Documentaries are my guilty pleasure. Dakotapastor and the Dakotakids don’t care for them. I’m a closet anthropologist, so I am drawn to them. I’ve watched too many food related docs lately, and they usually make me fear food…so I decided to try another topic. And then Dive caught my eye. It was a food doc, but it was primarily about food waste.

My curiosity was peaked as I had just listened to a presentation from the Great Plains Food Bank just last week about the astounding amount of food that is wasted in America before it even gets to our dining table. I KNEW that we wasted a lot of food once it gets to our table, one look at the food scrapings of the Dakotakids makes that abundantly clear.

The film opens with scenes of some bearded, slightly dirty men “dumpster diving” behind a grocery store. My first feeling was pity, that these men could not afford to buy food. But the next scene was of these same men grilling steaks and serving a lavish spread at a baby shower. All with food procured from a dumpster behind a high end grocery store.

These people could afford food…yet they had freezers full of food that they “rescued” and paid nothing for.

Dive! Trailer from Compeller Pictures on Vimeo.

My feelings were mostly that of annoyance with a system that would throw out food rather than feed the hungry in our country. Dakotapastor pointed out, and rightly so, that part of the blame falls on us, the consumer. We are demanding of our retailers. If we go to the store and expect to buy a steak, potatoes and the makings of a garden salad, we complain loudly if the grocer is out of any of the items we desire. Can you imagine the uproar if you were to attend a catered event and the caterer were to run out of food? These very attitudes lead grocery stores to over purchase food and our caterers to over plan for events.

Dakotapastor also pointed out that our own overprotective government is to blame. Do you think, for instance that the sell by dates on our food are, perhaps, a bit too conservative? I often purchase meat that is perfectly fresh a few days within the sell by date at a significant discount. I freeze it, and feed it to my beloved family with no ill effects.

I think some of the problem can lie in man power. While there are local organizations (Great Plains Food Bank is a local one here) that can accept and redistribute close dated, overstocks and cosmetically flawed food items, it takes work to get these items from the retailer to the food bank. And many retailers may find it easier to simply toss the un-sellable items in a dumpster rather than take the time to contact the right people to get the goods from point a to point b.

Now, I do think there were some faulty claims in the movie. At one point the jump was made that our wastefulness contributes to the hunger we see in places like Haiti and the continent of Africa. However, our cleaning our plates here in America will not make food magically appear on the plates of our precious brothers and sisters in Haiti.

I also don’t think that our government plays a role in reducing our food waste. I think our reducing waste actually has to be a bottom up movement. I’m not sure that bullying our grocers and putting cameras in their faces is going to make them magically desire to help the needy. I do think that if most business owners are approached about the opportunity to donate their food destined for the dumpster without fear of litigation in case of food poisoning etc. (Good Samaritan Law) they will respond favorably, as long as it does not require extra work on their part.

I am pleased to know that both Cashwise foods and Dan’s Supermarket here in Bismarck donate their surplus to the Great Plains Food Bank.

As for myself, the documentary made me a little more aware of the waste that goes on in our own home. I plan on being more mindful about what I purchase for our consumption, use what I buy and not overcook which leads to leftovers that get thrown away. I do think that reducing our food waste begins at home.

It is embarrassing that here, in the land of milk and honey, where we have so much and produce so much, so many still go hungry. Sadly, much as in the case of Haiti and Africa, I think the cause of American hunger is a result of bad choices and politics. You and I…we have the power to be the change.

Follow the simple rules my father had at his dinner table: “Take all you can eat, and eat all you take.”

Let’s stop being food hoarders. I think some of our extreme couponing measures lead to a lot of food stored, and not a lot eaten.

Volunteer with your local food banks, offer to help transport food from supermarkets and restaurants to places where the food can be used.

Grow your own food when you can, and donate the surplus.

Don’t fuss if your supermarket runs out of food. This is actually a sign of good waste management.

Don’t be afraid of close dated items if you can use food quickly. It makes no sense for our family of eight to pass over a gallon of milk that is dated within a week…we can go through a gallon in a day!

Do you want to watch Dive! The Film? It is available on Netflix streaming, or you can download it from iTunes.  I can guarantee you that you will take something from the film. I may not have agreed with everything shown, and yet, it did challenge me to change some of our habits.

Chime in! Have you seen Dive? What are your thoughts? Do you have solutions or ideas on how to deal with our food management issues?

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But, my goal in simplifying our meal planning was to avoid take out food as much as I could. I feed a family of 8…take out pizza adds up quickly.

However, I have a very convenient ace up my sleeve. . .does anyone remember what my New years resolution is? (And yes, I’m aware that resolutions are so 2011 and the new thing is a single word for the year…but I can’t think of a single word to replace “quit whining”, so I’m going all retro and sticking to a resolution.)

Yes, friends…over a month and a half in, and I’m still baking! I truly have to credit the no-knead Artisan style of bread I’ve been crafting. I’m super lazy…so if I had to really, truly work at baking bread every day, we would have tanked by January 3.

I’ve discovered that the same bread that I bake into free form loaves works great as pizza dough as well. Which is perfect because I my kids lost the dasher to my bread machine pizza dough maker. A few times I resorted to buying the dough in the cans (don’t judge), but at $3 per crust, I might as well get some really tasty take out pizza!

So, I’ve been making up pizzas every Friday. The boys like pepperoni or anything without mushrooms, and I have been making a chicken bacon ranch variety. But this week…I made the best vegetable pizza ever!

I started with a whole grain crust. Then I brushed on some ranch dressing for the “sauce”. I added some generous handfuls of shredded Italian cheeses, some thinly sliced tomatoes,  sliced zucchini, mushrooms (I had to settle with canned…they were on hand) and a few handfuls of spinach leaves. I topped with some cheddar and parmesan and baked at 400 until it looked delightful!

I'd share, but it is all gone!

Chime in! Have you tried to replicate a favorite take out pizza at home? Were you successful? What is your favorite pizza topping combination?

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Fact: One of every three U.S. children are obese or overweight.

Fact: The typical food item in the U.S. Travels 1,500 to 2,400 miles from farm to plate.

Fact: Less than 1 in 10 North Dakota youth, grades 9-12, eat the recommended 2 servings of fruit and 3 servings of vegetables a day.

These are some of the statistics that I heard at the Dakota Grown Local Foods Conference last weekend.

I find it shocking that we live in a state so rich in agriculture and yet we feed our children so poorly.

I asked this question on my Facebook fan page and on Twitter: “What keeps you from buying more fresh and local foods for your family?” I got some very clear answers. The biggest hurdles are cost and convenience. We are busy, and money is tight.

And this, I think, is the very reason that our schools do not serve more fresh local foods. I have children in three different schools in our city, and I can tell you that the meals that are served are improving.

Dakotatween and Dakotateen load up on fresh fruits and vegetables from a salad bar daily. The Dakotalittles do not have a salad bar option at their elementary school, but they are served a variety of fruits and vegetables each and every day. The entrees served have finally gotten away from breaded chicken nuggets every few days and our children are challenged to try a variety of foods.

This is all progress. But I know that we can do better.

According to National Farm to School:

• The choice of healthier options in the cafeteria through Farm to School meals results in consumption of more fruits and vegetables with an average increase of one serving per day, including at home.
• Schools report a 3 to 16 percent increase in school meal participation when farm fresh food is served through farm to school programs.
• And, for every $1 spent on local foods in schools, $1-$3 circulate in the local economy.

The major aims of the Farm to School approach are healthy children, healthy farms and healthy communities. To me, it sounds like everybody wins.

There are no simple solutions though. Schools are not automatically going to search out farms to partner with and not all parents are able to spend the time and energy to determine what exactly goes into a school lunch.

I encourage you to get involved in the Farm to School project at a local level if you are able. There are Farm to School Programs, at varying levels of activity, in all fifty states. Parents can help Farm to School succeed by promoting programs, organizing field trips and volunteering in classrooms.

Do you want more information on the North Dakota Farm to School program? Contact Sue Balcom at sbalcom@farrms.org

Do you need to find more information for Farm to School program in your state? Check out http://www.farmtoschool.org

Chime in! Do your kids eat school lunches? Is there an active Farm to School Program in your community? Have you been involved in it? I’d love to hear about your experiences!

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Well, I think they taste good!

Here on the prairie, there are not many options for fresh vegetables in the winter. We eat a lot of frozen vegetables. I remind myself that frozen vegetables retain nutrients as well or better than their fresh counterparts and they tend to still have that fresh veggie look when I steam them. However, there is just no getting around the not fresh taste. About the only frozen vegetables I can tolerate are peas, green beans and corn. Oh, and brussels sprouts. You know, the maligned step-child of the vegetable world, undertable dog snack. . .brussels sprouts. I love them.

Dakotapastor and the Dakotakids hate them. They really hate them. But I am so sick of frozen green beans and corn that I’m about ready to give vegetables up for Lent later this month.

So this weekend at the grocery store I rebelled. I passed up the freezer section and stocked up on fresh, possibly out of season and not grown anywhere near here vegetables. I bought asparagus, squash, peppers, snow peas, broccoli and brussels sprouts. 

Yes, I decided to make the kids and husband try them again. But I was not going into this fight alone. No…

I harnessed the power of Facebook for brussels sprout wisdom.

I learned a few things. I learned that my pal Dawn is a smart alec…and she probably got in a lot of trouble as a kid for not eating her veggies. In response to my asking how to prepare fresh brussels sprouts she said:

(ahem), Wisdom speaking here: A great way to prepare them is to gently tell them that they will soon be meeting the trash can, and then toss them quickly down the garbage disposal..that is the best way to prepare them, in my opinion. You could toss some lemon peel down as well…to help with the smell! : )

My friend Ellen suggested cheese:

Have you tried a simple cheese sauce? My kids would eat anything with cheese and then learned to eat things like cauliflower without the cheese.

However, the problem is that I have hidden too many healthy things under a cheese disguise and the Dakotakids are on to me.

My father-in-law went the veggie dessert route. (He must have been reading some Jessica Seinfeld):

Deep fry them in oil after breading. Let them cool. Cover with chocolate syrup. Add powdered sugar to your taste. It works for me.

Many of my friends had great ideas. Many included bacon, which sounded great but required a trip to the store, which I was avoiding. So I settled on Big game Hunter Steve’s treatment:

Use a paring knife to cut off what remains of the stem, and remove the outer leafs. Throw them into a baking pan, drizzle with olive oil, crushed sea salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes, maybe even finely chop a shallot and sprinkle that on them too (I like the chopped bacon sprinkling as well). Get in there with your hand (screw the bag as that’s wasteful) mix it around; and then roast at 425 for 20-30 minutes or until the outer leaves are just caramelizing. Serve them up with some grilled flank steak and mashed yams and call ‘er good! Oh yeah, and pair it with a big earthy Cabernet.

Now, I don’t eat yams…mashed or not, and I did not have shallots on hand (though I do love them). I was broiling steaks, and I guess my cheap house wine will have to sub for the earthy cabernet (it totally would go).

I think they turned out very well. I chose Big Game Hunter Steve’s recipe for a few reasons.

• Dakotapastor grew up eating dinner at Big Game Hunter Steve’s house a lot and he raves about BGHS’s mom’s cooking. So, to Dakotapastor, BGHS is a reliable source.
• I figured the Dakotakids would be more receptive to eating a “dude inspired” recipe.
• I had everything except the shallots (and that earthy Cabernet) on hand.

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But really, that thirty some hours away. . .it did wonders for me! 

Not only did I get to learn an an incredible amount of very useful information about our very active agriculture industry here in North Dakota, I also got to spend some down and dirty quality time with some awesome North Dakota bloggers.

You see, while we bloggers appear very social (and we are), at the same time we often work in a vacuum, in our own little bubble.

Take, for instance, Beth of Rhubarb and Venison. We live close to each other. Very close. And we share a lot of the same loves. But we never see each other. We just “see” each other through blogs and Facebook pages. And that is OK. However, this weekend we carpooled to Fargo Beth was stuck in a car with me yakking at her for several hours at a time. It was great! I think any time that women can get together and share their views and ideas, each person comes away a little wiser, a little more enriched.

I think the frosty branches added to the charm.

Quick, Beth, snap the photo so I can taste this!

Beth showed me a side of Fargo that I had never seen. To be honest, I spent a lot more time in Fargo when we lived in Minnesota. Fargo was 90 miles away and it was our go-to spot if we wanted to go to a shopping mall. Also, people tended to have babies there. And Pastors have conferences there. Otherwise, Fargo never offered us much. Beth showed me that Fargo has a charming downtown. We wrapped up our weekend with a mocha for myself and a tea for her at Nichole’s Fine Pastry.  I treated myself to the most decadent Raspberry Chambord Mousse. It was like a mouthful of heaven. We enjoyed the charming interior, took pictures of our food (that is what bloggers do), and treasured the moment.

These are the things bloggers do. . .

Then we took another field trip to the Asian and American Market.

I think those quail eggs are the coolest thing I've seen in a market. I have no idea how to prepare them though.

Where Nichole’s was bustling, yet quiet; the Asian and American Market was just plain bustling. I realized how very little I know about ethnic foods and wished I had my friend Gayle there to give me some hints. However, I came out with some interesting rice and grain mix, sesame oil, not -American soy sauce, some really fabulous looking fresh bok choy and enough bean sprouts to keep me happy and remind me that I need to start sprouting beans and grains at home again.

Chime in! Have you had face time with a fellow blogger lately? What did you do? Did you learn from each other? YOu know I’d love to hear from you!

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