GOODe Grief: Scrambling for some perspective

SOAPBOX Warning…

So, most of you know that I grew up on a farm and that up until recently I worked in agriculture before starting my own freelance business. You may also know that I still work very closely with a lot of folks in agriculture as a freelance communicator.

With that being said, you probably also have heard about these egg recalls out of Iowa.

I normally wouldn’t be writing about such matters here, but today I was caught by how big this thing has gotten by a simple trip to my little town’s grocery store. I found this sign posted on all of the doors and it got me thinking… a lot.

  

I first heard about the recall while packing to take my family down to Daytona. My mom called warning me that the news was going nuts and she wanted me to go “check my eggs” because she didn’t want anyone getting sick on our trip like the last time… oh lordy did the last time ever stink…just sayin’

So I went into google mode and tried my best to cut through the rhetoric to find out the information I needed to know to make sure my eggs were safe. It took me a while, but finally I freeze framed a “sky is falling” “news” story to find the carton #s that were effected.

A week later, I see this sign at my grocery store… which got me digging for more information—so I skipped the media and emailed a friend in the egg industry.

Did you know that less than 1 % of the egg supply was affected?

Dude… those weren’t the headlines I was bombarded with when trying to find out if my eggs were affected. 

Pssst… my friend shared this site with me for anyone still concerned.

How refreshing… the information I need to be safe, without all the scary headlines.

A local ag commentator said it well.

“The frequency of food recalls in recent years is often used to claim our food is not as safe as it used to be. When, in reality, this is a sign that our food safety system is working better than ever. The incidence of many foodborne illnesses continues to decline according to the CDC‘s FoodNet surveillance network which was established in 1996," says Gary Truitt of Hoosier Ag Today.

All of this hysteria reminds me of that old Ellen Degeneres bit about the local news. (Pardon the quality of the video/audio.)

You should really watch it. It is really funny and would be even funnier if it wasn’t so true.

All of this food talk these days… from factory farms to pesticides to peanut butter, beef, spinach and now egg recalls has my mommy gal pals and I standing with our shopping carts in tow confused, frustrated and worried… did I mention confused?

We turn to the news and can’t even find the information amidst all the hype. Media continues to create this hysteria as they scramble in a losing battle to drive viewership and readership…controversy sells after all.

I am a skeptic by nature, so I having a hard time these days swallowing that all our food is bad, killing us and all at the hands of evil empires… I tend to believe the media reports what sells and controversy sells. I’m not saying the food system is perfect.  I just don’t feel like I ever get a full story.

Meanwhile, food packaging goes into an all out marketing tug-of-war selling us hormone free, antibiotic free, organic promises…creating an impression of safety at a literal and figurative expense.

Then enters the self-proclaimed food gurus, authors and film makers that are trying to sell books, dvds, fear, guilt and morality all tied in a pretty bow. Their food righteousness looks nice from afar, yet none of them can really tell us how we can affordably feed our families safe, nutritious food… within our budgets and our communities—and on our own terms, not theirs.

For what it is worth, below is my soapbox full of common sense commentary on the food issues of today:

·        People who sell you on “how bad your food is” are likely making money off of the alternative or their “expertise”… just sayin’

·        I grew up on a farm and I gots to tell ya--that work ethic doesn’t exist in very many places in the U.S.  We’re all gonna starve if some folks get their way… just sayin’ 

·        Truth be told, this big bad industry full of factory family farms is actually full of your neighbors and the dude setting in pew next to you at church and you may not even know it…just sayin’

·        Anyone with money can produce a film and call it a documentary.  People who write books and sell videos need those products to sell. A book on “hey look at how wonderful and progressive our food system is” doesn’t quite have the same excitement to it as “danger, danger you must buy my book/video to find out what food is going to kill you”

Truth be told, I am tired of being scared of my cupboards and frightened of my fridge.

Truitt calls for a little perspective and I totally agree.

Here is my perspective of the day:  More than 1 in 10 people are going hungry in Indiana. 

What a luxury these new food dilemmas are for the modern mom…just sayin’

GOODe TV: Go Aarti, It's Your Paarti

Have you guys been watching the Next Food Network Star?

I am not a huge fan of the show, but this season has me hooked...

Mainly because of Miss Arti... she is so engaging and inviting. She cooks mostly Indian cuisine--which, truth be told, I have rarely tried or cared for : / -- and makes it look like comfort food.

I sooo want to try her recipes (not to mention those super cute hair accessories).

She makes me think I have totally misjudged this type of food... perhaps after just one trip to India Garden and that bad incident with a chicken bone (which we won't talk about)-- I didn't exactly give Indian food a fair shake?

Weeks ago I thought they should just stop the show now and give it to her.

She is like a younger Paula Deen with an Indian spin and a little less butter.

If they mess this one up and pick someone else, it would be a shame... just sayin'

Turns out, she is a food blogger at Aarti's Paarti and has a YouTube internet cooking show (see below)...

Where have I been?!?

So are you watching the Next Food Network Star? Who is your favorite? 

Do you like Indian food? Help a novice out... what should I try first???

Meet and Greet Mondays

GOODe GOODeNESS: Turkey Tetrazzini

Tonight's meal is Turkey Tetrazzini... Yummo!

We always had the BEST Turkey Tetrazzini at college. And, I finally found a comparable recipe in my Gooseberry Patch Best Ever Casseroles Cookbook.... Yippee!

(Click on photo above to print recipe only)

Start out with turkey cutlets or leftover turkey if you happen to have roasted one ;)

I cooked my gals up right with a little EVOO

And Lawry's

Meanwhile I boiled my pasta

in water flavored with chicken bouillon 

And dried minced onion

Smellin' GOODe about right now ;)

Once my turkey was done, I ran my knife through it again.

Then I added a couple cans of mushroom soup to my drained pasta

And a dollup or two of Daisy (8 oz)

I just heart Daisy. Hands down my favorite sour cream.

Then it was time to add a 1/2 cup of milk

A can of drained mushrooms

salt and pepper to taste

Don't forget the turkey!

Mix 'er up

Cover with cheese. Yummo!!! This is seriously a new family favorite.

And, it freezes beautifully Ladies and Gentleman. 

Mommy Score!

It's a GOODe Life: My Brown Thumb Solution

As most of you know, I grew up on a farm and pride myself in having those farm grown traits of "hard work and know how".

That could be why my brown thumbs and resulting browner vegetable garden year after year frustrate the tar out of me! This especially bums me out since I am sooo into once a month cooking (OAMC) --better known as FREEZE-O-RAMA 'round these parts--and I'd love to add some canning to the mix.

But no, this former farm girl can't manage to keep her garden rows straight, nor her veggies healthy.

Now, in my defense, we raised cattle and hay... I can tend to bottle-fed calves and  carry my weight pitchin' hay bales-- but gardening... oh gardening... it alludes me : /

So therein is my problem. I gots all these great new cookbooks on canning an preserving that I am just itchin' to use-- but I lack the skillz to get the core ingredients to grow!

Now, I can make me some mean garden signage, but that doesn't really fill my plate--does it?

So, this year I went into problem solving mode and figured out a way to have my garden and eat it too ;) Then it hit me-- I would go to a couple experts I knew and see if they couldn't save me from the weeds and pests that usually destroy my bounty.

That's right folks, I asked a farmer. Luckily I know a few :) and even have a few in the family-- so they won't make too much fun of my lack of an inner gardener.

This year we will have a GOODe garden with Uncle Tom and Aunt Mary--who just happen to be corn and soybean farmers.

Ya see, I have never been too GOODe at figuring out fertilizers and pesticides when it comes to my food. So, when I garden at home I tend to either over do it and worry myself to death about it or under do it and watch the pests devour my hard work down to nothin'.

So havin' Uncle Tom helping us manage all that is a big sigh of relief for this mama. I'll stick to graphic design and facilitation as a career ;) 

He does it for his crops everyday that go to feed both his family, animals and ultimately the world... so I figure he might know a thing or two about these things.

We had so much fun! Turns out gardening is MUCH easier when you are doing it with folks who know what the heck they are doing... Just sayin'

We learned that Uncle Tom is a stickler for straight rows...

Aunt Mary is gonna teach this gal how to can this summer too! I have always been so jealous of her cupboards and I can't wait until I get to fill mine up too :).

Miss Add had a ball planting the garden as well. Aunt Mary got her out her own gardening tools!

After things were planted Miss Add and Uncle Tom played around with his glasses...

Miss Add has such a special relationship with all her uncles :) 

She is truly one blessed kiddo!

Before headin' out to the field to plant some soybeans, Uncle Tom explained to Add how the planter worked.

The day reminded me so much of when I would plant a garden with my grandma as a kid. I sure hope Add pays more attention than I did ;)

GOODe GOODeNESS: Texas Ranch Soup

The Big FREEZE ( the 3rd part to my FREEZE-O-RAMA CHILL-ogy) was a BIG success. I do believe this was the biggest GOODe freezer cooking day yet. I am so stoked about the recipes I have waiting for me in the freezer.

One HUGE family hit is Texas Ranch Soup.

Yummo!

GOODe FREEZE-O-RAMA TIP: I like cooking up a soup on freezer days for the family to eat on throughout the day and then freeze the leftovers at the end of the day.

This recipe comes from one of my new Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks, Mom's Favorite Recipes. I am IN LOVE with this cookbook. It is quickly becoming my new favorite. I got it for Mother's Day along with Summer in the Country and Farmers' Market Favorites.

I hadn't even asked for this book, but when we were ordering the two I wanted, it made sense shipping-wise to get one more book... and I don't pass that kind of opportunity up, so I opted for this one. Boy am I glad I did. You will be seeing a lot of this baby in the future. This cookbook just "gets" me... Just sayin'.

(Click on image above to bring up screen to print recipe only.)

I started with my seasoned ground beef (1 1/2 lbs).

Then added in some fresh herbs from my potted herb garden. (Don't be too impressed. If I can grow herbs, anyone can... I have the brown thumbs to prove it! When I realized the whole plant cost the same as a handful of sprigs, I decided it was well worth the risk.)

I also tossed in some frozen spinach (1/2 cup) for a vitamin boost.

Then I returned to the recipe... well sorta ;)

Ya see it called for 2 can "Ranch Style" Beans. Call me ignorant, but for the life of me, I couldn't find beans that were labeled "Ranch Style". The closest I found were "Texas Ranch" and they had jalapenos in them... This Goode doesn't do heat, so I went safely to what I knew... "Baked Beans"--the big can. 

Then two cans of diced tomatoes... I heart Red Gold ;)

Then 1 pack Taco Seasoning

 2 cans corn or the equivalent of frozen corn.

I then added in some frozen red bell pepper from my great Red Bell Pepper find. 

Salt & Pepper to taste and then mix'er up.

Sooo Yummy!

Add some shredded cheddar and a little crush tortilla chips (I like lime flavored).

Now one of Puddie's favorite dishes!

Like I said, The BIG FREEZE was a big success. Check out what is hanging out in my freezer right now:

8 family size beef meals

• 2 Lasagna in a Pot
• 2 Beef Stroganoff
• 4 Beefy Mexicali

8 individual size lunches

• 2 Lasagna in a Pot
• 2 Beef Stroganoff
• 4 Texas Ranch Soup

3 packs seasoned ground beef

5 packs chopped onion

4 family sized poultry/pork meals

• 2 Turkey Tetrazzini
• 2 Chicken & Ham Casserole

5 poultry marinade packs for grilling

• 3 Italian Chicken
• 2 Balsamic Rosemary Chicken

Whew! Did I mention I was tired? 

Sure glad I don't have kitchen clean up for another month ;)