Home made July 4th Condiments

Ketchup, mustard, relish, oh my!

Why support big AG and Monsanto this weekend when it's cheap and easy to make your own condiments (it's fairly quick too!).

This post will be updating during the weekend, to start I'll leave you with a recipe I got from Tasting Table, it's probably the most elaborate and fancy, everything will be down hill from here.

Mustard

In a small heavy bottomed saucepan combine 1/2 cup organic cane sugar, 1/3* cup dried mustard, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspsoon tumeric and 2 T flour, whisk to combine.

In a bowl add 1 cup of whole milk, 1 egg yolk and 1/2 cup cider vinegar.

Gradually add the milk mixture to the dry mustard mixture.

Over a medium high heat cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick and bubbling.

Cool thoroughly and store in refrigerator, in a resealable glass jars.

For a more interesting texture, lightly brown in a heavy skillet yellow mustard seeds. When they have slightly brown and are aromatic, grind them in a mortar and pestle or in a food processor and substitute for the mustard powder.

Also, I'm a fan of cider vinegar which I can get, in a home made version, from a local farmer at the green market, if you don't have any white wine vinegar or white vinegar will all do in a pinch.

Also, the last word on mustard is that if you simply grind some mustard seeds, add sugar and vinegar to taste you will get a fine mustard without the bother of cooking it. The difference is the texture and body of this more basic mustard is not the one we have become so used to.

Explore! Mustard seeds are cheap. I buy mine at Dual Spices on First Avenue.

Relish

Take some home made bread and butter pickles and pulse them a few times in the food processor, et voila!

UrbanFoodGuy's Easy Indian Spiced Ketchup

Combined in a bowl: 1 teaspoon cumin, 2 teaspoons ground coriander, 1 teaspoon garam masala (curry powder) 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/4 teaspoon clove, nutmeg, ginger, cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon aseafotida* powder, 2 T palm or brown sugar and 3 T cider vinegar. Stir to combine.

Heat 2 T canola oil in a heavy skillet over a meidum high heat to almost smoking then quickly add the cider/spice mixture, stirring constantly for about a minute, then stir in 1, 9 ounce jar/tin of tomato paste, incorporate and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. taste for seasoning adding more salt and pepper as you like.

* also called Hing available at most Indian Spice stores.

Tilth’s Heirloom Tomato Ketchup

Recipe adapted from Maria Hines

Makes about 11⁄2 quarts

5 pounds assorted heirloom tomatoes
1 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 cheesecloth sachet containing 1 cinnamon stick, 5 cloves, 4 bay leaves and
10 black peppercorns
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons turmeric
Splash of bourbon (optional)

1. Core the tomatoes, but leave the pulp and seeds intact. Place the tomatoes in a
stockpot. Add water until the tomatoes are just covered. Add the vinegar, kosher salt,
spice sachet and sugar. Stir to combine.

2. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer for
about 1 hour. Stir in the turmeric, then remove the pot from the heat.

3. Strain the tomatoes and reserve the liquid. Remove the sachet. Puree the tomatoes in
a food processor--in batches, if necessary--until smooth. If the consistency is too thick,
add a little of the reserved liquid to thin it out.

4. Taste for seasoning, adding a little salt and/or sugar as necessary to balance the flavor.
Stir in the bourbon, if using.
5. Place the ketchup in a large bowl and cover with cheesecloth. Set the bowl in a
warm place (about 75F to 80F) for about 12 hours; letting the ketchup sit for this
length of time helps develop the flavors.

Transfer the ketchup to airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 1 month, or divide into smaller portions and freeze.

Maker of Food, Inc. on Jon Stewart

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Robert Kenner
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Jason Jones in Iran

Nicholas Kristof on our Drinking Water

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Nicholas Kristof
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Jeff Goldblum

Hunger Can be a Positive Motivator

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Tip/Wag - Cynthia Davis & Fox News
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Jeff Goldblum

Traitor Joe's

This just in from Greenpeace apparently they are, rightfully so, trying to motivate Trader Joe's to be a little bit more sensitive in their seafood selection.

Watch the fish video and do the action it only takes a minute.

In The News

There is not enough time in the day to read every news article, magazine and book I want to!

So here is a summary of things I have managed to read that I think you might find interesting.

Harper's June 2009 has a very upsetting article about world hunger written by Fredrick Kaufman called: Let Them Eat Cash

This article isn't on line, but I encourage you to spend the 17 bucks and become a subscriber to Harper's it is one of the most consistently smart magazines out there, they can use your support.

The article discusses a new model for solving world hunger which has to do with cash not shipping food, it's all very corporate.

The most interesting thing to me about the article is how the chemical companies are so insidious that even in discussions of world hunger/food aid the article mentions pesticides several times as part of the big picture. As something necessary and an intrinsic part of what is needed to solve world hunger.

When will we wake up to the fact that monocultures and pesticides are part of the problem not the solution? How about teaching poor rural farmers in Uganda how to diversify their crops and grow organically, increasing nutrition and yield in addition to improving soil that may not have been very good to start with? Alas, none of the big wigs in the world food aid business are interested in this real solution cuz there's no money in it.

The New York Times had an interesting, if frustrating article today about Urban Homesteading in Oakland, CA. Can I just say all these people who live in places where they can have a house and live in a temperate climate (foraged grapefruit jam my ass) really makes me jealous! Oh darling I'm going to go forage some grapefruit from those trees in the alley.

The only thing you could forage in an alley in New York are empty zip lock bags that used to be filled with crack.

Grist ,as usual, has tons of depressing stuff to report. First, and closest to my heart, Canada is sucking at maintaining it's green image, my homeland came in last of all the G8 nations when it comes to making substantive legislation/regulation to tackle climate change. I blame it on the conservative pro business government, but that's hardly surprising.

Lastly and also from Grist comes this article on how Americans just seem to be getting fatter. Author Tom Laskawy makes the trenchant point without food system reform health care reform is going to be a challenge. Something to think about when you gorge yourself on high fructose genetically modified corn syrup thickened ketchup this July 4th.

Look above for some home made ketchup alternatives.

Beet & Pecan Salad with Cumin Lemon Vinaigrette

I'm on a recipe roll.

Beet & Pecan Salad with Cumin Lemon Vinaigrette

Take 3 pounds of beets, a mixture of golden and red, feel free to mix it up with as much variety as you like, leaving an inch of stalk attached to the bulb remove the beet greens
(keep the greens and saute or use in a stir fry).

Place the beets in a baking dish with an inch or so of water in the bottom, cover and cook for about 20 minutes.

Depending on the size of the beets, this may take more or less time, after 15 minutes check on them a tooth pick.

While the beets are cooking, lightly roast 2 T cumin seeds in a heavy skillet under a medium heat. When the seeds start to brown and become fragrant take them off the heat. With a mortar and pestle or in a food processor grind the seeds until they are broken up but not powder.

Chop 2 T chives, place in a bowl with 1/2 cup olive oil and 2 T lemon juice (or vinegar of your choose) , 1 T honey, season with salt and lots of black pepper.

Whisk to incorporate.

When cooked remove the beets from the oven and plunge into a bowl filled with ice water.

Skin and remove tops, chop into bite size pieces and add the vinaigrette.

Let sit for at least an hour or longer (overnight) so the flavors can get familiar with each other.

Just before serving add 3/4 cup toasted pecans, toss and serve.

I like to serve this as a marinated salad, but you could certainly place the beet mixture on a bed of greens, some wild arugula with a simple lemon/olive oil dressing would be lovely.
You can also crumble a mild feta over the beets as well (or any other cheese you fancy - try something local!)

Potato Salad with Variation

Potato salad is something we here in the West of been eating since we were kids. At my house it was red skinned potatoes, Miracle Whip, celery and maybe a few spring onions.

Oh and my mothers favorite spice: Paprika. "It gives it color," she would say. Funny how color was more important than taste.

As for Miracle Whip, it is all about the sugar and has very little resemblance to actual mayonnaise.

My reinvention of this recipe goes like this:

Potato Salad Classic Variation

Put 6-8 red skinned potatoes, cut into bit sized chunks with skins on in lightly salted cold water. Bring the water to a boil then reduce to simmer. Watch it like a hawk, in 3-5 minutes the potatoes should be cooked through yet still firm. You really don't want to over cook them or they will get all mushy when you add the other ingredients.

The minute they are cooked plunge into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process.

Drain in a colander, pat dry if need be and place in bowl.

While the potatoes are cooking place 2 or 3 cloves of smashed garlic in a blender, 1 whole egg, 1 T Dijon mustard, 1/4 t cayenne pepper and 1 1/2 - 2 T lemon juice or white wine vinegar. Turn the blender on and slowly add 1 cup of oil (I use a combination of organic canola and olive oil, 2/3 to 1/3, the more olive oil you use the stronger the olive oil flavor, I think in this instance you're better with a more neutral flavor with so much else going on).

As you slowly pour in the oil into the blender the mayonnaise will thicken. Once the oil has all been incorporated, taste and season with salt & pepper, if it's too thick add more lemon juice/vinegar.

Chop roughly 2 T Capers and 1 cup of Parsley add to the potatoes along with a 1/2 of the mayo, using your hands mix it all together.

Taste, add more salt and pepper, adjust any other seasoning to your liking and mix in more mayo if you want it to be more creamy.

This amount of dressing goes a long way so you could easily double the amount of potatoes and still have enough.

Refrigerate, covered for at least 2 hours so the seasonings can all get to know each other better.

Warm Roasted Potato Variation

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Cut into bite size pieces 6-8 yellow fleshed potatoes (like Yukon Gold).
Place in a bowl and toss with 1 or 2 T of olive oil, and several rosemary branches.

Place on a baking sheet and put in the oven. Cook for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes are brown and crispy.

Meanwhile in a food processor place 2-3 cloves of smashed garlic, 4 anchovy fillets, 2 T lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 T grain mustard, salt and black pepper to taste.

Pulse just until combined.

Pour dressing into a small bowl and add 2 T roughly chopped Rosemary or Thyme leaves (or a mixture of both) and mix together.

When the potatoes are cooked take them out of the oven and place immediately into a large bowl, add half the dressing and toss, taste and continue to add dressing and tasting until all the dressing is used or you are satisfied with the flavor. Season with salt and pepper, add more grain mustard and or anchovy paste if you like a stronger flavored salad.

Great served over purslane or watercress.

New Fun Facts

My Food Democracy Now newsletter just popped into my in box with an urgent plea to get Bill Marler to be appointed as Under Secretary to the USDA for food safety.

In addition to singing the praises of Mr. Marler the email also lists these facts:

Every year in the U.S. an estimated 76 million people get sick with food borne illnesses and 5,000 die. One person who knows this fact better than anybody else in the country is food safety lawyer Bill Marler.

For the sake of ease, here is the cut and paste letter they are asking to be sent to http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

Click on the link, fill out the form and paste in this letter:

Dear President Obama and Secretary Vilsack

In an age of record food safety outbreaks, it’s important that America has a reformer on the frontlines in the effort to rebuild our nation’s broken food safety system. In just the past few weeks, U.S. consumers have had to contend with E.coli O157:H7 found in Nestle Toll House cookie dough and a massive new E.coli outbreak in over 421,000 pounds of beef.

On June 24 the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a Class 1 recall for primal cuts of beef from the JBS Swift Beef Company in Greeley, Colorado. According to the FSIS website, this recall has a high health risk to American consumers and at a time when they should be relaxing and enjoying the festivities of our nation’s Independence Day, mothers and cooks will have to worry if their children or loved ones could get sick from eating tainted meat on the 4th of July.

It’s time to put this to an end.

I believe it’s important that America leads the way in food safety for the 21st century and support our nation’s leading food safety attorney, Bill Marler, being selected to lead the way as the next Under Secretary of the FSIS.

America can no longer afford to appease an industry that has made our food less safe and continues to put lives at risk because of convenience or profit. Please show us that you care about our nation’s consumers and children by nominating Bill Marler to become the next head of the FSIS.

Sincerely,

[Your name
city & state here]

Manhattan, My Kind of Town

Monday night at 11:15, hungry I head to Cafe Orlin, a long time local fav.

It's the Organic Chicken ($15) with greens beans and mashed potatoes slathered in an olive chicken jus that I'm hankering for, but I was not the only person that night who was - they had just sold the last one.

Instead I had the Haloumi Cheese Salad ($10), a generous portion of large, cubed, cucumber, tomatoes, chopped red onion, 2 large pieces of Haloumi cheese, lightly fried, several pita points coated in olive oil and sprinkled with zahtar.

Crunchy, chewy white bread and butter accompanied my hearty bowl of lentil and spinach soup.

By midnight I was delightfully sated and started to make my way home, strolling down St Marks Place, then south along Avenue A until I hit 6th street when I head further east to avenue B and southwards to Clinton.

Here it was after midnight on a Monday, Cafe Orlin was slowing down, but still serving, the patio bustling; restaurants all along my route were open and doing business, people were out strolling the streets, catching a last drink or a quick bite after a late night at the office. There was life happening on this sultry summer eve in lower Manhattan and it was past midnight on a Monday. It's exactly why I moved here, to the city that doesn't sleep, because as someone who grew up in a city that did nothing, but sleep, this was my idea of heaven.

It's so invigorating, for me at least, to live in a city where in theory 15 buck organic chicken is a walk away from my house at Midnight.

Feeling so alive doing something as mundane as walking home at the end of the night.

Mostly, it just reminded me again, as I've so often been reminded in the 23 years I've lived on this island of Manhattan, why I love it here.