Sustainable Eating

Issue 5: Spring/Summer 2007 — Unnatural Eating

We don't preach. We don't lecture those around us about the evils of trans fats or high fructose corn syrup. We simply make other choices; but, since we also choose to interact socially, the two often collide...

— by Frank S. Spinelli

Slow Eating

We live in a society that is highly structured when it comes to time. Nowhere is this structure felt more acutely than at mealtimes...

— by Jennifer Allen Keilty

Unnatural Eating

A Social and Political Look at Food Consumption

Food is not a neutral topic and it is no longer the natural activity it once was. Now, food is complicated by politics, policies, attitudes and, consequently, practices....

— by Elizabeth Barry

The Pessimistic Chef

I have read of an era when people took time to eat; I have rarely experienced this in public...

— by Michael Blau-Shane

Fasting

The Ultimate Pollution Solution

The typical American diet, together with environmental pollution, has resulted in a never-before-seen burden of toxins in our bodies. Can therapeutic fasting help us to heal?...

— by Robyn Cornwell

Hegemonic Freedom through Sustainable Agriculture

While there is no easy solution to the problem of hegemony and sustainability, there is an alternative way of living that holds hope for the future: permaculture...

— by Alex Middleton, Alisa Eddy, Eric Schiller, Amanda Knutzen and Guy Smith (The Sustainability Club of Whatcom Community College)

Art as Activism

Visuals and Victuals

Paintings by Loetitia S. Lilot

Inspired by Ahimsa, the Sanskrit term meaning "do no harm to any living creature," these paintings explore the food we eat and the impact our diets have on ourselves and on others...

Poster Art

by Doug Minkler

Prints inspired by the collective humor, defiance, & lust for life exhibited by those on the margins...

Book, Film & Product Reviews

Fast Food Nation

Arguably a modern day "The Jungle", "Fast Food Nation" exposes ill-treated immigrants, corporate cover-ups and facts that will make you think twice about eating mass-produced meat or stopping at the drive-thru after work...

— by Michelle Tooker

In Season

Nettle Cream Sauce

Nettles grow in most states in the US, though not in all parts of those states. Look for them growing in rich, moist ground, in woods with some sunlight, and on the edge of fields, roads and paths.

—recipe adapted from Healing Wise by Susun Weed

Ingredients:

2/3 plastic grocery bag of fresh nettles, not packed tightly (probably about 10-15 cups loosely packed, though much more can be used depending on how strong you want the green nettle flavor to be)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
olive oil
1-2 cups yogurt, sourcream or silken tofu
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2-1 cup mushrooms (optional)
1/4-3/4 cups walnuts, pinenuts or other nuts (optional)

Instructions:

Sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil.
Cook the nettles over low-medium heat in a pot with an inch or more of water in the bottom.
In a blender, put strained nettles (save the water), sautéd onions and garlic, creamy stuff, and mushrooms and nuts (optional). Add 1 tsp. salt and pepper to taste.
Blend until it is a smooth, delicious sauce. If needed, you can add a little of the cooking water from the nettles to make it blend more easily. (Note: be careful that the blender does not explode hot liquid on you when you turn it on).
Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Serve it over pasta or rice or other grain.

Variations:

Add mushrooms and/or nuts to make an even more buttery rich and earthier sauce.
Add more water to make a creamy nettle soup.

— from Carolyn Cooley
San Francisco, CA

Also in this issue:

Saying Goodbye

We regret to announce that this will be the final issue of Sustainable Eating.

We wish to thank everyone who contributed content to SE, who helped spread the word about our work, and who gave us much appreciated encouragement and support over the past three years.

We also wish to thank everyone who visited our site to read the stories and view the artwork that was posted here.

Thank you all for being a part of Sustainable Eating.

— SE

Food News & Events

Take Action!

Support a Better Farm Bill

In the coming months, Congress will seal the next farm bill, legislation so broad in scope that it touches each of us in many ways. When you hear "farm bill," think beyond the farm. Think food bill, renewable energy bill, nutrition bill, environmental stewardship bill, anti-hunger bill.

Basic Organic Vegetable Gardening

Saturday, June 16 (Alameda County, CA)

Taught by Herman Yee, an avid gardener who has worked on many community garden projects in the East Bay, this workshop will cover the basics of starting a garden, including selecting and starting your seeds, building good soil, watering plants, and managing bugs and blights. Come learn to start growing foods and culinary herbs for your kitchen!

The Basic Organic Gardening class will be held on Saturday, June 16, from 10am to 1pm in Alameda county. For specific location and to register, please call 510-548-2220 x233.

— Event sponsored by the Alameda Countywide Clean Water Program

Global Effort to Save Endangered Crops Gets $37.5 Million Infusion

Scattered around the world in jars, fields, freezers and vaults are tens of thousands of endangered varieties of wheat, yams and 19 other crops that underpin the global food supply.

Now, the first international effort to restore, organize and safeguard scattered seed banks holding some 165,000 varieties of the 21 crop plants will receive a $37.5 million infusion, people involved in the project said yesterday: a $30 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and $7.5 million from Norway.

Organic Fruits and Vegetables Work Harder for their Nutrients

Produce Has Been Losing Vitamins and Minerals Over the Past Half-Century

The fruits and vegetables that our parents ate when they were growing up were more nutritious than the ones we'll serve our children tonight. On average, the produce we grow in the United States has lower levels of several vitamins and minerals today than it did 50 to 60 years ago.

By growing or buying and eating organic produce, however, we can make up much of the difference. Organically grown fruits and vegetables are proving to have higher levels of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals than their conventionally grown counterparts.