Letters to the editor, December 2004

Food policy, food politics

One of the best recent issues of the Sound Consumer was the September 2004 issue with, Farming the Future at WSU. I read the entire newspaper right away. Other Sound Consumer favorites have been Earth Day, Farm Policy, and What Consumers Need to Know (April 2004), The True Cost of Food (May 2004), and Fair Trade Chocolate (February 2003). I appreciate more comprehensive articles that address political issues and give us facts, the latest research, and issues to consider, such as the agenda of corporate agribusiness, as we make our food choices.

While speaking with friends at a farmers market recently, we agreed that some of the recent articles in the Sound Consumer seem too much like attempts at marketing. PCC members can see through this. The October issue featured “Adventures in Eating Regionally,” which was just more of the same information every magazine writes about. People who shop at PCC already eat mostly regional organic foods. A person’s journey taking cooking classes in the August issue also was not very informative. Weak front-page articles don’t inspire me to read on or even to look at advertising inside.

The Sound Consumer should continue to distinguish itself as a more informative publication and continue to address the policies behind our food system — food is a political issue. We don’t need any more fluff in our lives.
— Debra Daniels-Zeller, Edmonds

New dreams

Here is a Web site that other Sound Consumer readers may find useful and interesting, www.newdream.org. It is a Web site that encourages people to live greener, more balanced lives and to do something constructive about saving the planet, even in very small steps. It is definitely worth accessing.
— Christa Barke, Seattle

Wheat-free, egg-free recipe

I devised this wheat-and-egg-free apple crisp recipe and when I sent it to someone who wanted the recipe, I was tickled at all the references to PCC — so I send it on to you! Thanks for the great food.

This recipe is based on my mom’s crumb pie topping. She made it with drained canned peaches, topped with a cup of bleached wheat flour and a cup of white sugar mixed with an egg. I have played with it for 10 years now, and this is the result. Play with the spices when you make it; the only essential spice is cinnamon.
— Mary eva Love, Seattle

Apple Crisp À la PCC

8 or 10 large tart, sweet, crisp apples — ask the produce manager for a good pie apple (if you use Granny Smiths, mix with other, sweeter apples)

Approximately 1/2 can frozen cranberry juice concentrate, thawed

1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 cup rice flour (or mixture of rice and barley flour)

1/2 cup granola (wheat and corn free)

1/2 cup muesli (wheat and corn free)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tablespoon Ener-G Egg Replacer

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 425° F. Peel and slice enough apples to fill a 9″ X 13″ baking pan. Put them in a large bowl and add enough cranberry concentrate to thoroughly moisten, but no more. Stir in pumpkin pie spice. Mix thoroughly, put in an oiled baking pan. The pan should be full, but not overflowing.

Mix together flour(s), granola, muesli, sugars, egg replacer and cinnamon. Gently mix in, one tablespoon at a time, enough cranberry concentrate to make a crumbly mixture that will look a little like ground meat (according to my son!). Spread the mixture evenly over the apples; leave a hole in the middle for pulling out apple slices for testing. Sprinkle walnut pieces on top.

Put it in the oven on the bottom rack, turn the oven down to 350° F, bake until apples are cooked and topping is crispy and browned, about 30 to 45 minutes or longer.