Food, Inc., among other things

Where have I been, you may ask? Why haven't there been any new postings for awhile? Well, the last two weeks of my life have been jam packed with culinary adventure and flavor! I haven't been blogging about food because I have been seeing it grow, touching it, smelling it, cooking it, thinking about it, tasting it, and renewing my appreciation for that which sustains me. This month I am truly running the culinary gamut here, there, and everywhere. I'm not sure if it's because the summer is winding down and I feel, as I do every year, that I haven't done everything I wanted and my favorite season has flown by too fast. Maybe it's that late summer is just the best time to go on picnics, visit a farm, read an Anthony Bourdain book, or sit in an air-conditioned movie theater. Here is what I have been up to.

Last week, I visited Blue Hill Farm and Stone Barn Center near Tarrytown, NY. I've been picnic-ing in McCarren Park, seen Food, Inc. in the theater, and started reading "The Nasty Bits", by Anthony Bourdain. Yesterday, I spent the day on Martha's Vineyard and tonight on Cape Cod, I will be making ceviche with striped bass that Will, Tommy, Emily, and Jay have caught on their charter boat today. It's been a fun, delicious, food-centric time and I would love to share some highlights with all of you.

Last week, Sarah B. and I finally were coordinated enough to get out of Greenpoint together on a weeknight and go see Food Inc.--a movie by Robert Kenner and featuring Eric Schlosser (author of Fast Food Nation) and Michael Pollan (one of my favorite philosophy-driven food writers/food spiritualists).

Together, with a colorful assortment of others, they talk us through the raw truth of the food industry with clear, straightforward facts in a well put-together structure. Honestly, most of what they presented were things I already knew, but they explained things clearly and backed up the general facts with background stories. We meet factory farmers and sustainable farmers and are generally put off by the conventional food industry--because of both the products they are producing and what the corporations are doing to the farmers that produce for them .

What I was mostly impressed with is the tone of the movie. While food activists can be passionate about their cause to the point that skeptics often are turned off by assumed extremism, this documentary-style film tells us the truth in such a way that is not intimidating or too preachy, but does not sugar-coat the message. The message is loud and clear.

The consensus: LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT Go and see it asap, before it is out of the theater. It could change your life.

http://www.foodincmovie.com/

Stay tuned for the next installation: Blue Hill Farm at Stone Barn Center, followed by Cape Cod/Martha's Vineyard cuisine complete with recipes, and a late summer picnic menu!