I had never been on a diet:  ever.  I believe in eating relatively healthy and in moderation and exercising to maintain a healthy weight, but I do not believe in counting calories and restricting  my choices of food.   I’m a bit of a hedonist and tend to give into cravings.  So, if I wanted a serving of tiramisu or a bowl of Cheetos, I … Continue reading My experience with an inflammation diet by Cynthia D’Amico-Graham

In Formerly Known as Food Kristin Lawless completely rejects the current American food system. She calls for a reformation if not a revolution. She concludes her book with a 9-point New Food Movement Manifesto. The author identifies as a nutrition educator. Without a formal degree in Nutrition or related field, I conclude that she is primarily a journalist provocateur. Formerly Known as Food does not … Continue reading Formerly Known as Food (How the Industrial Food System Is Changing Our Minds, Bodies, and Culture)

All these preservations affect taste/odor and appearance (browning/oxidation). Before describing the preservation methods, some definitions:  Firstly, “edible” is personally and socially defined, but is also biologically defined as able to pass through the digestive system without serious negative effects. Some substances start out as edible–fruits off the tree, parts of other plants, and most all animals.  Cooking alters the chemistry to increase digestibility, but most … Continue reading The Thirteen Preservations by Allan Griff

A recurring theme on this site has been on the health effects of ultra-processed foods. The Twinkie and a Coca Cola represent the ultimate in ultra-processed foods. The NOVA classification of foods defined ultra-processed foods. Do these products represent the greatest dietary danger to American health? Or are the dangers overexaggerated? Note, this post was inspired by an article by Linn Steward on Gourmetmetrics. In … Continue reading The Twinkies caper: Separating processes and ingredients

Sugar is sweet. We all know that. Sugar performs many other roles in food that make it a valuable ingredient in food. We call these roles functional properties. Sugar is important in home-cooked meals. Sugar is also important in manufactured foods. Absence of sugar in a recipe or formulation may result in inferior quality of the food. Formulations are scientific versions of a recipe. Food … Continue reading Sugar as an ingredient: functional and dangerous

What do you get when you turn a biochemist loose in the kitchen of a school for boys? You get Shirley Corriher, a gift to anyone interested in food and cooking. Her book, KitchenWise, arrived unsolicited in the mail as an early Christmas gift. What a delightful book from a delightful person! Many years ago I was at a dinner meeting of Dixie (since renamed … Continue reading KitchenWise: Essential Food Science for Home Cooks

Most of us are not sad to leave 2020 behind. It has been a miserable year in many ways, more for some than for others. I am optimistic for 2021, but we are not over the pandemic yet. Normal, whatever that will look like, will not be part of our lives for some time. Will we return to a diet of more processed food in … Continue reading Remembering 2020; Looking ahead to 2021

Religious organizations undergird food pantries across the country. Many Christians feel the need to give back to society. They see the need to serve others who are suffering from hunger. In Feeding the Other Rebecca de Souza does not value pantry volunteers. She suggests that they distribute food through a sense of guilt or superiority. She also indicates that volunteers are predominantly white and look … Continue reading A gospel guide for distributing food to the poor

I had heard about food pantries but never knew what went on at a food pantry, who worked or volunteered at food pantries, or who received food from food pantries.  One of my neighbors mentioned that her church announced that a food pantry was looking for additional volunteers.  I could say “the rest is history” because I have volunteered at food pantries and food banks … Continue reading Why I volunteer at the food pantry by Roberta Parillo

“Equality if the mother of justice . . . Justice is the offspring of equality.” –Philo of Alexandria Rebecca de Souza criticized food pantries and the volunteers who inhabit them in Feeding the Other. Today’s blog is a direct response to those criticisms.  She studied two very different food pantries in Duluth, Minnesota. The book relates what she learned. I volunteered at a monthly food … Continue reading In defense of food pantries