Tea for Tat - a thought.

Now, I have to warn you - this post is not about food. It's about a larger issue, an issue within my field of work that I am VERY passionate about. And I'd like to share its importance with all of you.

Some of you know that I attended a conference in Minnesota this week sponsored by the National Cooperative Grocer's Association, NCGA. Last year I spent time with the "TeaEO" of Honest Tea, Seth Goldman, and he spoke about the issues of market innovation, consumer education, and reaching the masses with an amazing product. Honest Tea was the first organic bottled tea to hit the market back in 1998, providing a healthy, non carbonated, low sugar alternative to the beverage world, something that was missing. Seth returned this year as a keynote speaker to address us all as a collective with the same presentation to better educate us surrounding these challenges - and to address one very big white elephant in the room.

Honest Tea. Delicious, organic
fair trade tea.

Honest Tea has been at the center of an argument within the natural foods industry over their ever criticized sale to the Coca Cola Company in 2007 - a "red badge of shame", if you will, that many brand loyal consumers, businesses and co-ops still meet with disappointment and outrage. "How dare they sell out their company to corporate money? Their product cannot be trusted, what with Coke's dirty money grubbing fingers in the mix! BOYCOTT!" Yes, a popular view to be sure. Many co-operators (I know, it's a silly name for ourselves) still argue about this 6 years later. And the reasoning behind the fighting is this: can a company preserve their integrity and beliefs after becoming part of a larger corporate umbrella that does not necessarily share these ideals? Does their product retain the quality and ingredients they started with, or do they become suffocated by additives and cheapened with lesser ingredients to save the parent company money? Just how far do the fingers of the corporation really go?

I believe this falls, for a lot of people, under the idea of epistemiclosure, or the idea of only regarding facts around an idea or piece of knowledge that fits one's personal frame of reference (think Fox News watching, Christian-Republican, gun toting America as a stereotypical example - or tree hugging, granola eating, God-hating Liberal hippies as another.) Honest Tea is a company that has endured criticism, consumer fury and been shunned by many in the natural foods community for becoming part of this larger argument. BUT, consider this: they are a wholly owned subsidiary of the Coca Cola Company, meaning that Honest Tea is still in control of the majority of their company through stocks and Seth's management (only 40% of stock is owned by Coke - Seth himself owns the controlling stake of 51%.) So what they are NOT is a division under the large umbrella of Coke's ownership, meaning Coke is 100% in charge. Subsidiary vs. Division: this is important, people. Yes, Coke distributes their product, so naturally it leaves a slightly bitter taste in the mouth for some - but, where does that leave them as a company? From my standpoint, I see that Coca Cola is making an investment: by letting this successful smaller company specializing in organic and fair trade spearhead this social movement (with their brand name behind it, yes) that it sure does make Coke look a little less "evil", doesn't it? Obviously it matters on some level over the money, as Honest Tea does not rake in nearly the number of dollars Coke does - Coke is throwing their name behind Honest Tea for more fundamental reasons than most give them.

Tea(C)EO Seth Goldman speaking at a
National Beverage Conference.

And here is a real kicker. Since the "merger", Honest Tea has organically certified EVERY ONE of their products, save a few brand new ones from this year. ALL of their teas are Fair Trade Certified, EVERY ONE. They have gone from reaching 15 thousand stores to 100+ thousand stores. That is a 600+% increase in exposure of an organic, fair trade product to the masses. How is that a bad thing? This was done with money they gained themselves in sales of their products, not money from Daddy Coke. THEIR initiatives. And there's more. They are constantly pioneering new ideas and ways to better their business practices, through supporting the Just Label It! campaign (this is a HUGE DEAL - LOOK IT UP) and sourcing 100% fair trade cane sugar, of which is a big deal as sugar cane is a commodity that suffers highly without the certification. They started the National Honesty Index, where they poll the American populace openly to see how honest we really are (sadly my city, Seattle, was one of the lowest - maybe this year we will do better.) They also sponsor many huge recycling events known as The Great Recycle, making national news quite a few times. And it's all been done within the control of the exact same company, the exact same hands, the exact same standards that started in Seth's kitchen 15 years ago - Honest Tea's standards. Not Coca Cola's, Honest Tea's. Their money, their choices.

Why is this important to understand? Because it is clear that without proper saturation in the market, without exposure to customers that do not buy organic or fair trade, and without growth and support, a company cannot grow fast enough to keep up with the demand of 8+ billion people. Honest Tea has succeeded in doing this, all with a simple risk of becoming a part of a larger corporate umbrella. Personally, I agree with the decision they made in 2007, with this short essay as my reasoning. I am personally committed to this idea and I firmly believe in what I do, and I love doing it. I have the best job in the world: providing the people and families of my community with good health and education to better their lives and the lives around them, in a nut shell. I don't just sell food, I give knowledge. I give support. I give provisions for personal and social change.

So, in closing, would you support the cause of a company that believes in bettering the world through better health and consumer practices? Or would you turn up your nose to ignore the change made not only at the world consumer level but also at the world corporate level, just because of who's money is behind it?

I like tea. And recycling. And progressive change. So should you.


Extra info in the links below:

NCGA https://www.ncga.coop/
Just Label It! Campaign http://justlabelit.org/
Honest Tea http://www.honesttea.com/
Organic Certification http://www.organic.org/
Fair Trade Certification  http://www.fairtradeusa.org/

wow, it's so dark in here.

so over a year has gone by, and let's just say that i honestly forgot i had created this little page as an outlet. it's been a bonkers year, what with new friends, new dietary changes, some family loss, a new engagement. but i'm picking up the pieces once more, hopefully this time i'll stay in touch with this little chunk of cyber space i like to call my own.

i've had a few changes lately that i'm not really comfortable with still, but i'm easing around it. this is just a food thing, so no worries: i won't be going into detail how i'm finding things on my body that have started expanding or someone in my life that i want to dearly punch in the face. recently i find that with steady consumption of soy, corn, and dairy my body starts to shut down in numerous little ways. i take more naps, have more frequent mood swings, weight fluctuations, etc - yes, i am whining just a little. but if you know me, you know i'd kill for fine cheese. and popcorn. and stirfry. damn it i miss panang curry with fried tofu. but in slight digression i have found with some paleo-esque steps i'm getting a better handle on it. more raw foods, whole vegetables of the fibrous kind, not counting coffee as a meal. of course, having my boo around helps as he enjoys anything that requires a bit of love and cook time regardless of what's in it. except quinoa, we're still working on that. but seriously? corn and soy are in EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING. i can't even begin to list a core category, so let's say that in reflection it's been interesting not being able to eat almost anything in a package anymore. the poor snack food door in the kitchen is so sad now.

a new treat, maple "butter" bars (v/gf/everything free)

i guess the nearest thing that has circled around food and my newfangled troubles lately was easter. lovingly spent with my family, easter is always a challenge for me as is any other holiday. i find myself always torn with anything displayed beautifully in a salad bowl, on a roasting pan, in a china bake set: can i eat that? i wonder what's in the seasoning? is this cookie going to murder my guts? I REALLY WANT THAT DEVILED EGG. again, you get the idea. it's pretty run of the mill now that most things on the table don't need to be catered to the glutard, but it still hurts sometimes when some go out of their way to make sure you have something just for you and you alone, that all that extra time however little was at your expense. really, it's ok that i can't have the lasagna: the salad and sides is enough, really. so i'm still having problems accepting that this is life now, too. still, eventually i won't be so tough on myself and i will accept it however begrudgingly my inner self will be about it.

but strangely, this year was a little bit different. normally i stand alone in my select foodie kingdom, but i had one more member of the family in my corner: my sister. in the last year i've seen her transform her diet and her lifestyle to something new, fresh, and beautiful. and the similarities are getting more and more numerous between us. for the first time i now have a friend (besides my boo) in the midst of this familial food firefight as it were. which is awesome. so, it was easier to have a little understanding from everyone that if i had to decline the asian chicken noodle salad or the chips and salsa that it wasn't because i wanted to be that person. it was nice to have someone there who was consciously making the choice to, in a way, join me in my quest for better health, both inside and out. i'm no longer the only plate at the table without pasta, with extra salad and specially made rice on the side. instead i had a few questions about things that were good substitutes, what is a good smoothie base, what a kale top is, etc. -  my partners in crime are growing ever so steadily.

in closing, i guess i needed to rant just a tad and share some raw thoughts. no real outcome from this, just a rough re-introduction. maybe the next one will be more about food, with more joyful thoughts attached. for now though, i think this will suffice.

and i will talk about those cookies up there, promise.

celery root: the undisputed champion of the dirt fed world.

as i sit here on a blustery rainy november evening, sipping my generous glass of cheap white (a guilty pleasure, i assure you) i cannot help but share this amazing, astounding, absolutely delightful experience i have created. i call it... ryuu's sweet n' savory fall root soup. made for a certain someone visiting for the holidays, i believe that this is the definitive reason EVERYONE should try the long shunned celery root. so sad and unknown, it cries out for love... and to be eaten. om-nom-noms.

an intimidating vegetable to the food preparation challenged, the "celeriac" is most commonly roasted and purred into soups, stews, mashed into gratins and other baked potato-ish dishes, etc. however, it is a low starch option, contain up to only ~7% starch content - a far cry from ye olde russet or golden potato. sweet and mild with a celery like bite, it is a great accompaniment to almost all fall and winter dishes. plus, it smells freakin' aweome, so that's a plus.

but, in this soup... ooooh my. every ingredient is palpable, every spice is present to the nose, every flavor is felt on the tongue. salt vs. spice, savory vs. sweet, a consumer delicacy vs. a seasonal staple... it is absolutely amazing, and i am here to share my new found knowledge with  you. if you've a vegan,  a fellow glutard, a carnivore, a vegetarian or just a culinary nerd in your audience, then you must try this. i simply pulled this out of my butt: any way you want to mess with it is HIGHLY recommended. add sausage! put some cream in it! add more veggies! i don't care, have at you! enjoy the experience - it WILL soothe the soul, as it were.

ryuu's sweet n' savory fall root soup: cook time ~ 1.75 hours, 3.5 hours with baking
5 qt dutch oven/large soup pot
1 sugar pie pumpkin, baked
1 large celery root, baked
2 medium onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 large-ish carrots, half mooned
1 rutagaba, chopped
1 med fennel bulb, stalks too, chopped
1 large parsnip, half mooned
2 large handfulls button mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons (at least) garlic, fine chop
2 quarts veggie broth, more to suit your soup as needed/preferred
1/4 lemon, chopped in half (2 1/8s lemon)
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp thyme
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cardamom
salt and pepper to taste
1 bunch chopped parsley to garnish

1) cut your pumpkin in 1/2 length wise, your celery root into 1/4s. line cookie sheet with foil and place pumpkin and celery cut sides down, cover with additional foil to prevent burning. bake at 350 degrees for 1.5 hours. set aside to cool.
2) heat your dutch oven/soup pot over medium heat, add your rutabaga - cook until softened, about 10 minutes. add celery, carrots, onions, parsnips and garlic and cook until the flavors meld, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. keep covered.
3) dump the veggie broth in, adding lemon wedges, bay leaves, thyme (BE GENEROUS - thyme is the most important!), cinnamon, cardamom, salt and pepper - bring to a boil, covered.
4) when boiling, add mushrooms and let fall to a simmer, low-medium heat - let it stay and roll for approximately 20 minutes. by now, you should be SOOO hungry. leave covered.
5) chop your celery root into 1/2 inch pieces, add to the goodness and let simmer another 10 minutes, covered. while the soup is finishing, add small-ish spoonful sized chunks of the now cooled sugar pie w/o skins, about 1/2 the pumpkin. remember, skins taste icky: compost them! let the soup simmer another 5 to 10 minutes, and top with the chopped parsley.
6) EAT IT. so awesome. remember, don't eat the bay leaves. gross.

random notes...

mushrooms hold thyme and veggie flavor so well... like little dumplings of bursting flavor.
celery root - sweet, celery savory with a mellow finish, so cleansing on the palate
sugar pie pumpkin - not required, but a whole addition of sweet taste to round out the celery root and veggie power, sooo HIGHLY recommended.
bay leaves - SO necessary, the "dry" flavor is to DIE for.
cinnamon matches the rutabaga and c. root to a T, a required spice!
cardamom + thyme + cinnamon = AMAZING!
parsley is a beautiful finish to the sweet root body, an herby carrier to tasteful heaven.


and there, the first recipe i feel comfortable sharing. enjoy it, may it bring you deep joy and profound ideas for your next meal. peace out fools.

chocolate makes the heart explode. thank god there be a cure.

i have made... a MASTERPIECE. well, not really. just fudge. no big deal.

the treat in all it's splendor.
mine, however, looks better.
believe it to be true.

OR IS IT?! O.o

it started as any other kitchen adventure does: perusing the interwebs in search of a tasty treat. "to chow.com!" i hear from the couch. so we quickly tread over to aforesaid destination. behold: a treasure trove! "you're doing it wrong." "chow tips." "cooking with grandma." could this site get any better? and then... i see it. what i came looking for: peanut butter chocolate fudge. the perfect flavor combination that 1) will perfectly satisfy the soul to a state of nirvana, 2) the simple sounds in the name of this delightful nectar of the gods brings a symphony of trumpets to play in thine head, and 3) it's real damn easy to make. like, real easy. 10 minutes, tops. well, not including the trip to the store anyway.

which brings me to another point of my evening. as j and i sat stupefied by the awesomeness of chow.com (as usual), we sifted through the library of "you're doing it wrong" - a series of videos created for the sole purpose (and with the forceful intent) of making any flim-flam fuddy-duddy "cook" into a walking kitchen viking on their way to culinary Valhalla. seriously: watch just five of these and you will not be the same. the perfect grilled cheese? check. the perfect stir fry? check. cooking a frozen turkey to a state of flavorful awesomeness? check. also, brine your turkey. a ryuu top-tip - you'll never go back to deep fried bird again! but for another time... back to the rant. GO HERE. amazingness, without a doubt.

left: rolled oats
right: unrolled groats

the last video we watched sparked an interesting concept: oatmeal. no, not that nuked cement paper crap you put into your microwave, OATMEAL. the real deal, made with... you know, oats n' stuffs. it all starts with the oat groats, or cat grass as y'all might know it, the seed variety typically given to horses, cattle, and other live stocky-ish animals. for our consumption, they are pressed into the oatmeal you typically buy (the little flat oats? really just squished groats - did that just blow your mind, or what?) or else they are typically ground into oat flour for baking cookies and cakes and the like. for those like me (the gluten sensitive or "glutard" as it were) oats are not a huge threat as people claim. they do contain a small amount of avenin, a protien that can be toxic to some such as myself, but most with a simple intolerance will do fine. they are only marketed as glutenous mainly for the fact that they are milled in the same locales as wheat, barely, rye, etc. the more you know...

we have this one. it is awesome.

now, if you have a coffee or spice grinder you can grind them into a finer consistency, soak them in a small covered jar over night, and make them into oatmeal in the morning. add the entire bunch, groats and water alike, and bring to a simmer over medium. cook until it loses a little water and reaches your desired consistency. breakfast! BE SURE to add the proper fixin's: oat groats' nutrients are mostly fat soluble, meaning there needs to be a fatty substance to get the nutrients out of them. go plain with milk and honey and a dash of blueberries or go crazy with coconut milk, acai and a touch of mango. either way, you can't lose.

ima go eat some fudge now. be jealous.

the love child of oats and fudge.
i give you... the oatmeal peanut fudge bar.

pickled tea with a foot rub - minus the foot rub.

it is 7:53 on a rainy, chill, windy saturday as i sit with my boo on the couch. we are busily doing nothing, as it were, but there is something that we can both attest to.

chai. hot, delightful, fragrant warming chai. a dollop of honey, a splash of cream, a full mug of steeped goodness - in a pickle jar. yeah, that's right. i find that this said 'glass' is one of the most amazing and necessary items to find in your cupboard. kind of like horseradish. and tortillas. and rum. but i digress - you know when you're on the hunt for that perfect glass for your drink? you rifle through the regular drinking glasses, the batman mug, the hello kitty tumbler, the pickle jar...

wait, what? PICKLE JAR? holy crap - i must drink from this holy grail of awesomeness.

it's that bright and fleeting moment that graces you maybe only once a day, for the unlucky ones anyway. kind of like when you find the perfect pair of shoes in a store front window, the perfect ohmygodlookattheamazingcutepuppies calendar at the stand on the mall, when someone offers you a back massage, etc etc. you get my gist. seriously, if you do not have this amazing glass in your household, get one. who doesn't want sweet chai tea out of a sweet creek chilli dillie pickle jar? that's right - no one. because it is awesome.

also - canning jars make the most amazing drinking glasses for the boozer in your life. literally: amazing. add your tequila, your ice, your salt and mix, your slice of lime - add lid. shake profusely. drink the most satisfyingly made drink you e'er done drink, son. for reals, who doesn't wanna shake their margarita in a canning jar?! "whoa dude, what the hell are you making?" "time bomb. real easy, drinkable too." "O.o" "nah, just kidding. wanna sip?" the concept of this is an easy one - no spoon required, no cocktail shaker dirtied, everyone gets a laugh. in short, canning jars are kick ass. and sweetly multi-functional. also, they come in super tiny 8 oz. all the way up to the monster 128 friggin' oz. size. perfect for that one special alcoholic friend of yours - in this case, mine loves pirates. and drinks larger than his face. (pst - remember that margarita?)

so go on - make your tea in a pickle jar, your gin and tonic in a jam container. once you step down this path, your glass collection will be the greatest on your street guaranteed. well, at least one of the most humorous anyway.

one

to truely understand food, you can't just eat it. you can't just cook it. you can't JUST anything about it. if you don't have the love for food, the passion, the understanding, there is a certain emptiness surrounding your relationship with one of the most intimate activities your body has. understanding food is going past the sustenance, past the need to feed, past the necessity to fuel your body: it is an essential ideal that, without it, you can never experience real satisfaction with yourself.

for example, imagine your mother's kitchen. imagine the first time you were there, the first image that comes to you. imagine who was there with you. the lighting. the colors. the smell. the clutter on the counter.most important, what are you cooking? cookies? pasta? chicken? anything? i believe that this first memory is the one that defines your entire life's experience with food: this experience is what subconsciously drives you towards the foods you eat, how you eat them, how you feel when you eat them.

my first memory is a simple one. i am two or three years old. my mother is standing next to me, moving between the stove and the refrigerator: her hair is loose, following her like a shadow as she turns. i am standing on top of a foot stool, leaning on the edge of the black salt-and-pepper speckled stove, watching a medium sauce pan boil my lunch: macaroni. as i watch the starchy water froth and threaten to overflow the edges i hear my mother behind me - don't get too close, you'll burn yourself. i lean back as my mother starts running water in the sink behind me; hearing the noise distracts me, i turn to her to watch. she turns and takes the noodles off of the burner with a single swift movement - i turn back to look, leaning over the hot stove coil. i put my hand on the coil to get a better view of the noodles. the bubble that stretches across my palm from the pad of my thumb, along the bottom near my wrist and to the edge of my pinkie finger is about an inch wide and quite tender. someone rushes in to help when my mother calls.

that's the extent of it, anyway. as long as i have been near a kitchen i have always been most fascinated not so much with the outcome but the process, the science, the art of the cooking itself. the first thing i remember making by myself was a fish casserole. the recipe time given was one hour, but i took three. when it was finished it was the most exhausting and exhilarating thing that, up until that time, i had ever done. i made my own juice as a kid with an older bulky monstrosity of a juicer. i always wanted the strangest thing the menu could offer: at age 9 i ordered jambalaya frog legs and made them hop across the table, much to the delight of the chefs peeking out from the kitchen to see if i would actually eat them. in middle school i hung out in the back of a bakery, helping bake the breads and cakes for the next day while learning the ins and outs of the kitchen. it was pretty sweet, pun intended.

for a few years now i haven't been in this state of mind. i have had friends and co-workers in the foodie profession that have graciously shared this part of their lives with me, but i haven't pursued it myself. being in the position i am in now, working with my community to help create a foodie culture based off of sustainability and supporting your neighboring farmers, looking for the cleanest and most real food possible, eating organically and in season, i feel the time is right to start following this hobby as it were. to really think about my relationship with food and what direction i want to take it. hopefully these blurbs will give you some laughs, some insights, and some ideas of your own.