by Dina Eliash Robinson

Ciao Dina,
Thanks so much for your interest in Aroma Cucina!. My wife, Jude, and I are honored to be part of the FreeRangeClub.com.
Jeff

My discovery of the bi-continental Aroma Cucina while surfing the Internet for food sites and recipe ideas, turned out to be a case of mistaken identity—specifically, my mistake in thinking it was a restaurant. Not.

It is, instead, the original and unusual creation of Chef, food blogger and cooking guru Judith Klinger—with videographer, devotee of fine food and wine connoisseur Jeff Albucher’s able assistance and encouragement—a unique enterprise that truly deserves the definition of ‘movable feast (i.e. festa). Because Aroma Cucina operates in both Italy and the U.S. Or more precisely, Judith (or Jude as she is called by those who know her) does her personal chef-ing, cooking classes, writing and party planning during the warm months in Montone, a walled medieval village in Umbria, and moves her food magic act to New York City for the cooler entertaining season. A rather smart way to grow an international following—and a loyal one at that.

“We take care of our planet for future generations,” Jude and Jeff write, “We plant our garden, eat in season and don’t take ourselves too seriously.”

Gazpacho Soup

Having apparently taken a liking to the FreeRangeClub food and nutrition philosophy, Jude and Jeff were kind enough to send us their mouthwatering Kitchen Garden Gazpacho recipe to share with you. Since we did not want to tamper with perfection, we are running a link to the blog post that the recipe was in, without any changes —only with a heads-up about the salt included in the ingredients. (Herbs and spices substitute for salt in our own recipes, mainly to protect the health of people on low-sodium food plans.)

Here is more information about Aroma Cucina and its creative team

Buon appetito!

FreeRangeClub Editor Corrects
“Is It Organic?” Author’s Perception of Flaws in Organic Food Industry

Our Catharine “The Kitchen Shrink” Kaufman recently received the following comment from Mischa Popoff in Osoyoos BC Canada , under the heading of “The inside story of the organic industry.”

Mr. Popoff’s e-mail was forwarded to me for reply—mostly because researching all things pertaining to organic foods, from production to consumption, has been my task since FRC first hit the Web. Far from claiming expertise—the topic is too vast and changeable—I merely admit to passionate interest in factual information that leads to safe foods and healthy nutrition.

We decided to share this exchange to answer some questions and perhaps come up with new ones. Hope you won’t hesitate to chime—opinions, conclusions, different information are all welcome. Post your comments, corrections, critiques, messages and contributions to this discussion directly on this site or e-mail them to me at FreeRangeClub.

E-mail from Mr. Mischa Popoff to The Kitchen Shrink:

Dear Catharine,

To listen to some media outlets you’d think the multi-billion-dollar organic industry was infallible. I’m trusting you’ll be a bit more objective.

As you may already know, I worked for five years in the United States and Canada as an organic inspector. I believe fervently in the principles of organic farming but maintain that we have to prove those principles instead of operating on the politicized, bureaucratic honor system that’s been the organic industry’s mainstay for the last decade.

Here are three recent stories, which I believe demonstrate where the organic industry has gone terribly wrong:

1. An “organic” spinach farm near San Diego who’s been infesting the surrounding community with deadly eye-gnats for a decade now.
2. An “organic” miller in Quebec, Canada, who lost his certification back in July but the Feds still won’t say why and are allowing this guy to sell his remaining inventory. This miller was certified by an Argentine-based certifier even though it was a Canadian-based business, and the Feds were okay with that.
3. Last but certainly not least, the story of 44 deaths and over 3,700 illnesses caused by an E. coli outbreak on an “organic” farm in Germany.

In all three cases, the complete lack of science in the organic industry is at the root of the problem. And yet, the most influential people in the organic industry are unwilling to allow organic crops and livestock to be tested to ensure they’re actually purer, more nutritious and safe, as claimed in multi-million-dollar advertising campaigns.

If this strikes you as odd, please drop me a line. I’m here to help. My critically acclaimed work on the organic industry should be a part of your next story on organic food production.

Mischa Popoff
Author of Is it Organic?The inside story of the organic industry
Some people won’t like this book, but you will.
Osoyoos BC Canada

FRC Editor in Chief Dina Eliash Robinson replies:

Dear Mischa Popoff,

Thank you for contributing your remarks to the growing store of information and opinions about organic farming and the role of organic foods in nutrition and health. Since I do most of the research on organics, our FreeRangeClub columnist and blog partner, Catharine Kaufman–a.k.a. The Kitchen Shrink (who, by the way, is a Canadian-American)—asked me to reply to your (above) comments and questions.

While human imperfections are sometimes reflected in the mistakes we make in the enterprises we undertake, it is important to get all the facts before we condemn or criticize. As someone who claims a first-hand knowledge of the organic food industry, you must be are aware that on the whole, its record has been overwhelmingly positive.

Answer to your Point #1. I am well aware of the eye-gnat infestation that had occurred some time ago at a San Diego-area organic farm. It was the natural consequence of the farm’s chemical-free environment–i.e. bugs live and multiply more vigorously in the absence of pesticides, unless their populations are kept in check by other means. Which that farm eventually did quite successfully when it responded to the problem by planting a barrier of bushes and trees around its fields, which protected nearby communities from the natural manure odors that may have attracted the gnats, by increasing the use of benign, pest-eating insects that helped reduce their population and other steps. There is no disputing that the use of compost and animal manure in organic agriculture can be smelly and attractive to unpleasant bugs. The alternative, however–i.e. chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, etc.–are toxic to consumers and the environment. Happily, this organic farm was able to mitigate the problem by means which the surrounding communities have found to be acceptable tradeoffs.

Answer to your Point #2. I am not familiar with the organic miller in Quebec, but it sounds like a case of cross-contamination, which sometimes occurs when equipment reserved for organic products—in this case grains—is used by mistake in the milling of non-organic grains. Since the latter are usually loaded with chemicals or genetically engineered–both of which are toxic–such a mistake can result in the mill’s de-certification. I only hope that by showing leniency to avoid serious economic damage to the miller, if or when they allowed him to sell his remaining inventory, the Feds acted in a humane way–although I do hope they ordered the miller to mark the contaminated grains clearly as ‘Conventional,’ to make sure no one mistakes them for ‘Organic.’

That the Canadian miller was certified by an Argentine-based certifier is a common practice these days and due to the enormous amounts and varieties of foods being traded among countries around the globe. How else would U.S. consumers be pampered with year-round offerings of out-of-season produce (some of it marked ‘organic’) imported from Chile, Mexico, China, etc.? While foreign organic certification is legal and prevalent, we at FreeRangeClub recommend buying and eating in-season, locally grown and certified organic foods whenever they are available. (The ‘in-season’ applies, of course, to plant food, but the ‘locally produced organic’ also extends to livestock.)

Answer to your Point #3. Organic farms all over the world have problems with e-coli, listeria and other harmful bacteria and viruses that cause outbreaks and even deaths when a contaminated cow or other livestock strays into the fields, or when inadvertently contaminated irrigation water or the wind carries the germs and deposits them on the soil or produce. It is impossible to prevent such things in all cases–as the death toll caused recently by the Colorado-grown organic cantaloupes shows. If anything, the situation is worse in the meat and poultry industry, in which the recall of huge amounts of contaminated lots are quite frequent. (We regularly post the FDA’s recall alerts in our “Food Safety” section.)

(Following the FreeRangeClub tips on proper kitchen hygiene and cooking practices can prevent most food-borne illnesses, but unfortunately, as far as we know, not even thorough washing of foods eaten raw–such as cantaloupes and salad greens–can protect consumers from harm. We are, however, researching and experimenting with recipes that might reduce the danger of food poisoning. Stay tuned.)

Now let me add a few points of my own:

A. It is a big mistake to accuse organic farming of being unscientific–on the contrary, no farmers are better informed about, and more responsive to the latest (well-tested and proven) scientific advances in safe and healthy soil treatment, planting systems and growing methods than those engaged in the difficult, back-breaking and often low-profit organic farming industry.

B. After exhaustive research, I have not been able to find any solid evidence to confirm your contention that “influential people (?) in the organic industry are unwilling to allow organic crops and livestock to be tested to ensure they’re actually purer, more nutritious and safe…” On the contrary, there are countless studies that have clearly shown the many advantages of organic products–including the absence of cancer-causing chemicals, higher nutritional levels (mostly due to healthier soil), etc.

C. Nor have I found any proof or even hint of “multi-million-dollar advertising campaigns.” Please compare the enormous amounts of advertising money spent by the conventionally produced food industry (including junk food) to the advertising funds (if any) spent by the organic food industry–you’ll find the latter minuscule by comparison… an elephant next to a gnat.

Please forgive my bluntness, but it seems to me that these charges were selected and taken out of context to support your exposé of the organic food industry (see above notation: “Author of Is it Organic? The inside story of the organic industry.”)

If the above project was not what motivated your comments, I do apologize for misunderstanding your intention. While it is important and helpful to point out mistakes or bad actors wherever they appear–including the organic food industry–taking statements out of context (i.e. not telling the whole story) and thus giving a false impression of what is really going on, are all in all, unhelpful to public health, the environment, human lifestyle and sustainable food production.

Hope the above information answers your questions–but please feel free to argue any point on which you have refuting evidence. Since FreeRangeClub was created and is dedicated to provide thoroughly researched and meticulously fact-checked information about optimum nutrition, healthy gourmet cooking and food safety, we not only welcome, but are grateful for any corrections and critiques that help us improve our content, so we can best serve our readers.

IMPORTANT REQUEST: Should you want to use or refer in any way or in any medium to my above reply that follows your e-mail to Catharine, we, the publishers of FreeRangeClub.Com request that the former be printed, copied or referred to in its entirety, in order to prevent any of the information from being quoted or taken out of context.

Thank you again for following us and commenting on our content.
Sincerely,
Dina Eliash Robinson, Editor in Chief FreeRangeClub.Com

By Dina Eliash Robinson

By early October, our craving for potato latkes grew so strong, we decided to pay an early visit to Hanukah by baking up a batch of this traditional comfort food. Yes, you read it right—baking… As in a healthier but still crispy, crunchy, oven-baked version of potato pancakes—in keeping with the FreeRangeClub ban of fried foods.

Driving to Whole Foods, I was debating whether to bake the latkes on parchment-covered baking sheets or in oiled Pyrex pans. As it turned out, I shouldn’t have bothered. The plan was derailed the moment Lew and I entered the store’s foodie Paradise of’ “Local—Organic” produce. For months now, Southern California’s Whole Foods Markets have been expanding these sections reserved for the best of local organic growers, making it evermore difficult to choose among the enormous variety of spectacular plant-foods. The supermarket chain is committed to supporting the organic farming communities of their stores’ surrounding regions.

As accustomed I am to the abundance of mouthwatering organic produce, nothing has prepared me for the picture-perfect jewels still being unloaded, farm-fresh, from their respective crates and boxes. Brilliant colors and ample shapes were asking to be painted, photographed, touched, tasted and I was getting drunk on the fragrances of just-picked basil, strawberry, apple, heirloom tomato, pepper, broccoli, squashes, kale and lemons.

The potatoes came in Yukon Gold, red, Russet brown and dark purple, with equally diverse sizes and shapes. To avoid the agony of choosing, I bought one of each species, convinced that blending them would enrich the flavor of my pancakes. Had I quit then, all would have been well. But who can resist a bit of sightseeing? And there it was, cheek-by-jowl with the spuds, a display of the most beautiful garnet yams I’ve ever seen in my life. Lew nodded his approval when I bagged only one—albeit rather large yam, plump and perfectly shaped. That’s when I lost it, thanks to a pile of red and golden beets, of which I picked just one of each with the last vestiges of my self-restraint.

From then on, I was on a tear… Blame it on my being cursed with the ability to taste the foods I see and sense what combinations of herbs, spices and other flavors work best together, just by imagining them, without being anywhere near a kitchen. And my taste buds were buzzing, directing me to grab two gorgeous parsnips, three carrots, a small turnip and rutabaga—adding more root veggies to spuds for richer latkes.  It all made sense until I added a fragrant fennel bulb, which I didn’t even try to justify.

“What are you planning to make out of all this?” my sweet Lew inquired. Although he loves my cooking, even his great trust in my culinary prowess has its limits. I rambled about adding roots to liven up the boring old potato latkes, inviting friends to dinner, freezing leftovers for future meals and when he wasn’t buying any of this, I blamed the Hanukah Spirits for my temporary insanity. “Are you kidding?” my husband laughed, “Letting you loose near fresh organic produce always ends up with you buying enough to feed a regiment.”

Not until I cleaned and shredded my haul did I realize that it would take more than 100 hours to bake all the hand-size latkes contained in that mountain of roots. Having let myself be carried away by food-greed now and then in the past, I had lots of practice harnessing my panic to culinary improvisation. And that’s how the idea of baking a humongous roots-latke-casserole (instead of individual latkes) was born.

As I was assembling and blending the ingredients that would transform the crunchy sweet and tangy shreds into my new creation—lovingly misnamed the Ginormous Baked Latke Loaf—I was ‘in the zone,’ my version of a semi-dazed state tinged with equal parts denial that anything could go wrong and hopeful anticipation. In this case, I hoped for a dish emerging from the oven topped with a rosy crust and as easily sliced as a meatloaf or cake.

The experiment was a huge success, attested to by the oooh’s and aaah’s of our assorted dinner guests and the praise lavished upon the frozen portions shared with our  food-savvy FRC blog partners, Catharine “The Kitchen Shrink” and graphic designer Dalia and their families.

Recipe Caveat: Quantities and Proportions—Since there are too many variants in the number and quantity of produce included—for example, in the type, number and size of root vegetables you choose, as well as the intensity of flavoring—the following recipe merely approximates the recommended measurements and ratio of ingredients.

Note: Recommend using all organic ingredients.

Gynormous Baked Latke Loaf

One parsnip—washed and peeled

One medium size carrot—washed and peeled

One small turnip—w & p

One small rutabaga—w & p

Three medium potatoes—washed, skin-on

One medium size garnet yam or sweet potato—washed, skin-on

One small or medium fennel bulb, with or without stalks—washed

Two stalks celery—optional—well washed

One large red onion—peeled

5-6 large cloves of garlic—peeled

Two whole eggs

One and 1/2  cup of egg whites

Five sprigs of fresh parsley—washed, leaves only—or two teaspoons of dry parsley

4-5 leaves of fresh basil—washed, leaves only—or two teaspoons of dry basil

1/2 teaspoon sweet red paprika

1/2 teaspoon Turmeric

1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)

1/4 teaspoon cumin powder

1/4 teaspoon dried sage

1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/2 cup buckwheat flour—or whole-wheat flour

1/4 –or more of organic, unsweetened almond milk

Two tablespoons lemon juice

One and 1/2  cup (more if needed) of olive oil—divided

1/4 teaspoon sea-salt—optional

Chop onion into pea-size pieces and sauté in ½ cup of olive oil on low heat until glassy.

Dice garlic and add to onions in the skillet for a minute or so. Remove skillet from burner and let it cool.

Shred in a food processor (or grate by hand) all the root vegetables, as well as the fennel and celery (if used). Place in large bowl.

Dice fresh parsley and basil (if fresh is used) and add to shredded roots.

Add eggs, egg whites, ½ cup olive oil, the buckwheat (or other) flour and all the spices.

Make sure the sautéed onion and garlic with the olive oil in the skillet are cooled and add to the mixture in the bowl.

Blend and mix well—with large spoons or hands. If not moist enough, add a little more olive oil, but don’t make the mixture soggy or too oily.

Turn on the oven to 400 degrees. Suggest you place a tray in the oven to catch any overflow juices from the casserole.

Coat an appropriately sized Pyrex baking dish with a generous amount of olive oil and cover the bottom of the dish with additional oil.’

Scoop the shredded veggie mixture into the baking dish and spread evenly from wall to wall, smoothing the top.

Beat a 1/2 cup of egg whites with the almond milk, 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the lemon juice, and drizzle evenly over the entire top of the casserole mixture. This liquid topping creates a rosy crust over the dish.

Place casserole into oven and bake for 30 minutes or until you see the juices bubbling at the bottom of the dish. (That’s why a glass Pyrex is best.) Turn oven temp down to 375 degrees and bake for another hour or until the vegetables are soft and the loaf holds well together for easy cutting.

Dish can be served hot or cold, as well as used in omelets.

Depending upon our national, regional or ethnic backgrounds, most of us grow up with very definite ideas about what is or isn’t a proper breakfast food. Well, get ready to move out of your morning comfort zone. Breakfast is following lunch and dinner into the Great Cultural Exchange of Cuisines, as our taste buds are being seduced by exotic concoctions.

In fact, these days it would be foolish to assume that the couple digging their chopsticks into a traditional Japanese breakfasts of rice, pickled vegetables, seafood and tea in a hotel dining room are actually from The Land of the Rising Sun. Neither should we be sure that the man assembling a curry platter is a native of India; or that the woman sampling tahini, humus and grape leaves has even a drop of Greek blood in her veins. I’ve learned this lesson in a posh Swedish hotel, while watching a group of Somali travelers share a smorgasbords of herring, smoked salmon, sardines and cheeses fit for a royal Scandinavian feast.

Actually, it’s a good thing that we are falling in love with — and are shamelessly poaching on — each other’s cuisine. Teaching our taste buds to be adventurous has certainly made our meals — and especially our breakfasts — a lot more fun. Who knows… This cross-cultural culinary cooperation might even lead to better international relations.

Speaking of which… The versatile Israeli Breakfast is a culinary United Nations which blend and complement in perfect harmony the flavors of European and Middle Eastern foods.

Fair disclosure: The Israeli smorgasbord—with all organic ingredients—has long been included  in our breakfast rotation and is a favorite of family and friends who have sampled it at our table. Its most exciting feature is adaptability to various tastes and preferences, from the easily bored gourmet who likes to improvise by combining unusual foods and flavors but has no use for measuring cups or spoons, to ‘locavores’ enamored of fresh, seasonal and locally grown foods.

The main component of an Israeli Breakfast—you may call it  ‘the anchor’—is a fresh (raw) vegetable SALAD which should have at least four ingredients but ideally more—tossed together in a bowl with or without dressing; or each item served separately in its own bowl, au nature, for individual assembling.

Essential Salad Veggies include carrots and radishes (sliced or shredded); bite-size-cut bell peppers (green, red, yellow, etc.) and tomatoes (heirloom, cherry, Roma, etc.); sliced mushrooms; chopped or ring-sliced onion (red is best); sliced cucumber (the long, curved and striped Armenian is delicious; other types should be young and slender); zucchinis (slender, firm, sliced or cubed) are good replacements to cucumbers; bite-size broccoli and/or cauliflower florets; celery (sliced or chopped); a leafy vegetable (bib, Romaine or crinkle lettuce, Belgian endive, spinach, Arugula, etc.) and various sprouts.

Protein items include hard-boiled eggs (plain, deviled or as egg salad with mayo, onion, herbs and spices); humus (Middle Eastern chickpea dish comes with various ingredients and flavors, is often served with a sesame sauce called tahini and garnished with olives or tomatoes); olives (black, Kalamata, green, stuffed, etc.); herring (with onions, in wine, cream or other sauce); sardines (best is wild caught, with skin and bones, in olive oil); lox, Nova or other smoked fish.

Breads and Pastry include bagels, English muffins, sliced fresh or toasted breads, pita, crackers, muffins, cakes or cookies.

Anything else your taste buds crave.

TAKE ONE: Toxic Pine Nuts From China

Consider yourself lucky if a nasty taste is all that you have suffered after eating pesto, salad or other foods containing pine nuts. At least you’re not alone. Thousands of consumers in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere have complained that everything they drank, ate or chewed after eating even the smallest amount of pine nuts, tasted bitter, metallic, ‘crushed medicine-flavored’ or indescribably disgusting—for days, weeks or months on end. Nor has an antidote or remedy been found for what came to be known by the unscientific name of “pine mouth.” Sufferers have even set up a Facebook group called “Damn You Pine Nuts.”

Although, as far as we know, the condition has not caused more severe or lasting harm to consumers than dysfunctional taste buds—a symptom that tends to go away on its own after a while—pine nuts have been banished from many restaurants and home kitchens for now. Cooks reluctant to give up the crunch have been substituting crushed walnuts, pistachios or other nuts and seeds in their pesto, salads and other recipes.

The mystery of this phenomenon was eventually solved. It seems that China—the world’s biggest producer of pine nuts—had once again chosen to mix a toxic ingredient into its shipments of a food product, rather than lose revenue when demand for it exceeded its supply capacity. (Not unlike it did some years ago, when Chinese dairy farmers watered down their milk and then boosted its protein content to required levels by spiking it with antifreeze chemicals. The tainted milk ended up poisoning and in some cases killing thousands of babies and pets in China, as well as in many of its trading partner countries—including the U.S.)

Greed seems also to have motivated this latest toxic food calamity. During the 2008-09 harvest season, some Chinese suppliers found themselves short of edible pine nuts (known as Pinus Koraiensis and Pinus Cedar). So they padded their shipments with quantities of inedible (i.e. toxic)—and, of course, cheaper—pine nuts, of a variety called Pinus Armandi. Incomprehensibly, they were fully aware that even a single toxic seed would contaminate an entire shipment of what otherwise would be an entirely safe delicacy.

The International Nut and Dried Fruit Association recently met with officials from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to ensure that the country’s pine nut producers would never again ship the toxic mixture. In spite of this—as well as China’s assurance that “since November 2009, measures have been put into place to ensure that such mixing no longer takes place”—we advise you to substitute other nuts or seeds in recipes calling for pine nuts. Just to be on the safe side. At least until the tainted batches have been discarded or (forgive our skepticism) used up.

If you do experience post-pine nut symptoms, contact the Food Standards Agency (FSA), http://conversation.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/complaints-help-solve-pine-mouth-mystery/ or e-mail toxicology@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk, for more information or to lodge a complaint. To vent or find fellow ‘pine nut victims,’ join Facebook’s  “Damn You Pine Nuts” group.

TAKE TWO: Promises, Promises…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is looking to share more information with its international counterparts, in an attempt to improve the safety of both domestic and imported food supplies.

In recent years, we have watched on TV a parade of FDA officials sitting in the hot seat at Congressional hearings, literally sweating their interrogations by often (at least seemingly) outraged lawmakers. The latter fumed and accused those responsible for the safety of American consumers of falling down on the job, while the FDA people admitted to fault, promised to do better and blamed depleted resources (i.e. inspectors), due to budget cuts. After both sides performed their parts and returned to their daily toil, toxic foods continued to be stocked on grocery store shelves.

Even those of us who are not from the “Show Me” state of Missouri might want to take a wait-and-see attitude until stepped-up FDA inspections show solid improvements in the safety and—dare we hope?—nutritional quality of our foods.

TAKE THREE: Time to Stand Up For Sustainable Agriculture

Now is the time to call or write and convince your Representatives and Senators to switch some funds from rich factory farm companies that don’t need Government subsidies, to organic farms that struggle to stay in business. Most of the latter are small, family owned and run enterprises that deserve long overdue Government support for their huge contributions to keeping their land, consumers and the environment healthy.

Find more information about the Government Farm Bill now being debated in Congress at http://www.ewg.org/farmsubsidies.

TAKE FOUR:  How to Pick a Tasty Watermelon

If your way of selecting a watermelon is to tap it while trying to look like you know what you’re doing, it’s probably because you’ve seen your mother or spouse go through this strange ritual. Here are a few tips that not only will help you pick a good one, but build a reputation as an expert watermelon picker:

• Shape matters. Pick a symmetrical watermelon. A lopsided shape is a sign that the growing field did not get its full pollination share from the bees—whose job is sometimes interrupted by weather or other obstacles. Because of this, the narrower or misshapen parts of such watermelons might taste less sweet or flavorful.

• Color matters. Look at the watermelon’s “belly”—the part that sat on the ground. It should be a shade of butter-yellow.  If it’s white, put it back.

• If you notice a black ring around the stem with a crystallized look, you’re holding a sweet watermelon, which had leaked a bit of its sugar when it was cut. Since sugar is carbon-based, it turns black when heated by the sun.

• Don’t know who came up with the idea to listen for a hollow sound when thumping a watermelon—it’s bogus. Instead, depending on the size of the watermelon and how strong your hand is, try to hold your selection in the palm of one hand and if you feel a vibration when you slap the watermelon several times with your other hand, you’ve got a solid specimen, filled with juicy flesh.

Enjoy.