FoodPope Summer Tip: Keep an Eye Open for Discarded Grills

As the summer continues to heat up, grilling becomes a wonderful way to prepare an array of meats and vegetables.  If you're looking to get grilling for a reasonable price without the hassle of paying a lot at a local department or hardware store, keep an eye open on garbage night!

This little gem is a lightly-used Charbroil grill that one of my neighbors was tossing in the garbage last year after upgrading to a larger model.  If investigating a grill that someone has thrown out, check to make sure that rust is minimal and that the grill grate appears to be in-tact.

Also, make sure the grill appears stable and if it's a gas model ensure that hoses and attachments to and from the propane source appear uncracked and undamaged.

With this grill I found I got a really hot charcoal fire going the first time I used in and then placed the grate over it for about 10 minutes to burn off any remaining food and residue left behind.

Approximately 12 rack of ribs, 10 burgers, 10 hot dogs, and several chickens after finding this grill in the garbage, it's still working great and I plan to use it for at least another season.  At $0, the price was definitely right!

Dueling Crock Pots

The Rival Crock Pot has a long history of helping hungry families prepare a range of dishes from soups and chilis to roasts and ribs.  Here, my Crock Pot from the early 2000s duels against a model from the late 1970s.

Despite a several-decade difference in age, both Crock Pots performed beautifully at cooking a rack of ribs each.  Each rack of ribs was cut into 3-4 rib sections before placing in the Crock Pot and cooking at low heat for 7 hours.

After cooking, I applied a dry rub consisting of equal parts Joe's Stuff seasoning and brown sugar before finishing for 8 minutes per side on the grill.  Delicious!!!

Check out Crock Pots: http://www.crock-pot.com/

Check out Joe's Stuff: http://store.nosoc.com/joes-stuff-21-oz/

To GMO or Not to GMO, That is the Question

Recently I've been pondering whether I need to spend more time seeking non-GMO food products.  The movement towards requiring food manufacturers to label their foods as containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is one that is hotly debated.  Large corporations such as Monsanto argue that labeling foods as non-GMO can be misleading, as it suggests that foods that are genetically-modifed are less healthy than those that aren't produced using this technology.

As I walked through the aisle at Kroger last week, I decided to pick up a half-gallon of fat-free, organic milk.  At $2.99, the cost seemed a bit high, but I liked the fact that I was buying a product that produced using organic practices and was free of GMOs.  I thought back on the organic milk I had purchased the week earlier when yesterday I bought a gallon of milk from the United Dairy Farmers (UDF) for the same $2.99.

That's right: for the same price I purchased twice the amount of milk.  The two products tasted the same, and the dietary information on the labels was identical.  So what's a person who has the best interest of animals, the environment, and the health of my family in mind to do?  My suggested solution, buy organic, non-GMO products when you can, but don't necessarily reject genetically-modified foods just because they are altered in some way.

Stories abound of large companies like Monsanto utilizing ethically questionable practices such as hiring individuals to roam the heartland using gestapo-like tactics to intimidate farmers into not only using genetically-modified grain, soy, and corn in their fields, but also threatening lawsuits when farmers violate patents by reusing seed from previous crops.  Monsanto is also a major player in the use of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST) which is given to dairy cows to get them to produce higher volumes of milk more quickly than without rBST.

The use of rBST seems like a logical decision until one considers the testimony of many farmers that cows on rBST do not live as long and suffer more injuries (some fatal) as a result of the hormone.  I've read some farmers equating rBST as a product that's akin to "putting a Corvette engine in a Volkswagon," because a cow's metabolism is sped to way beyond where it should be and the cow eventually "burns out."

But do stories like these mean that all GMO products are necessarily bad, and that corporations such as Monsanto are inherently evil?  I don't think this is the case either.  As I continue to think about whether all foods that contain GMOs should be labeled, there will certainly be continued debate.
 

Burger Night Minus the Ground Beef

Recently I've been experimenting with meatless menu items that are nutritious and tasty.

A couple of nights ago I opted for a spicy black bean burger instead of my usual ground chuck burger and was pleasantly surprised.

Lightly fried in olive oil and served with sun dried tomato pesto, my veggie burger was tasty and satisfying.  Ground beef burgers truly capture the taste of summer and I'd never give up on them completely, but I could see myself getting into veggie burgers a lot more often!

Parsley and Cilantro Ommlette

One predicament I frequently find myself encountering in the kitchen is having an abundance of leftover herbs such as parsley, cilantro, basil, etc. and nothing to do with them.

A quick and easy fix to this issue is to cook the herbs with a beaten egg and make a healthy, tasty herb ommlette.

This ommlette contains parsley and cilantro and made a lovely lunch.

Garlic Scape Pesto!

With the arrival of garlic scapes at our local farmers market this spring, another recipe I enjoyed trying was garlic scape pesto.  Preparation was simple, and called for 2 parts of chopped garlic scapes to one part (by volume) shelled pistachios and one part coarsely chopped parmigiana cheese.

Olive oil was drizzled over the ingredients and all were placed in a food processor.  Pulse continuously until the mixture becomes a spreadable mixture.  Place in a small resealable jar, pour olive oil over the top of the pesto, and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Enjoy on pasta, with bread, or on crackers.

Scapes: The Other End of the Garlic Bulb

This weekend as I toured my local farmer’s market, I noticed that multiple vendors were selling garlic scapes.  Resembling long, coiling sections of rope, this odd addition to my usual farmer’s market fare intrigued me and got me thinking about how I could integrate them into my cooking.

Scapes grow above-ground and are trimmed by farmers and gardeners to ensure that the majority of the energy utilized by the plant is directed towards the bulb.  Like the bulb, scapes are a delicious accompaniment to a variety of spring table fare.

I decided to keep my first attempt at cooking with them simple: I chopped the scapes up and placed them in a cast iron skillet with some olive oil.  They cooked slowly, almost like a clove of garlic would, and my wife noted that the kitchen had the distinct aroma of cooking garlic.

After about 12 minutes of cooking over low heat I placed the scapes on a salad and they were DELICIOUS!  Paired with sautéed asparagus, sautéed radishes, and field greens, the salad was a tasty and healthy accompaniment to my meal.