Today I have the good fortune to interview Marissa Reddy, Peet’s core training leader of the Boston and Chicago district. You may be familiar with Peet’s. It’s a leading coffee and tea emporium based out of Emeryville, CA, with locations in Boston, Chicago, Colorado, Seattle, Portland, and California. And it’s tasty.

As I’ve discussed in previous posts, while green tea can be a great choice for weight loss, caffeine itself creates a blood sugar spike by forcing the adrenals to release cortisol.  So despite popular belief, if you are interested in slimming down, three lattes per day is not your best bet. However, if you do choose to indulge, be certain to select a well-made brew. Here Marissa discusses Peet’s dedication to quality.

STEPHANIE: What exactly does a core training leader do?

MARISSA: Well, good question. Peet’s has never advertised….no print, media, whatsoever. Mr. Peet believed that if you educated your customer, they would come back, and tell their friends. So knowledge is a huge piece of being a Peet’s employee. My job is to be sure that the people behind the counter know what it is they’re selling and understand all of the effort behind it, from the tea estate to the coffee farm to the buyers to the roasters.

STEPHANIE: Marissa, what is is about Peet’s that makes it so much better than all of the other chain coffee stores?

MARISSA: When Alfred Peet first started the company in 1966, he founded it based on three product tenents, which are still strictly adhered to. The first one is selection – how we choose what we sell. Peet’s practices long-term direct buying, so our average coffee contract with a grower is 5-7 years. We’ve been buying from a lot of the same people for the last 30 years. We buy directly from growers whenever possible as opposed to using middle men. This way we know exactly what we’re getting, and we’re aware of every step the coffee or tea has been through. It also gives us a lot of freedom to dialogue with growers about their methods.

We have two coffee buyers and one tea buyer who are solely responsible for buying all of our products. Many other companies use boards or committees. Our method allows us to be incredibly selective.

STEPHANIE: Wow, what a job that would be! How does one get hired as the sole tea buyer for Peet’s?

MARISSA: In this case, he started as a regular retail salesperson, tasted a lot, and slowly developed a reputation as someone with a very good palate and attention to detail. He developed a lot of the training we use – lesson plans, product knowledge. Then he was asked to take over the tea department. He’s been with Peet’s about 25 years.

STEPHANIE: You mentioned two other tenets. What are they?

MARISSA: The second one is artisanship. This is probably my favorite because it is the area that Peet’s has most control over. In terms of coffee, it’s the belief that coffee needs to be roasted by hand in very small batches and it is a craft. To become a master roaster for Peet’s takes ten years of apprenticeship so it’s very much treated as a skill you have to master. There are only eight roasters right now, I believe. It’s a small group responsible for roasting a whole lot of coffee.

The third tenent is freshness. That means that for coffee we don’t sell anything in retail stores that was roasted more than ten days ago. All our coffee is served within thirty minutes of being brewed and our espresso shots are only ten seconds old.

STEPHANIE: Does that mean you end up wasting a lot of coffee?

MARISSA: Yes, and from a manager’s perspective that is very tricky in terms of managing your inventory and also training your staff to be cognisant and respectful of the product. Respect the bean! When you go in a grocery store, or even most coffee shops, you probably don’t even know when it’s been roasted. And the staff might not either.

*note: Stephanie and BODA are in no way affiliated with Peet’s. We just like artisan food and companies with integrity.

Was it just me, or was January a weird month? I’m glad it’s over. And I am happy to say that February seems to be going swimmingly thus far. In optimistic spirit, I bring you…the First Friday in February edition of News Bites. Brew up a mug of tea and read along.

• SUGAR: PART OF YOUR COMPLETE BREAKFAST. What are students at H.D. Cooke Elementary in D.C. dining on at 7 am? Kellogg’s Crunchmania Cinnamon Buns, chocolate milk, and grape juice. And no, grape juice does not count as one serving of fruit. Its sugar level is 50 percent higher than that of Coca-Cola. I wonder how many of those sugar-infused children are being “diagnosed” with ADHD or anxiety and put on Ritalin.
• NIRVANA AND URBAN GARDENS. The city known for McDreamy, coffee, and grunge is designating 2010 the Year of Urban Agriculture. One goal: to “encourage residents to get their hands in the soil”. Nice. A number of initiatives, including a new urban food bank farm, are planned. With food prices escalating and oil peaking, the future lies in looking to the past, with household and community gardens providing fresh, local produce. It makes sense.
• WE NEED A NEW SYSTEM. Fewer than 1% of US farms are organic, per the USDA. This despite the increasing demand for organic products. We MUST vote with our dollar and demonstrate our unhappiness with the mono / factory farm culture by buying products that are created in a more sustainable way. On a positive note, California’s organic operations account for 20% of the state’s farming operations. Go Cali!
• POO SALAD. While there are always creepy crawlies on, around and in us, some foods harbor more than others. A recent Consumer Report indicated that pre-packaged bags of leafy greens contain high levels of bacteria that are indicators of poor sanitation and fecal matter. I have inherent suspicion of anything packaged. Why would you pre-package leafy greens, anyway? Is it THAT hard to pull a plastic bag off the hanging thingie and shovel some of your spinach in?

Coconut milk itself may not fall under “recession cuisine”. One can of organic, full-fat coco milk equals nearly $2. But I will tell you that a little splash of it goes a looooong way towards filling you up with delicious fats. And that’s what recession cuisine is about: stretching your dollar while maximizing your nutrient intake.

“COCONUT?!” you may be saying. “Isn’t this a WEIGHT LOSS SITE?” Well, yes. The fact is, we’ve been fed some really skewed information about fats. Saturated fats in particular. We NEED them! And coconut milk’s a wonderful source. Ironically, studies have found that eating enough saturated fat actually supports the weight loss process.

Here are just a few of coconut milk’s benefits:

• It’s been shown to aid weight loss by speeding up the metabolism.
• The lauric acid in coconut milk is anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-microbial, so it helps boost the immune system, which is your body’s defense against illness.
• It contains potassium, calcium, chloride, Vitamin A and Vitamin E, so it’s great for your skin and hair.

Do I have you convinced yet?

Now, I KNOW you like the sound of coconut milk shake. How could you not? What if I told you that drinking about 12 oz of this shake kept me full for six hours? Everyone’s body is different, so I can’t guarantee the same results for you. But if you’d like to experiment, try blending up the following:

• splash of coconut milk
• splash of any other “milk” (dairy, almond, rice, hemp)
• organic frozen berries (another recession cuisine idea, as they are cheaper than fresh. I like to use cranberries, blackberries and blueberries)
• spoonful of almond butter
• Stevia to taste (just a few drops should do it)
• optional: raw egg (I don’t recommend eating them at ALL if you’re getting feedlot, non-organic, gross factory farmed eggs, but I get them from a good source and like adding them to my diet every so often)
• optional: raw cacao nibs (I happened to have some on hand and they add a nice chocolaty crunch)

I have a new niece. Her neck smells like a corn chip and looks like a thick white sausage. Her body resembles a cross between a pig and a cow. She’s very noisy and she likes to chew on my comforter.

You’ve probably guessed by now that she’s a dog (that would be kinda horrible if she wasn’t, right?). Her name is Mason. In our house she is also known as Pigcow. She’s a Staffordshire Terrier, a very dominant lady. She also happens to have red, ouchy-looking skin (that’s a clinical diagnosis) on her lower abdominal and pelvic area. The first time I saw it I gasped in sympathy. I put a little coconut oil on it but she promptly licked it off.

“I’ve tried everything,” said her mom. She didn’t want to put Pigcow on steroids but was starting to consider it. Pigcow was so itchy that she sometimes dragged her underbelly along the floor. Pigcow’s mother, who is apparently good at making lemonade out of lemons, has now taught her to hump on command by synchronizing the word with Pigcow’s attempts to relieve her pain.

Like most pets, Pigcow is on a diet that her owner considers pretty good quality. But animals were made to eat raw meat. Our pets don’t. And if they’re fortunate enough to get some treats occasionally, it’s often the feedlot, corn and soy raised, antibiotic and hormone infested meat that most human Americans eat. Like our pets, we aren’t eating our native diet. So none of us are getting the nutrients we need. And many humans aren’t doing a whole lot better than Pigcow.

People don’t often connect skin problems and allergies with digestion. They are intimately related. I figured Pigcow would benefit from Cod Liver Oil, which provides supplemental Omega 3s and Vitamin A for her skin. She’s also getting a whole foods vitamin designed especially for pets (to replace what their food leaves out), and Quercitin for her allergies. It’s early days but her skin’s not looking quite as raw and red.

Many of you are probably reading this and getting ready to email me about your pet’s skin problems. I welcome that, and I think that’s great. I know you’d do anything for Fluffy. But I also notice people often treat their pets better than they treat themselves. Skin, hair, and nails can be a great barometer for your internal health. Are YOU experiencing any problems? Are you jumping at the opportunity to heal Fluffy’s pain, but ignoring your own?

• STATE OF THE UNION’S LUNCH. Although President Obama called for a freeze on domestic programs during Wednesday night’s State of the Union address, Debra Eschmeyer argues that childrens’ nutrition should remain a priority. The US Department of Ag recently reported that in 2008, 1 in 4 children went hungry. 1 in 3 children will develop Type II Diabetes – 1 in 2 if the child is Black or Hispanic. Fun fact: the School Lunch Program was initially developed to prepare young men for military service. But today, 27% percent of the population are too overweight to serve.
• MANIFEST DENSITY. No, that’s not a typo. Asserting that “America is great because we outconsume every other nation”, Steve Colbert calls on us to, well, get fatter. I’m of two minds about this clip. It’s a typical Daily Show sketch – a pointed indictment of the American sociopolitical machine. That I like. But in some ways it’s also pretty insensitive to fat people.
• FRUIT’S ROOTS. A Gallup poll indicates that fewer Americans ate fruits and vegetables in 2009 than in 2008. The USDA’s famous recommendation is, of course, five servings per day. Does anyone know what a serving size looks like? It’s not just “any time you eat the food”. For instance, it’s half a cup of veggies, or a cup of raw leafy greens. And while we’re on the subject of vegetables, I’d like to repeat what one of my brilliant holistic nutrition professors said. The phrase “fruits and vegetables” should really be “vegetables and fruits”. Vegetables contain everything fruits do, and more. Fruits are great, but they’re sugary. They actually evolved to spike our blood sugar so we’d gain a little weight going into the winter. So this isn’t about “I’m healthy because today I had grapes, a mango, a piece of watermelon and some strawberries”. Fruits are treats. Healthy treats. Better for you than sugary and refined foods, but still treats. I really don’t think we need three pieces a day.
• FRANKENWORMS. Frankencorn has made its way into soil-dwelling animals, such as worms. I could make a joke here about how everything’s made of corn nowadays, but I don’t find this situation  funny. Everything we do on this planet impacts everything else. What are the implications of GMO food slowly taking over??

It’s free. It comes out of our faucets. It comprises about 75% of both the Earth and our bodies. You can get it distilled or filtered or bubbly. You can add lemon or lime or ice cubes. But water?? That’s not a food.

No, it’s not. And I’m not suggesting you substitute your meals with water. But it’s a commonly overlooked and crucial substance.  It’s particularly key for weight loss because it helps the liver metabolize fat. It helps flush toxins out of your body. It improves muscle tone (hydrated muscles contract more easily). And most of us don’t drink nearly enough of it.

The recession part? It’s free. At least for now. The cuisine part? Sometimes when you’re hungry, sleepy, headachy, or craving sugar, you actually need water instead.  A few weeks ago I was at the tail end of a nasty bug, fever and GI symptoms included. I’d hardly had anything to drink…because…well…I couldn’t really keep anything down. And I developed a monster of a headache. As in, every time I shifted position, my head felt like a gong that had been smacked soundly by a sumo wrestler. I was concerned. What was going on? My brilliant boyfriend, who also happens to be a naturopathic doctor, suggested the obvious: dehydration. Sure enough, after sipping some water over a period of a few hours, it dissipated. You’d expect me to come up with this answer on my own, being a nutritionist and all, but it can be easy to forget about the basics.

Having trouble fitting the clear magical liquid into your life? Feeling confused about filtered vs distilled, flat vs bubbly? Here are a few of my top tips for effective H2O consumption. They’re good. Read ‘em all.

1. It’s great to aim for 8 glasses per day, but don’t drink them all at once – the body can’t absorb it. Instead, drink smaller amounts throughout the day.

2. If you have difficulty getting excited about drinking water, try purchasing a really fun cup or Sigg, and have it near you at all times. You can add flavorings like the aforementioned citrus, auditory stimulation like clinking ice cubes, or even a dash of tea or a FEW drops of juice to make it more palatable. Also try envisioning one pound melting off for each day you drink 8 glasses. It doesn’t quite work that directly but it can be good motivation.

3. The body absorbs flat better than bubbly. But bubbly’s far better than none at all.

4. It’s a good idea to filter your water. You can buy a home filtration machine or a Brita filter. Distilled refers to the process of removing minerals from the water – you don’t want that.

5. Please try to refrain from buying water in plastic bottles! They’re horrible for the environment. Get something you can use and re-use, like a glass bottle or a Sigg. Also, if you do happen to have your water (or any other drink) in a plastic bottle, make sure it doesn’t get hot. Heat causes the toxins from the plastic to leach into the fluid. Yum!

6. Caffeine does not equal water. If you’re drinking black tea or green tea or decaf coffee, that’s not water. Caffeine is, in fact, dehydrating. However, herbal tea is like water with herbal benefits. I know many people think “gross” when I say “herbal tea”. I used to. Try experimenting with flavors. Go to your local health food store and ask them what they would recommend for people who think most herbal tea is gross. I like rooibos myself.

7. Remember that we’re all interconnected. This web that links us all is particularly evident in the water supply. Reducing your use of toxic chemicals can help lighten the load on the earth. Installing a water-saving shower head contributes to conservation of this precious material. Try to tread lightly!

Good morning!

I had an inspirational (and busy) weekend. Standout themes: community, spirituality, and food. With a background in clinical social work, part of me usually has an ear cocked to the effects of my individual actions on the larger society. And if you’re dedicated to food, sooner or later you will run across its social, economic, political, and cultural repercussions. Here’s how this process unfolded for me on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

I spent Friday afternoon preparing food for a Shamanic Journeying class. Shamanism is the oldest spiritual tradition known to humankind. It’s been around since we first emerged on the scene. If that phrase “shamanic journeying” makes you go “huh??”, follow this link for a nice explanation of what it is.

Anyway, as many of us know, food can be a great tool for grounding. If we were going to be visiting non-ordinary reality, we’d probably need some treats to help our physical bodies reconnect with the Earth. But which foods would best facilitate that? Twizzlers and Coke? Crepes and crudite? A few weeks ago I sat with this question and allowed my intuition to dictate a menu. I went with what emerged. Here’s what came up (all ingredients were organic whenever possible):

• trail mix composed of raw pecans, unsweetened dried cherries, apple juice sweetened cranberries, raw cacao nibs, malt grain sweetened dark chocolate chips.
• kale chips seasoned with apple cider vinegar, salt, garlic powder, agave and cayenne, baked in the oven.
• spaghetti squash mixed with butter, cinnamon, maple syrup and a pinch of salt.
• corn cakes prepared with corn, milk, butter and salt.

I proposed the menu to the group leader and she loved it. Later, I realized:

• the corn cakes to which I had referred were actually called “Journey Cakes” in my Arkansas cookbook (how appropriate!)
• I had quite a few native foods represented: corn, squash, cranberries, cacao / chocolate, maple syrup

What does this mean? I don’t know. Interesting coincedences? Spirit requesting foods that were indigenous to this part of the world? My subconscious making puns? Whatever it was, the menu worked. The recipes offered seemed to be just what the participants needed.

Saturday night I went to the annual Slow Food meeting for the Boulder Chapter. Bookcliff Vineyards hosted, with a delicious wine tasting during the meet and greet portion of the evening. We had a scrumptious pot luck (Morroccan lamb pie, anyone?) and the people were lovely.

Elections were held during the actual meeting. Then the floor opened for members to suggest event ideas for 2010. And of course, I had many. Would you expect anything less? I’m the Boulder Chapter leader for the Weston A. Price Foundation, and we have quite a bit of overlap with Slow Food in terms of obsession with and dedication to food, but also I’d say that as a generalization we’re more focused on nutrition and traditional, nutrient-dense foods. I hoped we could partner with Slow Food, and I made the following suggestions:

1. Monthly Speaker Series on nutrition. As focused we are in Boulder on holistic health, I’ve been really surprised at the lack of a central meeting place for regular, free or low cost public health talks. Sure, there are a few establishments around town that host, but the turnout isn’t great. In fact, as a speaker I was even cautioned about this issue when planning local presentations. I’d discussed this with Cafe of Life and we’d decided to work on filling this vacuum with compelling presentations and delicious food. I invited Slow Food to partner with us.

2. Food Film Festival. Again, I wonder why Boulder, of all places, doesn’t have one. Last spring I started dreaming about what it would take to create a simple weekend of three or four films and a panel discussion.

The Film Festival idea was particularly well-received. So we’ll see what emerges from these projects. I like serving the community, and I like getting people excited about food. Now if only I could figure out a way to get paid for it…

• OUR NOBLE FRIENDS TO THE NORTH. Referencing the fact that 28% of their students are overweight or obese, Ontario schools have banned the sale of soda, fries and candy on school premises. Quite logical, right? Why can’t the US follow in their footsteps? Perhaps it has something to do with the subsidies our public schools receive from the aforementioned industries. Wouldn’t it be nice if they received more money from the government instead?
• FOOD IN HAITI. Here’s an interesting article on Haitian agriculture. Once a self sufficient rice producer, the country was forced to open its economy to cheap US food imports. Local food producers cannot compete with these subsidized products. This sad story is repeating around the globe. 
• COWS = LAWNMOWERS AND FERTILIZERS. Time Magazine reports on the ability of grass-fed cattle to enrich the soil. This is a wonderful piece to read if you want to argue that eating meat doesn’t HAVE to be a drain on the ecosystem. It’s all in the process.

We all know how cheap eggs are. You might as well pay the extra buck for organic. It hardly breaks the bank, and you’re getting far better nutrition. Eggs are an awesome source of protein, and don’t listen to the naysayers who preach against saturated fat: we NEED saturated fat!

Everyone’s used to eggs in the morning, right? Scrambled. Fried. In an omelet. They’re a great way to sneak veggies in to your morning meal: I like to add mushrooms or spinach or zucchini. However, for the purposes of recession cuisine – expanding our minds about how to create the cheapest, healthiest and tastiest meals possible – I like to add them to an evening meal every so often. Here are a couple of creative ways I’ve used eggs for my dinner protein.

THAI INSPIRED EGG AND RICE

brown rice

Stevia

coconut milk

coconut oil

water

1-2 eggs

veggies of your choice – try bamboo shoots, green and red peppers, onions…

fish sauce

lime juice

1. Boil rice in equal parts coconut milk and water. Add a few drops of Stevia to make it sweet.

2. Saute veggies in coconut oil.

3. Fry egg(s) in coconut oil.

4. Combine, and drizzle with fish sauce and lime juice to taste.

5. Enjoy!

ITALIAN INSPIRED EGG AND PASTA

gluten free pasta

salt

pepper

garlic

olive oil

lemon juice

greens of your choice: I like beet greens or spinach with this dish

1 egg

1. Boil pasta

2. Saute greens in olive oil and garlic.

3. Fry egg in olive oil.

4. Combine. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Devour!

I’ve been reading a lot of weight loss / diet / health blogs lately, and I’m trying to figure out where mine falls.

I’m in the position of advice-giving expert. I have my Master’s in Clinical Social Work, and my certificate in Holistic Nutrition. I work with people (mostly women) to create a positive relationship with food. I really love what I do.

But sometimes it’s boring to read a blog that’s just telling you “do this” and “do that”. Sometimes you want to know more about the actual person behind the blog. And I’ve arrived in this position precisely because of my own journey with food. So I’ve decided to share a little more about me.

I grew up eating pretty horribly. The earliest meals I remember were Cocoa Krispies and pb&j sandwiches. In high school, a typical day consisted of a granola bar at breakfast, a brownie for lunch, chips and salsa after school, and some random concoction for dinner – leftovers, takeout, white pasta with sauce from a can. If a vegetable happened to make its way into my mouth it was probably on a slice of pizza, or had been microwaved within an inch of its life. Oh, and I was a vegetarian…who, I recently discovered, was allergic to both soy and milk. So any protein I was ingesting was wreaking havoc on my digestive system.

I was obsessed with sugar. I ate it every day, multiple times per day. I also had numerous health problems. For instance, the summer I was fourteen, I went to Switzerland. You can probably imagine my favorite activity there: pounding chocolate. I came back with severe acne that remained with me for years.  All the dermatologists told me “diet has nothing to do with it” and wrote me prescription upon prescription. At one point I was applying 4 different lotions topically and taking a low dose of antibiotic. Now I know antibiotic is one of the worst things you can do to your gut. I was also on birth control, another gut wrecker. My sugar cravings got worse and worse. I had excema, brutal PMS, really unstable moods, and other issues that are a little too personal to go into. And of all the medical practitioners I visited, no one ever questioned my diet.

By my mid-twenties, I was a practicing psychotherapist living in San Francisco. I didn’t know how to cook, and I ate things like apples for breakfast and protein bars for lunch. No wonder I binged on sugar two or three times per week – I was starving. I really had no desire to change my eating habits either. As far as I was concerned, eating healthy meant half a grapefruit and salads with fat free dressing  and cottage cheese. And NO SUGAR. When I ate that way I was hungry, and I didn’t enjoy myself!

Eventually a friend connected me with her holistic nutrition counselor. I started to see her when I was 26, and I began to get a bit of a handle on how to eat. I learned what a meal should look like, and I learned how to cook really basic things that also tasted good (hint: it’s all about the seasoning). Before long I was assisting cooking classes. As I improved my food choices, many of my symptoms began to lessen. And within two years I had decided to embark on my own course of study of nutrition.

Now I work with people on their relationship to food because I think food is a wonderful, simple metaphor for how you live the rest of your life. If you’re willing to learn to cook, that means you’re ready to start taking care of yourself – at least a little bit. If you’re ready to explore your food addictions, it means you’re ready to look at some difficult dynamics and face some potentially unpleasant emotions. By supporting people both nutritionally and emotionally, I feel I can support the whole person.

And so often, we’ve bought into myths about food! Healthy diets do NOT consist of grapefruit and salad…well, not ONLY grapefruit and salad. There’s room for butter and meat and cream and maple syrup and all kinds of whole, satiating foods. Very often, I see people who are eating too little, then go off the rails, as I used to do. They think it’s an issue of willpower. That always makes me sad. In reality, they just don’t know how to eat supportively day to day in order to feel satisfied.

So that’s a little about my own journey. I believe in what I do because I saw it work for me, and I’ve seen it work for many others. Food is endlessly fascinating precisely because it’s so powerful. We’re only made up of what we eat – nothing else.

So I couldn’t get it together to write Friday News Bites this week. Well, here you go…a well-rested, exercised and brunched version. Happy reading!

• A GAY COUPLE WITH KIDS. Move over, Jersey Shore. A fabulous gay couple from NYC learns biodynamic farming in Planet Green’s latest reality tv series. And yes, some of their activities  involve goats, hence the pun. I’d much rather watch this than orange oompa loompas with too much hair gel. But I don’t have a tv.
• ANOTHER ONE FOR THE DUH FILES. In case you need proof, the California Department of Education discusses the efficacy of environment-based education: specifically, school gardens. Apparently, if you are involved in creating a school garden, you learn more about nutrition and are more likely to eat vegetables. Who’d have thought?
• AN UNFORTUNATE REASON FOR GROWTH. Check out this WSJ chart of the recession’s impact on various jobs. Waaay down in the bottom right hand corner you’ll see that “community food services” grew by 11.5%. When unemployment’s high, food banks become crucial.
• FOOD TRENDS FOR 2010. Marion Nestle, nutritionist extrordinaire, predicts the ten most pressing food issues for 2010. Hunger, childhood obesity, and food regulations top of the list.

And we’re back with recession cuisine Tuesdays. I know it’s been a minute. But I’m sure our collective post-holiday bank accounts have many of us scraping the backs of the cupboards to make tuna-carrot-millet surprise. Oh, that’s just me? I tend to get too personal in these blogs sometimes.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. One of the best ways to save money is to cook your own food. It’s also one of the best ways to eat nutritiously and lose weight. Sounds like a win-win situation, right? Well…the problem is that so many of us live such busy lives that a healthy dinner is often a pizza with vegetables on it! Yes, I know that trick, telling yourself it’s good for you because you ordered it with onions and peppers. Well, it’s better than nothing, of course.

But here’s what I tell my clients. Our culture is sorely lacking in tradition. Can you decide to start a new tradition? On Sundays – and this is particularly nice in the winter – cook up a bubbling vat of stew. It’ll perfume the house with the scents of caring, love, garlic. It’ll make you feel all homey and cosy. You’ll have something to eat off of for a couple days. And you’ll feel virtuous, because you saved money.

Here’s your first recipe for Sunday Stew Day. There are more under ‘recession cuisine’. Sobaheg is Wampanoag (one of the Native American tribes in Massachusetts) for ’stew’. How appropriate! Now remember, people traditionally did not use recipes. They threw whatever was handy into a pot. So in that sense, the tuna-carrot-millet surprise is actually a pretty traditional way of cooking. This sobaheg recipe draws on ingredients that would have been local to this tribe. The method of cooking was recorded by English settlers in the late 1600s, and the recipe itself appears on the website for Plimoth Plantation - a fantastic recreation of the colonists’ original community in what is now Plymouth, MA.

Sobaheg

½ pound dry beans (white, red, brown, or spotted kidney-shaped beans)
½ pound yellow samp or coarse grits
1 pound turkey meat (legs or breast, with bone and skin)
3 quarts cold water
¼ pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths
½ pound winter squash, trimmed and cubed
½ cup raw sunflower seed meats, pounded to a coarse flour
Combine dried beans, corn, turkey, and water in a large pot. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, turn down to a very low simmer, and cook for about 2 ½ hours. Stir occasionally to be certain that the bottom is not sticking.

When dried beans are tender, but not mushy, break up turkey meat, removing skin and bones. Add green beans and squash, and simmer very gently until they are tender.

Add sunflower flour, stirring until thoroughly blended.

Ok, not if you’re getting multiple colds and flus every year. If that’s the case, something’s probably wrong. But the occasional bug isn’t a bad thing. Experiencing symptoms like runny nose, fever, and vomiting means your immune system is working.

On New Year’s Eve I went out in the cold Boulder night wearing a leetle 1920s dress and toeless high heels (bad move, but I was going to a speakeasy and needed to look the part). I’d had an emotional few days that culminated with a secret desire to lie in bed and do nothing. And what do you know…I got sick. I do believe illness can often be an emotional, physical and spiritual cleansing. Clearly, I needed to slow way down. I needed to curl up under my down comforter and watch 30 Rock. And today I arrive back at work a better woman for it.

You may have heard that frequent immunizations are likely to create a weak and vulnerable population. This medical professional certainly thinks so. It’s important to boost your immunity in natural ways – eating good quality food, exercising, and reducing the stress in your life. When you do get sick, don’t suppress the symptoms. They’re your body’s way of detoxing. Let your illness run its course, and support your body in natural ways like homeopathic remedies, keeping hydrated, and laying low.

It’s not just an expression your mother used to guilt you into cleaning your plate.

Turn on the tv. Drive down a freeway. Open a magazine. Heck, even watch a movie. You’re likely to be bombarded with glossy images of irresistible treats. You watch the chocolaty ooze of hot fudge drizzled over ice cream. You hear the crisp snap of a can of soda as it’s opened. You can practically smell the golden fries as they bounce, slow-motion, onto a plate, ready to be devoured.

Seems like food’s omnipresent in the good old USA. But that’s not the case. And it’s most definitely not the case worldwide. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization,  6.7 billion people call this lovely planet home. Of those, 1.02 billion are hungry. 947 million people in the developing world are undernourished, meaning they consume less than the minimum number of calories essential for healthy growth and development. Per the World Health Organization, poor nutrition and nutrient deficiencies cause nearly 1 in 3 people to die prematurely or have disabilities.

There are many ways to look at food:

• fuel
• a blessing from the Earth
• an indulgence
• a quick fix
• a way to stop feeling, or to feel better
• a way to take care of yourself
• a creative act
• a way to hurt yourself
• a function of your socioeconomics

If you’re struggling with food – or even if you aren’t – consider how many people go without. It may offer some perspective for you.

• Want to lose those holiday pounds – and actually keep them off?
• Feeling lethargic and dreading the winter blues?
• Looking for a way to jump start your healthiest year yet?

How was your holiday? I’m happy to say mine was wonderful. On Christmas Eve we indulged in a potluck feast featuring hot spiced cider, pate, ham, salad, sweet potatoes, gluten free spice cake and raw pecan pie. Then on Christmas Day we had….DIM SUM.

I’m Jewish. Jewish Christmas means Chinese food and a movie. I was determined to celebrate the holiday while still honoring my ancestors. And I hadn’t had dim sum since I lived in San Francisco (about a year). So before seeing Avatar (which I highly recommend), we swung by a packed Heaven Star in Broomfield, Colorado.

Eating dim sum is incredibly engaging and interactive. It’s best to go with a group, although two or even one can certainly enjoy it. You choose your small plates from carts that circulate throughout the restaurant. Everyone knows about shrimp dumplings and pork buns, but on Friday I was treated to visions of jellyfish and stomach (I don’t know whose stomach it was!). Sadly my dining companions did not share my curiousity about these more unusual delicacies, so we stuck with some of the basics.

Because I love to explore food from a cultural and historical angle, I was driven to research dim sum. Did you know the term actually means “to touch your heart”? I’d say it was more my GI tract that was touched. We ate at 2 pm and I was full for about seven hours, which is rare for me. Anyway. Originally a Cantonese custom, these tiny treats evolved to accompany tea in Chinese teahouses. As Chinese immigrants began to settle in America, dim sum gained popularity in this country as well. Yum cha, or drinking tea, is the term that describes the entire culinary experience. There’s some speculation that dim sum gave rise to the concept of brunch, as dim sum is a large meal traditionally eaten by early afternoon.

Dim sum generally involves small plates of either steamed or fried foods served family style. Tea accompanys the meal and is believed to aid digestion. If you’d like to be extra polite during your dim sum experience, pour your companions’ tea first before filling your own cup. Thank you companion for pouring your tea by tapping your index and middle fingers on the table – this represents bowing.

Have you been fortunate enough to have dim sum? Leave a comment below and share your experience.

Isn’t it nice to know the history and nutritional value of the things you’re eating? Ok, maybe I’m the only nerd who collects facts such as “the zucchini originated as a hybrid outside Milan in the 17th century!” (adjust pocket protector and push glasses up nose). But I like stories. They provide context for life. And on that note, I’m going to let you in on a few secrets about the proteins sitting on the typical American Xmas dinner table.

*IRONY NOTE: I’m Jewish. But I’ve been told the following are traditional Christ-commemorating winter solstice treats. Feel free to correct me.

HAM – There are conflicting reports regarding the domestication of the first pigs. Some say it occurred about 13,000 BC in the near east. Another source reports 6,000 BC in West Asia. Regardless, they were consumed voraciously across the Eurasian continent. Jews, Muslims, and, apparently, Phoenicians, disdained the swine. They considered it unclean. Christians did too back in the day, but by about 50 AD they collectively changed their minds. Ham is a good source of protein and of Vitamin B12, which supports memory, normal growth and development, and energy levels. As always, be sure you are getting good quality pork – organic, if you can. And no…you will not get the swine flu from your Christmas Ham.

GOOSE – Traditionally, in the British Isles, a fattened goose was served at Christmas. Naturally they’re also quite high in protein. I don’t really have much more to say about geese. They’re not so easy to find nowadays, the edible kind I mean. It’s not like you can go into King Soopers and purchase a goose. But you can certainly order them online.

TURKEY – This fascinating bird has a long history in the Americas: archaeologists have found 12,000 year old turkey fossils. You read that right.  Wild turkeys were domesticated in Mexico between 200 BC and 700 AD. Spanish conquistadors introduced the bird to Europe about 500 years ago. Sadly, because of our industrialized food system, the more historic varieties of turkey have become nearly extinct, while the Broad Breasted White dominates the market. You can help support traditional breeds by purchasing a Heritage turkey for your next feast.

 

We have become so disconnected from our food. Take a minute to honor the history of the animal you’re eating, or to wonder where that vegetable came from.

As beautiful as this time of year can be, we all know that depression and stress peak during the holiday season.

If you’re feeling blue, it’s no surprise. This season can bring up feelings of lack, of anxiety,  of loneliness, or grief.  Perhaps you’re single and wishing for a partner. Perhaps you are grieving a loss. Perhaps you don’t have the family support you’d like to have, and seeing the chummy images of siblings and parents and cousins gathered round the fire just brings it painfully home. Or perhaps you’re far away from your community. It’s all too common to submerge our feelings in food, and the holiday season provides us with plenty of cookies, candy and cheese balls to do so.

Rather than drowning your sorrows in caramel popcorn, try showing up for your feelings. Identify a supportive friend or family member and ask if you can do a daily check in with them for the next week. Make a commitment to yourself about how you’re going to take care of yourself. Do you vow to avoid chocolate? Will you only allow yourself one slice of pie per day? Do you think a few minutes of daily meditation would make all the difference? Each day, let your contact person know whether you’ve accomplished your goal. It’s not about doing things perfectly. It’s about being accountable. If you wind up bingeing on candy canes, but you have to be honest with someone about it, perhaps it will prompt you to look at what’s REALLY going on emotionally.

Most of all, remember to find something you enjoy about the season. Do you love the smell of Christmas trees? Creating ornaments? Taking a walk through the neighborhood to look at the holiday lights? Identify a non-food activity to indulge in. When you’re feeding your heart, you won’t be looking to food.

• EATING FAT DOESN’T MAKE YOU FAT – BUT DRINKING SODA DOES. If the first part of this statement confuses you, check out this brilliant book. If the second part confuses you, check out this new anti-soda ad running in NYC. Gross? Yes. Shocking? Yes. Potentially effective? Yes. Accurate? Yes…except for the part about avoiding consumption of fat. Drinking soda will do many harmful things to you. But people tend to respond quicker to threats about their appearance than to the mysterious potential pathologies occuring in their deep dark guts.
• WHO NEEDS THE LIVER AND KIDNEY, ANYWAY? New studies demonstrate that a 90-day course of genetically modified corn consumption  induces a state of toxicity in the organs of rats. Researchers called the findings “highly statistically significant” . And this was only over three months. Who knows what might happen over a period of years?
• NEVER WAS THERE A TALE OF MORE WOE / THAN MONSANTO AND ITS GMO. That was horrible, but I felt compelled to do something with my undergrad degree in English Lit. The Obama administration is seeking stories of how corporate food systems have impacted individual Americans. If you have a tale of woe of Monsanto or another industry giant, or simply want to express concern about these monopolies, click here.
• ULTIMATE DETOX IN 2010. New Year’s Resolution time. Join me for a three week weight loss detox beginning January 11. Lose weight and kill your sugar cravings using cutting-edge health techniques and easy to implement strategies. Detox safely and restore your health. Start 2010 with the energy and vitality you’ve always dreamed of having!  For more info, shoot me an email.

This little article has been making the rounds.

Titled “The 7 Foods Experts Won’t Eat”, it describes the horrors of various items from microwaved popcorn to canned tomatoes. At first glance these foods seem to have nothing in common. But look closer: each one has been tampered with. None are in their natural form. Whether it’s corn and soybean fed cows  or pesticide laden apples, none have escaped the heavy, and toxic, hand of man.

What does this boil down to? The less people have touched the food, the healthier it is. The organic-by-default lettuce and tomatoes growing in your backyard garden top the list. The boxed, processed, partially hydrogenated cookies in the middle of Safeway fall somewhere towards the bottom.

It seems like a lot of nitpicky information. Details that no one but a holistic nutritionist (hello!) would know. Well, first of all, that’s what you pay us for. But second, it’s worth taking a few minutes to enlighten yourself about what you’re actually putting in your body. It’s what you’re made of, after all. And who wants to be made of growth hormone, insecticide, and herbicide?