As many of you may or may not know, the love of my life is currently doing a program at Stella Adler in NYC. Since September she and I have only been in the same place at the same time for five days. It’s been quite a semester for her. I am so proud of C for living her dream. Having the courage, in spite of great difficulty, to spread her wings and soar, in the pursuit of something more. Something that is hers and hers alone. So I just wanted to say congratulations to her and to all of you that have the courage, drive and determination to stick with it even in the face of great obstacles. Her reward, tonight, is a brilliant home cooked meal, by none other than myself of course.
Tonight she is getting a potato leek soup and a goat cheese and leek stuffed chicken in a chive white wine butter sauce. There will of course be wine, laughing and loving. Congrats babe and welcome home, even if only for a while. And, moreover, I could not be more proud of what you have achieved and more abundantly proud for what I have watched you become. Keep growing, keep shining and keep being the you I know you to be.
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
Jiddu Krishnamurti once said, “Freedom and love go together. Love is not a reaction. If I love you because you love me, that is mere trade, a thing to be bought in the market; it is not love. To love is not to ask anything in return, not even to feel that you are giving something- and it is only such love that can know freedom.”
A la prochaine
SDM
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Trans Fat (file under the winds of change)
We live in a time of massive change on multiple levels. Many have no idea what Trans Fat is and why it is both an issue and important. For a good Trans Fat primer go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans_fat .
I bring this up because I believe that slowly but surely the winds of change are sweeping away the use of Trans Fat, at first voluntarily and now through both consumer demand and regulation. I, as almost every other food provider, am guilty of using Trans Fats in cooking (primarily in the fat fryer) and am proud to let you know that we have no switched over to a Trans Fat reduced product.
As many of you may or may not be aware there is a movement in the United States http://www.bantransfats.com/ to completely ban trans fat, which to my point of view, is a VERY good thing, not to mention necessary. Cities, towns and even states are moving to ban or reduce the level of trans fat in our food, notably, New York City and more recently California. It has come to my attention that the City of Toronto is asking food service providers to voluntarily reduce or completely remove trans fat from menus. A voluntary ban in my experience eventually leads to regulation which requires it. But it is important to note that food giant are paying attention and responding to consumer demands, such as is the case with Kraft Foods (http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/HealthyLiving/Articles/NutritionBasics/TransFatUpdate.html ).
If you check out the two sources that I have provided you will see that this is an issue that is going to become very prominent in the next few years. I feel that the most important thing that we can do as consumers is to be educated so that we can make our own decisions. For me personally I would like to see the use of Trans Fat banned completely as one of the controllable factors of poor health in North America. But you let me know.
The World Health Organization states in “WHO global strategy on diet, physical activity and health: South-East Asia regional consultation meeting report, New Delhi, India, 10- 12 March 2003” that; “Multiple studies have corroborated that trans-fatty acids are probably one of the most dangerous elements in the diet for atherosclerotic risk, as they have a combined effect of increasing LDL cholesterol and decreasing protective HDL. Deep-fried fast foods and baked goods containing hydrogenated fats are major sources."
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
SDM
I bring this up because I believe that slowly but surely the winds of change are sweeping away the use of Trans Fat, at first voluntarily and now through both consumer demand and regulation. I, as almost every other food provider, am guilty of using Trans Fats in cooking (primarily in the fat fryer) and am proud to let you know that we have no switched over to a Trans Fat reduced product.
As many of you may or may not be aware there is a movement in the United States http://www.bantransfats.com/ to completely ban trans fat, which to my point of view, is a VERY good thing, not to mention necessary. Cities, towns and even states are moving to ban or reduce the level of trans fat in our food, notably, New York City and more recently California. It has come to my attention that the City of Toronto is asking food service providers to voluntarily reduce or completely remove trans fat from menus. A voluntary ban in my experience eventually leads to regulation which requires it. But it is important to note that food giant are paying attention and responding to consumer demands, such as is the case with Kraft Foods (http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/HealthyLiving/Articles/NutritionBasics/TransFatUpdate.html ).
If you check out the two sources that I have provided you will see that this is an issue that is going to become very prominent in the next few years. I feel that the most important thing that we can do as consumers is to be educated so that we can make our own decisions. For me personally I would like to see the use of Trans Fat banned completely as one of the controllable factors of poor health in North America. But you let me know.
The World Health Organization states in “WHO global strategy on diet, physical activity and health: South-East Asia regional consultation meeting report, New Delhi, India, 10- 12 March 2003” that; “Multiple studies have corroborated that trans-fatty acids are probably one of the most dangerous elements in the diet for atherosclerotic risk, as they have a combined effect of increasing LDL cholesterol and decreasing protective HDL. Deep-fried fast foods and baked goods containing hydrogenated fats are major sources."
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
SDM
Lament for a Potato (file under Spud Killer)
Only a Mick,
Such as I,
Would hold court,
To lament the fallen spud,
Fallen by my own hand,
Only to reveal,
The potato phoenix,
Reborn into something new and beautiful,
Tasty and bountiful,
In this year passed,
I have been the judge, jury and executioner,
Of too many to count,
And their death,
Most certainly not for not,
As I have transformed their rugged beauty,
Their palette of flavour to reveal,
With delight,
Mash, medallion and fry,
I have taken them to a Zen like state,
From which joy abounds,
For those that receive it.
Only a Mick,
Such as I,
Could possibly lament,
For the potatoes that I have killed,
Only to rebirth them into something more fantastic,
Something more appealing,
Something revealing,
That from one comes another,
And from another comes pleasure divine,
Only a Mick such as I,
Would redefine Ambrosia,
To now become,
The potato and its many uses,
And in its death,
Finding beauty,
I still lament,
As I accept,
My fate and theirs,
To something more.
Only a Mick such as I,
Could take something,
Which once starved an entire population,
Strangling it and forcing the perilous journey across the Atlantic,
To new and wonderful worlds,
And like the potato I now lament,
Onto ever greater things,
The manifest destiny,
Of mash or fry,
Shepherds pie,
And ever more.
Fear not potato,
You have not lived in vain,
For though I lament,
I too celebrate,
Your simple beauty and truth,
And all the joy that you can bring,
As I transform you,
And in so doing,
Become transformed myself.
An old Irish Proverb states; "Only two things in this world are too serious to be jested on, potatoes and matrimony."
SDM
Such as I,
Would hold court,
To lament the fallen spud,
Fallen by my own hand,
Only to reveal,
The potato phoenix,
Reborn into something new and beautiful,
Tasty and bountiful,
In this year passed,
I have been the judge, jury and executioner,
Of too many to count,
And their death,
Most certainly not for not,
As I have transformed their rugged beauty,
Their palette of flavour to reveal,
With delight,
Mash, medallion and fry,
I have taken them to a Zen like state,
From which joy abounds,
For those that receive it.
Only a Mick,
Such as I,
Could possibly lament,
For the potatoes that I have killed,
Only to rebirth them into something more fantastic,
Something more appealing,
Something revealing,
That from one comes another,
And from another comes pleasure divine,
Only a Mick such as I,
Would redefine Ambrosia,
To now become,
The potato and its many uses,
And in its death,
Finding beauty,
I still lament,
As I accept,
My fate and theirs,
To something more.
Only a Mick such as I,
Could take something,
Which once starved an entire population,
Strangling it and forcing the perilous journey across the Atlantic,
To new and wonderful worlds,
And like the potato I now lament,
Onto ever greater things,
The manifest destiny,
Of mash or fry,
Shepherds pie,
And ever more.
Fear not potato,
You have not lived in vain,
For though I lament,
I too celebrate,
Your simple beauty and truth,
And all the joy that you can bring,
As I transform you,
And in so doing,
Become transformed myself.
An old Irish Proverb states; "Only two things in this world are too serious to be jested on, potatoes and matrimony."
SDM
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