Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

It's been easy to have been seduced by food manufacturers.  We're told how busy we are and how we need convenience, and these quick to cook products will make our lives oh so much more wonderful and allow us to cope with all the multi-tasking we are putting ourselves through.  Well, I think its a bunch a crap.  Not only that we're so busy, but also what they're shoving down our throats in advertising and marketing as healthy food is crap. And what passes for food today is crap. Literally.

If you can't pronounce it and don't know what it is, it can't be good for you. Ignorance is not bliss.  It's dangerous.  Do you really care that the FDA says it's allowable.  As consumers we've been lied to before and continue to be lied to by food producers with a vested interest in making a profit and by the governmet with a vested interest in keeping their jobs.  You have to be your own advocate and to do that you must not believe the bill of goods you are being sold by food manufacturers.  You have to believe in your eyes, your sense of smell, you taste and your senses.

We need to rethink our priorities.  What are we doing that is so important that we can't serve healthy food? What are we doing that we can't take an hour to cook a meal?  Why do we demand that food be placed on the table in 30 minutes or less?  Yes, you can make a healthy meal from real food in 30 minutes or less, but we're missing so much more if that's what we limit ourselves to everyday.

I'm not a scientist.  I don't know what the connection between perservatives, additives, growth hormones and antibiotics and the vast amount of diseases, and health issues there are today, but I do believe there is a connection as I've watched the numbers of those stricken increase year by year.

Let's stop being duped and as adults and parents let's make a better, healthy future of our children and their children.  Join the Food Revolution, learn to shop better, learn to cook better, learn to make healthier choices for those you love and care about.

Jamie Oliver is going out on a limb and I admire him for taking a stand.  Please think about what you can do and every small change is a good change.  Be proud of what you eat by knowing you created it.  Be proud of what you eat knowing your food was grown and produced by people who care about the land, the environment and your health. Be proud in knowing that you don't buy into the mass marketing that tells you that you don't have time to create a good healthy meal for your family from real food.

Please watch Jamie Olivers' Food Revolution tonight.  Sign the Food Revolution Petition and let our government know we want a Food Revolution in our schools.

It's not easy to make change, but our wellness and the wellness of our children depends on it.

Sweet Potato Bliss

My family loves sweet potatoes, but some have diabetes and can't or shouldn't eat those traditional servings with heaps of brownsugar and melted marshmallows. Not a marshmallow fan myself.  So I've come up with this recipe, which I've served again and again with many requests for the recipe.  Well I've finally had to write it down for a contest from the North Carolina Sweet Potato Comission, which has some other great recipes.  This is going to be one of your favorite recipes for summer, fall and holidays.  This dish goes with chicken, pork, ham, steak, and salmon.  Slightly sweet, creamy, smoky with just a hint of spice. The Chipolte and Ancho add flavor but not enough to make it hot or overly spicy and the fresh nutmeg brings all the flavors together nicely. Try it for your self and see what you think.  Write a comment and tell me if it's not one of your favorites or if you've just died and gone to heaven.

Ingredients


6 large sweet potatoes

¼ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg (about ¼ of a whole nutmeg or approximately 20 turns on a grinder)

1 quart of heavy cream

½ teaspoon ground Chipolte pepper

½ teaspoon ground Ancho chili pepper

1 teaspoon oil or cooking oil spray


Preparation


Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel sweet potatoes and slice into rounds about 1/8th inch think (about the thickness to two quarters put together). Place in a large bowl and sprinkle the sugar over the potatoes and toss (the sooner you get the sugar on the potatoes the less brown spots will develop).


Take a whole nutmeg (found in most grocery stores and online) and grate over potatoes and toss again to distribute nutmeg. It’s better to use less nutmeg than more, if you’re unsure of how much you’ve grated, but ¼ to 1/3 of the nutmeg will have been grated off to get about 1/4 teaspoon.

Oil or spray an oblong or oval oven-proof baking dish (approximately 4 inches deep and 11 inches long and 9 inches wide. Place the potatoes into the baking dish, layering potatoes until the dish is full.


Pour heavy cream evenly over potatoes. Sprinkle with the Chipolte and Ancho chili peppers.


Cover with foil and bake for 30 mintues. (set pan on cookie sheet in case cream boils over)

Uncover and bake for about another 30 minutes, until the cream has thickened and the potatoes are tender.


Let set for about 5 minutes before serving .

Beef , Barley and Mushroom Soup

The cold winds of March are still chilling our bones.  I developed this hearty soup recipe to stave off the chill until the blossoms emerge.

Ingredients

4 ounces thick bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips (I like to use Rays/Chiefs Smokehouse or Applewood smoked)

2 pounds chuck steak or roast cut into cubes or stew meat

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup finely chopped carrots (about 3 carrots)

1/2 cup finely chopped celery (about 2 stalks of celery)

2 garlic cloves, minced

½  pound sliced mini-bella  or button mushrooms

2 cups dry red wine (merlot, cabernet sauvignon, shiraz)

4 cups water

2 cups beef stock or canned beef broth

2 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth

1 cup Quick 10-minutepearl barley or regular pearl barley

 3 large Swiss chard or spinach leaves, thinly sliced crosswise (about 3 cups packed)

Grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation

Cook bacon in heavy large soup pot (I used and love the Mario Batali 6 Quart Dutch Oven) over medium-high heat until fat is rendered. Add beef and brown. When all liquid from browning beef is evaporated, add onion, carrots, celery, garlic and mushrooms to beef in pot ; cook until soft, about 10 – 15 minutes.

Add 2 cups of wine and cook down to half. Add 4 cups water, both stocks, and bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat; simmer until beef is tender, stirring occasionally.

After an hour add the barley and cook until the beef and barley are tender (total cooking time about 1½ to 2 hours depending on type of barley used). Can be made 1 day ahead to this point. Cool slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate. Bring to simmer before continuing.)

Add chard or spinach to soup; cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with cheese.

Spring into Salmon Asian Style

Here is an easy and quick salmon dish that I developed that will wake up your taste buds from the winter doldrums and get you thinking about Spring.  This has passed the Jerry taste test (not a salmon lover), so I think you'll like this and it's very quick and easy.  I used frozen salmon fillets and defrosted them in the fridge.  Fresh salmon of course will be even better, but for those of us who live in areas where fresh is relative, flash frozen can be a better choice than "fresh".

Asian Salmon

Yield:  Serves 4

Ingredients

4 (4 - 6 ounces) pieces salmon fillet with skin, patted dry (if frozen thaw completely in refrigerator)

3 scallions, chopped

Marinade

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

½ cup orange juice with pulp (fresh squeezed from 2 oranges or not-from concentrate)

Dressing

1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

1 clove of garlic

¼ cup orange juice with pulp fresh squeezed from 1orange or not-from concentrate)

2 teaspoon grated orange peel (from one orange)

3 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro

¼ cup canola oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

For marinade and fish:  Combine all marinade ingredients in a small bowl.  Pour the marinade into a plastic zipper-lock bag.  Put the salmon fillets into the bag, and seal. Marinate the salmon in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to overnight.

For the dressing: Blend all the ingredients in a blender or food processor until emulsified (blended thoroughly) and set aside.

Heat a large non-stick skillet until hot.  Remove the salmon from the marinade and arrange in the hot skillet skin side down. Pour the marinade into the pan and cover.

Cook on medium to high heat for about 4 to 5 minutes (depending on thickness of salmon fillets). The salmon should be slightly rare in the center and will continue to cook slightly once removed from the pan. Remove to plate.

To serve:  Drizzle dressing over salmon and sprinkle with chopped green onions on top.