What Makes Us Label (Almost) Everything?

As I do every morning, today I got up, got my coffee and settled down on the sofa to ingest the life-liquid as quickly as I possibly could. Matt usually gets up a couple hours before I do so the television is already on when I “shuffle my slipperless toes to the kitchen” most days.

Most mornings he goes for the Today Show. It’s easy and always there. Reliable.

Before I go on here I’d just like to say that I have nothing specific against the Today Show. I’ve watched that show on and off for years. I was even a little sad when Katie Couric left. The way I feel about the story I saw this morning isn’t specifically attacking the show.

Instead, my baffled head shake comes from the fact that people must want to hear about stuff like this, otherwise they wouldn’t report the story. The people out there in news program land enjoy hearing stories like this one, it isn’t about placing blame on “news” anchors or the writers.

Now I know a bunch of you probably think I’m talking about the Amy Schumer v. Glamour Magazine debacle that took place a couple days ago. They have a Plus Size women issue, Amy gets named in the issue, they don’t label her as plus size but she freaks anyway and takes to twitter to release her frustration.

No. I mean, that story is an interesting experiment in political correctness but it isn’t the labeling issue I’m referring to this morning.

What got me all riled up this morning has to do with food.

Before you say the “ugh” that’s dying to escape from your throat give me a minute.

You know I’m pretty environmentally focused, and that goes for the planet as a whole as well as the tiny speck of space I inhabit on the blue and green rock. I like my home to be clean and try for a chemical-free existence. I prefer to make a lot of my own stuff like laundry detergent and lotion. And I try to buy organic options whenever possible.

So, with all that said, you might be thinking I’m talking about labeling food with GMOs. And in a way, I guess I am, but that still isn’t the issue at hand. It raises a whole bunch of questions though and here’s why:

The story I saw this morning was about labeling our junk food with recommended exercise time in order to work it off.

Now, I’m not sure you had the same reaction as I did. Mine went something like this:

I’m sorry, but, what the actual fuck?

Once that went through my mind, the next three things I thought about, in this exact order, were:

• We can’t get GMO labeling but this stupid shit is okay?
• Who in the hell thought of this and how did it end up as a story on a morning talk show?
• Idiocracy

I really can’t understand this world we live in sometimes. Big huge corporations are creating seeds resistant to pesticide and pests – and they all tell us those seeds are perfectly safe to consume – but the fight to have packages marked with that information is like asking the CEO of that huge company to pull his teeth out with a pair of rusty pliers.

Who wants to place bets that we get big bold stickers next to all the nutrition information on our bags of chips that tell us to shove in 5 of those chips then go do 100 sit ups before the fight is even over on GMO labeling?

Like I said, it makes me sad for our society. Watching people watching segments like that and knowing there are tons of people sitting at home and nodding along at just how great an idea that is makes me mental.

I mean, come on.

And I don’t mean to offend anyone here, because I’m basically talking about myself, but if you’re a person who sits around shoving snack foods, junk food, fast food down your gullet, is it safe to assume you don’t really give a shit about the nutrition label that says you need to go jog around the block?

Because, and answer me honestly here, what’s the first thing you want to do after ingesting a few (hundred) handfuls of cheddar and sour cream chips? I may not know you but, using myself as the example again, I feel pretty secure in saying it isn’t 'go to the gym'. At least not for the majority of the world.

The good news, if for nobody other than Mike Judge, is that at least we’ll all know how much we have to exercise while drinking our butter. It's just unfortunate, that butter is probably going to kill us with chemicals before we ever get off our ass to go workout.

• • • • • • • • • • •
In addition to this drivel I also write books, both fiction and non-fiction.
Learn more on my author page.

Under the Wire with The Dish!

I tossed and turned. My brain was all tingly with excitement for the vast array of possibilities. A burger recipe. That is what we were charged with conceptualizing for The Dish! in June and immediately I realized it would be no easy task. There are so many different types of burgers it was going to take some serious crafting to come up with the perfect one.

I toyed around with the idea of a meatless burger because the veggie burgers they sell in the store are not only processed but always seem to have mushrooms. I figured “If you want something done right, do it yourself”. Unfortunately my limited brain capacity for cooking didn’t really allow a good filter and I never came up with anything (yet, I swear it will happen one day!)

Instead Matt was the one to cook up some ground turkey burgers by adding a whole bunch of spices and some home grown basil to make one super tasty treat! We cooked them on our George Foreman grill and although we didn’t have sliced cheese, Matt improvised and pulled some string cheese for his own unique take on a cheese burger.

So here’s Uncle Matty’s Spicy Chipotle Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey (85/15 fat)
¼ tsp ground chipotle spice
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Mix it up well and grill to your desired level of done-ness. We like just medium so did 12 minutes on the Foreman Grill. We ate them on light wheat buns; top with your favorite condiments.

Now Matt also mixed up ½ tsp chipotle, ¾ tsp sea salt, ½ tsp garlic powder and 1/8 tsp ground black pepper to sprinkle over our fries on the side. He baked for about 20 minutes on 400.

The meal was spicy but not “mouth on fire oh no I might pass out” hot which was just perfect on the cool night we ate these.

Now are you a burger person like we are? If you are and you write about it then submit your link to The Dish! by July 5, 2010 and you could win a $60 CSN Stores gift certificate to spend however you want.

Um, score!

Seriously, we all know burgers of some sort will probably be involved in our meal plan this upcoming weekend so why not snap a photo of it & toss a post up on your blog? You might just win the GC but even if you don’t win that you score anyway because you got an awesome burger out of it!

Break me off A Piece of That

This past Wednesday I went to the Farmer’s Market with S and the twins and since it is winding down there was a ton available. I picked up a whole bunch of veggies at the grocery store that I just didn’t see at the FM like avocados, carrots, cilantro, red onions, etc. and then at the market I grabbed a butternut squash, red pepper, corn on the cob, an enormous heirloom tomato and a jar of locally packaged Thai peanut sauce with nothing artificial added. Yum.

The night I brought all the veggies home it occurred to me that I never actually liked squash so I have not made it in the ten years Matt and I have been together. I had never seen him with squash on his plate, he’s never even ordered it out, so it was going to be interesting to find out if either of us would eat it.

Over the past couple years I have been experimenting with re-trying foods I used to not like because I figure tastes change so why not give it a go. I think I have mentioned before that this experimentation led me right down an avocado filled path of yumminess, so I wondered if squash could be the next alright veggie.

Yeah, not so much.

Well OK, in all fairness, just not the way I did it. I have major issues with texture in my foods as well as this very odd thing where if I have had the same flavor in my mouth for too long I feel nauseated and I have to stop eating it in favor of something else; sometimes I have to stop eating altogether, don’t ask I’m a freak. Usually it happens with pasta or chicken but never with veggies, until now.

I cut up the heirloom into small cubes, tossed it into a pan with a shake of dried basil, a pinch of each -- nutmeg, sea salt, black pepper and sugar -- and set it to boil. Once it was boiling I simmered it on low for about 2 hours. Making sauce is one of my specialties. In fact for a long time it was the only thing I could cook that I didn’t screw up beyond recognition (lemon poppyseed super bouncy ball anyone?). For some reason, the tomato and I are just happy bedfellows; if I wasn’t Irish, I would have definitely been Italian.

Squash however is entirely new territory for me, so a lot of online research had to be done before I was ready to give it a go. Upon delving, I discovered that about two minutes in the microwave will soften both: the skin to easily peel it, and the meat (is that the proper term here?) enough to cut it up easily. I cubed it, tossed it in my 8x8 Pyrex and sprinkled the top with a pinch of salt, nutmeg and cinnamon and a couple tablespoons of brown sugar then I tossed about a ¼ cup of water in the bottom, covered with my recycled aluminum foil (awesome stuff which I had sent to me recently by Reynolds) and baked on 350 for about 35 minutes.

Zucchini chunks were steamed and vermicelli was boiled and when all was said and done I mixed them all together in a big bowl.

Matt downed that squash so fast I didn’t see a single chunk make it to his bowl before it was in his mouth. I asked why he never mentioned that he loves butternut squash so much, since he clearly missed it something awful over this past decade.

I couldn’t understand his response as his mouth was full of squash.

On the other side of the spectrum was me. I ate about 5 chunks of squash until I finally had to admit that while the flavor was good, the texture was not going to work. This was a vast accomplishment though as I never used to like the flavor, so I started hatching a plan for what could be done with the rest of it, in lieu of allowing Matt to turn into a butternut squash of course.

Into the food processor (my new favorite household appliance by the way, we finally broke down and got one a few weeks back because it is fall and fall is all about soup) went everything chunky along with about a half a cup of 2% milk. Out came the most delicious creamy soup I have ever made.

Admittedly, yes, it was the first creamy soup I’ve made but seriously, who’s counting? Since butternut is a winter squash I have a feeling we will be experimenting with it around this house a lot over the coming months.

That is if I can keep any of it off of Matt’s fork.

If it’s Broken, you’ll find the Thought Process behind it here:
Bridgete, Kate, Ginger, Bree & KC

Broken Thoughts Are Handy on Friday

Another week gone. They fly so fast I have no idea what to even do with myself anymore! Last weekend we painted and this weekend will be all about relaxing over some super yummy meals with family. It should be a nice time all around. On top of that we have both decided it is high time to go sit out in our yard so we are both grabbing a book and will be doing just that.

I’m still reading On the Road, Jack Kerouac. It isn’t a very tough read per se but he is so erratic sometimes it is hard to follow along. Considering I have a similar style of writing you would think I could but strangely I like to have an entire land built for me when I read; a place I can “travel” to in my imagination and I don’t want that place to be too broken or I just can’t get into it. His voice is casual though and he isn’t too pretentious from what I can gauge so far so I will definitely finish the book, it just might mean I read the same paragraph three times before moving on so it might take a while.

I’m kind of feeling like Kerouac today; I’m eating pie and ice cream for lunch.

Last night I made the coolest dinner out of fridge scraps; better known as the random stuff left at the end of the week. I baked some salmon steaks in the oven then placed them on top of a killer salad made from baby spinach & basil leaves, seedless red grapes, walnuts and diced apple. Then I cubed some crusty Italian bread, marinated garlic in butter on the stove top, saturated the bread with the liquid then baked until they were crouton crispy. It was sort of Waldorf-y but I drizzled blue cheese across the top. Matt was impressed. More importantly, we were both full. Here is the plate because I told him he was not allowed to eat it until I took a picture haha.


Then after dinner we headed out for our evening walk and this was at the end of the street just as we walked out the door.

Pretty!

Tonight I read about a cool thing going on in Davis Square in Somerville called Art Beat. Apparently there is going to be all kinds of artistic stuff, a wind powered car parade, food and some other randomness. Hopefully Bridgete is still up for meeting us there but Matt and I are planning to go either way. Should at least be interesting enough for a blog post so stay tuned

Man I am totally dying for a cannoli.

Today S and I did a little over two miles going from East Arlington, to Arlington center and back on the bike trail. Because of where they are it added a little extra on. I’m really tired now and downing lots of water. It seems to be starting to work I think. Well my butt feels tighter even if it doesn’t look that way yet. Guess I’ll keep it up and hope for the best. If nothing else it’s a nice way to get out of the house everyday for both of us. And it means I can eat pie for lunch and not feel too bad about it. Of course it is Chocolate Overkill Pie so it’s actually good for me. Yeah, that’s what I’m going with.

I’m just not feeling it today. I don’t know what “it” is exactly but I’m feeling very fatigued and I fancy crawling back under the bloody covers, turning the fan on and just napping the rest of the day away.

Clearly I’ve turned into a British person; maybe that’s why, the trip from England to get into my skin over here across the pond was far too long and now I’m exhausted.

Maybe it was watching Sense and Sensibility the other day that has me talking like that. Perhaps it is because “Desmond” is back on the season we’re on of Lost. Or it could be from playing Jethro Tull on Rock Band.

Yeah, that’s it. I’ll sod off now. Safe Friday night to all.

The BTP All Stars
Ginger
Bridgete
KC
Bree
Kate

Unconventional Heat Source -- Bring It On!

Here in New England in November the temperatures tend to hover somewhere in the fifty degree range which makes it just crispy enough to wear a light jacket but not so cold that it is necessary to bundle up completely. Going for a walk is pleasant as the sun shines and the breeze creates a ruby nose ski-tan look that everyone is still able to see because every inch of skin is not yet hidden under down jackets, scarves, hats, mittens and goggles.

This past week we entered into a cold snap akin to the temperatures in January where the mid day high was not really making it out of the thirties. Damn climate change.

So what does a summer loving, need to be barefoot as much as possible, warmth craving, and environmentally conscious gal do without turning the heat up to eighty in the apartment? I re-introduce myself to exercise and the oven. Though not simultaneously of course, that is just dangerous and would require a level of coordination I definitely do not possess.

As you all know Rock Band is quickly becoming my favorite evening activity -- I am priding myself on the fact that I can now pull off scores in the ninety percent range with the level set to Hard and I am starting to actually get the drums in more ways than just hitting the corresponding pad when little boxes of color scroll across the screen. The pads correspond to a real drum kit so not only do I get which pad is associated with which sound (bass drum, snare, cymbal, cowbell, high hat, etc) but I am beginning to feel the rhythm of the songs I play. My arms are flailing about, my right leg is in seemingly constant motion and my core body temperature goes up as I pound away. Many may say this is not exercise but I challenge them to try playing on Hard level for an hour and then let me know how their arms and calf feel the next morning. It is energizing to play rock 'n roll but more importantly, keeping me toasty warm.

Another thing that rocks is channeling the life of a bear. Again, everyone knows how I plan to come back as a Grizzly in my next life because of their play all summer, eat as much as possible then sleep all winter lifestyle. Man that is like a dream come true. So I figure why not get a little bit in touch with that now and start packing it on so I can survive what is clearly shaping up to be a cold ass winter in Boston.

Matt is laughing at me because (and I am the first to admit) I am not what one would typically call domestic but as of late my oven has been firing up some pretty tasty treats and adding joyous warmth into the apartment (not to mention intoxicating smells!). Some of my favorites are homemade sauce which I then used to make lasagna, mashed potatoes, chicken soup from scratch (we cooked a whole bird and I used the bone, veggies and drippings to create the soup), banana bread and of course my specialty desert apple cranberry pie.

Fall just lends itself to cinnamon and brown sugar, apples and cranberries, fatty deliciousness. I want to share the recipe with all of you because the big Turkey day is almost upon us and if you are looking for something super yummy to compliment the meal but do not know what to bring this is definitely a winner! Happy eating, I plan to be either drumming or comatose until spring.

Apple Cranberry Pie

Two 9” pie pastry crusts (or enough home made dough to make them)
3/4 Cup brown sugar (not tightly packed)
1/3 Cup flour
4 Cups apples sliced or chunked (I use Cortland or Gala, sometimes McIntosh)
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 Cup white sugar
1 Tsp cinnamon
2 Cups frozen cranberries
1/2 Tsp cinnamon sugar mix

Preheat oven to 425
Coat pie pan with butter using wax paper to spread & sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture (leave some if you want to use it on the top of the pie as well)
Combine sugars, flour and cinnamon & mix well
Add fruit, thoroughly coat all of it
Place one crust in pan and turn fruit in, distribute leftover dry mix across evenly
Top crust and dot with butter (sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture)
Seal edges with a fork & cut slits in top, remove excess dough from sides
Bake with crust shield for 30 minutes
Remove shield, bake additional 10 minutes or until golden and mixture is bubbling

Let cool slightly and enjoy with a warm cup of tea and cold scoop of ice cream