Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Recall

In recent food-recall news, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, a flavoring agent used in foods ranging from soups to hot dogs, is being recalled after a batch produced by Basic Food Flavors of Las Vegas tested positive for Salmonella.

Though the risk of infection is considered low (cooking is supposedly affective enough to kill the contaminants in this case), Salmonella can still cause serious illness in children, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems. Better safe than sorry. The recall includes products manufactured since September 17, 2009.

For some more info, here's an article that was in today's Times.

For a list of recalled foods, visit the FDA's website.

Caravan of Dreams

Last night, I sat down for dinner at Caravan of Dreams, a vegan restaurant in the East Village with a group of other NYC bloggers. Megan of Runners Kitchen organized the outing, and it was so nice to meet Katherine, Lindsey, Liz, Irina, and Jacqui.

It was a treat to spend a night out talking shop with a bunch of ladies with similar interests!

My photos turned out pretty awful, so check out Megan's blog for some quality photo documentation.

As a teaser, here's a pic of the tasty salad that came with my ginger stir-fry entree. This place is a must-try for vegans and non-vegans alike. I can't wait to go back!

Meatless Mondays to Come to New York City Schools?

This week, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer released a report titled "A Blueprint for a Sustainable Food System," in which he proposed several health-promoting measures for New York City schools. As ways of addressing the fact that one in five NYC kindergarten children is obese, Stringer suggested the following measures:

• Require Food Curriculum in Public Schools
• Expose City Students to Farms and Gardens
• Institute Meatless Mondays in City Schools

For more info, check out NYU's Wagner Food Policy Alliance blog.

There have been both positive and negative responses to the "Meatless Mondays" proposal, in particular. I, for one, am in favor of it—as long as the food being served includes real vegetables and whole grains rather than just pizza, french fries, and ketchup. For example, vegan chili is incredibly easy to make in large quantities for cheap and is packed with nutrients.

One of the main concerns of people unfamiliar with vegetarian eating is protein. Nine times out of ten, the first question is, "WHAT ABOUT PROTEIN?" Contrary to popular belief, once you know what to do (key word: nutrition education), it's incredibly easy. And anyway, as a country, Americans get much more protein than we technically need. One meal without animal protein is not going to cause your kids to shrivel up and die.

Happy Love!

Every February, we get to read new versions of the same old article about aphrodisiac foods. This year’s Love Drugs parade did not disappoint. I think that by far, my favorite article was Vegetarian Times’ “Feast of Love,” which pictured a group of four enjoying a romantic dinner of Roasted Vegetable Linguine with Fresh Torn Basil, Feta-Stuffed Peppadews, Pineapple-Fennel Salad with Ginger-Sesame Dressing, Crispy Kale Leaves, and Chocolate-Nutmeg Pots de Crème.

The pictures are the best part. Models trying to look dewy-eyed and, yes, love-drugged, as they gesture to the serving platters and lift forks to each other’s mouths. They appear to be in a house with glass walls, as well. It’s nearing sunset. Of course.

Quite appropriately, the following article is about five different ways to prepare oats, encouraging the reader to “Rekindle your relationship with a heart-healthful favorite.” Yeah, I know they mean one’s relationship with oats, but come on—I can’t be the only one imagining the Feast of Love folks waking up on the living room floor, covered in baby oil or something and saying, “Hey, guys, let’s go make some oats! Happy love!”

While I believe that if you eat well and take care of yourself, you’re bound to have better stamina and enjoy overall, um, benefits, I don’t think there are any magic foods that can suddenly turn your average Joe into a sex machine (check out this NYTimes article on the subject). The only genuine aphrodisiac I’d associate with a meal is one’s mate offering to run you a bath so you can relax while they do the dishes.

I considered writing a parody article, complete with recipes like baked asparagus (thought to “stir up lust”) with almonds (which can evoke arousal in women) and ginger (stimulates the circulatory system so the blood flows efficiently to you know where!), and figs (a powerful female sex symbol) stuffed with tapenade, but I just couldn’t get my act together.

However, if you want to make the soft pink dessert tacos that just weren’t subtle enough, it’s very easy:

*In a bowl or food processor, blend together 1/3 cup low-fat ricotta, a handful of raspberries, a teaspoon of vanilla, and sugar to taste.
*Heat two small soft tortillas in a skillet in a little butter or put in the oven to warm up. Sprinkle brown sugar on the inside.
*Spread the ricotta-raspberry mixture down the center of each tortilla and fold over as you would a taco.
*Broil for one minute
*Garnish with dark chocolate shavings (optional)

Last year, Chris and I stayed home and cooked, and we talked about doing that again this year, but we decided to make reservations at Pure Food and Wine instead.

This morning I fueled up with what I’ll call the “Brangelina Special”: Oats with bananas cooked in, along with a little cocoa powder and then topped with cinnamon and a spoonful of almond butter. I got my B-vitamins, potassium (both good for sex hormone production), phallic symbolism, passion-inducing-nut flavor, and feel-good chemicals all in one shot.

Mark Bittman on What's Wrong With What We Eat

For my Food Management Theory course, we've been assigned several videos to watch online and write brief commentaries to bring to the first day of class.

I found this particular talk by Mark Bittman (love him) on the over-production and over-consumption of meat and junk food and its impact on our health and the environment especially thought-provoking.

What I like is that he implores the audience to cut back on meat rather than going full-blown vegetarian. He also calls the issue one of "global survival" rather than bringing morals into it. That's a kool-aid I can drink.

Of animals, he says, "The time has come to stop raising them industrially and to stop eating them thoughtlessly" and that "there's no way to treat animals well when you're killing ten billion of them a year."

No sh*t.

I was also very interested by his comments on the USDA and the food pyramid and the fact that many of its developers had/have ties to agrobusiness. In short: there's a reason we're not explicitly encouraged to eat a diet rich in plants and low in animal products and junk food...

Beef-Free Burgers

Sick of the same old hamburger? Freaked out by all the beef recalls? Courting vegetarianism?

Check out this article for some ideas for beef-free burgers. My favorite suggestions are the tuna burgers and of course, the bean-and-vegetable burgers.

Sometimes at home I like to make weird stuff out of whatever's left in the fridge, and you never know, burgers could be the perfect improv dish...I should probably hold off for a bit, though, otherwise I might end up with a roasted-beet-and-asparagus burger. Um...that's a little too weird, even for me : )

Vegan-Friendliness

Sometimes I take for granted how easy it is to find vegetarian and vegan eats in New York. Today, for example, while doing my holiday shopping, I stopped in at Pure Juice for a tall glass of "green spice" juice and raw vegetable sushi rolls (made with jicama-and-pine-nut rice!). A little later, I met up with a girlfriend for coffee at Cocoa V, a vegan chocolate-and-wine place, which just opened up on Ninth Ave.

Of course, our coffee plans actually turned into healthy glasses of Malbec and a sharing of a vegan cheese plate and chocolate once Chris arrived. The portions are small (but in that "perfect taste" way), and it's not exactly cheap, but it was a very nice treat to linger for a couple hours and enjoy a moment of peace before the holiday madness envelopes us all. The hot chocolate samples they brought out were pretty awesome too! Worth stopping in even if you're not a vegan. I mean, hell, I'm not even technically a vegetarian.

After that, we all hit up the Chelsea Market to pick up cellophane for cookies Chris and I had made as well as some last-minute treats for family members. I couldn't believe how many interesting shops and places to eat there were in there! I'm definitely going to go back sometime in the very near future! If you're in the New York area, you should check it out!

Hope your holiday prep has been more fun than stressful!

Word from the Flexitarian Front

I haven't posted about flexitarianism in a while, but I found this segment on NPR's Tell Me More really interesting. Host Jennifer Ludden had ADA's Dawn Jackson Blatner—the author of The Flexitarian Diet—to discuss the need to be a little bit, um, flexible during the holiday season.

In short, the main message is to cut back on meat and load up on vegetables. Blatner also tells vegetarian listeners how to get that savory umami flavor found in meats. She also encourages vegetarians to just have a little turkey and enjoy the meal, treating meat as a condiment.

It's an interesting suggestion. I suppose it all depends on why someone chooses to follow a vegetarian diet in the first place. I will say, I did have a meatless Thanksgiving, and I didn't feel a bit like I was missing out, thanks to the nontraditional yet delicious spanikopita my mom brought!

Really, when it comes down to it, you just have to do what works for you.

Vegan Goodness

Last night, I went to a dinner party where the hostess and several of her friends were vegan.

The initial plan had been a "takeout & tea" theme, and then I was told it was "flowers & cupcakes," so I made a white bean salad to bring just in case she was serious. As I was heading out the door, I also grabbed a bottle of pinot noir a friend's dad gave us as a housewarming gift. Perhaps the best red wine I've tasted.

I was happily surprised when I got there—the plan had morphed yet again into a mutli-colored tomato-and-pepper sauce/tofu/polenta spread. There were also a dozen or so of the hugest, most beautiful portobello caps I have ever seen. Another girl brought the makings for toasted bread with brie and raspberries (not vegan, but some things, as I learned, are worth making allowances for). The flowers were edible, and someone else had brought vegan cake. And champagne.

So I put on a frilly lace apron (the Women's Studies Minor side of my brain was amused, if a bit terrified) and helped man the kitchen. It ended up being a great night, and a lovely meal. Proof that you can make a feast in a studio kitchen, albeit which much choreography. I definitely need to try making polenta at home soon.

Recession Flexitarians

I came across a really interesting article from Gourmet magazine while procrastinating on a work project earlier. I don't know about you, but I feel like I've been hearing a lot about how more people seem to be citing money as a reason to go vegetarian in recent months.

So behold, Recession-Bred Flexitarians—"semi-vegetarians who dabble in carnivorous cuisine from time to time."

Meat being as expensive as it is, it makes sense that choosing legumes, soy products, nuts or other vegetarian options over, say steak, can save you money, even if you only do it a few times a week.

If you don't want to take the jump to full vegetarianism (especially if you, like me, don't believe in restrictive diets), this can be really easy to stick with. Besides that, a lot of research supports the notion that the American diet is too heavy on meat in general, so why not take advantage of the recession and use it as an excuse to do something good for your health?

Personally, when it comes to saving money, I think a lovely bowl of homemade lentil soup or spinach pie beats a Big Mac any day.

MIrror, Mirror

An article from Sunday's New York Times discusses recession-driven changes in consumer spending at major retailers such as Wal-Mart. Said John E. Fleming, the chief merchandising officer for Wal-Mart, "Our sales—it's like holding up a mirror to our society."

With consumers prioritizing how to spend what money they do have, they are sticking close to their lists of the essentials and favoring generic-brand goods over brand-name items. We're also seeing a "recession protein hierarchy...with ground beef trumping steak, and chicken trumping beef." Many consumers are just plain skipping protein, choosing pasta instead. 

Not surprisingly, microwave sales are also up. Heating up leftovers or a frozen entrée is more popular these days than going out or ordering in.

One good thing about living in New York is that we have access to a lot of great, cheap food, and there are even places where you can get cheap groceries. 

I used to think nothing of shelling out for a bunch of fancy Greek or Icelandic yogurt, for example, or white asparagus I didn’t really know how to cook. Now, I save that kind of stuff for once in a while (2 for $1 White Rose yogurt, anyone?), and buy cheaper produce. 

Luckily, a block away from us is this market that has amazingly low prices on fruits and vegetables. They may or may not be cheap because they fell of the back of a truck somewhere, but whatever—just wash them before you eat them, like you would anything else.

For packaged stuff like oatmeal, rice, and bread, there’s the sketchy meat market a few doors down, which is also cheap, and something of a vortex, but I’d rather risk having an adventure than pay twice as much at the Food Emporium.

Learning to cook balanced meals that actually taste good using a few cheap ingredients has been a lot of fun too—definitely better than eating a five-dollar frozen entree every night. 

So there's a bright side to everything, I suppose. 

Not the Vegetarian Pride Parade

I had no idea that today was the Ninth Avenue Food Festival! It was a nice surprise when Chris and I walked out the door to go meet my friend Allie T. at Port Authority and saw all these different local vendors and restaurants with booths set up. 

We walked up and then back down. It was pretty awesome (especially because there were lots of tasty, cheap options), but hard to decide what to eat! I ended up getting a Greek salad from one of my favorite places, Uncle Nick's, and a free SoyJoy bar. 

It was pretty much the opposite of what I expect the Vegetarian Pride Parade will be, as evidenced in the pictures....

Veggie Pride Parade This Weekend!

For those of you in the New York area, this Sunday, May 17th, the Veggie Pride Parade will be going on in Greenwich Village!

The rally/expo will start with a parade from Little West 12th Street to Union Square Park, where the expo will be set up. 

There will be speakers, contests, and even...baby veggies—toddlers in costume. 

Exhibitors include the American Vegan Society, EarthSave, Healthy Planet, Lantern Books, Moo Shoes, Natural Kitchen Cooking School, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Whole Foods Market, Youth Buddhism and others. 

If you can't make it to the event or the idea of a parade makes you claustrophobic, consider checking out one of the many vegetarian and vegan-friendly restaurants in the area. 

Red Bamboo is my favorite, but you can't go wrong at Angelica Kitchen, Pure Food and Wine, or VP-2. 

For more information, check out the Veggie Pride Parade's website. 

White bean and escarole soup

I can't believe it's already May. The weather hasn't quite decided how it feels about warming up yet, apparently. It was cool and drizzly this morning, so I went to the market and bought a ton of escarole and other soup greens to use for a white bean and escarole soup. 

I threw in some veggie sausage near the end, to add a little extra protein. Vegetarian sausage is one of my favorite fake meat items—it's really great sliced up in soups and things, but it's also good if you mash it up with a fork and use it in sauces too. Very easy to work with. 

I also threw in some dried goji berries because I have some lying around and, well, why not? They added some nice color and hopefully some of those ultra-marketable antioxidants without screwing up the flavor of the soup.

 I just had some for lunch, and I am very pleased with myself. For some reason, making soup is one of the most relaxing things—maybe because it's so hard to mess up.

I've got to get better at taking food pictures though. At least you can kind of tell it's the beginnings of soup in this shot...

Close Encounters of the Fake Meat Kind

Something you’ll probably see me post a lot about is vegetarianism.

I never intended to become a vegetarian—and technically, I’m still not one—but since meeting and living with Chris, I’ve come to appreciate meat-free foods. We don’t really keep meat in the house (except for the occasional carton of egg whites when we’re baking cookies or something, if that counts), and we often go to one of the many vegetarian or vegetarian-friendly restaurants in New York, since there are so many.

I do still eat meat on occasion, though over the past year-and-a-half, I’ve very gradually transitioned from eating it once a day to once a week. It hasn’t been a conscious effort, exactly. To be honest, it’s more that I’ve just gotten used to it and come to really enjoy some of the benefits of a vegetarian diet. I feel like I have more energy and get sick less frequently. I also sleep better—much better—than I used to.

Of course, there are plenty of other factors that contribute, but some of the other perks include that feeling that I am making a choice that benefits the planet and its creatures (hah, creatures)—we humans love feeling “green,” don’t we?—and the sweetness of saving a little money.

And did I mention how awesome and amusing fake meat is? It basically is what it sounds like: texturized soy or gluten protein flavored to taste like various meat products. For example, the other night, I made this masaman curry with vegetarian duck in it. We had just spent the day in Chinatown wandering around and stocking up on various canned fake meat products we’d never encountered before.

Last night, we made pad thai with fried gluten, which was oddly similar to scrambled egg. We also threw in some chopped peanuts. Since we were out, Chris went to the deli on the corner and came home with a pack of Uncle Jesse’s nuts. I about died laughing…