Iowa ergo Corn brought Vilsack to power ergo he isn't going to bite the hand that feeds him....unless he is the coolest dude ever. I hope he surprises everyone and gets rid of ethanol subsidies. Then farmers, not Monsanto win. Then food is about the consumers not the producers. Argh!!!! I guess we shouldn't give up Hope just yet.

Fast Food Origami

This is the perfect Sesame Tooth holiday gift. So what if you can't eat it. That's about a close to fast food as you need to be anyways.

Set includes sheets of printed sixteen 6"x 6" pieces of origami paper to make two burgers, a soda, a carton of fries and a tray. Illustrated instructions are easy to follow even if you don't understand Japanese!

Buy it at The Curiosity Shoppe for $6.00.

Recession Delight

Inspired by growing whispers of falling prices and a recent NY Times article by Melissa Clark, I could no longer resist the call of the fish market. After work on Thursday, I headed over to The Lobster Place, looked the fish monger in the eye and said “Let me see your 2 pound lobsters, I’ll take a pair of them.” For $7.95/lb how could I not indulge? I road the train home giddy with the secret knowledge that, between my feet, two huge crustaceans elbowed each other for room.

For me, one of the most fascinating parts of cooking lobster is that you get the rare opportunity to kill your own food. Not that I enjoy the act itself, but the fact is we have been so far removed from the animals we eat that they are no longer recognizable. That package of meat in the supermarket was actually a cow at one point and it is important to acknowledge it as such, and be aware of how it got from cowness to steakness (probably in an antibiotic-fed daze on a factory farm). While I wish I could have set my own lobster traps, having a greater responsibility in the process from sea to table was extremely satisfying. I appreciated my meal more because of it.

That being said, I tried a new technique of killing lobsters not for the faint of heart. Following Melissa’s advice, I put the lobster in the freezer for 15 minutes to slow down its metabolism (this did not mean the lobsters weren’t squirming furiously after I took them out). Then I turned the lobster on its back, took my sharpest knife, and plunged the blade from head to tail. Next I cracked the shell in half and scooped out the guts. Elizabeth was with me for the first lobster, but had to leave the room for the second. The lobsters, with their decentralized nervous system, still twitched after I was done.

Over the summer, I had grilled lobsters in the Hamptons, and I had boiled lobsters before, so I was intrigued by Melissa’s suggestion to broil them in a spicy butter. Twelve minutes (of salivating and basting) later, they were a gorgeous red hue and ready. To compliment the seafood, I cooked polenta and then baked it with chopped garlic and parmesan cheese mixed in. I also baked up cubes of buttercup squash and steamed some spinach. As it turned out, all were easily eaten by hand.

The lobster tail meat separated from the shell in one simple pull and Elizabeth and I dived into to the succulent meat. Next followed the claws and silence. Then suddenly, I came out of a daze, completely sated, and completely satisfied, with a clean plate.

Grab some lobster while it’s still cheap! You won’t be disappointed.

Broiled Lobster with Cajun Butter

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 teaspoon onion powder

3/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon mustard powder

2 live lobsters, about 1 1/2 pounds each (or 2 lbs. if you're gangster).

1. Preheat broiler. Arrange an oven rack 4 inches from heat source. To make Cajun butter, stir together all ingredients except lobsters in a small bowl.

2. Place lobsters in bag in freezer for 15 minutes to slow their metabolism. Place a lobster on its back. Using a sharp knife and quick movement, slice lobster in half lengthwise from head to tip of tail. Grab both sides of shell and split open body, cracking through its hard back. Scoop out its gray-green innards. Use back of a heavy knife to crack open both claws. Repeat with remaining lobsters. (You can have a fishmonger do this for you as long lobster meat is cooked within an hour.)

3. Arrange lobsters in a single layer in a large roasting pan (or use 4 large gratin dishes). Coat body and claw meat generously with Cajun butter. Broil, basting once halfway through with pan juices, until lobster meat is cooked through and slightly charred, about 12 minutes. Remove lobsters from oven. Spoon pan juices over lobsters and serve.

More Axe than Axe

In other fast food-related news, Burger King has just come out with a body spray!? Burger King Flame is 'the scent of seduction, with a hint of flame-broiled meat'.

As they explain on their website FireMeetsDesire.com, "The Whopper Sandwich is America's favorite Burger. Flame by BK captures the essense of that love and gives it to you" as a new age cologne. They are actually selling the stuff at Ricky's. I don't know what to say. Is this brilliant or sad?

McEvolution

“The new packaging engages in an honest conversation with consumers about the quality of McDonald’s food,” claims Boxer, the design firm that McD's brought on to update the brand's image. For more on this unfortunate masking of fast-food's detriments check out Creative Review's article here.

Veev: Capitalizing on the Antioxidant Craze

The featured beverage of the Green Drinks party was Veev (tagline: a better way to drink). Reputed as being the very first Açaí spirit, Veev's press release claims that the açaí is "the exotic-tasting, Brazilian national fruit considered to be the healthiest food on the planet. With 57% more antioxidants than pomegranates or blueberries, and 30 times more heart-healthy anthocyanins than red wine, this dark purple berry has catapulted from the Amazonian Rainforest to martini glasses."

I was first introduced to Acai about four years ago by my friend Grant. He had just come back from studying in Brazil and thought that acai was ripe for the spotlight, maybe even the next big American food trend. Unfortunately, he was maybe about a year late in terms of capitalizing on the berry. As you can see now, Acai is so trendy that there's even an alcoholic beverage using the fruit's health value to its advantage. This is clearly ludicrous; the alcohol is going to get you drunk, not keep your immune system strong. However, as marketing ploys go, it's not bad. Plus, they donate $1 per bottle to Sambazon's Sustainable Acai Project in Brazil. Righteous bootleggers.

oh come ON

There is too much cuteness in this picture. Makes a grown man get all googley inside.

(via Serious Eats)

GreenDrinks

Last night I attended the Island to Island Party, courtesy of Green Drinks NYC. Green Drinks is an international networking night out that happens once a month all over the country and the world. I was amazed at how cool it was. Here hundreds of green-conscious like-minded individuals network, make friends and learn about amazing projects around NYC and abroad. My friends at Make Me Sustainable had a booth there, as did bio diesel activists, fare trade chocolatiers and other cool business.

I went with my friend Chip, whose father was a keynote speaker of the night, talking about an organization he founded called Islands First. As Palau's ambassador to the UN, Stewart Beck has a vested interest in confronting the effects of climate change, which are felt to a much greater extent in the South Pacific than here in the U.S. If there are still neigh sayers of climate change out there, Palau is a perfect example of a place that is right now in the line of fire because our devastating treatment of the planet.

On a lighter note, there were several food treats that should not go unmentioned. Chocolate samples were in full force at Green Drinks represented by Sweet Riot, Travel Chocolate, and my personal favorite (namewise) Dagoba Chocolate.

Sweet Riot is "creating a sweet movement to fix the world. :) We’ve started by sourcing our cacao directly in Latin America, using recyclable, reusable packaging which features emerging artists, and by only using all-natural, healthy ingredients for our dark chocolate ‘peaces.’

Travel Chocolate's mission: To provide premium fair trade chocolate products with a positive societal impact focusing on improving farmers' working & living conditions, eradicating child labor, providing education, and restoring the earth's waterways.


At Dagoba Organic Chocolate they seek to honor Full Circle Sustainability principles: blending attention to Quality, Ecology, Equity and Community into each step from cacao farms to their factory to you. This is rooted in their founder Frederick Schilling’s vision to create exceptional chocolate through high standards of ethics and social responsibility.


Those are some upstanding Chocolate makers! And bars or 'peaces' like these wouldn't make a bad substitute for Chocolate Hanukah Gelt. So get going holiday shoppers. And make sure you check out when the next Green Drinks Party is happening around you.

P.S. If you are single, this was a goldmine to pick up chicks/dudes etc. because everyone is in the mood to meet new people and the awkwardness of talking to someone you don't know vanishes with the realization that everyone is connected through a common righteous goal. Is this what the 60's was like?

Chard in the Scone

An Edible Book Festival is just a great idea, period. Puns, food and literature are my cup of tea. Every year the Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign holds their festival, part of an international movement started in 2000 that combines Brillat-Savarin's birthday (April 1st) with the tomfoolery of that particular day. I am definitely holding a festival this April Fool's and I am accepting suggestions for book/food creations starting now.

(via Seriouseats)

Snoop X Martha Mashed.

I like black pepper.

(via Hima)

Deadly Chocolate

Each reusable miniature ammo can contains 20 rounds of dangerously delicious .50 caliber milk chocolate bullets for your enjoyment!

(via Nerd Approved)

Thanksgiving Back Home

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving was a week ago. I had the pleasure of spending the holiday back in Newton. Ever since I got a free copy of Bon Appetit, I had been dreaming of making a few choice dishes from it, namely sauteed brussel sprouts with chestnuts and pumpkin creme brulee.

So there I was, Wednesday afternoon, in the kitchen with my momma making the pumpkin creme filling. The recipe was really simple (find it at the bottom of the post) and the best part was that I was forced to buy one of those kitchen torches in order to make the brown sugar melt on top. This little gadget is really easy to use and my next idea is to sear tuna with it for sushi. But anyway, with an hour to go til Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, I found myself in the garage torching ramekins.

The brulee came out perfectly:
and went well with chocolate pecan pie, cranberry pie, and sugar cookies.

I know there are some people out there who don't really even enjoy Turkey, but my mom's brining was delectable.
The turkey was succulent; my sister's cranberry sauce divine; my mom's stuffing classic. We had sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes, with a gravy courtesy of yours truly. I love Thanksgiving, and I think that keeping it simple is the way to go, maybe with a few flourishes here and there (we had never had brussel sprouts before but they were welcome addition).
Having my aunt and cousin and Elizabeth's family there was great and although we never went around saying what we were thankful for, I can tell you that we were all quite thankful for such a feast.

Pumpkin and Brown-Sugar Crème Brûlée

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 5 large egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 8 tablespoons raw sugar or golden brown sugar

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Whisk pumpkin, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup brown sugar in large bowl. Whisk in egg yolks and vanilla, then spices and salt. Bring cream just to boil in medium saucepan. Gradually whisk hot cream into pumpkin mixture.
• Divide mixture among eight 5x1-inch ramekins. Divide ramekins between 2 large roasting pans. Add enough hot water to pans to come halfway up sides of ramekins. Bake until custards are just set in center, about 35 minutes. Chill custards until cold, about 6 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and keep chilled.
• Sprinkle 1 tablespoon raw sugar over pumpkin custard in each ramekin. Using kitchen torch, melt sugar until deep amber. (Alternatively, use broiler. Place ramekins on rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle tops with brown sugar [not raw sugar] and melt directly under broiler until deep amber.) Refrigerate 15 minutes to allow sugar to harden. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 hour ahead. Keep chilled.

Fight Metabo With Virtual Wives!

Japan's average population is getting older and everyone, including the government, is worried about the nation's health. In that sort of climate it's only natural for everyone to be constantly on their guard against Metabolic Syndrome (metabo in Japan) a combination of medical conditions that act in conjunction to increase the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

To help Combat Metabo, metaboinfo.com is now offering a service that is bound to help. The 'Virtual Wife' service is aimed at middle aged men who have a weight problem and need a nagging wife to remind them to eat well. You get to choose from four different virtual Japanese wives that will contact you throughout the day with 4 mobile emails reminding you to eat healthy.

Choices include a Japanese maid, a dominating business woman, a motherly nurse type, or a fashion conscience nail artist. Users then input their height, weight, and lifestyle habits and the emails you receive will be written in the style of your chosen wife.The service also allows you to use a meal management tool that will keep track of your daily calorie intake.

That's one way to fight obesity!

(via Jesse)

The Right Idea

This informational video from Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has it all: post-Nintendo music, Zoom-in x-ray vision, nationalism. But most of all, it is a great illustration of how Japan (or the U.S.) can become more self-sufficient regarding food production and energy. They basically call out the Western/American diet for making everyone obese and advocate shifting back to the more tradition Japanese diet of rice, vegetable and fish. I am down. Check it out!


(via The Feedbag)

Framingham Meat Mayhem

Someone is leaving large hunks of meat on the town green in Framingham, MA. Thus far this unsolved mystery is puzzling city officials.


Maybe they need to do a steak out! This video is not very informative but you can read the full article here.

Dinner At My House

The week before Thanksgiving, Naphy called me up to say, "Noah, let's make dinner at your house on Wednesday." This seemed like a brilliant idea. I've known Naphy since he was a meat and potatoes/one-glass-of-OJ-one-glass-of-milk-with-every-meal kind of youth. These days though, I was not surprised by his request for fish. It even turned out that we were right on the same page craving scallops. So after work I headed over to Green Grape Provisions for the fish. Because it was going to be me and Elizabeth, and Naphy and his lady friend Becca, a meal of scallops was going to be pricey. Instead, I decided on a scallop appetizer and a sexy looking fillet of organic (but farm-raised) Salmon for the main course.

At home I already had a butternut squash ripe for the roasting and few choice ingredients my mom had brought down on my folk's last visit: a bag of 'Forbidden' black rice from Lotus Foods and a jar of the aptly named FiCoco, a fig and cocoa spread. Here's how the meal went down:
We marinated the Salmon in an Asian-style sesame ginger BBQ sauce, preheated the oven and put the rice on. I chopped up the butternut into cubes, dressed it in olive oil, red pepper flakes, 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and salt/pepper. I put that in the oven at 325 for about 15-20 minutes, until a I could easily pierce it with a fork. Once it was done, I took it out, covered it and turned the oven up to 425. Meanwhile, we threw together a salad and then put the salmon in for about 25-30 minutes.

Once everything was underway, I started preparing the scallops. Naph chopped up a bunch of shallots and we carmelized those in our tiny cast iron pan. The last time I made scallops, I wasn't completely satisfied with the searing, so this time I was more patient in letting the oil heat up. I cooked the scallops for about 2.5 minutes a side. Then I smeared the FiCoco spread on a plate, placed the scallops on top and then garnished it with the shallots and some fresh chive.

I usually broil salmon, not bake it. But this turned out great, especially with its healthy slathering of bbq sauce. It was a delicious meal, eaten in wonderful company. My own criticism was that the meal, taken as a whole, was too sweet (the bbq sauce, the wonderful flavor of the roasted butternut, and the FiCoco) but still quite enjoyable. Thanks Naphy for making it happen. I encourage anyone who so desires to call me up and invite yourself over for dinner. I would happily oblige.