foodmuseumblog

Report from an Organic CSA in Poland, Maine

Yesterday afternoon, and this morning ( in drenching rain,) comprised "harvest day," at Summit Springs Farm, Maine. The greens have been washed, and everything else sorted and bagged or binned. The beets are beginning to look weary, having fought off bugs and rot all summer, the spuds are hearty, the greens luxurious, the kohlrabi--why do so few people eat these?--gorgeous but a tad scarred.  Ah, the peppers, fab!   Multi tomatoes, squash, eggplant....The CSA-ers will pick up their shares at the farm from 3 to 7 pm today, and a few from other locations, methinks. 

Growing and harvesting food is haaaaard, to quote a past president known for his penchant for days off,  and so each time you eat, thank a farmer! ( And buy locally....)

 

 

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Mightiest Onion Grown by Peter Glazebrook

Via The Lahore Times----"....yesterday British pensioner Peter Glazebrook set a new record for the heaviest onion in the world.

The monster vegetable tipped the scales at 17pounds 15 and half ounces – breaking the earlier world record of 16 pounds 8.37 ounces in the hands of John Sifford, the West Midlands, since 2005."

 

Vegging at the Table

Speaking of dining tables, grow your own plants at the base of your table, then pluck veggies from them for dinner. Hmmm...Where's the light? Where's the adequate amount of soil? Apparently they tried this out with tomatoes, as well as peas....

The idea is cute, but clearly needs work. It has been on display as part of London Design Week 2011.

The concept is from JAILmake.

Chile Roasting Time

 A young friend of ours in Vermont loves roasting his own New Mexico chiles. So we sent him some, and here they be, along with the utterly appropriate brew.

Pumpkin Carving Reimagined in Leipzig

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The European Vegetable Carving Competition just held in Leipzig, Germany, had room for fruit carvers as well.

According to the Times of Malta, "Each participant is provided with a basket containing melons, giant papayas, kohlrabi, cucumbers, radishes, Chinese cabbages and carrots. Participants may bring their own pumpkin, too. 

The art of vegetable carving originated in China but has acquired numerous followers in Europe in recent years."

  A mango!

(Photos: Jan Woitas)

 via Mother Nature Network

Grateful for Growers Markets

9/11 is a good time to express gratitude for life and food and peace, especially if one is lucky enough to be living in a peaceful space. And there is nothing like the bounty in a farmers' market as the season starts to wind down.

Why are carrots orange? It is political « NextNature.net

No, the image above does not some show some collection of freshly genetically designed hypercarrots in various colors of the rainbow. This is the spectrum of colors carrots used to have – and in some regions of the world you can still find white, yellow, red and purple carrots. In most countries however, carrots tend to be orange nowadays. Why is that?

via www.nextnature.net

But some of us knew that, about the House of Orange now, didn't we?

Mona Veg

Marimbas, Zucchini Car Races, at Homer, AK, Farmers' Market

Check out the story here at EATSAlaska!

Fearless City Gardener Plants Veggies Where Petunias (?) Once Flourished

Right out in the open--no guerilla-gardener he, Bill Koen, City Horticulturalist of Lakeland, Florida, is planting edibles on city land. Bravo, Bill!

Via The Ledger.com

"A petite crop of vegetables, fruits and grain is thriving at Heritage Park at Kentucky Avenue and Orange Street. Indian corn, okra, peppers, kumquats and eggplant provide an unexpected agricultural filigree to the slice of city property.

Towering corn stalks also ring the perimeter of a circular planter in the parking lot at Lakeland's main library, and an assortment of ornamental peppers can be seen near the entrance to the Lakeland Electric building on Lemon Street.

City horticulturist Bill Koen said he started installing food-bearing plants at Hollis Garden more than a decade ago, and in recent years he has expanded the approach into other city properties...

Koen, a city employee for 41 years, said he planted the crops at Heritage Park in the tradition of the "victory gardens" Americans tended in their yards and in public spaces during World War I and World War II."

( Thanks for okra photo to Bijlmakers.com)

Back, Back, Backety Back from Fiji, NZ, OZ, Bali and HK: Rice and Mangosteens

 

 
Back from exploring some of the foods of Bali, we can attest that rice is primary, along with sweet potatoes intermingled with flowers, as well as chiles and other veggies. 
Rice feeds 50% of the world's population, of course, bolstered by America's many offerings to Asia, chiles and sweets among them. 
But oh, the mangosteen! A rare non-sweet perfect tropical fruit, its segments are hidden under a thick, maroon rind, and well worth the seeking. (Those at left were on sale in a huge Hong Kong mall supermarket.)

The mangosteen has only one fault; it is impossible to eat enough of it, but, strictly speaking, perhaps that is a defect in the eater rather than in the fruit. It would be mere blasphemy to attempt to describe its wonderful taste, the very culmination of culinary art for any unspoilt palate. 

--Eric Mjöberg, author of "Forest life and adventures in the Malay Archipelago" 1930

( NB Posting from this remarkable part of the world on a regular basis was well nigh impossible--WiFi was sorely lacking in NZ and OZ, other than in (!) McDonald's', posting was time consuming, and we had to pay for Internet access everywhere  until we reached Bali. Bali, the land of mega overseas visitors, marked a return to WiFi, and free access in many cafes and restaurants. ) 

What We Eat

Tubers uber Alles!

Eating potatoes, yeah! Boiled! Yeah! People and critters both.

Today's Gorgeous Haul from the Corrales Growers Market

 

Exultation, delectation, and delight! Early days at our local market in New Mexico. From left, clockwise: Mixed greens, speckled lettuce w/pale blue, brown and speckled eggs, spinach, broc tops, tat soi, and cherries, the best we've ever tasted.

USDA MyPLate? YourPlate? Not Really Mine.

So--this MyPlate imagery from the USDA is a decent attempt to make visual to Americans what previous food pyramids apparently have failed to do. The fact that it resembles a plastic kitchen toy may not be a plus, however.

Eat more veggies than proteins ( though beans, spuds and sweet pots, of course, are protein-filled veggies...,) and OOPS--are they implying we all have a hearty glass of milk with our meals, instead of water or wine? Not a great idea, but then again, the dairy lobby is alive and well.

Also--how much of everything should we eat? Deck of cards worth of protein?  I rankle when I read 3 ounces of this and 6 ounces of that, as if we all have little ounce measuring devices available. 8 ounces to a cup is embedded in my brain, but 3?

An alert pal sent me this visual interpretation of MyPlate--source unknown-- that is close to nauseating in its lack of appeal. Overcooked, canned green beans, milk, a slab of unadorned salmon, maybe, a slice of bland looking bread and, can it be, canned mandarin oranges???  Aaaargh.

Clearly the USDA swiftly needs to put together some plates that show real, tasty food.

Here's one, from a Thai restaurant lunch I had.

 

 

 

Rice, slice of orange, loads of veggies, and tofu in a red curry sauce.

Here's another from an earlier post:

 A roll, a slew of steamed summer squash w/onion and spinach, grilled eggplant topped with mozzarella ( dairy!,) tomatoes, yellow pepper, fresh basil, olive oil with spices.....

But wait! The USDA MyPlate shows us no oils, no nuts...how can this be?

And finally, a lunch we had on the road from Florida to NM, in a small town in Texas.

 

 

 

A cup of "baked potato soup," comprised of spuds, cream and bacon, a salad, assorted unnecessary  bits of carb (!) and a decent piece of spinach quiche, with a fine handmade buttery crust. The soup was a tad over the top, but then, this was Texas.

So, USDA, high marks for rethinking the imagery, but methinks the American public needs a wide range of actual plates of food in order to get the message.

On the other hand, one of my favorite writers, M.F.K.Fisher, who happened to focus on food, once wrote, "Balance the day, not the meal." This plan works well for those with some food savvy. I keep it vaguely in mind, but more importantly, like many people, I choose what looks fresh and good, and dive into an enjoyable meal.  And ignore the rules. Sheesh. 

Ayurvedic Earth Apples to Swoon Over in Albuquerque

Yes, Virginia, there is a place where one can savor fresh cut, freshly prepared,  twice fried (seemingly) potatoes with chipotle sauce. And that place astonishly, is an Ayurvedic joint, Annapurna's World Vegetarian Cafe on 4th street in Albuquerque.

A friend of mine wanted breakfast, and I noted what I thought were "home fries" on the menu and ordered a side, as I had indeed eaten breakfast a couple hours prior.

Home fries they were not. I was stunned. The finest fries eaten in months, maybe years ? At breakfast in a calm, fabric draped place with whiffs of cumin in the air.

Read here about the CPA who founded Annapurna with the aim of serving " food as simple as possible – from the earth, just as nature intended, and as prescribed in the Ayurvedic tradition."

Try the earth apples. Truly.

 

 

Variety Dance at Growers Markets

Flitting from the magnificent and exuberant wound down St Petersburg Saturday Market, Florida, to the just gearing up for the season Corrales Growers Market in NM, one observes, alas, what a relative absence of water can achieve. The chard from St Pete was tall and plump, the chard in NM, modest. Both delicious, but...

Spotted and bought in NM on Sunday: Red Baby Bok Choi and Helios radishes. The former a true purple, the latter a bronzy color--both new to me.

 

Russia's Putin, Venerated by Female, Veggies-Only Sect

You cannot make this stuff up. A group of women that comprises a religious sect in a Russian village has decided that Vladimir Putin, the former KGB bad boy and Prime Minister, is imbued with the Holy Spirit. As such, they are venerating him, while keeping to a strict diet of "turnips, carrots, peas and buckwheat," according to a report from The Telegraph.

Swiss Chard: Easy to Grow, Pluck

 

Chard: No Great Mystery as to How to Cook It

Often I overhear people at growers markets wondering how to cook this magnificent green. They hold up a bunch, sigh at its beauty, then lay it down, seemingly flummoxed by the difficulty involved.

This is not Chateaubriand, friends!

Gently start to sautee at least 3 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped, in a decent olive oil.

Slice up the washed chard, even some of the stems--they are edible, but maybe not to everyone's liking, texturally speaking.

Toss them in. Move them about with tongs. (The moisture from the washing should be enough, but you can always toss in some wine, too. Never hurts.)  Add ground black pepper, a tad of salt. Cover, briefly.

The chard takes somewhat longer than spinach, which quickly goes limp. But not tooooo much longer.

Eat--or---if you want to, blend in a generous dollop of cream or 1/2 and 1/2 first.

Then eat. Enjoy.