CHG Favorites of the Week

Blog of the Week
Tastespotting
100% pure, unadulterated food porn. (Note: “food porn,” meaning “close-up pictures of baked goods,” not “woman-on-broccoli action.”) Seriously, this is the Doritos of cooking websites. You can’t click on just one. Thanks to Rachel for the link.

Comedy of the Week
“Chopping Broccoli”
22 years ago, SNL was just kicking off its late-‘80s salad days and Dana Carvey was king. This is one of his early highlights. Check out a young Phil Hartman and an Aliens-era Sigourney Weaver, who sports the hugest set of shoulder pads ever seen outside the Meadowlands.

Organization of the Week
Americans for Fairness in Lending
Okay, this isn't so much a food link, but it does tie in (intimately) with yesterday's somewhat long-winded CHG essay. AFFIL is a consumer advocate group that "exists to raise awareness of abusive credit and lending practices and to call for re-regulation of the industry." Their website is up to its eyeballs in useful information, including gobsmacking stats on how minority-heavy neighborhoods are specifically targeted for high-interest loans.

Quote of the Week
"I'm not a vegetarian because I love animals. I'm a vegetarian because I hate plants." – A. Whitney Brown

Tip of the Week
This one comes from The Boyfriend's mom: when you buy a head of romaine, wash it when you first arrive home. Then, line the leaves up on a few paper towels, roll the whole shebang up, and stick it in a sealable plastic bag, squeezing as much air out as you can. You'll have instant romaine whenever you like it, and the lettuce will last much longer.

Untried Recipe
Chicken and Mushroom Marsala at Smitten Kitchen
Wow. How can something so ... brown ... look so dang appetizing? And those mushrooms. They’re like gorgeously earthy playing cards. (Side note: I might cut down on the butter, but with six servings, I’m not sure it’d be necessary.)

Video of the Week
“Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk” by Rufus Wainwright
Rufus’ voice is kind of an acquired taste, but once you’re in, you’re in. I got to share an elevator with him about three years ago, and it took everything I had not to “EEEEEE!” and smooch his delicious, Judy Garland-loving face off.

(Photos courtesy of DanaCarvey.net, and Flickr member Kevin P. McManus.)

Finance, Food, and the Role of Personal Responsibility: A Question for Readers

I’d like to depart from the usual Wednesday-type articles today to pose a question to everybody out there: when it comes to diet and finance, how much do you think personal responsibility factors in?

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately, but it really picked up steam after dinner with my sister L. We struck up a conversation about money and food, since we’ve both been in debt and slightly overweight. I asked L if she thought there was a connection between the two. She answered with preternatural wisdom:

“When you’re resigned to the fact that you’re going to owe money, it doesn’t matter how much. When you’re resigned to the fact you’re going to gain weight – same thing.”

She’s right, too. When a situation becomes inescapable and oppressive, it often doesn’t matter how much more is piled on. To borrow a psychiatric term, we usually have to hit bottom before we actively decide to change. But how does this happen in the first place? Is it societal pressures? Or our own lack of awareness?

To read Maxed Out, James D. Scurlock’s treatise on the predatory credit industry, you’d think that we’re all being victimized, and debt is as culturally ingrained as closing our mouths when we chew. Undoubtedly, there’s some truth to this. Banks, credit card, and loan/mortgage companies make it their goal in life to profit from us as much as possible, whether or not we can actually afford it. They target us with advertising from birth, and all too often, exploit the uneducated and poor to bulk up their bottom lines. What’s more, the business of money is difficult to navigate, and it’s only getting harder. It’s easy to see why anyone could give up – why anyone just wouldn’t want to know – and I think the same principles apply to food marketing and weight.

On the flip side, many (if not most) finance and food blogs claim that personal responsibility is all you need to get by. Taking control and informing yourself will overcome negative cultural influences, a.k.a. those industries which profit from your increasing debt/waistline. In terms of programs that promote this concept, none are brought up more than Weight Watchers and Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University.

If the internet is to be believed, Dave Ramsey is second only to FDR in rescuing Americans from financial ruin, while Weight Watchers has turned a nation of 500-pound Krispy Kreme devotees into an army of lean, fit triathletes. (Slight exaggerations both, but you get the picture.) I believe this is because they do the following:

• Emphasize permanent lifestyle and behavioral change over temporary band-aids and quick-fix scams.
• Give people the information and tools to make changes.
• Ask people to take responsibility for their actions.

Admittedly, both Dave and WW have worked for me. And that colors my opinion.

I think weight and money have everything to do with personal responsibility. I think being unaware of what went into my mouth and came out of my wallet held me back in lots of ways. I think I can’t blame profit-driven industries for anything when I willingly bought into what they were selling me, without looking any deeper.

Of course, this doesn’t apply to everyone. I’m a middle-class, semi-educated white girl with no kids and no mortgage. My realm of experience is incredibly limited, which is why I’m VERY interested in opinions from readers. Assuming that weight and money are tied together...

• How much does personal responsibility factor in?
• How much do outside/industry pressures factor in?
• Do you have a good story?
• What are the solutions to either problem (obesity and/or debt)?

Comments are wide open, and I’d love to get a discussion going. Thanks for reading.

(Photos courtesy of smallbiztechnology.com, daveramsey.com, and jupiter images.)

Tuesday Megalinks

Casual Kitchen: The Granola Blogroll – The Ultimate Authority on Great Granola Recipes
Holy moly. Dan’s created THE granddaddy, mother-of-all granola recipe lists, starting with a rolled oats/coconut concoction and ending on a massive, colon-blowing pile of deliciousness. Fibertastic.

Chow: Who Makes Trader Joe’s Food?
What? It’s not a dude named Joe, who also trades things? (But seriously folks, I'm here all week.)

Culinate: COFP – Clean Out the Fridge Pasta
The Boyfriend and I have kitchen sink pasta at least once a week, using whatever meats (ground turkey, chicken) and veggies (peppers, mushrooms) we have hanging around. It's makes for a quick, rounded, fairly healthy meal, AND there are about four dishes to do afterward. Bonus.

Festival of Frugality #115: Broke Grad Student
Featuring CHG's own Make Your Own Mix, Fat Man Skinny Wallet with Portion Control the Bento Way, Thrifty Mommy's Top 10 Times Not to Shop, and a hilariously appropriate picture of Ramen.

Get Rich Slowly: An Easy Way to Go Organic
Turns out that milk, apples, peanut butter, ketchup, and potatoes might nab the most bang for the buck when it comes to organic foods. That sounds like everything Ma ever packed in my lunch box. (Nice work, G!)

Kitchenography: Best Recipes of 2007
Ooo! Nice comp of top ten lists from LA Times, Seattle Times, Chicago Tribune, Food and Wine, Atlanta Journal Constitution, and more! Shrimp Tacos with Pumpkin Seed Sauce? Enticing…

Like Merchant Ships: Laying Down the Skillet
Meredith revises her game plan for meal prep after a week of 50s-style cooking. Includes a few nice links and suggestions for creating your very own menu strategy.

Money Making Mom: Wheat prices set to soar – What’s your plan of attack?
See, this is why I read this blog. Between the Ohio/Texas showdown and reading about Sunday’s episode of The Wire, I had no idea a wheat shortage was lurking around the corner. Great heads up from Crystal & Co, and be sure to read the comments for fantastic storage ideas. (P.S. Speaking of The Wire, will anything good ever, EVER happen to Dukie? That poor kid is the most tragic figure of the whole show.)

Mom Advice: Baby Steps – Storing Your Stockpile
Tips of making the most of tiny spaces. As a Brooklynite with three roommates who’s confined to approximately 15 sq. feet of apartment, this resonates.

New York Times: My Forbidden Fruit (and Vegetables)
“But consumers who would like to be able to buy local fruits and vegetables not just at farmers’ markets, but also in the produce aisle of their supermarket, will be dismayed to learn that the federal government works deliberately and forcefully to prevent the local food movement from expanding.”

The Simple Dollar: Investing in Yourself – Diet
Everything I’ve ever meant to say on this blog, in one simple post. Tremendous. (Trent-mendous?)

Slashfood: Oh, those crazy kids!
Score one for non-violent protest: to voice their disapproval over a shortened lunch period, 29 New Jersey eighth graders paid for their meals entirely in pennies. 6,000 pennies. Genius.

Time Magazine: The World’s Growing Food-Price Crisis
Oh, yikes. This can’t be good. (Perhaps an understatement.)

Wise Bread: 5 Sleek Marketing Ploys Aimed at Getting More of Your Grocery Money
Linsey Knerl is one of WB’s most prolific food bloggers, and her articles are generally thorough, well though out affairs. This one is an excellent rundown of supermarket ploys, including 100-calorie packets, meal kits, foods labeled “humane,” overblown health claims, and “soups for the cure.”

(Photos courtesy of Flickr members ComeUndone, Unique_Snowflake, and flyzipper, as well as msnbc.)

Best Dressed at The 2008 Annual Academy Awards

JENNIFER GARNER

Smoldering her way down the red carpet, the actress sizzles in a black silk taffeta Oscar de la Renta fishtail gown, major Van Cleef & Arpels diamonds, Roger Vivier clutch and a deeply parted updo.

JESSICA ALBA

The mom-to-be, who tells Ryan Seacrest that she's in her "third trimester," glows in her deep-purple feathered Marchesa gown and Cartier diamonds.

ANNE HATHAWAY

The Anne Hathaway Oscar Dress was an off the shoulder, red Marquesa with a collection of rosettes running across the front. She called it "diaphanous chic.". Anne Hathaway wore this dress on the red carpet for the 2008 Oscars. She had on Harry Winston earrings and diamond ring and sleek ponytail.
The red color complimented her porcelain skin. The rosette details are amazing. Anne Hathaway looked like a goddess, didn’t she?

MARION COTILLARD

The Best Actress nominee is a modern mermaid in her intricately detailed custom-made Jean Paul Gaultier gown, Chopard diamond necklace and ring, and Daniel Swarovski clutch.

CAMERON DIAZ

The ponytailed presenter keeps her beach-girl cool in a pale pink Dior by John Galliano bustier gown, Bulgari jewels, Roger Vivier clutch and minimal makeup.

NICOLE KIDMAN

The mom-to-be keeps her custom Balenciaga gown and Bottega Veneta clutch simple, putting the focus on her 1,399-carat diamond necklace designed by L'Wren Scott – and of course, her baby bump!

PENÉLOPE CRUZ

The always-glamorous star sweeps down the red carpet in a Chanel Haute Couture navy blue feather embroidered gown – designed by Karl Lagerfeld just for her, no less! – accessorized with a Roger Vivier clutch and Chopard diamonds

KATHERINE HEIGL

Red is the color of the night – the newlywed is simply stunning in her crimson silk georgette Escada column gown, Ryan Ryan jewels and Jimmy Choo shoes and clutch.

RENÉE ZELLWEGER

The Oscar winner goes for the silver in her hand embroidered Carolina Herrera gown and Cartier jewels.

HILARY SWANK

The two-time Oscar winner shows off her award-worthy physique in a clinging Atelier Versace black gown, Ferragamo clutch and Chopard diamonds.

HELEN MIRREN

Last year's Best Actress winner is regal on the red carpet in her custom-made ruby red satin Georges Chakra gown with Swarovski crystal sleeves, Kathrine Baumann clutch and H. Stern and Fred Leighton diamonds.

KERI RUSSELL

The new mom shows off her svelte shape in a strapless champagne organza bustier Nina Ricci evening dress and a 46-carat-diamond H. Stern necklace.

HEIDI KLUM

The Project Runway host goes for high drama in a Haute Couture by John Galliano gown and Heidi Klum for Mouawad jewels. The red silk taffeta stunner will be auctioned off online to benefit Red Heart Truth charity.

CATE BLANCHETT

The expectant double-nominee – for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress – is fashion-forward in a deep blue satin Dries Van Noten gown, Lorraine Schwartz jewels and a Roger Vivier clutch.

SAMANTHA HARRIS

Beverly Hills, CA -- Regis Philbin, who will host the official 30-minute red carpet arrivals show preceding the 80th Academy Awards® presentation, will be joined by co-hosts Samantha Harris and Shaun Robinson, executive producer Gil Cates and producer Dennis Doty.



LAURA LINNEY

The Best Actress nominee is elegant in a midnight silk bustle-back Michael Kors gown, dramatic Cathy Waterman jewels and Ferragamo bag and heels.

KRISTIN CHENOWETH

One of the night's performers – for the nominated song "That's How You Know," from Enchanted – Kristin, adorable star of Pushing Daisies, chose a strapless sheer to rock the red carpet in, goes for old-fashioned sex appeal in her black and rose Armani Privé gown, Tiffany & Co diamond jewelry and Fred Leighton diamond hair clips.