A response to "Food Stamped"

We took an interesting documentary DVD out from the library this week - "Food Stamped" - it was written / directed / edited by a couple named Shira and Yoav Potash.   

Shira Potash is a nutritionist, employed directly or indirectly by the food stamp program to teach kids in the public schools about healthy nutrition.     In the documentary this young couple sets out to live for a week, in terms of groceries, on the $50 which is a higher-than-average allotment for a two adult household.   

She did this following the example of a few congressmen and congresswomen who also followed the same challenge for a week.

Points on which I agree with Mrs. Potash's theories:

1)  We have an obesity problem AND a malnutrition problem in this country, especially among the poor.

2) Access to healthy food is difficult for the poorest citizens of our country, especially those without cars in urban environments with only corner stores.

3) A lack of education is one of the biggest problems.

4) Basing a lot of their meals on the cheap and nutritious proteins of beans and eggs was a good starting point.

BUT I also take issue with some of what she demonstrated and said:

1)  She set up some straw men arguments .... the choice is not between living on ramen noodles or buying $5 bottles of organic, gourmet salad dressing.      In trying to still eat not only organic but FRESH organic, she didn't do much to demonstrate the "least of the evils" choices she could have made.    

2) Eating salad and eating out of season produce every day is a new phenomenon, and one that started as almost a parlor trick for the wealthy to show off at their dinner parties.     It is NOT necessary nutritionally.        

3)  Whole Foods and similar gourmet grocery stores are just that - gourmet!    Of course they aren't going to be the source of daily sustenance for anyone who is on a tight enough budget to have only the money provided by food stamps.     Food stamps is a last resort type of thing - and I'm glad it's there for those who really have no other options - but if it DID allow daily consumption of $5/jar coconut oil, it probably would be a bit too generous ...

4)  There was no individual highlighted in the documentary who was doing well in making those dollars stretch.    I certainly agree without a game plan and careful thought it would be hard to feed your family for $1.10/person/day.    But they couldn't find one single person who was doing it pretty well?

5) There was no acknowledgement that her husband might need more food than her - the quantities served seemed to be about equal.    

6) I don't know how you would do this on the challenge, but another factor is that when you're cooking from scratch, you replace different ingredients each week.     This week I might need to buy whole wheat flour and a can of rolled oats, but I'll have enough olive oil and vinegar left from last week to dress my salads ....


So what would I have liked to see her do differently, and what would I like to see her more realistically teaching her students?

1) She slammed canned veggies as less nutritious, but didn't focus on frozen at all ... frozen green beans are likely just as high in nutrients as fresh green beans bought anywhere but a farmers market because of the transportation time .... but are frequently available for $1 for a pound bag.      Same with frozen spinach, frozen corn, frozen peas ....

2)  She indicated she couldn't have peppers and showed a $8.99/pound fresh red organic pepper!   Ummmm ... who would EVER pay that?    I get frozen sliced bell peppers, tri color, for 1.99/pound.    And it's ALL useable ... no seeds/core/stem to throw out, which makes the effective price per pound higher.

3) Skip the expensive bread (either pull out your bread machine or get a normal store brand whole wheat), and instead spend money on a frozen bag of chicken tenderloins.      I think I pay about $8 for a 2.5 pound bag.    Easily enough for a few meals.    In fact one bag of frozen chicken tenderloins and a couple pounds of 80/20 ground beef would allow at least some meat for every dinner.   Or our local Trader Joes has chicken drumsticks, antibiotic free and organic, for about 1.29/pound. 

4) If you're really tight on funds, serve EVERY meal with a generous portion of some type of whole grain carb ... for one dinner she had a beans and greens that they said was tasty, but didn't seem to be enough quantity for her husband.     Especially when you are that tight on portions, grits, whole grain penne, cornbread, whole wheat toast, etc ... all can help fill you up.   

I guess my major issue, especially with someone employed by tax dollars to teach poor kids, is that she wasn't offering PRACTICAL solutions within the realities of poor families.   Whining that they can't afford the most gourmet choices won't help them do a bit better with what they DO have available.  

A few links I thought I would share ...

I want to try this:
Pickled Beets


pdf of local Chester County Food resources


I'm really enjoying the variety and challenge of a CSA again: 
The marvelous Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA - they're still accepting applications

Pasta with Fresh Lima Beans and Pancetta

My CSA share this week included fresh lima beans. I've never cared for them much. I remember swallowing them like pills as a child. But I thought I should give them a fare try.

I had some cubed pancetta and prosciutto (the local farmers markets sells the bits too small to slice at a lower price - like cheese ends, only expensive Italian hams)

First, start a pot boiling with water for your pasta. Send your children or husband out to shell the lima beans.

I started by chopping two small onions into thin half moons. Into the hot pan they went, after a bit of oil:

Add the proscuitto and some onion to the pan to brown, then turn to low:

I soaked some dry mushrooms. Dry mushrooms are a great thing to have in your pantry, because they last for years, and can be used in small quantities. Pre soak them to add like a dish to this - just cover with warm water. If adding to soup, you can throw them right in.

I started the pasta (1/2 pound) in the water, and then added the lima beans:

I added about a cup of white wine to the onion mixture, as well as the reconstituted (but drained) mushrooms. Boil off about half the liquid from the wine.

Add a large spoonful of sour cream:

and some shredded cheese. I used some parmesan, some asiago and a little bit of Chevre from my cheese drawer. You can't see it, but I grated fresh nutmeg on top of the cheese as well.

Drain the pasta and beans, and stir into the creamy onion mixture. Serve with a fork!

I'm very sorry that this mixture didn't show how PRETTY this dish was, with the vibrant light green of the beans.

Taco Salad

I happen to have lots of wonderful tomatoes on hand this week. I also found 80/20 ground beef at the grocery store at a really good price. It was already on sale for 2.69 pound, but then this package also had a $2 off coupon .... so I paid under $5 for two and a half pounds of ground beef. So what better to make with tomatoes, corn and ground beef than a taco salad?

ground beef (I used a 2.5 pound package, but had lots leftover)

2 large tomatoes

2 large onions (I used Vidalia)

1 bell pepper

2 ears corn

salad greens

tortilla chips

taco seasoning (in a packet or from a jar)

2 limes

cilantro

garlic

Brown the beef in a pan. Using a spoon, drain off the fat. Mix the taco mix with about 1/2 cup of water and stir into the beef. I also added a few cubes each of garlic and cilantro. Dried cilantro would work just as well. Roll two limes on the counter before juicing them over the beef:

Peel the two onions. Cut off the ends, cut them in half, and then slice into half moons. These go into another pan (following a splash of oil):

Stir frequently. Remove the browned onions to a bowl.

Turn the heat back up on the pan. Cut the kernels off the two ears of corn (a light sawing motion with a serrated knife seems to work well). Throw them in the hot pan just long enough to warm and give a touch of color:

Meanwhile wash your salad greens. Wash and cut the tomatoes and bell pepper.

Have another veggie you want to add? By all means chop it up! Jalapenos, olives, shredded carrot, cucumber, zucchini, canned beans ... all would be lovely additions to the party. I used guacamole, sour cream, shredded cheddar and salsa as toppings. If you happy to have a cherry tomato, it makes a great "cherry" for your fiesta sundae.

Finding Local Produce

I'm not super political about my food. But I certainly recognize the desirability of local food based on freshness, taste, and cost.

So how to find good local produce? Drive down rural highways and stop at farm stands. Make friends with someone who grows zucchini and tomatoes. Visit your local pick-your-own orchard.
If you live in the Western suburbs of Philadelphia like I do, check out my links to the right - Gentiles, Linvilla, Boothscorner Farmers Market, Ardmore Farmers Market, and Wolffs are all wonderful. Reading Terminal Market and the stands at the Italian Market are great if you live in Philadelphia. Farm to City also lists Farmers Markets in the general Philly area.

(By the way if you happen to live in Greenville, SC check out the Farmers Market on Rutherford Rd - it was a favorite of mine early on Saturday mornings during growing season)

These are great links for finding local produce near you (at least if you live in the US):

Local Harvest
Pick Your Own farms
Local Diet 100 Mile Map (just enter your zipcode! Works for Canada too)

Check out my 100 mile radius:

That means I have New Jersey Sweet Corn, blueberries, tomatoes; produce, dairy and even chicken from Lancaster, BLUE CRABS from Maryland .... not bad at all!