The Good Plate

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Usually, since this is mostly a recipe blog, I don’t talk about politics. But, I feel this is a very important subject, and since it is about food, I feel it is appropriate. Normally, I make a “read more” link in my posts, but not this one. I want you to read the whole thing, right now.

• What is GMO?
• Is GMO Safe?
• GMO Corn Kills Bees
• Facebook Conspiracy
• Dr. Oz Censored on GMO
• Who is behind No on 37?
• Conclusion

If you live in California, and you are a registered voter, please remember to vote Yes on 37, the GMO Food labeling initiative. If you wish, you may read Prop 37′s text.

If you don’t live in California, then please take this matter up with your own representatives. Speak up on Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In, tell your friends, your neighbors, your co-workers, people on the street. If you know someone who does live in California, please call them and urge them to vote on 37. What happens in California often cascades into other states, so we cannot afford to lose this one.

Update: November 7, 2012 – Prop 37 did not win, Monsanto did. However, you can still shop smart and not eat GMO foods by finding what crops have been affected. The GMO Database is not American, so I feel it may be a little more truthful.

What is GMO?

What is the big deal about GMO? GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism. This does not mean something that would occur naturally, like two different plants making a new plant. This is about scientists taking DNA from one organism and putting it into another, so that host will acquire traits of the organism. Soybeans have been developed that express a crystalline insecticidal protein from Bacillus thuringiensis – got it? The soybean got a bacteria’s DNA – this would never happen in nature.

Is GMO Safe?

Which brings up the question, is this safe? What about allergens? What if you happen to be allergic to that bacteria? What happens when we consume a lot of it? Huh? The FDA considers GMO safe, but they thought Fen-Phen was safe, too, and a host of others we hear class action lawyer commercials about late at night. Sometimes, it takes a long time for side effects to appear. I don’t want my child to be a science experiment, do you want yours?

In Europe, GMO foods are labeled. As a matter of fact, some countries have even destroyed their Monsanto corn because it was invading non-GMO corn, and actually killing bees.

GMO Corn Kills Bees

Bees? Sure, bees make honey, but they are also responsible to most pollination of the plants on this planet. Without bees, there’s no pollination; without pollination, there’s no plants. We die. Read the Reuters article Mystery of Disappearing Bees. What is killing the bees? It’s GMO corn crops, made by who? Monsanto, of course.

Facebook Conspiracy

Today, November 1, 2012, I noticed that there was a No on 37 Like status on my Facebook news feed. It appeared as a new status. Researching it, I discovered that it was from October 22, 2012 – a full 10 days ago, but only 5 days before the election November 6, 2012. I did not notice any Yes on 37′s as “new” status on my news feed. Makes you wonder, huh?

Dr. Oz Censored

Dr. Mehmet Oz had a show about GMO foods on October 18, 2012. The show was censored in some parts of the country. These are actual posts on Facebook reporting it – I omitted names for privacy reasons.

• Fox5 in San Diego pre-emptied the segment on GMOs with an old re-run of News Radio. Instead of important information vital to voters in California, we got to watch an actor (who is not longer alive, by the way) puffing away obsessively on a cigarette.
• You should know that the Fox affiliate in San Diego that broadcasts your show broadcast a rerun of “News Radio” for the first half hour of your show. I’m assuming this is the part of the show that covered Gmo’s. The broadcast resumed to show your segments of 3 issues women should know about, BUT your usual wrap up at the end was replaced with blackness for about 1 minute. No sound. No picture. Did you say something else about GMO’S at the end? In light of Prop 37 on the ballot in California in November, it is pretty obvious you were censored by Fox.

Who is Behind No on 37?

Who is behind No on 37? The biggest contributor is Monsanto, who with $7,100,000.00 in contributions, brought us such horrors as DDT and Agent Orange. Monsanto said they were safe – obviously, they’re not. Who else is on the No bandwagon?

Largest Opponents to Prop 37

Contributor	Amount
MONSANTO	$7,100,000.00
E.I. DUPONT DE NEMOURS & CO.	$4,900,000.00
PEPSICO, INC.	$2,145,400.00
BASF PLANT SCIENCE	$2,000,000.00
BAYER CROPSCIENCE	$2,000,000.00
DOW AGROSCIENCES LLC	$2,000,000.00
SYNGENTA CORPORATION	$2,000,000.00
KRAFT FOODS GLOBAL, INC.	$1,646,000.00
COCA-COLA NORTH AMERICA	$1,455,500.00
NESTLE USA, INC.	$1,315,600.00
CONAGRA FOODS	$1,176,700.00
GENERAL MILLS, INC.	$1,135,300.00
KELLOGG COMPANY	$790,700.00
SMITHFIELD FOODS, INC.	$683,900.00
DEL MONTE FOODS COMPANY	$674,100.00

Conclusion

I hope what I have written here is enough to get you to go to the polls on November 6, 2012 and vote YES on Prop 37. Even if you don’t vote for anything else, vote for this. Our children and our children’s children depend on you.

Did you just click on the link that said conclusion without reading the article? Well, here’s a second chance, with links to the various parts. Please be informed.

• What is GMO?
• Is GMO Safe?
• GMO Corn Kills Bees
• Facebook Conspiracy
• Dr. Oz Censored on GMO
• Who is behind No on 37?
• Conclusion

So, yesterday, August 9, 2012, there was a DDOS attack on the servers that host The Good Plate. This is the second time this has happened. This is not something for which the hosting provider is at fault – this is some miscreant doing damage.

Have you ever heard of a DDOS attack – it’s a Distributed Denial Of Service. Basically, thousands of computer send simultaneous requests to a single server, and there are so many requests that the server is unable to respond, and has to shut down until the attack stops.

It’s as if you’re in a room with a hundred people, and they are all asking you different questions at the same time. I don’t know about you, but sometimes, I feel like I’m under at DDOS attack when Spane starts asking me “Mom, why does this? Mom, why does that? Mom! Mom! Mom!”. You know how it goes if you have kids.

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Ah yes! The time has come again to get all those tools out for the Holiday cooking. These days are pretty hectic, so it’s important to have your tools on hand, and that they are clean and in working order.

I’m always surprised to see people buying cooking tools that only do one job. A friend of mine went out and bought a Quesadilla maker, that couldn’t be used for anything else, and she already had several frying pans that were perfectly suitable to the task. That, to me, is a waste of time and money.

So, what I’m going to talk about here are tools that you can use any time of year, and that can be used for many jobs. I have all these products in my kitchen.

I’ve done a lot of shopping for you, found the best prices, and best products. This is a no-brainer! You can shop for the products by clicking on the link provided, or the picture, the choice is yours.

1. Stand Mixer
2. Food Processor
3. Cookie Press
4. Cookie Sheets
5. Nesco Roaster Oven
6. Electric Knife
7. Knives
8. Measuring Tools
9. Timer
10. Thermometer
11. Mitts
12. Bowls
13. Organizer

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Recipes In This Post

• Turkey Salad Stuffed Tomato and Avocado

Paula Deen is going to be at Barnes and Noble to do a book signing this evening at 7pm. That made me think of how lucky I am to be living here in Glendale, California. We have things here that you just don’t find everywhere else.

This morning, I went to my favorite store, Best Grocery on Maple, and got two big, red tomatoes, a fat slice of smoked turkey and an avocado. I went home and made a wonderful stuffed tomato salad.

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There is a wonderful restaurant in Glendale, California, called Elena’s Greek Armenian Cuisine that we go to quite frequently. The rice pilaf is just the best, I could eat it every day. Dinners are usually served with a tomato and green Anaheim chili that have been grilled on the barbecue. Often, we don’t finish everything, so I wind up packing up the rice, tomato and chili pepper in a to go box.

In 2010, I threw together a dish for Teacher Appreciation Day at my son, Spane’s elementary school. I was in a rush, and when I was asked later how I made it, I didn’t even remember. In 2012, the PTA is now putting out a cookbook, and I was again asked about that recipe, so I started wracking my brain to figure out what it was.

Tonight, being a Friday, and wanting to use up left overs, but not eat meat, I remembered there was a box from Elena’s in the refrigerator. I also had some corn tortillas, some cheddar cheese, and a half full jar of green enchilada sauce. Serendipitously, while making this, I rediscovered that old recipe!

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In this post

• More Than Waffles
• eCosway
• The Good Plate’s Waffle Recipe

Yesterday was very interesting. My friend Josef asked me to come with him to see something new in Encino, and also promised me breakfast.

Since this blog is mostly about food, let’s talk about breakfast first.

More than Waffles

Encino is an interesting place, as it is dominated by Ventura Boulevard, and if you are a merchant, and you want to be successful, your business almost has to be on Ventura Boulevard. It’s been that way since the Tonngva Indians settled the area thousands of years ago. Ventura Boulevard was part of the original El Camino Real, and was a popular stop for clergy on way to various Missions on the route.

Josef told me there was a breakfast place right downstairs from where we were. I wasn’t too excited, thinking it would be a little hole in the wall, office workers’ cafeteria. I was wrong! More Than Waffles has outdoor seating, is very popular, and has a lovely interior.
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