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By Michael Cokkinos, November 11, 2012 1:17 am

WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE GREEN CUISINE?

Green Cuisine encourages a regional food supply and a strong local economy, it maintains a sense of community, encourages earth stewardship, and protects the future of small to medium-size family farms. It is approaching the farm, the ranch, the ocean, the vineyard and the dairy as an ecosystem that thrives through careful management of natural resources. It boils down to three parts: environmental, economic an social sustainability.

Join Culinary Arts for a SUSTAINABLE STIR FRY Demonstration on Thursday, November 15 at 1PM in A734

Ecological / Environmental
• Organic/Biodynamic agriculture
• More Nutritious Food and less Packaging and waste
• Improve Soil Quality
• Improve Water Quality
• Promote Biodiversity
• Energy Conservation / Food does not have to travel hundreds of miles

Economic
• Support Local / True Economy
Social / Political
• Better Tasting Food / Variety
• Help Small Farmers
• Reduce your Bodies Chemical Burden
• Protect Farm Worker’s Health
• Food Safety through traceability

Sustainable and seasonal cuisine has many benefits, not the least of which is great taste. It is also great fun to know that you are cooking and eating great food grown or harvested by local artisans. Let the flavors of seasonal produce and raw ingredients speak for themselves and inspire your cooking, the flavor will always be outstanding.

One good premise to follow is to focus on locally grown vegetables.

Here is a simple recipe for Roast Asparagus

Easy to do in a toaster oven. You can even substitute other vegetables like cauliflower, or Brussels sprouts so be creative.

Wash and trim about an inch off the Asparagus stalk. Shake dry. Place on the oven dish or cookie sheet. drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and season with Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper. Roast at 400F for about 20 min or until the vegetables show some browning. Serve with some fresh lemon juice.

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By Michael Cokkinos, October 23, 2012 11:39 pm

Whether it is our Green Roof Program, Ban the Bottle, Save Paper and Scan It, or a new solar powered sign, AVP Rebecca Corrado knows FIT’s Green Scene. Click the FIT Green Roof Photos to watch the interview produced by my FIT AMC students.

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By Michael Cokkinos, October 17, 2012 3:34 pm

JOIN FIT CULINARY ARTS ON NOVEMBER 15th, 1-2 in A734 for a SUSTAINABLE VEGETARIAN DEMONSTRATION

That’s right FIT it’s not what you put on your skin but what goes inside that keeps you young and healthy. Antioxidant loaded fruits and veggies contain nature’s phytochemicals that beat anything that comes in a jar or tube. Plus eating more fruits and vegetables is sustainable and better for the earth.

Berries such as raspberries, blackberries, loganberries, blueberries, bilberries, and cranberries contain flavonols and anthocyanins, naturally occurring substances with strong anti-cancer properties. Frozen berries have the same nutrition benefits as fresh, so you can improve your health, even when fresh berries aren’t in season.

Citrus Fruits such as oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes, and grapefruit-all have vitamin C, a vitamin long associated with preventing the common cold. Vitamin C may also help reduce the risk of cancer and cataracts. In addition, citrus fruits contain limonese, a compound that may help the liver detoxify carcinogenic chemicals.

Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, kale, bok choy, and brussels sprouts feature a substance called sulforaphane, a naturally-occurring compound in foods that neutralizes highly reactive, dangerous forms of cancer-causing chemicals before they can damage cells and promote cancer.

Garlic and other members of the allium family such as onions, scallions, shallots, chives and leeks are loaded with allicin and S-allylcysteine-compounds associated with reduced risk of cancer and heart disease.

Grapes, grape juice, and wine are sources of resveratrol, which protects against heart disease and fights the production and progression of cancerous tumors.

Nuts and seeds have heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. Nuts are good sources of vitamin E, which can prevent the oxidation of “bad” cholesterol and the resulting buildup of cholesterol in the arteries. Nuts and seeds are also filled with selenium, another powerful antioxidant.

Olives and olive oil are monounsaturated fats, and this type of fat can help lower total blood cholesterol and increase the ratio of good cholesterol to bad. Improving blood cholesterol levels reduces the risk of heart disease.

Orange and yellow vegetables such as carrots, squash, sweet potatoes and pumpkin all contain beta-carotene-the substance that gives these vegetables their intense colors. Beta-carotene may reduce the risk of cancer and protect against cataracts.

Salmon although not vegetarian, is a particularly good source of omega-3 fat, a type of fat that has been shown to help thin blood and keep blood platelets from clotting and sticking to artery walls. The result is a lower risk of heart attack and stroke. Go for the wild salmon. It’s caught from a healthy wild stock with sustainable methods, is free of contaminants, and avoids the problems with farmed salmon, which can not only pollute local waters near the farm but also be polluted themselves because of the fish meal they’re fed. Plus I think it is much tastier than farmed salmon.

Tomatoes, especially in the form of tomato sauce, and other members of the nightshade family. Eggplant, tomatillos, cayenne and chili peppers contain a substance called lycopene, which research has shown may help to reduce the risk of prostate, colon, and bladder cancers. Chili peppers are a source of capsaicin, which is the compound that makes the peppers spicy hot. Capasicin has been shown to help prevent the growth of certain types of cancer and is a potent anti-inflammatory agent.

When cooking your healthy vegetables you’ll want to use healthy cookware too. In our upcoming demos we will be using the state of the art ceramic cookware for green cuisine from Xtrema.

JOIN FIT CULINARY ARTS ON NOVEMBER 15th, 1-2 in A734 for a

SUSTAINABLE VEGETARIAN DEMONSTRATION

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By Michael Cokkinos, October 8, 2012 8:33 pm

Hey FIT – Try a Vegetarian Monday for the rest of October. You will be doing yourself and the planet a favor. Why not visit your local green market and get in on some of the Fall Harvest or order up the Vegetarian option at Aramark!

COME TO THE FIT CULINARY ARTS  SALSA DEMO

on THURSDAY 10/11 at 1PM in A734

Environmental Benefits
REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are accelerating climate change worldwide . . . far more than transportation. And annual worldwide demand for meat continues to grow. Reining in meat consumption once a week can help slow this trend.
MINIMIZE WATER USAGE. The water needs of livestock are tremendous, far above those of vegetables or grains. An estimated 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water go into a single pound of beef. Soy tofu produced in California requires 220 gallons of water per pound.
HELP REDUCE FOSSIL FUEL DEPENDENCE. On average, about 40 calories of fossil fuel energy go into every calorie of feed lot beef in the U.S. Compare this to the 2.2 calories of fossil fuel energy needed to produce one calorie of plant-based protein. Moderating meat consumption is a great way to cut fossil fuel demand.

Health Benefits
LIMIT CANCER RISK: Hundreds of studies suggest that diets high in fruits and vegetables may reduce cancer risk. Both red and processed meat consumption are associated with colon cancer.
REDUCE HEART DISEASE: Recent data from a Harvard University study found that replacing saturated fat-rich foods (for example, meat and full fat dairy) with foods that are rich in polyunsaturated fat (for example, vegetable oils, nuts and seeds) reduces the risk of heart disease by 19%
FIGHT DIABETES: Research suggests that higher consumption of red and processed meat increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.
CURB OBESITY: People on low-meat or vegetarian diets have significantly lower body weights and body mass indices. A recent study from Imperial College London also found that reducing overall meat consumption can prevent long-term weight gain.
LIVE LONGER: Red and processed meat consumption is associated with increases in total mortality, cancer mortality and cardiovascular disease mortality.
IMPROVE YOUR DIET. Consuming beans or peas results in higher intakes of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium with lower intakes of saturated fat and total fat.

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By Michael Cokkinos, June 7, 2012 8:53 am

Student produced interview about the FIT Bottle Filling Stations

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By Michael Cokkinos, April 22, 2012 7:50 pm

What makes our food choices Sustainable?

Sustainability is a long-term goal. Modern factory-farm-style
American agriculture has produced high crop yields, but at what cost?

Join Chef Michael Cokkinos on Thursday, April 26 at 1PM in Room A734 for answers about Sustainable Cuisine and a delicious tasting and demonstration.

Our choices and those of the retailers and wholesalers we buy from affect the
environment, the economy and everyone’s quality of life. I believe it is important to be aware of and concerned about where our food comes from and the impact it has on all of us.

By eating sustainably we can have a huge impact on the environment.
Small farms that produce a wide variety of crops allow for greater
biodiversity than do massive monocultures. By buying locally, we
lessen the environmental costs associated with the transportation of
food — costs such as increased air pollution, the use of fossil fuels,
and damage to roadways and the oceans. Refrigeration of food that
needs to be transported a long way uses energy and can involve the use of ozone-depleting gases that ultimately affect the whole planet. Excess packaging and processing of our foods also creates a strain on the environment.

Eating a plant based diet has a much lower impact than a high protein, meat diet.

When choosing fish and meat know your sources.  If it was farmed, was it raised with an
appropriate vegetarian diet and according to environmentally sound methods? If wild, where
was it caught? How was it caught? Should it be caught, or protected because the species is
threatened? Does it have a high by catch percentage that adversely impacts other marine animals?
Similarly, we need to ask questions about where our meat comes from and how the animals
were raised and slaughtered. Livestock needs to be humanely treated, fed the purest natural feeds
(with no animal by products or waste), never given growth hormones or antibiotics,
and raised on land cared for as a sustainable resource.

Principles of Sustainability:
• Celebrate the joys of local, seasonal and
artisanal ingredients.
• Understand the source of the ingredients
— the way they have been grown, raised
or caught.
• Support sustainable agriculture and
aquaculture, humane animal husbandry
practices and well-managed fisheries.
• Purchase from purveyors whose conservation
practices lessen our impact on the environment.
• Choosing sustainable food products is
about more than helping the environment.
It’s about sustaining the heritage
and the economy of whole communities.
Respecting local economies, traditions
and habitats are important parts of
participating in a sustainable food system.

• Cook seasonally; do not buy fruits and vegetables out of season.
• Always buy locally whenever possible and buy directly from the grower or from a source
as close as possible to where the product is grown.
• Join a CSA or work with a local farmer who will supply you with seasonal
produce of your choosing.
• Support farmers’ markets and farm stands.
• The next time you are in your supermarket talk to the produce manager.
Tell the manager of your concern about pesticides and let him or
her know you would prefer to buy local or regional produce and certified
organic food if possible.
• Ask your grocers and suppliers about the farms where the meat
and poultry they sell is raised and how it is raised. If they do not
know, ask them to find out. Support grocers and butchers who
get their supplies from farmers who do not use factory-farming techniques.
• Ask how the fish you buy is caught, either by using sustainable practices or by
practices damaging to the environment, and whether it is wild or farm raised.
• Learn which fish species are endangered from over fishing.
• Read labels; find out what ingredients or additives are in the food you are eating.
• Complete the cycle by composting and recycling.
• Educate yourself about food, understand the issues, and let your legislators know
how you feel about food management issues.

To learn much more: join the FIT CULINARY ARTS CLUB.