Elite BBQ

For those of you who missed last nights party, don't worry, there will be more. For the people that were able to attend, I hope I made many new friends and I hope you all took something away about how to eat, what to eat and how to cook. Here are some points that I hit last night as a recap:

• Typical BBQ sauce is loaded with sugar and preservatives, two ingredients that will turn your diet upside down
• Red Meat can be organic, but moderation is key to keeping healthy.
• Organic, All-Natural and Conventional. Key words to know when shopping. Organic, no additives and naturally handled, always. All-Natural, refers to proteins that never had hormones or antibiotics added however, they were fed conventional feed or raised on non-organic land. Usually more price effective and still better than conventional which is the traditional method of using chemical science to maximize growth and yield in all categories of farming
• Organic Food typically has better, more natural flavors because of the care taken in the soil. Fruits and vegetables are similar to growing grapes for wine. They are all influenced by the earth and climate that they are grown in.
• Be smart in planning your ingredients, avoid high-glycemic foods like white flour and corn, carrots and parsnips.
• Sulfates are slowly gaining competition by products that are naturally cured. Hormel is making deli meats like Ham, Roast Beef and Turkey with natural cures containing Celery Juice, Simple Sugars and Sea Salt. They are also making bacon the same way. Look for "Uncured Bacon" on the label technically Bacon isn't bacon unless its chemically induced.
• Always try and eat raw vegetables with every meal. The nutrients remain intact when vegetables are in their natural state. Marinades and Soaking are two ways to add additional flavor to your food without breaking down the nutrients.

Check back here very, very soon for recipes from last night. We enjoyed making Ceviche, Charred Vegetable Gazpacho, Grilled Artichokes, BBQ Oysters and Shrimp Kabobs. We finished off the night with Seared Ahi Tuna with Napa Cabbage, Cilantro and Watermelon Radish Raw Salad with Cashews and Sesame. The dressing was a Tahini Vinaigrette.

Learn how to create a balanced meal

Just because you choose to eat organic foods doesn’t mean you are on your way to better health and weight loss. Ok, maybe better health because your body will begin to detoxify itself and start pushing out all the additives absorbed in your body. However, in reality, over eating organic red meat can also be detrimental to your health, so keep reading, I’ll work on telling a joke or two, I promise. So lets get into some of what will lead to better health. The ingredients we chose to eat are so important because of how our bodies are designed to function. Food is designed to be fuel and nutrients for our body. Its ground up by our teeth, pushed into our stomach by the muscles in our throat, we’ve been given the gift of taste to enjoy that first step. Next our stomach begins to break down the food mash and later begins to be absorbed into our body through our intestines. This part is critical to our moods and health because when we absorb foods too fast, like sugar, it hits our blood stream so quick that our bodies glucose levels shoot through the roof and later crash just as hard. At this point with high spikes, the withdrawals cause cravings of more sugar. The way to avoid this up and down sugar swing is to eat low-glycemic foods. These foods are absorbed much slower into the blood stream keeping a much more stable sugar level and prevents up and down mood swings giving your body a sense of fullness for a longer period of time. Essential fats also slow down food absorption into the body also decreasing your cravings for food. Your body is now able to process, digest, foods much more efficiently preventing excess body fat, decreasing the risk of diabetes and other organ failures. Ok no joke yet, but I’m working on it. Knock Knock, ok not yet still more to talk about.
So intestines mean more to a Chef than just sausage casings, it’s the organ where the rubber meets the road on food quality. We’ve all had those great tasting meals that later ran right through us or were brought right back up for another vote. That’s because our body decided the food wasn’t worth keeping. Empty Calories. Useless food. Useless food often means we need to eat more of it because our body is trying to get the level of nutrients it needs and its not finding them in the bottom of the potato chip bag. If Frosted Flakes came with a hidden bag of nutrients instead of a pack of stickers that we find all over our walls in the house and usually on the back of our pant legs halfway through a day of work, life wouldn’t be so bad. However, that’s not the case. Consuming highly nutritious low glycemic foods means we can reduce our calorie intake and eat small portions. That means one less chin over time and instead of “sucking it in” we can actually breathe and smile for a picture.
The glycemic index has been published for public reference. This is a road map of what’s good for us and what we should stay far away from. Even vegetables, organic vegetables no less, aren’t always the best choice for health and weight loss. Carrots for example are often used in savory recipes to add sweetness and reduce acid and bitterness because they are so high in sugar. Natural sugars yes, but sugar none the less. A little will go a long way. Knowing what we eat before we eat it makes a big difference in weight management. So leave the carrots to the rabbits.

Peru, Chile fight over Potatoes

The origin of
the potato
has become
a hot potato
b e t w e e n
n e i g h b o r s
Peru & Chile.
The spud
dispute began
last week,
when Chilean
Agriculture
M i n i s t e r
M a r i g e n
Hornkohl said
99% of the world's potatoes derive from
spuds native to Chile. Peru, where the potato
is a source of national pride, said the potato
comes from a part of the Andes near Lake
Titicaca, most of which is located in modernday
Peru. The country claims to have some
3,000 varieties of potato. Now both nations
are fighting over bragging rights to the potato.
Chile's Austral University says archaeological
studies show evidence of human consumption
of potatoes dating back 14,000 years in southern
Chile, long before evidence of any spud
consumption in Peru, but Peru's Institute for
Agriculture says Chile's potatoes are mere
"grandchildren" of Peru's tubers.—AP (Lima)
STONE FRUIT: California tree fruit
continues to increase on Yellow &
White Peaches, Yellow & White Nectarines,
Apricots and Cherries.
TOMATOES: Market is very active.
The ongoing rains in Florida have
taken a bigger toll then expected.
The East coast is pulling product
from the West coast. Central CA is
14-15 days away from starting; Baja
has good supply of Romas; 4x4's
4x5's have tightened up. Cherries
Tomato market is active due to the
limited number of shippers. Clusters
have good quality.
CROP UPDATE Peruvian citrus
imports on
track for 2009
A Clementine

Ghione's Organic Delivery

Recently at DragonRidge I've had the time to really develop an idea of what identity I want to have in the community. Organic Ink has been my outlet of energy to share with the public my passion for food, especially organic unprocessed food. Since this past Saturday, I've established a concept, found a location and an investor and with in two weeks I will have ownership and launch Ghione's Organic Delivery, gourmet food, right to you.

I'm excited about this venture, I'm looking forward to improving peoples lives through what they eat and allowing them to enjoy what it is they are eating. What we put in our bodies has a direct effect on our mood, health and energy. I want to be able to use my knowledge and ideas to share with others. There is no point in knowing anything if you don't take the time to give it away.