America's Obesity Epidemic, and Jamie Oliver's 'Food Revolution'

The World Health Organization defines health as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease and infirmary". Obesity is an example of a health condition that does not necessarily exist along with disease and infirmary, but still has an impact on one's physical, and perhaps mental and social, well-being.

Catherine Rampell has plotted out this graph showing the correlation between obesity and the average amount of time spent eating in various cultures. [Source here.]

 While sociologist Samantha Kwan has criticized the idea of an "obesity epidemic", it has been shown that the community and environment do play a role in the epidemiological factors related to obesity. The television show Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution has served as an agent of socialization to promote public awareness about eating to promote health. 

In February 2010, Jamie Oliver gave a talk at TED about his passion for wholesome food and for addressing the obesity epidemic in the Western world. 

Jamie has a website with recipes. Go here!

Vegetarianism as a Social Movement

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
Michael Pollan

www.ivu.org

 While vegetarians have existed throughout history, usually for religious reasons or simply because of shortage, vegetarianism as a trend did not take hold until the 1960s. But is vegetarianism a social movement? Sociologist Donna Maruer takes a close look at this question in her book, Vegetarianism: Movement or Moment? In his review of that book (read here), Mat Thomas writes:

"Donna Maurer wants to place vegetarianism on the map of social movements. The fruit of her effort is Vegetarianism: Movement or Moment?, a sociological state-of-the-movement report that chronicles recent changes in society's perception of vegetarianism and examines movement responses. Using sociological research, survey results, vegetarian literature, and conversations with movement leaders and activists, Maurer attempts to present a study that 'is useful to the movement's leaders and participants.'"

In her book, Maruer concedes to the fact that the main goal of the vegetarian movement is not political in nature. However, one of its main objectives is to improve quality of life, for people and animals alike, as well as the environment they share. Maruer also points out that along the course of one's vegetarianism, the driving motivations may change. An individual may first convert to vegetarianism for health reasons, and later be just as driven by ethical concerns.

The Weekday Vegetarian movement (also known as "Flexitarianism") has sprung up fairly recently, and its aim is to be sympathetic to the vegetarian movement without having to completely up a more omnivorous menu. Graham Hill reveals in this short TED talk "Why I'm a Weekday Vegetarian".

For this week's recipes, check out The Weekday Vegetarian.

Working to Address Global Poverty

The world's most impoverished societies struggle not only with hunger, but also disease, high child mortality rates, poor maternal health, lack of access to education, and gender disparity.

In the Western world, we have lost sight of what used to constitute as "wealth", historically, in virtually every society, and that is quite simply: food. This is especially true of any food that could provide 1) more food (by means of its offspring), 2) food without sacrifice of the whole animal or plant (as with eggs, milk, fruit trees, and honey), 3) useful by-products (such as leather, bones, and fertilizer), and 4) labor. Cattle have historically served this purpose.

"The very word 'cattle' comes from the same etymological root as the word 'capital.' In many European languages, the word 'cattle' was synonomous with the words 'chattel' and 'capital.' Cattle meant property. [...]
"Cattle was one of the first forms of movable wealth, an asset that could be used as a standard medium of exchange between people and cultures. Both the grain-prodcuing empires of the Middle East and North Africa and the Mediterranean maritime powers traded in cattle. In ancient Greece, families often gave their female children cattle- derived names to emphasize their 'worth' and to attract male suitors. Polyboia means 'worth many cows,' Euboia meeans 'rich in cows,' and Phereboia means 'bringing in many cows.'"
(Jeremy Rifkin, Beyond Beef. Taken from this link.)

Heifer International is one well-known charity working to end world hunger. It distributes farm animals to people in need, and operates on the premise of "passing on the gift".

Beatrice Biira is one of Heifer International's most famous success stories. The gift of one goat brought this young woman out of poverty in Uganda and into a world of limitless possibilities.

Jessica Jackley explores a similar concept, the microloan, in this TED talk:

For more information about Kiva, visit www.kiva.org.

In honor of Beatrice's goat, this week's recipe is for homemade goat cheese.Goat cheese is a wonderful addition to salads, quesadillas, quiche, and so much more.

The Family Meal

Peggy Drexler, assistant professor of psychology at Cornell Middle School, asserts that "Few events are simple and powerful as the family meal". Indeed, companionship (literally, "sharing bread together") is one of the six paramount functions of family, according to sociologist William F. Ogburn.

Food metaphors that relate to society, relationships, and conferred status have been in use for many years. "Upper crust" refers to the elite, or the aristocracy (those "born with a silver spoon in their mouths"). The sentiment that may eventually lead to procreation is often directed toward "the apple of my eye". "Bringing home the bacon" refers to earning an income. And young people who spend dinner time with their families have fewer opportunities to "sow their wild oats".

An entire website has been devoted to the subject of the family meal. It is called The Power of Family Meals and is sponsored by the J.M. Smucker Company. Miriam Weinstein, author of The Surprising Power of the Family Meal, is a spokesperson for Smucker's. The site is centered around tips, recipes, and ideas for creating a family mealtime routine.

This week's recipe is for Beet-Pickled Eggs, because my grandmother used to always make them for every important occasion. Sadly, I don't have her recipe, but this one is just as good. (I like to throw in some sliced onions and a couple teaspoons of pickling spice, after the syrup has cooled but before adding to the eggs.)

What the World Eats (& Doesn't Eat)

Peter Menzel's book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats is a fascinating look into the menus of different families in different parts of the world. Some of the photos from the book are on this link on time.com.

The book gives a more thorough description of the spread in each photo. I found it interesting that the Bhutanese family (#14 of 16 on the Time link) keeps Red Label Tea in the home for serving to guests. (The family drinks the tea they grow themselves.) In my home, I use Brooke Bond Red Label Tea for personal use and serve "fancier" teas to my guests.

If we are on the subject of what the world does eat, then a natural accompaniment would be to consider what the world does not eat - the taboo in the culinary world. Many Jews and Muslims don't eat pork. The Navajo have food taboos concerning seafood. Most Americans find the thought of eating insects and certain rodents appalling. Same with dogs and cats, but for different reasons. Victor Benno Meyer-Rochow explores the origins and purposes of food taboos on this link. In this article, Meyer-Rochow writes: 

"Probably food taboos (as unwritten social rules) exist in one form or another in every society on Earth, for it is a fact that perhaps nowhere in the world, a people, a tribe, or an ethnic group, makes use of the full potential of edible items in its surroundings."

Some of the reasons explored in this article include: highlighting special events; preservation of health; protection of resource; monopolization of resource; and group identity and cohesion.

Kosher dietary laws are one example of food taboos.

In my search for food taboos, I also came upon a list featuring "The 6 Most Sadistic Dishes From Around the World", and to be honest, it is the reason that this week's post does not feature a recipe. The list includes sashimi that is not only raw but still actually living, everything you didn't want to know about foie gras, and even a Chinese tradition of eating meat carved directly from a living donkey. For reference purposes, the list is on this link, but I don't recommend it for the faint of heart or if you have a lunch break coming up in the next hour er, week or so.

Gender-specific Food Advertising

In our culture, even television advertising is an agent of socialization. Companies market their products to specific demographics, and aim to create a sense of "need" that goes even beyond the primary function of the product -- in this case, food the the eating of it.

Consider this commercial for Kellogg's Special K cereal, in which it is suggested that a woman's worth lies in her weight (which should be low) and her shape (which should be trim):

Here is a Special K commercial that aired in Australia in the 1990s. The central message is essentially the same:

Messages in cereal advertising for men have noticeable differences. Consider this 1989 Wheaties commercial featuring Michael Jordan. This commercial places a greater focus on the importance of building a strong body through good nutrition:

Looking at the nutritional labels of each product, it is interesting to note that Special K, with its implied promise to help women become thinner, actually has more calories per 1 cup serving than Wheaties, and more protein. Wheaties, with its images of athletic, strong male sports figures, has only 3.0 g of protein per 1 cup serving. A 1 cup serving of Special K has twice that much protein!

Today's recipe is for homemade granola and carries no gender bias. Alton Brown has a good recipe on this link.

Marketing Food to Children

A post today from Sociological Images features "Disney Princess Grapes": a regular, plain ol' bag of green seedless grapes with a picture of Cinderella and her friends printed on the side.

With all the attention being given in recent years to the marketing of junk food to children, especially in light of America's childhood obesity problem, it is interesting that there has been some initial backlash in response to this marketing scheme. It seems that parents don't want to see cartoon characters on the packaging of food that is still in its natural form.

 In an article titled "The Cultural Structuring of Mealtime Association" (see here), Eleanor Ochs and Merav Shohet explore how children in different cultures are socialized regarding food and practices of its consumption. I have observed that this occurs not only at the table, but also at the supermarket.

When my children were very small, I could walk them down the cereal aisle and they would quickly zero in on the only items they knew they were allowed to have (granola, oatmeal, and Cheerios in the yellow box). Everything else was "not food". From a very early age, when they called attention to the cartoon pictures on the cereal boxes, I would say, "Nice picture! Not food." My little ones would repeat, "Not food". Passers-by would sometimes take notice and marvel at my "brilliant" children, but the little ones weren't intellectualizing; only mimicking. (It helped that they had almost no exposure to television commercials aimed at their age group.) My children had been socialized with certain expectations with regard to what is "food" and what is "not food".

As a parent, I really like Mollie Katzen's cookbook for preschoolers, Pretend Soup, because she makes recipes slightly "gimmicky" without having a commercial angle. This week's recipe is for Number Salad. Please follow this link to access the recipe on molliekatzen.com.

An interview with a food sociologist, and Sustainable Fishing

Only when the last tree has died
and the last river been poisoned
and the last fish been caught
will we realize we cannot eat money

~ Cree Proverb

I began on this link with an excellent interview with food sociologist Mark Kurlansky. Mark's own webpage can be viewed here and I have to say that, as a parent of children who enjoy both food and graphic novels, I am very excited about his newly-published book, A World Without Fish.

Sustainable fishing is just one topic where food sociology intersects with environmental sociology. According to this article from Science Daily, "Seafood is a significant source of protein for nearly 3 billion people and is the planet's most highly traded food commodity, contributing to the livelihoods of more than 560 million people. But a lack of coordinated policy threatens global seafood supplies."

From an economist's standpoint, Martin D. Smith and colleagues at Duke University propose that foreign aid geared specifically toward sustainable fishing practices will help address the problems that have been caused by years of overfishing, without also putting people out of work who are already in desperate need.

For more information on sustainable fishing, check out this TED talk from Dan Barber, called "How I fell in love with a fish:

A short article from the Natural Resources Defense Council about the merits of sustainable fishing can be found here, as well as a list of recipes made with sustainably-raised fish.

Can you eat on $2.00 a day?

A friend of mine told me last week about this website devoted to the challenge of eating on a budget of $2.00 a day. According to that link:

"$2 a day is the global poverty line below which people are defined as living in poverty. The World Bank produces estimates of the number of people living in poverty, and in 2004 they estimated that in 2001 2.7 billion people were living on less than $2 a day. Of these, 1.1 billion people lived on less than $1 a day, the level of extreme poverty" See World Bank data here.

On this link you can read statistics about poverty in the U.S. The largest demographic shown is children under the age of 18, and single women represent the largest adult demographic. 

If you are interested in getting involved, visit Live Below the Line on this link for more information.


I can't think of a better recipe to include with this post than Moosewood Lentil Soup. A bag of lentils costs $.89 or less, and most supermarkets offer tired but perfectly good "soup veggies" at a steep discount. This is a nutritious, yet very inexpensive meal. A small handful of rice added to the pot makes it a complete protein.

Food and Culture

Recently I was visiting friends while they were preparing to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim with their families. My children helped our friends bake a big batch of hamantashen, which is a filled cookie that represents Haman's hat (or his ears, depending on whom you ask). The filling is traditionally made of poppy seeds, but apricot, plum, and other fillings may also be used.

Hamantashen are a delicious tradition, and (together with latkes), are a cultural universal food of the Jewish faith. Sending food to friends and giving to the poor are two Purim traditions. You can read more about Purim here.

You will find a hamentash recipe on this link.

The Globalization of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders have long been (incorrectly) recognized as a phenomenon belonging to Western culture.

A study performed in the 1990s with adolescent girls in Fiji revealed an alarming increase in binging and purging behaviors that had previously been almost non-existant in the culture. This trend in eating disorders directly correlates with the advent of television broadcasting on certain parts of the island, where the ideal type for body shape had long been described as jubu vina (well-formed) [Source: Anne E. Becker, Body, Self and Society, (c) 1995, University of Pennsylvania Press, p.50].

Traditionally, in Fiji, men have regarded large calves as an attractive feature on a potential partner, noting that a woman with a strong frame is better able to keep up with hard work. Since the 1990s, this cultural ideal has been changing.

For this week's recipes I'm going to point you over to this post on Earthy Family, where you can find a number of traditional Fijian recipes with photos. Enjoy!

The Joy of Entomophagy

Does the idea of eating insects "bug" you? In the Western world, entomophagy primarily exists as a form of entertainment, something we think of only for the "shock value" or as a source of entertainment.

At TEDxAmsterdam, Marcel Dicke gave a presentation titled "Why Not Eat Insects?", which raises some compelling points in favor of entomophagy. See the talk here:

According to the website insectsarefood.com, the inclusion of insects on the menu provides "[a]n opportunity to question our own cultural conditioning, and broaden our ideas of what the word 'food' can identify". There are some very specific nutritional and agricultural benefits as well:

"According to the Entomological Society of America insects generally contain more protein and are lower in fat than traditional meats. In addition they have about 20 times higher food conversion efficiency than traditional meats. In other words they have a better feed-to-meat ratio than beef, pork, lamb or chicken."

 
This week's recipe is appropriately "bug-themed" but does not actually contain any insects. If you are interested in true insect recipes, you might consult The Bug Chef. For instructions on how to make the Caterpillar Sushi Roll, see this link. Also see Food.com for a written recipe for this dish. Tips for cooking sushi rice can be found on Just Hungry.

A Hearty Bowl of Feminism

I recently made this recipe for "Gypsy Soup", originally taken from Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook and featured on Cooking Books. This recipe is the springboard for today's blog post in honor of Feminist Coming Out Day.

As the post on Cooking Books points out:

In her book A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove, Laura Schenone writes of Katzen's new vegetarian cuisine that is was liberating, that "a dish like Gypsy Soup offered not only a chance to rebel against the corporate powers that built weapons, pesticides, and commercial foods but also a chance to challenge mother's bland dishes and the narrow gender roles prescribed by Betty Crocker... [Gypsy Soup promised] an adventurous culinary and spiritual journey far away from those commercialized kitchens of the 1950" (Schenone, 330). 

Laura Schenone's book is a fascinating look at the female presence in food preparation, from masdadon to macaroni and cheese. Schenone looks at a variety of specifics such as a slave woman's use of cooking skills to buy freedom for herself and her children, the prestige of "beat biscuits" and how the use of chemical leavening agents changed the scene of biscuit baking, and the vastly different views with which Lakota women would have viewed Pioneer women and vice versa. Hunger, immigration, food ethnicity, rationing, commercialization, and finally liberation are all discussed in this book. 

It is interesting to note that in the modern push toward a more egalitarian society, the tradition of connecting our "selves" with our cuisine has taken a giant step outside of the home and into the commercial world. For me, part of the appeal of Mollie Katzen's Gypsy Soup recipe is that it seems to represent the entire time line of the past thousand years in cuisine. It begins with earthy, wholesome ingredients (made easily attainable to me by largely invisible commercial forces) and ends as an expression of my individual culinary expertise. It reminds me of the African proverb: "If we stand tall, it is because we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us." I have the ingredients and the cooking skills and the appliances and the spices and my particular palate because of the whole history behind my culture and civilization.

What Would Karl Marx Eat?

Recently, I was strangely delighted to find this post on Horrifying Foodstuffs, titled Of Karl Marx and Cool-Whip.

A particularly striking observation that the author, Poppy Buxom, makes about this food product is this:

"My idea is that Cool-Whip is designed for only one thing: to make people get fat by getting them to consume highly caloric non-foodstuffs. In that, of course, it is not alone; there are millions of junk foods with the same goal."

She goes on to explain her idea that if people were more connected to the process of obtaining (making) whipped cream, they would eat considerably less of it.

Why would our culture need a bounty of "highly caloric non-foodstuffs"? With its low price tag and instant gratification, foods such as Cool-Whip and hundreds of other highly processed things that people eat tend to be pantry staples of the working class, especially the "working poor". The conflict theorist Karl Marx called the working class the proletariat. Marx claimed that workers become alienated as a result of being exploited by the capitalist. In particular, the proletariat is alienated from their work, their product, other people, and their species being. This last refers to the human nature to enjoy the process of making things.

Karl Marx

Food provides us with an excellent modern example of Marx's theory. The proletariat working at the Cool-Whip plant puts in long hours, probably is part of a dual-income household with children, comes home at the end of a long shift, and doesn't have the time, energy or inclination to make dinner. What does he or she do? More often than not, working people will reach for convenience foods, which provide fast energy through high sugar, calories, and fat. Dinner becomes an example of alienation from one's species being. 

Miners in Cornwall

Historically, the working class enjoyed a diet that was more connected to the farm or garden. A great example of proletariat food of yesteryear is the Cornish Pasty. This humble, homemade hand-held pie was hardly haute cuisine, but it provided workers with carbohydrates, fat, protein, and sugar in a handy, high-calorie package.

Cornish Pasty

This week's recipe is for Cornish Pasties. Find a recipe on this link at Allrecipes.com. If you prefer an all-vegetable pasty, try this recipe instead.

I'll close this post by pointing you to this interview with Rob Albritton, author of Let Them Eat Junk: Capitalism and Food. Here is a notable excerpt:

"In my interpretation “junk food” epitomises capitalist food in this phase of history, and junk food is high in sugars, fats and salts, while being low in other nutrients. My book does not focus narrowly on junk food, but on a food system whose cutting edge has been junk food and whose largest corporations tend to be centred in the US, expanding outward to the rest of the world. The main themes of the book are the food system’s failure to advance human health, environmental health or social justice; and the connections between the food crisis and the myriad of other crises characteristic of late capitalism."

Albritton's book takes a close look at capitalism and its impact on the distribution of food in our society. He addresses the irrational and unsustainable nature of the current system, and proposes democratization of the labor market as one means of addressing this problem.

I want to invite you all to take a closer look at your food; to see the faces behind what you are consuming.

Vegetables in a Bowl or The Gardener, Giuseppe Arcimboldo.

All Manners of Dining Etiquette: Folkways Around The World

As a teenager, my dating life included a brief interlude with a young man who was from the "wrong side of the tracks". He had been raised by a single mother who had a number of issues including chemical dependency and chronic unemployment, and his father had been absent from his life for as long as he could remember. While his mother was responsible for paying the rent on their apartment, she was almost never there, except to pick up some personal effects once a week or so. This boy and I dated from June until August, the summer I was 16, and his 18th birthday was during that time. My parents took him, my sister, and me out to dinner at their favorite restaurant, a locally-owned Italian place with an atmosphere that can be compared to what you'd experience at Bertucci's or Carrabba's. I had not realized until I observed his reaction when we were seated at the table that he'd never dined at a restaurant more formal than McDonald's or the local "greasy spoon". He was noticeably uncomfortable, and one of the first things that alarmed him was confusion over which plates and utensils were for his use. He was aware that his cloth napkin belonged in his lap, but beyond that, he was lost. He did enjoy his food, and thanked my family for his birthday meal, adding that he'd "never been in a restaurant this fancy before". 

A typical Western table setting.

My friend had been raised with different folkways than what I was being raised with. Folkways are norms, or rules, that govern behavior on a day-to-day basis. The differences in our understanding of table etiquette illustrates this fact.

Good manners are often considered a mark of "good breeding"; however, dining norms differ from culture to culture, and also between different societies within those cultures. As this American traveler in France observes, the table manners that one learns at home will not necessarily apply while visiting abroad. In Japan, the eating customs are even more different from what is familiar to most Americans, as described on this page.

A Japanese place setting.

The arrangement of place settings and proper use of eating utensils is often governed by norms that reflect how the people in a culture interact with one another.

(Left) In Western culture, each diner has his or her own defined dining area, marked by separate plates and utensils. Rules regarding passing food and keeping one's hands off the table, or at least limited to the space in front of her, are emphasized in this dining style.

(Right) In Eastern and African cultures, a communal table setting is not uncommon. Different courses are laid out in the center of the table, and the diners eat directly from the serving plates. Cultures that follow this dining style tend to have more collectivistic values as compared with American culture.






This week's recipe is one of my own creation. It is for a Spicy Mushroom Miso Soup, inspired by an episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate. I wanted to try to recreate the soup that Alex Guarnaschelli raved over, from Miyake restaurant in Portland, ME. To enjoy this soup following Japanese table manners, drink directly from the bowl, holding it with both hands. Slurping is acceptable and shows your enjoyment and appreciation. Use your chopsticks to eat the solid parts of the soup. For Westerners, this will be a definite deviance from the norms we are accustomed to. Click on this link for the recipe.

            

Is Your Valentine Bittersweet?

In the United States and in other parts of the world, Valentine’s Day is synonymous with chocolate, often presented in heart-shaped boxes such as these:

This wasn't always the case. St. Valentine's Day originally traces back to a pagan fertility festival in Ancient Rome, before anyone in that part of the world had ever tasted the Food of the Gods. 

Mayan Cacao God

 Why do we love chocolate so much? From the above link, Claire Spampinato explains: 

"[E]ach 100 grams of chocolate contains 660 mg of phenylethylamine (C6H5(CH2)2NH2), a stimulant similar to the body's own dopamine and adrenaline. Phenylethylamine raises blood pressure and heart rate, and it heightens sensation and blood glucose levels. In fact, it is identical to a hormone produced by the brain when a person feels infatuated-which could explain the chocolate/Valentine's Day connection."

phenylethylamine

So, in essence, chocolate makes us feel good in the same way that we feel good when we have a romantic interest in another person.

Valentine’s Day also provides us with a number of different avenues for discussing specific sociological concepts. Holidays in general have always been connected with cultural diffusion. Christmas, for example, has its origins in pagan winter festivals, the traditions of which can be seen in modern festivities: Christmas trees, Yule logs, flying reindeer, kissing under the mistletoe, etc. Christmas is perhaps the most significant holiday in America, but this was not always the case. In Puritan New England, some colonies banned the observation of the holiday because the revelry and pagan customs conflicted with stringent Puritan values.

While Americans and Canadians have in recent years begun to embrace Eastern holidays such as Chinese New Year,  Valentine’s Day has been innovated into Eastern cultures as well, with different results.

In Japan, Valentine’s Day customs reflect the folkways of Japanese society. On February 14^th, women across Japan are obliged to present their honmei (“sweethearts”) with chocolates and gifts. In the International Journal of Japanese Sociology, Volume 5, Issue 1, pages 41-66, November 1996, Yuko Ogasawara takes a close look at this chocolate-fueled dynamic between the sexes. Below is the full abstract taken from this link.

"Valentine's Day as practiced in contemporary Japan constitutes a cultural puzzle. Comparison of Japanese and American Valentine's Days using data collected through interviews with twenty Japanese and twenty Americans reveals three customs peculiar to the Japanese holiday: an emphasis on chocolate; exclusively women-to-men gift giving; and the prevalence of giving “obligatory chocolate” within offices. Although chocolate companies' promotional activities go a long way toward explaining the first custom and arguably the second, women giving chocolate to male colleagues and supervisors is an adaptation of the original formula made by the participants themselves. Because Valentine chocolate is a highly symbolic gift with the message “I admire you,” whether or not they receive chocolate matters to men. By imbuing the gift with meanings which men find difficult to ignore, women are able to enjoy a temporary power over men. The study strongly asserts the cultural freedom people possess in creating new meanings from available codes."

Meanwhile in India, Valentine’s Day has not been so universally embraced. This holiday that encourages an open expression of affection violates traditional Hindu mores regarding propriety of conduct between men and women. Some of the sanctions that couples have experienced include forcible hair-cutting, forced marriage, and being arrested. 

Valentine's Day protests in India and Pakistan
are common and sometimes violent.

Stratification is yet another issue that relates to the chocolate industry. On Valentine's Day, we think of chocolate as a food that brings people together, at least in pairs. But the very process of cultivating cacao is divisive, on a macrosociological scale. It may come as a surprise to many Americans that slavery still exists on this planet, and we still continue to benefit from the exploitation of slave labor. There is a great deal of information on slavery in the cacao industry on this link.

But back in the U.S., Valentine's Day is fast approaching. This week's recipe is for Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes,  from food is luv. This dessert is just right for two and is sure to warm your hearts. Please consider using Fair Trade Chocolate when you make this recipe.

 

Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes, from "food is luv".

We Built This City (On Bread and Rolls)

“In this food I see clearly the presence of the entire universe supporting my existence.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh

Sociologists study the intricacies of human interaction, particularly on a group scale. Yet for years, the subject of food and its relationship to the human social network was largely ignored by sociologists. This seems strange, since food was the basis of civilization. Food is also where urban sociology and rural sociology converge. Cities, while apparently removed from the natural environment, cannot be sustained without agriculture. Human civilization was literally built on food.

In this TED talk, Carolyn Steel, architect and author of Hungry City: How Food Shapes Our Lives, describes “how ancient food routes shaped our modern world”. 

Prior to the advent of agriculture, humans invariably lived a nomadic existence: wandering about in search of whatever food they could find. The “Fertile Crescent” became the cradle of civilization because the flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers provided people with fertile, moist soil in which to grow crops. The same thing happened along the Nile and Indus rivers as well. As people’s crops grew roots in the soil, so too did the people become “rooted” themselves, and towns were born. Advances in agricultural methods then allowed farmers to produce a surplus, and this is what led to the development of cities and stratification in society.

For thousands of years, cities flourished in landscapes that were accessible to water. Water was essential not only for irrigation, but also for trade, and food was an important commodity. Food was also central to virtually all religions, for thousands of years. Then the Industrial Revolution gave us the railway system and the automobile. These technologies ultimately led to a gross urban expansion, as cities no longer had to be dependent on water in order to bring in food and other commodities. Now we produce more food than we actually eat, and a portion of the population is obese while another portion goes hungry. As Carolyn Steel points out, we no longer value food because we are so separated from the process of its production. We'll explore this more in later posts.

Recipe of the Week

Since food is the central theme of this blog, I plan to punctuate each entry with a recipe that relates to our weekly topic. In keeping with this week's discussion of agriculture and civilization, what could be more appropriate than bread? The word companion literally means "one who shares bread". This is an excellent example of how social relationships have historically been formed and defined according to food, and eating customs and habits.

So, my blogging companions, I would like to direct you to Steamy Kitchen's blog entry for No-Knead Bread. ("So easy a 4-yr. old can make it!") I make this bread often and it really is that simple.