Category Archives: FROM THE BELLY LAB

less food waste & more delicious salami

Today on belly, sister T & sister D spend the first hour with the aptly named Aime Green, who travels the country helping
festivals to manage their waste and focus on sustainability. And we'll be talking compost, yei!

Then we are off on a belly safari to Billinudgel, to the Salumi Australia factory, to learn how artisan smallgoods (salumi in Italian) are made, and how they differ from the home made and the big fast factory methods.

To contact Aime Green:

http://greenchief@sustainability.com<mailto:greenchief@sustainability.com>

To find out more about Salumi Australia, especially where they will be next

https://www.facebook.com/SalumiAustralia

And the website, which should have lots of recipes after Easter, they promised

http://www.salumi.com.au/

Meantime, here are a couple from the bellysisters

FROM THE BELLY LAB – PIGGY ROOTS RECIPE – by sister T

small onions, whole, peeled
medium or small potatoes, whole, peeled or unpeeled
mixed roots such as parsnips, carrots, beetroot, cleaned, left whole or halved or quartered lengthways
(opt) whole chillies and halved and seeded capsicum
fresh rosemary or thyme sprigs
smoky pancetta
good olive oil

This is a way to simply dress up veg to accompany roast meats, or makes a very good meal on its own. And if you eat the potatoes on the first night you can mix the rest through cooked rice and reheat in the oven the following night. So you can feel at one with our peasant ancestors, who could make a little bit of 'his majesty the pig' go a very long way.

pre-heat oven to 180-200 degrees C
oil base of a wide oven dish, add veg and herbs, salt, pepper, light drizzle of olive oil
cut pancetta into 1 cm thick slices, then 1cm wide strips (similar to French lardons)
add to veg – the only slight trick to this dish is to have the pancetta on top and not stir the veg until the strips have rendered their fat into the veg and gone crispy, so the roots absorb (and cook in) the fat and smokyness. You don't need a lot of pancetta to make a big difference to the flavour. I used about 3kg of veg to 2 thick slices of pancetta.
The capsicum adds a moist element, but it's not essential, and the chillies are good left whole so they don't burn and can be left to the chilli lovers only.

ITALIAN CLASSIC – BUCATINI ALL'AMATRICIANA RECIPE

translated by sister T from Slow Food Ed 2001 – "Ricette di Osterie d'Italia" – Italian tavern/bistro dishes
recipe from ristorante La Conca, right in the town of Amatrice

This recipe from the mountains of central Italy is as famous within Italy as Ligurian pesto is around the world. Even by Italian standards it gives rise to more growling about "the one and only proper recipe" than most – often because guanciale, cured pig jowl, is supposed to be the one and only piggy bit to use. But if you can't find guanciale, use a good pancetta.

For 4 people

500 g bucatini pasta
1 kg peeled tomatoes
400 g guanciale
1/2 glass (say 100/150 mL) dry white wine
aged pecorino cheese (not Parmesan)
extra virgin olive oil
chilli powder, salt

Cut any hard bits off the guanciale and cut into small dice. Brown in a cast iron pan with a little olive oil and chilli powder. Add the wine, then squashed peeled tomatoes, salt, cook 15 minutes.
Meantime cook bucatini in plenty of salted water. Drain well.
Add to tomato sauce pan and stir with pecorino until well combined.
Serve on hot plates.

Obviously a pretty simple recipe that relies on good ingredients – but you are allowed to use tinned tomatoes I think. Absolutely no garlic or onions according to Mrs Perilli from La Conca.

SALUMI SAFARI

If you would like to listen to the audio of Sister T's belly safari at the Salumi Australia HQ in Billinudgel, please just click on the audio files below, or check out the great pics by the belly photographer, Madam Zaza. You can almost smell the salami! Actually one of the most interesting things is that the aging room, which was simply loaded with all sorts of good things (roughly 10 tons of cured meat), smelled more of pleasant moulds, like a cheese room. I was constantly reminded of the similarity of techniques and natural processes between cured meats and cheeses and winemaking – the magic of fermentation, and the temperature and hygiene control that skilled producers can use to work with nature, rather than bombing our food with chemicals designed to counteract hurried and potentially harmful industrial processes. Though I still have strong doubts about pig fat actually being mostly unsaturated (as Michael says in our interview), I love his idea that animals don't make bad fats, factories make bad fats. If you know who first came up with that one, please let the bellysisters know.

Salumi safari Part 1

Salumi safari Part 2 – drying room

Salumi safari – Part 3 – aging room

Salumi safari Part 4

BELLY BULLETIN

Research out of Duke-NUS Graduate Medical school in Singapore published in the Journal of Hepatology has discovered a link between consumption of coffee and prolonging the lives of those with cirrhosis of the liver.‭ ‬The study found that people living with cirrhosis of the liver caused by non-viral hepatitis were less likely to die if they consumed at least one cup of coffee daily.‭ ‬The research also indicated that the more coffee the patients drank,‭ ‬the better their chances for survival were.‭ ‬The results are not connected solely to caffeine,‭ ‬and tea and caffeinated soft drinks did not have the same benefit.‭ ‬The researchers believe the results are due to coffee lowering the level of enzymes in the blood that cause cell breakdown and inflammation of the liver.‭ ‬It is believed that coffee reduces oxidative stress‭ (‬stress on the body caused by cumulative damage of free radicals over time‭)‬.

Local company Madura Tea Estates is the official sponsor of Cancer Council’s Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea . Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea is a national fundraising event, mostly help in the month of May, that invites Australians to host or attend a morning tea and raise funds for cancer research, prevention, early detection and patient support programs. Over the last two decades, $110 million has been raised for the Cancer Council. Stephen Bright of Madura Tea Estates says : ‘We have made it simple for the host by creating special host kits on our website.’ The company is also going for the Worlds Biggest Tea Bag title. The record currently is 150kg. As host kits and specialty marked packs in store are purchased more tea is added to the tea bag. The Worlds Biggest Tea Bag will be on show at the next public event at the Byron Lighthouse on May 20th. ‘We currently have 79kg in the tea bag’ We hope to have well over 100kg at our Byron Bay event’ said Mr Bright. Host packs are available online at www.maduratea.com.au

The international Union for Conservation of Nature‭ (‬IUCN‭) ‬reported in‭ ‬2010‭ ‬that sturgeon had become the most critically endangered group of animals in the world due to humans desire for caviar.‭ ‬When this report was released,‭ ‬85%‭ ‬of the species was at risk of extinction.‭ ‬It is the usual practice that pregnant sturgeon are killed before their eggs are harvested.‭ ‬As the fish do not reproduce annually,‭ ‬it can take many years for the population to recover from a decline.‭ ‬To continue to fulfil the worlds demand and yet preserve the life of sturgeon,‭ ‬some sturgeon farmers have been using alternative‭ “‬no kill‭” ‬methods of roe collection.‭ ‬Vivace a small farm in Loxstedt Germany has perfected the technique of‭ “‬massage‭” ‬to extract the eggs.‭ ‬The massage method involves first observing a sturgeons eggs by ultrasound,‭ ‬and if ready a signalling protein Is given to the fish several days before the egg harvest,‭ ‬to induce labour,‭ ‬and the roe can then be pumped out of the fish with a gentle massage.‭ ‬There are many benefits to this process,‭ ‬including sustainability and financial viability as the same sturgeon can be‭ “‬massaged‭” ‬several times throughout their lifetime,‭ ‬not just live for‭ ‬7‭ ‬or‭ ‬8‭ ‬years to mature and be killed.

Cheeses Loves You Cheesemaking Classes
Debra Allard from Cheeses Loves You has announced her latest cheese making classes at Burringbar Hall.
Friday, 2^nd May – Drunken Goat, Washed Rind Reblochon, Persian Feta.
Saturday, 3^rd May – Colby, Camembert, Goat Chevre, Cow Cream Cheese/Quark.
email Debra for more information – cheeseslovesyou@bigpond.com

Popular local caterers Open Table are running cooking workshops through May

Middle Eastern Workshop Sunday May 25th. Raw Food- Sunday 4th May
Moroccan Cooking- Sunday 11th May
Gourmet Wholefood- Saturday 17th May: look for Open Table on facebook for more details

And finally, an interesting new publication to check out if you like to think about food issues.
The Graduate Journal of Food Studies is a US based online publication, that publishes food research stories from graduate students of food issues around the world. The first issue includes the social history of the "trophy kitchen", food and agriculture propaganda in North Korea, a Detroit food justice group, and lots of great photos and drawings for those of us who like to look at the pictures – www.graduatefoodjournal.com

MUSIC – For info and videos of tracks we played today go to – http://bayfm.org/programs/belly-/

or at least check out the gorgeous Fabio KoRyu Calabro' on Youtube, singing about everything from veg to salami to managing to fool his cat – all in Italian, just helped out by his uke

SALUMI AUSTRALIA VISUAL TOUR – All images on this post copyright Isabelle Delmotte – id(at)idbytes(dot)net

Thank you very much Michael for a very interesting experience, I only wish internet scratch and sniff technology was available.

on air March 7: Italian in season flavours, women’s voices & Danish Mardi Gras

It was a March hare’s mad tea party of a show today. Alison Drover was our guest fresh reporter and she was in an Italian mood, she prepared a whole lot of info on fruit and veg in season in March, especially zucchini eggplant and figs, then she couldn’t get to the studio so sister T has to pretend to be much blonder and nicer and better dressed (you can tell in the voice) and read out all Alison’s info and recipes. On the first belly in April though, she will be live on air in person. Also, straight from the belly lab, a wonderful new discovery, lychee choc tops, the belly bulletin featuring breast milk ice cream, stories from fabulous community radio food shows, lots of women’s voices to celebrate 100 years of International Women’s day, Danish mardi gras, and this week’s markets as usual.

ALISON’S GUEST FRESH REPORT : IN SEASON AROUND AUSTRALIA IN MARCH

This month March and I tend to think I am very Italian because it is the season for many fruits and vegetables, which characterize a lot of Italian cooking… The fig, the zucchini flower, the eggplant, the zucchini, pumpkins and basil.

It is about using the seasons in abundance having a lot of something like eggplant and adding something special to it like an artisan cheese or some prosciutto but taking time to prepare the vegetables well. The Italians are inherently sustainable in the kitchen and supplement vegetables, which are low carbon footprint with small amounts of meat or often than not any meat and also make flavorsome cheeses, curds and intense pestos.

Zucchini Flowers – are at the markets however they disappear. Harris Farm and other groceries stock them however it is worth talking to your grower and even asking to reserve some. They are fragile and therefore you need to consider this with regards to price. They price can vary from anything to $4.00 a punnet upwards. The best incentive to grow food is to taste it. The recipe that I have provided is for zucchini flowers and is a little “special” however worthwhile and then another that can be whipped up easily.

Corn …is ready and its arrival was celebrated in Corndale at the Chicken and Corn night in a few weeks ago at the Community Hall.

March is the month of figs. This is a time to seek them out and dedicate meals to them. I love figs grilled with cheese, salad, balsamic and roasted macadamias however they are good in so many ways especially on top of cakes. Finding the Fig – figs are not going to be everywhere like the custard apple or the lime however this makes them more treasured. Look for them at local stores ie Bexhill Store has some great ones bought in by locals or the markets. They have only a very short window at their peak so check out the local market now to see if you can get them. Figs grow quite well on the North Coast, despite coming from a more Mediterranean climate. The delicious plump fruits are highly perishable and can only be stored in the fridge for a few days. You can poach, grill and bake figs and add them to salads.

Custard Apples – love to grow in this region and are plentiful and often found on the side of the road at stalls as well as at the markets. More and more recipes for using them http://www.custardapple.com.au Peter Gilmore from the Quay restaurant in Sydney made them famous with the Custard Apple ice cream which is great.

Eggplants are glossy purple and in abundance. Many people overlook this vegetable however it is such diversity. The recipe I have included is for an eggplant stack with roasted tomato sauce, feta and basil. Whole eggplants can stored for two weeks in the fridge but once cut, they quickly discolour. Eggplant can be sliced and fried for use in lasagna but this method soaks up a lot of oil. Whole eggplants can be sliced lengthways and roasted for half an hour or so in a moderate oven until they collapse. The skin can be easily peeled off and the flesh pureed with tahini, lemon juice, a hint of crushed garlic, a teaspoon of cumin and a little olive oil and salt to make a brilliant dip – Baba Ganoush. Of course you can mix eggplant with other ‘in season’ vegies such as tomatoes and zucchini to make a ratatouille, which is basically a mixed, or roasted vegetables and onion in a tomato sauce. I take out all the tomatoes that I harvested in December from the freezer and mix them with the zucchini and eggplant.

Zucchini are robust and will keep in the fridge for a while and can be grated to make fritters with, chargrilled and layered like the eggplant, diced and fried with pasta or can be oven roasted with oil and garlic and rosemary make a great salad for a bbq.

March is the month for harvesting and eating beans, beetroot and Bok Choy. Beans of all sizes and shapes including green (or French), butter beans (yellow), scarlet (actually purple) and runner beans are in season now. One idea is steamed with basil, chopped boiled egg, macadamia oil and some red onion.

Baby beetroot should also be ready now and available at your local market. If you grow your own, you have the added bonus of using the tops – the smaller leaves in salads or the larger leaves in cooking, as you would use spinach. The roots are good sources of vitamins B1; B2 and the leaves are high in Vitamin C.

March is the month for:

• Making lime cordial so that you can top up your vitamin C in winter when limes are going to be very expensive

• Celebrating the fig – bake a cake, roast them poach them grill them

• Eating eggplant every which way and how

• Enjoying berries blueberries and strawberries before they disappear.

• Eating plums the last of the stoned fruit although in this area look for the sugar plums as they grow better here

Fruits in season this month:

• Apples – galas and red delicious have been in the shops for a few weeks, while Jonathons are coming off the trees at the moment

• Avocadoes – Hass are finishing up, but Shephards are coming into season

• Bananas

• Berries – this is the end of the season, but blueberries and blackberries are still very good

• Figs

• Fuji fruit

• Guava

• Mangoes – Kensington Prides have finished but the end of season Palmer mangoes are beautiful

• Pears – William, Sensation and Bosc

• Pineapples – Bethongas are still great

• Plums are gorgeous at the moment – particularly radiance and I’ve seen the first of the tiny sugar plums

• Pomegranates – mostly still fruit from the US, but the local supply will start later in March

• Quinces

• Rhubarb

Vegetables in season this month:

• Asian greens

• Beans

• Broccoli

• Brussels sprouts – the season is just starting

• Capsicums are good and cheap

• Cucumbers

• Chestnuts should be coming in later in the month

• Chillies

• Eggplant – the long thin Italian eggplants are particularly good

• Lettuce – although they’ve been small recently

• Mushrooms

• Okra

• Potatoes – Dutch cream and Sebagoes are the best

• Snow peas

• Sugar snap peas

• Sweetcorn

• Sweet potato

. Zucchini – excellent small zucchini available at the moment

ZUCCHINI FLOWERS STUFFED WITH FETA AND WHITE WINE BATTER – by Alison

Tips – If you open a bottle of wine mid week and don’t finish it take a freeze bag and freeze it and write across it “White White” . This is a great way of ensuring you have wine for cooking when you need it without opening a bottle especially

Ingredients:

Vegetable oil, to deep fry

140g feta (try to go to the Farmers Market and get a local feta as it has so much flavor and you are supporting farmers who we rely on for the skills of traditional cheesemaking)

¼ cup parmesan, grated

2 Tbs thickened cream

6 zucchini flowers

1 cup plain flour

1/3 cup white wine

½ cup corn flour

Method:

Fill a saucepan half full with oil and place over a medium heat until hot enough to deep fry.

Combine the feta, parmesan and cream in a small bowl, season with salt and pepper. Spoon into a piping bag, pipe the mixture into the zucchini flowers and twist the flowers closed.

Place the flour, and white wine in a bowl, add a cup of water and using a whisk, whisk to make a batter.

Coat the zucchini flowers in corn flour, then carefully place in the hot oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and crispy. Drain onto a plate lined with kitchen paper. Sprinkle with salt to serve.

ALISON’S RAT (ATUILLE)

If you have some left over bread make it into breadcrumbs lay them on a tray with some olive oil on low heat to crunch them up and you can use this as a topping. I also add some finely chopped rosemary and thyme from the garden which I have hung to dry.

5 red capsicum

70 ml olive oil

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced –(please use local garlic)

1 onion, finely chopped

4 cups peeled and diced tomatoes -passata

800 gm eggplant (about 2), cut widthways into 5mm-thick slices

400 gm green zucchini, cut widthways into 5mm-thick slices

6 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced horizontally

140 gm (2 cups) fresh coarse breadcrumbs or leftover bread finely chopped

100 gm finely grated cheddar or your choice hard cheese

2 tsp thyme leaves

Preheat oven to 180C. Place capsicum in a roasting pan, drizzle with 2 tsp olive oil and roast until skin is blistered (10-15 minutes). Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and cool. When cool, peel and remove seeds (discarding peel and seeds), thinly slice lengthways and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and sauté until soft (5-7 minutes). Add tomatoes, season to taste and simmer, stirring occasionally to combine (4-5 minutes), then pour evenly into the base of a 3 litre-capacity deep baking dish.

Layer eggplant, overlapping slightly, over prepared base. Season to taste and repeat with zucchini and roast capsicum. Scatter anchovies over and finish with a layer of Roma tomatoes.

Combine breadcrumbs, cheddar or your choice of hard cheese and thyme in a bowl. Season to taste, then scatter over vegetables and drizzle with remaining olive oil. Pop in the oven and bake until top is golden about 55 minutes.

Alison Drover

FROM THE BELLY LAB

One other delicious thing in season this month is lychees, a bit of an odd up and down season this year, but there are quite a lot around at the moment. Look out for small stone ones, a whole lot more flesh in even the small looking ones. I had a lovely lychee martini in Brisbane recently, the best part was 3 frozen lychees on a stick as decoration/swizzle stick. I took the idea back to the belly lab, and after much product testing, highly recommend to you…

LYCHEE CHOC TOPS

Peel and remove the stone from lychees, trying not to open them up too much.

Soak in a white spirit – white rum works well, vodka is drier and lets you taste the fruit more. Skip for kids of course.

Freeze. When frozen, coat in warm tempered chocolate and re-freeze.

Eat straight from freezer with great delight.

You could also experiment with filling the centre of the lychees with nuts, chocolate ganache, another fruit….too much is always good!

DANISH MARDI GRAS

Yes they are dancing in the streets in the biggest Carnival in the world today, in Rio, and all over Brazil and the Catholic world, celebrating life and love and rich food before we all get very serious and give up all animal products and sugar until Easter.

Most of us have heard of the Rio mardi gras, and the Sydney one, but have you heard about Danish mardi gras, or fastelavn? It evolved out of the Catholic tradition, but as Denmark became mostly Protestant, it turned into “a time for children’s fun and family games” like whipping your parents. It is celebrated the Sunday or Monday before Ash wednesday.

Some towns in Denmark hold large Fastelavn parades and festivities , including hitting a wooden effigy of a cat filled with sweets – which once used to contain an actual cat.

Of course there is a special food associated with Danish carnival, a sweet bun sometimes filled with cream. It is made with potatoes, flour, egg, sugar and butter and deep fried. Typical carnival food, sweet fried dough seems to be popular all over the world for mardi gras.

The other typical Danish tradition is a good flogging, now done mostly by children to wake up parents on the Sunday of fastelavn. They use bunches of twigs or willow, decorated with sweets or feathers, egg-shells, storks and little figures of babies. Apparently it started as a fertility ritual, when it was mainly the young women and the infertile who were flogged. Then very pious parents would flog their kids to remind them of Christ’s suffering. Now the kids get their revenge. But the flogged ones always get a sweet bun in return. If you are living at home with mum and dad, you could just go multicultural and be Danish for a day.

FASTELAVN BUNS – from this unadorned but great collection of Danish recipes, a lot from his mum, bless him.

* ½ pound potatoes

* 1 cup potato water

* 1 package dry yeast

* ½ cup water

* 2 cups flour — sifted

* 2 tablespoons soft butter

* 1 egg — beaten

* ¾ cup sugar

* ½ cup warm water

* 1 teaspoon salt

* 5 cups flour

Cook potatoes. Drain and reserve potato water. Mash potatoes. Mix mashed potatoes, potato water, yeast cake soaked in the 1/2 cup water, and the 2 cups flour. Let stand overnight.

In the morning add the butter, the egg and the sugar, and cream well. Add the lukewarm water, salt and the 5 cups flour. Beat well. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Punch down and roll ½ inch thick. Cut into rounds with a cookie cutter and drop each round into hot fat, browning on both sides. Remove and drain on paper towels. Roll in sugar while still warm.

AND TO CELEBRATE 100 YEARS OF INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

I played a few minutes from a couple of my favourite community radio food shows. Because on community radio you can be involved no matter your gender, colour, sexual orientation or fanciability.

This is a story from the American network NPR, by those other fabulous sisters, the Kitchen Sisters, about an indomitable woman who fed and helped the black civil rights campaigners, including ML King.

And this is from the Melbourne station 3CR, a piece from their long running food show ‘Food Fight’. If you are chasing up info on all the benefits of coffee grounds for your garden, or you are thinking of starting up a coffee grounds recycling system where you are, the website is http://groundtoground.org/

AND FINALLY …. sometimes it’s hard to believe belly only goes for one hour:

THE BELLY BULLETIN

CARE Australia is launching the Walk In Her Shoes challenge in celebration of the 100th year of International Women’s Day. Women and girls make up 60 per cent of the 1.4 billion people currently living in poverty. Millions walk over six kilometres a day in search of food, water and firewood. This leaves little time for anything else. So if you want to Help break this cycle of poverty, Walk 10,000 steps per day for one week and get sponsored – the week is Monday 28 March to Sunday 3 April 2011.
You can raise money towards firewood, water, food, health care, safety or education to reduce the burden. Go to www.careaustralia.org.au for details.

In other news, the 2 big supermarkets are fighting over milk, Mallams has closed down in Mullum, but I’d rather tell you about life-saving honey, soggy pizza and breast milk ice cream.

Honey made from an Australian native myrtle tree has been found to have the most powerful anti-bacterial properties of any honey in the world and could be used to treat antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections that commonly occur in hospitals and nursing homes. The myrtle is (leptospermum polygalifolium), which grows along the Australian eastern seaboard from the south coast of NSW to Cape York. The honey is being tested by a Brisbane-based research group. Meantime cover yourself in honey, it can’t hurt, just watch out for ants.

What does it take to break the the record for the world’s longest pizza? One-and-a-half tonnes of flour, 650 kilos of mozzarella, 1,500 litres of water, 30 or 40 kilos of salt and about 15 kilos of yeast, also one-and-a-half kilometres of chicken wire, and a special oven that can cook one-and-a-half metres of pizza per minute.
And no rain. So maybe they never should have tried this in Melbourne, especially this year.
More than 40 chefs from Melbourne pizza restaurants were working since midnight last weekend on Lygon street, to make the 1.2-kilometre long pizza and were halfway through when rain-affected soggy dough brought the attempt to an end.
The pizza was going to be distributed to charities across Melbourne.
Judges from the Guinness World Records Association were there to decide if the pizza broke the previous record which is held by Poland.
Organisers say they might try again next year.

On my last belly show I told you about how popular baby food is with many adults. Now you can go straight for the ultimate baby food. A cafe in London has started selling ice cream made from women’s breast milk. It is called Baby Gaga, and it’s made with milk expressed by 15 women who replied to an ad on an online mothers’ forum. One of the milk donors, Victoria Hiley, said that if adults realised how tasty breast milk was then more new mothers would feel happier about breastfeeding. She expressed the milk at the cafe and it was pasteurised before lemon zest and vanilla pods were added as it was churned. Ms Hiley, is paid $23 for every 10 ounces of milk.
The man behind Baby Gaga icecream, Matt O’Connor, said he could not understand people being squeamish about the product. “If it’s good enough for our children, it’s good enough for the rest of us,” he said. “Some people will hear about it and go yuck – but actually it’s pure organic, free-range and totally natural.”
Already a pretty good story, but now it’s much better because singer Lady Gaga has had her lawyer send a stern legal letter telling the ice-cream makers to : “cease and desist from in any other way associating with Lady Gaga any ice-cream you are offering,” . The letter accuses The cafe of “taking unfair advantage of, and riding on the coat-tails of” Lady Gaga’s trademarks in a manner that is “deliberately provocative and, to many people, nausea-inducing”.
The ice-cream was a big hit. One serve costs $22.50 and it’s brought out by waitresses wearing flamboyant outfits, a bit of a Lady Gaga trademark. But breast milk icecream is now off the menu because Westminster City Council seized it for health and safety checks. “We are taking the ice-cream away for samples,” a spokeswoman said. “It’s not a ban. The owner has voluntarily agreed not to make any more or sell any more until we’ve got all the results.” Breast milk could carry viral infections, including hepatitis, she explained.
The manufacturers have said they use the same screening procedures as blood donation centres or milk banks in London.

MUSIC

Still celebrating wonderful crazy community radio, the tracks I played today were from a compilation done to support a Sydney community radio licence aspirant station that unfortunately never became permanent, Out Fm.

From “Inside Out”, Warner records 1999

authority over the fish – by artificial

flowers in the sky – by boo boo and mace

miss del ray – by jo jo smith

love and chocolate cake, sister T

belly 12 July 2010 – tender herbs and starfruit

This was Sister Tess’s first show after a trip to the North and South extremities of Europe, Finland (where they have porridge for lunch) and Sicily (where they have icecream in a bun for breakfast). More about those two fascinating places soon. During this show Sisters T and B talked about the wonderful carambola or starfruit, a delicious and beautiful golden fruit that grows well in our area. And sister T played an interview recorded at the Byron Bay Herb Nursery with Debbie Shortis, the fabulous belly herbologist. Deb talked about ways to use herbs in mixes. The traditional bouquet garni , woody herbs like thyme, sage, rosemary, bay, tied together so they can be easily removed at the end of cooking. Herbes fines, or tender herbs like chervil, tarragon, parsley, fennel tops, dill, that are great chopped together and added at the very end of cooking to zest up winter dishes : soups, mashes, casseroles. And her own invention, an Asian bouquet garni to tie together,add to curries and remove, choosing from kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, galangal, cinnamon, ginger, curry leaf, coriander root or horseradish root.

These are a couple of recipes that get Deb’s fresh and herbal seal of approval. The crepe is inspired by one on “The Cook and the Chef” ABC TV show.

HERB CREPE
Serves 4
(To go in any soup)
2 tablespoons flour
2 eggs
3-4 tablespoons milk
Salt and pepper
‘fines herbes’- 1 tablespoon each of parsley, tarragon, chives, chervil and dill frond,
all chopped very finely.
Put flour in a bowl, stir in the eggs and then gradually beat in the milk to make a thin batter. Season, add herbs and let rest for 30 mins. This crepe is about the herbs more than it is about the crepe. The batter is just a boat to carry the herbs upon the soup.
Heat a heavy pan and brush lightly with both a little oil and butter. Add crepe mix and swirl around the pan to form a thin crepe. Cook on very low heat without adding much colour, flip and set aside. Roll the crepe and cut into thin strips.
Place a few strands of crepe ribbon in the bottom of each serving bowl before adding the soup of your choice.

CARROT AND CHERVIL SOUP
50gms butter
275grams chopped carrots
50gms plain flour
1ltre chicken stock
½ cup of chopped chervil
Salt and pepper
Melt butter in saucepan and gently sauté the carrots for 5 mins. Stir in the flour, then stock and seasoning. Bring soup to the boil, cover and simmer gently for 30mins. Allow to cool slightly then purée the soup in a blender. Return to pan add the chervil and gently bring back to the boil. Serve hot or chilled with a swirl of cream or yogurt and a chervil garnish.
(recipe from “ The Complete Book of Herbs” by Lesley Bremness 1990)

For lots more recipes and herb information, go to the Byron Bay Herb Nursery site
www.byronherbs.com.au

FROM THE BELLY LAB : MUSSELS WITH TENDER HERBS by sister T

I made this the night before the interview, inspired by Deb’s enthusiasm for mixing up lots of fresh green things. I just went around the garden and picked lots of whatever was looking good, parsley and chervil and chives, a little nasturtium and a few mustard leaves. There was at least a loosely packed cup of chopped greens. I opened the mussels in a big pot with chopped garlic, butter and a glass of wine (one for the pot, one for the cook), and just tossed the herbs in at the end. Much nicer than plain old parsley moules marinieres.

starfruit photo by Pratheep P S, www.pratheep.com

STAR FRUIT OR CARAMBOLA

The star fruit has been grown in parts of Asia for hundreds of years— it may have originated in Sri Lanka and Indonesian Moluccas.
They are best consumed when ripe, when they are yellow with a light shade of green. It will also have brown ridges at the five edges and feel firm. An overripe fruit will be yellow with brown spots (so the sources say – we still like them that ripe, obviously minus the brown bits).

The fruit is entirely edible, including the slightly waxy skin. It is sweet yet tart, a complex tropical flavour, and extremely juicy.

Carambola is rich in antioxidants and vitamin C , you may need to be careful of overconsumption if you have liver problems possibly cos of their oxalic acid content.

– To grow : tropical, sub tropical small tree, full sun,water, good drainage, fertilise 3 x year, can propagate by air layering – wrap soil around a branch and wait for roots. If you grow them from seed they may bear sour fruit.

– To prepare : wash, remove ends and ridges and seeds

– To cook :
fruit salads – the main way you will see starfruit, but there is so much more you can do! In China and India unripe fruit is used cooked as a veg.
Spicy thai salads (even rosepetal with chicken and prawn http://thaifood.about.com/od/thaisnacks/r/rosepetalsalad.htm) they introduce a sweet/sour element.
Juices, drink decoration, cake topping eg pavlova, upside down cake, muffins – substitute in pineapple recipes, the star slices hold their shape if you are a bit gentle.
Salsas with eg cucumber, mint, chilli to put on fish or chicken
Raita – the yogurt side dish, serve with curry, instead of cucumber raita
Pickle whole

radio show 24 May 2010 : veggie warriors, geminis and chestnuts

…yes a bit of an odd mix when you put it like that. It’s a bit hard to explain what Kieran is doing in 2 words, go to the fundraiser and let him explain. Today’s topics were the dangers of industrial food and seed production and some grass (or veggie patch) roots solutions, the deliciousness of chestnuts, and Lilith is cooking with the stars for Gemini. And at least one famous Gemini chef, Jamie Oliver, is a bit of a veggie patch warrior too.

GUESTS : Kieran Weston, organic heirloom seedling grower
Lilith, astrogourmet

KIERAN’S SCHOOL/NURSING HOME PROJECT :

“Seed Sowers Organic Seedlings with Life Changing Documentaries is hosting a fund raising movie night at the Byron Services Club on the 1/6/2010 [at 4 pm and 6 pm]
The not for profit event is focused on raising awareness of major issues that confront our local and global communities along with future generations.
Proceeds from the evening are intended to fund the installation of Organic Gardens in Schools, and assist in the formation of community cooperative programs, which are hoped to foster a closer community.
The first 200 people to register online for this event will be invited to participate in the installation of the garden at the school,at which time Seed Sowers Organic and friends will conduct free workshops related to Gardening, Fermentation, and Raw Food Preparation.
Seed Sowers Organic would welcome expressions of interest on the night from schools retirement villages and other community groups that feel they would like to be involved. ”
[see contacts/links below]

Seed Sowers last school garden workshop...

...and the flourishing vegetable garden

GUEST RECIPES :

SOME HEALTHY SMOOTHIES FROM KIERAN :

Abundant Vegetable Smoothie

2 roma tomatoes
1 small carrot
1 small zucchini
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon onion
2 stalks celery
1 red bell pepper
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
2 cups water
1 Avocado
Blend all ingredients together until creamy.

Contributed by: Brenda Cobb (www.LivingFoodsInstitute.com)

“When I Eat This, Life is Bliss” Smoothie

3 bananas
1 cup raspberries
2 golden delicious apples
2 big handfuls of spinach
½ – 1 cup of water

Blend and indulge!
(best if your blender is 800 watts or more for the ultimate consistency)

ESPRESSO GRANITA SPIKED WITH COFFEE VODKA – from LILITH

like Geminis it’s light, but it’s got bite

Ingredients: 2 cups brewed espresso, sugar to taste, coffee vodka.
Garnish: Dark chocolate curls, fresh pomegranate, Italian cats tongue biscotti, up
to you…

Directions: Combine espresso and sugar in a bowl and stir till sugar is
dissolved. Pour into shallow dish and freeze till ice granules start to

form around the edges, about 1 hour, then stir with a fork to break up
granules. Refreeze and restir every 20 minutes till the mix becomes an icy
slush, about 2 hours.

To Serve: Spoon crystals into goblets, pour coffee vodka over, garnish as
you fancy.

Australia's groovy chestnut mascot : Mr Chesty!

FROM THE BELLY LAB – by sister Tess

BOILED CHESTNUTS:

choose fat, shiny chestnuts, with skin that feels tight and full, make a small cut on each so they don’t explode

boil in plenty of water with a few few fennel fronds or a good pinch of fennel seed, and a pinch of salt, until the inside is soft

cut one open to check

eat warm or cold after peeling off both the outer and the inner skin, they keep for 2-3 days in their skins
or peel and use in various recipes (labour of love)

LILITH IS COOKING WITH THE STARS : GEMINI

Today we’re wishing happy birthday to all the Shire’s busy Geminis, for whom constant change and variety are the spice of life, and who just love eating with others: they adore the stimulating buzz of gossip over plutonic coffee while snacking on interesting nibbles at the latest nook with the look, or doing lunch at the newest smart little eatery serving tiny portions for high prices to celebs.

So it’s no surprise that Gemini celebrity chef Delia Smith baked the cake on the cover of the Rolling Stones album Let It Bleed, and received an OBE last year for her contribution to British cooking. She shot to fame with Delias How To Cook TV series which actually taught Brits how to boil an egg, a show which led to a 10% rise in egg sales. From bread machines to pasta makers to panini grills, Geminis love their gadgets, and Smith’s use of particular kitchen utensils caused overnight sell-outs a phenomenon which came to be known as the Delia Effect, and that phrase is now in common use to describe a run on a product as a result of a high profile media recommendation.

Gemini chefs also tend to be ultra moderns who love coming up with novel combinations and techniques like Gemini kitchen chemist Heston Blumenthal whose signature dishes include snail porridge, parsnip cereal and bacon-and-egg ice cream (must have an Aquarian ascendant). Famous for his scientific approach to cooking, culinary alchemist and molecular gastronomist Blumenthal promotes the use of vacuum jar cooking, cooking in sealed bags and low temperature, ultraslow cooking of meat that doesn’t melt fat or release juices, keeping the meat so moist it doesn’t need sauce.

His Fat Duck restaurant was voted best in the UK and best in the world, and his TV program Heston’s Feasts recreate Victorian, Medieval, Tudor and Roman themed dinner banquets with celebrity guests all very Gemini. The Edwardian feast was based on the last meal
eaten on the Titanic and the Christmas feast included dormouse, hot ice cream and a dish made from gold, frankincense and myrrh.

While they’re the zodiac’s people people, Gemini chefs aren’t all celebrity showponies turning out moreish little morsels of elegant party tucker and Naked Chef Jamie Oliver, restaurateur and frequently outspoken media personality, has been awarded an MBE, voted Most Inspiring Political Figure of 2005 for lobbying the British government about British kids being served junk school lunches, and for creating a foundation which takes 15young adults a year from disadvantaged backgrounds, and trains them in the restaurant business. Another cheffy success story who left school at 16 with no qualifications, his TV series continually emphasize fresh organic produce and interesting low joule cuisine, and campaign to change poor cooking habits andunhealthy diets.

Sophie Grigson is another Gemini cookand author who’s a keen supporter of organic local food suppliers andadvocate for healthy children’s food.

by Lilith

radio hula pic by KK - just to prove that Lilith really does wonderful hula performances while us bellysisters vainly try to keep the show on the rails

EDIBLE QUOTE :

“For any chef, supermarkets are like a factory. I buy from specialist growers, organic suppliers and farmers”.

by Jamie Oliver, who got into a bit of trouble for saying this because he does ads for UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s

CONTACTS/LINKS:

http://lifechangingdocos.com/northernnsw/blog – to book for the Future of Food screening in Byron Bay

Seed Sowers Organic seedlings are at several markets and farmers markets around the Northern Rivers, including Byron Bay and Mullumbimby

http://www.chestnutsaustralia.com.au/recipes.html – oodles of chestnut recipes aand tips and the fabulous Mr Chesty

a few links to the attempted Jamie Oliver US conquest:

http://www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/

http://www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/jamies-food-revolution

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/mar/25/jamie-oliver-us-healthy-eating – worth clicking just to see him dressed as a pea

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/west-virginia-eats-jamie-oliver-for-breakfast-1925393.html – good article on the uphill battle Jamie is facing in the US

some more healthy veggies planted in by the student volunteers and Seed Sowers at a local school

belly radio show April 26 – war and food special and cooking with Taurus

a housewife takes aim - wall image from the Imperial War Museum, London, Ministry of Food exhibition

TOPICS

Lilith is cooking with the stars – this week : Taurus

Anzac day war and food special : internees, soldiers’ rations, rationing in Australia and UK, Napoleon’s favourite battle snack, spam sushi, victory gardens, expensive cooks and the downfall of the Roman Empire

GUEST : Lilith, belly astrogourmet and hula queen

GUEST RECIPE : by Lilith

BEEF WELLINGTON WITH MADEIRA AND BLACK TRUFFLE JUS

This special occasion dish was named for Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of
Wellington, created to satisfy his love of beef, truffles, mushrooms,
Madeira wine, and pâté – its time consuming, but most of it can be prepared
in advance.

INGREDIENTS to serve 8

1.35 kg of beef tenderloin fillet
2 tablespoons olive oil
30g unsalted butter
175g foie gras or whatever pate
you can afford
1 beaten egg
450g puff pastry

Mushroom Stuffing
55g unsalted butter
small onion, finely chopped
220g flat black mushrooms,
finely chopped
3 tablespoons heavy double cream
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Madeira and truffle jus
3/4 cup Madeira wine – you can use red if that’s what
you have
3/4 cup beef stock, knob of unsalted butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped black truffles (optional)
watercress to garnish

METHOD

First the stuffing: Heat butter in a frying pan, and saute chopped onion a
few minutes till soft and golden. Add chopped mushrooms and sauté till
moisture evaporates. Add cream, season with salt and fresh black pepper,
cook over a low heat till reduced to a thick pureé. Remove from heat, mix
in chopped parsley, allow to cool and refrigerate till needed.

Then the beef: Heat olive oil and butter in a large pan. Season beef with
salt and black pepper, brown on all sides over a high heat for a few
minutes. Remove from pan and let it cool, reserving any juices. On a
floured surface, roll out the puff pastry 3mm thick to an oblong big enough
to fit your piece of beef. Spread the pâté across centre of the pastry,
same width as the beef. Spread the mushroom stuffing over the pâté.
Place the beef on top of the stuffing and gently settle it into the mix. Cut
away the middle of the pastry ends and brush all edges with beaten egg.
Carefully fold the pastry up to completely envelope the beef, tucking in the
ends and very carefully turn the parcel over onto a large buttered baking
tray. With a sharp knife make a few small incisions in the pastry, decorate
the top with pastry leaves cut out of the leftovers and refrigerate
uncovered for half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 450F/230C/gas mark 8. Brush wellington all over with
beaten egg and bake at high heat for 10 minutes. Then turn it down to
375F/190C/gas mark 5 for a further 20-25 minutes till pastry¹s golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let it rest uncovered for 10 minutes.

While its baking, do the jus. Simmer reserved juices from the beef pan with
the wine and beef stock till reduced by half. Add finely chopped truffles
(if using them), and simmer another 2 minutes. Take pan off the heat, add a
knob of butter, let it melt to give a shine to the sauce and season to
taste.

TO SERVE: Cut wellington into thick slices and arrange on warm plates. Pour
over some Jus, garnish with fresh watercress.

This is a very rich complex recipe, so keep accompaniments simple: new
potatoes, green beans, an orange and watercress salad.

If this all sounds a bit too gouty, our local chef Nadine Abensur has a
gorgeous recipe for Mushroom Wellington which I personally prefer.

COOKING WITH TAURUS

Taurans, the earthiest earth sign, are often described as touchy, feely,
hungry and horny and it’s true they engage with life through their senses.
This is not the sign of dieting, lean cuisine, small portions or fussy
little canapes. Taurans like big servings, especially smorgasbords where
they can graze at leisure and heap up their plates with their favorite nosh:
which tends to be solid, satisfying and usually fleshy. Apologies to any
Tauran vegetarians out there, but a salad just won’t cut it for these hearty
eaters who love nothing better than a no-nonsense roast followed by a good
pud all washed down with a full-bodied red.

Tauran favourites may include the Bullshot – beef consomme, tabasco, lemon juice, ice and vodka from the freezer, and robust, uncomplicated flavours like steak and kidney pie with garlic mash,roast beef with carrot and parsnip puree,and mixed grills with crumbed brains and spicy sausages.

SOME TAURUS CHEFS

Matt Moran of ARIA, one of Sydney’s premier restaurants overlooking the Opera House a country boy from Tamworth who was told by a teacher he was a loser who’d never amount to anything, Matt left school at 15 to become an apprentice chef. A true Tauran, he describes his kitchen style as hands on.

Gary Rhodes, English celebrity chef who became famous reviving
British classics like braised oxtails, bread and butter pudding and faggots
– meatballs made from leftovers.

these are faggots - photo taken by sister T at the Brixton farmers market, London

Anthony Worral-Thompson, whose godfather was Richard Burton, had his recipe for Snickers Pie nominated by an independent
food watchdog as one of the most unhealthy recipes ever invented – being
Snickers bars, marscapone, sugar and eggs in puff pastry, and weighing in at
1,250 calories a slice, its no mystery why the ever-charming Gordon Ramsay
once called Worral the Teletubby chef. [in Adelaide right now for Taste Australia]

Epitomizing Taurans’ love of the good life, the Dean of American Cuisine
James Beard was a great big man of large appetites – an endearing teacher
who loved people, loved gossip, loved food and loved a good time.
Bedridden with malaria at the age of three, he grew to love the food prepared by his mother and their Chinese cook, resulting in a life time mission to defend good cooking with fresh
ingredients against, quoting James: the assault of the Jell-O-mold and
domestic scientists. Expelled from college for being gay, Beard started his
own gourmet catering business and became star of the first American TV
cooking show titled, with typical Tauran subtlety: I Love To Eat. His legacy
lives on in twenty books, the Citymeals On Wheels he founded to feed New
York’s home-bound elderly and The James Beard Foundation which provides
scholarships, champions American fine dining and honours industry
professionals with annual awards for best chefs, restaurants, journalists
and cookbook authors.

Alice Louise Waters is another American restaurateur whose edible education
ideas have been introduced into the Berkeley school system to try and combat
the current crisis in childhood obesity. Waters advocates seasonal local
produce, believing the international shipment of mass-produced food harms
the environment and gives consumers an inferior product.

In case I make them sound too boofy, Taurans are ruled by Venus so they’re
lovers of beauty and Taurus wild boy of art Salvador Dali published the
extraordinary cookbook Les Diners de Gala a sumptuously illustrated
gastro-aethetic feast for eyes, mind and palate featuring exotic recipes for
frogs, snails and aphrodisiacs things like ” Pierced Heart” and “Ox Snouts
in Pastry Shells” – all lavish, fattening and expensive, though to be fair
he does kick off with the Tauran warning: “Do not look for dietetic formulas
here.” It’s a collector’s item now, but I once owned it and remember
attempting the Eels in Tequila recipe (what was I thinking).

Lilith

FROM THE BELLY LAB :

CHICKEN MARENGO

adapted from the many versions of this historical recipe by sister Tess

Napoleon definitely won the battle of Marengo, a place in Italy near my grandmother’s hometown of Alessandria in southern Piemonte, Italy. He beat the Austrian army and then he was hungry, so he ate a chicken dish which is said to have become a great favourite of his because either it reminded him of the victory, or he was like a sportsperson who always wears the lucky underpants on the day of a big match – it was his lucky dish.

He was separated from his food wagons (for a great fictional account of being Nap’s cook, read Jeannette Winterson’s “The Passion”), and either his French chef stole some chickens and a few bits and pieces to rustle up a quick meal (say the French texts), or they went to a simple local restaurant and ordered the cook to snap to it (say many Italian versions). The only thing that is definitely in chicken Marengo is chicken – there may also be fried eggs, mushrooms, freshwater prawns, croutons, brandy, tomatoes, wine – or not. I have translated and adapted one of the simplest versions, in an Italian cookbook that is well over 100 years old, by Pellegrino Artusi, called “Science in the Kitchen and the art of eating well”.

for 4 people (or 2 x 2)

1 small young free-range chicken, about 1kg or the smallest you can find – I used a size 13, which is a 1.3 Kg chook

flour
100 mL/1 glass white wine
flat leaf parsley, chopped, about 1/2 cup
stock (chicken or veg)
stale good bread, sliced
1 lemon
butter, olive oil
salt, pepper, nutmeg
opt. – 2-3 mushrooms per person

Rinse, dry and cut the chicken into large pieces, about 8-12 depending on size. Dust with flour.
Lightly brown in a little oil and butter, a few pieces at a time, seasoning with salt, pepper and nutmeg as you go. When all the chicken pieces are browned, put them together and add the wine, when it is absorbed add 1-2 cups of stock and cover to finish cooking over a gentle heat. If you find that you’ve added too much stock, just leave the cover off towards the end.
Just before serving, brush the mushrooms with olive oil and cook in a dry pan. Keep warm while you add a little more oil to the pan to toast the slices of bread.
Add the parsley to the chicken, and lemon juice to taste, stir and turn the heat off.
Serve surrounded by mushrooms and toast.

You could go the full I-just-conquered-another-great-big-piece-of-the-map and fry an egg each in oil, steam a few prawns in the white wine, and serve those too.

I tried making a thin plain omelette and serving it cut in strips with the chicken. It was ok, but it didn’t really add anything. But the chook/toast/mushroom combo was delicious and very simple to make.

We were only two eating this, so the next day I added fresh peeled, seeded, chopped tomatoes to the chicken while it was re-heating, as most recipes for chicken Marengo include tomato. It was ok, but there are much better recipes for tomatoey chicken around, and probably not what Napoleon ate, as it took a long time for tomatoes to conquer Europe after they came from America.

EDIBLE QUOTE

Today’s quote is by the Roman historian Livy, he was writing about Roman soldiers in the days when Romans were rough and tough and simple people, going off to conquer the Greeks and other softer and more civilised people in Asia, and coming home with souvenirs and bad habits

“The beginnings of foreign luxury were brought to Rome by the army of Asia. .. Harp girls and other festive amusements became features of dinner parties. The feasts themselves began to be arranged with greater meticulousness and expense. The cook,cheapest and most despised of slaves in our fore father’s times, increased in price. His work, once seen as servile, was now considered an Art. These, scarcely noticed by contemporaries, were the seeds of corruption” Livy writing about a time around 200 bc – and all downhill from there

THE MINISTRY OF FOOD EXHIBITION AT THE IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM, LONDON

In the kitchen a housewife checks the size of a slice of bread against a chart supplied by the Wartime Social Survey, a government fact-finding organisation set up in April 1940. There was no bread rationing during the war, but it had to be introduced on 21st July 1946. It remained in force for exactly two years. © Imperial War Museum

I’ve got a sticker that says “make chocolate not war” on the car. Us bellysisters are peace loving, sybaritic souls. So I don’t normally visit museums dedicated to guns and co. But I thoroughly enjoyed the current exhibition at the IWM. It’s quite amazing how many of the preoccupations of wartime Britain are again very topical.

From eat more veggies to grow your own, to avoiding food that needs long range transport (because of German subs not food miles), to recycling and using underused land for small scale food production. The reasons may be different, but the messages are the same. And often these days we are told to look to wartime methods and values to avoid environmental catastrophy, or just to have access to better, healthier food. The first major Slow Food event in San Francisco last year, for example, included a temporary but very lush “Victory Garden” in the centre of the city.

So it makes sense to go along and see how the British Government, and people, very successfully not only increased domestic food production war, but ended up with a healthier, better fed population – in the middle of a war!

There are propaganda videos, songs and radio programs, lots of posters and

photos, and recreations of a kitchen, shop and greenhouse. Design students would get a lot out of it too, such great posters they used to do.

And all sorts of media were used to communicate techniques and tips on all sorts of subjects from nutrition to cooking methods to gardening.

I particularly like this way of telling a good bug from a bad bug.

And while most of us are probably aware that rationing existed, this show explains some of the less obvious aspects.
Rationing was meant to ensure that both rich and poor had access to scarce food, and that as much as possible was left for the troops. There was a big supply web between Britain and us colonials. Many merchant sailors died transporting food, and many people in Australia endured rationing to supply food to Britain and the various armed forces.

IWM cafe food

The one thing that is really hard to take is the supposed recreation of wartime cooking in the Museum cafe. One of the sponsors is responsible for this, and the whole museum smells pretty unappetising. As one of the people serving it up said to me : “I think they had better food during the war”.

¨Food Chart Eat Something From Each Group Every Day, © Imperial War Museum In 1944, the Ministry of Food Public Relations Division spent £600,000 on posters and other forms of publicity.

However, see this wartime nutrition chart – we are all familiar with eating from all the food groups. If you could get hold of them, you could follow this dietary advice by eating just butter, cheese, and potatoes. Ahh, those were the days. But then you could work it all off digging and dancing.

If you can’t get to London, check out the videos available on the net – I posted a list below.

LINKS :

The Kitchen Sisters story on US public radio, about American Japanese internees during WW2 – anyone with 1/16th of Japanese blood – and the odd new foods they learned to love, like spam – recipes and audio, including that fab spam sushi recipe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_aldlRKzvQ&feature=related – the BBC US army ration story

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKyO84pYy0c&feature=related – this one is silent, so not in the radio show, but lovely historical images of soldiers with those ever-present tins!

http://www.6thcorpsmusic.us/ – lots more music like the tracks I played on the show, thanks to the US IV Army Corps Combat Engineers

give us this day – the full version of the Australian rationing ad – this website is a wonderful archive of Australian film

http://london.iwm.org.uk/server/show/conEvent.3167 – the Ministry of Food exhibition at the Imperial War Museum, London

Dig for Victory ad

Dig For Victory, 1942, IWM PST 0059 © Imperial War Museum The Dig For Victory campaign was launched in October 1939 by the Minister of Agriculture Sir Reginald Dorman-Smith.

this is the one I call “Mrs White sees the Minister” – love a talking chicken!

and a couple of rationing films that I didn’t have time to play:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcaSJCtmt7c&feature=related – the announcement of rationing in the UK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2evv45stEHw&feature=related – 2 cooks and a cabbage

but there are so many more great wartime clips on youtube! we just don’t do propaganda like we used to. If you follow the links above you will find many more, including a whole heap of soldiers just opening up and heating army rations, to show exactly what they look like – no words usually, just preserved food bubbling away on camp stoves – very odd.

and for a dark, distopian and disturbingly likely future of rationing, National Meat loaf and veggie gardens, read Fay Weldon’s 2009 novel “Chalcot Crescent”