pay your rent and eat it too... or something like that

We've all seen the signs, "$1 Value Meal." Great! What a bargain! Ok, so not really. Tom Philpott of Grist breaks it down for you here: "people are gaining weight and getting sick because unhealthy food is cheaper than healthy food -- thanks in large part to federal policies."

Sweetness and Power If the USDA's food pyramid recommends two to five cups of fruits and vegetables per day, its budget -- mandated by Congress through the Farm Bill -- encourages different behavior altogether. Will the real food pyramid please stand up?

Cheap corn, underwritten by the subsidy program, has changed the diet of every American. It has allowed a few corporations -- including Archer Daniels Midland, the world's largest grain processor -- to create a booming market for high-fructose corn syrup. HFCS now accounts for nearly half of the caloric sweeteners added to processed food, and is the sole caloric sweetener for mass-market soft drinks.

According to Drewnowski and his student Pablo Monsivais, cheap and abundant additives such as HFCS allow manufacturers to sweeten food liberally without adding much to their production costs. For people on a tight budget, these additives can also make cheap food the most efficient way to get calories.

Ok, I'll stop there, I don't want to bog you down with all this information. However, I do encourage you to read the article. Stop playing Solitaire and do something productive at work today.

Now, on the reason for this post... Pay Rent and Eat Too? This was an article published yesterday by, yet again, Tom Philpott. The sparknotes version: it discusses the rising food prices and who will pay the cost.

With food on the brain, here's your weekly dose (by the way, I know a good whale stew recipe if your interested):

How about Brunch? Do you need a drink to wash this down? I do.

Champagne Eye-Opener

2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1 cup papaya juice
2 ounces Grand Marnier liqueur
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 (750-ml) bottle good quality Brut sparkling wine or Champagne
8 strawberry halves, garnish

In a blender or food processor, puree the strawberries. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a tall pitcher, pressing with the back of a spoon to extract the juice. Add the papaya juice, Grand Marnier, and sugar, and stir to dissolve the sugar. Refrigerate until well chilled. Add the sparkling wine to the pitcher and stir gently to mix. Pour into tall Champagne glasses and garnish each glass with a strawberry half. Serve immediately.

to-do's and to-don'ts

It's almost time for yoga and most of the world is still asleep. Everything's so still, so quiet. With a fresh pot of coffee, I watch the sun rise. The air is cool, but it doesn't quite feel like February. As I sit here typing I realize this is the only time that I allow myself to slow down. My calendar is full of to-do's and I don't take the time to reflect.

I've been sick for a week now, and I've really only wanted to eat dry cereal. It's a default; back to a child-like tendency.


Cheerio® Bars



Prep Time:15 min
Start to Finish:45 min
Makes:15 bars

1/4 cup butter or margarine
4 cups miniature marshmallows or 1 bag (10 oz) regular marshmallows
6 cups Cheerios® cereal
1 cup salted peanuts (optional)

1. Spray 9-inch square pan with cooking spray; spray back of large spoon with cooking spray.
2. In 3-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add marshmallows; cook until melted, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Gently stir in cereals and peanuts.
3. Press in pan with back of sprayed spoon. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. For bars, cut into 3 rows by 5 rows; wrap individually in plastic wrap.


Tips from the kitchen
Variation:
Try Honey Nut Cheerios®, Frosted Cheerios® or Corn Chex® cereal.

For more Recipes check out cheerios.com.

Twinkies, Letterman, and the Food Network

If you're like me, college life doesn't exactly leave you much time to eat. Between work and class I really don't have time to do anything else but sleep. Anyway, with a my Criminology exam this morning I thought for Friday's menu we would have "brain food." By the way, don't let Twinkies do this to you:

The Twinkie Defense


and now for your Brain Food...

Granola

Sweet Popcorn Treats

for more snacks check out the Food Network's Website.

Speaking of the Food Network, everyone knows Martha Stewart's latest purchase but perhaps you didn't know the two of them were on Letterman's top 10. Click here to watch.

Have a great Friday!

Namasté

I love when my roommate leaves town. It's not that I don't like her, I just like to relax and have the house to myself. So, for Friday's menu, something easy:

Easy Mushroom Rice
The mushrooms are optional

INGREDIENTS
1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed French onion soup
1 (10.5 ounce) can beef broth
1 (4 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/4 cup butter

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Combine rice, onion soup, beef broth, mushrooms and butter in an 8x8 inch casserole dish.
Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 60 minutes.

Beginning, Middle, End

[Next on "Friday's Menu"...]

Start the month with a full menu and a full stomach...

I’m a Taurus. So now it’s out there. I don’t read horoscopes, don't need a Virgo and wouldn't be inclined to run from a Leo. But, I do believe in the general classifications and personality traits of the different signs. So, for this Friday, a "diet by sign:"

Atkins Crab Cakes

For added flavor, try these tender crab cakes with a sauce made from mayo spiced with a dash of Old Bay seasoning.

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 pound lump crab meat, picked over to remove any shells
1 cup fresh PageLink(Atkins Bread Crumbs), divided
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
2 lemons, cut into wedges for garnish

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook bell pepper and green onions until softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a large bowl. Add crab, 2 tablespoons breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, parsley and Old Bay. Mix with a fork until just combined, being careful not to over-mix. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

To assemble crab cakes: Sprinkle the inside of a 1/3 cup solid measuring cup with a thin layer of breadcrumbs. Fill measure with crab mixture and sprinkle a layer of breadcrumbs on top. Pack lightly using hands or another measuring cup. Invert crab cake onto a plastic-wrap lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining breadcrumbs and crab mixture to make 8 crab cakes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.

To cook: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer four crab cakes to skillet using a wide metal spatula. Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, until golden brown and crisp.
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Broiled Lobster with Garlic Oil

I love love love lobster! Hopefully you do too...

2 cloves finely chopped garlic
1/4 cup mild extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon melted butter
4 live lobsters (2 pounds each)
Coarse (kosher) salt

Set broiler rack at least 6 from the flame, and heat the broiler. Mix together garlic, olive oil and melted butter, and keep warm. Using a large, sharp chefs knife or a Chinese cleaver, hold the lobsters down firmly to a cutting board, and split them in half from head to end. Gently crack the claws by striking them with a meat mallet, small hammer or the spine of the knife. Scoop out the viscera behind the mouth parts, and remove the green roe sacs. Transfer, cut side up, to broiling pans. Brush the lobsters liberally with the butter mixture, and season with a small pinch of coarse salt. Broil four minutes; baste with butter mixture, then finish broiling 3 minutes more. Serve one lobster per person.
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Panna Cotta

The name of this dessert means "cooked cream" in Italian, and the recipe is simplicity itself. Vanilla bean imparts the most flavor, but extract is fine in a pinch. Just add 1 teaspoon along with the gelatin.

1 envelope unflavored gelatin
2 cups heavy cream
8 packets sugar substitute
1 vanilla bean

Lightly oil 6 6-ounce custard cups. In small bowl sprinkle gelatin over 3 tablespoons cold water, let sit 5 minutes until softened. Meanwhile, in medium saucepan combine heavy cream, 1/2 cup water, sugar substitute and scrapped out vanilla bean seeds. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat, add gelatin mixture; stir until melted. Pour mixture into prepared cups. Cover surface with plastic wrap to prevent skin from forming. Refrigerate at least 3 hours. Turn out onto serving plates.

ENJOY!

15

15 for 15

I've finally made a decision. 15 Green Chefs. Sounds like the start of a joke. Anyway, this is Grist's list of what they call, "15 eco-conscious chefs". I found it fitting. For more 15 "greens" click here.

So I was wondering, "what does it take to make this list?"

After reading this list, it seems to me, you must not only turn to locally grown produce, but begin to rethink consumption. It takes innovation. It requires our "fast food nation" to revolutionize, like Dan Barber, cooking as an expression of the surrounding countrysides.

For this Friday, a recipe from number 6. I'm a "psuedo-atkin-er" so I would substitute the puff pastry for a lower carb alternative.

My Old Man’s Superb Chicken

I recommend pairing with simple spinach.

For more recipes check his website.

yoga fridays

5:45 am - Wake Up Call
6:30 am - Yoga
somewhere around 7:30 am all my negative energy escapes.




It was probably somewhere between
the Natarajasana (King Dancer Pose)




and the Dhanurasana (Bow Pose).

With all this purged space, creativity flourished.

"If I am going to blog about the environment, why not fully embrace all that is 'green'?" And while Yoga may not precisely fit into this so-called "green" movement, it is to the body and mind, like technological advances are to environmental structures. It requires one to look beyond the shallow surfaces.

Maybe you're one of those people who are intimidated by the "flexibility" factor. Or maybe you're like my friend Lindsay, who thinks yoga isn't challenging enough. If you aren't sweating, you aren't working out. Whatever the case may be, I hope to shed some light on the secrets of yoga. Stay tuned.