Berkeley Student Food Collective

Slow food momentum!

Here at the Berkeley Student Food Collective, one of the foodie philosophies we embrace is the Slow Food Campaign.

Slow Food International is a grassroots, non-profit member-supported organization which aims to counter fast food and fast lifestyles, disappearing availability of local food, and a dwindling appreciation for the food we eat. 

Philosophy

From the Slow Food International website:

We believe that everyone has a fundamental right to the pleasure of good food and consequently the responsibility to protect the heritage of food, tradition and culture that make this pleasure possible.

Good, Clean and Fair

Slow Food’s approach to agriculture, food production and gastronomy is based on a concept of food quality defined by three interconnected principles:

GOOD a fresh and flavorsome seasonal diet that satisfies the senses and is part of our local culture;

CLEAN food production and consumption that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health;

FAIR accessible prices for consumers and fair conditions and pay for small-scale producers.

Local Identity 
We are committed to protecting traditional and sustainable quality foods, defending the biodiversity of cultivated and wild varieties as well cultivation and processing methods. 

Making Connections

Slow Food believes that food is tied to many aspects of life, including culture, politics, agriculture and the environment. This is why we are an active player in a wide variety of areas, from education to agricultural policy. To work across this wide sphere, Slow Food defends biodiversity in our food supply, promotes food and taste education and connects sustainable producers to co-producers through events and building networks. 

Why is there a need for slow food?

A question much too complicated to answer in one blog post, the need for slow food comes simply from the fact that fast food is bad. The current globalized food system has deteriorated into one which focuses on quantity rather than quality, cheap prices rather than sustainable practices, instant gratification rather than appreciation, artificial rather than natural, and convenience rather than awareness.

Nothing about the current American food system is particularly sustainable. The environmental impacts range from feeding bovine, poultry, and fish foods they are not evolutionarily supposed to eat, wasting acres and acres of farmland on sickly monocultures, to pesticides, herbicides, and antibiotics which leak into water systems and soil. Political impacts cover everything from corporate corruption (read more on Monsanto), to never-ending cycles of corn subsidies and bankrupting farmers, to politicians turning a blind eye to messy practices at farms and slaughterhouses. Health impacts are triggered by eating heavily processed and artificial foods, consuming animals pumped with unnatural hormones and antibiotics, and straying more and more from plant-foods, which in turn leads to problems such as increasing occurrences of food allergies and food poisoning.

How you can participate in the Slow Food Campaign

• Eat locally
• Eat seasonally
• Avoid fast foods

If you want to join the Slow Food USA campaign, you can also go to this link to sign up for the mailing list. Some members of Slow Food USA include Alice Waters (of Chez Panisse), Michael Pollan, and Eric Schlosser.

Start with yourself, then move onto your friends and family, and hopefully, eventually, the global movement for healthful, local, and ethically responsibility can gain enough momentum to change the current food system.

Quinoa… quin-what?

What is quinoa?

Quinoa, pronounced keen-wah, is one of the latest stars in health food trends. The plant looks like a grain, but it’s not a grass. It actually is related to beets, spinach, and tumbleweed (source: Wikipedia), but has comparable nutrient composition to whole grains.

There are many varieties of quinoa, but only three types are cultivated. White quinoa is the most popular, and has a sweet flavor. Then there is red quinoa and black quinoa. All types have a slightly nutty flavor and when cooked are fluffy and can have a pleasant “crunch.”

Besides being super delicious, quinoa is incredibly easy to make, and can be used in pretty much everything - breakfast, lunch, dinner, even dessert. Use it to replace rice in your recipes for a huge punch of protein, calcium, iron, and all essential amino acids. Each little “grain” of quinoa is especially dense in nutrients, and the seeds are all gluten-free. Quinoa has low-sodium levels, and provides valuable fiber and starch (source: Chet Day).

Because quinoa is so versatile, try it as a side to veggies, in a salad, mixed into pancakes or muffins, instead of rice, or simply go wild and experiment!

How to cook quinoa

Basic recipe:

1 cup of quinoa
1 1/2 cup of water
salt (optional)

Rinse quinoa under cold water to get rid of the bitter-tasting saponins. Drain well. In a pot, bring quinoa and water to a boil, then reduce heat, cover tightly with a lid, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove quinoa from heat, let sit for 5 minutes with lid on, and then fluff lightly with a fork.

Some awesome quinoa recipes

Quinoa salad with chickpeas, kalamata olives, and mint

Southwest quinoa patties with avocado sauce

Gluten-free quinoa buttermilk patties

Fava bean and quinoa salad

Mango blueberry quinoa salad

Mushroom and asparagus warm quinoa

Broccoli quinoa casserole

Lime and cilantro quinoa salad

Globalization as a good thing or bad thing?

Even though it’s a great thing that more and more Americans are buying healthy, nutrient-rich quinoa, the food trend does have its downsides. Quinoa is an ancient crop that has been cultivated for centuries in Bolivia and Peru, and the rising demand for quinoa has driven crop prices up beyond the affordability of local peoples. Fewer Bolivians and Peruvians are now able to afford quinoa, causing them to turn instead to cheaper processed foods.

At supermarkets in Bolivia, a 1000-gram bag of quinoa costs the equivalent of $4.85, whereas a bag of noodles of the same weight costs $1.20, and a bag of white rice only $1.00. Climbing prices are not only contributing to an inability to afford a basic crop that has been consumed for hundreds of generations, but also to the younger generations of Bolivians’ increased consumption of unhealthy processed foods and changing taste preferences (source: NY Times).

Stop by the Berkeley Student Food Collective to pick up your quinoa!

Quinoa is a great, healthy, and super nutritious food to add to your diet. It’s super easy to make, and works as either a side or the featured main dish in your meal. As always, stay cognizant of how your eating practices may affect global markets and cultures, and make your dietary choices accordingly; awareness always solves problems better than ignorance.

Go ahead, try this superfood!

Whole grains are a whole lotta good!

A whole grain contains all edible parts of the grain, including the bran, germ, and endosperm. The whole grain may be used intact or recombined, as long as all components are present in natural proportions (source: Whole Grains Council).

Health Benefits

You can’t go wrong with eating whole grains! Not only will eating whole grains improve your diet by packing in lots of fiber, B vitamins, protein, and antioxidants, but also help reduce the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and some forms of cancer. Plus, whole grains can improve your bowel movements because of the high fiber content (something no one can ever hate), and contribute to lower percentages in abdominal fat (source: Framingham Heart Study).

Eat more whole grains!

It’s really easy to introduce more whole grains into your diet. When you’re at the grocery store, stay cognizant of what the product says. Look for whole wheat pastas and bread, substitute white rice for brown rice, enjoy a bowl of oatmeal in the morning, or get adventurous and try versatile whole grains such as quinoa or millet!

Unfortunately, most Americans don’t even get one serving of whole grains per day (source: Whole Grains Council). There’s an important difference between “whole grain” and “multigrain” when you’re at the store looking for some delicious bread or whatnot to buy. “Multigrain,” “100% wheat,” “stone ground” and “cracked wheat” may sound innocently healthy, but none of those terms actually indicates whole grain goodness. 

The Storefront has a whole array of whole grains available! Some products include

• Rolled oats
• Quinoa
• Millet
• Spelt flour
• Bulgar
• Brown rice
• Barley
• Whole wheat pastas

Not sure what to make?

More recipes will eventually be posted, but here’s a simple, delicious, (and healthy!) oatmeal recipe.

Chocolatey Peanut Butter Oats (from Yack Attack)

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Rolled Oats

3/4-1 Cup of Water or Non Dairy Milk

1 Tbsp. Cocoa

1 Tbsp. Peanut Butter

1 Tbsp. Maple Syrup or Agave Nectar

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon (optional)

Very small Pinch of Salt

Directions:

Put oats, cocoa and water in a very small pot over medium heat. Stir together until it warms completely and is a little thicker; add in peanut butter, maple syrup and cinnamon. Stir until the oatmeal is as thick as you like, pour into a bowl, drizzle with a little more maple syrup and eat! :)

News for the foodies!

We now accept debit, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover for your purchases over $5.00!