A Literary Culinary Journal
GOOD reports that the corporate giant Procter & Gamble’s aim is to send zero manufacturing waste to landfills. Already in 2007, Procter & Gamble launched a team in charge of turning manufacturing waste into worth.
Click here to read the GOOD article.
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by Jonell Galloway
One great thing about spending 3 days with a group of like-minded people, who have come from all over the country (and Switzerland) to pay homage to their “spiritual guide”, Wendell Berry, is that the audience is already filtered, and you can be sure to meet people you can relate to and that you will stay in contact with.
Wendell Berry speaking in Frankfort, Indiana
Such is the case with Elias Crim, a native Texan who spent “several good years studying classics and medieval Italian at U.C. Berkeley before wasting several more years in financial journalism around Chicago.” Crim has also written for The American Scholar, The American Conservative, the Washington Times and The Chicago Observer.
This is the only photo ID I could muster up and I think it rather amusing.
He also runs a website, Solidarity Hall, which he describes as “as a hospitable old hostelry, a mental oasis in the deserted landscapes that surround us. We no longer have the coffeehouses of eighteenth-century London, where Samuel Johnson and his friends said more of substance in an hour than our blogs today could manage in a week. Nor do we have a local culture of pubs such as Chesterton’s Old Cheshire Cheese, where friendship could flourish easily, even amidst clashing opinions.” I thoroughly recommend that you take a look and start a conversation of your own.
Elias was so kind to publish this article, “A Rambling Epicure,” about my work after the Wendell Berry conference. I invite you to take a look.
Start here and then continue on Solidarity Hall:
Jonell Galloway is surely the only person from Hardinsburg, Kentucky, to ever study Sanskrit. But that’s secondary. More important is the way this spiritual daughter of Wendell Berry has developed the Rambling Epicure, an encyclopedic and literate website which describes itself thusly: “A gastronome’s guide to mindful eating. A serious approach to real-food shopping, cooking, and dining.”
Click here to continue.
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by Adriana Pérez de Legaspi
Care for things of the earth; cut some firewood, cultivate the earth, plant prickly pears, plant yucas.
You will have to drink, eat, get dressed.
Thereafter you will be standing, you will be your true self, you will walk on your own two feet.
Thereafter you will be well spoken of, you will be praised.
Thereafter you will be known.
Ten cuidado de las cosas de la tierra; haz algo corta leña, labra la tierra, planta nopales, planta magueyes.
Tendrás que beber, que comer, que vestir.
Con eso estarás en pie, serás verdadero, con eso andarás.
Con eso se hablará de ti, se te alabará.
Con eso te darás a conocer.
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by Jonell Galloway
I begin with the proposition that eating is an agricultural act. Eating ends the annual drama of the food economy that begins with planting and birth. Most eaters, however, are no longer aware that this is true. They think of food as an agricultural product, perhaps, but they do not think of themselves as participants in agriculture. They think of themselves as “consumers.”
—Wendell Berry, The Pleasures of Eating, Center for Ecoliteracy
The Times They are a-Changin’: Move Towards a Local Economy
After a few very difficult years, we are now only starting to talk about the importance, and even necessity, of maintaining and supporting a local economy. This is important not only to our health and taste buds, but also to our vital economic self-sufficiency. It is perfectly in line with the concept of Mindful Eating, and, by definition, involves local farmers as well as others who contribute to eating and drinking.
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Wendell Berry speaking in Frankfort, Indiana
The Atlantic‘s Corby Kummer interviews Wendell Berry, food philosopher, poet and advocate as well as farmer; Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation; Carlo Petrini, founder of Slow Food; Vandana Shiva, philosopher, environmental activist, eco feminist, and advocate in the domain of agriculture and food; and Alice Waters, American chef, restaurateur, activist, and humanitarian.
Part 1 of this movie-interview lasts 1 hour 21 minutes, but is broken up into shorter segments, consisting of interviews with the people listed above. Part 2 lasts 53 minutes.
Click here to view documentaries Building a Slow Food Nation, Part 1 and Building a Slow Food Nation, Part 2.
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Eating with the fullest pleasure — pleasure, that is, that does not depend on ignorance — is perhaps the profoundest enactment of our connection with the world. In this pleasure we experience our dependence and our gratitude, for we are living in a mystery, from creatures we did not make and powers we cannot comprehend.—Wendell Berry
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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
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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.
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by Jonell Galloway
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals, by Maria Speck
My favorite cookbook of the year. Maria Speck knows how to incorporate ancient whole grains from around the world into dishes that remain rustic on the edges, but healthy, original and elegant at the same time. The technical explanations about ancient grains are excellent, as well as her explanations about general cooking techniques. The food stories she incorporates here and there about growing up in Greece and Germany add a touch of charm.
A must for any health-conscious real food lover who wants to eat interesting food combinations and dishes with a touch more sophistication that can pleasantly surprise guests, but not take them totally away from their references, because the dishes are for the most part influenced by Mediterranean cuisine.
The Poet’s Cookbook: Recipes from Germany, poems by 33 American poets with German translations
The Poet’s Cookbook: Recipes from Tuscany, poems by 28 Italian and American poets
I love the original concept of these books, pairing a food poem with a recipe. A poem by our Food Poetry Editor, Christina Daub, “Wine“, appears in the Tuscany version.
Farming: A Hand Book, by Wendell Berry
As a Kentuckian, Wendell Berry has forever been my mentor. He is, in my mind, the precursor of the Slow Food philosophy in the U.S., through the philosophy he has cultivated and spread for over 50 years now, well before Petrini and company started the Slow Food movement. Whether writing prose or poetry, he is always eloquent, and the same message of integrity, respect for others and for the land is the central message. This is one more inspiring book of poetry to add to our shelves of books to keep forever, that will comfort us in times of trouble, that we will pick up time and time again when we’re losing faith in humanity, devastated by the disrespect shown to the land, losing touch with our roots. Berry always says what he thinks in all his eloquence and with true gentillesse, but more than that, he lives the life he preaches, and that is consoling.
Food Wine Rome, by David Downie and Alison Harris, published by The Little Bookroom, part of The Terroir Guides series
Food Wine Burgundy, by David Downie and Alison Harris, published by The Little Bookroom, part of The Terroir Guides series
Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light, by David Downie
David Downie writes wonderful articles for The Rambling Epicure and Alison does exquisite food photo exhibits for our Food Art section. I can never get enough of their work, because the writing is exquisite and full of literary and historical references, and the photos are truly art. Downie always shows you the insider’s view of whatever he writes about, and Alison has a great eye for catching the very essence of what they’re covering, whether it be truffle hunting or discovering little out-of-the way restaurants in isolated villages. You can never go wrong with their books.
Dictionnaire Universel du Pain, by Jean-Philippe de Tonnac
Jean-Philippe de Tonnac also writes for The Rambling Epicure, and has recently become THE bread writer all bakers want to meet. This book should in my mind be translated into English immediately. It offers a wealth of information about bread from time immemorial, covering techniques and breads from around the world, as well as spirituality, sex, gluten intolerance, bakers as poets, bakers as prophets and much more. “Encyclopedia” would be a more appropriate term than “dictionary”.
The Self-Compassion Diet: Guided Practices to Lose Weight with Loving-Kindness by Jean Fain
Jean Fain has tried every diet out there, so she can speak with authority about the subject of weight loss. She is also affiliated with Harvard Medical School as a psychotherapist, so she has the credentials to talk about the subject. Her book takes a totally different approach to weight loss than any I’ve seen. She doesn’t count calories and restrict what you eat. Her approach is instead through the mind, to become mindful of what we eat, when we eat (when stressed or lonely, for example), why we eat (out of need to nourish ourselves or out of boredom or frustration); to appreciate what we eat, and above all to be conscious of our entire relationship with food.
The book teaches you how to take control of yourself and your relationship to food so that you can change the way you think about food in general, so that eating becomes a totally different experience. Jean does this through loving-kindness, self-hypnosis, meditation and numerous other weight-loss approaches, which you follow gradually, not all in one go. She also offers a CD including guided meditations to help patients after they have stopped therapy.
Her main thrust is self-love, that we must not be too hard on ourselves, or we’ll fall back in to our old and bad habits quickly. The beauty of the book and CD combination is that you can live half way around the planet and still follow her method.
Slow Food: Collected Thoughts on Taste, Tradition, and the Honest Pleasures of Food, by Carlo Petrini and Ben Watson
Mich Turner’s Masterclass: The Ultimate Guide to Cake Decorating Perfection, by Mich Turner, published by Jacqui Small LLP, London
Mitch Turner’s cake decorating book is worthy of a fine art book in its presentation, and of an encyclopedia in terms of the detailed explanations about cake decorating. Her pastry and cakes are truly works of art. A must for all pastry makers, whether professional or amateur.
Food art:
From Plate to Pixel: Digital Food Photography, by Hélène Dujardin
This book is special for many reasons. There are lots of people out there trying to learn food photography without a clue as to even the basic techniques required and no possibility of taking a food photography workshop. This is the book for them, because all the basics plus quite a lot more are explained in a clear, direct manner. It also verges on being an art book, because it is illustrated by Dujardin’s beautiful food photography.
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Meet Jonell Galloway, a freelance writer and editor specialized in French cuisine. 
