I watched the first episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution last night. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to make the first few episodes because it seemed like no one really cared about what he was doing.
However, Jamie and his family moved to LA in order to help make this revolution take place, so I think he’s really making an effort. The challenge will be to try and get all the parents involved.
In this first episode though it rapidly became apparent that Jamie’s Food Revolution in LA is going to take a bit of time to get momentum.
In order to make up a full hour episode, Jamie Oliver had to sort of create a new sub plot where he also tries to remake a fast food hamburger place so that it serves healthy food.
I would love to go by that restaurant and see if any of his suggestions have stuck, but from the scenes shown, it really looked like a hard sell.
The owner was a great guy, but the bottom line was about the margin per burger. He could make his burgers more healthy and then go broke doing it. Time will tell if they are able to work something out.
I think that one of the best things about Jamie Olivers Food Revolution is that it comes across more like a documentary than a reality show. One kind of fake scene was during the appeal to the LA Board of Education – there was a part where the room was empty and he was talking, and then the room was full again, which seemed odd.
A hilarious part during that discussion with the LA Board of Education was when the religious nut was blathering and then reappeared several times talking to Jamie – I think during his last scene, the nut appeared really intelligent and lucid – strange how people are.
Another great part was when Jamie Oliver went to the California School Nutrition Association Event and then to a discussion on flavored milk and a study funded by the Milk Board which basically said that kids drink more flavored milk than regular milk. Jamie started discussing the study with the presenter and the discussion rapidly turned into an argument.
The saddest part of this episode was the lack of people showing up for his presentations and stunts like showing how much sugar was in a weeks worth of flavored milk served at LAUSD schools. There were literally less than 20 people there. One would think that with Jamie Olivers Food Revolution would have a bigger draw than that in LA, so I’m hoping that they started small so that they can end big.
There’s clearly any number of reasons for not seeing, being able to see, or not wanting to see this child and make his wish come true. However, none of those reasons are being given.
No is not a sufficient answer.
Invite the kid to where you’ll be, send him something personal, make some kind of an effort – or explain why that is not possible or desirable.
Explain to us why this is a bad idea or impossible.
My guess is that Ina herself had nothing to do with this, and if that is indeed the case, then her PR person should be fired and some explanations need to be given.
I could understand not being able to make all of Enzo’s wishes come true, and even if, as reported elsewhere, his mother is batty, I think there is room to make Enzo’s make-a-wish dream come true – if only partially.
Otherwise, we have no other recourse than to believe that Ina Garten just doesn’t give a shit.
And that would just be a terrible shame.
So, I challenge Ina Garten.
As a parent of a child who has medical issues – explain AND justify your actions or prepare to feel the icy blast of hatred and apathy for your show(s) that was previously reserved for people like Ted Haggard or Ted Bundy.
There are no reasons for this kind of attitude, however there may be excuses. I for one, would like to hear the reasoning behind these actions, the apology for these actions, and the outcome for Enzo.
I challenge Ina Garten to explain her actions, and then spend the rest of her life making up for them.
I urge everyone who reads this blog to write to Foodtv.com at this link:
Give them your opinion of the situation. Tell them you demand justice.
I really feel that the so called privileged of the world have taken their places for granted for too long. At some point they need to give back to humanity for the benefits they have received.
This is of course in stark contrast to the actions of Jamie Oliver, who has done more for the nutrition of our children both in England and in the US than the actual governmental entities who have been tasked with that very job.
Made some delicious home made tapenade the other day. I spread it on some nice crusty toasted bread and some pizza bread. My teenage son ate about a cup of it too :O
Black Olive Tapenade
Tapenade Recipe
About 2 C pitted and drained Kalamata olives – the purple ones, not black or green
2-4 cloves of garlic – put through a garlic press
5-7 Basil leaves – got that idea from Alton Brown
Juice of 1 lemon
3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil, but don’t use the expensive stuff
Put it all in a food processor and chop until it’s a thick paste
I love this use of sausage and tomatoes, and I don’t make it as often as I should. Here’s my version of Hopping Johns, a southern dish, usually made around New Years for good luck!
Hopping Johns Recipe
1 medium white onion
3 cloves garlic
1 can black eyed peas
1-1.5 lbs sausage – I like to grill mine, then slice and add to the dish
1 14-16oz can of black eyed peas – drained
3 Cups uncooked brown rice
2 14 oz cans whole peeled tomatoes – undrained – I like the juice
3 TBSP Hot Sauce
Optional: 1-2 Bell Pepper or 1-2 stalks celery
The greens give it a bit more color and crunch – saute with onions
The first step is to start making the rice.
I make mine in a rice maker – 2 C brown rice,2 chicken bullion cubes, 1 tsp of olive oil and 5 C water – hit the button and it’s done in 20 min
While the rice is cooking I grill the sausages – takes about 10-15 min.
While the rice is cooking and the sausages are grilling, I saute the onion for 3-5 min, then add the garlic and saute for another 1-2 minutes.
Then I add the black eyed peas and tomatoes while the sausages are cooling enough to slice
Once it’s all mixed together I add the hot sauce and stir.
If it’s too watery, let it cook for 5-10 min
If it’s too pasty, add 1/4 C of water
This should make enough to feed 4 hungry teens.
For more good ole down home southern cooking check out Paula Deen:
Kale is already a super healthy veggie, that should be a main staple of anyone on any kind of health food kick.
Now, find out how to make it edible!
Ingredients
1 bunch kale – washed and dried – CUT OUT large veins to make it more edible
1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp maximum salt soy sauce
Cut, chop, or tear kale leaves into potato chip sized pieces.
Mix all three ingredients in bowl
Line baking sheet with parchment paper – it really does work best
Bake at 350-375 for 10-20 minutes – I did 350 for about 20 min and most every piece was crisp and delicious
This Kale Chip recipe is a great way to introduce kale into you and your kids diets.
I wish I had this recipe available when I joined a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program and we got waaaaaay too much kale – though they did give out kale recipes the ones we tried were um, atrocious and the kale was largely inedible.
In a story broken by TMZ – Link here - The Barefoot Contessa Ina Garten has refused to grant a request of the Make-A-Wish foundation to meet with a 6 year old leukemia patient.
As the parent of a child who has medical issues, I would encourage readers of this missive to contact Foodtv.com at this link: and explain to them exactly how you feel about this situation.
Clearly it is possible that Ina Garten had a scheduling conflict a year ago, and I suppose it is possible that she again had another scheduling conflict, but the blatant disregard for the 6 year old cancer patient is inexcusable and warrants immediate action.
This is not a scheduling issue, it’s not a personality issue, it’s not a medical issue, it’s a matter of not giving a shit, and I for one refuse to spend my time, energy, effort, or Direct TV scheduler to help Foodtv and the Barefoot Contessa continue to exist.
In addition to contacting Food tv, I suggest that you cancel all Tivo, direct tv, dish network, and any cable company recordings that you have planned for any Food Tv network show, until this situation get’s resolved to your satisfaction.
Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa needs to remember that her livelihood depends on her fans, and right about now, I’m thinking that she would have a hard time finding someone to cross the street to piss on her if she was on fire.
As individuals, we only have the ability to make a difference one person at a time, but when we all work together, we can change the world.
I’m anxiously awaiting any kind of response as to why Ina Garten, the barefoot contessa couldn’t throw the kid a bone if her schedule is sooooo busy. There are many ways to placate a child, to give a little something back to a pre adolescent leukemia patient, and none of them include the word “no”.
Here is the message I sent to FoodTV:
As a long time foodtv enthusiast, I implore you to verify the recent apathetic actions of the barefoot contessa Ina Garten, and once they’ve been verified – fire her, terminate her contract, and or otherwise remove her from your network for her actions regarding the make a wish foundation and her attitude towards Enzo, the 6 year old Leukemia patient who wanted to meet her, and she just couldn’t find the time.
Right is right, and her actions, her response was not right.
Saw this video on youtube while looking up some other cooking stuff and I just had to watch because I’d never heard of Avocado Fries before, and they sounded brilliant!
I think that this might be something that Jamie Oliver could really get behind. It’s fresh, it’s fried – so ok in small amounts, and it’s quick and easy. Also, that looks a lot like Catsup that she puts on it at the end, which sounds disgusting but maybe it would pass for food in England?
I’m thinking about dipping it in sour cream or possibly ranch dressing.
Homemade Egg Rolls
The recipe is :
1 package egg roll wrappers
12-16oz sausage
1 tsp fresh ginger
2 cups sliced cabbage
2-3 scallions – chopped
1 large carrot julienned
6-12oz bean sprouts
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)
2 tsp Oyster Sauce
1/2 C any other julienned veggie that you like or have handy
Cook sausage so that it’s crumbly, add ginger and cook together for a min or two
Add rest of ingredients and cook together for 4-5 minutes, put in strainer if you want to let excess water/juice drain off – save juice if you want
You’ll also need 1 qt or so of oil for the frying, so start heating that up – I basically eyeballed it, but you want around 350 degree oil
I made the egg rolls per the instructions on the package – I used the juice to help seal the egg roll on some, and a bit of oil on others. I think the oil worked best – and also give it a little pinch to help seal it. I had some come apart a bit in the oil, so I had to hold them under with my slotted spoon.
Its better if they don’t come apart
Fry until golden brown and put them on a broiler pan to drain
I put the finished egg rolls on a broiler pan to drain and put them in the oven at 215 degrees to keep them warm until the rest of dinner was done.
As a special treat, I made about 5 that had chunks of goat cheese in them instead of the egg roll mixture. These goat cheese egg rolls tasted fantastic. I used a sweet chili dipping sauce with them for a super treat.
The goat cheese egg rolls were super big, so you really only need 1 – maybe 2 – per person. These are not the goat cheese won tons that your regular Chinese restaurant has!
The regular egg rolls I dipped in a bit of hoisin sauce – perfect for them.
Everyone loved my homemade egg rolls and also the goat cheese egg rolls – try them!
Here’s a link to the highest rated Asian dumpling cookbook if you are looking for a broad variety of things to do egg roll or dumpling style.
