2,000,000 Cribs Recall

Sorry, I was wrong about the number of cribs involved in the last recall. It's actually over a two million cribs, all with drop-sides. I now have the right link...

Another massive recall, this time with Stork Craft cribs.
I've included one picture, but there are several models included so be sure to check out the information on this.

The cribs were sold in the usual places - Walmart, Amazon.com, Babies r Us, Costco, J.C Penney, Kmart.

You can find information here.

Baby Back Ribs with Mac and Cheese and Brussels Sprouts

Yesterday I decided that I had better go buy my turkey if I still plan on hosting Thanksgiving dinner here at my apartment. I didn't want to get stuck with a 20 pounder just because I didn't think ahead.

And I was also really busy editing so I didn't have a good plan for dinner. So, I decided to go get my turkey at Costco. That way I could also pick up a rack of baby back ribs that they have all prepared and ready to go. We've had them before and they are delicious.

Costco did not disappoint. I was able to get my 8 pound organic turkey and for $19 I picked up 2.5 pounds of ribs - a full rack. For sides, I decided we needed some mac and cheese so I made one of those Annie's Homegrown Organic mac and cheese boxes I had in my cabinet. I also decided to make those brussels sprouts that have been sitting in my refrigerator. Last week, my friend Kita wrote a blog post about her reintroduction to brussel sprouts after being served some at a dinner party. As a former brussel sprouts hater, she was converted and posted brussels sprouts cooking tips on her site.

This is how I like to make them.

Brussels Sprouts
1/2 pound (maybe? enough for 2 people) brussels sprouts
1 or 2 strips of bacon (I like a maple flavored kind for this)
salt and pepper

Clean and trim you brussels sprouts. Place them in a container with a lid - I use BPA free Rubbermaid ones - add a little bit of water, cover and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes.

In the meantime, cut the bacon strips into small pieces. Put in a frying pan and cook until the fat has emulsified and the bacon begins to brown.

Add the steamed brussels sprouts to the frying pan with the bacon. Cook until the brussels sprouts start to brown. Add salt and pepper to taste.

So super easy and really delicious. And good for you, too! Well, except for the cooking in bacon fat part.

Precious

This past Sunday Damien and I did our little movie swap. Damien went to the movies first, then I met him at the food court of the Aventura mall to hand off Baz so that I could go see the same film.

We decided on seeing Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire, an intense, sad story of an obese teenage girl from Harlem who deals with lots of abuse and little opportunity to escape it. It is filled with really terrific performances. But, most of all, it is refreshing to see a story about someone other than middle class white boys coming of age. I certainly wouldn't go see this if you were in the mood for some sort of "pick me up", but I do think that it was a well done movie that offers a unique, if not incredibly uncomfortable, perspective of characters and situations we'd rather believe don't exist.

The only thing that really bothered me was the number of small children in the audience. Don't get me wrong, this was a powerful movie with an important, positive message. But, not for 6 or 7 year olds. This is a movie about a young girl who has been repeatedly raped by her father (she has two children with him.) In the film, the mother is physically and emotionally abusive, calling her all sort of horrible names and at one point tries to drop a television on her. I guess it's one thing if you are going to have some pretty hardcore discussions after seeing the movie, but I don't really think that was on the agenda after our Sunday matinee. And honestly, is it even in any way appropriate to have a discussion about incest with a 6 or 7 year old?

So, I do recommend going to see this movie. But, the kids should probably sit this one out.

Enchiladas Once Again

Since I messed up last night. Tonight, I just went with something I know tastes great and that Damien loves - Mollie's MacDonald's Chicken Enchiladas. And they did not disappoint.

Thanks again for the wonderful recipe, Kita.

Tomorrow night, we have company. Damien's colleague from the Times is coming so I need to come up with something good. And something that doesn't take too much time since I am still slaving away on my freakin' video.

Any ideas? I'm thinking Shrimp Creole -- looks fancy and I can make it ahead of time (and add the shrimp right before serving.)

Quinoa and Apples with Curry

Oh my goodness, I totally screwed up last night.

See, I have never made quinoa before. But I've ordered it at restaurants and loved it. So, when I saw a bag of it at Publix a couple of weeks ago, I bought it. But, it's taken me a while to actually try it. It's actually pretty easy to make -- just like rice. You boil 2 cups of water, then add the quinoa and cook for about 15 minutes or until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy.

I was in the mood for Balthazar's Mustard-encrusted Salmon and thought it would make a great side dish. I looked up a few recipes online and discovered this one from Martha Stewart . But, her recipe looked like it was a cold dish. I wanted it to be hot, so I cooked the apples and shallots in a little bit of butter before I added them to the quinoa.

But, I totally messed up. I don't know what I was thinking -- probably something along the lines of "I hope Baz doesn't choke on his toast while I am turned the other way cooking and man, I should be editing right now" -- but when I went to put my spices back in the cabinet this morning, I discovered what went wrong. I used coriander instead of curry. No wonder my quinoa tasted so different than what I expected. No wonder it sorta sucked.

I figured I'd give you the recipe anyway. Like I said, Martha makes this as a cold salad dish. I think it would be good hot too.

Quinoa and Apples with Curry (adapted from Martha Stewart's recipe)
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 cup quinoa
1 tablespoon butter
1 small apple, diced
1 small shallot, diced
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon curry powder (not coriander)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons dried currants
a few fresh mint leaves, coursely chopped

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Put the almonds in a single layer on a small cookie sheet and toast in the over for about 8 minutes.

Boil two cups of water. Add the quinoa and return to a boil. Cover, lower the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes.

While the quinoa cooks, melt the butter in a small saute pan. Add the shallots and apples and saute until just soft. Set aside.

Make the dressing by combining the honey, curry powder, salt, pepper, olive oil and lemon juice in a small bowl. Stir until it emulsifies.

When the curry is done, add the apples and shallots and mix well. Drizzle the dressing into the quinoa and mix well. Then add the currants and mint and mix well.

I hope it's good. I wouldn't know.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

I was craving chicken noodle soup yesterday so I decided to make use of some of the delicious chicken stock I had in the freezer to make some. It's a little time consuming but fairly easy to do. I started with a recipe from Emeril Lagasse and made adjustments from there.

Then today, I pureed a bit of it to give to Baz. I'm Cuban. We puree a lot. I actually turned out really well and Baz seemed to enjoy it even though he much prefers foods he can pick up and feed himself these days.

Anyway, here is my recipe. For the chicken stock I used this recipe from a couple of weeks back.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (Inspired by Emeril Lagasse's recipe)
3 pound whole chicken
4 cups chicken stock
8 cups water
2 stalks of celery, chopped into large chunks
2 carrots, peeled and chopped into large chunks
2 onions, chopped into large chunks
4 sprigs of thyme
6 sprigs of parsley
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
10 button mushrooms, cut into six pieces
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 onions, diced
1/4 cup white wine
salt and pepper
1/4 pound egg noodles

Put the chicken in a large pot and cover with chicken stock and water. Add the large chunks of vegetables and the thyme, parsley and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 1 hour.

Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside to cool enough so you can handle it. Pour the liquid through a very fine strainer or a strainer lined with cheesecloth. Set the broth aside.

Remove all of the skin and bones from the chicken. Shred the meat into small pieces.

In a large pot heat up the olive oil. Add the butter and melt. Add the mushrooms and saute until brown. Add the diced carrots, celery and onions and saute until soft and brown bits begin to stick to the bottom of the pot. Add the wine and use the liquid to scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pot. Cook for a couple of minutes to let the alcohol evaporate. Add the shredded chicken. Add the reserved broth. Season with salt and pepper to taste which could require quite a bit.

Bring the soup to a boil. Add the egg noodles and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the noodles reach their to desired tenderness.

Voila! It's pretty good stuff and just what the doctor ordered if you are feeling a little under the weather. And it was good left over, too. And pureed like what I did for Baz.

Norman Rockwell and Au Pied de Cochon

Last Thursday, Damien and I had a rare night out together -- sans baby -- to attend the opening of the Norman Rockwell exhibit at the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art. Let me start by saying how impressed I was with the museum. Aside from the wonderful Norman Rockwell exhibit, they also have a more modern stuff upstairs featuring some Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst and other contemporary artists. The space is really nice with lots of different types of rooms. If you are in the area, I definitely recommend checking the place out. It's very easy to see everything and the quality of the work was top-notch.

The Norman Rockwell exhibit is running through February 7th, 2010. All of the paintings are drawn from the Norman Rockwell exhibit in Massachusetts and what I liked most about it is seeing the evolution of his work. It was inspiring to see how much he honed his craft through the years and how he really started to layer is work with different themes and meanings.

It was a great date night!

Friday was another doozy of working my butt off, so Damien made dinner that night and he did a spectacular job. He made delicious pork chops that he served with some Zatarain's red beans and rice and some broccoli. Nice job!

Then on Saturday we spent a big part of the day shooting additional footage for my video. At the end of the day we found ourselves in South Beach so we stopped in at Au Pied De Cochon, a newly opened French restaurant to see what it was like since we've heard good things. It's open 24 hours a day apparently, and at 6pm, when we were there, it was pretty empty. So we decided to brave a visit with our sleeply little Baz in tow. They had a high chair for him and beautiful raw bar set up near our table so Baz behaved wonderfully -- minus a couple of loud screeches at certain points.

Wish I could say I was as happy with the food. I mean, maybe I was expecting too much, but when I saw that the steak frites would cost at least $41 (for the New York Strip) I decided to just get a hamburger. I know, I know. Ordering a hamburger at a French restaurant. But, I don't know when I order a burger to Balthazar in New York, it's delicious. They serve it on a great bun and it's expertly prepared. I guess I was thinking it would be the same here. Besides it was $25. It had to be pretty good.

I ordered the burger medium but when it came it was very rare -- and not that snobby, but "we're a fancy french restaurant and this is what we call medium" rare. It was really, really rare. So, I had no choice but to asked that they take it back. Well, in the kitchen they simply scrapped off the condiments I had put on it and charred the outside to get it to the usual medium pink inside. Not for nothing, but for $25 bucks, you'd think they would have asked if I wanted a new burger entirely so that the outside didn't taste like a burned mess. But, no, I just ate the freakin' thing. And it was on a plain old sesame seed bun like I could find at Publix. No fancy brioche bun like I had imagined.

Damien ordered the veal cheeks and they were tasty and fine. And the French onion soup au grain I had as an appetizer and the salad Damien ordered were fine too. But, the burger really got to me.

The next day, Damien and I left Baz with his grandparents for a couple of hours so I could shoot some of the last few shots for this video. And to make up for our overly expensive hamburger annoyance the night before, we stopped at Joe's Stone Crab take-away store and had ourselves some stone crabs and a lobster roll. Now we were talking.

Mom's Shrimp Creole

REVISED RECIPE!

Okay, you really have to try today's recipe. It is so good.

It's a good thing it worked out, too. Today was strange and unproductive, well, except I also made that fresh mozzarella cheese which turned out pretty well. A little hard, but still tasty served with some vine ripe tomatoes and a little bit of olive oil.

Anyway, about my unproductive day -- I just hate paying the babysitter when I don't feel like I got enough done. But with the weather being pretty crappy, I couldn't shoot much so I tried to digitize and get started on the editing. The beginning of this process always feels like this. Very slow and painful. I mean, I knew going into it that it was going to be slow. Just not this slow.

So, I tried to redeem myself by making a great dinner which began with a quick trip to the supermarket to pick up some of the ingredients I would need. I don't normally stock pimientos and I was out of tomato sauce.

This recipe is so super easy but you need a food processor (or, I guess a blender would work too -- and it would probably help to have a child who does NOT burst into tears every time he hears the roar of the processor motor. Poor little Baz is terrified every single time.)

Here's how you do it:

Shrimp Creole
1 green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 6.5 ounce jar of pimientos
1 8 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
REVISION: 1/4 cup fresh parsley, stemmed
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound shrimp

Place the green pepper, onion, garlic, pimientos, tomato sauce, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, salt and pepper and parsley in a food processor. (If you have a small one like me, you may have to do two rounds. Poor Baz.) Blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into a saucepan, stir in the olive oil and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, clean and devein the shrimp removing the shells and tails. When the sauce has 5 minutes left of cooking time, add the shrimp and continue cooking.

Serve over white rice. And you may want to throw in a side of sweet plantains. Yummy!

I hope you like as much as I do. It is actually really great left over so throw a few extra shrimp in there for tomorrow.

Homemade Cheese!

This is a very busy week where I will be scrambling to figure out what to make for dinner. I have been working on this new video and, man is it requiring a ton of freakin' legwork! Since Damien's been pretty busy too, poor Baz has either been toted around for a few shots or surrendered to his awesome babysitter for the afternoon. I am beginning to feel like he is forgetting the fun we have together. And so far for dinner, I have picked up a fried chicken dinner including macaroni and cheese from Publix one night and one of my Mom's frozen lasagna dinners the other.

But, today I am taking it a bit slower so I will hopefully be making my mom's recipe for Shrimp Creole. This is my favorite dish that I used to request for every birthday. In fact, this year I asked Damien to make it for me. So he wrote to my mom and got her recipe. I will write more about this when I actually make it.

I also decided to use my slower day to try this amazing gift that my brother and sister-in-law sent me for my birthday. It's a cheesemaking kit (that Baz is modeling above.) So, after getting a gallon of organic whole milk from Whole Foods, dissolving some citric acid and rennet tablets in some water, I found myself stirring and stretching my way to some fresh homemade mozzarella.

This was just the first try but I think it looks pretty good. What I would like to do is try to find some really fresh milk -- like from a local dairy -- because I think that is key to making the most flavorful, creamy cheese. For now though, my attempt can be called a success. And tonight, before our shrimp creole, I will be serving a caprese salad!

Maclaren Recall

Just wanted to get this news out there to help protect those little fingers.

Maclaren is recalling all of their umbrella strollers -- about 1 million of them -- because their hinges pose a danger to kids. Apparently 12 children have had the tips of their fingers amputated by these hinges. They are going to supply everyone who owns one of these strollers with hinge covers that should solve the problem. But it's probably best to keep your little ones away when folding or unfolding the stroller.

You can contact Maclaren through their web site at: www.maclaren.us/recall

Of course, when I went to look at it, the site was down. Probably has something to do with the fact that a million people have these strollers.

Potato Leek Soup

The other day I made chicken stock and one of the reasons was because I have been craving potato leek soup and chicken stock is a main ingredient. So, now that I have a freezer and fridge filled with it, I am ready to go.

I used an Emeril Lagasse recipe and it turned out pretty well. I guess I was hoping for a slightly creamier version so next time I might add more heavy cream to the mix. But, this recipe does include bacon and we all know that, really, anything that contains bacon is guaranteed to be delicious.

And it's pretty easy to make, if you have the chicken stock handy. You can always buy the canned kind. So, without further ado:

Potato Leek Soup (inspired by the Food Network, Emeril Lagasse recipe)
1 large leek
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs of thyme
1 teaspoon of peppercorns (I used a multi-colored version)
2 tablespoons of butter
2 strips of bacon, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup of white wine
5 cups of chicken stock
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper (white if you have it)
3/4 cups of heavy cream (or creme fraiche)

Cut of the green part of the leek and use two of the larger leaves to make a bouquet garni. Simply fold the bay leaves, thyme and peppercorn into the leaves and tie it closed with cooking twine or cheesecloth (which I luckily had on hand thanks to the cheese-making kit my brother and sister-in-law sent me for my birthday a few months ago.) Set aside.

Split the white part of the leek down the middle and rinse well since leeks are notorious for holding sand and dirt in between their leaves. Then slice both pieces thinly.

In a large pot, melt the butter over a medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until the bacon is soft and it's "rendered most of it's fat" as Emeril says. This takes about 5 minutes. Then add the leeks and cook until soft and wilted which also takes about 5 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Now add the chicken stock, the potatoes, the salt and pepper and the bouquet garni you created. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for about 30 minutes.

Remove the bouquet garni and, in batches, use a food processor to puree the soup. Return the puree to the pot and stir in the heavy cream. Yummy.

This is best served immediately but is still very good left over if stored overnight in the refrigerator.

I served this as an appetizer last night followed by my chicken cordon bleu which I made a little bit more traditionally last night with ham and swiss cheese. Things are starting to pick up again for work, so I wanted to have at least one fancy-ish meal before we get back to it. We topped things off with a couple of pieces of Halloween candy.

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture again : (

Red Light with the Ladies

Last night a couple of my girlfriends and I met for dinner at an organic diner/restaurant called Red Light. The three of us all had our first babies within months of each other so every once in a while we like to get together without the babies -- there are plenty of time when they come with us too -- and talk about how things are going.

The Red Light is a pretty cool spot on Biscayne Boulevard. It's nestled between a dingy motel and a strip club right on the Miami River. The place is pretty small but it's got a great retro diner feel and hipster wait staff. I liked it. The food was...okay. Two of us had the warm spinach salad which I really liked (it has bacon in it), while the third ordered a vegetarian plate that they specially put together for her. We also shared an artichoke appetizer and a fish dip that was pretty tasty. Unfortunately they brought a butternut squash soup way too late so we didn't even eat it.

But the best part of the night was definitely catching up with my new Miami mom friends. I may not have known them for long, but we've been through a lot together in this limited time. God, this whole motherhood thing has just been insane. It's not only introduced us to a new part of ourselves, but it's changed who we are as career women, as wives, as friends. So every once in a while it feels really nice to get together and hash some things out.

Chicken Stock

Today, I decided to try and make chicken stock since a few recipes I have been looking at recently required this ingredient. I have used canned or boxed stock in the past, but I would imagine that freshly made chicken stock is probably so much better -- and better for you.

Since today was a slower day for me -- or at least I thought it would be -- I undertook the challenge. I bought an organic whole chicken from the Publix Greenwise section and bought some celery and leeks to add to the carrots and onions I already had.

I looked at several different recipes and decided to just wing it based on what I read. This is sort of an all day undertaking so take that into consideration before you start. Here is what I did:

Chicken Stock
1 whole chicken
2 carrots
2 onions
2 stalks of celery
1 leek, the green stems included
4 sprigs thyme
4 sprigs parsley
1 teaspoon peppercorn (I used a multi-colored mix)

Put the chicken in a large (and I mean really large) pot. Cover the chicken with water (about a gallon) and bring to a boil. Remove the foam that accumulates on top.

Chop up the vegetables into big chunks (the pieces should be about an inch). Add the vegetables and the herbs to the pot and bring to a boil. Once it boils, reduce heat to medium low and let the mixture simmer for 4 or 5 hours.

Strain the liquid through a sieve to remove all of the other ingredients. Chill the stock in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, remove the fat that has accumulated on the top. Refrigerate or freeze.

I am chilling my stock now and will let you know how it goes tomorrow. I also saved the very, falling apart, moist chicken and hope to use the meat somehow. We'll see though. It wasn't looking very appetizing after soaking for 4 hours.

God, I really hope it works out. That was a lot of food to use up. But, how could it not work out? It's just that I was so distracted trying to get this done with my newly mobile and very enthusiastic adventurer, Balthazar. Well, first it was his sleeping that really tripped me up. I mean, I put that kid in the car and he is out for an hour at least. So, first I sat in the parking lot at Costco and then again at Publix letting the little guy catch some z's. It was such a waste of time. But, I have to let him rest because when he's awake he is a MANIAC. He's standing up against the table, the refrigerator, the oven. He pulling down pots and pans, screaming when I won't let him leave the refrigerator door open or when I insist that the knife is off limits. Ugh, I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

But, the stock finally got simmering and then I made some Penne alla Vodka for dinner.

I also booked myself another video today. So it looks like this "hiatus" was a short one. I guess that's good.

Full report of the stock tomorrow. Oh and if anyone has made a good chicken stock before and sees that I have made some terrible errors, please let me know. I would really appreciate it.

Yankees Suck Meatloaf

I'm gonna have to write this quickly. My power supply doesn't seem to be working properly. Then I remembered that I found Baz sucking on the end of it today. I hope it is not another casualty of Baz the drooling electronics fanatic. We've already lost a Blackberry and a couple of remote controls.

But, I am back at it today. After taking Baz to his 9 month doctor's appointment, and waiting out an hour nap in the parking lot of the Surfside Publix, I went food shopping and then came home and cooked a nice meal.

I was in the mood for meatloaf. So, I sort of made up my own recipe and added a glaze that I liked from a Food Network recipe. It turned out pretty well.

Here's what I did:

Yankees Suck Meatloaf
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, pressed or diced
1 small onion
1 small carrots
1/2 green pepper
1 small Roma tomato
4 small mushrooms
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon bread crumbs
1 slice of bread
1 pound ground beef (I used organic ground beef after the New York Times article)
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Finely dice the carrot, onion, tomato and mushrooms. Put the olive oil in a large saute pan and heat over high heat. Add the garlic and saute until it starts to brown. Add the rest of the vegetables and saute until soft and the onion is translucent. Set aside to cool a little bit.

Combine the dry ingredients and put in a large bowl. Add the ground beef and break up the slice of bread and use your hands to mix it with the meat and spices. Add the sauteed vegetables and egg. Mix all ingredients together with your hands.

Form the mixture into a loaf either using a loaf pan or your hands. Put the loaf in the middle of a baking sheet and put it in the oven.

After ten minutes, add this glaze which I got from Alton Brown on the Food Network site:

Combine 1/2 cup of ketcup, 1 tablespoon of honey, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, a dash of Worcestershire sauce, a dash of hot sauce. Mix well.

Cover the meatloaf with this glaze and continue cooking until a meat thermometer reads that it is 165 degrees in several places. This takes about 1 hour of cooking.

I served it with mashed potatoes and some steamed broccoli. It was really good.

Oh and I call it Yankees Suck Meatloaf because the Yankees suck.

Supper Sum-Up

I was unusually busy this week finishing up this video for The New York Times that is running on the homepage today (check it out!). So, I didn't really do a lot of cooking. In fact, I can barely remember what I ate. Luckily, I have an awesome husband, who despite having to finish the article that the video accompanied and another piece about the world's largest rubber band ball being moved out of Lauderhill, FL, kept me fed and hydrated.

So, I thought I'd do just a quick run down of what we did for dinner this week in hopes that maybe it will inspire some ideas and distract people from the fact I have been such a blog slacker.

Saturday: One of my mom's frozen Chicken Parmesan meals with a side of penne.
Friday: Filet Mignon with wasabi mashed potatoes and steamed asparagus. (I put a rub on the filet mignon of olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and cumin and cooked in a cast iron skillet to medium rare -- with no fire alarms set off this time)
Thursday: Shrimp Scampi (that I made, thank you very much)
Wednesday: Damien made this excellent Cashew-encrusted chicken dish from the Miami Spice cookbook we recently picked up at the Bookstore in the Grove. I'll post the recipe soon.
Tuesday: Cafe Prima Pasta for the early bird 50% off special. I had the mushroom ravioli special and Damien had the Seafood pasta.
Monday: Rotisserie chicken dinner from Publix with macaroni and cheese and steamed broccoli on the side.
Sunday: Our usual Sunday night pizza order from Pizzafiore.

This week I should be back to cooking so I'm hoping to come up with some new recipes. Any suggestions?

Oh and Happy Halloween!

The Carnivore’s Dilemma

An interesting New York Times "food for thought" column here. I have several friends who push their vegetarian/vegan views and this op-ed piece offers another perspective.

I'm more of an "everything in moderation" kind of girl so I'm not really likely to give up meat anytime soon. But when I can find it, I have been trying to buy only organic or farm raised products. Apparently, it's even better for the environment that eating tofu since so much soy comes from the handful of Brazilian international agribusinesses that are big culprits in the deforestation of Brazil.

I found this paragraph pretty interesting too:

And it should also be noted that farmers bear only a portion of the blame for greenhouse gas emissions in the food system. Only about one-fifth of the food system’s energy use is farm-related, according to University of Wisconsin research. And the Soil Association in Britain estimates that only half of food’s total greenhouse impact has any connection to farms. The rest comes from processing, transportation, storage, retailing and food preparation. The seemingly innocent potato chip, for instance, turns out to be a dreadfully climate-hostile food. Foods that are minimally processed, in season and locally grown, like those available at farmers’ markets and backyard gardens, are generally the most climate-friendly.

No! Not potato chips!

So, take a read and if anyone has any suggestions for where to buy organic meat, let me know. I already get Verde Farms organic ground meat at Costco.