Food Revolution!!

This is such a fantastic show. One time Naked Chef- Jamie Oliver filled with passion and excitement for.....Vegetables?! It's amazing. Working to clean up a rural town in West Virginia's school lunch program, Jamie must battle with children's habits, school politics and the inevitable, sort of scary, lunch lady who thinks everything is fine the way it is. Obese parents raising obese children on frozen pizza and chicken nuggets. It made me mad, and then sad, and then really hopeful that these people see the blessing that it is that Jamie has rolled up into their town. It's been about 5 episodes now and the folks of Huntington are opening their minds and mouths to wholesome, REAL food. Bravo Jamie!! Anything I can do to continue this revolution- Greenstream Gourmet is on board.

Rooftop Garden

Here it is!  The Rooftop Garden in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  I finally made it over to the greenest spot across the river and it was just what I had hoped it would be.  With plenty of visitors that day, I'm hoping their final Farmer's Market of the season was profitable.  Available for sale were greens like purple kale and various lettuces.  The head farmer Annie was there walking and talking around the garden to many of its guests.  I overheard her inquiring with a friend about how to get fish juice to the farm.  The oils and juice will nurture the soil with tons of vitamins and minerals, allowing for more nutrient rich veggies next spring. They have started a volunteer list for the upcoming winter projects and I'm hoping I get a chance to participate.   It was SO cool to see such a wonderful project excelling.  I'm looking forward to seeing more of these rooftop farms next spring. This city never ceases to amaze me.  Besides its being awesome on every other possible front,  now we get to enjoy farm fresh, LOCAL produce too?  Revolutionary- The term the "Big Apple" now has new life. 

Rooftop Rose

As I was knitting away on my rooftop tonight, with a glass of wine and NYC as my backdrop, I was suddenly comforted with this great gust of garlic.   I quickly realized this is just one of the reasons I love being back in NY.  Garlic is in the air!  It's also the month when the San Gennaro Feast and other Italian festivals pop up all over this area and frankly- I love it! Garlic is known for a number of medicinal uses such as warding off colds, the flu and Vampires.  It has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that our bodies appear unable to build up resistance to un-like pharmaceutical antibiotics.  It supplies great amounts of Vitamin C , B6 and Maganese- an important mineral for cardio vascular health.  So enjoy the tasty benefits of the amazing stinking rose-Cheers! to your health, and so much more.  

Natural Meat-Hopefully

This is good.  Yesterday, July 13, 2209, the Obama Administration announced that they were proposing a measure to BAN the use of antibiotics in healthy livestock.  Many ranchers and pig/chicken farmers routinely administer- themselves I might add, antibiotics to healthy animals so they will produce more meat, faster. This ban hopes to reduce the spread of dangerous bacteria to humans from the treated animals and also to allow for a more normal life span and growth experience for the animal, in turn producing healthier meat. The ban is supported by the American Medical Association and the Union of Concerned Scientists who state that as much as 70% of the antibiotics used in the US are given to healthy chickens, pigs and cattle-Crazy right?Where are our health care dollars going exactly?  Representative Louise M Slaughter from right here in NY held the meeting and happens to be the chairwoman for the Rules Committee. The meeting alone is a positive step in getting our food systems back on a more Natural track.  In the meantime, I think I'm going to stick with some advice from a smart and very researched and informed man-Michael Pollan.  "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. "

Hungry For Change

"In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, herbicide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli, are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults."

http://www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-film.php

Maybe some of you have heard of this new documentary now in select theaters?  I am torn with excitement and fear to see the truth behind the foods we eat, where they come from, and how genetically modified things have really become. I've recently moved back from the west coast where I was spoiled with year round organic produce at my fingertips.  I want to find a way on the east coast for all of us to eat seasonally, locally, and normally...again.  " The way we eat has changed more in the last 50 years than in the previous 10,000." Michael Pollen   Isn't that fact just crazy?  It's weird.  Everyday we make choices on what to nourish our bodies with.  I understand the dilemas-Hey, I'm a cookie pusher myself, however, the cookies I sell are made with organic and natural ingredients.  See, you can still have the sweet stuff and keep the natural thing in check.  Nicholas D. Kristof wrote a column this weekend for the NYTimes stating that  "unhealthy calories are cheaper than nutritious ones": broccolli compared to Twinkies-get my drift. I know times are tough - perhaps Food, Inc is a small reminder on those Really important things to keep in check?    

GREENSTREAM GOURMET-Favors

Times are tough but the party must go on, right?  Most people equate being "green" with being expensive.  For all of the brides hoping to plan an eco-friendly wedding this year, take peace in knowing that you can stay green, in budget.  Greenstream Gourmet offers many wonderful organic cookie combinations as gifts, baskets and favors.  The packaging used is always compostable, recycled or biodegradable.  Cookies are baked with fine organic and local ingredients and taste Amazing!  It's a sweet treat for all your sweet guests to remember your occasion by.  It will also give you a chance to share your concern and awareness for our home with the people you care about most.  Also available are personalized gift tags printed with soy inks on recycled papers.  WWW.GREENSTREAMGOURMET.COM

Stone Barns Center

Last week I stopped by the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture to check it out.  It happened to be on a Wednesday when they have a small farmer's market from 2-4 offering their veggies and meats straight from the gardens and pastures you look at while purchasing your goods. This is one of the best examples of Farm to Table I've come across since being back on the east coast and this place makes me happy.  We toured their greenhouses and compared their lettuces to ours at home.  We stopped by to see the turkeys, chickens, and my personal favs- the Bershire pigs.  Everybody looked so content I swear I could see smiles.  There is a small cafe open during the day for sandwiches and pastries and a beautiful dining room offering a bit more elegance for dinner.  It's a great place to picnic with family and friends on the acres of beautiful grasses and the Rockefeller Nature Preserve within strolling distance.  Cheers to Stone Barns!! Good times in nature + a little education= one sweet afternoon.   www.stonebarnscenter.org