Archive for October 2012
Soil from Germany & Denmark Imported by Hong Kong Organic Growers
David Montgomery in Dirt, The Erosion of Civilizations, argues that the twin problems of soil degradation and accelerated erosion (with an estimated twenty-four billion tons of soil lost annually around the world) eventually determine the fate of civilizations. The pressure of growing world population intensifies these problems, with Montgomery noting that “to feed one human requires .2 hectares (approximately 1/2 acre) per person.” With a land mass of 426 square miles and a population of 7,000,000, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with approximately 17,000 people per square mile.
With the growing concern in Hong Kong over the food supply in China, reporter Mary Hui in the New York Times recently reported in her article, “In Organic-Hungry Hong Kong, Corn as High as an Elevator’s Climb,” that Hong Kong consumers “are striking out on their own by tending tiny plots on rooftops, on balconies and in far flung, untouched corners of highly urbanized Hong Kong.” She quotes one rooftop gardener voicing his concern about “the food scandals in China: the formaldehyde that is sometimes sprayed on Chinese cabbages, the melamine in the milk and the imitation soy sauce made form hair clippings” as reasons for growing his own food. The Times article reports a remarkable increase in organic farms in Hong Kong: “There are about 100 certified organic farms in Hong Kong. Seven years ago, there were none.”
What is the source of the organic soil for these farms? Reporter Hui interviewed Osbert Lam, the owner of a rooftop operation in Hong Kong called City Farm, who revealed the difficulty of growing food in Hong Kong’s humid, subtropical climate. Starting with imported organic soil from Germany and Denmark, Mr. Lam for a year “had to tinker, sift, mix and adjust before arriving at a suitable recipe” for his soil, with more sand to grow potatoes, more peat moss for strawberries, etc.
According to David Montgomery in Dirt, his must-read history of world agriculture, there are three great regions on our planet Earth “where thick blankets of easily farmed silt can sustain intensive farming even once the original soil disappears.” The wide expanses of the world’s loess belts in the American (U.S. and Canada) plains, Europe, and northern China are the Earth’s breadbaskets. Most of the rest of the planet has “thin soils over rock” which must be carefully nurtured by the practice of intensive organic agriculture which rebuilds the thin soils.” Mr. Lam’s struggling to grow food in his rooftop Hong Kong operation is a reminder how we Americans are truly blessed to be living in one of the world’s loess belts.
(FW Barrie, 10/6/12)
Bistro Farm to Table Dining in Massachusett’s Pioneer Valley
Northampton in Massachusett’s Pioneer Valley is a lively destination offering a stimulating urban scene including art galleries, crafts stores, an excellent Smith College Art Museum and botanical garden as well as superb farm to table dining at Bistro Les Gras. After enjoying a visit to the wonderful William Baczek Art Gallery on Northampton’s Main Street, which presents six to eight solo and group exhibitions each year, and a stroll around the Smith College campus including a visit to its outstanding botanical garden, where the extraordinary corpse flower (titan arum) is now in bloom, we were prepared to treat ourselves to the pleasure of dining at Bistro Les Gras. We settled into our comfortable corner table in a sylish and open main dining room, with large picture windows overlooking historic Forbes Library on West Street. Not long after, the scene was enhanced by the unobtrusive arrival of guitarist Jeremy Milligan, who began playing masterfully, and with perfect low volume dynamics, a blend of classical Spanish guitar music and melodic tunes, including a Rogers and Hart standard (the name on the tip of my tongue but unfortunately never pronounced).
Les Gras is a small picturesque village in the Burgundy region of Eastern France near the Swiss border, and the proprietors note the literal translation of Les Gras is “the fats” in terms of culinary uses. They “love the tongue and cheek aspect” of their restaurant’s name “especially since we shy away from cream and butter and like the fresh ingredients to shine.” Our meals confirm the accuracy of this description of the extraordinary local Pioneer Valley foods served in this fine bistro. On its website, Bistro Les Gras notes “its pride” in using 100% Pioneer Valley meats and produce year round and lists over a dozen local farms from which it sources the food carefully prepared and artistically served at this destination-worthy restaurant. The bistro’s wine list focuses on a rich diversity of mostly French wines. We toasted the recent retirement of a dining companion with raised glasses of Lillet, the French aperitif, a blend of 85% Bordeaux wine grapes (Semillon, Muscadelle, Sauvignon blanc) and 15% citrus liqueurs from the peels of sweet oranges and bitter green oranges). Micro-brewed Massachusetts beers were available including Wachusett India Pale Ale and Cisco Brewers Whale’s Tale Pale Ale.
Appetizers of “soupe au chou-fleur” (cauliflower soup, confit cherry bomb peppers, brown butter) and “ravioli au courge” (squash ravioli, beurre noisette, spiced chevre) were creamily delicious, yet surprisingly light. The warm “beurre noisette” or hazelnut butter sauce was a perfect accompaniment to the flavorful house-made squash ravioli. The texture of the finely chopped hazelnuts added a special sensory element to this remarkable dish. Tender green salads, lightly dressed with a delicious honey-fennel vinaigrette, house-marinated olives and crusty baguette with fresh lightly salted churned butter whetted our appetites for our hearty and nourishing main courses.
“Porc et légumes,” tender pork and molasses baked beans, braised sweet shallots and apple compote, just sweet enough, to enliven the juicy meat was perfect as a meal in early autumn. One dining companion marveled at his succulent “agneau et oeuf,” Vermont lamb shoulder, served with a custardy “sous-vide” egg (slow cooked for an extraordinary 60 minutes), puy (French green) lentils, all complemented by the mustardy flavor of sautéed tatsoi (dark green spoon shaped leaves of nourishment). My other dining mate’s “canard roti,” (roast duck), was perfectly cooked with tendersweet cabbage, “coucroute a la minute” (prepared to order, rather than being prepped in advance and held for service) which preserved the fresh cabbage flavor, and “pommes boulanger,” French gratin potatoes, which were artfully layered.
For dessert, we could not resist sharing a perfect harvest-time dessert of apple cake with a scoop of creamy, caramel ice-cream and warm caramel/cinnamon sauce. Delicious French-pressed coffee kept the conversation flowing. Instead of Bistro Les Gras, the proprietors might consider a new name of Bistro Mardi Gras since their Pioneer Valley restaurant is worthy of a celebration.
[Bistro Les Gras, 25 West Street (Route 66) @ Green Street, 413.320.4666, Dinner: Mon-Thurs 5:00PM-9:00PM, Fri-Sat 5:00PM-10:00PM, Sun 5:00PM-8:30PM, www.bistrolesgras.com/]
(Frank W. Barrie, 10/1/12)
