Books & Media

We're big fans and supporters of Daniel Klein's The Perennial Plate, a weekly video series focused on connecting people with good food and its producers. Daniel's quest to experience a full year of good, local food in Minnesota has already had him killing and carving up his own Thanksgving turkey and visiting a Minnesota greenhouse in the heart of winter. This week's video features Daniel's new tree-tapping friend Chris Ransom, working his maple syrup magic:

The movie Fresh is one of our favorites. Compelling, entertaining, warm, funny, and unabashedly hopeful, the documentary aims to forward the cause of good, sustainable food by making it accessible. As director Ana Sophia Joanes put it in our interview last summer:

When you're as cynical as I am, the title of the book Eat Your Way to Happiness by Elizabeth Somer, sounds like a claim begging to be questioned. While I was reading her 10 diet secrets, I found myself wondering, "Yeah, but does it work?" I took a week to find out.

Fortunately, some of my approach to food already follows what Somer recommends. A large part of my diet already is "real food": I always eat breakfast and often whole grains, I don't drink much caffeine, and I eat lots of blueberries and other "superfoods." Still, some of the things she was asking me to do on this path to happiness were a challenge. I've grown used to having a beer while I cook dinner most evenings. Fatty fish twice a week would put a strain on my wallet. I was dubious that I could find an hour to do moderately intense exercise everyday.

Daniel Klein is on a mission. His goal is to teach people about "socially responsible and adventurous eating" through The Perennial Plate, his weekly video series focused on how food is raised and prepared in Minnesota. Here's a three-minute clip from the most recent episode, featuring growers in Milan, MN (population 326):

Our shiny new bookclub continues this month with Much Depends on Dinner: The Extraordinary History and Mythology, Allure and Obsessions, Perils and Taboos of an Ordinary Meal, by Margaret Visser. This is a fantastic book about the facts, myths and rituals surrounding the typical American dinner; it's equally social, scientific, and political.

Last Sunday evening I watched the sneak preview of the Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Oliver is a world-renowned chef from Essex, England, who was one of the first celebrity chefs of The Food Network. He's known for his emphasis on fresh, local foods and a casual, no-fear approach to cooking.

Author Catherine FriendMany thanks to Jan Zita Grover from Mississipi Market Co-op for providing terrific discussion questions for this month's book club selection, The Compassionate Carnivore by Catherine Friend. Here are the questions, for those of you who are conducting your own book clubs this week and next:

This month's book club selection, The Compassionate Carnivore, by Catherine Friend, chronicles the author's journey to better understand and appreciate the face on her plate. Here's a short excerpt from Indie Bound, describing the book:

I have a fantasy scenario that plays out in my head each spring as the dingy snow melts; through the musky, warm summer evenings; during the crisp and bountiful weeks of autumn harvest – frankly, just about year round. My husband and I move our family to a healthy plot of land in the country where we grow our own food, make our own cheese, and watch our children frolic with goats, the sheep and the chickens. All is peaceful and pastoral. Admit it, if you're visiting this website, chances are good that you've had a similar fantasy yourself.
 

Namedropping Michael Pollan isn't likely to bring you much insider food cred these days. If you think about good, real, local, organic, sustainable, fresh, tasty, whole food - heck, if you've watched "Oprah" lately - then you've probably already heard the name Michael Pollan more times just this week than you can count. When "The Omnivore's Dilemma" was published in 2006, many of us were just starting to think about the amount of corn we were consuming.