Salmon, Greyhounds and Aged Gin
Happy Labor Day, my friends. I know several of you who are working today. So very American, just like the holiday! Ironic, yes, but since this is a blog about food and drink, I'll stay on topic, and share some news that is as equally horrible as having to work on a holiday.
GES
Genetically engineered salmon.
Before I do something that will get me in trouble (or might if I had a larger readership), everything I am about to say is just my opinion. It is what I think and nothing more.
Okay, then.
Consider this headline from the Business Day section of the Saturday New York Times: Modified Salmon Is Safe, F.D.A. Says.
The headline gave me the heebie-jeebies, enough so that I might consider being a GES for Halloween because a genetically modified animal becoming part of the U.S. food stream is scarier than the monster that lived in my closet when I was kid, or, if you prefer a more contemporary analogy, scarier than a Glenn-Beck devotee.
The article itself increased my discomfort. The FDA will meet 9/19-21 to discuss this GES which is "intended to be used as food."
Intended? We all know what paves the road to hell, now don't we? (And you know I mean hell in a metaphoric sense. I only feel the need to point this out seeing as how our current times are riddled with folks who actually still believe in that fiery pit of despair. Really! And they do things like hold inappropriately scheduled rallies in DC!)
Anyway, back to the GES. The company is AquaBounty Technologies and the product is AquAdvantage Salmon. The fish would be the first GE animal available for 'human consumption.'
Oh, Aquaman where are you when you are needed most!? Well, there is a coalition opposing the fish which, with a dash of genes from one species and a pinch of DNA from another, grows much faster than the natural version. (Take a look at the photo in the NYT's article.)
The key day of the FDA meetings will be the last when they discuss labeling of this potential intended food product. 'The public' will be able to comment. Let's hope members of the coalition can make a sound case for clear labeling of GES.
Fortunately, my long weekend was not all consumed with worries about GE foods. I had a delightful and gastronomically rich Sunday, which is why this week's blog is a day late.
AQ hosted a ladies brunch with several delicious courses. The meal started with a seasonal and colorful salad of beets and beet greens and a dish of white beans with red onion and feta cheese. Two quiches followed, one with Emmentaler and onion and one with feta. Heavy cream and buttery crusts! Dessert was a sweet and delicious cobbler with pears and plums topped with cream that AQ whipped on the spot in her 1950's dress with a vintage teal mixer.
Of course, no ladies lunch is complete without beverages. We began with a variation of the Greyhound, a mix of vodka, grapefruit juice, fresh mint and seltzer served in wonderful retro gold painted glasses. The Greyhounds were followed by mini martinis in delicate etched glasses. And, we finished the meal with rich coffee in antique porcelain tea cups.
The meal, the drinks, the food, the glassware and the company all lovely!
In the evening, LP made me two versions of a martini: one with Citadelle Reserve Gin and one with Hendricks. Both also had Noilly Prat dry vermouth, celery bitters and an olive stuffed with Gorgonzola.
Citadelle Reserve is a French gin aged in oak casks, not a usual practice for gin. It had a flavor that was much more complex than Hendricks. We both preferred this cocktail with the Citadelle Reserve. The cucumber in the Hendricks and the lighter overall flavor of the gin, made the celery bitters too present. The more complex gin balanced the celery flavor.
It was a superb martini... perhaps we shall call it the LP martini like the LP negroni. She has a definite knack for mixology.
LP then made a pizza inspired by a visit to a Todd English restaurant in Boston. Her homemade whole-wheat crust was topped with fig jam, Gorgonzola, prosciutto and arugula. Delicious and fortifying after several hours of shopping!
There you have it, ladies and g's. A random post I know. What do you think... is it better to split things up into more than one post in the week when the topics are so randomly mixed?
Let me know! And stay tuned!
Happy Labor Day, my friends. I know several of you who are working today. So very American, just like the holiday! Ironic, yes, but since this is a blog about food and drink, I'll stay on topic, and share some news that is as equally horrible as having to work on a holiday.
GES
Genetically engineered salmon.
Before I do something that will get me in trouble (or might if I had a larger readership), everything I am about to say is just my opinion. It is what I think and nothing more.
Okay, then.
Consider this headline from the Business Day section of the Saturday New York Times: Modified Salmon Is Safe, F.D.A. Says.
The headline gave me the heebie-jeebies, enough so that I might consider being a GES for Halloween because a genetically modified animal becoming part of the U.S. food stream is scarier than the monster that lived in my closet when I was kid, or, if you prefer a more contemporary analogy, scarier than a Glenn-Beck devotee.
The article itself increased my discomfort. The FDA will meet 9/19-21 to discuss this GES which is "intended to be used as food."
Intended? We all know what paves the road to hell, now don't we? (And you know I mean hell in a metaphoric sense. I only feel the need to point this out seeing as how our current times are riddled with folks who actually still believe in that fiery pit of despair. Really! And they do things like hold inappropriately scheduled rallies in DC!)
Anyway, back to the GES. The company is AquaBounty Technologies and the product is AquAdvantage Salmon. The fish would be the first GE animal available for 'human consumption.'
Oh, Aquaman where are you when you are needed most!? Well, there is a coalition opposing the fish which, with a dash of genes from one species and a pinch of DNA from another, grows much faster than the natural version. (Take a look at the photo in the NYT's article.)
The key day of the FDA meetings will be the last when they discuss labeling of this potential intended food product. 'The public' will be able to comment. Let's hope members of the coalition can make a sound case for clear labeling of GES.
Fortunately, my long weekend was not all consumed with worries about GE foods. I had a delightful and gastronomically rich Sunday, which is why this week's blog is a day late.
AQ hosted a ladies brunch with several delicious courses. The meal started with a seasonal and colorful salad of beets and beet greens and a dish of white beans with red onion and feta cheese. Two quiches followed, one with Emmentaler and onion and one with feta. Heavy cream and buttery crusts! Dessert was a sweet and delicious cobbler with pears and plums topped with cream that AQ whipped on the spot in her 1950's dress with a vintage teal mixer.
Of course, no ladies lunch is complete without beverages. We began with a variation of the Greyhound, a mix of vodka, grapefruit juice, fresh mint and seltzer served in wonderful retro gold painted glasses. The Greyhounds were followed by mini martinis in delicate etched glasses. And, we finished the meal with rich coffee in antique porcelain tea cups.
The meal, the drinks, the food, the glassware and the company all lovely!
In the evening, LP made me two versions of a martini: one with Citadelle Reserve Gin and one with Hendricks. Both also had Noilly Prat dry vermouth, celery bitters and an olive stuffed with Gorgonzola.
Citadelle Reserve is a French gin aged in oak casks, not a usual practice for gin. It had a flavor that was much more complex than Hendricks. We both preferred this cocktail with the Citadelle Reserve. The cucumber in the Hendricks and the lighter overall flavor of the gin, made the celery bitters too present. The more complex gin balanced the celery flavor.
It was a superb martini... perhaps we shall call it the LP martini like the LP negroni. She has a definite knack for mixology.
LP then made a pizza inspired by a visit to a Todd English restaurant in Boston. Her homemade whole-wheat crust was topped with fig jam, Gorgonzola, prosciutto and arugula. Delicious and fortifying after several hours of shopping!
There you have it, ladies and g's. A random post I know. What do you think... is it better to split things up into more than one post in the week when the topics are so randomly mixed?
Let me know! And stay tuned!
You would think we would require review by both the FDA and EPA for GM foods, at a minimum. It seems we're laboring mightily to ruin the food chain.
ReplyDeleteI agree! Ruining the food chain is a good way to put it... and the big question is why... is there such a demand for salmon that they need to speed up the process? Yikes.
ReplyDelete