Winter Doldrums

Will whoever pulled the plug on America's appetite for fresh vegetables please reinsert.  It is hard to believe the markets are as slow as they appear to be.  I have spoken to many people in the last two days who say this is the slowest January they can remember, with many admitting to more than 30 years experience.  As usual, no one is certain of the cause, but the tried and true excuses are trotted out and excercised.  The Christmas bill hangover, the cabin fever syndrome, Super Bowl anticipation, and on and on.  Personally, I think people are cooking fewer meals at home and not eating vegetables as often at restaurants.  The success of the Texas Roadhouse chain, which has been packing them in at the Plattsburgh location since opening two months ago is a case in point.  You cannot get a seat without waiting up to two hours.  I refuse to wait that long for mediocre food, but having eaten at one of their stores in  Myrtle Beach, I can tell you that vegetables are like an afterthought at an Alzheimer's convention.  I can guarantee a similar size vegetarian restaurant opening in the same location would probably have closed by now. 

Back to the "Frozen Tundra"

Or not.  Got back from the land of palm trees and illegal immigrants and was immediately  reminded of why I want to go back as soon as possible.  The roads were black ice from Montreal to the border as the temps hovered near the freezing mark.  Saturday was another story and Sunday was even nicer with sunshine and temps in the 40s.  Got some housekeeping work in the garden done, then harvested some fresh spinach in the cold frames.  Usually, even the protected greens are toast by the end of January, but I think these will even have a second cut by the end of Feb.  So far, this winter is more a rumor than reality here on the NCR.  They had to import ice to build a castle for the winter carnival at Lake George, since the lake has not frozen.  There are a few protected bays on Lake Champlain that have frozen enough so ice fisherman can try for pike and lake perch, but the main lake is quite open and when the wind blows out of the south it is quite rough.  At this point in the season, we would have to have several weeks of sub freezing temps to have a general freeze.  I am anticipating an early spring.  The USDA has reconfigured its hardiness zones, and most areas of the country are at least a half zone warmer than they were the last time the agency adjusted them in the mid  1990s.  Even if the politicians refuse to acknowledge what is happening, the legions of gardeners across the country are witnessing the changes on a daily basis.  We may not be planting palm trees in the Adirondacks anytime soon, but what is happening is not trivial and needs to be addressed without the ad hominem attacks on Al Gore.   It may seem counterintuitive to many people, but the facts do seem to have an undeniable liberal bias.

Palm trees and guacamole

Leaving for vacation tomorrow, so posting will be somewhat erratic, although I'm sure the tropics will inspire me, if only the wi-fi will cooperate.  I'm looking forward to tropical fruits and veggies as a change of pace from the usual fare.  I think many of us get locked into a fairly narrow range of choices in what we eat, so to break away from the routine is enlightening.  Unfortunately, when we get back home, unless home is an ethnic melting pot like NYC, the choices inevitably steer your menu plans back to where they were before.  I guess that's all the more reason to enjoy the tropical variations.  I have also seen fellow travelers keep to the same choices as at home.  Bacon and eggs for breakfast, hamburgers for lunch and steak for dinner.  Let it go.

eating for health

That Paula Deen fessed up to her type 2 diabetes diagnosis is surprising, only that it comes 3 years after the fact.  That she should use the announcement as a platform to hawk a non-injectable medication to combat the disease is as tawdry as it is unsurprising.  According to the news story I saw regarding Ms. Deen's announcement, she does not plan to change her approach to southern cuisine, just cut back on the portions of salt, fat and sugar she has been pushing for years.  If she is your guide to southern cooking, you are probably unaware that drowning everything from collard greens to chicken with monumental portions of bacon drippings, lard and salty and sweet seasonings is the only way southerners can enjoy food.  Vegetables are certainly an afterthought in the Deen world.  It would appear she is not planning a road to Damascus moment of conversion to healthy cooking and eating.  More's the pity.

Is corn food?

A story on NPR this morning caught my attention.  American farmers plan to plant 93 million acres of corn this year, with more than 50% slated to go to ethanol production.  In a world where billions of people go hungry every day, we put fuel production ahead of food.  What does this say about the priorities of our country in the 21st century?  Most of the rest of the corn will either feed animals, or be processed into high fructose corn syrup for the soft drink industry.  The logical commentary about social responsibility to the rest of the world or the profit centered business model which produces an obesity rate of 60% or more of the population fails me.  Unbridled capitalism seems a social as well as an economic failure as we head into a pivotal election season.  Unfortunately, neither political party is willing to touch the blight that is American agriculture policy.  So we will continue to drive our gas guzzlers and continue to our unchecked consumption of corn based non foods for another four years.  Sorry about the sour mood of this post.  It only happens when I think about the "leadership" we inflict on ourselves.

Small steps

The new year is pretty uneventful so far.  No outrageous weather, but business seems sluggish overall.  The economy is weighing heavily on most people in the produce business.  The consumer is holding onto food dollars and spending on what is generally perceived as expensive produce items is off.  It doesn't help that when people cocoon during the winter months, it seems produce consumption falls off.  Despite abundant evidence produce is better for you and actually costs less than processed foods there is resistance to eating for health or economic reasons.  Salt and fat taste better and unfortunately, the produce business does not have the advertising budget to counteract the blizzard of commercials we are subjected to in the run up to Superbowl Sunday, when even I will indulge in an orgy of unhealthful eating.  This is the apothesis of the junk food year.  I guess we will have to hold on til the last bag of Doritos is consumed and perhaps some sanity returns to the mind of the consumer.

Winter's Discontent

As we get further into January, the weather is getting uglier.  Snow and sleet changing to rain and back again.  This weekend looks like the deep freeze with temps in the below 0 area.  Plus there are no bright spots in the produce world.  The only good food related news was a story in the NYT about the popularity of Greek yogurt and how New York state farmers are jubilant about prospects in the coming year.  It seems it takes a  lot more milk to make the greek style yogurt than the regular variety.  I know it is a big hit at Casa Monzeglio.  We should have bought stock in the companies which make the stuff.  Now if only someone would come up with some vegetable that would be on everyone's must have list.  Such are the fantasies of January.