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Finally a chance to cover some food and cooking - a topic that somehow escapes writing about, but that is a major component of my daily life.

When I became a Bahá'í about twenty years ago, it resulted in a change of lifestyle. One of those changes involves abstaining from alcohol. Not a big deal in the drinking sense, as I drank very little already. But, coming from a northern European country, many friends and family cooked regularly, adding wine, beer or liqueurs to the food.

Interestingly, the Bahá'í Writings clearly suggest to refrain from any kind of alcohol - unless prescribed by a physician - and not to add it to food in any way. Generally, when preparing their own meals, Bahá'ís take this seriously. The challenge arrives when visiting someone else, who does not live by this advice, and serves up a delectable meal.

What happens?

Well, practically, one would just eat the food, and not make a fuss. Perhaps I would then mention at some later time that I really don't consume any alcohol, not even in food. Most friends end up respecting it, and take it into account the next time.

There's a second scenario that is so common it is the main reason for me to write about this (at last): a discussion ensues as to whether there is any alcohol left in the food after cooking, kind of forgetting this is a religious issue, and that any underlying reason pro or contra may not really be relevant in any way. So I've tried to have that conversation a few times (right, mom?), but found it unsatisfactory and divisive, as there was never any commonly accepted scientific source to provide a way out of this argument.

By sheer chance, I just stumbled (via ChowHound) upon some updated information from the USDA - the United States Department of Agriculture, a scientific source I would think we can all (provisionally?) agree with. In their 2003 report on Nutrient  Retention Factors (2003), they provide some data on alcohol retention during food preparation. A summary is available on another website, giving the following overview:

I think this puts all discussion, even among Bahá'ís themselves, to rest. Phew.

By way of the New York Times, I came across the articles of Michael Pollan. Lo my surprise when he wrote an article about buying local, 4 days after my entry Buy Local. His writes articles for the NYT and other publications. These, as well as his personal website are a real treasure trove of information about organic farming and buying your food locally. I love finds like this on the web; it feels like hitting a home run.

His article for Mother Jones (the May/June 2006 issue), really an excerpt from his book An Omnivore's Dilemma, covers his journey to Joel Salatin's local farm in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. It illustrates beautifully the various actors in this slow revolution, demonstrating the symbiotic relationship between this new kind of farmer and their supporters/consumers. Inspiring. 

I also found many more links to assist in buying local and organic. I'm listing them below. I haven't found the time just yet to go visit a farm, but the good news is that there are three farms reasonably nearby: Simply Grazin' Organic Farms in Skillman, Cherry Grove Farm in Lawrenceville and Honey Brook Organic Farm in Pennington.I'll be sure to visit one or more very soon. Will keep you posted.

SITES:

Center for Informed Food Choices ( informedeating.org ) advocates a diet based on whole, unprocessed, local, organically grown plant foods; its Web site contains a useful F.A.Q. page about food politics and eating well, as well as an archive of relevant articles.

Eat Well ( eatwellguide.com ) is an online directory of sustainably raised meat, poultry, dairy and eggs. Enter your ZIP Code to find healthful, humane and eco-friendly products from farms, stores and restaurants in your area.

Eat Wild ( eatwild.com ) lists local suppliers for grass-fed meat and dairy products.

Food Routes ( foodroutes.org ) is a national nonprofit dedicated to “reintroducing Americans to their food — the seeds it grows from, the farmers who produce it and the routes that carry it from the fields to our tables.”

Heritage Foods USA ( heritagefoodsusa.com ) sells mail-order ‘traceable' products from small farms — maple syrup, pole-caught tuna, grass-fed Kobe beef — whose labels provide every detail about how they were produced.

Just Food ( justfood.org ) works to develop a just and sustainable food system in the New York City region through projects including City Farms (a New York community garden program) and community supported agriculture (which connects regional farmers with produce-hungry city dwellers).

Local Harvest ( localharvest.org ) offers a definitive and reliable nationwide directory of C.S.A.'s, farmers' markets, family farms and other local food sources.

Locavores ( locavores.com ), based in San Francisco, encourages people to eat only foods produced within a 100-mile radius of home. Their Food Web page offers an abundance of additional resources, including books, articles and Web sites.

Organic Consumers Association ( organicconsumers.org ), a research and action center for the organic and fair-trade food movement, maintains a comprehensive Web archive of articles about genetically engineered foods, cloning, food safety, organics and globalization.

Seafood Watch ( mbayaq.org/cr/seafoodwatch.asp ) — a program of the Monterey Bay Aquarium designed to raise consumer awareness about the importance of buying seafood from sustainable sources — offers a downloadable, pocket-sized, region-by-region guide to eco-friendly seafood.

Slow Food USA ( slowfoodusa.org ) is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to ecologically sound land stewardship and food production and to living a “slower and more harmonious” life.

Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture ( stonebarnscenter.org ) is a hands-on educational center and restaurant that aims to demonstrate, teach and promote sustainable, community-based food production on a working farm 30 miles from Manhattan.

Sustainable Table ( sustainabletable.org ) offers an introduction to the sustainable food movement and the issues surrounding it, plus resources for further investigation (the links for ‘Introduction to Sustainability' and ‘The Issues' are good places to start).

The U.S.D.A. Agricultural Marketing Service ( ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets ) includes a state-by-state listing of farmers' markets across the United States.

For a while now, I've had this vague desire to buy local produce, preferably organic, but local above all. Living in the New York tri-state area does not make this easy - or so I thought. Then I found Foodroutes, a site dedicated to assisting consumers to find local produce (via maketheroad  thanks Bradley!). I'll venture to strive to attempt to see the first streaks of dawn of this... I'll keep you posted on my now more serious attempts to finally get local produce at last.