0 Listeria? Wires? E Coli? Foreign Materials? Salmonella? This is Food?

In the past 10 days there have been at least 9 food recalls, nearly one per day!  In your great-grandmother's day, things like Listeria and Salmonella in your whole fruits and vegetables, wires in your breadsticks or macaroni and cheese and E Coli in your ground beef, top round and beef tips just didn't happen. This is real and it's scary!

If your great-grandmother were alive today and walked into a supermarket she wouldn't recognize most of the food that she would see on the shelves. And even that food that she recognized such as fruits and vegetables are treated with pesticides, picked early, shipped around the world, treated with chemicals to ripen it and has very little flavor or nutritional value compared to the fruits and vegetables that she either grew or bought herself.

Forget about hounding your representatives about more safety inspections. Don't get me wrong, that would be great. But really, if you're going to hound them about anything let it be about ending these huge factory farms and food processors that are causing these problems to begin with. Not only are these people being irresponsible and killing us, but they get huge subsidies from our government to do it. Meanwhile the little farmer gets put out of business. This needs to change, the government needs to support the little guy, the sustainable farmer.

You might hear that organic, sustainable farming can't feed the masses. This is a lie told and spread by big business.  Average farmers using natural farming methods can produce just as much food as the big guys, and it's more nutritious too! Think about the HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of POUNDS of food that's thrown away because it's been recalled and may kill you! We also need to pressure the government to stop subsidizing soy and corn production, this is food that is grown to feed animals (animals that are not meant to eat that kind of food either), instead of people. Farmers need to grow food for people!

Remember that processed foods aren't good for you either, they contain too much sugar, salt and chemicals - even when they don't contain bacteria and metal fragments... They are typically high in fats and carbohydrates, and don't contain enough fruits and vegetables. Save money and save a life. Buy local, eat natural whole foods and cook your own meals.

Here's a list of recalled food from the last 10 days alone!

September 22 – Pepperidge Farms breadsticks – 13,000 cases – Metal Wires

September 23 - Carol's Cuts recalls fruit – part of the 4.5 million pieces of cantaloupe from Jensen Farms – Listeria

September 23 – Palo Duro Meat recalls ground beef – 40,000 pounds – E. Coli

September 26 – K Heeps recalls pureed pork products – 5,550 pounds – Metal Fragments

September 27 – Cargill Meat recalls ground turkey – 185,000 pounds – Salmonella

September 27 – Tyson Meat recalls ground beef – 131,300 pounds – E. Coli

September 30 – Manning Beef recalls whole and ground beef products – 80,000 pounds – E. Coli

September 30 – Kraft recalls shell macaroni and cheese products – 137,000 cases – Metal Wires

October 1 – Greencore recalls packaged salads because of tomatoes – 57 pounds – Salmonella

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0 Organic & Local Farming vs Factory Farming (Monsanto, Tyson Foods, etc)

Why should you buy organic? Good question.... I won't lie, I typically don't, although I do purchase from my local farmer's market and directly from local farmers when I can. I think there are times when it's a good idea to buy organic and I wish I bought organic more often, but to be honest just like a lot of people I can't afford it. 

If you do buy organic though, find out where it came from.  Not only do you want to buy products that come from areas near where you live to lessen your carbon footprint, but I read something recently that got my attention about some organic products - 80% of organic products are imported from China!  I don't know about you but with all of the news reports lately about the poorly regulated food industry in China, I'm not sure I would trust that their organic products are really organic.  Now as far as this country, the food industry is working hard to lower "certified organic" standards and a lot of the time your local farmer/gardener can't afford to get “organic” certified, but you're getting the same or better quality product so buy from local farmers or shop your local farmer's markets.

If you can grow your own vegetables that's a good start to eating healthier too – organic, local farms (that don't use chemical fertilizers) and home gardened fruits and vegetables have more nutrients. If you grow your own, look for heirloom varieties – some of them are better for you too. Our “factory farms” grow for quantity not quality. Some people are raising their own chickens for eggs too. As a matter of fact a nearby city just changed their law regarding raising chickens within the city limits because so many people are wanting to have their own fresh eggs.

Remember the egg salmonella scare last year? That won't happen with organic or farm fresh eggs! Is it worth buying organic honey or maple syrup? Doubtful – I mean really, how can the honey producer guarantee that his bees didn't fly across the road to the non-organic farm and what kind of poison did they put on the maple trees that's going to get into your syrup? If at all possible though I think you should consider buying your meat & dairy from a local farmer – preferably one that feeds grasses to their animals and lets them spend a lot of time in the pasture.

If you've seen Food Inc. then I don't think I need to say anything about genetically modified corn or other genetically modified organisms, animals full of growth hormones, antibiotics and pesticides, caged chickens with oversized breast that can hardly stand up, pigs that can't turn around and are forced to live in their own feces, rBGH milk or cows that have been fed stuff like corn that they can't digest and huge “manure lagoons” that overflow into our rivers and streams.

If you haven't seen Food, Inc. – watch it! You'll be shocked by what the food industry is growing, processing and feeding you. For instance, some companies are now using a hamburger meat filler cleansed with ammonia hydroxide to help kill E. Coli. I don't want to get E. Coli, but I don't want to eat chemicals either. Remember, 70% of processed foods have some sort of Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) – the food industry fought against having to label foods as GMO and won! Whenever possible you really should buy meat, and in season fruits and vegetables from a local farmer and cook your own foods. Not only is it more healthy, but it will help the environment by saving fuel and pollution too. Just transporting food throughout the world emits 30,800 tons of greenhouse gasses.

It's not just about how they raise the animals and the poisons that are left on fruits and vegetables, it's also about non-sustainable farming methods. It's about air, soil and water pollution. If we stand up, vote with our money and buy more organic and local farm products we'll be sending a message to the “food industry” and perhaps they will start changing the way they farm and do business.

Now as far organic fruits and vegetables – they are expensive but they have more nutrients, however, if you can't afford them or to save money you can buy them from your local supermarket, but when you get them home give them a Clorox bath*. Put 1 tsp of Clorox to one gallon of water, put your produce in the sink for 30 minutes (leafy vegetables only need 15 minutes), rinse with water, and dry them on a towel. This won't get rid of all of the chemicals that were sprayed on them, but it will help.

According to the Environmental Working Group the following 20 fruits and vegetables have the most pesticide residue in descending order (worst to least):

Peaches
Apples
Sweet Bell Peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Pears
Imported Grapes
Spinach
Lettuce
Potatoes
Carrots
Green Beans
Hot Peppers
Cucumbers
Raspberries
Plums
Domestic Grapes
Oranges

According to the Environmental Working Group, the following 20 fruits and vegetables have the least pesticide residue in descending order (least to worst):

Onion
Avocado
Frozen Sweet Corn
Pineapples
Mangoes
Asparagus
Frozen Sweet Peas
Kiwi
Bananas
Cabbage
Broccoli
Papaya
Blueberries
Cauliflower
Winter Squash
Watermelons
Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes
Honeydews
Cantaloupe

*You can also use apple cider vinegar, or ¾ c 3% hydrogen peroxide, or wash them with a vegetable cleaning product such as, Bi-O-Kleen, Organiclean or Vermont Soap Organic's “Wash dem Veggies”

Fruit Salad
Cut up and mix together your favorite fresh fruits**,

put into a resealable container and squeeze a little

lemon juice on them, seal and shake.

**I like strawberries, blueberries, bananas, kiwi and pineapples....yum!

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0 Burritos! Another quick meal....

A friend of mine sent me a video of Jamie Oliver yesterday giving a speech at the TED Conference. It was very inspiring. He's working to teach Americans how to cook again, to help save lives, to educate our children on what real food is and how to cook also. I was shocked that school children didn't know what a tomato, cauliflower, beets, eggplants or even potatoes were!  Check out the video - click here. 

The reasons that Jamie is doing what he's doing is the same reason that I started this blog. Please continue reading, send in comments and questions. Obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer are killing us – and many of them can be cured by cutting out processed foods, eating more real food, whole food, local and in season foods. Thanks, George for sending me that video – it makes me want to spread the word all that much more! Really cooking from scratch isn't that hard, doesn't take that long, it can help you lead a healthy lifestyle and loose weight.

Burritos are a quick, easy and versatile meal. You can have them with beans and/or meat (or textured vegetable protein), add lettuce, avocado, tomatoes, sour cream, salsa, cheese, etc. As a matter of fact, you can make them fairly bland (cut the jalapenos out) and let everyone make their own by putting all of the sides on separate dishes and letting them add what they want. A lot of store bought tortillas are unhealthy, they contain a lot of lard – please check the labels carefully, buy whole-wheat and don't eat too many!

Black bean burritos
2 Tbl olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 jalapeno, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 15 oz can black beans (low sodium), drained and rinsed*
3 oz cream cheese, cubed
½ tsp salt
2 Tbl fresh cilantro, chopped

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add olive oil, onion, pepper, jalapeno and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes stirring occasionally. Pour beans into skillet and add cumin, cook for 3 minutes. Add cream cheese and salt. Cook for 2 minutes, stir in cilantro.

You can heat the tortillas in the microwave for about 25-30 seconds each, spoon mixture into tortillas, add sides and wrap. Makes 2 burritos, serves 2 people.

Not only is the burrito versatile in the toppings, avocado, salsa, etc - but you can add other ingredients to the filling too like spinach, cooked brown rice, corn, etc. 

*You can substitute ½ lb chicken or ground beef for beans – if you do, omit the cream cheese

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0 High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) and why to avoid it

I just read a finance article the other day saying that grocery prices are going up again due to shortages of wheat and corn. Bread, cereal, soda, pet food and most preprocessed foods prices are on the rise. One of the reasons why is because so much of the corn grown today is used for ethanol, so when there is a shortage it directly effects the prices of processed foods which are loaded with corn byproducts. In fact the article recommended cooking your foods from raw materials to save money! Wow, not only can you eat healthier but now you can save even more money too!

If you start reading labels you will notice that one ingredient is in nearly everything on the shelves of your local grocery store – High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Sometimes it doesn't matter if the item is sweet or salty, it's in there. Sometimes even if what you're eating is naturally sweet, it's in there. Sometimes it's added even if they've already added sugar or regular corn syrup too. There's really no reason for this. So much of processed food is just clever rearrangements of corn (here are just a few examples of the additives that are derived from corn: cellulose, saccharin, polydextrose, xanthan gum, maltodextrin, and HFCS. Look for those ingredients on processed foods and avoid them!

The “food industry” and the government are telling you that HFCS is no different than sugar, in fact the “Corn Refiners Association” is lobbying the government to change the name to “Corn Sugar” to make people think that it's a healthy alternative to real sugar. While eating a lot of sugar isn't good for anyone, I think that eating real sugar in my food is better for me than eating HFCS and it tastes better too.

Why? Because HFCS is made by mixing corn syrups, corn starch and other ingredients together and then undergoing a process to makes the fructose content higher, which makes it sweeter. HFCS also has at least one genetically modified enzyme in it too. Food made in a lab... YUCK.

Studies have shown that HFCS in soda makes it richer in harmful carbonyl compounds. According to one study¹, carbonyl compounds are elevated in people with diabetes and are blamed for causing diabetic complications such as foot ulcers, eye and nerve damage. Another study² concluded that foods with increased fructose “produced significantly higher fasting plasma triacylglycerol values than did the glucose diet in men” and “if plasma triacylglycerols are a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, then diets high in fructose may be undesirable”... sounds like something I want to avoid. Not to beat a dead horse but, according to an article in the SF Chronicle³, “The body processes the fructose in HFCS differently than it does in old-fashioned cane or beet sugar, which in turn alters the way metabolic-regulating hormones function. It also forces the liver to kick more fat out into the bloodstream.” Sounds like enough information to make me want to avoid it, if possible.  If you're buying processed food, remember to read the labels, avoid HFCS and any product with more than 5 ingredients or ingredients that you can't pronounce.

1 A study by Dr. Chi-Tang Ho, Rutgers University Food Science Dept.
2 A study by Allocca and Selmi (2010)
3 San Francisco Chronicle, February 18, 2004

Oatmeal Cookies

¾ c flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
½ c butter
½ c light brown sugar
½ c sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 ½ c quick cooking oats
½ c chopped pecans or walnuts

In a bowl sift together flour, salt, baking soda. In another bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla, mix in dry ingredients, oats and nuts. Divide dough in half, turn out onto a lightly floured board and shape into 2 rolls about 10” long and 1 ½” in diameter. Wrap in plastic and chill well. Preheat oven to 375, slice rolls 1/4” thick and arrange 2” apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes or until tan. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a plate to cool completely.

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