Ri-freaking-diculous

My husband sent me this by email today, with the subject line "I may have to turn you in."  That may be funny, but what is happening to poor Steve Cooksey is not. 

Are the members of the North Carolina Board of Dietitics/Nutrition bored?  Are they now canvassing every blog that talks about food on the internet?  Wow.  That's a big honey-do list, if ever I've heard of one.

Hey, does that mean that every Weight Watchers group leader in North Carolina is violating this rule?

How about every know-it-all you ever ate lunch with at work?

You know who they should arrest?  Paula Deen and her son, who now have a TV show called "Not My Mamma's [Artery Clogging, Deep Fried, Crap Food that Caused Said Mamma to Have Type II Diabetes and Hide it From the World but Now Profit From it as the New Face of Pfizer]".  I caught two minutes of it on FoodTV last week.  Horrible. 

Food Police, Amok

By Andrew Stuttaford

April 27, 2012 2:24 P.M.

From the Carolina Journal:

CHARLOTTE — The North Carolina Board of Dietetics/Nutrition is threatening to send a blogger to jail for recounting publicly his battle against diabetes and encouraging others to follow his lifestyle.

Chapter 90, Article 25 of the North Carolina General Statutes makes it a misdemeanor to "practice dietetics or nutrition" without a license. According to the law, "practicing" nutrition includes "assessing the nutritional needs of individuals and groups" and "providing nutrition counseling."

Steve Cooksey has learned that the definition, at least in the eyes of the state board, is expansive.

When he was hospitalized with diabetes in February 2009, he decided to avoid the fate of his grandmother, who eventually died of the disease. He embraced the low-carb, high-protein Paleo diet, also known as the "caveman" or "hunter-gatherer" diet. The diet, he said, made him drug- and insulin-free within 30 days. By May of that year, he had lost 45 pounds and decided to start a blog about his success.

But this past January the state diatetics and nutrition board decided Cooksey's blog — Diabetes-Warrior.net — violated state law. The nutritional advice Cooksey provides on the site amounts to "practicing nutrition," the board's director says, and in North Carolina that's something you need a license to do.

Unless Cooksey completely rewrites his 3-year-old blog, he could be sued by the licensing board. If he loses the lawsuit and refuses to take down the blog, he could face up to 120 days in jail.

Regulatory overreach? I'd say so.

Recipe: Scallop and Black Plum Ceviche



Pretty and delicious.



This is a tasty recipe (see video here) from Mark Bittman (The Minimalist).  Though it is not as low carb as my usual recipes, it was a nice, light, refreshing change. At about 5 grams of net carbs per gigantic serving, it fits within my carb budget.

I made it with tarragon.  Surprise!  I discovered that I dislike tarragon intensely, so next time I make it, I will add either mint or parsley for some green and a little flavor.

The recipe comes together in a snap, and sits for just about 20 minutes before eating.  Although I portioned it to make 4 servings, this recipe would be great to serve as an impressive (and super easy) appetizer at a dinner party.  It would probably make 8-12 servings.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound fresh sea scallops, cut into 1/4 inch dice
• 2 plums, pitted and cut into 1/4 inch dice
• 1 to 2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint or parsley, or more to taste
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest
• Salt
• Pinch cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. In a bowl, toss together scallops, plums, tarragon, lime juice and zest. Season with salt and cayenne. Let mixture sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
2. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Kale Chips for Dinner

Check out this dinner: butter fried salmon, sauteed red cabbage and onions, and crispy kale chips with homemade horseradish sauce!  

Tasty Dinner!



Low carb and pretty primal, it was delicious! 

Here is how to make kale chips:

• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
  
   
• Tear your thoroughly dried kale into 2 inch square pieces (removing the ribs), and toss in olive oil.
  
• Lay kale pieces out on a large cookie sheet, making sure that the pieces are spread out and do not overlap.  To ensure extra crispiness, bake the kale atop an oven-safe cooling rack for better air circulation below the leaves (below).
  
• Bake for 7-10 minutes, checking the kale at 10 minutes to ensure that it does not burn (burned kale is horrible).  The kale should be crispy along the edges.
  
• Remove from the oven, and immediately sprinkle with fine sea salt and a little garlic powder (spice it up as you like with, e.g., cayenne, cumin, onion powder, etc). 

  
  
  Enjoy your crispy chips!

LCHF Sauteed Kale Recipe and Tips on Cooking Kale



Check out the ribs on that baby.

I am all about the kale, people.  

Check out these recipes that I found online for Kale (chips), Kale (salad), and More Kale (sauteed).  Last night I made sauteed kale - I just winged it.  It was a success! 

Here are a couple of pointers for cooking kale: 

This plant is tough.  The ribs of the leaves are just not going to break down with fast cooking methods like a sautee, so they have to go.  I bought a whole bunch of kale yesterday, and just used the top leaves of the bunch (essentially, giving it a 6" haircut or so).  I removed the ribs, rolled the kale and did a fine chiffonade.  This is a good technique for getting very thin kale ribbons.  I gave the ribbons a quick rinse with tap water, shook out the excess water, but left some drops clinging to the leaves.  The extra moisture helped the kale steam when they it was first added to the hot pan, softening the plant a bit.  When the water evaporated (pretty quickly), the kale fried up in the buttery goodness that was in the pan. Yummy.

Here's my quickie recipe:

Kate's Sauteed Kale

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• 3 cups of kale, chopped into a fine chiffonade

  1/2 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp salt (or to taste)

Directions:

1. Melt butter and olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
2. Add chili flakes and garlic to the melted fat, and cook until garlic is softened but not brown.
3. Add kale to pan, and toss to coat in the melted fat. 
4. Add lemon zest and salt to kale, and toss to combine.
5. Sautee kale for 3-5 minutes.  The kale should be vibrant green, and slightly softened.  Serve!

I served this kale with garlic-y, parmesan crusted, butter fried, wild-caught haddock.  It was really delicious!