March 1, 2013 | Page 2 of 3 | The Rambling Epicure

Daily Food Quotes: Farm Philosophy from Wendell Berry

Published by Jonell Galloway + Sunday, March 24, 2013 Permalink 0

For 50 or 60 years, we have let ourselves believe that as long as we have money we will have food. This is a mistake. If we continue our offenses against the land and the labor by which we are fed, the food supply will decline, and we will have a problem far more complex than the failure of our paper economy. The government will bring forth no food by providing hundreds of billions of dollars to the agribusiness corporations.

Wendell Berry, “in the op-ed piece he published with his old friend and collaborator Wes Jackson, shortly after the economy crashed in the fall of 2008.” (Michael Pollan, in introduction to Wendell Berry’s Bringing it to the Table: On Farming and Food).

Wendell Berry speaking in Frankfort, Indiana

Food Art: Still Life with Flutist and Fruit, by Italian painter Cecco del Caravaggio

Published by Jonell Galloway + Saturday, March 23, 2013 Permalink 0

Cecco del Caravaggio (1571-1592) was born in Milan, from which he fled in 1596 to avoid the plague. He worked as apprentice for the Lombard painter Simone Peterzano for four years. His contract there listed that he was a pupil of Titian. He lived in Rome from 1592 to 1600, forging many great artists. The realism and dramatic intensity of many of his paintings was thought to be vulgar by many Romans, and even painters were divided by its distinct nature which opposed that of most other Roman artists. Nevertheless, between 1600 and 1606, he was considered Rome’s most famous painter.

Caravaggio was known for getting into scuffs, even in a time where this was commonplace. On May 29, 1606, “he killed, possibly unintentionally, a young man named Ranuccio Tomassoni. Previously his high-placed patrons had protected him from the consequences of his escapades, but this time they could do nothing. Caravaggio, outlawed, fled to Naples.” He went from becoming the most highly regarded painter in Rome to being the most highly regarded painter in Naples. Soon after, he left for Malta. The rest of his life was darkened by brawls and scrapes with the law.

A wonderful biography of Caravaggio’s life can be read here.

Food Art: The Last Supper, by Caravaggio

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, March 22, 2013 Permalink 0

The artist Caravaggio had a profound influence on figurative painting. He was a rebel who shocked the established art world with every painting. His use of prostitutes for models of Mary and his depiction of saints in common dress outraged the church. He even killed a man over a tennis match. His life was short and he died in exile. After his death, his detractors attributed lesser paintings to him and many of his greatest works were claimed by other artists. Even today, mystery and controversy surround him and his work but there is no denying his amazing talent.–Sharon Weaver

Best Fondue Restaurants in French Savoie as per Michelin Restaurant Guide

Published by Jonell Galloway + Tuesday, March 19, 2013 Permalink 0

Best Fondue Restaurants in French Savoie as per Michelin Restaurant Guide

by Jonell Galloway

For reference: here is a list of the Michelin guide’s favorite fondue restaurants in the Geneva/French Savoie area.

A magnificent collection of the Michelin “red guides”

The Big Apple on a Budget: Mas (la grillade), a Restaurant Review
Were the twelve apostles guilty of overeating at the Last Supper?
The Art of Tasting Wine with James Flewellen: The Waipara Wine Region
Simple Sustenance: Flavors of the Mediterranean – Parsley, Dill, and Bean Dip with Feta
Michelin Guide: food bible in legal row over Michel Platini web domain

The Big Apple on a Budget: Mas (la grillade), a Restaurant Review

Published by Leonor White + Monday, March 18, 2013 Permalink 0

by Leonor White

I recently discovered a farm-to-table restaurant in the West Village. I was looking for an upscale lunch at an affordable price to dine with my family. Mas (la grillade) is the sister restaurant to Mas (farmhouse), but, as the name indicates, focuses on grilled meats.

During lunch hours, a seasonal menu of locally grown foods cooked solely over wood fires of oak, apple and other hardwoods is served. This menu is comprised of three courses: appetizer, main course and desert, and it all comes at a very reasonable price, $27. Lunch à la carte is also available, but I would recommend opting for the menu, as you get a chance to experience Chef Galen Zamarra’s seasonal favorites. The restaurant is also open for dinner, and just as for lunch, there is a prix fixe menu (but for a higher price, $68), as well as an à la carte dining.

We went for lunch on a Saturday, and it did not disappoint. The restaurant is simply but tastefully decorated, making a bold statement with regards to its farm-to-table concept. As the menus arrived, we all had our eyes fixed on the first item in the menu: “Grilled Pear and Sunchoke Soup with Mint, Black Truffle and Hen of the Woods Mushrooms.” Despite the fact that there were other appetizers to choose from, such as the “Grilled Trumpet Royale Mushrooms with a Salad of Mizuna, Grilled Onion Vinaigrette, and Croutons,” we all thought that the soup sounded divine, and it was indeed. The grilled pear and sunchoke flavors made for a distinctive taste; the soup was sprinkled with mint and black truffles and topped with mushroom croutons.

Wendell Berry Interview, by Mark Bittman

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, March 15, 2013 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

There’s probably no better short overview of Wendell Berry‘s views on agriculture and sustainability than Mark Bittman‘s interview of Berry in The New York Times in 2012.

Wendell Berry speaking in Frankfort, Indiana

Here are a few excerpts about agriculture and sustainability:

“That’s one of Wendell’s recurring themes: Listen to the land.”

“If you imitate nature, you’ll use the land wisely.”

“The two great aims of industrialism — replacement of people by technology and concentration of wealth into the hands of a small plutocracy — seem close to fulfillment.”

Mark Bittman (Photo credit: rebuildingdemocracy)

“You can describe the predicament that we’re in as an emergency, and your trial is to learn to be patient in an emergency.”

“[N]o great feat is going to happen to change all this; you’re going to have to humble yourself to be willing to do it one little bit at a time. You can’t make people do this. What you have to do is notice that they’re already doing it.”

“I’ve been thinking about that question about what city people can do. The main thing is to realize that country people can’t invent a better agriculture by ourselves. Industrial agriculture wasn’t invented by us, and we can’t uninvent it. We’ll need some help with that.”

Read The New York Times entire article here.

Food Art: Fresh Radishes and Radish Chutney, food photography by Lail Hossain

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, March 14, 2013 Permalink 0

You can see more of Bangladeshi photograph Lail Hossain’s work on her site.

Simple Sustenance: Flavors of the Mediterranean — Parsley, Dill, and Bean Dip with Feta

Published by Renu-Chhabra + Wednesday, March 13, 2013 Permalink 0

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by Renu Chhabra

“Salt is born of the purest of parents: the sun and the sea.” –– Pythagoras

Pass the salt please.

We hear this often while eating meals. I sometimes think what life in the kitchen would be without salt. Nature’s pure offering and staple of any pantry! It’s one ingredient that can put life in any recipe. Just a pinch of it does wonders. But it’s the right amount of it, according to one’s taste buds that makes a recipe sing….. not too much or too little. Hence the term, “salt to taste.”

Some overly salty feta cheese was the center to make this dip. It was too salty for our taste buds. Really salty. And wasting it seemed unnecessary. To give it a new life, I combined it with a few ingredients on hand. A can of unsalted garbanzo beans worked well to mellow the saltiness of the feta. Parsley added color and freshness, and dill enhanced it with its delicate flavor. Lemon juice and garlic brought all the flavors together. I finished it with olive oil and a sprinkle of sumac.

Food Art: When Food Comes to Life, food photography exhibit by ilian

Published by Jonell Galloway + Tuesday, March 12, 2013 Permalink 0

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ilian began his career in photography as a news photographer before moving to London and starting a new career in commercial photography, developing his own unique style, balancing commercial appeal with an acutely artistic eye.

He has over 15 years’ experience working in editorial and commercial projects, specialising in food and drink, still life and product photography, both locally and internationally. He shoots from his Cheshire-based kitchen studio. His clients are magazines, hotels, restaurants and food companies such Mornflakes, Felicini Restaurants, Metropolitan Hotel, Casino Flamingo, AstraZeneca, Manchester University, Sofia airport, etc.

His work appears in BBC GoodFood, Olive, Professional Photographer, Digital Photographer and The Rock magazines. His style is simple, clean and graphic, based on natural light. A passionate and talented cook himself, the enjoyment ilian takes from food and drink shines through in his images.

Click to see more of ilian’s outstanding work.

ilian has had more than ten solo photo exhibitions, the most successful ones being:

1998 ”Old Houses” – Sofia and 1999 Los Angeles

1999 “War in Kosovo” – Sofia

2000 “Mount ATHOS” – Sofia, London, Vienna, Thessaloniki, Warsaw, Bratislava and Plovdiv

2004 ‘Ballet Portraits’ – Sofia

2012 “Edible Art” – London, Moscow, Manchester, St. Petersburg, Sofia

Food Philosophy: British Economist E.F. Schumacher

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, March 8, 2013 Permalink 0

Small is Beautiful - Economics as if People Ma...

E. F. Schumacher

A timely quote by the British economist E. F. Schumacher

E.F. Schumacher

“If greed were not the master of modern man — ably assisted by envy — how could it be that the frenzy of economism does not abate as higher “standards of living” are attained, and that it is precisely the richest societies which pursue their economic advantage with the greatest ruthlessness? How could we explain the almost universal refusal on the part of the rulers of the rich societies — where organized along private enterprise or collective enterprise lines — to work towards the humanisation of work? It is only necessary to assert that something would reduce the “standard of living” and every debate is instantly closed. That soul-destroying, meaningless, mechanical, monotonous, moronic work is an insult to human nature which must necessarily and inevitably produce either escapism or aggression, and that no amount of of “bread and circuses” can compensate for the damage done–these are facts which are neither denied nor acknowledged but are met with an unbreakable conspiracy of silence — because to deny them would be too obviously absurd and to acknowledge them would condemn the central preoccupation of modern society as a crime against humanity.”― E.F. Schumacher, Small Is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered