Served: Weird News About Food (Cicadas)

"Cicada invasion: If you can't beat them, eat them"

"Brood II is good for you. It just takes 17 years to prepare. Bun Lai, owner of Miya’s Sushi in New Haven, Conn., and one of the city’s best known chefs, has a few gastronomic plans for the bumper crop of periodical cicadas expected to emerge along the Eastern seaboard in a couple of weeks. He’ll be cooking up batches of the critters for himself and possibly for certain, select customers.
“I plan to get a big freezer for them,” said Lai, who has become famous for introducing local palates to insects and invasive plant species. “I’m going to catch a whole bunch of them and preserve them for future eating. I plan on eating a whole bunch of them myself.”

Perhaps billions of 17-year cicadas — the Brood II group, to be specific — soon will emerge from their underground homes, climb nearby trees and transform from nymphs into big, hard-shelled, winged creatures with red eyes.

They’ll engage in a rather ostentatious courtship ritual for a few weeks after that, with the male cicadas creating an incredibly loud mating call thanks to handy personal amplifiers called tymbals.

They’ll be above ground for about five weeks before the adults die off and the 17-year life cycle begins again. “I’m definitely considering the possibility of including them in some thematic dinners I do,” Lai said. “Insects are far healthier for our bodies than eating meat.”

There are seven species of periodical cicadas. Three of them live on a 17-year cycle and four species have a 13-year cycle. Their year of emergence is staggered into broods, with Connecticut on the northern edge of Brood II.

Along with the intense public fascination over the creatures comes a healthy curiosity about people who are willing to eat cicadas. There are a fair number of these folks, actually. They even create recipes with cicadas, everything from tacos and cookies to dumplings and pizza.

Aficionados report that the meatier, young female cicadas taste best. They also note that cultures such as the Native American Iroquois tribe in upstate New York considered cicadas a delicacy. That makes perfect sense to Lai, whose repertoire includes Mexican grasshoppers, spiced Asian shore crabs and fried rice with meal worms and crickets.

But he’ll be doing something slightly different with the cicadas. “I don’t want to take something that’s inherently nutritious and deep fry it,” he explained. “If I’m going to interrupt this amazing, 17-year life cycle, I’m going to honor it and respect it.”

For example, Lai is going to steam some cicadas with ground spices and herbs — in a fashion similar to the way Maryland crabs are prepared. He’s also going to do a cicada boil with spices and herbs. “The challenge is to take an ingredient that’s abundant and nourishing and make it appealing to people,” he said. “I’m not trying to gross people out. I’m not running a frat house. I respect the cicada.”

This story is courtesy of the New Haven Register

High Tea and Safety Last

My friend and I set out for Hamden this Sunday afternoon to enjoy a proper high tea held at Le Petit Gourmet, a small and quaint spot that shares a space with a used bookstore where one could easily lose track of time exploring. The restaurant only offers tea on Sundays and by reservation. There are two time slots available: 2:30 and 3:30. Our server greeted us and informed us of the tea selections of the day; Earl Grey or Orange Pekoe. That was the only choice we had to make. 

Our steaming pot of Earl Grey was poured into charmingly mismatched tea cups. A request for honey was quickly obliged. Being rampant tea connoisseurs we were even more pleased that we didn't have to ask for additional hot water, that our server checked back to keep us in good supply. 

We were delighted when warm cranberry scones (yes I did say warm!) were brought over next, accompanied by strawberry jam and the most delightful clotted cream to spread on top. I could have eaten several of these, but was when I saw the assortment of sandwiches and treats that came next, I was glad for just the one scone. 

A two tiered tray was placed in front of us laden with four different kinds of tea sandwiches on the bottom, and sweets on the top. The sandwiches were; curried chicken salad, smoked salmon and red onion, ham and brie, and the most amazing cucumber sandwiches I have ever tasted. The desserts included shortbread, sliced tea cake, tartlets and fresh strawberries. 

I was reminded vaguely of my time visiting England with my grandparents and how much I enjoyed the simple pleasure of making time for taking tea in the afternoon. It made such an impression upon me as an act that was so highly civilized as well as an opportunity to stop one's day and take a few minutes away from the craziness of life to relax and recharge. Afterwards we decided a good follow up would be to visit Cinestudio at Trinity College. In case you don't know, it was founded in 1970 by a group of students who converted a large lecture hall in the college’s Clement Chemistry Building into a recreation of a 1930s film house. The theater was created as a cooperative, with students overseeing all aspects of the theater’s operation. It is one of the coolest places to see a film with its operational gold screen curtain, balcony seating and capability to play 70 mm film. 

 The film we saw was a screening of Safety Last, the silent film starring Harold Lloyd who was "considered by many to be one of the most gifted physical (and risk-taking) comedian of the big three silent stars (with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton), Harold Lloyd brings a modern sensibility to his optimistic everyman, who takes a job at a bustling department store to make enough money to marry his hometown sweetheart (Mildred Davis)."

(playing nightly till May 30th at 7:30pm) 

Information about high tea:

Cost per person, $15

Location: Le Petit Gourmet, 1231 Whitney Ave, Hamden, CT 

Call for reservations: (203) 230-3252

Link: http://www.le-petit-gourmet.com 

Ruminations about Mother's Day

Does anything remind us of our mothers and grandmothers more than the comforting foods that they have lovingly prepared for us thoughout our lives? For me, more than anything else, my mother's cooking is something that invokes my sense of place, and feeling like I am home. My favorites include her homemade breads, chipolte corn chowder, pierogi, cranberry pie, and grains with steamed greens and pumpkin seed dressing. For my grandmother, I will always associate her with homemade beef jerky, almond paste cookies, and coconut cake.

It is in thinking about foods and mothers, that I found the work of the photographer, Gabriele Galimberti especially appealing. He has created a virtual cookbook with portrait photographs of grandmothers around the world showing their best dishes. The site is called "Delicatessen with Love" and is composed with obvious adoration and respect for mothers and grandmothers around the world. Not only are the images stunning, but each photograph also has a small tab beneath it stating "more info" which presents the recipe so you can try to recreate the beautiful dishes yourself.

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful women and cooks around the world!

Check out his project here: http://www.gabrielegalimberti.com/projects/delicatessen-with-love-2/

Polish food in the heart of New Britain

Recently, during the process of driving around Newington and getting succeeding in getting lost in the suburbs, my friend and I felt the need to rally our failing spirits with some hearty fare. Our first thought was that we must be somewhere need the German club (http://www.hartfordsaengerbund.org/) and the thought of a mug of beer, bratwurst and saurkraut had instant appeal. We did eventually find it, but arrived to find the doors locked and the interior dark. Our disappointment was only slightly alieviated by the poster on the door for an upcoming event titled, "Vienna Night" that peaked our interest. We changed gears and directions, and decided the next best thing would be to jump on the highway and have some Polish food instead. While I am partial to Hartford's Polish Home, my friend suggested instead that we go to New Britain and visit one of her favorites, a place called Cracovia.

Well we found what we were looking for in Cracovia, and more. Walking into the restaurant is a combination of walking into a time warp, with the restaurant's lunchcounter feel on the left side, and then on the right hand side, neatly lined tables sheathed in thick plastic tableclothes. The walls are adorned with Polish folk art.

I really started to smile though when I opened my menu and read at the top: "Receipt for Happiness" which went as follows : "Four cups of love, Two cups of loyalty, Three cups of forgiveness, Cup of friendship, Two spoons of tenderness, Four quart of faith, And barrel of laugh, Join love with loyalty, and mix well with faith, Flavour of goodness, tenderness and lenience. Splash by laugh then add friendship and love. Bake on the sun. Big portion serve every day."

We were instructed by our waitress that to eat Polish food, you should also drink like you are Polish. We decided it was only right to tap into our eastern european roots and follow her advice, so we agreed to take her beer suggestion and make the most of our dining experience. I was even more tickled to see the vintage soda glasses that were brought to sip our beer from.  

Despite many interesting offerings on the menu such as barley and pickle soup, or roast pork stuffed with plums, I couldn't bring myself to deviate from what I had been craving all afternoon. Kielbasa and onions with mashed potatoes, and a side of spicy saurkraut. It looks like a modest portion, but was 100% filling!

My friend chose to try one of the weekly specials, potato dumplings stuffed with fried meat, and a side of cucumber salad. Sadly, I didn't get a photograph of the salad because we ate it so quickly. Thin strips of cucumber smothered in yogurt with dill. The dumplings were also incredibly filling and served for lunch the following day.

Cracovia is the kind of place that is just special. It, and restaurants like it from all different ethnicities showcase not only provide us with the chance to sample new cuisines, but they also preserve a cultural heritage and national pride that can be shared through one of the most translatable formats on the planet, which is food! These places along with their social clubs (french, italian, jamaican, polish, etc) are in danger of disappearing all together as we move towards globalization and a homogenized world and they become less useful to the groups of people who relied on them. My advice to you? Enjoy them while you still can.

Cracovia, 60 Broad St New Britain, CT 06053 (860) 223-4443 http://cracovia.homestead.com/

Happiness = coconut and curry

For quite some time, I had been avoiding checking out the relatively recently opened Sweet Chili 312 Thai Restaurant. It was a bias that I had carried with me from the previous tenant of the restaurant, a Siamese place that I had found in earlier years to be somewhat of a disappointment. However, I am happy to report, that the new occupants of the space have done exceptionally well at creating a serene dining atmosphere and some wonderful new takes on classic thai flavors and dishes. My dish in the above picture was a delightful combination of spicy yellow curry sauce balanced with coconut milk. It was tossed with onions, pineapple, tofu and tomatoes. 

One of my dining companions for the evening tried the grilled jumbo shrimp which were served on skewers, accompanied by a chili lime sauce, and was quite pleased with the portion, preparation and flavor of the meal. The other sampled a vegetarian dish of sauteed vegetables with tofu called Pad Pik Pow, in which they were tossed in a traditional Thai roasted chili sauce.

 I have visited a few times before deciding to take the photos and write the post, and I happy to say that I think Sweet Chili will be around for a long while. Service is excellent, the food quality is consistent, atmosphere is lovely. And, most importantly to me, there are many tasty vegetarian options! While I usually recommend that diners in search of good Thai food stay in Parkville, this is one that is worth crossing from Park St over to Park Rd to enjoy. 

Website: http://www.sweetchilli312.com

Update and Action Request: GE Salmon Approval

Aqua Bounty vs. Native Salmon

One of the first posts that I wrote when I started this blog was about the company called Aqua Bounty Farms and my concerns about the genetically engineered fish, especially Salmon that they have been working on growing and getting FDA approval to sell to US consumers. Just to update any new readers, Wikipedia defines it as such: "the AquAdvantage salmon has been modified by the addition of a growth hormone regulating gene from a Pacific Chinook salmon and apromoter from an ocean pout to the Atlantic's 40,000 genes. These genes enable it to grow year-round instead of only during spring and summer." Now this issue has reached a head, and we have until April 26 to say no to GE Salmon being approved. From all reports, including research from the Perdue University and the National Academy of Science, there are sizable risks if these transgenic fish pose to nearby populations of native fish if escape into our waterways, which there seems little doubt that they will.  Chefs/ restaurants, grocers, and seafood distributors have been signing pledges not to sell GE Salmon based on the feedback of their customers. PLEASE  join them and find the time to go to regulations.gov, search for GE SALMON and comment and send your thoughts. The only way we have a chance to stop this from happening is to take a moment to speak up. 

LINK to Comment: http://www.regulations.gov

I also encourage you to take a few minutes and do some further reading on the subject. Good place to start is at:  Salmon Nation

GMO OMG & the 2013 Environmental Film Festival

GMO OMG / U.S. Premiere


Tuesday, April 9th, 7:00pm / Burke Auditorium, Kroon Hall, 195 Prospect Street

Today in the United States, by the simple acts of feeding ourselves, we are unwittingly participating in the largest experiment ever conducted on human beings. Each of us unknowingly consumes genetically engineered food on a daily basis. The risks and effects to our health and the environment are largely unknown. Yet more and more studies are being conducted around the world, which only provide even more reason for concern. We are the oblivious guinea pigs for wide-scale experimentation of modern biotechnology. GMO OMG tells the story of a fathers discovery of GMOs in relationship to his 3 young children and the world around him. We still have time to heal the planet, feed the world, and live sustainably. But we have to start now!

Followed by a panel discussion with filmmaker Jeremy Seifert, Justin Freiberg, and Tara Cook-Littman.

About the Filmmaker
In 2010, Jeremy completed his debut film, DIVE!, Living Off America’s Waste. Initially made with a $200 budget, a borrowed camera, and a lot of heart, DIVE! went on to win 22 film festivals worldwide - including screening at EFFY 2010. With the release of DIVE!, Jeremy began the production company, Compeller Pictures. He is now a filmmaker and activist, traveling the country and speaking on humanitarian and environmental issues. Jeremy’s second film, GMO OMG, tells the hidden story of the take over of our food supply by giant chemical companies, an agricultural crisis that has grown into a cultural crisis. He has once again found the heart of the project in his own journey and awakening. Jeremy and his wife, Jen, live in North Carolina with their three children, Finn (7), Scout (4), and Pearl (2).

Preceded By: Mushroom Man
3 min. Dir. Leslie Iwerks. This is the story of how mushrooms can save the world! Renowned mycologist and mushroom pioneer Paul Stamets harnesses the power of infamous fungi to fight the planet’s leading problems, from developing cures for cancer to destroying toxic radioactive waste.


Check out the entire free and relevant line up of events at the 2013 Environmental Film Festival at Yale here: http://environment.yale.edu/film/2013/gmo-omg/