Fresh broccoli and cauliflower cut into small florets, then tossed in a mixture of coconut oil, chopped peanuts, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and a pinch of blonde palm sugar. Oven roasted at high heat until fork tender and partially caramelized, then served over a curry of coconut milk, galangal, red chilies, star anise and coriander..
AMERICA’S PREMIER NUTRITION CONFERENCE
Life-changing Lectures • Cooking Lessons • Networking
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For anyone interested in health, nutrition and food,
including parents, health professionals, seniors and students
Regarding that “Stanford Study”, the good people at Austin’s Sustainable Food Center writes to say..
On September 3, 2012 the New York Times published an article about a Stanford University study that allegedly dispels the nutritional advantages of organic food. The response from the sustainable agriculture community regarding this study has been tremendous. Below we have provided links to articles we feel provide the best response to the claims made by this study.
Hey, Austin!
It’s time for the 5th annual Austin Restaurant Week, the not-to-be-missed culinary event to benefit Meals On Wheels And More. Participating restaurants (including Foreign & Domestic, Olivia, Uchiko, Olive & June and lots more) are offering special lunch, brunch and dinner table d’hôte menus ranging in price from $12 to $37.
This year, Austin Restaurant Week has doubled their fundraising goal to $35,000 which would help provide more than 17,000 meals for the local non-profit organization’s clients.
Addie Broyles writes “From this Sunday through Wednesday and again Sept. 30 through Oct. 3, each restaurant is offering three-course dinners for either $27 or $37 and/or two-course lunches for $12 or $17. Some are also offering a $17 brunch menu. Austin Restaurant Week has an iPhone and Android app that lets you search by location, cuisine or price and make reservations. You can make reservations and find more information at restaurantweekaustin.com. (OpenTable.com, a partner in Austin Restaurant Week, will make an additional donation for every ARW reservation made through either its website or restaurantweekaustin.com.)”.
Hope to see you out there!
NEW YORK TIMES, Sept. 15, By MARK BITTMAN
IT’S not an exaggeration to say that almost everyone wants to see the labeling of genetically engineered materials contained in their food products. And on Nov. 6, in what’s unquestionably among the most important non-national votes this year, Californians will have the opportunity to make that happen — at least in theory — by weighing in on Proposition 37.
Prop 37’s language is clear on two points: it would require “labeling on raw or processed food offered for sale to consumers if made from plants or animals with genetic material changed in specified ways.” And it would prohibit marketing “such food, or other processed food, as ‘natural.’ ” (For now, let’s ignore the vast implications of the phrase “or other processed food,” lest we become overexcited, except to say that the literal interpretation of that sentence has the processed food manufacturers’ collective hair on fire.)
Polls show Prop 37 to be overwhelmingly popular: roughly 65 percent for to 20 percent against, with 15 percent undecided. Nationally, on the broader issue of labeling, in answer to the question of whether the Food and Drug Administration should require that “foods which have been genetically engineered or containing genetically engineered ingredients be labeled to indicate that,” a whopping 91 percent of voters say yes and 5 percent say no. This is as nonpartisan as an issue gets, and the polls haven’t changed much in the last couple of years.
Unsurprisingly, Big Food in general — and particularly companies like Monsanto that produce genetically engineered seeds and the ultraprofitable herbicides, pesticides and other materials that in theory make those seeds especially productive — have already thrown tens of millions of dollars into defeating Prop 37. On the other side is a relatively underfunded coalition led by California Right to Know, which collected the necessary million-plus (yes!) signatures to get the proposition on the ballot. Although television advertising has just begun and its advocates would never say so, at the moment the bill seems assured of passage. Excellent.
Thick, soft and chewy cookies made with organic peanut butter, pastured eggs, sea salt, freshly-ground sweet cinnamon, and much less sugar..
Flour-less Peanut Butter Cookies (makes about 2 dozen cookies, recipe adapted from Saveur Magazine)
2 cups organic peanut butter without added oil or sugar, creamy or chunky
1 cup granulated piloncillo or rapadura sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
2 large, pastured eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon organic, pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground Sweet Cinnamon (True Cinnamon, Ceylon Cinnamon)
Cream together peanut butter and 1 cup of the sugar in a large glass bowl. Using a hand mixer at low speed, beat in eggs, vanilla, baking soda, salt and cinnamon until just combined. Mixture should be slightly grainy.
Using a small cookie scoop (or your hands), form mixture into 2-inch balls and place 4 inches apart on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Use the tines of a fork to flatten slightly, pressing a cross-hatch pattern into each cookie. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar.
Place the tray into an oven preheated to 350 degrees and baked until puffed and lightly browned on the edges. Allow to to stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before removing from tray.
Kept at room temperature, the cookies will remain soft for a day or two, assuming they last that long.
Pole-and-line-caught maguro (yellowfin, ahi tuna) from the pristine waters of Hawaii is seasoned simply with sea salt and cracked pepper, then seared over high heat for two minutes per side.
Served with a sweet and sour puree of pineapple and mango seasoned with tōgarashi (dried Japanese chili peppers) and a splash of fresh lime juice.
Pan-Roasted organic edamame completes the dish..
While yellowfin tuna is found throughout most of the world’s oceans, troll/pole-caught from U.S. waters are contain less mercury than the larger longline and purse seine-caught fish found in international waters. Hawaii enforces strict bycatch regulations, helping this fish to earn a “best choice” rating from Seafood Watch.
Gorgeous, pastured lamb from Menzie’s Farm in the Hill Country outside of Austin is misted with Texas olive oil and seasoned with sea salt and cracked black pepper, then flashed in a 500 degree oven for 10 minutes.
The lamb is then packed with a persillade-like mixture of fresh bread crumbs, melted butter and garlic with a bouquet garni of both fresh and dried herbs including rosemary, thyme, savory, marjoram, sage and tarragon.
Next, the lamb is roasted at 400 degrees until the internal temperature reaches 125 degrees (approximately 15-20 minutes), then removed from the oven and allowed to stand 15 minutes before being carved into double chops.
While the lamb rests, dried wild porcini mushrooms are soaked in just-boiled water enhanced with porcini powder, then strained into a pot containing brown stock and toasted shallots. The sauce is furiously reduced by a third and the mushrooms added and simmered for a couple of minutes before being finished with a spoonful of demi-glace and a knob of cold butter.
Served a perfect medium rare, this is one of my all-time favorite things to eat..
American lamb, especially those that are pastured and grass-fed, are generally milder/less gamey in flavor than those from New Zealand and Australia, with young lamb (less than 1 year old) being preferred for its tenderness.
A bounty of fresh garden vegetables including green bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, and celery, with loads of herbs and fresh spices like thyme, oregano, bay and cayenne.
Toss in a pound of Gulf blue crab and serve over steamed rice topped with garlic chives. Don’t forget the hot sauce!
I eat Créole whenever I have the chance, which is a lot. If you need it, here’s an easily adaptable recipe for the base.
The Gulf of Mexico (Spanish: Golfo de México) is an ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In Texas and Louisiana it is often called the “Third Coast,” in comparison with the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts. –Wikipedia
Fresh cauliflower is cut into florets, misted with olive oil and seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper. Slow-roasted until tender-crisp and brown, then dressed with Buffalo sauce (equal proportions of Frank’s Hot Sauce and melted butter, with a dash of vinegar) and returned to the oven for a few more minutes to glaze.
Served hot with a cooling combination of crumbled bleu cheese, buttermilk, shaved celery, sour cream, chives, parsley and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice..
“Cauliflower is very low in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Protein, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Magnesium and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Potassium and Manganese.” –NutritionData
Austin’s Best Food Event Monday, Sept 10 and Tuesday, Sept 11
Dining for Life: Eat, Drink & Make a Difference!
AUSTIN, September 4, 2012: Restaurant reservations are going fast for Dining for Life, voted Austin’s Best Food Event in 2010 by the Austin Chronicle Best of Awards. Dining for Life is this coming Monday, September 10 and Tuesday, September 11, at select Austin restaurants.
Dining for Life has raised over half a million dollars over the past 19 years, and its power lies in its simplicity: you eat at a participating restaurant and 10% to 50% of your tab will directly fund HIV prevention outreach and care services right here in Austin.
According to Dining for Life founder and former Eastside Café co-owner Dorsey Barger, “Eating out during Dining for Life is like throwing a dinner party, but without the cost, cooking or cleanup. And, the money goes to life-saving services for people right here in Austin.”
Contact: Marcus Sanchez
Communications Coordinator, AIDS Services of Austin
512-406-6115 (work)
512-466-8125 (cell)
marcus.sanchez@asaustin.org
Wild Alaskan halibut seared in clarified butter and topped with spiced lemon confit, English peas and fresh parsley, cracked pepper and crunchy sea salt..
For the Lemon Confit (Saveur Magazine)
2 lemons
1-1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon cracked coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cracked fennel seeds
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red chile flakes
2 bay leaves
Halve lemons crosswise and squeeze their juice into a bowl; set juice aside.
Thinly slice juiced lemons crosswise and transfer lemons, reserved juice, and remaining ingredients to a 1-qt. saucepan over high heat. Bring mixture to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
Remove pan from heat; let cool. Transfer lemon confit to a glass jar, cover, and refrigerate. Confit will keep, refrigerated, for 3 weeks.
For the Halibut and Peas
2 wild Alaskan halibut filets, skinned, about 5-6 ounces each
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 cup English peas, shelled
fine sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
coarse sea salt for finishing
Gently rinse the halibut in cold water, pat dry and season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat until shimmering.
Carefully slide the halibut filets into the hot pan and sear without moving for 3 minutes.
Use a fish spatula to carefully turn the filets over and cook another 3 minutes (depending on thickness), basting all the while with the butter from the pan (the fish is done when it becomes opaque and easily separates into large flakes). Transfer fish to warm dinner plates.
Quickly sauté the peas in the fish pan until just done, about 2-3 minutes.
Spoon some lemon confit over the fish, then spoon the peas on top of that.
Finish with coarse sea salt and parsley and serve immediately.
Pacific halibut is a bottom-dwelling groundfish that nestles into the sandy seafloor, often seen with only its eyes and mouth uncovered. Primarily found in the coastal North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, it migrates hundreds of miles from shallow coastal waters to the deep, open ocean to spawn in winter. Most return, year after year, to the same coastal feeding grounds.
Most Pacific halibut are caught in Alaska where fishing for Pacific halibut is strictly limited to the bottom longlining method, which causes little habitat damage or bycatch. Pacific halibut is also caught using troll lines and bottom trawl nets. —Seafood Watch