Thursday, October 17, 2013

Organic.org

Organic.org

Organic vs. Local Produce: How To Choose, When You Have To

Posted: 17 Oct 2013 04:55 PM PDT


It's a bourgeois dilemma, to be sure, but it's one many produce-loving healthy eaters face: If your neighborhood farmer's market only sells local blueberries grown with pesticides and the organic ones at your grocer have been flown in from Chile, which do you buy? In an ideal world you'd always have access to berries that fulfill both criteria, but that's not generally the case.

"I dealt with this yesterday with a client," culinary nutritionist Stefanie Sacks, MS, CNS, CDN, told me as soon as I presented her with the question. "It's all about learning how to negotiate."

We spoke with Sacks, along with local-leaning Juice Generation founder Eric Helms, and the health coach Urban Detox Club co-founder Jen Morris for a well-rounded perspective on the many factors to consider, plus easy tips to help you pick:

FACTORS TO CONSIDER

1. Pesticides and nutrients. 

To avoid gross chemicals altogether, organic is definitely the way to go. But small farmers selling roadside cucumbers may also be using less pesticides than a giant industrial operation; they may even be partially organic, but not up to USDA-certification standards. And if you're buying the veggies through a third party, they may be checking for you. "We take great pains to meet our farmers and ensure that, certified or not, they're using sustainable methods and following organic best-practices," says Juice Generation founder Eric Helms, a huge proponent of local sourcing. It's just hard to know. Local produce is also going to be richer in nutrients, since it's been picked more recently.

2. Environment and community.

"If you're trying to be a conscious consumer, local is usually better," Urban Detox Club's Jen Morris says. Not only is it way better for the planet, it also means your dollars are going directly to the person growing your food and supporting the local economy.

3. Taste and appearance. 

As anyone who's ever opened a plastic box to find already limp, wet arugula knows, when it comes to flavor and prettiness on a plate, local wins. "It goes without saying that local produce—produce harvested just the day before it's delivered to our USDA Certified Organic production facility—retains a vibrancy with which imported products could never compete," says Helms.

TIPS TO HELP YOU CHOOSE

1. Talk to the farmers. 

"The people at the market are often the ones growing the food," says Morris. "Ask them what their practices are like." If they're using GMO seeds and spraying pesticides like it's going out of style, you can always politely move on.

2. Use the Dirty Dozen. 

Both Sacks and Morris suggest using EWG's list of the top 10 most pesticide-laden foods as a guide. For the foods that top the list, make sure you go organic, even if it means you can't do local. For those that tend to hold on to less residue, like those on the Clean 15 list, stick to local, even if it's not organic. This is the kind of grocery shopping negotiation that Sacks recommends.

3. Consider the volume. 

"The amount you're eating matters," Sacks says. So if you're eating an apple every day, for example, you'd better buy the organic bag. If you're just eating a few slices with almond butter once a week, buy the New York State ones that have been sprayed. "If it's not something you're eating a lot of, I wouldn't get yourself too crazy about it."—Lisa Elaine Held
[via Well + Good]

Stinging Nettle: How To Identify, Harvest, and Eat

Posted: 17 Oct 2013 12:53 PM PDT




It's unbelievable how much food you can collect from the wild! Our society is so accustomed to running to the grocery store for food that foraging for wild edibles has become a novelty instead of a necessity. Our ancestors not only knew how to identify wild plants that were edible, but they also wisely used this free bounty of nature.

Now that we're learning more about edible wild plants, we have had several meals and snacks made up of weeds, plants, berries, and vegetables we harvested while out walking. (And no, we didn't have to steal them from anyone's yard!) Recently we had a beautiful salad with chickweed and dock, embellished with some of our favorite salad toppings. But one of our new spring favorites is sautéed stinging nettles with pasta or veggies.



Why stinging nettles?

Stinging nettle definitely lives up to its name – it will sting like crazy if you brush up against it or handle the plants without wearing gloves. But this nuisance of a plant is highly nutritious and readily available in most areas, making it one of the perfect wild plants to consume.

When cooked or dried, nettles completely lose their stinging properties, making them perfectly safe for consumption. You can steam, sauté, or boil them and enjoy with a meal or in soups. You can also make a wonderful tea with the leaves, sweetening with honey and lemon. Use them in any dish you would normally use spinach. They have an earthy, wholesome flavor that you're sure to enjoy if you enjoy other greens.

Stinging nettles are also packed with nutrients. They are high in Vitamin C, Vitamin A, and full of calcium, magnesium, iron, and potassium. Nettles are also a wonderful source of protein. Seriously!

Finding and harvesting stinging nettles

Nettles will begin popping up in early spring, and can be found all across North America. Its proper habitat is in sunny places where there is rich, moist soil. You'll find them growing along rivers, streams, lakes, ditches, fencerows, and on the edges of cultivated farm fields. When Matt and I walk along one of the nearby rivers, we always notice it growing abundantly as a "weed."

Stinging nettle will grow in dense clusters, and stalks can reach 5-8 feet at maturity. Leaves are about 2-5 inches long with jagged edges, found in opposing pairs along the upper half of the stalk.  Leaves are pointed at the tips, with a heart-shaped base and indented veins. The plant will have small "hairs" up the stalk and stems. (This is where the sting comes from!) Young plants will have smaller, heart-shaped leaves with a purple-ish hue, while the mature plants have longer, pointed leaves that appear very green. (For more pictures, click here.)

The best time to harvest nettles is the first few weeks after they come up in the spring, before they grow to be a foot tall. Wearing gloves, pick the first two or three pairs of leaves from the tops of plants. Carefully place nettles into a paper or plastic bag for transport. Nettles can still be harvested into summer, but keep in mind the top few pairs of leaves will be most tender, and stalks and stems will be very fibrous.

Once you are ready to use your nettles, use kitchen tongs to remove from the bag and place in a colander to rinse well. To avoid stinging, continue using tongs as you transfer your nettles from the sink to the stove.

Sautéed Nettles With Onions and Pasta

(Makes 2-3 servings)

You will need:
  • 8 cups stinging nettles, rinsed well and chopped into smaller pieces if desired (use tongs while rinsing and dealing with nettles)
  • ½ cup spring onions or ramps, sliced
  • 2 Tbsp butter, preferably pastured
  • 2 Tbsp other fat, like bacon grease, coconut oil, lard, etc. (we like bacon grease)
  • ½ cup cooked ham, cubed (optional)
  • 1 cup noodles, uncooked
  • sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
  • freshly grated parmesan
Directions:

Boil water and cook noodles. Strain noodles, add a little olive oil to prevent sticking, and set aside. Melt fats in a large skillet on medium heat. Add spring onions and sauté for a few minutes. Using tongs, carefully add nettles to skillet and toss in fat and garlic until cooked down. Add optional cubed ham and toss until warm. Add noodles and gently toss all ingredients together to combine. Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste. Garnish with freshly grated parmesan and enjoy!


We eat this as a complete meal, but it can also be served as a side dish.

Spring is the perfect time to find tender stinging nettles, so start foraging and take advantage of this natural free food source!

We highly recommend these books if you're interested in learning more about edible wild plants:
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