Dinner discussion topic: The Pope's statement on climate change

The Pope has released his position on climate change (see NY Times coverage) which is leading to vigorous debate and discussion. What do you and your guests think about this?  Has he crossed a line or is his position about preserving life on Earth and reducing human suffering on target?  Why do you think what you think?  Will this change your (or your guests') behavior?  If so, how?  If not, why not?

Salmon season!

LA Times has some great wild salmon recipes including salmon bisque and chipotle salmon.

Yum!  Will try these soon.

Almonds are not the enemy...

Mark Bittman has a GREAT Op-Ed in the NY Times talking about how rational water use in California means growing what grows well there and accepting the higher costs of food that will be associated with pricing water correctly.  Great read and great discussion topic for dinner this weekend.

Congress attacks science based policy

An outstanding (and scary) piece was just published in Science. Authored by a number of Union of Concerned Scientist folks, it documents how regulations working through Congress remove scientific evidence from the table when making some policy decisions--many of which have substantial public health consequences.  Worth a read.

Drink: vodka, bitters, lemon juice, ginger, sugar

I've been working through a Peruvian cookbook and got the idea for this delicious drink which is modified from a recipe requiring pisco. I've run out of simple syrup and am too lazy to make more, so I've been using cane sugar--I really need to make the simple syrup for this one.

1.5 shots of vodka
juice of 1 lemon
1" of ginger, peeled, and julienned
several good dollops of angostura bitters
2 Tbs cane sugar (or ideally, simple syrup)

Shake vigorously over ice, and pour into a martini glass.

This will ease discussions about the water crisis in California

Water required to grow food

NY Times had a great interactive feature (see previous post from LA Times) about water required to grow various foods.  I find this stuff amazing and learn something new each time I read more about water and agriculture.

don't wash your chicken!

Great video explaining why it's actually a health risk to wash meat before cooking. Worth watching.