The Vegetarian Myth

The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability by Lierre Keith

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


An important book with an unfortunate title. Keith has some pretty rough feminist axes to grind which occasionally cloud (though also occasionally enhance) her message as it regards our food supply, but what she has to say about the way we eat is important for ANYONE to hear. You can absolutely feel her passion as a "recovering vegan," and the pain it causes her to denounce something she once so passionately believed in. I don't like the title, because my fear is that vegetarians/vegans will look at it and discount it immediately (as you can see from the "reviews" from vegetarians/vegans who haven't even read/finished the book), and omnivores will look at it and think there's no message there that they need.

She does tend to go on a bit, but the message boils down to pretty much this: There is no opt-out of the food chain; we're all part of it, like it or not. There is no plant life without animal contribution and death, and vice-versa. The only way for our planet to keep feeding its inhabitants into the future is if we abandon the industrial agriculture model we've adopted. Monocropping of non-native species is killing our planet, and darn quickly. We're starving ourselves with our ever-increasing focus on genetically modified cereal grains and soy. The only sustainable way to feed ourselves is to do it on a small, local, native scale that includes animals (remove animals from the equation and topsoil vanishes). There's really nothing to argue with there.

I absolutely believe in the tenets set forth in this book (no big shock to anyone who knows me), and go out of my way to find local, organic sources for 100% pastured, grassfed meat and dairy. I buy produce from within 100 miles of my home almost exclusively. I invest in healthy fats, raise free-range chickens for eggs and meat, etc. I won't go so far as to absolutely denounce vegetarianism, but I do believe that it has to fall under the same guidelines: local, sustainable, native. While I really didn't discover anything "new" to me in this book, it certainly drove home the urgency of the locavore movement in ways that Pollan, Kingsolver, et al did not. This book has a bit of a desperate tone, because we're facing a desperate situation. I very much recommend this book to anyone who eats. Take Keith's angsty, patriarchy-hating melodrama (I couldn't say I disagreed with her points, and Heaven knows the patriarchy needs some hating, but it was just disruptive in this context) with a grain of salt if need be. The message is worth indulging her a bit there.

I was first made aware of this book in a blog entry by Dr. Michael Eades, in which he tells of Ms. Keith being the victim of a terroristic attack at a reading, and bought it partly in support of her in the face of that treatment. I'm glad I did. I'm also glad I'm not her, because this is a woman (I'm sorry, "womyn?") operating under extreme anxiety a lot of the time, it seems. But then, maybe we should all be feeling that pressure--we don't have much time to put things right.



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You Musk(melon) Make This Jam

Just made a little batch of this jam from odds and ends I had on hand that just happened to be called for in this recipe from Ontario blogger and locavore Sarah Hood, who adapted it from a Foodland Ontario recipe. It was my good luck to have stumbled across Sarah's blog when I had these ingredients all ready to roll. I'd bought a bunch of nectarines the weekend before at the farmer's market, and the grower had tossed in this adorable little muskmelon (I'm thinking a variety of honeydew) for free. This jam is so good that I literally caught myself eating it with a spoon.

I took Sarah's tip about the lemon zest and ran with it, and lazied things up a bit further than that, even, because I have no patience for pushing things through sieves or getting out a food mill. I used a whole lemon and reduced the amount of lemon juice added later, and took my stick blender to the apples instead of straining them. I also left out that second half-cup of water the recipe calls for, and that maybe cut down on the time it took, because I got a very firm set fairly quickly. As nearly always, I peeled nothing.

This recipe yielded me more than four but not quite five half-pint jars of jam.

Honeydew-Nectarine Jam

1.5 cups tart apple, chopped (Granny Smith and Mitsy apples are out in Arkansas now)
One whole lemon, unpeeled, halved then sectioned, seeds removed
3/4 cups water
2 cups finely chopped muskmelon (canteloupe, honeydew, casaba, etc.)
2 cups finely chopped nectarines
1Tbsp lemon juice
3 cups sugar (raw, rapadura, whatevs)

Combine chopped apples, lemon pieces, and water in a large, non-reactive heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until apple is soft, about 10 minutes. The lemon will have cooked down to the peel--remove the pieces of peel. Original recipe has you push the mixture through a strainer at this point. You could do that, sure...or you could do what I did, and take your immersion (stick) blender to it right in the pan, and puree the apple pieces. Worked a treat.

Add melon, nectarines, and lemon juice, and bring to a full rolling boil. (This is where I used to mess up a lot of jams, and I never could understand why my jams didn't want to set. I was too timid in cooking them. You want the stuff to BOIL. Hard. I realize now that this is why jam recipes always call for a "large" saucepan or pot--you have to allow enough room in the pot for the jam to really rock and roll and pop and splatter...in other words, boil.) Gradually stir in sugar until completely dissolved. Boil rapidly, stirring frequently, until jam stage is reached, about 20 minutes. You could speed things along here by adding pectin, but it's not needed.

To check for "jam stage," put a clean spoon into the mixture and lift it out, looking at the back of the spoon. You want to see the jam coming off the spoon in a solid sheeting action. Additionally, if you put a little plate or two in the freezer before you start, you can drop a blob of the jam mixture onto a frozen plate, let it cool, then run your finger through it. If a gap remains where you dragged your digit, it's jam. If the "trench" fills in, keep cooking. Or, you could be sensible and just use a candy thermometer and watch for the magic 220F. I haven't gotten sensible yet.

Once jam stage is achieved, remove from heat and stir jam for 5 minutes. I don't know why, but I did it, and it turned out perfect, so you just hush and do it, too. Skim foam if necessary (I didn't have to). Pour jam into hot, sterilized jars, adjust lids, and process in a boiling water bath for however long you usually do with jams...I did mine for 10 minutes before I noticed that this recipe calls for 5 minutes. *shrug*

This was my first time using these crazy little Italian jars, and I had to go to Facebook for help with the oddly translated instructions for getting the one-piece lids to seal. You have to put them in the water bath when the water is close to the same temperature as the filled jars, then bring it up to the boil, process, and then just take the canning pot off the heat and leave the jars in the water until it's all cooled. Kinda weird, but totally worth it for the cute factor of the finished product, I think.

You Should Totally Drink This

This is another recipe that I first made back when it was strawberry season in Arkansas (which is to say, late May), but I know from The Twitter and The Facebook that lots of you people are having strawberries right now, which is grossly unfair. Our season was shorter than ever this year, but I did manage to get several quarts into the freezer. Not as many as I'd like, but at least some. I served this drink to my family at the lake on a holiday weekend, along with some Mozzarella Caprese featuring fresh homemade mozzarella. It was a big day for balsamic vinegar.

Yes, balsamic vinegar is in that drink. As is basil. You're gonna have to trust me here, because this is super refreshing. I stumbled across this recipe a couple of places, and it just looked so good I had to try it...and I kept making it, because YUM. I did a few things differently, because...well, because I just did. And I've done it a couple different way since, so I'll just mention those as we go.

NOTE: You'll need to make the syrup at least one day before you plan to serve this drink.

Strawberry Balsamic Basil Soda

Basil Syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup minced fresh basil leaves
8-10 bruised basil stems
1 cup sweetener of choice (sugar, Splenda, agave syrup, even honey...I've also experimented with stevia extract, though that requires that you use more water and monkey with it a bit)

Strawberry Balsamic Puree:
2 cups chopped strawberries
2 Tablespoons GOOD balsamic vinegar (Modena--don't skimp)

Carrier:
Sparkling water, sparkling wine, tonic, seltzer, club soda...anything bubbly and neutral-ish

Syrup: In a saucepan, combine water, sweetener of choice, and basil stems. Stir to dissolve sweetener, and bring to a light boil for a minute or so. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 10 minutes. Add the minced basil leaves to the pan, cover, and let stand a half hour or so (until it's cool). Remove basil stems, and transfer the rest to a Mason jar with a lid, and let it steep in the refrigerator overnight. Strain out the minced basil just prior to serving.

Puree: Use a blender, food processor, or stick (immersion) blender to puree the chopped strawberries with the balsamic vinegar. You want it as smooth as possible.

Prepare four tall glasses and have whole basil leaves ready for garnish. Pour 1/2 cup strawberry balsamic puree into each glass, and add one cup of seltzer (or whatever carrier you've chosen) and 1-4 Tablespoons of the basil syrup, depending on your taste for sweetness (In my opinion, each glass needs about 3Tbsp of the syrup, which is why I doubled the original recipe), to each glass. Finish with ice to fill glasses, stir gently to combine, and add basil leaves to garnish.

Cheers!

Plumb Luscious Plum Sauce

Plum season has come and gone here, and I didn't get a chance to write this up in time, but hopefully some of you in more northern climes are still getting some plums, or maybe you froze some until you figured out what to do with them...let me tell you, this is what to do with them.

I froze a good number of plums for smoothies, and made plum jam, and the darn things were so delicious that I went back to the Certified Arkansas Farmers Market the next week and bought another box of plums from The Russian Farmer. Froze some more, and decided that I wanted to do something really special with the last of them, since there wouldn't be any more fresh local plums this year. So I did what I always do when faced with such a quandary: I took it to Twitter (and by extension, Facebook, since my Twitter updates post there as well). I was rewarded with the most amazing plum sauce recipe EVER, from the lovely Joie of Canned Laughter. I only made a couple of tiny, inconsequential changes to Joie's original recipe, and I'll note those for you as we come to them.

JOIE'S PLUM SAUCE:

* 4 lbs. Dark Plums
* 8 oz. Onions
* 1 scant cup Golden Raisins
* 2 tsp. each: Whole Allspice, Peppercorns, Mustard Seeds
* 1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
* 1 inch piece of bruised Ginger Root (~1/4 oz.)***I at least tripled this amount, and chopped it up--we love ginger!
* 2-1/2 cups Brown Malt Vinegar (or substitute Apple Cider Vinegar)***I used both
* 2-1/2 Tbs. pickling salt
* 1-1/3 cups soft Brown Sugar, light

Start with four pounds of beautiful, ripe (but not overripe) plums. Joie's recipe called for "dark plums," which is good, because that's what I had. Wash, chop, and pit them--no need to peel them at this time (or ever, if you do it the way I did).

Find a kid to peel the ginger for you, because peeling ginger root is a pain in the nether regions. Use a whole one-inch chunk to follow Joie's recipe, or three times that much, chopped, if you're doing it my way.

Bundle the whole spices (allspice, peppercorns, and mustard seed) in a bit of cheesecloth, tied up and secured in a nice little bindle. I fasten mine with a zip-tie, and cut off the excess cloth.

In a heavy, non-reactive (no aluminum, no non-coated iron, no copper) pot, combine chopped plums, chopped onions, raisins, ginger, half the vinegar (My bottle of malt vinegar wasn't quite enough for this recipe, so I made up the rest with organic ACV),cayenne pepper, and the sachet of whole spices.

Bring this mixture to the boil, then reduce temperature and simmer gently for about 30 minutes, or until plums are soft and pulpy. It just gets more and more beautiful as it simmers.

This next part is where I disobeyed Joie's instructions. My sauce turned out amazing, and I'm sure it does when done her way, too--heck, her way might be better. But I am lazy, and I also hate to waste anything, plus I like a strong ginger "bite" to sauces like this. So, to follow Joie's instructions, at this point you'll want to remove the spice bag, and strain the cooked sauce into another container, rubbing the contents through a fine sieve before returning the strained mixture to the original, rinsed pot.

What I did was simply to remove the spice bag, and puree everything until it was perfectly smooth. Use a blender, a food processor, or the easiest option, an immersion (stick) blender, right in the cooking pot.

Whichever route you choose, at this point you'll add in the salt, sugar, and the remaining vinegar. Bring the mixture back up to the boil, and keep it at a good bubbling simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. It should reduce down a good bit, and thicken up some.

Ladle hot sauce carefully into hot, sterilized jars, adjust lids and rims, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes (more if at higher altitudes--check your local extension office guidelines). Rest for 24 hours before storing in a cool, dark place (mine just live in a kitchen cabinet). Joie says that her recipe yields 2 pints, or 4 half-pint jelly jars. My batch, as you can tell from the picture at the top of this post, yielded 7 half-pint jars...probably because I pureed everything instead of straining anything out.

I really appreciate Joie sharing her recipe with me, because this plum sauce is simply divine! And look how pretty it is! This would make an amazing gift, if you are a better person than me and can resist the urge to hoard it all for yourself. I'm imagining many wonderful uses for this delicious sauce...on lamb, on chicken, or to elevate pork roast to another level altogether. And desserts? Oh, the options are endless.

Just Peachy! Part Two, Quick Fresh Peach-Tomato-Cucumber Salsa

See all that stuff there? Go gather it up. I'll wait.

*tap, tap*

Oh, OK, I'll tell you what it is. Unlike yesterday's Peach-Tomato Salsa recipe, this one, using all raw ingredients, is virtually instant. Seriously, you can have it on the table in minutes from start to finish. Do NOT leave out the cucumber. I'm convinced that is what gives it its bright, fresh taste...it tastes like summer.

Fresh Peach-Tomato-Cucumber Salsa

Equal parts of the following, chopped (for measurement purposes, we'll call it a cup each):

Peaches, peeled and pitted
Tomato, cored and seeded
Cucumber, partially peeled

And:

One medium Vidalia (or other sweet) onion, peeled
One medium bell pepper, any color, seeded
2-4 fresh jalapenos, seeded
A handful of fresh cilantro, to taste
2-4 cloves garlic, crushed then chopped

And:

Lime juice, just a bit
1-2 Tbsp honey, or more to taste
A splash of white wine vinegar (this makes a huge difference)
1-2 tsp ground cumin
Salt to taste

Instructions? Combine all ingredients.

Just like before, it's up to you whether you chop or puree. And just like before, if you want it to be gorgeous, you'll chop everything uniformly. The colors are just beautiful. But if, like me, you like pureed salsa, or, like me, you are lazy, you'll just load everything into the food processor or blender and let 'er rip. Adjust the seasoning ingredients to taste at the end, adding anything you think might give it your own personal zing.

Then, you needa EAT THAT. I am not kidding when I tell you that Alex and I put away the first batch all by ourselves, in one sitting, in bed with a giant bag of tortilla chips and an awful movie. And it makes at least a quart. It's that good.

Just Peachy! Part One, Cooked Peach Tomato Salsa For Canning (or not)

I love peaches. LOVE them. That smell alone just makes me happy. So the last couple of times I've been to the farmers' market, I've come home loaded down with a box full. I cut a bunch up and flash froze then vacuum sealed them, so I can have fresh peaches to put in smoothies or cook with long after their picking season has come and gone, but when it comes to peaches, there's so much more you can do.

I've had really good success with a couple of different peach salsas this year, and wanted to share them. The first one is a cooked peach-tomato salsa that I processed in jars for storage, and the second one is fresh and raw. Both are totally delicious. I'd recommend the cooked version for topping chicken or pork or adding to tacos, etc., and the uncooked version ROCKS on tortilla chips. I'm doing a separate post for each one, starting with the cooked salsa.

You'll notice lots of "ranges" in my ingredients list, partly because I was winging it, and partly because taste is so subjective. You might like things more spicy, or less salty, or loaded with garlic and onions. Taste it and go with what you like.

Peach Tomato Salsa

Yield: At least 8 pints

4-5 cups chopped tomatoes (skinned and seeded)
9-10 cups chopped peaches (skinned and pitted, duh)
1-2 cups chopped onion, depending on your taste for onions (I used two Vidalias)
3 large Bell peppers, any color (I used one each red, yellow and green)
4-6 fresh jalapenos, chopped, or more if you like heat
1 cup white wine vinegar
A bunch of cilantro, fresh or dried (since I was gonna be cooking it anyway, I used dried) to taste
1/3 cup honey
Juice of 2-4 limes
3-6 cloves garlic, crushed then chopped
2-4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2-4 tsp cumin
Salt to taste (or not at all)

You need about 15 medium-sized tomatoes: enough to make 4-5 cups of chopped tomatoes once they've been skinned and cored/seeded. Here's the easy way to do that. Even better if you have a kid around.

While you get a big pot of water boiling, fill a huge bowl, or your sink, with ice water. Drop the tomatoes into the boiling water. Watch them, and when their skins start to split, take them out, and immediately plunge them into a bowl or sink full of ice water until they're completely cool.

Might as well take advantage of that already-boiling water, and give the peaches the same treatment. Only this time, you're not waiting for their skins to split--time it, and give them about 60 seconds. Do them in batches to avoid overcooking any (I think I used about 20 medium-sized peaches). The skins should be just slightly "loose."

After they've cooled, all you have to do is gently rub the tomatoes and peaches, and the skins will slip right off. This is a perfect job for a child who keeps begging, "Let me help!" but who you mightn't want handling giant pots of boiling liquids.

Yay, nekkid fruits!

Then the boring part: You get to core the tomatoes and squoosh out all the seeds, and pit and chop the peaches. Kids are good for the squooshing (and can just tear the cores out with their hands) while you handle the knife work on the peaches.

If your peaches are going to be sitting around for any length of time, go ahead and squeeze the limes over them and mix well, to keep them nice and bright. Otherwise, you can add the lime juice at any time.

This is the point at which you decide how chunky you want your salsa (and how much time you want to spend standing at a cutting board chopping stuff up--or slaving over a food processor, whatever). For presentation purposes, having everything chopped uniformly, and kind of chunky, is definitely the most visually stunning choice, because of all the colors. Personally, I like my salsa un-chunky. I wound up splitting the difference and chopping the peaches, but pureeing everything else. Any excuse to use my Kitchen Ninja. I love that thing.

Get it all in a heavy non-reactive pot (no uncoated iron, no aluminum), add your honey, herbs, vinegar, and spices, and cook it just briefly...bring to a boil and let it bubble for, say, 6 or 7 minutes. This is where you can adjust your seasonings, add salt, whatever.

All done! You can chill some to serve right away, package it in freezer jars or bags, or go ahead and process it to store in jars on the shelf, or even give as gifts (if you're insane). I know if you've never done it before, "processing" sounds scary, and you're afraid you're gonna give everyone botulism. But if I can do it, anyone can, and water-bath canning is not that intimidating. All it really is, when you get right down to it, is funneling your salsa into piping-hot sterilized jars (you can sterilize them in your dishwasher on the hot setting, boil them, or heat them in your oven), covering with a hot, sterilized lid, screwing on that ring, then placing the filled jars on a rack in a ginormous pot of boiling water for ten minutes. That's it. Really.

When you take your beautiful jars out and place them on a clean towel on your counter top, drying the tops, the best part soon follows...listening for that magical "POP!" that tells you you did it right. I love that pop.

Next post will be a quick, easy recipe for a fresh raw peach-tomato-cucumber salsa you can throw together in minutes, and WOW whoever you feed it to. You gotta try it.

Little Bee

Little Bee by Chris Cleave


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I don't want to say too much about the plot, because I read this book on a spontaneous whim, when it was recommended to me by Kindle because I enjoyed The Help. I knew nothing about it going in, and it was a remarkable and delightful discovery. Given the subject matter, you'd expect the author to have given the novel a preachy, heavy-handed tone, but he didn't. It's a real gift, in my opinion, when a writer can allow the reader to do most of the legwork in that regard. You're left to develop your own readings of the characters and their motives, and trust me--you will.

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