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Intelligent Design by jurvetson, on Flickr
If you are fascinated with the science and tech behind nanotechnology, or if you want to know what it is, how it works, what consumer products (nearing 10,000 some estimates say) contain it and why you should care, there is a new site that has all these answers and more.
I was so very excited when @TomPhilpott sent a tweet around:
Small isn’t always beautiful: Everyone should check out Andrew Schnieder’s blockbuster series on nanotech http://www.aolnews.com/category/nanotech/
I rushed right over, but it took me hours to read it all. Schnieder has done just an excellent job laying it all out for us average Joes. I didn’t see where he addressed the scariest issue yet as far as I’m concerned: that nanotech particles cross both the blood/brain barrier, depositing nanotech in your delicate brain and the placental barrier, which can carry these particles to an unborn baby!
So, if you or someone you know wants more information about nanotechnology, at last there is a place to send them for reliable information.
This post is part of Fight Back Fridays, hosted by Food Renegade.
Pick Your Poison by Scott Ableman, on Flickr
Sometimes I feel like my brain is going to explode. I’ve learned so much in the last year that I think I must have been really, really dumb before! And the more I learn the more I know I don’t know. There are days I don’t even know the questions to ask.
I feel like I’ve really strayed from the original focus of my blog: local, seasonal food. But as I learn about things that affect food, the food supply, farmers that provide our food, food policy and the overall state of our health, I want to share. Some issues are hot buttons with me, especially nanotechnology and GMOs. But there are certain news items that send me over the edge into a major funk. BPA and phthalates, for instance. They’re everywhere, like the zombies in a George Romero film. They seem inescapable and here to do great harm.
With the rate our food is being trashed, how is it any of us are still upright and breathing? Why do I feel like I’m yelling into a great void, or worse, walking around downtown in a sandwich board: “Repent, the end is near”? What great apocalypse will be required to stop us from building our grandchildren’s lives on the shifting sand of untested technology and rampant consumerism? I tell ya, it’s enough to make a girl lose sleep.
But all I can do is all I can do. I’m not skilled at preaching and am completely incapable of “saving the Earth” or any such. My original goal remains the same: feed my family traditional food from clean sources as often as possible. Sure, I’m going to get fired up about things, vent a little and allow that impetus to drive me toward change. Much has changed since I started down this road.
It’s those first steps that I keep coming back to. Homemade stock incorporated into at least one meal a day. Fermented foods. Kefir and kombucha. Real, fresh milk, grassfed meat, pastured eggs. Full fat. Of course, if the coffee I drink with my eggs is shade grown, fair trade and organic, all the better. But I can’t fight every battle every day. So, we’ve tossed the plastic Tupperware and drinking cups, even though the water bottles that hold our water (not individual bottles, but 3-gallon refillable bottles) are suspect. There’s no non-stick among my cookware, but we still microwave leftovers once a week. I use canvas shopping bags and produce bags, but have been known to buy boxed cereal and Fig Newmans.
It’s a growing thing. I’ve grown a lot in the last 15 months. And I can’t begin to imagine where I will be 15 months from now. That’s the problem with education. You never really know where you’re going if you’re learning every day.
Apple Cinnamon Streusel Muffins by ~ The Purple Foodie ~, on Flickr
Ratio is a book that appeals to my left-brain way of thinking. I am accustomed to keeping a scale in the kitchen for my soapmaking attempts, so the method Ruhlman recommends of using weights instead of volumes is not entirely foreign to me. And I must admit that the recipes I have attempted using his ratios have turned out perfectly every time. It was from his calculations I first really mastered hollandaise, mayonnaise and bearnaise.
But let’s face it, a book is a book. You can scribble in the margins, but there is only so much room in a margin. And a book won’t help you calculate a ratio of four ingredients at 8, 4, 2 and 1 parts where 1 part is .27 of an ounce. Yeah, I should be able to do this in my head, but let’s face it, when juggling a barely-simmering pot, a handful of kids and trying a recipe for the first time, there just aren’t enough brain cells left over for multiplication.
Enter the iPhone Ratio App. It’s $4.99 in the iTunes store in the Lifestyle section. (Please forgive my inability to post screenshots, there are some good ones on the iTunes site. Ruhlman has also posted a short video on his site of the app in action.)
What I love:
- First, I have to applaud the beautiful interface. From the opening screen to the large, clear ratio wheel and stunning photos, this is a first-class app.
- The ratios feature real food! Butter, cream and eggs are recommended without a blush or apology.
- In the “About” section, there is a category where you can view Ruhlman’s recent blog posts which reference Ratio.
- The Settings allow for default units and measures, so if you just can’t make the jump from volume to weight, you can still use the app.
- Each ratio comes with a pie chart, viewable at a distance, if that’s all you require. There is also a nifty calculator that allows you to enter the exact weight of a single ingredient and all other ingredients scale themselves appropriately. Super handy for calculating the exact amount of oil when you are dealing with a single egg yolk for mayonnaise. There is also a detail screen that provides instructions and options for tweaking a recipe toward heat, sweet, etc.
- I love the feature “My Recipes” which allows me to personalize a ratio, add notes and save it. If something turns out perfectly, I can name it and that recipe will always be right there ready for me in proportions that fit my family.
- There are categories for doughs, batters, custards, fat-based sauces, stocks and thickeners, meat-related ratios (think sausage) and dessert sauces, the major categories covered in the book. Within each category are anywhere from 2 to 10 recipes.
What I’d change:
- Oh, please add more! I’d like to see a ratio for sourdough bread products. As I experiment with soaked grain I’ve been adding notes on adjusting the ratios. Of course, it would be incredible if Ruhlman would bring his expertise to soaked grains, but that’s not his thing so I’m not holding my breath.
- I’d like to see more international ratios: curries, Thai ginger mixes, jerk seasonings, tempura batter etc.
- I’d like the ability to add my own ratios (would be helpful for my soaked grain recipes) and to share those with others. The increased functionality of importing other users’ ratios would make this app a kitchen essential.
How I use it:
- Of course, I use this right in the kitchen! The ratios are very basic, and include ingredients I normally have on hand, but from time to time I’ll check a ratio in the grocery store as I purchase the freshest ingredients for a meal. Berries in season? Top with Creme Anglaise: 4 parts cream, 1 part egg yolk, 1 part sugar. Ooh! The details suggest adding a vanilla bean! It’s far easier to use on the fly like that than a written recipe.
- Like most everything that happens in my house, Ratio is a great learning tool for my kids. I’m not sure they will ever memorize the ratios, but the details section is great for explaining how pizza dough is related to bread dough; what veggies in what proportion to add to stock; and how to turn pan juice into gravy.
I’ll be honest with you. I picked up Ratio at a bookstore and skimmed through it. I had the money in my pocket but just couldn’t see me using the book on a regular basis, so it went back on the shelf. This app I dropped $5 on I have used almost twice a week for several months now. It’s a winner!
As is true of all my posts, I do not accept compensation for my reviews. No one has approached me and requested this review, and I did not receive a “reviewer copy” of the program.
This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays, hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop!
March 18, ready for planting!
It’s been a long, cool winter. And I’ve been very patient. There were a few warm days earlier that tempted me to get out and garden, but I knew better. Sure enough, a good, hard frost hit days later. Ah, but it’s warming up quickly now. Tomorrow we expect sunny skies and 70 degrees, and the future reports are trending upward. In the next two weeks there isn’t a nighttime low of less than 39 expected! I know there will be one more cold night, probably right around Easter. There always is.
I was late ordering my seeds again. Our finances run very, very tight at the first of the year with various taxes due. But, I’ve been socking away a dollar here and there from our food budget and have purchased most of the seeds I’ll need. I’ve also purchased the ingredients for my homemade custom potting mix.
Today the kids and I poured the ingredients of the custom potting mix onto the ground and mixed it up. We cleaned out and filled all our containers, first with an inch of pea gravel, then with our mix. It will compact down a little as the season goes on, so we made some extra for supplementing. My strong teens carried the containers up the stairs to the second-floor balcony where the plants will live just outside my kitchen window.
Last week I started Johnny Jump Ups, Dianthus, Greek oregano and Mountain mint indoors in little recycled paper cups. I’ve been squirting them with water every day, keeping the soil just moist. Tomorrow I’ll start the calendula, bergamot, two types of tomatoes and two types of bell peppers indoors.
My patio looks barren but hopeful and more than a bit eclectic with all the recycled containers and pots. But it smells of composted manure and peat moss, the stuff of spring.
Watch this spot for more as my garden and my zero-mile foodshed grows.
- The ONLY good use for Diet Pepsi in school. rocket science (mentos eruption) by woodleywonderworks, on Flickr
You gotta admire the tenacity of soda companies. I mean, they’re in there swinging every chance they get to bat. They’re on the cutting edge (albeit possibly the wrong end) of advertising, food science, and especially PR. When High Fructose Corn Syrup gets a bad name, they come out with “throwback” formulas: Made with REAL (genetically modified) sugar! When concerns of overconsumption hit the press, they respond with cute little “mini” cans. When the outcry against sugary soda at school gets too loud, they magnanimously retreat and brag about how they care for our children.
Big news in the world of soda was announced in the Wall Street Journal this week:
PepsiCo Inc. said Tuesday it will remove full-calorie sweetened drinks from schools in more than 200 countries by 2012, marking the first such move by a major soft-drink producer.
Well, Pepsi has beat Coke in this skirmish of the “Less-Cola War.” But before you prepare the laurel wreath to hang on their shoulders, let’s let the other shoe drop. From the same article:
In primary schools, PepsiCo will sell only water, fat-free or low-fat milk and juice with no added sugar. In secondary schools, it will also sell low-calorie drinks like Diet Pepsi.
Bottled waters, some not even different in composition than tap, served in a nice BPA-laden plastic bottle. Yum! Fat-free and low-fat milk, the drink of overweight, lactose intolerant children everywhere. Fruit juice with no added sugar, as if fruit juice needs more sugar. Feeling better about PepsiCo yet? So far I’m not seeing a great improvement in the choices. Then there’s low-calorie drinks like Diet Pepsi, full of aspartame. Here’s where PepsiCo and I enter the ring as grudge match opponents.
You can sort of justify water, juice and milk. Kind of. But PepsiCo has shifted the attack from HFCS soda’s assault on young bodies to aspartame’s devastation of growing brains.
PepsiCo, you get no gold star for this assignment.
Further reading:
Stop Childhood Obesity: Serve Whole Milk!
BPA hazardous to developing brain tissue
Environmental Working Group’s assessment of bottled water, including Pepsi’s Aquafina
The Use and Misuse of Fruit Juices, an AAP study
View the sugar contained in fruit juices as sugar cubes
Aspartame: What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You
Aspartame Toxicity Info
Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills
This post is part of Fight Back Fridays, hosted by Food Renegade and Prevention Not Prescriptions by The Kathleen Show.
Dear Mr. Colson:
I respectfully take exception to your BreakPoint editorial of March 16, 2010, “Genetically Modified Famine: Ideology and the Poor.” The Institute for Food and Development Policy says that world hunger is not a food production problem, but is a food justice problem. In 2008, enough food was grown globally to feed over 11 billion people—a staggering 4,000 calories per day, roughly twice what a human requires for sustenance.
As Christians, caring for our neighbors is the second great commandment, but seeing to the resources we have been given falls within our purview as stewards as well, and genetically engineered life is proving not to be a good use of our stewardship responsibilities.
Genetically modified crops once appeared to offer great promise, but as the Union of Concerned Scientists explains in its March 2009 study, genetic engineering has failed to significantly increase U.S. crop yields despite twenty years of research and thirteen years of commercialization.
The great increase in genetically modified crops grown for human sustenance and animal feed owes more to the governmental subsidies paid for these crops than to their overall effectiveness as a food source.
That the seeds and the corresponding herbicide and pesticide which permits their growth may only be purchased the same company is telling, as is the agreement farmers must sign to purchase the seed. This contract includes the following onerous provisions:
o Farmers signing this agreement have agreed to waive all of their rights under the Federal Privacy Act.
o Farmers cannot save any seed or provide any seed to others.
o Farmers must allow the manufacturer access to their fields to inspect crops and to determine the farmer’s compliance with the contract.
o There is no time limit to this contract—the company is authorized to examine the farmer’s documents, fields, and crops even after the farmer has stopped using the company’s seed.
o The company will not honor any warrantees if the farmer does not also use the company’s approved chemicals with the company’s GM seeds.
This agreement does nothing to protect farmers or encourage food growth in developing countries; it protects only the profits of the manufacturer.
Perhaps more alarming is that genetically modified organisms are patented life forms according to the U.S. Supreme Court decision Diamond v. Chakrabarty. The company creating the genetically modified seed “owns” the plants created with that seed. This burgeoning monopoly is increasing food scarcity and prices—the price of genetically engineered seed has increased 10% over last year, which will not benefit developing countries in their quest to feed their populations—all while decreasing the safety and security of our food. Indeed, the FDA has put the fox in charge of the henhouse, issuing only a voluntary guidance recommendation on the testing of bioengineered plants by the companies that produce them. In fact, in order to purchase GMO seeds, farmers must agree that no independent testing of the seeds will take place.
Meanwhile, the prospective health dangers of consuming GMOs have been documented since 1989. Herbicide-resistant superweeds are becoming more and more common. The total pesticide and herbicide load on land growing genetically modified crops is far greater than on conventional land and is increasing.
And now that genetically modified and patented plant life has been approved by our government, the next step is to genetically modify and patent animal life, which has already occurred in the case of Canada’s Enviropig. The next logical step down this slippery slope is the genetic engineering and patenting of human life.
Anti-GMO ideology is not exclusive to the political left. Shenandoah Valley farmer and man of faith Joel Salatin is among those leading the fight against GMOs. Salatin’s website says that he is “in the redemption business: healing the land, healing the food, healing the economy, and healing the culture.” This self-styled Christian Libertarian Capitalist Environmentalist Lunatic Farmer is just one of many who believe that what God has created in His wisdom should not be dissected and reassembled for our own selfish reasons; that the food He created for our bodies is profoundly superior to that which we can create in a lab; that His method of food production honors Him and the earth He created far more than the patenting of life for profit. We believe the words of Isaiah 55:10–11 to be instructive:
“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”
The plant that does not yield seed for the sower but for the seed company returns to the farmer empty. Our growing dependence on GMOs asks the farmer to mortgage his future for the profits of a few.
This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays, hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.
cabinet of food and poison 2 by jessamyn, on Flickr
There are certain species that science looks to as indicator species. When these species first show problems, an alarm is sounded that something is happening that needs our attention. We have several things happening right now in these indicator organisms and how we react is very important.
Alarm #1: Atrazine Causing Sexual Abnormalities in Amphibians
(Beyond Pesticides, March 3, 2010) A recently published study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds that male frogs exposed to the herbicide atrazine can become so completely female that they can mate and lay viable eggs. This latest study adds to the growing scientific evidence which shows that atrazine, one of the most common herbicides used in the U.S., disrupts the development and behavior of aquatic animals, and negatively effects their immune, hormone, and reproductive systems.
Alarm #2: Silver Nanoparticles Lethal to Fathead Minnows
(Beyond Pesticides, March 4, 2010) Scientists at Purdue University have found that nanosilver that is sonicated or suspended in solution is toxic and even lethal to fathead minnows, an organism that is often used to measure toxicity on aquatic life. The study is the latest research to demonstrate the need for federal regulatory agencies to regulate emerging nanotechnologies as a unique pesticide.
Alarm #3: Pyrethroid Pesticides in Streams Found Toxic to Indicator Species
Pyrethroid insecticides, commonly used to kill ants and other insects around the home, have been found in street runoff and in the outflow from sewage treatment plants in the Sacramento, California area. The insecticide ended up in two urban creeks, the San Joaquin River and a 20-mile stretch of the American River, traditionally considered to be one of the cleanest rivers in the region. Although the pyrethroid levels were low, around 10-20 parts per trillion, they were high enough to kill a test organism similar to a small shrimp that is used to assess water safety.
One thing that strikes me is the incredibly small amount of substance required to cause problems. Two parts per trillion of pyrethroid are enough to paralyze one indicator species.
What does this have to do with real food?
Indicator species are more than just thermometers, taking the chemical overload “temperature” of our environment. They are food for other organisms. Because people are at the top of the food chain, we need to heed these alarms and not just roll our eyes and inwardly giggle about male frogs capable of giving birth.
Kate, my teenaged daughter and I both adore wild-caught Pacific and Alaskan salmon. While developing from egg to fish, salmon feast on amphipoda, small shrimp-like organisms similar to the type killed by pyrethroid. No amphipoda, no salmon. Animals eating large quantities of hermaphroditic amphibians could likewise become ill or damaged, and pass that up the food chain eventually leading to…us. And even if you are a strict vegetarian, these poisons are in the water used to irrigate your crops—yes, even organic crops.
Okay, so what can I do?
Getting rid of the toxic waste in your own home is an essential first step. Avoid antibacterial and antimicrobial products. If you are a germophobe, I recommend Why Dirt is Good: 5 Ways to Make Germs Your Friends by Mary Ruebush. Plain soap is good for washing hands, triclosan, used in antibacterial hand cleaners is a very dangerous chemical. You absolutely do not want an antibacterial cutting board, which leaches chemicals (usually triclosan) into your food with each swipe of the knife. Evidence is emerging that triclosan in our water supply doesn’t break down and that it builds up in the bodies of marine animals to the point that it might be toxic to them. One researcher, after using triclosan-containing products in the course of a normal day, discovered that his body absorbed 2900 times more triclosan after only two days of use.
Next, search your cabinets. Pesticides are not something you want in your everyday living space. There are many good natural remedies for bug infestation which can be located in an internet search. Some might not work for you, but keep trying until you find one that does. You may not like ants in your kitchen but poison on your food is not a good trade-off. And for heaven’s sake, if you must keep poison in the house, please do not store it near food, like in the above photo!
Finally, if you’re a letter-writing, phone-calling type, make your concerns known to the governing bodies that are paid with your tax dollars to protect you. Sign petitions, join associations, bookmark Beyond Pesticides, the Environmental Working Group and Grist.
Caring about the world in which we live has less to do with tree-hugging than with breathing, eating and drinking clean. You should absolutely start with your own body and your family’s health, but please don’t stop there.
This post is part of Prevention, not Prescriptions.
at the bake sale by tiny banquet committee, on Flickr
With the current struggle for funding, many schools depend on fund-raising efforts to keep their music and art programs going. Even so, the once-popular bake sale has come under attack in New York City schools. New York City’s Panel for Educational Policy has approved a new set of rules for bake sales. You can’t bring cookies for sale, or banana bread, or home-popped popcorn. But, you may buy a box of Pop-Tarts or Doritos and resell them. In addition to fresh fruits and vegetables, there is an approved list of (industrial) foods from which parents may choose to sell.
The idea is that because the homemade muffins are of different sizes, shapes and composition, the exact calorie count cannot be determined accurately. Food that comes in a package provides a calorie statement on the nutrition label, and therefore the exact portion sizes and nutrition data can be calculated. You kind of have to stand on your head and look out of the corner of your eye to see this logic, but it was the intent of the ruling to control the calories and therefore make a contribution in the fight on childhood obesity.
And a cursory reading of the rule makes some sense:
To qualify as an approved item, a snack must meet 11 criteria developed by the city. For example, all products must be in marked, single-serving packages with a maximum calorie count of 200. Artificial sweeteners, like Splenda, are banned. Less than 35 percent of the item’s total calories may come from either total sugars or fat. Grain-based products must contain at least 2 grams of fiber.
But digging a little deeper, the New York Times asks the right person the right question and truer motives are revealed:
The city’s new vending operator, The Answer Group, will also negotiate with vendors to produce fund-raising kits for students, probably by next September, said the group’s president, Tom Murn.
Then, as if to shift the focus of the issue with a shrug and a wink-wink:
Kathleen Grimm, the deputy chancellor who oversees the regulation, told members of the panel that the permitted snacks were not “necessarily foods we recommend that students eat.”
“We think an apple is the best snack,” she said, generating chuckles from panel members.
Chuckles from panel members. Chuckles?
This is getting out of hand. I can’t make a healthy snack for a school bake sale, but I can buy chemicals-in-plastic and resell them? I hope you will forgive my overactive cynicism gland, but it sounds to me like our schools are so desperate for money that they have opened themselves up to blackmail by the industrial food system. This kind of silly edict has the ring of “cash” more than “nutrition” to me.
As if to add a dash of interest, I find it ironic that this particular rule change is happening now. Weren’t bake sales one of the grassroots efforts which propelled Obama to the White House? What has happened that the bake sale, and homemade food in general has fallen even further out of favor so very quickly?
In a demonstration that is sure to capture the hearts and taste buds of legislators, one mother has organized a “bake-in” to be held at the New York City Hall on March 18. Elizabeth Puccini, the organizer of the bake-in has been a loud detractor of this policy since its announcement, showing up at meetings and press conferences to try to be a voice of reason.
I applaud Puccini’s efforts and hope City Hall pays close attention to her while they enjoy the homemade treats being brought to them on the 18th. She may not know it, but Elizabeth is a Pro-Food Food Renegade.
This post is part of Fight Back Friday, hosted by Food Renegade.
I never did catch the wing crazies going around. I mean really, they need a whole restaurant for buffalo wings? I tried them once. They were pretty unpleasant. Gooey sweet, painfully spicy and lacking in anything I’d call flavor. We’re pretty wimpy here. Bell peppers are about the only peppers we eat, even pepperocini is too hot for us.
But, my pastured poultry producer had a great sale on their wings and I just had to pick some up. These aren’t little grocery store wings, they include a nice chunk of breast meat (they call it breast bits) and I found one wing was plenty for me and the kids, the boys had two wings apiece and were plenty happy. They turned out just lovely, but next time I’ll adjust the recipe a tad.
Wings for Wimps
3 oranges, juiced
2 tablespoons naturally fermented soy sauce
1 tablespoon freshly ground peanut butter
1 teaspoon raw honey
2 teaspoons molasses
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 inch knob of ginger root, peeled and finely minced
10 pastured chicken wings with breast bits
Mix together thoroughly all the ingredients except the wings. Put wings in a glass baking dish and use mixture to marinate the wings overnight, covered in the refrigerator. Remove the wings from the refrigerator about an hour before cooking to allow the pan to warm up a bit. Bake 45 minutes at 325°, basting with the juice occasionally.
It turned out very well, but next time I think I will use the juice from 4 or 5 oranges, then after marinating, reduce it by boiling a few minutes first, and maybe add some grated orange peel too.
This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays, this week hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.
The title really says it all. I’m guest blogging today at the Natural Cures Carnival over at Hartkeisonline. Chocolate lovers, don’t miss this post!
The Dark Side of Fat Loss
