I came across this recipe back in 2007, attached to an article/restaurant review in the NY Times. In that article, Melissa Clark echoed my own skepticism about a raw kale dish; I was no stranger to the winter green staple, but thought of it as coming out of a sauté pan with garlic and butter and balsamic vinegar, or in a soup or baking dish combined with other tasty things, like comfy root vegetables and white beans. I had not thought of it as a main ingredient and certainly not edible in its raw state. When I thought of chewing raw kale it was of a long, laborious process, ending probably in a sore jaw and not much in the way of satisfaction.
But, Melissa’s description of the simple yet intensely satisfying combination of earthy flavors and textures – and assurance that the Tuscan (or Lacinato) kale was indeed tender enough to be satisfyingly eaten raw, especially when sliced into thin ribbons – enticed me to try it.
I was totally won over. I may not have actually stood at the counter and eaten the entire bowlful the first time I made it, but pretty close. It was such a delightful surprise – a perfectly balanced combination of crunch from the kale and bread crumbs, with the garlic, salty cheese and sharp citrus of the dressing. The next time I made it I added more garlic and had more cheese and toasted bread crumbs available, as I found myself always wanting just a bit more of that bite.
I have introduced it to many a friend – taking it to potluck dinner parties or forcing co-workers to try a bite at lunch – and even the most doubtful have liked what they tasted. My friend Sandra ate it nearly every day during one winter, her kale planted so thickly that it was available outside her back door nearly until spring. She claimed addiction. She served it back to me sometimes with her own experimental additions; toasted pine nuts and bits of homemade sundried tomatoes, even sometimes thin ribbons of red lettuce when nearing the end of her kale supply. It’s a great dish that way, amenable to variation depending on mood or palate, or what happens to be in the pantry. Read More »
From February 15 through March 15, 2010, the Blog For Food Campaign, a coordinated effort of participating Oregon bloggers, seeks to help Oregon Food Bank (OFB) raise funds to address the rising (and alarming) levels of hunger and food insecurity in the state.
Sadly, Oregon has joined the ranks of four other states (Mississippi, Maine, Oklahoma and Missouri) with the highest percentage of hunger (very low food security) in the nation. The latest data released from the USDA shows that between January 2006 and December 2008, almost 7% of Oregon households faced periods of time when they went hungry without being able to purchase food. This data doesn’t reflect the most recent period from 2009 to the present, where the economic downturn has increased sharply. According to the OFB website, the USDA data indicates: “nationally, 49-million Americans, including nearly 17-million children, lived in households that were food insecure in 2008 – up from 36.2 million in 2007 and 33.2 million in 2000.”
It should be pointed out, in the compiling of this statistical data, the USDA attaches labels that describe the following ranges of food security:
Source: USDA Economic Research Service
Oregon Food Bank is the central support hub of a statewide network of more than 900 local partner agencies that serve all of Oregon, and Clark County in Washington. OFB and its state network now distributes record amounts of food to families reeling from the economic throes of one of the deepest recessions within living memory.
For those wishing to contribute money, please add this note “blog for food” in the section “In Honor of” on the Food Bank donation page (the second form page), so that the campaign totals may be accurately compiled.
[Editor's Note: This is part six of Mark Keating's ongoing history of the origins and evolution of organic agriculture; how the organic community and the USDA eventually came together to create the national organic standards; their subsequent implementation; and the fallout felt through to the present day.]
“Democracy is the worst form of government you can live with, until you’ve tried all the rest.”—Winston Churchill
How the Purity of Product Came to Triumph Over the Integrity of Process
The USDA rolled out its first proposal for national organic standards in late 1997 and within weeks the verdict was decisive: universal repudiation, to put it mildly. The Department typically received scores, maybe a few hundred public comments on its draft regulations. The torrent of comment on the organic standards poured in by the thousands per day and ultimately exceeded 275,000 with maybe 4 having anything complimentary to say. A realist by nature, USDA Secretary Dan Glickman found religion and promised to do right the next time around. Indeed, the Secretary was so sensitized by the backlash that he committed the USDA to issuing a second draft proposal for additional comment before finalizing the standards.
Reflecting his good faith, the Secretary appointed the widely respected Kathleen Merrigan as Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service to lead this initiative. When asked what made the concert promoter Bill Graham special, Grace Slick of the Jefferson Airplane commented that “He was one of them and he was one of us.” Merrigan (now the Deputy Secretary of Agriculture) earned similar standing; she was solidly connected in DC as a whip smart Hill staffer who gained the trust of the grassroots community while drafting the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) (PDF). The USDA also brought in Keith Jones, a savvy veteran of the Texas Department of Agriculture’s successful certification program to run the day to day operations of the National Organic Program (NOP). The Secretary made it clear that he wanted the job done and done right before he left office at the end of the Clinton Administration. Once he signaled support, the mid- and upper-level bureaucrats who had gone through the motions for five years on the first proposal became much better at returning phone calls and solving problems.
What did the organic community find so objectionable in the first proposal? Pretty much everything. The provisions for managing crops and livestock seemed paper-thin and lacked the rigor and complexity that people associated with the private and state certification programs. For example, livestock could receive 80% organic feed and still be certified when existing certification programs had raised the bar to a 100% requirement. Provisions for confining livestock were so vague that the public concluded that USDA couldn’t think outside the factory farm box. The crop standards featured an “order of preference” approach that allowed farmers to implement less desirable practices if preferable ones proved too difficult. Was USDA suggesting that organic meant settling for less than the best? The proposed standards also seemed riddled with deficiencies and loopholes that increased the risk of prohibited synthetic substances slipping into the system. Read More »
The thermal banking technology that Steven Schwen uses in his innovative greenhouse (see Sustainable Energy: Thermal Banking Greenhouse Design) applies not only to conservation of heat, but to cold storage and refrigeration. In this short companion video, Schwen discusses his plans for an ice house at his farm in Minnesota, and how this project is a logical extension of his energy conservation strategy. When completed, the ice house will provide cold storage and a comfortable place for packing his produce during warm summer months.
The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program’s mission is to advance—to the whole of American agriculture—innovations that improve profitability, stewardship and quality of life by investing in groundbreaking research and education. SARE is proud of its connections to farming communities across the country and encourages those who wish to learn more to visit SARE. SARE is funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA.
Part of the reason pesticides are widely used in agriculture comes down to the general preferences of the average American consumer. Farmer Don, a local Portland farmer who grows and sells a variety of fresh foods explains the fussiness some people exhibit toward fruits and vegetables—they won’t buy if something is blemished or has any insect holes. As he tries to explain, imperfection is a part of nature, and an insect boring into (say) an apple causes only a cosmetic harm. Using less pesticides reduces the risks of contamination to the surrounding environment, and also less exposure to farm workers, and ultimately to eaters.
I started “documenting” in 2001, not “making a documentary” exactly, because I really didn’t know what it was going to end up being. The New York Times had run a series of articles about the disappearance of small towns across the Midwest, about communities drying up and farmers forced off the land. I wanted to understand what was happening, and I wanted to hear it from the farmers themselves. More…
A Protest Sign In Iowa
What are the results and realities of the continued concentration of agricultural production, marketing, and retail? “What kind of a society are we going to leave for our children,” asks a farmer turned activist, “if we allow the continued consolidation—not only in agriculture—but in every aspect of the American economy where all of the wealth and power are being concentrated into the hands of a very few?”
Jan’s career in television and film production spans some 35 years. Over that time she has produced, directed, and written commercials, corporate programs, network pilots, and co-produced two feature films. Through her marketing and communications consulting company, JW Creative Solutions, Ltd., she works with a myriad of corporate clients to plan, develop, and execute communications, marketing, and corporate education programs. As We Sow was Jan’s first documentary, (and not the last) and she continues to document food and farm from her no-so-rural perch in Brooklyn, NY. For additional information about her film, or to purchase the DVD, she can be contacted at janweber(AT)aswesow.com and at her As We Sow website.
I came across this recipe back in 2007, attached to an article/restaurant review in the NY Times. In that article, Melissa Clark echoed my own skepticism about a raw kale dish; I was no stranger to the winter green staple, but thought of it as coming out of a sauté pan with garlic and butter and balsamic vinegar, or in a soup or baking dish combined with other tasty things, like comfy root vegetables and white beans. I had not thought of it as a main ingredient and certainly not edible in its raw state. When I thought of chewing raw kale it was of a long, laborious process, ending probably in a sore jaw and not much in the way of satisfaction.
