There’s been some evidence that eating fish can help you keep a sharp eye while aging and lead to a more clever baby when consumed during pregnancy. And a Mediterranean-style diet rich in olive oil and fish is just as heart healthy as the low fat diet that's long been recommended by the American Heart Association.

Stella Cadente's L'Autunno Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil is one of the world's great artisanal oils, rated the #1 California olive oil by Slowfood Editore Italia, and a Gold Medalist at the L.A. International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition in 2007. It's also our favorite. Our friend in Brooklyn makes a good point. If you want to take the entrees, appetizers and salad dressings you serve to new heights, “Use great olive oil.” It really does make a difference.

Ingredients for 4 Servings

• 2 Pounds fresh boneless, skinless fish fillets, such as rock cod or snapper
• 1/2 Cup Mendocino Mustard or sweet-hot mustard
• 3 Cups panko bread crumbs
• 4 Tablespoons L'Autunno Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Persian Lime Extra Virgin Olive Oil (to garnish)

Preparation

1. Check fish for small bones (remove before cooking). Coat the fillets in Mendocino Mustard and then bread in panko crumbs to coat each piece of fish.
2. Heat L'Autunno oil in a non-stick pan over medium high heat until shimmering. Pan sear each fillet, turning once until crust is browned and fish is just cooked through to the flake stage.
3. Drizzle filet with Persian Lime oil and serve.

To purchase the premium oils from Stella Cadente called for in this recipe go to:
L'Autunno Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Persian Lime Olive Oil

To listen to a podcast interview with the people behind Stella Cadente's success go to: Speaking with Stella Cadente's Founders

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Family at Dinner, ca. 1942 (photo by John Collier, courtesy of Library of Congress)

Here's an article from the New York Times we had to share. It was authored by Leslie Kaufman, a working mom who's managing to cook balanced meals for her family most nights of the week. She drolly compares her experience with cooking family meals over the past 10 years to starring in her own reality television series.

Ms. Kaufman emphasizes that success requires planning in advance, prepping what you can ahead of time, enlisting some help (maybe the babysitter), and keeping it simple and quick as much as possible. She writes, "My basic roast chicken is covered in oil and sprinkled with kosher salt and paprika, and that’s that."

And keep expectations reasonably low, "If everybody eats something, I call it a victory".

To read the New York Times article and get some tips for your family meals go to: Mom Puts Family on Her Meal Plan

Posted by Jeff Deasy at 12:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Go to the American Farmland Trust press release site and watch the terrific flash animation (entitled The Apple as Planet Earth) that explains in the simplest terms possible, why it's so important to preserve America's farmland. It's a real eye-opener! American Farmland Trust's mission is

"...to stop the loss of productive farmland and to promote farming practices that lead to a healthy environment."

Posted by Tim Tango at 03:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

If you bought Dole Organic Bananas recently, you might have noticed a number on the sticker under the words “certified organic”. Go to the Dole Organic website and type that code into the box provided. What you will get is information regarding the plantation where that particular banana was grown along with organic certification details. You even get photos of the workers on that farm and satellite images from Google Earth! Other food producers should take note. This is an ingenious use of the Internet and one that should be replicated. Dole Organic site here.

The U.S.’s biggest organic farmer cooperative has offered this feature on their soy milk products since 2004. Entering the expiration date at their site, brings up bios of the actual farmers that grew the beans! Organic Valley Coop site here.

Posted by Tim Tango at 09:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Here's a great idea for a franchise business. Remember when you sent your kid to that plaster party and they brought you home a plaster mermaid? How would you like them to bring you a Chateaubriand instead?

"Julie Fabing Burleson and Suzy Vinson Nettles, founders of YCA, believe this is the perfect recipe for showing children cooking is a lifelong skill that can be artistic, creative, and sometimes quite surprising. Suzy has commented, "this is the place where 'what if' collides with, 'look at this!'" Their kid-friendly classroom provides a "real" setting so that the students can use what they learn in their own homes."

Young Chefs Academy link here.

Posted by Tim Tango at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

New this month from YAHOO! is YAHOO Food aimed at the everyday cook.

Expect content (including video) from the likes of Martha Stewart, Rachel Ray and Wolfgang Puck.

And recipes, recipes, recipes!

YAHOO! Food link here.

Posted by Tim Tango at 08:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Latest guidelines from AHA. Nothing surprising here but their site is well stocked with resources like brochures in .pdf format and even a podcast! Link.

Also, here’s a link directly to a chart that tells you how many daily calories you should take in to maintain your current weight. Obviously, if you take in less you will lose weight. Link.

[via diet-blog]

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Funded under a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Business-Cooperative Service, the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service provides information and other technical assistance to farmers, ranchers, Extension agents, educators, and others involved in sustainable agriculture in the United States.

One useful feature of this site for consumers is the local food directory.

“ATTRA's Local Food Directories database, useful for producers and consumers alike, includes national, regional, state, and community resources.”

Link to main site.

Posted by Tim Tango at 07:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That’s the simple idea of a new site called Snacksby.com. Their tag line is “like Macgyver, but for food.”

The idea is simple, list what’s in your pantry, then click on “and we’ll tell you what you can make.”

"Snacksby is a different, easier kind of recipe site. You tell us what you've got in your fridge, in your pantry, or just what you're looking to find in a recipe, even how much of each ingredient and wham!, we let you know what your options are."

You can contribute recipes, as well. Link.

[via LifeHacker via MeFi Projects]

Posted by Tim Tango at 08:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)