annecros

The first fresh water prawn farm in the continental United States was located in Dade County and was established in 1969. I of course, have no idea where the prawns on the menu are sourced, but do know that the prawns play an important part in keeping the talapia and catfish tanks clean, and the industry sustainable. I'm pretty sure the Key Limes and Mangoes would come from around here, as well. Evidently Chef doesn't know where the prawns come from either: Click for article "Local, Seasonal, Wishful" I think it is unreasonable to expect any restaurant to be able to source every menu item locally - but it is important that they try. And, after all: Thanks for acknowledging Florida's Animal Industry. Beef, in particular, has a 500 year old history in Florida. The ability to calve year around gives Florida a nice niche.

Now, now, I am certain that you, and many other's who know and love Florida, are aware of the various climates, crops, microclimates, diversity, four USDA growing zones, a gulf and an ocean coast, that Florida has the benefit of being able to call "local." Check out this report: Click Here for Overview of Florida Agriculture Vegetables and Melons combined comprise almost a quarter of Florida's Agricultural output. The number is $1,446,654,000. To put it in perspective, citrus (excluded from the above number and a category to itself) rings up only $1,242,029,000. In that Vegetable and Melons category, there is an interesting statistic: Then, if one would just look at citrus as an isolated crop, although Florida produces 67% of US citrus production, it is only 18% of Florida's production. I don't think I need discuss the 2004 Hurricane Season, except to mention the names Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. Pompano is a regular menu item. Then there is this topic, citing this quote: I think it is an excellent reason to boast - just in my opinion. On a related note, Cattle and Calves make up 6.5& of Florida's Agridollar, Milk is 6%, Poultry and Eggs 5%. After looking at the facts, it would be difficult to convince me that Florida only produces a couple of fish and tomatoes, and those isolated items are the only thing that Michael's Genuine can boast as "local." Indeed, there are probably several menu items on quite a few menus on at least the Eastern Seaboard, that Florida can claim as homegrown.

We've had the Roasted Chicken - only took about 45 minutes, we enjoyed our cocktails and nibblers - and the prices (as of about 6 weeks ago, height of tourist season) were as reasonable as always. We enjoyed it very much, and appreciated that it was prepared to order. Deviled Eggs and Crispy Hominy - yum. I think Michael Schwartz has done a good job at achieving his stated goal: I was concerned that things would change after all the exposure he got from last season's "Top Chef" - but have been pleased to find it consistent with visits I made before Top Chef. I particularly am pleased to see him feature Florida food stuffs, and do so very successfully. He is very active, and very supportive of Florida Agriculture and Aquaculture, in the buy local and organic philosophy. We like the outdoor dining room. Is it fine dining? No, its not supposed to be - it is supposed to be homemade and delicious. Bistro dining. An hour is a reasonable time frame for a roast chicken at home, and Mom wouldn't "cheat" by pre cooking. I'm sure Michael Schwartz has enough expertise in the kitchen to know what is advisable for prep concerns. Hard to argue with success.

Hubby is spending two weeks in Omaha on business late next month, and thought I would check and see what is interesting. He will be staying downtown, with car, somewhere in the vicinity of Pacific? He will be working like 12 hours a day facilitating some training classes that start around noonish - so will not have much time for sit down Dinners (except maybe on the weekend). He is really looking for big breakfast, and quick lunches and dinners, probably carryout pretty often. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

But, the BMI alone is used to to diagnose and medicate patients in private practice in the United States of America. That is the way the health system is structured. The United States Military begs to differ. I've met a SEAL or two, and a couple of pilots, and there was that one guy at the O-Club. One or two had a BMI of over 30, in my humble opinion. http://usmilitary.about.com/od/theorderlyroom/a/bodyfat.htm

On the subject of diets, the amazing thing about Atkin's and South Beach is that they are so very effective and at the same time so counter intuitive. They run at an odd angle to the "common knowledge" that is out there. I've seen extremely obese family members take off the weight (one was so obese that he did Atkins to shed the pounds required to make him a candidate for gastric bypass surgery), but they bother me because a person's natural metabolism is being manipulated. For me, it feels too radical for a moderately overweight person to put themselves into ketosis just to shed a few pounds. But, for a morbidly obese person, it might make sense to go to extremes. If we understood more about the human body (and the amazing thing it is) perhaps we could find a more middle of the road position that everyone can feel comfortable with following. Right now we just don't know. It's that "Infected with Life" thing - as surely as a person is born, they are going to die. All that's left is to determine how you are going to live. And I can see, and have experienced personally, the impact of a health scare and a serious diagnosis. It is a "life changing" event - and sometimes excesses in one direction are resolved with excesses in another direction. Done now, going to pop some corn and keep my mouth shut!

What amazes me, is that the whole "Low Fat" movement ignores the fact that essential fatty acids make the brain function: Essential Fatty Acids and the Brain Sheesh, your heart won't beat if the brain isn't firing. Speaking of which, I have to give Busboy a big thumbs up for noting that the individual whose eyes are now open to the health hazards of obesity, weighed in at 400 pounds. The doctor would have been silly not to run blood glucose. That doesn't happen overnight, and it had to have been noticeable to himself, his family and friends. 400 pounds is definitely out of the range of overweight, and falls into the range of obese. You can't help but notice when you are walking, talking, even when you are cooking. But, as docsconz pointed out, people are able to wrap themselves in denial over any number of things. Not blaming the victim, and wish him every success in his weight loss efforts. I also hope that he is able to enjoy good food every day. The gender thing, well I need to think about that...great observation though.

Wouldn't Perlow be an example of an undiagnosed case of diabetes? Dude thinks he's healthy, starts feeling crummy, talks to a doctor who says "Surprise, your 400 pound self has diabetes!". How many people like that are walking around under the impression that everything is fine? ← But, he was diagnosed and is receiving treatment, because he felt crappy and went to the doctor. I don't think anyone who has posted in this topic has argued that Diabetes is a myth, or that ignoring the health risks associated with obesity is wise. I can't find it, anyway. It has been argued that the definition of obesity, and the complexities of the human body, make it difficult to make a blanket statement concerning the diet of every person in the human race.

Makes sense. The term should be misdiagnosed, if any term is necessary. Now over treatment or over medication can very well apply in this situation. Type 2 Diabetes, that I think about 80% or so of the diagnosed Diabetics suffer from, can be controlled with diet and exercise. Although who is to say that the pancreas behaves differently in a person that is predisposed to being overweight? No symptoms, no problems, no doctor visit, no ER visit = no diagnosis.

Well, I have no idea where the accuracy of the diagnostic rate for diabetes falls, and would prefer to spend some time researching before I found myself on one side or another. I do know that the condition I have is grossly under diagnosed. However, I may be able to help you understand that blood tests do not a diagnosis make. There is almost always a clinical component to a diagnosis - that is the patient's symptoms are observed. I may be wrong, and I am sure that the fine professionals here will correct me if I am, but I don't think diabetes is one of those "silent killers" like high blood pressure. In order for a diagnosis to be definitive, I think it takes blood work and symptoms both to come to a probably conclusion. Doctor's are practicing, remember. So many things can skew those blood tests. Take it from somebody who gets a complete metabolic profile every quarter (along with a bunch of other ancillary tests), Some of the tests depend upon a patient being honest ("Are you fasting today?" "Yes" even though they ate a banana at 4AM), and the lab staff performing them perfectly every time. Just as an example, I had white blood cell counts for a period of about 2 months that would indicate either Leukemia or Septicemia - but had no symptoms. After some time and retesting, the counts found a normal range again, no explanation even from the hematologist. Conversly, my Scleroderma diagnosis was initially a clinical one, based upon symptoms, and I was "sero-negative" for two years before it popped up in my blood work. I had enough symptoms that I could be treated, and thank goodness. However, I would guess that most people would not want the treatment for diabetes based upon blood work alone, especially if the positive result is because the patient sucked on a Jolly Rancher on the way into the lab. Over medication now, that happens all the time. My food choices, I make them every day depending upon what I am in the mood to eat. I think many in the medical profession, as an occupational hazard, see only the extremes in patients. If you spend all day long seeing only the portion of the population that are so morbidly obese that their eating habits cause life threatening health issues, then yeah, it would be easy to come to a conclusion that food is an evil killer.

Ed Levine's snippet bothered me: I think the whole article almost treats food as the "enemy" - something that simply is not true. Food is not the enemy - age is the enemy. Metabolism changes, exercise is not as easy, on and on. My primary will not use the Fasting Glucose Tolerance Test because of it's inaccuracy and false positives. I don't know what she is basing that on, but she states it as fact. I have to pay more for the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test, and it is two hours of sitting around (which is why many practitioners use the Fasting Test instead) but I have so many other health issues we have to be absolutely sure that diabetes does not figure in to the mix because my malabsorption issues and GI scarring require that I eat nutritionally dense foods that are high in fat. My blood glucose does weird things from time to time, but as a side effect of other health issues, sort of like gestational diabetes, and at it's worst has only been a borderline problem. Type 2 diabetes, well yeah, lose weight and you don't have to worry about it. Don't ever get old, and you really don't have to worry about it. Or go on Atkins, eat meat three meals a day, lose weight, your cholesterol goes down, and your Type 2 diabetes goes away. Also, there's a bit of me that wonders if the day that I avoid the pork belly will the day I get hit by a choo-choo train. I pretty much eat the pork belly if I want it.

Oh, I don't know - can't any expression of love be perverted? I do agree that eating disorders, and there is a connection to gender here as well, are probably distorted food/love neuroses, but I think it may have more to do with body image than with being force fed by a compulsive food preparer. It's never bothered me that someone didn't want to eat something that I have prepared - although it bugged the life out of my mother. Probably because she thought of cooking as more of a necessary chore than I do. She was married at 15, had a houseful of kids up until she was in her late 50's, and put three cooked meals in front of her husband nearly every day. That was cooking as a necessity for survival - she came out of the (barely) post depression South, was a young homemaker when WWII rationing was going on, and went to bed hungry as a child more than once, as did many of her contemporaries. Waste not, want not. I, on the other hand, being born at the end of the baby boom, never went to bed hungry. I practiced the three bite rule with my children (you don't have to eat it all, but you do have to eat at least three bites), and there was always something in the house to eat as an alternative. I also have wasted an awful lot of food over the years, and have had to train myself in some of the more frugal practices of my parents. It does bug me, however, when I don't prepare something well. I get a little defensive, I admit it. One of those partners that do dishes would be great.

Go Blais! Come on guys, the plastic wrap was GLAD wrap. Besides, it works. Every housewife should use Glad wrap to contain the smoky goodness of her little pocket smoker. Nothing tacky about that at all. I'm worried about Blais being an early favorite. Almost the kiss of death. I was rooting for Tre last season.

Conversely, it has enhanced my husband's status at work. He writes curriculum for computer based training for a large corp, and during the round tables it's a big deal when he brings in my homemade jerky. Of course, everyone assumes it is his homemade jerky! I have found out during social gatherings that he does not always correct them, either. However, salsa or baked goods, his wife (me, a work from home sort) gets credit. When the women he works with meet me on social occasions, a couple have remarked that I "wasn't what they expected" and I got the impression they were anticipating a June Cleaver sort after I asked them what they expected. I didn't show up in an apron, and could engage in discussion that did not revolve around homemaking. sygyzy remarked that he/she was surprised women are a bit offended by the article - and I think that the peer pressure professional women place on one another may have a lot to do with it.

Mason jars, sharpie on the lid for a label. Do the same for barley. I live in high humidity, and they actually seem to stay drier in the Mason type jars - not to mention keeping the pests either out or contained. Stackable as well, and reusable. I have an aversion to plastic. Can't drink out of it, hate to store in it. You can pick them up this time of year at places like "Big Lots" for next to nothing.

Oh gosh, any sort of stew, bean soup, I've even tossed it into some braises. Pork loves it, but it works with beef as well. Then of course, Chicken. Chicken Pot Pie to be exact. It thickens, but adds sort of an astringent component, that can actually lighten and brighten things a bit. Just remember to use it as a finish.

Well, actually I do not expect an eye opening cooking program from the Food Network. That would certainly raise the bar. It is interesting the comparison of the Neely's to Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry who received the NAACP Image Award and was inducted in the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was a personal friend of Mohamed Ali. Not to mention his career with the Chicago Defender. I think the Neely's have a way to go to live up to the accomplishments of Lincoln Perry. The language I use at home, in my kitchen, in the bosom of my family would probably be considered low class by some individuals. Yeah, I roll my eyes from time to time. Sure, it's the Network, but (as in the case of Paula Deen and all the bling she is sporting around these days) it is hard to argue with success. But, I suppose perception is reality. Now, I have to watch. Thought I was going to avoid the Food Network for a while...

Well, I guess I am going to come in from left field here. I have only seen the previews, not the entire show. Maybe I will feel entirely differently after viewing the show, and will readily admit it. Isn't cooking sensual? Isn't this a married couple with a healthy and playful interaction in the kitchen? That was my interpretation after seeing the previews, but I suppose I should watch the show. I must admit, when I saw the "rub me and roll me over" thing, that it occurred to me that it is something I would say to my husband in the kitchen if I were watching him rub a slab of ribs. I smiled, it resonated with me. Honestly. And he would grin and come back with something equally as lascivious in that situation. We flirt - outrageously. Even in front of the kids, now that they are adults and are involved in relationships of their own. Disclosure: I am southern and white, happily married. Yeah, hubby and I are pretty bawdy sometimes. We're married, we are supposed to be having sex. It is my understanding that engaging in and enjoying sex is vital to a healthy relationship. I know it has gotten us over several hurdles. Now, would I engage on this behavior on FTV? Nah - my grandkids would run across it on YouTube sooner or later. Is it exaggerated? Probably. Is it wrong for a warm, loving, married couple to make the kitchen and extension of the bedroom? I've seen it happen, and not just in my relationships. I saw no racial overtones at all - but maybe I am naive. It's possible. I just like seeing a happy and well adjusted couple, with a woman being able to express her needs without shame or apology. I hope I am not let down when I see it!

I have it on pretty good authority (a friend of mine from Georgia) that Paula Deen does not exaggerate the accent. My understanding is that Paula is from deep rural Georgia and that's just the way she talks. -Rich ← Well, Paula and I share the same "home" town - Albany, Georgia. She was actually born in the Atlanta area, but spent most of her married life in Albany, and I think her kids were born there - probably in the same hospital where I made my grand entrance into the world. The accent is thick there. We just spoke to some friends who still live there, and were reminded, over the weekend. But, she is laying it on thicker than you would normally expect to hear. She uses words (YAWWWLLLL) with gratuitous repetition that exaggerate her accent. This isn't unusual behavior in the area. When a Southern Lady is at a church supper socializing with other Ladies (or Gentlemen), or talking to a small child, it is pretty typical to simper. Those ladies are as mean as snakes when you cross them, though. I'm willing to bet she wasn't always sweet as sunshine when she was in the kitchen at the "Lady and Sons" when it first started out. Think of Jimmy and Roslyn Carter's accent. That is a much more typical Southwest Georgia accent, in normal speaking tone, and among adults. So yeah, she is laying it on as thick as butter on a biscuit. She knows she doing it, and its her shtick. Yeah, it gets on my nerves, but mostly because she is addressing the audience in a manner that one would customarily address a three year old when you ask them if they want a cookie. If you watch her earlier shows, you can more easily pick up on the "then and now" nature of her accent. She just wasn't pushing it so hard then. And no, what she is cooking is not an example of the rural South Georgia diet. Far from it. Maybe an example of semi-rural South Georgia covered dish church food in the 70's and 80's, but that sort of thing was happening all over the country at the time. And the "Bag Lady" era food was as far from rural Southern and she could get it. (Notice she is listed as a "Notable Albanian" on the wiki page linked above. Along with Ray Charles, Harry James, Hamilton Jordon, Ray Knight - ugh)

Perhaps not all, but can try. Jowl bacon is made from the cheek of the pig. Cream gravy is a roux (flour and fat heated up enough to cook the flour, in this case only slightly so it does not brown) with the addition of milk or cream as the liquid, salt and pepper to taste. Sausage gravy is the same thing, utilizing the fat rendered from fresh pork sausage and usually onion, Worcestershire sauce and a dash of hot sauce, salt and pepper to taste. The sausage goes back into the finished gravy. Biscuits are a short bread, similar in ingredients to basic scones, with a slightly different technique. "Chicken Fried" applies to any protein that is handled in the same manner as fried chicken, that is an egg wash and flour, then shallow or deep fried in fat. Traditionally and usually anything that is "Chicken Fried" is smothered in cream gravy. Biscuits can be smothered in either cream or sausage gravy, as you like. Did I miss any?

I am glad to read this - the poor potato got a bit of a shaft in the heirloom vegetable craze. Outside of Yokon Gold and some reds and some fingerlings, there didn't seem to be much interest. I think the seed savers and traders out there had a harder time trading the seed potatoes. After all, tomato, pepper, bean and melon seeds are easy to mail. Mailing a growout of seed potatoes is an exponentially larger operation. They take and awful lot of garden space as well. The genetic diversity in the Latin American varieties is certainly worth preserving. ETA: I knew Tom Wagner was working with Potatoes at the moment (and probably has for a number of years). He's the guy that cultivated the Green Zebra and Banana Legs Tomato varieties. Here is a PDF of some of the potatoes he has in his seed bank: Click Here As you can see on page 4 of 5, even his Latin American varieties are limited. Amazing the Swedish varieties that he has collected. The working title of his next book is "Potatoes: Beyond Luther Burbank" I think.

Hubby and I, who are alike as two peas in a pod, laughed like hyenas. I remained cool as a cucumber, but he became as white as a sheet upon hearing of your sausage malfunction. Sharp as a tack, Chris. Sharp as a tack.

I've made it maybe five or six times since my epiphany a year ago - usually as Sunday Brunch for relatives who come to visit from Georgia and tease me that I am turning into a Yankee. A sliced tomato is an ideal side, and I usually serve it with such. Unless I am pairing it with a Bloody Mary. It is very simple to prepare. I've taken to adding a pinch of MSG to the flour, because, what the heck? Jowl bacon is the way to go.

One of the things I did find particularly attractive about hubby when we first started dating was that he was a single parent successfully raising two teenage daughters (one of which he adopted) and had full custody. I think I find the Citibank ad more disturbing than the article. The article is more of an observational piece, but the writer does express some personal angst and almost a buy-in of the concept. I think she's wrong, but I have anecdotal evidence in my own family that supports her view. Oldest daughter is a Certified Nurse Practitioner, has one of the nicest and well equipped kitchens I have had the pleasure of cooking in - but we had to go out and buy a cookie sheet (along with all the food) when she decided she wanted to cook breakfast for myself and my husband. Number two daughter, coincidentally (or maybe not) a big Sex in the City fan, just adores Sandra Lee. I bought her a cupcake stand for Christmas. She's married to a saucier who comes to my house to eat well. Son can cook anything he wants. Baby girl is nearly as good, but as a student lacks time and money, but does manage to keep herself and roommates nourished. I ran across another article this morning, Foodie son whips up a delicious surprise and noted this: It does seem to have a more generational feel. Maybe GenX just can't cook?

A relevant quote from the article: The fact that this is a new city ordinance makes the previous argument about whether the money is actually being spent on health care a moot point: they do, in fact, have to "open their books" at least to the city. No trust necessary. ← I'm not sure it moots any point that I have so far made - because it just shifts the restaurant owner into the position of lobbyist. Why is complying with the law of the land a matter that should be printed on the menu? It is still overhead, and still what they have to do if they want to do business in this geographical region. They are angry because they had to do the right thing, and are making sure that the customers know that they are doing the right thing (although they were forced to do it by law), and are actually advertising that they are doing the right thing and want you to feel good that they are complying with the law. But you have to pay. No duh, but seriously, I wouldn't expect an announcement on the menu that the owners are complying with work comp laws. I'll say it again. Silly, and I will at this point add manipulative. Ultimately, the consumer pays, and this is just a way of turning the tables to make yourself look like the good guy.