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Archive for April, 2010

May Food Holidays

Apr 30

Posted by admin in food universe

I love the concept that someone or some association has figured out a clever marketing strategy to create a food holiday: A one-month long celebration of a specific food. Those who worry a month is too long create single day celebrations. This month of May is no different, but there are days that are ingrained and deserve a special mention.

Here’s my list of May must dos:

–May 1 is the Kentucky Derby so host a derby event or at least proclaim this day as a Mint Julep extravaganza.

–May 5 translates lovingly as Cinco de Mayo, a regionally celebrated holiday in Mexico. This holiday needs little help from bloggers as most bars and many restaurants have figured out how to draw the crowds to this annual party. If you want to host a home version, you’ll find no shortage of guacamole recipes and grocery store enticements to make this a fun event.

–May 9 or the second Sunday in May gets the traditional Mother’s Day nod. This day should be devoted to the care and feeding of Mom instead of the image of aproned Mom slaving over a hot stove. Whether that is the norm of the American family anymore proves irrelevant as Mother’s Day has become a true celebration and a financial boost for many businesses.

–May 11 will prove to be a diet guru’s worst nightmare as it has been called Eat What You Want Day. Can’t even make this stuff up!

As for monthly festivities, here are a few to whet your appetite:

–National Barbecue Month (note how this month is spelled). If your weather hasn’t cooperated and your grilling has been minimal, this month should help you initiate your outdoor skills. Or view this as the time to eat barbecue. After all, at the end of the month, there is a mini food celebration: National Brisket Day. If you want to fire up an argument, ask a chef or BBQ owner for the brisket recipe!

–National Egg Month. Here’s an example of a food that has worked its way into daily routines and cooking schedules. Maybe it deserves a month of recognition for its across-the-board popularity unless health dictates otherwise. There’s always egg whites!

–National Hamburger Month. Maybe this year the hamburger will be celebrated as the food with the single biggest comeback or growth market. Have you not noticed how the basic burger has spawned a legion of restaurants dedicated to its renewed popularity? Name your city; you probably have a new burger spot. Why not?

If you’re on the festival lookout, this month kicks off some big ones including the 51st annual Artichoke Festiival (May 15-16) in Castroville, CA. The artichoke would not be a common globe at many dinner tables if this city hadn’t figured it out. As you’re roaming around, step over to The Giant Artichoke restaurant and discover all the recipes you never thought possible! BTW, if you go, you need to swing over to nearby Gilroy, home of the summertime Garlic Festival.poster_51

The following week focuses summer and one of the fastest growing beverage concepts, craft beers, with the celebration of American Craft Beer Week beginning May 17. Plenty of bars, restaurants, markets, and brewpubs will be in on this action. No shortage of promotions to entice.

So many foods, celebrations, and festivals make this an especially delicious food-centered month.

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Water on the Go

Apr 29

Posted by admin in Environment, lifestyle

I’m always on the lookout for new products, and this season promises no shortage of possibilities. Here’s a good one to begin a discussion.

With all the landfill anxiety about plastics and especially plastic bottles, it’s no surprise that one of my new darling pieces of info centers around a reusable water bottle. Yes, I know we all have plenty of reusable containers for water and other beverages, but this one’s unique feature is its ability to provide filtered water in the container. No need to carry your Brita or Pur along for long days to replenish yourself, the Hydros Bottle is a filtered, reusable BPA-free water bottle with a built-in, fast flowing filter that turns water from any source into a safe, drinkable solution.bottle-for-blowout

The filter (filters last several months) removes chlorine, chloramines, and particulates. BTW, it takes just 20 seconds to fill the 24-ounce bottle with odor-free, good tasting water. Such products do not come inexpensively ($29.99), but think of the environmental savings and the opportunity to have water on the go.

The company also points out that last year alone consumers spent over $15 billion on disposable water bottles! To help countries without potable water, they have an impressive give-back program (Operation Hydros) that helps communities in need of safe drinking water, and there are over a billion people worldwide who do not have access to safe, drinkable water!

It’s spring. Get ready for your run, hike, or bike. You now know you can stop anywhere and fill up your container with water that will be transformed into a safe drink.

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Keep On Truckin’

Apr 28

Posted by admin in food universe

featureSidewalk vendors are so Old World; now we tweet to find the location of our favorite food truck and check out the menu. It seems as if a day barely goes by without a new entrant.

There are food trucks for every taste and every budget. Neighborhoods and city streets are becoming jammed with possibilities from Indian street food to dessert cupcakes or new food trends we haven’t begun to consider yet.

Here are a few trucks making life fun:

http://twitter.com/KOGIBBQ

http://twitter.com/VLAIC

http://twitter.com/SweetflowMobile

http://www.mobilecravings.com/curbside-cupcake-truck

http://www.mobilecravings.com/grilled-cheese-truck/

Follow your food fantasy, and a truck awaits. The poor street vendor is a dependable, stationery solution as are the numerous pop-up restaurants that fill otherwise vacant space. The new truck world offers a fun solution to a GPS existence!

If you have a food idea, you might be the next food genie who travels the neighborhoods. No need to ring a bell. Just tweet your location, and we’ll be there.

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Is Chocolate the Cure?

Apr 27

Posted by admin in chocolate, news

Sometimes a study comes out that leaves one with the question: What is the cause and the effect? That sentiment is definitely true with the latest chocolate study. They studied the relationship between chocolate and depression. Are those who are depressed more likely to consume more chocolate or does chocolate consumption contribute to depression?

It doesn’t take too long to scan thru my archives to see how I feel about chocolate. Yes, I enjoy chocolate, especially dark chocolate, for its taste and its health benefits. I know plenty of people who have a mini square as a dessert and are good to go. They are not solving issues of depression; rather treating themselves to a taste they enjoy and appreciate. The mini-square bars have had their own revolution of late as consumer check-out lanes at markets are often filled with the little bites of pleasure. Hey, they don’t cost that much. It’s a simple, satisfying reward. After all, we are the grab-and- go society and what could be better at instant gratification than the mini!51u2Li81GxL._SL500_SS100_

Now the depression issue. Which came first the chicken or the egg? If you’re depressed, a little bite of chocolate or many such bites may help. Assume you are doing something more medically sound for the depression anyway so this is just a mini stop. If you are not depressed, doubt how chocolate could cause it. Wait, maybe if you take in too much chocolate, you’ll gain weight and then become depressed. Apples and oranges.

Different issues. Go for the little square. It won’t hurt.

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BarBQ, BBQ, Barbecue?

Apr 26

Posted by admin in food universe

2010-wcbcc-poster-for-websiteWhen you have Master Chefs who are used to the intricacies of fine dining, it’s always fun to see them turn around their apron for something a little less formal. Take Andrew Evans and his shift from fine dining to Thai to his true passion, BBQ (his newest endeavor, The BBQ Joint).

Now the Maryland chef has company in Virginia as Craig Hartman with his fine dining pedigree does double duty. As the executive chef  at the Orient-Express property (Keswick Hall) in Keswick, VA and its fine dining approach to guest pleasure at its fine dining Fossett’s Restaurant, he has one type of demanding clientele. When he shifts gears, he heads to the smoker with his own restaurant that tests the mettle for real Southerners: Bar BQ. The recently opened BarBQ Exchange in Gordonsville, VA shows a talented chef can simultaneously be master of several cuisines as disparate as these two. OK, it helps if your wife is ready to run the Exchange and you have time to be the top toque at a demanding restaurant. Then such a juggle gives true fulfillment.

What Evans and Hartman demonstrate is an understanding of foods and the ability to conceptualize, cook, and execute. Hartman is the first to admit that you just don’t put the meat in an oven and wait for it to pop out as barbq. Time plays the fool as this slow-cooking process needs fine-tuning attention and has to meet the demands of an audience as critical in many ways as the one for fine dining.

Maybe the BBQ crowd proves even more demanding as everyone plays the connoisseur’s hand and discusses the merits of the meats and the sauces. Think of some of the great festivals that extol the ritual: Memphis in May ranks near the top of the list. Let’s see who comes out as a champion this year! Name a BBQ city such as Kansas City and you’ll understand partisan dialogue from the Gates to Arthur Bryant’s crowd and to some of the other player’s such as Jack Stack. One city; so many opinions and options!

Restaurants can’t even agree on the spelling of the food, so how can there be just a single barbecue style? No way.

Whatever fence you straddle, one fact remains: Talent is talent and smoked brisket doesn’t lie. Just slice it correctly!

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Mother’s Day Panic

Apr 25

Posted by admin in dining out, Economy

MD snoopy brag-LYes, I know it’s still April, but the panic surrounding what to do about Mother’s Day (Sunday, May 9) has already set in. Restaurants are quite pleased with the renewed interest in dining out. According to the National Retail Federation, this particular holiday ranks 2nd only to our spending around the December holidays. That’s a significant statement as specialty stores such as jewelers and florists are also eagerly awaiting the renewed interest in consumer spending. The study also found that over 80% of Americans plan to celebrate the holiday this year. Another sign that we are seeing improvements in the economy!

A quick look at restaurant reservations shows that lots of diners are already well organized for the breakfast, brunch, or dinner outing they’ve planned. This is the time to get to Open Table and see what’s still available in your city. Many restaurants offer special menus that enable them to handle larger crowds but still manage to fill up quickly. Unless you’re planning on finding a spot that does not take reservations and you don’t mind waiting around for a table, this is the week to finalize your plans.

There are plenty of families that shy away from restaurant outings at typically crowded times such as Mother’s Day. They try the more storybook approach with breakfast in bed or a barbecue event–anything that keeps Mom out of the kitchen is the philosophy behind this strategy.

Whatever route you think is best, remember it’s MOM you’re talking about so a little bit of planning is in order. OK, a lot of planning. Now. Don’t forget the card–selection starts waning a few days before the 9th!

Go for it.

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Organic Growth

Apr 24

Posted by admin in gardening, news

Some surprisingly strong numbers have just been released about the organic product market. Even during the time of great economic woes, organics grew significantly during 2009. According to the Organic Trade Association’s 2010 survey, product sales grew by over 5% to reach $26.6 billion dollars in sales. This is an interesting figure when compared to overall US food growth (1.6%) during that same period. That’s a significant number of people showing their support and belief in the organic food industry! It tells us how far we have come and how concerned we are about food safety and our belief that the organic route is a much safer passage.

The greatest growth of organic foods was with fruits and vegetables and demonstrated over an 11% increase over the prior year. In turn the organic fruit and vegetable market now makes up over 11% of all US food and vegetable sales! No longer are consumers limited to a few specialty stores for their organic purchases. The basic, mainstream, grocer recognizes the impact of having organic produce available for consumers. In addition, of course, there are numerous buying opportunities at smaller outlets and farm markets.

With all the negative attention on how our schools are doing a bad job of feeding our children, the Organic Trade Association established a contest, one week remaining, with the winning school to receive an organic garden or be supplied with a vending machine filled with organics. Vote now. t_Assorted_organic_produce

Whichever route one pursues for these purchases, the simple fact remains: The Organic Food Chain is growing considerably and it has reached an ever-growing market of consumers!

We celebrate this news.

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Putting the Earth Together

Apr 23

Posted by admin in Environment, gardening

As we conclude a week of attention on all matters of our environment, we need to figure out how to put all the pieces together.

Let’s start with the compost pile. It sounds like an ending for many of our thoughts, but today we focus on its multi-tiered value. For instance, every time you avoid running your garbage disposal, you are saving electricity. Create a compost pile or collect your compostable items and take them to a business that accepts them. A number of farm markets or green grocers are happy to let you join their efforts. Look at what New York City is doing. All that waste has a great second life. If you have the space, purchase a composter, but buy one that makes it easy to turn the contents so that you are diligently mixing up the items and making terrific compost. Numerous examples.

For many people, this week needs a heads-up on being a locavore, being a consumer of goods that we can purchase locally from nearby growers and producers. Those who live close enough to a farm market have a distinct advantage; a parallel to those who live in the country and can easily visit the nearby producer. For others, great distances are involved and then the inverse question needs to be asked: How much money does one save by supporting local if we are adding significant carbon miles to our outings? Likewise, if the farmer travels great distances, what impact does his farm market participation have? OK, the obvious answer is, he has an outlet for his products and we as consumers have the advantage of purchasing truly fresh foods. We are helping maintain a farm.csabox_120x120

The emphasis on buying local has convinced numerous grocers to sign agreements with producers as consumer awareness, especially at the beginning of the farm-fresh, produce season, is focused on buying local. Many grocers now have huge entryway signs telling us how many local products they have for purchase each day. More grocers are making deals with the nearby producers giving us an additional outlet to support the smaller grower. Freshness remains unmatched; we just need to calculate the distance and put it into the equation.

Maybe this is the week you focus on your own growing efforts. We are just weeks away from being out of the frost zone in most parts of the country. The markets have plenty of starter plants. Plenty of opportunities to have your own garden. Nothing more local than that!

One day; one week: It will take an on-going dialogue and action to help put our house in order.

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The Big Day

Apr 22

Posted by admin in lifestyle, news

Although we have acknowledged the interest in an Earth Week focus, the single day, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day is today, April 22.ed2010logo_blue We have come a long way in many of our steps to save the planet, change the world, and adhere to smart environmental and ecological principles. Many businesses are in the mood to reward customers today so you’ll be surprised by the various promotions all over town, every town.

It was not that many years ago when the concept of a reusable bag was left to a small part of our population. No more. You see people everywhere holding their bags for any type of shopping excursion. Some stores trade your smaller bags for their larger ones; smart marketing and advertising on their part as long as they don’t throw away the bags!

Target has a plastic bag promotion: They want you to turn in your plastic bags by submitting them to TerraCycle, and they’ll give you a coupon to use for one of their reusable bags. Following the lead of Whole Foods Markets and others, Target recently added recycling bins near the checkout area. That’s a boost to one-stop shopping and avoidance of extra mileage trips. Starbucks hopes this Earth Day helps people understand about bringing their own tumblers for coffee so the company can lessen its use of paper cups. They’ll reward you.

Numerous grocers, restaurants, and other merchants want to be heard during this day. Get out and celebrate and make changes in your everyday routines.

Our work has just begun. We’ve learned. We still have so much to learn. It’s our only Earth.

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What’s it All About?

Apr 21

Posted by admin in Environment, food universe

images-2No, Alfie refrain, just the big Organic question. If there is a word that confuses most people when they shop for the so-called right foods, the healthiest products, it’s the word ORGANIC. Yes, there is a definition as supplied by the USDA, and there are multitudes of farmers out there willing to talk to you about the trials and tribulations of going organic. Did I mention the costs? Yes, for many farmers that last element is the deciding factor when it comes to the care, maintenance, and monitoring of their fields. To be certified Organic involves time and money.

The same conundrum applies to the consumer who stands in front of a product and wonders Organic or Conventional. The health value and the good-for-you feeling may win over the shopper but not everything we purchase needs to be an organic product. Here’s a good list of products we are better off purchasing as organics and those in the no-need column. Print it out and keep it handy as we move into the summer growing season when all the market attention gets focused on LOCAL, you’ll see the double winner signage: Local Organic.

So what is a consumer to do? Decide your family’s needs and budget and do the math. With young children in the household, purchasing organic dairy products are a wise, health-proven choice. You’ll even find that the dairy cases at markets that have an organic focus often have organic products that are less costly than the more limited organic supplies at regular markets: Significant savings.When meat is discussed, there are numerous grocers who carry products from non-antibiotic feeds for their poultry and meats. This strategy is a welcome middle-ground for many. As for produce, if you only purchase some of the organic selections, refer to the list of the most harmful products, those that retain the pesticides, and buy the organics most recommended.

Here’s your opportunity to do a good job for your family and our environment. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle means making numerous purchasing decisions that are beneficial for all of us.

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