Blog

Get Your Apples: Good to the Core

Posted in Health, Out & About on Thu, 10/21/2010 - 7:00am by Jill Grunewald -

Although the Minnesota apple harvest begins in August, for a lot of folks apple season goes hand in hand with the changing and falling of leaves. Apples are a fantastic late summer treat, but there’s nothing like a crisp, freshly-harvested apple (or a hot apple crisp!) on a brisk autumn day.

Walk into a typical supermarket and you’ll see several shades of these sweet treats proudly taking up some serious real estate in the produce aisle. Yet this is a mere smattering of the 7,500 varieties grown around the world. According to Rebecca Wood, author of The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia, “Because every apple seed contains unique genetic material, you can plant ten seeds from a single apple and get ten different kinds of apple trees. However most of our commercial varieties lack genetic diversity.”

Book Review: Ana Micka’s "The Fresh Girl’s Guide to Easy Canning and Preserving"

Posted in Books & Media on Wed, 10/20/2010 - 7:00am by Dorothy Wickens -

I grew up in rural Minnesota, where my parents have a big back yard with an abundant vegetable garden, and where every summer brings a plethora of tomatoes, peppers, and onions. My mom is a canner, and she taught me there's really only one way to deal with all of these summer foods: canning. My mom spends plenty of time in the kitchen in August and September, peeling, chopping, and stewing the season's bounty. After all is said and done, several clean, hot jars of salsa sit on towels on the kitchen counter. My mom waits in the other room, listening for the sealing “pop,” counting to be sure each jar has properly sealed itself.

2nd Annual Wisconsin Cheese Originals’ Festival Offers One Very Cheesy Weekend

Posted in Out & About on Tue, 10/19/2010 - 7:00am by Katy Radtke -

Although Wisconsin has an abundance of fabulous local foods to enjoy, it is—of course—most recognized for its cheese (it has been nicknamed The Dairy State, after all). It should come as no surprise then that there is an entire weekend dedicated to the well-loved dairy product every year.

The 2nd annual Wisconsin Cheese Originals’ Festival celebrates Wisconsin cheese on the weekend of November 5th in downtown Madison. Jeanne Carpenter, Executive Director of Wisconsin Cheese Originals, says that the event “really has become the premier destination for foodies and cheese enthusiasts around the country who want to meet Wisconsin cheesemakers and taste new artisan cheeses. It’s a pretty unique event.” The festival is not for the casual cheese eater. No-no, my friends, this is one cheese-intensive weekend!

Gorkha Palace Offers Local Yak and Other Tasty Nepalese Delights

Posted in Out & About on Mon, 10/18/2010 - 7:00am by lee -

Although my love for restaurants that serve good food -- real food, whole food, food grown locally and raised ethically -- is well documented on this site, I've tended to be less effusive in my praise of ethnic restaurants. The reason for this is simple: finding an ethnic restaurant that sources local food can be a challenge.

Good Reasons Not to Eat Local Food

Posted in News & Views on Fri, 10/15/2010 - 7:00am by Leslie Kruempel -

Last week I wrote a post on reasons to eat locally-sourced foods. While writing that article, it occurred to me that there are also good reasons not to eat local food. Oftentimes the “local” label is applied liberally to refer to food grown on small-scale farms who produce according to organic and sustainable principles. But really, “local” just means grown and/or processed within a certain radius of where you live.

October Simple, Good, and Tasty Bookclub Pick: Javatrekker

Posted in Book Club, Books & Media on Thu, 10/14/2010 - 7:00am by Tracy Morgan -

In honor of Fair Trade month, October's Simple, Good, and Tasty book club selection is Javatrekker: Dispatches from the World of Fair Trade Coffee. In the book, author Dean Cycon -- founder of Dean's Beans Organic Coffee, activist, and entrepreneur -- describes the many issues and implications around producing fair trade coffee in Africa, Central America, South America, and Asia. Javatrekker is a fantastic mix of travelogue and social commentary, with a healthy dose of history, politics and economics.

Understanding the Farm Bill: A Citizen's Guide to a Better Food System

Posted in News & Views on Wed, 10/13/2010 - 7:00am by lee -

A couple of months ago, I was chatting with my friend Mark Muller, who runs the Food and Society Fellows program for the Institute For Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). I'd just gotten back from one of several meetings about food policy I'd attended with a variety of local dignitaries, politicians, and other movers and shakers, and I was frustrated by what I'd heard. Mark, as always, was a terrific sounding board, offering the experience and perspective of a man who'd heard it all before without becoming jaded.

Justin Bieber, Sane Eating, and Soda Tax: Mark Bittman Makes an Impression at the Healthy Foods Summit in Minnesota

Posted in Out & About on Tue, 10/12/2010 - 7:00am by Kristi Hamilton -

It’s not only activists and advocates who are influencing the dialogue. Anyone who purchases food – which is to say everyone – has the opportunity to advance the changes advocated in Food Matters. I’ve come to call this "personal food policy,” because collectively our choices can stand up to the legislators, lobbyists, and special interest groups that continue to shape the way our food is raised, produced, packaged, shipped, and marketed.

- Mark Bittman, The Food Matters Cookbook

Eat More Plants, Less of Everything Else

As someone who spends an inordinate amount of time reading about, talking about, cooking, and eating food, getting to hear New York Times food writer Mark Bittman speak twice in 24 hours was kind of like being a 12 year-old girl who gets to hold hands with Justin Bieber at homecoming. I was very excited, in other words.