The Observation Deck

DL

Great points. Thanks. Certainly this "cold tofurkey" entry into the vegetarian world left my repetoire a bit thin. But by the same token, I think it's causing the same impact on me!

Fortunately, there were a number of normal preparations, if infrequent ones, that I've been able to reintroduce. Still need to expand, however.

Also, I 've got to agree about the substitutes. A garden burger is good. In its own right. It is not a substitute for a hamburger. It would appear to me, as a novice, that the substitutes are like trying to quit smoking by switching to Ultra Lights. You're just teasing yourself, getting a mediocre substitue, providing less enjoyment and only maintaining the desire for the "real thing".

Jeff

Yeah, but sometimes you have to put barbecue sauce on something that resembles chicken an dipping tofu cubes is not what I have in mind.

And tofu is something that's really varied. Phnom Penn makes their own and it's worth a try to get an idea about why it's better than store bought. Since tofu takes on other flavors and is so bland, it's difficult to acquire the "taste."

Congrats on joining the "club" Jeff. I've missed this somehow, till this morning, and I have no idea how.

Looking forward for more recipes and suggestions from everyone. This is a great blog.

Mark Allan Crnolatas
P.S. I am having a great time reading this blog, and just wanted to wave the vegan/vegetarian flag a bit.

As the journey continues.....

As I said from the outset, the purpose of the experiment was to explore an alternate area of culinary options. I have done that over the past two weeks, without so much as a misstep. After this short foray into vegetarianism, is it my intent to make it a permanent condition? Well, the short answer is no. Many of the beliefs, held sincerely by others, are not something I necessarily share. Having said that, however, I have come to recognize that there is probably too much meat in my diet, and that it is possible to cut back on that without causing me a gastronomic nightmare.

Steve Davis, the familiar provocateur, perhaps summarized it best. "I have no problem eating meat, but when I do, it has to be really good meat". In other words, the meat should be the exception, rather than the rule.

So, I did have an exception on Saturday night, dining at Lola Bistro. A remarkable 30 day, dry aged Delmonico steak......truly something to savor, which I did. But, I did not follow that with a double rasher of bacon on Sunday. That would have diluted the experience of the night before. I did however, make a couple pounds of roasted peppers for use in the next few weeks, as well as a large batch of mushroom duxelle, the future foundation of a souffle, or perhaps as a spread on some tasty bruschetta.

Certainly the discussion will continue. But, what continues to stick in my mind is the reality that my steak, from Saturday evening, weighing in at 12 Oz., took 6 lbs of corn to produce, for a net loss of food product of 5 Lbs, 4 oz.

Jeff

Jeff,

Reading your blog has been great - and you and your family have been doing wonderful and experimenting with lots of new options for both yourselves and all of us.

What you keep referrering to in terms of ecological footprint was first brought out about 20 years ago in a great book entitled Diet for a Small Planet http://www.amazon.com/Diet-Small-Planet-20th-Anniversary/dp/0345321200

I am well aware that you like meat - and I understand that. But think how much we can save for the earth if everyone that is used to eating meat several times a day, gave it up for one or two days a week.

I'm not suggesting that everyone become vegetarian - just maybe think about meals without meat occaisionally - like one or two times a week. Your example with just your own steak proves that. Small changes over time do make a difference. Thanks for opening eyes to some new ideas.

I'm not a big tofu fan myself, but we had a wonderful Chinese Hot and Sour Soup from the Souper Market tonight with tofu. It was great. I strongly recommend it.

Lynn

I'm not suggesting that everyone become vegetarian - just maybe think about meals without meat occaisionally - like one or two times a week. Your example with just your own steak proves that. Small changes over time do make a difference. Thanks for opening eyes to some new ideas.

Actually Lynn, We've been enjoying the vegetarian dishes. This evening I made a dynamite cremini mushroom and aged cheddar souffle, a nice salad with fresh strawberries and spinach, and some (store bought...sorry) ciabatta with a little artichoke tapinade. It was very good, and I mean that in terms of as a satisfying meal. (Of course the product itself was also very good).

But you're right....I really do enjoy meat. And it's not only ironic, but perhaps a bit intuitive that after having none for 2 weeks, that which I had was really special. It would of been really good even without the vegetarian precursor, but with it, it was REALLY special. Which is perhaps, as it should be. Thinking in terms of the occaisional very special peice of meat amid a frequent consumption that is more on the vegetarian side....I don't know, still thinking this through. But tomorrow I'm doing egg foo yong.....

I appreciate your support. Gotta cut back on the feed corn! How else can we make all the ethanol we need?

Jeff

I do a lot of cooking and search out various cuisines to try - first in a relatively well regarded restaurants so I know what is supposed to taste like, and then through experimentation with recipes at home.

One of the most interesting things that I have noticed is the way in which meat and dairy products are used worldwide.

In many countries - the meat is an accent. It is not the main portion of a meal. This is most notable in the Eastern diets - Indian, Chinese, Korean, Japanese., etc. Vegetables, rice, and rice noodles are the bulk of the meals and meat, if even used, plays second fiddle to the sauces and spices that make these foods so tantalizing.

Ditto for milk and milk products - particularly in Chinese, Thai, Japanese, etc.

I am sure this has quite a bit to do with managing available resources to maintain the population as well as for health. It is no coincidence that these cultures have some of the lowest levels of heart disease in the world!

Moving north on the Asian continent; however, we see that meats and dairy (horse and goat mainly) become far more prevalent. One theory is that it has to do with climate and the subsequent need for more fats and proteins to maintain health in colder weather.

just "food for thought"


Charyn

There's a reason why Wisconsin is for cheese-heads!

Hotter climates also mean that dairy products quickly spoil.

agriculture hit many hurdles and/or developed along different lines in East Asia much earlier than in the West.

most of their animal fat/protein needs were met by developing much more productive smaller scale agriculture. That is how their populations were able to grow enormously greater than Western Populations centuries earlier. 60 years ago there were already 400 million people in China, just in time for modern medicine.

It is detailed in Farmers of Forty Centuries. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmers_of_Forty_Centuries

it makes you wonder