Head of Pig

A long-awaited project is now at hand.

Several weeks ago I co-purchased an entire pig from Afton Field Farm. I’m new to pork and in my excessive curiosity I thought it best to buy in bulk, rather than piece by piece. So I called some friends and had them call their friends, and then 6 households when in on the pig. Like any good meat eater/avid hobby cook, I want to learn how to cook “head to tail.” There is a clear and steep learning curve to preparing cuts of meat that are not found in grocery store meat aisles. Most of the time, the meat left behind includes the head, feet, tail and bones of the carcass. Having the opportunity to buy a whole pig, came the opportunity to make head cheese. And so begins the journey!

I received a recipe from a friend of a friend, a guy who makes charcuterie at Paley’s Place. He provided a basic recipe that requires 3 steps. Therefore, you shall expect and I shall provide three blog entries on this process. The first step is to brine the head.

We begin with the brine.

Nowadays, many people associate brining with Thanksgiving as it has become trendy to brine the turkey before roasting. Though, let it be known, the process of brining is old and well-known among many cultures. Ostensibly, it is a means to preserve but the restaurants use the technique to add flavor and moisten the final product.

A simple brine, like the one I used includes warm water, salt and sugar. Basically, you find the ratio that works for the weight of meat in terms of water, salt and sugar. Once that’s determined, you could add many other ingredients to enhance the layers of flavor. The idea is that the salt in the water opens up the cells in the meat and allows the other flavors to be absorbed. Depending on the size of the brine (i.e. the weight of the meat,) the length of the brine will vary. In the case of the pig’s head, the brine will last about 24 hours.

A pig head in my sink.

Not being an expert on butchery or charcuterie, I was unable to cut out any unnecessary parts of the head. To be honest, I don’t know what should and what should not be included. I know the brain is not needed but when I looked at the back of the head I had no idea what was what. I decided to cut off part of the throat and throw that away. I also cut off the ears to make it fit more easily in the giant stock pot. But really, I just made the brine solution, placed the head inside the pot and covered the head with water. The result is that same strangely adorable and grotesque face looking up at me, through the lens of salty water.

The brine begins.

With the help of a neighbor we carried the covered pot outside, where it is plesantly cold. I learned that a day outside and an evening in the basment over a 24 hour period is equivalent to 48 hours in the fridge. Given that our fridge is too small for such a container, outside it goes.

Tomorrow begins step 2 in which the head is strained and a stock is created and boils for many, many hours.

Stay tuned for part 2 of “head cheese.”

Related posts:

1. Chicken Stock
2. Risotto is worth the effort, trust me
3. If time is money, then we eat like king and queen

At the moment, the list contains 6 distinct ideas. In no particular order, here’s what I’ve got brewing in my imagination:

1. Taco Party: I came across this thought after preparing a pork dish and feeling a bit of dissatisfaction with the result. A while ago I found this recipe in The New York Times Magazine, knowing that I was buying a chunk of pork through Afton Field Farm. Well, suffice to say, I was not happy with the meal and decided that the best way to cook a pork shoulder or slab of pork butt was in the crock pot. Forget the fancy plating, I want to make tacos! Thus is born the need for a taco party.

Here’s the vision: People are assigned dishes so that we can create the ultimate taco party experience. I would want to make some pulled pork, and we’d have folks bring chicken and vegetarian options. Bowls of pickled radishes and carrots, piles of cilantro and sliced limes. I love the idea of having a party where everyone hangs out and downs delicious tacos. Maybe some beer and tequila, no matter to me. Of the various ideas, this one looms in the nearest of futures.

2. Fondue Night: Almost a year ago this time I received donated cookware for the classes I was about to teach. Originally, we thought that the classroom equipment was off limits and that we would need to provide our own cooking tools, hence the solicitation. Not only were we wrong, but I also received a ton of donated goods. Everything was given away – knifes, cutting boards, bowls, measuring cups, etc – except for one item. One kind woman donated a new though dated, fondue set. I knew then and I know now, that such an item would be of little use to a household that struggles to make ends meet, let along prepare a bourgeoise dinner affair. So I held on to it.

So now I have a fondue set and I have yet to use it. Though rich and luxurious in flavor and texture, everyone would like to dip something in a big pot of melted cheese or chocolate. Here, the potluck setup is super easy. Each person brings something to dip and a bottle of wine. We dip, we drink, we dine. What could be better than this? In winter no less!

3. Youtube Party: These days, it’s almost inevitable that a guest or friend or total stranger feels invested in sharing their favorite YouTube video. For me, it got to the point where there was a whole series of videos I felt inclined to share. So why not have a party focused on this very need?

I’m thinking that the people invited must come up with 3 favorite YouTube clips and maybe they are emailed to me or written down. The food is of course, potluck style. After eating and drinking we gather round the computer. Like the television parties of the 90′s, let’s celebrate the ingenuity of the internet and all them crazy folks out there.

Food wise, I’m not certain on the theme. Maybe bar food? I suppose it could really be anything. More to consider…

4. Pho Night: This thought has been around for a long while. I think it first occurred to me while we were living in Minneapolis. Between the frigid winter nights and our amazing meat CSA, maybe the idea was inevitable?! In any case, I like the idea.

Ironically (or not,) most of the ingredients are summertime finds, but I never wanted to make the soup in the summer. Another winter night gathering, I now envision the evening occurring on a wet winter night here in Portland. The excitement for me is the broth. To make proper broth for pho (pronounced fuh,) you boil beef shank and spices. On this night (unlike previous suggestions,) I think I’d make all the pho and have guests bring wine. Or maybe I could make the broth and guests could bring the toppings. Either way, this will be an awesome dinner party.

5. Settlers of Catan – Night of the Savages!: Yes, it’s true! I play geeky strategy board games, Settlers being one among many. The game takes place on the island of Catan and each player represents a groups of settlers, competing for resources. In my mind, the settlers are all savages and hang out in their loin cloths eating freshly grilled legs of wild boar. So, here’s the vision:

Five people attend (as I have the expansion pack and up to 6 people can play.) Maybe other people bring their boards and then more folks can participate. Before and during game play, we feast on meat! Everyone who comes would prepare a meat dish. No grains or vegetables, just meat. I, on the other hand, for those health-minded urban savages, will prepare a vat of mashed root vegetables and a giant bowl of salad. Honestly, this sounds awesome!

6. Fall Party: I recently realized that fall (or autumn) is officially my favorite season. This hunch has grown over the last few years – when I discovered winter squashes, brussels sprouts and kale – my world changed completely. And then a few weeks ago I was hunting for chanterelles and the leaves were just amazing. And thus I’m sold on the colors, flavors and foods of Fall!

Not to get too overboard, but I want to have a potluck that celebrates the foods of fall. Each person brings a dish that features fall vegetables, fruit or mushrooms. And then we feast!

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So there you have it. This is the current list and as it grows I’m sure I’ll want to share. You can definitely expect a post on the event, after is occurs. When it comes to dreaming and cooking, there’s no end to my imagination.

Related posts:

1. Cuisines of the World Potluck – Denmark
2. Winding Down Winter (weekly menu 26)
3. Filling up the freezer

At the same time, all the food ideas I had for my own kitchen or culinary events were pushed aside. And so I write this entry. This is my way of saying I’m giving a voice to my food fantasies. I want to share what’s on my mind (and my stomach’s mind too.) This may be less serious and more fun. All blogs need some balance. Here’s my go at it.

On my mind and in the freezer sit many ideas, including:

- head cheese (I recently facilitated the purchase of an entire pig from Afton Field Farm) Look for a series of posts on the making of head cheese. Yes, there will be gore but yes, it will be interesting.

- North Portland Supper Club. I posted about this recently and I’ve been reluctant to continue posting on this topic (see above worries.) But those concerns have passed and now I will write freely on my thoughts, hopes and future club meal ideas. The first supper club is in the coming weeks and I’m super excited about this food venture!

- Sundae Party. So I have a friend who has a friend. The friend of the friend either works for a major grocery store or works for an organization that works with a major grocery store. In any case, the major grocery store cannot (like many of its competitors) sell all of its products. Consequently, on Sundays a lot of the food must go. This definitely includes milk, cream and eggs. And so what better way to use these “aged” ingredients than make ice cream! I made 6 quarts last week and the goal is to make many more flavors over the next couple months. I will have to write more on this later (as there’s a lot to say.)

- Everything else. After buying the pig I also received 1/2 a lamb. The order for the lamb happened many months ago and it so happened that I received both around the same time. So now I have many pounds, many exciting cuts of meat in the freezer (not to mention the share of wild salmon.) So the freezer is full and now my imagination is exploding these days.

Now that I’ve finally said what I’ve been wanting to say on this issue, I am confident to fill this blog with food – culinary ideas, fulfilled food ventures, political rants and everything in between.

Related posts:

1. Head Cheese (part I)
2. Good-Bye Grocery Store (part 1)
3. Freezer Madness and the Long Winter Ahead

Nowadays I pride myself on the years accumulated of non-fast food consumption. It’s been at least 5 years, if not 10. And then I move to Portland, OR, where local, fresh food is abundant. It was only a matter of time for this foodie-hub to ignite an admirable fast food eatery. That’s right people, Burgerville is actually really cool and moving in the right direction.

I’d heard of Burgerville after moving here. It’s name came up when others spoke of this city’s food enlightenment. But when I found out that Burgerville was fast food, I immediately condemned it.

This summer though, Burgerville crossed my path in a much finer light. While attending the Oregon Sustainability Experience, a week-long conference covering sustainability in Oregon’s food chain, we visited a Burgerville to see how sustainability was taking form in the mainstream. Right off the bat, there were a number of details that struck. Consider the following,

- the Director of Sustainability (yes! a fast food chain has one) quoted Michael Pollan in her introductory remarks (what can I say?! You know Pollan is one of my food heroes.)
- 67% of food purchasing goes to local producers
- 26% of food costs comes from producers certified by third party groups (i.e. Food Alliance Certification)
- 89% of Burgerville employees are insured on a company insurance program; specifically, anyone working 20 plus hours a week has a monthly premium of $20
- the nutritional characteristics of the food ordered is printed on the receipt!

Burgerville receipt from 10/13/10

So, here we have this local fast food place that wants to be transparent. They want the consumer to know that a burger, fries and shake is unhealthy. Obviously, there is no warning sign about the hazards of consuming their shakes, but this remains a significant move towards putting more responsibility on the consumer.

Add to this, the fact that Burgerville is not that cheap. Our large platter of sweet potato fries was $5!  The beef in the burger, the berries in the smoothie and the seasonal fried sweet potato fries are all in touch with the true (or almost true) cost of food.

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I was also impressed by their commitment to waste management. The cups and utensils are compostable; and there’s not one giant bucket labeled “trash.” Instead, they offer a bucket for composting, another for recycling and a third for trash. But instead of labeling trash as trash, Burgerville has humanized the thing we know most.

Not trash. Not Garbage. This stuff goes to the landfill!

The garbage goes in the landfill and that is how they label it. Genius! I think that our relationship with garbage is so twisted that we throw things away with little to no consideration. But when you label the trash as ‘landfill,’ you place a tangible and recognizable face on that trash. This small detail really struck me as a meaningful attempt to change the way people think about waste. They’re doing a great job on challenging conventional fast food standards and I think this waste-related issue is so key.

In a culture that romanticizes sustainability (and rightly so) it’s important to have some institutions that can model a positive path to that end point. Burgerville wants to source its food from local farmers and ranchers; they want to treat their employees with respect; they are focused on the future of waste management and they really value the meaning of local food, albeit local fast food.

Part of me feels like I’m selling out by praising an establishment that sells fast food. But the other side, equally rational and more compromising, is willing to see the changes that are possible in this day and age. If you’re like me and you grew up on fast food and you have that craving for fries and a shake, why not go to a place that sources local milk, local berries and local potatoes but honors the easy-to-cook deep fryer?

For those nostalgic moments, go to Burgerville!

Related posts:

1. The Oregon Sustainability Experience
2. The Urban Farming Revolution
3. A Chance to Join the Food Movement! (If you live in Portland.)

Mobile poultry processing on Martha's Vineyard

Two weeks ago I was visiting one of my closest friends who lives on Martha’s Vineyard. Unlike the Kennedy’s, Wall Street Executives and Barack Obama, my friend and his lovely family are not millionaires living it up on the island. It turns out that most of the people that live there year-round are middle class families trying to survive in a community that inflates its cost for the summer crowds. The cost of living there is so high that local folks get an “Island Discount Card” that provides a 10% discount at the grocery stores and other daily amenities.

Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I did not visit Martha’s Vineyard to wine and dine with hollywood celebrities. In fact, beside spending time with my friend, his wife and their one-year old son, I traveled east to see his farm and kill his chickens.

When I learned that my trip would overlap with slaughtering chickens, I was overcome with joy. It’s not that I seek blood upon my hands. Rather, in my pursuit of being a conscious meat eater, I wanted the experience of killing and preparing an animal, one that I take for granted at the grocery store. And so begins the story of processing poultry on Martha’s Vineyard.

According to the Organic Consumers Association, an organization working on social justice and sustainability issues in the food system, factory farming kills 14,000 birds a minute. Over the course of one day, 20,160,000 birds are killed. Now I could definitely turn this into a rant on the evils of industrial agriculture, but I will not. I will try to keep this civil so as to maintain the perspective I seek to share. Whether or not you eat chicken, this number is incredible. We can only begin to imagine how an industry kills more than 20 million birds in a single day.

On the other side, the small scale farmer has little to hide. “Small” is a relative term. So let me clarify the smallness of the operation I attended. Looking at the image above, the total slaughtering operation took up about 900 square feet in total. The equipment needed to kill 40 chickens (aka cornish rock crosses) and 20 pekin ducks fits onto a small trailer that is hauled behind a standard pick-up truck.

Unlike the 18-wheelers hauling hundreds, if not thousands of birds to be processed, the 40 chickens fit into 3 crates:

40 chickens - 3 crates.

Although you cannot see it in this image, the chickens had roamed about in Salatin-esque pens and traveled about 40 feet (roughly) from pen to crate. I mention this to emphasize the levels of stress animals experience in factory farming. Unlike birds that live in small quarters with no sunlight and suffer many other ills, these ladies lived a good life on the open pasture and did not experience the same levels of stress in their brief transportation.

From the crates, the birds are handled one by one. The man weilding the knife removes a bird from the crate. The bird is held horizontal with its neck resting in his hand. There are no cries of fear. The bird is calm and the sharpened knife slides easily across the jugular. Within moments the bird is dead.

With 2 simple slices, a chicken is killed.

I do think there is room for debate as to when the bird is dead. Does the bird feel pain? Is the bird conscious at the moment? Does it know it is dying? Ultimately I cannot provide those answers. The birds do convulse for a few minutes once they are in the cones, but my understanding is that their nerves are sending messages and the body shakes. Again, no crying or shrieking from the dead/dying birds. The birds lay upside down in the cones for several minutes, bleeding.

Bleeding in the cones.

Once the bird is bled it is transferred to a hot, soapy bath that must be kept at 150 degrees. If it’s too hot the birds will cook and it it’s too cold the birds will not remain sanitized. The metal basket rotates the birds for about 45 seconds.

A sanitized death for sure.

From the bath the birds are the places into a giant metal cylinder that has large plastic knobs protruding from its sides. The purpose of this machine is to remove any remaining feathers from the body of the bird. Interestingly, the variety bred by the industry, a breed not so dissimilar from the one seen here, loses its feathers easier than most. (Think genetically modified poultry.)

And then the feathers are gone.

I suppose we could call this a half-way point in the processing. At this point the bird is tossed into a giant tub of ice water and proceeding requires that the temperature of the bird be lowered (to a degree I do not remember.) One birds have cooled down a bit, they are placed on a sanitized metal table and butchered. Though, unlike the chicken at the grocery store, these birds are not cut up into different parts (i.e. leg, wing, breast, etc). These birds will be packaged whole, minus the feet and the head.

In the hands of the butchers, first the feet and head are removed. The feet are placed in a bucket of cold water to be saved (great for stock.) The heads are thrown out. *Note, all blood, offal and other waste created by the process is collected and often absorbed by hay and placed in the compost. Small scale processing enables the farmers to return inedible parts of the bird back into the soil.

Once the head and feet are removed, the organs follow. Beside the feet, the liver, heart and gizzard are placed in a bucket.

The chickens are gutted.

The removal of the innards must be quick as there are more birds to follow. At the same time, while removing organs they must be incredibly careful not to tear the gull bladder. The little greenish-black sac in the bird’s intestinal track is filled with neon green bile. If the sac is torn it releases bile everywhere inside the carcass and will ruin the quality of the bird for the consumer.

Once the birds are properly gutted they return to ice water baths. The end of the process is packaging. Sadly, I did not take any pictures because I was helping them with the procedure.

Basically, a table sits with plastic tubes jutting towards the sky. The birds are placed on the tube through the excavated carcass. A bag is placed over it, the bird slips off with the bag, the bag is twisted and sealed at the top with a pinched metal staple. Then the bag is slightly cut open and the bird is soaked in a steaming pot of water (again around 150 degrees.) The hot water sucks out the air in the bag, creating a vacuum seal. A sticker is placed over the small hole and the bird is thrown in the fridge.

The bird that spent its life roaming on open pasture eating bugs, grass and a bit of grain, had its one bad day.

Related posts:

1. Chicken Stock
2. Simple, healthy and delicious
3. Head Cheese (part I)

Last week I boarded a bus with 30 professionals, grad students and other food politic wonks to explore the pieceses of an ever-increasing sustainable food system here in Oregon. Coined “The Oregon Sustainability Experience,” the week-long adventure drove us all over, visiting multiple participants and benefactors to the evolving sustainable food systems across Oregon. From Portland to Hillsboro to Monmouth to Corvallis to Philomath to Tangent to Junction City to Salem to Brooks to Woodburn and then back to Portland, we invested 40+ hours to investigation, analysis, reflection and immense discussion on the various topics that be.

Over the next several weeks and maybe months, I will post entries on each of our visits. We dined with plant breeders, toured small, medium and large organic farms, geared up in white gowns to see processing facilities, and of course ventured among heritage breed pigs and chickens, and at one point blew our minds in an dialogue with migrant farm workers. Suffice to say, we ran the gambit on sustainable agriculture in the Northwest.

You will be happy to know that I also took loads of pictures! I know that this blog lacks the creative efforts of my photo-friendly eye, and so I intend on showing the reader some of the sites we saw on our trip. Aside from the informative lens of who, what, where, when and how, I look forward to divulging some of the why questions that rang deep inside throughout this experience. Some of the thoughts that still linger in my brain include:

• Do we want to sustain a global food system, or move towards a sustainable localized food system?
• Is ‘sustainability’ an inherently liberal issue?
• The battle between local and organic in the context of sustainability
• Peak oil, climate change and the future of sustainable trends
• Sustainability – a class concern?

With so much to share, I’m still weighing the idea of posting regularly on this trip, i.e. several times a week or once every couple weeks, etc. At the same time, with so much to say and the desire to write more often, I can see posting many entries in the near future. As I mentioned a moment ago, beyond a news report, I really aim to engage some of the deeper issues I uncovered during the week-long conference.

For all my previous posts on food politics and eating seasonally and teaching food literacy, I think the theme of sustainability loomed in the background. Here is an opportunity to go that much deeper into an increasingly important issue.

Related posts:

1. Good Man Eats Takes a Break
2. Burgerville – Fast Food for Ethical Foodies
3. Local Food Movement Gains Serious Support

This summer, the same students who regularly chow down candy and fast food for breakfast, learned how to grow peas, berries, potatoes, kale, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, beets and other commonly found garden ingredients. Not only did the students grow and harvest many of these plants, but with the enthusiasm of myself and some awesome assistants (staff from the school), students prepared incredibly healthy and delicious meals every day! Sure, some of the meals were loved more than others, but I think it’s fair to say overall that students ate their food pyramid-requested-share of fruits and vegetables at every lunch.

Along the 18 raised beds that volunteers and community members constructed in late spring, there also lies 6 or so fruits trees, a huge 12-person bench (constructed by students), an outdoor sink and when needed, a portable stovetop. We had ourselves a simple outdoor kitchen. We steamed, sautéed, boiled and braised. We prepared many fresh salads with our homemade salad dressings (ranch, blue cheese and balsamic vinaigrette.)

Beyond the confines of the outdoor classroom, we made various ventures to other exciting food projects across town. On one trip students spent the day at Food Work’s farm on Sauvie Island and harvested crops with high school youth from North Portland communities. Another day we went down to the Pioneer school and participated in a work party to help harvest and improve another school’s garden. And during the last week I organized a trip to Ned Ludd restaurant where students saw a lamb get butchered, learned all about the importance of sourcing local meats and toured the neighboring Short Cut farm to see the source of Ned Ludd’s 50-yards-away fresh produce.

Though it felt like the class ended too early with so much information and experience left uncovered, the celebration yesterday afternoon was fantastic. Beneath our tents sat a buffet of student-prepared foods, including crab sushi, fruits salads, smoothies and chicken and shrimp shish-ka-bobs. Student’s had friends and family attend, the principal and some school faculty attended, and of course many of the policy makers from the county and city wanted to see the food revolution they funded.

Thinking back on this opportunity, I could not be any prouder and satisfied with the program. I loved getting to know the students. I loved the commitment students developed for the health and beauty of the garden. I loved the pride and confidence our cooking class instilled in the students. And I genuinely hope that this program continues years into the future. The impact was very real for all of us. Yes, “From Soil to Stovetop” was a huge success.

Related posts:

1. Guess Who Received a $4,000 Grant?!
2. A Future Food Project (or) An Idea is Born
3. School Gardens are All the Rage – Resources to Join the Movement

Many moons ago I was approached by a woman named Kate who had read a blurb about my cooking classes in December. We emailed back and forth and she finally visited a class later that winter. Lucky for me, she liked what she saw and invited me to teach a class for her organization – Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon (aka EMO.) It turns out that this local faith-based non-profit is doing a lot of exciting programming among congregations in Portland and beyond. Many of these programs focus attention on food and farms, eating healthy local foods, and preventing spread of obesity and type 2 diabetes, etc. Previous cooking classes had been successful, but this time there was an interest in critical food literacy. Beyond the basic cooking class we delved into the processed food conundrum and the environmental, economic and health-related consequences of the industrial food chain. (wow, that’s always a mouthful.)

So, over the last few months the meeting and planning and talking evolved. A binder was born, complete with recipes I had done in previous classes and relevant resources I accumulated in my diligent internet research. And last night we made the dream real.

Around 6pm, in a lone and nearly empty basketball court, I preached the gospel (pun intended) of eating local, seasonal foods. I talked about subsidies and overly cheap processed foods. Participants unveiled the importance of eating seasonally (for those that don’t know, this includes *supporting local farmers and a local economy, * eating fresh whole foods that are chock full of real nutrients, and * keeping the Earth a little bit healthier by avoiding processed and petroleum-induced food products.) Together the 18 families and individuals made enough brown rice and vegetable stir-fry to feed the masses and then some. The lovely fragrance of garlic and ginger wafted through the kitchen as young adults tossed salad greens with homemade salad dressing. To be honest, it was a fantastic class! I loved it. I loved teaching and being there as a resource. It feels really good to preach to a different choir.

So that’s what I did last night. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the food revolution is upon us! Be it school gardens or after-hours in the church kitchen, people are engaged and eager to eat healthier foods. And I am happily there to cheer them on.

Related posts:

1. Session 1 Complete!
2. Cooking Class Conundrum
3. A Successful Cooking Class

Sam and Jolene want to make pumpkin pies. Each pie shell consists of 3 ounces of flour. If they want to make 20 pies, how many pound of flour will they need?

Back in the day I hated word problems. I especially hated the wording. I’m sure it didn’t help that my math skills were subpar, but man, did I despise translating scenarios into workable equations. Fast forward a decade and here I am, intentionally surrounding myself with word problems. Though, to the hobby home-cook, the desire to multiply a recipe or alter the measurement of ingredients is actually sought after. Somehow or other, I now enjoy reading word problems and calculating the outcomes on a daily basis.

Aside from the basic reading skills, reading a recipe requires a solid understanding of pre-algebra. Beyond the adding and subtracting of whole numbers, I can also comprehend ratios, percentages and fractions. The last concept – fractions – seems to be of utmost importance in the kitchen. If you can’t double a 1/2 cup of milk or divide 4.5 into 2.25, then you are surely up shits creek. Though there is always the possibility that intuition will trump the precision of a given recipe. But I find it hard to teach intuition. It’s far easier to explain terms of measurement, the role of fractions and the importance of understanding word problems to the students who wants to cook.

It is with this train of thought that leads me to “culinary math.” In a couple weeks I will be teaching high school kids how to cook. Along with the general kitchen literacy knowledge (i.e. the difference between a teaspoon and a tablespoon, or a pot and a pan,) there is a lot to be said for basic math skills. Thus, I have spent the better part of the last several days writing up lesson plans that combine math and cooking. Like you might expect, the connection between the two is perfect. As a social studies teacher who fears math, I think this may be the easiest thing I could teach (in the world of math.)

For those who still don’t know:

A dash or pinch = less than 1/4 teaspoon

3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon

4 tablespoons = 1/4 cup

16 tablespoons = 1 cup

2 cups = 1 pint

2 pints = 1 quart

4 quarts = 1 gallon

And this is just the tip of the measurement iceberg!

Related posts:

1. A Successful Cooking Class
2. The Food Curriculum Project (part V) “Lesson Plan 3″
3. School Gardens are All the Rage – Resources to Join the Movement

From the very beginning I wanted this public space as separate from my life. Yet the problems I face during the day will inevitably trickle down to this site. The most direct influence is the absence of writing. If I am distracted I am less likely to write. Over time this tendency inflates and the next thing I know I have not written in days, weeks, a month?!

In this short post of reflection, let me say this:

I am rebuilding myself and redefining my relationship with the food movement and my career. I am in the process of rediscovering my passion and potential. I am finding my voice (again.) I appreciate your patience during this process. If you like what I have to say you will come back. If you are tired of waiting, maybe it will be awhile. But I promise that this lapse is almost over.

Good Man Eats is making a comeback.

Related posts:

1. Good-Man-Eats Goes “Food Publisher!”
2. A Bad Blogger
3. Reality Check – where is weekly menu 25?