Melting Pot

melting p t Natural to Supernatural One Restaurant’s Journey to Success P. 6

Real In.gredients Eco-Friendly All the Way P. 24

Chopsticks

Starting to Understand Japan P. 10

It’s An Art

From Grape to Glass P. 19

A Culinary Journey Adjusting to America P. 14

Table of Contents

6

Natural to Supernatural

12 Table Trivia

14

Chopsticks

A Culinary Journey

22 My Big Fat Greek Moussaka

24

9 Kosher Kraze

10

17 Holla for Challah

It’s an Art

Real In.gredients

27 The Seeds Of The Earth

19

Dalia Roth was born in Austin; however, her parents are from Mexico and South Africa, which are both countries she wishes to revisit in the future. She likes to learn the words and dances of international songs in her free time, and finds herself on her computer a bit too often.

Mathilda Nicot-Cartsonis is a bilingual identical twin. She swims on the LBJ swim team, and she does ballet at the Slavin Nadal School of Ballet.

She wants to be an epidemiologist, pathologist, or research doctor after college. She wants to work with bacterial and viral infectious diseases, focusing on Ebola.

Amelia Nicot-Cartsonis is a bilingual identical twin. She speaks French, and loves to cook, which is probably why she chose to write a magazine on international food. She also swims competitively on the LASA swim team, and hopes to become a surgeon after college.

Casey Dawson was born in Austin, is half Japanese, has two different colored eyes and has lived in 11 houses (so far!). She loves photography, reading, and of course, food! She has played soccer and competitively swum for almost 10 years, and loves trying new things.

Amy Reed was born in Austin. She rows at the Austin Rowing Club and plays guitar. She enjoys horror films and comedy shows, and she’s interested in philosophy, sociology and film. She also obsesses over zombies and food.

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Natural to Supernatural

By Dalia Roth

Photo by doberman

An idea that was just normal until a miralcle happened It was his inspiration. that I saw as a young boy,” Friedman said.

The colors, the walls, However, he had the trees, the tribes, a problem. When everything. They were Friedman was getting all inspired by those ready to get the loan, two events. it began to rain, a “I went to Kruger National Park and saw lot. The whole entire place was flooded. a whole pack of lions “I went [back] to the sitting under a tree,” bank and I said, ‘ok, Paul Friedman said.

I’m ready,’ and they “We got see to the said, ‘well we don’t lions actually catch have your money,’” an impala and bring A cottage under a native South African tree in the savannah. explained the chef. it to where they were Friedman had lost sitting and they had there,” said it. Chef remembered lunch, not like you and all hope and was left Friedman.

“So initially about a spice that with only one option.

I have lunch. I took it’s hard because is very popular in “What do you do pictures of that when I people aren’t South Africa: the peri when you got a $1.8 grew up.” accustomed to all the pepper. million restaurant to And his faith helped boerewors, chicken “There was the build and you don’t him as well. livers, biltong, and all English peri, and then have the money?”

“I said to God ‘if that kind of stuff that the French changed said Friedman. you would help me we make, pop and it to piri. But both of build this restaurant, “You get on your gravy, and it is difficult those names were I will dedicate this when I moved here in trademarked. I hands and your restaurant to you,’” 1980, it was too...just couldn’t use them,” he said. “So thats why knees and you too South African.” he explained the twelve tribes of pray. Pray that Despite the road Friedman couldn’t Israel are up there: we build this of trials, Peli Peli was use those so he did to remind me of my built.

It may not have more research. He restaurant with background and my been what Chef had to find something heritage.” barely nothing.” was imagining in the new, unknown, and Peli Peli, located beginning, but it was not trademarked.

That wasn’t the only in Houston, Texas, still a representation of “I found [that] in problem. The idea of is a restaurant that South Africa with hints Mozambique, which South African food incorporates South of religious miracles is off the east coast of was rarely heard of in African culture into worked in.

Africa, the Portuguese the 1980’s and raises a the design, food, “What was colony, they spelled question as to whether and atmosphere. supposed to be it peli. And so that’s or not Americans Paul Friedman, head natural turned why I called it Peli would be open to this chef and CEO of Peli into supernatural,” Peli,” said Chef Paul different culture.

Peli, is responsible Friedman interprets.

Friedman.

“Coming to America for the design of the The name was not easy because “The restaurant restaurant and the became a very influenced the logo bringing a new food made at Peli spiritual undertaking.” that was created to Peli. He is the one that concept to the United When he was be a symbol of the States, you know, it’s made it all happen constructing his restaurant. hard to understand “Peli Peli was restaurant, he had to “[Peli Peli is] known someone’s palette created to actually decide what to name as the ‘bird’s eye chili if you haven’t lived have that experience

Photo by danielito

pepper,” he informed. you look at my logo it looks like a little bird’s eye with a beak and the neck is flamed.”

The restaurant is now a huge hit in Houston with a rating of 4 ½ out of 5 stars. Everyone who goes there falls in love with the design and the food. They now have a brunch, lunch, and dinner menu and specials.

One of the specials called Espetada has a childhood story behind it.

“Espetada, which means beef on a stick, that was introduced by the Portuguese when I was growing up. I went to Boy Scouts and one day they told us go look for a baby tree, break a branch off and bring it back to the camp. So all of us ran out there to go find a baby tree and break branches off and bring ‘em back,” Friedman said. “And when we did, we sat Photo by Peli Peli

It’s served on a skewer that is hung on a stand at your table with garlic drizzling down from the top.

On the side there are spinach, carrot bredie (South African version of mashed potatoes but with carrots) and roasted new potatoes.

“It was so cool [because] then you had this eucalyptuslike flavor on it. And we’d just eat it right off the stick. So I created this dish called espetada which means beef on a stick.

It’s really good, you just want to lick your fingers,” Friedman said.

And that’s not the only special.

Sticky Toffee Pudding “Chicken sosaties, boerewors, biltong. around the campfire Those are kind of like and picked the leaves our signature dishes.” off, and stuck meat on The South African a stick and hold it over food isn’t the only the fire.” thing that brings The espetada is people back to the marinated prime restaurant. The feeling beef in garlic herbs throughout the space and spices cooked is also a large factor medium rare to rare.

The sunset at Kruger National Park in South Africa.

in what people love about Peli Peli.

“I would say it’s romantic,” Friedman explains. “The atmosphere has a very kind of an African beat because we have live music and we try to make you feel like you’re there, and its all about love and food that is comforting, so the atmosphere is very warm and inviting and its very comforting.”

Paul Friedman is the Executive Chef of Peli Peli was the person who came up with the idea of starting the only South African restaurant in Texas; but Peli Peli wasn’t even close to his first restaurant.

“I was 21 when I joined a company called Mike’s Kitchen,” he said. “And the guy’s name is Mike and him and I went on and we opened up thirty-seven restaurants together in South Africa.”

When Chef Paul Friedman started Peli Peli, his restaurant and even he himself, began to get numerous awards.

“I just won another award for chicken liver!” Friesaid.

He has won numerous awards including the 2013 Cadillac Culinary Masters Award, Best Chefs America, the 2013 Iron Chef Winner, as well as one other…

“Bobotie. The chef of chefs award; putting four different countries into one dish,” tells Friedman. “That would be my most prestigious award.”

Just like the bobotie puts four different countries in one dish, Chef Paul recreated a famous dish called melktert. Melktert is a kind of open tart with a custard filling sprinkled with cinnamon that is known throughout South Africa. continued on page 30

7

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Kosher Kraze

By Dalia Roth

Shechita-

Kashrut is the body of Jewish law dealing with which foods, given to them by their G-d, on what Jews can or cannot eat and how they have to be prepared and eaten to be labeled as Kosher. Most people have seen a Kosher symbol on a food package but just haven’t realized it! The information below provides interesting facts about the act of Kashrut and the signs that show that something is Kosher in an enjoyable, fun way!

kosher slaughtering

Birds of prey are prohibited; only familiarly used birds are kosher sources.

‫כשר‬

Kashrut comes from this hebrew root meaning fit, proper or correct.

All rodents and insects are NOT kosher except for 4 species of grasshoppers.

Land mammals with cloven hooves and chew their cud.

Fish with fins and scales can be eaten.

Pork is not kosher, which means no bacon!

All unprocessed fruits and vegetables are kosher

Meat and Dairy CANNOT BE EATEN TOGETHER

K U K

These are widely popular kosher certification food labels that many people recognize.

Sources: http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm http://www.kof-k.org/kosher http://kosherfood.about.com/od/guidetokosherfoodlabels/ss/symbols.htm

Photo Credits: Animals: bittbox.com Fruit: http://www.ianbarnard.co.uk/

9

Chopsticks

By Amelia Nicot-Cartsonis

For most people, eating comes as second nature. But for Tomoko Dawson, eating at restaurants is harder than it seems.

“A lot of people don’t know that much about Japanese food, so when I asked for chopsticks, [the restaurant] didn’t have any.”

Chopsticks are to Japan like forks are to America. Twenty years ago, not many people in the United States knew about the culture of Japan in general. There weren’t as many sushi restaurants, and no one knew what chopsticks were, much less how to use them. This is one of the hurdles Dawson had to jump when coming to America for the first time.

Mastering Japanese customs is challenging at best, and when it comes to the dinner table, the culture gets no less confusing. The start of understanding etiquette at the dinner table starts with Tomoko Dawson, a friendly Japanese citizen who is happy to share her stories from when she originally came to America.

Until the time comes when they can feed themselves, Japanese

children are fed with forks. At the age of about four or five, the kids start using training chopsticks. These are similar to regular chopsticks, with the one difference being that they are attached at the top.

When the children are ready, they switch to the unattached chopsticks, and use those for the rest of their lives.

“They have training chopsticks that are connected like tongs, but it’s already connected so you don’t have to worry about dropping one.”

Dawson was raised with chopsticks, and has huge faith in them.

“Mainly we can always use chopsticks,” she said.

“Chopsticks are great for everything. Even in cooking we use chopsticks.”

But there are other cultural differences between America and Japan, like the types of foods eaten.

Dawson has personal experience with these disparities, after getting sick from an old egg eaten raw.

“Eating raw eggs is quite common in Japan. The most basic way of eating raw

Photo by Casey Dawson

The story of a Japanese woman living in America.

eggs is mixed with soy sauce and put over hot white rice. So I cooked the rice, and found eggs from the kitchen and prepared them as usual, not knowing the shelf lives of eggs here is 6 months or more. Later that day, I got sick, of course. I could have died! So I was very skeptical of eggs since then.”

And here it isn’t just a difference in food, it’s also in serving size.

The Japanese have a much smaller servings than Americans.

“The serving is huge.

The first time I came, I went to a Seven Eleven, and bought, a 75¢ Big Gulp. It

Dawson moved from Japan to America in 1990.

She has lived happily in America for over twenty years.

was probably five times bigger than the [drinks] you see in Japan, and you can get a refill as well. I just couldn’t believe it, it was only 75¢!”

Dawson tells another story about the difference in serving sizes here, as opposed to Japan.

“When I was living on 21st Street, I volunteered to do the breakfast chore one day,” she said.

“I had other people to cook with, and I volunteered to make pancakes. Pancake

Photo by Nippon House (Russia)

also you cannot lift the food on your chopsticks and try to give it to somebody.

You have to put it on a plate. It is a cultural thing that when we cremate the bones, that’s how you pass the bones [chopstick to chopstick], the cremated bones, to put in a certain specific pot. And that was only done for the cremation ceremony, so you cannot pick up food and have someone else try to grab it with

Two round Futomaki sushi rolls and one Komaboko Kani crab roll. These are two of the many types of sushi Japan has to offer.

chopsticks. When I go to restaurants and someone tries to do that, I always say, ‘NO!’”

Photo by Dawson Family

size in Japan is quite different from the pancakes you see [in America]. I was quite a pro at making pancakes. One girl was watching me make them. Either I bragged, ‘Oh! I am good at pancake making!’ or she was just curious about her friend who couldn’t speak English. When the order came and I made one in front of her, I was really proud of my pancake. It was perfectly round with a nice golden brown color, and about 6-7 inches in diameter.

When I was done, she looked at me like she wanted to say something, kind of like ‘That’s it?’ but didn’t say anything unkind.

I didn’t know why until I went to Kerbey Lane Cafe later that month.”

The Japanese are also very rigid about when they eat food, especially when they go to or host parties.

“Japanese people will never [eat dinner] until someone insists, or until the time that is written down comes.”

Dawson also talks

Photos by Tomoko Dawson

“ Chopsticks are great for everything.

Even in cooking we use chopsticks.”

about her life in elementary school. ”When I was a kid, you could eat in between or during class, but it’s secret.

You cannot show the teacher that you’re eating and it’s just a thrill. You’re hungry and you put a book in front and you’re munching with a covered mouth.”

She also mentions the responsibility that children learn early at school in Japan.

“When [the kids] have lunch in elementary school, they have the chore of serving food, so the food is brought to your class. There are five people every week who are the serving people, and they put on caps, masks, white coats, and aprons and those are the people who serve the food, like a cafeteria.”

And she also has a few tips on what not to do with chopsticks.

“Well, you cannot stab the food with the chopsticks, and

The Dawson Family in front of Lake Austin.

A collection of traditional Japanese dishes are concocted in preparation for a family get-together.

11

Table Trivia Table Trivia

By Amelia Nicot Many people wonder about formal dinner table settings. Why Amelia Nicot-Cartsonis so many forks? Why so many knives? And what’sByup with those three different wine glasses lined up next to each

Many people wonder dinner table settings.

Why so other? Well, here’s an easy way to find out. See below for all the weirdabout facts formal you never knew about dinnerware. many forks? Why so many knives? And what’s up with those three different wine glasses lined up next to each other? Well, now you can find out! See below for all the weird facts you never knew about dinnerware.

10 2

4 3

11

9b

8

1

5

9a 9c 9d

6

7

KillerChihuahua 1- Service plate: serves as an as underplate for the for 5- Salad knife: left to dinner 9- Glasses: canhave have up glasses on 9- Glasses: can uptotofive five glasses 1Service plate: serves an underplate first course, after first course exchanged with the 5- Salad knife: left to dinner knife, right of service the table. Usually placed with the smaller knife, right of service plate. on the table.

Usually placed with the the first course, afteroffirst course exchanged entree (centered in front eater). plate. If salad is to be served first and fish second, ones up front, the champagne flute (a), red smaller ones up front, the champagne with the entree (centered in front of eater). then the knives would be arranged (left to right): wine (b), white wine (c), and sherry glasses 6Soup spoon or fruit spoon: dinner knife, fish knife, salad knife. flute (a), 2- Butter plate: placed above forks and used to (d). red wine (b), white wine (c), if soup or fruit are served first, and10place bread on and butter on when eating sherry (d).to hold sauce for Sauceglasses dish: is used 2- Butter plate: placed above forks and used bread and butter (left of service plate). then the accompanying spoon personal use.

Each person had their won. to place bread on and butter on when eat6- Soup spoon or fruit spoon: if soup or fruit are goes to thetheright of the knives.

Usually placed between the 10Sauce dish: is used tobutter hold plate sauce served first, then accompanying spoon goes to ing bread and butter (left of service plate). the dessert spoon and fork. had 3- Dinner fork: biggest fork, placed on the left forand personal use.

Each person the right of the knives.

7- Oyster fork: if shellfish are to their won. Usually placed between side of the plate with other forks placed on either 11- Dessert spoon and fork: are used 3Dinner fork: placed on the side depending on biggest the orderfork, in which the courses be served, oyster fork goes to the thesoley for dessert.

Usually butter plate and thebrought dessert are being left side eaten. of the plate with other forks placed 7- Oyster if shellfish are to be served, rightfork: of the spoons. (only fork in with thefork. dessert course, but are spoon and oyster fork goes to the right of the spoons. on either side depending on the order in placed on the table if there are less placed ononthe sideofof (onlyever fork ever placed theright right side the three courses.

4- Saladthe fork:courses if the salad is served the which are beingafter eaten.

11-than Dessert spoon and fork: are plate)the plate) entree, then the small salad fork is placed to the used soley for dessert. Usually Sources right of the dinner fork, next to the plate. If the 8- Butter knife: the small spreader placed 8- Butter knife: the small isspreadhttp://www.emilypost.com/table-manners/372 http:// brought in with the dessert course, 4Salad if the salad is served after the salad is to fork: be served first, and fish second, then www.etiquettescholar.com/dining_etiquette/table_setting. diagonally on top ofdiagonally the butter plate, handle er is placed on top of the knives would be arranged (left to right): dinbut placed on the table if there entree, then the small salad fork is placedon the right and blade down htmlare http://whatscookingamerica.net/Menu/DiningEtiquetteGuide.htm ner knife, fish knife, salad knife. are less than three courses. to the right of the dinner fork, next to the the butter plate, handle on the right and blade down. plate.

Sources www.emilypost.com http://www.etiquettescholar.com http://whatscookingamerica.net

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A Culinary Journey By: Mathilda Nicot-Cartsonis

Morrakot Sornnarin’s daily life is very different from what it used to be.

After living in Thailand for most of her life, it took great effort on Sornnarin’s part to change the way she used to live in order to be comfortable in America. She doesn’t have access to many ingredients that are abundant in Thailand, so she’s forced to make do with what we have here.

Many recipes that Sornnarin grew up with can’t be recreated in the States.

“I just had to settle with whatever was available. It’s not exactly the same.”

Growing up in Thailand provides a culinary experience with a diverse range of foods Americans are not typically ever exposed to or familiar with. Being raised in Thailand, Sornnarin lived a very different childhood. foodwise, than a typical child living in America would.

One of the most common meals she ate was yellow curry with coconut milk and a numprik chili sauce containing shrimp

Photo by Morrakot Sornnarin

A Thai woman’s leap from familiarity to foreign

Sornnarin’s son, Theo, cleans mushrooms for her.

paste.

The variety of yellow curry they have in Thailand is not the same as the ones grown elsewhere, so she is unable to cook one of the simplest recipes she grew up with. With the extreme differences in climate in Thailand and America, virtually none of the native plants that grow here grow there, and vice versa. She talks about magosteen, longan, leechees and other common fruit she used to eat These don’t grow

naturally in America, and therefore aren’t available here.

“Now they are imported from Thailand, and they don’t last, they don’t preserve well at all,” she said. “So usually by the time they come here, they taste like dirt. They really taste like dirt!”

This makes it increasingly difficult to use fresh ingredients from Thailand that aren’t stocked full of preservatives or pre-packaged, or canned.

Importation laws

are another obstacle Sornnarin has to deal with. [California is] very picky about [importation],” she said. “So I can’t just bring in any kind of fruit or vegetable in.”

Thailand’s climate also has a big influence on the types of food that are produced there.

Since, as mentioned before, Thailand is located mainly in the tropics and in a more heat-inclined area, fruit and rice grow there very easily.

Another effect is a lack of the use of

“So there’s food everywhere. And it’s food that is freshly made.”

Many people make their living managing and selling products they fabricate themselves. It’s a fairly common practice in Thailand, thought not at all in America, due to codes and regulations everyone must follow.

“Thailand you’re just a one man show, you have a little cart, you have the thing that you sell, you walk around the neighborhood and

you know, you do it that way,” Sornnarin said. “There are a lot of small businesses, like really small businesses, one person businesses like that all the time.”

Sornnarin explains that at certain hours of the day, different people sell a variety of products. Sometimes there’s an ice cream lady, then a soup man, and people get accustomed to these vendors bringing food and such to them.

Photo by Morrakot Sornnarin

ovens and heating appliances. In her family, they adapted to this kind of climate, and used it to their advantage, in some cases.

There are an abundance of small, local businesses in Thailand. To own a business, one doesn’t need to have a permit in order to sell to the general public. This means that anyone can get up one day, and decide to sell a product to anyone they want to. A business opportunity no one can resist, but few make it to success.

Some vendors are regulars, coming around every day at different intervals, getting good business.

Others are deemed unrealiable, and their businesses usually fail.

“We can’t really do that here in the US, right? Because your kitchens are commercial, and there’s all kinds of laws prohibiting something like that from happening here.”

An ingredient she never had growing up is beef, and with that, dairy.

“We don’t do a lot of beef. Beef’s not a big meat in Thailand.

We don’t raise a lot of cows,” she said. “And that’s why we don’t have dairy products either.”

Sornnarin explained that her main source of protein came from seafood, like shrimp, squid, jellyfish, and fish because she’s from the coast. Pork is also a primary source of protein in Thailand.

I grew curious when she was talking about meat, because without beef, how

Theo mashing spices with a Thai mortar.

Longan, indigineous to Thailand, is in season very often, and is delicious.

Durian, also native to Thailand, is very sweet, but also extremely smelly.

did she get calcium growing up?

The answer is a simple one.

“Thailand isn’t big on milk, so no cow milk, we got calcium mostly from shrimp.

I make and ate this shrimp paste made of tiny little shrimp but you use the whole shrimp so that’s a very good source of calcium.” Sornnarin said. “Because it includes the shell, and the shrimp shell is all

calcium.”

The food industry in Thailand is huge and abundant, full of life and innovative recipes that can’t be recreated in America, making them even more unique than they already are. Laws and restrictions are making it increasingly more challenging to cook these, and it isn’t going to get any easier.

15

Holla for Challah!

Nothing epitomizes Jewish food more than Challah does.

The fluffy bread that is served every Friday at sundown for Shabbat and on Rosh Hashanah; it can even be mixed with nuts or raisins to add flavor. There are many variations of how to braid Challah, but this will show step by step how to make two of the most common Challah designs as well as the dough.

By Dalia Roth

Creating the Dough Ingredients: 1 ⅞ cups warm water (about 110 degrees) water 4 ½ or 2 packets of dry active yeast 2/3 cups granulated sugar 1 ½ cups bread flour + 5-6 ½ cups more for another step 3 eggs 1 tablespoon of salt ½ cups canola oil

*Makes three large challahs

3.

1.

To that mixture, add the eggs one at a time, mixing well afte each one, the salt, and the canola oil. Then add five-six and a half cups of flour.

Gather your ingredients.

2.

Dissolve the dry active yeast into the warm water.

Add the sugar and flour then mix well and let sit until bubbles form.

4.

Mix until it is too hard to work with and then turn it out on a clean surface and knead it. The dough shold be slightly sticky. Place the dough in a clean bowl and let it rest until doubled in size.

The Turban Challah

The Traditional Challah Braid

1.

1.

Create four equal-size strands. Lay the four strands side-by-side, then pinch them together so that they are connected at the top.

Roll the dough into one long strand.

2.

2.

Take the strand furthest to the right and weave it towards the left through the other strands using this pattern: over, under, over. Repeat this pattern until strands are used up.

Roll one end of the strand inward to create a spiral snail-shell shape.

3.

3.

Pinch the loose ends together to create finished look.

Continue rolling the strand in the same direction until the spiral is complete. Tuck the loose end of the spiral underneath the challah and pinch it tightly into the bottom, securing it.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes and then enjoy!

Sources: Recipe Courtesey of Kelly Finkel http://theshiksa.com/ Photos by Dalia Roth

17

Wine Frenzy

By Amelia Nicot Everybody knows that wine is made of grapes. But not everyone knows how to turn those grapes into a complex alcoholic beverage. Check out the cool graphic below and impress your friends with your newly learned wine facts!

1

3

The grapes are picked and sorted for quality.

All remaining stems are removed.

2

The grapes are then pumped into a large tank to begin fermentation.

The grapes are run through a mill that completely removes the skins.

4 5

3

5

Red wine is fermented at 86-95 degrees for about 10 days.

During fermentation, red wine is exposed to oxygen to aid yeast developement.

After fermentation is completed, the wine is pressed to remove all remaining skins and/or dead yeast cells.

7 8

The grapes are put into the fermentation tanks without removing the skins.

Yeast is then added to convert sugar into alcohol while the grapes are in the fermentation tanks.

White wine is fermented at 63 degrees for about three weeks.

6

Sources http://science.discovery.com http://www.wineanorak.com http://www.dummies.com/ how-to/content/how-wine-ismade.html

The wine is moved to barrels to finish the maturing process, which can take anywhere from 6 months to three years.

After the wine is done maturing, it is filtered to remove any risk of microbial spoilage, and is ready to bottle.

It’s An Art

By Casey Dawson

The “art” of wine making and wine tasting, revealed from a first person perspective myself.” she said.

1983 AuxeyWorking at a Duresses, Burgundy, vineyard was a yearFrance. It’s snowing, a chill is in the air, and round commitment, as each season was Ellen Cartsonis works accompanied by its tediously on rows and own jobs that helped rows of grapevines, to make the wine. twisting wires while “So if you start with her hands are rubbed winter you’re pruning raw. the vines.” she said.

“By the 10th acre,” Cartsonis would work she said. “I was ready on cutting branches to be done.”

But through the cold to make room for the new grapes that conditions, Cartsonis grew from them. worked for hours, “They have a special picking grapes and system in Burgundy breaking branches, living the everyday life where they attach of a grape picker and the branch that your grape-bearing shoots wine seller. are going to come Often labeled as out of on to a wire the most pretentious horizontally, wrap it beverage by society, around, twist it and wine is an elegant it with a drink that “You’re walking clip little piece the average through some of wire.” person she said. might not of the most This system of know how to beautiful pruning the handle.

Wine can landscapes...” branches is very important in get complicated. the process of wine the intimidating making. thought of “wine Each vine grows tasting” and the out of an old one, so confusing processes some vines will last for can turn people over 100 years. And away. But each just like how wine ages drop of wine has a and tastes better, so down-to-earth history do vines. of countless hours “The older the vine working to perfect is, the better the fruit it each bottle, and gives. That fruit Cartsonis knows a becomes higher and great deal of this higher quality as the background. vine ages, it just makes “My two years that a much tastier fruit.”

I was there, I hand Cartsonis said. attached about 10 Working in the rows acres of vines all by

An aerial view of a vineyard like Auxey-Duresses, the vineyard Ellen Cartsonis worked on for six years.

of vines and cutting them required precision and care.

“Sometimes [the vines] will overproduce fruit, and the more fruit you have, the more diluted, the less high quality each bunch of grapes is going to be.”

Cartsonis said.

Checking the rows for overgrown grapes also had its own special process.

“We would go and rub and pick off branches. You have to clip them and put them inside wires to hold them upright.” she said.

Although sometimes tedious, Cartsonis said she loved the outdoor work the best.

“You have to be careful about what you’re doing and think about what you’re doing, but it’s also calm work, because it’s not like school, and you’re walking through some of the most beautiful landscapes in the

world. You stand up every once in a while and look around and see vineyard covered hillsides, wonderful, and I loved it.” she said.

Rainy days were used for cellar work.

“You have to raise it, you have to age it, and there are all sorts of jobs associated with aging the wine correctly.”

Working in the cellar involved checking the fermenting vats of wine, bottling and labelling, and making room for more wine coming in from the vines. In springtime vines would emerge from the previously cut branches. The process would start all over again, cutting branches, picking grapes, and fermenting and bottling it.

With wine seeming to have a very complicated and intriguing background, of course, there were some interesting 19

Ellen Cartsonis lives in Austin with her family

moments!

“Part of the red wine making process is, usually red wine grapes have red skin, but colorless pulp inside.

So if you just squeeze the grapes, the juice, it would be clear. It’s not red wine.” she said.

In order to get the wine to be red, it required putting the grape skins in the vat of fermenting wine so that the color would soak into the liquid.

During this process, carbon dioxide is being made, and it would push the grape skins up and not allow them to soak and color the wine correctly.

“We would actually have to get in and stomp down.” she said.

This is a process called “punching down.” The result of the carbon dioxide, the ‘silent killer’ caused people to faint and drown in the wine below them.

“We had to be very

carefully guarded, and we had our arms over wood planks to make sure that we were supported.” she said.

However dangerous, Cartsonis continued working for the wine business and traveled all over the world, to places like Japan, Singapore, Portugal, and many other exotic countries to sell wine.

With her love of wine and the business, Cartsonis began her new job at The University of Texas in 1998, teaching informal classes about wine tasting.

“Real, professional wine tasting is learning how to taste for true substances in the wine.” Cartsonis said.

“There are some basic things that you’re looking for, first is the amount of alcohol.” she said.

This can be found by a burn or heat you can feel on your tongue and down your chest.

“There are tannins which come from tannic acid...it feels really dry in your mouth...and then you’re tasting for what we call complexity.

Are there a lot of different flavors in the wine, or is it just one flavor and boring and diluted? ...So you want to understand how good a wine is when wine tasting.” she said.

Wine tasting is a more scientific process.

“It’s not learning how to say, ‘oh it’s mellow! With a little bit of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg!’

That’s baloney.”

Cartsonis said.

Often, people are intimidated by the thought of wine and wine tasting.

They aren’t sure what means what, how to determine a good wine or taste it. Cartsonis explains some basic knowledge people should have when tasting and choosing wine.

“The label on the wine is meaningless.

The way the label looks, the artwork on it, all the gilding and beautiful designs on it are meaningless.

That’s pure marketing.

The price is often meaningless.

All the scores that [people] see, that’s just one guy’s opinion. Everybody has their own palette, and learning how to taste professionally just teaches you to describe what you’re tasting.” she said.

A main point that Cartsonis wants to share is that wine is different for everyone.

“That’s why there’s lots of different wines out there, because lots of people have different tastes, and that’s okay. All you’re

“It’s an art.

A wine maker is an artist.”

learning when you’re learning how to taste wine professionally is vocabulary, to describe what it is that you’re feeling and tasting so that you know how to describe it.” she said.

Cartsonis worked at Central Market, and taught professional wine tasting for six years. From vineyard to classroom, Cartsonis is passionate about wine.

“I kind of fell into in it and of course I got interested in it, and it’s fascinating because I love cooking, and its an art. A winemaker is an artist. They take this raw material every year and they have to figure out, using a lot of intuition and experience and creativity to get the best possible wine out of whatever nature gave them, that year.” she said.

Wine, “an art”, is a true beverage of quality and care, comes from a beautiful background and exists today for the enjoyment of people.

Lastly, Cartsonis says, “The way I taught wine tasting was to teach people to enjoy it, not to be scared of it. To get them away from being afraid of it, trusting their own palette and understanding that really, anybody can go out and do it and that it shouldn’t be scary.”

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My Big Fat Greek Moussaka

By: Mathilda Nicot-Cartsonis

Kiss all that typical American food goodbye as this exotic recipe tantalizes the world’s taste buds. The delicacy is called moussaka, which is a layered dish originating in the former Ottoman Empire. Though the recipe appears with slight variations throughout eastern Europe, the variant we will be using is the one that is primarily made in Greece.

This enticing meal will change the way you view food forever! The recipe is below, as well as detailed instructions to make it just right.

Ingredients: • 3 medium sized eggplants • 1 cup of butter • 3 large onions, finely chopped • 2 lbs ground lamb or beef • 3 Tbsp tomato paste • 1/2 cup red wine • 1/2 cup chopped parsley • 1/4 tsp cinnamon • 6 Tbsp flour Peel eggplants and cut into ½ in. thick slices. Brown quickly in 4 Tbsp butter and set aside.

1

2

3

5 Brown onions in 4 Tbsp butter. Add ground meat and cook for 10 minutes.

Combine tomato paste with wine, parsley, salt and pepper, and cinnamon.

Stir this mixture into the meat and simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, until all liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

6

1 qt milk 4 eggs, beaten until frosty 2 cups ricotta or cottage cheese 1 cup fine bread crumbs 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese Salt & freshly ground pepper Nutmeg

Bring the milk to a boil and add gradually to the butter-flour mixture, stirring constantly. When the mixture is thickened and smooth, remove from heat.

Cool slightly and stir in the beaten eggs, nutmeg, and ricotta cheese. Grease an 11x16 in. pan and sprinkle the bottom lightly with bread crumbs.

Arrange alternate layers of eggplants and meat sauce in a pan, sprinkling each layer with parmesan cheese and bread crumbs.

7

Make a white sauce by melting 8 Tbsp butter and blending in flour, stirring with a wire whisk.

4

• • • • • • •

8

Pour white sauce over the top and bake one hour, until top is golden. Cool ½ hour before serving or (better) leave standing one day and reheat prior to serving.

Sources: -Athan, Lynn L. “Moussaka - Classic Greek Moussaka with Eggplant.” About.com Greek Food. Greekfood.about.com, 2013. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

-Flay, Bobby. “Moussaka.” Recipe : Bobby Flay : Recipes : Food Network. Foodnetwork.com, 2013. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

-Cartsonis Family Recipe Book Photos by: Mathilda Nicot-Cartonis

Chew Chew munch munch

gummy b s a’

n rs i c. ea

Grandm

I know what i want for lunch

Real In.gredients

By Amy Reed No packaging, no problem.

Photo by Amy Reed

with an idea to get rid of food packaging waste, and developed into much more.

Located at walking distance from approximately a thousand people, the store is a part of the community that educates and inspires awareness of the earth, while being simply delicious.

“Of the waste that we bury in the ground at landfills, they say about 40% of that, so almost half of that, is packaging from food.

I think those statistics were the motivation to do something about it. Basically, they were pretty alarming and disconcerting.” said Blaine.

In.gredients, an Austin neighborhood grocer, does a lot of things. Customers can grocery shop, eat meals, buy containers, and let their kids play on the playground out front. Customer who come to the store for groceries, have to bring their own container. If they don’t have the container they need, those can be bought in the store.

They will fill their containers with whatever they are purchasing, then check it out.

The reason it works this way is because the goal of the store is to lower the large

Herbs grow in the front of the store. This is part of the garden by Urban Patchwork.

Photo by Amy Reed

It began a long time ago. Little did we know that later, it could be the answer.

“Why don’t we just do that? Everything could just be BYOC (bring your own container) for all groceries.”

It’s Saturday night and a family sits down to dinner at Flat Top Burger Shop. When the meals come, each item is in its own separate bag. Four burgers, two orders of fries, four drinks, onion rings, and some sides, each in their own paper bag or plastic bottle. All of it is thrown away without a second thought. But what if you drinks came in real cups, or came on plates? Nothing would be wasted. And the experience wouldn’t be different.

“There is material involved, clearly, but it is being reused again and again, instead of this idea of single use, which just creates an unmanageable amount of material for us to deal with even if its being recycled,” said In.gredients manager, Josh Blaine.

In.gredients is a unique grocer that is very environmentally conscious and has potential to change food marketing for the better. It started

Here are some examples of the produce by In.gredients.

percent of food packaging waste that America produces as a country and to even reduce recycling (which as Blaine says is not a closed loop system). The “seed” for In.gredients was based on the way beer and wine were distributed around the 80s, the bring-yourown-container method. There is some produce that In.gredients

offers that cannot be stored or transported without packaging, such as meat and dairy, however, they still use (and waste) less than the majority of businesses.

“We’re trying to bring that sense of the small corner store, but the corner store has become so corrupted by processed foods. you can’t really go into a corner store

has a lot of potential, it takes funding. On such a small scale (having one location), they can’t offer competitive pricing. The business takes heat for being expensive sometimes, and that has been a difficulty with getting people to change their grocery shopping habits to this system, but In.gredients would like to expand in the future and be able to offer better deals.

“If we could buy three times the amount of butternut squash from the farm they’d give us a better price and then we can give a better price to the customer.

Because we’re on a very small scale we can’t really do that… we’re kind of limited by some of those things,” Blaine said.

In.gredients promotes a “zero waste” initiative, as they are part of the Austin Zero Waste Alliance. Blaine says their practices are affecting the people who vend to them, and has led some of them to change their practices to more “zero waste,” as well.

In.gredients is involved with many organizations around Austin, and tries to partner with non-profit com-

Photo by Amy Reed

these days, [you] haven’t been able to for decades- and find real food,” Blaine said.

“We’re trying to be a corner store in the sense that its where you can easily access food, but have real food, which is actually supporting the local economy, not just these big conglomerate processed food folks.”

When In.gredients opened, they knew they wanted to offer prepared foods.

This is because they are conscious of how much food simply gets thrown away, because customers often pass over perfectly good foods due to blemishes and things that make them look less visually appealing.

They take all the food that the consumer overlooks, that normally would be thrown away, and wasted, and instead “repurpose” it by slicing it up onto a sandwich or dicing it up and throwing it into a soup to serve.

“If you can offer prepared foods, and they are more willing to pay for that than they are for just a plain tomato, we can be able to offer competitive pricing on such a small scale.”

Though the idea

“There’s no waste in nature. Waste is a human invention.”

Here are some of the dispensers of ingredients you fill your container with and where you order food.

munity partners that they donate a portion of their proceeds to.

They also work with other nonprofits, and other vendors, and organizations and volunteers.

“A big part of our mission is just community. We kind of plugged ourselves into the community since we opened just by working with so many food vendors here in town, some who’ve been a part of our community for decades, a lot of whom have only been a part of the community for a few years, or even less who we kind of have grown with, alongside,” said Blaine.

The gardens in front of the store are due to their work with the

organization Urban Patchwork. This work is how the manager personally got involved with In.gredients.

The gardens are not sources for a lot of the store’s produce, but what they growpeppers, okra, etc., is occasionally put into dishes.

“What it is is it’s a nice kind of educational experience of the embodiment of part of our mission, which is just ‘know where your food comes from.’ We literally have a garden out front, and you can see, ‘this is food.’

I know it seems silly to say, but as a culture, that basic education is definitely necessary.

And we do like to host workshops and continued page 30

25

The Choice Crêpe

By: Mathilda Nicot-Cartsonis

You’ve just created a masterpiece - the perfect crêpe. Golden brown with a hint of crispness, just how you like it. But wait! How will you fold such a fine creation without making it look completely unappetizing? Not to worry!

In the following, you will be provided with a variety of techniques aimed at making your crepe look as delicious as anything you’ve ever seen.

History of the Crêpe The crêpe is not a recent invention! In fact, after much extensive research, historians discovered that the crêpe was invented up to 7,000 years ago, and used to look like a giant flat cake. It was made from a doughy mixture which consisted of assorted cereals and water. It originated in Brittany, a region of France on the west coast, near the thirteenth century after buckwheat flour was brought back from Asia by the Crusades. It was slowly transformed into the crêpe we are familiar with today, due to the arrival of white flour.

Beginner Folding Techniques The Quarter

1. Fold in half 2. Fold in half

The Roll

1. Start from one side, and roll until you reach the other end

The Dinner

1. Crease into a square 2. Fold in circular ends towards the center

The Halfsie

1. Fold in half

Advanced Folding Techniques The Square

1. Fold both sides to meet in the middle 2. Fold in half in other direction

The Piece

The Dessert

1. Do The Quarter 2. Cut off edges that are folded

1. Fold in one side about 2 in.

2. Do this around the entirety of the crepe

The Hybrid

1. Fold in one side twice 2. Continue on remaining three sides

Sources: -Prunille Fait Son Show. “Histoire De Crêpes ...” - Prunille Fait Son Show...Http://prunillefee.canalblog.com, 2 Jan. 2010. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

-Pellegrinelli, Carroll. “Crepe Folds.” About.com Desserts / Baking. About, 2007. Web. 27 Sept. 2013.

-Unknown. “Crepes Crepe Folds Crepes.” Crepes Crepe Folds Crepes. Baking.about.com, 2013. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

-http://www.bradhussey.ca/crepecollege/images/applesaucecrepe.jpg Photos by: Mathilda Nicot-Cartsonis

The Seeds of the Earth

This chart and key for our awesome and interesting magazine has to do with the main theme of the magazine, which is the different intriguing foods from around the world. This will show the materials they commonly use in the different countries that the magazine covers.The flags on the map act as a key below the map, and there, there are those flags again which are accompanied by descriptions of the materials/resources commonly used in that country to make various foods. Hopefully this diagram will be informative of the ingredients around the globe (or the countries featured in the magazine). The materials commonly used in these different countries reflect on the resources of the different areas. It also leads to thought about how healthy people are with eating foods made with these things, like how healthy America is based on it’s large consumption of cattle and wheat. It also showes differences within a country, such as with Brittany and France, where Brittany is within but has differing ingredients. Sources: http://www.mymexicanrecipes.com, http:// www.foodbycountry.com, http://www.hillmanwonders.com, http://www.whats4eats.com, http://www.dianekochilas.com, http://www. realsimple.com, http://www.ifood.tv/network/brittany

.

South Africa • • crocdile • • goats • • • boar • cattle • • ostrich • • maize • • toma- • • toes • • milk • • egg • sugars • • • fish •

Mexico achiote allspice avacado canela chayote chiles cilantro crema epazote jicama masa nopales oregano tomatillo

• • • • • • • • • • •

England brussel sprouts lard potatoes chicken lamb pork casting & icing sugar fish beef steak peppers cocoa

• • • • •

Ireland potatoes oats dairy seafood herbs & spices, not salt or pepper

Israel • chickpeas • olives • almonds • avacado • plums • honey • cinnamon • seeds • lentils • rice • eggplant • mint

America • chicken• • beef • • beans • • pasta • • tortillas• • • rice • tomato • • pota- • toes • • • eggs • • onion

Greece beans botargo feta fish peppers herbs honey olive oil olives rusks yogurt

• • • • • • • • •

France butter bread cheese sea salt mustard leeks olive oil shallots vinegar

Brittany • snails • garlic • butter • meats • eggs • milk • parsley

27

10 Weird Food Facts Whip out these fun facts during dinner to disgust and amaze family and friends!

by Casey Dawson

Bananas and Avocados are considered berries... but STRAWBERRIES, BLUEBERRIES, & RASPBERRIES

... ... ...... . a baker’s

dozen

is actually

13

are NOT 1 in every 8 Americans have been employed by

McDonald’s refried beans

are only fried once!

the most

expensive coffee in 500 million the world snails are was invented in is made consumed in China, from France every year! not Italy poop

Pasta

iceland

consumes more

Coca-Cola

JAPAN

grows square watermelons

They stack better! over 2/3 of American adults are

obese

the first soup was made of

Hippopotamus

per person than any other country in the world todayifoundout.com tescodiets.com leanitup.com sotruefacts.com environmentalgraffiti.com listverse.com dalje.com

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continued from page 25

“I know everyone in South Africa knows what melktert is, and I said to myself, ‘I’m gonna change it up, and I’m going to turn it into a parfait.’ And when people come in [they] say, ‘Wow! parfait? A melktert parfait?’ said Chef Paul Friedman. “So I just used the same kind of crusting I would use to make a melktert and I made it around and swirled it up into a parfait glass and put the melktert custard in there.”

Just like with the bobotie and the melktert, he takes something standard and turns it into something uncommon, rare, and extraordinary.

“Wees verskillend,” he said. “In English it means being different.”

gardening classes, so it’s a great kind of little demo space.”

On November 2nd, In.gredients hosted a festival. 200-300 families attended, and it was an educational, fun, and communal experience for the neighborhood and great for the store.

Blaine said, “we had a petting zoo, the UT microfund came out, [there was] vegetable stamp painting with the kids, Austin Creative Reuse was there, we had New Day Community Gardens doing stuff, we had a few vendors out, sampling things. We had a dog costume contest.”

In the future, In.gredients would like to expand and help change the world for the better. They would like to promote their system and do more good work for the community. It’s a little less convenient, and a little more expensive right now, but In.gredients encourages consumers to look past that to truly make change in their community, and advocate for real ingredients.

“We would like to be able to prove that, as a grocery model, this bring your own container, mainly local, mainly seasonal sustainable goods, is something that the public really wants.

Photo by Amy Reed

continued from page 7

There’s a lot of investor interest but we can’t really go to investors with this model until we’ve shown ‘yeah look, see? It works.’

We’re still working on an open letter to the community to say ‘we wanna do this more, we wanna do this better,’ but we need more support from the community, we need to see more people changing their shopping habits and making some of the small sacrifices that this requires… The consumer public can help promote us and help us reach a place where we are building a few more stores and doing more good work.”

Ingredients growing in the garden.

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