My Class at Jamie Oliver's Big Rig Kitchen

After watching the television program "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" back in June of 2011, I wrote this evaluation of local school lunches. Then one day last month, I was reading the newspaper published by the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op and saw a blurb that made my heart jump. Jamie Oliver's Big Rig Kitchen, it said, was doing a tour of California cities and would be stopping in Sacramento in January and February. As a long-time fan of the chef and fan of the Food Revolution, I knew I had to sign up for a class.

 

The Big Rig Kitchen is a mobile kitchen that has been offering free classes as it has made its way through our great state, thanks to donations from the places listed below (on the side of the truck). I hopped onto the website and saw all sorts of free cooking classes being offered, with menus including fish, Mexican and Italian fare, and the one I ended up signing up for - "Fast Food Now", featuring barbecued chicken.   

 

I arrived for my class at 5:30pm on a Friday night, pulling into the parking lot of Sacramento High school, the same fortunate school that recently enjoyed a visit from Alice Waters to their edible school garden. After a few minutes of waiting outside the closed door of the Big Rig, the door opened and I was welcomed in to don a name tag and a white apron.

At the front of the mobile kitchen was a demonstration area where Everett, our demo chef, showed us the ropes. After the demo, we washed our hands and retreated to one of the three kitchen stations where we would try our best to replicate what we had just seen.

 

Our kitchen stations were well-stocked with the necessary ingredients, donated mostly by the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op just down the street. (Thanks, Co-op!) Everything was ready for us to attempt to make a homemade BBQ sauce, a French-style vinaigrette dressing, and oven-baked Potato Wedges.

 

In addition to the ingredients, our kitchen station also came with a local food expert to assist us as needed. Joe helped oversee our group of four as each of us tackled one of the elements of our final meal. He was quiet at first, but once it came out that he was a certified BBQ judge, he was brimming with stories of his travels and experiences. That weekend, he confided, he was headed down to Brentwood, CA for a rib competition. A lucky man, that Joe!

 

 

With a little help from Joe, our group completed the meal in a surprisingly short amount of time - the whole meal took us maybe 20 minutes to prepare from start to finish.(To speed up the baking time on the Potato Wedges, we sliced them super-thin instead of cutting them into chunky wedges.) 

The meal we enjoyed together at the end was both healthy and tasty, and just the kind of informal, kid-friendly meal that families should be sharing nightly. If you can't spot the purple potato slices on the plate, it might be because they are camouflaged against the mixed greens!

As I ate my meal, I imagined Jamie Oliver explaining that instead of chicken nuggets every night, parents might see what their kids say to this homemade barbecued chicken. Instead of French fries, see what the kids think of the Potato Wedges. And of course, the salad was made delicious by the homemade dressing, which contained no added sugar (unlike most commercial bottled dressings). It could truly be a revolutionary meal. Our community is so fortunate to have the chance to attend free classes like these!

My one disappointment (besides, of course, the absence of the celebrity chef himself) was a difference I noted between the cooking classes portrayed on the television show and the class I attended. On the show, all of the participants were required to make a pledge to share the knowledge they gained, by teaching at least one other person how to prepare the dishes they learned to make in the class. In this way, the Food Revolution could spread throughout the community. 

In the class I took, we were not required to make such a pledge. But I still want to do my part to help the Revolution spread, by sharing the recipes from the class I took. Viva la revolution!

French Dressing:

1/4 of a clove of garlic

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar

1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Peel and finely chop the garlic. Put the garlic, mustard, vinegar and olive oil into a glass jar with a pinch of salt and pepper. Put the lid on the gar and shake well.

Potato Wedges (serves 4):

1/4 tsp. sea salt

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 medium (about 10 ounces) baking potatoes

1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat your oven to 400F. Scrub the potatoes clean and get rid of any gnarly bits. Cut the potatoes into chunk wedges (about 6 per potato). Transfer to a roasting tray and add a good lug of olive oil and salt and pepper. Toss together so all the wedges are coated in the oil, then spread out in one layer, skin-side down.

Cook in the hot oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden, crisp and cooked through. To tell if they're cooked, poke one or two with the tip of a paring knife- you should meet no resistance.

Barbecued Chicken (Serves 4):

1 orange 

1 dried chile

1 1/2 heaped teaspoons smoked paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon or English mustard

3 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons ketchup

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/16 teaspoon sea salt and

freshly ground pepper

4 x 5-ounce boneless skinless chicken breasts

If you're barbecuing, light the grill now so the flames have died down and it's ready when you're ready to cook.

Finely grate the orange zest into a shallow bowl. Crumble in the dried chile. Add the paprika, mustard, honey, ketchup, and a splash of olive oil. Season with a small pinch each of the salt and pepper and mix well. Spoon out a few tablespoons of the marinade and set it aside.

Add the chicken breasts to the bowl with the remaining marinade. Turn them over in the marinade so they're well coated, cover with plastic wrap and leave to sit for 5 to 10 minutes or until the grill is ready.

If using a grill pan, put it over high heat now to get it screaming hot.

Use tongs to transfer your chicken breasts onto the grill or grill pan. For chicken breasts about 1 inch thick, cook for about 5 minutes on each side, turning every minute and basting as you go, or until golden and cooked through. Spoon a little of the reserved sauce over each breast.

Rigatoni with Tomatoes, Eggplant and Mozzarella

From Leite's Culinaria

Some vegetables can be used year-round with similar results, like carrots and beets. Others are special; they must be eaten at their peak because they just don't taste the same out of season. Eggplant, I feel, is special and meant to be used in summer and summer only. I have, in my impatience, made the mistake of buying winter eggplant before....Ok, more than once. I have always found it to be disappointingly tough and mushy.

So when I found some awesome white eggplants at the Farmer's Market, I knew just what to do with them. There's this Jamie Oliver recipe I pinned on Pinterest quite a while back to my Summer Food board. (It's from Leite's Culinaria, an amazing website where famous chefs give you all sorts of cool recipes from their newest cookbooks for free. In other words, a very, very good idea - check it out!) 

 

Jamie describes this dish as one he ate many times while on the Amalfi Coast in Italy, and I could almost picture myself there as I ate it. Easy, unfussy, and ooey-gooey good, the sum of this recipe was greater than the total of its parts. As a bonus, it also helped me use some of my endlessly prolific basil, plus garlic and padron peppers from the garden. Nice one, Jamie! (Serves 6 generously.)

 

Rigatoni with Tomatoes, Eggplant and Mozzarella

By Jamie Oliver, From Jamie's Dinners

1 firm ripe pink, black, or white eggplant
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
Two 14-ounce cans good-quality plum tomatoes
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 fresh or dried chilies, chopped or crumbled, optional
Bunch fresh basil, leaves ripped and stalks sliced
4 tablespoons heavy cream (I used half-and-half)
1 pound rigatoni or penne (I used whole wheat rigatoni)
7 ounces cow’s-milk mozzarella
1 piece Parmesan cheese, for grating

1. Remove both ends of the eggplant and slice it into 1/2 inch slices, then slice these across and finely dice into 1/2 inch cubes. Some people prefer to season their eggplant with salt and let it sit for a while in a colander to draw out the bitterness, but I don’t really do this unless I’m dealing with a seedy, bitter eggplant. This dish is really best made using a firm silky one. 2. Now, put a large saucepan on the heat and drizzle in 4 to 5 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. When it’s hot, add the cubes of eggplant, and as soon as they hit the pan stir them around with a spoon so they are delicately coated with the oil and not soaked on one side only. Cook for about 7 or 8 minutes on a medium heat.

3. Then add the garlic and onion. When they have a little color, add the canned tomatoes and the balsamic vinegar. Stir around and season carefully with salt and pepper. At this point, if you wanted to give the dish a little heat you could add some chopped fresh or crumbled dried chilli, but that’s up to you. Add the basil stalks, and simmer the sauce nice and gently for around 15 minutes, then add the cream.
4. While the sauce is simmering, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and add the pasta, cook according to the package instructions until it is soft but still holding its shape, then drain it, saving a little of the cooking water. I like to put the pasta back into the pot it was cooked in with a tiny bit of the cooking water and a drizzle of olive oil and move it around so it becomes almost dressed with the water and oil.
5. At this point add the lovely tomato sauce to the pasta. By now the eggplant will have cooked into a creamy tomatoey pulp, which is just yum yum yum! Season carefully to taste with salt and pepper. When all my guests are sitting round the table, I take the pan to the table, tear up the mozzarella and the fresh basil, and fold these in nicely for 30 seconds. Then very quickly serve into bowls. By the time your guests start to eat, the mozzarella will have started to melt and will be stringy and gorgeous and really milky-tasting. Just lovely with the tomatoes and eggplant. Serve at the table with a block of Parmesan cheese and a grater so that everyone can help themselves.

Does West Sacramento Need a Food Revolution?

I have been an avid Jamie Oliver fan since I began watching "The Naked Chef" in high school, charmed by this quirky, charismatic chef with an irresistible accent. I admire him now as a person who has not been content with professional success, but has used his fame to promote positive change in child nutrition all over the Westernized world.

After watching the most recent episodes of his "Food Revolution" television show, currently set in my home state (but in LA), I began to wonder how Oliver's cry for change applied to my own neighborhood. I decided to do some investigative work on West Sacramento school lunches, choosing to examine a K-8 school, the local public high school, and a charter school.
Example #1: Southport Elementary (K-8):
The menu I found online is conveniently vague, often citing "veggie" or "fruit", but we all know that not all veggies and fruits are created equal. In some schools, pizza sauce and french fries qualify as veggies! And throwing a scoop of bagged salad and a scoop of canned peaches doesn't exactly make up for a poor quality main dish, in my opinion.

The main dishes being served to the children sound heavily processed, previously frozen as opposed to freshly made, and heavy on fat: chicken alfredo, chili dogs, pizza, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, and tater tots. This menu was used in all the K-8 schools in the Washington Unified School District from May-June 2011.
Example #2: River City High School:
I found the worst food overall on this incredibly outdated menu from last November, although there does appear to be more variety compared with the K-8 schools, which could be good or bad. Nearly every daily featured main dish appears to be fried, processed, or both. Chicken Fried Steak. Rib B Que Sandwich. Popcorn (read: fried) Chicken. Most mysteriously: Pepperoni Stuffed Sandwich. (?)

Hamburgers and pizza are available every day and a high school student could ostensibly subsist on a daily diet of these two items. I have the sneaking suspicion we're not talking about grass-fed beef or whole wheat buns.

The saving grace is that a salad bar is available daily and the menu proclaims that "all options come with fruit, salad and milk". Again, there is vagueness - is this fresh fruit or processed? Low fat milk or chocolate milk with as much sugar as a candy bar? Are we counting French fries as a veggie? Huge room for improvement here.
Example #3: West Sac Prep Charter School
By far the best of the bunch, which is obviously tied to the fact that they are independent from the universal school district menus. All students receive breakfast and lunch at no charge to their families. While a menu was not available online, the school's website says that school meals include:
- All Natural turkey & beef products are purchased from Niman Ranch
- Meals have no trans fats, reduced sugars and are high in whole grains
- Organic lettuce & vegetables
- Meats purchased from Applegate Farms (even our hot dogs are organic)
- Tillamook Cheddar & All Natural American cheese ( with no dye added)
- Barilla Plus Pasta (a whole grain product)
- Two vegetarian options daily (!!!!)
As a final clincher, their plates are biodegradable & compostable!

Conclusion: Dear Washington Unified School District: We can do better. We must do better. Others have done it, and so can we. We need fresh, healthy meals in our cafeterias and a school garden in every school. This is a challenge to rise to the occasion.

Redemption at the Church Potluck

This Sunday, our church had an informal potluck in honor of Father’s Day after the services had concluded. Having recently read "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollen, the spread of food offerings depressed me somewhat in the sense that it seemed representative of all that is wrong with the way we eat in America today. Quantity trumps quality. Processed food reigns and we consider American cheese and white bread an acceptable sandwich. I watch as the re-heated frozen meatballs becomes the first dish to be emptied by the hungry crowd. Meanwhile, children make a grab for the sugary Twizzlers and cocoa puff-marshmallow squares for dessert. Even the veggie trays cradles sad, faded, pre-cut specimens that probably saw their best day sometime a week ago.

Then, in the middle of the table, a shining beacon of hope: Slices of our bishop’s wife’s famous homemade bread and chunky strawberry jam (possibly homemade). Now, that’s more like it! As Michael Pollen and Jamie Oliver have asserted, the hope of America’s health relies on a return to homemade, real food like our great-grandparents would have eaten 100 years ago.

Yes, I know that men and women today are busy and their priorities may not place old-fashioned acts such as making bread at the top of their to-do list. But biting into that slice of fresh bread spread with berry preserves reminded me of everything that is good about life. It showed that someone was willing to honor the fathers in our life by investing a piece of themselves and their time in the act of nourishing the body and soul.

So if you get a chance, make something from scratch this week for someone you love. Here’s a recipe for strawberry jam to help you get started thinking of the possibilities.

Fresh Strawberry Jam

Adapted from a recipe by Ina Garten

2 cups sugar
1 large lemon, zested and juiced
1 1/2 pints fresh strawberries, hulled and halved

Directions

Combine the sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over very low heat for 10 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved. Add the strawberries and continue to cook over very low heat until the strawberries release some of their juices and the mixture boils slowly. Continue to cook until a small amount of the juice gels on a very cold plate. (I keep one in the freezer.) Total cooking time may be around 40-60 minutes, but will vary.

Pour carefully into 2 pint canning jars and either seal or keep refrigerated. Use immediately, or follow proper canning guidelines to preserve them.

On Making the Food Revolution Our Own

Taking a cue from my favorite celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver, I did something unique this Mother’s Day. I enjoyed watching Oliver’s recent Food Revolution series on TV, often watching in disbelief and chagrin as I saw families who relied completely on processed food because they lacked the basic cooking skills needed to prepared healthful food. However, I know that Oliver’s goal involves not only looking outwards at society’s worst-case examples, but also inside our own homes at how we can improve ourselves. Somewhere along the line, I realized that my own little brother, sister and father probably wouldn’t be able to survive on their own if my mom wasn’t around to cook for them.

Yesterday, I went over to my parent’s house with a plan and a bag of fresh ingredients, and I organized a team of chefs. I had everyone doing prep work first (grating cheese, chopping garlic, slicing bread, etc.), then handling a specific dish. Together, we made whole-grain spaghetti with meat sauce and freshly grated parmesean cheese (no more canned Kraft), tossed green salad, balsamic vinaigrette from scratch, sauteed asparagus, and a garlic/herb butter that we spread on fresh pugliese bread and warmed in the oven.

My mom loved the meal, and best of all, I felt like my family had gained a basic life skill that they will be able to draw on in the future as needed. They loved the way the result of their labor tasted, and all commented that it was easier than they thought. That’s what the Food Revolution is all about! Cheers, Jamie!

Absolutely Amazing Asian Noodle Salad

A lot of my female fellow bloggers follow a cooking blog called The Pioneer Woman, and that’s where I got this recipe from... Kind of! The Pioneer Woman actually got the recipe from The Naked Chef (can you tell why I wanted to try it?!) and adapted it to her tastes, calling it her "Favorite Salad Ever". I also adapted it slightly and I have to say, this is one fantastic tasting dish. It’s fresh, it’s delicious, it's simple, and the colors are amazing. The great thing about it is that you can use whatever vegetables are in season or just the ones you like; you could substitute cashews for the peanuts, soba noodles for the udon noodles, and so on. Run, don't walk, to the kitchen to make this one!

Asian Noodle Salad (serves 2)

1 bunch of udon noodles, cooked, rinsed, and cooled
1/4 head sliced purple or napa cabbage
1/4 bag baby spinach
1 whole red bell pepper (or can use multi-colored orange, yellow, etc.)
½ c. bean sprouts
1-2 green onions, chopped
1 carrot, sliced thinly like matchsticks
1/4 c. chopped dry roasted peanuts
chopped cilantro (optional)

For the Dressing:
½ lime, juiced
4 T. extra virgin olive oil
4 T. reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 T. Sesame oil
3 T. Brown sugar
1 T. chopped ginger
1 clove garlic, chopped
A squirt of sriracha sauce for some heat!

Mix salad ingredients together. Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve platter.

Pukkolla: Quick, Delicious Make-Ahead Breakfast

I think everyone who knows me knows what a huge Jamie Oliver fan I am. This week, I’ve been watching "Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution" on ABC (perhaps one of the most important shows on TV at the moment, in my opinion). Then, my husband procured the entire BBC production of "Jamie’s American Road Trip", and so far we’ve followed him as he explored the Mexican community of east LA and cowboy culture in Cody, Wyoming. Yum!

All of this Oliver mania left me hungry for even more Jamie, so I pulled out my old cookbook "The Naked Chef Takes Off" and found a recipe that I’ve been meaning to try. It’s basically a sort of muesli, and it has a beautiful silky, not-too-thick texture. I have made muesli before, but always with yogurt; I prefer it Jamie’s way. This dish is extremely healthy, and convenient, since you can make it all ahead of time. Both my husband and I absolutely loved it.

The name "Pukkolla" is a play on the British slang "pukka", which means something like "wicked" or "awesome". He’s very informal in his measurements - it’s all part of his natural, laid-back approach. Love it!

Pukkolla
(Jamie Oliver’s Muesli)

several handfuls of rolled oats (not instant or quick)
a handful of dried fruits (raisins, cranberries, dates, etc.)
a handful of crumbled walnuts
a few tablespoons of bran meal
a few tablespoons of flaxseed meal (This was my addition for the nutritional benefits of flaxseed!)

This mixture may be kept in an airtight container for several months if you want to make a large batch and take out a smaller amount each day to prepare. Here is how you prepare it:

The night before:Cover the mixture with milk (or soy/rice/almond milk). Grate in 1 apple, stir, cover and place in refrigerator overnight.

The next morning:Remove the bowl from the refrigerator and stir. Slice up a banana and stir it into the mixture. Can add a little honey for extra sweetness if desired. Serves 2.

The Food Revolution and YOU!

When I watched this 20 minute clip tonight, I knew that I had to post it on my blog. It shows one of my heroes, Jamie Oliver, giving a speech upon receiving the TED award this year. He discusses our role in health care and child education... and it all starts in the kitchen. I found his speech to be moving, interesting, and really- where else are you going to see kids who can't recognize a potato or a tomato? Maybe on Oliver's TV show that debuts March 26th...

To find ways to support Oliver's Food Revolution, see: http://www.tedprize.org/jamie-oliver/

One TV Show I Can't Wait to Watch

I try to avoid TV in general, as I find that there are hundreds of things that I could be doing with my time than sitting in front of a box. However, I must confess I feel a great deal of interest and anticipation regarding British chef Jamie Oliver’s upcoming reality tv show.

I’m not sure when “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” is slated to start, but I understand that the basis of the show will be Oliver touring America's unhealthiest cities and giving the residents good-food makeovers using local resources. The show is going to be produced by Ryan Seacrest.

Let’s see.... sexy famous chef with a killer accent, boasting loads of natural charisma and passion for fresh, easy food, making over the diets of fat Americans who are willing to change... Yes, that sounds captivating! When do we start?

Me and the Naked Chef in the Kitchen

I received “The Naked Chef Takes Off” as a birthday present as a teenager. I was a huge fan of Jamie Oliver’s hip cooking show and loved looking at the pictures and reading this cookbook, which is chock full of British slang and Jamie’s quirky personality. Yet I never tried any recipes... Until last night, when I made an attempt at his “fantastic roast chicken”!

A whole chicken is a wonderfully economic thing to make for dinner, particularly for a young couple. Besides a delicious dinner, you’ve got leftovers for the next day’s lunch (great for sandwiches or salads), as well as a carcass and tidbits to freeze and use to make stock and/or soup at a later time. I made many (healthier and/or more desirable, in my opinion) adjustments to Jamie’s recipe, and was thrilled when it came out “absolutely fantastic”, as he would say. You simply must try parsnips with the vegetables - they were the best part!

One organic chicken ( I used a 5 lb. Chicken)
1 large lemon (I used a Meyer lemon)
1 large clove garlic, chopped
2 handfuls of fresh thyme, leaves picked from stems and finely chopped (I used a bit of fresh rosemary along with thyme)
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 c. softened butter
Vegetables: chunks of potato (I used fingerlings), carrots, parsnips (they’re sweet and wonderful!), onions cut into quarters (if you do slices, they may burn), whole gloves of garlic if you like

Pre-heat the oven and an appropriately sized roasting pan to 425F. Wash your chicken inside and out and pat dry with paper towels. Using your fingers, part the breast skin from the breast meat. It’s important to try to push your hand gently down the breast, being careful not to rip the skin. With a zester, remove the fragrant yellow skin of the lemon, placing the peel in a bowl. Then add the softened butter, garlic, and whatever herbs you’re using. Season, then scrunch it all together. Push this into the space you have made between the meat and the skin - rub and massage any that’s left over in and around the bird. It’s all tasty stuff. Slash the thigh meat to allow the heat to penetrate a little more, which makes it taste better. Cut the peeled lemon in half and push it into the cavity. Prepare your vegetables by cutting them into approximately uniform sizes to cook evenly, season with salt/pepper, and pour them into the bottom of the roasting pan. Then put your chicken in the roasting pan and roast in the preheated over for 20 minutes. Stir the now-melted butter into the vegetables and continue to cook until the chicken is done. The whole baking process will probably take about an hour. Leave the chicken to stand for about 10 minutes before carving.