Good morning, reader friends. Soon I'll be sending out another Kitchen Kop newsletter (newly revamped, I might add, by someone who actually knows how to design things like that), and I'll be answering questions there, as always. So will you please email me your questions? Send them to: [email protected]. Whether it's related to Real Food, blogging, personal questions or whatever, let 'em rip. If I don't have any idea what the answer is (which isn't a rare occurrence), then I've got this cool little thing that I do, called Facebook. I'll post a question on there now and then and WOW, the answers just start flying in from all of you, my super smart readers. It's so fun to watch people help each other like you do. 🙂
Many of the following links today (and every week) are from all of you who are sweet enough to keep a lookout for articles that us Real Foodie weirdos would find interesting. Thank you! If you find one, please email me: [email protected].
Here's what's up today:
- This is a well done video on the dangers of chemical exposure: The Toxic Baby. “Filmmaker Penelope Jagessar Chaffer was curious about the chemicals she was exposed to while pregnant: Could they affect her unborn child?” (Thank you Deb for sending this to me.)
Check out a great article from Raine last week, 8 Reasons I Won’t Shop at Whole Foods When it Opens in Boise, Idaho. Do you shop at Whole Foods? Mostly I shop at local farms and health food stores, and I'll have to rethink this now, but there are a handful of products I do like my sister to pick up for me from WFM three times a year or so, foods that I can't get anywhere else at the same price…
Check out a great article from Raine last week, - A reader, Theresa, sent this link to a story about doctors ‘firing' families who won't vaccinate. The article was irritating as it was full of untruths or half-truths. Let's count them, how many can you find?
- Yesterday we were at a restaurant and our 19 year old said: “Mom, do you have to make a ‘butter' scene every where we go?” Of course it wasn't really a scene, I just asked them nicely if they had any real butter and when they said they only have a blend of butter and margarine, I replied, “Really? Margarine is really bad for you…” For Kal, that's a ‘scene'.
- A few different readers sent me a link to this scary article: “The World’s first burger made entirely from laboratory grown test-tube meat could be ready ‘by fall' say the team of Dutch researchers behind the project.” Here's what I want to know: why is someone even paying for this little experiment?! “Brown, who revealed that his research is funded by an American venture capital firm, said he will devote the rest of his life to developing products that mimic meat, but are made entirely from vegetable sources.” Are you wondering what I am? Why not just eat meat from animals raised and fed the way they were meant to be?! Brown also stated, “Animal farming is by far the biggest ongoing global catastrophe.” If he's talking about CAFOs, then yes, he's probably right. But there are other options! Which takes me back to this post, “Are meat-eaters ruining the earth?”
Here's a blurb unrelated to food… Does anyone else love Vince Flynn books as much as I do? (I'm very behind in the series at the moment. A certain plot twist really ticked me off a few years ago and for a while I vowed I wasn't going to read him again…) Read this interesting post from a reader, Mary, about Vince Flynn and his recent fight with cancer.
Here's a blurb unrelated to food… Does anyone else love Have a great week!
Jeanmarie says
I almost never eat out, can’t afford it, but if I did, I’d be tempted to carry my own butter and sea salt supply. I have no teenagers to embarrass, and my partner David would love it, so nothing is stopping me but money (and time) to eat out!
Stanley Fishman says
Kel, your butter scenes seems pretty mild to me. Real butter is one of the few things you can get to protect you from the phony factory fats in restaurant food, and you are so wise to request it. I see nothing wrong in trying to protect your health. In fact, it is the Restaurants that should be ashamed of using factory fats and other toxins in their foods. As I said before, if I eat at a restaurant and do not get an upset stomach, I am happy.
Oh, and that artificial vat grown meat is SICK! We need more real food, not lab experiments.
Robin says
So, the article on Whole Foods. While I totally get what she is saying and agree with a lot of it, I still love Whole Foods and will continue to go there for many reasons. I have found that they actually DO carry lots of local items, and there have been plenty of times when I have actually found MORE local produce there than at the farmer’s markets (a whole different subject-I’ve been somewhat frustrated by our farmer’s markets here around Denver). I love the fact that during the holidays, it is possible to find lots of fun, local candies and chocolates that I use to fill my husband’s stocking. I love their bakery-I can get homemade bread (sourdough and otherwise) there, plus homemade tortillas, corn and flour (which are better quality than I was able to find at the Mexican grocery I tried). I love that I can have my choice of several different kinds of organic cheeses there (and not just the standard mozzerella or cheddar you see at the “regular” store). I love that I can actually buy “whole milk” mozzerella, as it seems you can only find part-skim these days at most other stores. In my effort to avoid canned tomatoes, I have been buying the Pomi tomatoes in the box, as they are MUCH cheaper than brands stored in glass, and the Pomi tomatoes are actually about HALF the price that I’ve seen in Safeway. Since I don’t have a source for grassfed cream or butter, I am happy that I can actually find it there.
I could go on, but I guess what I am ultimately trying to say is that while they are FAR from perfect (I still check ingredients labels on everything I buy there, even the bakery and deli items), I can actually find good food there and am grateful to have it, especially as it can take a while to put together that list of local producers you want to buy from. I am still working on that for our family, and am finding that I have less I need to buy from Whole Foods all the time, but still, very grateful to have the option.
I would also like to add that I think they can be a great resource when traveling, and you don’t have access to all your local products that you usually buy. On a trip to Hawaii last year, we made a stop at the WF in Honolulu before driving the 45 minutes to our hotel, and I was so glad we did, tons of great local produce, fish, etc. Halfway thru the week, I decided to just go to Safeway, since it was close, and after 5 minutes there, I had to leave and drive the 45 minutes over to WF, as I couldn’t find one single local product at that Safeway. We were in Hawaii for goodness’ sake, and even the fish (Mahi, a very local fish) was from Peru or somewhere crazy. We also did happen upon an awesome produce stand, but again, when you’re in a new place and just traveling for the week, it can be very difficult to know where to go to find those kinds of places, and I was very grateful to at least know I had the option of getting some fresh, local food at WF.
And no, I dont’ work for them or get anything for saying this :-). I just get kind of tired for seeing people bashing them so badly all the time. Granted, a lot of it is justified, but they are providing some good stuff too.
Lillian says
I agree with you about Whole Foods. They aren’t perfect, but where I live it’s the best source for dairy products as well as other things. Raw dairy products aren’t legal in my state but I can buy good quality dairy products (grass fed, organic, non-homogenized, only pasteurized, cultured) at Whole foods when I can’t find them anywhere else. I also have to say that I’ve seen a lot of local products there as well. Yes, they are a big company, yes, their prices can be crazy and the CEO sounds like a jerk, but I’m grateful that I have this option.
Colleen says
Kelly – If you like vince flynn, make sure you check out lee child jack reacher series as well or the john sandford lucas davenport series. I find most people that like one like the other two as well (myself included)
Diane says
First I got a great chuckle reading your “butter scene” story; my teen and tween would say the same thing (MOM, you’re embarrassing me!) lol! Then I proceeded to tear my hair out reading about some doctors “firing” families from their practices. I had THE WORST doctor visit in the history of doctors visits this past week for my 11 year old daughters yearly well visit. The pediatricians we see are a group of 4 female doctors, and due to bad luck we had to see the doctor I like the least and try to avoid seeing. First, she tried to insist on getting my daughters cholesterol checked. I told her no, because we’re now following an optimal diet for our health, and if the numbers were “off”, there’s nothing I would change. She said she would send us to a “nutritionist” if there was a problem, and I said “why, so they could tell us to eat a low fat diet with 6 to 9 servings of grain per day”. No thanks! Then of course she wanted to push the vaccines on us, flu shot, the HPV vaccine (which she claims is very necessary and just got a “bad rap” in the press), and other vaccines which I don’t even remember because by that point SMOKE was coming out of my ears and I couldn’t think straight! Both she, and I, could not WAIT to get the visit over with! After she left the room my daughter said “Mom, why were you being so mean to the doctor” lol! I tried to explain to her calmly why the doctor and I were “vigorously discussing” these things. Later that day I started thinking perhaps “crazy” thoughts, but I was thinking “what if she reports us to some government agency or something because we’re endangering our kids by not allowing these vaccines!!!” Isn’t it terrible that we have to think this way nowadays!!! My kids had all their early childhood vaccinations because I didn’t know then what I know now, back then I didn’t “question” anything, just went along with whatever the doctors recommended. As my own health has failed me miserably because of following doctors recommendations over the years, I’ve learned to question everything! One thing that I assured my daughter of that day is that NOBODY cares more for her than her daddy and I do, certainly not some doctor who doesn’t even know her! We will do whatever it takes to keep her healthy and safe, and we can do a much better job at that than anyone else can.
KitchenKop says
“Isn’t it terrible that we have to think this way nowadays!!!”
YESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!
D. says
“NOBODY cares more for her than her daddy and I do, certainly not some doctor who doesn’t even know her! We will do whatever it takes to keep her healthy and safe, and we can do a much better job at that than anyone else can.”
This should be a standard response from all parents who are in the process of caring for and raising their children. It would appear, sadly, this is something which will actually need to be TAUGHT to them before they understand it.
The kids, should in turn, be taught that yes, their parents will make mistakes along the way, but they are trying to do what they feel is best for their child(ren).
And yes, it’s terrible we have to think “this way” nowadays – and I fear it’s only going to get worse in that regard. We are giving up our liberties without questioning the leaders of this country (soon to be called rulers) in every other facet of our lives, too – medical, nutrition, insurance, retirement, banking, military . . . the list goes on endlessly and one subject spills over into another. Mandatory vaccination is only a whiff and a whisker away. Our leaders are losing patience with their now non-compliant flunkies (that’s us) and they don’t like us asking questions and making trouble. Pretty soon we won’t be able to ask questions – that is my biggest fear. It almost makes me glad my earthly journey is coming to a close. I feel so sorry for the kids of today. Everything wasn’t hunky-dory when I was growing up in the 1950’s either, but it sure seemed so much better than now.