So you want to be a food writer?...

Jan 4, 2012 by

So you want to be a food writer?

Of course, I don't want to discourage you. But it's good to know what kind of world you'd be getting into before you make elaborate plans to spend your life savings on a website and six months hacking away at your computer while photographing and blogging about your gourmet lunches. To give you a more complete picture, check out this video here (it's just a couple minutes and it's SO fantastic!). And check out these blog posts written by one of our guest speakers, Sarah Henry, writer for the blog Lettuce Eat Kale: Will Write for Food and So you Want to be a Successful Food Writer? Here's how. And here's a video by Lauren Lipton called "Adventures in Food Writing." A...

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I Love Julia Child

Jan 4, 2012 by

I Love Julia Child

I'm teaching a course on food writing, and Julia Child of course is the hero de jour. Since this is my second time teaching this course and I'm the daughter of a chef, I have something slightly embarrassing to confess: I have never watched The French Chef until now. I'm ashamed, really--how could I have missed out on this pure pleasure for so long? But in a way I also feel so excited, because I get to experience her for the first time, like finding a friend you feel like you've known all along. I showed a short clip of this episode to the students in my food writing class today, where Julia shows us how to make non-traditional eggs. I just LOVE this episode--both for its relevance today, its topic (I love eggs), and...

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Food Writing Exercises: Writing the Senses...

Jan 4, 2012 by

Food Writing Exercises: Writing the Senses

"There are three important apples that have changed the world," one of my former students said when Steve Jobs passed away: The one that Eve ate in the Bible, the one that inspired Newton's theory of gravity, and finally the Apple brand that Steve Jobs created. I always loved that insight (which was something she'd heard somewhere, in all honesty, but was great nonetheless). In fact, I'm writing this blog post (and experiencing gravity) on an Apple product right now. Because of its rich presence in literature and history, apples are a great food to use for a sensory writing activity because it's so laden with meaning and metaphor. So, today I used it in our food writing class as a writing prompt, and I thought I'd share the activity here on our website....

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Pumpkin Time Lapse Video

Sep 25, 2011 by

Pumpkin Time Lapse Video

Check out this incredible video of the world's largest pumpkin growing into 1487lbs (should we be worried about a pumpkin obesity epidemic now too?). The pumpkin's owner, Ken Desrosiers, set up a camera to take photos of the pumpkin every fifteen minutes...resulting in the super cool and inspiring time-lapse video below: Competitive Entries for largest pumpkin at the State Fair of Virginia, 2007. Photograph taken by Joy...

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Edible Education: Food Politics with Marion Nestle...

Sep 24, 2011 by

Edible Education: Food Politics with Marion Nestle

If you're at all involved with the food movement, one question you have to constantly ask yourself is: How can we create equal access to healthy food, so the Slow Food movement doesn't become something only the elite have access to? I have easy access to lots of great food here in North Berkeley, which played a big part in my choice to move here. But at the same time, I'm very aware that the food I have access to is expensive and exclusive, and that the options I choose--even though I try to be frugal--would not be affordable for many families. Not to mention the fact that some families live miles and miles from grocery stores and don't have cars to get there. So where do you shop? At the corner store down...

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Edible Education: The Global Food Movement with Carlo Petrini...

Sep 24, 2011 by

Edible Education: The Global Food Movement with Carlo Petrini

I'm not sure if you've heard the buzz about the Edible Education course going on here at UC Berkeley, but somehow I got word of it and started attending the classes. I missed seeing one of heroes, Carlo Petrini, speak--and am especially bummed because it would have been a great chance to practice my Italian. The course was put together by Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame, Niki Henderson from People's Grocery here in Oakland, and Michael Pollan, food journalist extraordinaire. The last two classes I've attended have explored race and economic issues in the food movement, especially connections between obesity, food insecurity, and minorities in the United States. Even though I love eating wholesome, organic food, these are the questions that really interest me: How can we re-shape our food systems here in...

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A Must Read: Farm City, by Novella Carpenter...

Feb 25, 2011 by

A Must Read: Farm City, by Novella Carpenter

With the up and coming Truck Farm project, which will soon pick up speed, I couldn't help but read this fabulous book by an Oakland neighbor, Novella Carpenter. It's a memoir, I suppose, but it's almost more of a travel narrative through the jungles of urban farming. Though gardening and beekeeping are no foreign hobbies of Carpenter's, her virgin foray into raising her own meat in the Oakland ghetto has the exotic surprises, disappointments, and delights of a globe-trotting reportage. In Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer, Carpenter guides us through the creation of her urban farm in a shady corner of Oakland. Fatal shootings occur down the street, police repeatedly whisk her car-dwelling neighbor away, and overgrown vacant lots surround the small house she rents. But it's the vacant lot and...

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Americorps for Gardeners–Check It Out!...

Feb 10, 2011 by

Americorps for Gardeners–Check It Out!

Are you looking to make a difference in the world? Interested in food issues, gardening, or children's health? If so, then you should TOTALLY check out FoodCorps! FoodCorps is seeking young men and women interested in food, agriculture, community organizing, education, health, and public service to serve in the first class of FoodCorps Members. The one-year term goes from August 15, 2011 and ends August 14, 2012. The goal of the program? To "increase the health and prosperity of vulnerable children, while investing in the next generation of farmers and public health leaders." Sounds awesome, doesn't it? If you're interested, go to this website to learn more information (http://food-corps.org/). And make sure to check out the video...

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