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Two ways of looking at chicken parmesan
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When most of us think of chicken parmesan, we picture something similar to the photo above. It's a simple and delicious dish: breaded chicken breasts, pasta, red sauce, with a sprinkling of zesty parmesan cheese.
But, as the bright young minds at Middlebury College in Vermont have recently learned, it's not as simple as most people think. Below is a screen capture of a Google Earth map that some students and faculty put together to show the complex route that chicken parmesan's ingredients take to go from farmers' fields to Middlebury students' forks. It should be noted that Middlebury is considered a leader in its efforts to move towards local sourcing for its cafeterias.
The point of the exercise (and - we'd say - the local foods movement in general) is not to say "no" to all foods that have traveled, but to become more aware of where our food comes from, who produced it, how it was produced, and the good local alternatives that exist. The more attention we give to these local options, the more of them there will be.
To learn more about Middlebury's food mapping work, please see: http://geography.middlebury.edu/applications/Food_Mapping/
Chicken parmesan photo credit: My Amii
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Make Yourself a Rain Garden
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By Charlie Nardozzi
Summertime is thunderstorm time across the country. All that water rushing
off roofs, driveways and walkways is loaded with...
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Kitchen gardens enjoy a comeback in Japan
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By Yaeko Abe, printed in the Asahi Shimbun, June 22, 2007
Across the world, backyard vegetable patches have traditionally been the preserve of bearded baby boomers.
In recent years, however, a rustic urge has been catching on in Japan. People of all ages and interests have been getting down on their hands and knees to cultivate the earth.
Some do it to put fresh, pesticide-free vegetables on the table. Others simply want the satisfaction of growing their own produce.
In response to booming demand, allotment gardens that make use of fallow farmland are cropping up everywhere. There are up to 3,000 across the nation--the little "kitchen garden," it seems, is making a comeback.
Urban vegetable gardens that cater to members only are being created in front of railway stations in major cities. Tokyoites are now able to grow vegetables in patches that straddle railway lines.
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Storing vegetables for the winter
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Here are some pointers on storing vegetables. If your conditions aren't just right, don't worry -- your veggies will still store, just not as long. Be sure to monitor your stored crops every 2-3 weeks and sort out ones that are turning.
Root veggies and tubers
Wash and lightly scrub and store in plastic pails or perforated poly bags, best at 31°-33°F / 0°C with high humidity. If you wash them first, they stain less in storage. In a plastic pail, monitor moisture weekly, regulating it with the lid position, more or less ajar. You don't want drying out, nor do you want root surfaces to have visible water droplets. And give the roots some space - don't pack them tightly in the pail - for example, arrange a loose layer of parallel carrots, then run the second row the other direction.
Onions, shallots, garlic
Keep these cold, like roots, but not so humid. Use onion bags or airy boxes.
Cabbage
Cold and humid like roots. You can also pile heads in the cold corner of the porch or detached garage and cover with hay, leaves, etc. If a cabbage head is a bit frozen, allow it to thaw slowly, like over a day or two, and the leaves will be undamaged.
Brussels sprouts
Remove leaves, store like cabbage. They will be good for a month or so. For longer keeping, retain the roots and stand up the plants in 5-gallon pails with some soil in the bottom. Sprinkle the soil to keep it moist.
Leeks
Lift leeks with a fork and trim leaves (optional) to 8" long. Pack them upright in 5 G (19 L) plastic pails with 2 in (5 cm) moist soil at the bottom. Humid and cold like roots. Add water as needed to keep soil moist.
Peppers
Medium-cold (40°-50°F / 5°-10°C) and humid.
Tomatoes
Cool (45°-65°F / 7°-18°C), ideally also humid (80%+).
Squash/pumpkin
Cool (50°-60°F / 10°-16°C), rather dry (50%RH).
Source: Johnny's Selected Seeds monthly e-newsletter
Photo: Newfoundland root cellar courtesy of Raphael Borja
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