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Ingredients:

2 packets of ground turkey

2 packs taco seasoning packet 

1 pack of Whole grain taco shells

1 pack of Shredded Cheese

1 head of lettuce or pack of shredded lettuce

Salsa:

3 tablespoons of onion (chopped)

2 small cloves of garlic (minced)

3 tomatoes (peeled,chopped,seeds removed)

2 hot chile peppers (finely chopped)

2 1/2 table spoons of cilantro (minced)

1 1/2 tablespoons of lime juice

Salt and pepper

Guacamole:

3 avocados

1 tablespoon of lime juice

1/2 cups of red onion (chopped)

1 tablespoon of cilantro (chopped)

1 jalapeño pepper (seeded,chopped)

1 glove of garlic (minced)

1/4 teaspoon of ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/8 teaspoon of black pepper

1 tomato (seeded,diced,)

Steps for Guacamole:

Cut avocados in half and remove seeds.

Scoop the avocado into a bowl and mash together with all the other ingredients.

Stir and cover.

Steps for Salsa:

Boil two cups of water.

Put chopped onion and garlic in a strainer.

Pour bowling water over onion and garlic.

Combine onions and garlic with other ingredients.

Chill for 2-4 hrs.

Steps for Meat:

Turn on pilot to highest degree and place a large sauce pan on it. Allow to heat up.

Once hot, place ground turkey into the pan. Brown on both sides.

Use a fork to break meat apart.

Let sit until golden brown.

Drain off liquid.

Add a little water,less than 1/2 cups.

Add both packs of taco seasoning and stir.

Let simmer.

Sources:

http://southernfood.about.com/od/salsarecipes/r/bl40212k.htm

http://southernfood.about.com/od/diprecipes/r/guacamole-recipe.htm

Analysis:

The only processed part of this meal is the ground turkey,tacos seasoning packets and the soft whole grain shells. So maybe 50% of this meal is processed. Everything in the guacamole and salsa was fresh/whole food.To give a round estimate, this dish is less than 300 calories. I think all the sugars in this dish are natural because i didn't add any sugar. Fruit and veggies are good for the body. Ground turkey is light but somewhat filling so you won't be left hungry. I do think this meal may contain too much salt to eat everyday.I know for a fact that ground turkey is produced here in the US. I think the tomatoes and avocados I used were commercially grown, I didn't get them out of the organic section.At the market the groceries rang up to less than $40. You could problem get a least 4 meals from a fast food restaurant for that price. ShopRite made money off of this meal because that were I brought all my ingredients from. The brand of ground turkey I brought was Butterball so they made some money off this meal. From researching I found that Shoprite gets some of their tomatoes from NJ, which isn't too far away. When you grow tomatoes yourself they tend to be more red and have more flavor. I did know that the tomatoes I brought were a lighter red and not a deeper red.

Reflection:

I think simply put I'm a consumer in our food system. I buy what I like and whats easy not necessarily what is best for my health, as many do. There is where the problem lays.It is easier to grab a hamburger from McDonald's than it is to go to the supermarket and then make a salad at home. It takes extended effort and time to buy or cook food that is better for ones health. Easier more convenient food is always cheaper than food that is healthy. As we learned in class there are some areas where supermarkets are more than a mile away. People today don't have as much time or money anymore.Thus the good stuff is inaccessible. When the obvious healthy food is unavailable people turn to the things that seem to be healthy. Stuff with labels that say “all natural” and “light/lite”. We may think these things are benefiting us when in actuality they aren’t as healthy as we may think.

As for me personally I try to be conscience about the food I eat but not overly conscience to the point where I become obsessed. More recently I have been eating less fast food and making more food at home. Changes in diet almost always bring results either for the better or for the worst. Eating less fast food will most likely result is less risk of things such as obesity or high blood pressure. One change I’m working on is drinking more water and less juice. This could definitely lower my risk of having diabetes. It may be a struggle but it’s worth the effort in the end.

 In the spot we are now as a society we are pressured into thinking that eating greens and being healthy is the only way to if you want to live longer. However that is countered by the daily reminder of how “amazing” fast food is. So how are we supposed to react to this? So are we suppose to fall prey to those daily advertisements of that perfect juicy burger, with a side of crispy French fries, and a fresh cool soda on the side? How is it that we are so pressured into finding healthy ways to eat and live when we aren’t able to get away from those type of advertisements. Are we really the ones who are supposed to just learn to say no? Or are we going to always put up that healthy diet for next week?

 Even though people like to blame those advertisements I think that what you put in your mouth, chew, and swallow is all up to you. Nobody is forcing you to eat fat, greasy foods. You are the one choosing to ignore all the side effects that all those meals will give you over time. In the end you are only really hurting yourself right? So why blame others for what you choose to do or eat? Now, I’m not saying that eating fast food is the worst thing in the world or that you shouldn’t eat it at all. All Im saying is that if you’re going to eat it constantly you shouldn’t blame advertisements. You should be able to realize that if you want to live a healthy lifestyle it is up to you to make those healthy choices.

 With this I feel like I myself need to change my choices on the different types of foods I eat. Even though my mom cooks home cooked meals every night I still choose to sometimes order out. So this goes to show that it will always be up to you to make your own choices and that even though those not so healthy choices will be up in your way you should be strong enough to say no and take the healthy route. I think that once I’m able to do that for a majority of the time then I will be able to live the healthy life. 

Time : 1 hour

Materials :

Pot 

Bowls 

Solve

Knife

Cooking spoon

Ingredients

1-2 8oz pack of frozen cassava leaf. ( Get this from an local Africa market) 

1 smoked chopped Turkey 

Raw cropped chicken 

Bonely (dry fish ) 

1/2 regular drinking cup of palm oil 

1 tea spoon black peppers

2 tea spoon salt

1 onion chopped 

1 sweet pepper

2-4 maggi 

6 quarts of water in cups 

4-6 HOT peppers 

1) Add 6 quarts of water in cups in a big cook pot than add the chicken. Boil the chickens  for about 30 minutes. ( since the chicken is raw it would be best if it bowls by itself than add the rest of the meat later. This way the rest of the mat wouldn't be too over cooked. 

2) After 30 minutes, add 1/2 tea spoon of salt and black peppers with 2 maggi. 

3) Add the turkey, dry fish 

4) Now wait for about 5-10 minutes , before adding the 1-2 8 oz pack of frozen cassava leaf ( It’s does not matter wether or not the cassava leafs are frozen. ). Cover the pot. 

5) Since in this case the cassava are frozen, wait for 10-15 before opening the pot to see wether or not the cassava leaf melt. 

6) If the cassava is melt and the cooking spoon is able to stir the soup without it being stuck through the cassava leafs, you can now add the sweet peppers, onion.

 4-6 HOT peppers. ( blend the peppers, onions and sweet peppers together before adding) 

7) Close the pot for about 15 minutes so the cassava can cook with the rest of the other things that in there and the spice that were added to it, This way the cassava leaf would have the taste of the spice. 

8) After 15 minutes is over, stir the soup and taste it, if there’s not enough spice or season add 2 more maggi to the soup, or if it needs a bit more season ass 1 more. However, if the spice and seasoning are over, add 1 cup of water, this way it would make the soup less seasoning. But if the season and spice are not too salty or less salt you are good. 

9) Now, after completing step 8, cover the soup for another 5-10minutes, in this process lower the solve a bit .

10) Open the pot and stir the soup, this will proven the soup from burning. Taste the soup again, to check if the seasoning is not too much. 

11) After tasting, add 1/2 cup of palm red to the soup, ( make sure you are careful while adding, if you are making a smaller dish than this add a smaller amount than this and it you a person that like a lot of oil in your cooking add more oil. Stir for about 20 seconds. 

12) Close the pot and leave the solve on for another 5-10 minuets so the palm oil could reach everywhere in the soup and also get the spice. 

13) After 10 minutes, open the pot and taste the soup, if you like how it taste, turn the solve off and you are now done. But if you do not like the taste of the soup, you can add more spice o add more water to take the spice out. 

14) In this case, we love the way it taste, therefore we are done cooking. 

Analysis  

Cassava leaf is a common soup that is originally from an West African country, Liberia. Many people love the taste of it and there’s so many ways you can make it. Sometimes, some people like their cassava leaf bitter, so they add a leaf to it and this leaf is call (feva leaf). It makes the cassava leaf make like a stronger taste than it usually have. Also the leaf is healthy for you, so some people like to eat it with the cassava. Cassava leaf is leafs from the Cassava that is planted, and before the cassava comes out of the ground or in a stage to ready, there’s leaf that is on the stems. 

Ingredients:

·         ½ Ayco Mini Me watermelon

·         1 Ayco cantaloupe

·         1 Peruvian Mango

·         1 cup of rivoira frutta blueberries

·         1 cup of rivoira frutta raspberries

·         1 freshquest honeydew

·         1 pack of “USA Florida’s Best Berries” Gulf Sweet strawberries

·         3 organic Trader Joe’s kiwis

·         1 container of Marzetti cream cheese fruit dip

1.       Skin mangoes, remove pits and dice into manageable portions

2.       Remove the husks from the strawberries pits and dice into manageable portions

3.       Skin the honeydew pits and dice into manageable portions

4.       Skin cantaloupe pits and dice into manageable portions

5.       Skin kiwis and slice horizontally into multiple pieces

6.       Distribute blueberries throughout serving container

7.       Mash raspberries (blend for serving sauce)

8.       Cut watermelon in half and remove melon from the hard outer layer then dice into manageable portions

9.       Pour all fruits into a serving container and toss until thoroughly mixed

10.   VOILA!

 Analysis

As soon as this project was introduced, I knew a lot of people would bring in pasta or chicken- typical things. So, I brought something that I, and my family, eat a lot- fruit salad. Fruit is a natural sugar that your body can convert into energy easily. I eat these fruits practically every day, but if it were the only thing I ate, I’d probably weigh around 100 pounds. We didn’t use any artificial sweeteners or products, just fruit. Prior to introducing the concept of utilizing organic foods compared to regular, imported foods, I stocked up on lots of fruit in order to make my fruit salad. Then, we learned how environmentally friendly, more natural and healthier organic foods were. After the activity, I took a look at where my fruit came from. My cantaloupe and honeydew came from Guatemala. My mangoes came from Peru. My berries came from Italy. I thought about the environmental impact all that transportation must have by importing fruit halfway across the globe. So, I sought to buy more friendly fruits, which are usually organic. The strawberries and kiwis that I bought were organic, and cost a lot more than the traditional strawberries and kiwis would have cost. I didn’t mind much though, mainly because I wasn’t the one buying the fruit but also because I know the benefit of buying fruit from local business rather than from larger fruit distributors. My strawberries come from Florida and are grown by the workers of “Gulf Sweet Inc.” They acknowledge that growing fruit isn’t just a way to make money; it’s a way to provide people with a food that is essential to how they eat healthily. Their motto, and a great one to live by, is “Friends and partners, not buyers and sellers.”

Reflection

     The one thing I’ve realized, more than learned, is that I am a mere dust particle in the galaxy of the food system. I hate to say it but my role in the entire food system is so insignificant, I could buy all organic food for the rest of my life and not a single perspective of the economy or environment would change. That doesn’t mean I choose to buy McDonalds everyday, but my role as it relates to others and those who produce what I buy isn’t really noticeable. This sole reason led me to realize that the biggest problem with our food system is that not enough people care. There are too many people that feel exactly like I do. My mindset is that I’m just one person, and if 1 million people say I’m just one person, not a single thing changes for our food system for the better. Those corporations who believe it’s ok to maintain unhealthy food conditions will continue to do so, and those who flood artificial growth hormones will also continue to do so. The problem is us, not just one of us, all of us. One thing I could change though is care more about where my food comes from. Again, this won’t make that large of a change, but it has to start somewhere. For example, I love beef jerky, and one kind of jerky that I like is coming from Asia. I could probably choose to eat a different brand and/or flavor of jerky because I realize there’s quite a bit of pollution and money spent to get that much beef jerky from Asia to America. Being that jerky isn’t that large of a part of my diet; I can probably make the change to stop buying foods being imported from so far away.

Commercially grown carrots and Walnuts follow the same pros and cons of other commercially grown food; nuts specifically. 

Since lettuce is a vegetable, it is obviously first grown at a farm. Farmers produce crops to sell to big companies for packaging and distributing. There are a lot of steps to take for farmers to get their yield to the supermarket. From tending the soil to sowing the seeds and finally harvesting their crops, there are many steps to take to yield a successful harvest. As they stock up on vegetables, big companies either hire or make deals with them to produce their harvest at supermarkets for the general public. The vegetables go through a cleansing process to preserve its condition. Then, they are packaged up by machines or workers to sell.

Similar to Lettuce, walnuts must first be grown (from trees) to harvest later on in August. By using complex tree shaking machines, they are able to harvest walnuts by the thousands in a matter of a few hours. Most walnuts go through a quick and easy processing phase. The husk is removed since it is not edible and the nuts are dehydrated to optimum 8% moisture level. This is also to protect and preserve the quality of the nuts. Finally, they are packaged and sent to whatever food retailer.

It's really hard to actually pinpoint my exact role in the grand scheme of the food system, but I do know for certain that I am a contributor in the process of creating food. Of course by this, I don't mean that I actually grow my own food. Like everyone else, my contribution stems from my purchases. It's a cycle in which my purchases creates demand. When there is a demand (a market) for something, in this case food, companies will flock to increase their production output of food (I'm speaking generally here). They then buy from farmers and release more food into the world. Thus, making me and everyone else a small, yet significant part of the grand food system. 

Speaking of demand, it is a concept that is both good and bad. Let's start with the bad. As the demand for something increases, production increases. But the question is: at what cost? There is a large demand for Apple products right now. But if this means that workers are treated unfairly and are being worked to death to produce more Apple products, then does the value of money outweigh that of humans? In the case of food, it could be inhumane treatment of animals, disregard of fair work ethics, and etc. Money talks and the food system really brings that to light. As corporations get bigger, the workers (farmers) are sufferring in their wake. Farmers have become nothing more than prisoners of big companies. I strongly believe in the idea that biog companies should be stripped of their rights to carry out certain actions, whether it be legal or physical.

Now for the good: you get eat your Whoppers, play your iPads, and etc. But of course, not without the expense of others' rights. 

12.00 dollars

Ingredient

1/2 cup of magrine

1/2 cup of Sugar

4 eggs

 1 cup of skim milk.

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees

2. Mix the bowls with the ingredients.

3. Bake the 350 degree oven for an hour before serving.

Serving size 2 people.

Some of the food is process and some is whole. The pineapples and eggs are not process and they are whole foods. But the extra ingredients like sugar margarine is process. Its pretty healthy as it only has 166 calories. I say it’s like 55% process and 45% not process. It is very high in natural sugar and process sugar. It also has eggs for protein and bread for bread use. This food dish lacks vitamin A, B and D. Also it does not have a lot of cholesterol. Some of the food that is processed all of the food will go straight to your systems that will be processed and then go to your stomach. Margarine comes from vegetable oil and skim milk. That is healthier then butter.

Margarine comes from vegetable oil and skim milk. So they came from a farmers.  So does the eggs that were made. My specific margarine and eggs comes from Kentucky. I am not aware wear my eggs came from but its company was Foodhold USA which is in Maryland. The rolls came from Florida and my Pineapples also came from Florida. That is a total of 1324 miles traveled just to get in my home. The Margarine, bread, pineapples, and sugar were all processed. Only the eggs were not processed. But the chicken who laid it was.

This meal cost around 12 dollars. This meal is suppose to serve 8 people. This is a lot more expensive then a 4 dollar menu burgers from McDonalds. This is an outrage that a dish served for 8 cost so much more. The stuff that cost the most is pineapples which were 2.00 dollars. Obviously the Martians, Doles and other foods won the deal by stealing my money. 

My bread cubes cubes some soybeans and Monocalcuim in it. I have no idea how they managed to add those items in bread  but the did.  I’m pretty sure if I made the bread those items would not be included in my bread. My eggs have no significant source of Dietary fiber or sugar. But I have no idea how to make eggs the right way. Plus I have no chickens.

I learned different effects that food can have on someone. I knew that eating unhealthy can cause an unhealthy life in the future. I knew that liver problems and other serious diseases are caused by eating habits. What I learned the most was from the videos, even though we didn’t finish the movie I learned a lot about the food culture. I learned that the food producers are a bunch of a-holes. Sorry for the rude language but it’s beyond me that a food company can just about contaminate almost all of the natural foods to make them more fattening just for money. It’s terrible to kill the cows, chickens and pigs the way they do. Not only make them fat but you basically make them kill them in the most gruesome way. And once someone talks about it, they get sued by the food companies. The workers can’t stop because they need the money to survive. So no one wins. This is a messed up society we have. Another reason why this world is messed up is because people in low income can not afford healthy foods because 1 low income and 2 there are no grocery store. This a terrible world we live in.

Vegetable oil spray
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 large egg whites
5 cups (5 ounces) Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal, finely crushed
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 2/3 cups water
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup apricot jam
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons canola oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, top with wire rack, and spray rack with oil spray. Spread flour into shallow dish. Whisk egg whites until foamy in second shallow dish. Spread Corn Flakes crumbs into third shallow dish. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Working in batches, dredge chicken in flour, dip in egg whites, then coat with Corn Flakes, pressing gently to adhere; lay on prepared wire rack.

2. Spray chicken with oil spray. Bake until chicken registers 160 degrees and coating is brown and crisp, 12 to 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, whisk water, soy sauce, apricot jam, hoisin, cornstarch, and vinegar together in bowl. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk in soy sauce mixture, bring to simmer, and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.

4. When chicken is cooked, return sauce to simmer over medium-low heat. Add cooked chicken and toss to coat. Serve.

Recipe Analysis

•Approximately what percent of the meal is processed vs. whole food?

all-purpose flour - processed

vegetable oil spray - processed

egg whites - whole

cornflakes - processed

chicken - whole

water - whole

soy sauce - processed

apricot jam - processed

cornstarch - processed

balsamic vinegar - processed

canola oil - processed

garlic - whole

ginger - whole

red pepper flakes - processed

broccoli - whole

Processed - 9/15 ingredients 

Whole - 6/15 ingredients 

About 60% of this meal is processed.

Health/nutrition:

Approximate calories per serving: 490

" carbohydrates per serving: 62g

" fat per serving: 8g

" saturated fat per serving: 1.5g

" protein per serving: 44g

This meal is high in protein in comparison to it's commercially produced counterpart. This protein in the body will be broken down into amino acids and used in necessary chemical reactions within the body. 

The majority of the fat in this meal is good fat, which will be processed by the body and turned into acids. These acids will travel through the blood stream and be collected by cells that need to replenish their energy. 

This meal, compared to the meal available for $11.99 at your local chances food store, has fewer carbs than this homemade alternative. These carbs will be used for energy but if they're not used immediately they will be converted into glucose. That, in turn, will be stored in fat cells. 

If one were to eat this everyday, I would imagine they would have some vitamin deficiencies because every vitamin and mineral needed in day to day life is not present in this meal. 

Environmental:

I believe many of the ingredients were manufactured in the US, but there is still a considerable amount of traveling to food had to do to get from it's manufacturer to my local supermarket. Collectively, I'd estimate the total miles all the food had traveled would be about 5000 miles. With the cost of fuel today, the total money used to get it here is probably quite considerable. Not to mention the toll the fuel emissions most have had on the environment. Some of the cheapest ways to ship any cargo are also the most detrimental to the earth. 

Political/economic:

Purchasing all the ingredients for this meal coasted about $35, but to get the price per serving, it has to be divided by by 12. Which means that the cost per plate of food was approximately $3. This is significantly cheaper than going to a chinese restaurant where General Tso's chicken would cost about $12. 

There were profits made at every step of the preparation of this meal. Money was made by the people selling ingredients, shipping ingredients, making the products, shipping the products, and then down to the consumer, who buys the final product. The people made the most money out of this process were the people who own portions of the monopolizing corporations. In my meal this would be companies like Perdue, General Mills, and Nabisco. 

Social:

The chicken in my meal came from the Perdue Corporation. This means that it started at their farms, went to their processing plant, was shipped to my local super market, Super Fresh, and then I bought it. Since it's illegal to have chickens within city limits, I would never be able to personally raise a chicken to cook. 

Broccoli was another major part of my meal. Most broccoli production happens in China. Assuming that is where mine originated, that means that my broccoli was produced on a farm in china, it is then harvested, and shipped to the US. Where is was once and again shipped to my local market. To grow, broccoli needs a cool weather climate, which would make it possible to grow during certain seasons in Philadelphia. It takes about 100 days to grow and 200 seeds costs about $4. This packet would produce more than one head of broccoli and considering the price of broccoli at the market, I would save a lot of money in the long run. 

This unit has taught me a lot about food and how we, both as individuals and as a species, interact with it. I've learned that obesity and type 2 diabetes have only become epidemics in the past few decades. This is because of the widespread availability of processed food as opposed to whole food products. This is the probably the biggest issue with food in western society. Food that has been highly processed and contains many refines carbohydrates are the ones that are heavily advertised and are the cheapest and most available. 

Personally, before this unit I believed I ate mostly healthy and even after learning from this unit, I've retained this stance. One thing I could definitely improve upon is the attention I pay to the actual ingredients in my food. It was mentioned that foods with more than 5 ingredient are to be avoided and I've definitely disregarded this rule on a daily basis. In the future, I hope to be more aware of it and improve my health. Making these changes would hopefully resolve some little issues I tend to have like lethargy and the urge to constantly shovel doritos into my mouth. If I take care to learn about what I'm eating before I actually do it, it will most likely impact my health in a positive way. 

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cook sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, gently  swirling the pan (do not stir), until the mixture turns golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Immediately, pour the caramel carefully into a 9-inch round metal cake pan. If it stiffens before it completely covers the bottom of the pan, warm the pan in the oven, then swirl to cover the bottom.
3. Beat cream cheese in a large bowl with a mixer at medium-high speed until soft. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides. Add condensed milk, evaporated milk and vanilla; mix until combined. Carefully pour into the prepared pan. (You may hear some cracking; the pan will be very full.)
4. Place the cake pan in a larger pan and pour enough hot water around it to come 1 inch up the sides. Bake until golden and set at the edges but still wobbly at the center, about 1 hour. A knife inserted in the center should come out clean. Transfer the cake pan to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. To serve, run a knife around the edge of the pan and invert the flan onto a plate.
   

*1 cup water

*2 1/2 cups bread flour

*1 tablespoon white sugar

*1 teaspoon salt

*1 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

*1 egg yolk

*1 tablespoon water

1. Place 1 cup water, bread flour, sugar, salt and yeast into bread machine pan. This is recommened for the best possible baguette at the end. 
2. When the cycle has completed, place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover, and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until doubled in bulk. Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.
3. Punch down dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll into a 16x12 inch rectangle. Cut dough in half, creating two 8x12 inch rectangles. Roll up each half of dough tightly, beginning at 12 inch side, pounding out any air bubbles as you go. Roll gently back and forth to taper end. Place 3 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Make deep diagonal slashes across loaves every 2 inches, or make one lengthwise slash on each loaf. Cover, and let rise in a warm place for 30 to 40 minutes, or until doubled in bulk.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix egg yolk with 1 tablespoon water; brush over tops of loaves.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.
   
   
   

   This is a traditional meal for the French and Francophiles alike. This is meant to be a treat, as well as a supplement to a diet, or a meal, and they are a staple in French society. Though my family is not French, we do eat baguettes frequently, and it is a big part of our diet, and we eat baguettes nearly everyday.

   Most of the ingredients within the baguette are whole foods, and because of this, the baguette is relatively healthy. Baguettes are a great source of grain and carbohydrates, and are a hearty addition to any meal. Roughly, each whole baguette, which is about 3-feet long, is roughly 200 calories.

   Baguettes require a great deal of harvested products, such as yeast and flour. These things are not findings in nature, and would require additional processes in order to make it accesible to the consumer. After tracking down the manfucaturing company who made my flour and yeast, I discovered that they were both made in Minnestona, over 1,000 miles away. This plant of flour manfuracting is one of the largest in the country, because of this, the enviromental impacts are great.

   Whole baguettes can usually retail for about $2.50 each. The greatest profiteers on baguettes are the large manufacturers who create the ingredients. Also, a great reason why the cost of baguettes are relatively cheap is because all of its ingredients are staple foods; necessiaties in every person's pantry.

   
   Personal Reflection-
   
   

   Throughout this food unit, the lessons I have learned were vast and varied.

   Firstly, I have learned the various corruptions of the system of the food industry. It was shocking to see how these things have been allowed to happen.

   In addition, we’ve gone over foods that are healthy for us and the foods that aren’t, as well as what our food is truly made of. This, to me, was one of the most shocking revelations; the dependecy of various staples, such as corn or soy, which come across in nearly all the foods we eat. It shows, once again that the food problem within the USA will require great work to rectify.

   One of the greatest lessons I've learned throughout the course of Food Inc. was the fact that modern day food production isn't so much natural as it is an artifical science expermiment. Various chemicals and formulas come together to create the foods that we feed ourselves and our children, and the indregient lists for our foods are littered with unpronouncable words and phrases which don't often warrented a second thought in our minds.

   Ultimately, the sheer size of this problem makes it difficult for myself, and I think, in large, the country, to try to fix it. At every turn, the people who we believe have our best interests at heart have allowed their greed and love of profit and power to overcome their duty to keep us safe as harm. The corrupt system of food in America is nothing short of our country's most difficult problem, and the only solution will require much work and perspective into the thing that our society should truly value as importmant: American lives.

Yields 30 triangles

Preparation/cook time: 1 hour and 30 minutes to 2 hours

Ingredients:

- 1/4 cup olive oil

- 1/2 pound spinach

- 1 bunch scallions

-1/8 cup chopped parsley

- pinch of salt and ground black pepper

• 1/4 cup feta cheese

- 1/4 cup Ricotta cheese

- 1 egg, beaten

-1/2 cup butter

- 1/2 pound filo dough

Directions:

Heat half of oil and half of the spinach in a saute pan and saute until the spinach becomes soft. Do this for about 2 minutes. When done, take the spinach, drain it, and squeeze out excess liquid, then chop it (does not need to be fine). Repeat this again with the remaining oil and spinach, then add scallions and saute till soft (which should take 2-4 minutes). Add parsley, salt, and pepper, cook this for 2 minutes, then remove from heat and put everything you've made so far into a bowl and refrigerate till room temperature. 

Preheat the oven to 350. Put some butter or olive oil on a baking sheet. Beat eggs and stir feta together in a small bowl, then add to the cooled spinach mixture, and mix it all together. 

Unroll the filo dough, but make sure the dough doesn’t dry. At this point you can decide whether to make a pie or triangles, cut the dough in the shape you want. Dabble some melted butter over the filo dough, make sure it’s as even as possible though. If you’re making triangles, cut the filo dough into squares, and put a table spoon of the spinach in the middle of each square, then fold the dough to make a triangle. 

Place all the triangles on a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until the dough on top is golden. 

Analysis:

All of the food that I got was from Whole Foods or a specialty store. My parents an I, for the most part, only shop at Whole Foods or specialty stores, because we feel like food from there is just over all better for you and more trustworthy. Making my own guess, a serving size is five of those triangles. In each serving there’s about 230 calories and 14.3 total grams of fat. Because of the spinach, there’s 15% Vitamin A. I’d consider this to be a pretty healthy food, since there’s a lot of spinach and scallions. But to others, I can see how this could be fattening, since there’s so much cheese and butter. 

The filo dough is definitely made in the US, since the lady that works at the Greek store makes all the baked goods. I’m pretty sure the ingredients in the filo dough are probably also from the Greek market, which would mean it’s either from Italy or Greece. Everything else came from Cali or New Jersey. 

The supplies for this meal costed about $25. The most expensive ingredient was the filo dough, since it takes a lot of time to make and prepare. It’s  basically bread that’s extremely thinly sliced and then frozen, so it doesn’t break. 

Reflection:

Throughout this food unit, our class has learned about the food that we eat, health statistics, and how the human body processes certain foods. Before this unit started, I had some knowledge on the food that I ate and an overall general understanding of what we talked about. For my personal role in the food system, I'm a pretty big believer in organic and fresh foods. For the most part, I eat very healthy, except when I eat candy. My parents and I both shop at either Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, mainly because we know that the food they have don't have excessive amounts of preservatives and every fresh food is restocked every day. Although, I realize that organic food isn't always better, it always makes me feel better knowing it's fresh. To go along with organic, the animals they use for meat are not given steroids or chemicals and are not tortured before being killed.

I see fast food as being out biggest problem in the food system. I say this for multiple reasons. Fast food isn't just McDonalds or Burger King, it can also be frozen foods you find at the grocery store, such as Smart One's or LeanCuisine. Fast food is not only made with a lot of chemicals, but people are very uneducated about the amount of calories they take it. Also, not to mention that because fast foods are usually the cheapest, people tend to forget the importance of cooking their own food and then later on have no idea how to cook, and since so many people are lazy, they will continue to buy fast foods.

I personally like the food that I eat now and wouldn't change it. Sometimes I miss eating red meat, but since I've been eating only white meat for so long, it doesn't seem like that big of a thing. I get a fair share of vegetables, fruits, and protein. Although I believe I should eat less candy, it's probably not the best for my teeth. I'm definitely willing to make that change, and I think that I could be on an even healthier regiment if I did so. But life is short, why not eat candy?

 Ingredients:

Whole grain spaghetti

Olive oil

Tomato sauce

Chicken breast

Steps:

1. Ready and boil water with olive oil in pot
2. Cut chicken breast and put in pan
3. Apply seasonings to chicken and turn on low- medium heat
4. Ready sauce
5. Mix ingredients
6. ENJOY!

Analysis:

            Having spaghetti has become a really common meal in the United States and you can mix it with tons of things. A common mix at my house is the use of spaghetti and chicken. While some people look at spaghetti as an unhealthy meal, it depends on the kind and how much you eat. You see, there is whole grain spaghetti and plain white spaghetti. The white spaghetti is a processed form where the outer layers of the grain are removed so that you are left with white grains. The outer layers contain a lot of nutritional benefits, they contain fiber, which will help to prevent an insulin spike and keep you fuller longer. It also has a lot of vitamins.

            Carbohydrates are a really important macronutrient for the body because it is the bodies preferred energy source. There should be a large percentage of your daily calories that should come from carbs. The problem is, people tend to eat too much of the processed stuff. In whole grain spaghetti not only do you gain the benefits of having the fiber and vitamins, but you also have less ingredients. There are several ingredients in processed spaghetti but very little in whole grain.

            Protein is another really important calorie source and the recommended intake in grams of protein, is one gram per body pound. For instance if you weigh 150 pounds, the rule of thumb should be that you consume 150 grams of protein in that day. Protein is another energy source but it’s main objective is repairing destroyed muscle tissue.

            Fats are the last really important macronutrient left. Fats are sometimes thought to make you fat when you eat them but this is false. Perhaps from eating trans fats you’ll run into some problems, or eating nuts all day. The problem with fats is that they have 9 calories per gram so foods with fat have a lot of calories and when they are over consumed, people gain weight. Fats are actually really essential to the bodies functional. You should consume about 50 grams of healthy fats a day depending on your needs.

            This meal above has it all; it has the complex carbohydrates with vitamins and fiber from the spaghetti. It has the lean meats that give essential amino acids and provide proteins. Then you have the olive oil that has healthy fats and is rich in antioxidants which helps to rid the body of harmful free radicals (cause cancers).

Over the course of this course we’ve gone over foods that are healthy for us and the foods that aren’t so healthy for us. We’ve talked about reasons why people with lower income tend to be more obese then people with higher income and also when the accessibility to better food is scarce there are more obese people. There is currently more access to sugar, which was not as prominent in the past. Now that there is more access to sugar our bodies aren’t meant to process as much sugar as we’re consuming which is why diabetes is so prominent today.

Ways to better your eating is just watching how many calories you are eating every day. Make sure you’re not drinking your calories. One of the biggest reasons diabetes is so common today, is because of soft drinks. Soft drinks have three times the amount of sugar that you’re supposed to consume in a day. With fruits they have fiber and so the sugar does not spike your insulin.

I think the lesson to learn here is to make sure you’re not eating foods that are really processed. Shoot for foods with less than five ingredients and eat more whole grains. Eat things that come from the ground and shoot for more organically made foods. They do not hold many more nutritional properties but at least you’ll know your food was not processed. 

• El elefante se pone en la fila en el supermercado.
• La mujer ve al elefante y estuvo sorprendido.
• La mujer se dijo al elefante que se parece su hijo.

Ingredients:

White Rice

Red Lentil

Water

Tomatoes

Onions

Salt

Vegetable Oil

Indian Masala (spices)

Hand full of Parsley

Tumeric powder

Masala

Prior Steps:

Chop 2 red onions and 3 tomatoes

Put the 1 and a half cup of red lentil in a container

Wash red lentil until the water comes out clear

Steps:

Put 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a pressure cooker

Heat it on the stove for about 30 seconds

Put the diced onions into the oil

Put in 1/2 teaspoon of tumeric powder and 3/4 teaspoon of masala

Stir the goods.

Put in the chopped tomatoes & give it a good stir

Wait for the onions and tomatoes to be soft and mushy

Then add the 1 and a half a cup of Red lentil

Give it another stir

Add 6 cups of water.

Stir again and while you stir, add 3 teaspoons of salt.

Analysis:

Living in India for the majority of my life, I have grown accustomed to the things they eat, the way they cook and their life styles. I can remember up to 3rd grade and I remember eating rice and dal in our hostel room. Our home mother would make 15 liters worth of dal for the 40 students that live in the hostel. Dal is lentil soup in hindi. It is very popular in India. It is nutritious as well. I remember my house mother use to always tell me drinking dal would make you taller. I have always lived by these phrases of advice. 

Dal, or should I say, lentil soup, can be made out of different types of lentil. There are lentil beans, red lentil, yellow lentil, all sorts of variety. Everything in the soup is whole food, there is no processed food. A traditional dal would include, onions, tomatoes, lentil beans, salt, tumeric powder, vegetable oil and masala of your choice. You can choose to avoid masala but I wouldn’t recommended it because it would lose the generic taste. Lentil contains protein (which makes you grow, more so body development), vitamin B and dietary fibers. The best thing about lentil soup is that it doesn’t have as many calories as you would think it has when you eat it. 

For my dish, I decided to put in parsley to mix with my soup (it’s sort of my dad’s idea really.. but we have been doing that for awhile and we really like it). Parsley is basically a herb that many people use as topping or as decorations for their dish. It contains a lot of amazing vitamins such as vitamin A, C and K. These vitamins are good for 

I have realized that in United States, junk food and processed food are ubiquitous, I can find them almost every corner of the nation. Consuming processed food is much more convenient than making something out of scratch. If one was to run out of things in the refrigerator, one can just simply walk around the block and end up at McDonald restaurant or Dunkin Donuts. I think one of the main factors of obesity and the poor food system is due to lack of government care. If the government cared enough to think about the citizens before businesses, they can easily turn down these businesses, not even that, just lessening the amount of fast food restaurants in general can reduce the obesity level. More and more people would be cooking in their houses rather than being lazy and grabbing a fast food product.  Another thing is reducing the prices of organic food, with the government’s power, I’m pretty sure they can make that happen. Everyone cares for themselves or their children and they would want the best for their family but with the amount of money they carry in their pockets will limit what they can get and cannot. 

For me personally, I have banned soft drinks, fast food, any meat in general and juice from my diet after this unit. I have successfully been a vegetarian for a whole week now and I’m planning to continue to do so. After watching those clips in class, I could not bare to see the cruelty that these animals face. I think I’m good with vegetables. My mom has been vegetarian for 7 years now and she is supportive about me excluding meat out of my diet. I am not sure if I will last but I’m determined and hopefully it lasts more than a month. I love beans so that’s my source of protein, instead of meat. 

Names of people in your group:

Cyndi Lynn Sheridan

Jennifer Wright

Tenzin Ngawang

Sean Force

Script:

Un pato y una víbora entren un supermercado. Ellos están dispuestos a salir. Sin embargo, la víbora se da cuenta del pato es igual a su esposo viejo y ella dije...

Jennifer: Te parece como mi esposo que me dejó cuando estaba embarazada.

*Pausa*

Jennifer: Yo nunca recibí el dinero para cuidar a mis niños. ¿Porque yo?

Sean: Lo siento, señora. Espero que pueda ayudarle.

*Entra en su bolsillo.*

Sean: Aquí tiene trescientos dolores.

Jennifer: No no, está bien! Gracias.

Sean: No, yo insisto.

Jennifer: ¿En serio? Muchas gracias"

Cyndi: "¡HOLA DIEGO! ¿Qué tal, mi amigo?"

Sean: ¿Diego? ¿Qué?

* Encogió*

Commercially grown carrots and Walnuts follow the same pros and cons of other commercially grown food; nuts specifically. 

Since lettuce is a vegetable, it is obviously first grown at a farm. Farmers produce crops to sell to big companies for packaging and distributing. There are a lot of steps to take for farmers to get their yield to the supermarket. From tending the soil to sowing the seeds and finally harvesting their crops, there are many steps to take to yield a successful harvest. As they stock up on vegetables, big companies either hire or make deals with them to produce their harvest at supermarkets for the general public. The vegetables go through a cleansing process to preserve its condition. Then, they are packaged up by machines or workers to sell.

Similar to Lettuce, walnuts must first be grown (from trees) to harvest later on in August. By using complex tree shaking machines, they are able to harvest walnuts by the thousands in a matter of a few hours. Most walnuts go through a quick and easy processing phase. The husk is removed since it is not edible and the nuts are dehydrated to optimum 8% moisture level. This is also to protect and preserve the quality of the nuts. Finally, they are packaged and sent to whatever food retailer.

I think my role in the larger food system involves educating myself and the people around me to make healthier food choices.  I've learned to question the foods that are labeled to appear healthy.  Just because it says "100%" doesn't mean that there is all natural juice.  Some labels have vitman c or another vitamin in smaller print.   One thing I foiund particularly interesting is the fact that in America, the people of the lower economic statuses are more often obeses.  The opposite is true of people in other countries as well. Also, whole wheat bread may have bread that contains whole weat grains mixed in with the grains of regular bread. I also learned that corn of some type exists in almost everything we eat, solids and liquids.      I beleive the biggest problems with our food system is the way that crops like corn and soy have monopolized the food industry.  Instead of trying to find the root of problems and fixing them, they come up with more high tech was of temporarily dealing with the problems at hand.  There isn't much that we can do as individuals , but we would have to come together in the support of smaller companies and farmers that are invested in healthier foods and better treatment of animals.  I think that I could choose to eat less meat per day, and choose to eat less processed food , which in the long run would benefit my own health.