What's STILL at the farm markets....

If you've stopped visiting your local farmer's market(s) for the season, you're missing out on some great produce, baked goods, non-industrial eggs, poultry and meat -- just to name a few!
Cincinnati's historic Findlay Market in the middle of a 'hood known as Over-the-Rhine is always part of my my Saturday morning routine, year round.
Here are photos taken 11/10/12 of what the local farmers and bakers are selling. The weekend before Thanksgiving will bring in huge crowds -- what better place to get fresh (not frozen) turkey, Eckerlin's terrific fresh cranberry salad, fabulous pies of every variety, and a cheese platter to die for?

Persimmons--they grow wild here!

Hothouse tomatoes still available

Blue Oven Bakery--come early if you want some!

Red wine and your health: let me count the ways

I picked this up from the Today Show's website while looking at something else.

Of course we've all heard that wine, and in particular red wine, has health benefits. Here's a nifty little list of no fewer than EIGHT reasons that a nice pour every day is good for us:
1. A couple of studies have demonstrated that red wine can lower LDL ("bad") cholesterol.
2. Red wine has blood-thinning properties that can protect your heart by helping to keep arteries unclogged.
3. The skin of red grapes helps regular blood sugar in those with diabetes, or pre-diabetes.
4. It can keep your brain in good health, boosting memory.
5. Its antioxidants assist the immune system in fighting viruses, such as the common cold.
6. According to researchers at the University of Virginia, the resveratrol you get from drinking one glass of red wine three or four times a week may be enough to starve any nascent cancer cells. The scientists dosed human cancer cells with resveratrol and found that the compound inhibited the key action of a cancer-feeding protein.
7. Some studies suggest that red wine can prevent the growth of fat cells in our bodies.
8. Cooking with wine is just as effective as drinking it.

Click here to read the entire article, with details about the research backing these claims.

Fish oil: Should you or shouldn't you?

Whether one should take fish oil supplements, in pills, is debatable -- but the health benefits of the fats that are natural in seafood really isn't open to question.
I always feel that it's better to get nutrients from food rather than pills. But if for some reason you can't eat enough fish, consider supplements.
A reader sent me a link to her blog post about why she recommends the fish oil pills Her reasons include well documented relationships between the fats in fish and cardiovascular health, control of depression, improvements in skin and facial complexion. and other important benefits.
Click here to read the article.

Republican? Democrat? Invite a [insert other party here] to dinner

On the eve of Election 2012, let's take a deep breath and remember that our differences should not overwhelm the fact that we're all loyal and proud Americans. Our partisan rancor has gotten so miserably out of control, it's worth asking ourselves whether this is how we want to be in the world.
No wonder Congress is gridlocked and can't get anything done -- they are, after all, representing us. 
So here are a couple of things to contemplate.
1. The world will not end if the other guy gets elected. 
2. Neither side has all the answers, but we should listen to each other with open minds (even if open only a tiny crack) to figure out how we can work together to solve our country's many pressing problems.
3. Try not to hate politicians of the other party; respect their world view as being as valid as your own. They believe they're right, just as those on "our" side do.
4. [And this is the point of the title of my post] Cultivate friendships with people who are not of your political persuasion. Meet someone from "the other side" for coffee, a drink, a meal. Steer clear of politics as a topic of conversation if you want, and if it does come up, LISTEN more than you express your own opinions.
Remember Chris Christie and Barack Obama after Hurricane Sandy, and let's hope that can be a model for the future.

And vote, of course.

Cold weather: Bring on the (healthier) Beef Stew

Beef stew doesn't have to be a no-no for the healthy foodie.

If you emphasize a pot full of delicious, hearty vegetables made even more scrumptious by a judicious amount of high-quality, grass-fed beef, you can enjoy this delightful comfort food without a shred of guilt.

While my family doesn't eat much red meat, for health reasons, a little meat in most diets is not a bad thing. Iron and other minerals are more plentiful in red meat than in any other food.

And while I'm totally against supermarket or fast-food meats for ethical reasons--see "Food, Inc" or read Michael Pollan and others if you don't already know about the horrors of our industrial food system and its treatment of animals--humanely raised and butchered meat is a treat the healthy foodie can allow herself once in a while.

In addition to the traditional beef-stew veggies, this version tastes even better thanks to the inclusion of flavorful porcini mushrooms and leeks.

Recipe: Healthier Beef Stew
(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces stew beef in bite-size chunks
• 3 T canola oil
• 2 leeks, rinsed well, white and light green parts only, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 3 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 lb new potatoes (red or white), cut into bite-size chunks
• 3 large carrots, cut into bite-size chunks
• 1 large onion, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks (optional)
• 12 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in 2 cups hot water for 15 minutes, drained and chopped
• 2 T flour
• Mushroom soaking liquid, strained to remove sand from mushrooms, about 1 1/2 cups
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 3 cups beef stock or beef broth
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1 T dried thyme
• 2 large bay leaves

Instructions:

1.     Heat oil in your largest saucepan or a Dutch oven over medium high heat. When oil begins to sizzle, add beef and cook, stirring, until beef begins to brown. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate or bowl and keep nearby.

2.     Add leeks and garlic to pot, stirring for 1-2 minutes until they begin to soften. Stir in remaining vegetables (potatoes through porcini mushrooms) and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the vegetables begin to heat up and start to cook, about 3-4 minutes.

3.     Sprinkle flour over the veggies, stir well, and cook for another 2 minutes.

4.     Return beef to the pot.

5.     Add liquids (mushroom soaking liquid, wine and stock/broth), stirring well.

6.     Cover the pot and bring the mixture to a low boil.

7.     Remove cover, reduce heat to medium and add thyme, salt, pepper and the bay leaves.

8.     Cook for another 30 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are your desired level of tenderness by testing with the point of a knife.

9.     Discard the bay leaves before serving.

Maribelle's in Oakley

Maribelle's used to be located in a cute house with patio on the east side of town, but a few months ago it moved to Madison Road in Oakley, in part of the space that was home to Hugo's.

Interior of Maribelle's

This week, we had a chance to try it out for dinner.
Mostly, we were disappointed -- because it's not really a dinner place. The menu is mostly salads, small appetizers and sandwiches, although they do have three entree features per night.
Unfortunately, they were out of one of the three even though we did not arrive late (7 PM reservation), which gave us only two entree choices. We were OK with the one we chose -- the fish called wahoo, accompanied by a few vegetables -- but a larger selection would have been nicer.

Fish dinner entree

Another bummer: everything is completely a la carte, and none of the appetizers or salads particularly appealed to my husband or me. So I asked for the baguette that was listed as an appetizer for $5, and could not believe the tiny piece of bread the waiter brought. They could easily have given us twice as much bread -- the only accompaniment was a slab of butter -- and still made a tidy profit on the dish.
The wine list was marginally adequate (IMHO) while the beer list was much more extensive, it seemed to me.
We enjoyed our waiter, and the dining room/bar combo has a warm feel. But since Oakley is on the other side of town for us Cliftonites, my husband and I agreed that we are not very likely to return.

Weekend in St Pete FL

I took a short trip to Florida to visit my brother and meet his fiancee. That part was great -- he is happy and they are wonderful for each other. While there of course I had to eat! The weather was lovely -- it had cooled off and become less humid, thank goodness -- so many of our meals were enjoyed al fresco. Best? First of all, these fried oysters were excellent, not at all greasy, crunchy, and full of briny oyster flavor. Maybe the best single thing I had there, and this was at St. Petersburg Beach at a place called Hurricane.

Perfect oysters, St Petersburg Beach

For Saturday dinner we went to the renowned Bern's Steakhouse in Tampa, a "must" when you're in the Tampa Bay area. My brother, his lady and I split a chateaubriand for three with all the trimmings, delish. Bern's has a separate dessert floor that your waiter reserves for you when you order entrees. Here's a posed shot of me about to chow down on my coconut cake (which was a little disappointing by the way and I wished I'd chosen something else). Drinks there are fabulous; their wine list is one of the most extensive in the world, and their spiked coffees with dessert are worth saving room for.

Hamming it up at Bern's