Wonder what spin those feel-good marketeers over at the High Fructose Corn Syrup lobby will put on the Mercury content found in half the samples- maybe they'll tell us we're being treated to an extra mineral supplement?

 From Forbes

Almost half of tested samples of commercial high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contained mercury, which was also found in nearly a third of 55 popular brand-name food and beverage products where HFCS is the first- or second-highest labeled ingredient, according to two new U.S. studies...

 HFCS has replaced sugar as the sweetener in many beverages and foods such as breads, cereals, breakfast bars, lunch meats, yogurts, soups and condiments. On average, Americans consume about 12 teaspoons per day of HFCS, but teens and other high consumers can take in 80 percent more HFCS than average.

The author of two separate studies goes on to note that mercury is toxic in all its forms and extremely troublesome for children.

As has been noted before here and elsewhere a perfectly safe alternative exists: sugar. Mercury - does a body bad.

Read about (Franken) Food Trends here.

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Okay, just so you don't think this is nothing more than a shameless ploy for sympathy (did I mention I was bedridden almost three whole days?) - let me cut quickly to the chase.

Since I'm a little behind due to my butt-kicking bout with the flu, I was thinking I'd have to be late with my S/O/L/E Food Tuesday post. Then a wonderful thing happened on the way to a cleaned-up Inbox. I saw a Facebook notification that Rebecca Katz had 'friended' me on Facebook. Rebecca Katz is the author of One Bite at a Time and though I've never met her personally, I consider her more than a Facebook friend. You see, when my father-in-law was first diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer, I went full bore into research mode. Quickly realized that anyone undergoing treatment for throat and mouth cancers comes up against the dilemma of needing to keep up with nourishment while becoming less able to swallow and less interested in food when they need it most.

I found Rebecca's wonderful site and book and wrote to her through the website with more questions about how we could sneak in some healthy fat and calories that Sze would need when he's notoriously opposed to them. I never really expected to get an answer back, but I got much more. Rebecca provided me with so much help, really it was like a private consultation. Anyway, it was a godsend when we really needed it. Thanks again Rebecca!

I enthusiastically recommend the book, One Bite at a Time. I bought it and cooked from it during his recovery. The recipes are healthy and delicious and you don't need to be recovering from cancer to enjoy them! (see the subtitle: Nourishing Recipes for Cancer Survivors and their Friends). This is the kind of food that makes your body happy when you're eating it. Only later it dawns on you that it's also healthy.

(It's on my Powell's Bookshelf click on the image to go there.)

So, focus back on me...and my flu...I've been amazed at the healing power of soup. The Hot and Sour soup from Taiwan Cafe (and the ministrations of my husband) have saved me. I'm vertical again and back at the computer.

The salvation soup (sun lai tong) from Taiwan Cafe, the fact that January is National Soup Month, and the surprise reconnection with Rebecca remind me that she has a recipe for a delicious broth called Magic Mineral Broth. Packed with minerals and umami (click here to read more), it's savory and delicious and once you've had it, you want it again. I should make a big batch tomorrow.

• Here is a link to Rebecca's site, The Inner Cook and her Magic Mineral Broth.

• For another delicious but leaning-more-toward-the-decadent-side-of-the-spectrum recipe, see my latest Suite post: Sustainable Vodka Mac & Cheese. Okay, who am I kidding, it's totally decadent. But, it can be made vegetarian by omitting the crisped prosciutto on top.

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Great news! 

I've just learned that the Dewey Square Farmer's Market will be returning this summer! Don Wiest, Chair of the Boston Public Market Association, wrote me since I've been an advocate/pain in the arse to anyone that would listen. Imploring anyone to understand this neighborhood loves its market and wants it back.

Thanks to the Boston Public Market Association's work, the Greenway Conservancy and City Hall, as well as some private sponsorship, it looks like we'll have our Farmer's Market up and running once again!

Follow here and the LDNA blog to see if we manage to get Don or someone from BPMA to come to an upcoming LDNA meeting to give us an overview of where things stand with the permanent year-round market plans. Don asks that we let the BPMA know what the Leather District residents' preferences are for days to open the market.

→ Please take a moment to take this poll - Dewey Square Market Days - and let us know your preference for days. I've also created a place to write in other information you think is relevant.

Alternatively, you can write me here or Chris Betke through the LDNA blog. The important thing is to let the Board know that we are here, ready to support our market!

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A Few Firsts

After all these years in Boston, we finally made it to a “First Night” celebration. V-v-v-viewed ice sculptures in the f-f-f-freezing cold. It was gorgeous and we did it. (We also found a really nice sparkling blanc de blancs from Alsace for a whopping $13.00. We love Bauer Wines!) We had noodles to make the “smooth transition” to a new year in accordance with Japanese tradition.

The First Night adventure was a “first” for me at an age when new experiences are harder to come by. We wouldn’t have discovered the Willm sparkling wine bargain, had we not ventured out. Another recent first was my first roast capon. Wonderful bird, wonderful soup, and one of those “why did I wait so long?” kind of experiences.

I wrote a piece for a new client, Carrie and Danielle, called New Year’s Eve Traditions - Old & New.  In that piece, I shared some traditional foods and rituals from around the world.

• Do you know who eats pickled herring on New Year’s Eve?
• Who wears clothes with circular patterns and why?
• Why would you see a suitcase outside or old clothes flying out a window on New Year’s Eve?
• If you did, where would you be?

Carrie and Danielle is a place to find inspiration, laughs, gasps, and reflection. I hope you’ll enjoy the site and my NYE Traditions piece. In it, I share my once-private ritual of paper burning. You’ll have to read the piece to see if you like it, I’m not telling all here.

As my birthday comes ‘round this time of year - it always causes an extra dose of reflection on firsts, lasts, never haves and why nots. I came across the story of my first experience skiing out West which I wrote up to share with my father-in-law just after his cancer was diagnosed. Reading it again, I thought it might be good to share now while we are all full of resolve to live life more fully. My intent was not to minimize the diagnosis, but only to share one small example of strength and abilities we may not know we have.

What I learned in Jackson Hole

I learned to ski as an adult. Thrilled, I bought my own skis and tried to go as often as possible. Friends who were more experienced skiers kept telling me to go West. The skiing here on the East coast is so different, inferior. Once you experience real powder, they said, you’ll never be satisfied with the icy, so-called “packed powder” here. Besides, they said, real snow is easier for beginning skiers.

My chance came in a flier in a credit card bill. You know, those package deals offering flight and accommodations on the cheap? Jackson Hole, Wyoming – one of those ski destinations my skiing friends were talking about. So, for short money I took the 3 days, two nights ski trip. Real skiing! Real powder! Off I went!

Jackson Hole is a gorgeous little town. Done up to look authentic, as if the old-timers still lived there, but with art galleries and nice restaurants. I was so excited to try my new skiing skills out on real powder. I couldn’t wait, ready to ski on real snow.

Day One
It was cloudy and cold, but we headed to the lift. I was shocked at how slow the lift was. Compared to the lifts back home, this one seemed to take forever. Hmm. So far, this Western ski experience did not impress me. We finally got to the top and I was off. Or down. It seemed I’d forgotten more than I expected from the last ski season.

I skied about twenty or thirty feet and was down again. The backs of my skis were buried in so much snow. I was exhausted just from digging them out. Another twenty or thirty feet. Down again. Digging and digging to free my skis of all this “wonderful” powder. How had I forgotten how to ski in one summer? It really must be true that it’s different to ski on true powder. Maybe I just needed to distribute my weight differently.

On it went. Twenty feet of bliss, ten minutes of digging myself out. Eventually, I was able to adjust and could ski further and further before falling down. One thing I did notice was the lack of crowds. I practically had the mountain to myself. It was great not to worry about running over little kids who didn’t know I couldn’t really stop that well.

Sweaty, tired, I saw a lodge, part of the way down. Time for a break! This was great, even though I’d forgotten so much from just last winter; I was starting to get the hang of it again. The mountain was not crowded. Happy girl.

Day Two

I discovered the reason for the clouds (and the discount): a blizzard was moving in. It was so cold they closed the lifts due to frostbite hazard. My tears froze on my eyelashes walking two blocks to breakfast (remember the package deal - no food in my motel.) Next to me at the breakfast café was a famous Iditarod athlete in training. Everyone was talking about the storm and the cold, locals and tourists alike. The mountain pass to Grand Targhee was closed by snow. We had a day to shop for warmer clothes and boots. Extra socks. Very important.

Day Three

It was a colder day, but clear. Conditions improved and the lifts were opened. We arrived at the parking lot, to take the same lift.

When I looked up, I nearly fell over. Literally. Just to look to the top of the mountain, I had to bend back so far, I nearly fell over. I had to remind myself again and again that I had actually skied this mountain the day before. I couldn’t believe it was true, but I knew I had done it.

I stood there at the base of the mountain, barely able to move. Could I get on that lift again? Even with the knowledge that I had done it, I could barely make myself get on that lift again.

My epiphany

I am certain that had it been a clear day, that first day; had I seen that massive mountain, I never would have gotten on that lift. I also figured out that the lift was not slow, it was that the mountain was that high. I learned that Jackson Hole has the steepest vertical drop in the US. The summit is at 10,450. Yet, on day one, without the knowledge of the challenge before me, I was able to do something that my rational mind would never have imagined I could. Facing the mountain on day three, I realized I had skiied it the first day. I could do it that day.

I got on the lift, with no small amount of fear, had a great day, skied better and even extended my trip to go ski at Grand Targhee. (Another amazing day, complete with recitation by a cowboy poet driving our bus!)

Never haves and why nots

We don’t know what will happen, life takes some horrible turns. But living life in fear or under the illusion that we can control any of these things at all is not living. For those of us in a reflective place, I have some advice. If you're in the mood for resolutions, some tips.

Don’t let fear get in the way of those “never haves". Find ways to challenge yourself even if the dream adventure is out of reach. Challenge yourself in a small, private way. Whether it’s skiing a steep mountain or a frigid midnight New Year’s Eve adventure - tackling our “never haves” with a “why not” attitude is one resolution to consider.

It could be a thing you never told someone. A hurt you’ve carried - why not let go? Maybe it’s time to face it? Read my NYE rituals piece and see if there’s not something in it for you. Challenge yourself to one attainable goal this year, hope for something you dare not hope for, let go of something you don’t need to carry.

• How to make SMART Goals for Gourmets.
• New Year's Eve Traditions, Old and New

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Seems Jeremy Piven (of Entourage and now or recently on Broadway in Speed the Plow) was discovered to have mercury poisoning, they believe from sushi and possibly Chinese Herbs.

Well the highest levels of mercury occur in the big, top of the food chain predators that we shouldn't be eating, anyway. Maybe if Jeremy knew more about Sustainable Sushi, he wouldn't be in sushi rehab watching his understudy do his lines.

Mamet quipped: "My understanding is that he is leaving show business to pursue a career as a thermometer."

Want to estimate your own mercury levels? Try the mecury calculator - it's fun for the whole family!

And speaking of creepy food news... don't even get me started on that Burger King dude by the fire. First he's popping up outside someone's window, pouncing on lumberjacks, but creepy King dude by the fire?

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Here is info that could help clarify all the questions swirling around soy.

It comes from the AICR American Institute for Cancer Research and addresses new research on the issue of soy and breast cancer. (the link takes you to their newsletter article which has a link to the Journal of Nutrition.)

• Soy consumed at normal dietary levels – one or two servings of whole soy foods daily (up to 100 milligrams of isoflavones) – is probably safe for most women. One serving of soyfoods equals 8 oz. of soymilk, 4 oz. of tofu or tempeh or a half-cup of green soybeans (edamame).
• As a precaution, women receiving anti-estrogen treatments should minimize soyfoods and avoid isoflavone supplements.
• Evidence does not support adding soy to your diet to help prevent breast cancer. But soy is still a healthful choice. It is low in saturated fat and high in nutrients, fiber and antioxidant phytochemicals.

The bottom line is: It’s your overall diet that counts. Soy is a good way to get more plant protein, but it’s one food, not magic. So don’t expect it to single-handedly protect you from breast cancer and don’t avoid it out of fear that it will be solely responsible for increasing your risk. It fits into a healthy diet that is high in a wide variety of plant foods.

 Phew. Now we can breathe a little easier and incorporate this healthy protein in our diets.

Recipes for Health

Rebecca Katz has wonderful site that includes this recipe for Asian Japonica Rice Salad with Edamame Beans.

During cancer treatment many patients lose interest in food because they may lose up to 80% of their sense of taste. Some may lose the ability to swallow. Rebecca's site, One Bite at a Time, and her book of the same name, and her caring advice and help, were godsends during my father-in-law's treatment. 

Edamame beans can be purchased at Trader Joes frozen and shelled. This could be an easy snack itself just to have on hand. Full of protein.
 

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