Soy Products - Portfolio

I was shocked and amazed to find out that soy is not actually that good for us. I always thought it was a trendy thing that folks did who were trying to be healthy, give me milk any day but what about edamame? Should I give this delicious snack up? Are there truly no health benefits to soy? Were we never meant to eat soy like cows were not designed to eat corn? According to Raj Patel's book Stuffed and Starved "nearly three-quarters of products on supermarket shelves" contain soy. Soy is like corn, it's everywhere, nearly impossible to escape it. Soy does have it's benefits but it must be processed, it's hard to get the nutritional benefits when it's raw (Patel 167). I also really enjoy tofu, but this is processed and therefore is better for you than edamame. Soy is over produced which is why it is found in everything, just like corn! There are many similarities. Interesting fact from Raj Patel's book the oil from soy "is the worlds most widely consumed vegetable oil, responsible for over a quarter of the worlds vegetable oil market, and 70 per cent of oils and fats produced and consumed in the US." (Patel 168).

Raj Patel gives a nice bacfkground on when we first had a surplus of soy and what America did with this surplus. "In the First World War, the cutting of traditional supply lines for vegetable oil from Europe to America necessitated the import of 336 million pounds of low-grade soy oil from Manchuria, North-east China. Yet with the end of the war, and the restoration of European supplies of crops, US agriculture faced a glut...Once the Europeans were back in the agriculture export business, US farms found themselves with too much soy and too few markets." (Patel 169).

Another interesting tidbit of information the seventh day adventists were formed when a woman named Ellen G. White decided to give up meat and milk products. The seventh day adventists became a major proponent of soy.

Ann posted a lengthy article about soy and the benefits or lack of benefits from soy. Here is the article. http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/ploy.html What I gather from the chapter in Patel's book and also this article is that soy is safe when it has been processed or fermented but is best to stay away from raw soy or to rely on soy for protein because according to the article "soy protein is incomplete.. Soy should never be considered as a substitute for animal products like meat or milk." My roommate drinks soy in her coffee because milk upsets her stomach, so is soy in coffee okay? Is there something else that can be used instead of soy? The article warns that soy milk is "new to the diet and pose a number of serious problems." I passed this article along to my roommate and for whatever reason does not believe this is the case and is still a good milk substitute as well as a good source of protein. So what is the truth?

Food Profile on Popcorn

Popcorn was the subject of my first food blog and now it is the subject of my food profile because...well I love popcorn! In this food profile I will cover the history of popcorn, the significance of popcorn in American culture, the nutritional snapshot as well as the unfortunate side of popcorn. To gain inspiration while writing this food profile I need to make popcorn...well actually I just want popcorn but it's a good excuse to indulge in my favorite snack. I am very systematic when it comes to eating popcorn. I like to eat the fullest part of the popped kernel and then eat the rest. I also remove any part of the kernel that could get stuck in my teeth. For the amount of popcorn I eat it's important to remove this extra bit of kernel, I've had plenty of these slivers stuck in between my teeth. So let's get going on this food journey of what I believe should be the number one snack in America.

Popcorn is part of the cereal family and is a grass. The scientific name of popcorn is Zea Mays Averta.

Below is a picture of what popcorn looks like before it is popped.
Popcorn can be many different colors. What you find in the grocery store is typically yellow and white corn but you can also find blue and red popcorn. They all pop white though. Popcorn pops because water is trapped inside and when the kernel is heated the water begins to boil and then steams. The steam expands the kernel and then POP, the kernel explodes but remains in tact. Popcorn is fluffy and delicious. I've found the more oil used the less fluffy it seems to be.

The oldest known popcorn was discovered in bat caves that were known to house cave dwellers in New Mexico. The corn found is believed to be 5600 years old and can still be popped today! Popcorn has been depicted on burial urns dating back to 300 AD and was also used in ceremonial headdresses, jewerly, etc. "In American Indian folklore, some tribes were said to believe that quiet, contented spirits lived inside of each popcorn kernel. When their houses were heated, the spirits would become angrier and angrier, shaking the kernels, ad when the heat became unbearable, they would burst out of their homes and into the air in a disgruntled puff of steam." (http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/PopcornHistory.htm). According to Wikipedia it was believed "that the popping noise was that of an angry god who escaped the kernel." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popcorn. There is also speculation that popcorn was involved in the first Thanksgiving but this has never been proven. Native Americans would bring popcorn to the early colonists "as a token of good will during peace negotiations." Popcorn was even consumed as cereal back before it became a popular snack item. "Colonial housewives served popcorn with sugar and cream for breakfast." http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/PopcornHistory.htm Popcorn did not take off as a popular American snack until the 1890's with the advent of the first popcorn machine in 1885. Popcorn continued to be a popular snack through the great depression when popcorn was one of the few luxuries families could afford. I haven't found anything on why specifically popcorn has become the food of choice at movie theatres but I do know that when the first popcorn machines were springing up they soon became vendors at fairs and other social events. I imagine that this is also when they started showing up at movie theatres. When television was invented there was a drop off of popcorn consumption as people stayed home more rather than going out to the movies. Popcorn sales again rose when the microwave became a household fixture. Today Americans "consume 17 billion quarts of popped popcorn each year. The average American eats about 54 quarts. (http://www.popcorn.org/encyclopedia/epmdhist.cfm)

As I mentioned before popcorn sales rose greatly when the microwave was invented and microwave popcorn was introduced. I prefer the "old fashioned" way of heating oil on the oven. I use olive oil which gives a nice flavor and then salt with popcorn salt. There is also the air popper that is the healthiest way to eat popcorn as no oil is used, but what fun is there in that? In China they use "an equally ingenious popcorn-making device [that] can still be seen on the streets of some Chinese cities today. The corn is poured into a large cast-iron canister that is then sealed with a heavy lid and slowly turned over a curbside fire in rotisserie fashin. When a pressure gauge on the canister reaches a certain level, it is removed from the fire, a large canvas sack is put over the lid, and the seal is released. With a huge boom, all of the popcorn explodes at once and is poured into the sack." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popcorn)

Popped popcorn, yumm!Popcorn is a relatively low calorie snack and high in fiber, two very good things, right! Unfortunately plain popcorn can be somewhat bland and most americans add sugar or butter to their popcorn and of course salt which makes the calorie count go up. According to wikipedia a "small popcorn from Regal Cinema Group (the largest theater chain in the United States) still contains 29g of saturated fat as much as three Big Macs and the equivalent of a full day and a halfs reference daily intake." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popcorn#Nutritional_value)

The unfortunate side of popcorn is that some microwaveable popcorns were made with an artificial flavoring that may cause respiratory ailments. The chemical used is diacetyl and is "hazardous when heated and inhaled over a long period." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diacetyl). After this discovery I have been much more hesitant to eat microwaveable popcorn and still swear by the old fashioned way.

There are lots of different ways to prepare popcorn and fun seasonings that can be added to enhance the flavor. I've attached a few recipes.

Cheesy corn

2 tablespoons garlic flavored or vegetable oil
½ cup popcorn kernels
1 tablespoon melted butter, optional
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast or brewer’s yeast (found at health food stores, adds a cheese-like flavor without the calories or fat)
1 teaspoon curry powder, optional

• In a large, heavy-bottomed pot (with a lid), place oil and about 3 popcorn kernels. Heat over medium-high heat until a kernel pops. Add remaining popcorn; cover.
• Once corn begins to pop, shake pot constantly over heat. When popping slows, remove pot from heat and transfer popcorn to a serving bowl. Pour butter over popcorn, if desired, and toss. Sprinkle yeast and curry powder, if desired, over popcorn and toss to distribute evenly. Serve immediately or store in an air-tight container.

Yield: 10 cups

Chili Corn

4 quarts popped popcorn
3 small dried red chilies
1 package (6 3/4 ounce) peanuts
6 tablespoons margarine
1 package (3 1/4 ounce) roasting pepitas (little peppers)
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Heat popped popcorn in oven if it is cold. Cook chilies and peanuts in margarine over low heat for 5 minutes; remove chilies. Add pepitas and pour over hot corn; season with garlic salt.

Here is a link to more fun popcorn recipes. http://www.popcorn.org/nutrition/recipes/rprgchil.cfm

Corn in my hair?

Blog prompt:
Discuss what part of Pollan you found most persuasive in terms of changing your eating habits.

I love popcorn and eat it several times a week but didn't realize that wasn't the only time I was eating corn. Just about everything meal I'm eating corn, corn syrup, corn starch, mono, tri and di glycerides, dextrose, hydrogenated corn oil. The corn that is grown to make the products I just mentioned are made with a type of corn of that is not edible in the way we think of eating corn on the cob. After reading this section in Omnivore's Dilemma it prompted me to check what was in my pantry and see how many products contained corn. I had a party this weekend so unfortunately there is more junk food in the house than would normally be here. Cheez-its party mix contain corn syrup, baked lays contain corn oil, corn maltodextrin, sour gummi worms contain corn syrup. I have definitely become more aware making recent purchases and have been shopping at Trader Joes and shopping organic. Part of me thinks the whole shop organic and natural is a gimmick to try and get people to pay more for food, but after reading Michael Pollan's book and watching Kings of Corn I'm starting to see the benefits of actually paying attention to what I put into my body. Honestly I feel duped, like someone has pulled a quick one on me. But at the same time this doesn't mean that I won't buy the junk food once in a while or eat out even though I don't know if the ingredients are organic or not.

I think we really need to get back to the basics of food, learn how to cook fresh food (a skill we all have lost due to the convenience of frozen and microwavable foods).

This week in class, process foods and dumpster diving...

This past week's classes were eye-opening. Not sure how much I wanted my eyes opened but nonetheless its hard to think about food the same way after reading the first section of Michael Pollan's book Omnivore's Dilemma and then learning about processed foods and dumpster diving. Lot to think about! After class on Tuesday 2/10 I freaked out about processed foods, went to Safeway, bought organic cereal and an organic frozen meal for work the next day, the cost for the two items, $10! Yikes, it's going to be expensive buying organic. I went to Trader Joes the next day and found the selection much more affordable.

I've heard that there are certain food items that should be purchased organic but then others that it doesn't matter if you buy organic or not. I'm not sure how much truth there is in that so I did some research and found this list by Delicious Organics. This list is helpful but I wouldn't trust it completely considering whoever put it together did a poor editing job. So my research continued and I found a more credible source. Consumer reports ran an article in February 2006 titled When it Pays to Buy Organic. The article gives tips and tricks to the everyday consumer on which items should absolutely be purchased organic and which non-organic items are safe. It also gives some recommendations on buying organic inexpensively.

More to come on this blog entry, still need to discuss dumpster diving!

Pros and Cons of Food Banks - Portfolio

When I was 9 years old my Dad insisted on my brother and I working at our church, serving homeless people, a Christmas meal. The only problem was we would have to do that before we could open gifts on Christmas day. Absolute torture for a 9 year old who has waited so patiently since the last Christmas. I remember being truly upset and well a brat over the whole ordeal. But, as my father knew, it was one of the memorable Christmases. We talked with homeless people, served them, and felt truly rewarded. We went home and felt pretty happy with ourselves that we could bless someone else on Christmas. That year turned out to be the only year we did this. As rewarding as it was for us, we honestly didn't give them much thought after Christmas. I was too young really to understand what it meant to be homeless especially during the winter, and was certainly too young to think about what caused them to be in their predicament.

What does this have to do with food banks, you ask? Food banks are a wonderful way for people who might not be able to afford going to the grocery store to acquire food for themselves and usually for their families. But wouldn't it be better to solve the problem of poverty rather than just enabling it? Okay that statement was a little cruel but wouldn't it be better to donate time and money to solve the root of the problem rather than a symptom? (Just read the article for class by Janet Poppendieck, she mentions hunger as a symptom). In Poppendiecks article Want Amid Plenty: From Hunger to Inequality she discusses the need for food banks instead of government food assistance, at least that's how I understand the article. She states that food stamps can be traded for something else and that cash is the main objective. The cash can then be spent on something else. Instead it would be better if the government set up programs that addressed the disease rather than the symptom. Food banks would then come in to play, if people could just be given food that was donated privately then government money could be spent somewhere else. it would still help the homeless and poor but would also help them get back on their feet instead of always playing catchup. This makes sense and is overall a good solution for everyone. People who are not poor often want to give back mostly because it makes us feel good about ourselves, we pat ourselves on the back and think we've done our good deed for the day. While I don't agree with that entirely (we should want to give to just give and help someone instead of the warm fuzzies we know we are going to feel after we've done something good) it still means that food is being donated and handed out to those who need it. So the consequences of this win win solution is, those who are not poor feel good that they can help and feel good about themselves, those who are poor are simply given the food, the money that would have gone to food assistance programs can now go to other areas like healthcare for those that cannot afford it, perhaps job training, and other programs that help solve poverty.

To tie this into the first paragraph, no I didn't want to help poor people on Christmas day because it kept me from opening my presents, yes I ended up really enjoying volunteering, and sadly no, I didn't go back the following year. Even though I felt great about what I did, it didn't change enough of me to want to do it again. Now that I'm older and perhaps wiser I realize that we should give because we genuinely want to, and its okay to do it because it also makes us feel better, the end result is still the same, someone who didn't have food before, now does.

Obento - Portfolio

On Thursday January 22nd, I had the pleasure of making a Bento box for my friend Neil. The experience was entirely new to me and I must say I enjoyed it. To give a little background on the Obento, Japanese mothers would make a special boxed lunch for their kindergarten aged children. In turn the children must eat the entire contents of the box. For a mother, it would be an embarrassment if the food contents were poorly constructed and for a child it would be disrespectful if a child did not eat everything.

This practice is so different from an American style lunch bag or box. Most mothers still put time and energy to make sure their children receive the proper nourishment but they are not so concerned with the aesthetics. A typical American school lunch consists of a sandwich in a plastic bag, chips, an apple, juice box and perhaps a special treat. Everything is packaged separately which draws similarities in the Obento box where the different food items cannot touch. Once lunch time the trading begins, Americans are interested in getting the prize food item and will trade their lunch away to achieve this goal. My weakness was Oreos, I would trade anything! What does it say about Americans who are okay with trading their lunches away and Japanese where this practice is virtually forbidden. Does it even occur to the Japanese that they could trade their lunch?

Anyway, back to making the Obento. Most of the items that were provided I was unfamiliar with, (except for the broccoli and the chicken) so I was not completely at ease in putting the box together, but for the most part I found it fun and rewarding and because I was making it for someone, I wanted to make sure it was aesthetically pleasing to the person who would be eating it. At the same time I was making the Obento for someone, that person was also making me a box. He asked if I had any food restrictions, I said no pork but was willing to try anything else, but then I quickly realized most everything was seafood. Fish is usually the last thing I will ever crave but trying to be open to the food experience I allowed fish to be included in my Obento. The fish wasn't so bad.

Below is a pic of the Obento I made for Neil. The broccoli is in view as well as the Onigiri (Japanese rice ball but the one below is shaped as a triangle) and edamame.

Eating Oreo's on the Kitchen Counter - Portfolio

In class we discussed Marcel Proust's, "The Madeleine." The story was about a Madeleine cookie soaked with tea and how this combination of flavor brought Marcel back to his childhood. This is called a "Proustian Moment." When I think about proustian moments, they are related more to smell. The smell of Lilacs brings me back to a summer day in Sweden 7 years ago. A whiff of cologne or perfume will bring to mind someone that I had forgotten about. I don't have too many memories that are connected to food, that if consumed, would bring me back to an exact moment. But after searching through the recesses of my memory I came up with one.

On a hot summer day when i was 5 years old, I was playing outside with a pair of cheap flip flops on that did not fit me properly. I was climbing all over a wooden fence that had been knocked down between my house and my neighbors house. I had friends next door so this is they way we would go between our yards. I misstepped and my flip flop fell partially off. I felt something strange on my foot, some sort of pressure. Whatever it was it didn't hurt but felt strange. I looked down to see what was going on, and I nearly passed out, my foot was bleeding heavily. I had stepped on an old rusted nail. I immediately began screaming and my mother rushed out. She helped me get inside and began cleaning up the wound. She sat me on the kitchen counter (which I was never allowed to do) and gave me several Oreo cookies, hoping to distract me so I would stop crying. I remember she called the doctor to see if I needed to come in for a tetanus shot but I had one already. At this point I had calmed down and was perfectly content with my handful of Oreo cookies. Whenever I eat a Oreo cookie I always think back to this time and how such an awful situation turned into a happy memory.

I also have not so fond memories that resurface when I think about a certain food. When I young I got violently sick after eating Spaghetti. It took me years before I could eat spaghetti again. I'll eat spaghetti if that is the only food being offered but i would never order spaghetti from a menu and I'm convinced it's because of this bad memory that is associated to food.

Okay thats it for now, until next week...