A Householders Guide to the Universe: A Calendar of Basics for the Home and Beyond

Harriet Fasenfest offers a page-turning seasonal monthly breakdown in her book “A Householder’s Guide to the Universe: A Calendar of Basics for the Home and Beyond.”

With apologies to Douglas Adams and his “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything many modern galactic households are looking for is not 42. Instead, Fasenfest’s “Householder’s Guide” explores and promotes householding as “… the revival of a personal system of resource management, founded on principles of equity, thrift, and stewardship.”

Does that answer resonate with you?

The author’s rising consciousness about global development opened a “new lens” to view how she was living and how she wanted to live in the world. Her “Newton moment” was watching an old Bartlett pear tree drop fruit into her backyard. Fasenfest wondered, “How had I come to take them for granted and leave them to rot? What had turned them into valueless objects?”

Looking at her life through that “new lens,” this self-described “writer, cook, gardener, food preserver and backyard economist” saw a better approach. She became the change she wanted to see, rooted in valuing the growing home-based economy and “reclaiming (once common) skills.”

“A Householder’s Guide to the Universe” invites readers to share the journey. With wit, warmth and down to earth wisdom, the calendar book highlights each season and month’s to-dos and to-think-abouts for The Home, The Garden and The Kitchen.

Part philosophy book, part adventure tale, “Householder’s Guide” covers the basics of householding and also includes terrific resources like planting lists, recipes, information about preserving food, and how to make the tastiest jam in the world – the kind you pick, cook and can at home.

Dedicated to the memory of her paternal grandmother – “Oh, what you could have taught me!” Fasenfest writes – “Householder’s Guide” is heavy on hope and good humor, sustaining and nurturing along the never-easy paths we may walk. Fasenfest shares her family’s personal growth through everyday human “breakage and redemption” with inspiring, heartfelt (and often hilarious) details on every page.

This is a very real human story that clarifies “the odd history we have all inherited and the way the greed of the market has defined prosperity, success, and ‘the good life.’”

What kind of life sounds good to you? What does “home” really mean? In “The Householder’s Guide to the Universe,” “… home is not the place where lazy minds go to die, but rather where the active mind, heart and soul can find their resurrection. That we can practice much of householding in our bathrobes is an added plus.”

Are you interested in honing your householding skills? Fasenfest invites you to turn frustration into action and problems into solutions. Just DON’T PANIC*.

* “The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” features DON’T PANIC on its cover in “large, friendly letters.” Writer and futurist Sir Arthur C. Clarke said Douglas Adams’ use of “Don’t panic” was perhaps the best advice that could be given to humanity.

With family roots in the fertile Red River Valley of North Dakota, Lynn Torrance Redlin has been part of the Cooking Up a Story team for a number of years. An avid gardener and home cook, Redlin is also a voracious reader, and enjoys exploring new information and ideas about our food system.

A young Mo Rocca and his grandmother. Photo courtesy of the Food Network/Cooking Channel

“Rocca says his idea for the show came out of a particularly embarrassing dinner. “I had a friend over for takeout,” Rocca tells NPR’s Rachel Martin. “Since I don’t cook, that’s all I could serve him. And he said, ‘Do you have any salt? I need some salt.’ I said, ‘Uh, yeah. I think in the cupboard over the oven that I never use.’ And he said, ‘That’s sugar.’ And I realized I didn’t even have salt in my apartment. I mean, it’s pathetic!”

Rocca says that if he had a time machine, he’d go back 30 years and shadow his grandmother in the kitchen as she prepared bounteous Sunday meals for her family. “She made extraordinary meals,” he remembers. “I don’t have her anymore, so I’m doing the next best thing, which is learning from the old masters — from grandmothers and grandfathers across the country.”

The hour long special premieres on the Cooking Channel – Sunday, February 19th (tonight), at 8pm (EST), with repeats listed here.

As an added treat, watch Mo Rocca learn how to make his grandmother’s ravioli with Lidia Bastianich, 3 years ago.

Read more via NPR, “Mo Rocca Learns From the Masters: Grandparents“

In a world where the polluter (ie,an agrichemical company that holds a patent on a particular plant seed) can bring a patent infringement lawsuit against the party who is the recipient of that pollution (ie, a farmer whose native (unlicensed) seed becomes inadvertently contaminated by the patented seed of a nearby farm, through pollen drift, and other accidental means), is a clear sign that we are approaching the cliff. Are we sheep that follow the herd blindly over the abyss, or are we thoughtful human beings capable of taking corrective action to avert such a disaster?

It’s sad that such fundamental concerns over the allowing of living things to be patented (and thereby controlled) was decided by the supreme court. Not, as more appropriate, within the halls of congress and the executive branch, where such important, and far reaching implications far exceed the legal domain. Now decades later, the scene is set for this absurd legal battle to play out, the pollutee preeminently taking legal strike to avoid future harm from the alleged future polluter. Nonetheless, the outcome of this lawsuit may provide some indication whether we will walk as beast, or as man toward our intended fate.

For now, Federal Court Judge Naomi Buchwald will have to decide…

Here are two videos discussing this case from outside the courtroom in New York City.

This is a longer video by veteran filmmaker, Jan Weber: OWS FDN Monsanto

A factory of whisks. Wire, wire everywhere. How do they get those wires to stay in place and not come popping out. I was curious. I love to see how things are made.

Best Manufacturing Plant, Portland Oregon

I guess I’m one of those few people who don’t own a whisk. I see that it’s a simple tool, and widely used by many, but how? I called a couple of home cooks I knew and asked if they had a whisk. Both did. In fact, each had several. So off I went and watched them work their magic and listened. What an education.

Recipe from the show: Michael’s Mars Meringues

—Rebecca

Carol Deppe, The Resilient Gardener

But what about gardening in “not-so-good” times, when “ordinary trauma and minor disasters” like health problems and family needs trump the to-do list, or make it impossible to do the things our gardens need precisely when they need them? Or the “mega-hard” times that history proves deserve consideration – catastrophic drought, disasters (natural and man-made,) pandemics, energy shortages, economic instability, the ripple effect of war and terrorism?

“The Resilient Gardener: Food Production and Self-Reliance in Uncertain Times” is a personal revelation about “All-American food security,” and a clarion call to action. Author, plant breeder and scientist Carol Deppe offers a bumper crop of clear explanations about why resilience (“An ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change” – Merriam-Webster Dictionary) in even the tiniest backyard gardens matters, along with a ton of practical how-to information about growing, processing and storing food for optimal use. Today, Deppe says, “…we can produce better, more nutritious, more delicious food than anything we can buy,” and learning to reduce inputs like labor and water means “we spend less, waste less, pollute less, and are more sophisticated, efficient gardeners, in good times as well as bad.”

And since we humans need calories and protein, not just salads and herbs, “The Resilient Gardener” focuses on “the five crops you need to survive and thrive – potatoes, corn, beans, squash and eggs” – and presents step-by-step approaches to grow, store and use these vital crops.

Deppe offers a big-picture overview of the diverse “erratic-climate-adjusted style of farming” developed during the Little Ice Age and still seen as a “model for a maximally-resilient farming community,” then invites us to better understand the inherent resilience of our own backyards by exploring its soil, topography and traditional uses by Native Americans and pioneers.

She looks at diet and food resilience, sharing how resilient gardening can help with physical limitations, special dietary restrictions and other health considerations like food intolerances. There’s a real value to the foresight that leads to having a “stash” of staples for our families, “designed to primarily enhance the quality of our lives in ordinary times (and) also enhance personal and regional reliance in hard times,” she says. “The Resilient Gardener” details different growing and storage methods, including best temperature and humidity conditions for 49 fruits and vegetables that keep longer than two months. You may know about keeping apples and carrots, but what about celery? Garlic? Jerusalem artichoke? Kohlrabi? Parsnips? Sweet potatoes and (true) yams?

And any gardener who reads the chapter on The Laying Flock will come away with a lust for poultry (Deppe adores her ducks) that goes well beyond quality eggs, garden fertilizer and a handy (beaky?) outlet for produce leavings.

Deppe’s stated goal is to “encourage more gardening, and more growing of food, especially staples.” She urges us all to expand our knowledge and pass it on to nurture resilient neighborhoods, resilient communities, resilient regions and a resilient nation. “The Resilient Gardener” challenges us all to up our gardening game for maximum flexibility, satisfaction and self-reliance … just in case.

With family roots in the fertile Red River Valley of North Dakota, Lynn Torrance Redlin has been part of the Cooking Up a Story team for a number of years. An avid gardener and home cook, Redlin is also a voracious reader, and enjoys exploring new information and ideas about our food system.

We are honored to present the following members of The Collective:

Kathleen Bauer, Good Stuff NW

Anthony and Carol Boutard, Hillsdale Farmers Market, Portland, Oregon

Anthony and Carol Boutard, co-owners of Ayers Creek Farm, an Oregon Tilth, certified organic farm, located just outside Portland, grow a variety of specialty grains, fresh shell and dry beans, orchard fruits and berries, and winter vegetables, that not only taste better, they are less likely to be commercially available in the supermarket. They also sell their food directly to select restaurants, and to eaters who shop at the local Hillsdale Farmers Market. Disclosure: we purchase their food at the farmers market, and can personally attest to their freshness, and taste.

Liz Crain, Author of Food Lover's Guide to Portland

Liz Crain, author of the popular book, The Food Lover’s Guide to Portland writes about Pacific Northwest food and drink for online and print publications. In a town bursting at the seams with artisan bake shops, micro-breweries and micro-distilleries, food carts, neighborhood restaurants, and cheese shops, Crain’s guide is an indispensable tool for quickly navigating the local food culture.

Harriet Fasenfest, author of A Householders Guide to the Universe

Harriet Fasenfest is fiercely loyal to discovering the deeper truths about life, and to growing, cooking, and preserving fresh food. In her lifetime she has owned small restaurants, continues to teach on a wide variety of food subjects, especially relating to food preservation, and householding, and her recent book, A Householders Guide to the Universe, and her DVD, Preserving With Friends are both required resources in any serious food enthusiast’s library collection.

Michele Knaus, Friends of Family Farmers

Michele Knaus, executive director with the nonprofit organization Friends of Family Farmers (FOFF), meets with small farmers across the state, and understands the challenges that they face. Her organization is involved in supporting food policy initiatives to help Oregon farmers maintain their profitability, and to thrive. A graduate of Portland State University Master’s Degree Program Leadership for Sustainability Education, she is also involved in educating eaters about our food system at their monthly Friends of Family Farmers InFARMation (and Beer!) event.

The garden is not just a garden. The garden is a metaphor for having a place to develop an ethical way to understand life, and to make a life that is ethical. —Alan Kapuler

If there were an intergalactic spacecraft capable of carrying but one life safely in search of contact with other sentient beings, my vote would be for Alan Kapuler to be humanity’s ambassador to the cosmos. Leading a lifetime of work devoted to organic gardening and open pollinated plant breeding in the public interest, Kapuler, a molecular biologist by training, poetically expresses his reverence for all living things as embodied in his concept of a garden, and his daily work planting, breeding, and cataloguing his organic seeds.

This is the fourth of an ongoing series with Dr. Alan Kapuler, founder of Peace Seeds, and former co-founder and research director for Seeds of Change. He currently resides in Corvallis, Oregon where he continues his research projects, and maintains his remarkable organic seed catalog.

From the video, these are some of the important areas of concern where the laws need strengthening:

1. Environmental concerns: Massive manure lagoons pose threats not only to surface waters (rivers, tributaries, etc.) but also to groundwater supplies that are often ignored under current laws. For example, federal laws (largely) allow for the unregulated discharge of farm wastes.
2. Address federal “Right To Farm Laws” that impede the ability of local communities, and even small farmers to restrict the operations of nearby factory farms when their actions cause harm to them, and their community.
3. Property Tax reforms: Allow for the reduction of local property tax whose value declines due to their proximity to large factory farms.
4. Food Labeling Standards: Like the organic label, require strict standards for terms, such as, “cruelty free” and “pasture raised,” so that consumers know what they are really buying.
5. Regulate large amounts of animal waste by treating it in a similar way we treat human sewage.
6. Antibiotics contamination from animal waste, and meat consumption that is cause antibiotic resistance in human diseases.
7. Reexamine the dual role of government to regulate the agriculture industry, and at the same time, being charged with also promoting it.
8. Address one size fits all regulations that treat a small farm operation in the same manner as a large farm.
9. Address systemic problems that are posed by factory farms even if climate damaging methane gas emissions, can be converted into otherwise beneficial energy production.

Filmed at the Friends of Family Farmers event on November 9th, 2010.

Editorial

In this Friends of Family Farmer’s sponsored talk, Kathy Hessler, Director of the Animal Law Clinic at Lewis and Clark Law School in Portland (Oregon), discusses the important subject of factory farms in relation to animal welfare protections under existing federal and state laws.

In a nutshell, livestock in America do not enjoy any protections under the law; they enjoy the same rights as a personal kitchen toaster. There are no federal laws, including federal and state animal anti-cruelty laws, that apply to farm animals. One small exception applies to the transportation of livestock (poultry is exempted from this law) that requires certain conditions be met after 28 hours of continuous transport, but these are quite limited in scope.

In perhaps a time gone past, before factory farms existed, before the introduction of mega-farms, manure lagoons, and indoor warehousing of chickens, pigs, turkeys, and other livestock— before the advent of antibiotics, and vitamin D that made factory farms (large CAFO’s) even possible, (the laws of) nature would not allow a farmer to mistreat his animals; it would have directly harmed their economic interests to do so.

While many farmers do not abuse their animals today, for a number of good reasons, including moral and economic concerns, the absence of legal animal welfare protections have served to support a small segment of the agriculture sector, the large factory farm, effecting a disproportionally large number of animals.

When one looks at the pictures of livestock housed under factory farm conditions, as in Dan Imhoff’s anthology book, CAFO, these images depict the brutality, and obvious torturous conditions of their care. It should be noted, in some states, there are efforts underway to make it a felony to film any farm operation clandestinely, and in Florida (unbelievably), one senator unsuccessfully tried to make it a first degree felony to openly film any farm without first obtaining written permission of the farm. Under Florida law, that would have meant up to 30 years in prison, and obviously would have been a serious deterrent for shining light on continuing livestock and environmental abuses.

Large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations are the Maginot Line in the agricultural sand—in a civilized society, there can be no reasonable justification for their existence.

Don Wachlin, Fourth Generation Farmer; Schlichting Century Farms

Strawberry Picking at Schlichting Century Farms

Over the past several years, Rebecca and I have been touched by his warmth and generosity, and have benefited from his help on projects for CUPS. As a fourth generation farmer, he had a passion for farming, and an intimate knowledge of his community. In a written tribute to her dad after his passing, Mary writes:

“Dad would help anyone—as long as they could get through to him on his dang cell phone, or find him—fitting in favors between the thirty odd jobs he juggled along with the full time job of being a farmer, store owner, and family man.”

That was the kind of man that he was. Perhaps his daughter Mary summed it up most succinctly, describing him as: “a hardworking farmer who lived a good life.”

The average farmer in this country is 57 years old, and aging upward. Farmers, like Don Wachlin, who work tirelessly in the field to produce good food, and are solid members of their community, represent our unsung heroes.

Don Wachlin: 1948-2011

And for that reason, flu experts like Robert Webster worry that A(H5N1) virus could mutate and become the next great flu pandemic killing massive numbers of people. The last big one to occur, in fact the biggest epidemic in human history, the 1918 “Spanish Flu”, resulted in upwards of 100 million deaths worldwide (some credible sources peg this number closer to between 20-40 million), killing 2% of those who became infected with the virus. As World War 1 was ending, in less than a year’s time, the global flu pandemic killed more people than those who died from the war itself. Although the A(H5N1) virus has infected only a comparatively small number of people (in the hundreds since 1997), the virus is significantly more lethal than the 1918 flu virus subtype H1N1, killing 50% of those who become infected, though fortunately not known to be transmissible from person to person.

In order for a pandemic outbreak to occur, a virus must mutate in just the right fashion to allow for human to human transmission to easily occur, be highly pathogenic, and target a largely virgin population, those not possessing protective immunity from prior exposure. The H1N1 variant met all three conditions in 1918, though scientists still are not sure exactly why. The normal flu virus in many ways represents an ideal candidate for widespread disease transmission because the virus mutates rapidly, at least partially evading the bodies native immune response, and can be readily spread from person to person through air, and casual human contact. Characteristically, although tens of thousand may die each year from the (common) flu strains, because we have built up a fair degree of immunity from previous exposure, it poses the greatest danger to the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems.

Not true with the A(H5N1) virus and the 1918 H1N1, they mainly target those whose immune systems are the strongest; it is the infected person’s heightened immune response that causes much of the internal damage that results from the virus infection. Although this virus has shown signs of attacking organs throughout the body, including the brain in other species, in humans, like other influenza viruses, it targets mostly the lungs.

Recently, the Hong Kong government ordered a large population of chickens from their live poultry markets destroyed because the virus turned up in dead chickens that were tested.

A rift may have developed between infection disease researchers, and The National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity, created in 2004 to ensure that published information does not contain secrets that could help rogue states, or terrorist groups develop their own biological weapons. This has become a more urgent concern when two separate teams of researchers successfully modified the H5N1 strain into a highly infectious, human transmissible strain, and in their (as yet) unpublished report submitted for review, detail how they accomplished this feat.

From the researchers perspective, there is strong resistance to even a hint of censorship; the goal of science is to solve problems, and the ability to freely share timely information amongst colleagues is its lifeblood. By understanding how the virus can become more virulent, the hope is that this information will lead to development of an effective vaccine, better treatments, and to sound an early warning when naturally occurring mutations evolve in nature toward a recognized, more dangerous state.

Understandably, at least on the surface, the advisory panel wants to limit the type of information that gets published, and shared with other experts, for fear that information could provide a recipe for terrorists to develop their own weaponized avian flu virus. For an interesting interview with the lead author of this report, read this New York Times article: Security in Flu Study Was Paramount, Scientist Says. In addition, this NYT article Debate Persists on Deadly Flu Made Airborne talks about the A(H5N1) virus experiments at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, and with Ron Fouchier, their lead virologist whose team successfully altered the already lethal virus into the capability of a deadly pandemic strain.

Infectious disease experts expect another pandemic disease will kill millions of people—if not from an A(H5N1) avian flu virus— other viruses that exist in nature, as they mutate or suddenly come into contact with human populations, are a constantly evolving threat.

Lest one not forget, Mother Nature possesses her own weapons of mass destruction, and she knows how to deliver them.

Additional Background Information:

A Public Policy Expert Looks at the Bird Flu Threat

The Coming Plague by Laurie Garrett

“We will have to develop much more sustainable, or durable forms of food production because the way we have done things up to now are no longer as viable as they once appeared to be.” Prince Charles speech on the future of food, May 4th, 2011

Mankind is not on a timeless journey; as with all of life, our destiny is defined within the bounds of finite hope and promise. The magnificent bounty of nature, easily mistaken as being endless in supply, provides the foundation for all living things; it sustains the air we breath, the land we sow, the water, and other essential minerals in the earth, to create the necessary conditions for life to begin, and for it to continue to flourish. But nature’s abundance is not without limits, and in particular, the human species must learn how to navigate life’s path less destructively, and less rapacious of the natural world’s finite resources. Quite simply, unless we change course in time, having consumed both house and home—we may find ourselves plunged— as other civilizations before us— into sudden extinction.

Lubbock, Texas area from the air, showing center pivot irrigation circles.

The single source of irrigation is ancient water from a massive, underground aquifer. The Ogallala Aquifer is one of the largest, fresh water aquifer’s in the world, and was formed millions of years ago from the erosion of the Rocky Mountains. It traverses through portions of eight states (Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming), providing 30% of the total water used in irrigation of agriculture, and accounts for an astounding 20% of the entire agricultural output of the country.

More efficient center pivot irrigation of a cotton field in Hale county.

This short documentary provides a glimpse into an unusually important, and long-running research and demonstration project, called the Texas Coalition for Sustainable Integrated Systems Research (TeCSIS) and the Texas Alliance for Water Conservation (TAWC) that started with a grant from SARE to form TeCSIS. This combined project (TeCSIS/TAWC) involves scores of scientific researchers, educational institutions, government agencies, and local area farmers (producers) that are trying to find answers to extend the life of the aquifer, and promote more sustainable, economic viability for this invaluable agricultural region.

TAWC project manager, Rick-Kellison, talks to dry-land farmer Keith Phillips

There is another ambitious goal of this project that may be as important as its efforts to extend the life of the aquifer in this region. Only 2.5% of the Earth’s water is freshwater. Roughly two-thirds of that water is frozen, leaving less than 1% available for growing crops, and for drinking supplies. The transferrable knowledge that is gained through this unique type of cooperative research effort may offer valuable clues to other semi-arid regions in the world who are facing similar critical water scarcity challenges.

When we look toward the very near future, with an anticipated 2 billion more global inhabitants expected by 2050, better conservation of these fresh groundwater resources will be critical for our continued well-being.

Additional Resources:

• Future of Food
  Speech by HRH The Prince of Wales, May 2011
• Groundwater Management in the High Plains Aquifer in the USA: Legal Problems and Innovations (pdf) 2007
• Rethinking Groundwater Supplies in Light of Climate Change: How Can Groundwater be Sustainably Managed While Preparing for Water Shortages, Increased Demand, and Resource Depletion? (pdf) 2008

Can the 2012 Farm Bill protect the Ogallala Aquifer?

• One Hundred Years of Agriculture– the Giant Side of Lubbock (doc)
  Lubbock Chamber of Commerce
• Water Pressure
  National Geographic
• Ogallala Aquifer
  Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE)
• Ogallala Map Series
  Texas Tech University
• Map of Ogallala Aquifer- 41 counties in Texas (pdf)
• Water Worries: Declining Aquifers Threaten Agriculture; May, 2011
• Ogallala Aquifer
  High Plains Underground Water District No. 1
• The Ogallala Aquifer: Saving a Vital U.S. Water Source
  Scientific American Earth 3.0-March, 2009 (paid download)
• Ogallala Aquifer: An Introduction (doc)

The kids are home from school, boredom levels rise, what to do? Cookies! Caitlin Daniels of Two Tarts Bakery, gives us another idea how to have delicious fun with some of our favorite cookie cutters. She demonstrates using a Christmas tree cut-out on this Cashew Shortbread recipe. Year after year I’ve been making my favorite sugar cookie recipe, but this year I’m going to start a new tradition. What’s your favorite Holiday time cookie?

Check out these recipes from the show: Cashew Shortbread Recipe; Favorite Sugar Cookies Recipe

“In the last 30 years we have lost 90% of our pork producers; in the last 30 years, we have lost 40% of our ranchers, we have lost 80% of our Dairymen because of big corporate abuse of power.”

—Mike Callicrate, Kansas rancher

Farmers Join In Solidarity with Occupy Wall Street Protest in New York City

For those who care deeply about inequality in America— about the undue influence of corporate predators (including big Ag) that subvert democracy, and render the will of the people silent—the Occupy Wall Street protest represents the de facto conscience of the nation.

One important element of this ongoing struggle for transforming our economic system is the recognition that there is an important role for government to play, and equally so, a requisite role for an actively engaged citizenry. As Calligrate mentions in the video, we must learn to see our role as citizens first, not as rapacious consumers, or we resign our future (and that of our children) to slavery.

Sustainability is equally about producing profit, but not at the expense of local communities, the environment, and of labor.

In this Occupy Wall Street video, Kansas rancher, Mike Callicrate articulates the current state of agriculture, and the fight to reverse large corporate dominance over our food system.

Thanks to Dave Murphy of Food Democracy Now for sharing this video. The Occupy Wall Street Farmers’ March event was co-produced by Food Democracy Now, and the Occupy Wall Street’s food justice committee.

See also:

Oligarchy, American Style by Paul Krugman

The One Percent (2006)
Predating the 2008 economic meltdown, and the more recent Occupy Wall Street movement, Jamie Johnson, heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune, uses his unique financial status to gain access to some of the wealthiest individuals in America. To say the least, many of the one-percenter’s views on growing income disparity, and poverty are often beyond ludicrous. Brief appearances by Ralph Nader, Robert Reich, and congressmen John Lewis (along with some others) provide a welcome relief of sane analysis. Produced by Jamie Johnson and Nick Kurzon. See trailer below:

Image courtesy of http://www.birdphotos.com; Creative Commons 3.0

Please find below a short clip from an interview with Mr. Spears that was produced by the Kitchen Sisters, a long-running, award-winning radio show featuring stories across the country about food, and American food culture. As the Kitchen Sisters explain in their newsletter, this interview happened quite by chance. They were originally planning to interview Willie Nelson about his involvement with Farm Aid, but Nelson was temporarily delayed. So they began talking with Spears, and it turned into a interview that almost caused them to miss their opportunity to interview Nelson.

[audio src="http://cookingupastory.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/HKT-Bee-Spears-cooks-armadillo.mp3"]
Short clip of interview with Dan Bee Spears talking in part about cooking an armadillo (hence the reason for the post’s image)

Here’s a link to the complete one hour Texas special that the clip above was taken. For those who enjoy Willie Nelson’s music, here’s a link to a video on YouTube where his son (Lukas) and his daughter (Amy) play in their own band called Promise of the Real.

Maybe my ears are a bit weathered from age, but Lukas’s voice sounds identical to his dad’s. What a gift!

I remember it was a typical hot, dry day in August. I wanted to get a short trip to the Farmer’s Market in before the day was gone. So many beautiful fruits and vegetables to pick from. I was in heaven. Almost.

I passed a booth with 2 ladies with bright aprons selling…hmmm, let me see, what’s in those bottles? Mustard? And it’s called Monastery Mustard? Why? I looked around to get a hint. Up on their big banner, behind where they stood, was printed “Benedictine Sisters”. Oh, okay. Of Mt. Angel. Okay, too coincidental. There’s something more here, there’s bound to be a good story.

I walked over and introduced myself to one of the ladies, who turned out to be Sister Terry. I began to ask her about the mustard and how it came about, and I was intrigued. We exchanged information and I contacted her in a few days to come down to Mt Angel to visit, talk, and film the making of their mustard.

Community life is important to these Sisters. The community in their Monastery, the town community of Mt. Angel, and the larger community they reach through their participation at local farmer’s markets. And I think, in part, that’s what Sustainability speaks to. Acting locally, participating in your community, has an effect, eventually, on a much larger, global level. Like water rings from a single drop of water, it spreads outward.

After filming the making the mustard, and seeing how it’s made (and about it’s intent) Lynn and I bought a couple of jars. I had not yet tasted any of their mustard. It was mid-afternoon and we stopped to pick up a sandwich at a local shop. Once in the car, sandwich in hand, I opened a jar of Glorious Garlic, and took a small taste. And then another, and yet another. It was hard to stop. I had never tasted a mustard quite as good. Now I was in heaven. At least my taste buds were!

Curt Ellis has a definition of Sustainability that I agree with: “It’s food you want to eat when you know it’s backstory”. This fits in to what I learn about foods more and more.

“Pete’s Greens is one of Vermont’s largest vegetable farms. The fast-moving blaze destroyed several tons of storage crops and their vegetable washing and processing equipment, along with two tractors. The loss is valued at more than half a million dollars, and most of the food and equipment was not insured. The fire will also mean five of the farm’s eight full-time employees will be laid off.” -from WCAX.com

Just a week later the community began to come forward to show their support. There was an online auction, dinners, donations from local businesses, and more. Money was raised, and so was a new barn.

Last Saturday the community was invited to an open house and barn warming. Eva Sollberger, of Stuck in Vermont, visited and shares this video:

One of Elizabeth’s favorite recipe’s is a twist on the popular Pecan Tassie, by using locally grown hazelnut’s from Freddy Guys, and making it her own: Hazelnut Tassies. If hazelnuts (also known as filberts) aren’t available in your area, you might want to try pistachios or stick with pecans. Happy baking!

Hazelnut Tassies being made

Check out Elizabeth’s Hazelnut Tassies recipe here!

“When you go out to eat, you shouldn’t get wage theft, racism, and sick cooks in the kitchen along with your meal.” —Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation

Saru Jayaraman, co-founder of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC) speaking at the 2011 Community Food Security Coalition meeting.

Here’s a pop quiz. What is one of the fastest growing industry sectors of the U.S. economy, and one of the few growth industries since the 2008 economic meltdown? A clue: it offers the lowest full-time employee wages, and the fewest benefits?

According to Saru Jayaraman, co-founder of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC), it’s the restaurant industry. Despite the fact (as of 2009), 40% of the American food budget is spent outside the home, and reflects one of the fastest growth industries in the U.S. today—in terms of worker’s rights, and employee compensation, this industry simmers at the bottom of the employment stew.

90% of U.S. restaurants, Jayaraman says, in addition to providing the lowest wage jobs, fail to offer the most basic of employment benefits common to other industries. Jayaraman singles out some notable members of the sustainable food movement for their lack of engagement on this issue, stating in part,“it’s unfortunate that a lot of times the folks that promote themselves as being the best on slow and local, are some of the worst employers”.

Jayaraman has compiled data from the latest USDA statistics to provide the following facts:

• $8.90 per hour (including tips) is the median hourly wage for a restaurant worker. That means, Jayaraman says, a majority of restaurant workers (with a family of 3) “that cook, prepare, and serve our food” are receiving wages below the federal poverty line.
• Only 20 % of all restaurant jobs provide livable wage jobs, and those tend to be in a few major cities, at the more upscale restaurants that favor hiring white workers over persons of color.
• The federal minimum wage requirement for tipped workers is $2.19/hour (plus tips). Jayarman states that thousands of employed restaurant workers are homeless.
• 7 out of 10 of the lowest paying jobs in America are in the restaurant industry.
• There are 10 million restaurant workers, many of whom will remain in the restaurant business their entire lives.

ROC has just published a National Diners Guide (pdf), and a separate how-to workbook for employers in an effort to educate restaurant workers on their employment rights; employers on how they can improve their management practices; and to better inform the public, so as, to pressure restaurants to change their practices. The guide provides a rating system for 150 of the top grossing restaurants, whether they provide paid sick leave, higher guaranteed wages for tipped workers, and whether they offer an ability for employees to advance in the company. It also publicly recognizes the “high road” restaurants that have succeeded in offering better wages, and benefits to their workers, without sacrificing the bottom-line, and singles out a few of the bad actors that have been involved in lawsuits.

Restaurant workers deserve a more decent fate, and so too, do restaurant eaters.

This video is from Food First.

Event takes place on December 3, 2011

So, how does one make this vital piece of reoccurring legislation more palatable to the general public to promote better citizen engagement around this bill?

In conjunction with International Open Data, Food + Tech Connect, a company founded by two journalists, and Gojee are hosting a wiki-based “Farm Bill Hackathon” on December 3, 2011. Their stated purpose is to bring together “journalists, technologists, designers, policy makers, and food data specialists to develop tools and visualizations that will help the public better understand how the Farm Bill impacts our lives.”

To find out more about this event, and how you may participate, visit Food + Tech Connect Farm Bill Hackathon

It will be interesting to see what results from this event.

Conditioned within a matter of minutes to associate their feeding with the above mentioned explosive ingredients, when smelled, the bees will extend their proboscis toward the anticipated food, crossing an infrared beam in the process. If enough of the bees cross the infrared beam simultaneously, an alarm is triggered. So sophisticated are these honeybees in picking up a scent, the prototype device is reported to be more sensitive than any known bomb detection device currently in use— in the parts per trillion range (1 followed by 12 zeroes!).

The baking season is upon us, with Thanksgiving just ahead. In this video, Catherine Schon, of Sassafras Catering, demonstrates how to make a tasty homemade pie crust. Now for some of you this will be old hat, but for many who are rediscovering the baker within, this will be very useful to watch. Actually, even as a seasoned home-baker, you might pick up some tips – I did! Ms. Schon was kind enough to also share her Home Made Pie Crust Recipe.

Catherine Schon, Sassafras Catering

And before you start making dough, here’s a good tip I learned from the TwoJunes post, Pie, It’s A Way of Life; double or triple the pie dough recipe, divide accordingly, wrap in wax paper, and freeze until needed.

Happy baking, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Click on image to enlarge

Still, as the report details, this 4.8 billion figure represents about 1.9% of total farm sales in 2008. As the author’s note, “For local foods production to continue to grow, marketing channels and supply chain infrastructure must deepen.” The stated purpose of this report is to deepen the understanding about existing local food marketing channels so that both private and public sectors of society may provide added support to the local food sector of the economy.

Perhaps, too small at the present moment to change the overall local food economy revenue figures, there is an additional method of enhancing the local food economy of a region. While still in a state of relative infancy (I believe the first of these events began in 1999 by an organization called Outstanding in the Field)—there are a number of farm to table style outdoor culinary gatherings that have been springing up across the country.

Farm To Fork Events.
Photo courtesy of Toki Cavener Photography

Co-founders Matthew Domingo, and his wife Erin Dougherty help to inject money into the local food economy by paying small farmers (and winemakers) for the food they provide at these culinary events. At each farm dinner, the host provides a general tour of their farm, and along with additional stories and information shared over the duration of the 5-course meal (feast), also encourage donations for worthy organizations.

One of the central purposes for Farm To Fork is to help raise public awareness toward important sustainable food issues that include: increasing access to good food, improving the farm bill legislation, and promoting farm to school programs, among other good causes. At the event I attended, money was raised to help those in need obtain matching funds toward their WIC coupons (food stamps) to effectively double their WIC purchasing power at the local farmer’s market.

Disclosure: CUPS has been an invited guest to two of these events.

Willamette Valley Marionberry Frozen Pie

Those frozen pies that seem to fill the supermarket frozen display bins, who made them, and how are they made? We discovered one company, the Willamette Valley Fruit Company in our own backyard, that processes fresh picked berries, and within hours, the fresh berries are frozen, and made into frozen pies for shipment. The pie crusts are made from flour and whole ingredients, if you are not able to make your own fresh fruit pies at home, this may be the next best thing. Check out these related recipes that are perfect for this holiday season: Holiday Pecan Pie with Scotch; Zesty Marionberry Sauce.

Frozen Berries on Conveyor Belt

Pie Dough Being Mechanically Flattened

Frozen Pies Being Completed By Hand

Close Up of Frozen Pie Being Prepared

FindtheData.org has created a neat interface that allows for displays of relevant, and timely information across a wide variety of subjects. One of those interfaces collects raw data from the Farmers Markets Geographic Dataset (Data.gov), and from user submissions, to show the location of farmer’s markets throughout the country.

The idea for this public market locator tool came from UC-Santa Barbara senior, Evan Thomas, who performed the research, outreach, and compilation of the data used to create this online tool. Using the full featured version (see link at the bottom of the page) it’s possible to locate the farmer’s markets that fall within a slew of user defined parameters such as city, zip code, type of food products sold, etc.), among many other search and sharing options. After graduation, Thomas plans to attend graduate school to continue his sustainable architecture pursuits.

Here’s the basic widget to help find a local farmer’s market in your area:

Find the Best Farmers Markets

To see the more complete, feature rich farmer’s market locator in action, visit the FindtheData.org tool here.

2012 Farm Bill Legislation

Roughly every 5 years, Congress spends months hammering out the details of each new Farm Bill before it gets voted upon in the House of Representatives, and confirmed in the senate. According to the Environmental Working Group, for last year alone (2010), the program spent over 94 billion dollars.

Not this time.

In closed sessions over only a matter of weeks, the gang of 4, will decide the new provisions of the bill that will be presented to the budget deficit committee, itself a super committee. These 12 (super) legislators (6 Republicans and 6 Democrats) may ultimately decide the fate of this Farm Bill, along with wider recommendations (if they can reach a consensus vote) for cutting overall government spending to the tune of more than a trillion dollars.

For those who are not normally drawn to wonkish policy battles in Washington, this is one bill that literally effects every citizen in this country over the food on our table, and the price of food that we buy.

Check out these posts for a good crash course on what the government is deciding in secret about the federal farm bill, in the name of deficit reduction:

• 2012 Farm Bill Timing
• Top 10 Things You Should Know About The Farm Bill
• Quick and dirty: Congress may rewrite the Farm Bill in two weeks
• Memo to Congress: No Secret Farm Bill
• The Secret Farm Bill
• 24 Hours to Kill the “Secret Farm Bill”

It was fall, and crush time for the grape harvest. The weather was gorgeous, the skies were mostly clear with only a hint of possible rain. I heard (through the grapevine) about a doctor who practiced both traditional and nontraditional medicine, and also owned his own organic winery, Cooper Mountain Vineyards. This piqued my curiosity, and also that the winery began incorporating Rudolph Steiner’s biodynamic principles years ago when it was a fairly obscure practice here in the United States.

I must say, I also enjoyed filming the grapes, their different colors and shapes.

One of those manifestations applies to our industrial food system. Many farmers find themselves in the middle of a struggle of survival with forces too large individually to overcome. Sound familiar? This video tells the story about Heather Squire, a volunteer at an Occupy Wall Street kitchen in Zuccotti Park on Liberty Street in New York City’s financial district. Squire works with small farmers from the region to bring in fresh, organic produce that is used to help feed the roughly 800-1200 protesters that daily occupy the park. In the process, the farmers get some payment for their food in addition to the solidarity they express for the protesters, and Squire feels satisfaction that she is helping to promote a cause that she feels will benefit society.

This video was made by the folks at WNYC radio.

YouTube's Original Programming Initiative

For those of us old enough to remember TV when there were just 3 major networks, before the advent of original cable programming— from just a handful of available TV channels, to 100′s of channels—cable evolved into a transformative experience for television viewing.

What Google is doing with this initiative may well represent the watershed moment that finally ushers in 21st century television. A future not limited in definition by its method of program distribution or type of viewing device (broadcast or internet), nor limited in scope by a finite number of viewing channels, but viewing options on the magnitude of a “google” measure—an almost limitless potential.

Of course, when you talk about creating television shows, mere quantity is not the most relevant concern. It’s all about creating original content in order to continually satisfy (better yet, educate and inspire) a sizable, and increasing audience. This requires skilled labor, time, dedication, and financial resources to create, and sustain a continuing effort.

That’s what is most exciting to be a part of this project—the necessary support to greatly expand our content offerings to our existing audience, and exponentially, the potential to reach new viewers!

Stay tuned in January 2012 for continuing CUPS Food Farmer Earth updates…

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