I should probably make a disclaimer before I go any further in this blog. As a person, I have very few adamant convictions. I was raised with very few prepackaged tenets: my parents never stressed any sort of religion, my father always emphasized the value of considering an issue from all possible viewpoints, the meals that ended up on our dining room table was an eclectic mix of seafood, meat, and vegetables.
There are many things that I can say - positive and otherwise - about my college experiences that are about to come to a much-prolonged close. One of the most valuable lessons that I received was on the first day of freshman year, when the professor of my globalization class opened the first lecture he ever gave with these words: Whatever you believe, don't believe it too strongly.
From a personal standpoint, this summed up, and also influenced any convictions that I had, and have. I've never been attracted to extremes. My lifestyle has never been too wild or sedate, my friend groups were never centralized, my activities are not too homogeneous, my tastes too singular. The advice jived nicely with the most valuable points that I took away from my subsequent psychology classes - not only in the constructed nature of subjective experience and the value of interpretation, but also in thinking about the interaction of various internal and external factors that result in human experience. It influenced my decision to add a BFA in photography to my BA in psychology, and it had a place in my last-minute impulse to add a minor in education.
So what does this have to do with this blog?
Simply put, my feelings about food are complicated. I have wholehearted respect for my friends (and my roommate) that manage to have completely vegetarian and vegan diets. Pescetarian? Locavore? Organicophile? Fair trade fanatic? More power to all of you. I think that there are good lessons to take away from all of these lifestyle choices.
But for me, it doesn't work. Much akin to my compulsion to consider a variety of factors in life, and in art, I'm not convinced that any one of these ways of life can provide the final solution. Part of it is hedonistic - I like eating meat. I don't like eating a lot of it. On the contrary, meat is reserved for those rare occasions when I go out to eat, and even then, gyros are one of the few foods that make me weak-kneed enough to warrant this. Part of it is skepticism - anything that is nationally USDA certified as organic, or free-range, or x, y, or z is bound to vary. Part of it is less obvious - while there are indisputable benefits to buying all local goods, how does this impact other foreign communities that may subsist entirely on exporting a certain commodity?
So in terms of food, I believe in eating ethically, eating well, eating mostly vegetarian. I believe in trying to mitigate the decision to eat animals and animal byproducts by buying food that is sustainable and ethical. I believe in making meals in a way that nothing needs to be thrown away or wasted. (Big caveat: I know that sometimes, all of these things won't always be possible.) I believe that I can make all of my meals for less than $40/week, and that one shouldn't have to compromise between cost, nutrition, and morals.
I have quite a bit already stocked in my kitchen. For personal house-keeping purposes (and for those of you following that want to be sure that I'm not cheating on this $40/week thing!), I decided to inventory the things I already have. I'll also be keeping track of my weekly groceries, so this documentation should make sense in conjunction with the recipes that I subsequently make that use common ingredients.
STAPLES (in bulk)
rice (basmati, rice blend, brown), potatoes (russet, red), quinoa, whole wheat penne
FREEZER:
vegetarian breakfast sausage (Morning Glory), vegetarian meatballs, salmon, shrimp, edamame, Boca burgers
FRUITS/VEGETABLES
oranges, apples, asparagus, carrots, onions (sweet, red), vine tomatoes, cheese (feta, provolone), spinach, garlic, bananas
CONDIMENTS
lemon juice, sundried tomatoes, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, curry paste, jam (peach, strawberry, raspberry), olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sea salt, unground pepper, earth balance, butter
SPICES
basil, rosemary, curry, tumeric, honey, cloves, bay leaves, thyme, cinnamon, chili powder, oregano, coriander, parsley, nutmeg, garlic powder
PANTRY
chicken soup , artichoke hearts, bread crumbs, garbanzo beans, no-bake lasagna noodles
BAKING NEEDS
baking soda, baking powder, dark molasses, dark cocoa powder, sugar (powdered, brown, white), whole wheat flour, pecans
MISC
rice milk, amber rum, vodka, bourbon, coffee beans (dark Sumatra), vanilla wafers
Today's groceries (all organic, bought at Madison Market):
Whew. Done. So now, all of you know my kitchen as well as I do.
I've got a couple of things up my sleeve from a big, timely day of baking here, so stay tuned!
There are many things that I can say - positive and otherwise - about my college experiences that are about to come to a much-prolonged close. One of the most valuable lessons that I received was on the first day of freshman year, when the professor of my globalization class opened the first lecture he ever gave with these words: Whatever you believe, don't believe it too strongly.
From a personal standpoint, this summed up, and also influenced any convictions that I had, and have. I've never been attracted to extremes. My lifestyle has never been too wild or sedate, my friend groups were never centralized, my activities are not too homogeneous, my tastes too singular. The advice jived nicely with the most valuable points that I took away from my subsequent psychology classes - not only in the constructed nature of subjective experience and the value of interpretation, but also in thinking about the interaction of various internal and external factors that result in human experience. It influenced my decision to add a BFA in photography to my BA in psychology, and it had a place in my last-minute impulse to add a minor in education.
So what does this have to do with this blog?
Simply put, my feelings about food are complicated. I have wholehearted respect for my friends (and my roommate) that manage to have completely vegetarian and vegan diets. Pescetarian? Locavore? Organicophile? Fair trade fanatic? More power to all of you. I think that there are good lessons to take away from all of these lifestyle choices.
But for me, it doesn't work. Much akin to my compulsion to consider a variety of factors in life, and in art, I'm not convinced that any one of these ways of life can provide the final solution. Part of it is hedonistic - I like eating meat. I don't like eating a lot of it. On the contrary, meat is reserved for those rare occasions when I go out to eat, and even then, gyros are one of the few foods that make me weak-kneed enough to warrant this. Part of it is skepticism - anything that is nationally USDA certified as organic, or free-range, or x, y, or z is bound to vary. Part of it is less obvious - while there are indisputable benefits to buying all local goods, how does this impact other foreign communities that may subsist entirely on exporting a certain commodity?
So in terms of food, I believe in eating ethically, eating well, eating mostly vegetarian. I believe in trying to mitigate the decision to eat animals and animal byproducts by buying food that is sustainable and ethical. I believe in making meals in a way that nothing needs to be thrown away or wasted. (Big caveat: I know that sometimes, all of these things won't always be possible.) I believe that I can make all of my meals for less than $40/week, and that one shouldn't have to compromise between cost, nutrition, and morals.
I have quite a bit already stocked in my kitchen. For personal house-keeping purposes (and for those of you following that want to be sure that I'm not cheating on this $40/week thing!), I decided to inventory the things I already have. I'll also be keeping track of my weekly groceries, so this documentation should make sense in conjunction with the recipes that I subsequently make that use common ingredients.
STAPLES (in bulk)
rice (basmati, rice blend, brown), potatoes (russet, red), quinoa, whole wheat penne
FREEZER:
vegetarian breakfast sausage (Morning Glory), vegetarian meatballs, salmon, shrimp, edamame, Boca burgers
FRUITS/VEGETABLES
oranges, apples, asparagus, carrots, onions (sweet, red), vine tomatoes, cheese (feta, provolone), spinach, garlic, bananas
CONDIMENTS
lemon juice, sundried tomatoes, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, curry paste, jam (peach, strawberry, raspberry), olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sea salt, unground pepper, earth balance, butter
SPICES
basil, rosemary, curry, tumeric, honey, cloves, bay leaves, thyme, cinnamon, chili powder, oregano, coriander, parsley, nutmeg, garlic powder
PANTRY
chicken soup , artichoke hearts, bread crumbs, garbanzo beans, no-bake lasagna noodles
BAKING NEEDS
baking soda, baking powder, dark molasses, dark cocoa powder, sugar (powdered, brown, white), whole wheat flour, pecans
MISC
rice milk, amber rum, vodka, bourbon, coffee beans (dark Sumatra), vanilla wafers
Today's groceries (all organic, bought at Madison Market):
- frozen puff pastry (20 oz) - $7.59
- lacinato kale - $3.49
- local crimini mushrooms (0.63 lbs) - $3.14
- barley (2 lbs) - $2.64
- cayenne pepper (0.05 lb) - $0.67
- dozen brown eggs (cage free, local) - $4.69
- nutritional yeast (1 lb) - $7.84
Whew. Done. So now, all of you know my kitchen as well as I do.
I've got a couple of things up my sleeve from a big, timely day of baking here, so stay tuned!
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