Good, clean, and fair food.

I think this gratin was inspired by one of the food blogs I read… but I can’t remember which one. If you’ve posted on celeriac gratin in the past 30 days then I thank you for the inspiration.

I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve had these celeriacs in the refrigerator since last fall. But they seemed to have held up quite well. I sliced them thin using a mandoline and I layered them with onions and a single layer of crumbled French sheep’s milk feta. Then I topped them with strips of my canned Roma tomatoes and add some bread crumbs and some thyme. This was a definite two thumbs up from the GH and the leftovers heated up well in the microwave the next day.

Instead of using cream as the emulsifier I used tomato water. Tomato water is that really flavorful liquid that seeps out of the tomatoes after they’ve been processed in the canner. I’ve only encountered it with home-canned tomatoes and I used to believe that it was a nuisance, but I’ve since come to love it for its purity of flavor. It’s top note is very much of August…sunshine, heat, and that lovely fresh tomato smell. But it has an acidic note too that is quite useful in soups.

This meal was an almost local affair (the French cheese blew it…but it is so good). That brings me to my current thoughts on eating local. I’m a vigorous advocate of eating fresh and local. But I’m not (ever) going to give up my coffee, chocolate, bananas, and wine (have you tasted Wisconsin wine…I mean really, who are they trying to kid!). So that leaves me with the responsibility of making the best choices not only for me, but also the producer, and the planet. Fair-trade coffee and chocolate have helped to fill that gap. I wish there were fair-trade bananas but at least there are organic bananas, and wine has been the currency of the globe forever and given the nature of viticulture I think it is a rather self-policing (is this true…any ideas dear readers?).

I’m reading Slow Food’s compendium from Terra Madre 2006 and I’m struck by the eloquence of their philosophy:

“We believe that everyone has a fundamental right to pleasure and consequently the responsibility to protect the heritage of food, tradition and culture that make this pleasure possible. Our movement is founded upon this concept of eco-gastronomy – a recognition of the strong connections between plate and planet.

Slow Food is good, clean and fair food. We believe that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health; and that food producers should receive fair compensation for their work.

We consider ourselves co-producers, not consumers, because by being informed about how our food is produced and actively supporting those who produce it, we become a part of and a partner in the production process.”

Now that’s is a philosophy I can get behind.

17 March 2007 | eggs, cheese, dairy, ethical eating, food, gratins, stews, and stir-frys, low carb, low cal, quick and easy, vegetable | Comments