Out of the assigned class readings, my favorite text had to be Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace. This piece forced the readers to think outside of the box and question inherent cultural norms about eating lobster that I never considered before reading the text. As a writer, Foster Wallace does a stellar job of creating imagery of the lobster festival and conveying the ambience of the festivities to the audience. He also does a successful job in genuinely questioning the act of cooking lobsters instead of coming off as condescending and critical, which was very difficult to do considering the stance he took in writing the article. His writing was clearly thought out, original and intentional in making his audience think, instead of mindlessly read an article about a lobster food festival. After reading this text, I was forced to do some internal reflection of my own as a writer to think more about the message I wanted to send in writing my final composition.  

As for texts I read outside of class, my favorite had to be When You’re Here, You’re Famiglia by Matt Goulding. This article is featured on the blog Roads and Kingdoms, which is a travel journalism site that features articles written by people who share an interest in discovering and learning about new parts of the world. This specific article is centered around one of my personal favorite places in the world: Sicily. Yes, I like the text because I’m able to relate to the topic based on my own experiences in Sicily, but I like it for other reasons too. The author is creative in telling a story about the hospitality and culture there through a story about a family who cooked for him. Through his narrative, Goulding is able to transport the reader to the scene and give a vivid depiction of his experiences there. This text served as one of my mentor texts when writing my final composition for it’s

This semester was filled with a wide variety of texts surrounding food that covered a broad spectrum of topics. Now that we’re at the end of the semester, I feel as though I have a much better understanding of what the rhetoric of food means. Texts regarding food can incorporate multiple genres and exist in all different mediums including books, articles, blogs, podcasts, movies, documentaries, and/or short clips. These topics range from how to make food, restaurants, cultures, chefs, history of food, and many more. Pretty much anyone can create a text about food, so the credibility of authors varies, but generally the message of the text is based on the author’s own background, experience with, and knowledge about food. All in all, food something that all humans have in common, and the rhetoric of food represents a body of literature that embodies the all-encompassing nature of food.

According to Dictionary.com, the official definition of a blog is as follows:

blog [blawg, blog]; n. a website containing a writer’s or group of writers’ own experiences, observations, opinions, etc., and often having images and links to other websites.

The term “blog” was first coined somewhere between 1995-2000 as a shortened version for the original word weblog. As with many other platforms involving the mysterious and robust interweb, blogs have become integrated into our social-media driven modern-day culture. They serve as a platform for a person, or group of people, to discuss topics in a less formal setting [versus formal academic papers]. The writer of a blog post usually uses the first person in order to tell stories or share experiences of their own. This helps the reader understand the writer’s relationship to the text, and also give some personality to the voice behind the blog. Thus, bloggers tend to be willing to share personal information about themselves with their audience and tend to have some level of expertise in their topic of focus. Another fundamental component of blogs is the ability for readers to comment and respond to the text, and in some cases, start a conversation.

Blogs can cover pretty much any and every topic (but actually, I can’t think of one topic that couldn’t technically be covered in a blog post). In my experience with blogs, the topics include food, recipes, restaurants, travel, clothes, and/or beauty. So, when posed with the question so what, who cares? Well, the answer to that question is the people who have access to computers and who have an interest in the blog topic. For me, I frequent blogs that cover those topics because I want to learn more from someone who knows what they’re talking about.

To determine the type of blog post I want to do myself, I explored the links posted on the Saveur 2016 Awards page. Although I do love a good recipe, I want to write a blog post that contains more than that. I’ve just returned from a trip to Morocco and Portugal, and am currently developing a fixation with foods from other cultures and countries. This brought me to the section on the Saveur page titled “Food & Culture Essay Award”. The following bloggers not only won recognition for their work, but they also discuss important topics in regards to culture and food.

• Afroculinaria – Michael W. Twitty
  • https://afroculinaria.com/2016/03/23/dear-sean-we-need-to-talk/
• Lottie + Doof – Tim Mazurek
  • http://www.lottieanddoof.com/2015/03/youre-boring/

I’m also considering some blogs that feature food photography:

• Hortus Cuisine
  • http://hortuscuisine.com/
• Up Close & Tasty
  • http://upcloseandtasty.com/
• Hello My Dumpling
  • http://www.hellomydumpling.com/

Would food photography make for a good blog post? Thoughts are welcome!

“You can always generate great conversation around food, and perhaps more understanding about different cultures and heritages while at it. Everyone has something different to share, so why make the same thing, the same way, each and every year?” – Cathy Erway

Erway, Cathy. “Curried Sweet Potato Dumplings.” Not Eating Out in New York. N.p., 26 Nov. 2016. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

For my mentor text, I chose a blog post, written by Cathy Erway, from the blog Not Eating Out In New York. This blog features recipes and articles for those who are trying to save money by cooking good food at home instead of eating out at restaurants (remind you of Leanne Brown much?). For this specific blog post, Cathy tells us how to make curried sweet potato dumplings as a Thanksgiving side dish. As with most other web-based blog posts, Cathy prefaces the steps and “how-tos” of the recipe with some background of what makes this recipe so special. With this, she answers the so what? who cares? we discussed the other day in class when talking about rhetorical situations. Although she was born and raised in America, she comes from an Asian background and is a vegetarian. So, when it comes time for Thanksgiving, she’s not that inclined to cooking the traditional turkey with cranberry sauce recipe. She discusses her family’s tradition of doing an Asian infused meal the night before Thanksgiving and then also celebrating the American holiday the night after with the rest of the country.

With this in mind, she presents a combination of elements from those two meals: curried sweet potato dumplings. Part Thanksgiving (sweet potatoes) and Part Asian/vegetarian infused (dumplings). This dish serves to not only incorporate some of her Asian cultural background, but also to mix it up and get creative with cooking a side dish that time of year. And what better way than to incorporate sweet potatoes, a seasonal vegetable that is often the epitome of the side dishes in a Thanksgiving feast (other than stuffing, of course). Another part of this blog post that speaks to a wider audience that may not abide by her same exact dietary protocol and/or have the same ethnic background. She is able to relate her experience with Asian cuisine to others with similar relationships to other cuisines that may be more important to them. In this way, she speaks to not just Asian-Americans, but to people of all backgrounds and cultural experiences that may be looking to get creative on during that time of the year.

Lastly, she paints the picture of making dumplings in the kitchen together with family, since Thanksgiving is traditionally thought of as a family gathering. In this way, she makes cooking this dish with family seem easy to imagine and fun to do. This recipe serves as a mentor text for me when determining which genre to choose because she is able to give such personality and incorporate story telling into a recipe.

I have decided on the topic of the American food industry for my annotated bibliography. After working on the Nutrition Team at the Whole Foods Global Offices, I was able to get a behind-the-scenes look at one of the America’s healthiest grocery stores. With my background in nutrition and experience working this job, I’ve gained a great deal of knowledge about the healthy side of the food industry. However, I realize that this exposure isn’t necessarily shared with the rest of the American population considering the current state of our nation’s growing waistbands. Moreover, I realize that the majority of the American population doesn’t abide by a healthy diet, yet obsesses over food and diet tactics. My question is why? Fortunately, there are experts and journalists who share a similar interest in this topic and have some of the answers. Michael Pollan, the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma and Food Rules, has done in depth research on the history of cooking and eating, and discusses the dilemma humans now have with all of the food choices. In the book Salt, Sugar, Fat, Michael Moss shares his discoveries on some of the major food companies (i.e.- Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Pillsbury, General Mills) that produce the vast majority of the processed food in America. On top of these books, documentaries on this topic include: Food, Inc., Fed Up, and Cooked. Aside from those books and documentaries, I’ve started to research articles published on the EBSCOhost database using key words, such as, “America”, “food industry”, “obesity”, and “processed food”. Through this research, I’m hoping to expand my knowledge on the factors contributing to obesity and the food obsession in this country. Moreover, my aim for this annotated bibliography is to make connections between the different publications and hopefully make some discoveries for myself in the process. Although I still have more research to do, I’m currently stuck on figuring out how to properly summarize large books and documentaries in the form of text.

 

Homemade Pasta alla Norma – A Taste of Sicily

 

After traveling abroad to Sicily to study the Mediterranean diet, I became obsessed with homemade pasta. I was never much of a pasta eater before the trip, mostly because I hated how overstuffed it made me feel, but once I tasted true homemade pasta from the kitchens in Sicily my view of pasta drastically changed. I could eat bowls of pasta every single day, and actually feel good after eating the meal, as opposed to feeling like I needed to be rolled out of the restaurant like I usually do in the US. I realized the main difference in this feeling of fullness versus satisfaction was in the method of making the pasta [and the portion sizes]. Since I’ve been back home, I’ve done my best to recreate the signature pasta alla norma dish that I discovered that summer in Sicily.

After doing some digging, I found that Leanne Brown’s Good and Cheap recipe book served as a great guide to making an easy, affordable homemade pasta dish. I’ve combined and adapted the following recipe from two recipes in her cookbook. Although it’s impossible to truly recreate the experience of eating homemade pasta in Sicily, I hope that through making this dish you can get a little glimpse of that experience; both in the taste and good feeling following the meal! So, without furthur ado, I present to you the pasta alla norma!

 

Adapted from: Leanne Brown’s Good and Cheap

 

Making pasta from scratch may seem a bit intimidating, but it’s actually pretty easy. I’ve split the recipe up into 3 parts: 1. Making the Pasta, 2. Making the Rest, and 3. Final Touches. While making the dish myself, I found this to be the best order of steps to make the pasta in terms of the prep and time to cook things. Hopefully this works best for you too!

(Takes about 1-2 hours)

 

Part 1 – Making the Pasta:

 

• Ingredients (serves 2 – multiply ingredients for amount of people you’re serving)
  • 5 cup all purpose or bread flour
  • 2 eggs
  • Olive oil
• Supplies
  • 2 mixing bowls
  • Rolling pin
  • Pot
  • Strainer [for pasta after cooked]
  • Any large cutting knife
  • Plastic wrap

 

             

 

Pasta Method:

1. Wash your hands! (Although this step may seem self-explanatory, some people do forget – yuck.)
2. Pour the flour into the mixing bowl.
3. Create some room in the middle of the flour [in the bowl] and crack the egg.
4. Using your [clean] hands, mix the egg and flour together until they are properly blended. The flour tends to seem dry at first, so don’t panic if you think that’s the case. Add a teaspoon of water if the excess flour isn’t sticking to the rest or if you think it’s too dry.
5. Place a tablespoon or two of olive oil into another bowl. Transfer the dough from this bowl to the oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.
6. Let the flour sit for anywhere between 1-2 hours. This will let some of the moisture from the egg [and water if you added it] release in the flour to make for a good dough ball!
7. Once an hour or so has passed, the dough should contain more moisture and you should be able to knead it to make a dough ball.
8. If you’re making the pasta for more than one person, separate the dough ball into smaller balls [1 dough ball per person you’re serving].
9. Flour your counter top or cutting board in preparation for rolling out the dough ball.
10. Once you’ve covered your surface of choice with flour it’s time to roll out the dough! [Be prepared this part will give you somewhat of an arm workout.]
11. [Caution: this part will give you somewhat of an arm workout!] Roll out the dough on the floured surface with a rolling pin. You want the dough to be as pretty thin – almost translucent to where you can almost see through the dough to the counter top. Also, I like to roll the dough into a square as much as possible to make the noodles more even when I cut them.
12. Once you’ve reached a fairly thin square of dough, it’s time to make the noodles! My favorite way to do this is to roll the dough up and then slice the noodles down the long part of the roll of dough. [See picture for finished cutting product.]
13. If you’re making multiple servings, be sure to place more flour on the surface before repeating steps 11-12 so the dough doesn’t stick to itself when cutting the noodles!
14. Now that the noodles are cut and ready to place into a pot, set them aside and have a pot filled about ½ – ¾ of the way to the top with water. Heavily salt the water to give the pasta the best flavor. And hold off on cooking the pasta until the rest of the ingredients have been cooked. [Fresh pasta noodles take only 30 seconds – 2 minutes to make so we’ll return to cooking the pasta later.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 2 – Making the Rest:

 

• Now that the pasta noodles are pretty much ready to go, it’s time to make the eggplant and other good stuff! Here’s a list of the ingredients and materials necessary for this portion of the dish:
• Ingredients [serves 2]
  • 1 large eggplant
  • ¼ cup parmesan
  • ½ tsp red chili flakes
  • 4 cloves garlic [minced or finely chopped]
  • 2 cups canned tomatoes, finely diced
  • Basil
  • Olive oil
  • Salt & pepper
• Supplies
  • Large pan [either saucepan or skillet]
  • Spatula / Large mixing spoon of some sort
  • Large cutting knife

 

 

                   

 

Tomato & Eggplant Method:

1. Cut the eggplant. I found that the best way to do this is to cut both the ends off the eggplant, and then cut pieces about 1in wide down the long part of the eggplant.
2. After completing this step, you should have a good amount of circular eggplant slices (I had about 10-12 pieces). Next you should pile 3-4 eggplant disks on top of each other and cut into quarters. Do this until each eggplant disk is quartered.
3. Once you have all of the eggplant quarters, continue to cut them until you have eggplant cubes [small enough to eat with one bite of pasta]. Now that the hard part is over, now it’s time to cook!
4. Place olive oil in the saucepan or skillet and set the heat to medium-high.
5. Once the pan is hot and the oil is dispersed across the pan [about 30 seconds], place the eggplant slices into the pan and sprinkle the cubes with salt. Let the eggplant slices cook in the pan for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. (If the eggplant begins to look dry, add a touch of water.)
6. After 5 minutes, the eggplant cubes should start to look a little brown on the outside. Add the garlic and chili flakes to the pan and stir around until evenly dispersed.
7. Now it’s time to add the tomatoes! Add the tomatoes to the pan and let them cook for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
8. Set aside your Parmesan and basil so they’re ready to add later.
   1. For basil, I like to chop the leaves into smaller pieces, but you can always just tear the leaves apart. It’s whatever size you want them to be!

 

Part 3 – Final Touches:

 

            

 

 

1. Now that the eggplant and tomatoes are cooking, it’s time to return to the pasta!
2. Bring the pot with salted water to a boil. [Cover pot in order to make water boil faster.]
3. While the water is coming to a boil, return to your pasta noodle rolls. Unroll the pasta dough and make sure that the dough isn’t sticky. [If the dough seems a little sticky on the inside part of the roll, grab a handful of flour and lightly flour the noodle until it’s no longer sticky.] Place the uncooked, unrolled noodles in the original bowl you used to mix the dough.
4. After you’ve unrolled all the noodles and placed them in a bowl, you’re ready to add them to the pot to cook the pasta whenever the water reaches boiling! Leave the top off of the pot while the pasta is cooking so you can keep an eye on the noodles.
5. Return to your eggplant & tomato pan to stir again. Add half of the Parmesan cheese and basil. Continue to stir. [I like to add a sprinkle or two of salt and pepper to both cooking dishes at this point for flavor, but this step is up to you!]                  
6. Once the pasta has been cooking for max 2 minutes, check on the noodles to see if they’re done. To do this, I usually grab a fork and take a noodle out to see if it tastes good. If you think it’s good to go, drain the pasta in the sink with a pasta strainer. Let cool for a minute or two.
7. Turn the heat off of the eggplant and tomato pan. Pour the pasta in the second bowl you used to let the dough sit. Pour the tomato and eggplant ingredients on top.
8. Mix the ingredients all together. Add some olive oil, salt, pepper, and the rest of the parmesan and basil, and viola! The dish should be ready to serve and eat.
9. Enjoy yourself a little taste of Sicily! [I recommend to enjoy with a glass of wine if you’re 21 and up :)]